The Dawn framing camera (FC) acquired about 2500 clear filter images of Vesta with a resolution of about 70m/pixels during the High Altitude Mapping Orbit (HAMO) in fall 2011. We ortho-rectified these images and produced a global high resolution controlled mosaic of Vesta. This global mosaic is the baseline for a high resolution Vesta atlas that consists of 15 tiles mapped at a scale of 1:500,000. The nomenclature used in this atlas was proposed by the Dawn team and was approved by the International Astronomical Union (IAU). The whole atlas is available to the public through the Dawn GIS web page http://dawn_gis.dlr.de/atlas. ► The first controlled high resolution mosaic of Vesta was created using camera data from the high altitude mapping orbit. ► The first atlas of Vesta was created. ► The nomenclature for surface features was approved by the IAU.