04 / 06

Digital Map Collections

Many libraries and institutes create digital resources from their own materials and publish them online.

Publishing forms vary and range from databases to an online exhibitions. This is why it is useful to learn about various digital collections and their character. If you want to get a access to specific digitised map and already have identified the collection containing it, you can accelerate your search.


 

Resources

(H)GIS Projects
Search Navigator
Universal Database
  • Klokan Technologies. «Maps of Japan». Accessed May 31, 2019. https://www.oldmapsonline.org/en/Japan Klokan Technologies is a private company in Switzerland. It's speciality is creating/publishing an online map. The company maintains a project «OldMapsOnline» unter that maps of Japan are collected. 
  • edmaps.com. «Historical Maps of Japan.» Accessed May 31, 2019. https://www.edmaps.com/html/japan.html edmaps.com contains many free cartographic resources in the web. 
  • C.V. Starr East Asian Library, UC Berkeley. «Japanese Historical Maps from the C.V. Starr East Asian Library, UC Berkeley.» Accessed Feb. 27, 2019. http://japanmaps.davidrumsey.com/luna/servlet Collection of digitized maps in the C.V.Starr East Asian Library, UC Berkeley. It contains almost 2300 maps created in the Edo- and Meiji-period.
  • UBC Library. «Japanese Maps of the Tokugawa Era - UBC Library Open Collections.» Accessed May 31, 2019. https://open.library.ubc.ca/collections/tokugawa Collection of Japanese maps in the Library of the University of British Columbia. This collection focuses on travel guide and travel maps in the Edo-period.
  • 筑波大学附属図書館 (Library, University of Tsukuba). «古地図». Accessed May 31, 2019. https://www.tulips.tsukuba.ac.jp/pub/tree/kochizu.html Old map collection of the Library of University of Tsukuba. It contains ca. 370 old maps.
  • Norman B. Leventhal Map & Education Center, Boston Public Library. «Norman B. Leventhal Map & Education Center.» Accessed May 31, 2019. https://collections.leventhalmap.org/ Boston Public Library presents digital map collection of Leventhal Map &  Education Center which includes several Japanese Old maps.
  • Stanford University. «Gaihozu: Japanese Imperial Maps». Accessed May 31, 2019. http://library.stanford.edu/guides/gaihozu-japanese-imperial-maps Library of the Standord University collects digitized "gaihōzu (外邦図)" from many universities. Gaihōzu are the maps which created by Imperial Japanese Army.  If you want to especially see the gaihōzu, this site is very useful.
  • Wikimedia Commons. «Wikimedia Category : Old Maps of Japan». Accessed Jan. 20, 2020. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Old_maps_of_Japan Wikimedia Commons collects also digitized resource of Japanese maps. There are already plenty amount of maps in different categories and with different licences for reuse.
  • Geospatial Information Authority of Japan. «古地図コレクション（古地図資料閲覧サービス)». Accessed May 31, 2019. https://kochizu.gsi.go.jp 国土地理院 (Geospatial Information Authority of Japan) presents her own old map collection in the web. There are sekaizu (wolrd map), kunizu (country map), Inōzu (Maps created by Inō Tadataka), and further maps. Many maps are digitized.
  • 東京国立博物館 (Tokyo National Museum). «古地図データベース簡易検索». Accessed May 31, 2019. https://webarchives.tnm.jp/infolib/meta_pub/G0000002070607HM Tokyo Naional Museum builds a batabase for her old map collection. In this collection you find many maps created in the Edo period.
  • 国際日本文化研究センター (International Research Center for Japanese Studies). «DATABASE 長崎古地図». Accessed May 31, 2019. http://db.nichibun.ac.jp/pc1/ja/category/nagasaki.html Nichibunken (International Research Center for Japanese Studies) digitized the Nagasaki old city maps of the Nagasaki City Museum and append metadata to them. There are 221 digital images, 141 items.
  • 国際日本文化研究センター (International Research Center for Japanese Studies). «所蔵地図データベース». Accessed May 31, 2019. http://lapis.nichibun.ac.jp/chizu/menu-1.html Nichibunken presents her own map collection here. You can search the maps according to the place, the name of maps, the date of creation, the type of printing, and keyterms.
  • 京都大学 (Kyoto University). «貴重資料デジタルアーカイブ 地図でみる日本、世界». Accessed May 31, 2019. https://rmda.kulib.kyoto-u.ac.jp/classification/pickup-map This archive seems like a digital exhibition. It contains 135 items. Digital images are available in IIIF standard.
  • 地質調査総合センター (Geological Survey of Japan). «地質調査所初期出版資料デジタルアーカイブ». Accessed May 31, 2019. https://gbank.gsj.jp/ld/app/darc/ In this digital archive you find the publication of Geological Survey of Japan between Meiji period and 1945. It includes also maps and simlier materials. All digital images are offered with IIIF standard.
  • 岡山大学附属図書館 (Library of Okayama University). «池田家文庫絵図公開データベース». Accessed May 31, 2019. http://ousar.lib.okayama-u.ac.jp/ikedake/ezu/ja This batabase shows the collection of Ikeda Family. It contains more than 3000 maps created or collected in the Edo period.
  • 神戸大学附属図書館 (Kobe University Library). «神戸大学附属図書館 デジタルアーカイブ  住田文庫 (Sumida Maritime Materials Collection)». Accessed May 31, 2019. http://www.lib.kobe-u.ac.jp/sumida/ Sumida Maritime Materials Collection contains the maritime and geographical materials which Sumida Shōichi (住田正一, 1892-1968) collected until 1925. There are also many digitized maps available.
  • 徳島大学附属図書館 (Tokushima University Library). «貴重資料高精細デジタルアーカイブ». Accessed May 31, 2019. https://www.lib.tokushima-u.ac.jp/~archive/ Tokushima University Library presents the digital archive of her rare collection. There are categories like Inōzu (Maps created by Inō Tadataka), Tokushima maps, Nihonzu (Japan maps), and  sekaizu (wolrd map).