The Lord Mayor's Mansion House

This is a view of the front and west side of the Lord Mayor's Mansion House, as it appeared between the late 18th and early 19th centuries. It is probably the earliest representation of the Lord Mayor's State Coach, built in 1757.

Mansion house was conceived as a permanent residence for the Lord Mayor of London and building work commenced in 1739. Designed by the architect George Dance the Elder, Mansion House was finally completed in 1758, although from 1752 it was occupied by the Lord Mayor at the time, Sir Crispin Gascoigne.

Dance's son, George Dance the Younger, carried out some renovations to the house and removed a large roof pavilion, deemed unsafe, in 1795. In 1846 another pavilion was removed but - more dramatically - the main entrance to the house was moved around to the side, changing the appearance of the building's exterior.

Dance's design was influenced by the style of the 16th-century Venetian architect Andrea Palladio. In the foreground the ornate Lord Mayor's Coach, drawn by six horses, passes the temple portico at the front of the house, characteristic of Palladian architecture.