The Ten Books On Architecture: Purpose

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Vitruvius

The Ten Books On Architecture


Translated by Morris Hickey Morgan
A Dover publication of 1960 originally published in 1914 by Harvard University Press
Purpose:
-A comprehensive tool for Caesar Augustus to enable his buildings worthy
throughout the Empire, in great praise of Caesar.
-For Vitruvius to rise to posterity In history
-a return of gratitude for his pension
Context / History: 1
st
Century BC
-Vitruvius worked under Augustus Father
-Worked building and repairing artillery
-Found opportunity to write on architecture in retirement as not to interrupt
Imperator Caesar Augustus

Scope of the Books (Contents)


Book I: Preface
-Education of The Architect
-Fundamental Principles of Arch.
-Departments of Architecture;
-Site of A City;
-City Walls;
-Directions of Streets
with remarks on the wind;
-Sites for public Buildings

Book II: Intro
-The Origin of the Dwelling House
-Primordial Substance according
to the physicists
-Brick
-Sand
-Lime
-Pozzolana
-Stone
-Methods for building walls
-Timber
-Highland and lowland fir

Book III: Intro
-On Symmetry: Temples and the
Human body
-Classification of Temples
-Proportion of intercolumniation and of
columns
-Foundation and Substructures of Temples
-Proportions of the base, capitals, and
entablatures
of the Ionic Order

Book IV: Intro
-Origins of the Three orders and
proportions of the Corinthian
-The Ornaments of the orders
-Proportions of the Doric Temples
-The Cella and The Pronaos
-How the Temple should face
-The doorways of Temples
-Tuscan Temples
-Circular Temples and other varieties
-Altars

Book V: Intro
-The Forum and the Basilica
-The Treasury, Prison, and Senate house
-The Theatre: Site, Foundations and
Acoustics
-Harmonics
-Sounding Vessels in the Theatre
-Plan of the Theatre
-Greek Theatres
-Acoustics of the site of a theatre
-Colonnades and Walks
-Baths
-The Palestra
-Harbors, Breakwaters, and Shipyards
Book VI: Intro
-On Climate and determining the style of
the house
-Symmetry, and Modifications I it to fit the
site
-Proportions of the principle Rooms
-Proper exposure of the different rooms
-How the rooms should be suited to the
station of the owner
-The Farmhouse
-The Greek House
- On Foundations and Substructures

Scope of the Books
Book VII: Intro
-Floors
-The Slaking of lime for stucco
-Vaultings and stucco work
-On stucco work in damp places, and on
decoration of dining rooms
-The decadence of the fresco painting
-Marble for use in stucco
-Natural Colors
-Cinnabar and Quiksilver
-Cinnabar (cont.)
-Artificial colors. Black
-Blue. Burnt Ochre
-White lead, Verdigris, and artificial
sandarach
-Purple
-Substitutes for purple, yellow ochre,
Malachite green, and indigo



Book VIII: Intro
-How to find water
-Rainwater
-Various properties of different waters
-Tests of good water
-leveling and leveling instruments
-Aqueducts, wells, and cisterns
Book IX: Intro
-The Zodiac and the planets
-The phases of the moon
-The course of the sun through the twelve
signs
-The Northern Constellations
-The Southern Constellations
-Astrology and the weather prognostics
-The Analemma and its applications
-Sundials and Water clocks


Book X: Intro
-Machines and implements
-Hoisting machines
-The elements of motion
-Engines for raising water
-Water wheels and water mills
-The water screw
-The pump of Ctesibus
-The water organ
-The hodometer
-Catapults or scorpiones
-Ballistae
-The stringing and tuning of catapults
-Seige machines
-The Tortoise
-Hegetors Tortoise
-Measures of defense
-Note on scamilli impares
-Index


The Triad

I. Strength, Durability,
Firmness, Firmitas
foundations carried to solid
ground

II. Convenience, Utility,
Commodity, Utilitas
No hindrance to use

III. Beauty, Delight, Venustas
due proportion and correct
principles of symmetry
Figure 9 p. 20 from: Architectural Theory Vol. 1 The
Vutruvian Fallacy, David Smith Capon, Pub. John Wiley &
Sons
Proportions
a correspondence among the measures of the members of an entire work

Vitruvian Man:
-Book III, chapter I, part 2
-The guide for which interrelated measures were presented to the ancients from
nature
Perfect number 10; 6; 6 + 10,
-ancients: 10 fingers
-Plato: composition of 10 digits
-mathematicians: 1/6 ; 1/3 ; ; 2/3 ; 5/6 ; 6
-Vitruvius adds them together to get perfect number 16
Temples
-Built to conform to symmetry and proportion. The column base is module when
derived from proper division of width of each temple style.
ex. Tetrastyle divided into 11.5 parts
Hexastyle divided into 18 parts
Octastyle divided into 24.5 parts 1part = column base width
Uomo Vitruviano Leonardo Da Vinci, plate from p.2 of David Smith Capon
What still holds true

Vitruvius states that man is imitative and teachable
and supreme to all other animals.
As is presented in the origins of the dwelling
House. Fire gave comfort and man started to
gather this gathering led to the building of
shelters that were a joy of conversation and
greater detail was added through time.
Greater knowledge came as man learned from
each other and from nature.
The architecture that Vitruvius prescripts is highly
dependent on nature from its site to proper
proportions of the 4 elements in materials to the
relation of human proportions in aesthetics and
use.

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