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This early eighteenth-century map of Scotland, titled A New Map of North Britain, was drawn by John Cowley and engraved by Richard William Seale. Though dated 1734, the map was later included in Sir Alexander Murray’s political tract The True Interest of Great Britain (1740), where it appeared alongside other folding maps.
Cowley’s outline draws from a composite of earlier sources, most notably Herman Moll, with revisions based on his own survey work and observations provided by Murray, particularly along the western seaboard. The east coast follows John Adair’s map of 1688. Cowley acknowledged the limitations of existing cartography, citing the difficulty of conducting accurate coastal surveys from small vessels in challenging conditions.
An inset of the Shetland Islands appears in the upper right corner. The map’s maritime orientation and attention to coastal features invites the better treatment of the interior that would be accomplished by William Roy’s Military Survey, begun in 1747.
Cowley’s map marks a transitional moment in Scottish cartography. It is not a systematic or comprehensive survey, but it offers a structured attempt to present Scotland’s geography in a more regular and accessible form. In doing so, it invites further attention to the measurement and development of the country.
