“Specimens for the Architectural Lectures:” Jefferson’s Orders at the University of Virginia - Review Questions

As you watch the video, you can browse by subject using the course outline and timestamps below. As you progress through the units, you can use the below optional (ungraded) questions to help assess your understanding of the material. Please note that these are not the summative assessment questions to be answered at the end of the course. You will also need to complete the summative assessment in order to earn course credit.

0:00: Introduction and Jefferson's Original Sources for Design

Review: Which of the following is NOT one of the sources Jefferson referred to in designing the campus?

1. Palladio's Quattro Libri.

Incorrect. In fact, Jefferson owned multiple versions of Quattro Libri, including one with Palladio's original woodcut illustrations as well as Giacomo Leoni's 1715 edition with copperplate engravings.

2. Paul Letarouilly's Edifices de Rome Moderne.

Correct! In fact, the publication of Letarouilly's influential work came some years after the University of Virginia was designed.

3. Roland Freart de Chambray's A Parallel of Architecture both Ancient and Modern.

Incorrect. Freart's work, which often contrasts ancient and modern versions of the orders, was a major reference for Jefferson in designing the campus.


7:35: Examination of Pavilions I - V

Review: Which of the following is true of Pavilion II, featuring the "Ionic of Fortuna Virilis"?

1. The frieze ornaments recreate what is shown in Desgodetz's Les Edifices Antiques de Rome.

Incorrect. The frieze ornaments, crafted by William Coffee, are based on Palladio's depiction in Quattro Libri, despite their being less accurate to the original inspiration than Desgodetz's rendition.

2. The pavilion's Ionic capitals were carved on site using local stone.

Incorrect. While attempts were made to carve the capitals on site, local stone proved unsuitable for the necessary fine details, and the capitals were instead carved in Italy from carrara marble and imported to Charlottesville.

3. Of the pavilions, it is the closest in form to its ancient inspiration.

Correct! While other pavilions exhibit only the order, Pavilion II combines volume, scale, and detailing to recall the general appearance of the Temple of Fortuna Virilis/Portunus.


30:20: Examination of Pavilions VI - X

Review: Which of the following is true of Pavilion VI, featuring the "Ionic of the Theatre of Marcellus"?

1. The pavilion does not feature a portico.

Correct! For uncertain reasons, Jefferson specified this unusual decision.

2. The pavilion does not feature a pediment.

Incorrect. In fact, the pavilion's pediment utilizing the Ionic Order of the Theatre of Marcellus is a defining feature of the design.

3. The pavilion does not feature a colonnade.

Incorrect. Despite Jefferson's order that "the pavilion is to have no columns," the Tuscan colonnade of the pavilion proved necessary for its sheltered passageway.


50:05: The Rotunda & Conclusions

Review: Which of the following is true of the Rotunda?

1. It was the focal point and a defining characteristic of Jefferson's initial plan for the campus.

Incorrect. In fact, Jefferson's original scheme had no such structure and the idea for the Rotunda came from a critique by Latrobe.

2. Stanford White's reconstruction of its interiors is a painstakingly accurate copy of the original.

Incorrect. Stanford White's interior scheme for the Rotunda was actually a complete departure from Jefferson's--most of the space was made into one large room.

3. Its proportional system is inspired by the Pantheon as Jefferson considered that building to be the perfect example of "spherical architecture".

Correct! Jefferson specified the Rotunda to have half the dimensions of the Pantheon, making it approximately 77 feet in diameter and height.