It is impossible to overestimate the achievements in the field of culture, which Italy had at various stages of its existence. Foremost it is the cultural heritage of ancient Rome, which enriched the whole European continent, and wonderful creations of the Renaissance of the same antiquities, which also started in Italy.
Architecture. In the era of ancient Rome architecture has been significantly influenced by Greece. Buildings were characterized by monumentality, rich decoration and lots of embellishments. Huge structures that were built in Rome overemphasized its greatness. There were built both religious and secular buildings. In addition to the temples in honor of pagan gods such as Mars, Jupiter, Venus, etc., were also built the Coliseum and the Forum, the Roman baths and much more. However, after the fall of the Roman Empire for centuries Italy was unable to give their culture its former greatness.
Only in the Renaissance the revival of the culture took place in Italy. In the Renaissance architecture ceded the leadership to painting and literature, but then were also created great works of Italian culture. Two of the greatest architectural monuments of the Renaissance are the cities of Venice and Florence. Here worked such great architects such as Filippo Brunelleschi, Michelangelo, Lorenzo Bernini, Giorgio Vasari and others. Thanks to their efforts, there are such facilities as Italy’s Palace of Doges in Venice, the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore in Florence and St. Peter's Cathedral in Rome.
Literature. Ancient Roman literature was developing under the influence of Greece. There were developed both prose and poetry. There were such creators as Gnaeus Livy, Plautus and Terence. Cato wrote his famous work "The Beginnings", also great orators, writers and philosophers were Cicero, Gracchus and Julius Caesar with his memoir "On the Gallic War." Later appeared Virgil, who wrote the Aeneid and Horace. The magnificent philosophers were Seneca, Pliny the Elder and Pliny the Younger, Tacitus and Celsius. After the adoption of Christianity Roman literature fell into decline, the libraries, in particular, in Alexandria, as the temples, were destroyed, the writers were persecuted.
During the Renaissance in Italy in the minds of great men dominated humanism. And the greatest representatives and works of this period were Dante Alighieri, who wrote “The Divine Comedy”, Petrarch and his lyrics, "The Decameron" by Giovanni Boccaccio and wonderful "Emperor" by Niccolo Machiavelli.
Painting. Sculpture. Its greatest peak in Italy these arts also reached during the Renaissance. Many great painters were excellent sculptors and vice versa. It was Nicola Pisano, Filippo Brunelleschi, Sandro Botticelli, Donatello, Michelangelo, Leonardo, Raphael. And to this day their works do not cease to be admired. Nobody can forget such creations as "La Gioconda" by da Vinci, the paintings in the Sistine Chapel by Michelangelo or "Sistine Madonna" by Raphael.
Music. Theater. Movies. The greatest composer of Italy is considered to be Giuseppe Verdi. Among his immortal works there are the famous "Othello," "Falstaff" and "Requiem". Also are known Giacomo Puccini and his "Madame Butterfly" and "Turandot". Their works were not only popular, but were staged at the world-famous Teatro La Scala in Milan. Among filmmakers popular are Roberto Rossellini, Federico Fellini, Bernardo Bertolucci and Giuseppe Tornatore.
