The collection of approximately 150 drawings by the Award Holders of the BSR Scholarships in Architecture between 1913-33 returned to Rome from London in 2019.

Many of the drawings of ancient and early modern Italian buildings and monuments record their actual state in the early 20th century and are, in some cases, archeologically important.

A set of six drawings by architects R.A. Cordingley (1896-1962) of the Mausoleum of Augustus in Rome and F.O. Lawrence (1893-1971) of Ostia Antica was selected for the first Virtual Exhibition of the architectural drawings that can be viewed here.

In 1982 the BSR Faculty of Architecture organized an exhibition of the work of Rome Scholars in Architecture, held at the Building Centre, London, to celebrate the 70 years of the scholarship: The Classical tradition in British architecture: an exhibition of selected works by former Rome, Henry Jarvis and Special Scholars in Architecture together with Bernard Webb students in architecture, 1912-82.

The British School at Rome is grateful to the Mercer’s Company, to Peter & Anne Wiseman and to the British Academy for their generous donations that supported the cleaning, restoration and digitisation of these drawings.

This collection includes 56 original drawings by Sir Edwin Lutyens (1869-1944), the British architect who designed the BSR façade and building, as well as drawings by other architects who contributed over the years to the history of the building of the BSR.

In 1909 Edwin Lutyens was commissioned to design the British Pavilion for the Esposizione Internazionale di Belle Arti (International Exhibition of Art) that was to be held in Rome in 1911 in Valle Giulia to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the unification of Italy. The temporary pavilion was destined to become the home of the British School at Rome, then housed in an apartment in the centre of the city, when the Comune invited the BSR to build a permanent home on the site of the pavilion. Lutyens' drawings, plans and elevations of the new building were approved by the Mayor of Rome, Ernesto Nathan (1845-1921) in 1912 and work began. Lutyens supervised the project and made several trips to Rome until the completion of the work in 1916.

Here you can access online a selection of Lutyens' original BSR drawings, restored, digitised and catalogued between 2019 and 2025, and a drawing by Edwin Williams (1896-1977), BSR Scholar in Architecture in 1928, showing the actual plans of the building in 1926.

In 1992, the BSR Library published Lutyens in Italy: the building of the British School at Rome, by Hugh Petter (Rome Scholar in Architecture 1990-1992), based on the original correspondence regarding the design and the building process in the BSR archive, including letters and documents by Lutyens and others involved in the project.

The British School at Rome is grateful to the Mercer’s Company and to Peter & Anne Wiseman for their generous donations that supported the cleaning, restoration and digitisation of these drawings. We would also like to warmly thank Nils Oudshoorn who, in autumn 2024, carried out his research on Edwin Lutyens' drawings and related documents in the BSR Archive, during his stay as part of an MA in Building History at the University of Cambridge.