Timeline - Renaissance

Renaissance

1543

"De revolutionibus orbium coelestium" written by Copernico

1453 - 1610

1492

Discovery of America

1453

Fall of Costantinople

1455

Johannes Gutenberg - First Printed Bible

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1501

"David" made by Michelangelo

1610

"Sidereus Nuncius" written by Galilei

1513

"Il Principe" written by Macchiavelli

1503

"Gioconda" made by Leonardi Da Vinci

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Did you know?

"Renaissance" is a French word that means "Rebirth"

Scientific & Religious Discovery

Artwork

Historical Event

Historical Event

Artwork

The fall of Constantinople had a significant impact on European and World history, as it marked the end of the Eastern Roman Empire, which had played a crucial role in European culture and history for over a millennium. Furthermore, the fall of Constantinople was an important event in the history of Islam, as it allowed the Ottoman Turks to expand further into Europe and establish a vast empire that lasted for centuries.

The Bible printed by Gutenberg was one of the first texts copied with the technique of movable type. From this point on, the whole of Europe will come into contact with a revolutionary technique. For the first time, it was possible to reproduce books really quickly and cheaply. The diffusion of books, news, and culture began to speed up, leading to a progressive democratization of thought in the West in the following centuries.

One of the most significant events in the history of Europe was the discovery of America by Christopher Columbus which took place in 1492 so as to be considered by historians as the beginning of the modern era. Christopher Columbus was an admiral in the service of the sovereigns of Spain, for which he undertook four voyages to the New World allowing the European maritime powers of the time to give life to a system of trade with the "New World", to start the colonization of new lands, and begin the conversion of Native Americans to Christianity.

Michelangelo Buonarroti, known simply as Michelangelo, was an Italian painter, sculptor, architect and poet. Protagonist of the Italian Renaissance, already in his lifetime he was recognized by his contemporaries as one of the greatest artists of all time. Personality as ingenious as restless, his name is linked to some of the most majestic works of Western art, including David, Moses, the Pietà of the Vatican, the Dome of St. Peter and the cycle of frescoes in the Sistine Chapel , all considered outstanding artworks of Italian Renaissance

"De revolutionibus orbium caelestium" by Nikolaus Copernicus was published in 1543 in Nuremberg and marked a fundamental date in the history of humanity. Evaluating the work with today's eyes we realize that the great novelty of Copernicus' text must be identified mainly in the methodology that the author applies, which implies the fusion between astronomy mathematics and physical cosmology. In this text Copernicus showed that the earth and other planets revolve around the sun and this will be soon called "Copernican Revolution"

The Mona Lisa also known as Monnalisa is one of the most important works in the world. It is probably a truly universal icon that represents painting within Western culture. What made this work so famous were some legends built over time around the painting starting from the nineteenth century. Furthermore, Leonardo's revolutionary technique helped create a sense of mystery around the painted character. In fact, one of the Mona Lisa's strengths is her particularly ambiguous smile. Furthermore, even the gaze seems to follow the observer who moves in front of the work. Finally, Monnalisa's appearance is particularly ambiguous and some historians believed they could see in this painting the female version of Leonardo's face.

Literary Work

"Il Principe" is a critical essay on political doctrine written by Niccolò Machiavelli in which he exposes the characteristics of the principalities and the methods for conquering and maintaining them. It is his best known and most celebrated work, the one from whose the noun "Machiavellianism" and the adjective "Machiavellian" were born. The work is not attributable to any particular literary genre, as it does not have the characteristics of a real treatise. It's an example of the Renaissance and Humanism Italian Literature.

Scientific Discovery

Galileo Galilei's Sidereus Nuncius is a short treatise on astronomy published in 1610, which accounts for the revolutionary observations and discoveries made by the Pisan scientist with the use of a telescope (or Galilean telescope), perfected for the occasion. The title of the work can be translated as "celestial messenger", and refers precisely to the radical innovations, with respect to Aristotelian and Ptolemaic cosmology, that the book brought with it.

Scientific Discovery