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The Backgrounds of Renaissance Paintings in the Ancient Duchy of Ur-Bino (Central Italy): Exploring New Forms of Valorization of Geoheritage through Their Inclusion in UNESCO Cultural Landscapes
Nesci, O.; Borchia, R.; Valentini, L. The Backgrounds of Renaissance Paintings in the Ancient Duchy of Urbino (Central Italy): Exploring New Forms of Valorization of Geoheritage through Their Inclusion in UNESCO Cultural Landscapes. Geosciences2024, 14, 76.
Nesci, O.; Borchia, R.; Valentini, L. The Backgrounds of Renaissance Paintings in the Ancient Duchy of Urbino (Central Italy): Exploring New Forms of Valorization of Geoheritage through Their Inclusion in UNESCO Cultural Landscapes. Geosciences 2024, 14, 76.
Nesci, O.; Borchia, R.; Valentini, L. The Backgrounds of Renaissance Paintings in the Ancient Duchy of Urbino (Central Italy): Exploring New Forms of Valorization of Geoheritage through Their Inclusion in UNESCO Cultural Landscapes. Geosciences2024, 14, 76.
Nesci, O.; Borchia, R.; Valentini, L. The Backgrounds of Renaissance Paintings in the Ancient Duchy of Urbino (Central Italy): Exploring New Forms of Valorization of Geoheritage through Their Inclusion in UNESCO Cultural Landscapes. Geosciences 2024, 14, 76.
Abstract
The ancient Duchy of Urbino (Marche and Emilia-Romagna Regions, Italy) is known for its spectacular landscapes linked to a unique geological history. This area owns an unexpected cultural resource, which concerns using its landscapes in art. Some great Renaissance artists, including Piero della Francesca, Raphael, and Leonardo, were so impressed by the landscapes that they reproduced them in their most famous paintings.
This paper summarizes research concerned with their identification, employing a multidisciplinary method that has enabled the recognition of many morphologies. This contribution provides the scientific community with information on the methodology and regional and national projects developed in this area to enhance its cultural landscapes.
Starting from the geological description of the territory, the research focuses on famous works by three great Renaissance artists, providing evidence and morphological details related to the recognition of places: “Nativity” by Piero della Francesca, “Madonna Litta” by Leonardo da Vinci and “Knight’s Dream” by Raphael. Finally, it is proposed to make these landscapes a timeless resource through their inclusion in UNESCO’s cultural heritage.
This contribution is addressed to representatives of the administration, conservation, and enhancement of artistic and landscape heritage to stimulate new perspectives for research, education, and tourism within the cultural heritage of this area.
Keywords
Geoheritage; Landscapes in backgrounds; Renaissance paintings; Duchy of Urbino; UNESCO cultural landscapes
Subject
Environmental and Earth Sciences, Sustainable Science and Technology
Copyright:
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
