This article discusses whether or not Lorenzo Ghiberti is a true Renaissance artist. Lorenzo di Cione Ghiberti, son of a Florentine goldsmith, would become one of the most influential artists of the early Renaissance. As a child prodigy, he received his first assignment at the age of 23. Ghiberti executed many of his works, including the doors of the Florence Baptistery and many statues. He was a student of humanism and incorporated much of its philosophy into his work. Ghiberti's mother married Cione Ghiberti in 1370 and they lived in Pelago near Florence; some time later he went to Florence and lived there as the partner of a goldsmith named Bartolo di Michele. They married in 1406 after Cione's death, and it was in their home that Lorenzo Ghiberti spent his youth. It is not certain who Ghiberti's father was, as he claimed that the two men were both his father, just at separate times. But during his early years, Lorenzo considered himself Bartolo's son, and it was Bartolo who trained the boy as a goldsmith. In the autobiographical part of his writings it is reported that Ghiberti also received training as a painter in these times. 1400 with a painter who worked in the city of Pesaro for its sovereign, Sigismondo Malatesta. In 1401 Ghiberti quickly returned to his hometown once he learned of a competition held for the task of creating a pair of bronze doors for the Baptistery of the cathedral of Florence. He and six other artists were entrusted with the task of representing the biblical scene of the sacrifice of Isaac by Abraham in a bronze relief in the shape of a four-leaf clover, following the tradition of the first series of doors produced by Andrea Pisano. Ghiberti was chosen...... half of the sheet....ree from the background. Throughout his career, Ghiberti took an active interest in the work and careers of other artists. His workshop was a gathering place for several prominent artists who were at the forefront of early Renaissance technology. Whether through collaboration, competitive rivalry, or simply familiarity with the work of others, each artist influenced the other. Several apprentices who worked in his workshop would later become famous artists themselves. Ghiberti was also a historian and collector of classical artifacts. In his Commentarii (a collection of three books that included his autobiography), Ghiberti sets out the history of art, as well as his theories on art and humanist ideals. After a life dedicated to laying the foundations of Renaissance art and expanding its boundaries, Lorenzo Ghiberti died on December 1, 1455, at the age of 77, in Florence.