Description:The original Tower of the Winds in Athens was an octagonal tower featuring carvings in relief, each depicting the nature of the wind. On the top of the tower was a bronze weathervane.
Shugborough's version was completed in 1765 by James 'Athenian' Stuart. Eighteenth century paintings show this building could also boast copies of the carvings and weathervane, but today there is no trace of these features.
The tower was originally surrounded by water, being situated at the end of an ornamental lake, and was linked to the land by two bridges. The ground floor windows were inserted in 1803 when Samuel Wyatt converted the building into an ornamental dairy for Lady Anson.
It was rumoured that the 1st Earl of Lichfield used the tower as a gambling den.
This photograph is from an album of local views taken by Edward King Tenison (1805-1878), a highly regarded photographer in the early decades of photography. His family seat was at Kilronen, Roscommon, Ireland and he married Louisa Mary Anne Anson, daughter of the 1st Earl of Lichfield, also an accomplished amateur photographer. These images were probably taken during Tenison's visits to his wife's family home, Shugborough.