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Speed’s map of Oxfordshire
By SPEED, John, 1627
Oxfordshire described with ye citie and the armes of the colledges of ye famous university Anno 1605.
- Author: SPEED, John
- Publication place: London
- Publisher: Performed by John Speede and are to be sold in popes head alley against the Exchange by I.S. & G.H.
- Publication date: 1627
- Physical description: Engraved map with hand colouring.
- Dimensions: 380 by 520mm. (15 by 20.5 inches).
- Inventory reference: 11802
Notes
A map of Oxfordshire, with an inset map of the city of Oxford and a border made up of the coats of arms of the university colleges. At the bottom, the scale bar has been decorated with a globe and two scholars, one of whom is using a pair of compasses to measure out the scale bar.
John Speed (1552–1629) was the outstanding cartographer of his age. His ‘Theatre of Great Britain’ was the first atlas of the British Isles: Speed prepared the maps himself about two years before they were published. His maps and books dominated the seventeenth-century English market. The present map is taken from the 1627 English edition published by George Humble.
John Speed (1552–1629) was the outstanding cartographer of his age. His ‘Theatre of Great Britain’ was the first atlas of the British Isles: Speed prepared the maps himself about two years before they were published. His maps and books dominated the seventeenth-century English market. The present map is taken from the 1627 English edition published by George Humble.
Bibliography
- Chubb XXV.
- Chubb, T., Skells, J. and Beharrell, H. (1977). The printed maps in the atlases of Great Britain and Ireland. Folkestone: Dawson.
Biography
John Speed (1551/2–1629)
John Speed is perhaps the most famous single figure in the early history of the English map trade. He was a member of the Merchant Taylors’ Company, made free in September 1580, and later Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries. By training he was probably a rolling-press printer, but by interest he was a historian, and Queen Elizabeth granted him a sinecure in the Customs House, to give him the opportunity to pursue these interests.
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