1853 Dépôt de la Marine Nautical Map of the Coast of China: Hong Kong / Macau

This is an 1853 French Dépôt de la Marine nautical chart or map of the coast of China from Hainan to Nan'ao Island (Namao), including Macao, Hong Kong, and Guangzhou (Canton). Depth soundings line the coast, providing mariners with some understanding of these waters. Depth soundings fill the Pearl River Delta (Zhujiang River Estuary), and several anchorages within the estuary are noted. Bays and points along the coast are illustrated and labeled, along with numerous coastal islands.

Some Historical Context - French Trade with China

Guangzhou (then known as Canton) had been a center for international trade for over 1,000 years by the time this chart was published. From 1700 until 1842 (when the British signed the Treaty of Nanking), a trading system called the 'Canton system' arose in China and focused on the Pearl River Delta and the city of Canton. All foreign trade was restricted to Canton until the Treaty of Nanking, which created five open treaty ports (Shanghai, Canton (Guangzhou), Ningpo (Ningbo), Foochow (Fuzhou), and Amoy (Xiamen)) and ceded Hong Kong to the British Empire. On October 24, 1844, France signed the Treaty of Whampoa with the Chinese, which stipulated that China would grant to France the same privileges it granted to Britain in the 1842 Treaty of Nanking, including the opening of the five treaty ports to French merchants, a fixed tariff on Sino-French trade, extraterritorial privileges for French citizens in China, and as part of the treaty, France could station consuls in China. The first French Catholic charity was founded in 1843 and French missionaries were active in China. This chart, published between the First and Second Opium Wars, focuses on Canton and the surrounding region, underscoring the city's continued importance to French traders.

Publication History and Census

This map was created by Ferdinand Antoine Jules de la Roche-Poincié and published by the French Dépôt de la Marine in 1853 during the Second French Empire. An empty OCLC record exists for this map, suggesting that a former OCLC member institution created the entry.