Claude Perrault, French Architect and Physician
Claude Perrault (September 25, 1613 - October 9, 1688) was a French architect who also achieved success as a physician, anatomist, and as an author who wrote treatises on physics and natural history. As physician and natural philosopher with a medical degree from the University of Paris, Perrault became one of the first members of the French Academy of Sciences when it was founded in 1666. He became well known for his translation of the ten books of Vitruvius, the only surviving Roman work on architecture. In the competition for the construction of a new wing for the Louvre he triumphed over all rivals, and this project claimed his attention from 1665 to 1680, and established his reputation. Perrault's Colonnade overlooking the Quai du Louvre became widely celebrated. In addition, he made a valuable contribution in acoustics. His treatise on sound was a part of the book Oeuvres diverses de Physique et de Mecanique. In musical acoustics, he noted the importance of vibration on consonance and dissonance. He died in 1688 at the age of 75
