SCIENTIFIC
In his book Scamozzi has a very clear idea of what is right and wrong in architecture and throughout the book Scamozzi is able to reason in a very objective way in favour of his believes. The treaties were at last also a means of self-promotion. He includes a lot of his own works and did not limit himself to buildings he built but also includes idealised versions of them. With these combined with references from antiquity he builds a sterile environment which allows him to break down architectural ideas and concept. This approach to architecture makes clear that he thinks of his craft as a scientific matter. The book is intended as a systemic reflection of architecture and it becomes quickly apparent how serious the author is about the subject.
Scamozzi’s attempt to gather as many technical and historical sources combined with his immense knowledge on the subject and the addition of clear and explanative pictures and schemata allows for a very detailed yet complete overview of the architecture at the time. Similar to Vitruvius Scamozzi aims to formalize the science of architecture according to the Vitruvian model. This becomes apparent even in the way the treatise is structured. It is made up of ten books where each one covers an important aspect of architectural theory of the time. This ranges from theoretical aspects lie the discussion of “excellence” in the first book to more functional ones like the discussion of different types of buildings and how each type should be treated. The books also don’t limit themselves to the theoretical but Scamozzi includes a tenth book where he goes over various methods of repairing, restoring and improving buildings.
Scamozzi starts of the treatise with an explanation of why he considers the concepts of architecture as a science. This sentiment also reflects in his first and second book where he explains in a very mathematical fashion the importance of different shapes to architectural theory. The connection of mathematics and architecture is one of the building themes and appears throughout the entire treatise. The fact that architecture is a bundle of numerous disciplines is shown repeatedly and builds the idea that an architect has to be familiar with a large variety of areas of work.
Scamozzi wants the architect to become a more scientific man which studies and reasons his craft and elevates architecture into a speculative and practical science.