1950s Müller Pictorial Tourist Map of Zurich, Switzerland

This is a c. 1950 Otto M. Müller pictorial map of Zurich, Switzerland, published by the department store Jelmoli.

A Closer Look

Coverage embraces central Zurich and some of the surrounding countryside. Banners mark hotels, globes highlight travel agencies, and movie cameras denote theaters. Museums, universities, hospitals, and landmarks are illustrated. The Zurich Zoo is marked by a menagerie of exotic animals along the top border. Portraits of 3 prominent Swiss intellectuals provide historical flair.

Jelmoli

Jelmoli is a department store in Zurich, Switzerland, founded in 1833 as a fashion shop by Johann Peter Jelmoli Ciolina. When the store opened, it introduced fixed, no-haggle prices. The business prospered and continued to expand. Management began building a chain of stores in 1952, with the first opening in 1954. Subsequently, over 50 locations opened across Switzerland. However, as sales and profits declined in the 1990s, Jelmoli closed all its stores except for the flagship location in Zurich, known as the Glass Palace.

Publication History and Census

This map was drawn by Otto M. Müller and published by the Jelmoli department store c. 1950. Two examples are cataloged in OCLC and are part of the collections at the Wisconsin Veterans Museum Research Center and the Zentralbibliothek Zürich. This OCLC entry dates the map between 1945 and 1949.