The Presidential Library to digitize about 100 maps from the period of the Russian Empire and the Soviet Union

The Presidential Library launched the digitization of 98 maps of the Russian Empire and the Soviet Union. It is more than 760 pages, including atlases. These precious and valuable exhibits (the most ancient items date back to the 1770s) were provided to the Presidential library by the Russian Geographical Society.

One of the most important tasks of the Russian Geographical Society is to facilitate the collection and provide truthful information about Russia. The Presidential Library also solves the same tasks. In September 2013, both organizations signed a cooperation agreement. Today more than 6.5 thousand books, brochures, periodicals, archival files and photographs, including rare and valuable items, acquired digital presentation.

The expeditions of the Russian Geographical Society played an important role in the development of Siberia, the Far East, Middle and Central Asia, and the study of the World Ocean. Today, the Presidential Library's portal provides stories about scientific voyages, in particular, of Pyotr Semyonov-Tyan-Shansky or Nikolai Przhevalsky. Always, before equipping the expedition, its organizers and participants started a detailed survey of the maps of the area. During the expeditions, these maps were reviewed, improved, developed, acquired new previously unknown settlements, rivers and hills, lakes and valleys.

The General Map of the Russian Empire, Compiled according to the Latest Astronomical Observations (original title Tabula Geographica Generalis Imperii Russici ad Normam Novissimarum Observationum Astronomicarum Concinnata) published in Saint-Petersburg in 1776, is in the top list of items provided by the Russian Geographic Society for digitization in the Presidential Library. Like many other maps, it has solid authorship. It was compiled by Ivan Truscott, a Titular Councillor and Professor of the Saint-Petersburg Academy of Sciences and Jacob Schmidt, who were cartographers of the Geographical Department of the Saint-Petersburg Academy of Sciences.

The production of such a large-scale map was connected with the improving the Atlas of Russia in 1745, and the creation of a more detailed general map of the Russian Empire. The method of collecting topographic information was developed by Mikhail Lomonosov. It was his initiative to send to provinces and regions of Russia a "geographic survey" of 30 issues, featuring the collection of information about nature, economic geography of territories, etc.

The maps made by Truscott and Schmidt were the first ones based on a complex of astronomical and mathematical measurements, and therefore their accuracy was very high.

Besides the "general" map of our country, the Presidential Library digitizes the Map of the Russian Empire and Neighboring States (without the year of issue).

Another rare document is the General Map of Crimea made "by the latest observations" by Fyodor Cherny in 1790. The peninsula's territory displays administrative lines, several hundred settlements and cities, the river and road network.

The digitization plan also includes the Military Topographic Map of the Crimean Peninsula (1817).

Also, the Russian Geographical Society provided for the digitization in the Presidential Library the Detailed Plan of the Capital City of Saint-Petersburg in 1828, Map of the Outskirts of Saint-Petersburg (1831) and Topographic Map of the Circumference of Moscow.

The Soviet period is represented by the Geological Maps of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics.

Being digitized, the maps of the Russian Geographical Society will enter the collections of the Presidential Library. They will be available on the institution's portal, in the reading room at Senatskaya Square, 3, and in any of the more than 1200 remote reading rooms of the Presidential Library located in all regions of the Russian Federation and 30 foreign countries.