Hondius Map of Great Britain & Ireland 1617 — Antique Map Print

The story of this map

Jodocus Hondius bought Mercator’s plates in 1604 and turned the Atlas into the best-selling map book in Europe; this map of the British Isles is one of the plates his Amsterdam workshop cut for it. It shows England, Scotland and Ireland as one sheet, the counties named, the coast thick with harbours and headlands, and the seas ruled with rhumb lines and dotted with ships.

The engraving is fine enough that the county names and the rivers read clearly at 18×24 in, and the decorative cartouches — the title at the upper left, the scale below — reward a closer look. Colour was added by hand in the period, and the restored scan keeps that wash rather than flattening it.

It is a natural companion to the Jefferys map of Ireland and the Mercator map of Scotland in this collection, and a straightforward gift for anyone with roots in Britain or Ireland. We print it to order on archival matte paper and frame it in black, oak or white.

The scan comes from the Leventhal Map & Education Center at Boston Public Library, whose item record states no known restrictions on use; the year on the record is c. 1617.

Before and after

Left: the archive scan exactly as published. Right: the file that goes to the printer.

Hondius Map of Great Britain & Ireland, 1617: archive scan compared with the restored print

Archive scanRestored

Restoration notes

Restoration: cropped the scanner bed and mount margins, corrected levels and colour cast while keeping the paper tone, removed dust and specks, applied gentle sharpening. Fold lines, stains and period annotations are kept where they belong to the object; nothing is redrawn.

Every print carries its archive credit on the packing slip. Paper tone and small imperfections of the original are kept on purpose; nothing is redrawn.

Questions

Rights & provenance record Source scan: BPL Leventhal.Rights statement of the archive: “No known copyright restrictions. No known restrictions on use.”Original map: Jodocus Hondius, 1617, 1 map : outline col. ; 37 x 51 cm ; scale ca. 1:2,300,000. Verified 2026-09-13. This product is a new archival print made from a restored scan of that map. It is not an original antique and is not sold as one. The story of this map Jodocus Hondius bought Mercator's plates in 1604 and turned the Atlas into the best-selling map book in Europe; this map of the British Isles is one of the plates his Amsterdam workshop cut for it. It shows England, Scotland and Ireland as one sheet, the counties named, the coast thick with harbours and headlands, and the seas ruled with rhumb lines and dotted with ships. The engraving is fine enough that the county names and the rivers read clearly at 18×24 in, and the decorative cartouches — the title at the upper left, the scale below — reward a closer look. Colour was added by hand in the period, and the restored scan keeps that wash rather than flattening it. It is a natural companion to the Jefferys map of Ireland and the Mercator map of Scotland in this collection, and a straightforward gift for anyone with roots in Britain or Ireland. We print it to order on archival matte paper and frame it in black, oak or white. The scan comes from the Leventhal Map & Education Center at Boston Public Library, whose item record states no known restrictions on use; the year on the record is c. 1617. Restoration notes Restoration: cropped the scanner bed and mount margins, corrected levels and colour cast while keeping the paper tone, removed dust and specks, applied gentle sharpening. Fold lines, stains and period annotations are kept where they belong to the object; nothing is redrawn. Every print carries its archive credit on the packing slip. Paper tone and small imperfections of the original are kept on purpose; nothing is redrawn. Questions Is this an original antique map?

No. It is a new archival print of a restored high-resolution scan of the 1611 map held by the LOC (Library of Congress). We never sell originals.

What is printed on it?

England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland together on one sheet, as the opening map of John Speed's Theatre of the Empire of Great Britaine, with the engraving by the Amsterdam master Jodocus Hondius. The print is taken from the Library of Congress Rosenwald copy of the atlas.

How big is the map on the sheet?

The map fills the sheet apart from a slim margin. Because it spans two atlas leaves, the print is slightly taller than wide and suits our portrait sizes such as 16x20, 18x24 and 24x30.

Does it come framed?

Yes, if you choose a framed option. We offer archival matte paper on its own, stretched canvas, or a frame in black, white or natural oak, made and shipped from the country of delivery.

Colours vary between screens and paper. The tone you see here is a close match to the archival matte print; framed prints have no glass glare in these previews.

Pairs well with

Hang them together — 10% off the second framed print

Antique Map of Ireland, 1759

Thomas Jefferys · Boston Public Library, Leventhal Map Center

$49 16×20 in on paper · framed from $95

Mercator Map of Scotland, 1628

Gerard Mercator · Boston Public Library, Leventhal Map Center

$129 24×18 in framed · paper from $35

The discount is applied automatically at checkout when two or more framed prints are in the cart.

Size	Metric	Best for
16×12 in	41×30 cm	Desk, shelf, small wall, gallery groupings
18×12 in	46×30 cm	Desk, shelf, small wall, gallery groupings
20×16 in	51×41 cm	Above a desk or console, hallway, bedroom
24×16 in	61×41 cm	Above a desk or console, hallway, bedroom
20×20 in	51×51 cm	Over a sofa or bed, statement wall, office
24×18 in	61×46 cm	Above a desk or console, hallway, bedroom
24×24 in	61×61 cm	Over a sofa or bed, statement wall, office
30×20 in	76×51 cm	Over a sofa or bed, statement wall, office
30×24 in	76×61 cm	Over a sofa or bed, statement wall, office
32×24 in	81×61 cm	Over a sofa or bed, statement wall, office
36×24 in	91×61 cm	Over a sofa or bed, statement wall, office
40×30 in	102×76 cm	Over a sofa or bed, statement wall, office
48×32 in	122×81 cm	Over a sofa or bed, statement wall, office

Hondius Map of Great Britain & Ireland, 1617

Before and after

Restoration notes

Hang them together — 10% off the second framed print