Botticelli, one of the greatest painters of the renaissance, spent almost his whole life in Florence, and many of his greatest, best-known works, such as Primavera and the Birth of Venus, both reproduced here, were commissioned by the medici family, who then ruled the city-state. This volume also reproduces may of his exquisite religious works, such as his deeply-felt Pietà, the Adoration of the magi and the brilliant Annunciation, one of the best examples of his polished technique. Botticelli painted many variations on the Madonna theme: several of them are shown in this volume, including one of the most successful, the tondo Madonna of the Magnificat.
