1851 Tallis / Rapkin Map of the Near East, Middle East, and India

Traveling from London to India.

This is a rare 1851 John Rapkin / John Tallis map of the Near East, Middle East, and India, with hand-coloring of the overland routes to India and of national borders. The top portion shows the European section of four routes between London and India, while the bottom half shows the routes continuing through the Near and Middle East.

Getting to India

This map shows four routes from London to India. Contrary to map's title, each route required a fair degree of sea travel. Though this map predates the Suez Canal, it also predates many of the earliest railways built in the Middle East, meaning that sea travel was the fastest route. One of the main motivations for such routes was communication, as suggested by the illustration of the Post Office in London and the route run by the Mail Steam Packet Company, a royal chartered shipping company that connected the British Empire, illustrated here in purple. At the time this map was made, a letter sent from London took weeks to reach India. While telegraph communications were a burgeoning industry, and networks existed within the British Isles and India, London and the Indian subcontinent would not be connected by telegraph until 1870.

'The Great Game'

Though part of a world atlas, this map was made for an English-speaking audience in the context of the 'Great Game,' a diplomatic confrontation between the British and Russian Empires over territories in Central and Southern Asia. The conflict, rooted in long-standing animosity between Russia and Britain, revolved around Afghanistan, which, while lacking significant resources of its own, was strategically situated. For its part, Russia feared Britain was making commercial and military inroads into Central Asia, an area long within the sphere of influence of St. Petersburg. Britain, conversely, feared Russia making gains in India, 'the jewel in the crown' of British Asia.

The escalating tensions led to several wars and proxy wars in India and Afghanistan, were connected with the Russian annexations of Khiva, Bukhara, and Kokand, and tied to wider geopolitical tensions between Russia and Britain, evident in the Crimean War and elsewhere. At the time this map was made, the British East India Company and its allies had just fought two wars to subjugate the Sikh Empire and a war to repel Persian influence in Afghanistan, which the British hoped to maintain as an independent buffer state between India and the Russian Empire.

Publication History

This map was part of the well-known Tallis's Illustrated Atlas and Modern History of the World published in 1851. It was drawn and engraved by John Rapkin and the illustrations were drawn by H. Warren and engraved by J.H. Kernot. This appears to be an atypical edition, as at bottom it says 'The London Printing and Publishing Company' rather than 'John Tallis and Company London and New York' as is generally the case.

Cartographers

John Rapkin (July 18, 1813 - June 20, 1899) was an English mapmaker and engraver. Born in Southwark, Rapkin was the son of George Rapkin, a shoemaker, and his wife Elizabeth Harfy. Rapkin and his brother Richard both became engravers and his other brother, William Harfy Rapkin, became a copperplate printer. Rapkin produced works for James Wyld and John Tallis, including The United States and the relative position of Oregon and Texas for Wyld around 1845, and a series of eighty maps for Tallis that became 'Tallis's illustrated atlas, and modern history of the world' in 1851. Rapkin married Frances Wilmot Rudell on January 4, 1837, with whom he had at least eight children, some of whom became engravers, including his sons John Benjamin Rapkin (1837 - 1914), Alfred Thomas Rapkin (1841 - 1905), Joseph Clarke Rapkin (1846? - 1912), and Frederick William Rapkin (1859 - 1945). Rapkin operated under the imprint 'John Rapkin and Sons from 1867 until 1883, and was operating as 'John Rapkin and Sons' by 1887. Rapkin died in 1899 at the age of 85 soon after the death of his wife of over sixty years.   Further Details...

John Tallis (November 7, 1817 - June 3, 1876) was an English map publisher and bookseller. Born in Stourbridge, Worcestershire, he worked in his father's Birmingham agency from 1836 to 1842. Around 1838, Tallis published a collection of London Street Views and entered into a partnership with his brother Frederick Tallis from 1842 to 1849. Tallis and Company also published the Illustrated Atlas of the World (1849). Also in 1849, Tallis traveled to New York City, where he established agencies in 6 American cities. After returning from New York, Tallis paid his brother £10,000 for his share of the business and subsequently operated as John Tallis and Company until 1854. By 1853, John Tallis and Company had agencies in 26 cities in the United Kingdom, the United States, and Canada and employed over 500 people. On February 24, 1854, Tallis brought on a new partner, Ephraim Tipton Brain (1791 - 1876), forming the London Printing and Publishing Company. After a series of setbacks, however, Tallis had to sell his estate and by 1861 was declared bankrupt. Friends and former employees kept him afloat, but none of his 'various ambitious projects' proved lucrative. Tallis married Jane Ball on December 6, 1836, in Birmingham, and they lived together until she died in 1862. Tallis remarried on June 27, 1863, to Mary Stephens, with whom he had two children.   Further Details...

John Tallis (November 7, 1817 - June 3, 1876) was an English map publisher and bookseller. Born in Stourbridge, Worcestershire, he worked in his father's Birmingham agency from 1836 to 1842. Around 1838, Tallis published a collection of London Street Views and entered into a partnership with his brother Frederick Tallis from 1842 to 1849. Tallis and Company also published the Illustrated Atlas of the World (1849). Also in 1849, Tallis traveled to New York City, where he established agencies in 6 American cities. After returning from New York, Tallis paid his brother £10,000 for his share of the business and subsequently operated as John Tallis and Company until 1854. By 1853, John Tallis and Company had agencies in 26 cities in the United Kingdom, the United States, and Canada and employed over 500 people. On February 24, 1854, Tallis brought on a new partner, Ephraim Tipton Brain (1791 - 1876), forming the London Printing and Publishing Company. After a series of setbacks, however, Tallis had to sell his estate and by 1861 was declared bankrupt. Friends and former employees kept him afloat, but none of his 'various ambitious projects' proved lucrative. Tallis married Jane Ball on December 6, 1836, in Birmingham, and they lived together until she died in 1862. Tallis remarried on June 27, 1863, to Mary Stephens, with whom he had two children.   Further Details...

Source

Tallis, J., The Illustrated Atlas, And Modern History Of The World Geographical, Political, Commercial and Statistical, (London and New York: Tallis) 1851.    

Condition

Very good. Trace evidence of soiling along edges.