Vancouver

Vancouver’s protected views restrict development in what is already a constrained site: a peninsula surrounded by water. Vancouver officially protects views of its natural landmarks, rather than historic. These sightlines offer just a slim glimpse of the mountainous skyline on the northern shore. The careful curation of the city’s views is important to defining Vancouver’s identity as one of the world’s ‘most livable cities’. All illustrations: Tom Brigden/Purcell Architects

London

The London Building acts of 1888 and 1894 ruled that architects should not be allowed to build structures higher than roughly 10 storeys to ensure the city’s finest landmarks were not obscured. London has grown upwards since then, but still has protected views that pinwheel around historic sites such as the Palace of Westminster, the Tower of London and St Paul’s Cathedral. These sight lines influence the volume and massing of new developments, defining the edges of clusters of towers and their dividing chasms

Istanbul

Views of the water were important in Ottoman times, and over the years open views of the Golden Horn and across the Bosphorus have become traditional images of Istanbul. They remain a key part of the city’s character today, although aren’t officially protected sightlines. The controversy surrounding the proposed demolition of three ‘illegal’ apartment towers, chastised for their impact upon views of the old city, in many ways reflects the struggle between opposing visions for Turkey’s future place in the world

Dresden

The views along the green meadows by the Elbe River are Dresden’s most iconic. Although the city doesn’t have official ‘protected views’, its backdrop of medieval and baroque buildings have defined it since the 18th century. Even in Dresden’s postwar reconstruction, the ‘restoration’ of views of the city’s skyline played a part in the act of remembrance

St Petersburg

St Petersburg has long been admired for its skyline’s uniform flatness – the only things punctuating above it are steeples of churches, for example. The level was set by the height of the winter palace, and here the map shows broad, sweeping views across the river – key to St Petersburg’s identity

Rome

Admired for its topography and resulting views, Rome was perhaps the first intensively represented city – first in paintings, prints and postcards, and then in the photographs of tourists. Sweeping views of St Peter’s Basilica and the winding Tiber were influential in reimaginings of idealised classical landscapes. Mapped out here are the famous viewpoints of central Rome