The International Exhibition Building

Category

Library Item

Item no

17791

Title

The International Exhibition Building

Description

A huge dome presides over the entrance to the 1886 International Exhibition Building in the Meadows, Edinburgh. The frontage consists of the dome and arched entrance with a wing on each side, ending in a squared dome feature. Tall double windows run the length of the building letting the maximum amount of light in. The building may still be under construction here as piles of wood can be seen lying in front of it.

Artist / maker

Unknown

Date

1886

Size

11.5 x 13.5 cm

Type

Photograph

Location

Edinburgh and Scottish Collection

Exhibitions showcasing progress were held all over Britain in the Victorian period. In 1886, the International Exhibition of Industry, Science and Art was held on the Meadows in Edinburgh. Thirty thousand people turned up on opening day alone to see over twenty thousand exhibits illustrating the 'material progress of the age'. The exhibition was housed in enormous buildings constructed on the Meadows complete with imposing domed entrance way. One of the most popular attractions of the Exhibition was a reconstruction of an old Edinburgh street consisting of buildings which existed in Edinburgh during the 17th-century, but had been demolished by 1886. It was hoped that the exhibition buildings would remain, but they had to be demolished due to a law forbidding building on the parkland. Today there are a few remaining signs of the exhibition including the Prince Albert Sundial and Masons' Memorial Pillars at the Meadows west end and the whale jawbone arch at Melville Drive.

Exhibitions with this item

Other views of this item

Related images

Related subjects

Places > Edinburgh areas > Tollcross

Places > Scotland > Edinburgh

Sport and leisure > Culture > Galleries

Sport and leisure > Culture > Visitor centres

Sport and leisure > Sports and recreation facilities > Parks

(55°56′27″N, 3°11′28″W)