History on Maps

[ncr]

Tons of maps illustrating history:

http://www.historyonmaps.com/BWSamples.htm
http://www.historyonmaps.com/ColourSamples.htm

No way to describe all this.... have a look by yourself.

Regional example: Japanese attack on Singapore (map I43 (http://www.historyonmaps.com/BWSamples/Singapore.htm)).

(Didn't find the "Ledge" from Operation KROHCOL yet.....;) )

[ncr]

"A rare combination... a historian who is also a cartographer"

(1 (http://www.historyonmaps.com/) - 2 (http://www.historyonmaps.com/Main.html))

.....and he is correct: sadly there are only few historians with the slightest knowledge in cartography, or who even realize the importance of maps.

[dick]

"A rare combination... a historian who is also a cartographer"

(1 (http://www.historyonmaps.com/) - 2 (http://www.historyonmaps.com/Main.html))

.....and he is correct: sadly there are only few historians with the slightest knowledge in cartography, or who even realize the importance of maps.
The reason is that more and more good trainings,facilities for cartographic education are scrapped due to the new way of mapmaking (=geo-information, GIS) what is not the same as the old way of cartography. In most Topographic Services more and more classique cartographers are an extinct race. The present youth is not interested in good research, less patience. And don't forget the price tag! Old fashioned cartographers/historians are now plodders in the loft.
What we have seen here are fine results; pictures from a past dream of cartography in combination with new technology.

[ncr]

Dick, you are certainly right; however, what I actually meant to say was a bit more specific - that traditionally historians have never shown much interest in maps.

They described and analysed ancient kingdoms, cities, battles and so on at great length. But in most cases they failed to illustrate the extent of these historical states, to show the places where these battles actually took place, the locations of settlements, the trade routes, etc., there was nothing to provide a sense of the spatial relations. How to properly imagine the state of the world in the past without that? It also means there is no connection between the past and today: if you cannot locate that historical place in the present landscape, the event remains nothing but a forgotten tale from a dusty book.

A picture says more than a thousand words - and so does a map. So this lack of visualization has often angered me.

How many history books with maps do you know? How many history books with really good maps do you know?

Though it may be changing to the better. :)

[dick]

True. The problem for some historians, (with their bit of conceitedness), is that maps where not always available (military or civil purpose). But it also depend on the "cartografic" history, what makes a difference between countries. Germany for instance, has a rich cartographic history since 1850 (Justes Perthes, Gotha). The explorers (and historians in a special way) from that time and later (Hedin, Futterer, Regel, Stein Przewalski, Moorcroft a.o.) made good maps, published by Brockhaus in Leipzig. The thai cartographic history on the contrary is moor poor. Everything hand in hand with the development for each country. It's the cartographic awareness for each country. But your'e right, really good maps are scarce.