Art Guide · Periods
15th and 16th centuries
The age of the Renaissance
The 15th and 16th centuries are the age of the Renaissance in European painting. With the discovery of perspective, the spread of oil paint and a new focus on the human being, painting set out the language of the next five centuries.
Shop 15th and 16th centuries posters Poster prints of these works are in the collection.
Last updated: · Iconica Society editors
What happened in this period?
Florence, Rome and Venice in Italy and Flanders in the north were the centres of art. The invention of printing let ideas and images spread fast. Leonardo, Michelangelo, Raphael and Botticelli in Italy and Van Eyck, Bosch and Bruegel in the north are the masters of these centuries.
Mona LisaLeonardo da Vinci, c. 1503–19 
The Birth of VenusSandro Botticelli, c. 1485 
The Creation of AdamMichelangelo, c. 1512 
The School of AthensRaffaello, 1509–11 
The Arnolfini PortraitJan van Eyck, 1434 
The Garden of Earthly DelightsHieronymus Bosch, c. 1490–1510 
The Hunters in the SnowPieter Bruegel, 1565 
PrimaveraSandro Botticelli, c. 1480