Reviews of Books: Atlas Polski

Summary

This review introduces the provisional Atlas of Poland (1956), produced after WWII amid a wave of national atlases. The atlas was initiated in 1945 but its original plan was only partially fulfilled due to editorial changes, resulting in a four-folder collection of maps at 1:2M or smaller. The reviewer describes the contents: physical geography sheets covering soils, geology, geomorphology, climate, vegetation, zoogeography, and land use, plus an unusual phenological map based on plant blossoming times. Despite poor paper quality, the cartographic workmanship is satisfactory. The review concludes that this interim publication paved the way for a new comprehensive Polish atlas planned by the Institute of Geography, with larger format, 454 maps, and trilingual editions.