Garden buildings at Stowe, Buckinghamshire: views of one of the Lake Pavilions, the Shepherd's Cove (Hermitage), artificial ruins (Eleven Acre Cascade) and The Temple of Venus

SOURCE: Benton Seeley. Stowe: a description of the magnificent house and gardens (London, 1769), pl. II NOTES: The East and West Lake entrance pavilions were designed by Sir John Vanbrugh in around 1717 and are positioned adjacent to the Octagon Lake. The nearby Shepherd's Cove (also known as The Hermitage) was designed by William Kent in 1731, while the Eleven Acre Cascade was probably constructed by him in around 1738. The Temple of Venus was the first of Kent's garden buildings to be completed at Stowe and was constructed in around 1731.