Large folding map of China in printed colour with great interior detail and the marking the railways.


This map must have been an ever popular item in Stanford's inventory as it was issued in multiple editions in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. However, as was usual with Stanford's firm, it was updated and revised on each printing.


In its earlier iterations, the nomenclature referred to the "Chinese Empire" on the body of the map, yet, by the early 20th century, this had been changed to "Chinese Repub" noting the change of status of the country in 1912.


The other feature of note is the explosion of railway development in a relatively short period which is recorded on separate editions of the map. On this example, while many of the routes are still in development, as noted by their illustration with broken lines rather than continuous, there are already several important inland connections; especially those between Peking (Beijing) and Hankow (now part of Wuhan) and Peking (Beijing) and Shanghai. Of particular note are the international routes between the southwest of China, (Yunnan) and Vietnam as well as a projected railway route connecting the northeast of Myanmar (Burma) together with the southwest of China. This route although projected, is now being built by the Chinese government with a slight variation; it is known as the Dali-Ruili Railway and scheduled to open in 2022.


Printed colour. [Folded] [SEAS5102]