Workers renovating the National Gallery found striking letters on a column: “Thank you for taking down this unnecessary column”

The Sainsbury Wing, part of the National Gallery in London, is currently undergoing renovations. During the process, one of the supporting columns was removed and workers found a remarkable letter inside, from John Sainsbury, one of the building’s financiers.

In the letter, which he hid when the pillar was built in 1990, he wrote that he was “very happy” that it was being removed. The pillar was co-designed by American architect Robert Venturi. In the letter, he criticized the architect for including two columns in the design that “did not serve any structural purpose.” (Read more below the photo)

The letter was addressed to “those who find this letter”. “If you have found this note, you are removing a false column that was placed in the lobby of the Sainsbury Wing of the National Gallery. I believe the false column is the architect’s mistake and we would regret it if we accepted this detail of his design. Let it be known that one of the donors of the building is very happy that your generation has decided to remove the unnecessary column.”

Sainsbury died in 2022 at the age of 94. His widow, Anya Linden, 91, was on hand when the letter was removed from the pillar. “I’m delighted that John’s letter has been rediscovered after all these years… I think he would be relieved and delighted with the gallery’s new plans and the extra space they are creating,” Linden said.