-------- Original Message --------
Subject: Re: MAPS-L Digest - 11 Aug 2011 to 12 Aug 2011 (#2011-128)
Date: Fri, 12 Aug 2011 21:52:14 -0700
From: Virginia R Hetrick PhD <[log in to unmask]>
To: Angie Cope <[log in to unmask]>

Hi -

A couple of observations about the issue of bird's eye views and
pictorial relief maps probably colored by my experience.

I was first introduced to BEVs when I worked for Mr. Buffum at LoC.
In that context, all of the maps that I viewed as BEVs were maps of
cities, generally hand-drawn for later printing and nearly always to
an uneven scale because they were nearly always given a perspective
view.  These had small pictures of structures in pretty much the right
places though the pictures may or may not have been accurate to the
time in terms of number of floors, decorative additions such as around
the top of the facade, etc.  In the BEV of my hometown, my
grandmother's house is present but it's represented as a standard New
England saltbox without the sun room which had a roof deck over it
coming out from the second floor.  It was put on when the house was
originally built because it was built for a Yankee ship captain who
wanted his wife to be able to see when he arrived in port.  Subsequent
to the time Captain Fowler owned the house, a small 1-story addition
was built onto the north end of the saltbox.  That's how we were able
to date the time the various pieces were added to the house.
Similarly, some downtown business structures, below the cliff on which
the residences were built, were missing trim elements on top of their
respective facades so we were only able to date them approximately to
having been built within a given decade.

While I was working for Mr. B, I did see similiar BEVs of European
cities, but they were typically only of what we'd call today the
middle of town, major parks and the central commercial district.
Again, I've seen reproductions of them in friends' homes in places
like Paris, London, and Copenhagen.  The Institute of Geography at the
University of Copenhagen had one of Copenhagen in the library when I
taught there in the late 1970s.

I view pictorial relief maps as ones similar to the Mammoth Mountain
skiing area mentioned in today's list digest where the representation
is chiefly used to present structures which are not so "durable" as
business buildings and houses (not to mention that the
buildup/teardown cycle is pretty short there).  The Mammoth Mountain
map is reprinted in modified form each year, I think principally
because the small businesses near the ski area turn over fairly
rapidly and Joe's Pizza last year will be Pi Chang's Chinese this year
while the Baskin-Robbins will become the Cold Stone Creamery (or vice
versa).  ;~)

In the western US, the BEVs were printed principally for chamber of
commerce (or other business organizations) to use as promotional
pieces to attract new residents and businesses. I've seen several
residents of my hometown who have the BEV from approximately the 1890s
framed in their living rooms or other public rooms of their houses,
implying that they place some extraordinary value on the BEV.

By contrast the PRMs are more contemporary (latter 20th century and
21st century) and seem to be  used by tourists and other non-residents
simply to get around the area for short periods of time.  For example,
when I was visiting Devil's Postpile last month, I had a Mammoth
Mountain map to help me get to the handicapped parking and back out.
Then I dumped it at the first trashcan I saw in the next rest area
(and I saw half-a-dozen more in the same trashcan).

HTH and have a great weekend.

v
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Virginia R. Hetrick, here in sunny California
Email:  [log in to unmask]
"There is always hope."
My fave:  http://www.washington.edu/cambots/camera1_l.gif
There's no place like:  34N 8' 25.40", 117W 58'5.36"
if you can't be at:  48N 6' 59.9" 122W 59' 54.2"
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