Humankind have been constructing magnificent structures as far as history can remember. Many engineered marvels have been questioned as how such lengths were pushed to erect the tallest and elaborate creations without the modern tools we know and use today. But, there was a time where all knowledge for construction had seized. On the contrary, there was one willful man in Florence, Italy, Filippo Brunelleschi (1377 – 1446) who was up to the challenge and to prove it the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore was born. The most well-known piece of the Cathedral was the dome or Duomo, which consisted of complex layering of brick. So, how did Brunelleschi come up with this idea and how was it sturdy enough to stay in place for all these years?
Italy has a well-known reputation of being the masters of craftsmanship. Full of proficiency as well as architects. Since the Roman Empire, it was understandable that Italy was indisputable in architecture. One of the most recognized buildings of the era was the Colosseum. It was a …show more content…
Oxen, more reliable than humans, could walk longer keeping the flow and would be changing direction to lift or lower valuable work materials. Around 1425 was the five year mark of building the dome and was starting to curve inward from the weight of the bricks. To fix this problem, the brick laying technique Brunelleschi was to accomplish was something called a “herringbone” or “spine of the fish” which is the translation of spina pesce in Italian. The bricks would interlock each other and prevent slippage and collapse. A closer look into the “herringbone” design is that it is all in one spiral going around the dome. This feature further helps prevent gravity from ruining years of work. The dome took 16 years to complete (1420 – 1436) and considered to be really fast for such a large dome many feet in the
Italy has a well-known reputation of being the masters of craftsmanship. Full of proficiency as well as architects. Since the Roman Empire, it was understandable that Italy was indisputable in architecture. One of the most recognized buildings of the era was the Colosseum. It was a …show more content…
Oxen, more reliable than humans, could walk longer keeping the flow and would be changing direction to lift or lower valuable work materials. Around 1425 was the five year mark of building the dome and was starting to curve inward from the weight of the bricks. To fix this problem, the brick laying technique Brunelleschi was to accomplish was something called a “herringbone” or “spine of the fish” which is the translation of spina pesce in Italian. The bricks would interlock each other and prevent slippage and collapse. A closer look into the “herringbone” design is that it is all in one spiral going around the dome. This feature further helps prevent gravity from ruining years of work. The dome took 16 years to complete (1420 – 1436) and considered to be really fast for such a large dome many feet in the