209 - China - YANGTZE RIVER. Xia Jiang Tu Kao. ???? [Cartographic Study of the River of the Gorges]. [China], [late 19th or early 20th century].

China - YANGTZE RIVER. Xia Jiang Tu Kao. ???? [Cartographic Study of the River of the Gorges]. [China], [late 19th or early 20th century]. 2 vols., oblong 8vo (195 x 245 mm), bound in the Chinese style, blue paper covers, printed title labels (the one for the second volume is missing), in a blue cloth slipcase with fasteners (broken). Vol. I: [9] pp. (title and text), (53) pp. of engraved views, [4] pp. of text; Vol. II: [7] pp. (title and text), (44) pp. of engraved views, (7) pp. of text. Some foxing. Some handwritten translations in pencil in French. Some minor wear to the covers. An important Chinese river atlas, illustrated with 97 engraved views, devoted to navigation on the upper Yangtze River, particularly between Yichang and Chongqing. The panoramic views depict the river’s winding course through the mountains, with its gorges, rapids, rocks, villages, and riverside settlements. They are accompanied by numerous topographical and nautical notes in Chinese characters. Tables list the navigational difficulties, distances, and distinctive features of the various stretches. A valuable testament to traditional Chinese river cartography, this atlas documents a major transportation route between inland China and the regions open to international trade in the late 19th century. Included is an old French bibliographic entry suggesting a date of around 1875, based on Yichang’s opening to international trade in 1877 and the depiction of a steamboat. It is more likely that this edition was published in Shanghai by Xiuhai Shanfang in 1901, based on a text compiled in 1889 by Guozhang (1839–1900).