HIST 241: The Renaissance -- Jones: Find Background Info

Within the vast literature of the Renaissance, this is the one indispensable book: for the student who wants a guide to the complicated maze of Italian Renaissance political history; the scholar who needs a convenient, unified reference source; the art lover who wants to check facts and discover the background to the masterpieces of painting and sculpture; the traveler in Italy who wants to understand the great works of art and architecture in their context; and also the general reader who wants to find out more about this fascinating and important historical and cultural epoch.

The Renaissance was a period of intense activity, the fruits of which have had a profound impact on the intellectual history and culture of the whole of Europe and the wider world. Gordon Campbell, himself the epitome of the Renaissance man, with the help of his team of distinguished consultant and advisory editors, has created a unique new A-Z reference surveying all aspects of the Renaissance in Europe beginning in 1415 and ending at 1618. These entries cover a wide spectrum of topics including art, literature, science, culture, philosophy, religion, economics, history, and conflict. Over half of theentries are biographical, covering artists, architects, garden designers, philosophers, explorers, royalty, cardinals, reformers, statesman, writers, poets, playwrights, soldiers, rebels, woodcarvers, silversmiths, mystics, mathematicians, sculptors, and composers.

The Historical Dictionary of the Renaissance covers the history of Western and Central Europe from about 1350 to the early 17th century. It emphasizes those persons, movements, and places that are especially important in the growth of the humanistic culture and the new artistic and musical styles that are the most important aspects of European history in this period. The heart of the book is the alphabetically organized dictionary.

Leonardo da Vinci, Machiavelle, Cesare Boria, Elizabeth I, Shakespeare, and Juan de Herrera - figures great and small, famous and little known, all contributed to the outpouring of genius known as the Renaissance. This set of volumes treats the full period of the Renaissance, from 1350 to 1650, encompassing Italy and the rest of Europe in the context of the broader world. It contains topical entries and biographies, and alphabetically arranged articles on culture, literature, philosophy, religion, economics, politics, science, and the arts, - revealing how people thought, what they believed and how they lived.