31st International Conference on the History of Cartography (save the date + info)
The Faculty of Science of Charles University, the Institute of History of the Czech Academy of Sciences, the Moravian Library in Brno, the Faculty of Science of Masaryk University, and the Czech Geographical Society, under the auspices of the Czech Cartographic Society, are pleased to invite proposals for papers and posters for the 31st International Conference on the History of Cartography (7 – 11 July, 2026)
ICHC is the only academic conference solely dedicated to advancing knowledge of the history of maps and mapmaking, regardless of geographical region, language, period or topic. ICHC promotes free and unfettered global cooperation and collaboration among cartographic scholars from many academic disciplines, curators, collectors, dealers and institutions through illustrated lectures, presentations, exhibitions, and a social program. In order to expand awareness of issues and resources, each conference is sponsored by a leading educational and cultural institution. The biennial conferences are organized in conjunction with Imago Mundi CIO. ICHC 2026 builds upon Czechia’s robust tradition of research in the history of cartography and related disciplines, a tradition that has flourished for more than a century. Under the broad rubric of Bridging the Past and Present in Cartography, ICHC 2026 welcomes paper and poster presentations on the following themes:
- Maps and Tourism
- Encompasses the role of maps and related works in promoting tourism to regions or particular destinations and in the experience of touristic places.
- Maps as Artefacts
- Investigates the nature of maps as cultural objects that circulate within the marketplace and other networks, and that are variously collected and preserved within institutions of memory (GLAM).
- The Third Dimension: Representing Elevation on Maps
- Explores the particular strategies developed to represent the earth’s crumpled surface of hills and valleys for specific tasks, from military and geological mapping to forest management.
- Mapping the Past: Historical Cartography at the Turn of the Digital Era
- Pursues interdisciplinary and critical perspectives on the ideological implications of new digital technologies in mapping the past, including the risks of distortion and of the instrumentalisation of historical content for political or ideological purposes.
