Le antichità della città di Roma
The book “Le antichità della città di Roma” written by M. Bernardo Gamucci, is a collection of information on ancient buildings of the city of Rome. Bernardo Gamucci collected works from ancient as well as from modern authors. The examined book at Werner Oechslin Library in Einsideln is a second edition print with corrections form Thomaso Porcacchi.
The book consists of an introduction and four main chapters. As usual for the 15th and 16th century, the term “libro” which means “book” was used instead of “capitolo” which means “chapter” for the division of the separate parts. The layout within the chapters is quite diverse. There are text paragraphs with comments to their side. These comments are key expressions, which simplify the search for certain paragraphs. The illustrations are well distributed throughout the book. Some of them, especially the ones in the first chapter, depict famous buildings which are still widely known nowadays, for example the “Colosseo” or the “Foro Romano”.
In total the book has 192 pages and 35 illustrations. Unlike in modern books, only every second page is numbered. It is a small book, with an approximate height of 152mm, a width of 107mm and a breadth of 23mm. In terms of traditional standard formats, it is considered an octavo.
