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Architecture in National Gallery Paintings

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London Landmarks

The Great Western Railway | Technique | Industrialisation

J. M. W. Turner, 'Rain, Steam, and Speed - The Great Western Railway', before 1844.

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J. M. W. Turner, 'Rain, Steam, and Speed - The Great Western Railway', before 1844.

A dark structure slashes across the golden haze that represents the River Thames.

This is still recognisable as the Maidenhead Viaduct, taking the Great Western Railway from Exeter and Bristol towards London.

In the 1840s it was a controversial new piece of industrial architecture, designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel.

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