Since the Western Han Dynasty (206 BCE–9 CE) in China, data sets of administrative information related to civil and military affairs were collected, collated, and then made manifest in tu. The Chinese term 圖 tu can translate into a number of different meanings like diagram, picture, map, painting, and so forth, all related to rendering three-dimensional space onto a two-dimensional plane. Historically, local administrators, both civil and military, were required to compile data sets and produce these tu. The tu considered here are those most associated with cartography, as they functioned as management tools for taxation, resource allocation, agricultural planning, travel, military strategy, and as symbols of ownership and authority. They often provided information like population densities, geophysical characteristics of place, types of buildings (religious, civil, military), local resources, and so forth.
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