Vitruvius' famous treatise. 1914 Harvard University edition. Probably written between 30-20 BCE, "De architectura" ("On architecture", published as "Ten books on architecture") is a treatise on architecture written by the Roman architect and military engineer Marcus Vitruvius Pollio as a guide for building projects. As the only treatise on architecture to survive from antiquity, it has been regarded since the Renaissance as the first book on architectural theory, as well as a major source on the canon of classical architecture. It contains a variety of information on Greek and Roman buildings.