Alberti, Leone Battista, Architecture, 1755

Table of figures

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              <s>
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              Wood; let his Incruſtations or outward Coat
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              be adorned with plain Figures in Stuc, or with
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              ſome ſlight Painting, and his Cornices at moſt
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              of common Marble. </s>
              <s>Not that he muſt abſo­
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              lutely reject the moſt precious Materials; but
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              he ſhould place them only in the moſt honour­
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              able Parts, like Gems in a Crown. </s>
              <s>But to give
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              my Opinion of the whole Matter in one Word,
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              I think that a ſacred Edifice ſhould be adorned
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              in ſuch a Manner, that it ſhould be impoſſible
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              to add any Thing that can conduce either to
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              Majeſty, Beauty or Wonder: Whereas a pri­
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              vate Structure ſhould be ſo contrived, that it
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              ſhall be impoſſible to take any Thing from it,
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              without leſſening its Dignity. </s>
              <s>Other Buildings,
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              that is to ſay, the Profane of a publick Nature,
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              ſhould obſerve the Medium between theſe two
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              Extremes. </s>
              <s>Buildings of a private Sort ſhould
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              keep ſtrictly to the Ornaments proper to them,
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              only they may be made uſe of here with ſome­
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              what more Freedom. </s>
              <s>For Inſtance, if the Co­
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              lumns be of rather a ſmaller Diameter, or elſe
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              more turgid, or if the Diminution of the Top
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              of the Shaft be greater than the exact Propor­
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              tions for publick Structures, they ought not
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              here to be condemned, provided they do not
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              look deformed or unſightly. </s>
              <s>And whereas in
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              publick Works not the leaſt Deviation is allow­
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              ed from the exacteſt Laws of Proportion, in
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              private Works ſuch a Deviation is often hand­
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              ſome and commendable. </s>
              <s>Thus we may ob­
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              ſerve with what a beautiful Effect ſome of the
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              more lively Architects uſed in the Doors of
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              Halls, inſtead of Jambs to place huge Statues
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              of Slaves, which ſupported the Lintel on their
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              Heads; and to make Columns, eſpecially in the
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              Porticoes of their Gardens, with Knots in the
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              Shafts, in Imitation of Trees that had their
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              Branches cut off, or girded round with a Cinc­
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              ture of Boughs, or with their whole Shaft
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              wreathed and enriched with Leaves, Birds, and
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              Channels: or where they would make the
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              Work extremely ſtrong, we find them erect­
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              ing ſquare Columns, fortified with a half Co­
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              lumn on each Side; which inſtead of Capitals
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              had either Baskets full of Vine Branches laden
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              with Fruit, or the Head of a Palm-tree riſing
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              up and full of Leaves, or a Knot of Serpents
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              wreathed together, or an Eagle with its Wings
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              expanded in Token of Pleaſure, or a
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              Meduſa
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              's
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              Head with the Snakes hiſſing at each other, or
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              any other Fancy of the ſame Kind; to enu­
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              merate all which, would be endleſs. </s>
              <s>But in all
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              theſe Liberties the Architect muſt be as care­
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              ful as poſſible to keep the ſeveral Parts within
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              the Terms of the regular Lines and Angles, and
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              not ſuffer his Work to want a due Proportion
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              in its ſeveral Members: So that the Beholder
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              may immediately find, that his Deſign was to
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              be wanton in theſe Particulars, and to indulge a
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              Freedom of Invention. </s>
              <s>And as of the Parlours,
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              Paſſages and Apartments, ſome are more pub­
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              lick, ſome more concealed, and as it were hid­
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              den; the former may be allowed ſomewhat
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              more of the Splendor of a publick Structure,
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              but yet ſo as not to create Envy; and in the
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              latter we may allow ourſelves more Liberty in
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              departing out of the common Road, and con­
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              triving ſomething new.</s>
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            <p type="head">
              <s>CHAP. II.</s>
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              <s>
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              Of the Adorning of private Houſes, both in City and Country.
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              <s>But as of the Houſes of private Perſons,
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              ſome are in the City, and ſome in the
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              Country, we muſt ſay ſomething of the Orna­
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              ments proper to each of theſe. </s>
              <s>Between a
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              Houſe in Town and a Houſe in the Country,
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              there is this further Difference, beſides what we
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              took notice of in the laſt Book, that the Orna­
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              ments, for that in Town ought to be much
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              more grave than thoſe for a Houſe in the Coun­
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              try, where all the gayeſt and moſt licentious
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              Embelliſhments are allowable. </s>
              <s>There is an­
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              other Difference too between them, which is,
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              that in Town you are obliged to moderate
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              yourſelves in ſeveral Reſpects according to the
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              Privileges of your Neighbour; whereas you have
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              much more Liberty in the Country. </s>
              <s>In Town
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              you muſt not raiſe your Platform or Baſement
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              too high above your Neighbours, nor let your
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              Portico project too far forwards from the Line
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              of the adjacent Buildings. </s>
              <s>The Thickneſs and
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              Height of the Walls at
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              Rome
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              anciently were
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              not ſuffered to be according to every Man's
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              particular Fancy, but by an old Law were all
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              to be made according to a certain Standard;
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              and
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              Julius Cæſar,
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              upon account of the Miſ­
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              chiefs that might happen from bad Foundati­</s>
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