Social History — 1766-1799
A View of the London Custom House
This ivory drinking cup has been engraved with a perspective view of the London Custom House from the River Thames. Located up river from the Tower of London, the Custom House was the headquarters of the Customs Service. The building had a disastrous history. It was rebuilt by Christopher Wren after the Great Fire of 1666, but was then badly damaged by an explosion in 1714.
The building depicted on the cup is that designed by the architect Thomas Ripley, whose work also included the Admiralty at Whitehall. Ships' cargoes would be unloaded on the quayside and stored in warehouses. Customs duties were then paid in the famous Long Room. Ripley's building was destroyed by fire in 1814.
- Category:
- Social History
- Object ID:
- A8287
- Object name:
- A View of the London Custom House
- Object type:
- Artist/Maker:
- —
- Related people:
- Related events:
- Related places:
- Production date:
- 1766-1799
- Material:
ivory, metal
- Measurements/duration:
- H 125 mm, DM 78 mm (overall)
- Part of:
- —
- On display:
- —
- Record quality:
- 100%
- Part of this object:
- —
- Owner Status & Credit:
Permanent collection
- Copyright holder:
digital image © London Museum
- Image credit:
- —
- Creative commons usage:
- —
- License this image:
To license this image for commercial use, please contact the London Museum Picture Library.