The Urban Development of Rome in the Age of Alexander VII

Habel considers the urban development of Rome in the mid-seventeenth century under Alexander VII, suggesting that the Chigi pope masterminded a new conceptualization of the city grounded in the architectural formulas of late antique Roman Asia. Habel argues that these planning methods contributed formally and iconographically to the architectural future of Rome. Incorporating in-depth archival sources, working and presentational drawings, and the physical fabric of key monuments and their situation within the topography of Rome, Habel's study offers a new and innovative model for histories of urban architecture and planning.