Please note: In order to keep Hive up to date and provide users with the best features, we are no longer able to fully support Internet Explorer. The site is still available to you, however some sections of the site may appear broken. We would encourage you to move to a more modern browser like Firefox, Edge or Chrome in order to experience the site fully.

Christopher Wren : In Search of Eastern Antiquity, Hardback Book

Christopher Wren : In Search of Eastern Antiquity Hardback

Hardback

Description

A fresh look at the Eastern origins of Christopher Wren’s architecture In this revelatory study of one of the great architects in British history, Vaughan Hart considers Christopher Wren’s (1632–1723) interest in Eastern antiquity and Ottoman architecture, an interest that would animate much of his theory and practice.

As the early modern understanding of antiquity broadened to include new discoveries at Palmyra and Persepolis, Wren disputed common assumptions about the European origins of Classical and Gothic architecture, tracing these building traditions not to the Greeks or Germans but to the stonemasons of the biblical East.

In a deft analysis, Hart contextualizes Wren’s use of classical elements—columns, domes, and cross plans—within his enthusiasm for the East and the broader Anglican interest in the Eastern church.

A careful study of diary records reappraises Wren’s working relationship with Robert Hooke (1635–1703), who shared in many of Wren’s theoretical commitments.

The result is a new, deepened understanding of Wren’s work. Distributed for the Paul Mellon Centre for Studies in British Art

Information

Save 2%

£45.00

£43.95

 
Free Home Delivery

on all orders

 
Pick up orders

from local bookshops

Information