The Four Books on Architecture Paperback – September 9, 2002

In the 16th century, Palladio set himself up as the arbiter of function form and good taste in Architecture. Who am I to argue? Especially since all I seem to have to offer as 20th century competitors are the disneyesque Geary and Gaudi. Timeless Architectural Elegance will always outlast the comedic, which by neccessity only has a comtempory context.

This book is a must have for any architecture student. It is an excellent reference for precedent. I got a lot of use out of it in the first few year of school and still enjoy look through it!

yes, you should buy it.....

Great

I'would recommend this book to anybody who's searching for something real classical architectural mold or old type building design! #1

A stunning book. Amazing that it was discovered so long ago and survives to this day. Even more amazing are the drawings, their clarity, their detail. Reading this book really makes you realize that the ancients had vastly more knowledge and engineering skills than we could ever imagine. That they were able to construct these buildings without any known power equipment at all is truly incredible. It also makes you wonder about the estimates of how long intelligent life has been on this planet.

This is a book that was published in such a way as to trick amazon buyers: It looks like it has a nice cover. But it is only cheap card stock, which might not even be as thick as your average business card. The pages are photo copy quality. Super cheap, thin paper that you can see through. It could not have been a cheaper publication in terms of printing and materials.What also deceives is the quality of the simple clean type, and graphics, which are great. So you think you will be getting some high-quality material, but you won't. Just something that looks good on the computer screen, but is cheap and flimsy in real life.This book isn't worth more than $10.Shame on MIT Press.Palladio deserves better, and the customer should not be tricked.

Palladio was recommended to me as the "go to" source in understanding classical architecture. The first book (on the construction of foundations and vocabulary) didn't particularly hold my interest, but the terms and concepts were important to his later discussion of the construction of aqueducts and the Pantheon. The clincher for me, however was the number and variety of plates - almost every third page has an illustration that reinforces and shows the ideas Palladio is discussing. A must-have for serious students of architecture; a recommended read for anyone vacationing in Italy, as the details Palladio shows will enrich the experience.