Austria

W. Witt

This review discusses the first installment of the Atlas of the Republic of Austria, published in 1961 under the general editorship of Hans Bobek and the Commission for Spatial Research of the Austrian Academy of Sciences. As a national atlas, it covers natural conditions, historical development, settlement forms, population, economic structure, administrative divisions, and cultural-political aspects. The atlas is planned to include 115–120 map sheets, with annual deliveries of 20 sheets; main maps are at a scale of 1:1,000,000. The first installment includes topographic and climate maps, prehistoric settlement maps, and detailed urban-geographic maps of Vienna at scales of 1:50,000 and 1:25,000, which methodologically combine building period, height, density, and land use. The review praises the outstanding cartographic and printing quality, notes that planning conclusions are only cautiously indicated, and expresses keen interest in future installments.

Heimold Helczmanovszki

This article introduces the goals, content, and implementation of the "Atlas of the Republic of Austria," published by the Austrian Academy of Sciences. As a "cartographic regional geography," the atlas aims to comprehensively present Austria's natural, economic, and social spatial structures, including both analytical and synthetic maps, emphasizing functional relationships and regional typologies. Its scientific value lies in providing a reliable spatial information base, while its practical value serves policy-making and planning. The article also discusses the atlas's cartographic principles, organizational process, and historical context, highlighting its significance as a national atlas for science and public affairs.

Niels Nielsen

This review discusses two atlases: the first installment of the Atlas of the Republic of Austria (Vienna, 1961), produced by the Austrian Academy of Sciences under Hans Bobek, and the New Atlas of Spain (Aguilar, Madrid, 1961). The Austrian atlas plans 85 main maps at 1:1,000,000 scale plus 140 smaller maps, covering physical, cultural, and population geography. The first installment excels in technical execution, featuring detailed maps of Vienna's settlement types, land use, grain and root crop distribution, 1957-58 bus traffic, and Catholic church organization; the traffic map reveals a clear east-west division in Austria's transport patterns. The Spanish atlas, created through collaboration among scholars and institutions, begins with a geographic-statistical overview offering extensive tabular data. Both works represent high-quality achievements in cartography.

А. В. Ильина

This paper reviews the publication of the first issue of the National Atlas of Austria and its academic significance. As a major achievement in international geography, the atlas aims to comprehensively reflect the state of geographical research on Austria in terms of nature, economy, and culture. The full project comprises 122 sheets, including 85 main maps at 1:1,000,000 and about 140 smaller-scale maps, organized into 12 thematic sections, with economic maps occupying the largest share (32%), particularly detailed in agriculture. The first issue contains 22 sheets and 41 maps, covering topography, Vienna land use, climate, agriculture, transport, tourism, and administration. The author acknowledges the atlas's rich content and fine design while pointing out several shortcomings, such as excessive contour intervals on the topographic map, insufficient generalization on some maps, uneconomical layout, and overly brief textual explanations. Overall, the atlas can be classified as a scientific reference atlas due to its comprehensive thematic coverage, large scales, and detailed content.

Walter Petrowitz

This is an academic review of the first installment of the "Atlas of the Republic of Austria," edited by the Commission for Spatial Research of the Austrian Academy of Sciences under the general direction of Hans Bobek, published in 1961 by the Freytag-Berndt and Artaria cartographic institute in Vienna. The review notes that the atlas aims to provide a precise geographical analysis of Austria's national territory rather than serving as a tool for spatial planning. The first installment comprises 19 map sheets (ten at a main scale of 1:1,000,000) and a municipal directory, covering topics such as topography, climatology, prehistory, economy, administration, and Vienna's urban structure. The reviewer particularly praises the design and print quality of the maps depicting Vienna's built-up areas, while criticizing the use of solid black for forest cover on the land-use map as visually overwhelming and obscuring the map's primary theme. Limitations of the dot method at the chosen scale are also noted. Overall, the review offers high praise for the atlas and looks forward to subsequent installments maintaining the same standard.

S. Radó; L. Lackó

This article comprises three German book reviews from the 1962 issue of a geography journal. The first review assesses Parts 2 and 3 of the "Atlas of Central Germany," covering settlement geography, transport, economy, and population, while commenting on cartographic techniques and content depth. The second introduces the first fascicle of the "Atlas of the Republic of Austria," outlining its structure, thematic scope, and mapping methods, while noting deficiencies in the hypsometric color scale of the topographic map. The third reviews a special issue on cartographic reproduction techniques, summarizing the current state and trends in light-printing, copying, photographic reproduction, and printing, and emphasizing the need for standardization and material improvement.

Helmut Hahn

This is an academic review of the Atlas of the Republic of Austria, edited by the Commission for Spatial Research of the Austrian Academy of Sciences under the general direction of Hans Bobek, with Erik Arnberger as cartographic editor, published by the Freytag-Berndt & Artaria cartographic institute in Vienna in 1961. The review notes that the atlas is planned for six installments with approximately 120 map sheets, organized into twelve thematic groups covering Austria's location, topography, climate, hydrology, soils, vegetation, settlement, population, economy, transport, administration, culture, and socio-economic spatial structure. The first installment of 20 sheets employs various cartographic methods including dot maps, choropleth maps, and cartodiagrams with high accuracy. The review particularly praises the detailed representation of Vienna's building and housing structure (1:50000 and 1:25000), the tourism cartodiagram (using bar heights for visitor numbers and widths for average nights stayed), and the community-level choropleth map of the 1959 National Council election results. It also recommends including the administrative boundaries map (XI/1) as an overlay to facilitate comparison with other sheets.

H. Bobek

This article introduces the background, objectives, methodology, and organization of the 'Atlas of the Republic of Austria', compiled by the Commission for Spatial Research of the Austrian Academy of Sciences. The atlas aims to systematically present Austria's natural environment, population, economy, administration, and culture in cartographic form, providing a comprehensive spatial information base for policy-making, administration, and regional planning. Its core methodology follows the geographical principle of progressing from analysis to synthesis, moving from the presentation of individual elements (e.g., relief, climate, soils) to the comprehensive depiction of complex spatial entities (e.g., natural regions, economic areas, transport networks). The article emphasizes that although the atlas is not a planning atlas in the strict sense, it serves as an excellent information source and foundation for spatial planning. Furthermore, it details the atlas's editorial organization, technical design principles, data sources, and publication schedule, highlighting its significance for national self-awareness and public scientific service.

Ena L. Yonge

This article provides a systematic summary review of approximately one hundred regional atlases from around the world, organized primarily by continent (or other large region) and then alphabetically by country within each group. The author begins by noting that the ever-increasing flood of atlases—national, regional, topical, and special—makes individual reviews impossible, thus necessitating summary evaluations to acknowledge important publications while respecting space constraints. The review covers representative works from Europe, Asia, Africa, Oceania, North America, and South America, encompassing road atlases, historical-geographical atlases, national atlases, climatic atlases, economic atlases, and school atlases. Each atlas is assessed in terms of its compiling institution, editors, scales, number of plates, content structure, cartographic techniques, printing quality, and scholarly value, with notable features and shortcomings highlighted. For instance, the European section evaluates works such as the Euroatlas, Atlas östliches Mitteleuropa, Atlas von Niederösterreich, Atlas de Belgique, Climatic Atlas of Czechoslovakia, Atlas of Denmark, and Atlas of Finland, while the American section covers state atlases from Kansas, Kentucky, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, New York, Ohio, and West Virginia, as well as national atlases from Brazil, Colombia, and Venezuela. The article emphasizes that these atlases not only reflect the research standards of geography and cartography in their respective countries but also serve as vital references for regional planning, economic development, historical research, and education. The author concludes by acknowledging that no single individual can possess sufficient expertise across all aspects of geography, cartography, and linguistics to render definitive critical judgments, yet such summaries offer valuable guidance to scholars, with a forthcoming review of world atlases and special atlases announced.

Ed. Imhof

This article reviews the first volume (published in 1961) of the Atlas of the Republic of Austria, edited by the Commission for Spatial Research of the Austrian Academy of Sciences. The atlas is planned to comprise 6 installments with a total of 120 map plates, covering 12 thematic groups including topography, climate, soils, population, economy, transport, and culture. The first installment contains 20 maps, primarily on climate, agriculture, transport, tourism, and administration, mostly at scales of 1:1,000,000 or 1:2,000,000. The author highly praises the atlas for its well-conceived geographical-scientific concept and refined cartographic design, noting its advantage gained from the preceding series of Austrian federal-state atlases. Special appreciation is given to innovative plates such as the building-type maps of Vienna. The review also anticipates the atlas's significance as a model for the planned Swiss national atlas.

J. Majdl

This article reports on the publication of the Atlas of the Republic of Austria (Atlas der Republik Österreich), edited by the Commission for Spatial Research of the Austrian Academy of Sciences under the direction of Prof. Hans Bobek. The atlas is planned to appear in fascicles, comprising a total of 115–120 maps, of which 85 main maps are at a scale of 1:1,000,000. The first fascicle, printed in 1961 by the cartographic institute Freytag & Berndt-Artaria in Vienna, includes a hypsometric map, four climatic maps (annual precipitation, snow cover duration, sunshine duration, and phenological map), two maps on settlement history, city maps of Vienna at scales of 1:25,000 and 1:50,000, a map of ecclesiastical administration, administrative division maps, and a map of the 1959 National Council elections. The atlas aims to comprehensively document the historical development, settlement, population, and economic conditions of Austria, serving as a representative national atlas.

W. Witt

This review discusses the second delivery of the Atlas of the Republic of Austria (published in 1965), containing 21 maps covering geology, climate, hydrography, Roman-era topography, dialects, industrial locations, transportation, education, commerce, and central-place structures. The review notes that the geological map integrates stratigraphy and tectonic units, climate maps supplement temperature means, hydrographic maps show watersheds and runoff, the Roman-era map is rich yet clear, dialect maps employ modern methods, industrial maps follow a unified principle, and the central-place map, based on a survey, holds planning significance. Overall, it is praised as an outstanding thematic cartographic achievement, likely to rank among leading national atlases. Additionally, the review briefly mentions the Atlas of Hanseatic Trade Routes as a cartographic work, emphasizing that its scientific value can only be fully assessed after the accompanying text volume is published.

Günter Kroner

This review discusses the first two installments (1961, 1963) of the Atlas of the Republic of Austria, edited by the Commission for Spatial Research of the Austrian Academy of Sciences. Planned as a six-part work, the atlas aims to provide a "cartographic regional geography in the truest sense." Compared to planning atlases in Germany, it covers a broader scope, including not only basic maps but also development potential and planning objectives. The atlas progresses from analysis to synthesis, serving as a key information source for science, economy, administration, and spatial planning. The first two installments contain 40 main maps of high quality, both in scientific methodology and cartographic execution. The reviewer particularly praises the maps of building types in Vienna, central places and their hinterlands, land use, and industrial locations, but notes that some maps lack detailed topographic or administrative boundary information, suggesting transparent overlays for better orientation. Overall, the atlas is commendable, with final judgment reserved until completion.

G. R. Crone

Austria has a long and distinguished history in geodesy and cartography, ranking among Europe's leading nations in this field. Despite its deep traditions in official topographic mapping and thematic cartography, it is only now that Austria has produced a national atlas. The Atlas der Republik Österreich, edited by the Commission for Spatial Research of the Austrian Academy of Sciences under the general direction of Professor Hans Bobek, with its first two fascicules published in 1961–1963 by Freytag-Berndt und Artaria in Vienna, marks a significant milestone. Employing a scale of 1:1,000,000 for general maps, the atlas covers a comprehensive range of physical, economic, historical, and social topics. The maps are clearly designed and well printed, with sources and limitations stated on each sheet. This publication represents an important contribution to Austrian geography and a notable achievement in national cartography.

Hans Bobek

THE NATIONAL ATLAS OF AUSTRIA The Commission on Regional Research of the Austrian Academy of Science is the official agency in charge of the Austrian National Atlas project. The Kartographische Anstalt Freytag–Berndt & Artaria, Vienna, are printing and publishing the atlas. Thus far, 43 map sheets, i.e. one third of the planned total, have been published in two fascicles. Governmental research agencies and scientific institutes are contributing to the compilation of maps. The editorial staff is rather small, consisting of the author as chairman and a few other members (H. HELCZMANOVSZKI, E. ARNBERGER, H. TRIMMEL) who are assisted in their work by some helpers and a cartographic draftsman. The basic principles and concepts underlying the atlas project are outlined. Basically the atlas is designed to be a geography of Austria in maps, its contents logically arranged and featuring a considerable number of complex and synthetic maps. The standard map scale of 1:1,000,000 has been selected because at this scale the planimetric position of a certain phenomenon can still be given with a tolerable degree of accuracy, a decisive advantage over diagrammatic methods of representation. The contents are grouped into 12 chapters, each dealing with a special topic: The situation of Austria in Central Europe; the physical environment; land occupancy and land use in the past up to recent times; settlements; population distribution, structure, and trends; economy; transportation; administration; culture; and, finally, complex functions involving socio-economic and political structure, and problems of regional development control. After some comments on analytical, complex, and synthetical maps there follows a final discussion of cartographic problems encountered in the preparation of the atlas sheets published so far.

Л. Е. Сетунская

This article reviews the first issue of the National Atlas of the Republic of Austria, published in 1961. Compiled by the Austrian Academy of Sciences, the atlas is planned for publication in five issues, containing 85 main maps at a scale of 1:1,000,000 and 140 smaller-scale maps, organized into 12 thematic sections covering nature, population, economy, and culture. The first issue comprises 19 map sheets, predominantly socio-economic maps, supplemented by climatic and topographic maps. The article provides a detailed analysis of cartographic methods, projection choice (Albers equal-area conic projection), content representation, and the atlas's strengths and weaknesses, noting omissions of certain physical geographic elements (e.g., tectonics, wind patterns) while praising its print quality and color design. Additionally, the text briefly discusses H.K. Mihal's views on the accuracy of vertical deflections and astro-gravimetric leveling, addressing theoretical issues in geodesy.

Ernst Bernleithner

This review discusses three significant cartographic works. First, the 'Atlas of the Republic of Austria,' edited by Hans Bobek with cartographic supervision by Erik Arnberger, has released three installments containing 63 maps across 12 thematic chapters, comprehensively depicting Austria's spatial structures in geography, population, economy, and transport, establishing itself as a long-term standard reference. Second, Wilhelm Bonacker's 'Mapmakers of All Countries and Times' is a biographical lexicon with approximately 6,350 entries, systematically covering cartography-related figures from all cultural spheres and periods, making it an indispensable tool for cartographic history research. Third, Alois Fauser's 'Older Terrestrial and Celestial Globes in Bavaria,' published under the auspices of the Bavarian State Library, includes color and black-and-white illustrations, documenting ancient globes in the region. These three works represent different genres—regional atlas, cartographic history dictionary, and thematic catalog—each holding significant academic value.

Ede Hőnyi Jr.

W. Witt

This is an academic review of the fifth installment of the Atlas of the Republic of Austria, edited by the Commission for Spatial Research of the Austrian Academy of Sciences under the general direction of H. Bobek, with cartographic supervision by E. Arnberger, published in Vienna in 1966 by Freytag-Berndt and Artaria. The review examines the 19 maps contained in this installment, noting the problem of paper distortion in the relief and administrative boundaries map, and discussing maps of karst landforms, precipitation and snow cover, small animal habitats, settlement patterns, and the functional structure of the cities of Linz, Graz, Innsbruck, and Klagenfurt. Particular praise is given to the series of maps based on the concept of "permanently settled area," covering population density, population change, migration balance, and employment structure, as well as to the maps of healthcare catchment areas and functional types of the working population grounded in central place theory. The reviewer concludes that the atlas is exemplary not only in content but also in its thematic cartographic methods, and recommends it to geographers and cartography researchers alike.

H. G. Zimpel

This review discusses the second installment of the Atlas of the Republic of Austria, published in 1963. Edited by the Commission for Spatial Research of the Austrian Academy of Sciences, this national atlas is planned to comprise 12 thematic groups across 115–120 map plates. The new installment includes geological, climatic, and hydrological maps, as well as maps of Roman-era topography and dialect distribution, alongside agricultural, industrial, transport, administrative, and cultural maps. The atlas prioritizes synthetic geographical representations, emphasizing functional and socio-geographical perspectives. All main maps use a 1:1,000,000 scale, supplemented by smaller thematic maps and diagrams. Despite production constraints, the overall quality is commendable, and the addition of explanatory texts is suggested for enhanced usability.

W. W. Marshall

This paper reviews the third volume of the Atlas of the Republic of Austria, edited by Hans Bobek and published in 1961 by the Austrian Academy of Sciences. The volume contains 85 main maps at a scale of 1:1,000,000, issued as loose sheets with a transparent overlay for reference. The cartography is praised as excellent. Thematic coverage includes population, settlements, relief, karst types, snow, public health, leather and clothing industries, cereal and root vegetable types, insects, and urban land use. The reviewer highlights that only Linz and parts of Vienna are industrial cities among major Austrian towns, while population maps reveal stable city centers, growing suburbs, and population decline in border areas near Yugoslavia and Czechoslovakia.

Helmut Hahn

This review assesses the progress of the Atlas of the Republic of Austria, focusing on its 2nd and 3rd installments (1963, 1966), edited by the Austrian Academy of Sciences' Commission for Spatial Research under Hans Bobek, with cartography by Erik Arnberger. The 2nd installment emphasizes economy and transport, while the 3rd focuses on settlement and population. The reviewer praises the meticulous cartographic design and innovative methods, noting minor flaws such as overly dense symbols on the mineral resources map (IX/2) and imbalanced color scales on the runoff map (III/11), but overall quality remains high. Special commendation is given to the central places map (XII/1), based on a questionnaire survey, and its supplement (XII/1a). The 3rd installment includes a transparent overlay of administrative divisions, though on poorly dimensioned material. The reviewer concludes that both installments confirm the atlas's excellent reputation established by its first release.

S. Dragomirescu

This text comprises two book reviews. The first reviews a study on the territorial distribution of labor demand, highlighting its analysis of peak work periods and the judicious redistribution of surplus labor at the year's start, offering valuable insights for rational labor force utilization and underscoring the relevance of geographers in such economic research. The second reviews the first three fascicles of the Atlas of the Republic of Austria (1961-1965). Edited under Hans Bobek, the atlas employs a 1:1,000,000 scale across 12 thematic sections and about 125 plates, presenting a synthetic, dynamic geographical portrait of Austria's natural and human environment. It is deemed a fundamental reference work for regional planning and a testament to the country's advanced cartographic and geographic scholarship.

W. Witt

This review discusses the first part of the fourth installment of the Atlas of the Republic of Austria (1967–68), containing eleven map sheets on settlement, population, agriculture, and spatial planning. Two maps classify historical forms of urban and market settlements based on medieval core typologies, supplemented by insets on the timing of town charter grants and notable historical buildings. Demographic maps compare birth, death, and marriage rates from 1880 to 1961, alongside age structure data. Agricultural maps present hectare yields for various crops between 1955 and 1965 through both relative and absolute representations. A particularly innovative contribution is the map on the provision of central services, which uses concentric circles and sectoral divisions to visualize the concentration of services in central places and their regional supply levels. The reviewer concludes that the atlas, with its high scientific value and excellent technical execution, holds a distinguished position among national atlases.

Niels Nielsen

This review examines the final two parts of the Atlas of the Republic of Austria (published 1967-69), comprising 20 map sheets. The atlas exhibits pronounced thematic diversity, with each sheet forming a self-contained unit in terms of subject, treatment, and cartographic style. The analyses are often highly detailed, employing numerous symbols per sheet—the hydrogeological map, for instance, contains no fewer than 60 symbols. While such maps are not immediately accessible, thorough study reveals a rich picture of the country's situation regarding crucial issues such as freshwater occurrence, quantity, and utilization. Similar assessments apply to maps covering population, commuting, tourism, agricultural yields, and mechanization. The work is characterized by its wealth of content and meticulous treatment.

W. Witt

The Atlas of the Republic of Austria, edited by the Commission for Spatial Research of the Austrian Academy of Sciences, with H. Bobek as general director and E. Arnberger as cartographic supervisor, was published by Freytag-Berndt and Artaria in 1969 as the fourth delivery (part 2). This issue includes nine maps, some of which, such as administrative divisions and agricultural maps (livestock changes, mechanization), are methodologically straightforward, while others, like tourism, commuting, hydrogeological, and gravity anomaly maps, are complex and innovative. The tourism map uses gray scales, point-line grids, proportional circles, and colors to depict tourism intensity, accommodation types, overnight stays, tourism types, and development, requiring careful study but effectively distinguishing tourism regions. The commuting maps use colors and symbols to show commuting flows and employment center classifications. With this issue, 83 plates have been published, about two-thirds of the planned total.

Ernst Bernleithner

This review evaluates two Austrian regional atlases: the 'Atlas of the Republic of Austria' (1961–69, 4 issues with 83 map sheets), edited by Hans Bobek with cartographic supervision by Erik Arnberger, and the 'Tirol-Atlas' (1969, first issue with 12 sheets containing 25 maps), edited by Ernest Troger. The former covers themes such as gravity, hydrogeology, historical settlement, population statistics, agriculture, tourism, administration, and central services, using scales of 1:1 million and others, and is printed by the Freytag-Berndt and Artaria cartographic institute in Vienna. It is regarded as an epoch-making work in Austria's cultural and social geography. The latter employs scales of 1:300,000 and 1:600,000 with large-format sheets (870×660 mm) to detail German-speaking Tyrol (including Austrian Tyrol and South Tyrol), addressing topography, climate, population, politics, and tourism, with cartography largely conducted by the Institute of Regional Geography at the University of Innsbruck. Both atlases exemplify high standards of regional cartography and academic rigor in Austria.

Fekete Viola

This review covers four map publications. The fourth installment of the Atlas of the Republic of Austria addresses settlements, population, agriculture, and regional planning, with population maps using fine color tones to depict demographic dynamics and agricultural maps reflecting post-WWII shifts in crop patterns. The 1968 Annuaire de l'Europe pétrolière, a privately produced yearbook, combines analytical studies and documentation, offering detailed accounts of the European oil industry, with particularly accurate data on Eastern European countries. The Official Map of Louisiana, compiled from multiple agency sources, is rich in content, detailing hydrography, administrative boundaries, transportation networks, and settlements, though it omits relief. The map of Israel with Jordan, a six-color publication, includes main and supplementary maps, featuring both current and historical place names, transportation and oil pipeline networks, and clearly marking armistice lines and demilitarized zones. Finally, the review discusses the book 'Die Landkarten Afrikas', which chronologically outlines the mapping of Africa from early portolan charts to modern topographic surveys, noting stylistic differences between countries.

W. Witt

This review discusses the fifth delivery (1971-1972) of the Atlas of the Republic of Austria and the land use map of North Central Ifugao, Philippines (1972). The Austrian atlas, edited by the Commission for Spatial Research of the Austrian Academy of Sciences, comprises 20 map sheets covering themes such as climate types, natural vegetation, population distribution, socio-economic structure types, and regional planning. Its distinctive feature is the emphasis on partial syntheses and syntheses rather than predominantly analytical maps, which holds significant value for spatial research, planning, and thematic cartography. The Ifugao map, published by the American Geographical Society, is based on surveys conducted by Yale University from 1963 to 1969. At a scale of 1:5000, it details land use across 96 square kilometers of mountainous terrain, including irrigated rice terraces, dry crops, and forests, with excellent four-color printing, serving as an instructive example for land use surveys in tropical regions.

Ernst Bernleithner

This article introduces the publication background and compilatio

Von Hans Bobek

This article reviews the compilation process, methodology, and contributions of the "Atlas of the Republic of Austria" to the study of Austria's spatial structures. Initiated by the Commission for Spatial Research of the Austrian Academy of Sciences, the atlas aimed to scientifically map the country's fundamental spatial structures of practical relevance, providing a framework for spatial research and planning. The article details the project's organization, data sources and limitations, cartographic principles (emphasizing progressive integration from analytical to synthetic representations), and efforts to capture dynamic changes in population, economy, and settlements. Despite some data dating from the 1960s, most maps retain their validity. The article concludes with an overview of the atlas's sections and notes that further monographic studies will build upon it.

Hans Bobek

Ernst Bernleithner

This review discusses the latest developments of the Atlas of the Republic of Austria, edited by the Commission for Spatial Research of the Austrian Academy of Sciences under the leadership of Hans Bobek, with cartographic supervision by Erik Arnberger. Published since 1961, the atlas had reached 105 map sheets by 1976 across six deliveries. The review focuses on the 12 new maps in the sixth delivery (1974 and 1976), covering topics such as biological water quality, building and functional structures of Salzburg, Bregenz, and Eisenstadt, forest yields, land-use systems, livestock systems, agricultural economic regions, energy production and transmission, morphography, historical field patterns, historical rural settlement forms, road traffic accessibility, and central places and their hinterlands (based on a 1973 survey). The reviewer praises the meticulous scholarship of the editors and cartographers, noting that most maps represent original scientific contributions, while regretting the absence of explanatory texts. The printing by Freytag-Berndt & Artaria, Vienna, is described as exemplary.

Hans Bobek; Erik Arnberger

This article retrospectively examines the conception, production, methodological principles, contents, and scholarly significance of the Atlas of the Republic of Austria. Planned in the mid-1950s by the Commission for Spatial Research of the Austrian Academy of Sciences, the atlas appeared in six deliveries, or eleven partial installments, between 1961 and 1980. Its completion required roughly two decades because of persistent shortages of funding and personnel, delayed or unavailable municipal statistics, insufficient preliminary research for certain subjects, and difficulties in recruiting qualified contributors. The project survived through support from the Academy, the publisher, the Federal Ministry of Science and Research, and numerous institutions and scholars willing to prepare maps despite limited remuneration. Initially envisioned as a cartographic regional geography of Austria, the atlas was not intended as an encyclopedic collection of every conceivable fact. Rather, it sought to make a substantial contribution to spatial research by identifying and representing the natural, demographic, social, economic, historical, and functional structures likely to remain important for Austrian society. It was designed to provide a common framework within which particular places and specialized problems could be interpreted in relation to the country as a whole, while also complementing the heterogeneous regional atlases of individual federal provinces. The atlas therefore emphasized factual detail, topographic precision, scientific adequacy, and comparability across regions. Analytical maps isolate individual variables, whereas synthetic, typological, and regionalizing maps illuminate higher-order relationships that cannot be understood through a mere sequence of separate distributions. During the prolonged production period, advances in social geography, ecological research, quantitative analysis, and spatial theory were incorporated, causing the final program to differ from the original plan. The completed work comprises twelve major sections covering Austria’s position in the wider European space; topography, geology, and landforms; climate and water; soils, vegetation, fauna, and ecological evaluation; the historical formation of settlement, dialect, and territory; rural and urban settlement forms; population distribution, change, migration, commuting, and socioeconomic structure; agriculture and forestry; energy, mining, and industry; trade, transportation, and tourism; administration and culture; and integrated functional regions, central places, political patterns, and spatial-planning problems. Uniform concepts, scales, and cartographic conventions permit meaningful comparison among provinces and smaller areas, while historical series and surveys reveal regional development and interdependence. Some intended topics—including natural hazards, extreme weather events, land improvement, abandoned settlements, and preindustrial economic landscapes—could not be realized, and the long publication schedule left portions of the statistical evidence dated. Nevertheless, the atlas achieved its principal purpose: it created a coherent, research-oriented representation of Austria’s spatial structures and furnished a durable heuristic foundation for geographical inquiry, regional comparison, and spatial planning.

李海晨

This article introduces two foreign comprehensive regional atlases: the Atlas of the Republic of Austria and the Atlas of Switzerland. The former, edited by the Austrian Committee and published from 1960 to 1980, features a 72.4×46.2 cm format with loose-leaf binding, primarily using 1:1,000,000 national maps supplemented by 1:200,000 and 1:300,000 configurations to systematically present Austria's physical geography, socio-economic conditions, and regional divisions, with transparent overlays for administrative boundaries. The latter, edited by Eduard Imhof and published by the Swiss Federal Office of Topography since 1965, comprises 86 plates at scales of 1:500,000 or 1:800,000, covering natural and socio-economic themes, employing methods such as contour lines with hill shading, dot value, and choropleth techniques, with legends and descriptions in French and Italian. Both atlases emphasize the integration of terrain basemaps with thematic layers, exemplifying the high standards of European regional atlas compilation.

Bernard Rouleau

This article introduces the fifth edition of the Atlas of Spatial Development in Austria (ÖROK-Atlas), published by the Austrian Conference on Spatial Planning. The current edition comprises 95 map sheets, with 8 new ones added in 1987. The maps are presented in a landscape format of 297×630 mm, with most at a scale of 1:1,000,000. They feature vivid colors and are accompanied by excellent explanatory texts and statistical data tables. The themes covered include population change, labor and employment, industry, housing, commerce, water management, and natural environments, with particular attention given to maps on nature protection regulations and housing. Although still incomplete, this collection already constitutes a highly valuable and recent documentary source on Austria, deserving our full attention.

Bernard Rouleau

This article presents a new series of maps from the Atlas of the Evolution of Austrian Space (ÖROK-Atlas), published in Vienna in 1988. The sixth installment comprises eleven map plates in an oblong format of 297 × 630 mm, at scales of 1:1,000,000 or 1:500,000, accompanied by commentary texts and statistical data. Themes covered include: projected variations in household numbers by municipality from 1971 to 2001 (four maps); employment numbers and their evolution from 1991 to 2001 under optimistic and pessimistic scenarios; a labor market balance incorporating net migration for 1981-2001 (four maps); mining and forestry exploitation difficulty by region (large-format map); average annual growth rate of net domestic product by region for 1971-1986; railway traffic conditions (track gauge, speed, speed limits in 1988-89, and passenger traffic capacity and speed by section in 1989-90); Austria's hydrological and hydrogeological regime; water quality and pollution levels of Austrian rivers; and the 1985-88 forest inventory, using an original dot-matrix expression with colors modulated by forest degradation degree. The author concludes that this set of original themes undeniably strengthens the atlas's value as a documentation source on Austria, particularly regarding its evolution prospects over the next two decades.

Ingrid Kretschmer

This article reviews the state of atlas cartography in Austria, focusing on developments from the 1980s to the early 1990s. It begins by noting that since the completion of the 'Atlas of the Republic of Austria' in 1980, a decade of significant change had occurred in Austrian atlas production. This atlas, edited by Hans Bobek over twenty years, comprised 127 map sheets and 309 main and supplementary maps, and its synthetic approach ensured its continued relevance. A 1986 supplement updated topics such as population change and socio-economic structure. The article then discusses major projects: the ongoing work and completion of the 'Atlas of the Danubian Countries' (1989), and the initiation of new works like the 'ÖROK Atlas on Spatial Development in Austria' (from 1983) and the 'Planning Atlas for Vienna' (from 1983). It also covers specialized atlases, including the 'Geochemical Atlas of Austria' and the 'Atlas of Eastern and Southeastern Europe' (from 1989). In school cartography, the article examines revisions and innovations in Austrian school atlases during the 1980s, particularly adaptations to new curricula. Finally, it highlights the impact of technological advances, noting that from the mid-1980s, digital techniques began to influence Austrian cartography, transforming traditional methods. Overall, Austrian atlas cartography remained dynamic from the 1980s to the early 1990s, completing major works while embracing new directions and digital trends.

Bernard Rouleau

This is a collection of book reviews from Annales de Géographie (No. 569, 1993), evaluating three French-language geographical works. The first is a popular introduction to the history of cartography, organized in four chapters tracing the evolution from ancient mapping to scientific cartography. Despite some debatable subtitles, the text is rigorous and well-documented, featuring reproductions of rare documents and a biographical dictionary of major cartographers. The second reviews the 1988–1989 installments of the Atlas of Spatial Development of Austria, covering population, tourism, and transport themes based on the latest statistical data, continuously published under the auspices of the Austrian Conference on Spatial Planning. The third examines the Atlas of Green France, which depicts the diversity of French rural space in 220 pages, from historical landscape formation and population distribution to agricultural economic restructuring, distinguishing abandoned, slightly modified, and transformed rural areas. Richly illustrated with maps and photographs, the atlas is both academically valuable and aesthetically refined.