histoy G-10 E

were that only the church had the strength to
support the arts and the mediaeval thinking had
been built upon religious teachings. Therefore
the artists were not independent enough to
make creations according to their talents. But,
during the Renaissance everything changed. The
rich, who appreciated worldly pleasure, offered
to support the artists during the Renaissance.
As individualism was appreciated during the
Renaissance, the artists started making their
creations independently by showing their
talents. They started to produce the artworks by
the names of artists, which had been introduced
by the grades so far. Therefore, a number of
artworks, which displayed worldly pleasure
instead of religious thoughts, were produced.

Paintings

Paintings, among other arts and crafts, had a
broad transformation during the Renaissance.
The city of Florence was a centre which produced
a new art of painting. As the creations were made
giving priority to the worldly pleasure, paintings
and sculptures in this period displayed nude
and half nude figures. So far the personalities
related to religion like Jesus Christ and Mother
Mary were the subjects of paintings. But in the
Renaissance the figures of wealthy people were
drawn. Leonardo Da Vinci, Micheal Angelo,
Raphael, Masekshio, and Botta Chelli were
important painters in this period.

Leonardo Da Vinci was clever at many fields in
addition to painting. He was a poet, a musician,
a scientist and a practical engineer. His paintings
such as Monalisa and last supper of Jesus Christ
have been considered as great masterpieces
even at present. Michael Angelo was also a great
painter as well as a sculptor and an architect.
The paintings which he drew on the ceiling of
the Sistine church displays the greatness of his
paintings. The painting ‘Last Judgement’ and
"The Painting of Adam" drawn in the Sistine
church itself are important among his paintings.

Sculpture

Sculpture too had an important place among

the arts and crafts during the Renaissance.

Sculpturing in alabaster was a prominent feature

at that time. Michael Angelo was a great sculptor.

He has sculptured Lorenso Medici of the Medici

family out of alabaster. The statues of Pieta,

Moses, and David are among his other creations.

Architecture

There were significant changes in architecture

during the Renaissance. The special feature of the

architecture in the mediaeval period was high

roofs in the shape of pointed cone and pillars in

the shape of pyramids. Instead, the main features

in the architecture during the Renaissance were

the circular archs, high pillars and half round

domes according to the Roman architecture.

Even luxurious castles were constructed

imitating the Romans.

The buildings such as Saint Peter’s Basilica

church, and Seat Church in Florence are among

the constructions which reflect their architecture.

Michael Anjelo, Leonardo Da Vinci and Raphael

were talented architects in the Renaissance

period.

Scientific Advancement

Another significant feature of the Renaissance

was the advancement of science. The scholars,

who were influenced by the Greek books, tended

to experiment scientifically without being

confined to one field. They observed everything

including the earth, the sun, the moon and the

stars. As a result, they put forward novel ideas on

the universe. And also there was advancement in

science too.

Novel ideas on the Universe

Nicholas Copernicus (Polish)

He discovered that the earth is round and the

other planets rotate around the earth. Since he