Map item format

Maps do not store their information in the item - instead, their data value corresponds to the map number (ID) of a saved file. Their information is placed in the "data" directory within the world's save directory. Each map has its own file associated with its ID, and there is one file that keeps track of the highest (= most recently created) map ID.

When used in the Nether, maps render as a kind of static, making them unreadable.

Data folder structure

The file idcounts.dat contains the latest ID for current map. Each map's file name uses the format map_<#>.dat, where <#> is the map's unique number.

map_<#>.dat format

map_<#>.dat files are GZip'd NBT files.

NBT structure

• The root tag.
  •  data: The map data.
    •  scale: How zoomed in the map is (it is in 2^scale wide blocks square per pixel, even for 0, where the map will be 1:1). Default 3, minimum 0 and maximum 4.
    •  dimension: 0 = The Overworld, -1 = The Nether, 1 = The End, any other value = a static image with no player pin.
    •  trackingPosition: 1 (default) indicates that a positional arrow should be shown when the map is near its center coords. 0 indicates that the position arrow should never be shown.
    •  unlimitedTracking: 1 allows the player position indicator to show as a smaller dot on the map's edge when the player is farther than 320 * (scale+1) blocks from the map's center. 0 will make the dot instead disappear when the player is farther than this distance. Defaults to 0 for maps created from an empty map and 1 for Explorer Maps.
    •  locked: 1 if the map has been locked in a cartography table.
    •  xCenter: Center of map according to real world by X.
    •  zCenter: Center of map according to real world by Z.
    •  banners: List of banner markers added to this map. May be empty.
      • A banner marker.
        •  Color: The color of the banner. Allowed values: white, orange, magenta, light_blue, yellow, lime, pink, gray, light_gray, cyan, purple, blue, brown, green, red, black.
        •  Name: The custom name of the banner, in JSON text. May not exist.
        •  Pos: The block position of the banner in the world.
          •  X: The x-position of the banner.
          •  Y: The y-position of the banner.
          •  Z: The z-position of the banner.
    •  frames: List map markers added to this map. May be empty.
      • A marker.
        •  EntityId: Arbitrary unique value for the marker.
        •  Rotation: The rotation of the marker, ranging from 0 to 360.
        •  Pos: The block position of the marker in the world.
          •  X: The x-position of the marker.
          •  Y: The y-position of the marker.
          •  Z: The z-position of the marker.
    •  colors: Width * Height array of color values (16384 entries for a default 128×128 map). Color can be accessed via the following method: colorID = Colors[widthOffset + heightOffset * width], where (widthOffset==0, heightOffset==0) is left upper point.
  •  DataVersion: The version the map was created. If not present, defaults to 1343 (1.12.2)

When this structure is loaded, Colors array is transformed to standard dimension (if it's necessary) and then structure is saved with standard height and width.

idcounts.dat format

This file keeps track of the latest map added. It is stored as a raw (uncompressed) NBT file.

NBT structure

• The root tag.
  •  Data
    •  map: Latest map ID.
  •  DataVersion

Color table

Maps use a color table to store the colors efficiently by ID.

Base colors

Blocks are colored according to their material. Each material has a base color which is multiplied by 135, 180, 220 or 255, and then divided by 255 to make the map color. Each base color below is associated with four map colors - to get the first map color ID for a base color, multiply the base color ID by 4.

Color Table

ID	Color	RGB	Blocks
0 NONE		Transparent	Air, Void Air, Cave Air, Barrier, Redstone Lamp, Cake, Powered Rail, Detector Rail, Torch, Redstone Wire, Ladder, Rail, Lever, Redstone Torch, Buttons, Repeater, Tripwire Hook, Tripwire, Flower Pot, Head, Comparator, Activator Rail, End Rod, Glass, Glass Pane, Nether Portal, Structure Void, Iron Bars
1 GRASS		127, 178, 56	Grass Block, Slime Block
2 SAND		247, 233, 163	Sand, Birch (Planks, Log (vertical), Stripped Log, Wood, Stripped Wood, Sign, Pressure Plate, Trapdoor, Stairs, Slab, Fence Gate, Fence, Door), Sandstone (All variants, all slabs, all stairs, all walls), Glowstone, End Stone, End Stone Bricks (slab, stairs, wall), Bone Block, Turtle Egg, Scaffolding
3 WOOL		199, 199, 199	Cobweb, Mushroom Stem, Bed (head)
4 FIRE		255, 0, 0	Lava, TNT, Fire, Redstone Block
5 ICE		160, 160, 255	Ice, Frosted Ice, Packed Ice, Blue Ice
6 METAL		167, 167, 167	Block of Iron, Iron Door, Brewing Stand, Heavy Weighted Pressure Plate, Iron Trapdoor, Lantern, Anvil, Grindstone
7 PLANT		0, 124, 0	Sapling, Flowers, Mushrooms, Wheat, Sugar Cane, Pumpkin Stem, Melon Stem, Lily Pad, Cocoa, Carrots, Potatoes, Beetroots, Sweet Berry Bush, Grass, Fern, Vines, Leaves, Cactus, Bamboo
8 SNOW		255, 255, 255	Snow, Snow Block, White (Bed (foot), Wool, Stained Glass, Stained Glass Pane, Carpet, Banner, Shulker Box, Glazed Terracotta, Concrete, Concrete Powder)
9 CLAY		164, 168, 184	Clay, Infested Block (Stone, Cobblestone, Stone Brick, Mossy Stone Brick, Cracked Stone Brick, Chiseled Stone Brick)
10 DIRT		151, 109, 77	Dirt, Coarse Dirt, Farmland, Grass Path, Granite (slab, stairs, wall), Polished Granite (slab, stairs), Jungle (Planks, Log (vertical), Stripped Log, Wood, Stripped Wood, Sign, Pressure Plate, Trapdoor, Stairs, Slab, Fence Gate, Fence, Door), Jukebox, Brown Mushroom Block
11 STONE		112, 112, 112	Stone (slab, stairs), Andesite (slab, stairs, wall), Polished Andesite (slab, stairs), Cobblestone (slab, stairs), Bedrock, Gold Ore, Iron Ore, Coal Ore, Lapis Lazuli Ore, Dispenser, Mossy Cobblestone (slab, stairs, wall), Spawner, Diamond Ore, Furnace, Stone Pressure Plate, Redstone Ore, Stone Bricks (all variants, all slabs, all stairs, all walls), Emerald Ore, Ender Chest, Dropper, Smooth Stone (slab, stairs), Observer, Smoker, Blast Furnace, Stonecutter, Sticky Piston, Piston, Piston Head, Gravel, Acacia Log (side), Cauldron, Hopper
12 WATER		64, 64, 255	Kelp, Seagrass, Water, Bubble Column
13 WOOD		143, 119, 72	Oak (Planks, Log (vertical), Stripped Log, Wood, Stripped Wood, Sign, Door, Pressure Plate, Fence, Trapdoor, Fence Gate, Slab, Stairs), Note Block, Bookshelf, Chest, Crafting Table, Trapped Chest, Daylight Detector, Loom, Barrel, Cartography Table, Fletching Table, Lectern, Smithing Table, Composter, Bamboo Sapling, Dead Bush, Petrified Oak Slab, Beehive, Bee Nest
14 QUARTZ		255, 252, 245	Diorite, Polished Diorite, Birch Log (side), Quartz Block (all variants, all slabs, all stairs), Sea Lantern
15 COLOR_ORANGE		216, 127, 51	Acacia (Planks, Log (vertical), Stripped Log, Stripped Wood, Sign, Trapdoor, Slab), Red Sand, Orange (Wool, Carpet, Shulker Box, Bed (foot), Stained Glass, Stained Glass Pane, Banner, Glazed Terracotta, Concrete, Concrete Powder), Pumpkin, Carved Pumpkin, Jack o'Lantern, Terracotta, Red Sandstone (all variants, all stairs, all slabs, all walls), Honey Block, Honeycomb Block
16 COLOR_MAGENTA		178, 76, 216	Magenta (Wool, Carpet, Shulker Box, Bed (foot), Stained Glass, Stained Glass Pane, Banner, Glazed Terracotta, Concrete, Concrete Powder), Purpur (all variants, slab, stairs)
17 COLOR_LIGHT_BLUE		102, 153, 216	Light Blue (Wool, Carpet, Shulker Box, Bed (foot), Stained Glass, Stained Glass Pane, Banner, Glazed Terracotta, Concrete, Concrete Powder)
18 COLOR_YELLOW		229, 229, 51	Sponge, Wet Sponge, Yellow (Wool, Carpet, Shulker Box, Bed (foot), Stained Glass, Stained Glass Pane, Banner, Glazed Terracotta, Concrete, Concrete Powder), Hay Bale, Horn Coral (Coral Block, Coral, Coral Fan)
19 COLOR_LIGHT_GREEN		127, 204, 25	Lime (Wool, Carpet, Shulker Box, Bed (foot), Stained Glass, Stained Glass Pane, Banner, Glazed Terracotta, Concrete, Concrete Powder), Melon
20 COLOR_PINK		242, 127, 165	Pink (Wool, Carpet, Shulker Box, Bed (foot), Stained Glass, Stained Glass Pane, Banner, Glazed Terracotta, Concrete, Concrete Powder), Brain Coral (Coral Block, Coral, Coral Fan)
21 COLOR_GRAY		76, 76, 76	Acacia Wood, Gray (Wool, Carpet, Shulker Box, Bed (foot), Stained Glass, Stained Glass Pane, Banner, Glazed Terracotta, Concrete, Concrete Powder), Dead Coral (Coral Block, Coral, Coral Fan)
22 COLOR_LIGHT_GRAY		153, 153, 153	Light Gray (Wool, Carpet, Shulker Box, Bed (foot), Stained Glass, Stained Glass Pane, Banner, Glazed Terracotta, Concrete, Concrete Powder), Structure Block, Jigsaw Block
23 COLOR_CYAN		76, 127, 153	Cyan (Wool, Carpet, Shulker Box, Bed (foot), Stained Glass, Stained Glass Pane, Banner, Glazed Terracotta, Concrete, Concrete Powder), Prismarine (slab, stairs, wall)
24 COLOR_PURPLE		127, 63, 178	Shulker Box, Purple (Wool, Carpet, Bed (foot), Stained Glass, Stained Glass Pane, Banner, Glazed Terracotta, Concrete, Concrete Powder), Mycelium, Chorus Plant, Chorus Flower, Repeating Command Block, Bubble Coral (Coral Block, Coral, Coral Fan)
25 COLOR_BLUE		51, 76, 178	Blue (Wool, Carpet, Shulker Box, Bed (foot), Stained Glass, Stained Glass Pane, Banner, Glazed Terracotta, Concrete, Concrete Powder), Tube Coral (Coral Block, Coral, Coral Fan)
26 COLOR_BROWN		102, 76, 51	Dark Oak (Planks, Log, Stripped Log, Wood, Stripped Wood, Sign, Pressure Plate, Trapdoor, Stairs, Slab, Fence Gate, Fence, Door), Spruce Log (side), Brown (Wool, Carpet, Shulker Box, Bed (foot), Stained Glass, Stained Glass Pane, Banner, Glazed Terracotta, Concrete, Concrete Powder), Soul Sand, Command Block
27 COLOR_GREEN		102, 127, 51	Green (Wool, Carpet, Shulker Box, Bed (foot), Stained Glass, Stained Glass Pane, Banner, Glazed Terracotta, Concrete, Concrete Powder), End Portal Frame, Chain Command Block, Dried Kelp Block, Sea Pickle
28 COLOR_RED		153, 51, 51	Red (Wool, Carpet, Shulker Box, Bed (foot), Stained Glass, Stained Glass Pane, Banner, Glazed Terracotta, Concrete, Concrete Powder), Bricks (slab, stairs, wall), Red Mushroom Block, Nether Wart, Enchanting Table, Nether Wart Block, Fire Coral (Coral Block, Coral, Coral Fan)
29 COLOR_BLACK		25, 25, 25	Black (Wool, Carpet, Shulker Box, Bed (foot), Stained Glass, Stained Glass Pane, Banner, Glazed Terracotta, Concrete, Concrete Powder), Obsidian, End Portal, Dragon Egg, Coal Block, End Gateway
30 GOLD		250, 238, 77	Block of Gold, Light Weighted Pressure Plate, Bell
31 DIAMOND		92, 219, 213	Block of Diamond, Beacon, Prismarine Bricks (slab, stairs), Dark Prismarine (slab, stairs), Conduit
32 LAPIS		74, 128, 255	Lapis Lazuli Block
33 EMERALD		0, 217, 58	Block of Emerald
34 PODZOL		129, 86, 49	Podzol, Spruce (Planks, Log (vertical), Stripped Log, Wood, Stripped Wood, Sign, Pressure Plate, Trapdoor, Stairs, Slab, Fence Gate, Fence, Door), Oak Log (side), Jungle Log (side), Campfire
35 NETHER		112, 2, 0	Netherrack, Nether Bricks (fence, slab, stairs, wall), Nether Quartz Ore, Magma Block, Red Nether Bricks (slab, stairs, wall)
36 TERRACOTTA_WHITE		209, 177, 161	White Terracotta
37 TERRACOTTA_ORANGE		159, 82, 36	Orange Terracotta
38 TERRACOTTA_MAGENTA		149, 87, 108	Magenta Terracotta
39 TERRACOTTA_LIGHT_BLUE		112, 108, 138	Light Blue Terracotta
40 TERRACOTTA_YELLOW		186, 133, 36	Yellow Terracotta
41 TERRACOTTA_LIGHT_GREEN		103, 117, 53	Lime Terracotta
42 TERRACOTTA_PINK		160, 77, 78	Pink Terracotta
43 TERRACOTTA_GRAY		57, 41, 35	Gray Terracotta
44 TERRACOTTA_LIGHT_GRAY		135, 107, 98	Light Gray Terracotta
45 TERRACOTTA_CYAN		87, 92, 92	Cyan Terracotta
46 TERRACOTTA_PURPLE		122, 73, 88	Purple (Terracotta, Shulker Box)
47 TERRACOTTA_BLUE		76, 62, 92	Blue Terracotta
48 TERRACOTTA_BROWN		76, 50, 35	Brown Terracotta
49 TERRACOTTA_GREEN		76, 82, 42	Green Terracotta
50 TERRACOTTA_RED		142, 60, 46	Red Terracotta
51 TERRACOTTA_BLACK		37, 22, 16	Black Terracotta

Map colors

Each base color above has 4 associated map colors below. The conversion works by multiplying each of the red, green, and blue values by a value and then dividing by 255, finally rounding down to a whole number. As of 13w42b, the fourth base color variant is now multiplied by 135, providing a darker set of colors rather than just a clone of the second base color variant.

Map Color ID	Multiply R,G,B By
Base Color ID×4 + 0	180
Base Color ID×4 + 1	220
Base Color ID×4 + 2	255 (same color)
Base Color ID×4 + 3	135

All the different shades of each color, excluding water

Map Pixel Art

Redstonehelper uses the staircase method in survival

People have used the map to create pixel art. The default map has an image size of 128×128 and will read each block as a specific color. By placing blocks in a specific arrangement, it is possible to create pixel art images.

Two methods exist for creating map pixel art: flat and staircase. The flat method involves laying the pixel image across a flat surface, effectively creating a floor. The flat method is the easier of the two methods, but offers a smaller palette of only 51 colors. The staircase method offers 153 colors, but is much more complicated to use. In the staircase method, blocks are placed at different elevations to obtain specific color variations. A block’s color will be darker if placed at a lower elevation than the block north of it, or brighter if placed at a higher elevation than the block north of it.

With the flat method, the 2nd shade of each color group on the lists below can be used. For the staircase method, the first 3 shades of the color groups below can be used. The 4th shade can only be obtained with the use of an external tool.

1.12 Color Table

Color Table

ID	Color	RGB	Blocks
0
1
2
3
4		89, 125, 39
5		109, 153, 48
6		127, 178, 56
7		67, 94, 29
8		174, 164, 115
9		213, 201, 140
10		247, 233, 163
11		130, 123, 86
12		140, 140, 140
13		171, 171, 171
14		199, 199, 199
15		105, 105, 105
16		180, 0, 0
17		220, 0, 0
18		255, 0, 0
19		135, 0, 0
20		112, 112, 180
21		138, 138, 220
22		160, 160, 255
23		84, 84, 135
24		117, 117, 117
25		144, 144, 144
26		167, 167, 167
27		88, 88, 88
28		0, 87, 0
29		0, 106, 0
30		0, 124, 0
31		0, 65, 0
32		180, 180, 180
33		220, 220, 220
34		255, 255, 255
35		135, 135, 135
36		115, 118, 129
37		141, 144, 158
38		164, 168, 184
39		86, 88, 97
40		106, 76, 54
41		130, 94, 66
42		151, 109, 77
43		79, 57, 40
44		79, 79, 79
45		96, 96, 96
46		112, 112, 112
47		59, 59, 59
48		45, 45, 180
49		55, 55, 220
50		64, 64, 255
51		33, 33, 135
52		100, 84, 50
53		123, 102, 62
54		143, 119, 72
55		75, 63, 38
56		180, 177, 172
57		220, 217, 211
58		255, 252, 245
59		135, 133, 129
60		152, 89, 36
61		186, 109, 44
62		216, 127, 51
63		114, 67, 27
64		125, 53, 152
65		153, 65, 186
66		178, 76, 216
67		94, 40, 114
68		72, 108, 152
69		88, 132, 186
70		102, 153, 216
71		54, 81, 114
72		161, 161, 36
73		197, 197, 44
74		229, 229, 51
75		121, 121, 27
76		89, 144, 17
77		109, 176, 21
78		127, 204, 25
79		67, 108, 13
80		170, 89, 116
81		208, 109, 142
82		242, 127, 165
83		128, 67, 87
84		53, 53, 53
85		65, 65, 65
86		76, 76, 76
87		40, 40, 40
88		108, 108, 108
89		132, 132, 132
90		153, 153, 153
91		81, 81, 81
92		53, 89, 108
93		65, 109, 132
94		76, 127, 153
95		40, 67, 81
96		89, 44, 125
97		109, 54, 153
98		127, 63, 178
99		67, 33, 94
100		36, 53, 125
101		44, 65, 153
102		51, 76, 178
103		27, 40, 94
104		72, 53, 36
105		88, 65, 44
106		102, 76, 51
107		54, 40, 27
108		72, 89, 36
109		88, 109, 44
110		102, 127, 51
111		54, 67, 27
112		108, 36, 36
113		132, 44, 44
114		153, 51, 51
115		81, 27, 27
116		17, 17, 17
117		21, 21, 21
118		25, 25, 25
119		13, 13, 13
120		176, 168, 54
121		215, 205, 66
122		250, 238, 77
123		132, 126, 40
124		64, 154, 150
125		79, 188, 183
126		92, 219, 213
127		48, 115, 112
128		52, 90, 180
129		63, 110, 220
130		74, 128, 255
131		39, 67, 135
132		0, 153, 40
133		0, 187, 50
134		0, 217, 58
135		0, 114, 30
136		91, 60, 34
137		111, 74, 42
138		129, 86, 49
139		68, 45, 25
140		79, 1, 0
141		96, 1, 0
142		112, 2, 0
143		59, 1, 0
144		147, 124, 113
145		180, 152, 138
146		209, 177, 161
147		110, 93, 85
148		112, 57, 25
149		137, 70, 31
150		159, 82, 36
151		84, 43, 19
152		105, 61, 76
153		128, 75, 93
154		149, 87, 108
155		78, 46, 57
156		79, 76, 97
157		96, 93, 119
158		112, 108, 138
159		59, 57, 73
160		131, 93, 25
161		160, 114, 31
162		186, 133, 36
163		98, 70, 19
164		72, 82, 37
165		88, 100, 45
166		103, 117, 53
167		54, 61, 28
168		112, 54, 55
169		138, 66, 67
170		160, 77, 78
171		84, 40, 41
172		40, 28, 24
173		49, 35, 30
174		57, 41, 35
175		30, 21, 18
176		95, 75, 69
177		116, 92, 84
178		135, 107, 98
179		71, 56, 51
180		61, 64, 64
181		75, 79, 79
182		87, 92, 92
183		46, 48, 48
184		86, 51, 62
185		105, 62, 75
186		122, 73, 88
187		64, 38, 46
188		53, 43, 64
189		65, 53, 79
190		76, 62, 92
191		40, 32, 48
192		53, 35, 24
193		65, 43, 30
194		76, 50, 35
195		40, 26, 18
196		53, 57, 29
197		65, 70, 36
198		76, 82, 42
199		40, 43, 22
200		100, 42, 32
201		122, 51, 39
202		142, 60, 46
203		75, 31, 24
204		26, 15, 11
205		31, 18, 13
206		37, 22, 16
207		19, 11, 8

1.8.1 Color Table

Note: The description may not list every possible block. Example: In 1.8.1, any block that uses colored wool can also use colored carpet or colored pane glass.

Color Table

ID	Color	RGB	Blocks
0		Transparent
1		Transparent
2		Transparent
3		Transparent
4		89,125,39
5		109,153,48
6		127,178,56
7		67,94,29
8		174,164,115
9		213,201,140
10		247,233,163
11		130,123,86
12		138,138,138
13		169,169,169
14		197,197,197
15		104,104,104
16		180,0,0
17		220,0,0
18		255,0,0
19		135,0,0
20		112,112,180
21		138,138,220
22		160,160,255
23		84,84,135
24		117,117,117
25		144,144,144
26		167,167,167
27		88,88,88
28		0,87,0
29		0,106,0
30		0,124,0
31		0,65,0
32		180,180,180
33		220,220,220
34		255,255,255
35		135,135,135
36		115,118,129
37		141,144,158
38		164,168,184
39		86,88,97
40		129,74,33
41		157,91,40
42		183,106,47
43		96,56,24
44		79,79,79
45		96,96,96
46		112,112,112
47		59,59,59
48		101,84,51
49		123,103,62
50		143,119,72
51		76,63,38
52		45,45,180
53		55,55,220
54		64,64,255
55		33,33,135
56		180,177,172
57		220,217,211
58		255,252,245
59		135,133,129
60		152,89,36
61		186,109,44
62		216,127,51
63		114,67,27
64		125,53,152
65		153,65,186
66		178,76,216
67		94,40,114
68		72,108,152
69		88,132,186
70		102,153,216
71		54,81,114
72		161,161,36
73		197,197,44
74		229,229,51
75		121,121,27
76		89,144,17
77		109,176,21
78		127,204,25
79		67,108,13
80		170,89,116
81		208,109,142
82		242,127,165
83		128,67,87
84		53,53,53
85		65,65,65
86		76,76,76
87		40,40,40
88		108,108,108
89		132,132,132
90		153,153,153
91		81,81,81
92		53,89,108
93		65,109,132
94		76,127,153
95		40,67,81
96		89,44,125
97		109,54,153
98		127,63,178
99		67,33,94
100		36,53,125
101		44,65,153
102		51,76,178
103		27,40,94
104		72,53,36
105		88,65,44
106		102,76,51
107		54,40,27
108		72,89,36
109		88,109,44
110		102,127,51
111		54,67,27
112		108,36,36
113		132,44,44
114		153,51,51
115		81,27,27
116		17,17,17
117		21,21,21
118		25,25,25
119		13,13,13
120		176,168,54
121		215,205,66
122		250,238,77
123		132,126,40
124		64,154,150
125		79,188,183
126		92,219,213
127		48,115,112
128		52,90,180
129		63,110,220
130		74,128,255
131		39,67,135
132		0,153,40
133		0,187,50
134		0,217,58
135		0,114,30
136		90,59,34
137		110,73,41
138		127,85,48
139		67,44,25
140		79,1,0
141		96,1,0
142		112,2,0
143		59,1,0

1.7.2 Color Table

Color Table

ID	Color	RGB	Blocks
0		Transparent
1		Transparent
2		Transparent
3		Transparent
4		89,125,39
5		109,153,48
6		127,178,56
7		67,94,29
8		174,164,115
9		213,201,140
10		247,233,163
11		130,123,86
12		180,0,0
13		220,0,0
14		255,0,0
15		135,0,0
16		112,112,180
17		138,138,220
18		160,160,255
19		84,84,135
20		117,117,117
21		144,144,144
22		167,167,167
23		88,88,88
24		0,87,0
25		0,106,0
26		0,124,0
27		0,65,0
28		180,180,180
29		220,220,220
30		255,255,255
31		135,135,135
32		115,118,129
33		141,144,158
34		164,168,184
35		86,88,97
36		129,74,33
37		157,91,40
38		183,106,47
39		96,56,24
40		79,79,79
41		96,96,96
42		112,112,112
43		59,59,59
44		45,45,180
45		55,55,220
46		64,64,255
47		33,33,135
48		73,58,35
49		89,71,43
50		104,83,50
51		55,43,26
52		180,177,172
53		220,217,211
54		255,252,245
55		135,133,129
56		152,89,36
57		186,109,44
58		216,127,51
59		114,67,27
60		125,53,152
61		153,65,186
62		178,76,216
63		94,40,114
64		72,108,152
65		88,132,186
66		102,153,216
67		54,81,114
68		161,161,36
69		197,197,44
70		229,229,51
71		121,121,27
72		89,144,17
73		109,176,21
74		127,204,25
75		66,108,13
76		170,89,116
77		208,109,142
78		242,127,165
79		128,67,87
80		53,53,53
81		65,65,65
82		76,76,76
83		40,40,40
84		108,108,108
85		132,132,132
86		153,153,153
87		81,81,81
88		53,89,108
89		65,109,132
90		76,127,153
91		40,67,81
92		89,44,125
93		109,54,153
94		127,63,178
95		67,33,94
96		36,53,125
97		44,65,153
98		51,76,178
99		27,40,94
100		72,53,36
101		88,65,44
102		102,76,51
103		54,40,27
104		72,89,36
105		88,109,44
106		102,127,51
107		54,67,27
108		108,36,36
109		132,44,44
110		153,51,51
111		81,27,27
112		17,17,17
113		21,21,21
114		25,25,25
115		13,13,13
116		176,168,54
117		215,205,66
118		250,238,77
119		132,126,40
120		64,154,150
121		79,188,183
122		92,219,213
123		48,115,112
124		52,90,180
125		63,110,220
126		74,128,255
127		39,67,135
128		0,153,40
129		0,187,50
130		0,217,58
131		0,114,30
132		14,14,21
133		18,17,26
134		21,20,31
135		11,10,16
136		79,1,0
137		96,1,0
138		112,2,0
139		59,1,0

Original Color Table

Color Table

ID	Color	RGB	Blocks
0		Transparent
1		Transparent
2		Transparent
3		89,125,39
4		109,153,48
5		127,178,56
6		174,164,115
7		213,201,140
8		247,233,163
9		180,0,0
10		220,0,0
11		255,0,0
12		112,112,180
13		138,138,220
14		160,160,255
15		117,117,117
16		144,144,144
17		167,167,167
18		0,87,0
19		0,106,0
20		0,124,0
21		180,180,180
22		220,220,220
23		255,255,255
24		115,118,129
25		141,144,158
26		164,168,184
27		129,74,33
28		157,91,40
29		183,106,47
30		79,79,79
31		96,96,96
32		112,112,112
33		45,45,180
34		55,55,220
35		64,64,255
36		73,58,35
37		89,71,43
38		104,83,50

Code examples

Library name	Language	Link to Map-related code
MCModify	Java	Map.java
minecraftmap	Python	__init__.py
mcmapimg	Python	mcmapimg.py

History

Java Edition Beta
?					When Notch was adding maps for the first time he did not use the NBT format.
1.6		?			Added maps.
					Map IDs are is limited to the size of a short (32,768).
Java Edition
1.13		17w47a			Maps ids are no longer shorts, but rather ints, as they are no longer based on damage values of the item.
					idcounts.dat now uses an int instead of a short.
		18w19a			Added DataVersion to saved map_<#>.dat. (idcounts.dat still doesn't have a DataVersion)
1.14		19w02a			Added locked to saved map_<#>.dat.