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Society of Dilettanti (London, England). Society of Dilettanti drawings, prints, and letters, 1806-1880.

Title: Society of Dilettanti drawings, prints, and letters, 1806-1880.

A collection of drawings and prints reflecting the Society of Dilettanti's work in recording and publishing ancient sculpture and architecture, primarily of Greece. The main portion comprises drawings and printed proofs for three publications: Specimens of antient sculpture, Aegyptian, Etruscan, Greek, and Roman; Antiquities of Ionia; and The unedited antiquities of Attica. Also included are letters by the archaeologist, topographer, and member of the Society, William Gell, written mainly during his travels to Greece and Asia Minor. Series I comprises 253 drawings and prints executed in preparation for Specimens of antient sculpture, including 20 drawings for plates that are not part of the final publication. The objects came from the private collections of several members of the Society, mainly Richard Payne Knight and Charles Townley. The first volume was published in 1809, the second volume did not appear until 1835 when most of the sculpture previously in private collections was placed in the British Museum. The prints are proofs for plates in the second volume, with several proofs for a plate frequently present. The presence of multiple proofs with various annotations provides a glimpse into the process of selecting and captioning of plates. Most of the prints are stipple engravings; most of the drawings are wash drawings. The surviving drawings and proofs for the second volume show how much of the work was completed before Knight's death in 1824. Series II contains 14 drawings and two printed proofs for Antiquities of Ionia, including ten wash and ink drawings and two etchings for plates in part III, and two engravings for plates in part IV. The plates depict views of the ancient cities Knidos [Cnidus] and Patara, and sculpture fragments found at Priene. Series III consists of ten architectural drawings, including nine drawings for The unedited antiquities of Attica. Six of the drawings are for plates in chapter II on Eleusis: Propylaea, two are for plates in chapter III Eleusis: inner vestibules, and one is for a plate in chapter VI Rhamnus: Temple of Nemesis. Also present is an additional drawing of the floor-plan of the Temple of Jupiter Olympius at Agrigentum for an unknown publication. Series IV includes six letters by the English archaeologist, traveler and topographer Sir William Gell (1777-1836) addressed to Sir Henry Englefield, Secretary of the Society, written during the 1812-1813 expedition to Greece and Asia Minor. Gell writes about archaeological work at Eleusis and Corinth, mentions drawings he made at these sites, and comments on the newly discovered Aeginetan sculptures. The letters are illustrated with small sketches. An additional letter by Gell was written in 1834 from Naples to Lady Blessington in London about their common literary interests. Also present are five bank drafts by Gell, dated 1806-1809.

ArchivalResource: 28.64 linear ft. (14 boxes)

http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/123429849 View