Today arrived a present I bought myself, a book of the paintings commissined by Stanislaw August by Bellotto which gives a wonderful picture of Warszawa in 1776, just the right time for Wojciech, Seweryn and co.
But I find myself puzzled by some of the pictures.
A number of the street scenes include rude shelters. Now I would guess that the sloping roofs with uprights would be for people to leave their horses, but there's one which looks to me like a privy. possibly a shelter for a watchman? but it looks just like the sort of outside shithouse I can just remember some cottages still having in country areas in my childhood. I haven't scanned the book yet, but it's on the left just above the watermark here. the shelters are right in the front.
There are a number of rude huts outside the Church of the Carmelites too which do not look like shelters for horses.
And then the most puzzling of all. The Mniszech Palace - which has an odd brick structure by the road in the foreground with a corbelled roof and circular opening.
any ideas?
