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The cover of Brunelleschi's Dome: How a Renaissance Genius Reinvented Architecture

Brunelleschi's Dome: How a Renaissance Genius Reinvented Architecture

Ross King

How did Filippo Brunelleschi solve the greatest architectural puzzle of his age and raise the vast dome of Florence's cathedral?

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At a glance

Author
Ross King

Why read it

  • You will understand why a dome pushes outward as well as down, and why stone resists that pull so badly
  • You will see why an unprecedented project may require inventing the tools before you can build the thing itself
  • You will learn how even a lasting masterpiece carries hidden risks, from weak foundations to stresses its builder could never foresee

Who it is for

  • An engineering or architecture student curious how big structures were first built
  • A traveler to Florence who wants to understand the dome
  • A project manager leading a job nobody has done before

Contents

  1. 1 A More Beautiful and Honourable Temple
  2. 2 The Goldsmith of San Giovanni
  3. 3 The Treasure Hunters
  4. 4 An Ass and a Babbler
  5. 5 The Rivals
  6. 6 Men without Name or Family
  7. 7 Some Unheard-of Machine
  8. 8 The Chain of Stone
  9. 9 The Tale of the Fat Carpenter
  10. 10 The Pointed Fifth
  11. 11 Bricks and Mortar
  12. 12 Circle by Circle
  13. 13 The Monster of the Arno
  14. 14 Debacle at Lucca
  15. 15 From Bad to Worse
  16. 16 Consecration
  17. 17 The Lantern
  18. 18 Ingenii Viri Philippi Brunelleschi
  19. 19 The Nest of Delights
  20. SELECT BIBLIOGRAPHY
  21. Giovanni Battista Nelli: Section drawing of Santa Maria del Fiore.
  22. Bernardo Sansone Sgrilli: Ground plan of Piazza di S. M. del Fiore.
  23. Giovanni Battista Clemente Nelli: Baptistery of San Giovanni.
  24. J. Bühlmann: Interior of Pantheon, Rome. (AKG)
  25. Taccola: Brunelleschi’s ox-hoist, Biblioteca Nationale Centrale, Florence.
  26. Buonaccorso Ghiberti: Brunelleschi’s ox-hoist, Biblioteca Nationale Centrale, Florence.
  27. Anonymous: Drawing of a spring operated clock, British Library.
  28. Buonaccorso Ghiberti: Vertical screw with triple turnbuckle and lewis bolt inset, Biblioteca Nationale Centrale, Florence.
  29. Leonardo da Vinci: Drawing of Brunelleschi’s “castello,” Biblioteca Ambrosiana.
  30. Antonio da Sangallo il Vecchio: Drawing of herringbone brickwork, Gabinetto Disegni e Stampe degli Uffizi.
  31. Biagio d’Antonio: Archangels in a Tuscan Landscape, Bartolini-Salimbeni Collection. (Alinari)
  32. Girolamo Benivieni: Illustration of Dante’s Hell from Dialogo di Antonio Manetti cittadino fiorentino circa al sito, forme e misure dello “Inferno” di Dante Alighieri poeta excellentissimo, Florence, 1506.
  33. Taccola: Drawing of a column being shipped from a quarry, Biblioteca Nationale Centrale, Florence.
  34. Francesco di Giorgio: Drawing of a paddle-boat, British Museum Library.
  35. Buonaccorso Ghiberti: Brunelleschi’s lantern hoist, Biblioteca Nationale Centrale, Florence.
  36. Brunelleschi’s Death Mask, Museo dell’Opera del Duomo. (© E. Battisti)
  37. Drawing of the dome being struck by lightning. (© Howard Saalman)
  38. Gherardo Mechini: Scaffolding for the lantern of S. M. del Fiore, Gabinetto Disegni e Stampe degli Uffizi.
  39. View of the dome. (AKG)
  40. A section drawing of Santa Maria del Fiore, by Giovanni Battista Nelli.
  41. A ground plan of the cathedral shows the three tribunes, with their chapels.
  42. The Baptistery of San Giovanni.
  43. The Pantheon.
  44. Hoop stress. The dotted line shows how the dome is deformed by weight at the top.
  45. A drawing by Taccola of Brunelleschi’s ox-hoist, in this case being driven by a horse. At the bottom, the helical screw that raises and lowers the wheels is clearly depicted.
  46. A detail of the ox-hoist that shows, on the right-hand side, the secondary set of gearing.
  47. A drawing of a spring-driven clock, possibly based on one of Brunelleschi’s designs.
  48. A drawing by Buonaccorso Ghiberti of three turnbuckles and, inset, a lewis bolt to attach a piece of stone to a hook.
  49. Leonardo da Vinci’s drawing of the castello.
  50. Herringbone brickwork.
  51. A detail from Biagio d’Antonio’s Archangels in a Tuscan Landscape shows the dome in the background still under construction.
  52. Dante’s circles of hell.
  53. Taccola’s version of Il Badolone.
  54. A sketch of a boat with paddle wheels by the Sienese inventor Francesco di Giorgio.
  55. Buonaccorso Ghiberti’s sketch of Filippo’s lantern hoist.
  56. Brunelleschi’s death mask.
  57. The lantern being struck by lightning in 1601, and the scaffolding erected to repair it.

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