Cartography at the Nineteenth International Geographical Congress

Summary

The visible opening and closing passages review cartographic activities at the International Geographical Congress, focusing on the establishment of the International Cartographic Association (ICA) and its relationship with the International Geographical Union (IGU). The account traces preparatory meetings held in 1956–1959 and explains the Soviet delegation’s objections to allowing the ICA to constitute and direct an IGU cartographic commission. These concerned restricted participation in the association’s founding, statutory issues, insufficiently defined tasks, and the possible fragmentation of existing efforts. Soviet amendments proposed explicit coordination responsibilities and a revised commission membership. Although the amendments were not put to a vote, the final proposal removed the provision assigning formation and leadership of the commission to the ICA. The commission was nevertheless approved, with ICA president Eduard Imhof elected as its chair. The closing passages assess relief representation in Israel’s national atlas, historical cartographic studies, and French practices for updating topographic maps through aerial photography and field verification. The author praises Soviet contributions to the Commission on National Atlases and to work on cartographic generalization and hypsometric relief representation, while noting shortcomings in preparations: Soviet achievements were not fully presented, and insufficient new research problems were brought forward for international discussion. He advocates stronger work on regional atlases and closer contacts with, and assistance to, geographers in newly independent countries.