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Apr 20, 2024 17 tweets 7 min read Read on X
The Greatest Minds to Have Ever Lived (A Four-Part Series) - Part 2.

Here are the luminaries who have laid the foundations for the arts, philosophy, and the sciences that shaped our world sometimes at cost of their lives.

Let's look at how they were immortalized in art.🧵⤵️ Triumph of St Thomas Aquinas, Doctor Communis, between Plato and Aristotle depicting Aquinas (top center), a major Averroes critic, "triumphing" over Averroes (bottom), Benozzo Gozzoli, 1471. Louvre, Paris.
Aryabhata

Aryabhata was an Indian mathematician and astronomer. His pioneering work in the 5th century, notably the "Aryabhatiya," introduced the concept of zero, outlined the methods of algebra, and offered a heliocentric theory of the solar system, significantly influencing both Indian and Islamic mathematics and astronomy.Statue depicting Aryabhata on the grounds of IUCAA, Pune By Own work, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=1266822
Al Biruni

A Persian scholar who made contributions to the fields of mathematics, philosophy, and geography and wrote extensively on religious and cultural practices. His "Kitab al-Hind" (Book on India) provides a comprehensive cultural and scientific study of India. The statue of Al-Biruni in United Nations Office in Vienna. Photo: Pinterest/Wikimedia Foundation
Ibn Rushd (Averroes)

A medieval Andalusian polymath known for his extensive commentaries on Aristotle, he had a profound influence on both Muslim and Christian European thought and is referred to as the bridge between Muslim and Christian philosophy.

His work "Bidayat al-Mujtahid" (The Distinguished Jurist's Primer) is among his most important.Estatua de Averroes (Ibn Rushd) en Córdoba Statue of Averroes (Ibn Rushd) in Córdoba, Spain, Averroes was an Islamic theologian, Philosopher, Mathematician, Medicine, Physicist, Astronomer  Photo by Saleemzohaib (Wikimedia CC BY 3.0)
Nicolaus Copernicus

A Renaissance mathematician and astronomer who formulated a model of the universe that placed the Sun rather than Earth at its center. His revolutionary ideas were published in "De revolutionibus orbium coelestium" (On the Revolutions of the Celestial Spheres).Nicolaus Copernicus Monument in Kraków
Thomas Aquinas

Thomas Aquinas was a pivotal figure in medieval philosophy and theology, known for synthesizing Aristotelian philosophy with Christian doctrine, thereby laying the foundational framework for much of Western theology.

His major works, the "Summa Theologica" and "Summa Contra Gentiles," systematically outlined Christian teachings and rational arguments for faith, influencing centuries of religious and philosophical thought.Thomas is girded by angels with a mystical belt of purity after his proof of chastity. Painting by Diego Velázquez.
Zhu Xi

Zhu Xi was a prominent Chinese philosopher during the Song dynasty, who profoundly influenced the development of Neo-Confucianism by synthesizing Confucian thought with elements of Daoism and Buddhism.

His systematic approach to education and his commentaries on the Four Books became the basis for civil service examinations, shaping the intellectual, moral, and social frameworks of East Asia for many centuries.Image
Avicenna (Ibn Sina)

A Persian polymath whose contributions spanned medicine, philosophy, and science. His "The Canon of Medicine" was a standard medical text at many medieval universities. Avicenna at the sickbed, miniature by Walenty z Pilzna, Kraków (ca 1479–1480)
William Shakespeare (1564–1616)

An English playwright and poet, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. His works include "Hamlet," "Macbeth," and "Romeo and Juliet." Shakespeare's funerary monument in Stratford-upon-Avon By Sicinius - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=68457210
Sir Isaac Newton (1643–1727)

An English mathematician, physicist, astronomer, and author, known for his laws of motion and universal gravitation which formed the cornerstone of classical physics. His seminal work, "Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica" (Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy), laid the foundations for much of modern science.Newton's tomb monument in Westminster Abbey by John Michael Rysbrack By Javier Otero, CC BY 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=133473000
Rumi (Jalāl ad-Dīn Muhammad Rumi)

A 13th-century Persian poet, jurist, Islamic scholar, theologian, and Sufi mystic best known for his poems that form the basis of much Persian literature and have been widely translated into various languages. His major work is "Masnavi," a six-book spiritual epic.Jalal ad-Din Rumi gathers Sufi mystics Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=997371
Friedrich Nietzsche

Friedrich Nietzsche was a German philosopher known for his profound and provocative ideas on culture, morality, religion, and philosophy.

His works, such as "Thus Spoke Zarathustra," "Beyond Good and Evil," and "The Genealogy of Morals," challenged the foundations of traditional morality and introduced concepts like the "will to power," "eternal recurrence," and the "Übermensch," which have had a lasting impact on modern philosophical and cultural thought.Portrait of Nietzsche by Edvard Munch, 1906 By Edvard Munch - http://www.munch150.no/no/Presse/Pressebilder, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=37738947
René Descartes

René Descartes was a French philosopher, mathematician, and scientist, often regarded as the father of modern philosophy for his development of a new, systematic method of rational deduction.

His famous assertion "Cogito, ergo sum" ("I think, therefore I am") underpins his approach to philosophy, and his contributions to mathematics, notably the Cartesian coordinate system, have fundamentally shaped the development of modern science and analytical geometry.Descartes in conversation with Queen Christina in Stockholm By Snow Minister - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=106013940
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

A German writer, poet, and statesman whose works span the fields of poetry, drama, literature, theology, humanism, and science. "Faust," his two-part dramatic work, is his most famous masterpiece. Goethe in the Roman Campagna (1786) by Johann Heinrich Wilhelm Tischbein
Immanuel Kant

A German philosopher who is a central figure in modern philosophy, he established a comprehensive and complex theory in epistemology, metaphysics, and ethics. His critical philosophy is best encapsulated in "Critique of Pure Reason." Kant with friends, including Christian Jakob Kraus, Johann Georg Hamann, Theodor Gottlieb von Hippel and Karl Gottfried Hagen
Adam Smith

A Scottish economist and philosopher best known for his theories on free markets, laissez-faire economic policies, and the division of labor. "The Wealth of Nations" is his most famous work, and it is considered one of the founding texts of economic theory. A statue of Smith in Edinburgh's High Street, erected through private donations organised by the Adam Smith Institute Photo: Andreas Praefcke - Wikimedia CC BY 3.0
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More from @CultureExploreX

Jul 8
Italy doesn’t just have art.
Italy is art.

And nowhere is that clearer than in its churches, some built to honor God, others to display power, and a few to do both.

Here are 17 churches in Italy that will make you question what humans are even capable of. 🧵👇 Duomo di Siena, Italy Credit: @ValentyneDreams
1. Duomo di Milano – Milan

It took 579 years to build.

A forest of spires.
3,400 statues.
And on top? A golden Virgin Mary watching over the city.

This is what happens when ambition and spirituality unite. Credit: @Anc_Aesthetics
2. Santa Maria del Fiore – Florence

It changed architecture forever.

Brunelleschi’s dome was an unsolvable puzzle until he solved it without scaffolding.

No one had seen anything like it since the Pantheon. And 600 years later, no one’s matched it. Credit: Travel Destinations, Tips & Inspiration
Read 21 tweets
Jul 6
Most people think of mausoleums as tombs.

But the best of them are something more, Cathedrals of memory, ambition, and love carved in stone.

Here are 22 that left the world in awe and one that hides a deadly secret. 🧵 Baldacchino by Gian Lorenzo Bernini was erected over Saint Peter's tomb, it was designed at the request of Pope Urban VIII around 1624 AD.  Credit: @histories_arch on X  St.Peter's Basilica contains the tombs of many Popes also.
1. Basilica of Saint-Denis – France

Where the French kings go to sleep.

Gothic architecture was born here. Stained glass blazing like fire, tombs of Marie Antoinette and Louis XVI beneath your feet. Image
2. Taj Mahal – Agra

Shah Jahan built it for love.
The world never forgot.

Symmetrical gardens, flawless white marble, and haunting beauty.

But don’t miss the tragic twist: he was buried next to her, off-center, breaking perfect symmetry. Credit: @The_Earth______
Read 25 tweets
Jul 5
Most people visit Rome for the Colosseum or the Vatican.

But Rome is a city of cathedrals.

And these 18 churches aren’t just places of worship, they’re where architecture, power, and beauty collided to shape Western civilization.

You won’t believe #3 and #4. 🧵 Basilica de Santa Maria Maggiore, Roma, Italia. Credit: juans83
1. Sant’Agnese in Agone

Francesco Borromini’s boldest move.

He took geometry, crushed it, and turned it into emotion.
Step inside and you’ll feel space bend. Image
2. Santa Maria Maddalena

Baroque at its most unhinged.
Designed by Carlo Fontana and Giuseppe Sardi who curved the façade like it was dancing.

Don’t blink. The walls almost move.
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Jul 5
They say ancient epics ignored women. But what if that’s wrong?

What if the most powerful minds in early literature weren’t warriors but women?

Let’s talk about the forgotten heroines of East and West: The Shahnameh and The Odyssey. 🧵👇 Penelope and the Suitors 1900 tapestry by Victor John Robertson
One is Persian.
The other Greek.

One written by Ferdowsi. 120,000 lines.
The other by Homer. 12,000 lines.

Different worlds. Same question:
What role did women play in shaping the epic imagination? Image
Western scholars often claimed Persian women were passive. One even wrote:
“Such figures as Penelope… cannot be found in the Persian epic.”

But we are going to put that theory to the test. Atusa Shahbanu Credit: Hedayat Bazafkan
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Jul 3
Tomorrow is July 4th. Independence Day.

We’ll hear about Lexington. Muskets. War. But remember this:

The American Revolution didn’t begin with a gunshot; it began with a boycott.

Before the first shot fired, ordinary Americans had already overthrown British rule. 🧵 Detail from Washington Crossing the Delaware, an 1851 portrait by Emanuel Leutze depicting Washington and Continental Army troops crossing the river prior to the Battle of Trenton on the morning of December 26, 1776.
From 1765 to 1775, colonists ran a full-blown civil resistance campaign.

They shut down courts.
Refused to import goods.
Built parallel governments.

It wasn’t protest for show. It was rebellion in plain sight. Spirit of '76 by Archibald Willard
Britain passed the Stamp Act in 1765.

Americans didn’t riot.
They simply refused to comply.

Printers ran papers without stamps.
Lawyers stopped using courts.
Ports either closed or defied British orders. Burning of Stamp Act, Boston. 1 photomechanical print (postcard) : color.
Read 22 tweets
Jul 2
Latin America holds some of the most stunning architecture in the world.

Most of it was built by Europeans on top of Indigenous empires.

These 20 buildings reveal a continent shaped by beauty and conquest.

And the first three will leave you speechless. 🧵 Templo de Santo Domingo - Oaxaca, Mexico Credit: @kobe_sylvester
1. Las Lajas Cathedral – Colombia

It’s not built on a canyon.
It’s part of it.

Bridging cliffs like a miracle frozen in stone.

Built after a woman claimed the Virgin Mary appeared inside the gorge. Image
2. Church of San Francisco – Quito, Ecuador

500 years old.
Baroque on the outside.
Moorish on the inside.

And built by the hands of indigenous artisans during Spanish rule. Image
Read 23 tweets

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