Measured Drawing of Cornice
19th century
Medium
Graphite
Classification
Drawings|Ornament & Architecture
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
The Elisha Whittelsey Collection, The Elisha Whittelsey Fund, 1960
Accession Number
60.632.174
Tags
Art Historical Context
This delicate graphite drawing captures a *Measured Drawing of Cornice* 19th-century Britain, the meticulous precision of an anonymous artist's hand. Cornices, those elegant projecting moldings crowning walls or entablatures in classical architecture, were essential decorative elements in buildings from ancient Greece and Rome to Victorian-era structures. Created anonymously during a time of rapid architectural revival and documentation, this work likely served as a study aid for architects, builders, or students, recording exact proportions for replication or restoration. Rendered in graphit...