-------- Original Message --------
Subject:        Free Chinese maps online
Date:   Wed, 30 Aug 2006 10:56:39 +0200
From:   Brendan Whyte <[log in to unmask]>
To:     [log in to unmask], [log in to unmask]



The Chinese State Bureau of Surveying and Mapping  was concerned that
over 200 Chinese map portals provided 'incorrect information'.
According to the bureau "a map is a serious thing, reflecting as it does
a country and its political life"

So to ensure only serious maps are used to reflect the Chinese political
life, it has provided free over 400 downloadable maps on its website for
public use. Maps of China are available at 14 different scales, maps of
the world in 10 scales. There are various thematic maps of regions,
agriculture, traffic, water, shipping, railways and tourist attractions.

Unfortunately the site is only in Chinese, but the index page for the
maps is at
http://map.sbsm.gov.cn:8088/mcp/index.asp

On the first page, listing the first 12 maps, scale is given using some
Chinese number symbols.
the symbol like a running man with his arms outstretched is the symbol
for 10,000
the other symbol like a drunk TZ is 100,000,000

so the first maps's scale is 1:500,000,000
the second is 380,000,000
and these first 5 maps are maps of the world (the 4 Chinese characters
in the title box say 'shi-jie di-tu' = 'world map')


[a useful thing for map libraries is to have a list of Chinese number
symbols for use by librarians & patrons. A good one is given at
http://chineseculture.about.com/library/extra/character/bls_numbers.htm    ]



Brendan