A richly coloured south-up map of East Asia from the Catalan Atlas, filled with cities, rulers, routes, animals, ships, and explanatory text.

1375 · Illuminated portolan atlas

East Asia in the Catalan Atlas

Abraham Cresques or his workshop

Why it matters

The atlas gives Cathay a dense visual geography of cities, routes, rulers, commerce, and marvels. Its precision and invention coexist; the map records a connected European idea of Asia rather than a neutral survey of the region.

Publication
Atlas nautique, dit Atlas Catalan
Holding institution
Bibliothèque nationale de France, Département des Manuscrits
Shelfmark
Espagnol 30, tableau 3
Rights
Public-domain work; faithful reproduction marked free of known restrictions

Cresques, Abraham, or workshop. Atlas nautique, dit Atlas Catalan, tableau 3 (East Asia). Majorca, 1375. BnF, Espagnol 30.