This website presents our knowledge and research on this important aspect of the Royal Collection. As of April 2026 it will not be regularly updated and new research on this topic will sit within the main website.

Photographs 1842-61

Albums compiled by Prince Albert, reflecting his beliefs surrounding photography

WILLIAM JOHN THOMS (1803-85)

The Clock Tower, Eton College

c. 1860

Albumen print | 18.6 x 23.5 cm (image) | RCIN 2932771

Photograph of the early 16th-century Clock Tower in School Yard, Eton College. The clock is set into a gateway of the schoolyard and is flanked by polygonal turrets. In the middle ground, on the right, stands a statue of the college's founder, King Henry VI (1421-71) wearing Garter robes set on a plinth surrounded by iron railings. A single male figure, with his right hand on his hip, stands in front of the statue looking up.
  • Creator(s)

    William John Thoms (1803-85) (photographer)

  • 18.6 x 23.5 cm (image)

  • Acquired by Queen Victoria and Prince Albert

  • Subject(s)
    • Arts, Recreation, Entertainment & Sport
      • Plastic arts
        • Sculpture
          • Statues
      • Architecture
        • Buildings for educational, scientific & cultural purposes
          • Colleges
    • Science, Medicine and Technology
      • Industries, Crafts and Trades
        • Precision mechanisms & instruments
          • Horology (Watch & clock making)
            • Clocks
    • Places
      • Europe
        • Great Britain
          • England
            • Berkshire [England]
              • Eton [Berkshire]
                • Eton College Chapel [Eton]
    Object type(s)
      • visual works
        • photographs