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Early map by Sebastian Münster, based on the work of 2nd century geographer Ptolemy. The Malay Peninsula—labelled ‘Aurea Chersonesus [Golden Chersonese]’—is recognisable. An illustration shows the local animals: a tiger, cockerels and a white parrot.

This 1540 map by the German cartographer Sebastian Münster (1488–1552) was based on the work of the 2nd century geographer Ptolemy. On the reverse, there is Latin text giving details of the area, including crops grown.

Early map by Lorenz Fries, based on the work of 2nd century geographer Ptolemy. The Malay Peninsula—labelled ‘Aurea Chersone [Golden Chersonese]’—is recognisable. A drawing on the reverse features cannibals with dog’s heads chopping up human bodies.

Based on the work of 2nd century geographer Ptolemy, Bernardo Silvani’s woodcut map is innovative in its use of two colours: a black background with important text added in red. The Malay Peninsula is labelled ‘Aurea Chersonesus [Golden Chersonese]’.