Panorama of the Thames

Loretta reports:

“In 1829 a very unusual book was published, containing just two pages. One opened out into a panorama sixty feet (eighteen metres) in length, the other to just six feet (two metres). The work was called Panorama of the Thames from London to Richmond, and was published by Samuel Leigh, a well-respected London bookseller with premises in the Strand.”

—John R. Inglis & Jill Sanders, Panorama of the Thames: A Riverside View of Georgian London

I’ve used Mr. Leigh’s London guides as resources for many of my books. In their advertisements I’d come upon mouth-watering descriptions of publications I was unable to find online. Or anywhere.

Imagine my Nerdy History Girl excitement in November when I learned that the Panorama had recently been painstakingly scanned and cleaned up and made into a book!

Sadly, even the UK edition came out too late (U.S. edition will be out in February) for Dukes Prefer Blondes research, because I would have loved to have had such beautiful details of, for instance, Richmond, and in particular “Mr. Palmer’s” house—now known as Asgill House—the inspiration for Ithaca House in my story. However, I know it will be useful in future books, along with being simply a feast for Nerdy History Girl eyes.

You can read about the making of the new book as well as the entire Thames Panorama project here and you can see a lovely video here .

For more images and details, please see the London Historians’ Blog here .


Note: I bought this book with my own money, so no disclaimers are necessary.

Please click on images to enlarge.