Brunelleschi's Dome Summary

1075 Words3 Pages

Brunelleschi 's Dome: How a Renaissance Genius Reinvented Architecture, written by Ross King, describes the history of the city of Florence and life at the end of the Middle Ages through the genius of Filippo Brunelleschi. The book begins by giving information about the historic competition that led to the impressive dome that sits atop Santa Maria del Fiore. It then gives an account of the history of Florence in the late 1300s and early 1400s and the building of the cathedral and the initial competition for the dome 's design. After providing information about Florence and the cathedral, Ross King gives background information about Filippo Brunelleschi, his experiences as an artist and scientist in both Florence and Rome, and insight into …show more content…

It begins with explaining how the rivalry between Filippo and Lorenzo had been going on for years, and Filippo had quickly become the top designer for the dome. Unfortunately for Filippo, Lorenzo has the same salary and could possibly share credit with Filippo. In 1423, when Filippo 's design is selected, a disaster seems to strike; Filippo takes to his bed, seemingly very ill. When it seems he is not to recover, Lorenzo is forced to take over on this project. fter Lorenzo puts the men back to work, Filippo miraculously recovers. He returns to the work site, exposes Lorenzo 's incompetence and is rewarded with a salary that is almost triple the original amount. This shows how truly egotistical and self-centered Filippo is, as well as how easily he can get others to follow his plans. Not only is he talented at trickery, he seems to enjoy the fear he inflicts on others. Ironically, Filippo is also very concerned with the safety of the workers. He builds a parapetto, or balcony, in order to calm the masons high in the air, and implements other safety measures, such as leather harnesses, and diluted wine. These safety precautions worked, as only three men die during the building of the dome. Also natural to the time, Filippo has to deal is unemployment, which leads to labor disputes and strikes. Filippo does not tolerate this behavior, and although he rehires the men who go on strike, he pays them a lower wage. Unlike during strikes today, there was no union to support the workers during this earlier

Open Document