Aqueduct Gallery

Chirk Aqueduct on the Ellesmere Canal, c1829. Artist: Thomas Barber

Chirk Aqueduct on the Ellesmere Canal, c1829. Now known as the Llangollen, the canal was built by the Scottish civil engineer Thomas Telford (1757-1834) between 1796 and 1801 and was his first major civil engineering project. Engraving after an illustration by Henry Gastineau (c1791-1876) for Wales Illustrated. (London, 1829)

© Oxford Science Archive / Heritage-Images

Plate 6: Ruins of an ancient tomb in front of ruins of an ancient aqueduct

Plate 6: Ruins of an ancient tomb in front of ruins of an ancient aqueduct; above the arches of the latter is the channel which conveyed the water to Rome (Ruine de sepolcro antico posto dinanzi ad altre ruine d'un Acquedotto pure antico; sopra gli archi del medesimo v'e il canale, per cui si conduceva l'acqua in Roma), from the series Part one of architecture and perspectives: drawn and etched by Gio. Batt'a Piranesi, Venetian Architect: dedicated to Nicola Giobbe (Prima parte di Architetture, e prospettive inventate, ed incise da Gio. Batt'a Piranesi Architetto Veneziano dedicate al Sig. Nicola Giobbe), 1743

© Heritage Art/Heritage Images

Pont du Gard, Nimes, France, 1951. Creator: Shirley Markham

Pont du Gard, Nimes, France, 1951. Pont du Gard, Nimes, France, c AD 150, built to carry water across river to the town of Nimes, which was, in fact, some distance away from the aqueduct'. The Roman aqueduct in the south of France over the River Gardon is the highest of all elevated Roman aqueducts, and one of the best preserved. Shirley Markham (1931-1999) studied Graphic Design and Illustration at Central School of Art in London from 1950-1952. The writer, artist, poet, and illustrator Mervyn Peake (1911-1968) was one of her tutors, and her style of drawing was also influenced by other British illustrators such as Edward Ardizzone, Quentin Blake and Edward Bawden. Markham spent time in the Dolomite Mountains in Italy, and also visited Rome, sketching classical buildings. After graduating from Central, she worked as a graphic designer, producing book illustrations, cartoons for comics, menus and programmes. She gave up her promising career however when she got married in 1957. Middle-class women at that time were expected to devote their energies to bringing up children and running the home, and despite her obvious talent, she lacked the confidence to return to illustration. Her portfolio remained in the family attic for many years, but now her work is published here for the first time

© Shirley Markham Collection / Heritage-Images