The Atlas of Israel

This Israeli information paper describes the compilation and publication of the Atlas of Israel, issued by the Survey of Israel and the Bialik Institute from late 1956. Israel’s small area permits relatively large scales, mostly 1:750,000–1:2,000,000, but demands detailed, accurate mapping and careful symbol sizing for concentrated populations and activities. Rapid demographic, agricultural and settlement changes led the editors to prioritize time-sequence maps. Political changes and uneven source coverage required different geographic extents for different periods: most human and economic maps cover mandated Palestine through 1947 and Israel thereafter. The paper discusses difficulties in representing the contrast across the aridity boundary and selecting elevation tints for terrain ranging from nearly 400 metres below sea level to 1,600 metres above it; it acknowledges relief-representation errors on early sheets and their correction on later ones. Fifteen thematic sections cover cartography, physical geography, history, population and economic activities. About 100 sheets with over 600 maps were planned. At the time of writing, four folders contained 39 sheets and 245 maps; sheets were issued as completed, without grouping folders by theme.