Dimensions
210 x 245 x 22mm
2nd Edition
Throughout history, the creation and shaping of the built environment has been at the forefront of human endeavour. 'The Story of Architecture' is the account of how men and women of ingenuity and imagination have taken the most elementary of human needs and transformed them into some of the greatest manifestations of the human spirit.
The story is told in a clear and fluent narrative that covers the entire world and the whole of human history in a well-planned sequence of 21 chapters, each charting a stage in the development of architecture. The 21 chapters divide the book into natural study units, and the illustrations and plans are closely keyed to the text.
For this new edition, the author has revised and updated the whole text and bibliography, and has greatly expanded the treatment of the modern and contemporary periods. The book has been completely redesigned, with over 400 illustrations, half of them in colour. Valuable new features are maps, chronological charts, glossary, biographies or architects, and a comprehensive index.
This book answers a need long recognised by those involved in courses on architectural history and appreciation in schools, colleges and universities. It also provides a perfect introduction for those who have encountered the world's architectural heritage in their travels or through the media, and seek to explore it further. Presenting a clear and authoritative factual outline, it conducts at the same time a fascinating inquiry into the purposes that buildings serve, and the reasons for their endless variety of forms. Without using technical language, the author draws on his own architectural experience to inspire the reader to enter the mind of the architect, and tries always the question. Why is it like that?