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The Best, Largest and Most Important Map of Beijing on the Eve of the Second World War

Extraordinary administrative wall map of Beiping (Beijing), prepared for the government of the Republic of China, and dated January 1937 (Mingou 26).

Issued in the months before the Marco Polo Bridge Incident, the Battle of Beiping-Tianjin, the opening of the Second Sino Japanese War, and the subsequent Japanese occupation of Beijing, the map is the largest and most detailed map of Beijing produced ever produced to that date.

The map was commissioned by 21st Beijing mayor Yuan Liang (袁良, 1882–1953), and published more than 10 years after the most recent large scale administrative map of Beijing, with this map being on a far larger scale, with more detail than any prior map.

First Modern Survey Map of Beijing

The map is the first map of Beijing prepared using modern triangulation survey techniques.  It is also one of the largest maps of Beijing ever made. The methodology of the triangulation is illustrated by the smaller inset map at the top right, which locates the primary tiangulation points.

The Works Bureau provides a remarkably accurate depiction of China's capital city, packed with urban, political and other information, including the naming individual street lights, historic hutongs, post boxes, fire towers, public restrooms, and an exceptional amount of other minute details.

The map reference key locates 78 types of civic markers.  

The map utilizes a traditional western contour system for showing the topographical features of the city.

The depiction of Beijing's streets, avenues and hutongs is quite extraordinary, especially the meticulous way in which the Hutongs -- traditional alleyways associated with siheyuan or traditional courtyard residences -- are meticulously incorporated.  Many of the hutongs have long since disappeared, making this an exceptional record of 'Old Beijing' on the eve of its remarkable urban transformation following World War II.  

Map History  

Survey work for the map was started under the instructions of Beijing mayor Yuan Liang and completed between Minguo 23 - 24 (1934 - 1935). Publication of the map was completed under his Yuan's successor, Song Zheyuan (宋哲元, 1885 - 1940), in late 1936, and printed in January of Minguo 26 (1937).

Published exclusively for government administrative use, by the ROC Beiping Municipal Government Works Bureau (北平市政府工务局测), the map was not offered for sale or distributed privately. 

Rarity

The only example of the map which has been located outside of China is the copy held by the University of Chicago (f 3086 111.41).

The last known example to appear on the market was in a Chinese auction in 2007, where it was acquired by the private Beijing Archives, which had reportedly been searching for a copy for more than a decade.