This catalogue is a collection of unusual maps.  The principal focus is maps that were published as broadsheets.  While there are a number of definitions, I treat as a broadsheet any map that was originally intended to be sold as a separate sheet, although it may have subsequently been included in a composite atlas, or maps that were originally prepared for a standard atlas that were sold separately.

Why broadsheets?  Broadsheets appeal to me as they tend to be much rarer than atlas maps of the same period - one only has to look at the number in Catalogue 1 that are not listed in the British Library’s Map Catalogue to see the point - and I still get excited, after thirty plus years of looking at maps, when I see a map I’ve never seen before.

Broadsheets are also more likely to be cartographically more interesting than other maps of the day.  They were often made for a particular purpose, and so represent an effort in time and money on the part of the publisher which he would seek to recoup and so, by their nature, would need to be more advanced, or improve significantly on other maps available.

While I would like to think that the broadsheets here are in good condition, some of them have been restored - some by others, some for me - principally to fix tears and so on, but cosmetic cleaning has been kept to an absolute minimum.  Many dealers and collectors seem to want to have an item that looks as though it was printed yesterday, I like the item to reflect its age.

For this first catalogue, all the images were scanned from colour transparencies.  The high definition does pick up and highlight blemishes, but no attempt has been made to re-touch the scans, even when the blemish is over-stated. 

All photography by A.C. Cooper Ltd.