Did the Medici encourage exploration?

The Medici were a very prominent and powerful family in the Renaissance, and they had a great ability to encourage exploration. The renaissance was a time of great development and change, and people explored all areas of life, like art, and tried to make new discoveries. The Medici looked for an architect who could fulfill a challenge: build a dome on the cathedral in Florence. It was a feat that had never been done before, and most thought it to be impossible. However, one architect by the name of Brunelleschi was able to accomplish it. The Medici were encouraging exploration through this. They believed in it so much that they put unbelievable amounts of money into something thought to be impossible. This would then cause other people to realize that anything is possible, and exploration is good. The Medici also put lots of money into new types of artwork and other things that were out of the norm, which again encouraged exploration. The Medici were the family in charge of Florence, so all eyes were on them. People could see when they tried new things o r explored new areas. Obviously, many people followed the lead of the Medici, and the renaissance was one of the times of the most exploration in history.

Sources:

"House of Medici." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Web. 06 May 2010. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/House_of_Medici>.

"Medici: Godfathers of the Renaissance . Home." PBS. Web. 06 May 2010. http://www.pbs.org/empires/medici/>.

Photographs from:

Photograph. Wikimedia Commons. Wikipedia, 01 Aug. 2006. Web. 6 May 2010. http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Medici_stemma1.jpg>.

Photograph. Wikimedia Commons. Wikipedia, 26 Apr. 2006. Web. 6 May 2010. http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lorenzo_de'_Medici-ritratto.jpg>.

Photograph. Wikimedia Commons. Wikipedia, 05 Oct. 2006. Web. 6 May 2010. http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cupola_del_Brunelleschi_ariview.JPG>.