8. Old School Pranking
Filippo Brunelleschi (1377 – 1446), an Italian architect and designer, rediscovered the principles of linear perspective once known to ancient Greek and Roman builders, but lost in the Middle Ages. He is considered the founding father of Renaissance architecture, and the first modern planner, engineer, and sole construction supervisor. His major work is the Duomo in Florence – the dome of the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore.
Brunelleschi’s creativity was not limited to architecture: the man was also a prankster who mastered the practical joke like few had before or since. His most famous prank was a weird and elaborate effort that targeted a cabinet maker named Manetto, also known as il Grosso, or “The Fat”. Manetto was prosperous and good-natured, but he had the misfortune of having once ticked off Brunelleschi by missing a social gathering. So the pioneering architect got him with an epic prank: he screwed with Manetto’s mind and got him to believe that he had switched bodies.
