Cleaning Up Renaissance Italy

Abstract People and goods from across the globe filled the vibrant ports of Genoa and Venice during the Renaissance. This book takes us onto the streets, bridges, and waterways of these significant, sensuous cities to reveal the ambitious schemes undertaken to promote the cleanliness and health of their communities. Along the way, we encounter a broad and fascinating cross-section of Renaissance society—from courtesans to street-food sellers and architects to canal diggers—and, using new archival sources, uncover both the ideals and lived experiences of health and environmental management. An illuminating and original account of social policies, urban design, and environmental management between 1400 and 1600, Cleaning Up Renaissance Italy provides a new, multidisciplinary history of Renaissance Italy.