De re aedificatoria

De re aedificatoria (On the Art of Building) is a classic

architectural treatise written by Leon Battista Alberti between
1443 and 1452.[1] Although largely dependent on Vitruvius's De
architectura, it was the first theoretical book on the subject
written in the Italian Renaissance, and in 1485 it became the
first printed book on architecture. It was followed in 1486 with
the first printed edition of Vitruvius.

Book
Alberti's Ten Books consciously echoes Vitruvius's writing, but
Alberti also adopts a critical attitude toward his predecessor. In
his discussion, Alberti includes a wide variety of literary
sources, including Plato and Aristotle, presenting a concise
version of the sociology of architecture. De re aedificatoria is De re aedificatoria, title page of the
subdivided into ten books and includes: 1541 edition

Book One: Lineaments

Book Two: Materials
Book Three: Construction
Book Four: Public Works
Book Five: Works of Individuals
Book Six: Ornament
Book Seven: Ornament to Sacred Buildings
Book Eight: Ornament to Public Secular Buildings
Book Nine: Ornament to Private Buildings
Book Ten: Restoration of Buildings
In his survey of desirable floor plans for sacred buildings –
"temples" in his phrase—Alberti begins with the ideal form
of the circle, which is expressed in numerous examples of
Nature. Nine ideal centrally– planned geometrical shapes
are recommended for churches; besides the circle he lists
the square, the hexagon, octagon, decagon, and dodecagon,
all derived from the circle, and, derived from the square,
rectangles that exhibit the square and a half, square and a
third and double square, all of which have enharmonic
Title page of 1550 edition, Florence
parallels in music. Chapels add small geometric figures to
the basic circles and polygons to give a great variety of floor
plans, in which each geometrical figure retains its clear unity and simple ratios that bind all
elements of the plans and elevations into a harmonic unity.
De re aedificatoria remained the classic treatise on
architecture from the 16th until the 18th century.

Book Nine
In Book Nine, Alberti presents his comments about aesthetic
theory and beauty which Borsi summarizes on page 234 of his
Alberti book stating: "In short, what are the elements that
constitute beauty? (Or what elements derive from each
particular kind of beauty?) The question is a difficult one."
Quoting Alberti, Borsi presents Alberti as stating:

"For whatever that property be which is chosen

from the whole number and nature of the several
parts or attributed to each of them in precise and
equal measure, or which must be such as to form a
single entity of organism out of a number of parts,
binding them together in a just, stable and
harmonious manner... it must certainly contain
within itself the value, I would almost say the Plate from a 1565 edition, showing
essence of all the above-mentioned parts with which the plan of a basilica
it is connected or which it compenetrates.
Otherwise they would clash and the beauty of the
whole be lost. This enquiry and selection is in itself
far from easy or obvious. But it is particularly
hazardous and difficult in the field we have chosen
to enquire into, for architecture consists of so many
various parts, and each of these parts requires so
many different ornaments, as we have already
seen."

For Borsi, Alberti is deriving his viewpoint from the Enneads by Plotinus.[2]

See also
De pictura
De architectura
I quattro libri dell'architettura

Notes
1. Cecil Grayson, in Kunstkronik 213 (1960:359ff, and Münchener Jahrbuch der Bildenden Kunst
11 (1960), demonstrated that the bulk of the composition was carried out between these dates.
 2. Borsi, p.234.

References
Alberti, Leon Battista. De re aedificatoria. On the art of building in ten books. (translated by
Joseph Rykwert, Robert Tavernor and Neil Leach). Cambridge, Massachusetts: MIT Press,
1988.
Biermann, Veronica. 'Der Architekturtraktat. Leon Battista Alberti: De re aedificatoria 1452', in:
Erben, Dietrich (ed.). Das Buch als Entwurf. Textgattungen in der Geschichte der
Architekturtheorie. Ein Handbuch. Paderborn: Fink, 2019. pp. 32–55.
Grafton, Anthony. Leon Battista Alberti: master builder of the Italian Renaissance. New York:
Hill and Wang, 2000.
Tavernor, Robert. On Alberti and the Art of Building. New Haven and London: Yale University
Press, 1998.
Wittkower, Rudolph. Architectural Principles in the Age of Humanism (London: Tiranti) 1962;
(New York: Random House) 1965. Part I.i "Alberti's Program of the Ideal Church"; part ii
"Alberti's Approach to Antiquity in Architecture"; part IV.iii "Alberti's 'Generation' of Ratios".
Fontana-Giusti, Gordana. 'Walling and the city: the effects of walls and walling within the city
space', The Journal of Architecture pp 309–45 Volume 16, Issue 3, London & New York:
Routledge, 2011 http://www.tandfonline.com/toc/rjar20/16/3#.UlGA8ChTNUQ

External links
Ten Books on Architecture by Leone Battista Alberti (https://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=8
9563736) Archived (https://web.archive.org/web/20120609141712/http://www.questia.com/PM.
qst?a=o&d=89563736) 2012-06-09 at the Wayback Machine
Latin, French and Italian editions of De re aedificatoria (http://architectura.cesr.univ-tours.fr/Trai
te/Auteur/Alberti.asp?param=en)

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