BRUNEL 200

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To celebrate Isambard Kingdom Brunel's birth (9th April 1806) we have issued

1 6 special cards showing the building of the Clifton Suspension Bridge, Bristol

2 A special commissioned painting of the ss Great Britain & Clifton Suspension Bridge together (see below).

3 8 images of TempleMeads Station, Bristol

4 Royal Albert Bridge, Brunels last, and greatest railway bridge, spanning the river Tamar between Cornwall & Devon at Saltash.

In addition to these we have an extensive archive of additional images, past and present, which show his greatest engineering achievements.

View archive images in the Bristol Image Page. & Balloons

Special internet only price for all 6 mono cards of the construction and opening of Clifton Suspension Bridge

£7.95 including postage & Envelopes (internet only price)

or £1.25 ea plus postage (see Shop page)


Clifton Suspension Bridge under construction, 1862 code No. 047Bristol/2006	Clifton Suspension Bridge under construction, viewed from tower, 1863 code No. 048Bristol/2006	Clifton Suspension Bridge ceremony December 8th 1864 code No. 049Bristol/2006

Clifton Suspension Bridge nearing completion 1862 code No. 050Bristol/2006	Clifton Suspension Bridge, spans being added code No. 051Bristol/2006	Clifton Suspension Bridge towers code No. 052Bristol/2006

The first competition in 1829 was judged by Thomas Telford, the leading civil engineer of the day. Telford rejected all the designs and submitted his own but the decision to declare him the winner was unpopular and a second competition was held in 1830. 24 year old Isambard Kingdom Brunel was eventually declared the winner and appointed project engineer – his first major commission. The foundation stone was laid in 1831 but the project was dogged with political and financial difficulties and by 1843, with only the towers completed, the project was abandoned. Brunel died prematurely aged 53 yrs in 1859 but the Bridge was completed as his memorial and finally opened in 1864. Designed in the early 19th century for light horse drawn traffic it still meets the demands of 21st century commuter traffic with 11-12,000 motor vehicles crossing it every day.

Specially commissioned watercolour

to celebrate Brunel 200

Clifton Suspension Bridge with the ss Great Britain Code Special 01

Colour Greeting Cards £1.55 ea plus postage (see Shop page)

Temple Meads Station Bristol

Station Interior, West view, c1915 code No. 053Bristol/2006	Eastern Station Approach c1920 code No. 054Bristol/2006	Western Entrance c1900 code No. 055Bristol/2006	Eastern Entrance c19 code No. 056Bristol/2006

Station Interior, East view c1920 code No. 057Bristol/2006	Station Interior c1910 code No. 058Bristol/2006	Station Approach, c1915 code No. 059Bristol/2006	Station, c1875 code No. 060Bristol/2006

Brunel was involved in all aspects of the design of the station at Bristol Temple Meads, one of the oldest surviving railway terminuses in the world, although it has not been used as such since 1965. At one time the building housed the Bristol Exploratory hands-on science centre. It currently provides a home for the British Empire and Commonwealth Museum. Temple Meads is thought to be the first true ‘terminus’ type of railway station in which trains and people inhabited the same space beneath a single over-sailing roof. Some contemporary critics considered the turrets, façades and decoration were inappropriate and anachronistic, but it is today admired for the way style, space and structure come together naturally and coherently.

Mono Greeting Cards £1.25 ea plus postage (see Shop page)

Royal Albert Bridge, Saltash

River Tamar & Bridge, c1928 code No. PLY01	View from Plymouth side, c1935 code No. PLY02	View from Saltash c1928 code No. PLY03	Bridge & Train, c1935 PLY04

Of all of Brunel's railway bridges, his last, and greatest, was to be the Royal Albert bridges, crossing the river Tamar at Saltash near Plymouth. The bridge has two spans of 139m/455ft and a central pier built on the rock, 24m/80ft above the high water mark. The bridge was opened in 1859, the year of Brunels death.

Mono Greeting Cards £1.25 ea plus postage (see Shop page)

All images in produced by Past & Present Publication can be produced in most formats up to A3 size. Email your requirements.