Cambridgeshire. A fine map of the county from the 1676 Bassett & Chiswell edition of Speed's seminal atlas, 'The Theatre of the Empire of Great Britaine'.
Geographically, the north part of the map illustrates the sparsely populated Ile of Ely. This region of fenland was not officially part of Cambridgeshire, but for cartographic purposes, it was almost always included within maps of the county. In contrast, the southern part of the map, Cambridgeshire proper, is far more densely populated.
The upper left corner bears an early plan of Cambridge, with a key underneath locating the major locations of interest, which are mainly the colleges. This is balanced on the upper right with a cartouche of the royal coats of arms and two text panels explaining the border illustrations on the map.
These illustrations consist of the coats of arms of the Colleges of Cambridge on the left and right, together with the coats of arms of the University on the upper right. The upper left bears the arms of “King Sigebert founder of the University” although that accolade is usually given to Henry III. The lower border is just as elaborate and illustrates the coats of arms of notable aristocrats of the county. Further illustrations include two figures of academics on the left and the right.
English text on verso. Image available on request.