Identifier: cottageresidence00down_0 (find matches)
Title: Cottage residences : or, A series of designs for rural cottages and cottage villas, and their gardens and grounds. Adapted to North America
Year: 1847 (1840s)
Authors: Downing, A. J. (Andrew Jackson), 1815-1852
Subjects: Architecture, Domestic Cottages
Publisher: New York : Wiley and Putnam
Contributing Library: Getty Research Institute
Digitizing Sponsor: Getty Research Institute

View Book Page: Book Viewer
About This Book: Catalog Entry
View All Images: All Images From Book
Click here to view book online to see this illustration in context in a browseable online version of this book.

Text Appearing Before Image:
feet distant from the shore of a pretty little natural lakeon the left. The approach leading from the public roadthrough the demesne to the house is shown, in part, at b; agravelled sweep for carriages c is formed in front of the arcade,and the road d, leading to the stable and farm buildings,branches off at the right of the house. The most important feature in this plan which we shall en-deavor to describe here, is the architectural flower garden e,which will be seen occupying a considerable space on the leftof the house. The terrace /, the beauty and utility of whichwe have already insisted upon, lies in this direction, serving asa kind of beautiful extended base to the house. We shall sup-pose this idea still further carried out in the architectural flower-garden, which surrounds this terrace, and which, lying directlybelow it, affords a fine display from the windows of the draw-ing-room and library. We are not admirers of geometric or formal flower gardens COTTAGE RESIDENCES. 153
Text Appearing After Image:
(Fig. 70.) 154 COTTAGE RESIDENCES. like this, considered by themselves, and merely as flower gar-dens, because we think a natural arrangement is more repletewith beauty and grace, and is capable of affording a muchhigher kind of pleasure. But this kind of architectural flowergarden, so common in Italy, and so appropriate an accompani-ment to residences of this kind, requires to be regarded inanother light. It is not only a garden for the display of plants,but it is a garden of architectural and floral beauty combined;it is as much an accessary of the building as a portion of thegrounds, and therefore it very properly exhibits much of theregularity and symmetry of architectural forms and composi-tions. It contains plants, trees, and shrubs, it is true, in greatprofusion, but the beauty of these is heightened, and renderedmore brilliant, by the introduction of elegant vases, sculpturedurns, or perhaps a few statues of floral deities, or busts of distin-guished persons. Those who have ne

Note About Images