Alberti, Leone Battista, Architecture, 1755

Table of figures

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            <p type="head">
              <s>CHAP. IX.</s>
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              <s>
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              The Buſineſs and Duty of a good Architect, and wherein the Excellence of the
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              Ornaments conſiſts.
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              <s>A Prudent Architect will proceed in the
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              Method which we have been juſt laying
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              down. </s>
              <s>He will never ſet about his Work without
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              proper Caution and Advice. </s>
              <s>He will ſtudy the
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              Nature and Strength of the Soil where he is to
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              build, and obſerve, as well from a Survey of
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              Structures in the Neighbourhood, as from the
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              Practice and Uſe of the Inhabitants, what Ma­
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              terials, what Sort of Stone, Sand, Lime or
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              Timber, whether found on the Place, or
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              brought from other Parts, will beſt ſtand againſt
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              the Injuries of the Weather. </s>
              <s>He will ſet
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              out the exact Breadth and Depth of the Foun­
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              dations, and of the Baſement of the whole
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              Wall, and take an Account of every Thing
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              that is neceſſary for the Building, whether for
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              the outward Coat or the filling up, for the Li­
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              gatures, the Ribs, or the Apertures, the Roof,
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              the Incruſtation, for Pavements abroad, or
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              Floors within; he will direct which Way,
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              and by what Method every thing ſuperfluous,
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              noxious or offenſive ſhall be carried off by
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              Drains for conveying away the rain Water,
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              and keeping the Foundations dry, and by pro­
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              per Defences againſt any moiſt Vapours, or
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              even againſt any unexpected Floods or Vio­
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              lence from Winds or Storms. </s>
              <s>In a Word,
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              he will give Directions for every ſingle Part,
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              and not ſuffer any thing to eſcape his Notice
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              and Decree. </s>
              <s>And tho' all theſe Particulars ſeem
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              chiefly to relate to Convenience and Stability,
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              yet they carry this along with them, that if
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              neglected they deſtroy all the Beauty and Or­
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              nament of the Edifice. </s>
              <s>Now the Rules which
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              give the Ornaments themſelves their main Ex­
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              cellence, are as follows. </s>
              <s>Firſt all your Orna­
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              ments muſt be exactly regular, and perfectly
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              diſtinct, and without Confuſion: Your Em­
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              belliſhments muſt not be too much crowded
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              together or ſcattered as it were under Foot, or
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              thrown on in Heaps, but ſo aptly and neatly
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              diſtributed, that whoever ſhould go about to
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              alter their Situation, ſhould be ſenſible that
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              he deſtroyed the whole Beauty and Delicacy
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              of the Work. </s>
              <s>There is no Part whatſoever
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              but what the Artiſt ought to adorn; but there
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              is no Occaſion that all ſhould be adorned
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              equally, or that every thing ſhould be enriched
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              with equal Expence; for indeed I would not
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              have the Merit of the Work conſiſt ſo much
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              in Plenty as in Variety. </s>
              <s>Let the Builder fix
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              his richeſt Ornaments in the principal Places;
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              thoſe of a middling Sort, in Places of leſs Note,
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              and the meaneſt in the meaneſt. </s>
              <s>And here
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              he ſhould be particularly careful, not to mix
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              what is rich with any thing trifling, nothing
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              little with what is great, nor to ſet any thing
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              too large or high in narrow or cloſe Places;
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              tho' things which are not equal to each other
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              in Dignity, nor alike even in Species, may very
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              well be placed together, ſo it be done artfully
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              and ingeniouſly, and in ſuch a Manner, that
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              as the one appears ſolemn and majeſtick, the
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              other may ſhew chearful and pleaſant, and that
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              they may not only unite their different Beau­
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              ties for the Embelliſhment of the Structure,
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              but alſo ſeem as if the one without the other
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              had been imperfect; nor may it be amiſs in
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              ſome certain Places to intermix ſomewhat even
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              of a coarſe Sort, that what is noble may re­
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              ceive a yet further Addition from the Com­
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              pariſon: Always be ſure never to make a Con­
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              fuſion of the Orders, which will happen if you
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              mix the
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              Doric
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              Members with the
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              Corinthian,
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              as I obſerved before, or the
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              Corinthian
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              with
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              the
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              Ionic,
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              or the like. </s>
              <s>Let every Order have
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              its own regular Members, and thoſe all in their
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              proper Places, that nothing may appear per­
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              plexed or broken. </s>
              <s>Let ſuch Ornaments as are
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              proper to the Middle be placed in the Middle,
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              and let thoſe which are at equal Diſtances on
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              each Side, be proportioned exactly alike. </s>
              <s>In
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              ſhort, let every thing be meaſured, and put to­
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              gether with the greateſt Exactneſs of Lines and
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              Angles, that the Beholder's Eye may have a
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              clear and diſtinct View along the Cornices, be­
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              tween the Columns on the Inſide and without,
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              receiving every Moment freſh Delight from the
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              Variety he meets with, inſomuch, that after the
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              moſt careful and even repeated Views, he ſhall
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              not be able to depart without once more turn­
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              ing back to take another Look, nor, upon the
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              moſt critical Examination, be able in any Part
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              of the whole Structure to find one Thing un­</s>
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