At its height Renaissance Florence was a center of enormous wealth, power, and influence. A republican city-state funded by trade and banking, its often-violent political scene was dominated by rich mercantile families, the most famous being the Medici.
From relatively modest beginnings, the Medici became bankers to the pope and to many rich and powerful European families. But perhaps their most enduring legacy—for which the world owes them a debt of gratitude—is their patronage of the arts. Artists such as Brunelleschi, Donatello, Fra Angelico, Botticelli, and Michelangelo all thrived with Medici patronage.
Renaissance art historian Elaine Ruffolo traces the family’s influence on the political, economic, and cultural history of Florence, from the early 1430s with the rise of the dynasty under the near-legendary Cosimo de Medici through the golden era under Lorenzo il Magnifico to the achievement of the family’s goal: the papal tiara.
World Art History Certificate elective: Earn 1/2 credit*
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*Enrolled participants in the World Art History Certificate Program receive 1/2 elective credit. Not yet enrolled? Learn about the program, its benefits, and how to register here.
