The Mo Yi Tong Map or 'Zheng He Map' was purchased from a Shanghai dealer in 2001 by a Chinese lawyer; Liu Gang; for US$500.

Despite initial claims that the map was based on an earlier 1418 map drawn after the observations of Zheng He; the Ma Yi Tong map has been generally discredited as an 18th century forgery.

This analysis is based on the use of several modern Chinese characters; as well as the extensive mapping of Australia; North America and even Antartica; as well as the representation of California as an island which seems to have been copied from 17th century French cartographers.

Finally; China was always represented as the centre of the world in Chinese cartography until the ground-breaking 'Selden Map'; c. 1624 CE (see CPA0022438). Pictures From History