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Related: Culture Forums, Support ForumsFlorence: A few pictures from yesterday...
Unfortunately, I was forbidden to take any picture inside, so I missed photographing Michelangelo's David, among other statues...
This is a famous palace where the young Michelangelo first lived when he was learning his craft:
I don't recall the name of this square, but these buildings are often photographed:
And this is a detail of the above picture:
femmocrat
(28,394 posts)Notice the security cameras on the windows of the academy!
CaliforniaPeggy
(149,627 posts)Omigod, I hadn't noticed those!
Sanity Claws
(21,849 posts)CaliforniaPeggy
(149,627 posts)I am terrible about remembering the names of places!
libodem
(19,288 posts)Nice photograghy!
CaliforniaPeggy
(149,627 posts)It's always nice when the pics turn out...
libodem
(19,288 posts)The time of your life!
CaliforniaPeggy
(149,627 posts)monmouth3
(3,871 posts)CaliforniaPeggy
(149,627 posts)We're in Lucca now, and it has been quite muggy and warm...
But sunny!
monmouth3
(3,871 posts)WCGreen
(45,558 posts)It was a new design and it was really a triumph for man over God...
CaliforniaPeggy
(149,627 posts)It sounds really interesting...
It was stunning to see all those buildings there, all together.
WCGreen
(45,558 posts)Brunelleschi's Dome: How a Renaissance Genius Reinvented Architecture
by Ross King (Author)
155 customer reviews
Hardcover
from $6.38
PPublication date
Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com Review
Filippo Brunelleschi's design for the dome of the cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore in Florence remains one of the most towering achievements of Renaissance architecture. Completed in 1436, the dome remains a remarkable feat of design and engineering. Its span of more than 140 feet exceeds St Paul's in London and St Peter's in Rome, and even outdoes the Capitol in Washington, D.C., making it the largest dome ever constructed using bricks and mortar. The story of its creation and its brilliant but "hot-tempered" creator is told in Ross King's delightful Brunelleschi's Dome.
Both dome and architect offer King plenty of rich material. The story of the dome goes back to 1296, when work began on the cathedral, but it was only in 1420, when Brunelleschi won a competition over his bitter rival Lorenzo Ghiberti to design the daunting cupola, that work began in earnest. King weaves an engrossing tale from the political intrigue, personal jealousies, dramatic setbacks, and sheer inventive brilliance that led to the paranoid Filippo, "who was so proud of his inventions and so fearful of plagiarism," finally seeing his dome completed only months before his death. King argues that it was Brunelleschi's improvised brilliance in solving the problem of suspending the enormous cupola in bricks and mortar (painstakingly detailed with precise illustrations) that led him to "succeed in performing an engineering feat whose structural daring was without parallel." He tells a compelling, informed story, ranging from discussions of the construction of the bricks, mortar, and marble that made up the dome, to its subsequent use as a scientific instrument by the Florentine astronomer Paolo Toscanelli. --Jerry Brotton, Amazon.co.uk --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From Publishers Weekly
Walker was the hardcover publisher of Dava Sobel's sleeper smash, Longitude, and Mark Kurlansky's steady-seller Cod: A Biography of the Fish that Changed the World. This brief, secondary source-based account is clearly aimed at the same lay science-cum-adventure readership. British novelist King (previously unpublished in the U.S.) compiles an elementary introduction to the story of how and why Renaissance Italian architect Filippo Brunelleschi (1377-1446) designed and oversaw the construction of the enormous dome of Florence's Santa Maria del Fiore cathedralAdesigning its curves so that they needed no supporting framework during construction: a major Renaissance architectural innovation. Illustrated with 26 b&w period prints, the book contains 19 chapters, some very brief. Although the result is fast moving and accessible, King overdoes the simplicity to the point that the book appears unwittingly as if it was intended for young adults. (Donatello, Leonardo and Michelangelo, for example, "took a dim view of marriage and women." This book feels miles away from its actual characters, lacking the kind of dramatic flourish that would bring it fully to life. Despite direct quotes from letters and period accounts, the "would have," "may have" and "must have" sentences pile up. Still, the focus on the dome, its attendant social and architectural problems, and the solutions improvised by Brunelleschi provide enough inherent tension to carry readers along. (Oct. 23)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
CaliforniaPeggy
(149,627 posts)I look forward to reading it. Funny thing: I've read, and enjoyed both the other books mentioned here: Longitude, and Cod: A Bio...
I think this book will be just the ticket for me too.
Phentex
(16,334 posts)Love the close up details!
CaliforniaPeggy
(149,627 posts)I really wanted to show those.......they are gorgeous and fascinating.
You can't tell from the pictures, but it was very hot and humid, and the crowds were too much. But it was worth it!
Solly Mack
(90,769 posts)Thank you, CP, for sharing your adventures with us.
I've been enjoying the photos.
Sorry for not saying so sooner.
CaliforniaPeggy
(149,627 posts)It's been fun sharing the pictures. As well as fun taking them...
I'm glad you're enjoying them!
Thanks for coming by.
denbot
(9,900 posts)Have you and the Mr. been sampling the local cuisine? If I ever get back to Europe, I think food will be as important as site seeing. Or maybe I should put this thing down and have lunch..
CaliforniaPeggy
(149,627 posts)We have indeed been sampling the local cuisine, and it's variable and very good.
The food is very important....
And do have lunch!
EdwardSmith74
(282 posts)CaliforniaPeggy
(149,627 posts)Manifestor_of_Light
(21,046 posts)The Florence Cathedral was one of the first examples of art & architecture in the Renaissance. The doors of the baptistery are also famous, designed by Lorenzo Ghiberti. The dome is elliptical.
CaliforniaPeggy
(149,627 posts)I appreciate the art history so much...
I did get a picture of the doors, but it's nowhere as good as the one you posted...
Manifestor_of_Light
(21,046 posts)Grace Cathedral in San Francisco has an exact replica of the doors to the baptistery in their cathedral!! I saw them and took a picture of them back in 1982 when I visited my cousin there!!
Lionel Mandrake
(4,076 posts)One shows Albert Einstein with his famous formula E = m c^2.
Another shows John Glenn floating around in a space suit IIRC.
The late Bishop Pike of SF was an early advocate of women's rights, LGBT rights, and other then controversial policies. He kept being threatened with a trial for heresy.
Manifestor_of_Light
(21,046 posts)He died in the desert. Tragic.
LeftofObama
(4,243 posts)How long will you be in Italy? What kind of food have you had there? Ooooooh! One more question! Do they have a Pizza Hut there?
CaliforniaPeggy
(149,627 posts)We'll be heading home the day after tomorrow...
NO, there are no Pizza Huts in Italy!
Earth_First
(14,910 posts)How long are you there for, CP?
CaliforniaPeggy
(149,627 posts)I'm glad you do! It was a lucky shot...
We have tomorrow here, and Sunday we leave for home.
Tuesday Afternoon
(56,912 posts)looks like you guys are having a blast!
CaliforniaPeggy
(149,627 posts)I hope someday you can get here too...
greatauntoftriplets
(175,742 posts)It's about nine or 10 floors and quite a climb. Once you get up there, though, the view is spectacular. I couldn't do it now. Treated myself to a gelato afterwards.
CaliforniaPeggy
(149,627 posts)My legs hurt just hearing about it...
I'm sure the view is amazing.