This is a colour lithograph of the Crystal Palace, which was built for the Great Exhibition of 1851. In colour lithography, a picture is made by printing from a flat surface (traditionally stone, now often a metal plate), on which the artist draws or paints the original design with a greasy substance. The surface is next prepared, moistened and inked; the greasy printing ink adheres to the design, which is then printed onto a sheet of paper.

There was much early opposition to the plan for an exhibition in Hyde Park. It was architect Joseph Paxton’s design for the Crystal Palace – published in the Illustrated News that caught the nation’s imagination, and subsequent published images encouraged sustained support for the scheme. The text accompanying this image emphasises the construction details and the skill required by Paxton and the construction company, Fox, Henderson & Co., to create a building covering such a large site.

The view here emphasises the size of the Crystal Palace, which covered an area of almost 19 acres, and shows the structure from the front. The landscape shown extends all the way to Hornsey, in North London.