Three years later the committee, having obtained possession of a more convenient site, part of which had been occupied by the recently demolished Carlton House, entrusted Decimus Burton with the task of building a suitable club-house. In the course of its construction Croker insisted that the Scotch sculptor, John Heming, should contribute a frieze designed as a reproduction of that of the Parthenon—an ornamentation at the time characterized as an extravagant novelty. In spite of a good deal of opposition, Croker carried the day, and the construction of an ice-house, which had been advocated by several members, was abandoned in order to afford funds for the classical decoration. In connection with this was written the epigram: “I’m John Wilson Croker, I do as I please: They ask for an Ice-house, I’ll give ’em—a Frieze.” The new Athenæum club-house was formally opened in February 1830, some soirées being given, to which ladies were admitted, though not without protest. The building, which is of some architectural interest, was erected on the west end of the courtyard of old Carlton House, the smoking-room being exactly under what was the Prince Regent’s dining-room. In the finely-proportioned hall eight pale primrose pillars on broad bronzed bases, copied from the Temple of the Winds at Athens, support the panelled waggon roof, the Pompeian ornamentation being of an original design. The two statues in niches, “Venus Victrix” and “Diana Robing,” were chosen by Sir Thomas Lawrence, who also designed the club seal.