Design thumbnail 1
Image of Gallery in South Kensington
Request to view at the Prints & Drawings Study Room, level C , Case 92, Shelf D, Box 60B

Design

1710-1717 (Made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

The drawing was part of the collection assembled by John Talman (1677-1726). Talman was the son of the celebrated architect William Talman. From about 1698 he was employed by his father to help assemble material for his extensive collection of architectural drawings, prints and books. A keen traveller, he went to the Continent twice in search of acquisitions. He visited the northern Netherlands, France, Germany and Italy, and he made numerous watercolour copies of altarpieces and churches in Rome.

Talman was back in England in 1715. He was a founder-member of the Tavern Society, London, which later became the Society of Antiquaries, and he was appointed its first director. Like his father, Talman believed in the elevating purpose of art and in the use of art collections for the public good. Although his will indicates that he had wanted his vast collection (which contained over 32,000 prints and drawings), to go to Trinity College, Cambridge, he later changed his mind and instructed that it should be sold for the benefit of his children. A portion of the collection was nonetheless given outright to the Society of Antiquaries, who acquired further items from the auction in London on 19 April 1727.


Object details

Category
Object type
Materials and techniques
ink and graphite on paper
Brief description
Drawing from an album by John Talman (1677-1726) and other artists. Antiquities and archjitectural details, volume II.
Physical description
Recto: sketch two walls inspired by the Fire in the Borgo room in the Vatican. Sketch of the room plan.

Verso: sketch of a gallery floor-plan with niches.
Dimensions
  • Approx. height: 283mm
  • Approx. length: 424mm
The sheet is irregular.
Style
Marks and inscriptions
  • 'Parnasso / br/e in facia sopra le fenetre' (Recto)
    Translation
    Parnaso opposite and above the windows
  • 'Fuodo di Borgo' (Recto)
    Translation
    Fire in the Borgo
  • 'S.Pietro in /Prigione, incontra / il papa a Massa '// (Recto)
    Translation
    Saint Peter in prison meet the Pope at Massa
  • 'Atila & in facia / la coronazione//' (Recto)
    Translation
    Attila and opposite the coronation
  • 'Asia/Africa/ Europa/ America/ Britania' (Verso, inside the drawing)
Historical context
The drawing was probably realised during John Talman documented trip to Rome from 1710 to 1711.
Summary
The drawing was part of the collection assembled by John Talman (1677-1726). Talman was the son of the celebrated architect William Talman. From about 1698 he was employed by his father to help assemble material for his extensive collection of architectural drawings, prints and books. A keen traveller, he went to the Continent twice in search of acquisitions. He visited the northern Netherlands, France, Germany and Italy, and he made numerous watercolour copies of altarpieces and churches in Rome.

Talman was back in England in 1715. He was a founder-member of the Tavern Society, London, which later became the Society of Antiquaries, and he was appointed its first director. Like his father, Talman believed in the elevating purpose of art and in the use of art collections for the public good. Although his will indicates that he had wanted his vast collection (which contained over 32,000 prints and drawings), to go to Trinity College, Cambridge, he later changed his mind and instructed that it should be sold for the benefit of his children. A portion of the collection was nonetheless given outright to the Society of Antiquaries, who acquired further items from the auction in London on 19 April 1727.
Bibliographic reference
See Universita' di Pisa project: "John Talman an early Eighteen Century collector of drawings".
Collection
Accession number
E.267-1940

About this object record

Explore the Collections contains over a million catalogue records, and over half a million images. It is a working database that includes information compiled over the life of the museum. Some of our records may contain offensive and discriminatory language, or reflect outdated ideas, practice and analysis. We are committed to addressing these issues, and to review and update our records accordingly.

You can write to us to suggest improvements to the record.

Suggest feedback

Record createdJune 30, 2009
Record URL
Download as: JSONIIIF Manifest