Very Rare English Chart Closely Focusing on Hong Kong

JAMES IMRAY & SON. [London, 1884 [1885]]

Hong Kong/ Macao.  JAMES IMRAY & SON  [London: 1884 [1885—stamped]]  Channels to Hong-Kong and Macao.  28 1/8 x 41 ¼  (71.7 x 104.8 cm.)  Single lithographed sheet, re-mounted on new, heavy blue paper in keeping with original publication, dabs of hand color noting lighthouses, original commercial label affixed to verso, edges lined with new canvas; expertly restored, two mended splits entering a few inches into printed area bottom and left side, mends to lower corners and lower center with minor facsimilization of border areas; overall a largely unmarred, very good example of this kind. 

                                                                                       
This is one of the very few charts from the 19^th century that focuses specifically on Hong Kong and its surrounding waters that we’ve seen.  WorldCat records just a single example, that at the Library of Congress.  The chart’s central attention given to Hong Kong and its exceptional detail reflect the consolidation of the British presence there as well expansion beyond it in the decades following the end of the Second Opium in 1860.  Trade was booming in Hong Kong in the 1880s and by this time the infrastructure of British colonialism on the island was well in place. Both the islands complex coastline as well as the approaches to it are rendered in fine detail on the chart.  Further detail is provided by three inset charts along the bottom: of the waters adjacent to Hong Kong’s primary British settlement, Victoria; of Macao at left; and of the Kowloon Docks, controlled by the British from 1860.  The eastern portion of Macao Island is along the left side of the chart.  Also very well detailed are Lantau Island due east of Hong Kong and its surrounding waterways.  The chart extends south and southwest of Hong Kong to include the many small island groups in these areas.

In 1860, largely by virtue of the Treaty of Tientsin, the British gained full control over Hong Kong, secured the legalization of the opium trade and navigation rights to the Yangtze River, and were allowed a diplomatic presence in Peking, from which the British could exert political influence on China’s internal affairs.

James Imray (1803-1870) was the leading publisher of sea charts in Britain in the second half of the 19^th century. Imray's charts were prized throughout the world by both naval officers and merchant mariners for their unparalleled accuracy and the precise, elegant style of their engraving.  Imray was consistently able to source the most up to date hydrographic intelligence from the British Admiralty, as well from as commercial pilots and sea captains who had returned to Britain from overseas.  Imray was also London’s leading seller of navigational equipment as well nautical charts and sailing directions. Imray himself directly managed the chart end of the business.  Initially a bookseller and binder in Cheapside, Imray in 1836 joined with Michael Blachford, a sea chart publisher based in London. The partnership flourished and soon began to compete with the larger firm of Norie and Wilson. In 1846 Imray bought out Blachford, taking over as sole proprietor. From 1850 on, the firm traded as James Imray & Son.  Through various partnerships over the years, the company has survived to this day, now specializing in charts for yachting and fishing.

Worms/ Baynton-Williams, British Map Engravers, pp. 339-340.

Price: $5,500.00