About the BRF Collection
The Byzantine Research Fund Archive (BRF) is a unique collection of architectural drawings, photographs and notebooks created from the late 19th century to the middle of the 20th century by a small team of British architects trained in the Arts & Crafts tradition whose studies of Byzantium shaped the Byzantine Revival in later years.
The collection contains over 1,500 drawings and 1,000 photographs, numerous notebooks and the corporate records associated with the Byzantine Research and Publication Fund, the original body created in 1907 to support this work. Although the Fund was associated with the BSA from the time it was founded, it was not until 1937 that the BSA formerly took over the property and operation of it. The BRF Archive contains records of Byzantine monuments in Greece, Turkey, Italy, the Near East, Egypt, and Cyprus. In some cases, the collection contains the only record of a monument before its destruction in modern times, the most important example being the church of Hagios Demetrios in Thessalonike which was almost completely destroyed in the Great Fire of 1917 shortly after being recorded by one of the BRF architects, Walter Sykes George. It also contains personal records of the following architects; Robert Weir Schultz, Sidney Howard Barnsley, Walter Sykes George, William Harvey, Harold Swainson, Peter Gus Corbett, and A.H.S (Peter) Megaw. The aspirations of the BRF Archive Project today are to make these materials accessible to a wide range of researchers.
Ground plan. The drawing is entitled: 'Church of St Dionysius Areopagite'. Further annotation in pencil survives.
Ground plan. This is a preliminary drawing entitled, St. Dionysios Areopagite-Athens. Further annotation in pencil survives including part of title in Greek.
Ground plan. The words 'Athens, Erechtheion' are inscribed in the top right-hand corner. Further annotation in pencil survives. This is a preliminary drawing.
Ground plan. This is a preliminary drawing. Further annotation in pencil survives.
Architrave blocks. Further annotation in pencil and ink survives.
Rubbing - Fragment of lintel. This is a fragment of a lintel which was found 'outside the Acropolis'. It is decorated with foliate patterns (palmettes). Further annotation in ink and pencil survives.
Ground plan. The drawing is entitled: 'Church of St Theodore Athens', 'Ground Plan'. Further annotation in ink survives.
Longitudinal section with interior decoration. The drawing is entitled: 'Church of St Theodore Athens', 'Longitudinal Section'. Further annotation in ink survives.
Transverse section. Preliminary drawing. Further annotation in pencil survives.
North elevation. The drawing depicts the bowls which were used as tympanun ornaments throughout the monument. Unfortunately, few of them are original.
Katholikon, Nave (dome) - Mosaic decoration. The drawing depicts the image of Prophet Sophonias which decorates the dome. This is a printed colour proof of an original drawing. A signature survives on the back.
Katholikon, Nave (dome) - Mosaic decoration. The drawing depicts the image of the Pantokrator, one of the most celebrated images of Byzantine art, which occupies the centre of the large dome. Recent cleaning by the Greek Archaeological Service revealed the plasticity in the rendering of this austere face. This is a preliminary drawing. It is entitled (in Greek):
Katholikon, Interior cornices. This ia a preliminary drawing.
Katholikon, Interior cornices. This is a preliminary drawing. Further annotation in pencil survives.
Narthex doorway. This is a preliminary drawing. Further annotation in pencil survives.
Narthex doorway. This is a preliminary drawing. Further annotation in pencil survives.
Refectory - Plan. This is a preliminary drawing. It is annotated in ink.
Refectory - Plan. The drawing is entitled in pencil: 'Mistras - Plan of Refectory - Monastery of Efentiko - 1/8th Scale'.
West elevation. This is a preliminary drawing. It is annotated in pencil.
South elevation. This is a preliminary drawing. It is annotated in pencil.
North elevation. This is a preliminary drawing. It is annotated in pencil.
Longitudinal section (west half) - Plan of dome. This is a preliminary drawing. Further annotation in pencil survives. See also drawing no. 01/08/04/19/02 (BRF no. 01/01/07/222).
Transverse section (south half?) - Plan of dome. This is a preliminary drawing. Further annotation in pencil survives. See also drawing no. 01/08/04/19/04 (BRF no. 01/01/07/224).
Part of section. This is a preliminary drawing in pencil. Notes survive on both sides.Blue lined paper was once probably part of a notebook. See also drawing no. 01/08/04/19/12 (BRF no. 01/01/07/232).
Part of section. This is a prelimanary drawing. Further annotation survives on both sides. See also drawings no. 01/08/04/19/10 (BRF no. 01/01/07/230) and 01/08/04/19/11 (BRF no 01/01/07/231).
Part of elevation. This is a prelimanary drawing in pencil. Further annotation survives on both sides of paper which was once probably part of a notebook
Part of elevation. This is a prelimanary drawing in pencil. Further annotation survives on both sides paper which was probably once part of a notebook.
Architectural members - Miscellaneous. This is a prelimanary drawing in pencil. Further annotation survives on both sides of the blue-lined paper which was once probably part of a notebook.
Section through Panagia church looking south - North elevation of the Katholikon. This is a preliminary drawing.
South elevation. This is a preliminary drawing.
East elevation. This is a preliminary drawing.
North elevation (detail) - Three-light window. This is a preliminary drawing.
North elevation (detail) - Three-light window. This is a preliminary drawing.
South-west view showing the exo-narthex. The exo-narthex of the Katholikon was removed in the late 16th c. This is a preliminary drawing. Further annotation in pencil survives.
Longitudinal section with south elevation. This is a preliminary drawing. It is labelled in pencil: 'Section Through South Aisle Looking South'. Further annotation in ink and pencil survives. W.S. George also worked on these drawings (1907-1909).
Plans of the apse. The drawing is numbered in ink as 'Fig. 9a and Fig. 9b'.
Section through south trancept. The drawing is numbered in pencil as 'Fig. 10'. It is labelled in pencil:' Section through South Trancept looking Northwards'.
Section through north trancept. The drawing is numbered in pencil as 'Fig. 11'. It is labelled in pencil:' Section through North Trancept looking South'. Further annotation in pencil survives.
Elevation-East wall, north trancept. The drawing is numbered in pencil as 'Fig. 12 It is labelled in pencil:' East Wall of North Trancept'.
Projections-East façade. The drawing is numbered in ink as 'Fig. 13'. It is labelled in pencil:'Projections from the East Façade'. .
Elevation-North wall, south face. The drawing is numbered in pencil as 'Fig. 14'. It is labelled in pencil:'Part of North Wall, South Face'. Further annotation in pencil survives.
Tomb chamber-East elevation. The drawing is numbered in ink as 'Fig. 15'. It is labelled in pencil:'East Elevation of the Tomb-Chamber'.
Transverse section (top), Longitudinal section (bottom). The words 'Athens, Erechtheion' are inscribed on the top right-hand corner. Further annotation in pencil survives. This is a preliminary drawing. A sketch (plan) in pencil survives on the reverse.
Ground plan. The drawing is entitled: 'The Cathedral Athens', 'Plan'. Further annotation in ink survives.
Transverse section (left), Longitudinal section (right). The drawing is entitled: 'The Catherdal Athens'. Further annotation in ink survives.
Clockwise from upper row: Transverse section (left), Longitudinal section (right), Ground plan (bottom). Further annotation in ink survives.
West elevation. The drawing is captioned: 'West Elevation'.
East elevation. The drawing is captioned: 'East Elevation'.