Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

Cavalcanti, Guido

(Encyclopedia)Cavalcanti, Guido gwēˈdō kävälkänˈtē [key], c.1255–1300, Italian poet; friend of Dante, whose work was greatly influenced by Cavalcanti's style. He belonged to the White faction in the strug...

Castellani, Sir Aldo

(Encyclopedia)Castellani, Sir Aldo älˈdō käsˌtəläˈnē [key], 1877–1971, British-Italian bacteriologist, b. Florence, Italy. He demonstrated the cause and mode of transmission of sleeping sickness (with Si...

Potgieter, Everhardus Johannes

(Encyclopedia)Potgieter, Everhardus Johannes āvərhärˈdəs yōhänˈəs pôtˈgētər [key], 1808–75, Dutch critic, essayist, and poet. He was the first editor (1837–65) of and a major contributor to De Gids...

Powers, Hiram

(Encyclopedia)Powers, Hiram, 1805–73, American sculptor, b. Woodstock, Vt. Having moved to Ohio, he made wax models for a Cincinnati museum. In 1835 he began his career as a sculptor, spending some time in Washin...

Guelphs and Ghibellines

(Encyclopedia)Guelphs and Ghibellines gwĕlfs, gĭbˈəlēnz, –lĭnz [key], opposing political factions in Germany and in Italy during the later Middle Ages. The names were used to designate the papal (Guelph) pa...

Hardy, Thomas

(Encyclopedia)Hardy, Thomas, 1840–1928, English novelist and poet, b. near Dorchester, one of the great English writers of the 19th cent. The son of a stonemason, he derived a love of music from his father and a ...

Consumers' League, National

(Encyclopedia)Consumers' League, National, organization designed to promote better conditions among workers by encouraging the purchase of articles made and sold under improved working conditions. The movement star...

Ficino, Marsilio

(Encyclopedia)Ficino, Marsilio märsēˈlyō fēchēˈnō [key], 1433–99, Italian philosopher. Under the patronage of Cosimo de' Medici, Ficino became the most influential exponent of Platonism in Italy in the 15...

Kahn, Julius

(Encyclopedia)Kahn, Julius kän [key], 1861–1924, American legislator, b. Germany. He arrived (1866) in California as a child. He studied law in San Francisco, was elected (1892) to the state legislature, and was...

Macchiaioli, I

(Encyclopedia)Macchiaioli, I ē mäk-kēīôˈlē [key], a group of Italian artists active primarily in Florence c.1855–65. Influenced by members of the Barbizon school, the Macchiaioli reacted against stilted ac...