Reformatting a Traditional Image of the Qing Imperial Realm According to Modern Western Cartography

Abstract

The Göttingen State and University Library in Germany possesses the only surviving copy of a general map of the Qing empire, which until early 2014 was considered to be lost. The map is a middle-format hand-coloured block print. All the place names and other textual elements in the map are given exclusively in Chinese. The map is authored by a known Chinese scholar, Li Mingche 李明徹 (1751–1832), but is undated. Yet the time of its creation can be reliably approximated to the mid-1820s, most likely 1825–1826. The map exhibits a clear stamp of Western mapmaking, primarily that of French cartography of the eighteenth century, yet its fine fusion with the system of traditional Chinese cartographic conventions and aesthetic preferences makes it an interesting hybrid cartographic specimen. This article proposes an initial analysis of the map providing a basis for future more detailed study.