How to Make a Home: An Ancient Guide to Style and Comfort by Vitruvius

How to Make a Home: An Ancient Guide to Style and Comfort

An entertaining and enlightening collection of ancient Roman writings about home design and decoration The idea that...
$27.69 AUD
$27.69 AUD
Please hurry! Only 71 left in stock
Author: Vitruvius
Format: Hardcover
Language: English
Subtotal: $27.69

Free Shipping (Orders $60 USD or More)

How to Make a Home: An Ancient Guide to Style and Comfort by Vitruvius

How to Make a Home: An Ancient Guide to Style and Comfort

$27.69

How to Make a Home: An Ancient Guide to Style and Comfort

$27.69
Author: Vitruvius
Format: Hardcover
Language: English

An entertaining and enlightening collection of ancient Roman writings about home design and decoration

The idea that our homes can communicate professional as well as personal identities may seem as new as the work-from-home revolution. But it was second nature to the ancient Romans, for whom the home was in many ways the center of public and private life. Roman authors saw infinite practical and symbolic value in houses, and they have much to say about them. How to Make a Home presents some of the best Roman writings on houses--from buying and selling to designing and decorating.

Edited and elegantly translated by Marden Fitzpatrick Nichols, How to Make a Home gathers selections by Cicero, Vitruvius, Seneca, and others, with the original Latin or Greek on facing pages. These writings reveal the pleasures and pitfalls of the Roman practice of making one's home a cornerstone of self-expression. While the ideal home enshrined Roman virtues and could make a career, lavish building projects could lead to financial ruin and moral condemnation. These authors memorably describe such travails as deceptive staging, decorators run amok, know-it-all owners, unsupervised contractors, and buyer's remorse. Along the way, they also explain why simplicity is bliss, privacy is for nobodies, a neglected house is a sign of a neglected soul, and much more.

A unique and charming introduction to Roman domestic architecture and its cultural significance, How to Make a Home reveals that the obsession with house and home has a long and fascinating history.

Author: Vitruvius
Publisher: Princeton University Press
Published: 08/12/2025
Pages: 240
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 0.65lbs
Size: 6.90h x 4.60w x 1.20d
ISBN: 9780691249124

About the Author
Marden Fitzpatrick Nichols is Provost's Distinguished Associate Professor and Chair of Classics at Georgetown University and the author of Author and Audience in Vitruvius' "De architectura."

Returns Policy

You may return most new, unopened items within 30 days of delivery for a full refund. We'll also pay the return shipping costs if the return is a result of our error (you received an incorrect or defective item, etc.).

You should expect to receive your refund within four weeks of giving your package to the return shipper, however, in many cases you will receive a refund more quickly. This time period includes the transit time for us to receive your return from the shipper (5 to 10 business days), the time it takes us to process your return once we receive it (3 to 5 business days), and the time it takes your bank to process our refund request (5 to 10 business days).

If you need to return an item, simply login to your account, view the order using the "Complete Orders" link under the My Account menu and click the Return Item(s) button. We'll notify you via e-mail of your refund once we've received and processed the returned item.

Shipping

We can ship to virtually any address in the world. Note that there are restrictions on some products, and some products cannot be shipped to international destinations.

When you place an order, we will estimate shipping and delivery dates for you based on the availability of your items and the shipping options you choose. Depending on the shipping provider you choose, shipping date estimates may appear on the shipping quotes page.

Please also note that the shipping rates for many items we sell are weight-based. The weight of any such item can be found on its detail page. To reflect the policies of the shipping companies we use, all weights will be rounded up to the next full pound.

Related Products

Recently Viewed Products