The World on Maps and Charts

The ocean has always been an important
gateway, and throughout the ages both
China and the West have devoted
themselves to maritime and cartographic
activities. Documents on astronomy and geography existed as early as the pre-Qin period in China. The Zheng He Hanghai Tu (Zheng He Navigation Chart) of the Ming dynasty depicted a maritime route that went from Nanjing in China, to the east coast of Africa. We may infer that as early as the Ming dynasty, the Chinese travelled to Africa and drew detailed charts of their routes.

This map is included in Sebastian Munster’s sixteenth century best seller Geographia and Cosmographia. This is the first map to show the complete outline of Africa based on the work of Ptolemy as well as information provided chiefly by contemporary Portuguese and Arab sources. The interior of the continent is illustrated with an elephant and parrots on trees in South Africa.

Among the different cosmological theories of
ancient China, the Theory of Canopy-Heaven
which emphasizes the “spherical heaven and
square earth” was the most influential and
prevented the traditional Chinese map from
correctly depicting the curved surface of the
earth on the flat map.

Possibly traded for the Islamic markets in Southeast Asia market, the centre of this bowl has a Chinese compass with the characters 'taiji' (Supreme Ultimate). Surrounding are images of a Galleon ship, a long-tailed fish, distant islands, stars and constellations around, with the 'I Ching hexagrams' on the rim.

This map represents the Chinese understanding of the world in the late Ming dynasty. The Ming Empire is depicted as the centre of the world with Europe, Africa, and America as tiny remote places in the ocean. This is an expression of the Chinese attitude of the era that China was superior to other countries. The map was also widely reproduced in Japan.

In about the eighth century, science, astronomy and maritime ventures in the Islamic world developed rapidly to the point where even observatories were built. Much of the Islamic knowledge of the world and cartography spread to China during the Yuan dynasty in the 13th and 14th centuries. In this Arabic Circular World Map, The Chinese Empire can be seen in the east, next to India.

One side of this Islamic quadrant is marked with an astrolabic quadrant, the other with a sinical quadrant for astronomical calculations and telling the time. It would have been used in relation to timing prayers and religious festivals

Original by Matteo Ricci in 1602; reproduced in Japan, c. mid 17th century.
When Western missionaries came to China in the Ming and Qing dynasties, they brought with them not only their religion but also scientific knowledge. Italian missionary Matteo Ricci arrived in Macau in 1582 and started his ministry there. In 1602, he presented the Ming Emperor Wanli with a map called the Kunyu Wanguo Quantu (Complete Map of All Nations on Earth), which came to have a profound influence.

It demonstrated to the Chinese people the vastness of the world and the position of China on earth. Many of the Chinese scholars were deeply interested in Western maps and knowledge.

In 1674, Ferdinand Verbiest presented the Kangxi Emperor with a world map known as the Kunyu Quantu (Complete Map of the World), where China was on the fifth page as the centre of the world. There are many annotations on the map, as well as illustrations of animals, monsters and sailboats.

One major goal in reviving the Huidian Guan (Statutes Commission) in the Qing Guangxu Period was to standardise cartography across all provinces, based on the longitude and latitude system. It was not until 1899 that the maps were completed and compiled in the Daqing Huidian (Collected Statutes of the Great Qing). One such map is the Daqing Huangyu Quantu (The Imperial Atlas of China), using a conical projection and with Beijing set as the prime meridian. This can be said to be the first complete map of China in the mathematical cartographic tradition made without foreign aid.

This map is taken from English navigator Sir Robert Dudley's atlas, one of the most important atlases made in the 17th century using the Mercator projection. It depicts the southern portion of China, and includes Guangzhou, Macau and Hainan Island, as well as northern Vietnam and the Pratas Islands.

A re-engraving including an English translation of a French map of 1735 by J. B. B. d'Anville, an enterprising early effort to chart the whole of the Pearl River passage rather than Canton alone. The map shows the Pearl River estuary and islands to the south, including Macau, Lantau and Canton. Landmarks such as forts, pagodas and the sepulchre of St. Francis Xavier are identified.

This coastal defence and navigation chart of Fujian and Guangdong areas shows the details of the Pearl River Delta. Coastal charts had been made since the Ming dynasty to oppose invasions by pirates. Various navigation information is shown, including wind shelters used by ships, and there is an annotation that the waters between Kowloon and Hung Heong Loo (Hong Kong Island) are nine zhang deep (ninety Chinese feet, or approximately thirty metres), hence suitable for boats to be moored in this area while sheltering from the wind.

This map of Xinan County closely resembles Simeone Volonteri's earlier map, which makes it likely that it was used as the basis for this. Notable features include the greater than usual number of place names on Lantau Island, the red-colouring-in of the area denoting British-occupied territory, and the depiction of sea routes from Hong Kong to Macau, Guangzhou, Tianjin, Southeast Asia and San Francisco. A map of Guangzhou is included as an inset in the bottom right corner.

In 1841, Captain Sir Edward Belcher, Commander of HMS Sulphur, conducted a hydrographic survey of Hong Kong waters and made detailed and accurate nautical charts from the data he collected. His maps were extensively adopted and printed in various editions. Belcher’s Street and Belcher Bay were named after the admiral. The survey drawings that the British administration made later further revealed the history, land use and economic development of Hong Kong.

This chart shows the Hong Kong Island, Lamma, nearby islands, and Kowloon Bay. It was copied from the 1845 or 1846 Admiralty edition of Belcher’s chart.