ARCHITECTURE. RONDELET, Jean-Baptiste Historical... Lot 4

[ARCHITECTURE]. RONDELET, Jean-Baptiste Historical memoirs on the dome of the French Pantheon, divided into four parts... Paris : Du Pont, year V-1797. Large square in-8, (4)-118-(2) pages and 17 folding plates. Early 19th century half blond calf, smooth spine decorated. First edition of this important and rare work on the Pantheon. It deals specifically with the reinforcement of the dome of the Pantheon. For this purpose, Rondelet is perhaps the first to use reinforced concrete. Plate 6 shows the use of iron reinforcement to strengthen the peristyle. "[Rondelet] may have been mostly responsible for the system of reinforcement [of the dome], perhaps even the use (which would be the first recorded) of reinforced concrete." (Joseph Rykwert). "Rondelet was a draughtsman in Soufflot's agency (1770) and participated in the construction of the church of Sainte-Geneviève, the present-day Pantheon, whose technical daring was the talk of the town at the time. A true technician of the building industry and a scientific mind, Rondelet defended Soufflot's conceptions and quickly became known as one of the best builders of his time. After the interruption of the works of Sainte- Geneviève, after Soufflot's death (1780), he made a two-year trip to Italy as a boarder to the king (1783 - 1785), in order to deepen his knowledge of the Antiquities. Back in Paris, he was appointed director of the future Pantheon, which he completed. (Daniel Rabreau) Rykwert, The first moderns, p. 458, note 94, who does not cite this work. (Spine rubbed; large tear without missing at plate 2, small tear without missing and small at plate 10, small foxing in margins of first 10 leaves and on plates)