Emanuel Bowen (1693 - 1767)
Prominent c.18th Welsh map engraver and geographer who held the prestigious title of Royal Mapmaker, to both King George II of Great Britain and Louis XV of France. Born around 1694 in Talley, Carmarthenshire, he moved to London to apprentice under the globe maker Charles Price. By the 1720s, he had established himself as a leading figure in the London map-making trade, known for a signature style that combined technical accuracy with an abundance of decorative and informative detail.
His work was characterized by a tendency to fill the empty spaces of his maps with dense historical notes, geographical descriptions, and elaborate cartouches. This made his maps not only tools for navigation but also encyclopaedic resources for the 18th-century reader. Later in his career, he collaborated with Thomas Kitchin to produce The Large English Atlas, which remained one of the most comprehensive sets of English county maps for decades.
Despite his prolific output and the high status of his clientele, Bowen’s life ended in financial hardship. He trained several notable apprentices, including his son Thomas Bowen and his son-in-law Thomas Kitchin, yet he struggled to maintain his wealth. By the time of his death in May 1767, he had lost much of his eyesight and lived in poverty, reportedly due to family expenses.
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