Thames Tunnel peep show souvenir, 1843

Heralded as the Eighth Wonder of the World, Marc Brunel's tunnel under the Thames opened as a public walkway in 1843.Thames Tunnel peep show, 1843

Heralded as the Eighth Wonder of the World, Marc Brunel's pioneering tunnel under the Thames opened as a public walkway in 1843. Huge crowds flocked to see the engineering marvel of the age, the first of its type anywhere in the world, and to buy souvenirs of their experience, such as this peep show which recreates the view along the tunnel from Rotherhithe to Wapping. As one tourist said at the time, "it is a strange feeling which comes over one as he stands in the centre of the Tunnel, and knows that a mighty river is rolling on over his head".

But the novelty soon wore off and within a few years the tunnel became the seedy haunt of beggars and prostitutes. In 1865 it was sold to the East London Railway and now forms part of the modern day Overground system - almost 170 years after it was first built.

Heralded as the Eighth Wonder of the World, Marc Brunel's tunnel under the Thames opened as a public walkway in 1843.