Piero di Cosimo de' Medici

Renaissance Observation Paper The painting that I selected was “Forest Fire” by Piero di Cosimo. Piero di Cosimo was a Florentine painter of the Italian Renaissance. He was born on January 2, 1462, and died on April 12, 1522. He created this painting in 1505, at the age of 43, about a decade before his death. He painted “Forest Fire” with an oil panel canvas, similar to most of his paintings at the time. Starting in the left hand corner, I see a bundle of cream, beige, and black birds flying away in a frantic. Then a multi-colored bird sits on the far end branch, almost peacefully, unbothered by the chaos surrounding it. A little below the colorful bird is an ash hawk, with its wings sprung out, kind of looks as if he is controlling the situation. Below him is two small golden deer, one of them is looking at the fire, probably thinking why are we still standing here. The other deer is looking up at the birds as if he is envious that they are able to escaped with…

the London branch of the Medici Bank would be helpful. “A merchant would borrow 1000 florins (Florence’s currency) from Giovanni’s Florentine branch where the exchange rate is 40 pence (England’s currency) per florin. With that money, the merchant buys goods in Italy that he knows are in high demand in London. Upon arriving in London, he sells his goods and receives English pence. He is now prepared to pay back his debt of 40,000 pence, pocketing any excess he made as profit. The Medici branch…

The Medici Family The Medici family influenced politics in Italy for 300 years and can be traced back to the end of the 12th century. They belonged to the aristocratic class and not nobility, the family gained its fortune through banking and commerce and acquired great wealth by the 13th century. The first Medici to get notable political influence was Salvestro de’ Medici who was the gonfaliere during the 14th century, he led a revolt against the ciompi and became the dictator of the city,…

Through the Medici Party and many other established connections, the successful Medici leaders controlled the European Economy in the 15th Century. The Medici Family, originally from Mugello, a small, rural town, rose from simple beginnings to rule Florence (Cesati 19). The first ruler, Giovanni di Bicci de’ Medici, moved a small Roman Bank Branch to Florence in order to utilize the possibility for expansion and investments (“Medici Bank”). After the death of Giovanni, Cosimo de’ Medici, took…

even left the identity of the figures unknown so as to add to the multilevel interpretations available. Botticelli’s true intentions are nearly impossible to know for sure, however, due to the passage of time, the painting’s unknown provenance, and the current location of the painting. All three of Botticelli’s Venus paintings original locations are unknown, resulting in unknown context. They have all been suggested as wedding paintings, and the material, medium, and size of Venus and Mars…

His inspiration had come from his family who, having held high up positions in the city’s republic, had become prominent figures in Florence. In 1494 the Medici were driven out of power and replaced by Piero Soderini, “a man Machiavelli characterized as "good, but weak,"” “During this time, Machiavelli thrived under the patronage of the Florentine gonfaloniere (or chief administrator for life)” In 1498 he received the title, Second Chancellor of the Republic of Florence and eventually found…

form of income for the Medici. They spread out their accounts by dealing in many items, for example: wool, cloth, silk, spices, olive oil, and fruits. The Medici style of banking was sometimes done in the dark. They would use the complicated and confusing banking system to their advantage, when dealing with large sums of money. They would separate their accounts for each business venture they went into, and each account was charged with all the costs, expenses, and the amount if proceeds from…

The sculpture was first placed at the old cathedral façade. It now requires a seat at the Museo dell'Opera del Duomo.He did a lot of working in his lifetime.A sculptor who revolutionized the art in Florence during the early Renaissance. Born as Donato di Niccolo Bardi, he was an apprentice in the workshop of Lorenzo Ghiberti, and attended Ghiberti making the very famous bronze doors of the Baptistry of Florence.He was one of the most bestest Florentine sculptors alive. He lived mostly in…

4. Florence was considered to be the focus of what came to be the Renaissance. The political realm of Florence was dictated by the Medici family. This family controlled the city in secret, for nearly eight decades. The family saw the city of Florence as their work of art One member of this family was Cosimo de’ Medici. Cosimo embraced the very essence of what humanism is. Humanism embraces the arts and literature from cultures of Ancient Greece and Rome. Cosimo made sure that he was constantly…

spread ideas of the Renaissance through individualism. Most merchants were not born into wealthy families. Instead, they had to earn their social, economical and political status. This was important because it went against the idea from the medieval times that you were born into a certain status and the that is where you were meant to stay. This was called individualism which is self-achievement. Lastly, a lot of the wealthy families would use money or simply their status to gain control in…