I dieci libri dell'architettura di M. Vitruvio tradutti et commentati da monsignor Barbaro eletto patriarca d'aquileggia
The ten books of architecture by Marcus Pollio Vitruvius are the only text devoted to the art of building that remained from Roman Antiquity. The text was a great resource for Renaissance artists and architects who wished to learn and apply the Antique principles for their modern constructions. Initially, the text was hard to access, however, as it was written in Latin and was unillustrated. During the fifteenth century the first vernacular translation appeared in Italy, and in 1511, Fra Giovanni Giocondo published the first illustrated edition of the text. Vitruvius’ text became a point of reference for all subsequent architectural treatises and as such, the genre of Renaissance architecture publications is marked by a high level of inter-referentiality. This specific copy of Daniele Barbaro’s translation of Vitruvius is a very special case, however, as the text was (partially) illustrated by the well-known architect Andrea Palladio, who later published his own architectural treatises, and the book was owned by his direct successor, the architect Vincenzo Scamozzi.
Artwork Details
- Title: I dieci libri dell'architettura di M. Vitruvio tradutti et commentati da monsignor Barbaro eletto patriarca d'aquileggia
- Author: Marcus Pollio Vitruvius (Roman, active late 1st century BCE)
- Translator: Translation and commentary by Daniele Barbaro (Italian, 1514–1570)
- Publisher: Francesco Marcolini da Forli (Italian, Forli ca. 1500–after 1559 Venice)
- Designer: Illustrations designed in part by Andrea Palladio (Italian, Padua 1508–1580 Vicenza)
- Illustrator: Some illustrations attributed to Giuseppe Salviati (Giuseppe Porta, called Il Salviati) (Italian, Castelnuovo di Garfagnana ca. 1520–ca. 1575 Venice)
- Published in: Venice
- Date: 1556
- Medium: Printed book with woodcut illustrations
- Dimensions: 14 13/16 x 11 1/8 x 1 1/4 in. (37.6 x 28.2 x 3.1 cm)
- Classifications: Books, Ornament & Architecture
- Credit Line: Harris Brisbane Dick Fund, 1945
- Object Number: 45.82.3
- Curatorial Department: Drawings and Prints
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