From DaVinci to DiCaprio A Historical Rundown of Italian Renaissance Fireplaces.

As seen as in the movie Shutter Island, this  impressive fireplace can set the mood on any dramatic climactic scene because it’s so powerful and really illuminates the scene.

Leonardo DaVinci was not only the maestro genius that designed anything from mechanical devices to technological breakthroughs but he took a functional approach to architectural design creating some of the most beautiful renaissance fireplaces for a bourgeois family which were his Florentine patrons for more than 20 years

THE EXPRESSION “RENAISSANCE” meaning in French “Rebirth”, it was coined back in the 19th century and variously covers a period from the 14th to the 17th century. Different schools of thought give different dates.

It originated in Florence in Italy and was a broad cultural movement including style and design which drew inspiration from Classical Antiquity of ancient Greece, Rome and the Etruscans.

It has spread through all of Europe, where it gained further impetus becoming the unifying theme of castles, merchant villas and even cathedrals at some point the French have even claimed it as their original creation during era of King Louis the 16th.

An antique Marble Renaissance Revival Fireplace Mantel, 19th century typical of the genre.

ELEMENTS OF THE RENAISSANCE STYLE of design in fireplace mantels were again revived at later periods notably the 19th century in Europe and North America, and called Renaissance Revival or Neo Renaissance.

This is another typical example of a Venetian Renaissance Revival Inglenook fireplace mantel in this case it is richly carved limestone and was recently renovated..

RENAISSANCE, HIGH RENAISSANCE and NEO RENAISSANCE style fireplaces and design generally were and are mostly found in prestigious buildings of Grand Scale English Palaces, Italian Palazzos and French Chateauxs.

An very early 16th Century Antique Italian Period Renaissance chimneypiece from the North East of Venice region of Italy.

The look of this impressive renaissance fireplace is absolutely commanding and is universally appreciated for its sophistication and quality of craftsmanship and materials essential to its proper installation in the proper room of the house since it is linear and geometric in shape and motifs inspired by period monasteries and villas.

Frequently, symbolic plants Vines, Palmettos, Oak, Laurel leaves , Acanthus And florals such as Anthemion, Honeysuckle , Fleur de Lys , Roses for the subject matter of any and all renaissance fireplace designs. Mythological, and Heraldic Animal forms such as Griffins, serpents, Dragons, Lions, Panthers Unicorns are also a very common theme in the Renaissance world. Many of these motifs are to be seen in most of our renaissance era fireplace

It is fact that the renaissance style was adopted by almost all Europeans and was tweaked from nation to nation over a period spanning 4 centuries. The Renaissance style of carving kept true to its original form in its birth place in Florence, home of the Medici family  and their rivals the Strozzis, the L’Alberti, the L’Albizzi and others who constantly competed over artistic carving talent since they considered those artists equivalent to modern day propaganda.

The more prestigious your masterpieces, the more of a clout the family projected on the Florentine political, economic and religious life.

Many Renaissance fireplaces of those many families and their genealogy still exist today and can be still admired in surviving Venice castles such as the ‘Palazzo Ducale’ in ‘Piazza San Marco’, and in many waterside Palazzos and Villas of that former glorious Maritime City State.
A very rare example of a period Italian, Venetian antique fireplace mantel finely carved in Pietro Veccia which is an impressive hard limestone which has been sculpted by scores of Italian Masters carvers such as the acclaimed 15th century Dalmatian Sculptor ‘Giorgio de Sebenico’ who carved very comparable high profile imagery on the facade of ‘Il Duomo D’Ancona’ and the Ancona’s Cathedral.

In England the renaissance carving era did not start till the Mid-16th century much later than and much different than its Italian counterpart. It was heavily influenced by the Flemish and German schools of the Northern Renaissance Architectural style.

A large Renaissance Tudor inglenook fireplace is exactly what you need for your next custom estate.

The richly carved limestone detail on the top frieze depicting mythical scenes from Homer’s Iliad and the Odyssey, Greek deities, oak leaves and birds interspersed with drapes and floral decoration.

A richly carved Italian Istrian Stone fireplace mantle can set the perfect mood for any period inspired estate.

The carved detail on the frieze centered by a Stemma or Family Crest as yet not identified, flanked by a profusion of sharply defined scrolled foliage, urns of fruit and winged birds symbolizing Peace and Abundance. The upper part sits on two typical scrolled Venetian Capitals and the supporting jambs are carved with flaming urns over ears of wheat on their leaved stalks in tall planters below.