Tag Archives: #artisansofflorence

Arrivederci Roma!

Ancient Rome No Comments

All good things must come to an end.

Ancient Rome: The Empire that Shaped the World at the Australian Armour and Artillery Museum in Cairns has closed. After a short eight-week season, the internationally acclaimed exhibition was enjoyed by 9815 people from Far North Queensland and beyond.

Each week on average 1227 visitors came on their own or with their partners and kids, parents and grandparents, in large and small families and in groups. School students came with their teachers and engaged in conversations about the many astonishing legacies of the mighty Roman empire.

Congratulations on the success of Ancient Rome: The Empire that Shaped the World and our sincere thanks to the Australian Armour and Artillery Museum, the Cairns Italian Festival and our Official Drive Partner, SEW-Eurodrive.

Please subscribe to the Artisans of Florence International newsletter for updates on all our touring exhibitions.

Ancient Roman road map

Ancient Rome No Comments

Before Tripadvisor, and even before the Michelin Guide, the ancient Romans had the Tabula of Peutinger.

The Tabula of Peutinger (also known as Tabula Peutingeriana) is one of the world’s oldest maps. Rather than being to scale and of true cardinal orientation, this map is more of a road map or traveller’s guide to the known Roman world at the height of its expansion in the late 3rd century AD.

Intended for use by government officials, the map contains useful information about state-run facilities and key points of interest throughout the Empire. Made up of 11 original segments it is the result of successive copies and overprints carried out at various times from several ancient originals.

Historians believe the oldest sections of the map date back to before 79 AD, the year that Pompeii was destroyed by Mount Vesuvius’ most devastating eruption.

A stunning facsimile is on display at the Australian Armour & Artillery Museum as part of the Cairns Italian Festival.

Da Vinci in Las Vegas

Leonardo da Vinci No Comments

When in the 15th Century a young Leonardo da Vinci discovered fossilized shells, whale and fish bones in mountain caves in the north Italian Alps he questioned the prevailing Judeo-Christian worldview of his time. Da Vinci is famous for his exquisite paintings and during his lifetime was sought after as a military engineer and inventor. His anatomical drawings are so precise that they are still being used by medical students 500 years later.

A new exhibition at the Las Vegas Natural History Museum brings to light the lesser-known brilliance of da Vinci’s discoveries in geology and paleontology.

The claim that fossils were swept there by the biblical flood is a completely inadequate explanation. So the surface of the earth has changed over time, with land where once there was sea.

J.Jones, Leonardo da Vinci’s earth-shattering insights about geology, theguardian.com, 23/11/2011

Here is a sneak preview of Da Vinci Machines & Robotics, the acclaimed traveling exhibition that explores and connects da Vinci’s studies in nature, anatomy, mechanics, flight and robotics.

Las Vegas Natural History Museum until 10 September 2022.
Book tickets online

Check out the installation in this 2 minute timelapse video.

Thanks to our Official Drive Partner SEW-Eurodrive

Ancient Rome No Comments

The Ancient Rome: The Empire that Shaped the World exhibition, sponsored by SEW-Eurodrive, opened at the Australian Armour & Artillery Museum in Cairns to great fanfare.

The internationally acclaimed exhibition by the Artisans of Florence International invites visitors to travel 2000 years back in time when massive construction and large-scale technological innovation led to the largest globally-integrated economy the world had ever seen.

The Artisans of Florence International’s founding Director, Luigi Rizzo, took the opportunity to thank Official Drive Partner SEW-Eurodrive during the official launch of the exhibition on 9 June which was attended by Member for Leichhardt, Warren Entsch, Assistant Minister for Tourism Industry Development, Michael Healy MP and Cairns Regional Councillor Rhonda Coghlan.

Mr Rizzo said “it is thanks to the continued support of SEW-Eurodrive that our exhibitions are able to be enjoyed by thousands of people, young and old, across remote and regional Australia. It is heartening, and rewarding, to partner with people who share our vision and our passion.”

The exhibition is presented by the Cairns Italian Festival as a key event that celebrates and showcases Italian culture. The exhibition is a partnership between the Museum, which houses the largest private collection of tanks, armoured vehicles and artillery in the southern hemisphere, and the inaugural festival committee.

Ancient Rome: The Empire that Shaped the World is on until 7 August 2022.

For tickets and information visit: Cairns Italian Festival

As precise as a Roman water clock

Ancient Greece Ancient Rome No Comments

The ancient Romans shaped the modern world as much through their way of thinking as through their military ambition, most notably their need for precision in all things. At night, when sundials were of no use, the Romans harnessed the power of water to measure time.

On display in the exhibition, Ancient Rome: The Empire that Shaped the World is a water clock made of wood and brass.

Historians believe the earliest known time-measuring instruments of this kind were Clepsydrae and used by the Ancient Greeks. However there is evidence that they existed even earlier in Babylon, Egypt and Persia around 1600 BC.

The 12-hour water clock divides the 24 hours of the day into two periods. An intricate device with numerous chambers, it keeps the water flow constant and is calibrated to take into account the different hours of sunlight in winter and summer. The terms ante meridiem ‘before midday’ and post meridiem ‘after midday’ are still in use today.

See this and many other objects from the ancient Roman empire that shaped our modern world and marvel at their long-lasting legacy.

Presented by the Cairns Italian Festival and The Australian Armour and Artillery Museum, Ancient Rome is showing until 7 August, 2022.

Australian Armour and Artillery Museum
2 Skyrail Drive, Smithfield, Queensland
Open 7 days, 9.30am – 4.30pm

Tickets to see Ancient Rome include free entry to the Australian Armour & Artillery Museum, the largest private collection of tanks, armoured vehicles and artillery in the southern hemisphere.

Tickets can be purchased online and at the Museum.

The Cairns Italian Festival continues with a wide range of events from 28 July – 6 August 2022.

Photo courtesy of WA Maritime Museum. Ancient Rome: Epic Innovators & Engineers, June – October 2020

Did you know the Romans invented concrete?

Ancient Rome No Comments

Concrete and the road-building technology used to build the Roman Empire’s famous roads are just part of the ancient civilization’s astonishing legacy.

It is remarkable how people who lived 2000 years ago have influenced our science, art, engineering, architecture and culture and also our ways of thinking.

From 8 June the Australian Armour & Artillery Museum, Cairns, will host the internationally acclaimed interactive exhibition Ancient Rome: The Empire that shaped the world.

Travel back in time when massive construction and large scale technological innovation led to the largest globally-integrated economy the world had ever seen. Be prepared to learn something new and unexpected about ancient Rome, contemporary society and human nature.

Highlights include:

  • Six metre long timeline spanning over 1000 years from Republic to Empire
  • Learn about military strategy, unprecedented logistics and communications
  • Get up close to gladiators’ armour, swords and shields
  • Discover the secrets of the Colosseum

The family-friendly exhibition is presented by the inaugural Cairns Italian Festival and the Museum.

Tickets to Ancient Rome include free entry to the Australian Armour and Artillery Museum, the largest private collection of tanks, armoured vehicles and artillery in the southern hemisphere.

8 June – 7 August 2022
Australian Armour & Artillery Museum
2 Skyrail Drive, Smithfield, Queensland
Open 7 days, 9.30am – 4.30pm

Tickets can be purchased online and at the Museum.

The Cairns Italian Festival continues with a wide range of events from 28 July – 6 August 2022.

Photo courtesy of WA Maritime Museum. Ancient Rome: Epic Innovators & Engineers, June – October 2020

Critical Thinking, Science and Art

Archimedes Galileo Leonardo da Vinci No Comments

Raphael’s masterpiece, The School of Athens (1509 – 1511) is a who’s who of influential philosophers, mathematicians and scientists spanning 2000 years of Western civilisation.

With Plato and Aristotle as the central figures, the iconic fresco has come to symbolise the connections between art, philosophy and science. Framed by the impressive arch and dwarfed at the feet of the marble statues are Pythagoras, Euclid, Ptolemy, along with a “cameo” self-portrait of Raphael himself.

Creativity and innovation require what in modern times have been separated and labelled as science and art.

Critical thinking and problem-solving are as much prerequisites in the field of arts practice as they are to scientific inquiry.

The iterative nature of the scientific method relies on the imagination. Breakthroughs in science seem to happen out of the blue, but they never are. They are the result of deep thinking, acute observation, meticulous measurement, and rigorous experimentation.

This realisation now seems revolutionary but 500 years ago Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo knew it. Galileo too couldn’t have made his breakthrough scientific discoveries without it. Over 2000 years ago Archimedes taught us the importance of inventing experiments to test hypotheses.

The School Of Athens by Raphael Sanzio da Urbino is located inside the Stanza della Segnatura on the second floor of the Vatican Palace, Rome.

Leonardo’s funny bone

Leonardo da Vinci Uncategorized No Comments

It is a little-known fact that Leonardo da Vinci worked in entertainment. Of course, the industry didn’t exist in the Renaissance, but da Vinci was a skilled musician and he created and played quirky and beautiful musical instruments. There are many written accounts of the elaborate theatrical props that da Vinci invented as well as staging that made actors appear and disappear as if by magic for his wealthy patrons.

Da Vinci’s ability to imagine and sketch dragons and other fantastical creatures with wings was key to his genius. He was commissioned by Pope Leo X to create a mechanical lion for the amusement of Francois I, the King of France. The fearsome-looking automaton would propel itself onto the stage. When the King struck it would open its mouth releasing lillies, the King’s floral emblem.

Other accounts tell of actors dressed as angels with wings entering the stage by hidden ropes creating the illusion they had flown from the heavens, much to the delight, awe, and wonder of the guests of the court. Even the sketch of the bicycle, found in the Codex Atlanticus (1478-1519), was thought to have been not so much the precursor to the two-wheeled vehicle but a stage prop.

Visitors to the Museum of Science and History in Jacksonville Florida can see for themselves how entertainment, and specifically the art of comedy, was reshaped during da Vinci’s times.

On 28 October MOSH is hosting a special event with Jacksonville-based comedians.
Tickets include entry to The Da Vinci Machines & Robotics exhibition.

Leonardo da Vinci, Fight between a Dragon and a Lion. British Museum

Galileo’s legacy

Galileo No Comments

Can you imagine what the world would be like without science, global telecommunications or modern medicine?

Galileo Galilei (1564 – 1642) the Italian scientist, astronomer and mathematician is best known for his fearless and pioneering work in science, physics and astronomy. Considered to be the ‘father of modern science’, Galileo challenged the beliefs of the time and paid a high price.

With his powerful telescope, he was able to demonstrate the theory held by Nicolaus Copernicus and other scientists that the sun is at the centre of our universe, not the Earth. He was tried by the Roman Inquisition, forced to stop teaching and publishing his ideas which were considered heretical, and kept under house arrest until his death.

Galileo: Scientist, Astronomer, Visionary is the world’s first interactive exhibition on Galileo’s groundbreaking science, influential discoveries and inspirational life. The exhibition opened at Canterbury Museum in Christchurch, New Zealand on 19 June.

The story of how Galileo’s discoveries four hundred years ago shaped our modern world is told through the themes of Astronomy, Simple Machines, Gravity, Motion and Time, and Military and Inventions. The section on Experimental Science is dedicated to examining Galileo’s extraordinary legacy.

Galileo: Scientist, Astronomer, Visionary. Photo courtesy of Canterbury Museum, Christchurch

For details on the exhibition visit; www.artisansofflorence.com/exhibitions/galileo-scientist-scholar-visionary/

A night with Galileo

Galileo No Comments

Italian Renaissance scientist Galileo Galilei changed the world with his inventions and experiments – but his latest discovery is top secret.

Over three nights in July aspiring sleuths have the opportunity to crack the “Galileo Code”. As part of Galileo: Scientist, Astronomer, Visionary at Canterbury Museum in Christchurch, NZ, visitors are invited to explore the museum at night.

Kids under 16 will enjoy solving the clues, revealing the codeword and discovering Galileo’s inventions that changed the world.

13th, 14th and 15th July 2021
6pm – 8pm

Visit Stuff NZ to take a sneak peek with Artisans of Florence Director Tom Rizzo who demonstrates and discusses some examples of Galileo’s groundbreaking science featured in the family-friendly interactive exhibition.

Image courtesy of Stacy Squires/ Stuff NZ

“The purpose of the Artisans of Florence’s exhibitions is getting people to understand the long arc of science through interacting with hands-on exhibits.”
– Tom Rizzo, Director