Longitudinal section through Pantheon portico

Soon after his arrival in Rome in May 1778, Soane began a fruitful two-way collaboration with Thomas Hardwick (a former fellow student at the RA) which lasted the summer and autumn. Hardwick's extensive measured survey of the Pantheon completed during his stay in Italy was considered by contemporary architectural students as a paragon of antiquity. The partnership allowed Soane to obtain access to Hardwick's earlier drawings of the Pantheon and he copied at least three. This drawing is an example of a widespread practice among student architects abroad which has come to light since the chance discovery of the Soane and Hardwick suites. Due to increased competition 18th-century students were pressured to seek short-cuts to compile impressive portfolios. Consequently, out-in-the-open partnerships, clandestine collaborations and copying of drawings were common practice among the neo-classicists.