Flesh and stone : the body and the city in western civilization

Here, Sennet examines the relationship between the human body and the urban environment it inhabits, looking at the differing attitudes to nudity, burial, sanctuary and urban planning in ancient Greece and Rome, Medieval and Renaissance Europe, and concluding with a fuller analysis of how the link between flesh and stone has altered with the advances in science and medicine.

It is, as the author says in the introduction, "more than an historical catalogue of physical sensations in urban space", offering fresh insights and ideas for anyone interested in the city or civic life.