London Colosseum
Encyclopedia
The London Colosseum was a building to the east of Regent's Park, London. It was built in 1827 to exhibit Thomas Hornor
's "Panoramic view
of London", the largest painting ever created.
The design of the Colosseum was inspired by the Pantheon in Rome. It was demolished in 1874.
of London
. The panorama was based on drawings Hornor had made from the vantage point of a temporary hut placed at the top of the dome of St Paul's Cathedral, while the cross and ball were being replaced in 1821-2. Initial plans to sell panoramic views came to nothing, but an elaborate scheme to create a 360-degree panorama on the inside of a dome of the Colosseum, specially built in Regents Park (and resembling the Roman Pantheon
rather than the Roman Colosseum
), came to fruition, but at such expense that its principal backer, Rowland Stephenson MP, had to flee to America in 1828, soon followed by Horner.
The Colosseum was built on the east side of Regent's Park, between Chester Terrace and Cambridge Terrace. Designed by Decimus Burton, it was in the form of a sixteen sided domed polygon, with a Doric portico . It was built of brick rendered with cement in imitation of stone. The Roman building it resembled was the Pantheon rater than the Colosseum.
started work on the panorama, which was based on Horner's own drawings from the upper part of St. Paul's Cathedral. The project would involve great artistic as well as technical and mechanical challenges for the artist.
By means of squares, Parris began to draw the outlines in chalk, on a scale 16-times larger each way, or, in other words, 256-times the area of the original drawings. This was a work of much labour, and demanding close attention; but it was, nevertheless, completed by the following April. The painting in oil
) was then started. Horner engaged several artists to assist Parris in the undertaking, but progress was slow and unsatisfactory due to their unfamiliarity with the type of work required. There were also problems of consistency of colour, composition etc,and on several occasions it was necessary to repaint sections. Eventually, Parris decided to take charge and do the whole thing himself with the assistance of several house-painters; this proved to be the right choice.
In addition to the problem of the sheer volume of the canvas, there was also the difficulty of getting to it to start painting! This is where Parris's mechanical ingenuity came into its own; he devised all kinds of light scaffoldings, bridges, and platforms. Sometimes he was supported from the floor by two or three long and slender spars, which vibrated with every motion of his arm; sometimes he was suspended by cords from the roof. On two occasions Parris fell from a considerable height; fortunately, in neither case did he suffer any serious injury.
The panorama was completed in November 1829, after a period of 4 years. The painting was the largest ever created, totalling over forty thousand square feet in area, and a testament to Parris's great artistic skill, talent, and perseverance.
The new owners announced a "Glypoteca, or Museum of Sculpture", displaying more than 180 works by leading sculptors. Instead of calico draperies "which had the appearance of a tent hastily fitted up for some temporary purpose", the visitor was promised " a lofty dome, of several thousand feet of richly cut glass." The frieze of the Glypoteca was decorated with a copy of the Panathenaic procession from the Parthenon
, modelled by Mr Henning, Jr, above which were twenty allegorical fresco paintings by Mr. Absalom. The staircase leading up to the panorama was now disguised by a framework hung with "handsome and classically disposed drapery" . Around it were velvet covered seats raised on a dais, separated by groups of Cupid and Psyche, bearing candelabras in the form of palm trees. The lift, described in the brochure as "the Ascending Room capable of containing ten or twelve persons, which is raised by secret machinery" was now was decorated in the Elizabethan style, and illuminated by stained glass windows.
E.T. Parris repainted the The "Grand Panorama of London" for the reopening in 1845, adding detail impossible in the limited time before the original opening..
The conservatories were now decorated in the "arabesque" style, with, in their centre, the "Gothic Aviary". Meanwhile, an "Exterior Promenade" provided pastiches of classical ruins; "A secondary object has been to shew how much effect may be produced in a most limited space, and with apparently the most limited materials" the brochure told visitors.
Another attraction was the "Chalet or Swiss Cottage" from the window of which the visitor could look at real waterfalls, against the background of the Mer de Glace and Mont Blanc, as painted by Mr Danson. There was also a "Stalactite Cavern", constructed by Bradwell and Telbin, based on one at Adelsberg in Germany.
In the evenings, another panorama of London, from the same point of view of was placed in front of E.T. Parris's version. Painted by Danson and Telbin, light effects projected by William Bradwell were intended to provide a realistic vision of the city at night. A nocturnal panorama of Paris was shown from 1848, and a panorama of the lake of Thun, in Switzerland in 1850. A lavishly decorated theatre was theatre was added in 1848, which showed a ten scene cyclorama
of the 1755 Lisbon earthquake.
In 1855, the Colosseum, with the Cyclorama was put up for auction. The highest bid, for a building on which aroud £200,000 had been spent, was £20,000.
Thomas Hornor (artistic surveyor)
Thomas Hornor was an English land surveyor, artist, and inventor.Born on 12 June 1785 into the Quaker family of a grocer in Hull, Hornor learned surveying and engineering from his brother-in-law. Soon after 1800 he surveyed the Free Grammar School in Manchester, and was settled in London by 1807...
's "Panoramic view
Panoramic painting
Panoramic paintings are massive artworks that reveal a wide, all-encompassing view of a particular subject, often a landscape, military battle, or historical event. They became especially popular in the 19th Century in Europe and the United States, inciting opposition from writers of Romantic poetry...
of London", the largest painting ever created.
The design of the Colosseum was inspired by the Pantheon in Rome. It was demolished in 1874.
History
The Colosseum was a venture of English artist and surveyor, Thomas Hornor, built to exhibit a vast panoramic viewPanoramic painting
Panoramic paintings are massive artworks that reveal a wide, all-encompassing view of a particular subject, often a landscape, military battle, or historical event. They became especially popular in the 19th Century in Europe and the United States, inciting opposition from writers of Romantic poetry...
of London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. The panorama was based on drawings Hornor had made from the vantage point of a temporary hut placed at the top of the dome of St Paul's Cathedral, while the cross and ball were being replaced in 1821-2. Initial plans to sell panoramic views came to nothing, but an elaborate scheme to create a 360-degree panorama on the inside of a dome of the Colosseum, specially built in Regents Park (and resembling the Roman Pantheon
Pantheon, Rome
The Pantheon ,Rarely Pantheum. This appears in Pliny's Natural History in describing this edifice: Agrippae Pantheum decoravit Diogenes Atheniensis; in columnis templi eius Caryatides probantur inter pauca operum, sicut in fastigio posita signa, sed propter altitudinem loci minus celebrata.from ,...
rather than the Roman Colosseum
Colosseum
The Colosseum, or the Coliseum, originally the Flavian Amphitheatre , is an elliptical amphitheatre in the centre of the city of Rome, Italy, the largest ever built in the Roman Empire...
), came to fruition, but at such expense that its principal backer, Rowland Stephenson MP, had to flee to America in 1828, soon followed by Horner.
The Colosseum was built on the east side of Regent's Park, between Chester Terrace and Cambridge Terrace. Designed by Decimus Burton, it was in the form of a sixteen sided domed polygon, with a Doric portico . It was built of brick rendered with cement in imitation of stone. The Roman building it resembled was the Pantheon rater than the Colosseum.
Creation of the panorama
On 12 December 1825, E. T. ParrisEdmund Thomas Parris
Edmund Thomas Parris was an English history, portrait, subject, and panorama painter, book illustrator, designer and art restorer. He was appointed history painter to Queen Adelaide, Queen Consort of William IV, and painted Queen Victoria's coronation in 1838 and the Duke of Wellington's funeral...
started work on the panorama, which was based on Horner's own drawings from the upper part of St. Paul's Cathedral. The project would involve great artistic as well as technical and mechanical challenges for the artist.
By means of squares, Parris began to draw the outlines in chalk, on a scale 16-times larger each way, or, in other words, 256-times the area of the original drawings. This was a work of much labour, and demanding close attention; but it was, nevertheless, completed by the following April. The painting in oil
Oil painting
Oil painting is the process of painting with pigments that are bound with a medium of drying oil—especially in early modern Europe, linseed oil. Often an oil such as linseed was boiled with a resin such as pine resin or even frankincense; these were called 'varnishes' and were prized for their body...
) was then started. Horner engaged several artists to assist Parris in the undertaking, but progress was slow and unsatisfactory due to their unfamiliarity with the type of work required. There were also problems of consistency of colour, composition etc,and on several occasions it was necessary to repaint sections. Eventually, Parris decided to take charge and do the whole thing himself with the assistance of several house-painters; this proved to be the right choice.
In addition to the problem of the sheer volume of the canvas, there was also the difficulty of getting to it to start painting! This is where Parris's mechanical ingenuity came into its own; he devised all kinds of light scaffoldings, bridges, and platforms. Sometimes he was supported from the floor by two or three long and slender spars, which vibrated with every motion of his arm; sometimes he was suspended by cords from the roof. On two occasions Parris fell from a considerable height; fortunately, in neither case did he suffer any serious injury.
The panorama was completed in November 1829, after a period of 4 years. The painting was the largest ever created, totalling over forty thousand square feet in area, and a testament to Parris's great artistic skill, talent, and perseverance.
New Management
Hornor fell into financial difficulties and the property passed into the hands of trustees. It went into decline as a place of public amusement, and in May 1843 it was sold for 23,000 guineas. It was remodelled by William Bradwell, former chief machinist of the Covent Garden Theatre, who added an eastern entrance in Albany Street, and an arched corridor inspired by one at the Vatican.The new owners announced a "Glypoteca, or Museum of Sculpture", displaying more than 180 works by leading sculptors. Instead of calico draperies "which had the appearance of a tent hastily fitted up for some temporary purpose", the visitor was promised " a lofty dome, of several thousand feet of richly cut glass." The frieze of the Glypoteca was decorated with a copy of the Panathenaic procession from the Parthenon
Parthenon
The Parthenon is a temple on the Athenian Acropolis, Greece, dedicated to the Greek goddess Athena, whom the people of Athens considered their virgin patron. Its construction began in 447 BC when the Athenian Empire was at the height of its power. It was completed in 438 BC, although...
, modelled by Mr Henning, Jr, above which were twenty allegorical fresco paintings by Mr. Absalom. The staircase leading up to the panorama was now disguised by a framework hung with "handsome and classically disposed drapery" . Around it were velvet covered seats raised on a dais, separated by groups of Cupid and Psyche, bearing candelabras in the form of palm trees. The lift, described in the brochure as "the Ascending Room capable of containing ten or twelve persons, which is raised by secret machinery" was now was decorated in the Elizabethan style, and illuminated by stained glass windows.
E.T. Parris repainted the The "Grand Panorama of London" for the reopening in 1845, adding detail impossible in the limited time before the original opening..
The conservatories were now decorated in the "arabesque" style, with, in their centre, the "Gothic Aviary". Meanwhile, an "Exterior Promenade" provided pastiches of classical ruins; "A secondary object has been to shew how much effect may be produced in a most limited space, and with apparently the most limited materials" the brochure told visitors.
Another attraction was the "Chalet or Swiss Cottage" from the window of which the visitor could look at real waterfalls, against the background of the Mer de Glace and Mont Blanc, as painted by Mr Danson. There was also a "Stalactite Cavern", constructed by Bradwell and Telbin, based on one at Adelsberg in Germany.
In the evenings, another panorama of London, from the same point of view of was placed in front of E.T. Parris's version. Painted by Danson and Telbin, light effects projected by William Bradwell were intended to provide a realistic vision of the city at night. A nocturnal panorama of Paris was shown from 1848, and a panorama of the lake of Thun, in Switzerland in 1850. A lavishly decorated theatre was theatre was added in 1848, which showed a ten scene cyclorama
Cyclorama
For the classical album Cyclorama, see Jonathan Goldstein; For the rock album Cyclorama by Styx, see Cyclorama ; for the theatrical backdrop, see Cyclorama...
of the 1755 Lisbon earthquake.
In 1855, the Colosseum, with the Cyclorama was put up for auction. The highest bid, for a building on which aroud £200,000 had been spent, was £20,000.
See also
- George ChambersGeorge Chambers (painter)George Hyde Chambers was an English marine painter.-Life and work:Chambers was born in a poor working-class area of Whitby, Yorkshire, the second son of a seaman; his mother took in lodgers. At the age of 8 years, he was working on the coal sloops in the town harbour...
(1803-1840), a marine painter, was one of the artists who worked on the panorama.
Further reading
- A picturesque guide to the Regent's park; with accurate descriptions of the Colosseum, the diorama, and the zoological gardens (London Regent's park, 1829) pp. 31-38.