(red pen) 86, (black pen) 959, Desentans / MDCCC, Sir Francis Bourgeois / MDCCCXI (written on sarcophagi)

• datable to May 1812

Pencil and coloured washes, watercolour technique, shaded, within a singe-ruled black wash border on thick wove paper (911 x 656)

Soane office

James Whatman Turkey Mill Kent

The three perspectives shown in this drawing, SM 15/2/7 and 15/2/6 were possibly drawn as lecture drawings or for exhibition at the Royal Academy but were not actually used as such. The drawings show a variety of decoration for the exterior of the Mausoleum. SM 15/2/7 shows the Mausoleum built in brick and the lantern built in stone with a single urn at the centre of the canopied dome. It is very close to SM 65/4/45 with steps leading up to arches on the three exposed sides of the Mausoleum. Whereas this drawing and SM 15/2/6 show the whole Mausoleum built of stone with additional urns at the upper corners of the lantern. They both have three Roman altars at the base with alternative designs and variations of incised grooves and Greek key decoration on the pilasters. The domed altars of SM 15/2/6 display the funereal motif of an eagle killing a snake.

The drawings make the Mausoleum appear detached from the rest of the building, as a free-standing structure. In SM 15/2/7 this is achieved by reducing the almshouses to a single-storey block, as seen in earlier designs. In this drawing, foliage is used to disguise the almshouses. It is to give dominance to the Mausoleum, which became the centrepiece of the new building.

In this drawing and in SM 15/2/6, urns are placed within small niches in the wall of the central arch of the Mausoleum. Nevola writes that these niches are reminiscent of 'an ancient Roman Colombarium... illustrated frequently in Piranesi's Antichita Romane'. These were vaults for the reception of cinerary urns. All the drawings for the Mausoleum demonstrate a fascination with the funerary architecture of antiquity and contribute to the sepulchral quality of the building.

This drawing is the closest to the decorative scheme of the Mausoleum as executed. The three projecting porches were furnished with sarcophagi, the canopied dome of the lantern was decorated with five funerary urns and two cylindic Roman altars were positioned at the base of the Mausoleum. However, the arched openings of the porches were actually fitted with pedimented door cases. Also, as seen in SM 15/2/7, the lower storey of the Mausoleum was in fact built of London stock brick and only the lantern and decorative features were made in Portland stone.

Chantrell drew the ambitious view of drawing 71 on 11 June 1812 by which date the Mausoleum was already being constructed in brick, recorded in the progress view of SM volume 81/12, dated 29 May 1812. It was clearly an ideal design.

C. Davies, 'Masters of building: the first independent purpose-built picture gallery: Dulwich Picture Gallery', Architect's Journal, April 1984, p. 57
F. Nevola, Soane's favourite subject: the story of Dulwich Picture Gallery, 2000, pp. 81 & 188-189

Drawing

Digitisation of the Drawings Collection has been made possible through the generosity of the Leon Levy Foundation

If you have any further information about this object, please contact us: drawings@soane.org.uk