Synopses & Reviews
From ancient Persia to the Third Reich, imperial powers have built cities in their image, seeking to reflect their power and influence through a show of magnificence and a reflection of their values. Statues, pictures, temples, palacesand#151;all combine to produce the necessary justification for the wielding of power while intimidating opponents. Inand#160;
Power in Stone, Geoffrey Parker traces the very nature of power through history by exploring the structural symbolism of these cities.
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Traveling from Persepolis to Constantinople, Saint Petersburg to Beijing and Delhi, Parker considers how these structures and monuments were brought together to make the most powerful statement and how that power was wielded to the greatest advantage. He examines imperial leaders, their architects, and their engineers to create a new understanding of the relationship among buildings, design, and power. He concludes with a look at the changing nature of power in the late twentieth and twenty-first centuries and the way this is reflected symbolically in contemporary buildings and urban plans. With illuminating images,and#160;Power in Stoneand#160;is a fascinating history of some of the worldand#8217;s most intriguing cities, past and present.
Synopsis
Provides an international history of urban development, from its origins to the industrial revolution. This well established book maintains the high standard of information found in the previous two editions, describing the physical results of some 5000 years of urban activity. It explains and develops the concept of 'unplanned' cities that grow organically, in contrast with 'planned' cities that were shaped in response to urban form determinants. Spread throughout the texts are copious illustrations from a wealth of sources, including cartographic urban records, aerial and other photographs, original drawings and the author's numerous analytical line drawings.
Synopsis
Empires have always built cities in their image. From Ancient Persia to the Third Reich, imperial powers have sought to reflect their power and influence through a show of magnificence and a reflection of their values. The transposition to stone of the whole imperial edifice has been found throughout the ages to be an effective way both of overawing the populace and intimidating its opponents. It can take the form of statues, pictures, temples, palaces, and grand edifices of many sorts. All combine to produce the necessary justification for the wielding of power. It is in the city as the centre of power that all these things can most effectively be brought together and combined into a powerful statement. It is there also that the power displayed can be wielded to greatest advantage.
Geoffrey Parker breaks new ground by tracing the very nature of power right through history exploring the symbolism of these empire-reflecting cities from Persopolis to Constantinople, St Petersburg, The Forbidden City in Beijing and Delhi. Considering the imperial leaders as well as their architect and engineers he creates a new understanding of the relationship between buildings, design, and power. The book concludes with an examination of the changing nature of power in the late 20th and 21st centuries and the way in which this is reflected in contemporary symbolism.
About the Author
Geoffrey Parker is an honorary senior research fellow in the Institute of Advanced Research in the Humanities and Social Sciences at the University of Birmingham, UK. He is the author of Geopolitics, Past, Present and Future and Reaktion's Sovereign City.
Table of Contents
Note on Spelling
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Prologue: Symbols of Power
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1. Persepolis and the Persian Empire
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2. and#145;Three Romesand#8217;: City-state, Imperium and Christian Capital
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3. Constantinople and the New Lords of the Golden Horn
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4. From Karakorum to Shakhrisabz: Centres of Power of the Imperial Nomads
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5. Power over East Asia: The Forbidden City and the Middle Kingdom
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6. Power over South Asia: The and#145;Seven Citiesand#8217; of Delhi and the Saptusindhu Capital Region
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7. Global Power: Philip II and the Escorial
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8. Grandeur: Louis XIV and Versailles
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9. St. Petersburg and the Imperial Vision of Peter the Great
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10. Ghosts of Glory: Postscripts to Power
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11. Apex or Decline? New Delhi and British Imperial Power
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12. Architects of Empire: Hitler, Speer and the Germania Project
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13. Cyrus with Golden Caviar: Persepolis Revisited
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14. and#145;Cities and Thrones and Powersand#8217;
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15. After Empire: Post-imperial Symbols of Power
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Appendix: The Terminology of Empire and Imperialism
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References
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Bibliography
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Acknowledgements
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Photo Acknowledgements
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Index