How did Vitruvius influence Leon Battista Alberti’s Ten Books on Architecture?

Leon Battista Alberti’s Ten Books on Architecture (De re aedificatoria) was profoundly influenced by the Roman architect Vitruvius, though it was not a mere restoration of his work.1

The influence of Vitruvius on Alberti manifested in several key ways:

• Inspiration and Study: Alberti was encouraged by Leonello d’Este to study and restore the classic text of Vitruvius, which prompted Alberti to embark on a comprehensive investigation of the architectural and engineering practices of antiquity.1
• Conceptual Modeling: While Ten Books on Architecture was a wholly original work, it was modeled on the structure and theoretical foundation of Vitruvius’s De architectura.12
• Theoretical Foundation: Alberti utilized the authority of Vitruvius to ground his own aesthetic theories. Specifically, he adopted the Vitruvian concept of harmony between the proportions of the human body and those of architecture.2
• Advancement of Knowledge: Alberti’s work incorporated the engineering knowledge of antiquity found in Vitruvius’s writings while simultaneously making significant advances upon them, establishing a new, fully developed aesthetic theory of proportionality and harmony that defined Renaissance architecture.1