These are wonderful maps. And... I think Segovia is lovely (nicer than Toledo!), though the Alcazar is a little kitsch. Interesting also that San Lorenzo de El Escorial doesn't feature. I suppose it wasn't intended to be a tourist place then, whereas now it features as a day out from Madrid.
The Alcázar has been reconstructed too many times to be any authentic. It respects to a certain extent what it was in the late Middle Ages, but yes, it is a bit kitsch.
About El Escorial, at the time these maps were published, it was just starting to be presented as a touristic destination within Spain. In a way, as part of the overall propaganda to link Francoist Spain to the gold imperial era. From what I have seen, it starts showing up also in international tourism guides from the 60s onwards, a bit later than 1953.
Nice find!
These are wonderful maps. And... I think Segovia is lovely (nicer than Toledo!), though the Alcazar is a little kitsch. Interesting also that San Lorenzo de El Escorial doesn't feature. I suppose it wasn't intended to be a tourist place then, whereas now it features as a day out from Madrid.
The Alcázar has been reconstructed too many times to be any authentic. It respects to a certain extent what it was in the late Middle Ages, but yes, it is a bit kitsch.
About El Escorial, at the time these maps were published, it was just starting to be presented as a touristic destination within Spain. In a way, as part of the overall propaganda to link Francoist Spain to the gold imperial era. From what I have seen, it starts showing up also in international tourism guides from the 60s onwards, a bit later than 1953.