17th century SatNav returns to Belton House after almost 50 years

The book collection at Belton House is considered second only to that of the Norfolk estate, Blickling, in significance. The 11,000 plus books show the reading and collecting habits of the Belton’s Brownlow family over a period of more than 350 years.

This week, for the first time in almost 50 years, two superb Ogilby atlases, which were auctioned by Sotheby’s back in 1971, before the National Trust acquired Belton, have been reunited to Grantham once more.

Ogilby was one of the most significant English publishers of atlases, and Belton’s copy of his 1675 road atlas of England and Wales was purchased by the National Trust at auction in 2010.

The road atlas, the first ever produced for England and Wales, was essentially a book in the form of strip maps guiding the traveller from A to B, just like the modern day SatNav.

Simon Chesters-Thompson, National Trust Curator, said: “While today we might worry about heavy traffic on the motorway, these fascinating atlases are from a time when roads were muddy, rutted tracks and all travel could be extremely dangerous.”

The maps were based on on-the-ground research facilitated by a wheeled contraption to measure distances. Ogilby’s work set the standard for later atlases and was pivotal in standardising the English mile.

On 17 November 2018, the Brownlow’s original copy of Ogilby’s 1671 atlas of the Americas was also repurchased at Arader Galleries auction house, in the USA by bidding over the telephone to ensure its return home to Belton House.

Having recently re-acquired the late 17th century Ogilby book of America, the house and collections team have reunited the atlases, which can now be seen on display in the Ante-Library.

The two Ogilby atlases were owned by one of the most bookish members of the family, Sir John Brownlow,fifth Baronet andViscount Tyrconnel (1690-1754). Tyrconnel, known as the great collector, assembled a collection of books on science, history, travel, theology, literature and the classics.

However, a further four Ogilby atlases once at Belton remain to be found. They are the volumes of Africa, Asia, China and Japan. So, if you happen to come across them please contact the National Trust Collection team via CollectionsManagementTeam@nationaltrust.org.uk.