Atlas Ziem Odzyskanych/ Atlas Of The Recovered Territories Of Poland.
Oblong folio (29.4 x 42 cm. 11 ½ x 16 ½ inches), Title also in Russian & French. With a 16 pp. pamphlet describing each of the atlas's maps. In brown paper covers with titles & map of Poland in red, large chip lower left & a mended tear. 3 leaves with t-p & contents, 35 color-printed maps in excellent condition.
A rare and graphically sophisticated atlas that provides a multi-dimensional picture of the regions of Poland--then called the Recovered Territories--that were ceded back to Poland at the end of the Second World War. In years following World War II, Soviet authorities instituted a Polanization of these territories that had been largely occupied by Germans. This involved the willing as well as forced migration of Poles from central and eastern Poland. Most Germans either fled the areas or were expelled and expressions of German culture expunged. Today these areas are called the Western Territories.
The atlas's 35 maps display a multitude of aspects of these territories, using color and graphic design in inventive ways. They treat such subjects as soil, water resources, forested lands, mineral resources, "minefields cleared and fortifications dismantled," buildings and farms damaged in the war, the density of the Polish population in various areas, the locations of utilities and associated lines, and numerous other phenomena. If viewed through the lens of Soviet propaganda, one is to infer from this atlas a paternalistic, virtually omniscient state authority.
While this atlas can be found in several institutional collections, we have not found any recorded sales of it on the market.
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