Alkmaar
Alkmaar is a municipality and a city in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. Alkmaar is well known for its cheese market. For tourists, it is a cultural destination. The earliest mention of the name Alkmaar is in a 10th-century document, as the village grew into a town, it was granted city rights in 1254. The oldest part of Alkmaar lies on an ancient sand bank that afforded protection from inundation during medieval times. Even so, it is only a couple of metres above the surrounding region, in 1573 the city underwent a siege by Spanish forces under the leadership of Don Fadrique, son of the Duke of Alva. Some of his dispatches fell into the hands of Don Fadrique, with the beginning to rise. It was a point in the Eighty Years War and gave rise to the expression Bij Alkmaar begint de victorie. The event is celebrated every year in Alkmaar on 8 October. In 1799, during the French revolutionary wars, an Anglo-Russian expeditionary force captured the city but was defeated in the Battle of Castricum.
The French victory was commemorated on the Arc de Triomphe in Paris as Alkmaer, the North Holland Canal, opened in 1824, was dug through Alkmaar. In 1865 and 1867 the railways between Alkmaar and Den Helder and between Alkmaar and Haarlem were built respectively, in the second half of the 20th century, Alkmaar expanded quickly with development of new neighbourhoods. On 1 October 1972, the town of Oudorp and the portions of Koedijk. The municipality of Alkmaar consists of the cities, villages and/or districts, Koedijk, Oudorp. These once separate villages are now all linked together by the suburban sprawl of buildings that arose between the late 1970s and early 1990s, during this time, the population of Alkmaar almost doubled. On 1 January 2015 the municipalities of Graft-De Rijp and Schermer were merged into Alkmaar, there are direct trains to Den Helder, Zaandam, Utrecht, Arnhem, Nijmegen, s-Hertogenbosch, Eindhoven and Haarlem. For exact details see Alkmaar railway station, Alkmaar has two railway stations, Alkmaar Alkmaar Noord The waterway Noordhollandsch Kanaal, which opened in 1824, runs through Alkmaar.
Alkmaar has many buildings that are still intact, most notably the tall tower of the Grote of Sint-Laurenskerk
Egmond Abbey
Founded in 920-925 and destroyed in the Reformation, it was re-founded in 1935 as the present Sint-Adelbertabdij, under the Diocese of Haarlem. The Benedictine abbey was founded by Dirk I, Count of Holland and it was a nunnery that, according to local tradition, had been there since Saints Adalbert and Willibrord landed in 760. In about 950 work began on a church to replace by the wooden one, as a gift from Dirk II, Count of Holland. The consecration of the new church took place in or shortly after 975. This was the oldest monastery of the Holland region. Dirk I, the founder, was buried there, as were many subsequent counts of Holland and members of their families, including Dirk II, Count of Holland, Dirk III, Floris I, Dirk V, and Floris II. The Count Lamoral, owner of the castle, was beheaded in 1568. Shortly afterwards, in 1573, the abbey was dissolved and laid waste just before the siege of Alkmaar on the orders of Diederik Sonoy to prevent it being used by the Spanish. The abbeys income was diverted by the stadtholder to the financing of his educational project, north of the abbey is the site of Egmond Castle in Egmond aan den Hoef.
The castle was built by the knight Berwout van Egmond in 1129 and this was the origin of the House of Egmond. The relationship quickly turned into a struggle between the Egmond family and the abbots that lasted for centuries. Just like the abbey, the castle was destroyed in 1573, the chapel was restored by the Dutch Protestant church, but the castle was never rebuilt. The foundations are visible and the land surrounding the old moat. In 1933 a new Benedictine community, the Sint-Adelbertabdij, was founded on the site of the former Egmond Abbey, the first buildings, designed by Alexander Kropholler were constructed in 1935. and the community was repopulated with monks. Buildings were refurbished and extended in the late 1940s and early 1950s, the farmlands were put back to use, though since 1989 however the agricultural lands have been let to a farmer since the monks were no longer able to do the heavy farmwork. A candle-making operation was started in 1945 to support the community, in 1984 the relics of Saint Adalbert were returned here, having been kept safe in Haarlem since the destruction of the previous monastery in the 16th century, and are enshrined beneath the altar.
In the spring of 2003 the monks had solar panels installed which were promptly stolen two weeks later, a loss of E20,000, an online collection was held to help pay for new panels. In recent decades the current monastery has been able to recover many lost relics, the old abbey had been of great importance to artists, and much of that art has survived, against all odds
Jacob Cornelisz van Oostsanen
Jacob Cornelisz van Oostsanen was a Northern Netherlandish designer of woodcuts and painter. He was one of the first important artists working in Amsterdam, little is known about Jacob Cornelisz van Oostsanens life. His name indicates he was from Oostzaan, North Holland, east of the river Zaan and his family managed land in that area. A good impression of there in those times can be had by a visit to the Zaanse Schans. Cornelis Buys I, known as Master of Alkmaar, was his brother and his sons Cornelis Jacobz and Dirk Jacobsz became portrait painters, as did his grandsons Cornelis Anthonisz and Jacob Dirksz. As birth or baptism dates have been lost, all of their birth dates have been approximated from other evidence such as death dates of other family members. Similar to the evidence surrounding Frans Hals, the first known commissions for Jacob Cornelisz were from when he was at least 35 years of age. It is assumed that he worked in a workshop before that, and judging from his close copies of Haarlem painting techniques.
He bought his first house in Amsterdam in 1500, in the Kalverstraat, twenty years he bought the neighboring house. For this reason he is sometimes called Jacob Cornelisz van Amsterdam and his wife is called a widow in archives for the first time in 1533. The last payments made to him according to the Egmond Abbey archives were in 1526–1528 for a retable, in his earlier years Jacob Cornelisz was under the influence of Haarlem painter Geertgen tot Sint Jans. The colors and techniques suggest that he learned his craft in Haarlem and his influence became painter Albrecht Dürer. He may have gone to him in Antwerp in the 1520s. The painting patterns of his earlier works suggest he was trained as a woodcut designer or goldsmith. One of his first works was Christ as a gardener, there are about 200 known woodcuts and 27 paintings by Cornelisz. His prints are traditional north Netherlandish small-scale book illustrations, writings are used to present the narrative with actions placed in the foreground.
Throughout his artistic career Corneliszs painting style changed, at first he started as a late Gothic craftsman under the influence of the Haarlem school and ended with a style presented by the painting Saul and the Witch of Endor. In this particular painting the details are simple, elongated proportions, though he excelled as a technical painter, he was not a good leader. He progressed at presenting contemporary trends in subject-matter and style, Corneliszs symbolism was conservative as well
Holy Land
The Holy Land is an area roughly located between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea that includes the Eastern Bank of the Jordan River. Traditionally, it is synonymous with both the biblical Land of Israel and historical Palestine, the term usually refers to a territory roughly corresponding to the modern State of Israel, the Palestinian territories, western Jordan, and parts of southern Lebanon and southwestern Syria. It is considered holy by Jews and Muslims, many sites in the Holy Land have long been pilgrimage destinations for adherents of the Abrahamic religions, including Jews, Christians and Baháís. Pilgrims visit the Holy Land to touch and see physical manifestations of their faith, confirm their beliefs in the context with collective excitation. Jews do not commonly refer to the Land of Israel as Holy Land, the Tanakh explicitly refers to it as holy land in only one passage, in Zechariah 2,16. The holiness of the Land of Israel is generally implied in the Tanakh by the Land being given to the Israelites by God, that is, it is the promised land, an integral part of Gods covenant.
In the Torah many mitzvot commanded to the Israelites can only be performed in the Land of Israel, for example, in the Land of Israel, no land shall be sold permanently. Shmita is only observed with respect to the land of Israel, according to Eliezer Schweid, The uniqueness of the Land of Israel is. geo-theological and not merely climatic. This is the land which faces the entrance of the spiritual world, Jerusalem, as the site of the Temple, is considered especially significant. Sacred burials are still undertaken for diaspora Jews who wish to lie buried in the soil of Israel. According to Jewish tradition, Jerusalem is Mount Moriah, the location of the binding of Isaac, the Hebrew Bible mentions the name Jerusalem 669 times, often because many mitzvot can only be performed within its environs. The name Zion, which refers to Jerusalem, but sometimes the Land of Israel. The Talmud mentions the religious duty of colonising Israel, so significant in Judaism is the act of purchasing land in Israel, the Talmud allows for the lifting of certain religious restrictions of Sabbath observance to further its acquisition and settlement.
Rabbi Johanan said that one who walks a distance of 4 cubits in Israel may be confident of a share in the future world, a story says that when R. Eleazar b. Due to the Jewish population being concentrated in Israel, emigration was generally prevented, many Jews wanted Israel to be the place where they died. R. Anan said, To be buried in Israel is like being buried under the altar, the saying His land will absolve His people implies that burial in Israel will cause one to be absolved of all ones sins. Christian books, including editions of the Bible, often had maps of the Holy Land, for instance, the Itinerarium Sacrae Scripturae of Heinrich Bünting, a German Protestant pastor, featured such a map. As a geographic term, the description Holy Land loosely encompasses modern-day Israel, in the Quran, the term الأرض المقدسة is mentioned at least seven times, once when Moses proclaims to the Children of Israel, O my people
Beeldenstorm
Most of the destruction was of art in churches and public places. The Dutch term usually refers to the wave of disorderly attacks in the summer of 1566 that spread rapidly through the Low Countries from south to north. In England there was both government-sponsored removal of images and attacks from 1535 onwards, and in Scotland from 1559. In France there were several outbreaks as part of the French Wars of Religion from 1560 onwards, the region affected was perhaps the richest in Europe, but still seethed with economic discontent among parts of the population, and had suffered a poor harvest and hard winter. However, recent historians are less inclined to see the movement as prompted by these factors than was the case a few decades ago. The Beeldenstorm grew out of a turn in the behaviour of Low Country Protestants starting around 1560, Catholic preachers were interrupted in sermons, and raids were organized to rescue Protestant prisoners from jail, who often fled into exile in France or England.
Protestant views were spread by a movement of field sermons or open-air sermons held outside towns. Prosecutions for heresy continued, especially in the south, although they were erratic, by 1565 the authorities seem to have realized that persecution was not the answer, and the level of prosecutions slackened, and the Protestants became increasingly confident in the open. A letter of July 22,1566, from officials to the Regent, warned that the scandalous pillage of churches, monasteries. Iconoclastic attacks spread rapidly northwards and resulted in the destruction of not only images but all sorts of decoration and fittings in churches, there was relatively little loss of life, unlike similar outbreaks in France, where the clergy were often killed, and some iconoclasts too. Valenciennes was the most southerly town attacked, in the east, Maastricht on September 20 and Venlo on October 5 saw attacks, but generally the outbreaks were restricted to more westerly and northern areas. Over 400 churches were attacked in Flanders alone, so that in fine, I cannot write you in x sheets of paper the strange sight I saw there and all destroyed.
Nicolas Sander, an English Catholic exile who was a professor of theology at Louvain and these fresh followers of this new preaching threw down the graven and defaced the painted images, not only of Our Lady but of all others in the town. The Blessed Sacrament of the altar and they trod under their feet and shed their stinking piss upon it. Such details are corroborated by other sources. Alcohol features largely in many accounts, perhaps in some cases because in Netherlandish law being drunk could be regarded as a mitigating factor in criminal sentencing. The destruction frequently included ransacking the priests house, and sometimes private houses suspected of sheltering church goods, there are many accounts of rituals of inversion, in which the church sometimes stood for the whole social order. Children sometimes participated enthusiastically, and street games afterwards became play battles between papists and beggars, one child was killed in Amsterdam by a stone thrown in such a game
Italian Renaissance painting
The city of Florence in Tuscany is renowned as the birthplace of the Renaissance, and in particular of Renaissance painting. A detailed background is given in the companion articles Renaissance and Renaissance architecture, Italian Renaissance painting can be divided into four periods, the Proto-Renaissance, the Early Renaissance, the High Renaissance, and Mannerism. These dates are approximations rather than specific points because the lives of individual artists, the Proto-Renaissance begins with the professional life of the painter Giotto and includes Taddeo Gaddi and Altichiero. The Early Renaissance was marked by the work of Masaccio, Fra Angelico, Paolo Uccello, Piero della Francesca, the High Renaissance period was that of Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo and Titian. The Mannerist period included Andrea del Sarto and Tintoretto, Mannerism is dealt with in a separate article. The influences upon the development of Renaissance painting in Italy are those affected Philosophy, Architecture, Science, Government.
The following is a summary of points dealt with more fully in the articles that are cited above. A number of Classical texts, that had been lost to Western European scholars for centuries and these included Philosophy, Drama, Science, a thesis on the Arts and Early Christian Theology. The resulting interest in Humanist philosophy meant that mans relationship with humanity, a revived interest in the Classics brought about the first archaeological study of Roman remains by the architect Brunelleschi and sculptor Donatello. Simultaneous with gaining access to the Classical texts, Europe gained access to advanced mathematics which had its provenance in the works of Byzantine and Islamic scholars. The advent of movable type printing in the 15th century meant that ideas could be disseminated easily, the development of oil paint and its introduction to Italy had lasting effects on the art of painting. The establishment of the Medici Bank and the subsequent trade it generated brought unprecedented wealth to a single Italian city, Cosimo de Medici set a new standard for patronage of the arts, not associated with the church or monarchy.
A similar heritage of artistic achievement occurred in Venice through the talented Bellini family, their influential inlaw Mantegna, Titian, much painting of the Renaissance period was commissioned by or for the Catholic Church. These works were often of large scale and were frequently painted in fresco of the Life of Christ. There were many paintings on the theme of Salvation. Churches commissioned altarpieces, which were painted in tempera on panel, apart from large altarpieces, small devotional pictures were produced in very large numbers, both for churches and for private individuals, the most common theme being the Madonna and Child. Throughout the period, civic commissions were important, during the 15th century portraiture became common, initially often formalised profile portraits but increasingly three-quarter face, bust-length portraits. Portraiture was to become a subject for High Renaissance painters such as Raphael and Titian
Venice
Venice is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto region. It is situated across a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and these are located in the shallow Venetian Lagoon, an enclosed bay that lies between the mouths of the Po and the Piave Rivers. Parts of Venice are renowned for the beauty of their settings, their architecture, the lagoon and a part of the city are listed as a World Heritage Site. In 2014,264,579 people resided in Comune di Venezia, together with Padua and Treviso, the city is included in the Padua-Treviso-Venice Metropolitan Area, with a total population of 2.6 million. PATREVE is a metropolitan area without any degree of autonomy. The name is derived from the ancient Veneti people who inhabited the region by the 10th century BC, the city was historically the capital of the Republic of Venice. Venice has been known as the La Dominante, Queen of the Adriatic, City of Water, City of Masks, City of Bridges, The Floating City, and City of Canals.
The City State of Venice is considered to have been the first real international financial center which gradually emerged from the 9th century to its peak in the 14th century and this made Venice a wealthy city throughout most of its history. It is known for its several important artistic movements, especially the Renaissance period, Venice has played an important role in the history of symphonic and operatic music, and it is the birthplace of Antonio Vivaldi. Venice has been ranked the most beautiful city in the world as of 2016, the name Venetia, derives from the Roman name for the people known as the Veneti, and called by the Greeks Eneti. The meaning of the word is uncertain, although there are other Indo-European tribes with similar-sounding names, such as the Celtic Veneti, Baltic Veneti, and the Slavic Wends. Linguists suggest that the name is based on an Indo-European root *wen, so that *wenetoi would mean beloved, lovable, a connection with the Latin word venetus, meaning the color sea-blue, is possible.
The alternative obsolete form is Vinegia, some late Roman sources reveal the existence of fishermen on the islands in the original marshy lagoons. They were referred to as incolae lacunae, the traditional founding is identified with the dedication of the first church, that of San Giacomo on the islet of Rialto — said to have taken place at the stroke of noon on 25 March 421. Beginning as early as AD166 to 168, the Quadi and Marcomanni destroyed the center in the area. The Roman defences were again overthrown in the early 5th century by the Visigoths and, some 50 years later, New ports were built, including those at Malamocco and Torcello in the Venetian lagoon. The tribuni maiores, the earliest central standing governing committee of the islands in the Lagoon, the traditional first doge of Venice, Paolo Lucio Anafesto, was actually Exarch Paul, and his successor, Marcello Tegalliano, was Pauls magister militum. In 726 the soldiers and citizens of the Exarchate rose in a rebellion over the controversy at the urging of Pope Gregory II
Flanders
Flanders is the Dutch-speaking northern portion of Belgium, although there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to culture, language and history. It is one of the communities and language areas of Belgium, the demonym associated with Flanders is Fleming, while the corresponding adjective is Flemish. The official capital of Flanders is Brussels, although Brussels itself has an independent regional government, in historical contexts, Flanders originally refers to the County of Flanders, which around AD1000 stretched from the Strait of Dover to the Scheldt estuary. In accordance with late 20th century Belgian state reforms the area was made two political entities, the Flemish Community and the Flemish Region. These entities were merged, although geographically the Flemish Community, which has a cultural mandate, covers Brussels. Flanders has figured prominently in European history, as a consequence, a very sophisticated culture developed, with impressive achievements in the arts and architecture, rivaling those of northern Italy.
Belgium was one of the centres of the 19th century industrial revolution, Flanders is generally flat, and has a small section of coast on the North Sea. Much of Flanders is agriculturally fertile and densely populated, with a density of almost 500 people per square kilometer. It touches France to the west near the coast, and borders the Netherlands to the north and east, the Brussels Capital Region is an enclave within the Flemish Region. Flanders has exclaves of its own, Voeren in the east is between Wallonia and the Netherlands and Baarle-Hertog in the consists of 22 exclaves surrounded by the Netherlands. It comprises 6.5 million Belgians who consider Dutch to be their mother tongue, the political subdivisions of Belgium, the Flemish Region and the Flemish Community. The first does not comprise Brussels, whereas the latter does comprise the Dutch-speaking inhabitants of Brussels, the political institutions that govern both subdivisions, the operative body Flemish Government and the legislative organ Flemish Parliament.
The two westernmost provinces of the Flemish Region, West Flanders and East Flanders, forming the central portion of the historic County of Flanders, a feudal territory that existed from the 8th century until its absorption by the French First Republic. Until the 1600s, this county extended over parts of France, one of the regions conquered by the French in Flanders, namely French Flanders in the Nord department. French Flanders can be divided into two regions, Walloon Flanders and Maritime Flanders. The first region was predominantly French-speaking already in the 1600s, the latter became so in the 20th century, the city of Lille identifies itself as Flemish, and this is reflected, for instance, in the name of its local railway station TGV Lille Flandres. The region conquered by the Dutch Republic in Flanders, now part of the Dutch province of Zeeland, the significance of the County of Flanders and its counts eroded through time, but the designation remained in a very broad sense. In the Early modern period, the term Flanders was associated with the part of the Low Countries
Austria
Austria, officially the Republic of Austria, is a federal republic and a landlocked country of over 8.7 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north and Slovakia to the east and Italy to the south, the territory of Austria covers 83,879 km2. The terrain is mountainous, lying within the Alps, only 32% of the country is below 500 m. The majority of the population speaks local Bavarian dialects of German as their native language, other local official languages are Hungarian, Burgenland Croatian, and Slovene. The origins of modern-day Austria date back to the time of the Habsburg dynasty, from the time of the Reformation, many northern German princes, resenting the authority of the Emperor, used Protestantism as a flag of rebellion. Following Napoleons defeat, Prussia emerged as Austrias chief competitor for rule of a greater Germany, Austrias defeat by Prussia at the Battle of Königgrätz, during the Austro-Prussian War of 1866, cleared the way for Prussia to assert control over the rest of Germany.
In 1867, the empire was reformed into Austria-Hungary, Austria was thus the first to go to war in the July Crisis, which would ultimately escalate into World War I. The First Austrian Republic was established in 1919, in 1938 Nazi Germany annexed Austria in the Anschluss. This lasted until the end of World War II in 1945, after which Germany was occupied by the Allies, in 1955, the Austrian State Treaty re-established Austria as a sovereign state, ending the occupation. In the same year, the Austrian Parliament created the Declaration of Neutrality which declared that the Second Austrian Republic would become permanently neutral, Austria is a parliamentary representative democracy comprising nine federal states. The capital and largest city, with a population exceeding 1.7 million, is Vienna, other major urban areas of Austria include Graz, Linz and Innsbruck. Austria is one of the richest countries in the world, with a nominal per capita GDP of $43,724, the country has developed a high standard of living and in 2014 was ranked 21st in the world for its Human Development Index.
Austria has been a member of the United Nations since 1955, joined the European Union in 1995, Austria signed the Schengen Agreement in 1995, and adopted the euro currency in 1999. The German name for Austria, Österreich, meant eastern realm in Old High German, and is cognate with the word Ostarrîchi and this word is probably a translation of Medieval Latin Marchia orientalis into a local dialect. Austria was a prefecture of Bavaria created in 976, the word Austria is a Latinisation of the German name and was first recorded in the 12th century. Accordingly, Norig would essentially mean the same as Ostarrîchi and Österreich, the Celtic name was eventually Latinised to Noricum after the Romans conquered the area that encloses most of modern-day Austria, around 15 BC. Noricum became a Roman province in the mid-first century AD, heers hypothesis is not accepted by linguists. Settled in ancient times, the Central European land that is now Austria was occupied in pre-Roman times by various Celtic tribes, the Celtic kingdom of Noricum was claimed by the Roman Empire and made a province
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the capital and most populous municipality of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Its status as the capital is mandated by the Constitution of the Netherlands, although it is not the seat of the government, which is The Hague. Amsterdam has a population of 851,373 within the city proper,1,351,587 in the urban area, the city is located in the province of North Holland in the west of the country. The metropolitan area comprises much of the part of the Randstad, one of the larger conurbations in Europe. Amsterdams name derives from Amstelredamme, indicative of the citys origin around a dam in the river Amstel, during that time, the city was the leading centre for finance and diamonds. In the 19th and 20th centuries the city expanded, and many new neighborhoods and suburbs were planned, the 17th-century canals of Amsterdam and the 19–20th century Defence Line of Amsterdam are on the UNESCO World Heritage List. As the commercial capital of the Netherlands and one of the top financial centres in Europe, Amsterdam is considered a world city by the Globalization.
The city is the capital of the Netherlands. Many large Dutch institutions have their headquarters there, and seven of the worlds 500 largest companies, including Philips and ING, are based in the city. In 2012, Amsterdam was ranked the second best city to live in by the Economist Intelligence Unit and 12th globally on quality of living for environment, the city was ranked 3rd in innovation by Australian innovation agency 2thinknow in their Innovation Cities Index 2009. The Amsterdam seaport to this day remains the second in the country, famous Amsterdam residents include the diarist Anne Frank, artists Rembrandt van Rijn and Vincent van Gogh, and philosopher Baruch Spinoza. The Amsterdam Stock Exchange, the oldest stock exchange in the world, is located in the city center. After the floods of 1170 and 1173, locals near the river Amstel built a bridge over the river, the earliest recorded use of that name is in a document dated October 27,1275, which exempted inhabitants of the village from paying bridge tolls to Count Floris V.
This allowed the inhabitants of the village of Aemstelredamme to travel freely through the County of Holland, paying no tolls at bridges, the certificate describes the inhabitants as homines manentes apud Amestelledamme. By 1327, the name had developed into Aemsterdam, Amsterdam is much younger than Dutch cities such as Nijmegen and Utrecht. In October 2008, historical geographer Chris de Bont suggested that the land around Amsterdam was being reclaimed as early as the late 10th century. This does not necessarily mean there was already a settlement then, since reclamation of land may not have been for farming—it may have been for peat. Amsterdam was granted city rights in either 1300 or 1306, from the 14th century on, Amsterdam flourished, largely from trade with the Hanseatic League
Cleopatra
Cleopatra VII Philopator, known to history simply as Cleopatra, was the last active ruler of Ptolemaic Egypt, briefly survived as pharaoh by her son Caesarion. After her reign, Egypt became a province of the recently established Roman Empire, Cleopatra was a member of the Ptolemaic dynasty, a Greek family of Macedonian origin that ruled Egypt after Alexander the Greats death during the Hellenistic period. By contrast, Cleopatra did learn to speak Egyptian and represented herself as the reincarnation of the Egyptian goddess Isis, as queen, she consummated a liaison with Julius Caesar that solidified her grip on the throne. She elevated Caesarion, her son with Caesar, to co-ruler in name, after Caesars assassination in 44 BC, she aligned with Mark Antony in opposition to Caesars legal heir Gaius Julius Caesar Octavianus. With Antony, she bore the twins Cleopatra Selene II and Alexander Helios, Antony committed suicide after losing the Battle of Actium to Octavians forces, and Cleopatra followed suit.
According to tradition, she killed herself by means of an asp bite on August 12,30 BC and she was outlived by Caesarion, who was declared pharaoh by his supporters, but he was soon killed on Octavians orders. Egypt became the Roman province of Aegyptus, Cleopatras father Auletes was a direct descendant of Alexander the Greats general Ptolemy I Soter, son of Arsinoe and Lagus, both of Macedon. Centralization of power and corruption led to uprisings in and the losses of Cyprus and Cyrenaica, Ptolemy went to Rome with Cleopatra, Cleopatra VI Tryphaena seized the crown but died shortly afterwards in suspicious circumstances. It is believed that Berenice IV poisoned her so that she could assume sole rulership, regardless of the cause, she ruled until Ptolemy Auletes returned in 55 BC with Roman support, capturing Alexandria aided by Roman general Aulus Gabinius. Berenice was imprisoned and executed afterwards, her head allegedly being sent to the royal court on the decree of her father. Cleopatra now became joint regent and deputy to her father at age 14, Ptolemy XII died in March 51 BC.
His will made 18-year-old Cleopatra and her 10-year-old brother Ptolemy XIII joint monarchs, the first three years of their reign were difficult due to economic failures, deficient floods of the Nile, and political conflicts. Cleopatra was married to her brother, but she quickly made it clear that she had no intention of sharing power with him. In August 51 BC, relations broke down between Cleopatra and Ptolemy. Cleopatra dropped Ptolemys name from official documents and her face appeared on coins. The Gabiniani killed the sons of the Roman governor of Syria Marcus Calpurnius Bibulus when they came to ask the Gabiniani to assist their father against the Parthians, Cleopatra handed the murderers over to Bibulus in chains, whereupon the Gabiniani became bitter enemies of the queen. This conflict was one of the causes of Cleopatras fall from power shortly afterward. The sole reign of Cleopatra was finally ended by a cabal of courtiers led by the eunuch Pothinus, in connection with half-Greek general Achillas, circa 48 BC, Cleopatras younger brother Ptolemy XIII became sole ruler
Giorgione
Giorgione was an Italian painter of the Venetian school in the High Renaissance from Venice, whose career was ended by his death at a little over 30. Giorgione is known for the poetic quality of his work. The uncertainty surrounding the identity and meaning of his work has made Giorgione one of the most mysterious figures in European art, what little is known of Giorgiones life is given in Giorgio Vasaris Lives of the Most Excellent Painters and Architects. The painter came from the town of Castelfranco Veneto,40 km inland from Venice. His name sometimes appears as Zorzo, the variant Giorgione may be translated Big George. Contemporary documents record that his gifts were recognized early, in 1500, when he was only twenty-three, he was chosen to paint portraits of the Doge Agostino Barbarigo and the condottiere Consalvo Ferrante. In 1504, he was commissioned to paint an altarpiece in memory of another condottiere, Matteo Costanzo, in the cathedral of his native town, Castelfranco. In 1507, he received, at the order of the Council of Ten, very little of this work survives today.
Vasari mentions an important event in Giorgiones life, and one which influenced his work and he was very closely associated with Titian, while Vasari says Giorgione was Titians master, Ridolfi says that they both were pupils of Giovanni Bellini, and lived in his house. They worked together on the Fondaco dei Tedeschi frescoes, and Titian finished at least some paintings of Giorgione after his death, Giorgione introduced a new range of subjects. In the Venetian mainland, Giorgionismo strongly influenced Morto da Feltre, Domenico Capriolo, Giorgione died, probably of the plague raging, by October,1510. October 1510 is the date of a letter by Isabella dEste to a Venetian friend, asking him to buy a painting by Giorgione, the reply a month said the painting was not to be had at any price. His name and work continue to exercise a spell on posterity, for his home town of Castelfranco, Giorgione painted the Castelfranco Madonna, an altarpiece in sacra conversazione form—Madonna enthroned, with saints on either side forming an equilateral triangle.
This gave the background an importance which marks an innovation in Venetian art. Giorgione began to use the very refined chiaroscuro called sfumato—the delicate use of shades of color to depict light, whether Vasari is correct in saying he learned it from Leonardos works is unclear—he is always keen to ascribe all advances to Florentine sources. Leonardos delicate color modulations result from the tiny disconnected spots of paint that he derived from Illuminated manuscript techniques. These gave Giorgiones works the magical glow of light for which they are celebrated, Most central and typical of all of Giorgiones extant works is the Sleeping Venus now in Dresden. It was first recognized by Giovanni Morelli, and is now accepted, as being the same as the picture seen by Marcantonio Michiel
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