Vitruvius : writing the body of architecture /

McEwen (Canadian Centre for Architecture) presents a well-reasoned and impeccably researched argument that ties the animating ideas of Vitruvius's seminal text of the late 15th century, De architectura (more commonly known as The Ten Books on Architecture), to those of the early Roman Republican society in which it was written. McEwen's work is organized thematically into four chapters titled "The Angelic Body," "The Herculean Body," "The Body Beautiful," and "The Body of the King," which explore commonalities between De architectura and various parallel cultural manifestations. The book provides both a useful context for understanding Vitruvius's ideas and an enlightening examination of the beliefs and values favored by Augustus Caesar, to whom Vitruvius's work is dedicated. The book is not an introductory work; it would be best understood by readers with some understanding of Roman history and culture and familiarity with De architectura. Though some effort is required to relate the various lines of discussion to each other and to the accompanying black-and-white illustrations, the book, like the author's earlier book, Socrates' Ancestor: An Essay on Architectural Beginnings (1993), is an exemplar of scholarship in architectural history. ^BSumming Up: Recommended. Upper-division undergraduates through faculty. D. Sachs Kansas State University

Marcus Vitruvius Pollio was a Roman architect of marginal success, better known as a theorist and as the author of De Architectura Libri Decem (The Ten Books on Architecture), written between 33 and 14 B.C.E. and the only significant ancient treatise on architecture known to the modern world. The best-remembered words of the treatise are his list of the three requirements in building: strength, utility, and beauty. It is said that, without an understanding of Vitruvius, any discussion of architectural theory based on classical principles is not possible. First printed in 1486, the treatise has appeared in numerous editions since then. McEwen (Socrates' Ancestor: An Essay on Architectural Beginnings) takes a comprehensively historiographic approach to the work, examining the political climate in which Vitruvius worked: under the rule of the emperor Augustus, Rome's governance moved from oligarchic to monarchic. In the first of four main chapters, McEwen explores her fascination with his use of the word corpus (body) and applies it to the transformation of architectural Rome to imperial showplace. Subsequent chapters address Vitruvius's relation to Augustus, his chapter on anthopometric proportion, and the ambitious rebuilding of Rome by Augustus. Based on her own translation, this study is almost hermeneutic in its meticulous and scholarly treatment of the subject. For advanced graduate students in classics and architectural theory only.-Paul Glassman, New York Sch. of Interior Design Lib., New York (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.