Warburg and Burckhardt

Abstract

There are several signs emitted by Aby Warburg, in the writings of the final period of his life, about the importance of Jacob Burckhardt as a guide for understanding the Renaissance as an autonomous historical epoch (and, therefore, as a specific field of historical studies), and to approach the possible relations between word and image in this epoch. There is, however, a stage in Warburg's work in which the Swiss historian is more present. It is the period of Warburguian studies on art and culture in Florence in the second half of the 15th century, which coincides with the final stage of Burckhardt's production. This article addresses this issue.