Kartenwerken

Kartenwerken is the German term for a cartographic work or map series, typically a coherent collection of maps illustrating a region, country, or theme, published as an atlas or as an integrated program. In German-speaking cartography, Kartenwerke can refer to national or regional projects, or to the output of publishers or surveying authorities. They are often described as Große Kartenwerke when they aim to cover large areas at a consistent scale.

Historically, Kartenwerke emerged with systematic map production in early modern Europe. In the German-speaking world, notable examples include the 18th-century Homannische Kartenwerke and, later, extensive national surveys in the 19th and 20th centuries. The production process traditionally involved field surveys, triangulation networks, compilation of sheets, and printing; later developments included lithography and, in modern times, digital GIS-based methods.

Contents vary by project but commonly include topographic details, administrative boundaries, hydrography, and thematic layers such as land use, geology, or infrastructure. Kartenwerke have supported navigation, administration, planning, education, and research, and they provide historians with valuable records of geographic knowledge and cartographic technique.

Today the concept persists in historical analyses and contemporary publishing, with map series produced by national mapping agencies and publishers, often digitized and distributed as geospatial data alongside printed atlases.