Location

Country: UK
City: London
Place: Downing Street

This image was originally published as plate four of Havell’s ‘Views of the Public Buildings and Bridges’. The series of twelve prints was published in 1820-21 by Messrs. Colnaghi & Co. of Cockspur Street, London. It was then reissued sometime between 1833 and 1850 by Francis West, who principally worked as an optician but also had a sideline as a publisher and printseller. This is an example of the later version of the print.

Robert Havell senior, son of artist and publisher Daniel Havell, was born in Reading but moved to London as a child. After Robert launched his career, father and son collaborated on illustrations for Henry Salt’s ‘Twenty Four Views Taken in St. Helena’ (1809–10). However, the partnership was short-lived and Robert later established himself at premises in Fitzrovia. He married Lydia Miller Phillips and had a son, Robert junior. Robert junior and his father formed the firm of R. Havell & Son, working on numerous projects including ‘Birds of America’ for John James Audubon. The scale of this project led them to employ 50 additional staff and move to larger premises in Oxford Street. Robert senior died a year after the company expansion.

Places

England, River Thames, London, Somerset House

Subjects

rudder, rowing boat, topography, townscape/cityscape, Victorian Genre, river, bridge (urban), government building, barge/canal boat, sailboat

Materials & Techniques

aquatint, coloured aquatint

Artist

Robert, Jnr Havell (1793 - 1878)
Robert, Snr Havell (1769 - 1832)

Title

View of Somerset House / Vue de Somerset House

Date

published 1833-1850

Medium

Coloured aquatint

Acquisition

Purchased from Walter T Spencer, January 1953

GAC number

2012