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Sir Thomas Monnington:
Design for the main staircase of the British Museum 1966
Passe-partout (ref: 1026)
Pencil, wax crayon and watercolour on tracing paper, 19 7/8 x 15 1/8 in. (50.5 x 38.5 cm.)

Tags: Sir Thomas Monnington crayon pencil watercolour architecture interiors murals

Provenance:: Evelyn Monnington, thence by descent.
Exhibited: Thomas Monnington, Fine Art Society, 1997, no. 142
Literature: Judy Egerton, Sir Thomas Monnington, Royal Academy, 1977; Paul Liss, Thomas Monnington, Fine Art Society, 1997, pp. 55

Monnington was approached by his follow Trustees in 1966 to submit some design proposals for the redecoration of the main staircase. His proposal, which was not adopted, subdivided the wall surface into painted panels with two alternative decorative schemes: one using ornament related to the Department of British and Mediaeval Antiquities; the other a modern abstract design. It appears that the statue of Shakespeare by Roubillac, shown in outline, was one of the objects considered for display on the staircase.