Lives of the Founders of the British Museum, Part 2 of 2: With Notices of Its Chief Augmentors and Other Benefactors, 1570-1870.Edwards, Edward
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Lives of the Founders of the British Museum, Part 2 of 2: With Notices of Its Chief Augmentors and Other Benefactors, 1570-1870.
Edwards, Edward
Book collectors -- Great Britain; British Museum
XXIV. _Fifth Greek Room_, seventeen feet by twenty-four.—On a
pedestal, facing the great Greek gallery, might stand the semi-archaic
Apollo, from Byzantium.
[Sidenote: SIXTH GREEK ROOM.]
XXV. _Sixth Greek or Phigaleian Room_, thirty-eight feet by
twenty-four.—Here would be the casts from the Temple of Theseus, and
the sculptures and casts from the Temple of Wingless Victory, both of
the middle of the fifth century, B.C.; also the Phigaleian collection,
which is a somewhat later production of the same school. The friezes,
arranged in two rows, would just fill the room.
[Sidenote: SEVENTH GREEK ROOM.]
XXVI. _Seventh Greek or Parthenon Room._—Here would commence the grand
suite of galleries for large sculptures, of which the general breadth
would be forty-two feet, and the height from thirty to thirty-five
feet. By its side would run a secondary suite, twenty feet wide, and
from fifteen to twenty feet high, for minor specimens, of which the
interest generally is rather archæological than artistic. These latter
objects are both more conveniently classified, and more favourably
seen, in small rooms; if placed in large galleries, beside grand
monumental works, they lose importance themselves, whilst they fritter
away the effect of what is really more valuable. The Seventh Greek
Room, which is two hundred and forty-one feet long, would contain only
the remains of the Parthenon; which might be arranged as indicated in
the Plan, so as at once to keep the pedimental groups and the frieze
from interfering with each other, and to distinguish, more accurately
than is now done, the original connection or disconnection of the
several slabs of the frieze. As we possess the entire frieze from the
east end of the temple, and casts of the entire frieze from the west,
these two are here arranged opposite each other, towards the middle of
the two side walls of the room. On either side are the slabs from the
north and south flanks of the temple, which are mostly disconnected.
In front of the casts from the west is a proposed full-sized model of
part of the entablature, supported by one original and five restored
capitals, with the upper parts of their shafts, and incorporating ten
of the metopes, so as to explain their original combination with the
architecture. The total height of this model might be about eighteen
feet. The metopes not included in it should be attached to the wall
opposite, over the frieze. The finest of the pedimental groups would
face the grand entrance from the Lycian Gallery, through which the
whole might be seen in one view, from any distance less than
forty-eight feet. If it were desired to retain the two small models of
the Parthenon in the room, they might stand near the south end.
[Sidenote: EIGHTH GREEK ROOM.]
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