Design for a Classical Temple with a Tempietto and Semicircular Aedicule
ca. 1780
Classification
architecture
Department
Smithsonian Collection
Museum
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Credit
Museum purchase through gift of various donors and from Eleanor G. Hewitt Fund
Accession Number
1938-88-7158
About this artwork
Research in Progress
Art Historical Context
This exquisite architectural design, titled *Design for a Classical Temple a Tempietto andemicircular Aedicule hails from Italy around 1780. Created by an unknown artist, it captures the Neoclassical fervor of the late Enlightenment era, when architects and designers across Europe revived the grandeur of ancient Roman and Greek temples. The composition features a central tempietto—a small, ornate temple pavilion—flanked by a semicircularedicule, a recessed niche framed like a miniature shrine, evoking the harmonious proportions and classical orders beloved by architects of the time. In the co...