Moon and Crescent Ponds

Moon and Crescent Ponds are three ponds located alongside the Canal, completed by 1728 for John Aislabie. The ponds are lined with stone and clay. The Moon Pond is circular and features a submerged paved causeway leading to the center from the south-west. The flanking Crescent Ponds are situated within a large semicircular grassed terrace that serves as a dramatic foreground to the Temple of Piety. These ponds are supplied with water from small sluices and underground timber box culverts connected to the Canal.

The garden layout is significant as it predates similar designs by William Kent, who was likely acquainted with Aislabie through Lord Burlington. Aislabie received design advice from Colen Campbell during the creation of the High Stables, and the Palladian influence is evident in his collaboration with Lord Burlington on the Temple of Piety. Kent, who designed Holkham Hall in 1734, created a large circular pool that resembles the Temple and the semicircular terrace surrounding the Moon Pond, which was completed six years before Holkham's construction began.

Additionally, the Moon Pond was originally lined with Termes, a type of statuary displayed at Chiswick House, which began construction in 1725. These details suggest that Aislabie was implementing architectural theories discussed with prominent architects of the time in the north of England, even before they were widely practiced. Kent is recognized for the first garden layouts that integrated semi-formal gardens with the surrounding landscape, but Aislabie's work at Studley Royal predates Kent's designs at Chiswick and Stowe.