- Paperback: 184 pages
- Publisher: Pimlico; New edition edition (1 Feb 2001)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0712664807
- ISBN-13: 978-0712664806
- Product Dimensions: 21.8 x 15.4 x 1.7 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 529,910 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
Brunelleschi's Dome
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Product Description
Amazon.co.uk Review
Filippo Brunelleschi's design for the dome of the cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore in Florence remains one of the most towering achievements of Renaissance architecture. Completed in 1436, the dome remains a remarkable feat of design and engineering. Its span of over 140 feet exceeds St Paul's in London and St Peter's in Rome, and even outdoes the Capitol in Washington DC, making it the largest dome ever constructed using bricks and mortar. The story of its creation and its brilliant but "hot-tempered" creator is told in Ross King's delightful Brunelleschi's Dome.
King has already established himself as an accomplished novelist, author of Domino, Ex-Libris, and the story of both dome and architect offer him plenty of rich material. The story of the dome goes back to 1296 when work began on the cathedral but it was only in 1420, when Brunelleschi won a competition over his bitter rival Lorenzo Ghiberti to design the daunting cupola, that work began in earnest. King weaves an engrossing tale from the political intrigue, personal jealousies, dramatic setbacks and sheer inventive brilliance that led to the paranoid Filippo, "who was so proud of his inventions and so fearful of plagiarism" finally seeing his dome completed only months before his own death. King argues that it was Filippo's improvised brilliance in solving the problem of suspending the enormous cupola in bricks and mortar (painstakingly detailed with precise illustrations) that led him to "succeed in performing an engineering feat whose structural daring was without parallel". He tells a compelling and informed story, ranging from discussions of the construction of the bricks, mortar and marble that made up the dome, to its subsequent use as a scientific instrument by the Florentine astronomer Paolo Toscanelli. --Jerry Brotton --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Book Description
The superb story of the architect Filippo Brunelleschi and the design and construction of the Great Cathedral in Florence - one of the most magnificent achievements of the Italian Renaissance.
--This text refers to an alternate
Paperback
edition.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
a fabulous story of human endeavour, genius and weaknesses,
By A Customer
This review is from: Brunelleschi's Dome: The Story of the Great Cathedral in Florence (Paperback)
as a modern day consultant working on large projects, I found this book very uplifting. Things haven't changed too much! As a regular visitor to Italy it enhanced my knowledge of one of the great wonders. This is a novel, a history book, a study in human nature; it is amusing, enlightening and intellectually sound.
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
An excellent read,
By A Customer
This review is from: Brunelleschi's Dome: The Story of the Great Cathedral in Florence (Paperback)
This is a really excellent read, both in its description of the construction of the dome and in the way it adds colour to both Brunelleschi and the rest of contemporary Florence. The only criticism I would have of the text is that some of the technical descriptions of how the dome was built are difficult to follow - I found myself having to read them two or three times before I understood what the author was getting at. And the book would really benefit from more, and better, illustrations - a large format version of the book with proper colour photographs and plans would be great.
22 of 24 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Filippo's Dome Vs. Lorenzo's Doors,
By
This review is from: Brunelleschi's Dome: The Story of the Great Cathedral in Florence (Paperback)
This is another great read from Mr. King. A week or two ago I finished his wonderful "Michelangelo And The Pope's Ceiling" and at that point I decided I'd have to read "Brunelleschi's Dome". Over the past year or so I'd seen "Brunelleschi's Dome" in various bookstores and I'd skimmed through the pages- never buying it because I was put off by the technical illustrations. I figured this must be a book meant for architects and engineers. But I was wrong. While there is no denying that the technical aspects are a major part of the book, the illustrations are very useful in helping the lay reader to understand the ingenious solutions that Brunelleschi came up with to overcome the numerous technical difficulties involved in the construction of such a large dome. By going into the nitty-gritty of the construction process, Mr. King allows us to appreciate Filippo's accomplishment. After all, this was a man who was a goldsmith and clockmaker- not an architect! And even though the book is under 200 pages in length, Mr. King manages to include a lot of interesting peripheral information. We learn about the lives of the masons who worked on the dome- how many days they worked (only about 200 per year, actually. They had off Sundays and religious feast days, which came about once a week. They also couldn't work in bad weather); what they ate and drank (surprisingly, although they were a couple of hundred of feet above the ground they drank wine! Considering water quality at the time, wine was considered healthier. Florentines also believed that it "improved the blood, hastened digestion, calmed the intellect, enlivened the spirit, and expelled wind". Mr. King adds that wine "might also have given a fillip of courage to men clinging to an inward-curving vault..."!). Filippo was very safety-conscious. Because of his precautions, only one man died and few were injured during the 26 years Brunelleschi was in charge of the actual construction. A good thing....these were the days before workers' compensation and survivors' benefits! Another interesting theme of the book is the rivalry between Filippo and Lorenzo Ghiberti. Years earlier, Ghiberti had bested Brunelleschi in the contest to see who would be awarded the commission to cast and put up the bronze doors for the Baptistery of San Giovanni. Ghiberti won that competition. This time around Brunelleschi came up with the winning design. However, Ghiberti was still involved in "The Dome" project and there was no love lost between the two men. There was a lot of nasty backbiting behind the scenes of the "this guy doesn't know what the heck he's doing!" variety. Despite the fact that Ghiberti's baptistery doors are considered to be an artistic masterpiece (and were recognized as such by his contemporaries and by those who came shortly after- even the persnickety Michelangelo marveled at the workmanship) the following anecdote will give you some idea of the ill-will between the two men: Lorenzo, who was generally an astute businessman and was always on the lookout for good places to put his money, had bought a farm in the hills above Florence. Mr. King writes, "As the farm, called Lepriano, did not prove a successful investment, Lorenzo was forced to sell it. Years later Filippo was asked what he thought was the best piece of work Lorenzo had ever done, to which he replied- 'Selling Lepriano'". If we add "comedian" to his long list of accomplishments, we see that Filippo Brunelleschi was indeed a true "Renaissance Man"!
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