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Hachure lines are used on maps to indicate the shape and slope of land features. They convey direction and relative steepness, but not precise elevation. Hachure lines fell out of use with the adoption of contour lines in the 19th century. They are arranged in rows, with thickness indicating steepness. Hachure lines are still used for an old-fashioned look on modern maps.
A hachure is a type of line or series of lines drawn on a map to indicate the shape and slope of a land feature. These lines are capable of conveying the direction and relative steepness of a slope, but are somewhat imprecise in their ability to convey precise elevation and slope information in the way contour lines are. The term hachure comes from the French language and means “hatch” in the sense of a series of lines.
As the science of mapping progressed, cartographers struggled to convey information related to topographical features. Hachure evolved as the most popular method of expressing information about three-dimensional geographic subjects within the confines of a two-dimensional map or drawing. In the 18th and 19th centuries, this became the accepted convention for representing slope and contour on maps. Hachure lines fell out of use and into common use with the adoption of contour lines by cartographers in the mid to late 19th century, due to the latter’s ability to convey more exact slope and slope information. the elevation of the terrain features.
To describe a slope, lines of hachure are drawn running down the slope. They can be seen as drawn from the top of a hill downwards. The length of the lines conveys the horizontal distance the slope travels, and the density of the lines can provide information about the slope. Many hachure lines drawn very close together show a steep slope, while fewer lines are used to represent a shallow slope.
Several rules for hachures have evolved among cartographers to ensure consistency in their use and interpretation. In addition to the length and frequency of the lines, their thickness also conveys steepness. Thicker or darker lines indicate a steeper slope, while thinner or lighter lines indicate a gentler or shallower slope. Hachure lines are arranged in rows, the distance between them is constant, and all lines on a given row are the same length.
A line joining hachure lines at the rising end may also denote the outline of the particular terrain feature. Several sets of hachure lines drawn in this way can show the shape of a hill and the relative steepness of its slopes. This information, however, is inaccurate and can be interpreted in different ways by different viewers. Contour lines eventually supplanted hachure lines in map making as a much more accurate way to indicate slope, contour, and elevation, and are used almost exclusively on modern maps, although hachure lines are still sometimes used to give to a map an old-fashioned or historic look.
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