General Rules of Architecture

The following door may serve for all the buildings mentioned at the beginning: and since it is rusticated work, it would be very appropriate for the villa, as is seen in many places in Italy along the roads opposite some noble house, as an enclosure for the courtyard; for such structures give a grand presence to these locations.

The proportions of this gate shall be such that the height of the opening is double its width up to the underside of the arch. The facing of the openingoriginal: "pilastrata"; the vertical inner frame or "jamb" of the doorway shall be one-fifth the width of the clearanceoriginal: "lume"; literally 'the light', referring to the open span of the doorway, and the arch shall be the same. The pilasteroriginal: "pilastro"; a rectangular column integrated into the wall should be double the width of the facing, and its height should be six parts of its width.

The height of the base shall be one-fourth the width of the pilaster. The capitaloriginal: "capitello"; the decorative head of the pilaster shall be one-third the height of the pilaster. The flat bandoriginal: "fascia piana", which takes the place of the architraveoriginal: "architrave"; the primary horizontal beam resting atop the capitals, should be as tall as the capital; the frieze and the cornice should likewise be the same height. However, for the specific components—such as the bases, capitals, and cornice—the rules provided for the first order should be followed.

The impostoriginal: "imposta"; the structural block from which the arch begins to curve that supports the arch shall be the same height as the capital, divided according to the same rules mentioned earlier. As for the other components shown—namely the wedgesoriginal: "cunei"; the tapered stones, or voussoirs, that form the arch and other stones—their proportions can easily be determined using a compass. And if, for even greater ornament, one wishes to add a pedimentoriginal: "frontespicio"; a decorative triangular or curved gable above the door—truly a feature of great beauty—the method for this is demonstrated in two ways within the Doric order.