Alberti, Leone Battista, Architecture, 1755

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    <archimedes>
      <text>
        <body>
          <chap>
            <p type="main">
              <s>
                <pb xlink:href="003/01/130.jpg" pagenum="112"/>
              Matters, and ſo neceſſary to Mankind; it would
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              be a Shame to neglect any of thoſe Obſervati­
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              ons which voluntarily offered themſelves to me;
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              and I thought it the Duty of an honeſt and
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              ſtudious Mind, to endeavour to free this Sci­
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              ence, for which the moſt Learned among the
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              Ancients had always a very great Eſteem, from
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              its preſent Ruin and Oppreſſion. </s>
              <s>Thus I ſtood
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              doubtful, and knew not how to reſolve, whe­
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              ther I ſhould drop my Deſign, or go on. </s>
              <s>At
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              length my Love and Inclination for theſe Stu­
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              dies prevailed; and what I wanted in Capacity,
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              I made up in Diligence and Application. </s>
              <s>There
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              was not the leaſt Remain of any ancient Struc­
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              ture, that had any Merit in it, but what I went
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              and examined, to ſee if any Thing was to be
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              learned from it. </s>
              <s>Thus I was continually ſearch­
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              ing, conſidering, meaſuring and making
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              Draughts of every Thing I could hear of, till
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              ſuch Time as I had made myſelf perfect Ma­
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              ſter of every Contrivance or Invention that had
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              been uſed in thoſe ancient Remains; and thus
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              I alleviated the Fatigue of writing, by the
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              Thirſt and Pleaſure of gaining Information.
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              </s>
              <s>And indeed the Collecting together, rehearſing
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              without Meanneſs, reducing into a juſt Method,
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              writing in an accurate Style, and explaining
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              perſpicuouſly ſo many various Matters, ſo un­
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              equal, ſo diſperſed, and ſo remote from the
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              common Uſe and Knowledge of Mankind,
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              certainly required a greater Genius, and more
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              Learning than I can pretend to. </s>
              <s>But ſtill I
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              ſhall not repent of my Labour, if I have only
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              effected what I chiefly propoſed to myſelf,
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              namely, to be clear and intelligible to the
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              Reader, rather than Eloquent. </s>
              <s>How difficult
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              a Thing this is, in handling Subjects of this
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              Nature, is better known to thoſe who have
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              attempted it, then believed by thoſe who never
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              tried it. </s>
              <s>And I flatter myſelf, it will at leaſt
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              be allowed me, that I have wrote according to
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              the Rules of this Language, and in no obſcure
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              Style. </s>
              <s>We ſhall endeavour to do the ſame in
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              the remaining Parts of this Work. </s>
              <s>Of the
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              three Properties required in all Manner of
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              Buildings, namely, that they be accommoda­
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              ted to their reſpective Purpoſes, ſtout and
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              ſtrong for Duration, and pleaſant and delight­
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              ful to the Sight, we have diſpatched the two
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              firſt, and are now to treat of the third, which
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              is by much the moſt Noble of all, and very
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              neceſſary beſides.</s>
            </p>
            <p type="head">
              <s>CHAP. II.</s>
            </p>
            <p type="main">
              <s>
                <emph type="italics"/>
              Of Beauty and Ornament, their Effects and Difference, that they are owing
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              to Art and Exactneſs of Proportion; as alſo of the Birth and Progreſs
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              of Arts.
                <emph.end type="italics"/>
              </s>
            </p>
            <p type="main">
              <s>It is generally allowed, that the Pleaſure and
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              Delight which we feel on the View of any
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              Building, ariſe from nothing elſe but Beauty
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              and Ornament, ſince there is hardly any Man
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              ſo melancholy or ſtupid, ſo rough or unpoliſh­
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              ed, but what is very much pleaſed with what
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              is beautiful, and purſues thoſe Things which
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              are moſt adorned, and rejects the unadorned
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              and neglected; and if in any Thing that he
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              Views he perceives any Ornament is wanting,
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              he declares that there is ſomething deficient
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              which would make the Work more delightful
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              and noble. </s>
              <s>We ſhould therefore conſult Beauty
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              as one of the main and principal Requiſites in
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              any Thing which we have a Mind ſhould pleaſe
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              others. </s>
              <s>How neceſſary our Forefathers, Men
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              remarkable for their Wiſdom, looked upon this
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              to be, appears, as indeed from almoſt every
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              thing they did, ſo particularly from their Laws,
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              their Militia, their ſacred and all other pub­
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              lick Ceremonies; which it is almoſt incredible
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              what Pains they took to adorn; inſomuch that
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              one would almoſt imagine they had a Mind to
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              have it thought, that all theſe Things (ſo ab­
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              ſolutely neceſſary to the Life of Mankind) if
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              ſtript of their Pomp and Ornament, would be
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              ſomewhat ſtupid and inſipid. </s>
              <s>When we lift
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              up our Eyes to Heaven, and view the wonder­
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              ful Works of God, we admire him more for
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              the Beauties which we ſee, than for the Con­
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              veniencies which we feel and derive from
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              them. </s>
              <s>But what Occaſion is there to inſiſt upon
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              this? </s>
              <s>When weſee that Nature conſults Beauty
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              in a Manner to exceſs, in every Thing ſhe does,
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              even in painting the Flowers of the Field. </s>
              <s>If
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              Beauty therefore is neceſſary in any Thing, it
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              is ſo particularly in Building, which can never
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              be without it, without giving Offence both to
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              the Skilful and the Ignorant. </s>
              <s>How are we
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              moved by a huge ſhapeleſs ill-contrived Pile </s>
            </p>
          </chap>
        </body>
      </text>
    </archimedes>
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