We all know that Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826) was a president of the United States, the third one. Some of us might know that he was the principal author of the American Declaration of Independence but probably only a few know that he was also a talented architect of neoclassical buildings. I definitely didn't know that, not before getting these cards. He designed Monticello (1769–1809), his plantation home and his ideal 'academical village' (1817–26), which is still the heart of the University of Virginia.
In 1987 Monticello and the nearby University of Virginia, also designed by Jefferson, were together designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Monticello was largely finished when Jefferson left for France in 1784 as the American minister to that country. During his five years there his ideas about architecture changed drastically, as he was influenced by the work of contemporary Neoclassical architects and by ancient Roman buildings.
Jefferson began drawing up plans for altering and enlarging Monticello in 1793, and work began in 1796. Much of the original house was torn down. The final structure, completed in 1809, is a three-story brick and frame building with 35 rooms, 12 of them in the basement; each room is a different shape. - in: https://www.britannica.com/topic/Monticello-building-Virginia
Photographer: R. Lautman
On the back of the card: Dining Room with dumbwaiter.
The Dining Room received family members and guests for two meals each day, breakfast and dinner. While waiting for his family to gather, Jefferson often sat reading in one a pair of small french armchairs. Two dumbwaiters, installed on either side of the fireplace, carried bottles of wine from the wine cellar below.
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