1969 Diggers Collage Map of the Pacific Basin

A rare distinctive persuasive map of the Pacific Basin produced in 1969 by the Diggers, a group of artists and political activists in San Francisco that intersected with other currents of 1960s Bay Area counterculture.

A Closer Look

The map appears to be a collage with the Pacific Ocean replaced by a map of the moon's surface marking craters, an image of the moon at center, and portions of a time zone map of the Pacific Basin. Text around the map emphasizes the (perhaps quite tenuous) interconnections and similarities between the landscape, climate, cultures, and life of different parts of the Pacific Basin. While stressing the universality of the region, the perspective is undoubtedly American, specifically Californian, and more specifically the Bay Area, as the reference to Mill Valley indicates.

The language and style employed - long, stream-of-consciousness sentences with all lower-case text - reflects the spirit of the age and place where the map was produced, with references to Zen and psychedelic-tinged phrases such as 'most of the day tends to come thru in terms of a kind of spontaneous mental images.' At the same time, the author or authors are well-informed on scientific subjects such as geology and marine biology. Overall, the map reflects a growing environmental consciousness and Californians' greater awareness of and orientation towards the Pacific and East Asia.

The verso includes an illustration (unsigned but seemingly including the Chinese character for 'dawn' 旦) and short poems criticizing American cities, social inequality, and consumerism. The poems also outline an alternative place, society, or, perhaps, a state of consciousness called 'Planetedge.' For instance: 'Reverse a colored city map to see Planetedge. Here the parks are blonde and black but the tenements are full of trees, BOTANICAL APARTMENTS.'

The Planetedge Posters

According to a website dedicated to the history of the San Francisco Diggers (diggers.org), 'Planetedge' was a series of six two-sided posters produced in 1969 that were 'part of the continuum of deep ecology' that had defined the movement from its earliest days. The group was among the earliest and most unconventional of the counterculture currents that emerged in the Haight-Ashbury neighborhood of San Francisco in the mid-1960s. Most of their activity revolved around street theater and the concept of the Free City - they operated a Free Bakery, Free Stores, where items were given without the need for payment, and even a Free Medical Clinic. They also printed broadsides and leaflets for hand distribution, including, eventually, the posters just mentioned.

Publication History and Census

This map was prepared by members of the Diggers in San Francisco in 1969. It, along with other posters in the series (discussed above), is often attributed to Peter Berg (1937 - 2011), a prominent member of the Diggers who maintained a focus on environmental issues throughout his life. The illustration on the verso is typically attributed to artist Bryden Bullington. Due to the lack of clear titles or authors, cataloging of posters in the series is fairly muddled, with perhaps ten institutions holding various of the broadsides among their collections.