Artemisia Gentileschi was tortured during her rape trial against her teacher Agostino Tassi in 17th-century Rome.
The episode begins with host Pablo Vázquez introducing the show's travel and cultural focus from Asturias, Spain. The first segment features an interview with author Rubén about artistic rivalries throughout history. Rubén starts with the Renaissance, explaining how Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo were contemporaries in Florence and were commissioned to create competing frescoes in the Salón de los 500, though neither finished their work. He then discusses Caravaggio's turbulent life, including his use of lowlife models and a presumed murder that led to his exile. The conversation shifts to Baroque painter Artemisia Gentileschi, detailing how she was raped by her teacher Agostino Tassi, the subsequent seven-month trial where she was tortured, and Tassi's eventual acquittal due to connections. Rubén also covers the architectural rivalry in Rome between Bernini, who was popular with popes, and Borromini, a more technical but reserved figure, including an anecdote about a marble pricing scheme. Moving to the 19th century, he describes the 1827 Paris salon where neoclassical painter Ingres presented 'Apotheosis of Homer' against romantic painter Delacroix's 'Death of Sardanapalus,' representing a clash between drawing and color. Rubén briefly mentions Impressionist tensions involving Manet, Degas, and Morisot, and notes that volume two of his book covers later artists like Rodin and Van Gogh. The second segment transitions to medical history, with interviews of Miguel Ángel Cuesta and Francisco Mateo Vallejo, authors of a book on Spanish medical contributions. Cuesta discusses the 17th-century transmission of quinine for malaria treatment by the Countess of Chinchón in Peru, the early 20th-century development of epidural anesthesia by Fidel Pagés Miravé, and modern research on cellular aging by Juan Carlos Izpisúa Belmonte. He also notes Asturian scientists like Severo Ochoa. Mateo Vallejo then covers 16th-century theologian and physician Miguel Servet's description of pulmonary circulation, the 1803 Balmis expedition that used orphan children to transport smallpox vaccine across the Atlantic, and contemporary figures like psychiatrist Luis Rojas Marcos and neuroscientist Rafael Yuste, who leads the BRAIN project. He concludes with mentions of cancer researcher Mariano Barbacid and biochemist Margarita Salas, highlighting her work on DNA polymerase. The episode ends with promotional announcements for local cultural events and a closing from the host.
