Cassini’s Great British Cities Historical Map Collection provides a remarkable overview of three of Britain’s major urban areas from the early 19th century to the 1950s.

Four of the maps are at 1:50,000 scale and provide a bird’s-eye view of the city and the surrounding area at four crucial points in its history. The fifth is at a more detailed 1:10,000 and lets you zoom in and explore the 19th-century urban landscape street by street. Historical notes help set the maps in context and provide an introduction to the original mapping series used. Supplied in an attractive case, the Great British Cities Historical Map Collection makes an ideal gift for anyone with any interest in the history of Liverpool, Edinburgh or London.

Peter Barber MA, FSA, FRHistS - Head of Map Collections, British Library

"Old maps of the sort published by Cassini are an excellent introduction to local history throughout the United Kingdom because they focus the user’s attention on the sort of unexpected questions that act as starting points for research. “Well, I never knew that there was a house in that location 200 years ago”. “I never realised that my street followed a different course 150 years ago . . . why?”. Of course, detailed local histories will probably contain the answers to some of these questions – but they hardly ever force them on you as vivdly – and attractively – as old maps. And, in some cases, you will find yourself asking questions that even the standard histories do not answer.  So, before consulting those published histories, look at the maps!"