At the heart of University College London nestled in the centre of Bloomsbury lies a room
that had remained undisturbed for decades. When Professor James Cheshire stumbles upon it he
set about exploring its contents in the hope of saving them. For three years he sifted through
the countless dusty drawers and was stunned to discover some of the most significant maps and
atlases from the last two centuries - many of which have not seen the light of day since they
were created. Maps dating back to the eighteenth and nineteenth century that chart the course
of colonisation empire and power maps that trace the icy peaks of the Himalayas and the
deepest depths of the ocean maps that guided oil prospectors to untouched lands ripe for
exploitation maps that walk us through the fog of the First World War and maps produced by
the Nazis and the Soviet Union each envisioning a new world order after their imagined
victories. These maps transport us to the moments when they were hung on government offices
laid out on tables at oil company board meetings and shared with the public in times of crisis.
More than mere relics of the past they are also omens into the root of the most pressing
challenges of our future: from the environmental crisis and geopolitical conflicts to global
pandemics and mass migration. Beautifully illustrated and brimming with astonishing
discoveries The Library of Lost Maps is a journey through 200 years of history. The ambitions
motivations and critical revelations of world order were all foretold in these lost maps that
not only show us what has been but also what we are likely to become.
