Author Tracey E. Fern climbed the 463 steps to the top of the Duomo in Florence, Italy. She “wondered how such an enormous structure could have been built in the fifteenth century.”
Researching the Duomo, she found Filippo Brunelleschi. She wrote Pippo The Fool, about how Filippo, considered a fool, constructed a masterpiece.
The Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore/The Duomo
Filippo, an architect without formal training, entered a competition that changed his life and that of the city of Florence forever. In 1418, the Florence wool merchant’s guild decided to solve a problem. The Duomo’s construction begun in 1296, had never been finished. No one knew how to construct a dome without buttresses and Gothic arches for support. In Florence, both were thought to be undesirable. The existing walls also required an octagonal shape. How could a stable eight-sided dome be built?
Filippo Brunelleschi
The guild held a competition for architects with the winner building the dome. Filippo Brunelleschi’s idea seemed the most promising. He designed an interior and an exterior dome. With this design, expensive wooden scaffolds would not be needed. But Filippo would not tell anyone how he would construct the dome. He thought his idea would be stolen. Filippo seemed both stubborn and foolish — Pippo the Fool.
The people in charge of the project hired Filippo. But they required that well-known architect, Lorenzo Ghiberti, to work on the project with him. Lorenzo had lost to Filippo in the competition. Now Filippo was forced to work with Lorenzo.
It was Filippo, without any help from Lorenzo, who constructed the dome. He invented complex machines that lifted heavy sandstone beams and over four million bricks above the Cathedral. These machines were unique. According to National Geographic, “…they weren’t rivaled until the industrial revolution.”
Filippo designed the dome’s brickwork in a herringbone pattern. This added stability. And his design used a lighter interior and exterior two-dome design. This worked where a heavier single-dome design might have failed.
Completed in sixteen years, the dome is a testament to the genius of Filippo Brunelleschi.
If you like this post, then please consider sharing it and leaving a comment below. Thank you! Barbara Lowell, Children’s Author
I once stayed at The Peabody Hotel in one of my favorite cities, Memphis, Tennessee. The highlight of course, was watching the famous Peabody Ducks in action.
The five Mallards, one drake and four hens, swam in the elaborate fountain. They later marched down the red carpet for a ride up the elevator to their penthouse apartment.
Under the direction of the Duckmaster, dressed in a bright red jacket, they waddled to the sounds of a marching band and the cheers and applause of visitors. An honorary Duckmaster who was a member of the military assisted that day.
Although the hotel was built in 1925, the first ducks arrived in 1933. As a practical joke, the hotel manager and a friend added them to the hotel’s fountain. The three English call ducks generated lots of attention. The hotel decided to keep them, but soon replaced them with five North American Mallard ducks.
The first Duckmaster, Edward Pembroke, was a bellman and a former circus animal trainer. He led the ducks to the fountain from their rooftop penthouse every morning at 11 a.m. The ducks returned at 5 p.m. Mr. Pembroke performed his role as Duckmaster from 1940 until 1991. He started the now famous Peabody Duck March.
The Peabody Ducks in Their Penthouse Pool
If you like this post, then please consider sharing it and leaving a comment below. Thank you! Barbara Lowell, Children’s Author
Author/Illustrator Patricia Polacco’s beautifully illustrated picture book, John Philip Duck was inspired by Edward Pembroke’s story.
