| Radcliffe Observatory | |
|---|---|
 South front of the observatory | |
  Location within Oxford city centre | |
| General information | |
| Type | Formerobservatory |
| Architectural style | Neoclassical |
| Location | Woodstock Road,Oxford |
| Coordinates | 51°45′39″N1°15′50″W / 51.7608°N 1.2639°W /51.7608; -1.2639 |
| Construction started | 1772; 253 years ago (1772) |
| Completed | 1794; 231 years ago (1794) |
| Owner | Green Templeton College |
| Design and construction | |
| Architects | Henry Keene andJames Wyatt |
| Designations | Listed Grade I |
Radcliffe Observatory was theastronomical observatory of theUniversity of Oxford from 1773 until 1934, when the Radcliffe Trustees sold it and built a new observatory inPretoria, South Africa.[1][2] It is aGrade I listed building.[3] Today, the building forms part ofGreen Templeton College of the University of Oxford.
The observatory was founded and named after the physicianJohn Radcliffe (1650–1714) by the Radcliffe Trustees.[4] It was built on the suggestion of the astronomerThomas Hornsby, who was occupying theSavilian Chair of Astronomy, following his observation of the notabletransit of Venus across the sun's disc in 1769 from a room in the nearbyRadcliffe Infirmary.
The observatory building, at a site onWoodstock Road, commenced to designs byHenry Keene in 1772 and was completed in 1794 to the designs ofJames Wyatt. It has a prominent octagonaltower based on theTower of the Winds inAthens, topped with a statue byJohn Bacon ofAtlas holding up the World.
Until 1839, the Savilian Chair of Astronomy was responsible for the observatory. At this date the appointment ofGeorge Henry Sacheverell Johnson – an astronomer with no observational experience – caused the creation of the new role of Radcliffe Observer.
Because of the viewing conditions, weather, urban development and light pollution atOxford, the observatory was moved to South Africa in 1939. Eventually that site, inPretoria, also became untenable and the facility was combined with others into theSouth African Astronomical Observatory (SAAO) in the 1970s.
The building is now used byGreen Templeton College and is a centrepiece of the college.[4] The original instruments are now in theMuseum of the History of Science, Oxford, except for the Radcliffe 18/24-inch Twin Refractor telescope, which was transferred to theUniversity of London Observatory.
The following have been Radcliffe Observers:[citation needed]
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