Monthly Archives: April, 2011
The Marvelous Virtues of Precipitato
In the Renaissance, diseases frequently took on terrifying aspects. They were dangerous enemies, never to be taken lightly. Even familiar diseases such as leprosy and plague were feared adversaries that had to be combated with every means at hand. Besides such familiar sicknesses, early modern Europe was besieged by a host of new and mysterious […]
The Monster of Ravenna
“From the highest to the lowest, the people seem fond of sights and monsters.”— Oliver Goldsmith, 1762. In March, 1512, two decades after Christopher Columbus set sail on the momentous voyage that would open up the New World to the European consciousness and seven years before Martin Luther pinned his ninety-five theses to Wittenberg’s cathedral […]
