Japanese Empire - Political is the resonant title that crowns J. G. Bartholomew’s 1922 rendering for The Times Atlas, a work issued by John Bartholomew & Son, Ltd. that distills a volatile era into crystalline clarity. Created for the second issue of the 1920 edition, it advances the atlas’s cartography beyond Andree’s influential 1895 foundations, refining both geographic exactitude and visual grammar. Land gleams in peach against seas of light blue, while a disciplined lattice of solid and dashed lines separates jurisdictions and traces routes of power. Shipping paths sling across the waters with measured distances, anchoring trade and strategy in figures as well as form. The result is a political portrait that is also an instrument: precise, legible, and alive to the shifting realities of the early twentieth century.

Across the Japanese home islands, Bartholomew’s meticulous eye brings together the nation’s urban dynamism and rugged physiography. Tokyo commands the Kanto plain, paired with Yokohama’s maritime bustle; Osaka and nearby Kobe dominate the Inland Sea; Nagoya steadies the Tokaido’s commercial spine. Mountain chains script the archipelago’s profile, rivers tumble from highlands to harbors, and prefectural boundaries resolve in confident tints. Maritime routes, pricked with distance numerals, arc between these ports and onward into regional seas, knitting a network of commerce and communication. The cartographic symbols—varying typefaces, calibrated point sizes, and carefully keyed icons—establish a hierarchy that guides the eye from capital to cove. A measured scale assists the mind’s travel, converting the map’s elegance into practical orientation.

To the west, the Korean Peninsula appears under the period designation “Chosen,” its political status and connective tissues rendered with Bartholomew’s signature restraint. Seoul anchors the north of the Han River basin; Busan, Incheon, Daegu, and Daejeon step down the peninsula, each linked by a web of roads and coastal passages implied by the map’s symbology. Mountain ranges sweep like a spine along the peninsula, while river systems add a crucial sense of relief and resource. Political boundaries are crisp yet unobtrusive, granting both historical context and geographic coherence. Maritime arcs carry measured distances toward Japanese and Chinese shores, underscoring Korea’s role as a hinge between islands and continent—a geography legible at a glance, yet layered enough to reward close study.

East Asia’s continental threshold is equally vivid, with parts of eastern China framed to illuminate the strategic rimlands of the Yellow and Bohai Seas. Dalian, the commanding port at the Liaodong Peninsula’s tip, lies within a web of coastal routes, while inland the great Manchurian corridors sweep toward Shenyang—marked in the era’s parlance as Mukden—and further north to Harbin. Rivers and foothills are sketched with economy, providing a tactile sense of the plains and passes that shaped trade and conflict alike. Dashed and solid linework differentiates jurisdictions and pathways, while distance-marked sea lanes stitch Dalian to Korean and Japanese coasts. In these corridors of shipping and sovereignty, the map reveals how geography and policy intertwined in a region undergoing rapid, contested transformation.

Throughout, Bartholomew’s craftsmanship and The Times’ editorial ambition meet in a refined visual language. The elegant title block—The Times’ Atlas—announces authority; the legend and scale translate beauty into utility; and the palette of blues and peach sustains clarity across dense information. Political boundaries are never mere borders: they become arguments made visible, contextualized by mountains, rivers, and the measured numerals of maritime distance. Issued in 1922, at the crossroads of imperial expansion and interwar recalibration, this map captures a world both fixed and in motion. It is at once a geographic reference and a historical artifact, a disciplined composition whose typographic poise and cartographic precision continue to illuminate the geopolitics it set out to explain.

Cities and towns on this map

• Tokyo (Capital and largest city)
• Yokohama
• Osaka
• Kobe
• Nagoya
• Seoul (Capital and largest city)
• Busan
• Incheon
• Daegu
• Daejeon
• Dalian (Strategic port city)
• Harbin (Northeast China)
• Shenyang (Formerly Mukden, important regional city)

Notable Features & Landmarks

• Political Boundaries: Clearly demarcated regions and territories within the Japanese Empire.
• Shipping Routes: Detailed maritime routes with indicated distances, crucial for navigation and trade.
• Topographical Elements: Mountains and rivers illustrated to provide physical context.
• Cartographic Symbols: Use of different symbols and labels to denote cities, provinces, and geographic features.
• Legend: A scale bar provided for understanding distances.
• Title Block: Elegant title block at the top featuring "The Times' Atlas," indicating the series' publication status.

Historical and design context

• Map Title: Japanese Empire - Political
• Creator/Publisher: Created by J.G. John George Bartholomew, published by John Bartholomew & Son, Ltd. under the auspices of The Times in 1922.
• Creation Date: 1922
• Map Background: This map is part of the second issue of the 1920 edition and represents a significant evolution in cartographic representation for The Times Atlas, building upon earlier maps by Andree from 1895.
• Themes and Topics: The map displays political boundaries, intricate shipping routes with distances, and a portion of eastern China, embedding the historical and political contexts of the early 20th century.
• Design and Style: Features a color scheme that utilizes light blues and peach tones to delineate land from water, and highlights important routes and political boundaries with solid and dashed lines.
• Historical Significance: Reflects the political landscape of the early 20th century during Japan's imperial expansion; serves as both a geographical reference and a historical artifact.

Looking for a particular place? Review the detailed images to confirm that the town, landmark or feature you have in mind appears on the map. If you are unsure, ask our workshop to check before you order.

Detailed maps are especially rewarding at larger sizes, where names, boundaries and decorative features have more room to be appreciated. Use the close-up preview and size guide to choose the right scale for your wall.

This map looks amazing at sizes all the way up to 70in (180cm). If you are looking for a larger map, please get in touch.

The model in the listing images is holding the 16x20in (40x50cm) version of this map.

Where personalisation is available, you can add a short title or dedication, mark one meaningful place, or request one considered visual detail. See personalised map examples.

Every piece is printed to museum-grade archival standards using fade-resistant pigment inks on acid-free matte paper. Choose an unframed map print, framed map or canvas using the finish options above. Framed maps use crystal-clear optical acrylic and arrive ready to hang.

With its rich detail and strong sense of place, this map makes a considered gift for a new home, anniversary, retirement or anyone with a personal connection to the area shown. Still deciding? Explore our collection of rare old and vintage maps to discover another place, period or style.

This map is also available as a float framed canvas, sometimes known as a shadow gap framed canvas or canvas floater. The map is printed on artist's cotton canvas and then stretched over a handmade box frame. We then "float" the canvas inside a wooden frame, which is available in a range of colours (black, dark brown, oak, antique gold and white). This is a wonderful way to present a map without glazing in front. See some examples of float framed canvas maps and explore the differences between my different finishes.

For something truly unique, this map is also available in "Unique 3D", our trademarked process that dramatically transforms the map so that it has a wonderful sense of depth. We combine the original map with detailed topography and elevation data, so that mountains and the terrain really "pop". For more info and examples of 3D maps, check my Unique 3D page.