The following aspects of the book “Lucidum Perspectivae Speculum” published in 1727 by Paul Heinecken will be examined:
- Title of the book
The full title reads as follows:
«Lucidum Perspectivae Speculum
Das ist: Ein heller Spiegel der Perspective; In welchem So wohl der Grund dieser Kunst als auch die in Praxi täglich vorfallende mannigfältige Application derselben durch viele behörige Exempel klar gezeiget wird; Wozu noch beygefüget sind Achtzehen Plafonds oder Decken-Stücke von diversen Sorten / Den Liebhabern und Anfängern dieser schönen Science zum Besten aufgestellt von Paul Heineken, Mahlern in Lübeck.»
The Latin title of the book is translated into German. A “bright mirror” can be interpreted metaphorically and symbolically as a reflection of an enlightening transmission of clear understanding of perspective. This is highlighted in the rest of the title by briefly summarizing the content; It emphasizes the importance of perspective theory. Furthermore, Paul demonstrates this on common examples and ceiling pieces.
Also written in the title, the book is dedicated to be a guide for beginners and lovers of perspective.
- Content list
Probably because of the meaningful title, which already summarizes the content and section-division of the book, there is no list of content.
Additionally, the book contains only one main theme: perspective. This is why the book is structured with simplicity and a content list finds little importance.
- Illustrations
The book contains a lot of illustrations, which are all printed. These serve to better understand the descriptions and convey the information regarding perspective theory by showing the examples in 2D demonstrations and the respective three-dimensional figures. For this purpose, Heinecken uses geometric figures, as well as figures that occur in practice, such as columns, capitals, altars, tombs and ceiling drawings.
- Format
The book is very large and contains 234 pages. The size becomes important to make the illustrations as large and the information as clear as possible. The vanishing lines and the two- and three-dimensional figures need a lot of space. In the examples and illustrations, the back pages are not used.
- Author
The author is Paul Heinecken. He was the son of a city builder, with whom he learned his first skills in architectural drawing. He moved to Lübeck, where he was a student of Karl Krieg.
As Heinecken is called a master of perspective, the book is intended as teaching material and guide in perspective theory. It contains very precise perspective and architectural drawings and therefore forces a progress in this subject.