Plate 59: Terminary, from "A New Book of Chinese Designs"

Photostat reproduction of plate 59 of 'A New Book of Chinese Designs', consisting of a title page, index, and 120 plates, etched and published in 1754 by the British caricaturist, printseller and ornamental engraver Matthew Darly, in collaboration with George Edwards. The book consists of a variety of ornamental and costume designs of Chinese inspiration, some of them copies of the original works (including the title).

This plate consists of a design for a terminary, made up of six tiered chambers with pairs of columns on the sides, paneled ceilings with scrolling edges and bells hanging from the side tips, and rails fening the open windows on them. Each level presents a different type of arch, possibly intended to show variations of the design, rather than one design with a combination of designs for the chambers; the rails are also presented with bariations. The ceiling of the alcove on the top is flanked above by a small canopy with two columns with a wind vane on the top. The lower level is flanked to the sides by two additional rails, possibly meant as gates to enter the terminary.