John Soane took over as the Bank of England’s architect in 1788. One of his first major tasks was to rebuild the Bank’s Rotunda, one of the Bank’s most recognisable spaces and a meeting point for city brokers. Soane rebuilt the Rotunda using light, hollow, fireproof bricks. They are square at one end, and circular at the other. This means they form a natural curve when stacked up with the square end on the outside, creating a domed ceiling. These bricks were salvaged when Soane’s Rotunda was demolished in the 1920s, shortly before the Bank was rebuilt and expanded by architect Herbert Baker.
1795
1989/054
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