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THE CIVIL ENGINEER AND ARCHITECTS JOURNAL. 



[November, 



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So, too, in the case of the facade of the Museum, it proves on exa- 

 mination to be very far from fulfilling the promise made to the 

 eye at first sight: the circumstance of there being windows at all 

 must prove, if not fatal, a very serious drawback, where the most 

 starched classieality is affected as far as the mere order is concerned. 

 .Such apertures must inevitably destroy one essential characteristic of 

 a Grecian colonnade— breadth and repose. Hardly any skill can re- 

 concile together the style represented by the columns, and that by the 

 windowed wall behind them: at any rate purity of style is forfeited, 

 and a mixed one substituted for the original, therefore it becomes in- 

 dispensable to render that mixed a compound one, wherein the respec- 

 tive conflicting elements shall be brought into harmony — the whole into 

 keeping. Having passed the Rubicon it is of no use to halt, for then to 

 stand still is to have done nothing; so when an architect has not scrupled 

 to violate the simplicity of Grecian architecture, by introducing win- 

 dows, he must either convert them into features of positive beauty in 

 themselves, or leave them to be reprobated as solecisms and blemishes, 

 No excuse will it be for him to say that he has no sufficient authori- 

 ties to guide him for windows of rich and ornate character in the 

 Grecian style ; since neither has he any authority for introducing win- 

 dows at all, and if he can break through authority as to the one, he 

 surely need not scruple to do so as to the other — especially when by so 

 doing he would have an opportunity of showing his taste and inven- 

 tion, and convincing us that his study of antique design had furnished 

 him with resources not at every one's conn,; 



We admit that we are here setting up a high standard of taste, 

 and exact much more than is generally to be looked for; yet not at all 

 more than the occasion both demands and admits of. Surely it is not 

 at all unreasonable to expect that a Museum — a National Museum — 

 one perhaps the first in the world in regard to the treasures it con- 

 tains — should be also a splendid and perfect work of art, as a piece 

 of architecture. Are we to be content with merely having something 

 tolerable — decent — respectable — passably good, and so forth ? That 

 humble degree of merit could be obtained much more cheaply — 

 without such an array of columns, without so much pretension, the 

 effect might perhaps be all the more tolerable in consequence. We 

 have had quite enow samples of tolerable Grecian architecture be- 

 fore ; and now, we fear are about to have one again, where it, to be no 

 more than tolerable, will be actually insufferable and disgraceful. 



That the plan will be exactly followed in regard to there being 

 windows within the colonnades and portico, is now but too evident, 

 for the main walls of the building forming the west pavilion or wing 

 of the facade, are now raised — that is, in rough brickwork, to be 

 afterwardsyhctfi with stone, just as an old building might be ref routed 

 with new material ; and from them we perceive that there will be a 

 single range of windows, on about the same level as in the quadrangle 

 or inner court; and they will, no doubt, be nearly of the same cha- 

 racter, with no more dressing than will just be sufficient to prevent 

 our saying that they have absolutely none. In this respect, therefore, 



the colonnades of the Museum will be almost exactly such composi- 

 tions us is that which forms the centre of the Custom House, with all 

 the less excuse, because if Sir Robert could not foresee the effect 

 before, that experiment ought to have convinced him that it would 

 not do to be repeated in the Museum, more especially as the public 

 will naturally look for greater refinement of taste and display of ima- 

 gination than in a Custom House or a Post Office — even for some evi- 

 dence of poetic inspiration ; but we suspect that the architect of the 

 Museum is better acquainted with per-centage than with the muses. 



Were the number of the windows in the facade reduced to half, 

 — the plan should have been so contrived that there should have been 

 no necessity for any — corresponding with the alternate intercolumns ; 

 there would have been some, degree of breadth and repose, when. is 

 now they will cut up the background, and what is more, they will not 

 correspond with the intervals between the columns, at least not on the 

 sides or returns facing east and west, for there, instead of falling ex- 

 actly in the axes of t lie intercolumns, there will be — according to the 

 official plan, at least — no regularity in that respect, for in sonic in- 

 stances the windows will be partially, and in two others, exactly be- 

 hind columns! besides which, there will be some windows thrust 

 quite into the inner angles of the plan. How such a very strange 

 disregard to the most ordinary rules of symmetry should have arisen, 

 it is casv enough to perceive, it being evident enough that being 

 unable to hit upon any mode of keeping up symmetry of arrange- 

 ment in his windows, both internally and externally, the architect has 

 sacrificed exterior to interior appearance, thereby incurring, we think, 

 the far greater evil of the two, since defects of that kind, if to be 



tolerated at all, might more easily be excused in such rooms as co 



into this part of the plan, since they will not be seen by the public, 

 the former being for manuscripts, the others for the Trustees, than in 

 the "grand and classic" facade, where such blemishes are likely 

 to be noted by every one as most strange and sad architectural 

 bungling. Surely Sir Robert Smirke could never have given a second 

 thought to his own plan, or even he must have detected such very 

 palpable "school-boy" mistakes. Or are we to suppose that detect- 

 ing, he could not remove them? 



Come we now to the central portico : here an advanced line of 

 columns added to the general colonnade forms an octastyle which 

 w ill, doubtless be crowned by a pediment ; thus, besides some variety 

 being imparted to the elevation, there will be some richness and a 

 more than ordinary degree of perspective intricacy will attend the 

 inner range of columns seen behind those in front, of which disposi- 

 tion of them we have as yet no example in any of our London por- 

 ticos. Still it may be questioned if sucb arrangement of the columns 

 is the very best suited for the occasion, because there is hardly suffi- 

 cient space for so many columns in that direction within the portico, 

 the latter being rendered thereby nearly as shallow as far as actual 

 serviceableness is concerned, as the other colonnades. There will be 

 no amplitude of space any where, the entire plan of the portico being 



