A rare 17th century English sea chart of Jamaica

An early English map of Jamaica, based on the work of John Man, Chief Surveyor of Jamaica 1661-71. It shows the island divided into parishes (here precincts), with an extensive key of landowners bottom right. Above the title are the arms of the island, and to the tight are the crests of the first four governors held aloft by cherubs and a figure of Britannia holding a cornucopia. Above the key is a dedication to Sir Joseph Williamson (1633-1701), a civil service bureaucrat who was (according to DNB), ''in effect the de facto head of the Restoration government's intelligence system'', '' intercepting the mail at the Post Office, as well as examining and interrogating suspects, and employing spies and informers''. One of the four governors whose arms are illustrated is Thomas Modyford (c.1620-1679), who divided the island into parishes and commissioned Man's survey. He also gave the pirate Sir Henry Morgan a commission to attack Spanish interests: however Morgan sacked Panama after a peace treaty had been signed, so both he and Modyford were recalled to London for trial. Neither was brought to trial, but Modyford spent two years incarcerated in the Tower of London.