Spain and Portugal from the Latest Authorities: Jefferys c.1760

Title: Spain and Portugal from the Latest Authorities Author: Thomas Jefferys Date: c.1760 Medium: Copperplate engraving Condition: Very Good - light age toning, light foxing, vertical fold lines Inches: 10 1/4 x 8 1/2 [Paper] Centimeters: 26.04 x 21.59 [Paper] Product ID: 100789 By the end of the eighteenth century, Britain had established itself as the world’s leading naval superpower, a development which went hand-in-hand with cartographic advancement. One of the cartographers who contributed to this phenomenon was Thomas Jefferys (c. 1719-1771), Royal Geographer to King George III. We know little of his background, save that he married in 1750 and seemed to identify primarily as an engraver, rather than as a geographer. In 1766 he went bankrupt, which gave publisher Robert Sayer the opportunity to purchase a large portion of Jefferys’ materials and plates. Following this setback, Jefferys did continue to publish maps in partnership with the younger William Faden.