Rondelet - Arte di Edificare - 1840-1841

MAJESTIC AND GRAND NAPOLETANE EDITION OF THE ART OF BUILDING BY RONDELET
This imposing Neapolitan edition, richly illustrated with 234 two-page engravings, of Jean-Baptiste Rondelet’s treatise represents one of the peaks of the 19th-century transmission of European constructive knowledge, translating and spreading in Italy a work that marks the transition from the empirical art of building to its scientific codification. Here architecture is revealed not only as a technical discipline, but as a true anatomy of the built matter: stone, wood and iron become elements of a rational system governed by precise laws. The over 200 engravings amplify the almost initiatory character of the work, offering a complete and systematic view of the constructive principles, from stereotomy to bearing structures. A monumental editorial work that translates into images and formulas the hidden language of stability and form.
MARKET VALUE
On the international antiquarian market, this complete edition with plates is relatively rare and highly valued for its iconographic apparatus: complete copies in good condition typically range from 1,200 to 1,500 euros, with higher prices for fine contemporary bindings and freshness of the plates.

PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION AND CONDITION
4 volumes – 5 text fascicles in 2 volumes and 2 volume of plates. Contemporary green morocco binding, with a phytomorphic border impressed on the boards and a gilt monogram F.B. at the center; spines with title and gold decorations, marbled endpapers, signs of wear. Complete with eyelets and 234 double-page copperplates, including 4 half-plates; presence of the inversion of plates 116 and 117 in the two volumes. Water stains, more evident on the first and last plates. Two loose fasciculi of errata added. In old books, with a multigenerational history, may be present some imperfections, not always noted in the description. Pages:
Vol. 1-2-3: (4); 12; 136; 124; 126; 134; (4).
Vol. 4-5: (4); 260; 304; (4).
Plates 1 to 116.
Plates 117 to 207.

FULL TITLE AND AUTHOR
Theoretical and Practical Treatise on the Art of Building.
Naples, Stabilimento Tipografico Francesco Del Vecchio, 1840-1841.
Rondelet, Jean-Baptiste.

CONTEXT AND SIGNIFICANCE
Rondelet’s work constitutes one of the pillars of modern architectural theory, developed from the author’s direct experience in French building sites and, above all, in managing the Sainte-Geneviève factory (later Panthéon) in Paris. The treatise systematizes the entire know-how of construction in rigorous form: from the nature and resistance of materials to laying techniques, from stereotomy to coverings, up to the static principles of structures. The Neapolitan Italian edition fits into the 19th-century diffusion of French models in technical and academic circles, contributing to the training of engineers and architects on the Italian peninsula. The plates, extremely detailed, play a fundamental role: not mere illustrations, but real instruments for transmitting knowledge, where drawing becomes a universal technical language. In this perspective, the work also takes on symbolic value: construction as the domain where reason governs matter, almost an alchemy of stability.

BIOGRAPHY OF THE AUTHOR
Jean-Baptiste Rondelet was born in Lyon in 1743 and died in Paris in 1829. A leading architect and theorist, he was a pupil and collaborator of Jacques-Germain Soufflot, participating in the construction of Sainte-Geneviève Church. After his master’s death, he completed his work and organized his theoretical heritage. Rondelet is considered one of the founders of modern building science, thanks to his ability to combine empirical observation with theoretical formalization. His treatise enjoyed wide diffusion in Europe and profoundly influenced the technical formation of the nineteenth century.

PRINTING HISTORY AND CIRCULATION
The Traité théorique et pratique de l’art de bâtir was originally published in France toward the end of the 18th century and the beginning of the 19th, in multiple volumes and with later expanded editions. The Neapolitan edition of 1840-41 represents one of the main 19th-century Italian translations, aimed at a technical and academic audience. Printed by Tipografia Del Gallo for Francesco Del Vecchio, it testifies to Italian cultural interest in French constructive models and their application in the local context. The presence of a vast apparatus of engraved plates increased its cost and limited its diffusion, making complete copies particularly sought after today.

BIBLIOGRAPHY AND REFERENCES
Cicognara, Catalogo ragionato dei libri d’arte e d’antichità, II, pp. 508-510 (French edition and European diffusion of the treatise);
Schlosser Magnino, La letteratura artistica, p. 636 (on Rondelet’s role in architectural theory);
Kruft, Storia delle teorie architettoniche da Vitruvio al Settecento, pp. 424-426 (theoretical context and transition to technical modernity);
ICCU/OPAC SBN: IT\\\\ICCU\NAP\XXXXX (record to verify for the Neapolitan edition 1840-41);
WorldCat: OCLC (various records for 19th-century Italian editions, specific data to be verified);
Bibliothèque nationale de France, catalogue général, notices relating to the French editions of the Traité (late 18th – early 19th century).