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VITRUVIUS (MARCUS VITRUVIUS POLLIO)

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Originally appearing in Volume V28, Page 151 of the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica.
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VITRUVIUS (See also:MARCUS VITRUVIUS See also:POLLIO) , See also:Roman architect and engineer, author of a celebrated See also:work on See also:architecture. Nothing is known concerning him except what can be gathered from his own writings. Owing to the See also:discovery of See also:inscriptions See also:relating to the Gens Vitruvia at Formiae in See also:Campania (Mola di See also:Gaeta), it has been suggested that he was a native of that See also:city, and he has been less reasonably connected with See also:Verona on the strength of an existing See also:arch of the 3rd See also:century, which is inscribed with the name of a later architect of the same See also:family name—" See also:Lucius Vitruvius Cerdo, a freedman of Lucius." From Vitruvius himself we learn that he was appointed, in the reign of See also:Augustus, together with three others, a See also:superintendent of balistae and other military engines, a See also:post which, he says, he owed to the friendly See also:influence of the See also:emperor's See also:sister, probably See also:Octavia (De Architectura, i. pref.). In another passage (v. 1) he describes a See also:basilica and adjacent aedes See also:Augusti, of which hewas the architect. From viii. 3 it has been supposed that he had served in See also:Africa in the See also:time of See also:Julius See also:Caesar, probably as a military engineer, but the words hardly See also:bear this See also:interpretation. He speaks of himself as being See also:low in stature, and at the time of his See also:writing bowed down by See also:age and See also:ill-See also:health (ii. pref.). He appears to have enjoyed no See also:great reputation as an architect, and, with philosophic contentment, records that he possessed but little See also:fortune. Though a great student of See also:Greek See also:philosophy and See also:science, he was unpractised in literature, and his See also:style is very involved and obscure. To a great extent the theoretical and See also:historical parts of his work are compiled from earlier Greek authors, of whom he gives a See also:list at i. r and viii. 3.

The See also:

practical portions, on the contrary, are evidently the result of his own professional experience, and are written with much sagacity, and in a far clearer style than the more pedantic chapters, in which he gives the somewhat fanciful theories of the Greeks. Some sections of the latter, especially those on the connexion between See also:music and architecture, the See also:scale of See also:harmonic See also:pro-portions, and the Greek use of See also:bronze vases to reverberate and strengthen the actors' voices in the See also:theatre, are now almost wholly unintelligible. Vitruvius's name is mentioned by See also:Frontinus in his work on the aqueducts of See also:Rome; and most of what See also:Pliny says (Hilt. Nat. See also:xxxv. and See also:xxxvi.) about methods of See also:wall-See also:painting, the preparation of the See also:stucco See also:surface, and other practical details in See also:building is taken almost word for word from Vitruvius, especially from vi. 1, though without any See also:acknowledgment of the source. The See also:treatise De Architectura Libri Decem is dedicated to Augustus. Lost for a See also:long time, it was rediscovered in the 15th century at St See also:Gall; the See also:oldest existing MS. See also:dates from the loth century. From the See also:early See also:Renaissance down to a comparatively See also:recent time the influence of this treatise has been remarkably great. Throughout the See also:period of the classical revival Vitruvius was the See also:chief authority studied by architects, and in every point his precepts were accepted as final. In some cases a failure to understand his meaning led to curious results; for example, the See also:medieval See also:custom, not uncommon in See also:England, of placing rows of earthenware jars under the See also:floor of the stalls in See also:church choirs, appears to have been an See also:attempt to follow out suggestions raised by Vitruvius as to the advantages of placing bronze vases See also:round the auditorium of theatres. See also:Bramante, See also:Michelangelo, See also:Palladio, Vignola and earlier architects were careful students of the work of Vitruvius, which through them has largely influenced the architecture of almost all See also:European countries. Bk. i. opens with a See also:dedication to Augustus.

C. I is on the science of architecture generally, and the branches of knowledge with which the trained architect ought to be acquainted, viz. See also:

grammar, music, painting, See also:sculpture, See also:medicine, See also:geometry, See also:mathematics and See also:optics; c. 2 is on the See also:general principles of architectural See also:design; c. 3 on the considerations which determine a design, such as strength, utility, beauty; c. 4 on the nature of different sorts of ground for sites; c. 5 on walls of fortification; c. 6 on aspects towards the See also:north, See also:south and other points; c. 7 on the proper situations of temples dedicated to the various deities. Bk. ii. relates to materials (See also:preface about See also:Dinocrates, architect to See also:Alexander the Great). C. i is on the earliest dwellings of See also:man; c. 2 on systems of Thales, Heraclitus, See also:Democritus, &c.; c. 3 on bricks, c.

4 on See also:

sand; c. 5 on See also:lime; c. 6 on pozzolana; c. 7 on kinds of See also:stone for building; c. 8 on methods of constructing walls in stone, See also:brick, See also:concrete and See also:marble, and on the materials for stucco; c. 9 on See also:timber, time for See also:felling it, seasoning, &c.; and c. Io on the See also:fir trees of the See also:Apennines. Bk. iii., on styles, has a preface on See also:ancient Greek writers. C. I is on symmetry and proportion; c. 2 on various forms of Greek temples, e.g in antis, See also:prostyle, See also:peripteral, See also:dipteral, hypaethral;i c. 3 on inter-columniation—See also:pycnostyle, See also:systyle, See also:eustyle, &c.; c.

4 on See also:

foundations, steps and stylobates; c. 5 on the Ionic See also:order, its See also:form and details. Bk. iv., on styles and orders, has a preface to Augustus on the See also:scope of the work. The subjects of its nine chapters are—(I) the Corinthian, Ionic and Doric orders; (2) the ornaments of capitals, &c.; (3) the Doric order; (4) proportions of the See also:cella and pronaos; (5) sites of temples; (6) doorways of temples and their architraves; (7) the See also:Etruscan or Tuscan order of- temples; (8) circular temples; (9) altars. Bk. v., on public buildings, has a preface on the theories of See also:Pythagoras, &c. Its twelve chapters treat—(I) of fora and basilicae, with a description of his own basilica at Fanum; (2) of the adjuncts of a See also:forum (See also:aerarium, See also:prison and See also:curia) ; (3) of theatres, their site and construction; (4) of See also:laws of harmonics; (5) of the arrangement of tuned bronze vases in theatres for acoustic purposes; (6) of Roman theatres; (7) of Greek theatres; (8) of the selection of sites of theatres according to acoustic principles; (9) of porticus and covered walks; (io) of See also:baths, their floors, hypocausts, the construction and use of various parts; (II) of palaestrae, xysti and other Greek buildings for the exercise of athletes; (12) ofharbours and quays. Bk. vi. is on sites and planning, and the preface treats of various Greek authors. C. i is on selection of sites; c. 2 on the planning of buildings to suit different sites; c. 3 on private houses, their construction and styles, the names of the different apartments; C. 4 on the aspects suited for the various rooms; c. 5 on buildings fitted for See also:special positions; c.

6 on farms and See also:

country houses; C. 7 on Greek houses and the names of various parts; c. 8 on construction of houses in See also:wood, stone, brick or concrete. Bk. vii., mostly on methods of decoration, has a preface (as usual) on the opinions of ancient Greek writers, with lists of Greek sculptors, architects and writers on architecture, and of Roman architects. C. i has for its subject pavements and roads, their construction, See also:mosaic floors ; c. 2 is on See also:white stucco for walls (See also:opus albarium) ; c. 3 on concrete vaults, See also:gypsum See also:mouldings, stucco prepared for painting; c. 4 on building of hollow walls to keep out the See also:damp, wall decoration by various processes; c. 5 on methods and styles of wall painting, the debased See also:taste of his time; c. 6 on See also:fine stucco made of pounded marble—three coats to receive wall paintings; c. 7 on See also:colours used for mural decoration; c. 8 on red See also:lead (minium) and See also:mercury, and how to use the latter to See also:extract the See also:gold from worn-out pieces of stuff or See also:embroidery; c.

9 on the preparation of red lead and the method of encaustic painting with hot See also:

wax, finished by See also:friction; cc. Io-14 on artificial colours—See also:black, See also:blue, See also:purple; c. to white lead and ostrum, i.e. murex purple and imitations of murex dye. ' The excavations made in 1887 have shown that Vitruvius was right in describing the great See also:temple of Olympian See also:Zeus at See also:Athens as being octastyle. The previously almost universal See also:opinion that it was See also:decastyle had led to the needless theory that the passage containing this statement was corrupt. Bk. viii. is on See also:hydraulic See also:engineering, and the preface on theories of the ancients. C. I treats of the finding of See also:good See also:water ; c. 2 of See also:rain-water and See also:rivers—rivers in various countries ; c. 3 of hot springs, See also:mineral See also:waters, with an See also:account of the chief medicinal springs of the See also:world; c. 4 of selection of water by observation and experiment; c. 5 of See also:instruments for levelling used by See also:aqueduct See also:engineers; c. 6 of construction of aqueducts, pipes of lead, See also:clay, &c., and other See also:matter on the subject of water-See also:supply.

Bk. ix. is on See also:

astronomy. The preface treats of Greek sciences, geometry, the discovery of specific gravity by See also:Archimedes, and' other discoveries of the Greeks, and of See also:Romans of his time who have vied with the Greeks—See also:Lucretius in his poem De Rerum Nature, See also:Cicero in See also:rhetoric, and See also:Varro in See also:philology, as shown by his De Lingua See also:Latina? The subjects of the eight chapters are—(I) the signs of the See also:zodiac and the seven See also:planets; (2) the phases of the See also:moon; (3) the passage of the See also:sun through the zodiac; (4) and (5) various constellations; (6) the relation of astrological influences to nature; (7) the mathematical divisions of the See also:gnomon; (8) various kinds of sundials and their inventors. Bk. x. is on machinery, with a preface concerning a See also:law at ancient See also:Ephesus compelling an architect to See also:complete any public building he had undertaken; this, he says, would be useful among the Romans of his time.3 The chapters are—(i) on various See also:machines, such as scaling-ladders, windmills, &c.; (2) on windlasses, axles, pulleys and See also:cranes for moving heavy weights, such as those used by See also:Chersiphron in building the great temple of See also:Diana at Ephesus, and on the discovery by a shepherd of a See also:quarry of marble required to build the same temple; (3) on See also:dynamics; (4) on machines for See also:drawing water; (5) on wheels for See also:irrigation worked by a See also:river; (6) on raising water by a revolving See also:spiral See also:tube; (7) on the See also:machine of Ctesibius for raising water to a height; (8) on a very complicated water See also:engine, the description of which is not intelligible, though Vitruvius remarks that he has tried to make the matter clear; (9) on machines with wheels to See also:register the distance travelled, either by See also:land or water; (to) on the construction of See also:scot ones for hurling stones, (II) and (12) on balistae and catapults; (13) on battering-rams and other machines for the attack of a fortress; (14) on See also:shields (testudines) to enable soldiers to fill up the enemy's ditches; (15) on other kinds of testudines ; (16) on machines for See also:defence, and examples of their use in ancient times. (J. H. M.) The best edition is by See also:Rose (2nd ed., See also:Leipzig, 1899); see also Nohl, See also:Index Vitruvianus (1876) ; Jolles, Vitruvs 4esthetik (1906) ; Sontheimer, Vitruv and See also:seine Zeit 1908). There is a good See also:translation by See also:Gwilt (1826; reprinted, 1874). The name of Vitruvius has been given to several See also:works on See also:modern architecture, such as See also:Campbell, Vitruvius See also:Britannicus (See also:London, 1715-71), a See also:series of illustrations of the chief buildings of the 18th century in England, including many works of the See also:brothers See also:Adam; one of these brothers, See also:William Adam, produced a similar work illustrating the buildings which he had designed for See also:Scotland, under the See also:title of Vitruvius Scoticus (See also:Edinburgh, 1790). Thurah, Le Vitruve danois (See also:Copenhagen, 1746-49), is a similar collection of modern buildings in See also:Denmark. VITRY-LE-See also:FRANcOIS, a See also:town of north-eastern See also:France, See also:capital of the See also:department of See also:Marne, on the right See also:bank of the Marne, 20 M. S.E. of Chalons, on the railway from See also:Paris to See also:Strassburg.

Pop. (1906) 7985. The Marne-See also:

Rhine See also:canal, the Haute-Marne canal, and the lateral canal of the Marne unite at Vitry. Its church of Notre-See also:Dame is a 17th-century building with fine" 18th-century monuments. A See also:convent of the Recollets now contains' the town See also:hall, the See also:court-See also:house, a library and a small museum. There is a bronze statue of P. P. Royer-Collard (1763-1845), the politician and philosopher, a native of the See also:district. The See also:industrial establishments include important See also:cement works and the manufacture of See also:faience is carried on. The See also:present town was built in 1545 on a See also:uniform See also:plan by See also:Francis I. to replace the older one of Vitry-en-Perthois, 2a m. to the north-See also:east, burned in the previous See also:year by See also:Charles V.

End of Article: VITRUVIUS (MARCUS VITRUVIUS POLLIO)

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