Explore Collections Explore The Collections
You are here: CollectionsOnline  /  Drawings

Browse

Preliminary design, finished drawing and record drawings for ceiling and walls for the great dining room, ceiling as executed, and walls presumed to have been executed, August 1780 (5)

The great dining room was created in 1781 by knocking together two smaller rooms on the parlour (ground) floor on the south front of the house. There is photographic proof that Adam's ceiling was executed in this room, and therefore, presumably so too were the designs for the walls. There was no sign of this interior decorative scheme in the early twentieth century when the house was demolished.

The room was designed in the Etruscan style, along the lines of Adam's other Etruscan rooms, such as the dressing room at Osterley, but according to Stillman this was 'among the largest and most imposing rooms designed by Adam in the Etruscan fashion'. Moreover, the various drawings for this room show Adam's ability to design a harmonious ensemble, taking into account every aspect of a room.

There are various motifs in the preliminary design for the ceiling (Adam volume 5/33) which were omitted in the executed finished drawing (Adam volume 14/79). These motifs, however, found their way into the carpet design for the room (Adam volume 17/207).
Architectural & Other Drawings results view
Select list view result
Select thumbnail view result
Architectural & Other Drawings results view
Select list view result
Select thumbnail view result