It is believed that Herman Moll emigrated from Holland in the late 1680s and soon established himself as a geographer and engraver of note. Subsequently he made the move into publishing. The ‘Daily Journal’ of 31 July 1724 announced that ‘this day is publish’d, in folio, ‘A New Description of England and Wales’. It contained 50 maps complete with descriptive text. It is considered his finest English work being noted for its depiction’s of antiquities along the margins of each map. Shortly after Moll published ‘A Set of Fifty New and Correct Maps of England and Wales’. Although dated 1724 the earliest advert known is dated 27 March 1725, this being the pre-Gregorian calendar early March would still have been considered 1724.

The title describes how all the maps named in the index are present ‘except two, composed and done by Herman Moll’. These two are Stukeley’s map of ‘Britanniam’ and the map of Denbigh and Flint. ‘A New Description of England and Wales’ was published again following the death of Moll in 1732 of which only one example survives. A second edition of ‘A Set of Fifty New and Correct Maps of England and Wales’ is that offered here published in 1739, it is a much rarer edition than the first. The titlepage is reset, by now it appears that all the shareholders had been bought out by various members of the Bowles family. Provenance: Sotheby’s 30.11.95 lot 58; private English collection. Beresiner (1983) pp. 156-7; Chubb 162; Hodson (1984-97) no. 176; Shirley (2004) T.Moll 6b.