Journal Article

New atlases

De nouveaux atlas

By Bernard Rouleau· 1969

Publication: Annales de Géographie
Volume: 428
Pages: 474-476

Czechoslovak · Version 2

1966

Bernard Rouleau ranks the 1966 Atlas of the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic among the most monumental cartographic publications of recent years. He regards its breadth of subjects, extensive documentation and participation by numerous institutions and individuals as giving it the character of a national undertaking. Its 58 plates carry map commentaries on their reverse sides in Czech, English and Russian. Rouleau praises the abundant, precise documentation evident in most maps, the quality and variety of graphic techniques, and the carefully considered use of colour, with presentation ranging from conventional to distinctly modern. He hopes that the atlas can be continually updated and remain a lasting record of Czechoslovak cartographers’ mastery.

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This article reviews seven atlases published in the 1960s, covering regional comprehensive atlases, national thematic atlases, and methodological works on statistical cartography. It analyzes in turn the content structure, cartographic techniques, and design characteristics of each work, including the Atlas of North Carolina, the Atlas Nacional de España, Roberto Bachi's Graphical Rational Patterns system, the demographic fascicle of the Atlas économique et social pour l'Aménagement du Territoire, the Atlas National de Hongrie, the Atlas of the Pacific Northwest Resources and Development, and the Atlas of the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic. The author acknowledges the achievements of these atlases in terms of documentary richness, thematic diversity, and cartographic expressiveness, while also pointing out limitations in format innovation, scale selection, and visual presentation. The review reflects a deep consideration of atlases as tools for regional synthesis and statistical visualization.