Download of the Renaissance

Florence: The Gradle
of the Renaissance
29.1 Introduction
beganin ltaly. In this chapIn the last chapter,you learnedthat the Renaissance
ter,you will visit the Italian city of Florenceto learn about a numberof advances
thatwere madeduring the Renaissance.
Florenceis locatedon the Arno River,just north of the centerof ltaiy. The city is
oftencalled the "cradle of the Renaissance."Between 1300and 1600,it was home
to someof the greatestaftistsand thinkersof the Renaissance.
Florencewas a beautiful city. One of its most notablebuildings was
Renaissance
theduonto,or cathedral,of SantaMaria del Fiore. The domed cathedralwas the centerof the city's religious life. Nearby was the PalazzoVecchio(Old Palace).This
buildingwas the headquartersof the city government.The grand PalazzoMedici
wasthe home of Florence'sruling family, the Medicis. A more humble housewas
theCasadi Dante (Dante'sHouse).It was the home of ltaly's most famouspoet.
During Renaissance
times,Florencewas the banking centerof Europe.People
fromaroundEurope came to the Mercato Nuovo (New Market) to trade their coins
forflorins,the gold coins of Florence.Another busy spot was the PonteVecchio
(OldBridge).This beautiful bridge
spanned
the Amo River and was
linedwith the shopsof fine jewelersandgoldsmiths.
Florence'swealth helpedto
it a cultural leaderdurins
Renaissance.
In this chaprer,
will visit severalplacesin the
to leam aboutRenaissance
m a numberof fields.
ll exploreRenaissance
andengineerFainting, sculpture,
ffi$ w-*#
, andscience and
. You'll also find
Florenfine
politics
and trade.
Florence:The Cradle of the Renaissance 323
29.2The Gity of Flo
Florencewas Italy's leading cultural
during the Renaissance.
The city was thc
place of the greatpoet DanteAlighieri.
painter and sculptorMichelangelogrew
So did the brilliant thinker and artist
da Vinci. Other Florentines,such as the
Donatello, also made their mark on the
Renaissance.
What made Florenceso special?One
is its location.As you rememberfrom the
chapter,in Renaissancetimes Italy was divi
into city-states.Florencewas one of these
states.The city's location on the Arno River
it an important center for trade and commerce.
Florencebecamethe hub of woolen-clotht
for all of Europe.About 100,000residents
insidethe city walls.
Renaissance
Florencewas dominatedby a
single family, the Medicis. The Medicis acquired
their wealth through Florence'smajor industry:
banking. In the early l4th century,Florence
becameEurope'sbanking center.
The banking and wool tradescreatedwealth
that supportedintensecultural activity in
Florence.The city and its rich residentscould
afford to be oatronsof talentedartistsand
ThePalazzo
Vecchio
housed
thegov- thinkers.The Medicis, for example,spentlavish sums on art. Their
ernment
of Florence.
Localauthoritieshome was a gatheringplace for artists,philosophers,and poets.
wantedto awepeople
withtheir
Michelangeloonce lived for a time in the Medici household,where
p o w e ar n da l s oh a v ea p l a c eo f
he mingledwith otherartists.
safety,
sothisbuilding
wasmade
to looklikea fortress
or castle.
Over time, the work producedby Florentinesinspiredstill more
creativeactivity. Peoplelearnedfrom one another,and they sometimes
competedto produceeven greaterwork. Florentineswere also influencedby ideasfrom other places.The city drew travelersfiom many
parts of the world. Somecameto do business.Somecame to study art
324 Chapter29
Ad
Eng
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fereinfluen'
Renarssanc
o'd
old their
to t
affacted
Architect
I
Dunngthe
p'
blownas
homesabov'
arounda Pri
statt
contain
PublicsJ
byhumanis
istsvalued;
designed
Pu
couldintere
yetwelcom
inspired,ro
joinbuildir
Advanc,
kindsof ar,
instance,o
architectur
wasthe gr(
SantaMar
buildingtt
1296,but t
for the dot
know how
took a ReI
Brunel
aboutthe
designedr
with Florence'smasterartists.Otherscameto learn at the city's schools
and libraries.Thesevisitors brought new ideas,goods,and technologies
usedno it
archesme
of iron, u
that enlivenedthe city.
place.Bn
Florentineswere also inspiredby the freedomof ideasthat was at
the core of humanism.Recall that humanistsprized the individual and
tried to look with fresh eyesat natureand human society.You'll seethe
materials
building
influenceof humanismthroughoutthis chapteras you study examples
of Renaissanceadvances.
300 feet
its top yc
The n
29.3 Advances in Architecture
and Engineering
t
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amed
rere.
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ptor
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ast
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cityer made
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trading
; lived
bya
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Their
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You have learnedthat the humanistscholarsof the Renaissance
were influencedby classicalideas.So too were architectsand builders.
architectsstudiedGreek and Roman ruins, and they modRenaissance
eled their own buildings on what they learned.They were particularly
attractedto roundedarches,straightcolumns,and domed roofs.
Architectsalso addedtheir own ideasto classicalbuilding styles.
wealthy families built private townhouses
During the Renaissance,
known aspalazzi (palaces).Many had shopson the ground floor and
Thedomeof theDuomo
di Santa
MariadelFiorerisesfromtheoctagonal(eightsided)cathedral.
lts
designis oneof thegreatengineering
of theRenaissance.
achievements
homesabove.Most palazziwere built
arounda private courtyard,which might
containstatuesand other works of art.
Public spaceswere often influenced
by humanistideals.For example,humanistsvaluedgood citizenship.Architects
designedpublic buildings where citizens
couldinteractin settingsthat were grand
yet welcoming.They usedRomaninspired,roofed porchescalled loggia to
join buildings and createoutdoor plazas.
Advancesin engineeringmade new
kindsof architecturepossible.For
instance.
one of lhe most impressive
architectural
featsof the Renaissance
wasthe greatcathedral,the Duomo di
SantaMaria del Fiore. Florentinesstarted
buildingthis eight-sidedcathedralin
1296,but they had to leave an opening
forthedome.At the time. thev didn't
knowhow to build a large enoughdome that would not collapse.It
l tttoka Renaissance
architect,Filippo Brunelleschi,to solve the problem.
Brunelleschihad studiedancientruins in Rome. He had also learned
the mathematicsinvolved in creatinebuildines.The dome he
and built for the cathedraltook true engineeringgenius.It
no internalsupportbeamsor columns.Instead,eight huge stone
met at the top of the dome and leanedagainsteach other.Hoops
wood, and brick wrappedaroundthe arches,keepingthem in
. Brunelleschiinventedmachinescalled hoists to raisebuildins
and food to workers at the top of the dome as they were
it.
deviceused
hoist a mechanical
to lift peopleor heavyobjects
magnificent
dome was finishedin 1436.It stoodmore than
abovethe city. It still standstoday,over 500 yearslater.From
youcan seemost of the city of Florence.
Florence:The Cradle of the Renaissance 325
29.4 Advances in Painting
WealthypatronsmadeRenaissance
Florencea thrivins
art. The Medicis spenthuge sums of money on fine palaces.
and statues.The PalazzoMedici was filled with works of art t
commissionedby the family.
Patronslike the Medicis createdopportunities for talented
who made a number of advancesin style and technique.As you
painterswere influencedby the
in the last chapter,Renaissance
interestin classicalculture and the spreadof humanism.They
to depict real peoplewho were posedin lifelike ways and who
feelings. They also wanredto
include realisticbackgrounds.
;
The result was a very different
style from the more flat, rigid
painting of the Middle Ages. ,;'
'
One key advancemadeby :
painterswas the
Renaissance
discoveryof perspective.Painters
use perspectiveto createthe
appearanceof depth on a flat
painterswerethe first
Renaissance
to usetechniques
of perspective.
Thisis Botticelh'sAdorationof the
Magi.Noticethe senseof distance,
or depth,in the painting.
L*eP^
iS interest
fto
&g uP
lrrtPleanr
For the
prs rnade
(
wasverl
oewstatu(
i
bumanist
Donate
morelifel
i
examPle
of David'
painter'w
possible..
is thought
Donat
Michelan
andhis st
surface.Renaissance
artistsused
severaltechniquesto indicate
depth.One was the size of
objects.The smaller a painted
poetand
prefened
bringhis
object, the farther away it appears
to be. The larger an object,the
majestic
world'sr
closer it appearsto be. Painters
also learnedthat a feeling of depth
could be createdby lines that camecloser togetheras they recededinto
the distance.They discoveredthat careful shadingcould make figures
and objectslook three-dimensional.
Adoration oJ the Magi, a famous
Carvedi
David st
famedar
reflectsI
painting by SandroBotticelli, showssome of thesetechniques.
Michr
sionsho
of a real
Scienceand mathematicshelpedartistsmake other advances.The
Florentineartist Masacciousedgeometryto figure out how to divide
the spacein a painting to make scenesappearmore as they would in
Mict
in the P
real life. Leonardoda Vinci and othersstudiedanatomy.They observed
bodiesand how they moved. Their studieshelpedthem to portray the
the priz
geniusi
humanbody more realistically.
front of
Micl
Renaissance
sciencealso gave paintersnew materials,such as oilbasedpaints,to work with. Oil paint was made by mixing powdered
pigments(colors) with linseedoil. This type of paint was thicker and
int-luenr
dried more slowly than the older, egg-basedpaint. Oil paint also
how fo
have br
allowed artiststo paint over previouswork and to show detailsand
texturein new ways.
326 Chapter29
A
was onl
"What
Michel
29.5 Advances in $culpture
rof
ntings'
rt were
ainters'
u leamed
: IefleWed
wanted
) showed
ed to
ruodS.
fferent
, rigid
\ges.
rde bY
as the
'e. Painters
te the
raflat
rtists used
ndicate
re of
painted
ry it aPPears
bject, the
:. Painters
ding of dePth
recededinto
rakefigures
',
a farnous
lues.
'ances.
The
w to divide
v wodd in
It oUtervd
"Y
tbe
r PortraY
suchasoil'
:#f*
dnt also i5".'
detarls
Like painters,Renaissance
sculptorswere influencedby the humanist interestin realism.They were also inspiredby ancientRoman statues
dug up from ruins. Sculptorsbegancarving figures that looked like real
peopleand showedemotions.
For the first time sincethe days of ancientGreeceand Rome, sculptors made freestandingstatuesthat could be viewed in the round. This
was very diff-erentfiom the relief sculpturesof medievaltimes.The
new statuescausedquite a sensation.They seemedto symbolize the
\
humanistidealsof independenceand individuality.
Donatello,a Florentine,was one of the first sculptorsto use the new,
more lifelike style. His work expressedpersonalityand mood. A good
exampleis his statueof David, the young warior in the Bible story
of David and Goliath. In the 1500s,Giorgio Vasari,an architectand
painter,wrote that Donatello'sDavid is "so natural...itis almostimbelieveit was not moldedon the living form." This statue
possible...to
y i c h e l a n g e sl oi t s
M o s e s( a b o v e ) b M
is thoughtto be the first life-size nude statuesinceclassicaltimes.
a 1t h e t 0 m i ro f P o p eJ u l i u sl l i n R o m e .
Donatello'swork influencedFlorence'sother great sculptor,
Michelangelo.This famousartist is renownedboth for his painting
M i c h e l a n g e l oD' sa v i di s p e r h a p tsh e
m o s ta d m i r e ds c u l p t u r ien t h e w o r l d .
andhis sculpture.He was also a talented
poetand architect.Of all thesearts,he
preferredsculpturebecauseit seemedto
bringhis subjectsto life.
Michelangelocreatedhis own
majesticstatueof David. It may be the
world'smost widely admiredsculpture.
Carvedin white marble,Michelangelo's
Dcvidstandsabout 17 feet tall. It is
famedas an ideal of male beauty,yet it
reflectshumanistideas.David's expressionshowsthe concentrationand tension
ofa realyouth on the vergeof battle.
Michelangelo's David was installed
, ln thePiazzadella Signoria,the plaza in
&ontof the PalazzoVecchio.It became
Prizedexpressionof Renaissance
in Florence.
ngelohad an enonnous
on otherartists.Giorgio Vasari
of his followers.He wrote.
a happyagewe live in! And
areour craftsmen.who
given lighr and vision by
@=
29.6 Advances in Literature
Literature,like other Renaissance
art forms, was changedfy
rebirth of interestin classicalideasand the rise of humanism.
the Italian Renaissance,
the topics that peoplewrote aboutc
to earthlylife
secular relating
ratherthanto religion
or spiritual
matters
So did their style of writing and the languagein which they
In medievaltimes, literatureusually dealt with religioustopi
writers used a formal, impersonalstyle. Most Italian writers w
Latin. Their work could be read only by a few highly educated
In contrast,Renaissance
writers were interestedin individual
ienceand in the world aroundthem. Writing about secular, or
religious,topics becamemore common.Writers useda more indi
style, and they expressedthoughtsand feelingsabout life. By the
the Renaissance,
most writers were writing in their own dialecti
of Latin. As a result,far more peoplecould read their work.
Dante.
a Renaissance
writerin
Florence,
wrotea longpoemcalled
TheDivineComedy.
Danteis painted
herewithscenesof heaven
andhell
a sd e s c r i b ei ndh i sp o e m .
Dante Alighieri, a native of Florence, was the first well-known writeq
to createliteraturein his native languagb.His best-knownwork, The ):
Ditine Comedy,was written in the early 1300s.This long poem describes
Dante'simaginaryjourney through the placeswhere Christiansbelieved
that soulswent in the afterlife.With the spirit of the ancientRoman
poet Virgil as his guide, Dante witnessesthe tormentsof soulscondemned to Inferno, or hell. Virgil also takes him to Purgatory,a place
betweenheavenand hell where
soulsawait entry into heaven.
Then a beautifulwoman named
Beatriceshowshim Paradise.or
heaven.
Like other humanist art, The
Divine Contedyhighlights strong
emotionsand the experiencesof
individuals.
Dante'spoemis a
social commentary,too. It is filled
with real people.The inhabitants
of hell includedpeopleDante disapprovedof. Peoplehe admired
appearedin heaven.
Dante'swork becamea model
for other Renaissancewriters. He
strongly influencedtwo important
Florentinewriters, Petrarchand
'fhey
Boccaccio.
describedpeople's lives with a new intensityof
feeling. Like Dante,they wrote
using the local dialect. so their
words touchedmany more people.
328 Chapter29
7N
the Rer
others;
: Beforer
wot
aa$ral
$ thehun
questiorun€
ingthe wot
oldbooksz
experirnent
nathemati<
changedth
Oneof
wasLeona
scientisla
tersin Flot
saidthat hr
sketchingi
Leonar'
acceptany
self.In his
anamazin
etry,engin
He studiec
of blood a
aboutthe
wasthe fi.
eyeview I
he designt
machines.
an underv
Other
madebrei
solvedco
was intert
work in p
Galilei di
ity. He pt
object fal
sameheil
the first t
telescope
By emph
Renaissa
29.7 Advances in Science and Mathematics
The Renaissance
was not just a time of progressin the arts.Scholars Leonardo
many
da Vincistudied
and othersalso madegreatadvancesin scienceand mathematics.
things,including
humananatomy.
Beforethe Renaissance,
most of what peoplebelievedaboutthe
Thesesketches
of the muscles
of
naturalworld was basedon ideasin ancientGreekand Romantexts.
As the humanistspirit took hold. peoplestarted
questioningold ideas.They begancarefully observS
ing the world around them. Insteadof relying on
old books and theories,scientistsbeganto perfonn
They analyzedthe resultsusing
experirnents.
mathematicsand logic. This approachto research
changedthe studyof science.
al
of
the armarefromhisnotebooks.
#"-,:ai ,,,;**i
,r..-,
il\
l" lt
.tlti
thinkers
One of the most creativeRenaissance
wasLeonardoda Vinci. Leonardowas an artist. a
d
ter
bes
rved
scientist,and an inventor.He studiedunder art mastersin Florenceand did his early work there.It is
saidthat he was often to be found thinking and
Leonardowas endlesslycurious.He did not
acceptanythingas tme until he had proved it himself.In his notebooks,he sketchedand wrote about
anamazingvariety of topics. He wrote about geom-
d
or
'xe
)ng
of
I
ftlled
rnts
r dts'ed
,"&t
i. llo
)fu[t
rd
#,
iv{
0s:'
f,S'i;d$
sketchingat his favorite church,Orsanmichele.
etry.engineering.
sound,motion.and architecture.
He studiedanatomy,including the circulation
of bloodand the workings of the eye. He learned
aboutthe effectsof the moon on Earth's tides. He
wasthe first personto draw mapsfrom a bird'Seyeview (abovethe ground).As an inventor,
hedesignedbridges,weapons,and many other
machines.
Among his many farsightedideaswas
anunderwaterdivine suit.
,
.i
,;
OtherItalian scientistsand mathematicians
madebreakthroughsas well. Girolamo Cardano
tolvedcomplexequationsin algebra.Cardano,who
xrasinterested
in gambling,also did pioneering
m probability,the scienceof chance.Galileo
did importantexperimentsconcerninggravprovedthat a heavierobject and a lighter
fall at the samerate. If the two objects are dropped from the
they reachthe ground at the sametime. Galileo also built
telescope
that could be useclto look into space.He usedhis
to discoversunspotsand the moons of the planet Jupiter.
observationand experiment,Galileo and other
scientistspaved the way for modern science
of
circulation themovement
thebody
bloodthrough
Florence:The Cradleof the Renaissance 329
.
*1
29.A Florentine Politics
The local governmentof Florencewas housedin the palazzo
Vecchio.Like other Italian city-states,Florencewas ruled by a
ing board.As you learnedin Chapter28, however,theseboards
Florins
werethemostvaluable
c o i n si n a l lo f E u r o pdeu r i n tgh e
R e n a i snscae .
9l
often controlledby rich families. The powerful Medici family
trolled Florence for nearly three centuries.
As Yo
wi
csnrcr
Irt's cor
partof tf
The e
The Medicis maintainedtheir power in a number of ways.They
built palacesand kept a strongmilitary. They were involved in all
aspectsof life in the city. They were great supportersof artists,
and musicians.The Medicis also defeatedenemieswho plotted
the family or even to murder someof its members.
flexible'
nakjng'
kindsof
mightal
grunde
One of the most powerful membersof the Medicis was Lorenzo
Magnificent.A leadingpatron of art and scholarship,Lorenzo ruled
Florencefor more than 20 years,from 1469 until his deathin 1492.
Two yearslater, a revolution forced the Medicis into temporaryexile.
In 1512,the family regainedpower.
A Florentinestatesmanand historian,Niccolo Machiavelli, watched
thesestrugglesfbr power. During the Medicis' exile, he reorganizedthe
city's defenses.He also servedas a diplomat and spenttime observing
the actionsof other Italian rulers.
Machiavelli drew on his experiencesin a famous book called
The Prince. The book was a fiank
accountof how politics and governmentreally worked. Machiavelli advisedrulers to make
their statesstrongby doing what
worked best,rather than by being
good or moral. He said that they
shouldeven lie if it helpedthem
to rule. In his view, the end, or
purpose,justified the means(the
actionstakento achievea certain
purpose).Rulers,he wrote, should
belonge
TheI
Renaiss
industrY
s0fled r
Overtit
hub.Th
familiet
thantht
andkin
The
At the
bought
bread,
crowdt
theret,
The
center
andw,
orderl'
Th
in Eur
their t
be feared rather than loved.
The Prince seemsto contradict
humanistideals about people's
goodness.Its cold realism shock-
29.'
ed many readers.Yet in other ways
the book showsthe influenceof
TheProcesston
of the Magi is a
humanistideas.It was the product of one individual's careful obserfrescofromoneof theMedicifamilv's vation and thinking. It was concernedwith how things really worked
p a l a c ei sn F l o r e n c e .
in the world. It also separatedideasabout governmentfrom religion.
In this respect,The Prince was a very modernwork.
artistl
also I
and c
330 Chapter
29
Iq
advar
In
from
the F
29.9 Florentine Commerce and Trade
As you have learned,orle reasonthat Florencebecamea cultural
centerwas the wealth that trade and commercebrought to the city.
Let's concludeour visit to RenaissanceFlorencewith a look at this
part of the city's life.
)rs,
nst
the
The economyof Florencewas unusually
flexible. Its first greatindustrywas woolen-cloth
making, but peopleoften worked in several
kinds of business.The owner of a cloth factory
might also deal in banking and real estate.A
grain dealermight also be a lawyer.Peopleoften
belongedto severalof Florence'sguilds at once.
''
The shift to a money economyduring the
helpedcreatea thriving banking
Renaissance
industryin Florence.The Medicis, for example,
tched
ed the
startedout as merchantsand moneylenders.
Over time. FlorencebecameEurope'sbanking
hub.The Medicis becameone of the wealthiest
I
1Ie.
rving
experlled
r frank
I govchia;what
i being
't they
Ithem
d, or
ns (the
cernin
:, should
familiesin ltaly, and Florencebecamericher
thanthe largestkingdomsin Europe.Popes
andkings borrowedmoney from its 80 banks.
There were two market centers in the city.
At the Mercato Vecchio(Old Market), people
boughteverydayitems like vegetables,fruits,
bread"fish. meat. medicine.and shoes.The MercatoVecchiowas
crowded,noisy,and smelly.Still, peoplefrom all over Europecame
thereto buy and sell goods.
The Mercato Nuovo (New Market) was built in the mid 1500sas a
centerfor the cloth and banking industries.City officials bannedfood
andweaponsfrom this new market.They wantedit to be clean and
orderlyas a sign that cornmercewas highly regardedin Florence.
Florence's
MercatoNuovo(New
andnicer
wasmuchcleaner
Market)
Vecchio
thanthecity'sMercato
{0ld
TheMercatoNuovorepre'
Market).
Florence's
highstatusin
sented
Europe
as a centerof commerce.
The Mercato Nuovo becameone of the largestfinancial marketplaces
in Europe.People traveled from far and wide to get loans or to convert
theirmoneyinto florins, which could be usedanywherein Europe.
1.
ongadtct
lPle's
r shock
theru8f
mca'}i!i',
,Ot*X
Florence:The Cradle of the Renaissance 331