1845.1 



THE CIVIL ENGINEER AND ARCHITECTS JOURNAL. 



35 



great invoiUion; we Jo not deny that it boars a general ami absolutely 

 inevitable resemblance to all other examples ancient and modern, be- 

 cause all alike agree in consisting of a colonnade crowned by a pedi- 

 ment, except in those very rare instances where the semicircniar plan 

 is adopted, as in the two porticos of St. Paul's transepts — by far the 

 most tasteful pieces of composition Wren ever produced, and the niost 

 noble in style. Resemblance of that sort is, however, a very difterent 

 thing from' either actual likeness or mere repetition. However diver- 

 sified in other respects, all arcliitectural features of the same kind 

 must have something in common, let the style be what it may. One 

 spire, for instance, will bear a generic similarity to other spires, other- 

 wise it would be something quite dilfrrent from a spire, and would 

 not answer to such name. No doubt some other arrangement of 

 columns tlian that of a portico might have been adopted, — one at any 

 rate more novel, perhaps quite equal — not to say superior in etTect : 

 that is very easily said, but those who start invidious objections of 

 the kind seem to have themselves no idea of what that something 

 should be, else they would probably give their ideas some intelligible 

 shape. Dismissing all such unsubstantial, vague, and indotinite 

 "might-be's," and " mighi-have-bein's," our purpose is to consider the 

 portico as it is, and without claiming for it originality, wo are never- 

 th<'les3 disposed to hail it as a welcome novelty of its kind. We 

 grant that it keeps in the usual track, but then it advances very much 

 further in it tlun usual, — far beyond the point at which other archi- 

 tects have stood still. What has been done now for the first time — 

 in this country at least, might certainly have been done over and over 

 again, before : the only cause for surprise is that it should not have 

 be(~n done, — that our architects should have gone on contentedly, 

 giving us little more than so many external semblances and mere 

 shadows of porticos, — things which proclaim their own inefficiency of 

 purpose, and renounce even the appearance of utility, being generally 

 so shallow as quite to contradict the idea of shelter, and being some- 

 times so tastelessly — not to say barbarously applied, as to look more 

 like unmeaning and cumbersome excrescences than organized and in- 

 tegral parts of the buildings they belong to: they have the unhappy 

 look of being intruders where there is little or no room for them, and 

 where they are accordingly squeezed up as much as possible in order 

 to be no more in the way than can be helped. 



In discussing the merits of the Royal Exchange portico, we shall 

 not lay much stress upon the superiority to others, which it derives 

 from greater amplitude of dimensions: it is sufficiently obvious that 

 caleris paribus, columns forty-one feet high will make a more com- 

 manding appearance than such as are only thirty or five and thirty 

 feet; — that an octastyle — or eight columns in fiont, beinealh a pedi- 

 ment, produces a richer and more majestic appearance than an hexa- 

 8tyle,or what hasonly six columns so disposed. Though circumstances 

 of that sort have their weight and influence, and add to the aggregate 

 impression, they would not of themselves excite our admiration, — 

 Tery possibly might even increase our dissatisfaction, did we find the 

 grandeur intended to be so produced maimed or nullified by inherent 

 ignobleness of style and vulgarity of ideas, in other respects. Had 

 the portico in question little other excellence than that of its external 

 elevation and imposing scale, a foot rule would serve nearly as well 

 as a pen to describe its beauties. Our admiration, therefore would 

 Lave been considerably less had this part of the structure been exe- 

 cuted according to the architect's first designs. By a most miraculous 

 piece ofgood fortune — one exceedingly rare indeed in architectural 

 history, instead of being required to prune and pare down his original 

 ideas, Mr. Tite was very liberally allowed to develope and expand 

 them, and so to amplify his portico as to render it, although still the 

 same in front as at first, of markedly dillerent and highly improved 

 character. Whether tlie alteration was suggested lo, or by Mr. Tite, 

 or whether it was at all in consequence of the |iretty general and 

 strong approbation that had been expressed in favour of Mr. Donald- 

 son's design, on account of the classical character of its portico, — we 

 know not, but, although in its present form the portico does greatly 

 resemble the one proposed by the latter gentleman, more especially 

 in those peculiarities which so eminently (Tistinguish it from what we 

 have hitherto been accustomed to, the likeness does not afford any 

 charge of plagiarism, since the other idea was only founded upon the 

 example of the Roman Fantheou. It would be a difficult matter to 

 establish and protect by patent any property of ideas in architectural 

 design, — or could it be accomplished, it would be well that the pro- 

 fession should be restrained by severe pains and penalties from pirat- 

 ing Sir Robert Smirke's ideas of classical taste and Grecian style. 



However derived, it is quite sufficient for us that we have at last 

 got Buch an example as the portico of the new Exchange, — one whose 

 inttrior, a part generally treated as if of no account, and at the best 

 little more than a blank as to decoration, is strikingly replete with 

 picturescjue vffect, with varied combinutious uiid play of perspective, 



and is further set off' by brilli int contrast of light and shade. We hero 

 perceive something of the poetry of architecture, — certainly of its 

 pictorial quality, since this interior would be an admirable subject for 

 the pencil, were it not also one that quite baffles its powers of re- 

 jiresentation." For very much of this character the portico is in- 

 debted to the inner columns, which although only two in number tell 

 for a very great deal by their value in the design. By their position, 

 these columns distinctly mark out the plan into three divisions, the 

 centre one of which is wider tli:ui the others, and of greater extent as 

 to lenglh, the portico being there recessed within the general line of 

 its b.ickground, and lliruugh the open arched portal the inner quad- 

 rangle, or Merch lilts' Area, shows itself in the distance, which vista 

 produces a very unusual species and degree of scenic effect. The 

 inner columns, and all the other circumslancrs of jilan and arrange- 

 ment which we have mentioned, give to this jiortico the charm of 

 apparent intricacy combined with perfect regularity, and of architec- 

 tural uniformity without formality. Nor is this all, for we should 

 Ifave one remarkable feature of its design and embellishment unno- 

 ticed were we not to point out for admiration the richly coffered 

 vaulting of the ceiling. This last is qui e as much a noveltv in its 

 way as anything else in the design, for it exhibits a degree of finish 

 and sumptuousiiess of character that in direct, almost might we say 

 startling, contrast to the sort of apology for or pretence to coffering — 

 any thing but Corinthian in taste — in the ceiling of the portico of the 

 National Gallery, which has only very shallow coffers, without even 

 so much as a moulding of any kind to them, and the look of beggary 

 and blankness thus occasioned is further increased by the ceiling being 

 so very low, that it is almost on a level with the soffits of the archi- 

 traves, or the tops of the capitals of the columns. Finish was cer- 

 tainly not Wilkins' forte, and microscopic as was his taste in some 

 respects it seems to have concerned itself chiefly about cohiuins and 

 intercolumniation, to the neglect of nearly all besides in design. 



To return to the Exchange ; it may be thought strange that where 

 there is so much richness and decoration in other respects, the architect 

 should have bestowed rather less of the latter than is now usual upon 

 his columns, their shafts being left unfluted. Fluting, however, is not 

 indispensable, not essential to completeness, nor does the omission of 

 it occasion the appearance of positive nakedness and want of finish. 

 Although left quite plain, the shafts of columns will always tell in 

 a building, because of themselves they amount to decoration; and in 

 a climate like ours and in a London atmosphere they show themselves, 

 perhaps, with greater relief and breadth of effect when they are not, 

 than they do when they are fluted. At any rate, whenever such 

 further enrichment is applied to the'coluinns, a corresponding or even 

 increased degree of it sliould be applied to entablatures also. If the 

 one aie to be fluted, the mouldings of the others ought to be carved, 

 and the soffits of their architraves embellished. It would further fol- 

 low, from analogy and from regard to due proportion and distri- 

 bution of decoration, that if an extra degree of ornamental finish be 

 bestowed on the shafts of the former, it should be extended also to 

 the corresponding division of the entablature, whence we should lay 

 it down as a general principle that fluted columns require a sculptured 

 frieze, — at any rate such ornate finish in the collective entablature as 

 will render the entire order of a piece, by proportioning the character 

 of one of its main divisions to that of the other. Such, at least, is 

 our doctrine — fully supported, as we think, by the fundamental and 

 almost instinctive princijiles of taste ; and let whatever may be 

 thought of it, it cannot be called the mere repetition and dressing-tip 

 again of what is inculcateil as matter of course by the initiatory pre- 

 cepts of the art. No such broad theoretical maxims are laid down in 

 architectural treatises, much less in the application of them shown iu 

 architectural practice. Nevertheless, the lattersupports and confirms 

 them by making manifest, sometimes even painfully so, the ill conse- 

 quences of not attending to what is so obvious in itself, that almost 

 the least disciplined notions of architectural consistency might incul- 

 cate it spontaneously, without precepts or authority of any kind. Of 

 late years it has become almost the universal and ordinary practice to 

 display almost the very two extremes of character in what are in- 

 tended to constitute conjointly one consistent or&rand uniform whole, 

 for while all the decoration tliey are susceptible of is bestowed upon 

 columns, the very parts which least of all need extra embellishment, 

 all that is above them is treated as if meant to be be in contradiction 

 to them, plain architrave mouldings, naked friezes, stunted and other- 

 wise mean looking cornices, and blank pediments being exhibited as 



1 Even the most correct perspcctivo of I lie portico externally can b'lt very InnJequatcly 

 express, or rather only hint at the design of the interior, therefore hardly need we say that 

 the general views published of the building— apparently one and ail made from the very 

 same sketch, convey no idea whatever of the characteristic peculiarities of this example. 

 In a geometrical elevation, again they disappear; the inner columns are completely con- 

 cealed by those in front, tlie vaulting ond lis curiclimeuts cannot be Been, uod th« whole 

 is shown iu a state uf rl^id lilelessness. 



