ABC/181 - The Architecture of Marcus Vitruvius Pollio; translated by Joseph Gwilt

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ABC/181

Title

The Architecture of Marcus Vitruvius Pollio; translated by Joseph Gwilt

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  • 1826 (Creation)

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1 volume

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(fl.80-15BCE)

Biographical history

Commonly known as Vitruvius, he was a Roman author, architect, civil engineer and military engineer during the 1st century BCE, known for his multi-volume work entitled De architectura. His discussion of perfect proportion in architecture and the human body led to the famous Renaissance drawing by Leonardo da Vinci of Vitruvian Man.

Wikipedia entry: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vitruvius

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A Book containing Ten Books on Marcus Vitruvius Polio's Architectural Work. Contents of the First Book: Introduction; What Architecture is and of the Education of the Architect; Things on which Architecture Depends; Branches of Architecture; Choice of Healthy Situations; Foundation of Walls and Towers; Distribution and Situation of Buildings within the Walls; Situations for Public Buildings. Second Book: Origin of Buildings; Origin of all Things according to the opinions of Philosophers; Bricks; Sand; Lime; Pozzolana; Stone Quarries; Kinds of Walls; Timber; Firs called Supernas and Infernas, and of the Apennines. Third Book: Design and Symmetry of Temples; Five Species of Temples; Foundations, and Columns and their Ornaments. Fourth Book: Origin of the Three Sorts of Columns, and the Corinthian Capital; Ornaments of Columns; Doric Proportions; Interior of the Cell and the Arrangement of the Pronaos; Different Aspects of Temples; Proportions of the Doors of Temples; Tuscan Proportions, Circular Temples and other Species; Altars to the Gods. Fifth Book: Forum and Basilica; Treasury, Prison and Curia; Theatre and its Healthy Situation; Harmony; Vases used in Theatres; Shape of the Theatre; Portico and other Parts of the Theatre; Three Sorts of Scenes and the Theatres of the Greeks; Porticos and Passages behind Scenes; Arrangement and Parts of Baths; Palaestra; Harbours and other Buildings in Water. Sixth Book: Situation of Buildings according to the Nature of different Places; Proportions of Private Buildings to suit the Nature of their Sites; Courts (Cavaedia); Courts (Atria), Wings or Aisles (Alae), the Tablium and the Peristylum; Triclinia, OEci, Exedrae, Pinacothecae, and their Dimensions; Grecian OEci; Propes Aspects of Different Sorts of Buildings; Forms of Houses suited to Different Ranks of Persons; Proportions of Houses in the Country; Arrangement and Parts of Grecian House; Strenght of Buildings. Seventh Book: Pavements; Tempering Lime for Stucco; Stucco Work; Stucco Work in Damp Places; Use of Painting in Buildings; Preparation of Marble for Plastering; Natural Colours; Vermilion and Quicksilver; Preparation of Vermilion; Artificial Colours; Blue and Burnt Yellow; White Lead, Verdigrease and Red Lead; Purple; Factitious Colours. Eight Book: Method of Finding Water; Rain Water; Nature of Various Waters; Qualities of Waters in certain Places; Means of Judging Water; Levelling and the Instruments used for that Purpose; Conducting Water. Ninth Book: Method of Doubling the Area of a Square; Method of Constructing a Right Angled Triangle; Method of detecting Silver when mixed with Gold; The Universe and the Planets; The Sun's Course through the Twelve Signs; Northern Constellations; Southern Constellations; Construction of Dials by the Analemma; Various Dials and their Inventors. Tenth Book: Machines and Engines; Machines of Draught; Another Sort of Machine of Draught; Ctesiphon's Contrivance for Removing Great Weights; Discovery of the Quarry whence Stone was procured for Temple of Diana in Ephesus; Principles of Mechanics; Engines for Raising Water; Sort of Tympanum and Water Mills; Water Screw; Machine of Ctesibius for Raising Water to a Considerable Height; Water Engines; Measuring a Journey; Cataluptae and Scorpions; Construction and Proportions of the Balista; Machines of Attack; Tortoise for Filling Ditches; Machines for Defence. Illustrations in text: Plan of Rome; Mount Athos, as proposed to be sculptured by Dinocrates; Plan of Athens; Corinthian, Ionic, and Doric Orders; A Forum; Prothyrum and Roman Shops; Specimen of Ancient Fresco Painting; View of an Aqueduct; The Earth, and the Signs of the Zodiac; Catapultae from the Trajan Column. At the end of the volume there is a suite of original engravings depicting scaled plans, elevations and sections of several Temple Designs; Types of Bricks; Diagram of the Winds; Doric, Ionic and Corinthian Orders.

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  • English

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    Loose spine and pages

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