‘St. Petersburg on old maps: Peter the Great's ideas and reality’

The Russian Geological Library invites to a tour of the materials of its rare collection

The rare fund of the Russian Geological Library has one of the most substantial collections of maps of the 18-19th centuries in our country. The collection includes about 100 rare maps, which clearly demonstrate the formation of Russian cartography, which originated in St. Petersburg together with the founding of the Academy of Sciences.

Our city, represented on the maps of the 18^th century, allows you to see the result of the work of not only architects, but also cartographers. The excursion gives an opportunity to get acquainted with the first stages of development of cartographic science in Russia.

The visitors will see the famous maps of St. Petersburg in different scales of both Russian map authors and foreign ‘compilers’, will examine the peculiarities of printing and modelling in cartography of the 18th and 19th centuries on the originals.

Cartography of the 18th century has its own distinctive features - each copy was worked on jointly by many diverse specialists, who in the 19th century started to work in their own laboratories and workshops. Maps of the 18th century are interesting for their unique artistic design, which united true enthusiasts on one sheet: astronomers, mathematicians, land surveyors, artists, engravers, printers.

The event consists of three main parts:

• in the reading room we will tell you about the collection of rare maps
• in the rare book fund we will show you the maps of the 18th and 19th centuries
• during a workshop we will introduce you to designing a book mark for your own library, including heraldic symbols and name marks.

The event takes place every Wednesday from 12 pm to 12.45pm.

Registration for the tour by mail: Nadezhda_Morozova@karpinskyinstitute.ru