Lichfield Cathedral OP08956 (b/w photo)

Cathedral Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary and St Chad, Lichfield, Staffordshire, c 1860. Francis Bedford (1816-94), albumen print. Francis Bedford's photograph, published by Thompson & Co, shows the west front of Lichfield Cathedral. General views of cathedrals and photographs of their architectural details had been popular subjects for pioneer photographers, and they continued to attract attention as the mass market in photography developed. Lichfield Cathedral, one of the smallest in England, had been severely damaged during the Civil War. Significant restoration had been undertaken in the 17th and 18th centuries, and Bedford's view was taken before the west window (between the towers) was remodelled in the late 1860s during Sir George Gilbert Scott's restoration of 1856-78.