Earliest Reference To Map From The Qin Dynasty
Qín or Ch'in (Wade-Giles) (秦), (778 BC-207 BC) was a state during the Spring and Autumn and Warring States Periods of China. It eventually grew to dominate the country and unite it for the first time, after which it is referred to as the Qin Dynasty. The surname of its rulers was Ying (嬴).
The earliest reference of a map in China history can be found in Shiji, Volume 86, “Jingke Biography”. This was the event of 227 BC where Crown Prince Dan of Yan had his assassin Jing Ke visit the court of the ruler of the State of Qin, who would become Qin Shi Huang (r. 221–210 BC). Jing Ke was to present the ruler of Qin with a district map painted on a silk scroll, rolled up and held in a case where he hid his assassin's dagger. Handing to him the map of the designated territory was the first diplomatic act of submitting that district to Qin rule. Instead he attempted to kill Qin, an assassination plot that failed. From then on maps are frequently mentioned in Chinese sources.
Read more about this topic: Early Chinese Cartography
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