Alberti, Leone Battista, Architecture, 1755

Table of figures

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              <s>
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              moves upon an odd Number of Feet. </s>
              <s>On
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              the contrary, they made their Apertures al­
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              ways in uneven Numbers, as Nature herſelf
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              has done in ſome Inſtances, for tho' in Ani­
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              mals ſhe has placed an Ear, an Eye, and a
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              Noſtril on each Side, yet the great Aperture,
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              the Mouth, ſhe has ſet ſingly in the Middle.
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              </s>
              <s>But among theſe Numbers, whether even or
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              uneven, there are ſome which ſeem to be
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              greater Favourites with Nature than others,
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              and more celebrated among learned Men;
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              which Architects have borrowed for the Com­
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              poſition of the Members of their Edifices,
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              upon Account of their being endued with
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              ſome Qualities which make them more valu­
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              able than any others.</s>
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              <s>THUS all the Philoſophers affirm, that Na­
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              ture herſelf conſiſts in a ternary Principle;
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              and ſo the Number five, when we conſider
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              the many Things, and thoſe ſo admirable and
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              various, which either follow this Number in
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              themſelves, or are derived from thoſe Things
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              which do, muſt be allowed to be divine in its
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              Nature, and worthily dedicated to the Gods
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              of the Arts, and particularly to
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              Mercury.
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              </s>
              <s> It is
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              certain, that Almighty God himſelf, the Crea­
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              tor of all Things, takes particular Delight in
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              the Number Seven, having placed ſeven Pla­
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              nets in the Skies, and having been pleaſed to
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              ordain with Regard to Man, the Glory of his
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              Creation, that Conception, Growth, Maturity
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              and the like, ſhould all be reduceable to this
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              Number Seven.
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              Ariſtotle
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              ſays, that the An­
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              cients never uſed to give a Child a Name, till
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              it was ſeven Days old, as not thinking it was
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              deſtined to Life before; becauſe both the Seed
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              in the Womb, and the Child after its Birth, is
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              liable to very dangerous Accidents till the ſe­
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              venth Day is over. </s>
              <s>Among odd Numbers,
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              that of Nine is highly celebrated, in which
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              Number that great Artiſt, Nature, made the
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              Spheres of Heaven; and the Philoſophers ſay,
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              that Nature in many, and thoſe the greateſt
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              Things, is contented with making uſe of the
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              ninth Part of a Whole. </s>
              <s>Thus forty is about
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              the Ninth Part of all the Days of the Year,
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              according to the Revolution of the Sun, and
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                <emph type="italics"/>
              Hippocrates
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              tells us, that in forty Days the
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                <emph type="italics"/>
              Foetus
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              is formed in the Womb. </s>
              <s>Moreover we
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              find, that in the Generality of acute Diſtem­
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              pers, the Patient recovers at the End of forty
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              Days. </s>
              <s>At the End of the ſame Time Wo­
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              men that are with Child of a Male, ceaſe their
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              Purgations, which, if they are delivered of a
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              Boy, after the ſame Term of forty Days, begin
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              afreſh. </s>
              <s>They ſay further, that the Child itſelf
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              for forty Days is never ſeen either to laugh or
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              ſhed Tears while it is awake; tho' in its Sleep
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              it will do both. </s>
              <s>And thus much of odd
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              Numbers.</s>
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              <s>As to even Numbers, ſome Philoſophers
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              teach, that the Number four is dedicated to
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              the Deity, and for this Reaſon it was uſed in
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              the Taking the moſt ſolemn Oaths, which
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              were repeated four Times; and they tell us,
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              that even among the moſt excellent Numbers,
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              that of ſix is the moſt perfect, or conſiſting of
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              all its own entire Parts, for Example:
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                <arrow.to.target n="table1"/>
              </s>
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            <table>
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              <row>
                <cell/>
                <cell>1.1.1.1.1.1.</cell>
                <cell>1.2.3.</cell>
                <cell>1.5.</cell>
                <cell>2.2.2.</cell>
              </row>
              <row>
                <cell/>
                <cell>6.</cell>
                <cell>6.</cell>
                <cell>6.</cell>
                <cell>6.</cell>
              </row>
              <row>
                <cell>2.4.</cell>
                <cell>3.3.</cell>
                <cell/>
                <cell/>
                <cell/>
              </row>
              <row>
                <cell>6.</cell>
                <cell>6.</cell>
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                <cell/>
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              </row>
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              <s>And it is certain, that the Number eight has
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              an extraordinary Power in the Nature of
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              Things. </s>
              <s>Except in
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              Ægypt,
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              we never find,
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              that any Child born in the eighth Month, lives
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              long; nay, and even the Mother herſelf who
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              is is ſo delivered in the eighth Month, when
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              the Child is dead, will certainly, we are told,
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              die ſoon afterwards. </s>
              <s>If the Father touches
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              his Wife in the eighth Month, the Child will
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              be full of foul Humours, and its Skin will be
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              leprous and Scurfy, and nauſeous to the Sight.
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                <emph type="italics"/>
              Ariſtotle
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              was of Opinion, that the Number
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              ten was the moſt perfect of all, which was
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              probably becauſe its ſquare is compoſed of four
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              continued Cubes put together. </s>
              <s>Upon theſe
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              Accounts the Architects have moſt frequently
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              made uſe of the foregoing Numbers; but in
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              their Apertures they ſeldom have exceeded
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              that of ten for an even, or nine for an odd
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              Number, eſpecially in Temples. </s>
              <s>We are now
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              to treat of the Finiſhing.</s>
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              <s>BY the Finiſhing I underſtand a certain
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              mutual Correſpondence of thoſe ſeveral Lines,
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              by which the Proportions are meaſured, where­
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              of one is the Length, the other the Breadth,
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              and the other the Height.</s>
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              <s>THE Rule of theſe Proportions is beſt ga­
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              thered from thoſe Things in which we find
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              Nature herfelf to be moſt compleat and ad­
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              mirable; and indeed I am every Day more
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              and more convinced of the Truth of
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              Pytha­
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              goras
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              's Saying, that Nature is ſure to act con­
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              ſiſtently, and with a conſtant Analogy in all
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              her Operations: From whence I conclude, </s>
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