Subalterns and 'ghosts' behind Kiepert’s maps of the Anatolian peninsula (1830s–1890s)

Abstract

Abstract. Although they are discussed less frequently than his maps of the Balkans, Heinrich Kiepert's maps of Anatolia, and those of the Aegean coast in particular, nevertheless occupy a prominent place in his work. First published between the 1840s and the 1890s, Kiepert's maps reflect the way in which the German “classical Orient” depicted by Said (Said, 1978) became increasingly "real" over the years and emerged as a target for strategic and imperialist penetration. While their archaeological orientation tended to eclipse their ties to the German and Ottoman military, this analysis reveals how civil and military investigations were intertwined from the outset, and linked to a desire for national prestige. Based on the archives of the State Library in Berlin, the Secret State Archives of the Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation and the Ottoman State Archives, this article aims to highlight the ambivalence and different facets of Heinrich Kiepert's cartographic project in Anatolia. The context of his work will be analyzed in order to understand the conditions under which his cartography was produced and the transimperial exchanges that shaped it.