Valentia, Ireland, 1857-1858.

Lithograph after Robert Dudley from 'The Atlantic Telegraph', a book by W H Rusell with 26 illustrations by Dudley, published in 1866. Valentia was the place from which the earliest transatlantic telegraph cables were laid, and is shown at the time the first cable was laid by the ship 'Agamemnon'. This first cable operated for three months before breaking, and it was not until 1866 that a permanent transatlantic telegraph cable was established, reducing communication times from the length of a sea voyage to a few seconds.