עדויות קרטוגרפיות משלהי התקופה העות'מאנית לחיפוש נפט בנגב ובמדבר־יהודה

Translated title of the contribution: Cartographic Evidence from the Late Ottoman Period of Oil Concession Permits in the Judean Desert and the Northern Negev

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

This article focuses on twenty unpublished maps from the Ottoman archive in Istanbul, depicting requests to obtain concessions to search for oil and other inorganic minerals in the Judean Desert,near the Dead Sea and in the Northern Negev before and during WWI. It presents the concession maps, analyzes them, examines why they were produced in the first place and how they contribute to a better understanding of oil searches in the region during the late Ottoman period. The maps provide a new perspective on what is known from research in recent years about the Ottoman attempts to develop the region. They show that the Empire grasped the economic potential of extracting minerals, and hence made considerable efforts to utilize the minerals of the region,in addition to encouraging various forms of entrepreneurship, infrastructure and development projects. Nevertheless, there was often a huge disparity between the Empire’s ambitious plans and their actual implementation on the ground due to lack of funds, engineering problems, international conflicts and complications, as well as economic feasibility.
Translated title of the contributionCartographic Evidence from the Late Ottoman Period of Oil Concession Permits in the Judean Desert and the Northern Negev
Original languageHebrew
Pages (from-to)122-141
Number of pages20
Journalאופקים בגאוגרפיה
Volume101-102
StatePublished - 2022

IHP publications

  • ihp
  • Geographic information systems
  • Concessions
  • Turkey -- History -- Ottoman Empire, 1288-1918
  • Early maps
  • Eretz Israel -- Maps
  • Petroleum -- Prospecting
  • Judean Desert
  • Beersheba Region (Israel)
  • Dead Sea (Israel and Jordan)
  • Archives -- Turkey
  • Eretz Israel -- History -- 1517-1917, Ottoman period

Cite this