More developed plan of the south half of the western body at triforium and church-floor level

WRE/3/4/2

1685–86

Sir Christopher (1632–1723) Wren, Simon (1661–1733) Gribelin, Nicholas (c.1662–1736) Hawksmoor

Pen and brown ink with grey wash, over incised lines, with additions in pencil. Laid paper. 54.2 x 40.5 cm. Watermark: Strasbourg lily WR; countermark: IHS surmounted by a cross, over PB

{\rtf1\ansi\ansicpg1252\deff0\deflang2057{\fonttbl{\f0\fswiss\fprq2\fcharset0 Microsoft Sans Serif;}{\f1\fswiss\fprq2\fcharset0 System;}} {\colortbl ;\red0\green0\blue128;} \viewkind4\uc1\pard\cf1\f0\fs20 A finished plan of the south half of the western body at triforium level superimposed on the plan at church-floor level, drawn mostly in dotted outlines. Drawn probably by Wren and Hawksmoor collaboratively. Datable 1685-86. Scale, 6 ft to 1 inch.\par \par This neatly drawn plan incorporates the revised layout for the triforium chambers and stairs sketched in black chalk on WRE/3/4/1. Wren probably contributed to the setting out of the plan as the numbering in the scale bar resembles his hand. Hawksmoor's hand is also present on the drawing. He wrote the \lquote\i 5\i0\rquote [feet] dimensions, and may also have added the wash. \par \par One purpose of the plan was to explore how the shortfall of 1 ft in the centre-aisle to centre-nave dimension in the preliminary plan WRE/3/4/1 (38 ft instead of 39 ft) could be accommodated by gently deflecting the central axis of the aisle. This axis is marked in a fine dotted outline. It starts on the scale bar at 39 ft and slants towards the axis of the nave to reduce this dimension by 1 ft at the west front, where the intercolumniations are all 9 ft. The deflection creates distortions in the plan of the rectangular chamber behind the aisle door and in the side wall of the narthex. These oddities would have been sufficient to demonstrate the impracticality of this compromise solution. \par \par The main library chamber is drawn at the level of its upper windows and anticipates the final plan, save that five rather than three openings are inserted in the bays on the inner side. Leading off the gallery on the main cross-axis is a single door to the gallery around the western vestibule, as in the fabric. The gallery itself is not shown in plan and no steps are marked up to it. Instead, the plan shows how a staircase up to the western gallery passes over the L-shaped flight which leads down from the side gallery to the square stairwell within the rear wall of the narthex. A straight flight of steps rises from this stairwell through a narrow opening in the rear wall of the upper portico to provide direct access to the upper portico from the great west door. This flight first appears as a diagonal pencil line on a west-east section through the portico and the vestibule; see WRE/3/4/10. The small outer door to the upper portico is shown in a half-section through the upper narthex at All Souls College (Geraghty 2007, no.85). These short straight staircases were begun in the mid-1690s in both stairwells, but were blocked off during an interruption of work at the west end between 1696 and 1698. \par \par The \lquote Geometrical Stair\rquote is shown in detail for the first time in this drawing (see also WRE/3/4/3). When it was built from 1705 the secondary flight above church-floor level was widened and the half-landing was removed; see WRE/6/2/9. \par \par A closely related plan at All Souls of the east side of the south triforium and library is shaded in ruled pen rather than wash and may be in the hand of Simon Gribelin (Geraghty 2007, no.91). \cf0\b\f1\par }

Access to the Wren office drawings held at London Metropolitan Archives is available only with advance notice and at the discretion of the Heritage Services Director, London Metropolitan Archives, 40 Northampton Road, London, EC1R 0HB.

WRE/3/3/10, WRE/3/3/13, WRE/6/2/9