Unique maps from the ZB: Magnificent and secret
Around 1,150 digitised maps and city and building plans from the 10th to 19th centuries have been geographically located.
Interested citizens had the opportunity to georeference around 1,150 hand-drawn maps and plans of cities, fortifications and other structures spanning almost a millennium. Volunteers identified matching points on old and current maps online. The old maps will then be automatically rectified, making them easier to compare with modern maps.
Following three successful georeferencing projects in recent years, the new Citizen Science campaign tackled the rich collection of manuscript maps held by the Zentralbibliothek Zürich. These are available free of charge as part of the ‘Maps, Plans’ collection on the e-manuscripta platform.
The campaign is part of the Zentralbibliothek Zürichs strategic focus on Citizen Science.
Instructions
Georeferencing a map using Georeferencer on the Old Maps Online web platform is intuitive and usually requires no prior specialist knowledge. Volunteers compare an old map with a modern one and mark points that they can identify on both: Depending on the map scale, suitable points include settlements, distinctive details of coastlines, islands, river mouths and lake outlets.
In addition to a short video tutorial, you will find instructions on the most important steps and how to register. The web platform also provides an overview of all georeferenced maps from the ZB collection.
Late medieval pomp and mystery
The collection of maps and plans is very diverse: the oldest date back to the Middle Ages and were produced before the invention of printing. Some are hand-drawn originals by well-known cartographers, which were later used as templates for printed maps, such as Konrad Türst's map of the Swiss Confederation from 1495/97. The sometimes richly decorated manuscript maps, such as the portolans with nautical charts, were not only used for navigation at sea, but also as a magnificent representation of knowledge.
There are also cartographic products that are based on considerable surveying work but were intended for only a few eyes: these include maps that served military purposes and could only have been published at the cost of revealing strategic advantages. Worth mentioning here are the maps of Zurich's ‘military quarters’ produced during the Thirty Years' War (1618-1648) by the famous engineer and cartographer Hans Conrad Gyger (1599 to 1674), which were later copied by hand. Another of the most impressive objects recently acquired by the Maps and Panoramas Department is Pierre Bel's detailed road atlas from 1781. He mapped the old road between Bern and Zurich on several sheets.
Once again, there were some difficult puzzles to solve: these included large-scale land and fortification plans, as well as mapped areas that have changed significantly over time.
Final Ranking
Event
On Tuesday, 2 December 2025, we hosted a project presentation with original exhibits and an opportunity to share experiences in the Hermann-Escher-Saal of the Zentralbibliothek Zürich. A big thank you to all participants for their support!
Contact
Do you have any questions or comments about the campaign? Get in touch with us! We are happy to help.
Maps and panoramas
Header image: J. Müller: Map of the bailiwick of Küssnacht and Herrliberg, 1779. Zurich City Library, map collection MK 177.