Page 103 - Are You Future Ready?
P. 103
Chapter One - To Know the Present
Through the Past
Sideline
/ China’s oldest map /
There is no evidence of when the first map appeared
in China, because most of the materials used for
painting such as cloth were non-durable. The three
maps unearthed from the Mawangdui Tomb in
Hunan are some of the oldest maps that we can see
today. It is believed that the maps were drawn in the
Year 168 BC, the Western Han Dynasty, and were
used during wars.
When fighting wars, even in the ancient period, it is 101
important for a map to be accurate in scale and for it
to be clear and easy to understand. For example, the
Yellow Emperor, the leader of the ancient Chinese
tribe who defeated Chiyou (born in the Year 2717
BC), must have used a map to guide his chariots to
capitalise on advantages in the war; and Emperor Yu
who tamed the floods (estimated to be near the Year
2200 BC) was equipped with the so-called "marking-
line on the left, and the compass and square on the
right" ("marking-line", "compass and square" are the
measurement standard) to explore the geographical
environment around the Yellow River before taking
measures to mitigate the floods.
