The mental construct is the end result, yes, but I was thinking about map making and boundary definition as pre-linguistic, in a way, and that cartography itself has always dealt with imaginary spaces, perhaps, and projection. Were directions scratched out in the dirt as language was first being wrought? Were the first words related to cartography, and was map diagramming water or food sources, or potential enemies, the first multi-media presentation?

I'm suggesting that our very sense of self is bound up with cartography and associated symbolism, as soon as we start the process toward being individuals, and that is why retrograde appeals to this imaginary realm are so powerful.