The Sea Chart by John Blake

Wednesday 4th May 1845. Entrance Free!

We have a great talk coming up this Wednesday 4th May!

I find sea charts completely fascinating and so I am really looking forward this talk.

John Blake served in the Royal Navy and in the Reserve for nearly 16 years as an executive and navigating officer, attaining the rank of Lieutenant Commander. During his naval time he served extensively in sea-going ships and qualified as a navy underwater diver and a naval air defence specialist. On leaving the service he gained a business diploma and moved into retailing, opening three retail stores in Covent Garden, London; Boston, Massachusetts and later in Osaka, Japan, featuring exclusively British gift products.

In 1991 John Blake and his wife started an Intellectual Property Licensing Agency, Classics Licensing Company, and in 1996 helped initiate and run the licensing of the United Kingdom Hydrographic Office archives, producers of the Admiralty sea charts, as their Licensing Agent for six years under the brand name “The Admiralty Collection®”.

He is a keen maritime historian and a Fellow of the Royal Institute of Navigation and writes regularly on maritime history for yachting and maritime magazines. He is a member of the Society of Authors.

John Blake’s talk will look at how the sea chart was pre-eminent in exploring and discovering the world since the earliest known chart of c.1275 with illustration from seventeen major archives and museums across the world, including those from Europe, China, India and Arabia, America and of course the foremost explorers of the 19th century Britain.

John has given highly acclaimed talks at the National Maritime Museum, Royal Ocean Racing Club, The Darwin Centre, Pembrokeshire, Royal Thames Yacht Club, United Kingdom Hydrographic Office, Royal Southern Yacht Club, New York Yacht Club, Royal Lymington Yacht Club, Little Ship Club, London, Marlborough College Summer School, Bath Sailing Club, Worshipful Company of Scientific Instrument Makers, Wessex Cruising Association and the Indian High Commission (Nehru Centre), London.

This is definitely an evening not to be missed.

Bloomsbury have just published the second edition of John's book The Sea Chart with a foreword by Sir Ben Ainslie CBE, an additional 55 pages and 44 more illustrations of early sea charts and maps which will be available to purchase after the talk at a special price of £22.50.

The talk will be held in St Giles in the Fields Church just over the road from Arthur Beale. Try to come a bit early to browse the wide selection of nautical goods in the shop. We will then all walk crocodile fashion over to the church for the talk to start at 18:45.

Please email talks@arthurbeale.co.uk to reserve your place!