Between 2023 to 2025, the Institute of Chinese Studies at The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK), the École française d’Extrême-Orient, and The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology Library co-organized The Backgrounds of the Chinese Maps: Their Reading and Understanding Public Lecture Series to create new perspectives in map studies through the exchange and cooperation in this field.

Maps are most often communication tools. To enhance our understanding of their significance and use, it is important to have accurate knowledge of the stages of their mapmaking process and of their languages, including the recognition of their codification systems. It is also essential to be aware that maps are, by their very nature, never definitive. They are the result of a particular era, temporal objective, or policy goal that has inevitably changed over time. Our reading of maps must take all these elements into account, and in particular, we must avoid our modern way of looking at things, so that we do not interpret elements and representations that we no longer understand as bizarre.

Prof. Li Xiaocong from Peking University was invited to deliver the eighth lecture of the series on 19 March 2025, in Experiential Learning Space, 1/F, West Wing, Art Museum, CUHK. The lecture, titled “The Chinese Maps Collected in the Società Geografica Italiana”, featured Prof. Li presenting his new book, which focuses on the Italian Geographical Society’s collection of Chinese maps. The collection aims to catalogue Chinese maps scattered around the world, so as to foster a better understanding of these materials. More than a hundred CUHK colleagues and students, alumni, and members of the public attended the lecture either in person or via live broadcasting, fostering insightful feedback and enjoyable discussions.