-------- Original Message --------
Subject: colurs on maps
Date: Tue, 19 Oct 2004 16:02:04 +1000
From: Brendan Whyte <[log in to unmask]>
To: Maps and Air Photo Systems Forum <[log in to unmask]>

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Yes, British red for the redcoats of the soldiers, and the red cross of St
George (and of St Patrick!).
But most old maps used purple, not blue, for France.
Orange for the Netherlands is hardly arbitrary: the kings of the
Netherlands were Princes of Orange!
Once you coloured in those, then the rest were based on flag colours etc:
so yellow for Spain, and often China.


At 12:43 AM 19/10/2004 -0400, you wrote:
>The use of (light) red for British Empire -> Commonwealth countries on
>'old style' maps was likely for maximum contrast with the blue for French
>possessions (associated with their flag colour), and association with the
>red on the english flag, prior to Union with Scotland and the adoption
>of the union jack.
>
>Otherwise the use of colour simply for fill or outline seems mostly
>arbitrary (did they usually use orange for the Netherlands ?)

Dr Brendan Whyte
Assistant Map Curator
ERC Library
University of Melbourne
Vic 3010
AUSTRALIA
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