[First Sino-Japanese War Cloth Map]

Rare textile map from the First Sino-Japanese War.

This fascinating relic of the First Sino-Japanese War (1894-1895) is emblematic of Japan’s rising territorial ambitions across eastern Asia during the late 19th century. Most of the depicted area was ostensibly under Chinese control, but its authority was wavering. The title translates approximately to “Qing Japan Map”, reinforced with the crossed imperial banners of the conflicting powers seen immediately below.

A central map shows the theater of war across southeast China, Japan, and Korea. A key in the lower center identifies the symbols used for political borders, capital cities, and critical infrastructure like canals, railways, and telegraph offices. Text boxes on either side of the image denote the distances from the Japanese city of Nagasaki to various points within the image. Nagasaki was home to a major navy base and an important source for expressing Japanese military power across the region. The aforementioned flags may be naval ensigns, emphasizing further the importance of the maritime theater to strategic success.

The First Sino-Japanese War saw an ascendant Japan easily defeat its East Asian rival, the Qing Dynasty, which had failed to appropriately modernize its military. Territorial disputes in Korea erupted into full-scale war, and the subsequent Treaty of Shimonoseki resulted in the cessation of the entire Liaodong Peninsula, Taiwan, and other territories. Japan’s victory emboldened its imperial aspirations across the region. China’s humiliating defeat exacerbated internal divisions, contributing to the Boxer Rebellion (1900) and the 1911 Revolution.