Tag Archives: Josiah Wedgwood

Putting the Temple of the Muses back on the map

The Temple of the Muses was probably the largest single shop in 18th Century England. James Lackington’s trade card boasted it was “the finest shop in the world”. Arguably, Josiah Wedgwood’s intimate London showroom was more luxurious, showcasing his ceramics as if they were works of art, and admired by his elite clientele, including royalty….
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Written on April 1, 2026 at 6:21 pm, by Jane Davis

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Categories: Blog, Homepage, In-depth
Tags: 18th Century book trade, 18th Century London, 46 Chiswell Street, Allen & Co, Artillery Ground, Blue Plaque, E Beresford Chancellor, Elizabeth Caslon, English Heritage, Finsbury Pavement, Finsbury Place South, Finsbury Square, George Dance, Georgian London, Horwood's folding map, James Lackington, James Lackington's Memoirs, John Tallis, Joseph Jackson, Josiah Wedgwood, Lackington, Lackington Street, Listed buildings, London Squares, Merton, Moorfields, Mrs Burney, Richard Horwood, Samuel Johnson, Sir John Soames, Spring House, Tallis's London Street Views, The Bookseller's Wife, The Chiswell Street Chronicles, The Finsbury Estate, The HIstory of the Squares of London, The Northern Starr, The Temple of the Muses, Whitbread & Company, William Caslon

Why The Temple of the Muses was the perfect name for a Georgian Bookshop

In the bustling heart of Georgian London, James and Dorcas Lackington didn’t just open a bookshop—they created a cultural landmark. As their business outgrew its Chiswell Street premises, the Lackingtons dared to think bigger: a temple to books. Situated on one side of Finsbury Square (32 Finsbury Place South) and designed by architect George Dance,…
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Written on January 31, 2026 at 3:47 pm, by Jane Davis

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Categories: Art in Fiction, Blog, Homepage, In-depth, My Books, The Making of a Book
Tags: A Collection of Etruscan, and Roman Antiquities from the Cabinet of the Honourable William Hamilton, Angelica Kaufmann, Ary de Vois, Dorcas lackington, Emma Hamilton, European Grand Tour, George Romney, Greek, Herculaneum, Historical Fiction, James and Robert Adams, James Graham, James Lackington, Joos de Momper, Joshua Reynolds, Josiah Wedgwood, Mary Chudleigh, Neo-classical, Pompeii, Richard Samuel, Sir William Hamilton, The Muses in Art, The Muses of Mount Helicon, The Portland Vase, The Temple of Health