I know you can fairly frequently find me sat here bragging about how brilliant I think London is. But I just can’t help it, you know? And look, it’s pretty difficult to deny the fact that our big, bright capital city is somewhat of a trend-setter. From transport to terraced houses; London has blazed many a trail for cities across the world. One particularly pioneering piece of London’s puzzle comes in the form of a long-lost landmark that was built in Hyde Park (and later perched on top of Sydenham Hill) that went on to inspire architectures across the globe.
London’s Crystal Palace
When you hear the name ‘Crystal Palace‘; it’s probably the park, the football club, or the (outrageously hilly) south London suburb that instantly spring to mind. But London’s original Crystal Palace was a beautiful building in Hyde Park, designed by Joseph Paxton to house the Great Exhibition of 1851. It spanned a rather humongous 990,000 square-feet and featured around 293,000 panes of glass. Once the exhibition ended, the building was relocated and reconstructed in Sydenham Hill, where it stood proudly for over 70 years.
London’s Crystal Palace was tragically destroyed in a fire in 1936, but its legacy well-and-truly lives on. Not just in the likes of the Crystal Palace Park (which is home to some of the building’s original elements), but in the form of a gasp-inducingly gorgeous building located slap-bang in the middle of a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Madrid. Yes, really…
Madrid’s Palacio de Cristal
Picture-perfectly perched within Madrid’s beautiful Buen Retiro Park; the Palacio de Cristal was constructed in 1887 to mirror London’s Crystal Palace. Designed by Ricardo Velaquez Bosco as a space to exhibit exotic plants; the structure is a shiny architectural gem. The ornate glass and steel Baroque building forms the shape of a cross and resembles the shape of a birdcage. And this might be hard to believe, but the the building is possibly even more good-looking on the inside than it is on the outside.
The elaborate greenhouse first exhibited a display of of exotic Vietnamese plants that were brought over to Madrid especially for this exhibition. The plan was originally to continue display stunning flora and fauna inside the building, but over the years it began showcasing art. It’s now beloved for its collection of stunning artwork and plants that can be viewed alongside the sweeping vista of the park through the striking glass walls.
The Palacia de Cristal is completely free to visit and well worth of the journey, in my humble opinion (any excuse for a holiday, hey?). If you do fancy a fleeting trip to Madrid; please allow us to point you in the direction of the lovely lot at Madrid Secreto. Because, no one knows the city better than they do, after all.