1874 Sudo Manuscript Map of the Tribes of Southern Taiwan / Formosa

Part of Sudo Collection. Not sold Separately: Click here for full collection.

This is by far the most enigmatic and elusive of the Sudo 1874 series. The map is laid down on the framework established by the previous map, which is based upon the American Counsel to Qing Formosa, William (Guillaum) Joseph Émile Le Gendre's (1830 - 1899) influential his 1872 Southern Formosa. This, however, is where resemblances to Le Gendre's 1872 work end. The remainder of the work is completed in a wholly Japanese style, with topography rendered pictorially and place names embraced in yellow cartouches. The map breaks down the tribal peoples of Southern Taiwan and is likely based upon a combination of Le Gendre's 1868 'Rover Map' (which was prepared to illustrate the failed American 1868 Punitive Expedition to the same area) and new Japanese reconnaissance compiled under the orders of Saigō Tsugumichi. That the map mentions the Battle of Stone Gate (May 22, 1874), the only significant military engagement during of the Taiwan Punitive Expedition, is a strong indication that it must have been compiled from Japanese information assembled after the invasion.