Klencke Atlas

The Klencke Atlas, first published in 1660, is one of the world's largest atlases. Originating in The Netherlands, it is 1.75 metres (5 ft 9 in) tall by 1.9 metres (6 ft 3 in) wide when open, and so heavy the British Library needed six people to carry it.

The Atlas was created in the name of John Maurice of Nassau, but it was offered as a gift by Dutch merchants to the map enthusiast Charles II of England in 1660 in order to mark the occasion of the Stuart Restoration to the English throne. It was added to Charles' cabinet of curiosities in Whitehall Palace. In 1828, the Atlas was donated to the British Museum by George IV, along with the maps and atlases which were part of the collection of his deceased father George III.