Hypnerotomachia Joins the Perkins Library: Collecting to Support Persuasion in Architectural Design and History

The acquisition of the Hypnerotomachia by the University of Pennsylvania Libraries aligned with collection development objectives established in the 1950s by Architecture Dean G. Holmes Perkins. In order to support the university’s training in contemporary design for architecture and urban planning, Perkins built a collection of textual and graphic resources reflecting architectural theory and practice from the Renaissance through the twentieth century. Perkins was a modernist but expected students to acquire expertise in the whole of architectural history. The Perkins Library is made available in dedicated space within the Anne and Jerome Fisher Fine Arts Library, University of Pennsylvania.