Notitia architectonica Italiana, or Concise notices of the buildings and architects of Italy, preceded by a short essay on civil architecture, and an ... of the ancient architecture of the Romans - Softcover
Synopsis
This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated.1818 Excerpt: ... VIEW ANCIENT ARCHITECTURE ROMANS. The buildings erected in Italy, from the 12th to the 17th century, are those chiefly indicated in this Work; but as a reference to the architectural productions of that country, it had been incomplete, without some account of those constructed antecedent to that period. It is therefore considered necessary to begin with a brief view of the ancient architecture of the Romans; a sketch of the prominent features of which, is all that is intended in this Introduction. The Temples of Egypt were imposing more from the grandeur of their general masses, than from aught abstractedly beautiful and elegant in their detail; they mostly enclosed but a small cell, which was probably entered by none but the XXX11 ANCIENT ARCHITECTURE. priests themselves. Obelisks, colossal statues, alleys of sphinxes or lions, generally formed the approach to them. Flat roofs, terminating in an immense fillet which crowned an enormous cavetto, afforded fine terraces for the use of the priest in his astronomical observations, perhaps his chief occupation. Walls engraven with hieroglyphics, not inelegantly arranged--stupendous blocks of granite and porphyry, highly polished--tall obelisks and colossal sitting statues carved out of a single piece of stone, and pyramids of tremendous dimensions, give the works of the Egyptians a more than human appearance, to which sentiment the perfect state in which they remain after a lapse of forty centuries, not a little contributes. The simple forni of the Greek temple, with its elegant detail, double and sometimes triple peristyles, is calculated to charm--that of the Egyptian to surprize. A roof, with a gentle inclination continued from the front to the rear of the temple, formed at those parts gables or pediments wh...
"synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.
