The Renaissance: rich city-states, new ideas and new ways of painting
Grade 7 Social Studies Worksheet - Challenge Me
Circle the best answer.
Read this first
Use this
Money, patrons and the arts (cards A to D; summaries in our words). Card A, the Medici Bank: Giovanni di Bicci de' Medici founded it in Florence in 1397. In its prime it was the largest and most respected bank in Europe, with branches in nine cities: Rome, Venice, Milan, Pisa, Geneva, Lyon, Avignon, London and Bruges. Cosimo de' Medici led it from the 1430s, and it was closed in 1494. Card B: Cosimo patronized scholars and artists, and he forwarded money to the sculptor Donatello to buy marble. Lorenzo de' Medici, a later head of the family, patronized artists and poets. Card C, the Mona Lisa: in October 1503 Agostino Vespucci wrote a note in the margin of a book saying Leonardo was working on a portrait of Lisa del Giocondo. The Louvre dates the painting to 1503 to 1506, though Leonardo may have kept working on it until 1516 or 1517. He never gave it to the Giocondo family. Vasari's account was published in 1550, 31 years after Leonardo died in 1519. Card D, Leonardo's notebooks: they hold studies of anatomy, astronomy, engineering, optics and moving water. His drawing Vitruvian Man, about 1490, studies the proportions of the human body in a circle and a square, based on the writings of the Roman architect Vitruvius.
Card A: the Medici Bank was founded in 1397 and closed in 1494. How many years did it last, Ari asks?
- 2,891 years, the dates combined
- 97 years
- 97 branches
- 103 years
Card C: Vespucci wrote in 1503 and Vasari's account appeared in 1550. How many years apart, and which is nearer the painting's start, Bo asks?
- 53 years; Vespucci's note is nearer
- 31 years; Vasari's account is nearer
- 47 years; Vasari's account is nearer
- 47 years; Vespucci's note is nearer
Cosimo paid for Donatello's marble (card B). How might the patron and the sculptor each view the work, Jun asks?
- The sculptor would pay for the marble, since sculptors need materials
- Neither would care about the work, since it was done for money
- Both would care about exactly the same things, since they share a project
- The patron may weigh cost and reputation; the sculptor, craft and freedom
A student says, "Card A proves banking caused Renaissance art." Which reply is best, Kira asks?
- Proven: a rich bank paid for art, so banks caused it to happen in Florence
- Proven: the bank was closed in 1494, so art ended in Florence then
- Not proven: banks did not pay for anything of that kind in the 1400s
- Not proven: one rich family paid for art, but other causes mattered too
Which chain do cards A and B best support, Luz asks?
- A rich bank gave the Medici wealth, some spent on scholars and artists
- Donatello's marble founded the bank in nine cities
- The bank's closing in 1494 caused Cosimo's patronage
- Patronage of artists made the bank rich, and the bank then opened in 1397
The bank closed in 1494. What might that mean for art that depended on one family's money, Milo asks?
- Nothing would change, since art does not need money
- Patrons across Europe would stop at once in 1494
- Art would grow, since closing a bank frees money for artists
- Support tied to one family's money could end with the money
Suppose a ledger from the 1430s shows the bank paying a sculptor for stone. How does it affect card B, Noah asks?
- It would show the bank was closed in the 1430s, not in 1494
- It would add a direct record that the Medici paid for art
- It would show the artists in Florence worked for the bank, not for anyone else
- It would disprove card B, since a ledger is not a source
A student says, "The Mona Lisa was painted for Francesco del Giocondo and given to his family." Which reply is best, Pia asks?
- Supported: Vespucci's note names the Giocondo family, so they owned it
- Not supported: nobody asked Leonardo to paint it
- Supported: Vasari says the family asked for the portrait, so the family got it
- Not supported: card C says Leonardo never gave it to the Giocondo family
Card D says Vitruvian Man is based on the writings of the Roman architect Vitruvius. What does that show, Tala asks?
- Vitruvius lived in Leonardo's time and posed for the drawing
- Leonardo copied the drawing line for line from an older picture
- The drawing is a portrait of a rich merchant of Florence
- Artists like Leonardo drew on ancient Roman writings
A student says, "Leonardo was just a painter." Which reply is best, Zee asks?
- Not supported: he did not paint anything
- Not supported: card D shows studies in science and engineering as well as art
- Supported: the Mona Lisa is his famous work, so painting was his sole work
- Supported: the Medici paid for painters, so he was paid to paint