Descripción
Folio (17 1/2 x 12 in.; 44.5 x 30.5 cm). Letterpress index (fourth setting with 4-line heading and 3 columns), double-page engraved plate of coats of arms (total of 84 with one left blank) and table of counties with contemporary full hand-coloring, 35 double-page engraved plates (Yorkshire folding), after Saxton by Hogenberg, Lenaert Terwoort, Cornelis de Hooghe, Augustine Ryther, Francis Scatter, and Nicholas Reynolds, paper with the crossed sword watermark, maps of Northhamptonshire and Norfolk in the second state, 9 maps bearing Seckford's pre-1576 motto ("Pestis patriae pigricies") and 24 his later motto ("Industria naturam ornate"); extra-illustrated with 4 maps tipped in: Seller, "J. Buckinamiae comitatus vulgo Buckinghamshire" (London, 1733); Boazio, [Irlandiae accurata desciptio" London, 1599] (lefthand sheet only); Ortelius, "Eryn. Hiberniae Briannicae insulae" [Antwerp, 1584]; Ortelius, "Scotiae tabula" [Antwerp, c. 1582], all but 3 maps in FINE FULL CONTEMPORARY HAND-COLOR (Cornwall and additional map of Buckingham plain, Yorkshire in contemporary outline color). Lacking engraved frontispiece of patron and dedicatee Queen Elizabeth I, maps of Cornwall and Yorkshire replaced with maps from the Philip Lea edition of Saxton ca. 1689, some minor mostly marginal soiling, map of Norfolk browned, one or two early repairs to folds on verso. Contemporary limp vellum; stained, nearly detached, lacking leather ties. (64V1D) FIRST EDITION, THE MACCLESFIELD COPY WITH CONTEMPORARY HAND-COLORING OF THE MOST CELEBRATED AND EARLIEST ATLAS OF ENGLAND AND WALES. The index has been annotated in a late 16th-century hand to include the additional maps of Ireland and Scotland, and with the same hand annotating the map of Cheshire to show Macclesfield, the map of Lancaster to show Harrington Park (owned by ancestors of the Stanley family). Map making became increasingly prevalent during the reign of Elizabeth I due to advances in surveying techniques and copperplate engraving. At the same time, state officials began to realize the political and administrative advantages of accurate maps. Among them was Elizabeth's shrewd chief advisor, William Cecil, Lord Burghley, who relentlessly tracked politically volatile areas such as the Anglo-Scottish border. He was instrumental in ensuring that court official Thomas Seckford financed the first comprehensive survey of the counties of England and Wales. In turn, Seckford commissioned Saxton to undertake the task of producing an atlas of England and Wales. All the maps bear Seckford's arms in tandem with the Royal Arms (with the exception of Norfolk which lacks the latter), thus reflecting his deep involvement in this monumental enterprise. For his part, Burghley retained proofs of all the maps, which are now housed at the British Library. Widely considered the father of British cartography, Christopher Saxton grew up in Yorkshire and received his early training in surveying from the local vicar, John Rudd. Begun in 1574, Saxton's survey produced its first map (Norfolk) that year. All the maps are dated between 1574 and 1578, with the exception of Northumberland (undated) and Anglia (dated 1579 and probably the last to be completed). Dutch and Flemish engravers were employed to produce fifteen of the maps with additional contributions by skilled English artisans. The main geographical features on the maps include detailed depictions of rivers, streams, hills and mountains, parks, and woodlands. Woods are shown by small tree symbols, with clusters representing forests. Parklands are enclosed with ring fences while a small building with a spire represents a village. In consideration of the work and expense involved, Queen Elizabeth, to whom the atlas is dedicated, granted Saxton a license in 1577 for the exclusive publication of the maps for a period of ten years. An unparalleled commercial success, the atlas formed the basis of English regional mapping for more than a century, prompting attempts at si. N° de ref. del artículo 65ERM0112
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