London Underground 'Railway Map' 1936 No.2. Designed by Harry Charles (HC) Beck. Printed by Johnson Riddle & Co for London Transport. 22.7cm x 15.3cm. Card bi-fold map.  HC Beck Mainline Interchange Station map on the rear. Condition is excellent 

The 1936 No.2 pocket map came just 3 years after Harry Becks revolutionary 'diagram' was first issued in 1933. Having initially rejected Harry Becks design in 1931 on the grounds of being too revolutionary, the Underground Group Publicity Department tentatively published Becks map in January 1933 - to overwhelming enthusiasm from the public. The first distinct series of pocket maps by HC Beck ran from 1933-1938, all strikingly similar to the 1933 edition with their rich blue borders and evolving subtly with each iteration. In 1938 and much to Beck's surprise and frustration, London Transport published an Underground pocket map by another designer, Hans Schleger. Whilst Beck continued to design the map in poster formats, Schleger’s pocket map ran for 2 years until responsibility for it returned to Beck in 1941.