Sheet 43, Old Series1”.(1845) topography 1831, geology 1845, issued 1859. Hand-coloured engraving, 66 x 80.5cm,

British Geological Survey

£104.00

Sheet 43, Old Series1”.(1845) topography 1831, geology 1845, issued 1859. Hand-coloured engraving, 66 x 80.5cm, four quarter sheets, joined, dissected and mounted on linen folding to 22 x 13.5cm between green soft card covers. Ink signature of first owner on back Clean, age-toned, colours bright, cover worn, l pencil notes in margin, linen folds sound. Early colouring with patterns and pale green for alluvium, prior to standardization. Neat manuscript key in bottom margin. Legends were omitted on some of the earliest geological maps issued. Railways neatly added in red or black ink. In good to very good condition. Covers Monmouth, Hereford, Malverns, Gloucester.

About the England & Wales One Inch Old Series

The Geological Survey of England and Wales used the Old Series of the Ordnance Survey topographic map at a scale of one inch to the mile as its basemap, initially. These engraved basemaps were published and revised between 1805 and 1885; the sheet sizes varied and the layout and numbering system were eccentric. The Old Series geological maps were hand-coloured and without geological sections, which were published separately. The GS of E&W published the Old Series from 1850 to 1900, when it switched to the colour printing and the New Series one inch maps. However, old stock of the Old Series continued to be issued, hand-coloured, until the 1930s.