Henry Parke (1790–1835) was an English architect and draughtsman.

Life

He was a son of

John Parke John Grubb Parke (September 22, 1827 – December 16, 1900) was a United States Army engineer and a Union general in the American Civil War. Parke's Civil War service was closely associated with Ambrose E. Burnside, often serving him as chi ...

the oboist, was intended for the bar, and studied under a

special pleader A special pleader was a historical legal occupation. The practitioner, or "special pleader" in English law specialised in drafting "pleadings", in modern terminology statements of case. History Up to the 19th century, there were many rules, tech ...

; but a speech impediment led him to abandon the law. He studied architecture, and his father placed him with

Sir John Soane Sir John Soane (; né Soan; 10 September 1753 – 20 January 1837) was an English architect who specialised in the Neo-Classical style. The son of a bricklayer, he rose to the top of his profession, becoming professor of architecture at the R ...

, who used him as a draughtsman for his

Royal Academy The Royal Academy of Arts (RA) is an art institution based in Burlington House on Piccadilly in London. Founded in 1768, it has a unique position as an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects. Its pur ...

lectures. He became versed in mathematics, geometry, mechanics, and drawing, both architectural and landscape. Between 1820 and 1824 Parke visited Italy, Sicily, Genoa, Greece, and Egypt, ascending the Nile in 1824 with a fellow-student, John Joseph Scoles. At Rome and elsewhere he worked with

Frederick Catherwood Frederick Catherwood (27 February 1799 – 27 September 1854) was an English artist, architect and explorer, best remembered for his meticulously detailed drawings of the ruins of the Maya civilization. He explored Mesoamerica in the mid 19th ...

Thomas Leverton Donaldson Thomas Leverton Donaldson (19 October 1795 – 1 August 1885) was a British architect, notable as a pioneer in architectural education, as a co-founder and President of the Royal Institute of British Architects and a winner of the RIBA Royal Gold ...

, and others, measuring antique remains and modern works. On returning to England, at the end of 1824, he worked out his sketches. Parke died 5 May 1835. Many of his oil and water-colour drawings and marine works were sold at

Sotheby's Sotheby's () is a British-founded American multinational corporation with headquarters in New York City. It is one of the world's largest brokers of fine and decorative art, jewellery, and collectibles. It has 80 locations in 40 countries, and ...

by auction in May 1836.

Works

In 1829 Parke published a ''Map of Nubia, comprising the Country between the First and Second Cataracts of the Nile'', and gave a plan of the island of Philæ. He continued making drawings and views of buildings and ruins. A collection of between five and six hundred, including some near

Dover Dover () is a town and major ferry port in Kent, South East England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies south-east of Canterbury and east of Maidstone ...

, was presented to the

Royal Institute of British Architects The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) is a professional body for architects primarily in the United Kingdom, but also internationally, founded for the advancement of architecture under its royal charter granted in 1837, three suppl ...

by his widow. Parke exhibited at the

drawings of an ''Interior of a Sepulchral Chamber'', 1830, and ''Temples in the Island of Philæ'', 1831. He designed a house in

Queen Square, Westminster Queen Square is a garden square in the Bloomsbury district of central London. Many of its buildings are associated with medicine, particularly neurology. Construction Queen Square was originally constructed between 1716 and 1725. It was formed ...

, facing on St. James's Park. He is said also to have largely designed the medal presented by some architects of Great Britain to Sir John Soane; from the die of this medal the Soane medallion prize of the Royal Institute of British Architects was reproduced.

Notes

Attribution {{DEFAULTSORT:Parke, Henry 1790 births 1865 deaths Architects from London Draughtsmen