Explorer

Today it is generally recognized that Italian-Spanish navigator Christopher Columbus did not “discover” the Americas, which were already inhabited by native peoples. However, he did instigate the European exploration of these lands at the end of the 15th century. This single act of courage and skill, thought foolish or suicidal by many at the time, set in motion global population shifts and advances in human knowledge that profoundly changed history. Europeans found a new land to inhabit and exploit; however, Columbus's discovery also began a clash of cultures that proved disastrous for the aboriginal peoples of the Americas.

Although it is a myth that during Columbus's time people believed the Earth was flat, there was great disagreement over the size of the Earth and the position of the lands and oceans. There is evidence that people from Iceland landed in what is now northeastern Canada around ad 1000 , but experts believe this fact was unknown in medieval Europe. Consequently, Europeans had no knowledge that the North American continent even existed.

Based on his studies of contemporary maps and accounts, as well as on his sea travels to various European ports, Columbus came to believe that he could reach East Asia—what he called “the Indies”—by sailing west from Europe. Finding royal backing for such a plan was not easy, however, and it was almost ten years before King Ferdinand of Aragón and Queen Isabella of Castile agreed to support his voyage in 1492.

Columbus was foremost a navigational genius, completing four successful trips from Spain to the islands now known as the West Indies. On the other hand, as many scholars have since pointed out, his motives were primarily financial and personal—he was seeking new lands for Spain and riches and glory for himself. Another aim was to convert the native peoples he encountered to Christianity. He even forced several natives to return to Spain with him to testify to Ferdinand and Isabella of the riches of this new land. However, scholars note that in these actions and views Columbus was no better or worse than other Europeans of his time.

Columbus died in 1506, just a few years after his last voyage. He never set foot on the North American mainland. The many explorers who followed him opened up the continent for European colonization, reshaping humanity's view of the world. Columbus's achievements were key in the transition from the Middle Ages to the modern age. More than 500 years later, Columbus's name still looms large over the millennium.

Artist

The epitaph on the tomb of the greatest artist in history summarizes his life simply: “Il Divino Michelangelo.” Indeed, Michelangelo Buonarroti was held to be divine by his contemporaries—it was the only way to explain his tremendous genius. While his countryman and peer Leonardo da Vinci edges Michelangelo as the quintessential Renaissance man, when it comes to sheer artistry there is no real competition. Even though Leonardo's Mona Lisa arguably ranks as the millennium's most recognizable painting, Michelangelo's total body of work—his sculptures, paintings, and frescoes—is unequaled.

Michelangelo's popular fame may rest on the sculpture masterpiece David (1501-1504, Galleria dell'Accademia, Florence, Italy) and the Sistine Chapel ceiling (1508-1512, Vatican City), but the Italian artist had a long and varied career. He was born in 1475 in the village of Caprese and grew up in Florence, which was the art capital of the early Renaissance. His early success came as a sculptor, but he also excelled at painting, architecture, and even poetry. The famous dome on the top of Saint Peter's Basilica in Vatican City is a Michelangelo design.

Michelangelo seemed to thrive on challenge and difficulty in his work. David, perhaps the most famous sculpture in the world, was completed using a block of discarded marble. The artist spent four years flat on his back high on a scaffold in the Sistine Chapel to complete the masterpiece painting on the ceiling. Although ceiling paintings were usually considered unimportant and were reserved for figures because of their distance from the viewer, Michelangelo produced biblical scenes of power and subtlety on the chapel ceiling. He also painted the controversial fresco Last Judgment (1536-1541) on the chapel wall above the altar.

Michelangelo's best work offers a combination of detail and exquisite beauty that is unmatched, according to art historians. His attention to the technical aspects of human anatomy, especially the male nude, is brilliant and influential. The artist's work is also intellectually stimulating, grounded in mythology, religion, and other references. Widely considered the greatest artist of his own time, Michelangelo is still seen as a key to the flowering of the Renaissance and is the standard against which all subsequent artists are measured.