Virginia State Capitol
Virginia State Capitol
Richmond, Virginia
Circa 1788
Thomas Jefferson
For the design of Virginia's new Capitol, Jefferson drew inspiration from the Maison Carree, the near-perfectly preserved Roman temple in Nimes, France.
Although Jefferson had visited the temple and had studied its design in Charles Clerisseau's1778 Antiquities of France, he was first introduced to images of the building in his copy of Palladio's Quattro Libri. With Clerisseau's assistance, Jefferson produced design drawings for the Capitol which he sent from France to Richmond along with a plaster model crafted by the celebrated French model maker, Jean-Pierre Fouquet. Jefferson's design substituted the Maison Carree's Corinthian order with an Ionic order.
Further modifications were made in construction. However, in siting the Capitol, Jefferson followed Palladio's dictum for temples which he said should be: "far away from unsavoury areas and on beautiful and ornate squares where many streets end,[...],And if there are hills in the city, one should choose the highest part."
Dimensions: 9"w x 7"h x 15"d
Weight: 18.7lbs
Scale:1:170
£720.00
Quantity:
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