ONE of the oldest photographs featured in Christopher Horlock's new book Brighton From Old Photographs is of one of the most iconic buildings in the city, the Royal Pavilion.

The view of the building above dates back to 1846 and a sentry box can be seen on the roof.

It was built as a pleasure palace for King George IV, who reigned from 1820-1830 and his brother William IV also lived there from time to time.

The impressive structure stands out as one of the most recognisable and unique pieces of architecture in Brighton, which was originally a smaller palace called the Marine Pavilion.

As Brighton's clock tower was unveiled in 1888, a huge crowd of locals gathered and assembled for the photograph shown above.

The man wearing the light coloured top hat is called James Willing, a rich advertising contractor, who paid out £2,000 at the time for the construction of the tower.

The project was all in aid of the Golden Jubilee of Queen Victoria, which took place in 1887.

An architectural expert at the time named Nikolaus Pevsner once dismissed the clock tower as "worthless".

Another iconic building featured in the book is The Grand, a hotel that was famously bombed by the IRA in 1984 while then Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher was staying there.

Designed by J.H.Whichcor and opened in 1864 this is the earliest known photograph of the building, with work still being carried out on an eastern extension.

Scores of reporters attended the grand opening of the hotel, paying particular attention to the five lifts inside that were commonly known as "ascending omnibuses".

Three and a half million bricks make up the hotel, with around 450 tons of iron used during its construction.

In 1874 a clock tower was added to the entrance of Brighton Aquarium, after it opened in 1872.

The attraction brought many famous and VIP visitors to see the wonders of the sea, including the Shah of Persia in 1889.