Description
Take a trip back in time with 67 sketches of historic London like you’ve never seen it before.
In the early 1920s, artist and writer Alan Stapleton embarked on a journey to document London’s hidden features, many of which no longer exist today, all of which most certainly look very different from the way they did back then. This enlarged special edition print of the 1925 classic features:
– Big 8 ½” x 11” pages
– Digitally restored and enlarged images from a master source
– Author’s original page layouts
– Classic type font
– Bold retro-styled cover design
– Author’s preface
“Sirs and madams, if you wish to have a just notion of the magnitude of this city, you must not be satisfied with seeing its great streets and squares but must survey its innumerable little lanes and courts.”
This remarkable collection of intimate London drawings from a master craftsman is enhanced by Stapleton’s quick wit and clever writing. He guides readers on a fascinating journey through the back alleys and hidden courts of England’s busiest city with an eye for detail and an optimistic view. Rather than focusing on the seedy underbelly and grime of locales off the beaten trail, he portrays London as a sprawling metropolis rich in character and architectural diversity.
Readers can try to visit the locations today or relax and sink into Stapleton’s drawings and words that reveal a London which many people probably missed, and continue to miss, on their busy jaunts to and fro.
Table of Contents:
Chapter 1 – Great Turnstile – Newman’s Row – Red Lion Passage – Porch by Silver Street – Barter Street
Chapter 2 – Hanway Street – Little Marlborough Street – Great Marlborough Street – Foubert’s Place – Kingly Street
Chapter 3 – Shepherd Market – Mayfair
Chapter 4 – Crown Court – Vigo Street – Savoy Place
Chapter 5 – Warwick Street – William and Mary Yard – Walker’s Court – Rupert Court – Meard’s Street – Whitcomb Street
Chapter 6 – Conduit Court – Strickland Yard – The Last of “Snatcher’s Island”
Chapter 7 – The Savoy Steps – Strand Lane – Milford Lane – Devereux Court
Chapter 8 – Clifford’s Inn – Greystoke Place – Ram Alley – Mitre Court – Steps to Serjeant’s Inn – Serjeant’s Inn – Hanging Sword Alley
Chapter 9 – Wardrobe Steps – Wardrobe Court – Brook’s Yard – Trig Lane – Darkhouse Land – Huggin Lane – Miles Lane
Chapter 10 – Angel Court – Angel Place – Layton Buildings – Saint Benet Place – Pope’s Head Alley – Mitre Court – Priest Court – Paternoster Row – Ivy Land
Chapter 11 – Bartholomew Close – Faulkner’s Alley – St. John’s Passage – Passing Alley – Jerusalem Passage – Schoolhouse Yard – Steward’s Place – Newcastle Row – Clerkenwell Close
