Structure in Architecture

All buildings must stand. An adequate structure was as necessary for the simplest primitive hut as it is for the tallest or widest-spanning modern building. However, this requirement became more difficult to satisfy as designers became more adventurous and the experience already gained became less directly applicable. The present papers look at the consequent evolution of design methods and the types of understanding that have been essential guides. A particular focus is the question of how earlier innovations, made without the benefits of modern theory, were possible. Other papers look in detail at the most outstanding of these achievements, such as the church of Hagia Sophia in Istanbul and the dome of Florence Cathedral. Contents: Intuition and the springs of structural invention; The springs of invention revisited; The role of tradition in the development of form in domes, shells, and space structures; Structural theory and design before 1742; Developments in structural design since the seventeenth century especially in Britain; Structural analysis, structural insights, and historical interpretation; On the structure of the Roman Pantheon; The structure of the church of St Sophia, Istanbul; The reconstruction of the tympana of St Sophia at Istanbul; Hagia Sophia: Justinian’s Church of Divine Wisdom, later the Mosque of Ayasofya, in Istanbul; Hagia Sophia’s first dome; The structural conservation of Hagia Sophia: past history and present needs; The first and second churches of San Marco reconsidered; Squinches and pedentives: comments on problems of definition; Westminster Hall roof; Brunelleschi’s dome of S. Maria del Fiore and some related structures; Brunelleschi’s dome; The dome of St Peter’s: structural aspects of its design and construction and inquiries into its stability; Sinan’s Suleymaniye Mosque and Justinian’s Hagia Sophia; Designs for ribbed vaults by Guarini and Leonardo; The reinforced flat arches of the east colonnade of the Louvre; The Eddystone Lighthouse; Additional notes and comments; Index of subjects; Index of buildings; Index of persons.