'Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow...' - Skating in Regent's Park, 1838
Advertisement for winter fashions of 1838 and 1839, by B Read & Co. Image property of Westminster City Archives
Saint Hilary's Feast Day, on 13 January, is commonly said to be the coldest day of the year. This folk belief may date back to the great frost of 1205, when the severe weather caused the Thames to ice over and even saw ale and bread freeze solid.
The cold weather does have its compensations however, as testified by the skaters in this view of Regent's Park. The people in the foreground are well dressed for the cold, modelling fashionable designs for the 1838-1839 season.
Image ref: A09A3418
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