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A house for John Thorpe
Engraving: from 'Architectural Remains of the Reigns of Elizabeth and James I', C.J. Richardson (1840)
Source: RIBA British Architectural Library

Initially, this drawing seems a little odd. Composed of two blocks, attached by a covered passage, it is unclear if this is one or two houses. There is some attempt at symmetry, but the overall impression is of a plain house with a jumble of windows and chimneys; hardly remarkable. Only by inspecting the plan and title does some understanding emerge: this house was designed around the owner’s initials – I T - John Thorpe. Like Tresham’s Triangular Lodge, this design delights in device.

Thorpe is one of the most enigmatic figures of Elizabethan architecture. Known because of his book of designs, which are kept in Sir John Soane’s Museum, London, he drew many plans and elevations, but it is unlikely that he practised architecture. Most probably this is the only building he designed himself, but it sadly remained a figment of his imagination. Re-drawn by Richardson, this version adds sharply-cut lawns and topiary to the original plans, extending Thorpe’s geometrical fantasy even further.