The abbé

Abbé

Abbé is the French word for abbot. It is the title for lower-ranking Catholic clergymen in France....

 Marc-Antoine Laugier (January 22, 1713, Manosque

Manosque

Manosque is the largest town and commune in the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence department in southeastern France. However, it is not the préfecture of the département, which resides in the smaller town of Digne-les-Bains...

, Provence

Provence

Provence ; Provençal: Provença in classical norm or Prouvènço in Mistralian norm) is a region of south eastern France on the Mediterranean adjacent to Italy. It is part of the administrative région of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur...

 - April 5, 1769, Paris

Paris

Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...

) was a Jesuit priest

Priest

A priest is a person authorized to perform the sacred rites of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, rites of sacrifice to, and propitiation of, a deity or deities...

 and architectural theorist. Laugier is best known for his Essay on Architecture published in 1753. In 1755 he published the second edition with a famous, often reproduced illustration of a primitive hut

Primitive hut

The primitive hut had been standard in architectural theory since Vitruvius. Marc-Antoine Laugier brought the idea to life with an image of the hut as the frontispiece for the second edition of Laugier's Essay on Architecture ....

. His approach is to discuss some familiar aspects of Renaissance and post-Renaissance architectural practice, which he describes as 'faults'.