London from the South

This watercolour by Henry Thomas West offers a panoramic view of London from Denmark Hill where prosperous merchants and professional men lived in large detached villas with spacious gardens. It is painted from a hill-top garden which is populated by ladies with parasols and bonnets, gentlemen, a child, a dog and two gardeners. St Paul's Cathedral is visible in the distance.

In 1866 a loop line joined Denmark Hill to both Victoria and London Bridge by rail and cheap housing soon followed. However until the end of the century the suburb retained its rustic appeal.

Henry West was a landscape and topographical painter who lived in Hornsey and exhibited from 1831-1836