Lesson 17: The European Renaissance

 During the European Renaissance there were major developments in the discovery of knowledge, education
and culture. The Word “Renaissance” literally means “rebirth”.
 The Renaissance refers to a time of rebirth and reinvention learning and thinking that began in Italy in the
14th Century, They wanted to promote interest in education, arts and culture.
 However, Renaissance was also branded as the Dark Ages, the Medieval period was characterized by some
years with famine and pandemics such as the Black Death.
 Johannes Guttenberg- invented the printing press and was one of the factors that helped renaissance ideas
to spread.
 It made producing books much cheaper and made books more widely available. This prompted an interest in
literacy and education.

During the Renaissance, great advances occurred in geography, astronomy, chemistry, physics, mathematics,
manufacturing, anatomy and engineering.

Great Artist of the Renaissance

Leonardo Da Vinci (1452 – 1519) Leonardo was the supreme Renaissance painter, scientist, inventor, and polymath.
Da Vinci is widely regarded as one of the greatest minds the world has ever produced. He was interested in
everything from music to art and science. Da Vinci was an immense creative force at the start of the Renaissance
period. Amongst his many works was the immortal painting – The Mona Lisa.

Political Thinker of the Renaissance

Niccolo Machiavelli (1469-1527) Machiavelli was an Italian writer, historian, diplomat and humanist. His greatest
work, The Prince is an expose of political machinations.

Renaissance Scientist

Galileo (1564 – 1642) Creating one of the first modern telescopes, Galileo revolutionized our understanding of the
world supporting the work of Copernicus.

English Renaissance

William Shakespeare (1564- 1616) English poet and playwright. Famous works include Macbeth, Romeo and Juliet,
Merchant of Venice and Hamlet.

Lesson 18: The Renaissance Man (Leonardo da Vinci)

 He was born on April 15, 1452

 His full name is Leonardo di ser Piero da Vinci
 Leonardo had no surname in the modern sense—da Vinci simply meaning "of Vinci"; his full birth name
was Lionardo di ser Piero da Vinci,[2][26] meaning "Leonardo, (son) of ser Piero from Vinci.
 He was an Italian polymath of the Renaissance whose areas of interest included invention, drawing,
painting, sculpture, architecture, science, music, mathematics, engineering, literature, anatomy, geology,
astronomy, botany, paleontology, and cartography.
 He has been variously called the father of palaeontology, ichnology, and architecture, and is widely
considered one of the greatest painters of all time (despite perhaps only 15 of his paintings having
survived).
  Leonardo was educated in painting and became an apprentice at the age of 17 in the studio of the
renowned Italian painter Andrea del Verrocchio.
 Leonardo was fascinated by the phenomenon of flight for much of his life, producing many studies,
including Codex on the Flight of Birds (c. 1505), as well as plans for several flying machines, such as a
flapping ornithopter and a machine with a helical rotor.
Leonardo Da Vinci’s Paintings
 The Baptism of Christ- Da Vinci’s painting collaborated with Vercchio that first gained attention
 The Last Supper-Leonardo's most famous painting of the 1490s, commissioned for the refectory of the
Convent of Santa Maria della Grazie in Milan. It represents the last meal shared by Jesus with his
disciples before his capture and death, and shows the moment when Jesus has just said "one of you will
betray me",
 Monalisa ( La Gioconda means the Laughing one)- Its fame rests, in particular, on the elusive smile on
the woman's face, its mysterious quality perhaps due to the subtly shadowed corners of the mouth and
eyes such that the exact nature of the smile cannot be determined.