CHINA IN PORTUGUESE AND SPANISH HISTORICAL CARTOGRAPHY IN THE 16TH AND 17TH CENTURIES葡萄牙及西班牙歷史地圖中的中國（十六至十七世紀）
The article analyzes, in a comparative manner, the representations of "China" in Portuguese and Spanish historical cartography of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, arguing that maps not only reflected geographical knowledge but functioned as instruments of maritime power and of the management...
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| Published in: | Review of Culture |
|---|---|
| Main Author: | |
| Format: | Articles |
| Published: |
Instituto Cultural de Macau
January 2008
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.icm.gov.mo/rc/viewer/pdfViewerParts/40025/3672 |
| _version_ | 1877196270837170176 |
|---|---|
| author | Belinda Cheong Pek Wan |
| author_autocomplete | Belinda Cheong Pek Wan |
| author_browse | Belinda Cheong Pek Wan |
| author_facet | Belinda Cheong Pek Wan Belinda Cheong Pek Wan |
| author_sort | Belinda Cheong Pek Wan |
| container_title | Review of Culture |
| container_title_str | Review of Culture |
| container_volume | 25 |
| container_volume_str | 25 |
| description | The article analyzes, in a comparative manner, the representations of "China" in Portuguese and Spanish historical cartography of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, arguing that maps not only reflected geographical knowledge but functioned as instruments of maritime power and of the management of cultural and economic relations. Departing from the premise that cartographic production actively participated in networks of navigation, conquest, and administration (through circulation among explorers, courts, and chancelleries), the author employs comparative tools from the historiography of cartography to examine how different cartographic traditions shaped images of Chinese space and of the routes connecting it to Iberian ports and Asian markets.
The conclusions highlight that the cartographed "China" is frequently presented in articulation with concrete interests: maritime communication, commercial circuits, and monopoly strategies. Also evidenced are dynamics of symbolic and material reciprocity—such as the centrality of Macau in the Canton–Macao–Nagasaki routes and the instrumentalization of the value of commodities (for example, silk and silver)—which influence the manner in which the territory is drawn and understood. Thus, Iberian cartography appears as a mediation between knowledge, commerce, and imperial politics, revealing the presuppositions and objectives that structured Chinese geography in the European imagination. |
| first_indexed | 2026-09-11T02:56:54Z |
| format | Articles |
| genre | Articles |
| genre_facet | Articles |
| hierarchy_browse | Review of Culture{{{_ID_}}}zotero-coll-76L3BRGH |
| hierarchy_parent_id | zotero-coll-76L3BRGH |
| hierarchy_parent_title | Review of Culture |
| hierarchy_sequence | 0000 |
| hierarchy_top_id | zotero-coll-WX87PJHD |
| hierarchy_top_title | News |
| hierarchytype | Default |
| id | zotero-PET6Z2VL |
| institution | zotero_group |
| issn | 1682-1106 |
| last_indexed | 2026-09-11T02:56:54Z |
| latest_content_date | 2026-09-11T02:56:54Z |
| publishDate | January 2008 |
| publishDateRange | 2008 |
| publishDateSort | 2008 |
| publishPlace | Macau |
| publisher | Instituto Cultural de Macau |
| publisherStr | Instituto Cultural de Macau |
| record_format | zotero |
| spelling | CHINA IN PORTUGUESE AND SPANISH HISTORICAL CARTOGRAPHY IN THE 16TH AND 17TH CENTURIES葡萄牙及西班牙歷史地圖中的中國（十六至十七世紀） The article analyzes, in a comparative manner, the representations of "China" in Portuguese and Spanish historical cartography of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, arguing that maps not only reflected geographical knowledge but functioned as instruments of maritime power and of the management of cultural and economic relations. Departing from the premise that cartographic production actively participated in networks of navigation, conquest, and administration (through circulation among explorers, courts, and chancelleries), the author employs comparative tools from the historiography of cartography to examine how different cartographic traditions shaped images of Chinese space and of the routes connecting it to Iberian ports and Asian markets. The conclusions highlight that the cartographed "China" is frequently presented in articulation with concrete interests: maritime communication, commercial circuits, and monopoly strategies. Also evidenced are dynamics of symbolic and material reciprocity—such as the centrality of Macau in the Canton–Macao–Nagasaki routes and the instrumentalization of the value of commodities (for example, silk and silver)—which influence the manner in which the territory is drawn and understood. Thus, Iberian cartography appears as a mediation between knowledge, commerce, and imperial politics, revealing the presuppositions and objectives that structured Chinese geography in the European imagination. Instituto Cultural de Macau Macau Review of Culture Articles January 2008 Belinda Cheong Pek Wan |
| spellingShingle | CHINA IN PORTUGUESE AND SPANISH HISTORICAL CARTOGRAPHY IN THE 16TH AND 17TH CENTURIES葡萄牙及西班牙歷史地圖中的中國（十六至十七世紀） Belinda Cheong Pek Wan |
| title | CHINA IN PORTUGUESE AND SPANISH HISTORICAL CARTOGRAPHY IN THE 16TH AND 17TH CENTURIES葡萄牙及西班牙歷史地圖中的中國（十六至十七世紀） |
| title_autocomplete | CHINA IN PORTUGUESE AND SPANISH HISTORICAL CARTOGRAPHY IN THE 16TH AND 17TH CENTURIES葡萄牙及西班牙歷史地圖中的中國（十六至十七世紀） |
| title_full | CHINA IN PORTUGUESE AND SPANISH HISTORICAL CARTOGRAPHY IN THE 16TH AND 17TH CENTURIES葡萄牙及西班牙歷史地圖中的中國（十六至十七世紀） |
| title_fullStr | CHINA IN PORTUGUESE AND SPANISH HISTORICAL CARTOGRAPHY IN THE 16TH AND 17TH CENTURIES葡萄牙及西班牙歷史地圖中的中國（十六至十七世紀） |
| title_full_unstemmed | CHINA IN PORTUGUESE AND SPANISH HISTORICAL CARTOGRAPHY IN THE 16TH AND 17TH CENTURIES葡萄牙及西班牙歷史地圖中的中國（十六至十七世紀） |
| title_short | CHINA IN PORTUGUESE AND SPANISH HISTORICAL CARTOGRAPHY IN THE 16TH AND 17TH CENTURIES葡萄牙及西班牙歷史地圖中的中國（十六至十七世紀） |
| title_sort | china in portuguese and spanish historical cartography in the 16th and 17th centuries葡萄牙及西班牙歷史地圖中的中國（十六至十七世紀） |
| url | https://www.icm.gov.mo/rc/viewer/pdfViewerParts/40025/3672 |
| zotero_collection_key | 76L3BRGH |