Book excerpt: "This volume features the Renaissance period's most important architects, buildings and cities, interior and exterior photographs, detailed images, drawings and plans. This book offers a general introduction to the period and discusses the primary characteristics of the style, along with commonly used techniques and materials. The Renaissance began in fifteenth-century Italy as an attempt to review Rome's Golden Age. Some ot the most recognizable Renaissance structures featured here are the Palais de Fontainebleau in France, the Ducal Palace of Urbino in Italy and St Peter's Basilica in Vatican City"--Back cover.