Sketches of the Smithsonian Institution Building

Summary

• Sketches of the Smithsonian Institution Building drafted in pencil on paper. Two of the sketch elevations depict wings of the building. Three of the sketches show the east wing, an arrangement of iron beams, and a segmental arch made out of brick, demonstrating a plan to fireproof the building with iron.
• The sketches were done by James Renwick, Jr., who began his design of the Smithsonian Institution Building with a Gothic castle and eventually reworked it into a Romanesque castle. This later scheme won him the competition in 1846 to appoint an architect for the design of the Smithsonian's first building.

Subject

• Renwick, James 1818-1895
• Smithsonian Institution Building (Washington, D.C.)
• Smithsonian Institution Building East Wing
• Smithsonian Institution Building West Wing

Category

Historic Images of the Smithsonian

Contained within

Smithsonian Institution Archives, Record Unit 92, Item 289

Contact information

Institutional History Division, Smithsonian Archives, 600 Maryland Avenue, SW, Washington, D.C. 20024-2520, SIHistory@si.edu

Date

1846

Restrictions & Rights

No restrictions

Topic

• Fireproofing
• Design
• Engineering
• Architecture
• Architecture, Romanesque
• Drawings
• Architecture, Gothic
• Buildings
• Architectural drawing
• Architecture--Design and plans
• Architectural design

Form/Genre

• Paper
• Drawing

ID Number

SIA2012-1144

Physical description

Number of Images: 1 Color: Color ; Size: 8w x 10h ; Type of Image: Architectural Drawing ; Medium: Paper

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