Okanagan College Professor and map enthusiast Terence Day currently has a silk map of Western Ukraine on display near the entrance to the campus library.
Silk maps were carried by British and other NATO pilots during the Cold War.
The maps were printed on silk as it could survive immersion in water, made no noise when opening, and could easily be concealed in clothing.
Ukraine is not a member nation of NATO, and the map highlights the country’s precarious position in the region. Neighbours include Russia, Belarus, Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania and Moldova.
According to Day, the borders are for the most part not well defined in terms of physical geography. Historically the borders have been frequently crossed, resulting in people of Russian heritage in Ukraine and people of Ukrainian heritage in Russia.
The map, along with other resources displayed at the library, gives context to some of the unfolding events in the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
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