Open house London

Burlington House in the 1690s

There are so many interesting historical buildings and sites scattered around London and it's such a shame that they are not opened to the public. However, the annual 2-day Open House event allows the public to visit these sites for free, so it's a great opportunity to discover what lies behind these doors. Due to my rather hectic schedule, I only managed to visit two sites and the first one was the Burlington House in Piccadilly.

The Palladian style Burlington House is not only home to the famous Royal Academy of Arts but also the Geological Society, Linnean Society, Royal Astronomical Society, Society of Antiquaries and Royal Society of Chemistry. The original version of the building begun by Sir John Denham in or just after 1665. Then various architects worked on the exterior including Scottish architect, Colen Campbell.

In 2004, the five courtyard societies almost got evicted by the government because apart from the Royal Academy (which has been paying an annual £1 rent since 1867 and will continue to do do until 2866!), these societies have no lease and are rent-free! The case was eventually resolved and these societies were permitted to stay put and rent-free.


View of Royal Academy of arts


Geological Society


The 1.7 tonne Reception Desk



Library


Linnean society






Royal society of Chemistry



Beautiful stained-glass windows



My second site was the 'Roman' bath near Kings College/ Somerset House. I never knew this site existed before, but I have to say that it is quite well-hidden. I was really excited before entering the small entrance but was shocked to see the size of the bath! The bath looks more like a large bath tub than a typical Roman bath, no wonder the National Trust has doubts about its Roman origins! However, the tile work outside is quite interesting... I do hope that one day they will find out more about this hidden bath house.









'Roman' bath on Strand Lane