Pictured: The 400-year-old map that shows China as the centre of the world




A rare 17th Century map that shows China as the as the centre of the world went on display yesterday in Washington.

The map, created in 1602 by Italian Jesuit missionary Matteo Ricci, was the first in Chinese to show the Americas, and identifies Florida as 'the Land of Flowers'.



The 12ft by 5ft document, printed on six rolls of rice paper, is on show at the Library of Congress. It is one of only two copies in existence in good condition, and was coined 'the impossible black tulip of cartography' by experts strugging to track it down.

Rare: The 17th Century Ricci Map. 1: China - 2: India - 3: Russia - 4: Europe - 5: Japan - 6: Canada - 7: US - 8: South America - 9: Africa - 10: Middle East

The map includes drawings and annotations detailing different regions of the world. Africa was noted to have the world's highest mountain and longest river, while a brief description of North America describes 'humped oxen', wild horses and a region named 'Ka-na-ta'.



Several Central and South American places are also named, including 'Wa-ti-ma-la' (Guatemala), 'Yu-ho-t'ang' (Yucatan) and 'Chih-Li' (Chile).

Ricci also included a brief description of the discovery of the Americas: 'In olden days, nobody had ever known that there were such places as North and South America or Magellanica,' he wrote, citing a name that early mapmakers used for Australia and Antarctica.



'But a hundred years ago, Europeans came sailing in their ships to parts of the sea coast, and so discovered them.'

Historic: The document, printed on six rolls of delicate rice paper, is one of only two copies in existence in good condition. It is on show alongside the Waldseemuller world map - the first to use the name 'America'

Ti Bin Zhang of the Chinese Embassy in Washington called the map a 'catalyst for commerce', and that it represented the momentous first meeting of East and West.



Ricci was among the first Westerners to live in what is now Beijing. Known for introducing Western science to China, Ricci created the map at the request of Emperor Wanli.



No examples of the map are known to exist in China, where Ricci was revered and buried. Only a few original copies are known to exist, held by the Vatican's libraries and collectors in France and Japan.

Catalyst for commerce: The map is thought to represent the momentous first meeting of East and West

The copy on display at the Library of Congress became the second most expensive rare map ever sold after it was purchased by the James Ford Bell Trust in October for $1million.



The trust also owns the Waldseemuller world map, which was the first to use the name 'America' and was purchased for a staggering $10 million in 2003.



Prior to its sale, the Ricci map had been held by a private collector in Japan. When the Washington exhibition ends in April, it will be housed at the Bell Library at the University of Minnesota.

