Unusual Photos.

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London history: Oldest surviving photos of London show how much it has changed in 180 years


A photograph of King Charles I's statue in front of Whitehall snapped by French photographer Monsieur de St Croixin in 1839, believed to be the oldest photograph of London

 

London is a city that is always evolving, and thanks to technology, we are today able to visually capture its transformation more than ever. However, the vast majority of London’s 2,000-year history has been lost to time.

Beyond a handful of buildings that have been around for hundreds of years, there’s very little of the capital that remains as it was before the 1800s. Someone from that era visiting London today might not even recognize where they are.

In the past few decades, London has been overtaken by high rises and skyscrapers. However, not too long ago, St Paul’s Cathedral was the tallest building in London and was visible to all to see. Nowadays it can barely be seen between the buildings.

A number of landmarks have also been lost, such as the iconic Crystal Palace, which today only remains in name, after being destroyed by a fire. At the same time, so much of London remains unchanged, and you can easily see recognizable landmarks in photographs that are over 180 years old that are still around today.



By the time this early photograph of the Monument was taken in the 1840s, it had already been around for approximately 170 years

 

Photograph of a long-lost bridge

Another bridge used to be in the place where the Hungerford railway bridge is in place today, as this photograph from 1845 shows.

 

Early photo of Crystal Palace

The Crystal Palace was newly built and this photograph was taken sometime between 1852 and 1854. It was destroyed in a fire in 1936.

 

No dinosaur?

 

Oh, you do know some history. xxxx

 

St Paul's Cathedral minus the high rises

From when it was built in 1710 until 1963, St Paul's Cathedral was the tallest building in London, as can been seen in this 1855 photograph.

 

Crystal Palace cloned dinosaurs before it was cool. XXXX

 

Another view of St Paul's Cathedral towering over London's rooftops in 1865.

 

When Kensington was a slum


Kensington today is considered one of London's most affluent areas, but in 1868 when this photograph was taken, it was a ghetto for the poor and destitute.

 

A photograph of Westminster bridge taken sometime between 1870 and 1885 shows not much has changed in the heart of the capital since then.

 

Northern lights photographer of the year 2022 – in pictures

 

Wow! Spectacular!