From 1574, cartographer Christopher Saxton (born c.1540, Dewsbury, Yorkshire), began a survey of England, commissioned and funded by Thomas Seckford, a landowner, lawyer and member of Elizabeth I's court.
Over the course of 3 years, Saxton produced hand-drawn and coloured 22 maps, depicting notable buildings, settlements (cities, towns and villages), water and forests. Following completion of the counties of England, Saxton then repeated the survey in Wales in 1577, producing a further 7 maps of the 13 Welsh counties.
A total of 35 county maps were compiled, and were published in 1579 as 'Atlas of England and Wales', being the first comprehensive atlas of the two countries, and remaining the benchmark for the next century,
Listed in an inventory of Leicester House, taken in Jul 1580, it was documented that Robert Dudley, 1st Earl of Leicester was in possession of "a mappe of the counties of Oxon, Bucks...and Barks, in clothe"; it is highly likely that this was a copy of Saxton's 1574 map (see image).
]This map was later used as a reference guide in the manufacturing of the 'Oxfordshire Tapestry Map'].
Ralph Sheldon (1537-1580), a landowner in Warwickshire, and Justice of the Peace in Worcestershire, commissioned tapestries to decorate his home Weston House, near Long Compton, Warwickshire, c.1590s.
There was already an interest in tapestry making within the Sheldon family; in the 1560s, Ralph's father William set up his own tapestry business at his home in Barcheston, Warwickshire, which continued after his death. In his will in Jan 1570, he granted Flemish tapestry maker Richard Hyckes the ongoing use of his workshop. Baptism records from Barcheston show that Hyckes appears to have moved to the area c.1567. By the end of 1570, Hyckes is employed by the Royal Household, holding responsibility for the maintenance of the tapestries (predominantly in London) and having a large workshop based down there; however, there are further baptism and burial records for Hyckes' children in Barcheston up to 1571, confirming his ongoing residence in the area.
Four large tapestries were created, with each showing the counties of Gloucestershire, Worcestershire, Oxfordshire and Warwickshire (as well parts of the parts of the surrounding counties). Each tapestry was produced from wool and silk, and is approx 20ft wide by 13ft high, and was designed to be hung initially from an 80ft wide wall at Weston House. Whilst scholars have not been able to verify the location/workshops whom manufactured these tapestries, Richard Hyckes' involvement cannot be disputed, as his name is woven into the hangings ('Ric Hyckes'); given his experience in tapestry-making by the 1590s, and his previous contact with the family, it is felt that he likely supervised the project, which would have taken approx 1 year per tapestry.
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