(LONDRES) Explication des travaux entrepris pour la construction de la tonnelle, ou passage sous la Tamise entre Rothehithe et Wapping, à l'effet d'ouvrir une communication permanente entre les deux rives de ce fleuve

Second edition, as scarce as the first published in 1836 of this pamphlet. Illustrated with a folding plate as frontispiece, and 8 plates, including two folding ones.
With an engraved medallion on the cover. Spine lacking for two-thirds of its length, without affecting the integrity of the work.

NB: This item is available at the bookshop upon request within 48 hours.

A remarkable record of the Thames Tunnel project. Work began in 1824 and faced numerous difficulties, which this pamphlet reports. The tunnel was originally intended for horse-drawn traffic. In 1805, the Thames Archway Company had been founded to build a tunnel under the Thames between Rotherhithe and Limehouse, but the scheme was abandoned after more than 1,000 feet and was revived in 1824 thanks to Marc Brunel's tunneling system, a cast-iron shield in which miners worked in separate compartments, excavating the tunnel face. From time to time, the shield was pushed forward in large stages, while the walls of the tunnel already dug behind were lined with cast-iron rings. The illustration shows this system. It was this method that was later used in the construction of the Underground. The tunnel was finally completed in 1843 and was at first only used by pedestrians, before being later acquired for railway traffic.