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Map of the Asian colonial possessions of the Netherlands (Dutch East Indies), with an inset of the heights of some of the region’s mountains. A note describes the average temperature, barometer reading and magnetic declination in Batavia at the time.

Map of the Asian colonial possessions of the Netherlands (Dutch East Indies), with an inset of the heights of some of the region’s mountains. A note describes the average temperature, barometer reading and magnetic declination in Batavia at the time.

This map focuses on maritime Southeast Asia, with coastal settlements, rivers, bays, islands, straits and seas named. Shoals and reefs are marked. The only land feature is the mountains of Borneo, represented by short lines/dashes (called hachures).

This map of Asia is from the mid-19th century ‘Grosser Atlas der Erde [Great Atlas of the Earth]’ by the German publisher Albrecht Platt. It shows part of Southeast Asia, including the region’s borders with India and China.

This title of this map refers to orography (which is shown in the use of hachures, short lines/dashes that give a sense of the shape and steepness of terrain) and hydrography (which is shown in the highlighting of coastal regions, shoals and reefs).

Marine chart of the Pacific Ocean, including Southeast Asia. Small islands, shoals and reefs are marked, and often named, around the seas and straits of the region.

Map of Asia divided into regions with coloured borders. Mainland Southeast Asia is in green, and features the ancient kingdoms of Birma (Myanmar), Siam (Thailand) and An-nam (Vietnam).

Map of the East Indies in the mid-19th century, with the borders of Dutch colonial territory (Dutch East Indies) marked in brown.

Map of Asia divided into regions with coloured borders. Mainland Southeast Asia is in green, and features the ancient kingdoms of Birma (Myanmar), Siam (Thailand) and An-nam (Vietnam).

Map of the East Indies in the mid-19th century, with the borders of Dutch colonial territory (Dutch East Indies) marked in brown.

Southeast Asia is featured on the last of the four sheets of this map of Asia. The South China Sea is particularly detailed, with islands, rocks, shoals and reefs named, sometimes dated, and even marked with the name of the ship that mapped them.

Map of the East Indies, with the borders of Dutch colonial territory marked in brown. The Malay Peninsula (‘Malakka’) has green borders, indicating it is a British possession. Four inset maps show other Dutch territories outside Southeast Asia.