The Painted hall is one of the gems of London, designed by Christopher Wren to be the dining hall for naval pensioners who were housed at the nearby Royal Hospital for Seaman.

The halls magnificent paintings, which were created in the early part of the 18th century, and took 19 years to complete, include the clever use of painter’s illusions to give the hall even more grandeur.  The column seen on the right of the image above shows how the plain columns were made grand through the use of painted effects which gave an appearance of much more expensive carved pillars.  The same is true of the architraves around the rooms windows and doors.

The main panel of the ceiling has the UK’s largest figurative painting and at over 5,600 sq feet is often referred to as England’s Sistine Chapel.  The panel pays homage to King William and King Mary and represents the triumph of Peace and Liberty over Tyranny.

This is a great way to spend a few minutes when you are visiting Greenwich and best of all its free to enter.