View of London from the steeple of St Bride's Church, Fleet Street, looking east towards St Paul's Cathedral

The present lot is evidently a study for an engraving by J.H. Le Keux, published by E. Gambart in 1846. Although it bears an inscription suggesting an attribution to Edward Duncan on the verso, the subject matter, style of execution and choice of palette are much more typical of Allom.
Allom exhibited a larger version of this view (25¼ x 33¼ in.) at the Royal Academy in 1844, no. 1081. The Builder, 1844 reviewing the Royal Academy exhibition commented 'A beautiful drawing, showing as much of the vast city as possibly can be seen in one view, except from the summit of St Paul's Cathedral.' The companion view London from the upper gallery of St Paul's Cathedral was then executed, probably in response to this comment. The present watercolour and a version of London from the upper gallery of St Paul's Cathedral (sold in these Rooms, 5 June 2006, lot 60) are smaller in size and pre-date the exhibited watercolour and its companion piece and may be preliminary drawings for the finished works. The whereabouts of the exhibited watercolour and its companion piece are unknown.