2019 marks the 500th anniversary of the death of Leonardo da Vinci, the first of the "Big Three of the High Renaissance". At that time, the western world was welcoming great masters in both science and art. But the era also saw CHINA give rise to a surge of literary masters and scholars of its own. Take a look.

Leonardo Da Vinci was born in 1452 in the Medici-ruled Republic of Florence. He died in France in 1519, and today is still widely regarded as the most famous left-handed painter in history. The polymath was a driving force behind the Renaissance and worked in numerous fields, including painting, sculpture, architecture, science, mathematics and astronomy.

Not long after in ancient China, Tang Xianzu (1550-1616) was active. He's considered China's greatest playwright, and highly revered in ancient literary and dramatic traditions. His artistic works were primarily seen in performances of Kunqu Opera, the oldest existing opera in China.

Tang wrote only four major plays: The Purple Hairpin, The Peony Pavilion, A Dream under a Southern Bough, and Dream of Handan. The latter three were constructed around a dream narrative, a device through which Tang unlocked the emotional dimensions of human desires and ambitions. He also explored human nature beyond the social and political constraints of the feudal system of the times, in a way quite similar to the Renaissance spirit of the west.

Meanwhile, on the medical scene, Li Shizhen was born in 1518 and died in 1593. The Chinese scholar of the Ming dynasty compiled a highly influential materia medica, the Bencao Gangmu (Compendium of Materia Medica), which outlined 1,892 drugs and presented directions for preparing some 11,000 prescriptions.