Vasco de la Zarza: A Florentine Echo in Avila’s Stone The history of the Spanish Renaissance is often written in the enduring textures of stone and alabaster, and few hands wielded such transformative grace as Vasco de la Zarza. Emerging at the turn of the 16th century, Zarza stands as a pivotal figure who bridged the gap between the austere traditions of the late Gothic and the luminous, humanistic ideals flowing from the Italian peninsula. While his precise origins remain a subject of scholarly debate—with whispers of Portuguese lineage competing against the established claim of a Toledo b…