Brunelleschi’s Dome, Florence belongs to the Common Era — dated here to c. 1436 CE at Florence, Italy. Dates mark a scholarly centre of gravity (dedication, completion, or iconic phase), not a single foundation day.
Filippo Brunelleschi raised a double-shell dome without centering timber — a Renaissance brain-teaser solved in brick.
How it amazes the brain
Herringbone brickwork, machines of his own invention, and a lantern that locks the structure.
Why it counts as a wonder
It never needed a contest ballot to scramble the brain: scale, craft, or sheer improbability is enough.
Still the largest masonry dome ever built. Florence’s skyline is basically this one idea.
On dating
CE means years after the traditional birth of Christ. A monument listed as c. 1436 CE may have been founded earlier, rebuilt later, or become famous only in one phase. Engineering wonders (dams, tunnels, orbiting labs) are dated to opening or assembly.
This is story 17 of 100 in The Trend Ledger’s illustrated desk on world wonders raised after the birth of Christ — the companions to our BCE series.