Dating is slightly iffy - Looks to me (and others) that Sandro did these at the point in his career when Savonarola was rising in Florence, pushing Sandro away from his more secular work (Venus, Spring, etc.) - probably more like early 1490s rather than 1480s - Sandro definitely stopped 1494-5, after Lorenzo's death and the banishment of the Medici from Florence (they were most likely his patron for these works, and would have been paying for them as protection from the Savonarola fundamentalism - and also, as Lorenzo was really sick, in hopes of grace in the next world)

But I should not forget that Sandro was probably moved by the murder of Guiliano de' Medici (Lorenzo's brother) by the Pazzi conspirators in 1478, as they were best buds (per not such factual sources) and it's widely argued that the model for Venus (and the lady in Spring) was Guiliano's girl friend - so maybe 1480s works

ahh, Florence - to be there in the Spring....

P.S. - the bodies that da Vinci drew on the long gallows ropes are the Pazzi conspirators hanging high off the Palazzo della Signoria - he was "using" them to study pendulum motion and anatomy (he had nothing to do with the hanging, just watching) - at least that's the story handed down....

Alex - pissing off both sides could also mean you're (Neato, not you personally) are doing lots wrong - criticism isn't a safe harbor. As Jeff says, bad taste is wrong on both counts.

Wow - and now censoring the comments! Too funny.

For those of you who think I'm fulminating, the word **** in the previous comment is Cheney's first name, universally used by all, even Readers' Digest, the American Legion, Michelle Malkin, and all the good Reverends, but unfortunately spelled just like a male sexual organ - not my fault he chose that rather than Rick....

What is it with you and the right wing blowhard entries? First you feature a chart from an economist who uses outdated information and ignores even the information he cites, now you're into torturing "Others" - which seems really strange considering that the Brits held by Iran were treated a hell of a lot better than the Iranians we're holding. How about a post on Doug Feith's lies (just released by the Senate) or Dick Cheney hiding in the shadows like Darth Vader ever time W makes a public appearance (really spooky when the press caught that on camera two days ago).

To say that this chart is deceptive is an insult to deceptive - his foreign number is based on outdated info (China's dollar reserves have gone up at least $350Billion since then, not to mention OPEC/Russia oil $), and he ignores the Fed holding securities in accounts for foreigners not for itself - overall, SO is a propagandist, and not one I would quote on even the weather

It wasn't drawn by Bill - he was one of three animators (read the credits) - there's a difference, a big one - it was designed by another, it was directed by another, the color design was by another, etc. - please don't embarrass yourself or your readers - Bill did great work as the director (and animator) of the Peanuts stuff, but Bill would never claim to be an illustrator (especially not on someone else's short)....

And exactly how much will they make in ad revenue if they do get a million hits (or votes for Ft Collins)? Their site is nothing more than a collection of ads....