VITRVVIVS AVCTOR. L'œuvre littéraire de Vitruve et sa réception dans la littérature antique (Ier-Ve siècles)

Vitruvius’ De architectura is the only ancient architectural treatise preserved and widely diffused throughout Europe since the Middle Ages. It is famous for its theoretical principles that have long been a reference. It is also celebrated for its various technical as well as scientific knowledges that link it to the Encyclopaedical tradition.

But how was it valued in ancient Roma? One can only find five references to Vitruvius in Latin literature. Was he read? By whom? This study investigates the other side of De architectura: it first depicts Vitruvius’ literary efforts so that his book shall not be limited to a technical text but be a true literary work worth of scholarly libraries. A study of its vast contribution to Latin lexicon will follow, as well as an analysis of the many traces it left in the literature of the Empire. 

This inquiry will also reassess the place of the so-called “technical” volumes in Latin literature. It will finally be an opportunity for studying the circulation of words and ideas between disciplinary fields and between the Roman and Greek Worlds.