John Soane
Sir John Soane, born son of a bricklayer in Goring-on-Thames specialised in the neo-classical style, his most influential building being the Bank of England, much of which was rebuilt in later years. The outer wall is still intact.
If Wikipedia is to be believed (not that I would doubt Wikipedia – I reckon it’s generally a lot more accurate than people give it credit for), Nikolaus Pevsner named the rebuilding of his work at the Bank as “the greatest architectural crime, in the City of London, of the twentieth century”.
A building that Soane designed which is still around is the Dulwich Picture Gallery (which houses one of the oldest collections of old masters in Britain). To get there is around 15 minutes from London Bridge but beware it’s shut on Mondays!
Soane acquired the Sir in Sir John in 1831, then died in 1837 and was buried in a vault designed by himself, in St Pancras Churchyard.
His vault
This mausoleum inspired the design for Giles Gilbert Scott’s red telephone box. (Have a look at the dome at the top).
Telephone box
The Museum
This is a remarkable place in Lincoln’s Inn Fields: admirable for the range of artefacts Soanes collected, as well as the number of objects he was able to cram into this relatively small, labyrinthine place. Museum drawings, an egyptian sarcophagus of Seti I, medieval, renaissance, oriental, classical busts, statues and assorted works of art litter the place. There’s a gothic library, Pompeii red walls, a crypt room, a picture room. The paintings include Hogarth’s The Rake’s Progress, Turners and Canalettos. There’s a monk’s parlour in the basement – designed for a fictional monk. In the monk’s yard there’s a gravestone engraved with the words “Alas, poor Fanny” – the name of Soane’s wife’s dog whose bones are interred beneath.
Born in Belfast and now living in London, Julie McNamee is involved in internet marketing as a day job and blogging as a hobby. She’s interested in all things quirky and Fortean, as well as art, photography and theatre. Her blog Quirky Travel, specializes in London and Paris top tips and off the beaten path information with subjects such as London film locations and unusual Paris museums.
