Reviews: Atlas of the USSR

Stanisław Leszczycki reviews the Atlas of the USSR published in Moscow in 1962 by the Main Administration of Geodesy and Cartography of the Soviet Ministry of Geology and Mineral Protection. Completely recompiled by a large team, it contains 147 plates, compared with 76 in the 1954 atlas, and has a larger format and richer geographical nomenclature. Its three sections comprise regional physical maps on 55 plates, natural thematic maps on 32 plates, and socioeconomic maps on 18 plates containing 29 systematic and 22 regional-economic maps. Leszczycki regards the physical section as the strongest, praising more precise relief drawing, especially in eastern Siberia, the Far East, and the mountains of Soviet Asia. The natural section combines revised maps previously published elsewhere with original compilations on fauna, flora, seismicity, and other subjects. He criticizes schematic industrial maps for failing to distinguish plant sizes and understating Soviet industrialization. He finds the agricultural maps better, highlights the new dot map of state farms, and notes updated regional-economic maps. Overall, he judges the atlas a substantial achievement, while finding some economic maps weaker than the other sections and methodological progress smaller than technical progress.