Published almost 300 years ago by master mapmaker John Rocque, this is the first detailed map of West London. It was originally published in 1746, following a highly accurate survey of London and its suburbs starting in 1740. It is a beautiful, highly detailed and extremely rare old map.
This is sheet 14 of 16, covering the London Boroughs of Ealing and Hammersmith & Fulham, both of which form part of Greater London, located to the west of the city. During this time, Ealing was a rural village in the historic county of Middlesex. Still, it wasn't until the 20th century that it became part of Greater London. It's an important commercial and retail centre today.
On the bottom left of the map, you can see Osterley House and Park, a manor house that was built in the late 16th century, though it was remodelled shortly after this map was published by Robert Adams and today is looked after by the National Trust.
Some of the locations on this map include: Brentford, Ealing, Chiswick, Acton, Hanwell, West Ealing, Greenford Green, Strand-on-the-Green, River Thames, Osterley, Gunnersbury, Kew Gardens and Hammersmith & Fulham.
Rocque published two major maps of London. This map here is a single sheet from a very fine 16-sheet map of "London and 10 miles around". His other map, a 24-sheet map of central London with magnificent detail, is far more famous.
This map looks great at all sizes: 12x16in (30.5x41cm), 16x20in (40.5x51cm), 18x24in (45.5x61cm), 24x36in (61x91.5cm), 32x40in (81.5x102cm), 40x50in (102x127cm), 48x60in (122x153cm) and 56x70in (142x178cm), but it looks best at larger sizes.
I can create beautiful, large prints of this map up to 120in (305cm). Please get in touch if you're looking for larger, customised or different framing options.
The model in the listing images is holding the 16x20in (40.5x51cm) version of this map.
The fifth listing image shows an example of my map personalisation service.
If you’re looking for something slightly different, another option would be this amazing map of West London by Edward Stanford in 1862.
Please contact me to check if a certain location, landmark or feature is shown on this map.
This would make a wonderful birthday, Christmas, Father's Day, work leaving or housewarming gift for someone interested in West London or someone from the London Borough of Ealing or Hammersmith & Fulham, .
This map is available as a giclée print on acid free archival matte paper, or you can buy it framed. The frame is a nice, simple black frame that suits most aesthetics. Please get in touch if you'd like a different frame colour or material. My frames are glazed with super-clear museum-grade acrylic (perspex/acrylite), which is significantly less reflective than glass, safer, and will always arrive in perfect condition.