London Zoo: Burton's layout and buildings

The Zoological Society of London was set up in 1826 to build a collection of animals for scientific study. Decimus Burton worked for it from 1826 to 1841. In 1828 the Society rented a triangular plot of about eight hectares on the north side of Regent's Park, and Burton was given the task of laying it out. The zoo opened on 27 April 1828, at first only to members of the Society; it did not open to the public until 1847.

Burton landscaped the gardens and designed the first buildings, drawing on the Jardin des Plantes in Paris. Few of these buildings survive. The Raven Cage dates from about 1827 and the East Tunnel from about 1829. Around 1830-1831 Burton designed the Camel House, which now carries a clock tower; the building was rebuilt in the mid-1960s. The Giraffe House, since restored, dates from about 1836.

The Raven Cage is a picturesque octagonal ornamental cage of cast and wrought iron, with a tent-shaped top crowned by a finial.

The former Camel House is a single-storey brick pavilion of three bays under a tiled gabled roof. On the east side the central bay opens between two pointed arches, and the eaves overhang. On the ridge, a timber-framed clock tower with pilasters carries a copper cupola.

The East Tunnel, a pedestrian passage under the Outer Circle road, is vaulted in brick. Its stucco entrance on the south side opens through a round arch with stucco voussoirs, below a balustraded parapet between piers, with a screen wall and pediment above.

The Giraffe House is of brick under slate roofs. The central pavilion, built for the giraffes, is flanked on the east by a lower wing, the original hippopotamus house, and on the west by a matching wing added later. Each single-storey pavilion has three bays and tall round-arched stable doors. The central pavilion has pedimented gable ends and deep eaves on brackets; the wings have a cornice and a blocking course.

The Giraffe House is still used for its original purpose, housing the zoo's giraffes.

Burton's works stand inside London Zoo, on the northern edge of Regent's Park.