Rare Joseon-era world atlas from 18th century to be auctioned in UK

Five rare Korean maps from the 18th-century atlas "Cheonhado" (Atlas of the World), once owned by a former New Zealand ambassador to Seoul, will go under the hammer in the U.K. Tuesday, offering a rare glimpse into premodern Korean cartography and worldviews. The hand-crafted maps — part of the private collection of Patricia (1920-2010) and Denis Dunlop (1917-2012) — will be featured in Woolley & Wallis auction house's "Japanese & Korean Works of Art" sale under the name of "Ch’onha Chido." The lot's estimate is between 2,000 and 3,000 British pounds ($2,675.21 to $4,012.81). Created during the late Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910), the "Cheonhado," also known as "Cheonhajido," was a Korea-centered atlas that typically featured a world map, maps of Korea’s eight provinces and depictions of neighboring regions such as China, Japan and the Ryukyu Islands (now Japan's Okinawa Prefecture). It was produced mainly for administrative training, military planning and ceremonial purposes. The five pieces to be auctioned are presumed to be part of a once-complete atlas. "Crafted entirely by handWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Korea Times Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Korea Times