( 549 ) 
An Account of two Books. 
h COURS d'JRCHITECTURE, eHMgni dm l^dca^ 
demie Riyale d'AnhtteBure^ Premiere partte \ par sJTfcT. Fran- 
cois Blondel,^^^ I* Academic RoyaU des Sciemes^c a Paris, 1675, 
IN this Firjl Part of Architcflure ( which noble Art the Emi- 
nent Auihor will doubrlefs purfue and improve in all its 
parts,) are exp ained the Origin and Principles of i;,and the Pra- 
tique of the FiveOiders, according to the doflnneof Vhrtivim 
and his principal Fol'owers, and tbedoftrineof the three moft 
renowned Archi^efts that have written amongfi: the Moderns , to 
wits Vignole^ Palladio, and Scamozzi. 
For t;he Improvement of which Art his Majefty of Francehdith 
inftituted an Academy at Paris , which meets weekly to confer a- 
bout that fubjeft , and thereby endeavours to free Architedure 
from its vicious dreflPes , to retrench the abufes which the igno- 
rance and prefumption of Workmen had introduced 3 and to en* 
rich the fame with chofe natural embellifliments and graces, which 
have rendred it fo commendable among the Ancient ; not forgetting 
to teach in the fame the exafteft and mofl: correft Rules of Archi- 
tefture, and fo to form a Seminary of young Architefts, to be en* 
couraged by certain brabeums or prices for fuch as fhalldo beft, 
and thefe to be fent afterwards, at his faid Majefties charges, into 
Italy i there to perfeft their knowledge and skill, and fo to be 
made capable to ferve him in the Survey of his Buildings ail over 
his Kingdom. And becaufe the knowledge of the precepts df 
Architefture is not fufficient by it felf alone to make an Archited^ 
this Skill fuppofing many other accomplifliments, the faid King 
hath appointed, that in the Hime Academy fliould be taught the 
other Sciences that are abfolutely neceffary to Architefls, fuch as 
are Geometry^ Arithmetkk^ the Mechanicks^ HydraulickSy Gmwo- 
mckSf Fortification, Perjpeltive^ and the like. 
This firji Part being merely Praftical as to the Five Orders , the 
Author haih altogether applied himfclf to (hew with great plain- 
nefs, which are the moftcorreft Praftifes to beufed therein, be- 
ginning with that of Vitr^vius, and explaining him by the Praftick 
of his beft Interpreters or Imitators, fuch as are Philander y Daniel 
Barbaroy Serlio^ Alberti^ C^r. And feeing that the doSrine of Vi- 
truvitis is merely that of the Grecian Architefis that had preceded 
Bbbb 2 him> 
