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The Straits Settlements are in red, with the rest of the map marked with names of local peoples (‘Inhabited by the Johor Jakuns’) and resources (mines). Many areas are left blank or vague as unexplored or approximate. Inset map of Singapore city.

Map of East Asia, with British colonial possessions—Burma, Straits Settlements, Labuan and British North Borneo—highlighted with red borders. There is also an inset map of the Red River (Hong River) running through Hanoi, Vietnam.

Two maritime routes—for use during the North-east and ‘fair’ monsoons—are shown on this late 19th century navigation map. The routes lead north through Southeast Asia, passing the Philippines, and ending in Hong Kong. Bathymetry (sea depth) is shown.

Produced by the British Admiralty’s Hydrographic Office, this map includes various navigational aids, such as maritime routes, bathymetry (sea depth), tide and current data, and elevations (side views of hills and mountains to use as landmarks).

A late 19th century map of the town of Malacca and its surrounding area, including jungles, forests, mountains, rivers, roads, villages, tapioca estates and factories, and police stations. There is even a leper hospital on an island off the coast.

This late 19th century map of Southeast Asia shows the best maritime routes around the region, according to the time of year. There are also inset maps highlighting the rivers and southern islands of Singapore, and the sea depth around Labuan Island.

Small notes on this map of Burmah (Myanmar) describe mines, crops and products produced, names of local tribes etc. e.g.: ‘a passage to Rangoon in the wet season’, ‘Ship of 400 tons built here’, ‘Alompra’s birth place’, ‘Gold dust in the streams’.

Two maps of the Dutch East Indies, decorated with drawings of local people and animals. Dutch colonial territory and local sultanates and provinces are highlighted. The heights of Java’s mountains and settlements are displayed in an elevation view.

Designed to aid navigation around the western Java Sea, this map features bathymetry (sea depth), current and tide data, and is marked with shoals, reefs and other hazards. Written notes add details at specific locations (e.g. ‘heavy tide rips’).

To aid navigation, this map shows small islands, shoals and reefs, maritime routes for use during monsoons or at particular times of the year, bathymetry (sea depth), tide information, shipwrecks, compass roses and landmark mountains at the coasts.

Navigation map of the Celebes Sea, Makassar Strait and Java Sea, with bathymetry (sea depth), maritime routes, shoals and reefs, and landmark coastal mountains to aid navigation. On two sheets, which may not be from the same original map.

Map of Asia on four sheets, with Southeast Asia on sheet four. British colonial territory—British Burma, the Straits Settlements, Sarawak—is highlighted in red, with the Dutch East Indies, Spanish Philippines and Portuguese East Timor also shown.