Oceanica

Late 19th century European colonization of the South Pacific.

This lithographed map of Australia, Oceania, and southeast Asia was published by Rand McNally in Chicago in 1882. It uses vibrant printed color to distinguish between the various European territories across the region; including areas under authority of the Dutch, United States, British, French, Portuguese and Spanish.

Native possessions are highlighted in orange and represent only a handful of scattered countries across the map, and soon even the majority of these (such as Hawaii and the Solomon Islands) would be under the influence of a Western power.