[WORLD MAP] Bankokushnghizu

Japan : (Meiji 14) [1881]. Handcoloured copperplate print, 990 x 700 mm, folding to 130 x 180 mm, some silverfishing and creases with some splitting, both repaired with Japanese tissue.

A map of the world on Mercator’s projection by Japanese cartographer Yamanaka Zensaburo. Obviously derived from European sources, it shows the voyages of famous explorers and popular trade routes. Lower panels show flags of the world, small maps of the eastern and western hemispheres, comparisons of the world’s longest rivers and tallest mountains, and distances tables. Unusually titled in rōmaji (roman letters).