Covent Garden
By Anonymous , 1760
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Vue Perspective du Covent Garden.

London
  • Author: Anonymous
  • Publication place: Paris
  • Publisher: chez J. Chereau rue St. Jacques au defous de la Fontaine St. Severin aux 2 Colonnes No. 257
  • Publication date: c.1760
  • Physical description: Engraved print with contemporary colour.
  • Dimensions: Image: 252 by 430mm. (10 by 17 inches). Sheet: 350 by 505mm (13.75 by 20 inches).
  • Inventory reference: 12417

Notes

A perspective view of the Covent Garden Market, looking towards St Paul’s Church. Image reversed for viewing through a “Zograscope”. St Paul’s was designed by Inigo Jones and completed in 1633. When Lord Bedford commissioned the church, he asked Inigo Jones for a simple church “not much better than a barn”. The architect replied “Then you shall have the handsomest barn in England”. These perspective views, or vues d’optique, were popular in Europe during the eighteenth century. They were viewed through lenses to give the illusion of a deeper perspective, enhanced by the deep vanishing point and bright colour of the original print.

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