Cartography of Switzerland

Sample detail of the 1:50,000 National Map of Switzerland, showing the Blüemlisalp glacier.

The cartography of Switzerland is the history of surveying and creation of maps of Switzerland. Switzerland has had its current boundaries since 1815, but maps of the Old Swiss Confederacy were drawn since the 16th century. The first topographical survey on a federal level began in 1809, resulting in the Topographic Map of Switzerland (German: Topographische Karte der Schweiz) or Dufour Map (German: Dufourkarte; French: Carte Dufour). From 1869 to 1901, this map was replaced by the Topographic Atlas of Switzerland (German: Topographischer Atlas der Schweiz) or Siegfried Map (German: Siegfriedkarte; French: Carte Siegfried).

From 1901, the Topographical Survey of Switzerland is an independent division within the military, introducing the Swiss coordinate system in 1903. The office is renamed as the Swiss Federal Office of Topography in 1979, with the swisstopo.ch website online since 1997.