Japan 1956 Shaded Relief Map

1956 marked Japan's return to the international stage. The country had signed a peace treaty with the United States and most Allied powers in 1951, but the Soviet Union held out, using its UN Security Council veto to block Japanese membership for years. That stalemate broke in October 1956, when Japan and the USSR signed a joint declaration restoring diplomatic relations — clearing the way for Japan to join the United Nations that December, eleven years after the end of World War II.

We georeferenced the original 1956 survey and applied modern digital elevation data to add true shaded relief to Japan's mountainous archipelago. The shading is printed flat on the paper — not raised or textured — so it frames and hangs like any fine art print.

Available with or without our signature cloud overlay for a more atmospheric effect, and in your choice of black frame, walnut frame, or unframed.

Note on legibility: text on the original map is small and can be difficult to read given the map's age. In areas where the relief shading is darkest, the underlying labels are not legible. We recommend the largest available size for the best detail.