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TR2001-49
September 2001
Abstract
The origins of chart graphics (e.g., bar charts and line charts) are well known, with the seminal
event being the publication of William Playfairs (1759-1823) The Commercial and Political
Atlas in London in 1786. However, the origins of graph drawing are not well known. Although
Euler (1707-1783) is credited with originating graph theory in 1736, graph drawings were in
limited use centuries before Eulers time. Moreover, Euler himself does not appear to have made
significant use of graph visualizations. Widespread use of graph drawing did not begin until
decades later, when it arose in several distinct contexts. In this short note we present a selection
of very early graph drawings; note the apparent absence of graph visualization in Eulers work;
and identify some early innovators of modern graph drawing.
Proc. of Graph Drawing 2001 (Springer LNCS, Vol. 2265), pp. 272-286.
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c Mitsubishi Electric Research Laboratories, Inc., 2001
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