Plan of Shanghai by Charles Harpur for North China Daily News & Herald 1928 map
£4,060
SKU: P-7-028162
Plan of Shanghai [Map of Shanghai Supplement to the North-China Desk Hong List. Shanghai: North-China Daily News & Herald Ltd.]
A rare early printing of this important, finely detailed and impressively large city plan of Shanghai, issued at the outset of the city’s golden age following its separation from Jiangsu and elevation to Special Municipality in 1927, the year preceding publication of this map. Apart from the North China Daily News & Herald imprint, this example corresponds to that issued directly by the Shanghai Municipal Council (also dated 21 April 1928); both versions were printed in London by Edward Stanford. The French and International Settlements are delineated in hand-coloured outline (brown and pink), with their respective areas calculated in both mou and acres. A printed note records: “The Pootung shore is taken from surveys by the Whangpoo Conservancy Board. The French Settlement is taken from surveys by the French Municipal Council.” The Huangpu (Whangpoo) River sweeps prominently through the composition, dividing the foreign concessions from Pootung (Pudong) to the east. Street and building names are densely recorded along the Bund and the banks of Soochow Creek, while the mapping extends into the surrounding rural hinterland. The “Chinese City” (Old City), Chapei (Zhabei), and neighbouring districts are clearly identified. The map bears the printed signature of Charles Harpur, Commissioner of Public Works, a long-serving municipal engineer responsible for extensive civic improvements and appointed OBE in the 1929 New Year Honours “for services in connection with the Shanghai Defence Force” — possibly encompassing oversight of works such as this plan. A historically resonant and visually impressive document of Shanghai at a pivotal moment in its modern transformation.
Size 64 x 114 cm | 25.0 x 45.0 inches
Date Published: 21st April 1928
Type: Large folding colour antique city plan
Author: Harpur, Charles
Publication: Plan of Shanghai
Condition: Good |
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