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This late 19th century map shows the disputed border region between Siam (Thailand, Laos) and Tongkin (Vietnam), with the border claimed by Siam highlighted in yellow. Provinces along the border are labelled with the names of their local tribes.

Map highlighting areas of eastern Siam (Thailand) claimed by France. Notes describe Siam’s geography, government, population, military and trade (rice, teak, pepper, bullocks, fish, hides, tin, cardamom, tin), including trading partners by tonnage.

Topographical map of mainland Southeast Asia. Mountains are represented by hachures—short lines/dashes that give a sense of the shape and steepness of terrain—and settlements, roads and rivers are marked.

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

This map of Asia is from ‘Stieler’s Schul-Atlas’, a version of ‘Stielers Handatlas’ that was used widely in German schools in the 19th century.

This map of Asia is from ‘Stieler’s Schul-Atlas’, a version of ‘Stielers Handatlas’ that was used widely in German schools in the 19th century.

A nautical chart of the Indian Ocean showing bathymetry (sea depth), including in great detail around the seas and straits of Southeast Asia.

Map of the Kingdom of Siam, featuring mountains, rivers and villages, and surrounded by a yellow border (the border with Upper Burma and China in the north is undefined). The southern part of Siam is shown on an inset map of the Malay Peninsula.

On this map of Southeast Asia, numerous small islands, shoals and reefs are marked and named, especially in the South China Sea and around the Sunda and Maluku islands. Submarine cables to carry telegraph messages around the region are also shown.

Map showing the French protectorate territories of mainland Southeast Asia: Annam, Tongking and French Cochin China (modern Vietnam) and Cambodia. Some parts of Siam (Thailand) and Laos are also shown.

This 1883 map shows European colonial territories in Southeast Asia. An inset map details the proposed French annexation of Tonquin, Annam and Cochin China (modern Vietnam). International telegraph lines are also marked.

A map charting the effects of the 1883 Krakatoa volcanic eruption: a red circle where the eruption was heard; black lines showing the hourly spread of the resulting waves; and a list of ships on which ash fell, or that encountered pumice (with date).