I’ve been trying to flesh out the neglected regions, the blank, undeveloped rooms and spaces that still exist in the model. Two months ago I decided to tackle the Reduced Annuities Office. This is part of an L shaped wing, built by Taylor towards the end of his life.
There were two rooms: a square one in the corner, lit from above by a large circular lantern, and a rectangular one forming the western boundary of Garden Court and lit by three large Palladian windows, overlooking the court.
Soane built an upper room above this second space, as shown in a previous post. https://grevity.blogspot.com/2018/10/going-up.html At the same time he connected the two lower rooms, replacing the dividing wall with a triple archway which maintains its structural function, supporting the wall above. There are perspective sketches of this feature, made by Soane’s pupils during construction. I found it difficult to reconcile all the heights, but…