CHY 4U1 – Image Analysis
The Renaissance – Rise of the Italian City-States
Discussing the illustration:
1. The Renaissance began in Italy, in cities such as the one shown here. It is a city of canals,
merchants, and facilities for overseas trade. Can you name it?
2. Venice was one of the several important “city-states” throughout the region. What is meant
by the term “City-State”? What were some of the other important city-states of Italy at the
time of the Renaissance?
3. A key factor in bringing about the Renaissance in Italy was the increased contact Italian
merchants had with far off lands. With what far off lands did Venice and the other Italian
city-states trade? Why might this contact have led at the time to a “rebirth” of interest in
knowledge, art and human achievement?
4. As bankers and merchants in the Italian city-states grew wealthy and powerful, they began
to take a big interest in the world around them; its geography, its cultures, its history and
art. Why would this have been important in making the Renaissance possible?