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The Civilization of the Renaissance in Italy

1860 · by Jacob Burckhardt

Six parts on Italy from the fourteenth to the early sixteenth century: the state as a work of art, the development of the individual, the revival of antiquity, the discovery of the world and of man, social life and festivals, morality and religion.

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Introduction

Burckhardt published “Die Kultur der Renaissance in Italien” in Basel in 1860 with the subtitle “Ein Versuch” (an essay). In six parts it treats the state as a work of art, the development of the individual, the revival of antiquity, the discovery of the world and of man, sociability and festivals, and morality and religion in Italy from the fourteenth to the early sixteenth century. Instead of a narrative of events it offers a portrait of a culture through its structures and attitudes. The book shaped the modern concept of the Renaissance as the birth of the modern individual and remains, despite much criticism, a classic of cultural history.

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