Dulwich Picture Gallery And Mausoleum

Dulwich Picture Gallery and Mausoleum is an art gallery and mausoleum built between 1811 and 1814, with significant repairs and partial rebuilding following damage during the Second World War, reopening in 1953. Designed by Sir John Soane, it was redecorated in 1980-1 based on original designs.

The building is constructed of yellow brick with stone dressings and includes a 20th-century glazed lantern roof. The plan comprises a sequence of galleries arranged around a central mausoleum, flanked by smaller almshouses (later converted into galleries in the late 19th century), all set within projecting wings embodying a severe neo-Greek style. A stone base course, stone frieze and flat cornice run continuously around the entire building.

The main west front has two storeys and nine bays. A projecting, cruciform-plan mausoleum occupies the centre, consisting of two stages. Doors are set within round-arched recesses in each of the three short arms. Brick angle pilasters support a break-front stone entablature, topped by a stone sarcophagus above each door. The second stage is a square stone chamber with large leaded windows on all four sides. Above this sits a square stone podium with segmental pediments and urns at the corners, topped by a central urn finial. The interior of the mausoleum entrance utilizes Greek Doric order, featuring a shallow dome. A lantern positioned above the 'chancel' is supported on arcades. Flanking the mausoleum on the west front are three round-headed windows in round-arched recesses, with blank recesses on either side, and a stone cornice above. A recessed first-floor well features recessed panels. Projecting end sections have a single bay with a segmental-headed blank window on both floors, the ground floor window set in a segmental-arched recess and flanked by coupled brick angle pilasters. A moulded band runs along the first-floor sills. The frieze above the windows displays a key pattern. The east front is of similar style and features an entrance hall on the central axis. The same motifs are used on the north and south elevations with slight variation. Recessed three-bay sections flanking the entrance are copper-roofed. A key pattern is visible in the frieze at the centre and outer sections. Chimney stacks are decorated with Soanean antefixae.

The interior was not inspected. The gallery holds historical significance as the first public art gallery in England, founded by Sir Francis Bourgeois. The collection was largely brought together by the art dealer for King Stanislas of Poland, Noel Desenfans. The mausoleum contains the remains of Mr and Mrs Desenfans and Sir Francis Bourgeois.