Established in 1984, The Unique Map Co. is a purveyor of the finest and rarest old maps and artwork.
The unique process begins with me (Sebastian) travelling around the world and sourcing unusual and beautiful old maps – some as old as 450 years old.
Many of the oldest maps are exceedingly rare. Handcoloured maps were expensive and only affordable to nobles. Sometimes only a few dozen copies of a map were created, and only one or two may have survived until today.
The world's best maps are held in private collections and in national libraries. That's where I begin my search.
Next, I pore through hundreds, sometimes thousands, of maps to find the meagre handful that are good enough to add to my collection here at The Unique Maps Co.
And finally, the most arduous stage: restoring the detail and beauty of each map. This can take hours, or it might take days for larger or more damaged maps.
Over the years, The Unique Maps Co. has become world renowned for its customised and personalised maps.
We start with one of my beautiful, old, perfectly restored maps – but then we go one step further and personalise each map so that every customer gets a truly unique map.
There is almost no limit to what you can achieve with a handcrafted map. We have made treasure maps, retirement maps, bucket list maps, maps with secret messages... take a look at some of the pages below to find out more.
Unique maps, in the style and era of your choosing, focused on your home, street or postcode
Add an illustration, message, heart, icon, or something else entirely to any map in my collection
The finishing touch for your unique map: hundreds of colours and styles to choose from
Over the years, The Unique Maps Co. has slowly and steadily expanded. We are now proud to have local workshops in more than 25 countries.
This means that over 95% of our maps and art are produced and dispatched locally, which reduces delivery times and ensures that your order always arrive in perfect condition.
In addition to our larger production hubs, we also work with dozens of small printers and framers in cities around the world. Sometimes the best way to get a giant 4-meter-wide map to a customer is to make it at the frameshop around the corner.
The Unique Maps Co. was founded in London, England and that's where most of our cartographical research and map restoration is undertaken today.
Our head office is where the "magic" happens, where analogue and digital come together to create beautifully unique maps for our customers.
Rolls of old paper, drafting tables, high resolution scanners, big computers and even some artificial intelligence – the original workshop is always an exciting place to be!
After four decades, there are two things that keep us going: the thrill of uncovering a particularly rare or unusual map, and knowing that there are thousands of happy customers out there with a unique map on their wall.... and hopefully thousands more to come!
Get in touch if you want to discuss anything about our maps or artwork.
Alternatively you can use the live chat in the bottom left corner of your screen, call the workshop, or message us on WhatsApp.
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