The exact dating of the map is uncertain. It is highly unlikely to have been published earlier than 1589, a year after 

 returned. It has been suggested that it was produced sometime in the early 1590s, whilst Jodocus Hondius was still in London. Shirley (2001, 81), however,  counters that the map is too finished to be attributed to such a date; this, together with the fact that some copies are mounted as broadsides with Dutch text, makes a date of post 1594, when Hondius had returned to Amsterdam, more likely. One might equally argue that both theories are true. As Hondius must have owned the copper plate, publication in both London and Amsterdam is probable.

The map highlights the voyages' importance by stripping much of the descriptive text from the land, leaving only the information pertaining to the expeditions. The map also takes the uncommon step of splitting North America between its Eastern and Western Hemispheres. Although unusual, it does have the effect of highlighting the voyages’ ports of call in South America, the western coast of North America and the Spice Islands. The map’s cartographic importance lies in its depiction of the great Southern Continent, with Tierra del Fuego clearly distinct from Terra Australis. Schilder (1976, 15) states that, "Hondius was the first to see the true implication of Drake's voyage".

Below the title is the royal coat-of-arms of Elizabeth I, with a vignette of the Golden Hind, Drake's flagship, below. The text to the left of the vignette states that the ship now resides at Dartford. To the corners are four further illustrations of the ship: Drake's landing at ‘Nova Albion’ in California where he was allegedly crowned king by the Coast Miwok people, upper left; sailing round the southern coast of Java – the first person to do so – upper right; Drake's welcome by the King of the Moluccas, lower left; and the Golden Hind cast upon rocks near the Celebes. Although, as Fite and Freeman (1959, 27) point out these ‘are probably the only [contemporary] representations of the famous ship in existence’.

Jodocus Hondius (1563–1612) was one of the leading Dutch cartographers and engravers of his day. Between 1584 and 1593 he lived and worked in London where he took a particular interest in 

's voyages and the man himself, with several engravings of the explorer attributed to him. Hondius’s residence in London also bears witness to the close ties between the English and the Dutch at the time. Both were young seafaring nations who were eager to compete with Spain and Portugal for the resources of the 

 and the spice trade of the Moluccas.

This rare broadsheet map celebrates the voyages of Francis Drake and 

, the first Englishmen (and only the second and fourth men) to circumnavigate the globe. The Latin text below the title gives a brief description of both men's voyages: Drake left England on 13 December 1577 with five ‘well-equipped ships’, returning on 27 September 1580 ‘with great glory but with one ship only, the others destroyed by fire and storms at sea’; 

, who fared rather better, ‘took the same course round the world but with less loss and in a shorter time’, leaving on 21 July 1586 and returning on 15 September 1588. ‘He acquired great riches and the admiration of all his countrymen’.

The voyages were of huge significance at the time, as they directly challenged Spain's hegemony of the 

, at the same time that England was confronting her power over Europe.

This rare broadsheet map was produced by the master engraver Jodocus Hondius. It celebrates the voyages of 

, the first Englishmen (and only the second and fourth men) to circumnavigate the globe. These voyages were very significant because they directly challenged Spain's supremacy over the 

. 

The decorative elements surrounding this world map are exquisitely rendered and minutely detailed. They include birds, fruit, putti, Drake's 'Golden Hind' and Cavendish's ships, and the English royal coat of arms.

 (1540–1596) was born in Devon and began privateering with his relatives, the Hawkins family, at an early age. Success brought him wealth and into the orbit of influential people. In 1578, Sir Francis Walsingham commissioned Drake to lead a fleet to the Pacific to raid Spanish settlements. During the voyage, Drake made a number of geographic 'discoveries' including the fact that Tierra del Fuego, at the tip of South America, was in fact an island. The new strait, and the new gateway to the Pacific was duly named after him. By July of 1579, Drake had reached the northern shores of California, which he named ‘New Albion’, and then set sail across the Pacific for the islands of the East Indies. In October, he reached the Philippines, and almost a year later, after crossing the Indian Ocean and circumnavigating the globe, arrived back at Plymouth.
	
The plunder from Drake’s voyage was so great that Queen Elizabeth I knighted him in 1581. By 1584, a new raid on the Spanish Main was planned; investors included Elizabeth herself, the Earl of Leicester, the Hawkins family, and Sir Walter Raleigh. However, this voyage was not a financial success, even though Drake was able to rescue some survivors of the English settlement at Roanoke and return them to Plymouth in July of 1586.

In the summer of 1587, Drake ‘singed the King of Spain’s beard’ in mounting a series of audacious raids on the Spanish navy in their home port of Cádiz, and in 1588 helped defend England from the Spanish Armada. Subsequent attacks, in 1589, on the Portuguese navy were less successful, and left Drake in some trouble. But, he rallied, and by 1595 was planning an attack on various ports in the West Indies, and Panama. The voyage went badly from the beginning and culminated in Drake’s death from dysentery.



 (1560–1592) attended Cambridge, leaving in 1577 without a degree and relocating to London. He soon came within the orbit of Richard Hakluyt and through him met Walter Raleigh, who became his mentor. In return, he supported Raleigh’s application to take over the patent to colonize America and was subsequently appointed high marshal of the expedition to Virginia of 1585, despite his lack of practical nautical or military experience.

Though Cavendish failed to make a fortune from this venture, he did make lots of influential friends, and Queen Elizabeth I granted permission for a new voyage, following Drake’s route across the Pacific to the Spice Islands. His voyage was a successful, if bloody one, capturing and destroying a number of Spanish vessels, both within and outside of their ports. He spent much time in the Philippines and cruised the coast of mainland China, capturing a junk. However, a hero’s welcome was denied him upon his return in 1589, as it was overshadowed by the defeat of the Spanish Armada.

In 1591, Cavendish embarked on a second, but absolutely disastrous voyage. Thoroughly demoralised by lack of proper funding, an inexperienced crew, poor food, terrible weather, and a general loss of confidence in his ability to command, he died of a ‘broken heart’ in 1592, somewhere off the coast of Brazil.

Rare separately issued broadsheet world map depicting the voyages of Francis Drake and 

Hondius's 'Drake Map'