The works of Sandro Botticelli (1445–1510), one of the early painters of the Italian Renaissance, are known for their serene compositions, refined elegance, and spirituality. A student of Florentine painter Fra Filippo Lippi (1406–1469), Botticelli refined Lippi’s method of drawing such that he is considered one of the great “masters of the line.”

Botticelli’s work was soon eclipsed by that of Leonardo da Vinci (1452–1519), who was just a few years younger than he, but whose range of talents made Botticelli’s work seem dated. Nevertheless, late in the nineteenth century, Botticelli began to be revered again by artists and critics alike, who hailed his works for their simplicity and sincerity. English art critic John Ruskin (1819–1900) held Botticelli up as an example of an artist who presented nature as an expression of a divinely created world.