A Brief History of the Leaning Tower of Pisa

Download or read book A Brief History of the Leaning Tower of Pisa written by Piero Pierotti and published by . This book was released on 2007-05-01 with total page 121 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: 'A Brief History of the Leaning Tower of Pisa' was originally written by Prof. Piero Pierotti, a professor of Art and Architectural history at the University of Pisa, who has spent a good portion of his career documenting the history and enriching the meaning of the Tower relative to contemporary issues. This history covers the 830 years since the initiation of construction in 1173 of this unique and colorful monument. From the fascinating perfection of the tower's 12th century dimensions to the haphazard, but ultimately successful, 21st century restoration, the Tower is presented as a world treasure often embroiled in misunderstanding and conflict. Professor Pierotti, the Tower's most prolific guardian, identifies the likley architect of the Tower, expands the meaning and architectural context of the Tower, develops the circumstances that led to the absurdity of the lean, and elaborates on the foibles surrounding the efforts to correct the lean, including a blunder in 1995 under the supervision of a team of world renowned experts that very nearly toppled the fragile structure. The book is illustrated with contemporary and historical graphics. This history is written by one who is uniquely qualified to interpret the importance of the Tower historically, architecturally, and culturally on both a local and international level. Professor Piero Pierotti is a docent, lecturer, instructor, author, and researcher at the University of Pisa. He is a prolific author on Italian Art and Architecture, with emphasis on civic development, medieval art, archeology and architecture, and historic personalities. He has authored two books and many related publications on the Tower of Pisa: Breve Storia Della Torre Di Pisa, Pacini Editore, 2003 Una Torre da non Salvare, Pacini Editore, 1990 A special area of research has been his discovery of the Architect of the Tower, previously surrounded in much controversy. Through his research, Prof. Pierotti has credited the 12th century architect Deotisalvi as the designer of the Tower. The professor is a recognized authority on the Tower, regularly quoted on the internet and interviewed by media such as National Public Radio, NOVA, BBC, and the New York Times. Prof. Pierooti holds the distinguished position as President of ArtWatch Italia: With permission of the author and editor, the book has now been translated from the Italian into English. Gary Feuerstein was well qualified to provide the translation as he maintains the internet's largest and most popular Leaning Tower of Pisa website. He is an architectural engineer in the US with family in Pisa, and has worked in and traveled extensively through Italy.