1402 “Kangnido” World Map

Map found on Reddit

The map above is the Kangnido (or Gangnido) map, formally known as the “Map of Historical Emperors and Kings and of Integrated Borders and Terrain”, which was made in the year 1402 by Korean cartographers in China.

It depicts both China and Korea prominently, with the map being a fusion of two Chinese-made maps made during the 14th century AD. The two maps were then obtained by a Korean ambassador in 1399.

The Kangnido map came to be when one of the map’s makers added geographical details of both Korea and Japan. The map would also have Islamic influences, especially in the names of places in Africa and the Middle East.

Despite the map being vastly different from the world maps we see today, it is nonetheless an important artifact when it comes to the Korean viewpoint of the world and the geographical knowledge that is known at the time, as well as cartography or map-making in general.

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