In March we remember and celebrate many Italian-born history-makers. On March 6, 1475, one of the most famous Italian Renaissance sculptors of all time was born. Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni, commonly known as Michelangelo, exerted unparalleled influence on the development of Western art during his time.

Discoverer of the “New World,” Amerigo Vespucci, was born just 21 years earlier on March 9. Sandro Botticelli, the famous Italian painter also of the Renaissance era, was born in 1445. Perhaps one of the U.S.’s most infamous con-artists, Charles Ponzi, was born on March 3, 1882 in Lugo, Italy. Alessandro Nesta, an Italian professional footballer considered by many as one of the best center backs to have ever played the game, was born in Rome on March 19. Anna Maria Quaini, better known as Mina, is an Italian pop singer who dominated Italian pop music in the mid-1960s to mid-1970s. She celebrates her 79th birthday on March 25.

• Alessandro Nesta Alessandro Nesta
• Amerigo Vespucci Amerigo Vespucci
• Charles Ponzi Charles Ponzi
• Michelangelo Michelangelo
• Mina Mina
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