Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #111973 in Books
• Published on: 2004-05-21
• Format: Facsimile
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Map
• 1 pages

Synopsis
As the twentieth century dawned the British Empire enjoyed its heyday. It spanned 11 million square miles with 400 million inhabitants. This detailed colour reproduction of a contemporary world map shows details of global trade including the furs of fox, bear, seal and otter brought from the shores of Canada's Lake Athabasca by canoes in summer and dog sleds in winter; cochineal, indigo & vanilla from central America; teak and bamboo from Siam; cinnamon and pearls from Ceylon; tortoise shells & birds of paradise from New Guinea as well as minerals and foodstuffs from all over the world. In the Sahara we note that slaves were still traded. Coaling stations, telegraph cables, railways and caravan routes are all marked. Additional maps show the development of the Empire in the preceding three centuries. A ten page gazetteer describes over 200 British countries and possessions, as well as 33 (including Normandy and the USA) which had been lost to the crown. Folded in a protective wallet.

Customer Reviews

The sun never sets
This map is great, a good informative map showing British possessions in 1905, the map itself is a good size to use as a poster on a wall or in a classroom, the map also shows trade routes, telegraph cables, coaling stations, railway routes and many more. Comes with a little booklet listing all british possessions and short discriptions, overall for the price it well worth it, BUY IT.

Interesting to see, but just that
Bought as a gift for a friend, I found the map a little disappointing. The colour quality is excellent in the surrounding images, but the map itself is a little flat, like a rather heavy print. Of course, that could just be a reproduction of the original. The small pamphlet that comes with it lists the colonies, current and former, but only with their bullet-point political history, so no great depth or description.

The one amusing entry is "Tristan da Cunha, a small group in the South Altantic (Gough's Island, Inaccessible, and Nightingale). Occupied between 1816 and 1821. There is no Government and no crime."

Overall verdict: If you can't visit the places, then you're better off spending your money on a book like The Last Pink Bits.