Hong Kong and New Territories is the original title of this authoritative 1970 chart, compiled by the U.K. Ministry of Defence from field surveys of 1957 and 1968–69. Conceived at a moment when Hong Kong’s landscapes were being remapped by rapid growth and strategic planning, it marries military precision with metropolitan detail. The sheet ranges from the serrated uplands guarding Victoria Harbour to the reaches of the New Territories, capturing coastlines, islands, and straits in crisp delineation. Its scarcity today stems from its planning pedigree: a scarce, working reference that documented built-up districts, active construction, and the terrain that constrained and channeled development. Color-coded topography, a disciplined grid, and lucid symbology turn a crowded, vertical city into a legible field of operations.

Behind it stands the Ministry of Defence’s postwar cartographic tradition—methodical, survey-driven, and designed to serve both command and civil authorities. The late 1960s were a period when Hong Kong’s strategic value was inseparable from its urban dynamics: secure borders, navigable waters, and reliable movement across mountains and bays. The map’s reliance on successive survey campaigns yields a composite accuracy—spot heights, ridge lines, and shorelines reconciled to new roads and rail alignments—ideal for planning tunnels, depots, and arterial connections. It is a document of governance as much as geography: an instrument for coordinating services, hazard response, and expansion in one of the world’s most topographically challenging cities.

Topography takes center stage. Hills and mountains—stepping from the heights of Hong Kong Island across the Lion Rock range to the massifs of the New Territories—are rendered with elevations that make relief read at a glance. Valleys are incised by rivers and reservoirs, and the coast is laced with inlets and embayments that once dictated harbor works and ferry routes. The map’s treatment of Victoria Harbour and adjacent channels emphasizes approach lines and sheltered waters, while the northern frontier opens onto a mosaic of ridges and lowlands where settlements thread along passable corridors. This is Hong Kong as a landscape of thresholds: peaks, saddles, and straits shaping every decision about where people lived, traveled, and built.

Equally revealing is the human geography. Built-up areas are crisply distinguished from “squatter areas,” a stark cartographic acknowledgment of housing pressures that defined the era. Zones marked “under construction” track the emergence of new towns and industrial districts around Tsuen Wan, Sha Tin, and Tuen Mun, while dense Kowloon and the harborside precincts of Hong Kong Island are mapped block by block. Major road networks arc along coastal shelves and punch through ridges via tunnels—Lion Rock and other crossings—knitting hinterland to harbor. Railroads, including alignments and works noted as under construction, trace lifelines to the border, and reservoirs such as Plover Cove and Shing Mun anchor the water system that made urban expansion feasible.

Design choices power the map’s versatility. A disciplined grid supports precise referencing, while color coding differentiates relief, built environments, vegetation, and hydrography with an elegance that rewards both quick scanning and close study. Clear symbols flag road class, tunnel portals, rail stations, ferry piers, and civic installations, allowing planners to read capacity and constraint in a single pane. For today’s viewer, it captures Hong Kong, Kowloon, Tsuen Wan, Sha Tin, and Tuen Mun at a hinge point—poised between postwar improvisation and the systematized expansion that would follow. As a scarce, strategic survey, it distills a complex metropolis into a crisp, navigable logic—part topographical portrait, part blueprint for the city to come.

Cities and towns on this map

• Hong Kong (Island) - Modern population: ~7.5 million
• Kowloon - Modern population: ~2.3 million
• Tsuen Wan - Modern population: ~320,000
• Sha Tin - Modern population: ~700,000
• Tuen Mun - Modern population: ~400,000

Notable Features & Landmarks

• Hills and mountains with elevation
• Major road networks
• Railroads, including any lines under construction
• Water bodies like rivers and coastal areas
• Various built-up areas and squatter settlements

Historical and design context

• Title: Hong Kong and New Territories
• Publisher: U.K. Ministry of Defence
• Original creation date: 1970, based on surveys from 1957 and 1968–69
• Public significance: scarce map showcasing detailed features of Hong Kong and the New Territories
• Design style: color coding for topography, grid layout for navigation and referencing, clear cartographic symbols and labels
• Historical context: reflects late-1960s socio-political conditions, including housing issues marked as “squatter areas”
• Usage: employed by military and civil planners, illustrating the region’s strategic importance
• Geographical coverage: primarily Hong Kong and the New Territories, highlighting notable landmarks and urban layouts

Please double check the images to make sure that a specific town or place is shown on this map. You can also get in touch and ask us to check the map for you.

This map looks great at every size, but I always recommend going for a larger size if you have space. That way you can easily make out all of the details.

This map looks amazing at sizes all the way up to 100in (250cm). If you are looking for a larger map, please get in touch.

Please note: the labels on this map are hard to read if you order a map that is 16in (40cm) or smaller. The map is still very attractive, but if you would like to read the map easily, please buy a larger size.

The model in the listing images is holding the 18x24in (45x60cm) version of this map.

The fifth listing image shows an example of my map personalisation service.

If you’re looking for something slightly different, check out my collection of the best old maps to see if something else catches your eye.

Please contact me to check if a certain location, landmark or feature is shown on this map.

This would make a wonderful birthday, Christmas, Father's Day, work leaving, anniversary or housewarming gift for someone from the areas covered by this map.

This map is available as a giclée print on acid free archival matte paper, or you can buy it framed. The frame is a nice, simple black frame that suits most aesthetics. Please get in touch if you'd like a different frame colour or material. My frames are glazed with super-clear museum-grade acrylic (perspex/acrylite), which is significantly less reflective than glass, safer, and will always arrive in perfect condition.

This map is also available as a float framed canvas, sometimes known as a shadow gap framed canvas or canvas floater. The map is printed on artist's cotton canvas and then stretched over a handmade box frame. We then "float" the canvas inside a wooden frame, which is available in a range of colours (black, dark brown, oak, antique gold and white). This is a wonderful way to present a map without glazing in front. See some examples of float framed canvas maps and explore the differences between my different finishes.

For something truly unique, this map is also available in "Unique 3D", our trademarked process that dramatically transforms the map so that it has a wonderful sense of depth. We combine the original map with detailed topography and elevation data, so that mountains and the terrain really "pop". For more info and examples of 3D maps, check my Unique 3D page.

For most orders, delivery time is about 3 working days. Personalised and customised products take longer, as I have to do the personalisation and send it to you for approval, which usually takes 1 or 2 days.

Please note that very large framed orders usually take longer to make and deliver. 

If you need your order to arrive by a certain date, please contact me before you order so that we can find the best way of making sure you get your order in time.

I print and frame maps and artwork in 23 countries around the world. This means your order will be made locally, which cuts down on delivery time and ensures that it won't be damaged during delivery. You'll never pay customs or import duty, and we'll put less CO2 into the air.

All of my maps and art prints are well packaged and sent in a rugged tube if unframed, or surrounded by foam if framed.

I try to send out all orders within 1 or 2 days of receiving your order, though some products (like face masks, mugs and tote bags) can take longer to make.

If you select Express Delivery at checkout your order we will prioritise your order and send it out by 1-day courier (Fedex, DHL, UPS, Parcelforce).

Next Day delivery is also available in some countries (US, UK, Singapore, UAE) but please try to order early in the day so that we can get it sent out on time.

Read my full delivery and local production guide

My standard frame is a gallery style black ash hardwood frame. It is simple and quite modern looking. My standard frame is around 20mm (0.8in) wide.

I use super-clear acrylic (perspex/acrylite) for the frame glass. It's lighter and safer than glass - and it looks better, as the reflectivity is lower.

Six standard frame colours are available for free (black, dark brown, dark grey, oak, white and antique gold). Custom framing and mounting/matting is available if you're looking for something else.

Most maps, art and illustrations are also available as a framed canvas. We use matte (not shiny) cotton canvas, stretch it over a sustainably sourced box wood frame, and then 'float' the piece within a wood frame. The end result is quite beautiful, and there's no glazing to get in the way.

All frames are provided "ready to hang", with either a string or brackets on the back. Very large frames will have heavy duty hanging plates and/or a mounting baton. If you have any questions, please get in touch.

See some examples of my framed maps and framed canvas maps.

Alternatively, I can also supply old maps and artwork on canvas, foam board, cotton rag and other materials.

If you want to frame your map or artwork yourself, please read my size guide first.

Alcune delle mie vecchie mappe sono ora disponibili come tele incorniciate. Per favore contattami se desideri ordinare una dimensione che non è disponibile nel mio negozio.

Le vecchie mappe su tela sono un'alternativa interessante alle mappe incorniciate in modo convenzionale. A seconda del tuo gusto personale e dell'arredamento della stanza, le mappe su tela possono "risaltare" un po' di più rispetto a una mappa incorniciata.

Scopri di più sulle mie mappe su tela incorniciate.

My maps are extremely high quality reproductions of original maps.

I source original, rare maps from libraries, auction houses and private collections around the world, restore them at my London workshop, and then use specialist giclée inks and printers to create beautiful maps that look even better than the original.

My maps are printed on acid-free archival matte (not glossy) paper that feels very high quality and almost like card. In technical terms the paper weight/thickness is 10mil/200gsm. It's perfect for framing.

I print with Epson ultrachrome giclée UV fade resistant pigment inks - some of the best inks you can find.

I can also make maps on canvas, cotton rag and other exotic materials.

Learn more about The Unique Maps Co.

Map personalisation

If you're looking for the perfect anniversary or housewarming gift, I can personalise your map to make it truly unique. For example, I can add a short message, or highlight an important location, or add your family's coat of arms.

The options are almost infinite. Please see my map personalisation page for some wonderful examples of what's possible.

To order a personalised map, select "personalise your map" before adding it to your basket.

Get in touch if you're looking for more complex customisations and personalisations.

Map ageing

I have been asked hundreds of times over the years by customers if they could buy a map that looks even older.

Well, now you can, by selecting Aged before you add a map to your basket.

All the product photos you see on this page show the map in its Original form. This is what the map looks like today.

If you select Aged, I will age your map by hand, using a special and unique process developed through years of studying old maps, talking to researchers to understand the chemistry of aging paper, and of course... lots of practice!

If you're unsure, stick to the Original colour of the map. If you want something a bit darker and older looking, go for Aged.

See some amazing examples of Aged maps.

Se non sei soddisfatto del tuo ordine per qualsiasi motivo, contattami per un rimborso senza problemi. Si prega di consultare la nostra politica di reso e rimborso per ulteriori informazioni.

Sono molto sicuro che ti piacerà la tua mappa restaurata o la stampa d'arte. Lo faccio dal 1984. Sono un venditore Etsy a 5 stelle. Ho venduto decine di migliaia di mappe e stampe d'arte e ho oltre 5.000 recensioni reali a 5 stelle.

Utilizzo un processo unico per restaurare mappe e opere d'arte che richiede molto tempo e lavoro. Trovare le mappe e le illustrazioni originali può richiedere mesi. Utilizzo tecnologia all'avanguardia e incredibilmente costosa per scannerizzare e restaurarle. Di conseguenza, garantisco che le mie mappe e stampe d'arte siano superiori alle altre - ecco perché posso offrire un rimborso senza problemi.

Quasi tutte le mie mappe e stampe d'arte sembrano fantastiche a grandi dimensioni (200 cm, 6,5 piedi+) e posso anche incorniciarle e consegnarle a te, tramite un corriere speciale per oggetti di grandi dimensioni. Contattami per discutere delle tue esigenze specifiche.