To the upper right of the plan three putti raise a curtain to reveal the title, below reclines a personification of the Thames. To the plan itself cross-hatching and stippling are used to distinguish land use, with differentiation made between fields and parkland. The plan would seem to be slightly later than the imprint date, as Bedford House has been demolished and replaced by Bedford Square, which did not occur until 1799, and a large part of the London Docks have been constructed, work upon which did not commence until 1799.

William Faden (1750-1836) began his career in cartography after taking over the business of Thomas Jefferys, a highly respected British mapmaker. Initially publishing under the name Faden and Jefferys, he followed his predecessor by specialising in maps of North America, resulting in the publication of a collection of them in the ‘North American Atlas’ in 1777. Twice honoured by the Royal Society for his work, he became Geographer to the King in 1783, and was chosen in 1801 to create and print the first of the Ordnance survey maps.

Scale: 5 1/4 inches to 1 statute mile.