Mao Kun Map

"Nothing here is set. These can't be as accurate as modern charts." "No. But it leads to more places."

- William Turner and Tai Huang



The Charts to World's End was a nautical chart that could be used to locate some of the world's more obscure and mystical places, including the Farthest Gate. The chart was created at some point after 1513, as it included the location of the Fountain of Youth, discovered in that year.

Obtaining the charts
"Earlier this day, not far from here, a thief broke into my most revered uncle’s temple and tried to make off with these: the navigational charts, the route to the Farthest Gate."

- Sao Feng

The chart was stored in the temple of Sao Feng's wizened uncle, as Feng did not want the salty air of his waterfront lair to damage the chart's delicate pigmentation. He was also known to carry it on his back when using them for navigation. The chart was moved to Feng's bath house after William Turner tried to steal it for Hector Barbossa. During the Battle of Singapore, Will made a deal with Feng that procured Barbossa's crew the chart, leading them to World's End and Davy Jones' Locker beyond.

Journey to Davy Jones' Locker
"Trust me, young Master Turner. It's not gettin' to the Land of the Dead that's the problem...it's gettin' back."

- Hector Barbossa to Will Turner.

After escaping Singapore with the Hai Peng, along with the charts, they've made their journey to World's End. The crew used the navigational charts throughout their journey to World's End. As they were getting closer, they sailed through waters that reflected the stars so perfectly that it was nearly impossible to find the horizon. They soon realized that in order to go to Davy Jones' Locker, they had to go over a massive waterfall. Upon reaching the it, the ship was cast down the waterfall and destroyed.

Escaping the Locker
"Up is down...well that's maddeningly unhelpful. Why are these things never clear?"

- Jack Sparrow on the navigational chart

Barbossa still had the charts when they arrived in the Locker and joined Jack Sparrow on the Black Pearl. After which, they have tried to figure out a way to return to the land of the living. Sparrow later deciphered the chart's cryptic message, "Up is Down" on how to escape from the Locker and return to the land of the living: to flip the ship over by sundown. So Sparrow, along with the rest of the crew, flipped the Pearl over. When the sun sets, the green flash shoots up to the sky and transports the Black Pearl, along with its crewman, to the land of the living.

The Fountain of Youth
"It would make us feel a whole lot better, regarding our fortunes, if we could see that "item" you told us about." "On the charts." "Aye." "With our own eyes." "To help put an ease to our burden of guilt, so to speak." "Ah. Feast your eyes upon this, mateys. There's more than one way to live forever. Gents, I give you the Fountain of Youth."

- Pintel, Marty, Mullroy and Murtogg, Ragetti, and Barbossa



Following the death of Lord Cutler Beckett, Barbossa stole the Pearl from Jack once again, with the charts in his possession. Although Jack was left with a dingy. Jack anticipated this treachery, so he stole the middle part of Sao Feng's charts from Barbossa and began his quest to find the Fountain of Youth. Barbossa also planned on finding it, but it was postponed because of the loss of the part of the charts. The charts postulated that it was located in Florida, as it was where Juan Ponce de León tried to search for the Fountain. Jack then sailed, with the charts, to begin his search. The further use of the charts are left unknown.

Design
This navigational chart was believed to have been painted on washi-handmade Japanese rice paper. It was comprised of several rings upon which a map of the world was etched. By rotating the rings and lining one up with another, a reader could use the chart to find any number of mystical locations.

The Chinese symbols on the map could be deciphered to reveal such locations as "Ghosts of Lost Souls at Sea to be Shepherded Through the Watery Passageway,” “Forgotten Sailors Sleep with Eyes Open Dreaming of a Salt Water Death” and “The Rich Man Finds No More Hope of Continued Life-Death Will Always Be A Stairway Behind". Images of dragons&mdash;harbingers of good fortune in war&mdash;and tigers&mdash;devourers of evil spirits&mdash;could be found on the chart. The central ring depicted an intrepid junk surrounded by the phases of the moon.

Behind the scenes

 * The navigational chart prop was created by conceptual consultant James Ward Byrkit. He included several mythological creatures on the chart, as well as a Hidden Mickey (lower right quarter) which looks to be an early version of Mickey, and images of Elizabeth Swann and Jack Sparrow (lower left quarter).

Appearances

 * Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End