Villa Rotonda - Andrea Palladio

Andrea Palladio (1508-1580) was an Italian architect of the Renaissance who greatly influenced the field with his designs and above all his treatise, The Four Books of Architecture. Focusing on classical orders, villa designs, city planning, and temple construction, the compendium of architecture has been highly regarded to this day.

This LEGO model serves as a recreation of one of the most famous pages of the book: the design of the Villa Rotonda. Considered as one of the most perfect designs in the world, the Villa Rotonda is heavily regulated by simple geometry and symmetry. With four identical facades, the palazzo was placed on a 45-degree tilt to the four cardinal points to allow equal passage of light and wind. The central hall and dome serve as the axis mundi, focal point, and namesake of the design. It is located in Vicenza, Italy and was finished after Palladio's death by his student Vincenzo Scamozzi with modifications, principally to the dome.

Palladio’s designs and writings went on to inspire countless architects and designers….including me =)

The model measures approximately 6”x12”x24” with base to represent the plate from the Four Books on Architecture in 3D format. As drawn by Palladio, it contains the full plan, quarter section, and quarter elevation of the building. The quarter elevation can be connected with an additional quarter elevation, as well as be removed from the plate. Half of the Villa Rotonda can be assembled per set due to piece count limitation. (Two sets could be combined into a full Villa Rotonda).

It also includes a minifigure of Andrea Palladio with his desk for architectural drawings, a book to represent his architectural writing, and an Ionic capital.

The half Villa Rotonda in the set as a standalone model measures approximately 11.5”x5.75”x5.75”.

(If combined with an additional set, the standalone model would measure approximately 11.5”x11.5”x5.75”).

Total brick count for the model is 2684.