Designs for Public and Private Buildings.

First edition of this work exhibiting John Soane's (1753-1837) designs for London, revised from his work Designs for public improvements in London and Westminster first published a year prior. Produced towards the end of his life, the work is essentially a vehicle for celebrating his designs and collecting them under one title as some sort of record. He is sometimes frank regarding his over exuberance in his youthful designs, such as for Senate House, compared to his later designs in which he endeavoured to lean towards utility.

In 1827 Soane published 25 copies of Designs for public improvements in London and Westminster and a year later reprinted it with additional plates. In the same year he published the above which differs slightly from the latter and contains additions (Archer).

Apart from Soane's own house there are only 4 non-palacial residences included and only one of which, the facade of Swinnerton Villa, is emblematic of Soane's style. As expected his designs for public buildings are much more evocative including the Houses of Parliament, the Bank of England, and the entrance to Hyde Park.

First edition; folio (50 x 31cm); engraved title-page with vignette, 55 engraved plates including frontispiece and called for additional 21* plate, previous ownership inscription to endpaper deleted, small inner marginal tear to front free endpaper and frontispiece expertly restored, light occasional spotting and offsetting; twentieth-century half calf, coloured paper boards, gilt morocco lettering piece to spine, edges uncut, a little rubbed, a very good copy; vi, 36, [2] pp.

Archer 316.3; Colvin p.904; Fowler p. 270.