A rarely viewed world map compiled in 1602 by Jesuit missionary to China, Matteo Ricci, has gone on display at the Library of Congress in Washington, DC.

The 400-year-old map, which will be on display from Jan. 12 to April 10, is being shown publicly for the first time in North America. Measuring 12 feet by 5 feet and printed on six rolls of rice paper, the map identifies Florida as “the Land of Flowers” and puts China at the center of the world. It also includes pictures and annotations describing different regions of the world; Africa is noted to have the world’s highest mountain and longest river. The description of North America is brief with mentions of “humped oxen” or bison, wild horses and a region named “Ka-na-ta.”

A Jesuit missionary from Italy, Ricci was the first Westerner to visit what is now Beijing in the late 1500s. Known for introducing Western science to China, Ricci created the map at the request of Emperor Wanli.

This map – one of only two in good condition – was purchased by the James Ford Bell Trust in October for $1 million, making it the second most expensive rare map ever sold.  After the three-month display, the Library of Congress Geography and Map Division will digitally scan the 1602 document and make the electronic image available to scholars and students for research.

To read the full story, please visit: On This Rare Map, China Is the Center of the World (ABC News)

Links:

Library of Congress

James Ford Bell Library

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