W. Kip Camden's Britannia 1637 (1607)
The first five editions of Camden's successful history and topography of Britain were without maps, but for the sixth edition of 1607 the engravers William Hole and William Kip were commissioned to provide a set of maps of the counties of England and Wales, plus 3 general maps of the countries comprising the new "United Kingdom". These maps were retained for the subsequent 1610 and 1637 editions. They are based on the earlier work of Saxton, Norden, Smith and Owen. This attractively coloured example is from the 1637 edition.
Britannia Depicta was one of 3 pocket-sized reductions of Ogilby's road book that appeared within an 18 month timeframe between 1719 and 1720. It was more innovative than the others in including much additional topographical and historical information (researched by John Owen) on the maps. The work was a commercial success and ran to many later editions.
This small county atlas of England and Wales was first issued in 1748 by a consortium of 7 publishers who also had a stake in the publication of Daniel Defoe's Tour Through the Whole Island of Great Britain. It was advertised as a companion volume to Defoe's work, or as a pocket atlas in its own right. Thomas Hutchinson's name appears as the engraver on 2 maps, but the rest are unsigned and may be by a variety of hands. They are sometimes also known as Osborne/Wale maps. There was a second edition in 1756. Faint ex-library blind stamp to top 2 corners.
Cowley's work was a topographical guide to England and Wales with text and county maps. The title page is dated 1744, though other evidence suggests an actual publication date of November 1743. The 52 maps were re-issued in 1745 as a county atlas without text under the title A New Sett of Pocket Maps of all the Counties of England and Wales. The maps are uncommon.
The Panorama was published by Reid around 1820, although individual counties are sometimes found with the imprint of C. Hinton and J. Wallis, and may be earler. A final 1825 edition was published under the imprint of Hodgson and Co.Original colour, with a page of descriptive text.
J. Blaeu Theatrum Orbis Terrarum 1645, 1648 or 1662
The Blaeu family were one of the leading Dutch map producers of the 17th century. Their major work was a multi volume world atlas initiated by Willem Blaeu and expanded by his son Joan. Their maps were beautifully designed and engraved, and are often found with original colour, making them most desirable to collectors. 1645 saw the first publication of volume 4 of the atlas, containing maps of England and Wales. There were several re-issues between then and 1672 when most of Blaeu's plates were lost in a fire which engulfed his Amsterdam premises. Latin text on the verso narrows dating of this example to the editions of 1645, 1648 or 1662. The map is in original colour, and covers the counties of Pembrokeshire and Carmarthenshire
Carmarthenshire - Lanharne and Carmarthen Castles. The Antiquities of England and Wales was the product of Alexander Hogg who was well known as a partwork publisher. Under the claimed authorship of Henry Boswell it was issued serially from c1787-9, and subsequently made available as a complete work. The format was typically 2 (though sometimes up to 6) prints to a page, with one or two accompanying pages of descriptive text on each pair of subjects. It also included the set of English county maps by Thomas Kitchin first used in the London Magazine from 1747-54. Laugharne Castle lies on the estuary of the River Taf, and was first built around 116 by the Norman Robert Courtemain. It swapped hands during the English-Welsh wars of the 12th and 13th centuries, suffering damage and rebuilding in the process. In 1575 it was converted to a Tudor mansion by its then-owner Sit John Perrot, but it was besieged in the civil war and subsequently slighted in 1649, becoming a romantic ruin by the time of this print. It is today administerd by the Welsh Heritage body CADW and open to the public.
Carmarthen Castle sits on a rocky eminence overlooking the River Twyi, and is first mentioned in records of 1094. It saw action in the 11th and 12th century wars between the English and Welsh, being destroyed by the Welsh in 1215, before being rebuilt by William Marshall, Earl of Pembroke. It was further extended with new building in the 14th century, but was badly damaged in the civil war, and then fell into decay. The building of a prison in the precincts from 1789 resulted in further demolition of the remains. The prison was replaced by a new County Hall in 1938. The surviving parts of the castle are today open to the public without charge. This print, engraved by J.G. Wooding, offers 2 views on 1 sheet, and is supplied with the original, accompanying text.
Carmarthenshire - Lanharne (or Laugharne) Castle, . The Antiquities of England and Wales was the product of Alexander Hogg who was well known as a partwork publisher. Under the claimed authorship of Henry Boswell it was issued serially from c1787-9, and subsequently made available as a complete work. The format was typically 2 (though sometimes up to 6) prints to a page, with one or two accompanying pages of descriptive text on each pair of subjects. It also included the set of English county maps by Thomas Kitchin first used in the London Magazine from 1747-54. Laugharne Castle lies on the estuary of the River Taf, and was first built around 116 by the Norman Robert Courtemain. It swapped hands during the English-Welsh wars of the 12th and 13th centuries, suffering damage and rebuilding in the process. In 1575 it was converted to a Tudor mansion by its then-owner Sir John Perrot, but it was besieged in the civil war and subsequently slighted in 1649, becoming a romantic ruin by the time of this print. It is today administerd by the Welsh Heritage body CADW and open to the public. The print was engraved by Lowry, and is supplied with the original, accompanying text. A few spots.