Page:Architectural Review and American Builders' Journal, Volume 1, 1869.djvu/964

 788 The Architectural Review ami American Builders' Journal. [June, the windows, if at a considerable height above the floor; in both these instances the parts being slightly shaded, other- wise, in the one case, the windows would appear to be at the usual height, and, in the other, the lines intended to show the projection of the shelving from the face of the wall would not clearly define the actual area of the floor. Should parts of the same plan or floor happen to be on different levels, they should be dis- tinguished, as they easily may be in drawings, by making the whole lower part of a rather darker tint, in propor- tion as the difference is greater or less. When this is not attended to, it some- times becomes impossible to feel quite certain as to the plan, for we may mis- take the descent of steps for an ascent, or vice versa. At any rate, the mode above recommended has many advan- tages on its side, because it clearly indi- cates the circumstance at the first glance, keeps it in mind, and shows the exact extent of each level. Supposing the plan to be that of a theatre, there ma} r be three, four, or even a still greater number of planes in the same drawing; and, although this should be sufficiently understood when examined, it is as well to render it apparent to the eye at first sight. " Differences of height ought also to be expressed, as well as those of level, whether they occur in separate rooms, or in the separate divisions of the same room, because such difference is one great soui*ce of variety and contrast, and much of the effect and character of the apartments will depend more or less upon this circumstance; consequently it is one which should not be suffered to escape notice in the plan. Where all the rooms upon a floor are precisely alike as to height, it will be sufficient to state once for all what that measurement is ; if not, the respective altitudes should be denoted by figures, and a small h placed before or after them. Besides doing this, the same mode may be had recourse to for rendering apparent the greater loftiness of some rooms than others, as' that which has been pointed out for distinguishing such parts of a plan as lie on planes of different levels ; that is provided it be not required at the same time for the latter purpose " Whenever it happens that the upper floor does not extend over the whole of a lower one, this circumstance also should be noted, by making those walls which are carried up higher than the others of a darker tint than the latter; while the plan of the upper floor should be made to show, not only all the pro- jecting parts of the under one, but their roofs, lead-flats, skylights, chim- nej-s, &3. " It seldom happens, however, that plans, not intended for working draw- ings, are so well filled up as they ought to be. Those in books have, for the most part, very few details inserted in them, and are sometimes very ill defined, nothing further being represented than the walls and their apertures; hence they have a blank, naked appearance, and do not afford half the information that might be conveyed by drawings of this class. Neither is every part that is shown always so distinctly represented as is desirable ; in many Italian collec- tions of designs, for instance, the win- dows might be taken for mere recesses, owing to the solid part below the win- dow, and not the window itself, being shown in the plan, and no distinction made between such parts of the walls and those where no aperture occurs ; so that, were the same mode adhered to where the window recesses do not de- scend to the floor, the room would ap- pear to have no windows at all, none being described in the plan. Some dis- tinction should, perhaps, be made be- tween windows which actually reach down to the floor, and those which are raised so far above it as to leave a para- pet beneath them. Accordingly, these latter should be faintly tinted (in engra- vings as well as drawings), and windows raised so far above the floor that a per-