Object Type
This plaster cast was one of many made primarily to educate students and craftsmen, and was one of the earliest acquisitions of the Museum. It is taken from the 15th-century church of Santa Maria dei Miracoli in Venice, which was highly regarded by Ruskin, and considered by many to be one of the most important examples of early Renaissance Venetian architecture.

Materials & Making
Plaster casts were the most common three-dimensional reproductions of architectural details and sculpture, and were produced in great numbers during the 19th century in particular. The wet plaster of Paris (ground alabaster mixed with water) was poured into a mould, and then left to set. Often moulds of a complicated original were made in more than one piece (known as piece-moulds), and the resulting casts joined together with more wet plaster after they had been released from the moulds.

Places
Works of art from Italy (especially Venice, Florence and Rome) were and still are among the most sought-after and most studied examples in Europe and America. Many casts were acquired by the Museum from Italy; at first these were shown alongside original objects (objects which were not reproductions). From the early 1870s onwards plaster casts were displayed in the large galleries known as the Architectural Courts (now known as the Cast Courts). Here they were seen during the 19th century in the company of architectural models, drawings, other items of sculpture and architectural fragments.