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Description

The First Map of Poland Published in England

Decorative example of John Speed's highly sought after map of Poland, the first map of Poland to appear in an English Atlas.

The map includes birdseye views of Cracow, Dantzick, Posna, Crossen, Sandomiria and Breslaw across the top, and indigenous costumes of a Polonian Gentleman and Gentlewoman, Polonian Man and Woman, 2 coats of arms, a Silesian Woman and Bride, and Dantszck Maid and Bride, on the sides.

The English text on verso provides a fascinating Anglo-centric 17th Century description of Poland.

Condition Description
Soiled at top center of blank margin and bottom margin. Minor fold split, repaired on verso.
John Speed Biography

John Speed (1551 or '52 - 28 July 1629) was the best known English mapmaker of the Stuart period. Speed came to mapmaking late in life, producing his first maps in the 1590s and entering the trade in earnest when he was almost 60 years old.

John Speed's fame, which continues to this day, lies with two atlases, The Theatre of the Empire of Great Britaine (first published 1612), and the Prospect of the Most Famous Parts of the World (1627). While The Theatre ... started as solely a county atlas, it grew into an impressive world atlas with the inclusion of the Prospect in 1627. The plates for the atlas passed through many hands in the 17th century, and the book finally reached its apotheosis in 1676 when it was published by Thomas Bassett and Richard Chiswell, with a number of important maps added for the first time.