Selected Prints from Edward Hasted's, The History and Topographical Survey of the County of Kent, vols. 1-3 1777 - 1790

Editor: Here we have selected prints from Edward Hasted's *The History and Topographical Survey of the County of Kent*, published between 1777 and 1790. They’re a mix of engravings and etchings on paper. The cover's swirling pattern has a very antiquated feel. How do you approach a piece like this with such a specific historical purpose? Curator: Well, I look at how the act of documenting Kent becomes a cultural project in itself. Who was Hasted writing for? This lavish multi-volume set wasn’t for the average citizen. It catered to the gentry, those invested in maintaining the existing social and political order. The very act of surveying and recording was a way of legitimizing their power and historical claim to the land. Editor: So, the prints aren’t just informative, they’re participating in the social structure? Curator: Precisely. Consider the visual language—the picturesque landscapes, the depictions of stately homes. They reinforce an idealized image of rural England, masking the social inequalities and labor that sustained that lifestyle. We must question what this "history" chooses to highlight and what it omits. Think about who controlled the means of production for such detailed engravings, and whose stories are visually centered. Editor: It's fascinating to think about the prints as both historical documents and powerful visual tools. What would an art gallery or museum convey with a project like this, knowing what it communicates? Curator: It asks us to examine the role of institutions in shaping historical narratives, and to consider how seemingly neutral documentation can be deeply embedded in power structures. It challenges viewers to actively engage with history, questioning the motives and perspectives behind its construction and the function it now serves in the present. Editor: I’ll never look at an old topographical print the same way again. It’s amazing to see the layers of social and political meaning embedded within them.