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Capriccio showing a gorge or pass cut through mountains, beside which is a sarcophagus; above is a large Gothic cathedral-like structure with pyramid-topped towers and battlements. This is just below a circular domed structure with columns and vaulting, with another building in the distance.
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Reference number
Adam vol.54/Series 5/18
Purpose
Capriccio showing a gorge or pass cut through mountains, beside which is a sarcophagus; above is a large Gothic cathedral-like structure with pyramid-topped towers and battlements. This is just below a circular domed structure with columns and vaulting, with another building in the distance.
Aspect
Perspective
Inscribed
Inscribed in ink on drawing 18
Signed and dated
- Undated, probably 1755 or 1757
Medium and dimensions
Pen210 x 184
Hand
Robert Adam
Watermark
crown, royal arms
Notes
The cathedral-like building in this composition is similar in style to those in the Gothic section of this volume, Adam vol.54/Series 4. The extreme mountainous landscape may be compared with other compositions in this section (see Adam vol.54/Series 5/14) and the circular building is a version of those on the verso of Adam vol.54/Series 5/10. The verso of Adam vol.55/162 shows a similar gorge with tombs, and may have strayed from this volume and section. The mountain landscape with a road at its foot appears with a similar pass in Adam vol.54/Series 5/6. These two drawings may have been immediately inspired by the journey Robert Adam had made to Ancona, Italy in September 1755, when he passed through the Passo del Furlo and Vespasian's Tunnel (see Clerk Collection, Scotland, Clerk 137 and 139). It might equally have been inspired by the picturesque landscape Adam passed through on his return journey from Italy in 1757.
Level
Drawing
Exhibition history
The Adam Brothers in Rome: Drawings from the Grand Tour, Sir John Soane's Museum, London, 25 September 2008 - 14 February 2009
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