*** Handmade and dispatched locally! *** I print, frame and make old maps all around the world. I will make your map locally and deliver locally with your normal post or courier service. This means your map will usually arrive in 2-3 working days and ensures your map gets to you in perfect condition. (Plus, it reduces CO2 emissions by not flying old maps half way around the world!) *** Map personalisation *** This map can be personalised to make it truly unique. I will add a short message to the map that perfectly blends in. This is perfect for anniversaries, housewarmings, leaving gifts, and more. Please add this product to your basket before you checkout: https://www.etsy.com/uk/listing/1257156692/map-personalisation-add-on-item-please. Get in touch if you want to discuss an unusual or complex personalisation. have personalised thousands of maps over the years - I can almost certainly help you. *** Intro *** Established in 1984, the Unique Maps Co. sources the world's finest and rarest old maps from libraries and private collections around the world. I restore the maps in my workshop and then reproduce, customise and frame them to suit my customers' needs. I guarantee that you cannot find higher quality maps anywhere else. *** About this map *** This is an exceedingly rare, old full colour map of Essex created by master mapmaker Joan Blaeu from his workshop in Amsterdam and originally published in this Theatrum Orbis Terrarum Sive Atlas Novus in 1665. Originally handcoloured almost 400 years ago, this is one of the finest examples of this map that I've ever seen. This map looks great at all sizes, from 12x16 inches (30x40cm), to 16x20 inches (40x50cm), 18x24 inches (45x60cm) and beyond. I can print it at large sizes all the way up to 50 inches wide (125cm). The model in the listing images is holding the 20x16 inch (50x40cm) version of this map. Many of the towns, villages and cities in Essex are already visible in this ancient map, such as Colchester, Chelmsford and Braintree. The southwest part of Essex in this map borders London, which means this map also includes some north and east London towns and villages including: Hackney, Newington, Tottenham, Deptford, Greenwich, Barking, Walthamstow and Waltham Forest. Some of the other Essex towns and villages that can also be seen on this map include: Romford, Brentford, Chigwell, Basildon, Billericay, Clacton and Wivenhoe. But of course, many of them are spelt in their Early Modern English forms. Curiously, Southend on Sea didn't exist yet! There is the small village of Prittlewell, though, which would later become Southend. Take a look at the detailed images and try to spot your hometown! This would make a wonderful birthday or Christmas gift for someone from Southend, who is looking for a map of north or east London, or who has Essex in their heart. You can order the map itself, or you can order a framed version. The frame is a nice, simple black frame that really makes our maps pop out when on a wall. Please get in touch if you'd like a different frame. We use super-clear acrylic (perspex/acrylite) in our frames - it's less reflective than glass and better for transport. My museum-quality maps are printed on acid free archival paper with Epson ultrachrome giclée inks. *** CANVAS MAP INFO *** Some of my maps are available as canvas prints. These are 'box canvases' - the map is printed on canvas, and then stretched over a wooden frame. They come with brackets on the back and are 'ready to hang'. My maps look fantastic when printed on canvas, but please note that canvas reduces the sharpness of my maps. So, for example, a small label might be legible on paper, but too small to read on a canvas map. Generally, most of my maps should be fully legible at 24x36 inches (60x90cm). But please get in touch if you want me to check if a specific label will be legible.