Alberti, Leone Battista, Architecture, 1755

Table of figures

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              <s>
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              were to dwell for ever. </s>
              <s>The moſt probable
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              Account I can find of the firſt Original of theſe
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              Structures, is as follows: The
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              Getæ,
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              in the
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              moſt remote Antiquity, uſed at firſt, in the
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              Place where they interred a dead Body, to ſet
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              up a Stone for a Mark, or perhaps (as
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              Plato
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              in
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              his Laws more approves) a Tree, and afterwards
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              they uſed to raiſe ſomething of a Fence about
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              it to keep off the Beaſts from routing it up, or
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              moving it out of its Place; and when the ſame
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              Seaſon of the Year came round again, and they
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              ſaw that Field either chequered with Flowers,
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              or laden with Grain as it was when the Perſon
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              died, it was no wonder if it awakened in them
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              the Love of their dear Friends whom they had
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              loſt, and prompted them to go together to the
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              Place where they lay, relating and ſinging their
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              Actions and Sayings, and dreſſing up their Mo­
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              numents with whatever they thought would
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              embelliſh them. </s>
              <s>Hence perhaps aroſe the
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              Cuſtom among ſeveral different Nations, and
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              particularly among the
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              Greeks,
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              of adorning and
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              offering Sacrifices upon the Tombs of thoſe to
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              whom they were much obliged. </s>
              <s>They met,
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              ſays
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              Thucydides,
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              upon the Place, in Habits ſuit­
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              able to the Occaſion, bringing with them the firſt
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              Fruits of their Harveſt, thinking the publick
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              Performance of theſe Rites to be an Act of the
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              greateſt Piety and Devotion. </s>
              <s>From whence I
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              proceed to conjecture, that beſides raiſing the
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              Ground over the Place of Burial, and erecting
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              little Columns for Marks, they uſed alſo to raiſe
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              little Alars whereon to celebrate thoſe Sacrifices
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              with the greateſt Decency, and conſequently
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              they took care to make them as convenient and
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              beautiful as was poſſible. </s>
              <s>The Places where
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              theſe Tombs were erected, were various amongſt
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              the Ancients. </s>
              <s>According to the Pontificial
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              Law, it was not permitted to erect a Tomb in
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              any publick Square.
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              Plato
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              was of Opinion,
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              that a Man ought not to be in the leaſt offen­
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              ſive to human Society either alive or dead; and
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              for this Reaſon he ordained that the Dead
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              ſhould be interred without the City, in ſome
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              barren Place. </s>
              <s>In Imitation of this, others ſet
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              apart a certain determined Place of Burial, un­
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              der the open Air, and out of the Way of all
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              Reſort; which I highly approve: Others, on
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              the contrary, preſerved the Bodies of their
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              Dead in their Houſes, incloſed either in Salt or
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              Terraſs.
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              Mycerinus,
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              King of
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              Ægypt,
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              incloſed
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              the dead Body of his Daughter within a wood­
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              en Figure of a Bull, and commanded the Sa­
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              crificers to perform Obſequies in her Honour
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              every Day.
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              Servius
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              relates, that the Ancients
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              uſed to place the Sepulchres of their Sons, that
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              had the greateſt Stock of Merit and Nobility,
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              upon the Top of very high Hills. </s>
              <s>The
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              Alex­
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              andrians,
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              in the Time of
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              Strabo
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              the Hiſtorian,
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              had Gardens and Incloſures conſecrated wholly
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              to the Burial of the Dead. </s>
              <s>Our more modern
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              Anceſtors uſed to build little Chapels, along the
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              Sides of their great Churches, on purpoſe for
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              Tombs. </s>
              <s>All through the Country, which was
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              once the ancient
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              Latium,
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              we find the Burial­
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              places of whole Families, made under Ground,
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              with Urns ſtanding in Rows along the Walls
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              full of the Aſhes of the Deceaſed, with ſhort
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              Inſcriptions, and the Names of the Baker, Bar­
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              ber, Cook, Surgeon, and other Officers and Ser­
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              vants that were reckoned Part of the Family;
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              in thoſe Urns which incloſed the Aſhes of little
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              Children, once the Joy of their Mothers, they
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              made their Effigies in Stuc; but thoſe of grown
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              Men, eſpecially if they were noble, were made
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              of Marble. </s>
              <s>Theſe were the Cuſtoms of the
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              Ancients: Nor do I blame the making uſe of
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              any Place indifferently for burying the Body,
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              provided ſome diſtinguiſhed Place be choſen
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              for ſetting up an Inſcription in the Perſon's
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              Honour. </s>
              <s>Now what chiefly delights us in all
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              Tombs, is the Deſign of the Structure, and the
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              Epitaph. </s>
              <s>What Sort of Deſign the Ancients
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              approved moſt in theſe Works, I cannot ſo
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              eaſily affirm.
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              Auguſtus
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              's Sepulchre in
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              Rome
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              was built of ſquare Blocks of Marble, ſhaded
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              with Ever-greens, and at the Top ſtood his
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              Statue. </s>
              <s>In the Iſland of
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              Tyrina,
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              not far from
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              Carmania,
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              the Sepulchre of
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              Erythræa
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              was a
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              great Mound of Earth planted with wild Palm­
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              trees. </s>
              <s>The Sepulchre of
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              Zarina,
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              Queen of the
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                <emph type="italics"/>
              Saces,
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              was a Pyramid of three Sides, with a
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              Statue of Gold on the Top.
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              Archatheus,
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              one
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              of
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              Xerxes
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              's Lieutenants, had a Tomb of Earth
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              erected for him by the whole Army. </s>
              <s>But the
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              main Point which all ſeem to have aimed at,
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              was to have ſomething different from all others,
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              not as to condemn the Sepulchres of others,
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              but to draw the Eyes of Men to take the great­
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              er Notice of them: And from this general Uſe
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              of Sepulchres, and theſe conſtant Endeavours
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              to invent ſomething new in that Way, the
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              Conſequence at laſt was, that it was impoſſible
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              to think of any thing which had not already
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              been put in Practice to a very great Perfection,
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              and all were extremely beautiful in their ſeve­
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              ral Kinds. </s>
              <s>From the Obſervation I have made
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              of the numberleſs Works of this Nature, I find
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              that ſome had nothing in their Eye, but adorn­
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              ing that which was to contain the Body, while </s>
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