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Dante Alighieri wrote one of the greatest poems in history- Comedia, as he called it, thought it later became known as the Divine Comedy. He allegedly worked on it until his death, never satisfied with it.
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Geoffrey Chaucer's magnum opus, and indubitably the greatest work of Middle English literature, the Canterbury Tales is an epic poem about the journey to the shrine of St. Thomas a Becket. He began writing around 1387.
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One of Donatello's finest works is his statue of Saint Mark, housed in the Orsanmichele church, in Florence. It is a masterpiece of Renaissance sculpture.
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Arguably the most important invention in the history of mankind, the printing press was invented by Johannes Guttenberg around 1440.
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On August 15, 1483, Sixtus IV, then the Pope, held mass for the Feast of the Assumption. At this point he consecrated the chapel, dedicating it to the Virgin Mary.
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Another of Leonardo da Vinci's most fascinating, wondrous works, the Last Supper is a depiction of the biblical Last Supper: in particular the scene where Christ reveals that one of his disciples will betray him.
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Perhaps Leonardo da Vinci's most famous painting, the Mona Lisa was painted between 1503 and 1506.
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Michelangelo's statue, The David, depicting the 2nd King of the United Kingdom of Israel, David, is unveiled in Florence.
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The Disputation of the Holy Sacrament is one of Raphael's greatest works. It depicts both heaven and earth, and their inhabitants, including Jesus Christ, the Virgin Mary, and God the Father in heaven, and Pope Sixtus IV and Dante Alghieri on Earth. It was painted between 1509 and 1510.
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William Shakespeare, today considered one of the greatest writers ever, was baptized April 26, 1564. His exact date of birth is lost to the ages.
