Antique Maps and Map Makers - John Seller

John Seller, appointed Hydrographer to Charles II in I671, was a maker of mathematical instruments and globes as well as a publisher of marine and terrestrial atlases. His output was considerable and wide-ranging,covering individual charts and maps and complete atlases, but throughout his life he was beset with financial problems which limited the scope of his bigger projects. Of these, the English Pilot, the first part of which successful, but he was able to complete only the first volume without assistance. The details of issue of the later volumes and their subsequent editions are too complicated to be covered here; suffice to say that the work was continued in one form or another for over a century, being issued under many different namesincluding John and Samuel Thornton, W. Fisher, C. Price, Richard and William Mount, Thomas Page and Davidson.

Above: Antique map of Bedfordshire which appeared in John Seller's Anglia Contracta (London: J. Seller, 1694/1695). John Seller (fl. 1660-1697 Engraved area approx: 5" x 6" ( 125mm x 150mm) to plate mark. External mount size: 10.25" X 11" (260mm x 280mm).  See Bedfordshire Map

Although the Englisb Pilot was a popular work, Seller used Dutch sources and often actual Dutch copper plates which he adapted for the market by the use of English titles and details. As many of these plates were up to fifty years old their accuracy left much to be desired, a fact which directly inspired the call for a new coastal survey subsequently completed by Captain Greenvile Collins. Later, in 1695, Seller published an Atlas of County Maps, the Anglia Contracta. (Text extract from Antique Maps a Collectors Guide: Moreland C. & David Bannister. Publisher: Phaidon Christie's limited 1989.  Antique Maps a Collectors Guide