Christopher Saxton’s plate of the south-east including Kent, Surrey and Sussex was quite likely the first of the six to be produced in 1575 as he worked his way westwards along the south coast. It was the work of the engraver Remigius Hogenberg and was replaced by maps of the individual counties by Philip Lea around 1693, an example of which is offered above. The original plate however was somehow not destroyed although one would assume the sales were dramatically less and the number of surviving copies would reflect this. After Philip Lea the Saxton plates came into the hands of George Willdey. Thomas Willdey successor to George died in 1748 and the business was closed as there were many creditors. It would seem logical to assume that it was sometime shortly after that Thomas Jefferys acquired them. Only two years earlier he had been appointed Geographer to the Prince of Wales and was just finding his feet. He began his esteemed career as an engraver and turned to publishing. No doubt these plates came his way at a tempting price. The atlas was not advertised and it would seem that Jefferys was content to sell the maps loose only binding a collection of the maps on request. Certainly this is supported by the fact that only four examples survive. An extremely rare map, Burgess records ONLY THREE EXAMPLES. Burgess (2009) no. 1.ix; Evans & Lawrence (1979) pp. 12, 53-8 & 160; Hodson (1984-97) I no. 184; Kingsley 1.9; Shirley (2004) T.Sax 1h.