Jamaica Inn is hosting an exhibition of Antique Maps, Plans and Engravings of Jamaica and West Indian Interests on Saturday, February 9 and Sunday, February 10 from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.
At the exhibition you will see many antique maps such as this one pictured here. First published 1589, Ortelius “Maris Pacifici” is the first map of the Pacific Ocean. This copy is the 1606 English edition, of which as few as 300 copies were produced.
Jonathan Collier, history buff and collector of antique maps and prints, will fascinate you with details about the maps, the cartographers and how the maps were made. He will even explain what was going on in the world at the time the maps were created and how that may have influenced the design of the map. i.e. some of the maps of the US have no west coast as it had not yet been explored by the Europeans.
Jonathan has a wealth of information both for the collector and for the general viewer who might want to know just the basics about maps and engravings.
Most of the items at the exhibition will date from around the 1600’s and are mostly copper engravings on rag paper. If colored, the maps were colored by hand.