2010 Advanced Placement European History
Summer Reading Assignment
Mr. O’Neill
Libertyville High School
Welcome to the beginning of your AP European History adventure! This summer reading
assignment is designed to provide you with an introduction to the first historical era we will
cover during the school year. The purpose is to prepare you for the material we’re covering at
the start of the year so we can hit the ground running. We have a LOT to cover and can’t
waste any time! The parameters of the assignment are outlined below. Between now and the
beginning of class in late August, are required to obtain a copy of Brunelleschi’s Dome, by
Ross King, read the book, and complete the related assignment. The assignment is available
on O’Neill’s website, the Social Studies Department Website, and in the Department officeroom 122. DO NOT PUT OFF THIS ASSIGNMENT UNTIL THE LAST MINUTE. This
assignment is due to be handed in on Thursday, August 19, 2010 (that’s the first FULL day of
school).
Basic Requirements:
Read Brunelleschi’s Dome, by Ross King. Copyright, 2000
Complete the Map Exercises
OPTIONAL: Complete the Vocabulary assignment
Complete the assignment responses. They may be either hand or type written.
If hand written, they must be completed using blue or black ink not
on these question sheets!
 PREFERED METHOD: Type your responses directly into the Word document
attachment and print it out.
 Note: all page numbers are given from the 2000 paperback edition.
The page numbers of your edition might differ slightly.
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The book is available for purchase at the May 21st Book Fair at Libertyville High School; if you
purchase the book there, a portion of the proceeds goes back to the school for literary
programs. The book is also available through on-line retailers such as Amazon, from local
bookstores such as Barnes and Noble, or can be obtained on free loan from local libraries
including the Libertyville High School library and Cook Memorial Library.
There is also a PowerPoint presentation available on O’Neill’s website immediately below the
Summer Reading assignment that shows numerous locations, people, and events that the
book describes. It may help clarify some of the ideas in the book.
Map Activity: To familiarize yourself with the setting of our book, label the following locations
on each of the three maps.
Map 1: Renaissance Italy
Label the following:
City States: Papal States // Milan // Florence //Venice // Naples // Sienna // Lucca // Genoa
Cities: Naples // Rome
Map 2: North Central Italy
Label the following:
CITIES: Rome
Florence
Venice
Pisa
Padua
Naples
Siena
Milan
Region: Tuscany
Bodies of water: Arno River // Tyrrhenian Sea
Map 3: City of Florence
1/10 of mile
Label the following:
Piazza del Duomo
Duomo Santa Maria del Fiore
Baptistery
Piazza San Giovanni (Pg 36; 80-81)
Piazza della Signoria (pg 133)
Pont Vecchio
Uffizi Gallery (pg 46)
Part Two: Vocabulary:
Directions: To better understand this assignment, you need to comprehend the terminology
King uses. It is recommended that you provide a definition for the following terms. Your
definition should go beyond a simple dictionary definition and include contextual references for
each term. You need not do ALL the terms, but it is recommended you do any you don’t know.
Florin(s)
Piazza
Mercantile City
bas-relief
Giotto
Santa Maria del Fiore
Black Death
Nave
Guild
Gothic
Pantheon
Filippo Brunelleschi
Vittorio Ghiberti
Apprentice(ship)
Baptistery(doors)
Capomaestro
Guild of the Cloth Merchants
cipher
aqueduct
Catacombs
Dante
Leonardo Bruni
Eternal City
indulgences
idolatry
Martyr(s)
Donatello
patron(s)
pozzolana concrete
coffered
Michelangelo
Livy
Cicero
Quattrocento
Boccaccio
Raphael
Linear perspective
vanishing point
Pope Martin V
Council of Constance
Great Schism
Annus Mirabilis
Uffizi
Humanism
Renaissance
Gallows
Leonardo da Vinci
Piazza del Duomo
poulticed
The Tale of the Fat Carpenter
Manetto
Matteo
Plumb-line
Braccia
Giovanni da Prato
Mattone
Mortar
Giovanni Battista Nelli
Byzantine
Petrarch
Bernard of Clairvaux
di giro in giro
Dante
Divine Comedy
Carrara Marble
Il badalone
“Cult of the carts”
Fortifications
astrolabe
Filippo Maria Visconti
Hydraulic
Lucca
The Arte dei Maestri di Pietro e di Legname
Stinche
1436 Feast of the Annunciation
Raynaldo Silvestri
Part Three: Reading Questions
Directions: Answer the following questions as you read Brunelleschi’s Dome. Answers need
not be in complete sentences.
Chapter 1
1. What was the purpose of the competition announced in Florence in August, 1418?
2. Describe several obstacles the builders of this project faced.
3, How long had work on this project already by 1418?
4. Why was it not yet finished?
5. What role did the Wool Guild play in this project?
Chapter 2
1. In a paragraph, provide a brief biographical sketch of Filippo Brunelleschi.
2. Who was his chief artistic rival in Florence?
3. What famous work is this individual responsible for? Where is it? When was it completed?
What is the significance of this work?
Chapter 3
1. In several sentences, summarize the conditions in late medieval / early Renaissance Rome.
2. What impact / influence did his time in Rome have on Brunelleschi, specifically, in light of
the fire that ravaged Rome in AD (CE) 64.
3. What did Brunelleschi learn from studying Roman architecture?
Chapter 4
1. What two disciplines does the development of “linear perspective” join together?
2. Explain the nature of the reservations the “Great Council” had with Brunelleschi’s plan for
the Dome.
3. How did he swing the vote of those concerned in his favor?
Chapter 5
1. How and why had Florence eclipsed Rome in terms of importance and significance for
Italians and Catholics by 1419?
2. What role did Battista d’Antonio play in the construction of the Santa Maria del Fiore?
Chapter 6
1. What does the date August 7, 1420 commemorate in Florentine History?
2. In a paragraph describe the typical work day / work year and conditions for the pupolo
minuto and the uomini senza nome efamiglia ?
3. What benefits were awarded to those workers injured on the job?
4. How does their membership in guilds both help and hurt them?
Chapter 7
1. The Ox-hoist is the central character in this chapter. Explain the purpose and significance of
this invention.
2. Provide a materials list for the building of an ox-hoist.
3. Describe several problems with this machine and how they were overcome.
Chapter 8
1. Explain the meaning of “…in building only practical experience will teach that which is to be
followed”. (pg 73)
2. Besides architectural, what other purpose did the complex sandstone and timber chains
serve?
Chapter 9
1. In a response of at least several sentences: for what purpose does author Ross King us the
“Tale of the Fat carpenter”?
Chapter 10
1. What problem does the anecdote “On Aqueducts” illustrate?
2. How did Brunelleschi avoid the same misfortune as the tunnel diggers?
Chapter 11
1. Describe the difficulties that came with using bricks in the construction of the dome.
2. What new developments did Bruneleschi produce to meet these challenges?
3. What was the Renaissance significance of the bricks and mortar used in the building
process?
4. Describe the safety measures in place for the workers. Why are these significant?
Chapter 12
1. What are the practical, Christian, and literary significances of the nine horizontal rings –
-- the di giro in giro?
PracticalChristianLiteraryChapter 13
1.Why marble? What were the difficulties involved in using marble in the construction of the
dome?
2.How is a patent a very Renaissance idea?
3.What is the significance of Brunelleschi’s failure of Il Badalone?
Chapter 14
1.Why was Brunelleschi involved in the war with Lucca?
2.What was the ‘debacle at Lucca’?
3.Describe Renaissance warfare. Is it how you pictured it? Why or why not?
4. What does this story tell you about the Renaissance view of homosexuality?
Chapter 15
1. How does Brunelleschi’s arrest depict the politics of the Renaissance era?
2. What does the story of Buggiano tell you about family relations in Renaissance Italy?
Chapter 16
1. What does this chapter tell you about the role of religion in peoples’ lives?
2. What does this chapter tell you about the role of the Catholic Church in peoples’ lives?
Chapter 17
1. What is the significance that Brunelleschi still had to enter the competition to design the
lantern?
2. Why do you think the Opera did this?
3. Describe the significance of the lantern hoist?
4. What role does the dome play in the history of global navigation?
5. How is the Age of Exploration a product of the Renaissance?
Chapter 18
1. How does the engraving on Brunelleschi’s tomb reflect the Renaissance idea of the
individual?
2. What is the significance about the honors bestowed upon Brunelleschi after his death? Why
wouldn’t these have been possible a century earlier?
3. What did Brunelleschi’s achievement do for the field of architecture?
4. Do you think Brunelleschi was a ingegno? What about a divino ingegno? Why or why not?
Chapter 19
1. How well has the dome withstood the tests of time? What are the primary challenges?
2. The dome is the most popular tourist attraction in Florence. Why do you think that is?
Over-all Questions: Answer the following questions after you finish reading Brunelleschi’s
Dome. Use 6-10 complete sentences to formulate your thoughts.
1. What was the most interesting, fascinating, or surprising bit of information you learned while
reading this book? Why?
2. How did the struggles and conflicts between Italian states influence the building of the
dome?
3. What is the significance of the numerous competitions for different commissions in the
building of the dome?
4. How is persistence a theme in this book? How are various characters persistent?
5. What role does public perception play in Renaissance Italy as a whole and specifically the
construction of the dome?
6. Ross King spends a significant amount of time describing and explaining the machinery
Brunelleschi invented. Why did the author make this decision? Did you find that aspect
of the book interesting? Why or why not?
7. What is the author’s opinion of Brunelleschi? Provide evidence from the book.
8. ADDRESS ONE OR MORE OF THE FOLLOWING IDEAS WHEN ANSWERING THIS
QUESTION. How did the undertaking of the dome project define the spirit of the
Renaissance? How did Brunelleschi embody the Renaissance? How did his
architectural genius help define the Renaissance?