The conservation of the Selden Map and its display at the Hong Kong Maritime Museum

Conference item

The Selden Map of China arrived at the Bodleian Library in 1659 and remained largely unknown until recognition of its historical significance in 2008 gave impetus for its conservation. Its conservation has not only assured the preservation of a unique and important manuscript map, but also enabled it to be studied by scholars and widely displayed to the public, including its presentation in 2014 as the centrepiece of the Hong Kong Maritime Museum’s exhibition Mapping Ming China’s Maritime World: The Selden Map and Treasures from the University of Oxford. A number of published articles and books devoted to the Selden Map, along with its display in Oxford and Hong Kong, have offered scholars and the public an opportunity to view the map in detail. This international symposium offers the chance for further discussion of its importance and wider significance in the context of research into maritime trades, seafaring, and underwater archaeology of the Ming Dynasty. This essay presents an overview of the map’s conservation and subsequent display, emphasising how important discoveries made during its treatment have been key in the understanding of the map and its construction, adding to scholarly research of cartography and map making at the end of the Ming Dynasty.

Authors: Minte, R; Stiglitz, M

• Publication status: Published
• Peer review status: Reviewed (other)
• Publisher: Hong Kong Maritime Museum Limited
• Host title: New research into the maritime trades, seafaring and underwater archaeology of the Ming dynasty: Hong Kong Maritime Museum international symposium proceedings
• Journal: Hong Kong Maritime Museum International Symposium Proceedings
• Volume: 2
• Pages: 421-438
• Publication date: 2014-06-11
• Acceptance date: 2014-06-07
• Event location: Hong Kong Maritime Museum
• ISBN: 9789888366569
• Keywords: SBTMR