Chapter VII: Reconstructors and Projectors (1)

‘What do we, as a nation, care about books? How much do you think we
spend altogether on our Libraries, public or private, as compared with
what we spend on our horses? If a man spends lavishly on his Library,
you call him mad,—a Bibliomaniac. But you never call any one a
Horse-maniac, though men ruin themselves every day by their losses,
and you do not hear of people ruining themselves by their books. Or,
to go lower still, how much do you think the contents of the
bookshelves of the United Kingdom, public and private, would fetch, as
compared with the contents of its wine-cellars.’—

RUSKIN, _Sesame and Lilies_, pp. 75–77.

_The various Projects and Plans proposed, at different times, for the
Severance, the Partial Dispersion, and the Rearrangement, of the
several integral Collections which at present form_ ‘The British
Museum.’

[Sidenote: GROSLEY’S IDEA OF SEVERING THE MUSEUM COLLECTIONS, 1765.]

The first reconstructor, in imagination, of the British Museum on the plan of severing the literature from the scientific collections, was a speculative and clever Frenchman, Peter John GROSLEY, who visited it within less than six years of its being first opened to public inspection. GROSLEY expressed great admiration for much that he saw, and he also criticised some of the arrangements that seemed to him defective, with freedom but with courtesy. Some of my readers will probably think that he hit a real blot, at that time, when he said: ‘The Printed Books are the weakest part of this immense collection. The building cannot contain such a Library as England can form and ought to form for the ornament of its capital. It has a building quite ready in the “Banquetting-House” [at Whitehall], and that building could be enlarged from time to time as occasion might require.’

Other writers, at various periods, have advocated the severance of collections which seemed to them too multifarious to admit of full, natural, and equable development, in common. There is perhaps no apparent reason, on the surface, why a great Nation should not be able to enlarge the most varied public collections as effectively, and as impartially, within one building, as within half a dozen buildings. Nor does there seem to be any necessary connection between the wise and liberal government of public collections, and their severance or division into many buildings, rather than their combination within a single structure. Nevertheless it is certain that many thinkers have, by some process or other, reached the conclusion that severance would favour improvement.

[Sidenote: MR. WATTS’ PROPOSITION FOR THE SEVERANCE OF THE MUSEUM
COLLECTIONS, 1837.]

Seventy years after GROSLEY wrote, Thomas WATTS revived the proposition of dividing the contents of the British Museum, but he revived it in a new form. His idea was to remove the Antiquities and to retain at Montagu House both the Libraries and the Natural History Collections. ‘The pictures have been removed,’ wrote Mr. WATTS in 1837, ‘why should not the statues follow? The collections at the Museum would then remain of an entirely homogeneous character. It would be exclusively devoted to conveying literary information; while the collection at the National Gallery would have for its object to refine and cultivate the taste.’

It was not by any oversight that Mr. WATTS spoke of the ‘homogeneity’ of Manuscripts, Printed Books, and Natural-History Collections. He (at the time) meant what he said. [Sidenote: Watts, in _Mechanics’ Magazine_, vol. xxvi, pp. 295, seqq.] But I doubt if the naturalists would feel flattered by the reason which he gives in illustration of his opinion. ‘The various curiosities accumulated at the Museum might be considered,’ he continues, ‘as a vast assemblage of _book-plates_, serving to illustrate and elucidate the literature of the Library.’

Be that as it may, the idea of removing either the Antiquities or the Printed Books has long ceased to be mooted. All who now advocate severance advise, I think, that the Natural History Collections should be removed, and none other than those. But hitherto the idea of severance, in any shape, has been uniformly repudiated both by Royal Commissions of Inquiry, and by Parliamentary Committees. The question, however, is sure to be revived, and that speedily. Ere long it must needs receive a final parliamentary solution—aye or no.

In this chapter I shall endeavour to state,—and as I hope with impartiality,—the main reasons which have been severally adduced, both by those who advocate a severance, and by those who recommend the continuance of the existing union of all the varied and vast Collections now at Bloomsbury. There can be no better introduction of the subject than that which will be afforded by putting before the reader, on the one hand, a detailed and well-considered plan which contemplated the maintenance of the Museum as it is; and, on the other, the elaborate report in favour of transferring the scientific collections to a new site,—in order to gain ample space at Bloomsbury for a great Museum of Literature and Archæology, such as should be in every point of view worthy of the British Empire,—which was approved of by a Treasury Minute more than eight years ago.

Of the several schemes and projects of extension which rest on the twofold basis of (1) the retention at Bloomsbury of nearly all the existing collections, with ample space for their prospective increase, and (2) such an effective internal re-arrangement of the collections themselves as would greatly increase the public facilities of access and study, none better deserves the attention of the reader than that which was submitted in the first instance to the Trustees of the British Museum, and subsequently to Parliament (in 1860) by Mr. Edmund OLDFIELD, then a Senior Assistant in the Department of Antiquities, entrusted (in succession to Mr. C. T. NEWTON, on his proceeding to Greece) with the charge of the Greek and Roman Galleries. By this plan it is proposed to erect on the west side of the Museum a new range of Galleries for Greek and Roman Antiquities. The façade in Charlotte Street—prolonged to the house No. 4 in Bedford Square—would extend to about 440 feet in length, with an usual depth of 140, increased at the southern extremity to 190 feet. This new range would provide for the whole of the present Greek, Roman, Phœnician, and Etruscan Antiquities, and for considerable augmentations. To Assyrian Antiquities would be assigned the present Elgin Gallery, the ‘Mausoleum Room,’ and the ‘Hellenic Room,’ together with two other rooms—gained in part by new adaptations of space comprised within the existing buildings. [Sidenote: MR. OLDFIELD’S PROJECT OF RECONSTRUCTION OF THE GALLERIES OF ANTIQUITIES (1858–1860).] The rooms now devoted to the Antiquities of Kouyunjik and Nimroud would then be applied to the reception of Egyptian Antiquities, together with a room to be constructed on the site of the present principal staircase. The Lycian Gallery would retain its site, with an enlargement westward. I quote Mr. OLDFIELD’S own descriptive account of his project, in full, from the Appendix to the _Minutes of Evidence_ of 1860.

[Sidenote: ENTRANCE HALL.]

I. _Entrance Hall._—On the north side is a staircase, such as
suggested by Mr. PANIZZI, forming the access to the galleries of
Natural History.

[Sidenote: PRIVATE ROOM FOR SCULPTURES.]

II. Room for the first reception, unpacking, and examination of
sculptures, the consideration of such as are offered for purchase, the
cleaning and repairing of marbles and mosaics, and storing of
pedestals, mason’s apparatus, and machinery, &c.

[Sidenote: FIRST EGYPTIAN ROOM.]

III. _First Egyptian Room._—The present two staircases, and the wall
at the east end of the Assyrian Transept being removed, a handsome
entrance would be obtained to the galleries of Antiquities. The room
would be about seventy-six feet by thirty-five, and though not very
well lighted, might suffice for the monuments of the first twelve
dynasties of Egypt, at present in the northern vestibule and lobby,
which have no very artistic character.

[Sidenote: SECOND EGYPTIAN ROOM.]

IV. _Second Egyptian Room._—The monuments of the Eighteenth Dynasty
would here commence. Terminating the vista from the north would be the
head of Thothmes III, more advantageously seen than in its present
position, where it stands in front of a doorway, and exposed to a
cross light.

[Sidenote: THIRD EGYPTIAN ROOM.]

V. _Third Egyptian Room._—For smaller remains of the same period. The
alcoves should be removed, and a door opened on the north side.

[Sidenote: FOURTH EGYPTIAN ROOM.]

VI. _Fourth Egyptian Room._—To remedy the darkness of this room, an
opening should be made in the ceiling, inclosed by a balustrade in the
room above (_v._ Plan of Upper Floor), and covered with glass; whilst
the roof of this upper room should be lightened, at least in the
central compartment, by substituting glass for its present heavy
ceiling. The small space thus sacrificed in the floor of the upper
room would be a less serious loss than the virtual uselessness of so
large an apartment below. With the proposed improvement in the
lighting, the Fourth Egyptian Room would be well adapted for the
colossal monuments of Amenophis III; without it, the room could hardly
serve for any purpose but a passage.

[Sidenote: FIFTH EGYPTIAN ROOM.]

VII. _Fifth Egyptian Room._—In the middle would be arranged, in two
rows, the remaining sculptures of the Eighteenth and part of those of
the Nineteenth Dynasty. In the recesses between the pilasters might be
fixed wall-cases, which would rather improve than impair the
architectural effect of the room, and for which the light is well
adapted, the rays from the opposite windows striking sufficiently low
to obviate the shadow occasioned by shelves in rooms lighted from
above. Such cases would contain small objects from the Egyptian
collection now on the Upper Floor.

[Sidenote: SIXTH EGYPTIAN ROOM.]

VIII. _Sixth Egyptian Room._—This room, originally ill lighted, has
been further darkened by the new Reading-Room, erected within a few
yards of its windows. If, however, an opening were made in the ceiling
(as proposed for Room VI), and if the roof of the room above were
somewhat modified, light might be thrown both on the magnificent bust
of Rameses II and on the east wall of the room. The middle window in
that wall, which furnishes no available light, might then be blocked
up; and before it might stand the cast from the head of the colossus
at Abousimbul, now placed over a door in the northern vestibule, but
which ought, in any re-arrangement, to be united with the other
monuments of Rameses II, and which would finely terminate the vista,
looking from the west.

[Sidenote: SEVENTH EGYPTIAN ROOM.]

IX. _Seventh Egyptian Room._—Here would be the sculptures, both of the
native dynasties posterior to the Nineteenth, and of the Ptolemaic and
Roman periods, which at present occupy the southern Egyptian Gallery.
In the recesses between the pilasters might be wall-cases.

[Sidenote: EIGHTH EGYPTIAN ROOM.]

X. _Eighth Egyptian Room._—This, and the two succeeding rooms, would
be appropriated to smaller Egyptian remains. The light on the western
side of these rooms falls so nearly vertically, from the overshadowing
mass of building adjoining, that wall-cases would have their contents
completely thrown into shade by the shelves, or by the tops of the
cases. Objects in the middle of the room, on the other hand, would be
in uninterrupted light. It is, therefore, proposed to place against
the walls inscribed tablets, which are best seen under an acutely
striking light; painted plaster friezes, which, from their strong
colours and coarse execution, do not require much light; and framed
papyri, which are liable to injury from exposure to powerful light.
Along the centre of the room would be arranged mummies, and mummy
cases, in glass frames, with table-cases for scarabæi, and other small
objects, which are most conveniently exhibited on flat or sloping
surfaces.

[Sidenote: NINTH EGYPTIAN ROOM.]

XI. _Ninth Egyptian Room._—The thoroughfare is here too great for
objects to be conveniently arranged in the centre; but the walls might
be occupied as in the preceding room.

[Sidenote: TENTH EGYPTIAN ROOM.]

XII. _Tenth Egyptian Room._—To be arranged similarly to the Eighth.

[Sidenote: SUMMARY OF ACCOMMODATION FOR EGYPTIAN ANTIQUITIES.]

SUMMARY of the Accommodation provided in the plan for EGYPTIAN
ANTIQUITIES:—

1. The large sculptures would gain Rooms III, IV, and VI, in lieu of
the northern vestibule.

2. The inscribed tablets, which at present occupy the recesses of
Rooms VII, VIII, IX, containing four hundred and twenty-two linear
feet of wall-space, and the walls of the northern vestibule,
containing about eighty feet, or altogether about five hundred and two
feet, would share with the framed papyri and painted plaster friezes
the walls of Rooms III, IV, V, VI, VIII, X, XI, XII, containing
altogether about nine hundred and sixty feet.

3. The mummies, overcrowded in a room containing two thousand and
fourteen square feet of available open space, and the coffins in the
present ‘Egyptian Ante-room,’ would be arranged, with several table
cases, in Rooms X and XII, containing altogether about four thousand
and eighty square feet.

4. The small objects, now in wall-cases extending to two hundred and
thirty-seven feet of linear measurement, and in three table-cases,
would be arranged in wall-cases, extending to three hundred and
eighty-three feet, and in several table-cases, of which the exact
extent cannot be fixed.

The additional space here provided for large Egyptian sculptures is
not so much needed for the present as is the case in some other
series; but the greater comparative difficulty of moving objects so
bulky makes it advisable to secure, as far as possible, the permanence
of any re-arrangement, by leaving room for the probable incorporations
of future years. The accommodation provided for smaller objects is
little more than they already require for advantageous display.

[Sidenote: FIRST ASSYRIAN ROOM.]

XIII. _First Assyrian or Nimroud Room._—This room, on the site of the
basement room, would be formed by demolishing the small room, with the
adjoining students’ room and staircase; by extending over their site
the glass roof of room; by throwing a floor, on a continuous level
with those of the adjoining galleries, and supported upon iron
pillars, over so much of room as is coloured brown in the plan; and by
carrying up thin partitions from this floor to the glass roof, so as
to inclose a new apartment. This apartment would, at the south end,
extend across the whole breadth of room, but elsewhere it would be
limited to a central space, nineteen feet wide, corresponding to the
present central compartment of room, so as to leave open an area of
ten feet wide on each side. The open areas would serve to light both
the whole room below, of which the central portion would be partially
obscured by the new structure, and also the rooms in the adjoining
basements, which, though no longer used for exhibition, might be
serviceable for other subordinate purposes. In one of the open areas
might be a private staircase to the basement. Room XIII would be
considerably loftier than the present ‘Nimroud Side Gallery,’ and it
would contain two thousand nine hundred and seventy superficial feet,
and three hundred and fourteen linear feet of wall-space, instead of
two thousand one hundred and seventy-six superficial feet, and two
hundred and seventy-eight feet of wall-space. In this new room would
be placed the earliest of the Assyrian monuments, those of
Sardanapalus I; at the south end those found in the two small temples
at Nimroud, including the colossal lion, the arched monolith and
altar, and the mythological figures from a doorway; in the northern
portion, the sculptures from the North-west Palace at Nimroud,
including the small winged lion and bull, now in room.

[Sidenote: SECOND ASSYRIAN ROOM.]

XIV. _Second Assyrian Room._—This would contain a continuation of the
series from Nimroud. On the west side the colossal winged lions now in
the western compartment of the Assyrian Transept, which would complete
the monuments of Sardanapalus I; in other parts of the room, the few
but important sculptures of Divanubara, Shammaz-Phal, and Pul, now
somewhat scattered for want of the requisite accommodation in room,
but for which there would here be ample space, and an advantageous
light.

[Sidenote: THIRD ASSYRIAN ROOM.]

XV. A proposed new room, to be entitled the _Third Assyrian or
Khorsabad Room_, the Assistant-Keeper’s study being removed, and
accommodation being provided for him elsewhere. The room might be
forty-seven feet by forty, about the same height as XIV, and similarly
lighted by a central skylight; beneath it would be a basement room for
the uses of the establishment. Room XV would contain, first, the
bas-reliefs of Tiglathpileser II from the South-west edifice of
Nimroud; and secondly, the Khorsabad collection, or monuments of
Sargina, which is next in chronological order to the Nimroud
collection. The two colossal bulls of Sargina are marked in the plan
as facing each other, an arrangement common at Khorsabad. Deducting
space for the bulls, upwards of eighty linear feet of wall-surface
would remain in the room, which is considerably more than the
bas-reliefs of Tiglathpileser and Sargina require. The new building
would necessarily obscure some of the windows of the adjoining
basement, but this is of minor importance; and the evil might be
diminished on the western and southern side, by leaving open spaces in
the floor behind each of the colossal bulls. Between the bulls would
be a passage to

[Sidenote: FOURTH ASSYRIAN ROOM.]

XVI. _Fourth Assyrian or Sennacherib Room._—Here would be the first
part of the collection discovered at Koyunjik, the monuments of
Sennacherib, now inconveniently divided, and arranged partly in the
‘Koyunjik Gallery,’ and partly in the ‘Assyrian Basement Room.’ These
monuments consist, almost entirely, of bas-reliefs, extending as at
present arranged, to about three hundred and fifty-one feet (two
hundred and eight on the ground floor, and one hundred and forty-three
in the basement). In a lofty and wide room, however, such as XVI, an
upper row of bas-reliefs might be introduced over many of the smaller
slabs, now arranged in a single row only; by this means the sculptures
of Sennacherib might all be included on the east, west, and north
sides of the room, containing three hundred and seventeen linear feet
of wall-space, leaving the south side, or twenty-seven feet, for
sculptures of Sardanapalus III, the last monarch of the Assyrian
series. In the centre of the room would be glass cases for the
numerous tablets, cylinders, and other small objects of this
collection, which it is most instructive to exhibit in connection with
the sculptures. The only architectural alteration desirable in the
room would be to open skylights in the lateral portion of the roof,
and to close those in the central, in order to obtain a sharper light,
upon the principle so successfully adopted in the present ‘Nimroud
Side Gallery.’

[Sidenote: FIFTH ASSYRIAN ROOM.]

XVII. _Fifth Assyrian Room._—Here would be the continuation of the
monuments of Sardanapalus III, which conclude the Assyrian department;
they are at present divided like those of Sennacherib, and part
exhibited in the ‘Koyunjik Gallery,’ part in the basement room;
altogether they now extend to three hundred and seventy-three feet;
but as the greater part might, in Room XVII, be very well arranged in
double rows, and some of those in single rows might, without injury,
be less widely spread, two hundred and twenty-five feet would suffice
for their exhibition; of this space twenty-seven feet would be
supplied by Room XVI, and the remainder by XVII. The centre of the
room should be appropriated as the preceding, and the lighting
similarly modified.

[Sidenote: SUMMARY OF ACCOMMODATION FOR ASSYRIAN ANTIQUITIES.]

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐ │ SUMMARY OF THE ACCOMMODATION PROVIDED IN THE PLAN FOR ASSYRIAN │ │ ANTIQUITIES. │ ├──────────────────────────────────┬──────────────────────────────────┤ │ _Amount of Wall-space now in use │_Amount of Wall-space in the Plan │ │ for Assyrian Bas-reliefs._ │ for Assyrian Bas-reliefs._ │ │ │Linear│ │Linear│ │ │feet. │ │feet. │ │Nimroud Side Gallery │ 278│Room XIII │ 314│ │Nimroud Central Saloon │ 82│Room XIV │ 95│ │Assyrian Transept │ 125│Room XV │ 145│ │Koyunjik Gallery │ 242│Room XVI │ 344│ │Assyrian Basement Room │ 243│Room XVII │ 199│ │ │ ———│ │ —————│ │ │ 970│ │ 1,097│ │Bas-reliefs in the middle │ │ │ │ │ of Basement Room │ 254│ │ │ │ │ —————│ │ │ │ │ 1,224│ │ │ └───────────────────────────┴──────┴───────────────────────────┴──────┘

It thus appears that the wall-space provided in the plan, though one
hundred and twenty-seven feet more than the wall-space in the existing
rooms, falls short by one hundred and twenty-seven feet of the total
linear extent of the bas-reliefs, as now arranged. In lieu, however,
of placing slabs in the middle of a gallery, as is done in the
basement room, and as it would likewise be possible to do in XVI or
XVII, it is thought better, in these last rooms, to provide the
additional space by simply carrying up the slabs to a greater height.

The space for central cases for small objects, which is at present
four thousand and eighty square feet in rooms would be eight thousand
one hundred and seventy square feet in Rooms XVI and XVII, an amount
so abundant as to supersede the necessity for any wall-cases.

The accommodation here provided for Assyrian antiquities is little
more in quantity, though much better in quality, than the present. But
this is nearly the only branch of the archæological collections to
which there seems little probability of future additions. If, contrary
to expectation, any such should be made, a supplemental room might be
built on the vacant space to the north of the Assyrian galleries.

[Sidenote: PERSIAN ROOM.]

XVIII. _Persian Room._—The sculptures to be here exhibited, which are
all bas-reliefs, would probably not occupy more than half the
wall-space, which is forty-seven linear feet. They belong chiefly to
the sixth century, B.C., and properly therefore succeed the Assyrian,
which range from the tenth to the seventh century, B.C.

[Sidenote: LYCIAN GALLERY.]

XIX. _Lycian Gallery._—It is intended to reserve this room for the
monuments peculiarly characteristic of Lycia, and to transfer to the
Greek galleries those in which the Greek element is predominant; such
as, particularly, the sculptures of the Ionic trophy monument or
_heroum_ from Xanthus, now scattered over the room, and, if necessary,
the casts from the rock tomb at Myra. This would leave abundant space
for the purely Lycian remains. The harpy tomb, of which the
bas-reliefs furnish a very important illustration of archaic Greek
art, might best be placed in an isolated position near the entrance to
the Greek galleries, where it would be favourably lighted and
conspicuously seen. Its present place might be filled by the rude
sarcophagus with sculptures of lions. The lighting of the Lycian room,
which is very defective, should be improved by an alteration in the
roof; but it is thought better not to enter into the details of such
alteration in the present paper.

[Sidenote: FIRST GREEK ROOM.]

XX. _First Greek or Inscription Room._—The room beneath this being
supposed to be withdrawn from exhibition, the staircase at the west
end should be separated by a partition, and entered through a private
door. All Greek inscriptions, except the sepulchral, and such as are
engraved on architectural or sculptural monuments, would be here
collected.

At this point the new buildings commence with—

[Sidenote: SECOND GREEK ROOM.]

XXI. _Second Greek or Branchidæ Room_, thirty feet by twenty-four.—The
height both of this and the four succeeding rooms should be about
twenty feet. This would contain the earliest Greek sculptures, of
which the principal are those procured by Mr. NEWTON from Branchidæ.
The ten seated statues would be arranged on each side, as in the
‘Sacred Way’ at that place, and the recumbent inscribed lion and the
sphinx placed at the end of the room.

[Sidenote: THIRD GREEK ROOM.]

XXII. _Third Greek Room_, twenty-four feet by seventeen.—This would
contain other archaic works, including the casts from Selinus.

[Sidenote: FOURTH GREEK ROOM.]

XXIII. _Fourth Greek or Æginetan Room_, thirty-eight feet by
twenty-four.—Here would be fixed, in two recesses, the restorations of
the two pedimental groups from Ægina, which are exactly of the length
of this room, and which might be placed at a more convenient level for
examination than their present elevated position in room.

[Sidenote: FIFTH GREEK ROOM.]

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.]

XXVII. _Eighth Greek or Erechtheum Room_, sixty-five feet by
twenty-six, for monuments of the era between Phidias and Scopas, of
which the principal are the remains of the Erechtheum.

[Sidenote: NINTH GREEK ROOM.]

XXVIII. _Ninth Greek, or Mausoleum Room_, one hundred and twenty feet
in length, forty-two in breadth, and eighty across the transept.—Here
would be, 1. The marbles procured by Lord STRATFORD and Mr. NEWTON,
from the Mausoleum of Halicarnassus; in the west transept, the group
from the _quadriga_, and in the southern part of the room the other
important sculptural and architectural remains of the building,
including the frieze. 2. In the east transept, the colossal lion from
Cnidus, with a few other sculptures of the same school. 3. In the
northern part of the room, the Xanthian Ionic monument, here placed
for comparison with the remains of the Mausoleum. The whole upper
portion of this monument, commencing with the higher of the two
friezes which surrounded the original base, might be reconstructed,
though not restored, and would form a striking termination to the
vista through the galleries. The lower frieze might be arranged
against the adjoining walls of the room.

[Sidenote: TENTH GREEK ROOM.]

XXIX. _Tenth Greek Room._—Having thus passed through the great
monumental series of Greek sculptures in chronological order, the
visitor would return south by the side rooms, containing minor remains
of the same school. The Tenth Greek Room would be forty-two feet by
twenty, and would contain the latest of the smaller sculptures.

[Sidenote: ELEVENTH GREEK ROOM.]

XXX. _Eleventh Greek Room_, thirty-three feet by twenty.—This should
be appropriated to the small fragments from the Mausoleum, which would
thus be in immediate connection with its larger sculptures, without
impairing their grandeur of effect.

[Sidenote: TWELFTH AND THIRTEENTH GREEK ROOMS.]

XXXI, XXXII. _Twelfth and Thirteenth Greek Rooms_, together one
hundred and thirty-five feet in length and twenty in breadth.—The
exact position of the wall separating these rooms might be reserved
till the arrangement of their contents was settled. In one might be
architectural fragments, from buildings not represented in the large
galleries; in the other, small tablets, votive offerings, altars, and
other minor sculptures.

[Sidenote: FOURTEENTH GREEK ROOM.]

XXXIII. _Fourteenth Greek or Sepulchral Room_, ninety-three feet by
eighteen.—Here would be all the Greek sepulchral monuments now in the
basement. The casts from the sculptured tomb at Myra, of which the
style is more Greek than Lycian, might also be here placed, as
indicated in the plan, in case it should be thought desirable to
remove them from the Lycian Room, though the expediency of this
transfer may perhaps be doubted. Wherever placed, these casts ought to
be so put together as to explain the true arrangement of the
originals.

[Then follows a Summary of the Accommodation provided in the Plan for
Greek Sculptures, amounting to a superficial area of twenty-seven
thousand four hundred and ten square feet, and to two thousand one
hundred and ninety-one lineal feet of wall-space.]

[Sidenote: ETRUSCAN ROOM.]

XXXIV. _Etruscan Room._—The next parallel on the ground floor would be
devoted to the monuments of ancient Italy. The earliest are the
Etruscan, which, being altogether taken from tombs, would properly be
placed adjacent, on the one side to the Greek, on the other to the
Roman, sepulchral collections. The principal portion of the Etruscan
Room would be fifty-five feet by forty, with additional recesses at
the south end, the whole about twenty feet high. Two rows of pilasters
would divide the room into three compartments, the central for the
gangway, the other two to be fitted up as a series of tombs, of which
the sides would be formed of the mural restorations, with fac-similes
of paintings from Corneto and Vulci. Within these restored tombs would
be such sarcophagi as we possess, found in the tombs themselves. The
fac-similes of the painted roofs of two of the tombs might be fixed
above them, at such a height as not to obstruct the light. In the
central compartment, which contains six shallow recesses between the
pilasters, might be monuments from various tombs other than those here
restored.

XXXV. _Staircase Room_, forty feet by thirty, and of the same height
as the three united stories of the western galleries.—Four successive
flights of steps would be required to reach each floor. The landings
between the first and second, and between the third and fourth
flights, might each be supported by Caryatid or Atlantic figures,
which would give the whole composition an ornamental effect, as seen
from the east side. Beneath one side of this staircase might be a
private one leading to the western basement.

To the north is another private staircase, conducting to the basement
under the Greek galleries. The adjoining passage leads to—

[Sidenote: FIRST GRÆCO-ROMAN ROOM.]

XXXVI. _First Græco-Roman Room._—The Etruscan monuments are succeeded
chronologically by the Græco-Roman, here placed so as to adjoin the
galleries both of Greek and of Roman art. In accordance with the
character of Græco-Roman sculpture, the apartments containing it
should be somewhat ornamentally constructed and arranged, as in the
great continental museums, where works of this class form the staple
of the collections. The position of the principal objects in all this
series of rooms is marked in the plan, without distinguishing them
individually, as none are of such a character as to require any
special architectural provision. The first room is one hundred and six
feet by twenty-six, exclusive of the alcoves. Its height need not, for
the display of statuary, exceed twenty feet; but if, for architectural
effect, a vaulted ceiling is preferred, the height must be increased.
In the Braccio Nuovo, in the Vatican Museum, which is probably the
finest gallery of this kind in Europe, and has a cylindrical vault,
with a central skylight, the proportion of height to breadth is about
thirty-seven feet to twenty-seven; but in the darker climate of London
the height should not, if possible, exceed the breadth.

[Sidenote: SECOND GRÆCO-ROMAN ROOM.]

XXXVII. _Second Græco-Roman Room, or Rotunda_, sixty feet in diameter,
and about sixty feet high in the centre, being surmounted by a
hemispherical dome.—This room is, with slight variations, and on a
somewhat smaller scale, a copy of the Rotunda in the Museum of Berlin,
an apartment universally admired for its architectural beauty, and
only defective as a hall for sculpture from the unnecessary smallness
of the central skylight. The entablature over the columns would
support a gallery, opening into the first floor of the western
buildings.

[Sidenote: THIRD GRÆCO-ROMAN ROOM.]

XXXVIII. _Third Græco-Roman Room_, similar to the first, but only one
hundred and one feet long, exclusive of the northern alcove.

The spaces between the lateral alcoves on the east side of the First
and Third Græco-Roman Rooms might either be covered with glass, or
left open for ventilation, though the second arrangement would involve
a provision for the drainage below.

[Sidenote: SUMMARY OF ACCOMMODATION FOR GRÆCO-ROMAN SCULPTURES.]

The amount of accommodation for Græco-Roman sculptures cannot, from
the form of the rooms, be stated with the same exactness as that for
the Greek. Exclusive of the alcoves, there would be in the—

┌─────────────────┬─────────────────┬─────────────────┐
│ │Superficial Area.│ Length of │
│ │ │ Wall-space. │
│First Galley │2,756 square │ 180 linear │
│ │ feet. │ feet. │
│Third Gallery │2,626 „ │ 152 „ │
│ │————— │ ——— │
│ │5,382 „ │ 332 „ │
└─────────────────┴─────────────────┴─────────────────┘

The Rotunda would not have available space in proportion to its size.
Twelve statues or busts between the columns, and perhaps a large
sculpture in the centre, would be the natural complement of the room.
The wall-space behind the columns would not be available for
sculpture. The total accommodation in the three rooms would amply
suffice for our present collection, even somewhat enlarged. [Sidenote:
MEANS OF FUTURE ENLARGEMENT.] As it increased, however, further space
might be obtained by erecting in the first and third rooms transverse
walls, opposite the alcoves in the Roman galleries, thus subdividing
the first room into three principal compartments, with a small lobby
at each end, and the third into three compartments (of which the most
northern would need some modification), with a lobby at the south end.
The doorways through these walls might be twelve feet wide, so as to
preserve the continuous appearance of the suite; and they would still
leave one hundred and twelve feet of additional wall-space in the
first room, and eighty-four in the third. The lighting would be
somewhat improved by such an alteration.

[Sidenote: WESTERN GALLERIES.]

The last suite of galleries on the ground floor would contain the
Roman and Phœnician remains. To avoid any obscuration from the houses
on the west side of Charlotte Street, the windows should be as high in
the wall as possible, and as broad as architectural propriety would
admit, whilst the rooms should be not less than twenty-five feet high.

[Sidenote: FIRST ROMAN ROOM.]

XXXIX. _First Roman Room_, one hundred and ten feet by twenty-eight,
exclusive of the alcoves.—It would contain mosaics, including those
from Carthage, and miscellaneous sculptures, altars, architectural
fragments, &c.; the mosaics indifferently placed on all sides of the
room, the sculptures on the east side and against the two end walls.

[Sidenote: HALL.]

XL. _Hall_, fifty-six feet by seventeen.—Here might be an entrance
from Charlotte Street, which on many occasions would furnish a
convenient relief to the principal entrance to the Museum. It would
open immediately into the Rotunda, and through the vista beyond would
be seen, in the distance, the cast of the colossal head from
Abousimbul. Within the two abutments of the Rotunda would be recesses
for the attendants to sell catalogues, receive umbrellas, &c.

[Sidenote: SECOND ROMAN ROOM.]

XLI. _Second Roman or Iconographical Room_, fifty-four feet by
twenty-eight, without the alcoves.—This would contain the series of
portrait statues and busts, in chronological order. The west, or dark
side of the room, could only be used for very inferior sculptures.

[Sidenote: THIRD ROMAN ROOM.]

XLII. _Third (or Anglo-) Roman Room_, the same size as the preceding,
for Roman monuments found in this country. The rude character of many
would admit of placing them on the west side.

[Sidenote: FOURTH ROMAN ROOM.]

XLIII. _Fourth Roman or Sepulchral Room_, eighty-two feet by
twenty-six, containing Roman sarcophagi for which the west side might
be partially available, and sepulchral cippi, and inscriptions. At the
north-east angle would be a Columbarium, twenty-three feet by
fourteen, fitted up like that in the present Sepulchral Basement Room,
but with the advantage of a skylight.

[Then follows a Summary of Accommodation provided in the plan for
Roman Sculptures, amounting to a superficial area (without alcoves) of
eight thousand five hundred and fifty-eight square feet, and seven
hundred and seventeen linear feet of wall-space.]

[Sidenote: MEANS OF FUTURE ENLARGEMENT.]

The first three rooms, when their contents sufficiently increased,
would admit of an easy alteration, which would not merely increase the
wall-space, but much improve the lighting, by simply inserting
transverse walls between each window. Against these walls the
sculptures would have a true side light, whilst those against the east
wall would be protected from double lights. It may even be doubted
whether such an arrangement should not be adopted in the first
instance, without waiting till the additional accommodation is
actually required.

[Sidenote: PHŒNICIAN ROOM.]

XLIV. _Phœnician Room_, twenty-six feet square.—Here would be the
_stelæ_ and bas-reliefs from Carthage and its vicinity, with the few
Punic inscriptions which we possess. The room contains six hundred and
seventy-six superficial feet, and eighty-eight of wall-space.

[Sidenote: SUPPLEMENTAL ROOM.]

XLV. A similar room to the preceding, which, in case of necessity,
might serve for extending the Phœnician collection. In the mean time
it might perhaps be used for exhibiting such miscellaneous inferior
sculptures as could be advantageously weeded from the regular series,
though circumstances might temporarily prevent their removal from the
Museum. In such case it might be entitled ‘Supplemental Room.’

In accordance with a suggestion made in the Committee now sitting, the
writer has added to the new buildings proposed in his plan another
story, or second floor, over the first. The advantage of this is, that
it would provide for objects which it might be more costly or
inconvenient to accommodate elsewhere. But it involves necessarily two
evils: [Sidenote: PLAN OF UPPER FLOORS. ADVANTAGES AND EVILS OF A
SECOND STORY.] 1. That the height of the second floor, involving an
ascent of perhaps nearly one hundred steps (though this is not more
than is common in continental museums), might excite complaint in
English visitors. 2. That so lofty a building, by excluding all
oblique rays from the east side of the Græco-Roman galleries, would
make the light on the statues and busts there placed somewhat too
vertical.

[Sidenote: COLLECTIONS RETAINED OR REMOVED.]

With regard to the collections to be provided for on the upper floors,
it is here assumed, though of course without any express authority,
that Ethnography and Oriental Antiquities would be removed from the
Museum, and better accommodated elsewhere. The British and Mediæval
Collections, however, are supposed to be retained; if they are
removed, a modification of this plan must in consequence be made.

[Sidenote: FIRST FLOOR OR NEW BUILDINGS FOR ANTIQUITIES; ITS
CONSTRUCTION.]

The apartments should all be about eighteen feet high, the windows of
the same breadth as those below, but, except in the Terracotta Room,
only about eight feet high, and as near the ceiling as possible. On
the east side should be corresponding windows, so that each wall would
be illuminated; for cross lights, though so injurious to sculptures,
are generally desirable for galleries filled with wall-cases. All the
windows should have ground glass, to prevent injury to the collections
from the sun.

[Sidenote: VASE GALLERY.]

1. _Vase Gallery._—Two hundred and twenty-two feet long, the southern
half twenty-six feet wide, and the northern twenty-eight feet. The
wall-cases should be about eight feet high, like those in our First
Vase Room; and the transverse projections, flanked by pilasters, would
be only of the same height, so as not to shut out the view of the
upper part of the gallery; having glass on each side, they would serve
for vases with double paintings, such as we now exhibit only in dwarf
central cases. The most important vases should stand isolated on
tables, or pedestals, on each side the gangway; as in the present
arrangement of the Temple Collection. [Sidenote: ITS ACCOMMODATION.]
Although the superficial area of this gallery (five thousand nine
hundred and ninety-two feet) is little more than a third greater than
that occupied by vases in the present buildings (four thousand three
hundred and twenty-one feet), the amount of accommodation it would
afford is nearly double. For the present wall-cases, eight feet high,
extend to one hundred and forty-six feet of linear measurement; those
ten feet high will, when the collection is fully arranged, extend to
eighty-four feet; the whole therefore may be reckoned as equivalent to
two hundred and fifty-one feet of cases, eight feet high. The total
extent, however, of such wall-cases in the proposed gallery is four
hundred and fifty-five feet. The projections also, with the tables and
pedestals, may safely be estimated as providing twice the
accommodation for vases painted on both sides which is now furnished
by the dwarf central cases, besides exhibiting them much more
conveniently. It should be added that the vases would be better
lighted than at present; whilst the length and comparative openness of
the gallery would produce a more striking impression on the passing
visitor.

[Sidenote: PROPOSED ETRUSCAN APARTMENT.]

The accommodation here provided being so ample, it might be desirable
to appropriate one compartment of the gallery to an exclusively
Etruscan Collection, comprising not merely the pottery of the
Etruscans, properly so called, but that for which they were really
more distinguished in ancient times, their bronze and other metal
work.

[Sidenote: TERRACOTTA ROOM.]

2. _Terracotta Room._—Fifty-six feet by seventeen. As no windows could
be made on the east side, there should be no cases on the west; but
the western windows, which do not correspond with the others of this
story, should extend from near the ceiling to four or five feet from
the floor. A sloping case might then be placed in each window, for
lamps and other small objects, requiring a strong light. Against the
east wall should be cases for vases, and other large objects.

[Sidenote: GALLERY OF ROTUNDA.]

3. _Gallery of the Rotunda._—From one hundred and eighty to one
hundred and ninety feet in circumference, and about nine feet wide.
The powerful light from the centre of the dome would be favourable to
terracotta statuettes and bas-reliefs, which could all be contained in
shallow wall-cases, that would not materially narrow the gangway.[48]
The Townley Collection of bas-reliefs, now in the Second Vase Room,
might be arranged in panels all round, so as to produce a decorative
effect, agreeable to their original destination.

[Sidenote: ACCOMMODATION FOR TERRACOTTAS.]

The entire space provided in these two rooms is much more than our
terracottas can absolutely require; but this will facilitate an
ornamental arrangement of the collection, appropriate to the character
of the larger room. The small spaces between the Rotunda and the main
building would serve for closets.

[Sidenote: GLASS ROOM.]

4. _Glass Room_, twenty-eight feet by twenty-six.—The fittings proper
for glass being different from those of terracottas, it is desirable
to give it a separate room. This should be similarly arranged to the
Vase Gallery, with wall-cases eight feet high, and table-cases in the
centre.

[Sidenote: BRONZE GALLERY. ITS ACCOMMODATION.]

5. _Bronze Gallery_, three apartments united; together eighty-two feet
by twenty-eight.—As the advantage of a skylight for the bronze
statuettes is necessarily sacrificed by the adoption of an upper
floor, it would be best to place them, as far as possible, against
each side of the transverse projections, separating those sides by
internal partitions, and employing some contrivance to protect the
bronzes from the cross light of the further windows, an arrangement
possible with small objects in glass cases, though not with large
statuary. In the middle of the gallery might be table-cases, placed
longitudinally, or important objects on pedestals. The increase of
accommodation in the Bronze Gallery, as in the Vase Gallery, is more
than proportionate to the increase of space. Though the superficial
area is only two thousand two hundred and ninety-six feet, in lieu of
our present quantity, two thousand and twenty-one, the extent of
wall-cases, which now is only one hundred and thirty-eight feet,
would, even allowing doorways of twelve feet wide between each of
these compartments, be increased to two hundred and fifty feet,
equivalent, after allowing for the difference in height of the cases,
to two hundred feet. This, if the Etruscan bronzes were transferred as
already suggested, would liberally provide for the Greek and Roman
Collection.

[Sidenote: SECOND FLOOR OF NEW BUILDINGS FOR ANTIQUITIES.]

Each room should be fifteen to eighteen feet high; the windows
exclusively on the east side, and extending from the ceiling to four
or five feet from the floor. As the aspect is nearly N.E., the sun
could not be injurious, and the glass of the windows, therefore, had
better be unground.

[Sidenote: BRITISH ROOMS.]

1. _British Rooms_, each twenty-seven feet by twenty-six.—That which
adjoins the staircase (and, if necessary, those on each side), should
be lighted from the roof, and have wall-cases all round, with a
separate case in the centre. The other rooms should have wall-cases on
the west side, and shallower cases against the transverse walls. Two
long table-cases in each room might extend from the windows to a line
with the doorway.

[Sidenote: MEDIÆVAL ROOMS.]

[Sidenote: SUMMARY OF ACCOMMODATION FOR BRITISH AND MEDIÆVAL.]

2. _Mediæval Rooms_, each twenty-eight feet by twenty-seven, and
similarly arranged to the British.—Though the entire superficial area
in the British and Mediæval Rooms is only five thousand and
seventy-two feet, in lieu of four thousand and forty-six, the amount
in the present building, yet the wall-space is four hundred and
sixty-six feet, instead of only two hundred and ninety-seven, and the
cases, having no windows above, might, if necessary, be made ten feet
high, like the present. The gain in table-cases would be much greater.
In lieu of six, there would be twelve, each sixteen or eighteen feet
long, instead of ten; whilst the central case in the room adjoining
the staircase might be at least as capacious as the large separate
case in the present British and Mediæval Room. The lighting would
throughout be more advantageous for these collections than at present;
and the rooms, from the character of the windows, might be bright
instead of gloomy.

[Sidenote: GEM ROOM.]

3. _Gem Room._—As the contents of this and the succeeding room have
more or less intrinsic value, an iron door might be placed at the end
of the Mediæval Gallery, to be open only when the public are admitted
to the Museum. The Gem Room, twenty-eight feet by twenty-seven, would
be fitted like the preceding. The gems would occupy the table-cases,
which would accommodate a far larger collection than ours, and would
exhibit them in the best possible light for such objects. In the
wall-cases might be displayed the gold and silver ornaments, which
would have much more space than as now arranged, though in a room only
of the same size.

[Sidenote: COIN AND MEDAL GALLERY.]

4. _Coin and Medal Gallery_, fifty-six feet by seventeen.—As the dome
of the Rotunda would only rise a few feet above the floor of this
gallery, and would, from its curvature, recede to a distance of
several feet, windows on the east side would be quite unobstructed. In
each might stand a table-case, six or seven feet long, on which would
be exhibited, under glass, a series of coins and medals which, though
not the most valuable of our collection in the eyes of a numismatist,
would suffice to give the public an interesting and instructive view
of the monetary art. In the drawers of these cases might be kept the
moulds and casts of the Coin Collection. Against the side walls might
be upright cases, or frames, for extending the exhibition; but the
walls facing the windows, having a front light, would be unsuitable
for coins or medals, and must be employed for some other purpose.

[Sidenote: PRIVATE ROOMS OF COIN DEPARTMENT.]

5. The rooms which remain would be a private suite for the Coin
Department. The present rooms of that department are arranged in an
order the reverse of what is best for security and convenience, the
coins being kept in an outer room, which must be passed in going
either to the Keeper’s study, or to the Ornament Room, a room open to
all persons merely on application. In the accompanying plan the
contents of the Ornament Room have been transferred to the Gem Room;
and the Keeper’s study is placed near the beginning of the private
suite.

[Sidenote: OUTER COIN ROOM.]

_Outer Coin Room_, twenty-eight feet by twenty-seven, for the freer
exhibition of coins to properly introduced persons, for the use of
artists copying coins or other minute objects, and all other purposes
now served by the Medal Room, except the custody of the collection,
and work of the department.

[Sidenote: INNER COIN ROOM.]

_Inner Coin Room_, fifty-five feet by twenty-eight, secured by a
strong iron door, of which the Keeper, Assistant-Keeper, and
Principal-Librarian, would alone have keys.—In this room, to which
none but the departmental staff would be admitted, the coins and
medals would be preserved, arranged, and catalogued; they would be
carried hence by the officers into the Outer Room when required for
inspection. The room is somewhat more than half as large again as the
present Medal Room; and as the absence of visitors, and of the
barriers their presence now requires, would leave the whole space
free, there would be ample accommodation for any probable enlargement
of the collection. The library of the department might be arranged
partly in this, partly in the Outer Room.

Of the apartments reserved as private, two are placed at the south end
of the first and second floors, and each of these might, if necessary,
be subdivided into two small studies, each twenty-six feet by
thirteen, for the use either of officers or students. [Sidenote:
PRIVATE ROOMS IN PLAN. OTHERS SUGGESTED.] Private rooms are, however,
required on the ground floor, to replace the female students’ room,
and the Assistant-Keeper’s study, proposed to be removed for the new
Nimroud and Khorsabad Galleries. The most effectual provision for
these and other wants would be one which has been suggested during the
present inquiry, namely, to transfer to the Department of Antiquities
the several rooms now occupied as the Trustees’ Room and adjoining
offices, and to remove the official establishment to new rooms to be
erected on the east side of the Museum. Should this be found
impracticable, the present Insect Room, and adjoining studies, might,
in the event of the transfer of this part of the Zoological Department
to the upper floor, furnish the required accommodation. In default of
both these alternatives, rooms might be constructed north of the new
Assyrian Galleries, though, in the opinion of the writer, this ground
should only be built over as a last resort.

[Sidenote: USE OF BASEMENT.]