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Magnifico - The Brilliant Life and Violent Times of Lorenzo De' Medici (Paperback)
Loot Price: R526
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Magnifico - The Brilliant Life and Violent Times of Lorenzo De' Medici (Paperback)
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List price R617
Loot Price R526
Discovery Miles 5 260
You Save R91 (15%)
Expected to ship within 10 - 15 working days
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Total price: R546
Discovery Miles: 5 460
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"Magnifico" is a vividly colorful portrait of Lorenzo de' Medici,
the uncrowned ruler of Florence during its golden age. A true
"Renaissance man," Lorenzo dazzled contemporaries with his
prodigious talents and magnetic personality. Known to history as
"Il Magnifico" (the Magnificent), Lorenzo was not only the foremost
patron of his day but also a renowned poet, equally adept at
composing philosophical verses and obscene rhymes to be sung at
Carnival. He befriended the greatest artists and writers of the
time -- Leonardo, Botticelli, Poliziano, and, especially,
Michelangelo, whom he discovered as a young boy and invited to live
at his palace -- turning Florence into the cultural capital of
Europe. He was the leading statesman of the age, the fulcrum of
Italy, but also a cunning and ruthless political operative. Miles
Unger's biography of this complex figure draws on primary research
in Italian sources and on his intimate knowledge of Florence, where
he lived for several years.
Lorenzo's grandfather Cosimo had converted the vast wealth of the
family bank into political power, but from his earliest days
Lorenzo's position was precarious. Bitter rivalries among the
leading Florentine families and competition among the squabbling
Italian states meant that Lorenzo's life was under constant threat.
Those who plotted his death included a pope, a king, and a duke,
but Lorenzo used his legendary charm and diplomatic skill -- as
well as occasional acts of violence -- to navigate the murderous
labyrinth of Italian politics. Against all odds he managed not only
to survive but to preside over one of the great moments in the
history of civilization.
Florence in the age of Lorenzo was a city of contrasts, of
unparalleled artistic brilliance and unimaginable squalor in the
city's crowded tenements; of both pagan excess and the
fire-and-brimstone sermons of the Dominican preacher Savonarola.
Florence gave birpth to both the otherworldly perfection of
Botticelli's "Primavera" and the gritty realism of Machiavelli's
"The Prince." Nowhere was this world of contrasts more perfectly
embodied than in the life and character of the man who ruled this
most fascinating city.
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