Here, you can follow in the footsteps of the Dutch traveler Johan Nieuhof (1618-1672) on his journey to Beijing from 1655 to 1657.

The featured map comes from Nieuhof’s book An Embassy from the East-India Company of the United Provinces (1669). The first Dutch embassy to China was a two-year travel endeavor with the expectation of meeting the Qing Emperor and establishing trade deals on behalf of the Dutch East India Company. Accompanying the embassy, Nieuhof kept a detailed travel account with numerous notes and drawings. His notes were later published in Dutch, English, and other languages. The book generated significant public interest in 17th-century Europe as it provided a rare firsthand visual account of the culture and land of China.

The map was based on Nieuhof's manuscript map. Each stop along the route is labeled, but the rest of the map lacks detailed and accurate geographic information. For example, Macao (labeled Makao) appears as an island far from the continental coast. The map is decorated with animals at various locations, perhaps to cater to the curiosity of European readers about exotic animals of the Far East.