The atlas does not presume in any way to be exhaustive, but is representative of the different periods through which London passed, and shows most strikingly the development of the City.
I must acknowledge the valuable assistance I have received from Mr. George Clinch, F.G.S., in the many difficulties which arose in the course of its preparation.
G. E. Mitton.
PANORAMA OF LONDON
By ANTONY VAN DEN WYNGAERDE
Description.—This is the earliest representation of London that has come down to our time. Accurately speaking, it is not a map, but a picture; but as many of the old maps are more or less in the same category, we need not exclude it on that account. Such topographical drawings are apt to be misleading, owing to the immense difficulties of perspective—witness the wretched samples hawked about the pavements at the present time. But, considering the difficulties, this map of Wyngaerde's is wonderfully accurate, and it has the advantage of being full of architectural details which no true map could give.
Designer.—Of Wyngaerde himself little is known. He is supposed to have been a Fleming, and may have come to England in the train of Philip II. of Spain. He is known to have made other topographical drawings. The date of the one here reproduced cannot be fixed with perfect certainty, but must have been between 1543 and 1550.
Original.—The original is in the Sutherland Collection at the Bodleian Library, Oxford, and it measures 10 feet by 17 inches, and is in seven sheets. A tracing of it, made by N. Whittock, can be seen in the Crace Collection, Prints Department, British Museum, or in the Guildhall Library.