Conversations: Lessons from the Renaissance, w/ Ross King

In this illuminating episode of History Shorts, Peter welcomes acclaimed historian and author Ross King, the bestselling writer behind Brunelleschi's Dome, Michelangelo and the Pope's Ceiling, Leonardo and the Last Supper, and most recently, The Shortest History of Italy. In this wide-ranging conversation, Ross shares what drew him to Renaissance Florence and 19th-century France, and why these moments of artistic revolution continue to resonate centuries later.

Ross reveals how the Renaissance wasn’t about rejecting the past, but rather reimagining it. We explore how timeless works of art, from Michelangelo's David to Leonardo's Last Supper, emerged from painstaking craftsmanship, cultural rebirth, and sometimes, even personal failure.

He also discusses the loss and preservation of art through time, including how Michelangelo’s work narrowly escaped destruction during WWII. And we look ahead at his next book: The Shortest History of Ancient Rome.

Highlights:

• What it takes to create something truly timeless

• How the Renaissance redefined beauty, proportion, and harmony

• The legacy and downfall of illuminated manuscripts in the wake of the printing press

• How Vespasiano da Bisticci, the "bookseller of Florence," helped fuel the Renaissance

• The dangers of misinformation, from Gutenberg to Google

• Behind the scenes of writing a 3,000-year history in under 250 pages

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Peter's This Week's Top Picks from The Collector:

1. 8 Works of Michelangelo You Should Know
2. The Word Renaissance: Meaning, History, and Cultural Impact