This groundbreaking and authoritative two-volume survey is the first truly comprehensive history of modern Italian architecture and urbanism to appear in any language. Told in lively prose, it recounts more than 250 years of experimentation, creativity, and turmoil that have shaped the landscape of contemporary Italy.

"Volume I: The Challenge of Tradition, 17501900," explores the dynamic balancing of forces demanded by a reverence for Italy's unparalleled architectural patrimony and a desire for new means of expression and technological innovation. From the neoclassical fantasies of Giovanni Battista Piranesi to the spectacular steeland-glass gallerias of Milan and Naples, it reveals an underappreciated history of richness and complexity.

"The Architecture of Modern Italy" is exhaustively illustrated with rare period images, new photography, maps, drawings, and plans. With Colin Rowe's "Italian Architecture of the 16th Century," it provides a nearly complete overview of the history of Italian architecture.

Terry Kirk is a professor of architectural history at the American University of Rome.