British Isles sea charts by Greenvile Collins & Edmond Halley

We've just acquired a complete set of the first 1693 edition of Greenvile Collins' sea charts of the British Isles. The lack of accurate charts had hitherto resulted in frequent shipwrecks; Collins' maps, commissioned to address that shortcoming, were the result of the first comprehensive survey of the British coastline. His charts were a vast improvement on earlier maps, but by no means perfect; he located the Scilly Isles several miles further north than their actual position, an error which contributed to the Scilly naval disaster of 1709, in which four Royal Navy warships under the command of Sir Cloudesley Shovell were wrecked on rocks west of the Islands. Ironically, two of Collins' charts had been dedicated to Shovell. We also have a number of charts from later editions of his atlas.

We have also acquired a noteworthy chart by Edmond Halley of the English Channel, published by Mount & Page (1702). Best known as an astronomer and for predicting the orbit of his eponymous comet, he also made a number of groundbreaking contributions to cartography, of which this three sheet map is one such, being the first map to indicate the timing and direction of the tides. His other notable contributions to mapmaking include the first ever weather map, the first map to include isarithmic or contour lines, and the first map to show the predictive path of the umbra of an eclipse.

You can view our stock of Collins maps here, and the Halley map here.

If you have any questions, please ask - we're always happy to help. Call us on +44-(0)208-960-3476 or email info@antiquemapsandprints.com 

- Richard, Joanne & the team at Antiqua Print Gallery