Prussian Original Survey Maps 1:25,000 Scale

Preußische Urmesstischblätter are hand-drawn, one-off topographic maps produced for the entire territory of Prussia beginning in 1822. The maps were created at a scale of 1:25,000 to serve as the basis for smaller-scale maps and mark the beginning of modern topographic cartography. The dataset is provided by the Bundesamt für Kartographie und Geodäsie.

Use Cases

• Analyze historical land use and landscape changes based on the detailed topographic features.
• Study the evolution of cartographic design and symbology based on the hand-drawn map content.
• Georeference historical maps for comparison with modern digital elevation models.
• Train computer vision models for historical document analysis based on the map images.

Strengths

• Maps mark the beginning of modern topographic cartography, providing foundational historical context.
• Individual sheets have been reworked in color to be more similar to the original hand-drawn versions.
• The production of the maps began in 1822, covering the entire territory of Prussia.

Limitations

• Description metadata is limited; actual data quality requires manual inspection after download.
• Last updated 1826-12-31 00:00:00; freshness should be verified.
• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.

Provenance

Source

Bundesamt für Kartographie und Geodäsie

Collection Method

Hand-drawn, one-off maps produced by the Royal Prussian General Staff.

Time Range

Production began in 1822. The provided last updated date is 1826-12-31.

Geography

Entire territory of Prussia.