A map drawn as far back as 1947 in Pre-Communist China has, today, become the source of global concerns that are only increasing as China establishes itself close to the helm of contemporary geopolitics. Illustration by The Geostrata Such is the story of origins of the 9-dash line  which initially started out with 11 dashes, only for China to give the Gulf of Tonkin to Vietnam hence, forfeiting two dashes. The South China Sea is visualised by China such that it asserts “histo