1804 September Exhibition of Water Coloured Drawings, Old Bond Street, London, U.K. Designed and etched by Thomas Rowlandson. Via Wikimedia Commons commons.wikimedia.org (PD-ART)
On January 27th, 1772, The Pantheon opened on Oxford Street, London. Designed by James Wyatt, The Pantheon featured a rotunda which was one of the largest rooms in England at the time. The Pantheon was intended as London’s answer to Ranelagh Gardens for winter entertainment and opened to a crush when nearly “two thousand persons of rank and fashion assembled.” The Pantheon officially closed for public entertainments in 1814, after Lord Chamberlain restrictions on the building’s use as a theatre made the final venture unprofitable. It was converted to a bazaar in 1833 and in 1867 became a winemakers office and showrooms until being demolished in 1937.
From 1819 Ackermann: The Pantheon was built “for the purpose of public evening entertainments” and was a “superb and beautiful structure” with elegant interiors furnished with fine paitnings, gilt vases, and statues depicting gods and goddesses. The building consisted of a suite of fourteen rooms, and between 1789-1792 (until a fire) was used as an exhibition space for Italian operas after the destruction by fire of the King’s Theatre in Haymarket.
1814 January The Pantheon via Ackermann’s Repository : This once noble structure, situated on the south side of Oxford-street, was originally built by Mr. James Wyatt, for the purpose of public evening entertainments. It was a most superb and beautiful structure, the admiration of all connoisseurs, foreigners as well as natives. The interior was fitted up in such a magnificent style, that it is scarcely possible for those who never saw it to conceive the elegance and grandeur of the apartments, the boldness of the paintings, or the effect produced by the disposition of the lights, which were reflected from gilt vases. Below the dome were a number of statues, representing most of the heathen gods and goddesses, supposed to be the ancient Pantheon at Rome, from which it derived its name. To these were added three beautiful statues of white porphyry, representing the King and Queen and Britannia.
The whole building formed a suite of fourteen rooms, each affording a striking specimen of taste and splendor. After the destruction of the King’s Theatre in the Haymarket by fire in June 1789, the Pantheon was used for the exhibition of Italian operas, and was frequently honored with the presence of their Majesties; till on the 14th of January, 1792, this beautiful structure also fell a prey to the same devouring element.
The fire broke out in the new buildings which had been added for the most convenient performance of operas; and before any engine reached the spot, the flames had gained such a height, that all attempts to save the building were in vain. Owing to the scenery, oil, paint and other combustible materials in the house, the conflagration was so rapid that not a single article could be saved. Persons who witnessed the progress of this tremendous fire, declare that the appearances exhibited through the windows, the lofty pillars enveloped in flames and smoke, the costly damask curtains waving from the rarefaction of the air, and the superb chandeliers turning round from the same circumstance, together with the successive crashing and falling of different portions of the building, furnished to their minds a more lively representation of Pandemonium than the imagination alone cam possibly supply.
The effects, too, of the intense frost which then prevailed, upon the water poured from the engines upon the blazing pile, are described as equally singular and magnificent. The loss occasioned by this catastrophe amounted to £60,000; only one fourth of which sum was insured. The height of the walls fortunately prevented the conflagration from spreading to the contiguous houses.
The Pantheon has been rebuilt; the original elegant front and portico still remain, but the rest of the edifice exhibits not eve a shadow of its former magnificence. Since its re-edification, it has been used principally for exhibitions, and occasionally for masquerades. Various plans have at different times been brought forward for opening it for dramatic representations; and this was actually done a few months since under a license from the magistrates, by a Mr. Condy, who is understood to have embarked a considerable fortune in the concern; but whose right has been contested by the winter theatres, and is likely to become a subject of legal discussion.
1800 Pantheon Masquerade, London, U.K. via Rudolph Ackermann’s Microcosm of London. Engraved by John Bluck. (1791-1831)
1843 Mail Coach now runs over ground in a little over four hours. Via 1843 The Chace, the Turf, and the Road by Nimrod via Google Books (PD-150)
I love Pinterest for keeping thousands of historical images in some sort of order. And I love using Pinterest Boards as inspiration for my romance books. What about you? Do you use Pinterest for planning something, or just for fun? Need more hints for what to do with your boards and pins? Take a look at these fascinating articles on Pinterest. if you want even more Pinterest information and tips for becoming a power user, check out my Suzi Love Pinterest Boards
What did Jane Austen and friends wear? Early 1800s fashions were elegant and pretty with high waists and fabrics that were almost transparent. These Empire style gowns, named after Napoleon’s first Empress, became popular throughout Europe, and were then copied around the world. Colorful outwear was added to make an ensemble more attractive and warmer. History Notes Book 26 Fashion Women 1805-1809.
https://books2read.com/SuziLoveFashionWomen1805-1809
The Empire waist gown defined women’s fashion during the Regency Era. ‘Empire’ is the name given in France to the period when Napoleon built his French Empire. High-waisted, loose gowns were adopted by the aristocracy as a symbol of turning away from the fussy, elaborate and expensive clothing worn in the 1700s. Jean-Jaques Rousseau advocated copying peasants and returning to a simpler life and more natural fashions. Unrestricting clothing was part of the new Democracy in France and these simpler and flowing fashions were adopted all over Europe, including Britain and despite the continual wars being fought against France during the early 1800s. Not even war stopped fashions from being copied everywhere.
1805 Lady With Her Sketching Portfolio In Half Dress, French. White, At-Home, High-waisted, relaxed & flowing dress with white cap and pink flowers to match, long gloves, slippers. Fashion Plate via Journal des Dames et des Modes, or Costume Parisien. Definition Caps: Worn as morning caps, night caps, or under other hats. Jane Austen and her family and female friends would have worn caps like these, sometimes during the morning at home, to bed to keep their long hair from becoming knotted, or under a bonnet to hold a hairstyle in place. Caps sometimes had hanging ties, or tails, and were also called ‘follow me lads’, or ‘flirtation ribbons’. Or flaps covering theirs called Lappets. Magazine Journal des Dames et des Modes, or Costume Parisien, French. French fashion magazine published between 1797 and 1839 and second oldest fashion magazine published in France. Pierre de la Mesangere was editor and published every five days, which is why there is an abundance of French fashion plates from these years in France and internationally.
![1805_HalfDress_WhiteAtHomeDress_LadywithSketchingPortfolio_CP_Lge.jpg ]](https://www.suzilove.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/1805_HalfDress_WhiteAtHokmeDress_LadywithSketchingPortfolio_CP_Sml.jpg)
1806 Waiting For the St. Cloud Coach, Place de la Concorde, Paris. Illustrations by Francis Courboin. via Les Modes de Paris. (PD-Art) This couple is depicted waiting for the coach, which was a passenger vehicle drawn by four horses. The woman is wearing a fashionable hat or “capote” that covers her face. Her dress maintains the empire waist and has very long sleeves that also have a ‘mancheron’ or a gathered sleeve at the shoulders. The man is wearing a ‘habit du gagé’ or a coat with tails, buttoned at the waist. His hat is a ‘haut-de-forme’ or what is commonly known in English as a top hat. He wears tight, short pants tucked into large, riding boots, as was the fashion for men. Illustrations by François Courboin from Octave Uzanne‘s Les Modes de Paris. Variations du goût et de l’esthétique de la femme, 1797-1897, L. Henry May, Paris, 1898, or from the English translation of the same work: Fashion in Paris : the various phases of feminine taste and aesthetics from 1797 to 1897, William Heinemann, London, 1898. Modes de Paris VIa Brown University Library .
What Sort Of Pianoforte or Piano Was Played By Jane Austen and Contemporaries? Pianos, pianofortes and more. History Notes Book 7 Music Pianos books2read.com/suziloveMusicPiano
Definition Pianoforte or Piano: ‘Stringed keyboard instrument with a hammer action, as opposed to the jack and quill action of the harpsichord. Capable of gradations of soft and loud, the piano became the central instrument of music pedagogy and amateur study. By the end of the nineteenth century, no middle-class household of any stature in Europe or North America was without one.’ Definition via the Metropolitan Museum, NYC.
Around 1700, the Pianoforte, or Piano, was invented in Italy by Bartolomeo Cristofori, who created a hammer action keyboard instrument on which a musician could make changes in loudness by changing the force with which the keys were struck. He called his instrument “gravicembalo col piano e forte”, or, (harpsichord with soft and loud). Cristofori’s long name was later shortened to fortepiano or pianoforte, and finally just piano.
Musical Instruments were so important in most of the more affluent households in history that large industries grew all around the world to manufacture instruments, musical accessories, and to print sheet music. Pianos, pianofortes, harpsichords, and organs were found everywhere and were often the focus of a family gathering. By the end of the 18th Century, the pianoforte, or piano, was the leading instrument of Western music.
A portrait from 1810-1814 of Rudolph Ackermann, shop owner and founder of ‘The Repository Of Arts’ magazine, The Strand, London. via National Portrait Gallery, London. Plus, an image of Ackermann’s premises in 1809. His ‘Repository of Arts, Literature, Fashion, Manufactures, etc.’ was published from 1809 to 1829 with images of Regency London, Regency furnishings and grand homes as well as beautiful fashion prints and descriptions every month. Ackermann originally supplied artists, amateur and professional, with supplies for watercolor painting. In 1799, he began manufacturing and selling his own watercolor paint blocks which were supplied by other colourmen, although at least three colors were his own mixture – Ackermann’s Green, White and Yellow. From 1817, his eldest son Rudolph Ackermann junior was responsible for the watercolor manufacturing. Ackermann also trained as a carriage designer. He began publishing prints and colour-plate books like ‘The Microcosm of London’ and ‘Doctor Syntax’ in the early 1800s.
The Repository of Arts was one the most popular magazines in Jane Austen’s time as it displayed everything ladies wanted to learn e.g. history, important country seats and houses in England, music, current events such as theatre plays, plus fashion plates and embroidery patterns. Ackermann’s shop in The Strand, London, was one of the fashionable places to shop during the Regency Era. The Repository also included poetry, travel reports, society reports and upcoming lectures. It also included serious subjects e.g. politics, legal matters, medicine and agriculture, a meteorological journal and details of the London markets. In 1817, the price of the magazine was 4 Shillings, so quite expensive for the time.
In the first issue, published for January 1809, Ackermann included an ‘introduction to the history of the useful and polite arts’ which said: “It is universally admitted, that to cultivate a taste for the arts, and an acquaintance with the sciences, is a pleasure of the most refined nature; but to do this without regard to its influence upon the passions and affections, is to ‘tear a tree for its blossoms, which is capable of yielding the richest and most valuable fruit.’ The cultivation of this taste may and ought to be subservient to higher and more important purposes: it should dignify and exalt our affections, and elevate them to the admiration and love of that Being who is the author of every thing that is fair, sublime, and good in nature.”
What did Jane Austen and friends wear? Early 1800s fashions were elegant and pretty with high waists and fabrics that were almost transparent. These Empire style gowns, named after Napoleon’s first Empress, became popular throughout Europe, and were then copied around the world. Colorful outwear was added to make an ensemble more attractive and warmer. History Notes Book 26 Fashion Women 1805-1809.
https://books2read.com/SuziLoveFashionWomen1805-1809
The Empire waist gown defined women’s fashion during the Regency Era. ‘Empire’ is the name given in France to the period when Napoleon built his French Empire. High-waisted, loose gowns were adopted by the aristocracy as a symbol of turning away from the fussy, elaborate and expensive clothing worn in the 1700s. Jean-Jaques Rousseau advocated copying peasants and returning to a simpler life and more natural fashions. Unrestricting clothing was part of the new Democracy in France and these simpler and flowing fashions were adopted all over Europe, including Britain and despite the continual wars being fought against France during the early 1800s. Not even war stopped fashions from being copied everywhere.
