13 NOVEMBER 1841, Page 20

FINE ARTS.

VIEWS OF THE TOWER.

Amosc the multiplicity of prints, there is, strange to say, a great de- ficiency of good views of the fine public edifices of London on a large or even a moderate scale : cheap serials abound, which include some old buildings as well as new streets and churches ; but besides being small, they are slight and commonplace. The best street views are those on the top of the Stationers' Almanack, representing the new im- provements; though these are not of first-rate character. A friend of ours, who recently had occasion to procure some architectural engrav- ings for a foreigner, found it difficult to pick up tolerably good prints even of Westminster Abbey and St. Paul's, and could meet with no- thing of a high order of art. The recent destruction of the Small Armoury in the Tower has caused inquiries for prints of the burnt building ; but there is scarcely any view of the fortress which intro- duces it, notwithstanding it formed so conspicuous a portion of the mass. This circumstance has induced Mr. BOYS to publish separately a view of the Tower, taken from Trinity Square, in which the Armoury is a feature ; and the print forms one of his forthcoming volume of sketches representing London As it Is: the view is admirable for its truth, and makes a picturesque scene. The local characteristics are so faithfully indicated as at once to recall the spot ; the art, too, is of a superior order; and the print, being executed in the tinted style of lithography, resembles an original drawing in sepia. If the other plates in the volume prove equal to this, the publication will be most accept- able, and worthily supply the want of a good set of views of London. Mr. BOYS has published, as a companion to it, a sketch of the smoking ruins of the Armoury, taken on the morning after the fire ; showing the whole length of the building, or rather the roofless shell of this once noble apartment ; its desolate aspect forming a striking contrast to the lively scene from Tower Hill previous to the fire. Of the various prints of the conflagration itself, that by Mr. W. C. SMITH, published by ACKERMANN, is by far the best ; and is not only a very clever and effective picture, but a faithful representation of the burning ; the sketch having been taken on the spot during the night of the fire by the artist himself. Mr. W. OLIVER has, at the instance of Colonel PEEL, made several sketches of the ruins within the Tower, from various points of view ; showing the appearance of things immediately after the fire, before the guns that formed part of the grand trophy were removed : these sketches the artist intends to lithograph, with a view to publication.