This map of Leicestershire and Warwickshire originates from the first ever atlas of the English and Welsh counties, published in 1579 by Christopher Saxton.The printing plates from Saxton's atlas were later acquired by Philip Lea around 1680, and modernised by the addition of town plans and other changes and refinements. Lea's first updated edition was published in c.1689 under the title All the Shires of England and Wales. A French edition of the atlas was also published shortly afterwards titled the Atlas Anglois, and a further English edition in 1694. The maps were also sold singly.After Lea's death in 1700 his widow continued his business until her own death in 1730 although no further editions are known under her name. Lea's stock of printing plates went to auction in 1730 and were acquired by George Wildey who removed the Lea imprint for the next edition of the atlas in 1732. There were further rare editions, in 1749 by Thomas Jefferys and finally in 1772 by Cluer Dicey (who changed the publisher's imprint on the maps to his own name). some repaired marginal tears .Uncommon.
J. Blaeu Theatrum Orbis Terrarum 1645-67 (1645)
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. The Warwickshire map also covers Worcestershire. This example is in original colour, in excellent condition, framed and double glazed. French text to verso dates it as from the 1645, 1648, 1663 or 1667 editions.
Camden's Britannia - a history and topography of Britain - was first published in 1586 and had a long and successful publication history. County maps by Kip and Hole were addded in 1607, and these also appeared in the editions of 1610 and 1637. Over 50 year's later it was decided to issue a new and updated edition. The original Latin text was re-translated by Edmund Gibson, and Robert Morden was commissioned to provide a new set of county and general maps in a more modern style. The revised work was issued in 1695. There were 4 further editions of the Gibson/Morden work, the last in 1772, before a further updated version by Richard Gough was launched in 1789, with new maps by John Cary. This example is from the first Gibson edition of 1695. Short repair to bottom centrefold, not affecting the printed area.
H. Beighton Dugdale's Antiquities of Warwickshire 1765 (1730)
Sir William Dugdales work, first published in 1656, was one of the earliest county histories. It contained a county map, a town plan of Warwick, and 4 maps of the hundreds including this one of Barlichway hundred by Henry Beighton. This example is from the third edition of the work, published in 1765. Old (possibly original) colour. Some old, faint creases but otherwise good.
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. Modern colour.
Chorographia Britanniae was one of the most popular 18th century atlases, offering county maps showing main roads, a handy pocket-size format and useful extra information provided in the notes. It was first published in 1742, with later issues in 1743, 1745 and 1749, though the work continued to be advertised until at least 1759. This example has some restoration to the lower margin where trimmed just below the border. Modern hand colour.
J. Ellis Ellis's English Atlas 1766 (1765)
Joseph Ellis's English Atlas was an entry into the market for small county atlases by its publishers Robert Sayer and Carington Bowles. The county maps were closely based upon those drawn by Thomas Kitchin for the 1763 topographical work England Illustrated, the major difference being the attractive vignettes which replaced Kitchin's rococco cartouches. The atlas was first published in 1765, and soon became a commercial success, running to many later editions. It was promoted as a travelling atlas, and made available in various formats. These included a version with the maps printed back to back on each page, as with this example from a 1766 edition which has a map of Westmorland on the reverse.
J. Cary Camden's Britannia 1806 (1789)
Camden's Britannia was first published in 1586. County maps by Kip and Hole were first added in 1607, being supplanted by those of Robert Morden for the 5 editions from 1695 to 1772. In 1789 a new translation of the work by Richard Gough was published by T. Payne and G. & J. Robinson with updated and modernised maps by John Cary. The same maps were also later used in Cary's New British Atlas of 1805. They can be found uncoloured, with outline colour and with full wash colour. This example is from the second Gough edition of Britannia, published in 1806, and the maps are in full wash colour - the most desirable state. Some damage and repairs to right hand border with some loss. Priced accordingly.
B. Capper Topographical Dictionary of the UK 1808
Benjamin Pitts Capper was the author of this topographical directory, first published by R. Phillips in 1808. The maps were engraved, and possibly drawn by H. Cooper. Later editions of the work carry the imprint of G.and W.B. Whittaker who re-published the book from 1825-34. This example is from the first edition of 1808, with the hundreds shown in original, full wash colour.
J. Cary New English Atlas 1811 (1809)
It is suprising that Cary's large county atlas was issued as late as 1809, as individual maps from it seem to have been sold singly from 1801. The atlas format was perhaps to compete with the similarly sized atlas of Charles Smith, which went under the same title and was published in 1804. It is perhaps Cary's finest production, the maps being notable for their fine design, detail and engraving. The atlas ran to several later editions by Cary, and the plates were later used for a variety of lithographic transfers by G.F. Cruchley. This example is from the second edition of 1811, and is in original full colour.
James Pigot & Co's county maps were issued in their British Atlas (from c1829), in several of their national and local business directories (from 1826 for the "home counties", at least), and singly in folding form as travelling maps. They were amongst the first maps to be printed from steel instead of copper plates, allowing more accurate fine detail and less wear to the plates over time. Atlas and directories went through several editions up to around 1857, later editions from 1846 being re-named Slater's New British Atlas, with imprints changed accordingly. Original outline colour.
T. Murray An Atlas of the English Counties 1830
The title page of Murray's county atlas states that the maps were "Projected on the basis of the Trigonometrical Survey by order of the hon.ble The Board of Ordnance, under the superindendance of T.L. Murray". This might seem to imply the project had at least the official blessing, if not the active involvement of the Ordnance Survey, but is more likely to be a marketing puff. D. Hodson has suggested that the maps were copied from those of William Ebden published from 1825-8, both sets also being engraved by the same firm of Hoare & Reeves. Murray's Atlas was first published in 1830, with second and third editions in 1831 and 1832, the latter with the adddition of electoral data. by 1838 the plates had been acquired by W. Robson & Co. who published and sold the maps individually, and also used them in their commercial directories. This example is from the first edition of 1830. Original colour. Repairs to several marginal tears and to 5 which enter the border by c1-2cm. Some creasing. Priced accordingly.
This work was published in 1835 as a companion volume to Lewis's Topographic Dictionary. It contains county and borough maps, drawn by R. Creighton and engaved by J.& C. Walker, and was designed to show the electoral and boundary changes effected by the 1832 Reform Act. There were 2 issues of the work in 1835 and 1840, this example of the county map being from the 1835 first edition. Original outline colour.
T. Jefferys Sold singly and included in The Large English Atlas c1760-70?
The second state of Jefferys' large county map, first published between 1746 and 1760. The map was presumably originally sold as a single sheet, but is also found in The Large English Atlas where it sometimes takes the place of Thomas Kitchin's more usually found county map. The second state dates from 1760 or shortly after. Small hole just impinging the right hand border but otherwise a nice copy. Original outline colour.
Jan Jansson was one of Amsterdam's leading 17th century mapmakers, and a close rival to the Blaeu family. His multi-volume world atlas first saw the introduction of 6 maps of individual English counties into the German edition of 1636, and a further 11 of English and Welsh counties in the Dutch edition of 1644. But when Jansson saw the 1645 Blaeu volume with more decorative maps covering all the English and Welsh counties, he felt obliged to revise his existing plates and complete the set in order to compete. His new volume covering England and Wales was first published in the 1646 Latin text edition of the Atlas Novus. There were several later editions by Jansson, and later isses by Schenk and Valk who acquired the plates in 1694. The Warwickshire map also covers Worcestershire. There is no text to verso of this example, which precludes more accurate dating to a specific edition. Top and bottom centrefold repairs, the former impinging c4cm within the border, but still a most attractive and desirable copy.
James Wallis's New British Atlas was first published in 1813 by S.A. Oddy. There was a second edition in 1816. This example is from the first edition and is dated 1812 on the imprint. It is in attractive, original, full wash colour, and in good condition.
T. Kitchin The Antiquities of England and Wales c1789 (1752)
This map was first published in the November 1752 edition of the London Magazine, which between 1747 and 1754 issued a complete set of English county maps by Thomas Kitchin. The maps were later re-published by Alexander Hogg in Boswell's Antiquities of England & Wales, initially in partwork from c 1787-9, and then in several complete editions of the work up to 1798. This example of the Warwickshire map is from the first complete edition of Boswell's Antiquities dating from c1789.
Harrison's atlas was first published in 1791, but maps were engraved and dated between 1787 and 1791, and may have been sold singly as completed. Warwickshire is dated 1788. There were later editions of the atlas in 1792 and c1815.
The Royal English Atlas, first published around 1764, was probably an attempt to repeat the commercial success of The Large English Atlas, with a somewhat smaller format. The maps were again engraved by Kitchin and Bowen, and the partners in the enterprise were based around the consortium that had finally brought out The Large English Atlas in 1760. This time, however, they misjudged the market, and although there were some later re-issues of the atlas, the modern rarity of the maps suggests it was not very successful. This example, dated 1777, bears the publishers' imprint of R. Sayer,J. Bennett, J. Bowles and C. Bowles. Original outline colour.
This set of maps was engraved by Samuel Neele for James Dugdale's The New British Traveller, a topographical partwork issued from 1812-14, and later also sold complete, collected into four volumes. Early editions may have the imprint of James Cundee, but this is later changed to that of James Robins as with this example dated 1818. The maps were also used in Robins' Atlas of England and Wales, published in 1819. Close trimmed to top border and re-margined to faciltate mounting if desired.
R. Blome England Exactly Described 1715 (1681)
Blome's smaller series of county maps have a puzzling history. They seem to have been initiated before his larger maps for Britannia, but were not published until 1681 when they appeared under the title Speed's Maps Epitomiz'd. Blome re-issued them twice before his death in 1705. The plates were subsequently acquired by Thomas Taylor who brought out a new edition in 1715 titled England Exactly Described.Taylor removed Blome's dedications on a number of maps including this one of Warwickshire, replacing it with additional place names in the top left hand corner. There were further editions in 1715 (by Taylor), and in c1731 (by Thomas Bakewell). These later editions had roads added to the maps. This example of the Warwickshire map is from the 1715 edition of the work. Original hand colour. Trimmed just within the top left neat line, but as printed and without significant loss to the printed area.
J. Lodge Untitled Atlas of the English Counties c1795
This was one of a set of county maps engraved by John Lodge and issued between 1787 and 1790 in The Political Magazine, and Parliamentary, Naval, Military and Literary Journal, published initially by John Murray, and later by R. Butters. The maps were subsequently collected together and re-issued as an atlas (without title page) around 1795. For this atlas edition the imprint with the publication date and engraver's and publisher's signatures was removed from the maps. This example is from the atlas edition. The maps are well engraved in the plainer style then coming into vogue. They are uncommon, and sought by collectors.
C. Smith New English Atlas 1828/1833 (1822)
In 1822 Charles Smith issued a county atlas with maps based on his larger county maps which had been in circulation for over 20 years. The new maps were smaller in scale, but the atlas bore the same title as that in which his larger maps appeared. They are clearly drawn and engraved, but although there were several editions of the atlas, they are today amongst the rarer of the 18th century county maps. This example is from the edition of 1828 or 1833, in which the maps have no date in the imprint, but before railways were added for the edition of 1844. Original outline colour.
The New British Traveller was originally issued as a weekly partwork by the publisher Alexander Hogg, commencing in 1783. Once the series of 60 parts was completed in 1784 title pages were provided for the pages to be bound in a single volume. The work is a topographical review of Great Britain, containing numerous prints and a set of county and general maps. The maps are of varying sizes, being typically arranged 2,3 or 4 to a single page, with adjoining borders. When separated this means individual maps will be trimmed to the border on one or two sides and are often re-margined for mounting and framing. The map of Warwickshire is re-margined on one side and sold ready-mounted. The text pages for the county may be available on request at no extra charge. Mounted.
This detailed and well engraved map was one of a set first published around 1812-14 by Robert Rowe, who was probably also their draftsman and engraver. The maps were initially sold singly in folding format until their collective issue in 1816 as The English Atlas. The plates were later acquired by Henry Teesdale, who amended titles and imprints and re-issued the work as the New British Atlas in 1829, with several re-issues up to 1842. The plates were later acquired and used by H.G. Collins and then by G. Philip and Son, who both used them as the base for lithographic transfers for a variety of works up to c1860. This example is from the 1830 second edition of Teesdale's atlas. Original wash colour.