[Title in Chinese - General map of China]

Chromo lithographed map of China prepared by Pêre S. Chevalier and published by Hong-pao-tchai, Shanghai. With 3 colored insets and several index and key tables. The title in top with text (23 cm height).
Showing rail road system, the Great Wall, with French names.
Bottom left of the map, a miniature world map with China in the center. The Chinese note accompanying the map indicates that Emperor Kangxi in the 47th year of his reign sent missionaries Joachim Bouvet (白 晉, 1656-1730), Jean-Baptiste Régis (雷孝思, 1663-1738) for to realize "the map of the ten mile stretch".
This one was realized a year later. The Emperor was satisfied. He sent again the missionaries Guillaume Bonjour (潘 如, 1670-1714), Jean-Baptiste Régis, Pierre Jartoux (杜德 美, 1668-1720) and Jean-François Cardoso (麥 大成, 1676-1723) in order to draw the maps of Mongolia and Manchuria, provinces Zhili (直隸), under direct administration, and that of Shandong (山東).
In the 50th year of his reign, Emperor Kangxi (康熙) ordered the missionaries to travel through the 13 provinces to make the maps.
Jean-François Cardoso and Pierre-Vincent de Tartre (湯尚賢 1669-1724) are in charge of the provinces of Shaanxi (陜西), Shanxi (山西), Jiangxi (江西), Guangdong (廣東) and Guangxi (廣西). Joseph-Francois-Marie-Anne of Moyriac de Maille (馮秉正, 1669-1748) and Romanus Hinderer (德瑪諾, 1668-1744) are responsible for the provinces of Henan (河南), Zhejiang (浙江), Fujian (福建) , Jiangnan (江南). Xavier Fridelli (費 隱, 1673-1743) and William Hello go to the provinces of Yunnan (雲南), Sichuan (四川), Guezhou (貴州) and Huguan (湖廣).

Four years later, the preparatory work and the surveys are completed and the missionaries gathered in Beijing to draw the maps. The work was completed in two years.

The missionaries then submit a map of the fifteen provinces to the Emperor who satisfied with the work rewarded the missionaries. The note goes on to say that Westerners have used these maps, but that a few centuries later, changes in the administrative division of the provinces necessitated revising the map.

The author of this map, Stanislas Chevalier, reports that he has undertaken to update and correct all the errors on the map.
He also added the routes to the seaports. This long note is dated in Chinese 光緒 癸巳 (guang xu gui si, 19th year of the reign of Guangxu corresponding to the year 1893)