Ralph Symons
Ralph Symons (also spelled Ralph Symonds; Ralph Symondes; Ralph Simons; Rudolph Symons or Rudolph Simons) (active ca. 1583-1605) was an English mason and architect known for his work at the University of Cambridge in the reign of Elizabeth I.
In 1584, Symons designed the first portion of Emmanuel College, Cambridge for Sir Walter Mildmay.[1]
In 1593, he was overseeing the building of the Great Court of Trinity, "one of the outstanding college setpieces in Britain",[2] and from 1596 to 1598 he worked on the newly-founded Sidney Sussex College.[1][2]
Between 1598 and 1602, Symons worked in partnership with Gilbert Wigge of Cambridge on the Second Court of St John's College, which was built atop the demolished foundations of an earlier, smaller court. Their original architectural drawings are housed in the college's library, and are the oldest surviving plans for a Cambridge college building. Symons lost his left hand sometime during the work on St John's.[3]
Symons produced designs for building work at King's College in 1602/3, and 1604 found him back at work on the hall and kitchen at Trinity.[3]
Notes
- 1 2 Richards, T. (1887). The Dictionary of Architecture. London. p. 46. Retrieved 8 April 2016.
- 1 2 Foyle, Jonathan. "Is this the earliest known portrait of an English artisan?". Financial Times. Retrieved 8 April 2016.
- 1 2 "Portrait of Ralph Symons (fl.1580-1610), c.1602". Philip Mould & Co.
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