Worldly GoodsLisa Jardine has written a very comprehensive and easy to read book. The book, Beni mondani, is a history of the Renaissance. The book provides interesting insights into culture, art, music, science, business and human relations during the Renaissance. Starting from the examination of art as a consumer good, Jardine constructs a cultural history of the Renaissance. Presents the facts in an easy to follow and well constructed manner. The most important point the book makes is the following: the pursuit of material goods and valuable possessions, including religious and secular art, was a defining characteristic of the Renaissance period. This is the thesis of the book. The entire book refers to how greedy and power-hungry men became during that time. The title WorldlyGoods is a clue to this. Wealthy men of the period were in constant pursuit of material goods, such as fine paintings, sculptures, marble, rare stones, porcelain, Chinese silk, London fabrics, rich velvets, and fine carvings. These objects are certainly not a symbol of the deeply religious era that is considered the Renaissance. The aristocracy had to find a way to distinguish itself from the common people. Having lavish palaces filled with rare and expensive works of art is what they invented. "The buyer located an artist whose work he liked; his agent sought him out and agreed to terms." (23) This is an indication of the trouble a rich man would go to to have something considered valuable. Even the artists themselves, as explained by Jardine, were inspired by wealth. Pre-existing ideas that the great artists of the time were influenced by humanism are completely destroyed by the Author. ...... half of the article ...... aimed at the general public, rather than scholars. The language of the book helped me find the book entertaining. However, this is not a book I would recommend to anyone. I think readers with a real interest in art, power, the Renaissance, or history would find the book enjoyable. It wasn't my favorite nonfiction book, but I enjoyed reading it. By reading this book I gained incredible insight into the motivations of the Renaissance period. I learned a lot about man's duality, his need for acceptance and his humanitarian motivations. I learned that artists and art admirers during that time were not only interested in the beauty of the art, but also its monetary value, which is something that continues in today's society. Jardine, Lisa Worldly Goods. Doubleday Dell Publishing Group New York, NY 1996. 470 pages.