<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><p>The Soviet military mapping project was the most comprehensive cartographic endeavour of the twentieth century. The resulting maps have been commercially available to the West since at least 1993, when a Latvian business first offered Soviet plans of Western cities for sale at the 16<sup>th</sup> International Cartographic Conference in Cologne, Germany. Covering the globe at a range of scales, Soviet military maps provide a fascinating – if disconcerting – view of familiar territory with a striking aesthetic. But they also provide a substantial untapped geospatial resource, often with an unparalleled level of topographic detail. This paper gives an overview of the Soviet global military mapping programme and its coverage of Poland, including the 1:25,000-scale city plan of Warsaw (printed in 1981). By illustrating the extensive topographic symbology employed at various scales of mapping, it suggests how these maps may offer scope for regional studies and how their cartographic language can provide some solutions for addressing the ongoing challenges of mapping the globe.</p></abstract>

The Soviet military mapping project was the most comprehensive cartographic endeavour of the twentieth century. The resulting maps have been commercially available to the West since at least 1993, when a Latvian business first offered Soviet plans of Western cities for sale at the 16th International Cartographic Conference in Cologne, Germany. Covering the globe at a range of scales, Soviet military maps provide a fascinating – if disconcerting – view of familiar territory with a striking aesthetic. But they also provide a substantial untapped geospatial resource, often with an unparalleled level of topographic detail. This paper gives an overview of the Soviet global military mapping programme and its coverage of Poland, including the 1:25,000-scale city plan of Warsaw (printed in 1981). By illustrating the extensive topographic symbology employed at various scales of mapping, it suggests how these maps may offer scope for regional studies and how their cartographic language can provide some solutions for addressing the ongoing challenges of mapping the globe.

The Soviet mapping of Poland – a brief overview

Miscellanea Geographica

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

{"article-title":"The Soviet mapping of Poland \u2013 a brief overview"}

The Soviet military mapping project was the most comprehensive cartographic endeavour of the twentieth century. The resulting maps have been commercially...

The Soviet mapping of Poland – a brief overview

Published Online: Jan 31, 2019

Page range: 5 - 15

Received: Nov 07, 2018

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/mgrsd-2018-0034

Keywords
Soviet topographic maps, Cold War, geospatial intelligence, Warsaw, cartography

© 2019 Alexander J. Kent, Martin Davis, John Davies published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

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The Soviet mapping of Poland – a brief overview

Published Online: Jan 31, 2019

Page range: 5 - 15

Received: Nov 07, 2018

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/mgrsd-2018-0034

KeywordsSoviet topographic maps, Cold War, geospatial intelligence, Warsaw, cartography

© 2019 Alexander J. Kent, Martin Davis, John Davies published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Figure 5

Figure 6

Figure 7

Figure 8

Figure 9

Figure 10

Figure 11

Figure 12

Keywords
Soviet topographic maps, Cold War, geospatial intelligence, Warsaw, cartography