Section (Interior Elevation) of a Columbarium 1710 - 1727

This is Pietro Paolo Coccetti's, "Section (Interior Elevation) of a Columbarium," an ink wash on paper, made sometime between 1710 and 1727, now at the Metropolitan Museum. In eighteenth-century Italy, the architecture of death was imbued with powerful cultural and social meanings. Coccetti’s design for a columbarium reflects both ancient Roman traditions and the era's increasing interest in rationalized spaces. The drawing presents a symmetrical, multi-tiered structure filled with niches for cinerary urns. Consider what it meant to design a space that was meant for communal mourning. Who had access to these spaces, and how were they organized? Perhaps this drawing prompts us to consider how architecture can shape our rituals around death, memory, and community.