Italy timeline
-
Eruption of Mount Vesuvius
Mount Vesuvius is best known for its eruption in AD 79 that led to the destruction of the Roman cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum. They were never... Read more
-
Colosseum Completed
The Colosseum or Roman Coliseum, originally the Flavian Amphitheatre (Latin: Amphitheatrum Flavium, Italian Anfiteatro Flavio or Colosseo), is an... Read more
-
Leaning Tower of Pisa Construction Begins
The Leaning Tower of Pisa (Italian: Torre pendente di Pisa) or simply the Tower of Pisa (La Torre di Pisa) is the campanile, or freestanding bell... Read more
-
Cimabue Paints the Frescos of the Church of San Francesco at Assisi
Cimabue was commissioned to paint two very large frescoes for the Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi. They are on the walls of the transepts: a... Read more
-
Cimabue Paints his Maestà for the Santa Trinità Church
The picture originally stood on the high altar of Santa Trinità church in Florence. The iconography is frequent in medieval painting and represents... Read more
-
Giotto Paints the Crucifixion of Rimini for the Santa Maria Novella Church
According to Vasari, Giotto's earliest works were for the Dominicans at Santa Maria Novella. These include a fresco of the Annunciation and the... Read more
-
Giotto Paints the Marriage at Cana for the Interior of the Scrovegni Chapel
Sometime between 1303 and 1310 Giotto executed (and signed) his most influential work, the painted decoration of the interior of the Scrovegni... Read more
-
Giotto Paints the Ognissanti Madonna
In 1311 Giotto returned to Florence, A document from 1313 shows his presence in Rome, where he executed a mosaic for the façade of the old St.... Read more
-
Dante Alighieri Dies
About 1320 Dante made his final home in Ravenna, where he died on the night of September 13-14, 1321. His body was brought to the church of San... Read more
-
Marco Polo Dies
In 1323, Polo was confined to bed, due to illness. On January 8, 1324, despite physicians' efforts to treat him, Polo was on his deathbed. To write... Read more
-
Construction Begins on Giotto's Belltower in Florence
On the death in 1302 of Arnolfo di Cambio, the first Master of the Works of the Cathedral, and after an interruption of more than thirty years, the... Read more
-
Ghiberti Announced Winner of Sculpting Competition over Brunelleschi
In 1401, Brunelleschi entered a competition to design a new set of bronze doors for the baptistery in Florence. Along with another young goldsmith,... Read more
-
Donatello Sculpts his Saint Mark
Donatello's Saint Mark (1411-1413), is a marble statue that stands approximately seven feet and nine inches high in an exterior niche of the... Read more
-
Donatello Sculpts his Saint George
The full power of Donatello first appeared in two marble statues, St. Mark and St. George (both completed c. 1415), for niches on the exterior of... Read more
-
Construction Begins on Brunelleschi's Ospedale degli Innocenti
The Ospedale degli Innocenti ('Hospital of the Innocents', also known in Italian as Lo Spedale degli Innocenti), was a children's orphanage in... Read more
-
Construction Begins on Brunelleschi's Dome
By the beginning of the fifteenth century, the drum of the church was built. However, the 42 meter wide space above the church's chancel still did... Read more
-
Donatello Collaborates with Michelozzo on the External Pulpit of the Prato Cathedral
The Cathedral of Prato (Italian: Duomo di Prato) is the main Catholic church of Prato, Tuscany, Central Italy and seat of the bishop. It is... Read more
-
Cosimo de' Medici Commissions Donatello to Sculpt his Bronze David
Around 1430, Cosimo de' Medici, the foremost art patron of his era, commissioned from Donatello the bronze David (now in the Bargello) for the... Read more
-
Leonardo da Vinci is Born in Vinci
Leonardo was born on April 15, 1452, "at the third hour of the night"[nb 5] in the Tuscan hill town of Vinci, in the lower valley of the Arno River... Read more
-
Donatello's Equestrian Statue, "Gattamelata", is Placed on its Pedestal
Erasmo of Narni (1370 – January 16, 1443), better known as "Gattamelata", (The nickname means "The Honeyed Cat") was among the most famous of the... Read more
-
Donatello Carves his Mary Magdalene
Donatello was apparently inactive during the last three years at Padua, the work for the San Antonio altar unpaid for and the Gattamelata monument... Read more
-
Donatello Sculpts his Judith and Holofernes
The bronze sculpture Judith and Holofernes (1460), created by Donatello at the end of his career, can be seen in the Hall of Lilies (Sala dei... Read more
-
Leonardo da Vinci Begins Apprenticeship at Verrochio's Workshop
n 1466, at the age of fourteen, Leonardo was apprenticed to one of the most successful artists of his day, Andrea di Cione, known as Verrocchio.... Read more
-
A Young Michelangelo Contributes to the Ark of Saint Dominic
The Arca di San Domenico (Ark of Saint Dominic) is a monument containing the remains of Saint Dominic. It is located in Dominic’s Chapel in the... Read more
-
Leonardo da Vinci Paints the Annunciation
The painting "Annunciation" or "The Annunciation" by Leonardo da Vinci was painted, with Andrea del Verrocchio, circa 1472–1475. The wings were... Read more