The Renaissance

In this fascinating, beautifully illustrated book, historian Phyllis G. Jestice takes readers on a vivid journey through the world of the Renaissance, exploring the lives of great artists, the birth of new ideas and the politics that made such radical change possible.

Beginning in the 15th century, the Renaissance brought an unprecedented flowering of creativity across Europe as intellectuals re-examined the works of ancient Greece and Rome, artists developed new styles and composers transformed music. Central to this movement were the patrons, clerics and powerful monarchs who sponsored and shaped these changes, from figures such as Cosimo de' Medici to the renewed power and grandeur of Rome and a deep fascination with the classical past.

Ranging from Dutch painters and Italian sculptors to English and French composers, The Renaissance offers a compelling window into one of the most important periods of European history and shows how this spirit of rebirth took distinctive forms across the continent.