Long neglected by scholars, medieval and Renaissance Bologna is now recognized as a center of economic, political-constitutional, legal, and intellectual innovation, as the city that served as the cultural crossroads of Italy. The city’s distinctive achievements and its transition from medieval commune to second largest city of the Renaissance Papal State is illuminated by essays that present the work of current historians, many made available in English for the first time, from the broadest possible perspective: from the material city with its porticoes, the conflicts that brought bloodshed and turmoil to its streets, the disputations of masters and students, and to the masterpieces of artists who laid the foundations for Baroque art. See inside the book.

"This is the first bilingual edition of a selection of plays from the fifteenth-century tradition of Florentine sacre rappresentazioni. These were plays produced by youth confraternities that elaborated biblical texts or saints' lives in ways that achieve a concentration of psychological realism that is frequently astonishing."--P. [4] of cover.

Traces the life of the Italian artist who was an apprentice to Michelangelo and court painter to King Philip II of Spain, and discusses her major paintings.