Russell Stutler’s 221B Baker Street Illustration confirms his obsessive Sherlock Holmes fan status:
I first drew the 221B Baker Street illustration in pen and ink in 1995. At that time I read the entire collection of sixty Sherlock Holmes stories twice in a row, back to back, and took notes of every detail I could find of the Baker Street flat which began to take shape in my imagination. In the years since that time, this illustration has appeared on many other other web sites, and in various languages. It has also appeared in print publications around the world such as the Financial Times in London.
As I mentioned in the interview with the Financial Times, this is the only depiction I know of that deals with the challenges found in “The Adventure of the Mazarin Stone” and reconciles them with the various descriptions found in other stories. If one could just ignore that story, then constructing a floor plan would be very easy — and most reconstructions of the Baker Street have apparently done just that. The Baker Street illustration published in Strand Magazine in 1950 addresses some of the problems in “The Adventure of the Mazarin Stone” but doesn’t deal with details found in other stories. I’ve posted my notes on every detail I’ve found so you can judge for yourself.
I just love it! I read all of the Sherlock Holmes’ stories just like he did, back to back. This is such a wonderful project and I’m so happy to see the work of another pen and ink illustrator.