An Illustrated General Survey of the Three Countries Map By Hayashi Shihei in 1785

In 1785 Hayashi Shihei made the Illustrated General Survey of the Three Countries. This book was translated into French by Heinrich Klaproth in 1832 and then it became widely used in Europe as a guide to Northeast Asia. The Illustrated General Survey of the Three Countries was used to show how close the Japanese were from her potential enemies. On two of the five maps attached to the book there appear Ulluengdo and the small island next but unnamed apparently, Dokdo. Some Japanese assert the island next to Ulleungdo is the small rock called Jukdo Islet next to Ulleungdo. However it is not plausible Hayashi Shihei omitted Dokdo and included an insignificant rock on a map of Northeast Asia because it lacks such scale and detail.


Map of Three Adjoining Countries, by Hayashi Shihei (1785)

The Map of Three Adjoining countries drawn in 1785 was drawn to illustrate the close proximity of Japan´s enemies.


Close-up of Hayashi's Map

The close up of Ulleungdo and Dokdo reads ¡°ðÈàØ«Îò¥«Ë¡± meaning "Chosun´s Possessions".

A significant attribute of this map is the color-coding that leaves no doubt as to which country holds claim to each territory. From this map it¡¯s clear that Oki Island is the Northwest limit of Japan. Hyashi writes under the islands "Korea´s Possessions" We can also see the Japanese text stating that viewing Korea from here is the same as viewing Shimane from Oki Island. This is a similar to the earlier document written by Saito Hosen ̸ÍÔÕòë¢ê£ñ¶ØÐëßñ¶ (link) a quote that was said to define Japan´s boundaries a century earlier. Because this passage is written on map used to illustrate territorial limits, we can assume its inclusion of it was to remind readers that Oki Island was the Northwestern boundary of Japan.





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