In describing maps, the words “first” and “unique” are used very liberally as many antique maps have some special features. However in the case of the great sea atlas of Sir Robert Dudley there are no other words to describe the work. This was the first sea atlas to cover the entire world, the first to use Mercator’s projection and the first by an Englishman, albeit one working in Italy. The six-volume work covered navigation, shipbuilding and astronomy , with 130 maps in two volumes (nos. 2 and 6) . Unlike the vast majority of his contemporaries, Dudley’s maps are all his own and were not copied from other mapmakers. They have an instantly recognizable style, closer to the pre-17th-century manuscript portolan charts than the richly decorated maps of Mercator, Hondius and Blaeu. Later map-makers chose not to copy Dudley’s style and so it remains unique in the annals of cartography. The engraving by Antonio Francesco Lucini, who stated that he spent 12 years and used 5,000 pounds of copper to produce the plates, is of exceptional quality as is the calligraphy.

Dudley’s life (1573-1649) was noteworthy. Dudley was the son of Queen Elizabeth’s favorite minister, the Earl of Leicester. He was thought to be an illegitimate child of the Earl, but other information suggests his parents were married in secret. He was, however, a bigamist, privateer, engineer, mathematician, architect and designer of warships and scientific instruments (his collection of instruments can be seen in The Institute and Museum of History of Science in Florence). In 1594-5 he commanded an expedition to the West Indies and the Guiana coast of South America. In 1596 he served as commander of a vessel in the attack on Cadiz for which he was knighted. He fell out of favor at the English court due to his philandering and ill-considered support of the Essex rebellion and in 1605 settled in Tuscany under the patronage of the Grand Duke of Tuscany – a member of the Medici family - for whom he undertook a series of projects including the draining of the swamps between Pisa and Livorno (Leghorn). His masterwork was published in 1646 and 1647 just before his death in 1649. A second edition with 146 maps was published by Guiseppe Cocchini in 1661.