London from Southwark

This view of London from Southwark depicts the capital around 1600. It conveys a generalised view of the City and is one of very few surviving paintings to do this. One is at Chatsworth and another at the Society of Antiquaries.

It relates to a print by Clement de Jongh ( fl. 1640-70) and has been tentatively dated by means of technical analysis of the panel to 1625-1655. The artist is unknown but likely to be from the Netherlands.

The image is not topographically accurate. The vista has been compressed to include Whitehall on the left and the river bend on the right. The view was drawn from the church tower of St Mary Overy (now Southwark Cathedral) a popular viewpoint for artists drawing the city.

Old London Bridge features prominently to the right of the picture. Built between 1176 and 1209, it was the first stone bridge to cross the Thames. It was surmounted, famously, by houses, shops and a chapel, and its gatehouse on the Southwark side was regularly adorned with the severed heads of traitors, as can be seen here. The houses were removed and the bridge widened in the late 18th century. It was finally demolished in 1831.