Magnificent wall map of Cornwall published by William Faden after Thomas Martyn’s wall map first issued in 1748.

Thomas Martyn’s wall map of Cornwall was the second large survey of the county ever published. Martyn was a miner and mathematician who changed careers and began to survey estates; his lasting legacy was this beautiful survey of the county which was used as a basis for large scale maps of Cornwall well into the 19th century. Such was the respect for his map that later publishers left his name on their issues. Robert Sayer published this map in nine sheets for Thomas Martyn in 1749 and almost immediately also published a reduced edition with the same information.

In 1784, William Faden, the most successful map publisher of the age, published his version of the map, while James Wyld the Elder, apprentice to Faden, also issued the same map in 1827 and 1832 while James Wyld the Younger, son of the above, also issued his versions of the map in the 1870s. These later editions were usually reduced in size and bore different decoration.

The example offered here is Faden’s edition of 1784 in magnificent original colour. Faden’s map has been very slightly reduced by approximately 4cm on all sides but in terms of decoration, remains the same.

Original colour. [CORN602]