The book “Instituzione pratica dell’ architettura civile per la decorazione de’ pubblici, e privati edifici” was published in 1766 by Paolo Federico Bianchi who was an italian architect, more specifically from Milan. It is written in Italian.
General Subject
The content of the book focuses on the technical aspect of architecture and is based on the order and technique of columns and pillars. Just as the title of the book gives away, it also deals with the topics of decoration and ornaments whether it be public or private.
Organisation
The whole book has a clear structure and seems very planned and organised. The book starts offwith the introduction. After the introduction there is a provisional article. The following main part consists of 3 parts, each being made up of 6 chapters with a topic for itself. After the main part there is a segment for errors and their corrections. Lastly there are different illustrations showing mostly columns, pillars, geometrical figures, but also landscapes.
Size
The book has a width of 200mm, a breadth of 260mm and a height of 50mm. Therefore it falls into the group of “Quarto” in the traditional standart format.
Total number of pages
The whole content in the form of a text is written on 253 pages. There are 160 illustrations at the end spread over 320 pages with each illustration having its own front- and back sheet.
