books n buildings

books n buildings

architecture and bibliophilia //
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mediumaevum:

Medieval roots can be found in all of today’s major European cities. When Julius Caesar set to conquer Western Europe, there were few places that could have been called cities. Lutetia, which would become Paris, was probably the largest of the early cities. By the 13th century, however, cities were flourishing from the Mediterranean to northwest Europe.
Viking invasions were a major factor in the development of cities during the early Middle Ages. These invaders often plundered more than they could carry, sold surplus goods to surrounding villages and created base camps to be used for trading. Dublin, Ireland’s roots began as a Viking base camp. To protect themselves, villages began erecting walls and fortifying their positions. This lead to the great medieval walled cities that can still be seen in modern Europe.
These walled cities became known as “bourgs,” “burghs,” and later, bouroughs. Inhabitants were known as bourgeois. By the mid-900s, these fortified towns dotted the European landscape from the Mediterranean as far north as Hamburg, Germany.
image: Map of Lutetia (18th century rendition)
source
More about city life

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Lincoln Cathedral (U.K.)

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archimaps:

Lequeu’s projected Temple of Equality

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archimaps:

Saint Ann’s Church in 1895, Brooklyn

21 ♥

victoriasrustyknickers:

Temple at Mahadeva, Sonipur - 1875
Photograph taken for the Archaeological Survey of Western India in the 1870s.

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Ceiling painting in the Librarian’s Ceremonial Office, Jefferson Building, Library of Congress, Washington, DC.
The shallow dome of the Librarian’s Room includes a central disc with a painting by Edward J. Holslag. Representing Letters, the seated figure of a beautiful woman holds a scroll in her hand and is accompanied by a child with a torch. In the ribbon banner is the Latin phrase “Litera scripta manet” (The written word endures).
Surrounding the ceiling painting of Letters is plaster ornamentation in low relief by Albert Weinert. There are two slightly different alternating Grecian female figures holding a garland. Below them are square panels in which there is an open book. These, in turn, alternate with ovals, each containing an octagonal panel with an owl. Between each Grecian figure is a palm branch with a hexagonal panel above. These panels contain the lamp of learning. The open book, owl, and lamp symbols, used throughout the Jefferson Building, represent wisdom and learning. The dome also features decorative urns, fluttering ribbons, and bay leaf swags.
(via Photo Fiend)

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victoriasrustyknickers:

Photograph of the East Façade of the Hawa Mahal (Wind Palace) at Jaipur in Rajasthan - taken by Raja Deen Dayal & Sons in the 1890s
via British Library

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