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LONDON on the Ground

wandering London's wonders

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London On The Ground
- Sep 6
- 1 min read

Then and now: John Thomas Smith's London

Ancient London buildings depicted in the 18th century and today.

In June, I posted some of John Thomas Smith's engravings of London, created in the late 18th and early 19th centuries (click here for that post). The images are of public buildings from his book Antiquities of London (published 1791). Only a very small number of these scenes can still be seen today.

Below are photographs of the few sites that remain, together with the relevant John Thomas Smith engravings.

Summer schedule of walks available for booking

For a schedule of forthcoming London On The Ground guided walks, please click here.

John Thomas Smith Antiquities of London then and now — Barber Surgeons Hall from St Giles Churchyard. Part of the Hall built onto a bastion of the Roman city wall.

John Thomas Smith Antiquities of London then and now — Post-World War II Barber Surgeons Hall, looking towards St Giles. The Roman bastion is in the foreground, no longer part of the new Hall. St Giles Cripplegate is in the background.

John Thomas Smith Antiquities of London — Bruce Castle, Tottenham. 15th century origins, remodelled in 18th and 19th. The land was once owned by the House of Bruce, which produced two 14th century Scottish kings.

John Thomas Smith Antiquities of London then and now — Bruce Castle Museum today. Source: Wikipedia, public domain.

John Thomas Smith Antiquities of London — The remains of Duke's Place. Part of a 16th century house built on the site of Holy Trinity Priory.

John Thomas Smith Antiquities of London then and now — An arch from the Holy Trinity Priory is preserved inside a City of London office block.

Could the arch in the John Thomas Smith engraving be the one in the office block? Click here for a related post.

John Thomas Smith Antiquities of London — Lambeth Palace. 13th century origins, much of it is from the 14th and 15th centuries.

John Thomas Smith Antiquities of London then and now — Lambeth Palace today, still the Archbishop of Canterbury's residence.

John Thomas Smith Antiquities of London — Lincoln's Inn Gate, Chancery Lane. Built 1517-1521.

John Thomas Smith Antiquities of London then and now — Lincoln's Inn Gate today

John Thomas Smith Antiquities of London then and now — Gate to St Bartholomew the Great, Smithfield. Originally a doorway to the priory church built in the 12th Century.

John Thomas Smith Antiquities of London then and now — The gateway to St Bartholomew the Great today.

John Thomas Smith Antiquities of London then and now — Staple Inn, Holborn. 16th century Tudor origins, survived the Great Fire, restored after World War II bomb damage.

John Thomas Smith Antiquities of London then and now — Staple Inn today

John Thomas Smith Antiquities of London then and now — Traitors' Gate, Tower of London, built in the 13th century.

John Thomas Smith Antiquities of London then and now — Partial view of Traitors' Gate today

Summer schedule of walks available for booking

For a schedule of forthcoming London On The Ground guided walks, please click here.

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