Recto: On Timber, the Species of Trees (Vitruvius, Book 2, Chapter 9, no. 4); Verso: On Timber, the Battle of Larignium (Vitruvius, Book 2, Chapter 9, no. 15)..
Medium
Pen and dark brown ink
Dimensions
sheet: 5 7/8 x 10 3/8 in. (15 x 26.4 cm)
Classification
Drawings|Ornament & Architecture
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Purchase, Bequest of W. Gedney Beatty, by exchange, 2008
Accession Number
2008.105.4
Tags
Art Historical Context
This intriguing double-sided drawing, created by members of the Sangallo family between 1530 and 1545, offers a direct window into the Renaissance revival of classical architectural knowledge. It illustrates two passages from Vitruvius’s influential first-century BCE treatise *De Architectura*, specifically Book 2, Chapter 9. The recto examines the species of trees best suited for timber, while the verso depicts the Battle of Larignium, both serving as practical lessons on wood selection and its structural uses. Executed in pen and dark brown ink on a modest sheet measuring roughly 5 7/8 by 1...