The
Crystal Palace
Foundation

By Patrick Beaver.

The Crystal Palace was built in Hyde Park to house the treasures of the world gathered together for the Great Exhibition of 1851. It became a microcosm of Victorian life, industry and leisure, reflecting every aspect of its age. Patrick Beaver's research and entertaining narrative have provided a book about a unique building that is also an enlightening social study of the period.

The Palace was designed by Joseph Paxton as a purely temporary structure but it was such a success that when the Great Exhibition closed Paxton moved its iron and glass components to Sydenham and rebuilt it on an even more grandiose scale. Set amongst grounds and fountains that rivalled those of Versailles, it became a Peoples Palace, and for 84 years it was ' the mecca of all good Englishmen and women'. Its tragic destructionby fire in 1936 symbolised for many the passing of Britains golden age.

This pictorial documentary, written and compiled from contemporary records, photographs and engravings, many of which have never been previously published, illuminates the often dramatic and sometimes humerous events in ther history of this remarkable building. The story is of world-wide interest to students of the period, of architecture of of social and economic history. It has a particular fascination for Londoners and all who remember the great structure and its unrivalled fame as a showground and exhibition centre for more than 80 years.

'...widely regarded as the most authoritative book written about the history of the famous glass Crystal Palace...'Kentish Times

The Patrick Beaver collection from which this book was created has been donated to the Crystal Palace Foundation. It is presently in the care of the Crystal Palace Museum.

152 pages hardback 224 illustrations