The World's Greatest Buildings: Masterpieces of Architecture & Engineering (Time-Life Guides)

Greenstein, Ruth; Hanna, Bronwyn; Haskell, John; Howells, Trevor; Malor, Deborah; Phillips, John; Ranieri, Thomas A.; Stiles, Mark; Sweeney, Bronwyn; Cowan, Henry J.; Weldon Owen Pty Limited; Cowan, Henry J. [Editor]; Howells, Trevor [Editor];

ISBN 10: 0737000821 / ISBN 13: 9780737000825

Published by Time Life Education, 2000

About this Item

Seller Inventory # 0737000821-11-25873880

Bibliographic Details

• Title: The World's Greatest Buildings: Masterpieces of Architecture & Engineering (Time-Life Guides)
• Publisher: Time Life Education
• Publication Date: 2000
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0737000821
• ISBN 13: 9780737000825
• Binding: Hardcover
• Condition: New
• Weight: 34 ounces

About this title

Synopsis

Highlights places of worship, centers of power, and monuments and memorials considered to be among the 100 architectural masterpieces, describing their design, history, function, materials, and dimensions.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Chapter 1: Places of Worship Since ancient times, the Pantheon s sense of space and seeming simplicity of design have induced awe in all those who stand under its great dome. Despite depredations and alterations over 2,000 years, it s among the most complete and best preserved of all the ancient Roman monuments. Built by the Emperor Hadrian between AD 118 AND 125, the Pantheon covered a temple erected by one of the Emperor Augustus s generals, Marcus Agrippa, in 27 BC. The artistic Hadrian seems to have been a modest man with a sense of history: He had Agrippa s name inscribed above the columns of the entrance portico, vowing, with touching filial loyalty, to dedicate his own name to one monument only-that of his adoptive father, Trajan. The exterior, fronted by a portico eight columns wide and three deep, barely hints at the exposure within. A central block contains the huge, bronze covered doors, flanked by niches, leading into the immense rotunda. The dome is a half-sphere, its 144-feet (44.3m) diameter precisely equal to its floor-to-summit height. The oculus ( open eye ) at its center provides an unexpected view of Rome s changing skies, and a natural light source.