A New Collection of Chimney Pieces Ornamented in the Style of the Etruscan, Greek, and Roman Architecture thumbnail 1
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A New Collection of Chimney Pieces Ornamented in the Style of the Etruscan, Greek, and Roman Architecture

Print
1781 (published), 1781 (published)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

This design is from a collection of 36 designs for chimneypieces published in 1778, titled A New Collection of Chimney Pieces. The designer, George Richardson, was a distinguished architect, mainly working in the classical style. He toured France and Italy in his youth, and was influenced by the classical designs he saw on his travels. Richardson was particularly known for his ceilings and chimneypieces, and numbers of his chimneypiece designs can still be found in town and country houses, mostly executed in marble.

The capital in this print is not from the five regular orders of classical architecture, but it is derived from those on the ‘Tower of the Winds’ in Athens, from about 40 BC The tower, an octagonal marble edifice, is overlooked by the Acropolis, and has figures of the eight winds carved on each side.


Object details

Categories
Object type
TitleA New Collection of Chimney Pieces Ornamented in the Style of the Etruscan, Greek, and Roman Architecture (suite title)
Materials and techniques
Aquatint on paper
Brief description
George Richardson (after), a plate from 'A New Collection of Chimney Pieces Ornamented in the Style of the Etruscan, Greek, and Roman Architecture', London, 1781.
Physical description
Aquatint of a chimneypiece, from A New Collection of Chimney Pieces. The capital, which is not from one of the five regular orders, is derived from those on the 'Tower of the Winds' in Athens, of about 40 B.C.
Dimensions
  • Cut to height: 27.4cm
  • Cut to width: 34cm
Gallery label
The full text of the label is as follows: [Title missing] "English 1778 Aquatint by George Richardson (died about 1813) from A New Collection of Chimney Pieces Richardson published 36 designs for chimney-pieces "suitable to the most elegant range of apartments". The classical orders became standard for all features of interior design in polite architecture. The capital, which is not from one of the five regular orders, is derived from those on the 'Tower of the Winds' in Athens, of about 40 B.C. E.1212-1885"
Object history
Richardson published 36 designs for chimneypieces "suitable to the most elegant range of apartments". The classical orders became standard for all features of interior design in polite architecture. The capital, which is not from one of the five regular orders, is derived from those on the 'Tower of the Winds' in Athens, of about 40 B.C. (Label text)

With respect to record 03/2773, the Royal Academy of Art writes:

'Like Richardson's <I>A Book of Ceilings</I> (1776) this work was issued serially in six part numbers of six plates each, and these still carry their original publication dates - May 1778, June 1780, September 1780, December 1780, March 1781, and June 1781. The last of these was probably priced as a 'double number' since it would have included the title-page, dedication and 16-page letterpress description. On 25 June 1778 the Royal Academy paid 12s. for 'A Number of Richardson's Chimneys' and on 29 June 1781 a further £3 12s. for the rest of the book, making the total price £4 4s. This book is one of the earliest in Britain to include plates made by means of the aquatint technique, which Richardson learnt from Paul Sandby. Richardson went on to use this method of representing tone in all his subsequent architectural publications - though never, as most others employing the technique after him did, to represent architectural designs set within picturesque scenery. Some copies of this book were sold with the plates hand-coloured in imitation of marble.'
Production
Published in the book A New Collection of Chimney Pieces ornamented in the style of the Etruscan, Greek and Roman Architecture; containing thirty-six designs, suitable to the most elegant range of apartments; with descriptions of the plates in English and French , printed for the author
Subjects depicted
Summary
This design is from a collection of 36 designs for chimneypieces published in 1778, titled A New Collection of Chimney Pieces. The designer, George Richardson, was a distinguished architect, mainly working in the classical style. He toured France and Italy in his youth, and was influenced by the classical designs he saw on his travels. Richardson was particularly known for his ceilings and chimneypieces, and numbers of his chimneypiece designs can still be found in town and country houses, mostly executed in marble.

The capital in this print is not from the five regular orders of classical architecture, but it is derived from those on the ‘Tower of the Winds’ in Athens, from about 40 BC The tower, an octagonal marble edifice, is overlooked by the Acropolis, and has figures of the eight winds carved on each side.
Bibliographic references
  • A New Collection of Chimney-pieces (London, 1781) (from Marcus Whiffen, 'Richardson, George', Grove Art Online. Oxford University Press, 23/05/2005.
  • (Berlin II) Berlin Staatliche Museen, Katalog der Ornamentstich-Sammlung der Staatlichen Kunstbibliothek Berlin, Berlin and Leipzig, 1936-39, 3830.
Collection
Accession number
E.1212-1885

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Record createdMay 23, 2005
Record URL
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