Lithograph by Maclure, Macdonald & Macgregor, published in a supplement to the 'Manchester Examiner'. The Crystal Palace was built to house the 'Great Exhibition of the Works of the Industry of all Nations', conceived by Prince Albert (1819-1861). It was designed by the landscape designer Joseph Paxton (1801-1865), and was the first large-scale prefabricated ferrovitreous (iron and glas) structure. The prefabricated design made the construction, and later dismantling, easier and quicker. The exhibition was held at Hyde Park, London in 1851. The structure was then re-erected at Sydenham, South East London where it burned down on 30 November 1936.
© Science Museum / Science & Society Picture Library