Alberti, Leone Battista, Architecture, 1755

Page concordance

< >
Scan Original
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
< >
page |< < of 320 > >|
    <archimedes>
      <text>
        <body>
          <chap>
            <p type="main">
              <s>
                <pb xlink:href="003/01/033.jpg" pagenum="22"/>
              be ask'd, there is none of us but would readily
                <lb/>
              ſay, that ſuch a Thing might be remedied and
                <lb/>
              corrected. </s>
              <s>Indeed every one cannot propoſe
                <lb/>
              the Remedy, but only ſuch as are well practi­
                <lb/>
              ced and experienced that Way. </s>
              <s>It is therefore
                <lb/>
              the Part of a wiſe Man to weigh and review
                <lb/>
              every particular thoroughly in his Mind: That
                <lb/>
              he may not afterwards be forced to ſay, either
                <lb/>
              in the Middle or at the End of this Work, I
                <lb/>
              wiſh this, or I wiſh that were otherwiſe. </s>
              <s>And
                <lb/>
              it is really ſurprizing, what a hearty Puniſh­
                <lb/>
              ment a Man ſuffers for a Work ill managed:
                <lb/>
              For in Proceſs of Time, he himſelf at Length
                <lb/>
              finds out the Miſtakes he fooliſhly made in the
                <lb/>
              Beginning for want of due Reflection: And
                <lb/>
              then, unleſs he pulls it to pieces and reforms
                <lb/>
              it, he is continually repenting and fretting at
                <lb/>
              the Eye-ſore; or if he pulls it down, he is
                <lb/>
              blamed upon Account of the Loſs and Expence,
                <lb/>
              and accuſed of Levity and Inſtability of Mind.
                <lb/>
                <emph type="italics"/>
              Suetonius
                <emph.end type="italics"/>
              tells us, that
                <emph type="italics"/>
              Julius Cæſar
                <emph.end type="italics"/>
              having
                <lb/>
              begun a Structure at the Lake
                <emph type="italics"/>
              Nemorenſis
                <emph.end type="italics"/>
              from
                <lb/>
              the very Foundations, and compleated it at
                <lb/>
              vaſt Expence, pull'd it all down again, becauſe
                <lb/>
              it was not exactly in all reſpects to his Mind.
                <lb/>
              </s>
              <s>For which he is certainly very much to be
                <lb/>
              blamed, even by us his Poſterity, either for
                <lb/>
              not ſufficiently conſidering what was requiſite
                <lb/>
              at firſt, or elſe afterwards for diſliking thro'
                <lb/>
              Levity what might really not be amiſs. </s>
              <s>I
                <lb/>
              therefore always highly commend the ancient
                <lb/>
              Cuſtom of Builders, who not only in Draughts
                <lb/>
              and Paintings, but in real Models of Wood or
                <lb/>
              other Subſtance, examin'd and weigh'd over
                <lb/>
              and over again, with the Advice of Men of the
                <lb/>
              beſt Experience, the whole Work and the Ad­
                <lb/>
              meaſurements of all its Parts, before they put
                <lb/>
              themſelves to the Expence or Trouble. </s>
              <s>By
                <lb/>
              making a Model you will have an Opportunity,
                <lb/>
              thoroughly to weigh and conſider the Form
                <lb/>
              and Situation of your Platform with reſpect to
                <lb/>
              the Region, what Extent is to be allow'd to
                <lb/>
              it, the Number and Order of the Parts, how
                <lb/>
              the Walls are to be made, and how ſtrong and
                <lb/>
              firm the Covering; and in a Word all thoſe
                <lb/>
              Particulars which we have ſpoken of in the
                <lb/>
              preceding Book: And there you may eaſily
                <lb/>
              and freely add, retrench, alter, renew, and in
                <lb/>
              ſhort change every Thing from one End to
                <lb/>
              t'other, till all and every one of the Parts are
                <lb/>
              juſt as you would have them, and without Fault.
                <lb/>
              </s>
              <s>Add likewiſe, that you may then examine and
                <lb/>
              compute (what is by no means to be neglected)
                <lb/>
              the Particulars and Sum of your future Ex­
                <lb/>
              pence, the Size, Heighth, Thickneſs, Num­
                <lb/>
              ber, Extent, Form, Species and Quality of
                <lb/>
              all the Parts, how they are to be made, and
                <lb/>
              by what Artificers; becauſe you will thereby
                <lb/>
              have a clear and diſtinct Idea of the Numbers
                <lb/>
              and Forms of your Columns, Capitals, Baſes,
                <lb/>
              Corniſhes, Pediments, Incruſtations, Pave­
                <lb/>
              ments, Statues and the like, that relates either
                <lb/>
              to the Strength or Ornament. </s>
              <s>I muſt not
                <lb/>
              omit to obſerve, that the making of curious,
                <lb/>
              poliſh'd Models, with the Delicacy of Painting,
                <lb/>
              is not required from an Architect that only
                <lb/>
              deſigns to ſhew the real Thing itſelf; but is
                <lb/>
              rather the Part of a vain Architect, that makes
                <lb/>
              it his Buſineſs by charming the Eye and
                <lb/>
              ſtriking the Fancy of the Beholder, to divert
                <lb/>
              him from a rigorous Examination of the Parts
                <lb/>
              which he ought to make, and to draw him
                <lb/>
              into an Admiration of himſelf. </s>
              <s>For this Rea­
                <lb/>
              ſon I would not have the Models too exactly
                <lb/>
              finiſh'd, nor too delicate and neat, but plain
                <lb/>
              and ſimple, more to be admired for the Con­
                <lb/>
              trivance of the Inventor, than the Hand of
                <lb/>
              the Workman. </s>
              <s>Between the Deſign of the
                <lb/>
              Painter and that of the Architect, there is this
                <lb/>
              Difference, that the Painter by the Exactneſs
                <lb/>
              of his Shades, Lines and Angles, endeavours
                <lb/>
              to make the Parts ſeem to riſe from the Can­
                <lb/>
              vaſs, whereas the Architect, without any Re­
                <lb/>
              gard to the Shades, makes his Relieves from
                <lb/>
              the Deſign of his Platform, as one that would
                <lb/>
              have his Work valued, not by the apparent
                <lb/>
              Perſpective, but by the real Compartments
                <lb/>
              founded upon Reaſon. </s>
              <s>In a Word, you ought
                <lb/>
              to make ſuch Models, and conſider them by
                <lb/>
              yourſelf, and with others ſo diligently, and
                <lb/>
              examine them over and over ſo often, that
                <lb/>
              there ſhall not be a ſingle Part in your whole
                <lb/>
              Structure, but what you are thoroughly ac­
                <lb/>
              quainted with, and know what Place and how
                <lb/>
              much Room it is to poſſeſs, and to what Uſe to
                <lb/>
              be applied. </s>
              <s>But above all, nothing requires
                <lb/>
              our Attention ſo much as the Covering, which
                <lb/>
              ſeems in its Nature, if I miſtake not, beyond
                <lb/>
              any Thing elſe in Architecture to have been
                <lb/>
              of the greateſt and firſt Convenience to Man­
                <lb/>
              kind; ſo that indeed it muſt be own'd, that
                <lb/>
              it was upon the Account of this Covering that
                <lb/>
              they invented not only the Wall and thoſe
                <lb/>
              other Parts which are carried up with the Wall
                <lb/>
              and neceſſarily accompany it, but alſo thoſe
                <lb/>
              Parts which are made under Ground, ſuch as
                <lb/>
              Conduits, Channels, Receptacles of Rain
                <lb/>
              Water, Sewers and the like. </s>
              <s>For my Part,
                <lb/>
              that have had no ſmall Experience in Things of
                <lb/>
              this Nature, I indeed know the Difficulty of </s>
            </p>
          </chap>
        </body>
      </text>
    </archimedes>
Impressum