Former Bear Pit at Bristol Zoo, Clifton, City of Bristol

Summary

Bear pit, built in about 1836, in a classical architectural style. C20 alterations and additions. The structures, fixtures, and fittings associated with its use as an aquarium are not included in the listing.

Description

MATERIALS: constructed of rubble and coursed carboniferous limestone, with limestone dressings. Subterranean brick vaults.

PLAN: a circular pit approximately 7m in diameter surrounded by a brick vaulted ring that supports the wide octagonal viewing platform above. To the west side is a square projection with a central doorway and flanked by straight flights of steps.

EXTERIOR: the former doorway projection to the west elevation is surmounted by a parapet wall with a large stone statue of an eagle flanked by urns. In front of, and flanking the projection, is a balustraded section of wall with a double row of Doric piers, that continues to form the balustrade to the straight flights of steps. The octagonal viewing platform above has an outer parapet wall of alternating panelled and balustraded sections.

INTERIOR: the inner walls of the bear pit are of rubble stone, with some brick patching, and there is a chamfered and crenellated stone lip to the top. The pit is surrounded by a circular brick vaulted corridor.

Pursuant to s1 (5A) of the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990 (‘the Act’) it is declared that the C20 and C21 structures, fixtures, and fittings relating to the building’s remodelling as an aquarium are not of special architectural or historic interest, however any works which have the potential to affect the character of the listed building as a building of special architectural or historic interest may still require LBC and this is a matter for the LPA to determine.

History

Bristol Zoological Gardens opened on the 11 July 1836, becoming the second zoological garden to open in England, after London Zoo in Regents Park (1828), and the fifth in Europe; the others being Schönbrunn Zoo in Vienna (1752), the Jardin des Plantes in Paris (1800), and Dublin Zoo (1831). Many more were to follow, illustrating the rapid and extensive establishment of zoological gardens, alongside other C19 cultural institutions such as museums and galleries, that were being built in England and across Europe to exhibit and study the exotic animal, plant, and cultural specimens that were being provided by empire and colonisation.

Bristol Zoological Gardens was founded by The Bristol, Clifton, and West of England Zoological Society that was formed in 1835 with the intention of creating a zoo for the purposes of both education and entertainment. The society raised the funds for their venture through the sale of shares, with many prominent Bristolians, such as Isambard Kingdom Brunel, William Goldney, and members of the Frys, Wills and Sturges families, being among the first shareholders. They were subsequently able to purchase 12 acres of land to the north of the suburb of Clifton on the outskirts of Bristol.

The design for Bristol Zoological Gardens was produced by Richard Forrest. A landscape designer and nurseryman, Forrest, was well-respected in his field and during his career worked on several important commissions including the gardens at Syon House, London, and Eaton Hall, Cheshire, as well as producing designs for several other zoological gardens. As with all early examples of zoological gardens, the design for Bristol was much influenced by the C18 landscaped gardens of the aristocracy, and this can be seen in Forrest’s scheme that retained many of the existing mature trees, but also including the planting of specimen trees and plants, the excavation of a lake to the centre, the creation of a Grand Terrace for promenading, as well as buildings in a characteristic pavilion style. Comparison of Forrest’s plan with George Ashmead’s map of 1853, alongside knowledge of the financial restrictions of the project, suggest that Forrest’s plans were not fully implemented. Ashmead’s map shows a simplified version of Forrest’s scheme with the animal enclosures concentrated to the north of the Grand Terrace, with most of the site being given over to gardens. This would seem to reflect both the difficulty in meeting management costs and that the botanical rather than the animal attractions were the initial draw for visitors. To increase revenue, the site was increasingly hired out for events, becoming a place not only to enjoy the plants and animals, but also a place of entertainment.

From the mid-1850s the surrounding land was developed for housing, and in 1862 the first buildings of Clifton College, located to the immediate south, were built. This development and the later Bank Holiday Act of 1871 led to an increase in visitor numbers leading to extensive changes to the zoo with a clear focus on public entertainment. The new animal enclosures added at this time, such as the elephant and giraffe house, and the polar bear enclosure that abutted its north elevation, were built in domestic styles and reflected the then architectural trend to place foreign wildlife into an English domestic setting.

In the early C20 the zoo suffered a period of stagnation, and the standard of the site declined. However, from 1925, the influence of Dr Richard Clarke, a board member of the society, began to steer the zoo towards the promotion of knowledge through the quality of the botanical and animal specimens, and away from the pleasure ground aspect of the site. He proposed that 'every year a new feature should be built and shewn annually' to attract increased visitor numbers. He consequently ushered in a new profitability and animal focused philosophy, with the new buildings in modern and interesting settings. These new buildings were often designed under his guidance, with some showing the influence of Carl Hagenbeck’s zoo at Tierpark, Stellingen, near Hamburg (1906), and his ideas for the presentation of animals in their “natural” habitat, with the creation of panoramas, artificial rock formations, and the removal of cages. The Monkey Temple (1928) and the polar bear enclosure (1935) were particular examples at Bristol Zoo.

Further changes occurred throughout the C20 and C21, with a move to more hygienic enclosures with tiled surfaces, to increasingly natural environments as animal welfare and conservation became central to the zoo’s philosophy.

The bear pit formed part of the zoo’s original layout, forming a focal point at the east end of the Grand Terrace. Built in 1836, its design utilised an existing limekiln that provided the depth and plan form for the enclosure which consisted of a circular pit with a flagstone floor, an outer ring of brick vaults that supported the octagonal viewing platform above, and an outer ditch which incorporated the west entrance. The entrance had a doorway to the pit itself, flanked by straight flights of steps that led to the viewing platform above. There was a timber pole in the pit circle for the bears to climb; this has been relocated to the outer ditch. In 1907 a row of metal cages for the bears were added to the outer ditch on the south side, and metal doors were inserted into the wall of the pit to give access to the cages.

In 1927, as Dr Clarke's first new attraction for the zoo, the bear pit was remodelled to incorporate an aquarium, using the brick vaults as viewing areas and adding tanks to the north section of the outer ditch. The central pit and the cages continued to be occupied by brown bears. The aquarium was extensively enlarged and refurbished in 1986 fully incorporating the bear pit and including the erection of a lantern-style roof and the conversion of the external stairs into a water feature.

Reasons for Listing

The bear pit at Bristol Zoological Gardens, built in 1836, is listed at Grade II for the following principal reasons:

Architectural interest:

* for its accomplished architectural design and composition in a classical style with good attention to architectural detailing, form and massing;
* for its good degree of overall survival and the legibility of its historic form and plan.

Historic interest:

* as the earliest surviving example of a bear pit associated with the first phase of zoological gardens in England during the 1830s, and its overall rarity as an animal house of this period;
* as part of the original formal landscape design for Bristol Zoological Gardens by noted landscape designer Richard Forrest, and its function as a focal point at the end of the Grand Terrace;
* for its illustration of early ideas concerning the display of exotic animals and how this informs our understanding of changing architectural approaches and public attitudes to the housing of animals in captivity.

Group value:

* with the other listed buildings at Bristol Zoological Garden.

External Links

Historic England Listing

External links are from the relevant listing authority and, where applicable, Wikidata. Wikidata IDs may be related buildings as well as this specific building. If you want to add or update a link, you will need to do so by editing the Wikidata entry.