Narraciones extraordinarias, edgar allan poe

Medici

The Medicis were a powerful family from Florence, who, with the hereditary ruling system in place, influenced Italy and Europe from the 13th to the 17th century. Popes Leo X, Clement VII, and Leo XI were of Medici descent. The family achieved power through The Medici Bank with Giovanni di Bicci de' Medici, which was one of the most prosperous and respected banks in Europe. In 1434, theMedici family became unofficial head of the state of Florentine republic. The senior branch of the family ruled until 1537, when Alessandro de' Medici was assasinated, whereby the junior branch of the family took over.

Marco Polo

Marco Polo was a trader and explorer who was born on September 15, 1254 and died on January 8, 1324. He was one of the first to travel to China and visit KublaiKhan (grandson of Genghis Khan).

Dante

Durante degli Alighieri (known as Dante) was a poet from Florence, Italy. He was born June 1, 1265, and died September 13/14, 1321. He is known for his work, The Divine Comedy, of which the part Inferno is most widely known. It is considered Europe's greatest literary statement from the medieval period.

Gattamelata by Donatello, from "Donatello" byWikipedia, 2006.

Donatello

Donatello (Donato di Niccolò di Betto Bardi) was born in 1386 and died on December 13, 1466. He was a famous sculptor and artist of Florence in the Early Renaissance. Famous statues include Gattamelata, and David.

Alberti

Leone Battista Alberti was an Italian painter, poet, linguist, philosopher, cryptographer, musician, architect, and polymath during the ItalianRenaissance. He was born February 14, 1404 and died April 25, 1472. He was educated at the University of Bologna in law, and toured Europe during his twenties. He is famous for the first study of scientific perspective, and for numerous architectural buildings.

Botticelli

Alessandro di Mariano Filipepi (otherwise known as Sandro Botticelli), was born on March 1, 1445 and died on May 17,1510. He was a painter of the Florentine school during the Early Renaissance. He is most famous for his painting, The Birth of Venus.

Columbus

Cristoforo Columbo (Christopher Columbus) was born in 1451 and died May 20, 1506. He was an explorer and trader who sailed to America, reaching it on October 12, 1492. His discovery initiated the colonization of the Americas.

Da Vinci

Leonardo daVinci was born April 15, 1452 and died May 3, 1519. He was an Italian Renaissance architect, musician, anatomist, inventor, engineer, sculptor, geometer, and painter. He is well known for his paintings The Last Supper and The Mona Lisa, as well as his studies of anatomy.

Vespucci

Amerigo Vespucci is famous for voyaging to and writing about the Americas. He was born March 9, 1454 and diedFebruary 22, 1512. He was an Italian merchant and cartographer (map maker). He discovered the new continent of South America under disbelief from the general population that anything but East Asia would be reached by sailing West.

Michelangelo

Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni was born March 6, 1475 and died February 18, 1564. He was a Renaissance sculptor, architect, painter and poet.He painted the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, sculpted the famous David and Pieta, and designed the dome of St. Peter's Basilica in Rome.

The ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, from "The Sistine Chapel" by Wikipedia, 2006.

Raphael

Raphael was born April 6, 1483 and died April 6, 1520. He was a master painter and architect in the Italian High Renaissance, of the Florentine school. He isreknowned for the perfection and softness of his paintings, which include Madonna and Child.

Galileo

Galileo Galilei was an Italian astronomer, astrologer, physicist, and philospher closely associeted with the scientific revolution. He was born February 15, 1564 and died January 8, 1642. He improves the telescope, observed various aspects of astronomy, developed the first and second laws of...