This volume examines the painting, sculpture, decorative arts, and architecture produced in nine important court cities of Italy during the course of the fourteenth, fifteenth, and sixteenth centuries. Although each chapter represents a separate study of a particular geographical locale, many common themes emerge. This volume gives a multifaceted consideration of the art created for princes, prelates, confraternities, and civic authorities – works displayed in public squares, private palaces, churches, and town halls. Including six essays specially commissioned that explore the interaction of artists and their civic and/or courtly patrons within the context of prevailing cultural, political, and religious circumstances, The Court Cities of Northern Italy provides a rich supplement to traditional accounts of the artistic heritage of the Italian Renaissance, which has traditionally focused on the Florentine, Venetian, and Roman traditions. The book includes 35 color plates and 221 black and white illustrations.