Hong Kong香港

Curatorial Note

Hong Kong’s cartographic tradition is deeply tied to its unique status as a global city and former British colony. While the region has long been mapped for administrative and military purposes, the compilation of a dedicated national atlas—a comprehensive, thematic volume—emerged relatively late, reflecting its evolving identity. The single atlas in this collection, published in 1991 by Hai Feng Publishing, marks a pivotal moment. It was created during a transitional period, just years before the handover of sovereignty, and thus captures a self-conscious effort to document the territory’s physical and human geography in a systematic, state-sanctioned manner. The atlas’s editorial style follows a conventional national atlas framework: thematic sections on topography, climate, population, economy, and urban development, with detailed maps and statistical data. Notably, it was produced in Chinese, signaling a local readership and a cultural alignment with the mainland, even as the political future remained uncertain. This work stands as a rare, comprehensive snapshot of Hong Kong at the end of its colonial era, offering a baseline for later studies of urban change and regional integration. Its legacy lies in its role as a reference point—both for scholars examining pre-handover Hong Kong and for cartographers assessing how national atlases adapt to non-sovereign territories. Though no subsequent editions followed, its 1991 publication remains a touchstone for understanding the city’s spatial self-perception at a critical historical juncture.