The Geometry of an Art: The History of the Mathematical Theory of Perspective from Alberti to Monge

This book aims at giving a comprehensive review of literature on perspective constructions from the Renaissance to the end of the eighteenth century. Covering the work of some 175 authors, it treats the emergence of the various methods of constructing perspective, the development of the theories underlying the constructions, the communication between mathematicians and artisans in these developments, and the interactions between these theories and various subjects in mathematical geometry. The main protagonists are Peiro della Francesca, Guidobaldo del Monte, Simon Stevin, Brook Taylor, and Johann Heinrich Lambert. The book includes a comprehensive bibliography of books and manuscripts on perspective.