Shanghai. Stanfords (publisher), Plan of Shanghai, published under Authority..., 1928

Shanghai. Stanfords (publisher), Plan of Shanghai, published under Authority of the Municipal Council, 1928, colour printed lithographic map, sectionalised and laid on linen, printed table of explanation highlighting the drainage and creek system, facsimile signature of the Commissioner of Public Works, 820 x 1620 mm, bound in contemporary morocco with gilt title to the spine, slight wear to extremities, supplied with six sheets of personal notes and the career progression of Noel William Bailey Clarke M. Eng, M. Inst C. E., together with a contemporary photograph (with a pencil signature of the photographer) of Noel Clarke measuring 170 x 110 mm, tipped onto thin card and presented in a contemporary card wallet, overall size 245 x 165 mm (Quantity: 3) Noel Bailey Clarke was a civil engineer who worked on the engineering staff of the Public Works Department of the Shanghai Municipal Council. He was particularly responsible for wharves, river walls, underground sewage pumping stations, sewage purification plants, incinerators and public swimming baths. He rose to become the President of the Engineering Society of China and served as Vice-Chairman of the Shanghai Association of the (British) Institution of Civil Engineers. The two-line key printed in the bottom right corner of the plan relates to drainage and canals and is hand-coloured on the main plan in green and dark blue. This would only be of use to an engineer responsible for drainage and sewage and is indicative that this map is a personalised and possibly unique variant made for Noel Bailey Clarke's sole use. This hypothesis is strengthened by Noel William Bailey Clarke's most comprehensive publication being entitled 'Buried Pipelined: A Manual of Structural Design and Installation'. It would make sense that, with this being his speciality, his focus in Shanghai would have related to drainage and as such the plan may have been specially customised for his use. We have only been able to trace three extant but variant copies of this map. The British Library, Library of Congress Geography and Map Division Washington, D.C. and one held by a London map dealer. This example appears to be a unique example, specifically annotated for Noel Bailey Clarke.