ARCHITECTURE. 



advantage, and therefore no ornaments 

 whatever should be introduced : the bo- 

 dv and head of the niche being as plain as 

 possible, every kind of ornament, whe- 

 ther mouldings or sculpture, tends to con- 

 tuse the outline. 



Statues. Besides decorations of mould- 

 ings, columns, and pilasters, architecture 

 is indebted to sculpture for a great part 

 of its magnificence ; and as the human 

 body is justly esteemed the most perfect 

 original, it has been customary, in every 

 period, to enrich different parts of build- 

 ings with representations thereof. Thus 

 the ancients adorned their temples, basi- 

 licos, baths, theatres, and other public 

 structures, with statues of their deities, 

 philosophers, heroes, orators, and legis- 

 lators ; and the moderns still prese; vethe 

 same custom, placing in their churches, 

 palaces, houses, squares, gardens, and 

 public walks, the busts and statues of il- 

 lustrious personages ; or bas reliefs and 

 groups, composed of various figures, re- 

 presenting memorable occurrences, col- 

 lected from the histories, fables, or tra- 

 ditions of particular times. Sometimes 

 the statues or groups are detached, and 

 raised on pedestals, and placed contiguous 

 to the walls of buildings, by flights of 

 steps or stairs, at the angles of terraces in 

 the middle of rooms, or of courts, and 

 public squares, but most frequently they 

 are placed in niches. The size of the sta- 

 tue depends upon the dimensions of the 

 niche : it should neither be so large as to 

 seem crammed into it, nor so small as to 

 be lost in it. The distance, between the 

 outline of the statue and the sides of the 

 niche, should never be less than one-third 

 of a head, nor more, than the half, whe- 

 ther the niche be square or arched ; and 

 when it is a square, the distance from the 

 top of the head to the soffit of the niche 

 should not exceed the distance left on the 

 sides. The statues are generally raised 

 on a plinth, the height of which may be 

 from one-third to one-half of the head ; 

 and sometimes, where the niches are ve- 

 ry large, in proportion to the architec- 

 ture they accompany, as may be the case 

 where an order comprehends but one 

 story. The statues may be raised on 

 small pedestals to a proper height, and 

 by this means the figure will not only 

 have a better proportion to the niche but 

 also to the order, to which it would other- 

 wise appear too trifling. Statues are not 

 only placed in niches, but they are also 

 placed on the tops of walls, and before the 

 dwarf pilasters of attics, as in the arch of 

 Constantino, and the Corinthian colonade 

 at ThessaJonica, 



If there are two rows of niches in the 

 same building, care must be taken to 

 keep the statues of theirproper attitudes. 

 The character of the statue should always 

 correspond to the architecture with which 

 it is surrounded. Thus, if the order be 

 Doric, Jupiter, Hercules, Pluto, Neptune, 

 Mars, Esculapius, or any male figures, 

 representing beings of a robust and grave 

 nature, may be introduced. If Ionic, then 

 Apollo, Bacchus, Ceres, Minerva, Mer- 

 cury : and if Corinthian, Venus and the 

 Graces, Flora, or others of a delicate kind 

 and slender make, may very properly 

 have place. 



Proportions of rooms. The proportions 

 of rooms depend much on their use and 

 dimensions; but with regard to the beau- 

 ty, all figures, from the square to a sesqui- 

 lateral, may be employed : some have 

 even extended the length of the plan to 

 double its breadth, but this disparity of 

 dimensions renders it impossible to pro- 

 portion the height to both length and 

 breadth, though galleries are frequently 

 three, four, or even five squares in length; 

 but as the eye only takes in a portion of 

 this length, the comparison is merely 

 made in respect of the breadth. The 

 height of rooms depends upon the dimen- 

 s:ons of their plans and the form of the 

 ceilings. In rooms with flat ceilings, if 

 their plan be a square, their height 

 may be from two-tliirds to five-sixths of 

 the side ; and if an oblong, it may be equal 

 to the width. In covered rooms, if the plan 

 be a square, the height may be equal to 

 the side ; if oblong, it may be equal to 

 the breadth only ; or with a fifth, a quar- 

 ter, or a third, of the difference of the 

 length and breadth. In galleries, the 

 height may be from one and a-third to 

 one and three-fifths of the breadth. These 

 are the general relative dimensions of 

 rooms ; but good proportions are not al. 

 ways attainable, particularly in houses of 

 great magnitude ; since the same com- 

 mon height is that of all the rooms, what- 

 ever be the difference of their plans with 

 regard to their size ; however, to keep 

 the best possible proportions, the princi- 

 pal rooms may have flat ceilings, and the 

 middle-sized ones may be reduced by 

 coving the ceilings with a flat in the mid- 

 dle ; or by groins, or domes, as may an- 

 swer their heights : but if the loftiest of 

 these coved figures leaves still too great 

 a height, recourse must be had to mez- 

 zanines ; which are not only necessary 

 for this purpose, but may always be em- 

 ployed with advantage, as they afford ser- 

 vant's lodgings, baths, powdering-rooms, 

 wardrobes, and other conveniences. All 



