Hungerford Arcade every day sees all sorts of interesting objects come through the doors and this week, we have had the chance to pore over a fantastic 1891 volume, Bacon’s Complete Atlas of the World from 1891. Full of beautiful and detailed maps from around the world, facts and figures, it is a real snapshot of life in 1891, well before the First World War. It captures a world view at the end of an era and is full of the spirit of discovery.
The information, accuracy and artistry of the atlas is amazing, and also an education – for example, you can see a contemporary view of the Austria-Hungary territory at that time. There are also lots of fascinating and unexpected facts.
The ‘Diagram shewing the relative strengths of Armies on a war footing for the Chief Countries of the World’ has Russia in the lead with 2,151,000 Men – with the United States straggling in the bottom of the table with only 28,000 men! You can also find out about national debt, exports/imports, snowfall -the list goes on.
We often see many items of geographical interest coming through Hungerford Arcade – check out our extensive book section, or look out for rarer items like globes, sextants – and of course, more atlases!
