The History of Cartography Study Group
The History of Cartography Study Group (Grup d'Estudis d'Història de la Cartografía - GEHC) is an inter-university research group specialising in studies in the history of cartography and geographical information. Since its first research, at the beginning of the 1990s, its activity has been centred on analysis of the modernisation projects of geographical information in modern Catalonia and Spain. Within this general framework, specific attention is given to the development of topographical cartography, to the evolution of cadastral cartography, and to the study of military and colonial cartography.
In recent years the group has carried out extensive work in catalogation and diffusion of the cartographic documentation studied to date. Increasing attention has also been focussed on the conservation of our country’s valuable cartographical heritage, part of which, unfortunately, is in a precarious state of preservation.
Since 1997, the study group (GEHC) has received support through a series of competitive research projects financed by the Ministry of Education and Science and the autonomous Government of Catalonia, and has also established research contracts with the Barcelona Council (Diputació de Barcelona) and the Cartographic Institute of Catalonia (Institut Cartogràfic de Catalunya). The group maintains a relationship with similar research groups in the United States, France, Great Britain, Italy, Mexico and Portugal.
Presently forming part of the GEHC are researchers from the University of Barcelona, the University of Girona, the University of Lleida, the University Rovira i Virgili of Tarragona, and from the Cartographic Institute of Catalonia.
The GEHC is a Recognized Research Group by the Generalitat de Catalunya (Government of Catalonia) for the five year period 2009-2013.
From October 2010, under "Projects", please consult the online catalog of cadastral maps of Catalonia (1849-1897), compiled by GEHC.