安德烈亞·帕拉第奧常常被認為是西方最具影響力和最常被模仿的建築師，他的創作靈感來源於古典建築，對建築的比例非常謹慎，而其創造的人字形建築已經成為歐洲和美國豪華住宅和政府建築的原型。

帕拉第奧1508年齣生於意大利帕多瓦，13歲時就給一位石匠當學徒，隨後在維琴察一傢石工作坊當助手。後來，在給當時一位主要學者特裏西諾（Gian Giorgio Trissino）的彆墅進行擴建時，他掌握瞭古典建築的原理。後來，特裏西諾就把石匠的名字改名為帕拉第奧——希臘智慧女神的名字。

截至十六世紀四十年代，帕拉第奧一直運用古典建築的原理為維琴察的貴族設計瞭一係列的鄉村彆墅和城市宮殿，其中最著名的建築之一就是卡普拉彆墅（Villa Capra），也被稱為圓頂大教堂（Rotunda），後來的羅馬萬神殿就是仿照其建成的。此外，他還設計瞭長方形大教堂（Basilica）。十六世紀六十年代，他開始轉嚮宗教建築的設計。

1570年，他齣版瞭名著《建築四書》（I Quattro Libri dell' Architettura），該書概括講述瞭他的建築原理，為建造者提供瞭可行的建議。2580年，帕拉第奧在維琴察逝世，他的著作《建築四書》被翻譯成多種語言，把他的建築思想傳嚮歐洲乃至全世界。美國總統托馬斯·傑斐遜（Thomas Jefferson）在設計其位於弗吉尼亞的濛蒂塞洛宅邸（Monticello）時，就藉用瞭他的建築思想。

Perhaps the most influential practitioner in the history of Western architecture and one of the earliest neoclassicists, Palladio created a singular corpus of architecture, the legacy of which is seen and felt in buildings of all types throughout the Western world. His theoretical and promotional treatise, I Quattro Libri dell' Architecttura, was first published in Venice in 1570 and sets forth a grammar of architecture. From building materials to residences to Roman temples, Palladio covered an incredible breadth of topics in his four volumes. This new translation in English, the first since Isaac Ware's of 1738, is simultaneously elegant and readable. The organization of the volume is immaculate: in addition to the informative introduction?which serves as a bibliographic essay on the various editions of the work?the list of illustrations from the 1570 edition, glossary, and bibliography all enrich the value of this treatise immeasurably. This edition also features the original woodcut illustrations, which are not as pristine as the engravings produced for Ware's edition but are carefully interleaved with the text. An important addition to academic libraries, architectural collections, and libraries collecting in the theory of art and architecture.?Paul Glassman, Pratt Inst. Lib., Brooklyn