An example of the very rare Roger Rea edition of arguably the most prestigious English atlas of the seventeenth century by John Speed (1552-1629). Speed is the most famous of all the English map-makers. His two most famous publications are ‘The Theatre of the Empire of Great Britain’, first published in 1611[12] and the ‘Prospect of the most famous parts of the world’, first published in 1627. Speed was a tailor by profession with a great interest for history and maps. He wanted to produce an English atlas of the same high standards and quality as those published on the continent. First he prepared a series of county maps of England and Wales and personally travelled all over the British Isles to acquire the information for all the town plans to be included as separate insets. Between 1605 and 1610 he prepared these manuscripts and sent them to Jodocus Hondius in Amsterdam to engrave most of the plates.

The atlas when first published in 1611[12] was intended as a companion volume to his ‘History of Great Britain’. The descriptive text on the back of each map is mostly abridged versions from Camden’s ‘Britannia’. The ‘Prospect of the most famous parts of the world’, first published in 1627, was often bound with the ‘Theatre’ and added an additional 20 engraved maps of the various parts of the world. On 24 March 1659 William Garrett recorded at the Stationer’s Hall that he had acquired the plates and rights to Speed’s various works. He sold them on almost immediately to Roger Rea, both the elder and younger. The folio ‘Prospect’ was issued with a title dated 1662 and printed by Mary and Samuel Simmons. Each map had the name in the imprint altered to reflect their ownership.

The advertisement for the folio edition in the ‘Term Catalogues’ for Hilary Term 1675 interestingly states that ‘Mr. John Speed’s … Geography of the Kingdoms of England, Scotland, and Ireland … together with his Prospect … all in one entire Volume, hath been, for seven Years last past, out of Print, the greatest part of an Impression, then newly Printed, being destroyed by the late dreadful Fire, 1666’. It is this evidence which has led authorities to date the two works c.1665. In 1665 one of the Roger Rea’s dies, this might be supposed to be to the Plague which ravaged the city that year. Further luck befell the Rea firm when the following year London suffered severely from the Great Fire. This edition was largely destroyed and is today one of the rarest. One notable bibliographical alteration is that the double page map of the Civil Wars with text is now placed before that of the ‘Kingdome of Great Britaine and Ireland’ as the first map in the ‘Theatre’.

The maps in both works are attractive because of the border illustrations and insets with the arms of the country and the nobility, figures in national costume, city views, town plans, views of castles and cathedrals, and other interesting features. Provenance: Worthing Public Library with label affixed inside front cover. Chubb 26; ESTC R221744; Sabin 89228; Shirley BL T.Spe 1h & 2d; Skelton 81.