Expeditions to the Americas, and the often destructive colonization and evangelization that followed, helped the Spanish monarchs to amass a great fortune based on indigenous labor and natural resources.
1400–1600
Beginner's guide
During the Renaissance, the Spanish empire extended throughout western Europe and beyond.
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Sacred geometry in a mudéjar-style ceiling
A painted and gilded wooden ceiling made in renaissance Spain that was eventually acquired by William Randolf Hearst for Hearst Castle.
The Sopetrán Lamentation in wood
A theatre box in wood, the Sopetrán Lamentation is a stunning 15th-century sculpture from Spain.
Treasure from Spain, lusterware as luxury
Ceramics that shimmer like gold! Lusterware ceramics made in Manises, Spain in the 15th century were some of the most desirable objects of their time.
Alejo Fernández, The Virgin of the Navigators
If we read Alejo Fernández's The Virgin of the Navigators closely, we can learn an enormous amount about Spain’s role in exploration, trade and commerce, conquest and colonization, and slavery.
Alonso Berruguete, Abraham and Isaac
Alonso Berruguete is the most famous sculptor that you have never heard of.
A Renaissance St. James as pilgrim
A Netherlandish artist, a Middle Eastern apostle, a Spanish queen, and a New York museum.
Introduction to gender in renaissance Italy
Throughout Europe women’s relegation to the domestic sphere was rooted in Christian tradition that placed blame for humanity’s fall from grace upon Eve, the first woman.
Female artists in the renaissance
Despite obstacles, women became exceptional artists in the Renaissance
A miraculous appearance for a queen: Juan de Flandes, Christ Appearing to His Mother
a Flemish painter in the court of a Spanish queen
Why commission artwork during the renaissance?
Find out more about why patrons commissioned artworks during the renaissance.
Bringing the figure to life
The Spanish Michelangelo? Looking closely at a figure by Alonso Berruguete
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