John Smith Gallery

Ptolemy (2nd cent). Tabulae geographicae Cl. Ptolemei ad mentem autoris restitutæ & emendat[a]e per Gerardum Mercatorem [Ptolemy’s maps restored to the mind of the author and corrected by Gerardus Mercator]. Cologne, 1578. [D.4.3]

The exciting overseas voyages of discovery undertaken by Europeans in the 16th and 17th centuries inspired and fed the demand for more accurate map-making (it was in part the imperative to improve navigation that stimulated developments in mathematics and astronomy). Indeed, map making constituted a further element of the scientific and philosophical advances of the 17th century that were of such interest to John Smith. His ownership of this large hand coloured copy reflects the wider presence in his collection of an extensive number of books on travel and related subjects.