British County Maps: Reference and Price Guide

4to (28 cm), 295 pp. Publisher's cloth with dust jacket (minor shelf wear). "The aim of this book is to inform the map collector at every stage of his quest. Thus, in addition to a brief history of map development, a section on the formation and care of a collection, and a discussion of reproductions and forgeries, the bulk of this work is devoted to answering the map collector's perennial question: Who made the map? There is no standardisation whereby a map is always known by, for example, its surveyor, engraver, or publisher, and the difficulties created by such multiple involvement are often compounded by other factors. It is precisely these confusions that British County Maps sets out to clarify. This is the first time such vital information has appeared in so lucid a format, with one hundred biographical entries, many featuring detailed cross-references to associated names, and 270 illustrations to assist in identifying maps and editions. This book, which includes an appendix on prices, is an extremely valuable source of reference as well as a fascinating account of the cartographer's art in Britain from the sixteenth to the nineteenth century." (From the blurb).…