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[21] Design for the auditorium, with a view towards the boxes, c1789, unexecuted
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Reference number
SM Adam volume 28/22
Purpose
[21] Design for the auditorium, with a view towards the boxes, c1789, unexecuted
Aspect
Axial section of the opera house with a view towards the auditorium. The pit is shown to have raked seating, and there are vaulted rooms below. There are three tiers of boxes, surmounted by two tiers containing gallery seating, and these are flanked by passageways. The ceiling is coved, with a small shallow dome, and this is all beneath a pitched roof. To the west there is a wing with a pitched roof, and a double-height ground-storey arcade. Above this there are single-storey rooms, and a three-storey room with a domed ceiling. To the east of the auditorium there is the tavern parlour, with a central chimneypiece, surmounted by a mirror frame and set within a niche. The chimneypiece is flanked by Corinthian pilasters, ornamented with scrolled hearts. All this is set behind a screen articulated by Corinthian columns which frames a semi-circular compartment above. All this is surmounted by a domed ceiling ornamented with cameos, set within fans, alternating with urns, and above this there are figurative panels. Above this there is a stepped dome, with stepped access linking to the auditorium galleries. Beyond the parlour there is a detail of the east front, with a rusticated arcade at ground floor, surmounted by a balustraded Corinthian portico. In the bottom right-hand corner there is a faint preliminary design (pencil)
Scale
bar scale of 1 inch to 5 feet
Inscribed
Section of the Opera House / View from the Stage towards the Boxes (in the hand of William Adam, underwritten in pencil)
Signed and dated
- c1789
c1789
Medium and dimensions
Pen, pencil, wash and coloured washes including Naples yellow, Indian yellow, pink and verdigris on laid paper (897 x 529)
Hand
Possibly
Office hand, possibly Robert Morison or Daniel Robertson, with title inscription in the hand of William Adam
Office hand, possibly Robert Morison or Daniel Robertson, with title inscription in the hand of William Adam
Watermark
PVL
Literature
Bolton, 1922, Volume II, Index p. 40
Sheppard, 1960, Volume XXIX, (i), p. 249
For a full list of literature references see scheme notes.
Sheppard, 1960, Volume XXIX, (i), p. 249
For a full list of literature references see scheme notes.
Level
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