View of the city

This hauntingly beautiful image, taken in 1844 by photographer Henry Cundall, offers a misty panorama of the City of London, with the majestic St Paul’s Cathedral rising in the distance. In the foreground, timber buildings and riverside workshops line the edge of the Thames — a London still anchored in the past, on the cusp of industrial transformation.

1844 was also the year the Royal Exchange was reopened after being rebuilt due to fire, symbolising the rebirth of London as a global financial capital. Just as this photograph captures the city's physical growth, the mid-19th century marked a time of economic expansion and social upheaval.

Through the haze of time, this view reminds us how deeply the fabric of the city is woven with memory, labour and aspiration. The boats, the rooftops, the cranes — all frozen in an early moment of photographic history.

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