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ALLASON, Thomas [1790-1852].. Picturesque Views Of The Antiquities Of Pola, In Istria.

folio. large-paper. pp. 4 p.l., 67. with half-title. 10 plates on India paper, mounted (2 marked 'Proof'), & 4 large vignettes in the text, engraved by W.B.Cooke, George Cooke, Henry Moses, & Cosmo Armstrong, after drawings by Allason, the frontis. drawn by J.M.W.Turner after a sketch by Allason. modern half calf (some foxing to plates & first half of text, institutional rubberstamp in lower margin of title & p. 33). First Edition. 'Allason, an architect, travelled in Greece, 1814-15, as draughtsman to John and Edward Spencer Stanhope, and he produced the drawings for their works on Plataea, Olympia and Elis. Allason claimed to be the first to observe the entasis of Greek columns.The journey to Pola, the only maritime town of Istria to retain its ancient buildings, was made via Trieste while he was travelling with the Stanhopes. Allison dedicated his work to the Society of Dilettanti, which had long been interested in Pola and had wanted to erect a building of its own in Piccadilly modeled on the temple at Pola.the vignettes include a view of the Acropolis at Athens.'. The many surviving ancient Roman buildings and structures of Pola include its famous first century amphitheatre, one of the six largest surviving Roman arenas in the world, the Arch of Sergeii, the temple of Rome and Augustus, and the Gate of Hercules, all of which are illustrated in the plates. (Blackmer) Blackmer 25. Brunet I 188.

$2250 USD