A Sphere in Architecture and Astronomy
A Sphere in Architecture and Astronomy

Author: Rune Jakobsen

Publisher: BoD – Books on Demand

Published: 2012

Total Pages: 290

ISBN-13: 8771149317

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

This is a book about architecture and astronomy and it combines disciplines from both fields. Astronomic objects can provide inspiration for architecture, and the science of construction and perspective in architecture can describe the processes that take place in the Universe.

Decoding Astronomy in Art and Architecture
Decoding Astronomy in Art and Architecture

Author: Marion Dolan

Publisher: Springer Nature

Published: 2021-09-17

Total Pages: 356

ISBN-13: 3030765113

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

For centuries, our ancestors carefully observed the movements of the heavens and wove that astronomical knowledge into their city planning, architecture, mythology, paintings, sculpture, and poetry. This book uncovers the hidden messages and advanced science encoded within these sacred spaces, showing how the rhythmic motions of the night sky played a central role across many different cultures. Our astronomical tour transports readers through time and space, from prehistoric megaliths to Renaissance paintings, Greco-Roman temples to Inca architecture. Along the way, you will investigate unexpected findings at Lascaux, Delphi, Petra, Angkor Wat, Borobudur, and many more archaeological sites both famous and little known. Through these vivid examples, you will come to appreciate the masterful ways that astronomical knowledge was incorporated into each society’s religion and mythology, then translated into their physical surroundings. The latest archaeoastronomical studies and discoveries are recounted through a poetic and nontechnical narrative, revealing how many longstanding beliefs about our ancestors are being overturned. Through this celestial journey, readers of all backgrounds will learn the basics about this exciting field and share in the wonders of cultural astronomy.

Star Theatre
Star Theatre

Author: William Firebrace

Publisher: Reaktion Books

Published: 2017-12-30

Total Pages: 183

ISBN-13: 1780238886

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Most of us can recall a childhood visit to a planetarium: the sense of anticipation as the room darkens. The stars begin to appear as the voice of an astronomer is heard. In the planetarium, where the audience is transported to distant galaxies, the wondrous complexity of the cosmos combines with entertainment to become a theater of the night. Star Theatre explores the history of the planetarium’s mix of science and spectacle. William Firebrace reveals how in the planetarium, the solar system and universe is demonstrated on an ever-expanding scale. He traces the origins of the building through history, from its antecedents to its invention in Germany in the 1920s, developments in the USSR and the United States, to its expansion across the globe at the time of the space race, and finally to the evolution of the contemporary planetarium in a time of startling astronomical and cosmological discoveries. This concise and well-illustrated history will appeal to astronomy lovers and those interested in architecture, theater, and cinema.

Celestial Mirror
Celestial Mirror

Author: Barry Perlus

Publisher: Yale University Press

Published: 2020-06-26

Total Pages: 168

ISBN-13: 0300246277

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Explore the eighteenth-century Indian astronomical observatories called the Jantar Mantars, massive, stunning structures built to observe and understand the heavens Between 1724 and 1730, Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh II of Jaipur constructed five astronomical observatories, called Jantar Mantars, in northern India. The four remaining observatories are an extraordinary fusion of architecture and science, combining elements of astronomy, astrology, and geometry into forms of remarkable beauty. The observatories’ large scale and striking geometric forms have captivated the attention of architects, artists, scientists, and historians worldwide, yet their purpose and use remain largely unknown to the public. In this book, Barry Perlus’s visually driven exploration brings readers to the Jantar Mantars and creates an immersive experience. Panoramas plunge the viewer into a breathtaking 360-degree space, while pages of explanatory illustrations describe the observatories and the workings of their many instruments. The book provides the experience of visiting the sites, the historical context of the Jantar Mantars, and an understanding of their scientific and architectural innovations.

The Art of Building in the Classical World
The Art of Building in the Classical World

Author: John R. Senseney

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 2011-03-14

Total Pages: 263

ISBN-13: 113949726X

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

This book examines the application of drawing in the design process of classical architecture, exploring how the tools and techniques of drawing developed for architecture subsequently shaped theories of vision and representations of the universe in science and philosophy. Building on recent scholarship that examines and reconstructs the design process of classical architecture, John R. Senseney focuses on technical drawing in the building trade as a model for the expression of visual order, showing that the techniques of ancient Greek drawing actively determined concepts about the world. He argues that the uniquely Greek innovations of graphic construction determined principles that shaped the massing, special qualities and refinements of buildings and the manner in which order itself was envisioned.

Sringeri Vidy??a?kara Temple Astronomical Theater
Sringeri Vidy??a?kara Temple Astronomical Theater

Author: Viswa Nath Sharma

Publisher: Notion Press

Published: 2022-04-25

Total Pages: 443

ISBN-13:

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

An astronomical theater with twelve zodiac pillars having a zodiac sign carved on them is the Navara?ga of the Vidy??a?kara Temple at Sringeri, a town established by Shankaracharya. The pillars are illuminated each month, causing observers to conjecture that the illumination patterns represent a calendar. Scientific studies at the temple have not been able to resolve the issue. The present work reveals with scriptural support that the Vidy??a?kara temple is a Sun Temple unique in India and the world. It reveals many intriguing secrets of San?tana Dharma (Hinduism) and its astronomy as narrated by the architecture. It shows how well Veda, Vedanta, Ved??ga Jyoti?a (astrology), Yoga, V?stu Sh?stra, ?gama (canons of temple culture) and Tantra (esoteric doctrines of religious practice) are harmoniously blended in the construction of the Vidy??a?kara temple. The book provides captivating foundational facts like the religious purpose of the temples; how the grand temple architectures are designed to meet stated purposes; how to understand the biological basis of Hindu Astronomy, Ayurveda, Astrology, Festivals and Yoga of the San?tana Dharma civilization and many more cultural aspects.