South Elevation of the Rotunda

An architectural drawing by Thomas Jefferson shows his plan for the Rotunda, the centerpiece of his design for the University of Virginia. He began this ink-and-pencil drawing of the south elevation of the Rotunda in 1818 and finished it on March 29, 1819. Architectural elements for the building, which housed the university's library, include a portico, Corinthian columns, and a dome with an oculus. Jefferson's plan was inspired by sixteenth-century Italian architect Andrea Palladio's drawings of the Roman Pantheon.

Citation: Thomas Jefferson Architectural Drawings, University Archives, Special Collections, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Va.