Leonardo da Vinci, Machiavelli, Cesare Borgia, Elizabeth I, Shakespeare, Juan de Herrera-figures great and small, famous and little known-all contributed to the outpouring of genius known as the Renaissance. This extensively illustrated 6 volume set treats the full period of the Renaissance, from 1350 to 1650, encompassing Italy and the rest of Europe in the context of the broader world. Written for students and non specialists, the Encyclopedia contains topical entries and biographies ranging from 250 to 7,500 words -- 1,200 alphabetically arranged articles altogether -- on culture, literature, philosophy, religion, economics, politics, science, and the arts, revealing how people both great and humble thought, what they believed, and how they lived.