OCPLAHATION of . e ?K. U fv\ B E. FTT CfiUPS^ Qc It j£?a (9/7? 3 • jScLnJY[a.rco 5 . yi^- <^o csTo £i 6.Jj.TeiicitcL ^/ PALACES C. jfcrcivescovcLdo d. ^lAjcuLcujn t e. <#&.«£ Q*Signoriou J\..jSpuni-3erron i -v/\f- CD. fasa SbcurCte. M JWlsericordicL MW7>(erccitbJyuovo 1 TABLE OF CONTENTS PAGE Historical Sketch - - - - - - i General Description of Florence 23 Churches, Conventual Buildings, etc. - - - 33 The Uffizi Gallery - m The Pitti Gallery - - 177 The Accademia delle Belle Arti 215 Museums 236 Palaces and Public Buildings 251 Fiesole ' 292 The Certosa of Val d' Ema ------ 299 The Festivals of Florence 303 Chronological List of Churches, Palaces, and Public Buildings 308 Biographical Details of Eminent Florentines (other than Artists or Sculptors) 315 Index of the Principal Painters - - - - - 330 List of Eminent Architects and Sculptors - - 342 Saints and their Symbols 346 Miscellanea (Useful Information, etc.) - - - 363 Pedigrees of the Medici Family 373 General Index 375 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS Florence from the Piazzale Michelangelo- Frontispiece Photo. Alinari FACING PAGE Clement VII, by Bronzino. Uffizi Gallery - - 16. Photo. Brogi Cosimo I, by Bronzino. Pitti Gallery- io Photo. Alinari Giuliano dei Medici, by Allori. Uffizi Gallery - 16 Photo. Brogi Piero dei Medici, by Mino da Fiesole. Museo Nazionale 16 Photo. Brogi The Cathedral and Campanile 34 Photo. Alinari The Baptistery- .-.--... .40 Photo. Alinari The Brethren of the Misericordia - - - - 44 Photo. Alinari Church of the SS. Annunziata - - - 46 Photo. Alinari The Bigallo - - - - 46 Photo. Alinari Shrine of the Virgin. Church of SS. Annunziata - 50 j/ Photo. Alinari The Annunciation, by Donatello. Church of S. Croce 50 Photo. Alinari The Vision of S. Bernard, by Filippino Lippi, in the Badia - Photo. Brogi vii viii FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES FACING PAGE Church of S. Croce- - - 56 v Photo. Alinari Monuments to Michelangelo and Dante in S. Croce 56 Photo. Alinari Piazza and Church of S. Lorenzo - - - 64 Photo. Alinari Statue of Lorenzo dei Medici II, by Michelangelo, in New Sacristy of S. Lorenzo - - - 64 . Photo. Alinari Tomb of Giuliano dei Medici 64 Photo. Alinari Monument to Giovanni and Piero di Cosimo dei Medici, by Verrocchio. Church of S. Lorenzo 68 Photo. Alinari Marble Doorway, Palazzo Vecchio 68 Photo. Alinari The Cloister, Museum of S. Marco - - - 74 Photo. Alinari Corridor, with Fra Angelico's " Madonna ". Museum of S. Marco 74 Photo. Alinari The Coronation of the Virgin by Fra Angelico. Museum of San Marco 74 Photo. Alinari Portrait of Savonarola, from the Painting by Fra Bartolommeo in the Museum of San Marco - 78 Photo. Alinari Piazza and Church of S. Maria Novella 84 Photo. Alinari Cloister of S. Maria Novella ... - 84 Photo. Alinari The Visitation /Frescoes by Ghirlandaio in\ The Birth of John^ the Church of S. Maria V 84 the Baptist I Novella ... J Photos. Brogi S. MlNIATO AND S. SALVATORE AL MONTE - - 94 ' Photo. Alinari LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS ix FACING PAGE Church of S. Miniato al Monte g6, y Photo. Alinari Tabernacle of Orcagna. Church of Or San Michele ioo Photo. Alinari Church of Or San Michele, from the South East - ioo Photo. Alinari Charity, from the Fresco by Andrea del Sarto in the Cloister of the Scalzo 104 Photo. Alinari Church of S. Spirito 106 Photo. Alinari The Federighi Tomb, by Luca della Robbia. Church of S. Trinita -------- no Photo. Alinari Tabernacle, by Luca and Andrea della Robbia. Church of SS. Apostoli no Photo. Brogi Judith, by Botticelli. Uffizi Gallery - - - 124 Photo. Brogi The Calumny of Apelles, by Botticelli. Uffizi Gallery - - - 126 Photo. Brogi The Adoration of the Magi, by Botticelli. Uffizi Gallery 128 Photo. Brogi The Holy Family, by Luca Signorelli. Uffizi Gallery 130 Photo. Brogi Venus rising from the Sea, by Botticelli. Uffizi Gallery 138 Photo. Hanfstaengl Pope Julius II, by Raphael. Uffizi Gallery . - 148 Photo. Brogi The Venus of Urbino, by Titian. Uffizi Gallery - 156 Photo. Brogi The Portinari Altarpiece, by Van der Goes. Uffizi Gallery 170 - Photo. Brogi b x FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES FACING PAGE The Concert, by Giorgione. Pitti Palace - - - 178 Photo. Brogi The Granduca Madonna, by Raphael. Pitti Palace - 186 I Photo. Brogi Marine Piece, by Salvator Rosa. Pitti Palace- - 198 I Photo. Brogi Judith with the Head of Holofernes, by Cristofano Allori, in the Pitti Palace ----- 202 Photo. Brogi Madonna and Child, by Fra Filippo Lippi. Pitti Palace 204 Photo. Brogi The Baptism of Christ, by Andrea Verrocchio. Acca- demia 218 v Photo. Brogi The " Primavera," by Botticelli. Accademia - - 220 / Photo. Brogi The Nativity, by D. Ghirlandaio. Accademia - - 230 Photo. Brogi The Bargello 240 v Photo. Alinari Courtyard of the Bargello 240 K Photo. Alinari St. George, from the Marble Statue by Donatello, in the museo nazionale 242 t Photo. Brogi Portrait of Dante, by Giotto, in the Bargello. From a Drawing by Seymour Kirkup - 244 l Photo. Alinari Mercury, by Giovan Bologna. Museo Nazionale - 246 , Photo. Alinari David, by Donatello. Museo Nazionale - 246 Photo. Alinari Silver Altar of the Duomo. Opera del Duomo - 246 Photo. Alinari Loggia dei Lanzi 252 Photo. Alinari LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS xi FACING PAGE Perseus with the Head of Medusa, by Cellini, in the Loggia dei Lanzi 252 V Photo. Alinari The Uffizi and the Palazzo Vecchio - 256 Photo. Alinari The Palazzo Vecchio 256 Photo. Alinari The Pitti Palace and Boboli Gardens - 260 Photo. Alinari The Procession of the Magi, from the Fresco by Benozzo Gozzoli, in the Chapel of the Palazzo RlCCARDI ------ . 266 Photo. Brogi Madonna and Child with Angels, by Filippino Lippi. Corsini Gallery 276 Photo. Brogi Palazzo Strozzi - 286 Photo. Alinari Palazzo Ferroni (Spini) 286 Photo. Alinari Palazzo Corsini, and the Lung' Arno Corsini - - 286 Photo. Alinari The Ponte Vecchio - 288 Photo. Alinari FlESOLE 292 Photo. Alinari LIST OF PLANS The City of Florence - - - - Front End Paper The Environs of Florence 22 Plan of the Uffizi Gallery no Plan of the Pitti Gallery 176 Plan of the Accademia ------- 214 Plan of the Archaeological Museum - 236 Y* FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES HISTORICAL SKETCH FLORENTINE history may be conveniently divided into three distinct periods : (i) The early history of the city from remote classical times to the year 1266, which saw the Guelf cause finally triumphant; (2) the period of the great Florentine Republic with the rise to power of the burgher House of Medici, which ended with the unconditional capitulation of the city to Pope Clement VII in 1530 — a period of over two centuries and a half which will be undoubtedly found the most important and fascinating of the three; and (3) the his- tory of Florence as the capital of a third-rate European state and residence of a long line of Tuscan Grand-Dukes, which ceased with the ultimate absorption of Tuscany within the newly formed Kingdom of Italy in 1859. 1. Early History. — In spite of the importance assigned to Florence in classical days by ViJlani and other mediaeval chroniclers, it has now been made clear that these fine traditions are purely legendary, and that Flor- ence, even under the Empire, was a place of small size and consequence. It was probably colonized originally from the really ancient Etruscan city of Faesulae (the modern Fiesole, which still looks down on the great mod- ern city from its rocky height to northward) by settlers who sought the rich, low-lying plains of the Arno for purposes of commerce. As a small Roman city Florentia 2 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES certainly possessed its Forum (the site of the Mercato Vecchio) ; its Baths or Thermae (still recalled in the name of the Via delle Terme) ; its Amphitheatre (traces of which exist in the ellipse of the Piazza Peruzzi near Santa Croce) ; and a large temple dedicated to Mars, which is popularly supposed to have occupied the site of the Baptistery. Indeed, the equestrian statue of Mars, which had once been the chief object of veneration in this temple, continued to be regarded with superstitious awe by the Florentines long after the introduction of Christianity. For the statue, or at least a remnant of it, round which many local legends clung, was set up on a pedestal near the Ponte Vecchio, whence it was only removed through the action of Nature herself during the terrible inundation of 1333 which flooded and partially destroyed the city. The early part of the fifth century is remarkable for the career of the first great Florentine, namely, the good Bishop Zenobius or Zanobi, whose name and virtues are still so affectionately remembered by the people, and whose miraculous deeds have been set forth with matchless art by generations of Florentine artists. Zenobius seems to have inhabited, in company with his devoted disciples Eugenius and Crescentius, a small building on the very site of the existing great Basilica of San Lorenzo. During the early centuries of the town's slow increase in size and prosperity, Florence was counted merely one of many communes in the realm of the Margraves of Tus- cany, one of whom, Hugo or Ugo the Great, is popularly regarded (together with his mother Willa) as the founder of the Badia, or first Benedictine abbey of Florence, about the beginning of the eleventh century. In the twelfth century we find Florence under the sway of the famous Countess Matilda of Tuscany, the great supporter of the papal claims of Hildebrand, Pope Gregory VII. During the reign of the Great Countess we learn for the first time of a wall encircling the city, la cerchia antica, to which Dante alludes in cantos xv and xvi of his HISTORICAL SKETCH 3 "Paradiso". This girdle of early mediaeval walls, which at no point touched the banks of the Arno, was piercecl by four gates : Porta S. Piero to the east, Porta del Duomo to the north, Porta S. Pancrazio to the west, and Porta Santa Maria to the south, the last-named gateway being at a short distance from the Ponte Vecchio. In other words, the city proper at this period only occupied the small area bounded to the north by the cathedral square, to the south by the gate of Santa Maria (which still pre- serves its name in the busy and crowded Via Por Santa Maria), to the east by the Via del Proconsulo, and to the west by the Via Tornabuoni. Outside this circle of forti- fications were, however, numerous suburbs, notably that of Oltr' Arno on the opposite bank of the river ; and there can be no reason to doubt but that during the lifetime of the Great Countess the little city of Florence was increas- ing in extent, population, wealth, and industry. To the eleventh and twelfth centuries belong several buildings of importance which are still standing as memorials of the city's progress during these dark and obscure ages ; notably the octagonal Baptistery, the Basilica of Santi Apostoli, the facade of San Stefano, and the beautiful church of San Miniato al Monte on the steep hill above the bridge of Rubaconte (now Ponte alle Grazie). The death of the Countess Matilda in 1 1 1 5 may be taken as the definite date for reckoning the true beginning of the famous Florentine Republic, for Florence was now forced to take part in the fierce struggle between the Papal and Imperial parties that heralded the factions of Guelf and Ghibelline within the city. Left practically independent of external control, the leading Florentine citizens, now consuls of the young community rather than delegates of the authority of the late Margraves of Tuscany, made war upon various fortresses in the neigh- bourhood, reducing them and compelling their violent and rapacious nobles to enter the city walls as peaceable citizens. In this way Fiesole, a perfect nest of robber barons, was captured in 1125 and forced into becoming 4 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES a dependency of the growing city of the plain below. This drafting of the outside feudal element within the walls tended to the increase of Florentine importance but certainly not to the growth of internal peace and con- cord. So rapidly did the town increase in population that about the year 1 173, some sixty years after the death of the Countess Matilda, it was found expedient, if not absolutely necessary, to build a second circle of enclosing walls. This second circle took in the bank of the Arno from the Ponte alia Carraja to a point midway between the Ponte Vecchio and the Rubaconte, thence turning in- land, it was prolonged so as to enclose the ancient Amphi- theatre, stopping short at the Porta San Piero Maggiore beyond the present Piazza Santa Croce, where the street formerly known as Via del Fosso (recently christened Via Verdi) marks the course of the walls. From this point, deviating sharply to the west, this new circuit was carried beyond the Piazza San Lorenzo so as to include that important basilica w T ith its memories of S. Zenobius. Thence by way of the present Via del Giglio and the Via dei Fossi (commemorative name) it ran southward to the Ponte alia Carraja. The year 12 15 is commonly taken by the Florentine historians as the actual date which saw the definite forma- tion of the historic factions of Guelf and Ghibelline, owing to a purely private quarrel of the Buondelmonti and their friends with the Uberti and other powerful families. But the incident of the young Buondelmonte's murder merely served to intensify the cleavage between the two already existing rival parties, one holding Im- perial or Ghibelline sympathies, and the other with Papal or Guelf tendencies. For long before the date 12 15 the sharp struggle had begun between the democratic or Guelf party, consisting chiefly of the burghers of the commune, and the rival aristocratic party with its many feudal supporters. For a time the Guelf element pre- vailed in the government of the city, but in 1249 the great Emperor Frederick II incited the Ghibelline HISTORICAL SKETCH 5 nobles, headed by the Uberti, to seize the reins of govern- ment, a scheme which was accomplished only with the aid of the Imperial forces. But two years later, on the Emperor's death, the democratic element again rose to power, banished the offending Ghibelline nobles, and set up the Primo Popolo, the Florentine people, which was specially organized to resist the encroachments of the Podestd, the military governor, who was the practical representative of the Empire within the city. For ten years the Primo Popolo with the Capitano del Popolo at its head held command, but in 1260 the Ghibelline exiles, rallying at Siena, which was then at war with the Florentine Republic, inflicted a crushing defeat on their native city at the bloody battle of Montaperto on the banks of the River Arbia. After this victory of the Ghibellines, it was even proposed to raze Florence and to transport its inhabitants to the distant town ofEmpoli ; indeed, it was only through the angry protests of the truculent but patriotic Ghibelline general, Farinata degli Uberti, immortalized by Dante's verse, that the idea was at last abandoned. The Guelfs now fled in terror from Florence before the in-coming of the victorious Ghibellines, who razed the houses of their crushed opponents and chose for Podesta and vicar of King Manfred of Naples in Florence the stern Guido Novello, Count of Poppi. In 1264 died the greatest of the Ghibelline leaders, the celebrated Farinata degli Uberti, and in the following year was born the great poet Dante Alighieri. In 1266 the decisive battle of Benevento, which saw the complete overthrow of Manfred and the ultimate triumph of Pope Clement IV, freed Florence from the yoke of the Ghibellines, Count Guido evacuating the city in November, 1266, after severe fighting in the narrow streets. Charles of Anjou, the new King of Naples and Sicily, was chosen suzerain and protector of Florence, whilst the Uberti and other lead- ing Ghibelline families were violently expelled. A democratic government, or Signo?'ia, was again inaugu- 6 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES rated, containing amongst other features the annual election of twelve representatives, or Ancients, two for each sesto, or division of the city ; and the formation of a council of ioo "good men of the People," and a further general council of the commune with 300 mem- bers. At the same time an institution, known henceforth as the Parte Guelf a, with six captains (three nobles and three popolani), was erected with the openly expressed object of repressing the discomfited Ghibellines and of keeping alive Guelf traditions and principles. Thus was inaugurated in 1266 the second Florentine Republic, the Secondo Popolo, which was destined to make the state of Florence pre-eminent throughout Italy and even Europe. 2. Second Period, 1266- 1530. — It was not long ere the victorious Guelf party, according to the immemorial custom of the Florentine nature, was split into the two contending factions of the Black Guelfs and the White Guelfs — Neri and Bianchi — who may again be described as consisting of the democratic popolani and the more conservative grandi or magnates, who did not wish to have their privileges curtailed. The years succeeding the establishment of the Secondo Popolo are therefore marked by a new party spirit that ran almost as high as in the past conflict of original Guelf and Ghibelline, so that the peace of the community was constantly dis- turbed by serious rioting in the streets, which were then largely composed of fortified mansions with tall towers, such as may still be seen existing in all the older quarters of the city. Nevertheless, this turbulent epoch of tran- sition gave birth to great artistic development in Florence, for it was the age of Cimabue and of Giotto with their pupils, and also of the great architect Arnolfo di Cambio. Towards the close of the thirteenth century were begun, amidst the greatest enthusiasm of the citizens, the new cathedral, the vast Palazzo Vecchio, the huge Franciscan church of Santa Croce, the Dominican church of Santa Maria Novella, and the new circuit of walls which were to extend the confines of the rapidly growing city. By HISTORICAL SKETCH 7 this third and last girdle of fortifications a good deal more space was enclosed on the right bank of the Arno (the course of the walls being marked roughly by the broad band of the modern Viali), whilst the growing suburb of Oltr' Arno on the left bank was for the first time included in Arnolfo's plan. The fine wall and gates enclosing Oltr' Arno have happily been left intact from Porta San Niccol5 to Porta San Frediano, but the larger portion on the right side of the river has been wholly removed with the exception of the gateways, The actual government of the city was now largely vested in the Priori of the various Guilds {Arti), who were elected to hold office for the short space of two months. These Priori were chosen from the leading members of the Greater Guilds [Arti Maggiori), which consisted of the Calimala, the money changers, the wool merchants, the silk merchants, the physicians and apothe- caries, the furriers, and the judges and nobles, the last-named Guild possessing in addition an important representative known as the " Proconsul". The new democratic Florentine Republic was in short essentially a mercantile community, wherein only those who partici- pated largely in the commerce of the state were able to take an active share in its government. " The Republic of Florence," remarks Prof. Pasquale Villari, " was now a republic of merchants, and only he who was ascribed to the Arti could govern in it ; every grade of nobility, new or old, was therefore more a loss than a privilege." About 1300 an important officer of state, the Gonfaloniere of Justice, was added to the executive Signoria to hold office for two months as in the case of the Priori, to whom the Gonfaloniere was to act as a president. The name of this important functionary was derived from the go?if alone, or great banner of the Florentine people with its red cross on a white field, that this new officer was en- titled to bear in public. In 1289 was fought the battle of Campaldino, in which the Republic crushed not only the combined forces of 8 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES Pisa and Arezzo, but also their tallies, the exiled ^Ghibel- lines still striving to regain the city they had lost. In 1300, the famous year of Pope Boniface VIII's jubilee, the quarrels of the Neri and Bianchi came to a head, and after much fighting in the streets the White faction, led by the Cerchi, managed to repel their opponents under the command of the brave Corso Donati. In the following year, however, the Black faction, with the treacherous aid of Charles of Valois, brother of the French King, gained possession of the city and expelled the Bianchi from the civic councils, amongst these exiles being the poet Dante, who spent the remaining twenty years of his life a disconsolate wanderer throughout Italy. Following the usual Florentine precedent, the new domin- ant political faction soon split up into two rival parties headed respectively by Corso Donati and Rosso della Tosa ; the latter prevailing eventually and even slaying the old "Barone," Corso Donati, in a brawl outside the Porta alia Croce. In 13 10 Henry of Luxemburg, other- wise the Emperor Henry VII, descended upon Italy in order to attempt the reduction of the whole Ausonian land once more. His magnificent dream of emulating the feats of Frederick II, however, was rudely shattered, chiefly through the uncompromising hostility shown by the Republic of Florence, which in this case certainly inaugurated a patriotic policy of resistance among the free cities of Central Italy. In 1342 the vigorous young Re- public narrowly escaped falling into the power of an able and unscrupulous tyrant in the person of Walter de Brienne, Duke of Athens, a scion of the royal House of Naples. This ambitious prince, the last of the foreign governors of Florence, contrived to abolish the constitu- tion by force in 1342 with the help of certain dissatisfied and unpatriotic citizens, but his subsequent acts of tyranny soon aroused a general spirit of opposition which cul- minated in the forcible seizure of the Palazzo Vecchio on S. Anne's Day, 26 July, in the following year. The would-be tyrant narrowly escaped summary execution at HISTORICAL SKETCH 9 the hands of the enraged Florentine populace, which eventually permitted the Duke to depart unhurt out of the Republic's territory. The year 1348 is signalized by the terrible visitation of the plague, which carried off a large proportion of the inhabitants, and of which the great Florentine poet Boccaccio has left so dramatic a descrip- tion in the opening pages of the " Decameron ,; . The later half of the fourteenth century witnessed a marvellous outburst of civic energy in adorning or completing the existing buildings of the city and in erecting new ones, amongst the latter being the Loggia dei Priori (now called dei Lanzi), the church of Or San Michele, and the pretty Loggia del Bigallo % The -latter part of the same century is also distinguished for the fierce riots due to the action of the Cio??ipi y or unfranchised populace of the city, who, led by the able and intrepid wool-comber Michele di Lando, were eager to obtain a fair share in the govern- ment ; a strongly democratic movement that was secretly encouraged in 1378 by a wealthy merchant named Salvestro, head of a newly risen but ambitious family known as the Medici. The tumult of the Ciompi would be reckoned as a landmark in Florentine annals, if only as serving to bring the historic name of Medici to the front for the first time. Henceforth this powerful and wealthy house, holding itself aloof from the other leading Florentine families, was ever lurking behind the discontented populace, ready at any favourable moment to overthrow the declining rule of the Ottimati or members of the ruling burgher aristo- cracy, in whose hands the actual government of the city was now practically concentrated. Meanwhile, the Floren- tine state kept on increasing in size and importance. Arezzo was annexed peaceably in 1384; Pisa was con- quered in 1406; Cortona was added in 1414; and in 142 1 the Republic acquired by purchase from the Genoese the valuable port of Leghorn, the first Florentine outlet to the Mediterranean. But with the expansion of the state the influence of the Medici seemed to move for- io FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES ward concurrently, and their wealth and consequent power as the chief banking house in Italy made their name respected outside the limits of Florence itself. A desperate struggle for mastery between the House of Medici and the old burgher ruling element appeared in- evitable, and actually came to pass in 1433 wn ^ n a hostile Signoria arrested Cosimo, son of Giovanni dei Medici, and imprisoned him in the tower of the Palazzo Vecchio. Cosimo would undoubtedly have been executed by his political enemies, headed by Rinaldo degli Albizzi, but for their fear of offending Venice and certain other Italian states which were deeply indebted to the banking house of Medici. Cosimo and his family were accordingly sent into exile, only to return in triumph amidst popular ac- clamation in the following year. On 6 October, 1434, Cosimo, together with his younger brother Lorenzo, re- turned to their native city as practical victors in the late struggle, and this date can therefore reasonably be described as marking the beginning of Medicean despot- ism in Florence. The accomplished triumph in 1434 of Cosimo dei Medici — Cosimo il Vecchio — opens a new era in Florentine history, which many persons will probably adjudge its greatest and most attractive epoch. Nomin- ally and outwardly the government of the state was still carried on by means of the same elaborate republican institutions, whilst Cosimo himself, without any official title and drawing no civil list, lived openly at least as any other wealthy burgher of the city. But the real con- trol of the Republic, both in internal and foreign politics, remained absolutely in the hands of the Medicean mer- chant, who manipulated all the existing machinery of state for his own ends. This peculiar but very practical form of sovereignty, possessing all the power but none of the official pomp of monarchy, now passed from father to son without a break for four generations. As admitted rulers of the state, however, the Medici were required to use their vast private wealth in the entertainment of the HISTORICAL SKETCH n various illustrious guests of the Republic, notably in the case of the Emperor John Palaeologus and the Patriarch of Constantinople who came to attend the celebrated Council of Florence in 1439 ; and later, under Cosimo's grandson Lorenzo, of the dreaded Gian-Galeazzo Sforza, tyrant of Milan. Cosimo's period of authority, which practically amounted to a definite reign, is conspicuous for the immense impetus given to learning and all the liberal arts. A generous yet judicious patron, Cosimo encouraged Brunelleschi, Donatello, Michelozzo, Fra Lippo Lippi, Fra Angelico, and a host of famous Floren- tine architects, painters, and sculptors. He also founded the Platonic Academy, and his rule was marked by a general outburst of artistic energy and rivalry which saw the rebuilding of the great Basilicas of San Lorenzo and Santo Spirito, of the Badia Fiesolana and the Dominican convent of San Marco, together with a host of other im- portant structures in the city which were begun or adorned during this middle period of the Quattro -cento. In 1464 died Cosimo dei Medici, rejoicing in the proud title of Pater Patriae^ which had been conferred on him with good show of reason by the grateful city. He was succeeded, though not without some degree of opposition from the jealous Ottimati, by his son and heir, Piero, known as "II Gottoso " from his constant bad health, which kept him much in enforced retirement at his villa of Careggi, whilst his precocious but extraordinarily gifted son Lorenzo represented his absent parent in Florence. In 1469 Piero I expired, thus leaving a free hand to his youthful heir, Lorenzo il Magnifico, who, as statesman, diplomatist, ruler, poet, scholar, patron of art and science may perhaps be deemed the most versa- tile if not the greatest genius in that illustrious band which the prolific city of Florence produced in the days of the Renaissance. Entering into his difficult and onerous position at the early age of twenty, for nearly a quarter of a century Lorenzo continued to rule as the adored tyrant of the subservient Florentine people. In 1478, however, i2 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES a well-contrived conspiracy, chiefly hatched by the power- ful Pazzi family, nearly overthrew the apparently firm fabric of Medicean despotism. At a memorable service held in the Duomo on Easter Day, the Pazzi and their accomplices prepared to assassinate both Lorenzo and his younger brother Giuliano, and even succeeded in slaying the latter. Lorenzo himself escaped with barely a scratch, and this bold attempt of the conspirators to stir up the citizens against the Medici proved not only a complete failure, but actually resulted in renewed popu- lar enthusiasm and expressed devotion for the enlightened young ruler of Florence and the members of the Medicean House. The reign of Lorenzo il Magnifico may justly be re- garded as the most brilliant if not the grandest period of Florentine history. Not only did the Florentine state rise to a height undreamed of hitherto in the general politics of Italy, forming, in fact, the power which held the delicate balance between Venice, Milan, Naples, and the Papacy, but as a centre of art, culture, 4earning, and science, Florence now took a leading part in all developments of the Renaissance, being known with justice as the Modern Athens, Thus, masking his underlying despotism, with a veil of geniality and constantly keeping his humbler sub- jects entertained with masques, banquets, games, and processions, Lorenzo I continued to be held the darling of the Florentine populace, however much he may have been disliked in secret by the members of the late mer- cantile oligarchy. In his various efforts to augment the prestige of his House, Lorenzo was the first Medici to marry outside the ranks of the burgher families, for he wedded Clarice, a daughter of the proud Roman feudal House of Orsini, by whom he became the father of four daughters and three sons, Piero, Giovanni, and Giuliano, whom Lorenzo with his usual shrewd discernment was wont to character- ize as being respectively pazzo (headstrong), savio (dis- creet), and buono (virtuous). Almost the last act of HISTORICAL SKETCH 13 Lorenzo's reign was the obtaining of a Cardinal's hat for his second son, that discreet and highly promising lad, Giovanni, who thus became the first member of the rising House of Medici to be raised to the purple. On Lorenzo's decease at the premature age of forty-one, the government of Florence descended to his eldest son, Piero II, who quickly found himself beset by extreme difficulties both at home and abroad. In Florence itself a strong anti-Medicean movement had lately set in, largely owing to the diatribes and influence of that famous Dominican reformer, Fra Girolamo Savonarola, now Prior of San Marco, whose friendship and co-operation the late Lorenzo had vainly endeavoured to secure. In 1494 the invasion of Italy by Charles VIII of France proved the final cause of the downfall of the incompetent Piero, who surrendered the frontier fortresses and made an ill-advised treaty with the advancing French monarch that was highly distasteful to the national pride of the Florentines. iV popular tumult in the city, already deeply stirred by the impassioned sermons of Savonarola, now terrified Piero dei Medici, who with his young brother Giuliano eventually abandoned Florence without striking a blow. A plucky attempt on the part of the Cardinal Giovanni to rouse the Palleschi^- or adherents of the Medici, likewise failed, so that before the end of Nov- ember, 1494, all three of Lorenzo's sons were driven into exile. A week after the flight and outlawry of the three Medicean princes, King Charles VIII of France with his vast army appeared at the San Frediano Gate, coming from the oppressed colony of Pisa, which had meanwhile taken the opportunity to revolt and assert its ancient in- dependence. The French King, who preferred to regard himself as a conqueror rather than as a guest of the city, was lodged in the deserted palace of the Medici in Via Larga, but ere long to the intense relief of the citizens he 1 So named from the palle^ or red balls, borne on the coat-of- arms of the Medici. - i 4 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES proceeded southward to his ultimate destination, Naples. After danger had been averted by the departure of the King (whom Savonarola persisted in regarding as the chosen instrument of Heaven for the chastisement of Italy and the reform of the Church), there succeeded a period of spiritual dictatorship under the fiery Prior of San Marco, who for over three years remained almost supreme in the city. But external complications and various intrigues within the walls, and above all the hostility of Pope Alexander VI, who bitterly resented the Prior's fulminations against his own evil life and the cor- ruption of the papal court, led to the complete downfall of Savonarola whose influence was fast waning. In the spring of 1498 the convent of San Marco was stormed by the fickle and furious populace, and the great reformer was dragged forth, imprisoned, tried, tortured, degraded, and finally executed publicly, together with two of his most faithful friars in the Piazza della Signoria on 23 May, 1498. The jPi'agnoni, or puritan adherents of the Prior, were thus swiftly driven from power, and the combined opposing factions of the Arrabbiati and the Co77ipagnacci became triumphant in the control of the restored Re- public. In spite of several attempts, open or disguised, the exiled Medici signally failed to regain possession of their lost city, and in 1502, with the object of strengthening the home Government against such outside dangers, the Republic decided to invest the Gonfaloniere Piero Soderini, an influential and honest but not very capable citizen, with powers for life somewhat akin to those enjoyed by a Venetian doge. Both in his home policy and his many foreign missions the rather feeble Soderini was ably assisted by the counsels of his brilliant secretary - of-state, Niccolo Machiavelli, whose name comes to the front soon after Savonarola's fall. Meanwhile, the Republic clung to the dangerous and unprofitable alli- ance with France, which had been inaugurated under Savonarola, whilst it was being harassed by a lingering HISTORICAL SKETCH 15 war with the revolted colony of Pisa. With the rapid decline of the French power in Italy after the battle of Ravenna in 1512, the position of the now isolated Republic became critical. To prepare against possible invasion, the Government, on the advice of the energetic Machiavelli, strengthened its fortresses and sought to levy a local militia for defence ; but such efforts were soon proved unavailing, when in the summer of 15 12 the Spanish army of Cardona entered Florentine territory with the avowed object of restoring the Medici to Florence as part of the policy of the warlike Pope Julius II. Rather than re-admit the exiled family on any terms, the Republic decided on open resistance ; but the capture and cruel sack of the little town of Prato soon brought the Floren- tines to a different frame of mind. With the victorious army at Prato were the Cardinal Giovanni dei Medici (the acknowledged head of his House since the death of Piero II in 1503), his brother Giuliano, his young nephew Lorenzo di Piero, and his cousin Giulio, natural son of the Giuliano murdered in 1478 .by the Pazzi. The Palleschi and their adherents quickly got the upper hand in the councils of the alarmed Republic, with the result that the Gonfaloniere Soderini resigned his position and fled, whilst the city prepared to welcome the in- coming Medici after nearly eighteen years spent in exile, poverty, and insignificance. On the whole, the victorious Cardinal treated the city with generosity and clemency, but his election to the papal throne as Leo X in the following year, 1513, served to rivet more firmly than ever the Medicean fetters. The young Lorenzo II, created Duke of Urbino in 1516, now became deputy for his uncle Leo X in Florence, until his premature death in 15 19 without heirs, save one infant daughter Catherine, afterwards the celebrated Queen of France. The next ruler in Florence was the Cardinal Giulio dei Medici, whose tact and leniency secured some degree of popu- larity, until his elevation to the papacy as Clement VII in 1523, two years after the death of his cousin Pope Leo 1 6 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES X. Clement now delegated the control of the city to Cardinal Passerini who acted as guardian to the two young Medicean bastards, Ippolito and Alessandro. 1 Florence had already grown restless and weary under the Medicean yoke, and taking advantage of the sack of Rome and misfortunes of Clement in 1527, the citizens, with Niccolo Capponi at their head, arose and expelled the young Medicean princes with the full approval of the haughty Clarice Strozzi, niece of Leo X. The last days of the Republic, thus restored a second time to its pristine constitution, were brief but glorious. Filled with bitterness and revenge, Clement determined to retake the city at all cost, and for this purpose raised an army with the aid of the Emperor Charles V for the reduction of Florence. In spite of the noble efforts of Michelangelo, of Ferruccio, and other distinguished citizens, the siege, which was begun in October, 1529, ended in the capitulation of August, 1530, the year which saw the final extinction of the great and splendid Floren- tine Republic : betrayed largely through the selfish ambition and ignoble vengeance of her own son, the bastard Medici, Pope Clement VII. The space of forty years or so, dating from the death of Lorenzo il Magnifico to the fall of the Republic, is singularly fruitful in the history of Florentine art and literature. The works of Michelangelo (employed equally by Pope Clement and by the Florentine state), the choice paintings of Andrea del Sarto and of Albertinelli, the later pictures of Botticelli, the buildings of Sangallo and Sansovino are all associated with the closing years of the Republic. In literature, the Human- ists, encouraged at the brilliant court of Lcfcenzo dei Medici, continued to haunt Florence till such time as the patronage of the first Medicean Pope, Leo X, drew them to the Vatican, whilst the sinister genius of Niccolo Machiavelli hangs like a thunder-cloud over the final 1 See pedigree I of Medici family. CLEMENT VII, BY BROXZIXO Uffizi Gallery COSI.MO I, BY BROXZIXO Pitti Gallery tp. 18, 1S1 PIERO DEI MEDICI. BY MINODA FIESOLE Museo Nazionale pp,n. 248 GIULIANO DEI MRDICI, BY ALLOR1 Uffizi Gallery HISTORICAL SKETCH 17 struggle between the Medicean princes and the leaders of the old Republic. 3. Third Period, 15 30- 185 9. — In July, 1531, the young Alessandro dei Medici (commonly reputed a natural son of the late Duke Lorenzo of Urbino, but by many adjudged the actual son of Clement VII himself) entered Florence in triumph, and in the following year the office of Gonfaloniere and all the executive privileges of the historic Signoria were suppressed for ever. As Duke of Florence, Alessandro now began his brief and violent reign. Although dissolute and cruel, this young tyrant was not without natural abilities, so that there seemed little chance of his yoke being flung aside by the oppressed Florentines. His reign, however, was cut short in January, 1537, by his horrible murder in the Palazzo Medici at the hands of his distant kinsman Lorenzino, who was for this deed extolled by many as a liberator of his country. Alessandro left no legitimate offspring by his wife, Margaret of Austria, natural daughter of the Emperor Charles V ; and the dukedom of Florence consequently now devolved on the youthful Cosimo dei Medici, son of Giovanni " of the Black Bands," and the leading member of the junior branch of the Medicean House, which derived from Lorenzo, younger brother of Cosimo il Vecchio. Cosimo, who may perhaps be styled the last of the great Florentines, was cautious, firm, in- dustrious, and calculating beyond his years, so that, con- trary to general expectation, he soon showed himself a capable and relentless ruler of the state. All opposition was ruthlessly crushed, notably after the battle of Monte- murlo, and amongst those who felt the iron hand of this able prince was the intriguing Filippo Strozzi, who died in the new prison of the Citadel, or Fortezza da Basso, in 1538. Under Cosimo I, " the Great " as he has been styled with good- cause, the Tuscan state was finally con- solidated. As holder of the lordship of Siena, granted by Charles V, and as conqueror of Pisa, Cosimo at last became supreme throughout Tuscany, over which he was 1 8 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES granted the hereditary title of Grand-Duke by Pope Pius V in 1569. Cosimo laid the foundations of the prosperity of the port of Leghorn ; he encouraged learn- ing by reopening the neglected University of Pisa, and he was throughout his long and prosperous reign an enthusiastic patron of the fine arts. Anxious to con- centrate all the offices of state under one roof, he had the splendid public palace of the Uffizi constructed, and a gallery built to connect this official palace with the new Grand-Ducal residence at the Palazzo Pitti, whither Cosimo had finally moved the seat of his court. In- numerable commissions were given to Vasari, Cellini, Bandinelli, Ammannati, Tribolo, Bronzino, and other artists, architects, and decorators of the later Renaissance. To Cosimo also is due the initiative in building a Tuscan fleet to keep the coast clear of Barbary pirates, and it was he who founded the Tuscan Order of chivalry known as the Knights of San Stefano, with their head-quarters fixed at Pisa. Cosimo married Eleonora of Toledo, by whom he had a numerous family, two of his sons suc- ceeding him on the throne of Tuscany. Many crimes and tragedies have been attributed by historians and gossips to Cosimo and his children, but in the light of - modern research it would seem that the Grand-Ducal family of Medici was not on the whole more violent, more criminal, or more treacherous in its private life than any other reigning European house of the period. Cosimo I, whose familiar features are displayed in many pictures, busts, and statues throughout Florence, died in 1575, and was succeeded by his eldest surviving son Francesco I, who had married the Princess Joanna of Austria. Like his father, a judicious patron of the arts, Francesco, in spite of many moral failings, deserves the gratitude of posterity for his founding of the art of pietra dura, or the inlaying of precious stones and marbles, which is still a flourishing Florentine industry. He undoubtedly forfeited the trust and approval of his subjects by his unpopular and injudicious marriage with HISTORICAL SKETCH 19 the beautiful Venetian adventuress, Bianca Capello, whom, after being for some years his mistress, he espoused on the death of the Grand-Duchess Joanna in 1578. The Grand-Ducal pair now spent much of their time away from Florence absorbed in sport and amusement, and great was the public rejoicing when first Francesco, and then Bianca, expired suddenly in October, 1587, at the villa of Poggio a Cajano. The Cardinal Ferdinando dei Medici, Francesco's younger brother, now ascended the Tuscan throne under the title of Ferdinando I, since Francesco had left no heirs male, though his daughter Maria later became the bride of Henry IV of Navarre, King of France. Resuming the secular life, Ferdinando married Christina of Lorraine and became the father of nine children. Like his father and brother before him, an eager patron of the arts, he was the employer of Giovanni da Bologna and of Tacca, and also began the erection of the great Medicean Mausoleum at San Lorenzo where his statue in bronze gilt is still a con- spicuous object. Ferdinando, who was an able ruler, died in 1608, leaving as his heir Cosimo II, a liberal and enlightened prince, who did much for the moral and material progress of his country. He was particularly lavish of his favours to the growing port of Leghorn ; he was the friend and protector of the great Galileo ; and sheltered that strange English exile, Sir Robert Dudley, created Duke of Northumberland by the Emperor. By his wife Maria-Maddalena, daughter of the Arch- Duke Charles of Austria, Cosimo left a numerous family, of whom the eldest son, Ferdinando II, was but ten years of age at his father's death in 1620. Tuscany now had the misfortune to fall under the regency of two well- meaning but incapable and bigoted women ; namely, the Grand-Duchesses Maria-Maddalena and Christina, the young ruler's mother and grandmother, who bestowed money and privileges in endless profusion on the Church, and especially on the various monastic bodies that were now thronging Tuscany. The young Grand-Duke showed 2o FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES great bravery during the epidemic of the plague>in 163 1, the year after his assuming the reins of power. Like all his race Ferdinando II was a devoted supporter of science and the arts, though not to such an extent as his younger brother, the Cardinal Leopoldo dei Medici, who was a generous contributor to the world-famous collection of the Uffizi. Ferdinando married Vittoria Delia Rovere, of Urbino, heiress of her family, by whom he was the father of the Grand-Duke Cosimo III, who succeeded to the throne in 1670. This prince, who in his youth travelled over Europe, visiting and writing an account of England, proved inferior in ability to his predecessors, being of a gloomy and bigoted cast of mind. Under his well-intentioned but ill-judged measures, the country grew impoverished and the people discontented. His marriage with Marguerite- Louise, daughter of Gaston, Duke of Orleans, proved unhappy, the wife refusing to live in Tuscany and pre- ferring a French convent to the Pitti Palace. The Grand- Duchess Dowager, Vittoria Delia Rovere, continued the real ruler of Tuscany, much to the disadvantage of the country, and Cosimo himself was a mere tool in her re- actionary and extravagant policy. This long and inglorious reign ended in 1723 under circumstances of great sadness, for it had become evident that the historic dynasty of Medici was now approaching extinction, for none of Cosimo's three children were possessed of heirs, and the great European Powers were in consequence busied with political schemes for the transfer of the Grand-Duchy to some foreign line, which was finally settled to be the House of Lorraine. Cosimo's elder son, Ferdinando, had already died without issue in 17 13; his daughter Anna, Electress Palatine, was a childless widow; and his second and now only surviving son Gian-Gastone, who had married the Princess Anna-Maria-Francesca of Saxe-Launemberg, was without an heir and also separated from his wife. In 1723 Gian-Gastone, a dissolute but mild and cultured prince, entered upon the empty glories HISTORICAL SKETCH 21 of his ancestors, living at Florence, together with his more ambitious yet quite incapable sister, the Electress Palatine, but taking little or no interest in the rule or future of his Grand- Duchy, whose destiny had already been determined by the great Powers of Europe. * He died, the last male of his famous House, in 1737, whilst his sister, the widowed Electress, survived till 1743, when the Grand- Ducal House of Medici became extinct. On the death of the childless Gian-Gastone in 1737 the terms of the Treaty of Vienna were carried into effect, Prince Francis ofLorraine being proclaimed as the Grand- Duke Francesco II of Tuscany. The new Grand-Duke, together with his wife Maria-Theresa, daughter and heiress of the Emperor Charles VI, entered the city in January, 1739, beneath a triumphal arch still standing at Porta San Gallo ; but on his wife's succession to the Imperial dignity of her father, Francis resigned the throne of Tuscany in favour of his second son, Pietro-Leopoldo I, who with his consort Maria-Louisa of Spain came to reside in Florence. An accurate and amusing picture of the social life of Florence and the Grand-Ducal court throughout the eighteenth century has been left for us in the published letters of Sir Horace Mann, who was British Minister in Tuscany for over forty years, during which period, besides his political despatches, he kept up a constant private correspondence with Horace Walpole in England. Pietro-Leopoldo proved himself the most able and high-minded of sovereigns, his reign being marked by a series of enlightened reforms and measures, which brought an extraordinary degree of prosperity to his subjects. This popular ruler was, unhappily for Tuscany, recalled to Vienna in 1790 to succeed his brother, the Emperor Joseph II. The new Emperor's third son, Ferdinando III, now became Grand-Duke, but with the French invasion of Italy, the Grand-Ducal family was forced to fly from Florence in 1799, an< ^ under the terms of the Treaty of Luneville in 1801 Tuscany was converted into the Kingdom of Etruria under Prince Louis de 22 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES Bourbon, who died in 1803, leaving an infant son Charles- Louis, and his widow Queen Maria-Louisa as Regent. By the subsequent Treaty of Fontainebleau, Tuscany was declared part of the vast French Empire under the names of the Departments of the Arno, the Ombrone, and the Mediterranean, and placed under the regency of Elise Bonaparte, sister of the great Emperor Napoleon. With the downfall of Napoleon in 1814, Ferdinando amidst universal rejoicings returned to Florence and reigned without further disturbance till his death in 1824. His successor, Leopoldo II, the last Grand-Duke of Tus- cany, found himself involved in the troubles of the rising storm of revolution in Italy. In spite of the general prosperity of the country and the granting of new consti- tutions on liberal lines to his subjects, the Grand- Duke was expelled in 1849, on ^y t0 return, however, a little later to his capital. In 1859 Leopoldo II, refusing to join with Victor- Emmanuel of Savoy in an expedition against the Austrian forces in Italy, decided to abdicate and abandon his capital, a determination which he carried out on 27 April, 1859. The troops of the new United Italy now entered Florence peaceably with Victor-Emmanuel at their head, and as the result of a plebiscite Florence and Tuscany were absorbed in the growing Kingdom of Italy. Thus ended the existence of the Grand- Duchy of Tuscany, founded by Cosimo dei Medici in 1569 and annexed in 1859, after a lapse of nearly three centuries. In 1865 Florence was declared the capital of United Italy and the residence and court of the reigning House of Savoy. A number of suburbs were now built, and the fine old walls of Arnolfo were levelled to the ground by way of improving the city in size and appearance. The honour of being the capital of Italy was, however, of brief duration, for after the seizure of Rome in 1870, that city was declared metropolis, and Florence, no longer the seat of a court or a legislature, has sunk into the position of a mere provincial town, GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF FLORENCE FLORENCE — Fiorenza la Bella, la bellissima efamo- sissima figlia di Roma — now the chief town of the province of the same name in the modern Kingdom of Italy, the see of an archbishop and the head-quarters of the Sixth Italian Army Corps, has a population of about 250,000. Its many handsome and historic buildings, its extraordinary wealth of artistic treasures, and its lovely natural setting in a fertile valley amidst the Apennines combine to make Florence one of the most beautiful and interesting places in the world. The city, until recent times confined within its ring of mediaeval walls, has now spread in every direction, so that Florence is at present surrounded by numerous suburbs that continue to grow on the low-lying plain ; whilst the slopes of the neighbouring hills are thickly studded with farms and villas set amidst fruitful orchards and gardens. To the north of the town rises the great mass of Monte Morello, some 3000 feet in height, with its triple peak ; to the north-east stretches the long rocky ridge of Fiesole with its ancient cathedral city perched conspicuously on its crest and with the castle and woods of Vincigliata beyond ; to the east in the far distance may be observed the ranges of the Vallombrosan Mountains. In the west appear the Pistoiese Apennines, and beyond them the sharp outlines of the Carrara Mountains. To the south lies the long ridge of San Miniato, barring the view southwards, and covered chiefly with gardens and villas, and with the church of San Miniato and the Fortezza di San Giorgio prominently dis- played ; to the south-west rise the slopes of Bellosguardo 23 24 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES crowned with large villas and the olive-clad hill of Monte Oliveto with its picturesque old convent. The former limits of the city are marked by the course of the Viali, a broad band of tree-planted boulevards, on the right side of the Arno, following the lines of the ancient walls which were demolished in 1875, but of which some towers and gateways are still left standing. In the Viale Principe Amadeo to the east rises the small disused Pro- testant cemetery, which contains the tombs of many distinguished British residents of former generations, including those of Walter Savage Landor and of Mrs. Elizabeth Barrett Browning, who died in a house in the Via Maggio in 1858. The quarter of the city on the left bank of the river, commonly called Oltr' Arno, retains its mediaeval walls and gateways intact, so that the gates of San Niccolo, San Giorgio, the Porta Romana and the Porta San Frediano are still prominent ornaments of this part of Florence. Above Oltr' Arno winds the steep but beautiful drive known as the Viale dei Colli, which affords exquisite views of the great city lying below. The Arno, a small but rapid mountain stream, swollen in wet weather and a mere succession of pools in the height of summer, divides Florence into two unequal portions. It is spanned by four ancient bridges : the Ponte alle Grazie, the picturesque Ponte Vecchio with its shops and houses, the Ponte Santa Trinita, and the Ponte alia Carraja. A leading feature of Florence is the succession of quays, mostly of recent construction, known as the Lung Arno, which under various names line either side of the river. The Lung' Arno on the right bank stretches without in- terruption from the Iron Bridge opposite the hill of San Miniato to the entrance of the Cascine, a distance of about two English miles, and affords a pleasant sunny drive or walk. The Lung' Arno on the Oltr' Arno side is, however, broken from a point above the Ponte Vecchio as far as the Ponte Santa Trinita by a line of picturesque mediaeval houses hanging above the river itself, and forming a favourite subject for the artist. At the most westerly GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF FLORENCE 25 point of the Lung' Arno on the right side of the river begins the park of the Caserne, a long, narrow strip of lawn and woodland following the course of the river. From every point of view the city offers a most impos- ing appearance with its many public buildings and towers. Conspicuous above all are the huge dome of the Cathedral, the smaller cupola of the Medici Tombs, the great Cam- panile of Giotto, the towers of the Palazzo Vecchio, Santa Croce, the Badia, Santo Spirito, Santa Maria Novella, and the Bargello. Considered as a modern, thriving city, it seems remarkable that Florence should have still preserved so much of its old-world aspect at the present day, in strong contrast with Rome, which has been wholly changed within the last forty years. Comparatively few Florentine landmarks have been swept away ; on the contrary, numerous houses have been lately distinguished by tablets to commemorate the various historical personages and associations connected with them. Towards the close of the last century, however, certain changes have occurred, notably in the demolition of the walls and of the historic Mercato Vecchio, /' antico centro della citta, which has been replaced by the modern Piazza Vittorio-Emmanuele and some adjoining new streets. With the exception of this new central quarter, the demolition of the walls, and the construction of the quays of the Lung' Arno, the older portions of the city retain their original aspect in a remarkable degree. On all sides, therefore, the stranger in Florence will find ancient churches, mediaeval mansions and towers, Renais- sance palaces, and other monuments of the historic past of the great city. The newer residential quarters of Florence lie for the most part either outside or around the broad circle of the Viali, and consist chiefly of -broad, straight streets of a commonplace type. To the north lies the spacious Piazza dell' Indipendenza, and to the west the Piazza d'Azeglio, both surrounded by fine modern houses, and the latter containing a shady garden. The Piazza Vittorio-Emmanuele is a busy centre of civic 26 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES life, and its arcades and cafes are crowded at all hours ; but the neighbouring Piazza del Duomo is now perhaps the most central place in the modern life of the city, since it contains the starting-point of most of the electric tram-lines, which penetrate hence into every part of the town and the suburbs, and it is also the terminus of the line running to Fiesole. The straight busy Via Calzaioli connects the Piazza del Duomo with that of the Signoria, which is seldom crowded except on a Friday, when its whole area is thronged with Tuscan farmers and contadini^ come hither to attend the weekly market held in Florence. The noisy Via Cerretani leads westward from the Piazza del Duomo towards the church and square of Santa Maria Novella and the railway station. To the north, the broad Via Cavour proceeds by way of San Marco to the Porta San Gallo. In this most central piazza before the cathedral the visitor will find himself within a quarter of an hour's walk of almost all the principal sights of Florence, many of them (such as San Lorenzo, the Piazza della Signoria, and the Church of S. M. Novella) being little more than five minutes distance away. The Piazza of S. M. Novella is connected with the Lung' Arno by the Via dei Fossi, and that of Santa Croce by the broad Via dei Benci. Other important streets are the Via Tornabuoni, running north from the Ponte Santa Trinita and containing the chief restaurants, banks, clubs, and shops ; the Via Strozzi and the adjoining Via dei Vecchietti, in the latter of which is situated Vieusseux's famous lending library with its great reading-room ; the Borgo Ognissanti with hotels and shops, which runs westward from the Ponte alia Carraja towards the Casein^ ; and the dark, crowded Via Guicciardini which leads from the Ponte Vecchio to the Piazza Pitti. On all sides will be observed numerous churches, public buildings, and private palaces, the splendid result of the artistic enterprise of Florentine citizens in the past, and of the marvellous skill of the Florentine architects of the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. Of public build- GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF FLORENCE 27 ings it is sufficient here to mention the great Palazzo Vecchio, or Hotel de Ville of Florence ; the Palace of the Podesta (now called the Bargello) ; the arcades or logge of the Uffizi, the Lanzi, the Bigallo, and the Mercato Nuovo. Of the innumerable private palaces those of the Pitti, the Medici, the Strozzi, and the Spini-Ferroni are the most remarkable for size and grandeur. Of churches, the Duomo with its vast cupola, the Campanile of Giotto, the octagonal Baptistery, the huge conventual piles of S. M. Novella and Santa Croce, the Basilicas of San Lorenzo and Santo Spirito, and the Badia with its grace- ful tower are the most conspicuous. In addition to its architectural treasures, Florence contains also three large and important picture galleries — the Grand- Ducal (now Royal) collection at the Pitti Palace ; the vast Galleria degli Uffizi (which possesses besides many hundreds of pictures some fine antique statuary and immense quan- tities of cartoons and engravings) ; and the Accademia delle Belle Arti, with its many splendid examples of the works of early Tuscan masters. The Convent of San Marco forms a veritable museum of the lovely frescoes of Fra Angelico ; whilst the principal churches are filled with innumerable specimens of painting and sculpture of the many Florentine artists of the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. Of the four great Public Libraries, the Libreria Laurenziana^ in the fine building adjoining San Lorenzo, is the most important owing to its number of priceless manuscripts. The National Museum, contained in the Bargello, affords an inexhaustible study of the artistic productions of the past ; and the Museo Archeo- logico in the Via della Colonna possesses a most im- portant collection of Etruscan antiquities. It has been said, and with perfect truth, that no city in the world possesses such wealth of artistic treasure compassed within so small a space as does Florence. The chief public park and drive of Florence is the Cascine, so called from the Grand- Ducal dairies (caserne) formerly situated here. The entrance is near the western 28 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES end of the Lung* Arno. Parts of the Cascine are well wooded, and the views looking northwards towards Monte Morello are most beautiful. There is a good race-course, where flat racing takes place in the spring months, and (near the entrance) is a court for the curious and popular Tuscan game of Pallo7ie, which is played here by pro- fessionals on evenings in May and June. The game (which somewhat resembles the pelota of the Basque pro- vinces) is most interesting to watch. Seats at the side of the open court vary in price from i fr. to very small sums. The farthest point of the Cascine, which is over two miles long, is known locally as the " Indiano," from the coloured memorial bust of an Indian Maharajah of Kolapore, who, dying in Florence in 1870, gave orders for his ashes to be cast into the Arno at this spot. Towards sunset all the fashionable world of Florence drives, rides, motors, or lounges in the Cascine, which presents a very animated spectacle at this time of day. Other public gardens are the Boboli, or gardens sur- rounding the Pitti Palace, which are thrown open on Thursday and Sunday afternoons ; the " Bobolino," a charmingly laid out pleasure-ground on the slopes out- side the Porta Romana ; and the new-made garden of the Fortezza da Basso, or former citadel, near the Lungo Mugnone, to the extreme north of the town. Pleasant walks and exquisite views are to be obtained on the shady road known as the Viale dei Colli, below San Miniato. In walking through the older portions of the city — particularly in the districts lying between the Lung' Arno Acciajoli and the Duomo, or in Oltr' Arno — the stranger will find many good examples of ancient domestic Floren- tine architecture. The Borgo Santi Apostoli, the Borgo San Jacopo, the Via dei Bardi, the Via Lambertesca (to mention only a few instances), all present an appearance that is still in the main mediaeval. -Everywhere interesting specimens of architecture or ornament meet the eye, not- ably in the innumerable coats-of-arms, which form so con- GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF FLORENCE 29 spicuous a feature of all the older buildings of Florence, where the streets exhibit an endless variety of the escutch- eons of the great Florentine families both of Republican and Grand- Ducal times, as well as the heraldic emblems of the city and the various guilds. Many of the shrines at the street-corners are also worthy of attention, for, like the heraldic shields, some of those still remaining in situ were the work of great Florentine artists. And apart from their almost endless historical and artistic sources of interest, the streets of Florence offer unique attraction to*the visitor in their picturesque and changing scenes of the life of the people. The contadini with their huge green umbrellas ; the swarthy carters with their carts piled high with straw- encased fiaschi and with their patient horses or mules covered with jingling brazen harness and gaudy crimson trappings ; the many priests and nuns ; the Capuchin friars in their ginger-hued gowns ; the black-robed and hooded brethren of the historic Con- fraternity of the Misericordia that has attended the dead and the dying for so many centuries in Florence ; the handsome cavalry troopers; the diminutive but sturdy little soldiers of the Italian infantry ; the crowds of poly- glot and queerly clad tourists ; the peasants leading their long-horned, dove-coloured oxen ; the bawling flower- sellers with baskets full of roses or carnations — all com- bine to make of the Florentine streets a perpetual moving picture, which ought to entrance the artist with its rich colouring and constant variety. In the more secluded streets are still to be seen the old-fashioned shops with open fronts, and with the owners and their apprentices working unconcernedly at their tasks. The old occupa- tions of wool-combing, inlaying of woods, fashioning of sweet-scented cypress-wood chests, the preparation of the fragrant orris root are interesting sights that may often be observed in the quieter and less-frequented lanes. The fruit and vegetable shops are especially attractive, not only from their tasteful arrangement with regard to form and colour, but also from the unfamiliar objects 3 o FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES often to be seen in them. In winter, for example, the handsome Diosperi, a species of persimmon, in shape and hue closely resembling a tomato, are everywhere displayed, amid masses of grapes, apples, and herbs. The various local dainties that are popular with the Florentines can often be seen for sale in the streets, including cakes made of chestnut flour, and hot batter puddings sizzling in melted butter, the latter a popular dish on a frosty morn- ing. In winter also many a wild boar may be observed hanging from the butchers' shop-doors, and a visit to the large new Central Market beyond San Lorenzo will certainly prove interesting to such as are curious on the subject of Italian diet. In any case, a stroll through the old streets of Florence can never fail to bring interesting experiences to those who care to study them in the proper spirit of appreciation. Quantities of shops exist everywhere with the sole ob- ject of attracting the custom of the foreign visitor, and consequently the artistic shops with their photographs, coloured reproductions of the pictures in the galleries, and illuminated vellum work will be found very engaging. Carved and gilded picture frames of elaborate design also constitute a speciality of the place, and are generally to be found in conjunction with supplies of majolica and other local glazed pottery, made usually according to Re- naissance designs. Terra- cotta, glazed and unglazed, is also common. Florentine pietra dura work (the art of inlaying coloured marbles and precious stori§i r in pictorial designs) is also largely exposed for sale, and this historic industry is still capable of turning out some very fine specimens. The principal streets for this class of artistic shop (which is almost peculiar to Florence and abounds in every corner of the city that the casual stranger is ever likely to penetrate) are the Lung' Arno Acciajoli, the Via Tornabuoni, the Piazza Pitti, and the Via Strozzi. The best photographs are to be obtained at the fine es- tablishments of Messrs. Brogi in the Via Tornabuoni and of Messrs. Alinari in Via Strozzi. Shops crammed with GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF FLORENCE 31 antiques, real or sham, also abound, notably in the Via Maggio and the Via dei Fossi. According to immemorial custom the little shops on the Ponte Vecchio are occu- pied by the Florentine jewellers, whose chief productions are ornaments composed of pearls, turquoises, amethysts, and the less expensive stones, many of their pieces of jewellery exhibiting very graceful patterns. One great attraction of Florence is the circumstance that a walk into the country can be always undertaken without much fatigue or loss of time. By making use of the various electric tram-lines, the suburbs can be quickly passed, and the visitor can soon reach a convenient point for exploring the surrounding country, which is singularly fertile and beautiful. 1 The hill-sides below Fiesole offer many ^ pleasant rambles, and no one should miss the lovely views to be gained by ascending the slopes around and beyond the Church of San Miniato. A walk in the Boboli Gardens should also be undertaken, although for some mysterious reason these beautiful gardens are only open to the public on Thursday and Sunday afternoons. On no account should the expedition to Fiesole be omit- ted, and if possible the Certosa in the Val d'Ema should also be visited. Careggi, with a large villa wherein the great Lorenzo dei Medici expired in 1492, is a charm- ing spot about three miles to the north-west of Florence, though the road thither lies chiefly between streets and stone walls. A" drive or walk up the steep hill of Bellosguardo is also advised for the sake of the views. If time permit, an expedition to the little walled city of Prato, only thirty minutes distant from Florence by a fast train, is recommended. Its fine cathedral of black and white marble contains some interesting works of art by Fra Lippo Lippi and Donatello, and the town itself presents a good example of the smaller Italian mediaeval city. 1 For this purpose see the admirable little book by Mr. E. Hutton, " Country Walks about Florence," already mentioned in the Biblio- graphy attached to this work. 32 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES The Climate of Florence is somewhat trying and treacherous, as it varies from extreme cold in winter to torrid heat in the summer months, during which latter time rain seldom falls, and the Arno shrinks into a series of pools. During July, August, and September the city is practically deserted by all who can afford to move away to the sea-coast or the hills. In the winter months " the climate is diversified by spells of rain with a mild damp wind called Scirocco from the south, and by bitter cold with a clear sky and a tearing north wind known as Tramontanes, since it blows across the snowy Apennines. Snow, however, rarely falls in the city itself, although the surrounding hills are frequently covered with it. March is sometimes, and April is usually, warm and genial ; May is often wet and warm, ending in an outburst of sudden heat. Perhaps on the whole the months of October and November are the most pleasant in the Florentine year. In spring and winter a sunless north room should be avoided by the visitor, who in any case should be prepared beforehand to encounter heat or cold, sunshine or heavy rain, during his projected stay in Florence, with its variable and capricious climate. In the spring months visitors should be careful to enter the churches and galleries warmly dressed, as their interiors are usually bitterly cold, and liable to cause severe chills. CHURCHES, CONVENTUAL BUILDINGS, ETC. I L DUO MO, the Cathedral, or Santa Maria del Fiore (so- called from the giglio in the civic coat-of-arms), ranks as the fourth largest church in Europe, being surpassed in size only by St. Peter's in Rome and the Cathedrals of Seville and Milan. It is 556 ft. in length, 342 ft. across the transepts, and the height from the ground to the top of the lantern above the dome is 352 ft. The vast red-roofed building is entirely covered with variegated marbles — red from the Maremma, black or dark green from Prato, and white from Carrara — and the effect, though somewhat singular to northern eyes, is gay and pleasing in the extreme. (The best view of the whole bulk of the cathedral is to be obtained from the south- east corner of the Piazza del Duomo at the angle of the Via del Proconsolo.) It was erected on the site of the ancient Church of Santa Reparata between the years 1 294 and 1456, its original architect being the celebrated Arnolfo di Cambio, until his death in 1300. In 1334 the work was continued by Giotto, who was succeeded in his turn by Andrea Pisano in 1336. The original plan of Arnolfo having been substituted for one on a grander scale, the work of supervision was in 1357 entrusted to Francesco Talenti. In 1366 a committee of twenty-four architects decided upon the form of the pro- jected choir and dome. In August, 141 8, the Opera del Duomo, or Cathedral Board of Works, demanded the services of an architect able to carry out the proposed scheme of the great central dome, and after the expression of much hostility and ridicule Filippo Brunelleschi was selected out of a host of competitors. Brunelleschi completed his dome in the space of fourteen years (1420- 1434), and in 1435 the huge church was consecrated with great pomp by Pope Eugenius IV. The lantern, surmounted by the ball and cross, was 3 33 34 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES not finished till 1456. Brunelleschi also designed the elabo- rate terrace of white marble round the drum of his octagonal dome, but only one section (that facing the Via Proconsolo) was ever completed, so that after more than six centuries the great Duomo of Florence must still be described as unfinished externally. Considerable speculation exists as to the ancient appearance of the fagade, but whatsoever decoration existed was certainly removed in the year 1 587, on pretext of erecting a new front worthy of the church. The project of a new fagade was frequently mooted, but was only undertaken in earnest so late as 1858 under Leopold II, last Grand-Duke of Tuscany, with the approval of Pope Pius IX. The idea was happily encouraged under King Victor-Emmanuel II, with the result that in 1868 the design of Signor Emilio De Fabris was chosen out of numerous competing designs. The completed fagade was unveiled by King Umberto and Queen Margherita amidst great rejoicing on 12 May, 1887, four years after the death of its architect. This modern fagade, one of the most important artistic works of recent years in Italy, harmonizes admirably with the older portions of the building. According to De Fabris' first plan, it was to have possessed in addition three tall gables (as may be observed in the cathedrals of Siena and Orvieto) ; but the popular taste of Florence insisted on the present arrangement, which is undoubtedly more suitable, although the architect was loth to abandon his original and more ornate design. The effect of this fagade, especially when viewed by electric light after dusk, is magnificent in the extreme, with its bright mosaics, its coloured marbles, its masses of white statuary, its huge richly decorated wheel- window, and its innumerable coats-of-arms, which afford a perfect study in contemporary Florentine heraldry. Amongst these latter may be noticed the shields of the Royal House of Savoy, of the late reigning Grand-Ducal House of Tuscany, and of Pope Pius IX, above the main portal. Its three door- ways are rilled with ornate bronze doors, of which the central pair, by Passaglia, were opened in state by King Victor- Emmanuel III and Queen Elena in May, 1903, the old carved wooden doors being removed and placed in Santa Croce. In addition to those of the fagade, the cathedral owns four •;,- I ' A ■ '- THE CATHEDRAL AND CAMPANILE PP- 33* 3S ^ THE CATHEDRAL 35 entrances, two on the south side and two on the north side. Of these, that on the south near the Campanile (usually closed) is surmounted by a Virgin and Child, attributed to Niccolo Aretino. The next door on the south side, the Porta dei Canonici, opposite the residences of the canons, is more elaborate ; but it is far inferior to the north-east door, called sometimes the Porta delta Mandorla, on account of the almond-shaped bas-relief of the Virgin presenting her girdle {cintola) to S. Thomas, a beautiful work, attributed by Vasari to Jacopo della Quercia, but nowadays commonly assigned to Nanni di Antonio di Banco (1413-20). The portal itself is a fine specimen of the work of Niccolo Aretino, who gained thereby the nickname of " Della Porta ". The fourth, or north-west doorway, has twisted marble columns resting on crouching lions. The interior, though bare and rendered dingy by the drab colouring on walls and pillars, is singularly imposing. " In S. Peter's man thinks, but in Santa Maria del Fiore man prays," was the shrewd comment of Pope Pius IX. The immense space, the great height, the many small but bril- liantly coloured windows, and the dim light lend to this vast church an air of peculiar majesty and repose. On the Entrance Wall, to the left of the spectator, Por- trait of the Condottiere Niccolo Marucci of Tolentino (d. 1434), attributed to Andrea del Castagno ; to the right, eques- trian Portrait of the celebrated English Condottiere, Sir John Hawkwood, by Paolo Uccello. Hawk wood, after serving the Florentine Republic as a general for many years, died in Florence in 1394. To the left of main portal, Marble Statue of Pope Boniface VIIL Over the central door is a Mosaic of the Coronation of the Virgin, by Gaddo Gaddi (?), and on either side Angels in fresco, by 'Santi di Tito. The four Heads of Prophets in the angles of the curious mediaeval clock are by Paolo Uccello. To the right, the fine Gothic Monument of Antonio Orso, Bishop of Florence (d. 1336), by Tino da Camaino of Siena. Right or Southern Aisle. Monument of ' Brunelleschi vvith marble portrait by his pupil Buggiano. Statue of foshua by Ciuffagni ; Bust of Giotto, by Benedetto da Majano '1490), with epitaph composed by Politian. Over first lateral door, Monument of General Pietro Farnese (d. 1361). Bust of the Humanist,. Marsilio Ficino, by Andrea Ferrucci of 36 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES Fiesole. On the first column of nave, Portrait in fresco of S. Antonino, by Francesco da Poppi, and below it an ele- gant holy water basin, attributed to Giotto. Left Aisle of Nave. Bust of the Architect Emilio De Fabris (d. 1 883). In adjoining niche, Statue of Poggio Brac- ciolini(?) as King David, by CiufYagni. Modern Tablet with Medallion to A mo If o di Cambio, by Cambi (1843). Bust of the Organist A?itonio Squarcialupi, the friend of Lorenzo dei Medici, by Benedetto da Majano. To the left of the Porta della Mandorla, Picture of Dante, on wood, with a view of Florence and a curious representation of certain scenes from the " Divine Comedy ". This striking memorial was erected by order of the Opera del Duomo, or Cathedral Board of Works, in 1465, and is the work of Domenico di Michelino, its erection being largely the result of the public lectures on the poet's works given in Florence by Fra Antonio da San Francesco. Beyond this, over the door, Tomb of Aldobran- dino Ottobuoni, an honest Florentine citizen, who in 1256 refused a bribe from the Pisan envoys. On the first pillar, above the stoup, Portrait of San Zanobi, enthroned with his disciples Eugenius and Crescentius, by a painter of the school of Giotto. Choir. The octagonal choir occupies the space below the inner dome, which is adorned with indifferent frescoes of the Last Judgment by Vasari and Federigo Zucchero. It is enclosed within a marble screen designed by Giuliano di Baccio d'Agnolo and ornamented with bas-reliefs of the Apostles by Baccio Bandinelli (1555). At the back of the high altar is a Pieta, or group of the Virgin with the dead Christ, a late and unfinished work by Michelangelo. The tall wooden crucifix is the work of Benedetto da Majano. Fine ceremonies take place in this choir on the great festivals of the Church, notably during Holy Week, on S. John's Day (24 June) and on All Saints' Day (1 November). The singing of the Office every afternoon in the choir forms always an impressive scene, and ought, if possible, to be attended. Right Transept, known as the Tribuna di Sant' Antonio, with indifferent Statues ofSS. Philip and James, by Giovanni dalP Opera, Frescoes of Saints, by Bicci di Lorenzo. Adjoin- ing this transept is the door of the South, or Old Sacristy, celebrated as having afforded shelter to Lorenzo dei Medici THE CATHEDRAL 37 during the conspiracy of the Pazzi in 1478. Over its portal an Ascension in glazed terra-cotta, by Luca della Robbia (1446). The sacristy itself contains amongst other objects a Painting of the Archangel Michael, by Lorenzo di Credi (I523)- Tribune of San Zanobi, the most eastern portion of the cathedral. This contains the rich and magnificent Shrine of San Zanobi, with its splendid sarcophagus of gilded bronze, one of Ghiberti's finest achievements (1440). Behind the altar a Cenacolo, or Last Supper, by Balducci. The four adjoining chapels contain seated statues of the four Evangel- ists originally intended for the old fagade of the church ; S. Luke by Nanni di Banco ; S. John the Divine, an early but fine work by Donatello, which is said to have inspired Michelangelo's conception of his famous seated " Moses " ; 5. Matthew, by Ciuffagni, and S. Mark, by Niccolo d'Arezzo. The North, or New Sacristy, between the Tribune of San Zanobi and the Tribune of the Holy Cross, has its doorway surmounted by a fine Resurrectioii of Luca della Robbia, who also designed and cast the ornate bronze doors with the assistance of Michelozzo and Maso di Bartolommeo (1446-- 67). The fine inlaid woodwork (inlarsia) and the frieze of cherubim in wood within the sacristy are the work of Giuliano da Majano. North Transept, or Tribune of the Holy Cross. Fres- coes in the chapels by Bicci di Lorenzo. Statue of S. Andrew, by Andrea Ferrucci (15 12), and Statue of S. Thomas, by Vincenzo dei Rossi. In the middle of the pavement of this transept is the Marble Disc once used as a gnomon by the celebrated Paolo Toscanelli (d. 1482), who was wont to make astronomical observations at this spot. Between this transept and the " Porta della Mandorla," or north latera^ door of the church, is the entrance of the stair- case, leading by 463 steps to the lantern of the dome. The ascent is interesting and not particularly fatiguing (fee of 50 a). A good idea can be obtained of the construction of Brunelleschi's immense cupola, and the view from the sum- mit, embracing the red-roofed city, the fertile valley of the Arno, and the surrounding hills, is superb. The design of the handsome pavement of coloured marbles is attributed to Michelangelo, to Baccio dAgnolo, and to Francesco da Sangallo. The numerous stained-glass win- 38 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES dows, which are such an important feature of the Duomo, were designed by Ghiberti, Donatello, and other artists of eminence. The mysterious cipher OPA, represented on the huge shield that hangs in the nave, is the abbreviated form of " Opera del Duomo," the Cathedral Board of Works. The Campanile of Giotto \ or Bell-tower of the Cathedral, an architectural marvel of combined strength and elegance, " the Lily of Florence blossoming in stone," stands at the south-west angle of the fagade, on the site of the old belfry of Santa Reparata. Designed and begun by Giotto in 1334 and finished under his successors Andrea Pisano and Francesco Talenti, it presents one of the finest examples of Italian Gothic. It is divided into five well-marked storeys (of which the three upper storeys alone possess windows), that increase in height at each stage, thereby giving an additional appearance of loftiness and lightness to the whole structure, which is 292 feet high. The whole tower is faced with variegated marbles, its two lower stages being distinguished by a number of bas-reliefs and statues, the work of the most famous Florentine artists and sculptors. In the lowest storey is represented the progress of human civilization, in a series of bas-reliefs set in hexagonal compartments, which naively exhibit the prevalent ideas and philosophy of the fourteenth century. Amongst these twenty-eight designs may be noticed (on the western face) the Creation of Eve ; Adam Delving a7id Eve Spinning ; Man Subduing a Horse (rid- ing) ; Ploughing with Oxen (agriculture), etc. ; whilst the corresponding seven designs on the northern side of the tower (that facing the cathedral) are intended to personify the liberal arts under the guise of statues of the great masters, such as Pheidias (for sculpture), Ape lies (for painting), etc. The designs in the lozenge-shaped plaques above are the Seven Cardinal Virtues on the west side ; the Seven Works of Mercy on the south side (appropriately facing the build- ings of the historic " Misericordia ") ; the Seven Beatitudes on the east side ; and the Seven Sacraments on the north side. Giotto himself, Andrea Pisano and Luca della Robbia are responsible for the conception and execution of these curious and interesting ornaments. Above these are sixteen niches, four on each face of the square tower, containing in all sixteen statues of prophets, patriarchs, and sibyls, from the hands of various Tuscan sculptors. The second statue from THE CAMPANILE AND BAPTISTERY 39 the cathedral on the western side is Donatello's so-called David, commonly known as " II Zuccone," or the Bald-pate, from the hairless head of the original of the statue, for which the artist's friend, Giovanni Balduccio Cherichini, lent his features. It was one of Donatello's favourite masterpieces, so much so that he was wont to swear on occasions by the intense faith he had in his beloved " Zuccone ". The tall windows with their ornate columns of the three upper storeys are marvels of grace, lightness, and elaborate decoration. The topmost stage contains the cathedral bells, whose deep boom- ing at daybreak and sunset can be distinctly heard through- out all parts of the city. On the eastern side of the tower is the entrance to the stairway, a pretty Gothic portal, attributed to Andrea Pisano. The ascent to the summit (fee of 50 c.) consists of 414 steps, but the view obtained therefrom is not so extensive as that from the cathedral dome. On great Church festivals the pennant of the Opera del Duojho with its emblem of the Holy Lamb and flag floats from the top of the tower, which is crowned with a traceried terrace of white marble. According to tradition, Giotto intended to complete his tower with a tall spire, but it is hard to conceive of any addition that could possibly improve on the perfect proportions of this marvellous building as it exists to-day. The Baptistery, or Church of S. John the Baptist, patron saint of Florence, and the ancient cathedral of the city until the year 1128, is referred to by Dante in a famous passage of the " Inferno " as il mio bel San Giovanni. Erected prob- ably in the sixth century on the site of a pagan temple to Mars, the church was rebuilt towards the close of the eleventh century, when its rough walls were covered with slabs of white and dark green Prato marble, and the three existing doors were opened ; whilst the original entrance, behind the present high altar, was closed. Like all the early baptis- teries built under Lombardic influence in Italy, the form both of sub-structure and of roof is octagonal, and in this case consists of three storeys, of which only the second con- tains windows, the lighting of the interior being assisted by a lantern at the summit of the dome. The chief external ornaments of this most famous and historic building are the three Doorways, which were adorned in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries with the choicest and richest works that the incomparable artists of Florence could produce. First, 4 o FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES in point of time, is the South Gate, which forms the usual entrance to the building. This is the work of Andrea Pisano and was cast in 1330. Originally placed opposite the fagade of the Duomo, Andrea's gate was removed to the southern doorway in 1439 to make way for the more cele- brated masterpiece of Lorenzo Ghiberti. Many persons, however, will perhaps prefer the simpler designs of Andrea Pisano to the more elaborate production of Ghiberti. This south door, which depicts scenes from the life of S. John the Baptist, is surrounded by a beautiful framework of fruit and flowers, which was designed by Ghiberti himself. Over the door is a group of the Decollation of the Saint, by Vincenzo Danti (1571). The second Door, facing the Duomo, contains the famous Bronze Gates of Lorenzo Ghiberti, which Michelangelo pronounced worthy to serve as the entrance to Paradise. These doors, which represent in ten compartments scenes from Old Testament history, form "one of the artistic marvels of Florence. Their exquisite " pictures in gilded bronze " deserve the most careful study, as do also their surrounding ornaments in the borders, which include, besides the usual decoration of fruit and flowers, twenty-four heads of prophets, judges, etc., amongst them being the artist's own portrait, which has been introduced into the central band with the Latin inscription beside it, Laurentii Cionis de Ghibertis mira arte fabricatum. Above this superb work is the Baptism of Christ, by Andrea Sansovino (1502). The two broken antique pillars of red porphyry beside this gate were presented by the Republic of Pisa as a thank-offering for the assistance given by Florence in the war of 1 1 17 against the Saracens: The North Door is also the work of Lorenzo Ghiberti, being the outcome of a cele- brated public competition, in which Ghiberti's design was preferred by the judges of the Republic to those submitted to them by Brunelleschi, Jacopo della Quercia, and other leading artists. This was in 1400, when the artist was but twenty-two years old, and his success on this occasion doubtless spurred the youthful Ghiberti to the subsequent efforts which produced the "Gates of Paradise" already mentioned. This north door represents in twenty-eight sections the history of Christ, the Apostles, and the early Fathers of the Church, and though not so famous as the neighbouring masterpiece, this earlier work is almost as THE BAPTISTERY 41 beautiful and deserving of close inspection. Above it, the Preaching of S. John, by Francesco Rustici (151 1 ). The interior (best visited on a sunny day near noon) is very dark, so that the mosaics of the dome are .eldom seen to advantage. The roof is supported by sixteen ancient columns, fifteen of granite and one of white marble, with gilded capitals. The ancient pavement, of inlaid black and white marbles, consists of a series of intricate patterns. To the right near the centre of the pavement is the curious Monument of the Astrologer Strozzo Strozzi (d. 1048), with the signs of the Zodiac and the enigmatical sentence (reading alike forwards and backwards), En gire torte sol ciclos et roter igne. The baptismal Font, wherein every child born in Florence is baptized, was set up in its present position in the seventeenth century after the destruction of the old historic font. Near the high altar, disfigured by an incon- gruous marble group dating from the eighteenth century, we find the Tomb of Bishop Ranieri (tenth century), commonly called the Tomb of the Cabbage- woman (" La Cavoloja") by the Florentines, who believe that this monument contains the remains of a former favourite of the people, an old vegetable- seller who grew rich in the market and was buried at this spot. Next this is the splendid Renaissance Monument of Cardinal Baldassare Cossa, the ex- Pope John XXIII, who was formally deposed by the Council of Constance in 141 5. Dying later in Florence, the ex-pontiff was magnificently buried in this church under his papal title by Cosimo dei Medici, in spite of the protests of the reigning pope. The recumbent figure is a fine work by Donatello. Near the entrance is a wooden Statue of the Magdalen, an unpleasing work by the same great master. The Triforium is com- pletely covered with mosaic decoration in black and white, whilst the whole of the Cupola is covered with striking Mosaics in bright colours on a gold ground. These mosaics, which it has taken some twenty years to restore, were in March, 1908, freed from their scaffolding and again exposed to public view. They are the joint work of a Greek artist named Apollonius, of Andrea Tafi, and of other Florentine masters of the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries. Their most prominent feature is the gigantic figure of Christ above the high altar. The apse behind this altar is still (1910) undergoing restoration of its mosaics. The octagonal cupola 42 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES served Brunelleschi for a model of the dome which he undertook to construct for the cathedral. In the piazza, near the north door of the Baptistery, is an ancient pillar of cipollino marble surmounted by a cross and known as the " Column of San Zanobi," since it was erected in 1330 to commemorate the transfer of the Saint's relics from San Lorenzo to the cathedral. In the houses opposite to this cross is a pretty Renaissance doorway with a terra-cotta statue of the Baptist above it by Michelozzo (?), which was the entrance to the former residence of the Canons of San Giovanni. The Piazza del Duotno^ together with the adjoining Piazza di San Giovanni, consists of a long irregular space in the heart of the city, surrounding the three great buildings of the Cathedral, the Campanile, and the Baptistery. The western end of this space is occupied by the Archi-episcopal Palace (Arcivescovado), restored by Dosio at the close of the six- teenth century at the expense of Cardinal Alessandro dei Medici, afterwards Pope Leo XI, whose fine papal escutcheon in polychrome is conspicuously displayed at the north-east angle of the present palace, which was almost wholly rebuilt in the last century. The coat-of-arms on the south-east angle is that of Cardinal Bausa (d. 1899). Although so much modernized, the palace still retains on its western side, abutting on the little Piazza dell' Olio, the eleventh-century facade in black and white marbles of the small Church of San Salvatore. By a special dispensation of the first Medi- cean pope, Leo X, the Archbishops of Florence are allowed to officiate in public in the robes of a cardinal, even before they have actually been raised to the purple. On the south side of the piazza, at the corner of the Via Calzaioli, stands the graceful little building known commonly as the Bigallo, consisting of an open Loggia by Orcagna (?) and some internal chambers erected between 1352 and 1358 by the Confraternity of the " Misericordia ". The three statues in Gothic niches over the Loggia represent the Virgin, S. Lucia, and S. Peter Martyr (Fra Pietro da Verona), whose preaching against the heretics known as the " Paterini " in the thirteenth century caused the foundation of the orthodox " Compagnia del Bigallo ". Of the two almost obliterated frescoes, attributed to Taddeo Gaddi, the first shows the Saint preaching violently against the dreaded Paterini and THE MISERICORDIA 43 presenting banners to the newly formed military company of the Bigallo ; and the latter illustrates his exorcism of the Devil with the sign of the Cross. The Madonna in the pretty lunette over the door is by Alberto di Arnoldo, a pupil of Andrea Pisano. Within the building (shown between 3 p.m. and 5 p.m.) is a small collection of early paintings, including a Madonna del la Misericordia, by Ridolfo Ghirlandajo (1 5 1 5), and a Tabernacle, by Bernardo Daddi (1333). The Bigallo is now used as the office of the Foundling Hospital. On the same side of the piazza, a little to the east of the Via Calzaioli, is the present head-quarters of the Misericordia. This famous company owes its foundation in the thirteenth century to a humble porter, named Pietro Borsi, who con- ceived the truly pious idea of an organized company of men ready to carry the dead to burial or the sick to hospital during the frequent and dreaded visitations of the plague in Florence. Borsi's noble efforts and example commended themselves to the people of Florence, with the result that this world-famous society was duly enrolled and endowed. In 1425 the phil- anthropic Society of the Misericordia was joined with the older company of the Bigallo, whilst in 1491 a new set of regulations was drawn up for the Confraternity under the guidance of the Archbishop Rinaldo Orsini. In 1576 the Misericordia was granted the building it still occupies by the Grand- Duke Francesco I. All Florentine men, of every rank in life, consider it a peculiar honour to belong to this ancient institution, of which the King of Italy and the Arch- bishop of Florence are ex-officio heads. The members of the Misericordia whilst engaged on their pious errands form one of the most picturesque and remarkable of the many curious street scenes of modern Florence, since when on duty they still wear in public the long black robe and the hood masking the face. The small church contains an Altar by Andrea della Robbia, and a fine Statue of S. Sebastian, the patron of the Confraternity, by Benedetto da Majano. The church is illuminated and the wardrobe is exposed to public view on this Saint's festival (20 January). Beyond the Misericordia is the Palazzo dei Ca?ionici, a dismal range of buildings erected in 1827 and occupied by the clergy of the cathedral, who from this point can frequently be seen crossing the piazza in procession to the south lateral door of the church opposite. In the centre of its facade are 44 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES statues of Arnolfo di Cambio and of Filippo Brunelleschi, colossal but feeble works by Pampaloni (1830). Further east, now inserted into the wall, is the red marble slab, known as the Sasso di Dante, which is said to have afforded a seat to the poet whilst he used to watch the progress of the vast cathedral then in course of erection. On the northern side of the piazza, between the Via Ricasoli and the Via dei Servi, is an ancient building, formerly the head-quarters of the " Opera del Duomo," and still bearing some fine shields with the civic arms and the emblem of the Guild of Wool. On the eastern side is a handsome modern bust of Donatello placed in 1886 on the house, which was once his studio, and intended to commemorate the fifth cen- tenary of the master's birth. Almost opposite the easternmost point of the cathedral is the small but extremely interesting Museum, belonging to the Cathedral Board of Works, and therefore commonly called the Opera del Duomo (fee of 50 a), which should be visited, if possible, after an inspection of the interior of the Duomo itself. The Museum is entered by a courtyard and a door- way, above which is placed an excellent bust by Giovanni dalP Opera (1572) of the Grand-Duke Cosimo I. Here are preserved numerous objects, many of great interest and beauty, which were originally intended for the decoration of the cathedral. In the vestibule is a Bust of Brunelleschi, a fine work of Buggiano, his pupil, dated 1444 ; whilst in the corridor beyond and also on the staircase are various archi- tectural fragments, reliefs, mosaics, specimens of stained glass, etc. On the first floor is a large hall, containing amongst other treasures the two celebrated Cantorie, or Organ Lofts, which were removed from the Duomo in 1840, when the present organs were erected. That on the wall to the left on entering, the work of Donatello, is of most ornate design in white marble embellished with pillars and encrusted with translucent mosaics. The frieze represents a number of children playing in the most expressive and natural attitudes, so that the whole composition seems alive with vigour. On the opposite wall is the Cantoria of Luca della Robbia, con- sisting of ten groups of children playing on musical instru- ments and dancing, more restrained and more graceful, if less animated in appearance than the rival group by Donatello. Della Robbia's gallery bears an appropriate Latin inscription H ' I % ; i MUSEO DELL' OPERA 45 selected from the verses of the 1 50th Psalm. Two of its plaques, which formerly were affixed to the ends of the gallery, are now fastened to the wall below, and exhibit groups of youths singing in chorus which are very popular and are constantly to be seen reproduced in the modern Cantagalli ware and other Florentine artistic work. On the same side of the room as these last-mentioned works of Delia Robbia is the magni- ficent Silver Altar, perhaps the finest specimen of the art of true jewellery in existence, which was until recent years used at the great ceremonial held in the Baptistery on the festival of S. John the Baptist (24 June). The joint work of various Florentine silversmiths of the fourteenth century, this splendid dossale, or altar frontal, includes twelve scenes from the life of the patron saint of Florence, all executed with the most minute detail, besides numerous niches, statuettes, and decora- tions of richly coloured enamels. The great Silver Cross with the figures of S. John the Divine and the Virgin is somewhat later in date, being the work of Betto Betti and Antonio Pollajuolo. The whole work was finished about 1459. This room also contains some fine Vestments, including a magnificent set of embroideries representing scenes in the life of the Baptist ; a Paschal Candlestick inlaid with mosaic, a mosaic Portrait of San Zanobi, etc. In the room beyond is arranged a complete collection of the designs sent in by architects competing for the commission for the new facade of the cathedral. The two successful designs by De Fabris are prominently displayed, and will arouse considerable in- terest. In the centre of the room is a series of Models for the dome, including the original model for the lantern, con- structed by Brunelleschi. Piazza delP Annunziata. — The handsome and regular Via dei Servi with its numerous palaces, running north- east from the apse of the Duomo, forms an appropriate and worthy entrance into the Piazza dell' Annunziata, the most beautiful and architecturally perfect of the piazze of Florence. In the centre of the square stands the fine equestrian statue of the Grand-Duke Ferdinand I, one of the last works of Gian-Bologna, though sometimes attributed to Pietro Tacca. It was not erected till the year 1640 by Ferdinand II, who as an emblem of his grandfather's majesty and industry has placed on the bronze plaque of its marble 46 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES base the monarch-bee surrounded by the obedient inhabi- tants of the whole hive. Readers of Robert Browning's well- known poem, the " Statue and the Bust," will at once recog- nize in this effigy the original of the statue mentioned in that dramatic but purely imaginary love-story of the Grand-Duke and a bride of the House of the Riccardi, towards whose ancient palace the eyes of the figure are directed. The two bronze fountains with shells and sea-monsters are the work of Pietro Tacca. On the south side of the piazza is the long arcaded and raised front of the famous Spedale degli Inno- cently the great foundling establishment of Florence, the building of which was begun about 1420 by Brunelleschi and finished by his pupil Francesco della Luna in 145 1. The chief founder of this charitable institution, which is still a source of pride and utility to Florence, was Leonardo Bruni, commonly called Leonardo of Arezzo, or PAretino, who persuaded the Republic to build, regulate, and endow this hospital, which was placed under the special protection of the Guild of Silk. Originally intended to serve for illegiti- mate children and foundlings only, the scope of the hospital has in recent times been extended to include the children of poor parents under certain conditions. The little inmates of the Innocenti are reared, cared for, and educated for service, and small dowries are provided for girls marrying with the consent of the Governing Board of five members. Over 1000 children are received annually in this historic asylum. In the lunettes of the exterior arcade are charming speci- mens of Della Robbia coloured and glazed terra-cotta ware, representing infants in swaddling bands, each in a different attitude and each with a different but equally pleasing expres- sion. In the vaulting of the arcade are some decorative frescoes by Poccetti. The portal leads to a pretty courtyard, to the left of which is the chapel, having a fine lunette of the Annunciation, by Luca Della Robbia, over its doorway. Inside the chapel is the Adoration of the Magi, serving as an altar-piece, one of the most admired works of Domenico Ghirlandajo, painted in 1488. The Board's private room contains a few pictures by Florentine masters, including a fine Marriage of S. Catherine, by Piero di Cosimo, the master of Andrea del Sarto. CHURCH OF THE SS. AXXUXZIATA P- 47 rHE BIGALLO CHURCH OF THE ANNUNZIATA 47 The building with the arcade on the opposite side of the piazza, facing the Hospital of the Innocenti, was erected in 1520 from an old design of Brunelleschi's. On its arches are medallions with the large " S " entwined with Annuncia- tion lilies, which is the badge of the Servite Order. The eastern side of the piazza is occupied by the facade of the great Church of the Santissima Annunziata. The story of its foundation constitutes an integral portion of Florentine history. In the thirteenth century seven gentle- men of Florence, with Benedetto Buonfiglio at their head, retired to spend a contemplative life on the crest of Monte Senario, the mountain that lies to the north of Fiesole and forms a conspicuous object in views from that ancient city. Here was instituted the Order of the " Servi di Maria," or Servants of Mary, under the rule of the Augustinians. Leaving their chosen mountain retreat for the town itself, the members of the newly founded Order settled outside the gates of Florence at the exact spot now covered by this magnificent church and monastery, which in the fourteenth century came to be included within the third circle of the city walls. The wealth, popularity, and reputation of the Senate Fathers increased steadily, and brought numerous benefactors to their assist- ance, so that their church was enlarged and decorated by the best artists of the period. The facade has a much injured Mosaic of the Annunciation, by Davide Ghirlandajo, over its central door, and is approached by a handsome portico of Corinthian columns completed in 1601 by Caccini, who fol- lowed an older plan left by Antonio da Sangallo. Behind the fagade is a fore-court, covered with a glass roof to pro- tect its precious frescoes from the weather. This court, with its frescoed upper storey, was especially constructed for Piero dei Medici, "II Gottoso," in 1447 by Manetti, a pupil of Brunelleschi, so as to enable that prince to obtain private access to the famous shrine of the Virgin within the church. The lower portion of this courtyard, sometimes called the Chiostro dei Vuoti, is covered with a series of frescoes by Andrea del Sarto and other artists, which are amongst the most celebrated in Florence, though for the most part faded and damaged. On the left on entering from the piazza, nearest the church door, is the first of the series, the Nativ- ity, by Alessio Baldovinetti (almost destroyed) ; and next to this work the Story of S, Filippo Benizzi of the Order of the 48 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES Servites, in six compositions : (i) The Saint assumes the robe of the Servites, painted by Cosimo Rosselli in 1476 (the remaining five, dating from 1509-10, are all wholly or in part by Andrea del Sarto) ; (2) San Filippo shares his cloak with a leper ; (3) the gamblers who had scoffed at the Saint's sermons struck by lightning, one of the finest of this series of the career of S. Filippo ; (4) healing of a woman filled with an evil spirit ; (5) death of the Saint, with a miracle of a boy cured by the touch of S. Filippo's robe ; (6) healing of children by means of the Saint's garments, which contains in the old man with the staff an interesting portrait of Andrea della Robbia. In the midst of the corridor Bust of Andrea del Sarto, by Caccini. This artist, "the perfect painter," is closely associated with the Church of the Annunziata, which his skill did so much to embellish ; whilst his house, still standing and marked with a tablet, is situated close by in the adjoining Via Gino Capponi to the south of the church. On the right side of the fore-court, beginning on the side nearest the church : ( 1 ) Procession of the Magi, by Andrea del Sarto, who has depicted them as travelling through Tuscan scenery ; (2) The Birth of the Virgin, also by Andrea, exe- cuted by the artist in 15 14 and universally acknowledged as one of the finest frescoes in Italy. Andrea's worthless wife, Lucrezia del Fede, stood as model here for the figure of the central lady of the group, and it is related that when an old woman this Lucrezia used to point proudly to this fresco, and tell visitors to the church that she was the widow of the famous painter who had made such use of her beauty in this and in so many others of his paintings. A specially pathetic interest attaches to these frescoes, for the unlucky artist is said to have received only ten ducats each for these two master- pieces ; (3) Marriage of the Virgi?i, a good example of Franciabigio's work. The destruction of the head of the Virgin in this work is said to have been due to the infuriated artist, who thus revenged himself on the monks of the An- nunziata for uncovering his painting before it was fully com- pleted ; (4) The Visitation, 15 16, latest in point of date, by Pontormo, the pupil of Andrea del Sarto, fine in composi- tion and colour ; (5) The Assumption of the Virgin, by Rosso Fiorentino, painted in 1 5 1 3, when the artist was seventeen years old. The S. James on the left dressed CHURCH OF THE ANNUNZIATA 49 as a pilgrim is a portrait of the poet Francesco Berni (d. ! 53 6 )- ... The interior, which is cruciform with an elliptical dome above the choir, is rich with painting, sculpture, and gilding, somewhat resembling the interiors of the rococo Roman churches. Much of the decoration dates from the seven- teenth and early eighteenth centuries, and is gaudy but most effective. On the left, near the door, is the celebrated Chapel of the SS. Annunziata, containing the wealthiest and most popular shrine in Florence. The chapel itself was de- signed in 1448 for Piero dei Medici by Michelozzo. The chief object of devotion preserved here is a fresco, deemed miraculous, of the Annunciation, which is said to have been the work of Pietro Cavallini, the legend being that the Virgin herself condescended to paint her own likeness so as to assist the perplexed artist in his work. It is only exposed to public view on the Feast of the Annunciation (25 March). The ornate canopy of the chapel was added in the seventeenth century, and serves to spoil the proportions of Michelozzo's elegant structure. Over the altar is a beautiful Head of the Saviour, by Andrea del Sarto. The shrine is hung round with numerous votive offerings and with lamps of solid silver, replacing those melted down in the troubles ensuing on the French occupation of Italy at the close of the eighteenth century. The shrine itself with its many devotees always forms an interesting study, and no doubt the reader is well aware of the charming description of this favourite place of Florentine pilgrimage and prayer in the pages of Mrs. Browning's " Aurora Leigh ". The interior, though greatly modernized, still retains a few good works by early Florentine masters. The first chapel on the right possesses a good altar-piece of the Virgin with Saints, by Jacopo da Empoli, and some frescoes by Rosselli. In the fifth chapel on the same side, the Cap- pella Medici, is the fine Renaissance Tomb of Orlando Medici, by Simone di Betto. In the chapel opening out of the right transept is a Pieta, by Baccio Bandinelli, over the actual tomb of that sculptor, whose portrait appears in the bearded face of Nicodemus that supports the dead Christ. The fine Renaissance Organ Galleries of white marble in the nave are worthy of notice. The Tribune of the church, which is covered by the 5o FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES curious but effective depressed dome, was designed by Leon- Battista Alberti in 145 1. It contains the circular marble choir and a number of chapels of no particular interest, ex- cepting the fifth (immediately behind the high altar), the " Cappella del Soccorso," erected by Gian-Bologna to serve as a personal memorial and decorated with statuary and reliefs by himself and by his favourite pupils, Tacca and Franca- villa. The Tribune of this church is the scene of the fine musical services which take place here every Sunday and holy-day throughout the year, especially at the great festivals connected with the Virgin. On the northern pier supporting the choir is the monu- ment with effigy of Angelo Marzi-Medici, Bishop of Assisi, minister of Cosimo I, who allowed this devoted servant of his House to assume the name and arms of the Medici in addition to his own. The monument is by Francesco da Sangallo, whose name and the date (1546) are carved on the marble. The recumbent effigy opposite is that of Donato dell' Antella(d. 1702), at whose expense the church was largely re-decorated in its present form. In the left or northern aisle, the first chapel nearest the Tribune contains an altar-piece, by Perugino, the Assumption of the Virgin. The fourth chapel, that of Francesco Feroni, a rich merchant of the seventeenth century, is remarkable for its gorgeous but tasteless decoration by Foggini (1692). In the left transept are buried the three Florentine his- torians of the family of Villani — Giovanni, Matteo, and Filippo. From this transept a door leads into the Burial Cloister (Chiostro dei Morti), a court built by Michelozzo and filled with tombs and monuments, chiefly of benefactors to the church and monastery. In the corner of this cloister near the transept is a large glass screen, intended to pre- serve a very famous fresco by Andrea del Sarto from destruc- tion, though the painting has been already terribly defaced by weather and neglect in the past. The fresco, dating from 1525, which is in the lunette above the transept door, repre- sents the Virgin and Child with S. Joseph, who reads aloud from a book whilst he leans against a grain-sack, a circumstance that has given the popular name of the " Madonna del Sacco " to this work. Vasari considered the " Madonna del Sacco " unsurpassed for drawing, colour, and charm of composition ; whilst according to a well-known "~~ S. APOLLONIA— SS. APOSTOLl 51 tradition Michelangelo was a particular admirer of this work. Even in its present dilapidated condition, it is easy to realize the extreme beauty and grace of this little group of the Holy Family. Below this fresco is the fine tomb of Chiarissimo Falconieri, a member of a family who were amongst the first founders and special supporters of the Servite Order. The arcades of the cloister are decorated with a number of indiffer- ent frescoes by Poccetti, Rosselli, and others with subjects alluding to the lives of the " Seven Servants of Mary," the foundation of the church, etc. Opening out of this cloister to the north is the Cappella di San Luca, or dei Pittori, containing a fresco of the Madonna and Saints, by Pontormo. The " Company of S. Luke," con- sisting of Florentine painters, was first established in 1350 in the present Hospital of Santa Maria Nuova, but was trans- ferred hither by Cosimo I in 1561. S. Apollonia, Convent of. At No. 1 Via Venti-sette Aprile, about five minutes' walk north of the Piazza San Marco. Founded by the Buonarroti family about 1339, this convent of Gothic architecture is now used for a military hospital with the exception of the Refectory (entrance fee, 25 c), which contains four large frescoes by Andrea del Castagno — the Last Supper, the Crucifixion, the Ento?nb- ment, and the Resurrection — all of them considerably re- touched. In the same room are also preserved paintings of Nine Fa?nous Personages, originally executed for the Villa Pandolfini at Legnaia, but removed hither in 1891. The nine persons represented, which are good works of Andrea del Castagno in 1445, are Pippo Spano (the best of the series), a celebrated Florentine general, Farinata degli Uberti, Niccolo Acciajoli, the Sibyl of Cumae, a Queen un- known, Dante, Petrarch, Boccaccio, and Queen Esther. The ancient Church of the Holy Apostles, or Santi Apostoli, stands in the picturesque little Piazza del Limbo, lying between the Lung 5 Arno Acciajoli and the mediaeval street known as Borgo dei Santi Apostoli. Popular tradition assigns its foundation to the Emperor Charlemagne, a legend that is perpetuated in the apocryphal inscription outside the doorway with its pent-house roof. Whatever the actual date of its origin, the present venerable building was certainly erected early in the eleventh century as a Tuscan-Romanesque basilica with a nave, two aisles, and a small tribune. Accord- 52 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES ing to Vasari, it was this little church that later inspired Brunelleschi with his designs of the two great Basilicas of Santo Spirito and San Lorenzo. The elegant marble decora- tions of the portal, containing amongst other ornaments the heraldic wolf of the Altoviti family (whose former palace adjoins this church), are by Benedetto da Rovezzano. The interior, borne on Corinthian pillars of dark green marble, contains some monuments of the Altoviti and other neigh- bouring families who once owned houses in the adjoining Borgo dei Santi Apostoli. There are fine Tombs of Bindo Altoviti (right of altar), by Ammannati, and of Oddo Altoviti, opposite the former, a fine work by Benedetto da Rovezzano, executed in 1507. Close to this latter tomb is the extremely beautiful glazed and coloured terra-cotta Tabernacle, or Ciborium, a combined work of Luca and Andrea Delia Robbia, and one of the most perfect specimens of this charm- ing art left in situ. This church also possesses the sacred flints, brought by Pazzo dei Pazzi from Jerusalem in the eleventh century, which are used to kindle the holy fire on Easter Saturday in connexion with the ceremony of the " Scoppio del Carro ". The Badia, or ancient Benedictine Abbey dedicated to the Virgin and S. Stephen, and traditionally the earliest monastic foundation in Florence, owes its origin to Count Ugo of Tuscany, or rather to his pious mother, Willa. In or about the year 1000 a.d. the Count, as the result of a celestial vision of the wages of sin whilst out hunting, which gave him food for moral reflection, decided to found seven Benedictine abbeys, of which this was one ; and until modern times it was customary on S. Thomas's Day for a noble youth of the city to pronounce an eulogy in public at the High Mass upon the life and character of the Founder of the Florentine Badia. Towards the close of the thirteenth century the abbey was rebuilt by Arnolfo di Cambio, but in 1625 the whole structure was practically rebuilt again by Matteo Segaloni, who only spared the eastern portion of the church which adjoins the Via del Proconsulo. The graceful and lofty Campanile, one of the most prominent and beautiful objects in all views of the city, was erected in 1320. It is hexagonal, with elegant arcaded windows, and is surmounted by a brazen angel. It was well restored in 1895- 1900. The handsome doorway and double flight of steps facing the Via Ghibellina were added by THE BADIA S3 Benedetto da Rovezzano in 1495 at the expense of the Pan- dolfini family, whose armorial bearings of dolphins are to be seen in the decorations. The lunette, in imitation of Delia Robbia work, is modern. The Badia is amongst the three Florentine churches mentioned in Dante's great work, the other two being the Baptistery and San Miniato. It was in this church (and not as is often, but erroneously, stated in the Church of San Stefano " ad Portam Ferream ") that Boccaccio gave a course of public lectures in 1373 on the " Divine Comedy" of Dante. A short corridor with columns and lateral chapels leads to the entrance door of the church itself. The interior, which was completely modernized in 1625 by Segaloni, is in the form of a Greek cross, and its general effect is very impres- sive, owing to the height of the ceiling and the rich decora- tions and numerous monuments it contains. The ornate and deeply cassetted ceiling of wood by Segaloni is very handsome, and the false organ front painted by Vasari is likewise remark- able. The church contains some important monuments of the Italian Renaissance. To the right of the door is the Tomb of Giannozzo Pandolfini (d. 1456), by Benedetto da Rovezzano. Pandolfini was instrumental in arranging a treaty of peace between the Republic of Florence and the Kingdom of Naples. Adjoining this tomb is a beautiful Altar by Mino da Fiesole with figures in low-relief of the Virgin with SS. Leonard and Lawrence. In the right transept is the fine Tomb of Ber- nardo Giugni (d. 1446) with recumbent effigy, by Mino da Fiesole. This Giugni was a celebrated Gonfaloniere of Justice, whose equable and firm rule was greatly appreciated by his contemporaries. In the left transept opposite is the same artist's elaborate Monument of Count Ugo, the acknow- ledged founder of the Badia, tardily erected by the monks towards the close of the fifteenth century. The repose of the sleeping figure is charmingly portrayed. The chapel of San Bernardo in this transept acts as the receptacle of the Altar-piece, painted by Filippino Lippi in 1480 for his patron Piero di Francesco del Pugliese to place in the church of La Campora outside the Porta Romana. Removed hither for safety during the siege of Florence in 1529, this masterpiece has since remained here. It is the finest easel picture of the master, and deservedly one of his most popular works. S. Bernard is seen seated at his desk, when the Virgin, with 54 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES a host of attendant angels, herself appears to aid the com- mentary of the Saint, who gazes at the celestial vision with an expression of mingled awe and delight. In the corner of the picture is introduced the portrait of the donor, a severe dark man in a scarlet cap. From the sacristy is entered the cloister, consisting of two storeys. It contains a great number of tombs of the leading Florentine families, with whom the Badia was a favourite place of interment during the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries. Over the closed doorway leading to the refectory is a much damaged fresco of S. Bernard, by Fra Angelico. In the upper loggia are some good but also greatly damaged Frescoes of the fifteenth century, by Lorenzo di Viterbo (?), representing thirteen scenes from the life of S. Benedict. Here also is the Tomb, with a portrait bust, of Savonarola's friend and champion, Francesco Valori, who was killed by the Florentine mob in 1498. The Garden Court, beyond this cloister, contains a large statue of Ugo of Tuscany, and affords a good view of the graceful tower. Santa Croce. — The Piazza Santa Croce, a long rectangular space in the eastern part of the city, contains a marble fountain and the huge modern Monument to Dante, by Pazzi, placed here on 14 May, 1865, on the 600th anniversary of the poet's birthday. The colossal statue in white marble, 19 ft. in height, stands on a tall base supported by four lions bearing the shields of the four principal cities of Italy. On the southern side of the piazza stands the former palace of the Antellesi, or dell' Antella, with a long front supported on brackets and covered with fresco decoration of the seventeenth century still in a fair state of preservation. The piazza itself in the olden days of the Republic and of the Medici was frequently the scene of pageants, tournaments, and games of the once popular Calcio. From the steps of the church at the eastern end of the piazza a fine view can be obtained of the towers of the Palazzo Vecchio, the Badia, and the Bar- gello. The great Church and Convent of Santa Croce, of which the foundation-stone was laid on Holy Cross Day, 1 5 May, 1297, were built for the Franciscans, of which Order they formed the head-quarters in Florence. Arnolfo di Cambio was the first architect, being succeeded in 1334 by Giotto as THE VISION" OF S. BERNARD F?'0??t the painting by Filippino Lippi in the Badia CHURCH OF S. CROCE 55 master of the works. The church is an immense T-shaped structure 390 ft. in length, with nave, aisles, and transepts, but with a very small eastern apse. The miserable facade of white marble was erected largely at the expense of Mr. Francis Sloane, an English resident in Florence, during the last years of the reign of the last Grand- Duke, Leopold II. The modern bas-relief over the central door is a good speci- men of Dupre's work. On the north side of the long nave runs a graceful loggia with square pillars and arches of- black and white, whence a lateral door, near the Gothic tomb of Francesco Pazzi, leads into the church itself. The tower, erected about 1840, is a conspicuous object in all distant views of Florence. The interior, in spite of many unfortunate alterations under the direction of Vasari in the sixteenth century, is most imposing and spacious owing to the great height of the nave supported by its fourteen octagonal piers and surmounted by an open roof of wooden beams. The number and size of the windows filled with brightly coloured stained glass shed a subdued but mellow light throughout this church, blending admirably with the innumerable monu- ments of the illustrious dead with which it is filled, for Santa Croce ever since its foundation has served as a Pantheon for distinguished Florentine citizens. The work of restoration that has lately been carried on in this church has also greatly tended to improve its appearance, since the coating of white- wash from the pillars of the nave and the painted beams of the roof has been scraped away and the original soft colouring of stone and woodwork has been again brought to light. [The visitor is strongly advised to inspect the many tombs, monuments, and frescoes of this famous church by the clearer light of early morning.] Entrance Wall. — Fine circular stained-glass window, of which the design, the Descent from the Cross, is ascribed to Lorenzo Ghiberti. Below this, a Statue in Bronze of S. Louis of Toulouse, by Donatello. On left, Tomb of Marches e Gino Capponi (d. 1876), the Florentine historian. Nave and Aisles. — The commission of Cosimo I to his favourite artist Vasari to alter the appearance of the interior of the church resulted amongst other unfortunate changes in the destruction of the frescoes by Giotto and his pupils depicted on the walls of the aisles, and in the removal of 56 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES banners, armour, and escutcheons belonging to various noble Florentine families from the pillars of the nave. Some portion of these obliterated early paintings has recently been recovered by scraping the walls between the heavy Corinthian side altars with which Vasari embellished the aisles, so that a tolerable idea can be gained of the pristine appearance of the church before its sweeping restoration by Vasari in 1 560. Right Aisle. — Tomb of Michelangelo, designed by Vasari, with the master's bust and three fine allegorical figures, of which that of Architecture is by Giovanni dall' Opera. The bust, by Battista Lorenzi, is considered a particularly good likeness. On the pillar opposite, above the marble Renaissance stoup, is a beautiful almond-shaped relief of the Madonna and Child, by Rossellino, commonly called the " Madonna del Latte ". Beyond the second altar is the colossal Me?norial to Dante, by Stefano Ricci, erected in 1829. Tomb of Count Vittorio Alfieri (1749- 1803), with the weeping Genius of Italy, by Canova, placed here in 1 8 10 by Alfleri's devoted friend, Louise Countess of Albany. Opposite, on the pillar, an elaborate marble Pulpit, by Bene- detto da Majano, with five reliefs alluding to the foundation of the Franciscan Order : the Burning of Books ; S. Francis receiving the " Stigmata " ; the Death of S. Francis ; and the Martyrdom of certain friars ; below these reliefs, statues of Faith, Hope, Charity, Valour, and Justice. Next in order to the tomb of Alfieri is the huge but tastless Monument to Machiavelli, by Spinazzi, erected in 1787 mainly through the exertions of an English admirer of his works, George Nassau, fifth Earl Cowper. It bears a medallion portrait of the great thinker with the grand but simple inscription, Tanto nomini nullum par elogiu?n. Beyond is the Mo?iument to Padre Luigi La?izi (1732- 18 10), the eminent writer on Italian art. Close by, above the To?nb of Fra Be?iedetto dei Cavalcanti, is a fresco of the Baptist and S. Francis, by Andrea del Castagno (?) or Domenico Veneziano (?), an interesting remnant of the paintings which once covered the walls of this aisle. Next to this is a highly effective and popular work by Donatello, the Annunciation, of grey freestone heavily adorned with gilding. Over the south lateral door is a lunette representing the Meeting of SS. Francis and Dominic. Be- yond the door, the beautiful Monume?it of Leonardo Brimi d>Arezzo, sometimes called "PAretino," a very fine work by CHURCH OF S. CROCE ■Pill ^m H 1 i ii i / 1 Hi 1 |J Bl 1 « yl ■r.4 r /jji ■-^h Bifl| ""* **^^^^^^^^^i H S MONUMENTS TO MICHELANGELO AND DANTE IN S. CROCE P. 56 CHURCH OF S. CROCE 57 Bernardo Rossellino, with two cherubs bearing the scholar's coat-of-arms above the arch. Next to this is the large modern white marble Monument to Gioacchino Rossini, the composer, with a portrait (d. 1868). Monument and Bust of Pietro Antonio Micheli (d. 1737), the great Italian botan- ist. Beyond, an elaborate white marble Monument to Leo- poldo Nobili (1784- 1835), the eminent scientist. Left or Northern Aisle. — Near the entrance, Tomb of Vincenzo Filicaja, the poet (1642- 1707), and beyond it the Monument of Galileo Galilei, by Foggini, erected in 1737. Opposite the fifth pillar of the nave, a modern Memorial Bust to Donatello, with a long inscription. Below it Monument to Carlo Botta, the historian (d. 1837). Be- yond the north lateral door Monument to Carlo Marsuppini (1399- 1 45 5), by Desiderio da Settignano, "the masterpiece of this sculptor," and a fine example of a Renaissance tomb. This Marsuppini, known as " Carlo Y Aretino," was secretary to the Florentine Republic, succeeding in this office Leonardo Bruni, whose tomb stands exactly opposite in the south aisle. The last monument of this aisle is that of the famous engraver, Raphael Morghen, whose fine work is so well known to all English print-collectors. He died as Professor of Engraving in Florence in 1833. Right or South Transept.— At the angle of aisle and transept, Monument to Prince Neri Corsini, Marquis of Lajatico (d. 1859). To the right, entrance to the Chapel of the Sacrament, sometimes called Cappella Castellani, which is decorated with a much injured series of Frescoes by Star- nina (?) or Agnolo Gaddi (?), representing scenes from the lives of SS. Nicholas and John the Baptist (on right) and of SS. John the Evangelist and Anthony (on left). Against the walls on bases two life-sized Statues of SS. Francis and Ber- nard, by the Delia Robbia. The chapel also contains the ornate white marble Monume?it of Louise Countess of Albany, widow of Prince Charles-Edward Stuart (1752-1824). The monument, which was executed by Santarelli from designs by Percier, exhibits the royal arms of Britain. Left of altar, Renaissance Tomb of Francesco Castella?ii and his wife, Elena Alemanni. Outside the next chapel, the Cappella Baroncelli, is a fine Gothic Monument with twisted columns, heraldic shields, and a lunette with the Madonna, of the school of Andrea Pisano 58 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES ( 1 326). Within, this chapel possesses a number of Frescoes illustrating the life of the Virgin, an important work by Taddeo Gaddi, completed between 1332 and 1338. The clumsy Pieta, or Group with the Dead Christ, is by Baccio Bandinelli ; the Statue of the Virgin to the right is by Vincenzo Perugino. Above this latter work is a well-preserved Fresco of the Madonna delta C into I a, or " of the Girdle," a fine work by Bastiano Mainardi, a pupil of Domenico Ghirlandajo. We now find ourselves facing the range of five chapels to the right of the High Altar. The first of these, the Cappella Velluti) possesses two half-obliterated Frescoes of the story of the Archangel Michael by a painter of the school of Giotto. The second and third chapels offer nothing of inter- est, but the fourth, the Cappella Peruzzi, contains some cele- brated Frescoes by Giotto, executed between 1307 and 1317, which were re-discovered and restored (not to say re-painted) by Bianchi in 1853. These portray incidents in the lives of SS. John the Baptist and John the Divine ; those on the left showing Zacharias expelled from the Temple, the Nativity of the Baptist, and the Dance of Salome ; whilst the subjects to the right deal with the career of the Evange- list. The Altar-piece with the Virgin, SS. Roch and Sebastian, is attributed to Andrea del Sarto. The fifth and last chapel, the Cappella dei Bardi, " the most interesting and perfect little Gothic chapel in all Italy," according to John Ruskin's verdict, contains Frescoes of scenes from the life of S. Francis by Giotto, which were also exposed to view and practically re-painted in 1853. To the right, Con- firmation of the rules of the Franciscans by the Pope ; the Saint before the Soldan ; the Saint's sick-bed and his ap- pearance in a dream to the Bishop of Assisi ; to the left, the Saint's flight from his father's house and his reception by the Bishop of Assisi ; his miraculous appearance to S. Anthony at Aries ; and his Death-bed (the best and most striking of the series). On the ceiling, the Saint in glory with figures of Poverty, Chastity, and Obedience, the three cardinal virtues of the Franciscan Order. In the sides of the win- dow, the four chief Saints of the Order, viz. Louis IX of France, Louis of Toulouse, S. Clare, and Queen Elizabeth of Hungary. The very interesting Altar-piece, one of the oldest paintings in Florence, contains a celebrated portrait of S. Francis with twenty-one diminutive scenes from his ^N CHURCH OF S. CROCE 59 life. The artist is unknown, its former attribution to Cima- bue being probably incorrect. On the High Altar itself is an ornate polyptych with the Virgin and Saints of the school of Giotto, set in an elabor- ately carved and gilded frame. The small but lofty Choir contains a series of Frescoes by Agnolo Gaddi (?), setting forth the story of the " Finding of the True Cross " in eight scenes. The tall Gothic windows filled with fourteenth- century stained glass produce a singularly rich effect. Left or Northern Transept. — In the fourth chapel from the High Altar are Frescoes by Bernardo Daddi of the Martyrdom of SS. Lawrence and Stephen (much restored), and a coloured terra-cotta Altar by Giovanni della Robbia. The fifth chapel contains Frescoes by Giottino (?), depicting the Life of S. Sylvester and the Conversion of the Emperor Constantine. To the left of this chapel is the highly orna- mented Gothic Tomb of Andrea dei Bardi (d. 1367), with a curious fresco by Giottino (?) of the deceased rising at the Last Judgment from his stone sarcophagus. The sixth chapel, formerly belonging to the " Laudesi," or singers of the Madonna's praises, was transferred to the Niccolini family towards the close of the sixteenth century. It has a fine iron grille and rich decorations by Dosio. In the ad- joining Bardi Chapel is preserved the celebrated Crucifix ascribed to Donatello, who is said to have acknowledged the inferiority of his work in this instance to that of Brunelleschi, who had fashioned a rival crucifix, now at S. M. Novella. In the wall, to the left of entrance, is a fine Gothic Tomb with columns, lions, shields, and arch, corresponding in position and design with a similar monument in the south transept (already mentioned). The pavement of the church is thickly studded with monu- mental slabs and effigies, many of them of great interest and beauty, though in most instances they have been much worn by the passing of feet for centuries. Amongst them may be mentioned the splendid Bronze Figure, by Ghiberti, of Fran- cesco Sansoni da Brescia, General of the Order of Friars Minor, and a favourite with Pope Sixtus IV. This monument is situated in the nave mid- way between the two lateral doors, and at a short distance from it to the west is the beautiful Tomb, with coloured marble border and with a recumbent 1 effigy, of John Catterick, Bishop of Exeter, who died in Flov- 6o FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES ence in 1419, whilst engaged on a mission to Pope Martin V from King Henry V of England. The Sacristy and Adjoining Chapels.— The Sacristy is reached by a corridor which is entered through a door at the south-east corner of the south transept. Within the door, to the left, is a good Fresco of an angel with an asperges brush, by Mainardi, recently uncovered from a coating of whitewash. The first door on the left admits to the Sacristy (knock, and on leaving give small fee to the attendant). It is a lofty chamber with painted roof and furnished with wooden presses and cupboards of fine intarsia work. It contains a small collection of vestments, church plate, and illuminated books of vellum. The whole of the south wall is covered with good Frescoes of scenes from the Passion, which have been attri- buted to Niccolo di Piero Gerini and Ambrogio di Baldese. The large wooden painted Crucifix on the wall to the left, formerly ascribed to Margaritone, was once the property of the great Ghibelline warrior and patriot, Farinata degli Uberti (d. 1264). A graceful Gothic grille of wrought iron separates the sacristy from the Cappella Rinuccini, which is adorned with a number of frescoes by Giovanni da Milano, a pupil of Taddeo Gaddi (1379), illustrating events in the lives of the Virgin and S. Mary Magdalen. The Altar- piece, a splendid Gothic polyptych with the Madonna and ten attendant Saints, is by Taddeo Gaddi (?) At the farther end of the corridor already described is the little Cappella Medici, built by Michelozzo for Cosimo il Vecchio. It is entered by an exquisitely carved door, and contains a few pictures and some specimens of the art of the Delia Robbia, notably the Christ between Two Angels over the entrance, and a lovely Altar-piece with the Madonna crowned and enthroned with Saints. The Tabernacle of white marble, to the right, is a fine work by Mino da Fiesole. On the left wall is a celebrated picture in five panels, a Coronation of the Virgin, by Giotto (?), removed hither from the church, which is accounted by Vasari one of that painter's most important works. In the predella below the picture are SS. Francis, John the Baptist, Peter, and Paul the Hermit. The small stained-glass window displays SS. Cosmo and Damiano, the tutelary saints of the Medici family. (Entrance to the Cappella Medici, the Cappellone dei Pazzi, and the Museo di Santa Croce costs 1 fr., and tickets CHURCH OF S. CROCE 61 are to be obtained at the porter's lodge at the entrance to the cloisters.) The irregular Cloisters, probably designed by Arnolfo di Cambio and built about 1300, lie to the south of the nave, and are usually entered from a gateway in the south-east corner of the piazza. There is a good view of the tower and of the exterior arcade of the nave, corresponding with that on the northern side of the church. The grass-set court- yard contains a colossal statue of the Almighty by Bandinelli. Opposite the entrance, and at the foot of a stairway leading to the south lateral door of the nave, is the Cappellone dei Pazzi, a fine example of Renaissance work by Brunelleschi, who erected this chapel about 1420. It consists of a square structure surmounted by a depressed dome and approached by a pillared portico with an overhead loggia. This portico is adorned with works by the Delia Robbia, conspicuous among them being the heraldic bearings of the Pazzi family — Azure, two dolphins addorsed between four cross crosslets fitchee or. Over the portal is an elegant Frieze of Cherubs'' Heads, attributed to Donatello and Desiderio da Settignano. The finely proportioned interior, with its soft grey pietra serena stone, is strikingly simple and severe, forming an ex- cellent specimen of a Renaissance building of the fifteenth century. It is adorned with numerous works by the Delia Robbia, including twelve coloured medallions of the Apostles and four plaques representing the Evangelists in the spandrils of the cupola. The frieze below, consisting of lambs and cherubim, is attributed to Luca della Robbia. In the six- teenth century this chapel of the Pazzi was used as a chapter house. Close to the door of the church at this point is the Gothic monument with a sarcophagus, which forms the Tomb of Gastone della Torre, Bishop of Aquileia, attributed to Ago- stino and Agnolo da Siena. In the south arcade of the cloisters is the entrance to the former Refectory of the once rich and celebrated Franciscan convent attached to the church. The huge room together with an adjoining chamber has been converted into a Museum of various paintings taken from closed or demolished Florentine churches and convents. Amongst numerous objects pre- served here may be mentioned two Crucifixes, one formerly attributed to Cimabue and the other to Giotto ; a fine fresco of 62 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES S. Eustachius and of his legend (right of entrance) by Andrea del Castagno, formerly in the little Church of Sta. Maria sopr' Arno (now destroyed), near the Ponte Vecchio ; the Last Supper on canvas, a good but much injured work, by Vasari ; a Nativity by Perugino, and a Virgin and Child by Taddeo Gaddi. Opposite the entrance, a large fresco of the Last Supper by some painter of the school of Giotto ; above this, a Crucifixion and a Tree of Jesse with scenes from the lives of SS. Francis and Louis by an unknown master. The adjoining room on the left contains a large painting, by Giovanni da San Giovanni, representing the miraculous multiplication of loaves by S. Francis. The greater part of the large conventual buildings has been secularized so that no admittance can be obtained into the fine second Cloister of Brunelleschi, a splendid colonnaded Renaissance court now included in some cavalry barracks abutting on the Corso dei Tintori. San Felice. — This church, with a handsome Renaissance portal, gives its name to the little Piazza San Felice at the northern end of the Via Romana, almost under the shadow of the Pitti Palace. It is an ancient foundation but was almost rebuilt in the fifteenth century by Michelozzo (?), after which in the succeeding century it became the property of Dominican nuns, whose pillared gallery still occupies part of the nave. To the left of this gallery is a large painted Crucifix of the school of Giotto. The church contains some pictures, amongst them being an Altar-piece of the school of Botticelli at the first altar on the left, representing SS. Anthony, Roch, and Catherine of Siena. The sixth altar on the right has a Madonna and Saints (greatly restored) by Ridolfo Ghirlandajo. Opposite, is a much injured fresco by Giovanni da San Giovanni, depicting the Rescue of S. Maximus by S. Felix. The Chapel of the Sacrament (sixth altar on the left) has a delicately carved marble arch and a triptych by Neri di Bicci, dated 1467. Santa Felicita. — The Church of Santa Felicita stands in the little piazza of the same name, off the busy Via Guicciar- dini. It is of ancient origin, and was apparently surrounded by a Christian burial-ground in early times, as certain inscrip- tions, some dating from the fifth century and preserved in the corridor outside the church, testify. In the twelfth century a Benedictine nunneiy was established here in connexion CHURCH OF S. FELICITA 63 with the church, and this convent was only suppressed at the close of the eighteenth century. Being close to the Pitti Palace, this church was consequently the parish church of the Grand-Ducal Court, which was in the habit of hearing Mass here, occupying for this purpose a private tribune that could be entered directly from the palace. The eastern part of the church and its ancient square belfry form a picturesque group when viewed from the Boboli Gardens. The present building is chiefly the work of Ruggieri, who practically re- built Santa Felicita in the year 1736. The portico was erected by Vasari in 1564 during his work of connecting the Uffizi Gallery by means of a corridor with the palace. In the porch are two Monuments on the left. The first is that of Balduccio Balducci (d. 141 4), a wealthy merchant, and the father of the Balduccio who sate for the David with the bald head (" II Zuccone ") to his friend Donatello, this monu- ment being a flat sepulchral slab with the deceased's effigy. Below this is that of the musician and artist Archiangola Pala- dini (d. 1600), the wife of a merchant of Antwerp named Broo- mas, who died at the early age of twenty-three. Opposite is the To?nb of Cardinal Luigi dei Rossi, the cardinal who figures in the famous picture by Raphael of Pope Leo X, together with the future Clement VII, preserved in the Pitti Gallery. The monument is by Raffaello da Montelupo, but the effigy of a prelate above is certainly not that of the cardinal, who died in 15 19. The Rossi family, to whom this ecclesiastic belonged, formerly had their palace in the little piazza behind this church, which is still known as Piazza dei Rossi. The interior is cold and bare, but possesses a few objects of value. The first chapel on the right contains an altar-piece, the Descent from the Cross, and some Frescoes by Pontormo, scarcely visible in the prevailing gloom. The choir and sacristy retain their elegant decoration of friezes of cherubs' heads. In the sacristy is a curious and interesting picture I by Neri di Bicci of Santa Felicita with her Seven Sons, whose j names are duly inscribed below each one. Mother and sons j are depicted in the costume of the fifteenth century. The Guicciardini family are closely connected with this church, and amongst their tombs before the high altar is that of the celebrated historian, Francesco Guicciardini. In the Piazza Santa Felicita is a small, round, antique column, standing on a circular base. It formerly supported 6 4 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES a statue of S. Peter Martyr, and was perhaps originally a monument in the old graveyard of the church, which has been restored from time to time. San Jacopo sopr* Arno. — The picturesque little Church of San Jacopo sopr' Arno, whose eastern end overhangs the river near the Ponte Santa Trinita, and whose graceful campanile of red brick is so familiar a feature from the Lung' Arno Acciajoli, is one of the most ancient churches in Florence, although it was greatly altered in 1580 by Ber- nardino Radi of Cortona. The entrance is in the interesting old street called Borgo San Jacopo, which runs parallel to the river between the Ponte Vecchio and the Ponte Santa Trinita, and is one of the best existing examples of a mediaeval Florentine street. The facade of the church con- sists of three bays resting on dark green marble columns with Corinthian capitals, and the portico contains a number of tombs and architectural fragments of early date. The interior has been completely modernized, but the Renaissance choir and the small cupola constructed by Brunelleschi still remain intact. The large palace to the west of the church for- merly belonged to the Frescobaldi family, and was afterwards the property of the canons of San Salvatore, or so-called Scope- tini. On the south side of the Borgo, almost opposite this church, is the old Tower of the Ramagliati, which in 1830 was decorated by its owner with a group of the Annunciation, a fine work of Luca della Robbia, which shows to good effect against the old stone wall. San Lorenzo. — The Piazza di San Lorenzo is a small square, where a humble market of cheap and tawdry goods, of old books and of second-hand clothes is held daily. At the corner of the neighbouring Via dei Ginori is the white marble pedestal with a good relief which affords a base for the Statue of Giovanni delle Bande Nere, the father of Cosimo dei Medici, first Grand-Duke of Tuscany. The statue itself, an indifferent work of that mediocre genius. Baccio Bandinelli, has often given rise to hostile criticism. The western side of the piazza, where the ground gradually rises, is occupied by the unfinished fagade of the important Basilica of San Lorenzo, which in spite of its close connexion with one of the wealthiest and most artistic reigning families in Europe has always shown this pitiful naked front to the square. The Collegiate Church of PIAZZA AND CHURCH OF S. LORENZO P. 64 STATUE OF LORENZO DEI MEDICI II TOMB OF GIULIANO DEI MEDICI p. -JO f- 6 9 BY MICHELANGELO Iji New Sacristy of S. Lorenzo CHURCH OF S. LORENZO 65 San Lorenzo is certainly of great antiquity, and is said to have been consecrated by S. Ambrose in or about the year 393, and apparently at one time it even served as the metropolitan church of Florence. In the fifteenth century this ancient church was almost in ruins, when it was decided to rebuild it, chiefly at the instigation of Giovanni di Bicci dei Medici, the father of Cosimo and Lorenzo. Seven other leading Florentine families subscribed in the work of restoration, but from that time onward the church and chapter of San Lorenzo have always been closely associated with the family of the Medici, whose palace is so near at hand. Brunelleschi was entrusted with the plans for the new basilica, but the Old Sacristy (Sagrestia Vecchia) was alone actually completed by him, the body of the edifice being the work of his successor Antonio Manetti, who in the main followed Brunelleschi's design. The building is in the form of a Latin cross with a low cupola at the point of intersection. In 15 16 Leo X com- missioned Michelangelo to erect a fagade worthy of the church, but this project was never carried out, although the master lost much of his time in quarrying marble for the purpose. Michelangelo's design for this facade is said to be still in existence, and it is most strange that none of the Medici ever seems to have taken any further interest in carry- ing the work to a successful conclusion. The New Sacristy, on the north side, balancing Brunelleschi's earlier building, is a most celebrated work of Michelangelo, and was erected at the command of Clement VII, whilst the huge domed Cappella dei Medici, or Grand-Ducal mausoleum, to the west was added at the suggestion of Cosimo I, and completed under his successors. The bell-tower was erected in 1740 at the expense of Anna-Maria dei Medici, Electress Palatine, the last descendant of her House. Built at various dates the whole mass of S. -Lorenzo exhibits an irregular but singularly picturesque appearance, especially when viewed from the corner of Via dei Gori at the angle of the Palazzo Medici itself. Palace and church together contain endless reminis- cences of the wealth, power, taste, and history of this re- markable family. The interior with its lines of Corinthian columns is spacious and grand, but singularly cold and bare, owing chiefly to the presence of the sad-coloured pietra serena so freely used in pillars and cornices. The flat ceiling is cassetted in white 5 66 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES and gold, and contains the Medici shield frequently repeated. Elaborate services are held in this church during Holy Week and the great festivals of the Church. In the second chapel on the right is the Gothic Monument with a reclining effigy of the musician Filippo Landini (fifteenth century). Near the entrance to the right transept is the Tomb of Pietro Benovenuti of Arezzo, the painter (d. 1844). In the right transept is the Chapel of the Sacrament with a fine marble Tabernacle by Desiderio da Settignano, one of the best examples of its kind. In the same chapel is the plain red porphyry sarcophagus surmounted by the Grand- Ducal crown of Tuscany, which serves as tomb for Anna-Carolina of Saxony (d. 1832), first wife of the last Grand-Duke Leopold II. To the left of this chapel is the modern Monu- ment to Bernardo Cennini, the first Florentine printer (d. 1 471). Before the high altar, which is richly inlaid with coloured Florentine pietra dura work, is the simple Tomb of Cosimo dei Medici, "il Vecchio," bearing the proud inscrip- tion, Cosmus Medices hie situs est Decreto Publico Pater Patriae Vixit annos LXXV Menses III Dies XV. The monument itself consists of a circular space inlaid with antique coloured marbles, marking the place of actual inter- ment in the crypt below. In the left transept the Cappella Martelli contains the modern Monuinent to Donate i 'to, a fine work by R. Romanelli (1896). The Altar-piece is a good Annunciation with a predella of scenes from the life of S. Nicholas of Bari, by Filippo Lippi. The Crucifix above is by Benvenuto Cellini. In this chapel is also preserved the curious Marble To7nb in the form of a cradle, made by Donatello for a member of the Martelli family. In the nave, opposite the high altar, are the two celebrated Pulpits, or Ambones, designed for this basilica by Donatello in his old age, but executed by his pupil Bertoldo. They rest on marble pillars, and contain a number of elaborate scenes in bronze representing the Passion and the Resur- rection of our Lord. Close by, against the wall of the nave, is a beautiful Cantoria, or singing gallery, of various coloured marbles inlaid with enamels. The large Fresco of the Martyrdom of S. Lawrence on the wall beside it is by Angelo Bronzino. The famous Old Sacristy is entered from the left transept. This structure, consisting of a square chamber with a SACRISTY OF S. LORENZO 67 polygonal dome supported on Corinthian pilasters with a domed recess for the altar, was erected by Brunelleschi before the other portions of the basilica. The bas-reliefs, the medallions with the four Evangelists, and the ornate doorways were added by Donatello. In the small cupola above the altar is a curious allegorical painting of the sun, moon, and planets. In the centre of the sacristy, below the table, is the simple but graceful Monument of the Parents of Cosimo il Vecchio, Giovanni and Picarda dei Medici, which was executed by Donatello at the suggestion of Cosimo himself. There are a few pictures on the walls, including one of SS. Lawrence, Stephen, and Leonard in the middle of the right wall, dated 151 1, and probably by Mainardi ; also a Nativity, on the north wall, a good work by RafTaellino del Garbo (?). The bronze doors leading to the lavatorium are by Donatello, who is also credited with the design for the handsome marble screen before the altar. Near the entrance- door is the magnificent Monument to Giovanni and Piero dei Medici, sons of Cosimo il Vecchio, which was erected by Andrea Verrocchio at the instance of Lorenzo il Magnifico and his younger brother Giuliano in 1472. It consists of a splendid sarcophagus of red porphyry adorned with lions' gambs and festoons of foliage in bronze. The bronze cabling above the urn is a remarkably fine specimen of fifteenth-century metal-work. The Bust of San Lorenzo over the entrance door is by Donatello. [The entrance to the New Sacristy and the Tombs of the Medici is now usually made from the Old Sacristy. Fee of 1 fr. The former entrance in the adjoining Piazza Madonna is now closed.] The domed Mausoleum of the Medici, or Cappella dei Principi, a grandiose erection intended to serve as a mortuary chapel for the first Grand-Duke of Tuscany, Cosimo dei Medici, and his successors on the throne, was begun in 1604 by Matteo Negretti from designs afforded by Giovanni dei Medici, a natural son of Cosimo I. The vast building is sombre and imposing in the extreme, although the modern gaudy paintings by Benvenuti in the cupola and the tall glaring ugly windows contrast ill with its prevailing air of gloom. The original design for the building, showing a roof decorated with gold stars on a blue ground and 68 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES with small circular windows, hangs near the entrance of the mausoleum and is well worth inspection. To those who care for the study of rare and beautiful marbles and the art of ftietra dura, this somewhat despised building will prove a veritable " sermon in stones " ; for there scarcely exists any species of marble or granite which is not included somewhere in the decoration of this costly charnel-house of the splendour-loving Medici. Along the walls are ranged six colossal sarcophagi of granite surmounted by grand- ducal crowns, but only two, those of Ferdinand I and of Cosimo II, possess their intended bronze-gilt effigies, which are by Gian-Bologna and Tacca respectively. The hand- some but unfinished pavement is wholly of coloured marbles. The recess was once occupied by the altar, a gorgeous work in ftietra dura, but long since removed and its various jewelled ornaments transported to the Gem Room of the Uffizi Gallery. Above the level of the pavement is inserted a series of coats-of-arms of the chief towns of Tuscany, composed of the finest and rarest of marbles inlaid with coral, crystal, cornelian, amethyst, and other precious stones. Those of Florence with the giglio, of Arezzo with the horse, and of Pisa with the floriated cross are specially noticeable amongst these splendid specimens of civic heraldry. The sum of 22,000,000 lire, or nearly 1,000,000 pounds sterling, is said to have been expended by the Medici on this monu- ment of dismal pomp and pride, the completion of which was always very dear to the heart of the foolish old Anna- Maria dei Medici, Electress Palatine. In the crypt below are buried certain members of the Grand- Ducal House, and also the princes of the House of Lorraine. The New Sacristy, one of the most celebrated shrines of Renaissance art in all Italy, was erected by Michelangelo for Giulio dei Medici, Pope Clement VII, between the years 1524 and 1534, to serve as a memorial chapel for monuments of Giuliano the Younger, Lorenzo Duke of Urbino, Lorenzo il Magnifico, and Giuliano the Elder, the two latter being the parents respectively of the two Medicean popes Leo X and Clement himself. The work was interrupted by the pro- clamation of the Florentine Republic in 1527, but on Clement extending full pardon and grace to Michelangelo for the part he had recently taken in the political troubles of Florence, the master in 1531 again took the work in hand, " being MEDICI TOMBS 69 moved thereto," says his biographer Condivi, "more by fear of the Pope than by love for the Medici ". With Clement's death in 1 534 the work was abruptly suspended ; nor could the Grand-Duke Cosimo I induce the master to complete his half- finished commission which was finally undertaken by Vasari. The result is that we see, as it were, merely the skeleton of the truly grand conception aimed at by Michelangelo. The result of Clement's premature decease and of his artist's escape from an uncongenial task, is therefore that to-day we possess only the chilly and bare but perfectly proportioned apartment, covered with apparently meaningless niches, cornices, and brackets, which cry aloud for their intended pieces of statuary, and disfigured by the blank wall-spaces which were meant to glow with frescoes from the master's own hand or with graceful arabesques from the brush of that prince of decorators, Giovanni da Udine. Consequently, a first inspection of this famous building with its whitewashed walls, its cold white marble statues, and its dreary columns and niches of ftietra serena seems to strike a chill and a sense of disappointment into the mind of the visitor. Roughly speaking, the New Sacristy of Michelangelo follows the architectural lines of the Old Sacristy by Brunel- leschi, to which it forms a pendant. Only two out of the four intended monuments were ever completed, namely, those to Lorenzo and Giuliano dei Medici, whilst no memorial exists to the builder of this splendid fabric, the unpopular and unlucky Clement VII. The white marble monument to Giuliano (right), the younger brother of Leo X, created Duke of Nemours by Francis I of France, consists of Giuliano's effigy in the garb of a Roman general with baton in hand seated in a niche disproportionately low for his height. Guarding the sarcophagus below are the famous Statues of Day and Night, the former unfinished. The beautiful female figure of Night, distinguished by the mask, the star, and the owl, was at once made the subject of a celebrated quatrain by the poet Gian-Battista Strozzi, a quotation of which seems inseparable from every mention of this monu- ment : — La Notte, che tu viedi in si dolci atti Dormire, fu da un angelo scolpita In questo sasso ; e perche dorme, ha vita. Destala, se no'l credi, e parleratti. 70 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES (The sleeping Night imprisoned in this stone The wondrous work of angel hands is shown ; A sleeping, yet a living form is she ; Wake her, and she will truly answer thee.) To this elegant conceit the master made answer in verse of a most enigmatical nature : — Grato m'e il sonno, e piu l'esser di sasso, Mentre che il danno e la vergogna dura. Non veder, non sentir, m'e gran ventura. Pero non mi destar, deh ! parla basso. (Grateful this sleep in stony guise secure, So long as tyranny and shame endure ; Hearing and seeing gladly I forego; So trouble not my sleep, but whisper low.) Facing the monument to Giuliano, is the yet more celebrated memorial to the young Lorenzo dei Medici, Duke of Urbino. Seated in his niche the worthless Medici, who might have aspired to become Machiavelli's hero-tyrant risen to deliver Italy from the barbarians, the original of the great writer's Prince, keeps an attitude of profound meditation, so that this statue has very appropriately gained the epithet of // Pensieroso, or the Thinker. The head rests on the left hand, with the face in shadow, giving a remarkable air of mystery to the whole figure. There from age to age Two ghosts are sitting on their sepulchres. That is the Duke Lorenzo ; mark him well. He meditates, his head upon his hand. What from beneath his helm-like bonnet scowls ? Is it a face or but an eyeless skull ? 'Tis lost in shade, yet like the basilisk It fascinates and is intolerable. His mien is noble, most majestical. Though rather hackneyed, these lines from Samuel Rogers' once-popular poem of " Italy " give a really good idea of the impression conveyed to a sensitive mind by an inspection of these magnificent tombs with their figures of the rather feeble Giuliano the Good and the idealized form of the dissolute father of Queen Catherine de Medicis of France. Below the statue of Lorenzo dei Medici are the attendant marble alle- gorical Statues of Dawn and Evening, the male figure in this ^s LAURENTIAN LIBRARY 71 case also being left unfinished by Michelangelo. Much specu- lation has arisen over the mystical meaning that Michelangelo is said to have infused into these four allegorical creatures of the hours of light and darkness ; but it is highly probable that the period of tyranny and pestilence through which Florence was passing during the reign of Clement VII operated strongly on the master, who had then been compelled to labour unwillingly at these monuments of the victorious and detested Medici. The marble altar is a beautiful work, opposite which is an erection supporting a Madonna and Child, in an unfinished state, but considered one of the master's best productions. The Statues of SS. Cosmo and Damiano, on either side of the Virgin, were the work of Michelangelo's assistants, Mon- torsoli and Raffaello da Montelupo. Below this spot repose the remains of the brothers Giuliano and Lorenzo dei Medici, whose coffins were exhumed in 1895. The body of the evil Alessandro, Duke of Florence, was discovered in 1875 to have been interred in the sarcophagus of the young Lorenzo, Duke of Urbino. Laurentian Library {Biblioteca Laurenztana). — Close to the facade of San Lorenzo a doorway on the left leads into the cloisters of San Lorenzo. (Ring the bell and the custodian will admit.) The first cloister, where the canons of the church have their residences, has two arcaded storeys, whilst the central space is prettily laid out as a garden. Below, in the dark north-west angle, is the statue of the learned historian Paolo Giovio, or Jovius, Bishop of Nocera, the biographer of many of the famous Italians of the Re- naissance, who died in Florence in 1552. Near this statue a stone stairway leads to the upper storey of the cloisters, whence is to be obtained a fine view of the Duomo and the towers of the city. On the right is the entrance to the Laurentian Library, the most important library in Florence, and one of the most valuable and interesting in Europe. The present structure was built by Michelangelo for Cle- ment VII at various times during that unlucky pontiff's reign (1523-34), and completed under Cosimo I by Vasari. The vestibule contains a triple staircase in pietra serena, and is considered a fine example of the master's architectural skill, although the original design was slightly altered by Vasari. The library itself is a long, lofty, and beautifully 72 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES proportioned room, lighted by large windows filled with stained glass by Giovanni da Udine, w T ho assisted Michel- angelo both here and in the New Sacristy. The carved wooden ceiling is handsome, and also the eighty-eight wooden cabinets ranged the length of the chamber to hold the MSS. deserve attention. The flooring, composed of red tiles with white sgraffiti^ was designed by Tribolo. The general effect of this vast chamber is rich and harmonious in the extreme, an ideal library. The nucleus of the library itself, containing some 10,000 Greek, Oriental, and Latin MSS., was first collected by Cosimo il Vecchio, whose connexion with the court of Con- stantinople gave him special opportunities for the acquiring of valuable MSS. in the Greek tongue. At the expulsion of the three sons of Lorenzo dei Medici in 1494, this splendid library was seized by the Republic after narrowly escaping destruction or dispersal from a Florentine mob. The Re- public sold the collection to the friars of San Marco, who in their turn generously sold it again to its rightful owner, Cardinal Giovanni dei Medici, the future Leo X, in 1508. After Leo's death, his cousin Clement VII restored the library, now considerably increased in bulk and value, to Florence, and also commissioned Michelangelo to build the present edifice for its reception. Amongst its innumerable literary treasures we may mention the following : — 1. The famous copy of the Pandects of 'Justinian, which was brought from Amalfi by the Pisans in the twelfth century, and from Pisa removed to Florence in 141 1. As the chief existing source of Roman law, this manuscript was always regarded with special devotion and jealousy by its possessors for the time being, and was treated like a most holy relic by the scholars of the Renaissance. 2. The Medicean Vergil, taken hence by the French but restored in 1816. One of the earliest MSS. of the poet con- taining numerous notes by the Consul Apronianus in the fifth century. 3. The Bible, an eighth-century copy made by the Saxon monk Galfridus of Wearmouth. 4. The unique Tacitus, said to be of the sixth century, which was bought by that papal Maecenas, Leo X, for 500 golden florins, the only MS. which contains the first five books of the Amials. ^ SAN MARCO 73 5. The famous copy of Dante's Works, by an unknown scribe, who notes in the book the expulsion of the Duke of Athens in T343. 6. The original MS. of the Autobiography of Benvenuto Cellini. 7. The original MSS. of the Dramas of Vittorio A I fieri. There are numerous MSS. from the hands of Boccaccio, Petrarch, Politian, Ficino, and other famous humanists and scholars ; also some very fine illuminated missals and books of Hours. In short, this collection, made by generations of the Medici, surpasses in importance, if not in size, all other libraries in Italy save that of the Vatican. The small rotunda to the right of the chamber was constructed in 18 14 to hold the fine library of Count Angiolo d'Elci, which con- tains a perfect collection of all the first editions of the classics. Another room, only opened by special permission of the librarian, has lately been added to contain the magnificent choral books belonging to the Duomo and certain of the literary treasures of the library. San Marco. — The Piazza di San Marco, a dusty square containing a small garden set with palmettos and flower-beds, lies between the Via Cavour and the Via Lamarmora. The long building on its south-eastern side is the Reale Istituto di Sticdi Superiorly built on the site of the stables and lion-house of Cosimo I. The north-eastern side of the piazza is occupied by the former Dominican Church and Convent of San Marco, which together cover the space between the piazza and the Via della Dogana to the north-east. The exterior of this famous pile of buildings, one of the most famous historical monu- ments in all Italy, is far from being imposing, although the side of the convent abutting on the Via Lamarmora has a pretty little loggia. Yet from its historical memories, as well as from its numerous works of art, San Marco will probably appeal to many as the most fascinating of all the buildings of Florence. The Church, founded in the thirteenth century and practi- cally rebuilt by Michelozzo (1436-43), and again largely altered by Gian-Bologna and others in the sixteenth century, was with the adjacent monastery originally in the posses- sion of the Salvestrini, an offshoot of the great monastic House of Vallombrosa. Its commonplace fagade dates from the eighteenth century. The interior contains little of interest. 74 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES Over the entrance is a large Crucifix by Giotto, the figure being painted on a gold ground, and chiefly interesting on account of the popular tradition that it was owing to this very crucifix that the pupil Giotto came to be ranked as a greater genius than his master Cimabue, as Dante records in the " Paradise " : — Credette Cimabue nella pintura Tener lo campo, ed ora ha Giotto il grido, Si che la fama di colui oscura. Above the second altar in the right aisle is a Madonna with Saints by Fra Bartolommeo, and above the next altar on the same side, that of the Ricci Chapel, is an ancient mosaic of the eighth century, representing the Mater Miseri- cordice (Mother of Mercy), which was brought from the ruins of the old S. Peter's at Rome by Michelangelo. In the left aisle of the nave, between the second and third chapels, are buried the three humanists, Politian, Pico della Mirandola, and Girolamo Benivieni. The handsome sacristy, built by Michelozzo, contains an effigy in bronze of Sant' Antonino. To the left of the high altar is the Chapel of Sant' Antonino, the lofty arch of which supports a good statue of the Saint by Gian-Bologna, who also erected the chapel itself in 1588. It is richly adorned with frescoes by Passignano, Poccetti, Allori, and others. Those by Passignano in the ante-chapel are in- teresting from an historical point of view, since that on the right depicts the interior of San Marco in 1588 with the body of the Saint lying in state and with portraits of Averardo and Antonio Salviati, the founders of this chapel, kneeling amongst the crowd. On the left is shown the funeral procession of the Saint with the Grand-Duke Ferdinand I and the Duke of Mantua attending it in state. Beneath the altar is the bronze shrine of the Saint, a fine work by Gian-Bologna. The Monastery, now Museum, of San Marco (entrance, 1 fr.) was conveyed to the Dominican Order under Pope Martin V, who suppressed the Order of the Salvestrini early in the fifteenth century. The chief patrons of the newly established convent were the two brothers, Cosimo dei Medici, founder of the senior branch of the House of Medici, whose legitimate line expired with Leo X in 1521, and Lorenzo dei Medici, ancestor of the junior or Grand-Ducal branch of that family. The historic palle or balls, the armorial bearings of the THE CLOISTER, MUSEUM OF SAX MARCO t- 75 corridor with fra angelico s ' madonna' Museum of Soui Marco f-77 THE CORONATION' ( Mu THE VIRGIN, nm of San Mat BY FRA ANGELICO SAN MARCO 75 Medici, are everywhere conspicuous at San Marco. The convent buildings were designed by Michelozzo, and were consecrated in great state by Pope Eugenius IV in 1436. From the time it passed into the hands of the Dominican friars, this convent played a most important part in the history of Florence. One of its earliest priors was the saintly An- tonino, afterwards Archbishop of Florence, whilst in 1489 the convent became the residence of the celebrated Fra Girolamo Savonarola of Ferrara, who was transferred hither from Bologna. In 1490 he was appointed prior, and under his rule San Marco rose to a position of the greatest eminence in Florentine politics. In spite of the convent's deep debt to the bounty and patronage of the Medici, Savonarola set himself and his friars to defy Lorenzo il Magnifico and to condemn his various illegal acts. The picturesque episode of the prior being summoned to attend the dying tyrant's bedside at Careggi in 1492 is well known, and rests on an authentic basis. At the expulsion of Lorenzo's three sons in November, ! 1494, the young Cardinal Giovanni dei Medici, afterwards Pope Leo X, sought a refuge from the Florentine mob in this monastery, but its inmates, in spite of past Medicean bene- fits, ungraciously refused to admit him. With the decline of Savonarola's influence, the importance of the convent waned also, and on the night of Palm Sunday, 1498, the building was forcibly seized, and its prior was carried off from the midst of his trembling friars to the awful fate which eventually befell that ardent reformer in the following month of May. When the convent was suppressed, its buildings were happily pre- served as a museum, and though the changes of succeeding centuries have removed or destroyed many precious frescoes and memorials of the days of its short-lived glory, yet San Marco still remains a place of surpassing interest from its connexion with the holy Antonino and the fiery Savonarola, as well as a true shrine of art owing to its many valuable works by Fra Giovanni Angelico da Fiesole and Fra Bar- tolommeo, of whom the former laboured here between 1437 and 1445, an d the latter became an inmate of the house shortly after the fall of Savonarola. The entrance door to the first cloister stands a little to the right of the facade of the church. The cloister itself, which is laid out as a small garden, is surrounded on three sides by the reception rooms of the monastery with the dormitories :, 7 6 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES upstairs, and on the fourth by the nave of the church. The lunettes of the cloister are adorned with a series of frescoes by Poccetti to illustrate the life of Sant' Antonino, the fifth on the right containing an interesting representation of the Duomo with its old facade. There are five frescoes in this court by Fra Angelico, the first and largest of which is that facing the entrance, S. Dominic at the Foot of the Cross. Above the door which leads to the sacristy of the church is S. Peter Martyr, wounded by the knife of his martyrdom and with finger on lip in allusion to the rule of silence in the Order. Over the door of the chapter-house is S. Dominic with book and scourge, to indicate the constant study and severe discipline of monastic life. At the entrance of the adjoining refectory is Christ with the wound-prints. At the far end of this side of the cloister, over the door of the former guest-house, or ospizio, is a beautiful fresco of the Saviour as a Pilgrim, being received by two Dominican friars. In the Ospizio itself has lately been placed a small collection of early Italian paintings of no special merit or interest. On the eastern side of the cloister is the former chapter-house, a large chamber containing the great fresco of the Crucifixion, a celebrated work by Fra Angelico, commissioned by Cosimo dei Medici in 1441. This large composition discloses the scene on Calvary, with Christ crucified between the penitent and impenitent thieves, whilst below are grouped the three Marys, SS. Mark, the Baptist, John the Divine, Lawrence, Cosmo, and Damiano (these three last being the especial protectors of the Medici), and with S. Dominic kneeling at the foot of the cross. To the left of the fresco a number of the leading saints includes the great Dominicans, Thomas Aquinas, and Peter Martyr. In the arc-shaped border are medallions containing prophets and sibyls ; whilst below is shown S. Dominic with sixteen celebrated members of his Order — saints, popes, cardinals, bishops, and doctors. The adjoining door leads, by way of the " Sala del Lavabo," containing a few unimportant pictures, to the Great Refectory, the farther wall of which is covered by the beautiful com- position of the so-called Provvidenza, or fresco of the Miracle of S. Dominic, whereby the Saint and his friars were supplied with food in a time of dearth by two angels, painted in 1 536 by Gian-Antonio Sogliano. Above is the Crucifixion attributed to Fra Bartolommeo. This spacious apartment also contains SAN MARCO 77 a fine stone framework by Jacopo da Settignano (1439) and some pictures of no great interest. In the passage leading to the second cloister is the stairway, to the left of which is the Small Refectory, with a fine and much admired Last Supper, or Cenacolo, by Domenico Ghirlandajo, which is considerably damaged. At the top of the adjacent flight of covered stone stairs a door leads into the three corridors, which were the former dormitories of the monastery. The rough timber roof and the stone cells remain practically unchanged. Opposite the entrance is a celebrated fresco of the Annunciation by Fra Angelico, some of whose finest work is to be found in these dark passages and cells. This exquisite Annuncia- tion is faced by another specimen of that favourite subject in San Marco, S. Dominic at the Foot of the Cross. The corridors are divided into about forty cells, many of which are decorated with beautiful frescoes from the hand of Angelico. Beginning on the left, No. 1 has a Noli me t anger e ; No. 2 has an A7inunciation ; No. 6 has the Trans- figuration; and opposite, in the corridor itself, the Madonna Enthroned with Saints. No. 7 contains an Ecce Homo, being a curious representation of the scene in Pilate's house, wherein Christ is blindfolded and buffeted by unseen persons, whose hands only are made to appear. No. 8 has the Re- surrection with portraits of S. Catherine of Siena and that of the painter himself. No. 9 has the Coronation of the Virgin, perhaps the most graceful and spiritual of the whole series. At the end of the corridor is the little set of three rooms inhabited by Savonarola when Prior of S. Mark's, compris- ing Nos. 12, 13, 14 of the cells. The first of these contains a marble tablet recording the visit of the Medicean pope, Leo X, here in 1 5 16, and proclaiming his indulgence to all visitors who should enter the inner room of the former prior, who had been so barbarously executed by the Florentine Re- public during the exile of the Medici. There is also a modern Bust of Savonarola by Dupre. The two frescoes of the Madonna and that of the Walk to Emmans are by Fra Bartolommeo. On the wall is a copy of the curious old picture (of which the original hangs in the Palazzo Corsini) depicting the execution of Savonarola and two of his friars in the Piazza della Signoria in May, 1498. The adjoining 78 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES cells, Nos. 13 and 14, contain various relics of the ill-fated prior. These include his writing-desk (an exact imitation of the original, which had fallen to pieces with age), wherein are preserved his crucifix and some of his manuscripts. Here is his chair, of a pattern familiar to all who visit Florence, which stands beside the desk. In a cabinet with a glass front are kept his hair-shirt of penitence, his rosary, and some pieces of the faggots used at his execution. The small Portrait by Fra Bartolommeo (?) is perhaps the best of the various likenesses of Savonarola extant. The shutters and iron-barred windows remain unaltered, and. there is no jarring note of modernity to mar the unspoiled aspect of these tiny rooms, which it is impossible to inspect with- out the deepest feelings of reverence and compassion for one of the most remarkable men produced by the Renais- sance. From the diminutive window of his study Savon- arola was wont to watch the great Lorenzo dei Medici patiently awaiting his convenience, as he sate below amongst the rose bushes in the cloister garden. From these small chambers the prior was later destined to emerge as practical master of Florence ; whilst but a little later still he was doomed to be dragged forth to his evil trial and fate by the fickle populace of the city that had once acclaimed him. The cells from this point to the head of the staircase on the left, formerly occupied by the novices, contain frescoes of no special interest, mostly consisting of the favourite sub- ject of S. Dominic beside the Cross, but all are the work of Fra Angelico or his assistants. The cell (No. 31) close to the Annunciation first mentioned, is known as " S. Antonino's Cell, 55 and has a fresco of Chris fs Descent into Hell, by Fra Angelico. Here are preserved numerous relics of the good Archbishop of Florence and former Prior of San Marco, among them being his Death-mask and a good Portrait in chalk by Fra Bartolommeo ; also some vestments and books. In the genealogical tree of the Dominican Order hanging on the wall, it will be noticed that the name of Savonarola has been almost obliterated by the kisses of those to whom his memory was dear. Cell No. 33 contains the exquisite Madonna delta Stella, or " of the Star, 55 removed hither from S. M. Novella, one of the best and most popular of Fra Angelico 5 s easel pictures, quite perfect in its brilliance of colouring, its simple piety and beauty of expression. On the mmiMmtii PORTRAIT OF SAVONAROLA From the painti)ig by Fra Bartolonimeo in the Museum 0/ San Marco P. 78 SAN MARCO 79 gradino below the picture appear the three Dominican saints — Dominic, Thomas Aquinas, and Peter Martyr. In the inner cell is another work by Fra Angelico (?), the Coronation of the Virgin, with a beautiful predella, also brought hither from S. M. Novella. The next cell, No. 34, possesses a third easel picture on panel by the same artist, the Annimciation, with the Adoration of the Magi below. No. 35 also has a fine fresco of the Last Supper by Fra Angelico. At the end of this corridor a small flight of steps leads to two rooms, cells Nos. 38 and 39, which were once occupied by Pope Eugenius IV at the time of the consecra- tion of San Marco. These are said to have been specially reserved for his own use by Cosimo dei Medici, and here he was wont to discuss public matters with S. Antonino, whose bust is also preserved here. The fresco of the Adoration of the Magi is by Fra Angelico, who was likewise in the habit of conversing here with Cosimo il Vecchio. The interesting Portrait of Cosimo was painted at a later date by Pontormo for Goro da Pistoja. To the left of the corridor, on returning hence, is the Library, a fine apartment designed by Michelozzo (1441) and originally filled with 400 valuable books through the bounty of Cosimo dei Medici. It contains a collection of illuminated missals, etc., from various sources. The second, or inner cloister, Chiostro di San Domenico, laid out as a garden, and containing a well and a statue of S. Dominic, was built by Michelozzo. From it can be obtained a good view of the church and of its picturesque little bell- turret, which still retains the historic bell that sounded the tocsin of alarm on the night of that eventful Palm Sunday in 1498. This cloister, together with the rooms of the adjacent corridor, now houses the Museo del Centro, a recently formed collection, which contains a vast number of objects of archi- tectural or historical interest removed hither after the demoli- tion of the former Mercato Vecchio and the neighbouring streets that once constituted the Centro, or central and most ancient portion of Florence. As early as the middle of the last century schemes were set on foot for the removal of this insanitary but intensely interesting quarter of the city, and in spite of the protests of many distinguished citizens and artists, the Municipality of Florence decided to close the houses of this area with a view to destroy them by degrees 8o FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES and afterwards to rebuild the whole of the Mercato Vecchio and its surrounding streets and lanes. The work of demoli- tion was begun in 1884 and is scarcely finished at the present time (1910). Great care was taken to preserve everything of artistic or historical value that still existed in or near the Centro, with the result that the present collection of fragments was placed in this spot. The area razed to the ground in- cluded the old Market, the Ghetto, and several adjoining streets, which are now occupied by the present Piazza Vittorio-Emmanuele with its equestrian statue of the first King of Italy. The new archway spanning Via dei Strozzi and the arcades were also erected, and new streets, broad and airy, were built to take the place of the former maze of dingy lanes and courts. But, however much Florence may have gained from a sanitary point of view from this wholesale demolition, it must be admitted that from an artistic stand- point the new Centro leaves much to be desired, for nothing can exceed the dismal monotony of the huge new Piazza and the adjacent streets. It is to be regretted that the Munici- pality did not see its way to the rebuilding of its historic Centro in the fine old style of architecture, which is essentially Florentine, and yet at the same time lends itself admirably to the construction of the large modern palazzi, of which this quarter of the city is almost entirely composed. The Museo del Centro contains a large number of archi- tectural fragments of various dates, inscriptions, coats-of- arms, pillars, gothic mouldings, pieces of coloured terra-cotta, shrines, ironwork, etc. To those who wish to understand the early history of the development of Florentine life, a care- ful study of this rather melancholy collection of fragments preserved in the inner cloister of San Marco may prove most interesting and instructive, but for most persons visiting Florence for a short period, a cursory glance at this mass of " architectural orts and abjects " will probably prove, sufficient. In the neighbouring Via Cavour is the Pharmacy of the convent, where drugs are still procurable, and where are still preserved the fine old jars of glazed and coloured ware used in former days. Santa Maria del Carmine. — The church and suppressed monastery of the Carmelites stand at the southern end of the broad Piazza del Carmine in Oltr' Arno. The Church, dedi- cated to Our Lady of Mount Carmel, a massive structure of CHURCH OF THE CARMINE 81 the fifteenth century, was almost wholly rebuilt after a fire in 1 77 1. Fortunately the celebrated Brancacci Chapel, with its famous frescoes, as well as the sacristy, escaped the general conflagration. The Cappella Brancacci occupies the right transept of the existing building, its walls being covered with the Frescoes illustrating the life of S. Peter, which were begun here by Masolino in 1422, carried on by his pupil Masaccio till 1428, and finally completed by Filippino Lippi in 1484. The adornment of this chapel was originally commissioned by Felice Brancacci. Critics dispute everlastingly and with varied arguments over the respective portions of the decora- tion painted by Masolino and Masaccio ; and the exact attribution of certain of the frescoes still remains doubtful. It is sufficient to state here that these paintings were in the late fifteenth and early sixteenth centuries considered a precious store-house of art by Perugino, Raphael, Michel- angelo, and other later and more advanced masters, who did not hesitate to profit by the skill displayed here by the earlier painters of the Cappella Brancacci. Apart from their artistic importance, the costumes, scenes, and architecture introduced render these frescoes particularly interesting to the student of Italian life in the fifteenth century. (The chapel itself is somewhat dark, and the best light is to be obtained about sunset.) On entering the chapel, high up to the right is the small fresco of the Temptation of Adam and Eve, which is certainly the work of Masolino, and according to some critics his sole contribution to these frescoes. It is the first in the upper of the two rows of subjects, and next to it is a large composition of the Healing of the Cripple at the Temple gate by SS. Peter and John, whilst in the same compartment, but with no apparent connexion with the last-mentioned incident, is the Raising of Tabitha (?). Both these works are attributed by Vasari to Masolino, but are now proclaimed by modern critics to be the work of his pupil Masaccio. Below the Adam and Eve is the Rescue of Peter from prison by Filip- pino Lippi, a painting that includes the graceful figure of a Florentine youth as the sleeping gaoler. The large fresco below the Raising of Tabitha (?) is by Filippino Lippi and represents two subjects, the Judgment Before the Emperor Nero, or the Proconsul, and the Crucifixion of the Saint 6 82 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES with his head downwards. The former composition contains several contemporary portraits ; thus the young man with flowing hair and small jaunty cap is presumably the artist Lippi himself, whilst the older man beside him with the conical head-dress is said to be Antonio Poliajuolo. Behind the altar are four pictures by Masaccio, also arranged in double rows, of which the uppermost on the right shows S. Peter bestowing Baptism. In this composition the naked youth, evidently shivering from his late immersion, is highly praised by Vasari as a good early example of the nude in art. Below it, SS. Peter and John Distributing A Irns. On the left side of the altar, S. Peter Preaching, with Carmelite monks listen- ing ; and below, SS. Peter and John Healing the Sick by their shadows. Above, on the left wall, the Expulsion of Adam and Eve fro7n Paradise by Masaccio, a masterly composition, imitated later by Raphael in the Logge of the Vatican. Below it is S. Paul visiting S. Peter in Prison by Filippino Lippi. On the same line by Masaccio (?), the Finding of the Tribute Money by S. Peter in the fish's mouth. Below, the Raising of the Child, in which the child himself and the ten persons sur- rounding him are by the later hand of Lippi ; but the subject of the painting (like everything else connected with these celebrated frescoes) has been disputed. It is sometimes called the Revival of Eutychus, who fell from a window through weariness during one of the Apostle's sermons, whilst others say it alludes to a miracle wrought by S. Peter on the son of Theophilus, Prince of Antioch, whom Simon Magus had failed to restore to life. The old man seated in a black dress to the left is said to represent Cosimo dei Medici ; the scholar with black cape and hat is Luigi Pulci the poet ; and the figure on the extreme left is Marco Soderini, father of the celebrated Gonfaloniere of Florence, who is buried in this church. In the corner of the fresco S. Peter is seen being adored by three kneeling Carmelite monks. Both from their innate charm of treatment and their in- tense value in the history of the development of Italian art, these frescoes rank amongst the most important works of the fifteenth century. Preserved at this altar is an ancient painting of the Virgin, of Greek origin, one of the many traditionally attributed to S. MARIA MADDALENA DEI PAZZI 83 S. Luke. In the tribune behind the high altar is the Tomb of Piero Soderini by Benedetto da Rovezzano, the Gonfa- loniere of Florence, whose pitiless literary monument by Machiavelli 2 is, however, far better known than this erection of marble. The sacristy retains some remnants of frescoes by Spinello Aretino or by Jacopo da Casentino (?). The transept opposite the Brancacci Chapel contains the gor- geous altar and shrine of S. Andrea Corsini, Bishop of Fiesole (d. 1373), which were erected here in 1670 and decorated by Foggini and Luca Giordano. A door in the nave leads to the pretty little cloister of the former convent, once wholly covered with frescoes, but where- in only a few fragments of painting now remain, chief amongst them being a Madonna with the Donors by Giovanni da Milano. The former refectory opening on the cloister is ornamented by a Cenacolo^x Last Supper, by Alessandro Allori. m Santa Maria Maddalena dei Pazzi. — This church and former Benedictine convent are situated at the angle formed by the broad Via della Colonna and the mediaeval Via dei Pinti, in which street is the entrance to the church and a cloister with a garden. The church was erected by Antonio da Sangallo in the sixteenth century, and contains two frescoes by Andrea del Sarto and some other works of art. The convent was the abode of the Florentine saint, Maria Maddalena, of the Pazzi family, a nun of the Carmelite Order who flourished 1 566-1607. The chapter-house, which is entered at No. 3 Via della Colonna, contains a celebrated Fresco by Perugino (entrance fee, 25 c). This work, executed between 1493 an( ^ 1496, the finest fresco by this master, consists of three com- partments, in the central one of which is the Crucifixion, with SS. John and Benedict on the right and the Virgin and S. Bernard on the left. The beauty of the faces, the soft colour- 1 La notte che morl Pier Soderini L'alma n'ando dell' Inferno alia bocca ; E Pluto le gridd : " Anima sciocca, Che Inferno ? — Va' nel limbo dei bambini ! " (Died Soderini ; and that very night Down to Hell's portal flew that simple soul, Where Pluto cried, " Not here, O foolish sprite, Is room for thee ; of babes we take no toll ! ") 84 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES ing and the beautiful effects of landscape introduced make this work one of the most charming examples of the Umbrian school of painting. The fresco (to the left) of the Vision of S. Benedict is by a pupil of the master. Santa Maria Maggiore. — This church, of ancient founda- tion and restored early in the fourteenth century by Arnolfo di Cambio, stands at the angle of the Via dei Vecchietti and Via Cerretani in the most central portion of the town. It has a dilapidated Gothic portal and contains the tombs of Brunetto Latini (d. 1294), the master of Dante, and of Salvino degli Armati, the alleged first European inventor of spectacles, whose bust is preserved in the chapel to the left of the choir. Santa Maria Novella. — The Piazza of Santa Maria Novella, a long spacious piazza, is approached from the Ponte alia Carraja and the Lung' Arno by the Via dei Fossi. At its southern end is the Loggia di San Paolo, a graceful structure of the fifteenth centui 1 ^, attributed to Brunelleschi and decorated with a number of coloured terra-cotta me- dallions by Luca and Andrea della Robbia, the most interest- ing of which is the relief in the lunette of the door within the arcade, representing the meeting of SS. Francis and Dominic. The Gothic tabernacle at the corner of the neighbouring Via della Scala contains a much injured fresco by Francesco Fiorentino (fourteenth century). No. 21 in this piazza, once the Pitti mansion, was the house occupied by Garibaldi in 1867 before setting out from Florence on his expedition against Rome, which ended so disastrously at the battle of Mentana. This piazza, once a favourite spot for preaching by S. Peter Martyr in the thirteenth century, was long the chief scene of Florentine pageants and festivities, the chariot races on S. John's Eve, inaugurated by the Grand-Duke Cosimo I, being held there. In these races, commonly called after the chief prize, the Palio dei Cocchi, the competing chariots were, in imitation of the ancient Roman games, distinguished by the four colours of blue, red, green, and white. The two obelisks in the piazza, erected in 1608, which served as goals on these occasions, consist of purple marble pyramids resting on bronze tortoises and crowned with bronze gigli. In the spring of 1903 this piazza was selected as a suitable ground for a tournament and a revival of the old game of calcio, a species of mediaeval football. To the south-east of the piazza, in the neighbouring Via delle IL j 1: fMha JfeH* -I; CHURCH OF S. MARIA NOVELLA 85 Belle Donne, is the picturesque old granite column sur- mounted by a crucifix known as the Croce al Trebbio, dating fro: 1 the fourteenth century. The northern end of the piazza is occupied by the hand- some facade of the Church of Santa Maria Novella, the chief Dominican edifice in Florence, and a fine example of Tuscan-Gothic architecture. It was begun in 1278 from the designs of the Dominican friars Fra Sisto, Fra Ristoro, and Fra Giovanni da Campi, and was continued by Jacopo Talenti, who completed the body of the church about the year 1350. It is 325 ft. long, 93 ft. wide, and 202 ft. broad at the transepts. The slender campanile with its series of arcaded windows is attributed to Jacopo Talenti in 1334. The ornate facade of black and white marbles is chiefly the work of Leon-Battista Alberti, completed at the expense of Gio- vanni Rucellai (1470), whose heraldic emblem of an antique ship in full sail can be observed in the scheme of Alberti's decoration. The central door is a singularly fine specimen of the architect's skill and taste with its tall columns of black marble and its delicate frieze. Above are two volutes (one still remaining unfinished) in wheel-like patterns, the first example of this method of connecting the nave with the adjoining aisles. The astronomical instruments below the volutes were added by Padre Ignazio Danti, court as- tronomer to Cosimo I, in 1572. The small enclosed space to the right of the fagade contains a number of arched and vaulted tombs (avelli) constructed about 1300, which once served as burying-places for the leading families of Florence. The interior, which (like Santa Croce) is practically T- shaped, rests on twelve pointed arches and has a plain groined roof. It is wholly daubed over with dismal drab-coloured plaster, and is therefore darker than Santa Croce, though of better proportions. Until the middle of the last century S. M. Novella was the least altered and spoiled of the Florentine churches, but during the past century it underwent a most drastic and destructive restoration, the flooring with its numerous fine monuments being torn up and the effigies removed from the pillars of the nave. In spite of much vandalism, however, the church still remains one of the most interesting in all Italy, and contains a great number of important paintings and monuments, chiefly of the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries. 86 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES Entrance Wall. — Fine rose window, the best of the many stained-glass windows in the church, depicting the Coronation of the Virgin. Over the central door, a fine Crucifix painted by Giotto (?), below which is a Mosaic of the Holy Family in the stable at Bethlehem. To the left, a Fresco of the Trinity, the Virgin and S. John with two donors, a much injured but important work by Masaccio. To the right, the Annunciation and other scenes by Agnolo Gaddi (?). The nave is lined on either side by baroque altars placed here by Vasari in the sixteenth century and adorned with large paintings of the later Italian schools by Ligozzi, Naldini, etc. It retains, however, certain Gothic and Renais- sance monuments, notably that of the Blessed Villana, opposite the first pillar on the right. This tomb and its effigy are by Bernardo Rossellino, and commemorate a young Florentine widow who renounced the world and passed a life of piety and good works under the supervision of the friars of S. M. Novella. Villana herself died in 1350, but this monument was only erected by her grandson so late as 145 1. It shows the Saint sleeping beneath a canopy upheld by angels, whilst overhead celestial hands bear a' radiant crown. In the nave also is the Pulpit, with marble bas-reliefs gilded, depicting scenes from the life of the Virgin. It is the work of Maestro Lazzaro, who is said to have received his designs direct from Brunelleschi. The door near the fifth altar on the right leads to the Cappella delta Pura, built by the Rucellai family in 1474, with white marble decorations and an ancient Byzantine crucifix. Hence a doorway leads into the little cloister of the Avelli, or arcaded tombs, already mentioned. Right Transept. — To the right, wooden Bust of San? A?itonino with a lamp suspended before it, sculptured soon after his death in 1459. Above this bust, the beautiful Monument of Tedice AHotti, Bishop of Fiesole (d. 1336) by Tino da Camaino. Beyond the doorway, Effigy of Bishop Cavalcanti of Orvieto (d. 1279), who took an active part in the foundation of this church. The Madonna in the black and white marble niche above is of the school of Andrea Pisano. Below, Monument with a fresco portrait of the Patriarch of Constantinople, who died whilst attending the Council of Florence in 1440. A double flight of stone steps leads hence to the dark CHURCH OF S. MARIA NOVELLA 87 Cappella Rucellai containing the tomb of Paolo Rucellai. To the right of the altar is the historic picture on panel, once universally attributed to Cimabue, of the Virgin and Child Enthroned and surrounded by six adoring angels, a work that was long regarded as famous in the story of the early development of Italian art. For this picture, which appears so crude and dingy to-day, was, according to popular tradition, the very one that the citizens of Florence carried in joyful procession from the artist's studio in the street near Santa Croce, which became known in consequence as the Borgo Allegri. Unhappily, the beautiful legend has been dissipated by the researches of modern critics, and the picture is now attributed positively to Duccio di Buoninsegna of Siena, who executed it in 1285. The Rucellai Chapel likewise contains over the altar a fifteenth-century Sienese painting of the Archangel, Tobias, and SS. Vincent and Catherine, besides an Amiunciation by Neri di Bicci, and a Martyrdom of S. Catherine, a fine work by Bugiardini. The adjoining Chapel of the Sacrament, with a fine iron grille, possesses some much injured frescoes of the school of Giotto. To the right of the high altar is the handsome Chapel of Filippo Strozzi the Elder, a perfect specimen of Renaissance decoration. It contains the tomb of its founder, Filippo Strozzi, who was also the builder of the far-famed Strozzi Palace. It consists of a black marble sarcophagus with an exquisite medallion above it of the Virgin and Worshipping Angels in white marble, the work of Benedetto da Majano. Filippo's bust, which formerly crowned the tomb, was sold to the Louvre in 1878. The walls are covered with lovely frescoes full of classical conceits by Filippino Lippi, painted between 1487 and 1 502, which depict (on right) S. Philip Exor- cising a Dragon, and, above it, the Sainfs Execictio?i by the priests of the dragon ; on the left, S. John Recalling Dru- siana to Life, and, above it, the Sainfs Martyrdom in boil- ing oil. On the ceiling are the Four Patriarchs — Adam, Noah, Abraham, and Jacob. SS. Philip and John are also represented in the stained glass of the window. Behind the tasteless modern high altar, under which rest the relics of the Blessed John of Salerno, first Dominican apostle in Florence, is the Choir with handsome stalls and lectern of inlaid wood by Baccio d'Agnolo. The walls of the choir are wholly covered with the series of Frescoes which SS FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES Domenico Ghirlandajo, assisted by his brothers Davide and Benedetto and his pupil Mainardi, executed between the years i486 and 1490 for Giovanni Tornabuoni, to replace some earlier paintings by Andrea Orcagna. These constitute the master's most popular, if not his best work, for which he was paid the sum of 1200 golden florins by his patron. The subjects, which should be inspected by morning light, are fourteen in number, besides the four Evangelists on the vaulting and the Saints in the embrasures of the window. From the vast number of contemporary portraits introduced and the constant delineation of Florentine dress and manners in the days of Lorenzo il Magnifico, these frescoes possess an historical as well as an artistic importance. On the right, the Story of S. John the Baptist in seven sections. Begin- ning with the lowest section, the Angel Appears to Zacha- rias in the Temple, a large composition which is said to include no fewer than thirty-one contemporary portraits of Florentine citizens, amongst them being (in the left-hand corner) the humanist Marsilio Ficino in the dress of a canon ; Cristoforo Landini, the famous commentator on Dante's works, in a red cloak with a black band ; Politian, with the raised hand ; and the learned Gentile dei Becchi, Bishop of Arezzo. On the opposite side of the fresco appear members of the family of Tornabuoni, cousins of Lorenzo dei Medici, whose mother had been Lucrezia Tornabuoni ; (2) The Salutation ; (3) the Birth of the Baptist ; (4) the Infant John, Named by the Dumb Zacharias ; (5) Preaching of John; (6) Baptism in the Jordan ; (7) the Dancing of the Daughter of Herodias. To the left, on the opposite wall ( 1 ) the Childless Joachim being Expelled from the Temple, a group which includes several portraits as well as those of the painter himself, dressed in a red cloak and with a hand on his hip ; his father, Tommaso, in a scarlet head-dress ; his pupil, Mainardi, and his brother, Davide, with a red cap. To the left of the same painting are portraits of Lorenzo il Magnifico with two of his sons, and his cousin, Giovanni Tornabuoni, Ghirlandajo's patron. (2) The Birth of the Virgin, a charming composition with a group of children playing on musical instruments, in chiaroscuro ; (3) the Pre- sentation of the Virgin; (4) Her Marriage ; (5) the Adora- tion of the Magi; (6) Massacre of the Innocents ; (7) Death and Assumption of the Virgi?i. CHURCH OF S. MARIA NOVELLA 89 The frescoes beside the window represent scenes from the lives of SS. Dominic, Peter Martyr, and other Dominican saints ; whilst in the lowest compartments appear portraits of Giovanni Tornabuoni and his wife, Francesca Pitti, who died young in childbirth. These frescoes, of which many are greatly damaged, have recently been judiciously cleaned. The tall window has its triple light rilled with good stained glass of the same date as the paintings, and in it can easily be recognized the coat-of-arms of the Tornabuoni family — Per saltire vert and or, a lion rampant counter- changed. In the first chapel to the left of the high altar, known as the Cappella dei Gondi, is preserved the magnificent Crucifix, made by Brunelleschi in rivalry with Donatello. On the pavement is the fine bronze Effigy of Fra Leonardo Dati, Grand Master of the Dominicans, by Ghiberti (1426). The adjoining Cappella Gaddi is a good example of Dosio's semi- classical style of architecture, and is enriched with bas-reliefs by Giovanni dalP Opera. Its altar-piece, the Raising of Jairus" Daughter, is by Bronzino. At this point a staircase leads to the Cappella Strozzi, which forms a pendant to that of the Rucellai in the south transept opposite. It is decorated with a number of early frescoes, which are of considerable importance in the study of the progress of Florentine art. On the right wall is Hell by Leonardo Orcagna, wherein the artist follows the topo- graphy of Dante's " Inferno " with the seven circles. On the left wall is Paradise by Andrea Orcagna, a large com- position (completely re-painted) crowded with angelic figures possessing much sweetness and grace. The fresco on the altar wall representing the Last Judg?nent is also by Andrea. The Altarpiece is likewise by Andrea Orcagna, and repre- sents Christ, the Virgin, S. Thomas Aquinas, and S. Peter in the centre, with SS. Michael, Lawrence, Catherine, and Paul on either side. The Predella in three sections shows a friar celebrating Mass ; Christ rescuing S. Peter on the Sea of Galilee ; and the contest between angels and demons for the soul of a dead king. The artist's name in Gothic characters is inscribed round the central panel of the work, which was painted for Tommaso Strozzi in 1357. In the small crypt below this chapel rest the remains of the Blessed Alessio Strozzi, the family saint of this once powerful House, 9 o FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES In the vault below the staircase is a fresco of the Dead Christ, surrounded by saints, attributed to Giottino. In the south transept is the entrance to the Sacristy, a spacious vaulted Gothic chamber built by Jacopo Talenti in 1350. Its walls are lined with fine walnut presses contain- ing some ancient vestments. Three of the reliquaries of the church, containing exquisite paintings by Fra Angelico of Fiesole, are shown amongst the church plate. To the right of the doorway is a splendid lavabo of coloured terra-cotta, the work of Giovanni della Robbia (1497). In this room is preserved a curious historical relic in the sole existing speci- men of the twelve banners emblazoned with a red cross which S. Peter Martyr distributed to the military captains of the "Compagnia del Bigallo " on Ascension Day, 1244, for the purpose of making an attack on the Paterini heretics. Near the entrance of the sacristy is a small granite Vase of Etruscan design supported by a marble figure, an admired work of Michelangelo. This church is one of the most popular and well-attended in Florence, and during Advent and Lent distinguished preachers of the Dominican Order are engaged to fill its pulpit. Special services, often on a magnificent scale, take place here during the months of May and October, which are dedicated to the Virgin. On very grand occasions the whole of this vast building is completely decorated with fine old crimson brocade and hung with handsome crystal chan- deliers of antique pattern. But from a musical point of view the services held here are not to be compared with those at the Annunziata. At the foot of the staircase of the Strozzi Chapel is the entrance to the western cloisters (fee of 25 c. to 50 c. to the brother who opens the door). Below a flight of steps is the Sepolcreto, a small courtyard with some early frescoes and a work by the Delia Robbia. In the corridor to the right, near the steps, are four small frescoes illustrating the story of Joachim and Anna, extravagantly praised by Ruskin and formerly attributed to Giotto. From this cloister the fine Chiostro Verde is entered to the left. This Green Cloister takes its name not from the grass and roses of its enclosed garden but from the terra verde, or different shades of green and brown used by Paolo Uccello and Dello in painting a series of frescoes upon its four walls, which though in an ad- THE SPANISH CHAPEL 91 vanced state of decay still present a good many interesting details to those who care to study them carefully. They represent scenes from the history of the Old Testament. The cloister itself, with its circular arches and Gothic columns, is a charmingly peaceful retreat, commanding a good view of the campanile with its delicate arcaded windows. To the west of the Chiostro Verde lies the Grand Cloister {Chios tro Grande), which is unfortunately always kept closed. It is the largest cloister in Florence, containing fifty-fouf arches and has its walls covered with a number of frescoes, the work of Cigoli, Poccetti, Alessandro Allori, and other artists of the schools of the early seventeenth century. Many of the sub- jects depicted in the lunettes have a distinct historical value. In the Green Cloister is the entrance to the celebrated Spanish Chapel {Cappella degli Spagnuoli), built in 1326 and so named from the circumstance that its use was ceded to the Spanish members of the suite of Eleonora of Toledo, wife of the Grand-Duke Cosimo I in 1566. The chapel, a plain lofty structure with handsome Gothic windows opening on the cloisters and with a simple groined roof, was erected from the design of Fra Jacopo. Every available portion of wall space is covered with the famous frescoes, which on the authority of Vasari have hitherto been attributed to Simone Martini and Taddeo Gaddi but of which the author- ship is constantly denied or disputed. It is therefore safer to allude to these works as valuable and interesting ex- amples of the art of the fourteenth century, whoever may have been their actual painters. The large fresco on the right wall is intended to represent from a Dominican stand- point the Church Militant and Triumphant, and contains over 300 figures, amongst which are believed to appear many interesting portraits. The Pope and the Emperor, as the ecclesiastical and secular heads of the Christian world, appear seated as guardians of the Church, here symbolized by the Cathedral of Florence, not as actually erected but as originally conceived. Beside the Emperor are princes and councillors ; beside the Pope, cardinals, prelates, priests, nuns, and friars. Heretics are represented under the guise of a pack of wolves harried by the faithful black and white dogs (" Domini canes ") of the Dominican Order. S. Dominic meanwhile points the way to heaven to the sheep that have escaped the onslaught of the wolves. Above "is shown the 92 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES joy of the celestial host at the salvation of the faithful and of repentant sinners, with Christ in glory in the heights above. If, as Vasari informs us, the most prominent persons in this immense fresco are in reality contemporary portraits, this painting is indeed of extraordinary historical value, but nearly all Vasari's information concerning this fresco has been dis- credited by modern critics. The Pope is Benedict XI ; the Emperor is Albert ; the King beside him is Philippe le Bel of France ; the Cardinal is Niccolo di Cambio, etc. The handsome figure in a white dress with a hood is usually said to be intended for Cimabue (but is now adjudged to be Walter de Brienne, Duke of Athens) ; and that next to him for the artist Simone, who has been so long credited with the exe- cution of this work. The man in yellow is said to be the architect Arnolfo di Cambio, and the warrior beside him Count Guido of Poppi. The portrait of Petrarch in a white hood and red cloak was, according to Vasari, painted from life ; and even the female, with a green dress sprinkled with violets and with a flame at her throat, is called Laura. The vast and intricate composition is supposed to have been planned by the Dominican scholar, Fra Jacopo Passavanti, for the guidance of the artist employed. Opposite, on the left wall, is Theological Philosophy or the Triumph of S. Thomas Aqui?ias. The great doctor of the Dominican Order is displayed aloft on a throne surrounded by angels, patriarchs, and saints, whilst at his feet crouch the three abashed false leaders of heresy, Arius, Sabellius, and Averrhoes. In the lower portion of the fresco are fourteen female figures intended to personify the sciences and virtues, beneath which are depicted fourteen human personages who are believed to have excelled in the particular sciences or virtues painted above them. (From left to right of the spectator) : (i) Civil Law, with the Emperor Justinian ; (2) Canon Law, with a pope, perhaps a portrait of Innocent III ; (3) Speculative Theology, with Peter Lombard ; (4) Practical Theology, with Dionysius the Areopagite ; (5) Domestic Theology, with Boethius ; (6) Mystic Theology, with S. Basil (?) ; (7) Polemic Theology, with S. Augustine of Hippo ; (8) Arithmetic, with Pythagoras ; (9) Geometry, with Euclid; (10) Astronomy, with Zoroaster or Ptolemy; (11) Music, with Tubal-cain ; (12) Logic, with Aristotle; (13) Rhetoric, with Cicero, who is for some unknown reason re- S. MINIATO AL MONTE 93 presented with three hands; (14) Grammar, with Priscian or Donatus. On the entrance wall, much damaged frescoes of scenes from the lives of SS. -Dominic and Peter Martyr. On the east wall, beside the altar recess, the Crucifixion (left) and the Descent into Hell (right). In the former composition, the figure of the centurion Longinus with his spear is said possibly to represent Walter de Brienne, Duke of Athens. On the vaulting, designs attributed to Antonio Veneziano, one of Gaddi's pupils, of the Resurrection ; of Peter's Rescue by our Lord on the Sea of Galilee ; the Ascension of our Lord; and the Inspiration of the Virgin. The apse con- tains decorations of the late sixteenth century by Allori, Poccetti, and other artists. The extensive conventual buildings of Santa Maria Novella have been secularized, but the Pharmacy (entrance in the Via della Scala) is still kept in working order, so that it is often visited by persons wishing to purchase drugs (amongst them the renowned Alkermes), perfumes, packets of orris- root powder, etc., which are all compounded according to the old Dominican recipes. The pharmacy contains a small hall covered with frescoes of the fourteenth century attributed to Spinello Aretino and some other remains of early paintings. In the days of the Republic visitors of importance to Florence were frequently lodged at the expense of the State in a suite of rooms in this spacious convent, amongst such guests being the Popes Martin V, Eugenius IV, Pius II, and Leo X, and the Emperor Frederic II. The Church of San Miniato al Monte can be reached either by driving along the beautiful Viale dei Colli with its many views of the city, or else by walking through the Porta San Miniato and ascending the steep Via Cruris ^ one of the most ancient "Ways of the Cross" in all Italy. This latter flight of steps, set with old crosses and cypress-trees at intervals, traverses the new Viale a little below the Franciscan Church of San Salvatore al Monte in the midst of a grove of cypresses. This church, which was erected by Cronaca in 1480 at the expense of Castello Quaratesi, was greatly admired by Michelangelo, who used to name this broad, well- proportioned building la bella villanella, " the fair country- maid," in contrast with its neighbour the more beautiful San Miniato, which he was wont to speak of as la bella cittadina. 94 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES The interior contains some old stained glass, the tomb of the founder, and some Delia Robbia ornaments, but there is nothing of especial interest to detain the visitor. Amongst the celebrated Florentines buried here-are Tanai dei Nerli and his son Gian-Battista Nerli, who wrote a history of Florence (d. 1574}. Below the church is the broad expanse of the Piazzale Michelangelo, overlooking the city and hills, and distinguished by its huge bronze group of Michelangelo's David and the four figures copied from the Medici tombs in San Lorenzo. A little further up the hill is the famous Church of San Miniato, which dominates the city from its lofty and con- spicuous position. Its foundation is said to date from the reign of Decius in the third century of the Christian era, when S. Miniatus, king of Armenia, is believed to have suffered martyrdom at this spot. The present building, however, owns no portion earlier than the opening years of the eleventh century, when Bishop Hildebrand of Florence in 10 1 3 erected the existing fine basilica with the assistance of the Emperor Henry II and the Empress Cunegunda. It is a splendid example of Tuscan-Romanesque architecture, and one of the most venerable and interesting churches in all Italy. The black and white marble facade, which is so familiar a sight from the streets of Florence, is adorned with most interesting mosaics of the thirteenth century, represent- ing Christ with the Virgin and S. Miniatus. On the gable above is a bronze eagle, the emblem of the guild of the Calimala, patrons of the church and convent, which was set up in 1401. The interior consists of a nave and aisles supported on twelve columns, coated with ancient stucco in imitation of polished marble, and on four triple piers. The choir is considerably raised above the boc!^ of the church and is approached by a double staircase. Below the choir is the fine spacious crypt, upheld by twenty-eight columns of marble, several of them taken from ancient buildings. The pavement of mosaic, arranged so as to form a broad band stretching from the west door to the altar, is of black and white marble laid in intricate patterns of roses, lions, griffins, etc. It also contains the signs of the Zodiac, as in the Baptistery. This curious pavement dates, according to an inscription, from 1207. The walls of the aisles retain some much damaged frescoes of the fourteenth century. Below ■ L - m I 1 I * If V far- a i CHURCH OF S. MINIATO 95 the raised choir is the Chapel of the Crucifix, so called because it was erected by Piero dei Medici in 1448 after designs of Michelozzo in order to contain the miraculous crucifix of San Giovanni Gualberto, founder of the Vallombrosan Order, which is now preserved in Santa Trinita. This famous relic is said to have once stood in a small chapel in a thick wood, which formerly covered this hill, and according to the legend it was this very crucifix that bent its head to bestow the kiss of peace on San Giovanni Gualberto as he kneeled at this spot, after forgiving the murderer of his brother and sparing his life. The altar is surmounted by the eagles of the guild of the Calimala. The vaulting of this shrine is in glazed rosettes of white on a blue ground by Luca della Robbia, and the whole is enclosed by an elegant grille of wrought-iron. The Tabernacle, depicting the Annunciation, with smaller pictures of San Miniato and San Giovanni Gualberto, is by an unknown artist, perhaps Spinello Aretino. Above the altar is the choir, consisting of ante-choir, choir, and tribune. In front is the space reserved for the neophytes, separated by a marble screen from the choir itself. This screen, the pulpit, and the lectern are beautiful examples of incrusted marble decoration in the most fantastic patterns. The apse itself is lighted, or rather filled with a subdued radiance, by five windows composed of thin slabs of transparent alabaster, a rare form of decoration to be observed also in the Cathedral of Orvieto. On the semi-circular vault of the tribune is a mosaic dated 1297, representing the Virgin and S. John, with San Miniato in regal robes offering his crown to the Saviour. The ancient altar remains still in situ at this spot. Near the altar to the right is an interesting painting on wood of S. Giovanni Gualberto, by a fourteenth-century Florentine painter. Below the raised choir is the beautiful Crypt, a special feature of this wonderful church. Under its altar are pre- served the relics of the martyred San Miniato and his com- panions. The vaulting was covered with painting by Taddeo Gaddi (?) in 1341, but little of his decorative work remains in- tact. Unfortunately, both the crypt and the nave have been used for interment during the last century, so that the many tasteless tombstones go far to spoil the antique appearance of the body of the church. In the nave, to the left of the entrance, is the monument of the Tuscan poet, Giuseppe Giusti, who died in Florence in 1850 at the age of 41. 96 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES On the north side of the nave is the exceedingly lovely Chapel of S. James, one of the most exquisite shrines of Renaissance art in all Italy. It was erected in or about the year 1460 to serve as the receptacle of Antonio Rossellino's tomb of the Cardinal Prince James, a youthful ecclesiastic of the royal House of Portugal, who died in Florence in 1459 whilst travelling to Germany as papal legate. To the right is the Monument oi the young cardinal by Rossellino, whereon the youth is represented lying in peaceful slumber on a bier surrounded by fruit, flowers, and foliage of great charm and variety. Above the bier are angels and a medallion with the Virgin and Child, a singularly pleasing example of the artist's work. The roof of the chapel is adorned with four beautiful angels by Luca and Andrea della Robbia, some of these masters' most admired works. The four figures in the angles of the vaulting represent Moderation, Prudence, Fortitude, and Chastity, the four virtues of the deceased prelate. On the left wall is an Annunciation by Alessio Baldovinetti, the best preserved of his frescoes in this chapel. The picture for the altar, painted by the brothers Pollajuolo, is now in the Uffizi, but the Angels in fresco, a fine work by Antonio Pollaj- uolo, still remain over the altar. The pavement is of opus alexandrinum, composed of rare antique marbles. The Sacristy is entered from the choir, and is a lofty vaulted Gothic chamber built in 1387 and almost wholly covered with a series of good frescoes by Spinello Aretino, executed at the expense of a Florentine merchant, one Benedetto degli Alberti, a member of the well-known Alberti family. The frescoes relate the story of S. Benedict, and form a complete epitome of the acts and legends connected with his life. The intarsia work of the wooden presses below is worthy of notice. The Tower of the church, an unfinished work by Baccio d'Agnolo in 15 19, is a square Renaissance structure, more interesting than beautiful, for it is around this sturdy belfry that the story of the siege of Florence in 1 529 largely centres. At the approach of the invading army of the Prince of Orange, the rulers of the Republic decided to fortify the hill and convent of San Miniato, for which purpose they entrusted the defence of the city on the eastern side to Michelangelo, appointing him Commissary-General of the Republican forces of defence. The great artist at once cleared the- convent and threw up fortifications (afterwards enlarged by Cosimo I) CHURCH OF S. MINIATO AL MONTE CHURCH OF OGNISSANTI 97 to the east of the church, which still exist. In order to save the tower of the church from destruction, he had its eastern side encased in mattresses, and thus saved Baccio d'Agnolo's new structure from the Spanish cannon, although the tower still bears traces of fire and of injury from the shells thrown. After the surrender of the city, the great architect, according to tradition, sought a refuge in the belfry of the church of San Niccolo near the Porta San Miniato, till Clement VII extended his forgiveness to him. The Convent, with embattled walls adjoining the church, was originally built by Archbishop Mozzi of Florence in 1234, after which it became the property of the Benedictine monks who held the church. From them it passed to the Olivetans, and later to the Jesuits, till their suppression in 1773. Both church and convent have undergone a most thorough and needed restoration in recent years. The adjacent Camfto Santo, or graveyard, is the most fashionable in Florence, and visitors may find some of its curious tombs and miniature chapels of interest. In any case, every one ought to ascend the platform to the south of the graveyard to enjoy the magnificent and extensive view, one of the noblest in Italy, extending over the city, the Val d'Arno, and the encircling Apennines. On the heights to the south-west overlooking the town is the huge machicolated structure with a tall tower recently erected on the site of the celebrated Torre del Gallo, with its memories of Galileo, of which the late " Ouida " in " Pascarel " has left so charming and sympathetic a description. The Church of Ogni Santi, or San Salvadore, situated in the Borgo Ognissanti, originally belonging to the " Padri Umiliati " in the thirteenth century, dates principally from 1554, but was largely altered in the succeeding century by Matteo Nigretti for the Franciscan friars, who had owned it since the sixteenth century. The fagade which abuts on the Piazza Manin contains a beautiful lunette over its principal doorway of the Coronation of the Virgin, a late work by Giovanni della Robbia. To the left of this, on the wall, is to be seen one of the few existing relics of the brief reign of Duke Alessandro dei Medici, in the ducal coronet and plumes in coloured terra-cotta with an inscription calling for a long life to that tyrant. The belfry to the east of the church is a picturesque structure. The interior of Ogni Santi is rich in 98 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES colour, gilding and marbles, but it possesses comparatively few works of art. Over the second altar to the right are some celebrated frescoes which were only discovered by the removal of a large altar-piece in 1898. One of these, that of the Trinity, dates from the sixteenth century ; the other is a good work by Domenico Ghirlandajo, with a most interesting history attached to it, for according to Vasari, it was painted expressly for the Vespucci family, whose houses were situated near the church in the adjoining Borgo. Above in the lunette is the Virgin sheltering the various members of the Vespucci family underneath her mantle, amongst whom the youth with the long .dark hair and round face to the right may be recog- nized as the celebrated Amerigo Vespucci, from whom the actual name of America derives. On the pedestal supporting the Virgin are the words Misericordice Domini plena est Terra. The lower portion of Ghirlandajo's painting represents the Descent from the Cross, with the Virgin, S. Mary Mag- dalen, S. Joseph of Arimathea, and six Saints. On the wall- space between the third and fourth chapels is a fresco by Botticelli of ^. Augustine praying, a good specimen of this master's work. The high altar is richly adorned with marble and bronze ornaments, and in a reliquary behind the altar is preserved the chief treasure of the church — the robe worn by S. Francis of Assisi at the time he received the " Stigmata ". In the left transept is the entrance to the sacristy, which contains a good fresco of the Crucifixion by Gerini (?), a pupil of Taddeo Gaddi, and a painted crucifix attributed by Vasari to Giotto himself. In the left aisle of the nave, exactly opposite the fresco already mentioned by Botticelli, is a fresco of S. Jerome in his study with his lion beside him, an early work by Domenico Ghirlandajo, executed in 1480. The entrance to the first cloister of the former Franciscan convent is to the left of the fagade of the church. The small cloister is covered with paintings by Ligozzi, Giovanni da San Giovanni, etc., depicting scenes from the life of S. Francis and portraits of distinguished ecclesiastics of the Franciscan Order. From this cloister the visitor enters the old Refectory, a long, handsome chamber containing a few architectural fragments and early paintings, whilst its eastern wall is covered by Ghirlandajo's Fresco of the Last Supper, painted in 1480, somewhat inferior to the same artist's Cenacolo in San Marco, but a fine piece of work (entrance fee, 25 c). S. ONOFRIO— OR S. MICHELE 99 Sanf Onofrio, Convent of. — The suppressed Convent of Sant 5 Onofrio at No. 58 in the Via Faenza contains a small collection of pictures of no great value, whilst in the former refectory of the convent is the Cenacolo di Fuligno, a fine fresco of the Last Supper which is commonly attributed to Raphael, since the inscription Raf. Urb. 1505, on the collar of S. Thomas, is generally considered sufficient evidence to prove this to be an early work of the great master. How- ever, the authorship of the fresco is still a matter of dispute amongst critics. Of the pictures preserved here that of the Angel Gabriel, by Carlo Dolci, is the best (entrance fee, 50 c). Or San Michele. — This celebrated church derives its name from the former Chapel of San Michele in Orto (in the garden), or in Horreo (in the granary), which in the thirteenth century stood here in a loggia of brick with a wooden roof. In 1336 Taddeo Gaddi, or perhaps Talenti, rebuilt the loggia and the rooms above it, in order to form a place more worthy of the much venerated picture of the Madonna which is still preserved here, and also to serve as a suitable and ample corn-exchange. In the terrible year of the plague, 1348, of which Boccaccio has left us so vivid an account, the offerings at this popular shrine amounted to no less a sum than 3500 golden florins, whereupon the Signoria determined to turn the loggia into a church, and for this purpose Andrea Orcagna (?) filled in the open spaces, whilst Simone di Franceso Talenti added the richly decorated Gothic windows that are so marked a feature of the present building. The upper storeys were used as granaries so late as the sixteenth century, when Cosimo I ordered the archives to be placed here. The lower storey of this square, box-like erection, part chapel and part corn-exchange, was embellished at different times with a series of bronze or marble statues set in ornate niches that were placed here by the various Guilds of Florence with their emblems in the medallions above, some of these heraldic achievements being the work of the Delia Robbia. Beginning with the eastern side of the church, abutting on the Via Calzaioli, and proceeding towards the left, the follow- ing bronze statues are to be noticed : (1) 5. Luke, by Gian- Bologna, the latest of the series, erected in 1601 by the advocates and notaries, (2) The unbelieving 5. T/iomas ioo FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES feeling the wound-prints of Christ, a splendid composition begun by Donatello, but chiefly executed by Andrea Verroc- chio, the gift of the Guild of Merchants (Magistrate) delta Mercanzia) in 1483. (3) S.John the Baptist, by Ghiberti, for the Guild of Wool Merchants, or Arte di Calimala, placed herein 141 4. On the south side, (4) S.John the Divine, by Baccio da Montelupo, in 151 5, made for the members of the Guild of Silk, or Arte delta Seta, the special patrons of Or San Michele. The empty niche adjoining was formerly filled by a statue of the Madonna and Child by Simone Ferrucci, which was transferred into the interior of the church in 1630 on account of the supposed miraculous powers of this Madonna. The small Madonna and Child in the medallion above are by Luca della Robbia. (5) S. James, attributed to Nanni di Banco, in the niche reserved for the Furriers. (6) S. Mark, by Donatello, one of this master's finest and most satisfactory productions : Marco, fterchl non mi parlif is the salutation said to have been addressed to this statue by Michelangelo, who also added that such a noble countenance would be sufficient to vouch for the truth contained in his Gospel. It was erected for the Guild of Flax Merchants. On the west facade which has the entrance, (7) S. Eloy, or Eligius, patron of Jewellers and Blacksmiths, by Nanni di Banco. (8) S. Stephen, by Ghiberti, for the Guild of Wool-traders, or Arte della Lana, erected in 1428 and perhaps the best of the statues adorning the church. (9) S. Matthew, by Ghiberti also, erected in 1420 with the help of Michelozzo, who also designed its graceful niche for the Arte del Canibio. On the north side, (10) a modern bronze, replacing the famous statue of S. George by Donatello, removed to the National Museum of the Bar- gello. It had been executed for the Guild of Sword-makers and Armourers. The marble bas-relief by Donatello below the niche shows the Saint slaying the dragon. (11) The next niche contains four Saints by Nanni di Banco, for the four Guilds of Smiths, Carpenters, Masons, and Sculptors. The group consists of SS. Claudius, Nicostratus, Sinjronius, and Castorius, " I Quattro Incoronati," that were thrust into this cramped space by the action of Donatello, Nanni's master. The fine bas-relief below shows the interior of a Florentine sculptor's workshop. (12) S. Philip, also by Nanni di Banco, was the donation of the Guild of Shoe- * ^ OR S. MICHELE 101 makers. (13) S. Peter, by Donatello, an inferior work, exe- cuted for the Guild of Butchers (beccai), whose ancient guild- house with its emblem of the goat (beccd) stands opposite this side of the church. The interior of the church, having been once a loggia, con- sists of a plain rectangle with a nave divided by massy square columns, and has a vaulted ceiling, its walls and pillars being still partially covered with the frescoes executed here by Jacopo da Casentino, a pupil of Taddeo Gaddi. The upper lights of the intricate traceried windows are filled with richly coloured stained glass, so that the whole effect of this unique church, though dimly lit, is harmonious and reverential in a high degree. The first altar on the right contains an ancient wooden crucifix, interesting as having frequently assisted in the devotions of the good Bishop Antonino and of Savonarola. Over the principal altar, that of S. Anna, whose festival of 26 July, 1343, witnessed the expulsion of the Duke of Athens, is a marble group of the Virgin and Child with S. Anna, by Francesco da Sangallo, and to the left of this the Statue of the Madonna, by Simone Ferrucci da Fiesole, which on ac- count of miraculous powers was removed hither from its niche outside the church. In the south-west angle of the church, in a dark and most unsuitable position for so splendid a monument, stands the famous Shrine of Andrea Orcagna, " a miracle of loveliness," one of the most valuable and perfect examples of Italian Gothic decoration in existence. This elaborate work was begun after the plague of 1348, and took its architect and his assistants some fourteen years to complete ; a circum- stance not to be wondered at, when the close finish and the delicate ornaments of this marvellous shrine are carefully inspected. Built with the object of forming a suitable setting for the miraculous picture already mentioned of the Virgin and Child with attendant angels, believed to have been painted in 1347 by Bernardo Daddi, to replace an older painting by Ugolino da Siena, this structure consists of a square, railed- in space which contains an immense turreted Gothic taber- nacle, surmounted by a dome and crowned by an image of the Archangel Michael. In the principal niche facing the church is set Daddi's sacred picture, which is usually covered with drapery that the sacristan will remove only after lighting the tapers on the altar below, according to an ancient and io* FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES honourable custom ordained by the Captains of the Company of S. Michael. The whole shrine with its screen is one harmonious whole of the most exquisite and glorious decora- tions in bronze, mosaic, and marbles. It is lavishly covered with sculpture, the three bas-reliefs in front of the altar representing the Annunciation and Marriage of the Virgin with the central panel depicting Hope. The various bas- reliefs that cover the lower portion of the shrine represent other incidents in the story of the life of the Virgin and are all of consummate beauty. On the east side of the shrine is a large relief of the Death and Assumption of the Virgin, below which is the artist's inscription in Gothic characters, Andrea Cionis Pictor Florentinus Oratorii Archi?nagister Extitit Hujus MCCCLIX. Alternating with the scenes from the Life of the Madonna are the theological and cardinal virtues, whilst at the angles of the shrine appear figures of prophets, angels, and evangelists. Of special beauty is the marble screen surrounding the shrine with its Gothic tracery in bronze, whilst its light elegant columns at the corners are surmounted by angels bearing candlesticks in their hands. This magnificent piece of work, which is so unfortunately placed in this dimly-lit corner of Or San Michele, requires an unusual amount of careful attention to understand its extraordinary richness and delicacy of workmanship, but probably no object of art in all Florence better repays a close inspection. Opposite the entrance door of the church is the picturesque ancient Guild House of the Wool Combers, the Arte della Lana, once the most important and wealthy of the civic cor- porations of Florence. The building, whereon are conspicu- ously displayed the Lamb and Cross of the old Florentine guild, is joined by a flying arch to the upper chamber over the church and has recently been restored to something of its original appearance, having been purchased by the Italian Dante Society (Societa Dantesca) for its head-quarters in Florence. This society, which was chiefly founded through the efforts of the late Michelangelo Gaetani, Duke of Sermoneta, now possesses a fine set of rooms in this build- ing, as well as the spacious vaulted chamber above the church, which is often used for literary meetings and lectures. The Shrine with the ancient painting of the Madonna attri- buted to Jacopo da Casentino, enclosed within an ironwork S. SALVI— THE SCALZO 103 grille at the corner of the building, was opened by Queen Margherita of Italy in state in 1905 in the presence of a vast multitude. This ancient painting formerly stood at one of the corners of the Old Market, and had interesting but melancholy associations from having been the Madonna which condemned criminals saw and implored on their way to the place of execution. The coats-of-arms in colour sur- rounding it represent the various heads of Florentine families who subscribed to the restoration of this historic building. San Salvi. — The Church and former Convent of San Salvi lie in the eastern suburbs outside the Barriera Aretina, and can be reached from the Piazza del Duomo by means of the Rovezzano tram-line, which passes within three minutes' walk of the buildings, stopping at a point called the Madonnone, where is a shrine of the Madonna with a fourteenth-century fresco. The buildings of the former Vallombrosan convent have long been secularized, but the Refectory and some ad- joining rooms have been converted into a small museum (entrance fee, 50 a). There is nothing of importance, how- ever, except the truly glorious Cenacolo, or fresco of the Last Supper, by Andrea del Sarto, on the wall of the refectory, executed for the Abbot of San Salvi in 1 5 19. This is one of the master's finest works, and is considered to rank second only in point of grace and execution to the famous Last Supper of Leonardo da Vinci at Milan. At the back of the museum stands the conventual church with a pretty portico and tower. At San Salvi the large building near the rail- way is the chief Manicomio, or Lunatic Asylum of Florence. Scalzo, Cloister of the. — The Scalzo, or former cloister of the bare-footed friars, stands in the Via Cavourat the farther extremity of the fine Renaissance palace (formerly Palazzo Medici) which is now the Court of Assize. The tiny cloister with its valuable frescoes has been converted into a small museum (entrance fee, 25 a). To those who admire the genius of Andrea del Sarto, the Scalzo will prove of particu- lar interest, after inspecting the master's works in the Church of the Annunziata hard by. The series of frescoes in grisaille, which have suffered greatly from damp and exposure in the past, represent sixteen scenes from the life of S. John the Baptist, together with four groups of emblematic figures of the Cardinal Virtues near the two doors of the cloister. The io 4 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES execution of these paintings occupied the artist nine years, from 1517-26; but during his brief absence at the court of Francis I of France, his pupil Franciabigio contributed two of the series, namely, the Departure of the Baptist from his home (No. 5) and the Meeting of the Baptist and the Saviour (No. 6). The most popular of these paintings are the Birth of the Baptist (No. 4), the Dance of the Daughter of Herodias (No. 15), and the beautiful group known as Charity, near the farther doorway. Santo Spirito. — This church, the chief seat of the Augus- tinians in Florence, stands on a raised stone platform with its unfinished facade in the Piazza Santo Spirito and with its eastern side on the broad Via del Presto. It is the largest church in Oltr' Arno, and undoubtedly the best of the Renaissance churches of Florence. The present building was begun in 1433 from designs of Brunelleschi, who is said to have taken the little Basilica of Santi Apostoli for his model. The heads of numerous leading Florentine families undertook to bear the expense, notably the Capponi, whose coat-of-arms — Per bend, argent and sable — and also those of other donors are to be seen set in the long nave above the windows facing the Via del Presto. In 1480 the half-finished church was burnt to the ground during the fetes held here in honour of Galeazzo- Maria Sforza, Duke of Milan, but the original plan of Brunelleschi was happily adhered to, though with some modifications, so that this church still remains one of the great architect's most imposing productions. It is cruciform in plan with a cupola at the point of intersection of the transepts. Its length is over 300 ft., and its breadth at the transepts is about 1 80 ft. The graceful campanile, so familiar an object from the Lung' Arno, was added by Baccio d'Agnolo about 15 16. The interior, with its harmonious proportions and its long lines of stone pillars with rounded arches, is singularly im- pressive, and is far more pleasing in its general effect than the Basilica of San Lorenzo by the same great architect. In the facade is the handsome circular stained-glass window with the subject of the Descent of the Holy Spirit, designed by Perugino (?). The many chapels of the lengthy nave offer little of interest, but those in the transepts and tribune con- tain numerous paintings and works of art that are worthy of close attention. The choir and high altar beneath the dome CHARITY From the fresco by slndrea del Sarto in the cloister of the Scalzo CHURCH OF S. SPIRITO 105 are enclosed within a fine balustrade of coloured marbles and bronze, with statues of the Virgin, S. John, and six angels at its angles. It is a splendid though late work by Gian- Battista Michelozzi, and was completed in 1608. The altar and tabernacle above are composed of fine Florentine pietra dura work, and afford good specimens of this style of orna- ment. Lamps of silver and ornaments of bronze furnish the altar. Although of much later date than the church itself, this erection seems to harmonize admirably with the elegant but simple Renaissance architecture of the interior. The series of chapels in the transepts and tribune contains a number of interesting paintings, whilst many of the original picture-frames and altar-fronts of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries remain here in situ. In the right transept, in the second chapel, is a picture by Francesco Botticini of S. Monica, mother of S. Augustine of Hippo, with Augustinian nuns kneeling before her — an interesting work, but difficult to inspect in so dark a corner. In the fifth chapel is a fine picture by Filippino Lippi, in an old frame of carved and gilded woodwork, of the Madonna Supported by SS. Nicholas, Catherine, and other Saints. This important picture was commissioned by Tanai dei Nerli, the bitter foe of Savonarola, and he and his wife are herein represented as kneeling on either side of the group. In the distance is a view of old Florence with the Porta San Frediano and the Nerli mansion, giving a good idea of this quarter of the city in the closing years of the fifteenth century. The sixth chapel contains a copy of Perugino's celebrated Vision of S. Bernard, which was formerly here, but was sold to the Munich Gallery in 1829. The seventh chapel is one of the many belonging to the Capponi family, and holds the fine Renaissance marble Toinb of Neri Capponi, which was erected here in 1457 by Simone di Nanni Ferrucci. It also contains a curious coloured monument with a portrait of Cardinal Luigi Capponi (d. 1659). The adjoining chapel has tombs of other members of this dis- tinguished family. In the second chapel of the tribune (to the right) are some works over the altar attributed to Giotto, consisting of the Madonna and Four Saints on a gold ground. The next chapel has a Madonna Enthroned with SS. John the Divine and Jerome by Lorenzo di Credi (?) in a fine carved frame ; and the next chapel to this has an altar-front painted with a S. Luke by Neri di Bicci. io6 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES In the left transept the first chapel has an altar-piece of the Madonna Enthroned with SS. John, Bartholomew and Angels, a fine painting of the school of Botticelli. The third chapel has an altar-piece by Cosimo Rosselli, dated 1482, of the Virgin with SS. Peter and Thomas. The adjacent Chapel of the Sacrament has some beautiful marble sculpture and decorations by Andrea Sansovino. The semi-circular marble balustrade is later in date (1642). In the first chapel, to the left of the Chapel of the Sacrament, is a Majesty with SS. Mary of Egypt and Catherine in adoration, a fine and well- preserved work by Raffaelino del Garbo (?). In the second chapel to the left is an altar-piece of the Madonna with SS. Nicholas and Bartholomew, of the school of Botticelli. The altar-piece of the third chapel is a beautiful work by Raffaello di Carlo, dated 1505, representing the Madonna with SS. Lawrence, John, Stephen, and Ber?iard. In the neighbouring Cappella Cavalcanti is buried the unfortunate Gian-Battista Cavalcanti, who was murdered on 25 May", 1652, as well as his lady-love Maddalena Antinori, the lady by her relations and young Cavalcanti by his rival Carnesecchi. As a sequel to this Florentine love-tragedy, the two murdered lovers were entombed near each other, in the respective chapels of their families, the Cappella Antinori being the first chapel in the north aisle of the nave, close to the entrance of the sacristy. The Sacristy, which is approached by a broad corridor with an elaborate vaulted ceiling, is a noble octagonal chamber with four niches in its corners, built by Giuliano da Sangallo in 1489 from designs by Cronaca. The delicately carved capitals of the pillars by Sansovino are worthy of notice. Amongst its decorations is a pretty fresco over the entrance door of S. Augustine and the Child playing by the seashore. According to the legend, the child was reproved by the Saint for trying to fill a small hollow with the contents of the ocean, to which the child retorted that his was an easier task than that of the Saint, who was then vainly seeking to solve the Divine mystery of the Trinity. There are two cloistered courts belonging to the former monastery of the Augustinians now utilized as barracks. The larger of these is reached by the corridor of the sacristy, and contains a statue of the Augustinian saint, Nicholas of Tolentino, whose sextenary was kept recently S. STEFANO— S. TRINITA 1107 with great splendour in this church. The second cloister, built by Ammannati in 1564, contains the ancient chapel of the Corsini, which has some monuments of members of that family. The Church of San Stefano, "ad Portam Ferream," stands in the little piazza of the same name off the narrow and crowded Via Por Santa Maria, a little to the north-east of the Ponte Vecchio. The fine old Torre dei Girolami, sometimes called the Torre di San Zenobio (whose figure is represented on its side in low-relief), communicates with this church at the corner of Via Lambertesca. The church possesses an old black and white marble facade of the eleventh century, and in its iron doorway is nailed a horse- shoe, concerning which many local legends have arisen, the most unlikely of them assigning this relic to the horse of the murdered Buondelmonte in the thirteenth century. Owing to this iron gate the church has received the additional descriptive name of Ad Porta?n F err earn. In 1656 San Stefano was modernized and decorated in a gorgeous manner, so that it has preserved but little of its ancient appearance. The high altar has some good bronze ornaments by Tacca. Santa Trinita. — The Piazza Santa Trinita is a small irregular space off the Via Tornabuoni, close to the Ponte Santa Trinita. The centre of the piazza is occupied by a tall column of antique granite removed hither from the Baths of Caracalla in Rome and presented to the Grand- Duke Cosimo I by Pope Pius IV (Gian-Angelo Medici) in 1563. This tall pillar is surmounted by a figure of Justice in red porphyry with a bronze robe, which was added by Francesco I in 1581. On the western side of the piazza is the facade of the Church of Santa Trinita, one of the oldest foundations in Florence, and so beautiful a specimen of Tuscan Gothic that Michel- angelo was wont to speak of it as u la sua dama," or his lady-love. It became the property of the Vallombrosan monks in the eleventh century. It was re-erected, according to the historian Villani, from a design of Niccolo Pisano in the fourteenth century and completed in the following century by other architects who followed Niccolo's plan. In 1593 this beautiful Gothic church was terribly altered by Buonta- lenti, who destroyed its ancient facade with mosaics and replaced it by the existing rococo front. In 1884 a thorough and careful restoration was begun, so that the church has to io8 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES a certain extent recovered its former appearance of a Gothic building of the fourteenth century. The beautiful interior, which consists of nave, aisles, and transepts, contains numerous works of art, and should be visited if possible in the early morning, since it is very dark. The aisles are lined by a series of chapels belonging to the chief families in Florence. Right aisle — the first chapel, formerly that of the Gianfigliazzi who owned the adjoining palace, contains on the right wall a fresco of the school of Giotto representing 5. Osimo with S. Mary of Egypt. In the third chapel is a Madonna and Saints by Neri di Bicci. The fourth chapel, Cappella Bartolini-Sali?nbeni, is enclosed by a fine iron grille of the fifteenth century. Its frescoes are attributed to . Lorenzo Monaco, who also painted its Gothic altar-piece, an Annunciation, a much admired work of this master. The fifth or adjoining chapel (Cappella Ardinghelli), recently restored with care and taste, has a fine altar by Bene- detto da Rovezzano. In the sacristy, which is approached from the north transept, is the fine Renaissance Tomb of Onofrio Strozzi ( 1 41 7) in the manner of Donatello. Opening on to this transept is the chief glory of this church, the Cappella Sassetti, with its frescoes by Domenico Ghirlandajo. The altar-piece is a copy of the beautiful original painting by Ghirlandajo, the Nativity and Adoration of the Shep- herds, once at this spot but since removed to the Accademia delle Belle Arti. The subject of these Frescoes is the life of S. Francis of Assisi, and they should be compared with those of Giotto of an earlier date but on the same subject in the Bardi Chapel of Santa Croce. These frescoes were executed in the year 1485, and are therefore earlier in date than the same artist's work in the choir of Santa Maria Novella. Beginning with the topmost subject on the left: (1) S. Francis having bestowed all his garments on the poor is protected by the Bishop of Assisi, who wraps his episcopal mantle round the youthful Saint. (2) Pope Honorius III approves the rules of the new Order ; an incident which the artist has depicted as taking place in the loggia of the Piazza della Signoria, giving us thereby an interesting view of the chief Florentine square as it existed in the year 1485. Amongst the various contemporary por- traits introduced is that of Lorenzo dei Medici, who is walking up the steps to the right. (3) S. Francis before the Moham- CHURCH OF S. TRINITA 109 medan Sultan of Syria offers to pass through the fire unhurt, if the Sultan will embrace Christianity. Lower row, to the left of spectator : (4) S. Francis receives the miraculous wounds known as the " Stigmata". (5) (Over the altar), S. Francis appearing in a glory restores to life a child of the Spini family that has fallen from a window of the great Palazzo Spini, which the painter here introduces together with the old facade of Santa Trinita and the ancient bridge by Gaddi. (6) The death of S. Francis, perhaps the best of the series, with the artist's portrait introduced in the figure with a red dress standing behind the bishop at the head of the bier. On either side of the altar are portraits of the donor Francesco Sassetti and of Nera Corsi his wife, with the date i486 below. The handsome Tombs of dark marble on either side are by Giuliano da Sangallo. On the ceiling are painted the Four Prophets. Left Transept. — In the chapel next to the high altar is preserved the celebrated Crucifix of San Giovanni Gualberto, the founder of the Vallombrosan Order, who is said to have been kissed by the figure on this cross for having spared the murderer of his brother. Originally placed at San Miniato, the traditional scene of this miracle, the crucifix was claimed by the Abbot of Santa Trinita, who was finally allowed by Cosimo III in 1671 to gain possession of the coveted relic, to which were attached many spiritual privileges. In the next chapel is the Monume?it of Benozzo Federighi) Bishop of Fiesole (d. 1450), which has a beautiful recumbent effigy and is a fine work of Luca della Robbia. The whole tomb, which is divided into three compartments, is surrounded by a lovely border of enamelled tiles with coloured fruits and foliage. This work has only recently been transferred hither from the little chapel of San Francesco da Paola outside the Porta San Frediano. Left Aisle of Nave. — The first chapel from the high altar contains a wooden Statue of the Magdalen by Desiderio da Settignano. The second chapel possesses the tomb of the historian Dino Compagni (1323). In the third chapel, that of the Davanzati, is an ancient Christian sarcophagus used as the tomb of Giuliano Davanzati (d. 1444), and an altar-piece of the Annunciation by Neri di Bicci. The northern side of the church and the former conventual buildings extend along the adjacent Via Parione, whence is entered the cloister. no FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES P if a n of the Urnzi Gallery ACCORDING TO RECENT ALTERATIONS - 1910 et: 18 17 16 20 13 4-1 11 10 I22J83 } a* I ^[ao j Venetian School I Venetian School II 10. Tuscan Hall II 11. Hall of the Maps 12. Tuscan Hall III 13.Tribuna 14. Italian Schools 15. Dutch School 16. Flemish School. 1 T.German School. 18. French School. 19. Cabinet of Gems. 20.South or Second Corridor. 21. West or Third Corridor. 22,23,24,25,26,27, 28, 29. Rooms of the Painters' Portraits. 30. Corridor leading to the Pitti. 31. Hall of Van der Goes. 32.Hall of Rubens. 33, 34. Hall of Inscriptions and Hermaphro- dite. 35. Hall of Baroccio. 36.Hall cftheNiobe 3 7. Hall of Giovanni di San Giovanni. 3S.30. Rooms of Pastels and Miniatures. 40, Drawings (closed). GALLERIES THE UFFIZI GALLERY ENLIGHTENED patrons of art and letters, the Medici of f the elder line laid the foundations of this gallery which, taken as a whole, is the most important collection ever brought together through the efforts of a single family. Their policy was continued by succeeding generations, and despite changes of dynasty. The Grand-Duke Cosimo I kept artists at work throughout his reign (1537-74) ; but the credit for the foun- dation of the Uffizi belongs to his son Francis I (1574-87) and his successors. This prince directed the architect, Bernardo Buontalenti (1 535-1608), to close in the eastern terrace of the palace erected by Vasari for Cosimo I with the intention to gather under one roof the pictures, etc., dis- seminated in the town and country houses of his family. Several small rooms and the octagonal. Tribune, surmounted by a gilded stucco and mother-of-pearl dome, were decorated by the best artists of the day. Ferdinand I (1 587-1609) bought statuary excavated in Rome, notably the celebrated Venus. Little more was done at the Uffizi during Cosimo IPs short reign (1609-21), but Ferdinand II (1621-70) directed the south and west terraces to be covered in and decorated. Amongst his principal additions to the gallery were the Delia Rovere pictures ; his brother Cardinal Leo- poldo dei Medici's collection of Artists' Portraits, which is being continued to this day ; the Venetian pictures purchased by him from the Florentine merchant Paolo del Sera at Venice ; and a fine collection of drawings by celebrated masters. Cosimo III (1670- 1723) enriched the Uffizi with a choice collection of Dutch pictures, and the Venus, the Knife-Whetter, and the Wrestlers, brought from the Medici Villa at Rome, besides statuary from the Boboli Gardens. ii2 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES Gian-Gastone, the last of the Medici princes, dying in 1737, his sister Anna-Maria-Luisa, the widowed Electress Palatine, devised all the family property, real and personal, to the city of Florence in perpetuity, thus securing these art collec- tions irremovably to the Tuscan State. The succession of the House of Lorraine proved no check to the growth of the gallery. The Emperor Francis I like- wise bought sculpture, whilst his son Pietro-Leopoldo (1765- 90), on succeeding to the Grand-Duchy, initiated far- reaching changes. All the works of art hitherto dispersed in the Medicean villas, the offices of suppressed public bodies, convents, and churches were ordered to be collected under one roof. The west corridor, injured by fire in 1772, was restored, and in 1779 the Hall of Niobe built for that fine group of statues. Pietro-Leopoldo also threw open the collection to the public. The reign of his son Ferdinand III (1790- 1 824) was marred by the French interregnum ( 1 801 -14), during which a number of paintings were tempor- arily removed to Paris ; still many additions were made, notably at the Pitti. Some nine hundred inscriptions, frag- ments, etc., from Thebes and Abydos were purchased by Leopold II ; and in 1866 the long gallery uniting the two Palaces of the Pitti and Uffizi was filled with the overflow from the Palace store-rooms. The re-arrangement of the entire collection, commenced in recent years upon scientific lines, is now virtually complete, through the addition of a number of new rooms. The ac- companying plan is taken from the recent (1910) catalogue, from which also much valuable information has been drawn. Visitors can ascend the stairs or reach the gallery by means of a lift. In the vestibule at the end stand portrait-busts of members of the Medici and Lorraine families, the founders and benefactors of the museum. In the circular hall we note three fine Hellenic statues — two hounds and a wild boar. The latter was cast in bronze by Tacca, the pupil of Gian- Bologna, for the Loggia del Mercato Nuovo. East Corridor A comprehensive survey of the development of religious art from the twelfth to the sixteenth century is here obtainable. Owing to their vast number, only the most important paint- ings are mentioned. THE UFFIZI GALLERY 113 No. 3. Italian School. Twelfth century. The Crucified Saviour. The belief commonly held in the eleventh century that when Longinus inflicted the spear- wound the Saviour's life was not extinct, finds expression in the open eyes of this picture. No. 8. Lorenzo Monaco. Christ in the Garden. Formerly attributed to Giotto. No. 10. Tuscan School. Fourteenth century. S. Bar- tholomew. The Saint is holding a knife, the instrument of his martyr- dom. No. 14. Giovanni del Biondo. S.John the Evangelist. He is depicted with three fine symbolic figures, Pride, Avarice, and Vanity at his feet. No. 17. Giovanni del Biondo. The Translation of S. Joh?t the Evangelist. The legend tells how, S. John being carried up to heaven, a fountain of manna was seen to issue from the empty grave. The composition recalls Giotto's fresco in Santa Croce. No. 15. Pietro Lorenzetti. The Virgin and Child (i34o). This picture is recorded by Vasari as painted for the Church of S. Francesco at Pistoia. No. 16. Pietro Lorenzetti. Scenes of Hermit Life in the Thebdid. Angels minister to their needs, and wild beasts perform domestic offices for SS. Paul, Macarius, Anthony Abbas, and their companions in the desert. The Nile is dotted with quaint craft, blown about by the winds. A delightfully naive composition in which religious sentiment makes up for the lack of perspective. No. 26. Bernardo Daddi. The Virgin and Child with SS. Matthew and Nicholas of Bari. A votive picture, dated 1328, commissioned for the Con- vent of Ognissanti. No 20. Tuscan School. Fourteenth century. Scenes from the Life of S. Cecilia. Vasari was mistaken in attributing this picture to Cimabue. The eight small scenes depict episodes in the Saint's life, viz. : (1) Her marriage. (2) S. Cecilia and her husband Valerian. (3) She is crowned by angels. (4; SS. Cecilia, Valerian, and his brother Tiburtius. (5) The Baptism of ii4 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES Tiburtius. (6) S. Cecilia converts the soldiery. (7) Her appearance before the Prefect. (8) Her martyrdom. No. 27. GiOTTlNO (?). The Entombment. Impressiveness is obtained through simplicity in grouping the figures. Note the Magdalen kneeling beside S. Benedict. The nun is probably intended for his sister S. Scholastica. The donor, a young girl guarded by S. Zanobi, presents a charming figure. No. 28. Att. to Taddeo Gaddi. The Annunciation. The expression and attitudes are graceful. The scenes of the predella, especially the Nativity, should be noticed. No. 29. Niccolo di Pietro Gerini. The Coronation of the Virgin. Polyptych. The artist was assisted by a pupil, Jacopo di Lino. The composition with numerous figures is impressive. The Saints are the special Protectors of Florence : SS. John the Baptist, Matthew (Patron of Money-changers), Catherine (Patroness of Orators), Clement, Florentia (with a model of the city), John the Evangelist, Anthony Abbas, Zanobi, and the Martyr- Virgin Reparata. The handsome frame is emblazoned with the Arms of the Guilds. No. 31. Giovanni dal Ponte. The Coronation of the Virgin. Triptych. S. Ivo, the Patron Saint of Lawyers, stands on the Virgin's left, beside S. Dominic. No. 1292. Giovanni dal Ponte. Scenes from the Life of S. Peter. Predella. Brilliant colour and considerable freedom of composition distinguish these little scenes, especially that of S. Peter conferring ecclesiastical dignities. The Apostles are SS. Andrew, John, Philip, Matthew, Thomas, James, and Luke. No. 35. Tuscan School. Fifteenth century. S. Martin and the Beggar. Predella. A votive picture of the Vintners' Guild, whose arms, a cup, are emblazoned upon the frame. S. Martin is regarded as the Patron Saint of Drinkers. No. 36. M. Ariotto di Nardo. The Annunciation. Sadly injured and re-painted. No. 32. Giovanni da Milano. All Saints. Polyptych. This notable painting was executed, as Vasari records, for the Church of Ognissanti. Representative Saints are arranged in pairs. SS. Lucia and Catherine ; Stephen and THE UFFIZI GALLERY 115 Lawrence ; John the Baptist and Luke ; Peter and Benedict ; James and Gregory. The lower portion contains the choirs of Virgins, Martyrs, Apostles, Patriarchs, and Prophets, amongst them Noah holding the Ark. Note in small medal- lions the Days of the Creation. No. 40. Lorenzo Monaco. Pietd (1404). The scenes from the Passion are most delicately painted. No. 37. Spinello Aretino. The Crucifixion. Predella. The grouping of the numerous small figures is spirited. No. 45. Bicci di Lorenzo. SS. Cosimo and Damiano. This painting, so far as is known the artist's single authentic work, was commissioned in 1429 for the Duomo. The two Physician-Saints, in their scarlet doctor's robes, hold the instruments of their profession. Note in the predella the familiar miracle : an amputated limb healed by the substitu- tion of a leg from a negro's dead body. No. 43. Zanobi Strozzi. Portrait of Giovanni di Bicci dei Medici. Vasari records this likeness of the worthy Florentine mer- chant, the father of Cosimo the Elder. The shrewd humorous face must have been a speaking likeness, and served as the model for all the later " official portraits " of the ancestor of the ruling House. No. 44. Zanobi Strozzi. 5. Lawrence. A characteristic work, but damaged and restored. Note the predella with the Martyrdom of the Saint and his De- liverance of Souls from Purgatory. No. 19. SlENESE SCHOOL. Fifteenth century. The Marriage of S. Catherine. The Saints are SS. Dorothy and Agnes, and to the right S. Barbara and a nun, probably S. Catherine of Siena. No. 54. Neri di Bicci. The Virgin and Child. Sadly restored. The child holds the pomegranate, symbo- lizing his Life and Passion. No. 53. Neri di Bicci. The Annunciation. The delicate colour of this graceful composition recalls the art of Filippo Lippi. It was commissioned, as the inscription records, in 1458. No. 62. Tuscan School. Fifteenth century. The Game of the Owl. Artistically of little value, this painting is nevertheless interesting as a record of " manners " and Florentine popular n6 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES sports. The game consists in mimicking a whispered word, which has to be guessed by the onlookers. No. 63. Cosimo ROSSELLI. The Coronation of the Virgin. A brilliantly coloured but somewhat crowded composition. Nos. 66, 67, 68. School of Botticelli. Fifteenth cen- tury. The Story of Esther and Ahasuerus. These spirited little scenes formed the decoration of a dower-chest. The glimpse afforded us under the disguise of a biblical scene of the mode of life of the wealthy Florentine citizens of the day is most attractive. No. 66 depicts the banquet, with a great display of gold plate under a gilded trellis. No. 67, that of Queen Vashti and her ladies, is no less gorge- ous though more subdued in tone, whilst in the Triumph of Mordecai, No. 68, we behold the victor's return from a tour- nament. No. 166. Sogliani. Holy Family. Warm colouring confers characteristic distinction upon this work of Lorenzo di Credi's disciple. No. 1223. Franciabigio. The Triumph of Hercules. Hercules, symbolizing Physical Energy, stands erect upon a pedestal'surrounded by scholars, soldiers, husbandmen, etc. This fine composition, the front panel of a dower-chest, was formerly attributed to Andrea del Sarto. No. 189. Domenico Beccafumi. Holy Family. A charming picture. No. 1296. Francesco Verdi (II Bachiacca). Scenes frojn the Life of S. Acasius. This delicate little composition formed the predella of an altar-piece by Sogliani. (1) The Baptism of the Saint (a Roman legionary) and his comrades by angels. (2) The angels help the Emperor Hadrian's Christian legion to victory. (3) The Martyrdom of S. Acasius and his companions on Mount Ararat. This scene is sometimes described as " the forty crowned Saints ". Nos. 1249-1282. Francesco Granacci. Scenes from the Life of Joseph. Interesting historically, these compositions formed part of the decoration of Margherita Acciajuoli's bridal-chamber upon her marriage in 1 528 to Pier-Francesco Borgherini. Her father-in-law, the wealthy Florentine merchant, had entrusted the leading artists of his day with the work, and the remaining panels by Andrea del Sarto are at the Pitti (Nos. 87, 88), THE UFFIZI GALLERY 117 whilst those by Pontormo (No. 1 13 1 ) and by Bacchiacca (Nos. 12 1 8, 1 2 19) are in the National Gallery of London. No. 90. Raffaellino di Carlo. The Virgin in Glory with Saints. An interesting delicately coloured painting brought from the monastery of San Vivaldo in Val d'Elsa. The little angels are charming. Compare the fine picture No. 200, Corsini Palace Gallery. Nos. 82, 83, 84. Piero di Cosimo. The History of Per- seus and Andromeda. An early work. These fanciful compositions, probably in- tended for a dower-chest, were painted for the Florentine merchant Francesco del Pugliese. No. 1287. Lorenzo di Credi. Holy Family. Warm and pleasing in colour. Note the devout mien and graceful attitude of the Virgin, and especially the charming landscape in the background. No. 91. Gerino d'Antonio Gerini. The Virgin En- throned with Saints. A characteristic work signed and dated 1529. The effec- tively grouped Saints are SS. James, Cosimo, Mary Magdalen, Louis, Catherine, and Roch. We retrace our steps to the Third Tuscan Hall marked No. 33 on the map (second door from the entrance) where most of the works of art purchased from the Hospital of S. Maria Nuova in 1900 are exhibited. Third Tuscan Hall A few unimportant pictures are omitted. No. 71. Fra Bartolommeo and Mariotto Alber- tinelli. The Last Judgment. This fine composition is too much damaged to pos- sess anything but an historic interest. Commissioned in 1499 by Gerozzo Doni, for the Mortuary Chapel of Santa Maria Nuova, the artist left his work unfinished when, in obedience to a vow after the execution of his friend Savona- rola, he joined the Dominican Order. The donor thereupon directed Albertinelli to complete the painting. No. 22. Raffaellino del Garbo (known also as Raf- faello Capponi). The Virgin E?tthro?ted with Attendant Saints. Fine harmonious colour is a distinguishing feature of this n8 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES painter's art. The child blesses the donor, possibly Francesco del Pugliese, kneeling in front of his patron S. Francis, beside his wife who is guarded by San Zanobi, Bishop of Florence. No. 12. Andrea del Castagno. The Crucifixion, The Virgin, S S.John, Romuald, and Benedict. A most impressive work, the life-size figures contrasting with the dark background are sculptural. This fresco, for- merly in the cloister of the suppressed Camaldolese Monas- tery of S. M. degli Angeli, was concealed under whitewash, and is sadly damaged. We can, nevertheless, appreciate the genius of the artist whose distinctive characteristic, in advance of his time, is truth to nature. The figures of the Virgin and the Evangelist are especially fine. No. 72. Sogliani. The Annunciation. This picture possesses undoubted charm. The inscription on the faldstool entreats a prayer for the artist. No. 1542. Lorenzo di Pietro (II Vecchietto). The Virgin Enthroned with Attendant Saints. Triptych. This notable but much restored work was commissioned in 1487 for the Sienese Guild of Silk Weavers. The attendant Saints are : one of the Three Kings, SS. Bartholomew, and James the Great leaning on his palmer's staff, Lawrence, Andrew, and Dominic, the latter kneeling. No. 63. Sogliani. The Dispute upon the Doctrine of Original Sin. The attitudes of the Doctors of the Church are striking. No. 1278 bis. Verrocchio. The Virgin Enthroned with Attendant Saints. Verrocchio's art is sculptural in the grouping of his figures. S. Zanobi tenders the model of a church, the projected Cathedral of Florence probably. The heads of S. Francis and S. Nicholas, the latter holding three purses, express deep religious feeling. No. 65 bis. CosiMO ROSSELLI. Madonna in Glory called " Madonna delta Stella ". The star embroidered upon the Virgin's mantle gives its name to this fine painting. No. 56. Alessio Baldovinetti. The Annuncia- tion. A park-like scene opens from the loggia where the Virgin stands to receive the Archangel's salutation. Vasari attri- butes this charming painting to Pesellino, THE UFFIZI GALLERY 119 No. 20. Andrea and Jacopo Orcagna. S. Matthew, Triptych, and Predella, by Lorenzo di Niccolb di Pietro Gerini. The figure of S. Matthew is instinct with simple dignity. Note the delicately painted small scenes on either side : (1) S. Matthew preaching in Ethiopia, exorcises the dragon, sent by the King's sorcerers to destroy him. (2) The calling of Matthew the Publican. (3) The Saint raises the son of King Egippus from the dead, in the sight of the sorcerers. (4) The death of S. Matthew. (5) King Hirtacus of Ethiopia desiring to take to wife Euphigenia the daughter of his predecessor, who had become a nun, is reproved by S. Matthew. (6) Enraged by the insult, the King sends a soldier to stab the Apostle in the back whilst celebrating Mass (Golden Legend). The predella scenes depict : The Crucifixion, and five epi- sodes from the life of S. Nicholas of Bari, viz. : (1) The en- thronement of the Saint as Bishop of Myra. (2) S. Nicholas, in response to the prayers of mariners overtaken by a tempest, appears in the rigging and brings their barque to land. (3) The Saint vindicates the innocence of three soldiers unjustly sentenced by the Roman Consul, and appears in a vision to the Emperor Constantine. (4) A certain nobleman had promised S. Nicholas to make a votive offering of a gold cup in the event of a son being born to him. Told to purloin the gift, the son is drowned. (5) S. Nicholas restores him to his parents (Golden Legend). No. 60. Alessio Baldovinetti. The Virgin and Child, with SS. Lawrence, Julian, and Anthony, John the Baptist, Cosimo and Damian, SS. Francis and Do?ninic Kneel- This painting, noteworthy for brilliance and transparency of colour and the life-like grouping of the personages, is the artist's finest work. Spring flowers star the grass in the garden, enclosed with a brocaded curtain. The Saints, con- spicuous for careful characterization, stand and kneel in de- vout attitudes before this ideal presentment of the Mother and Child. No. 61. (School of) Piero della Francesca. The Resurrection. We note only the characteristic landscape background with a hill-town overlooking the Adriatic. i2o FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES Unnumbered. The two large paintings of the Cruci- fied Saviour are attributed to Lorenzo Monaco, Hall of Lorenzo Monaco No. 1309. Lorenzo Monaco. The Coronatio?i of the Virgin. Polyptych. This magnificent altar-piece containing over one hundred figures was painted in 141 3 for the Camaldolese Monastery of S. M. degli Angeli in Florence to which Lorenzo Monaco belonged. It is his greatest work. The central group is very fine. The Founders and Patron Saints of the great Benedictine Order of which the Camaldolese and the Cis- tercians, founded respectively by SS. Romuald and Bernard, were off-shoots, are conspicuous figures amongst the attendant Saints, Martyrs, and Doctors of the Church. The six predella paintings comprise : The Nativity, the Adoration of the Magi, and four episodes from the Life of S. Benedict. Note especially the visit of the Saint to his sister S. Scholastica, and the resurrection of the novice killed by a wall thrown down by the Evil One in building their Mon- astery. Although injudicious restoration and over-cleaning make the composition appear somewhat flat, this work still remains one of the finest productions of earlier fifteenth- century art. No. 1544. BARTOLOMMEO Caporali. The Virgin and Child. A charming painting of the early Umbrian School. Its miniature-like delicacy is exquisite. No. 41. Lorenzo Monaco. The Virgin Enthroned with Saints. Triptych. This fine composition, dated 14 10, is a beautiful and characteristic work. Note the Angels behind the Virgin. The attendant Saints are SS. John the Baptist and Bar- tholomew (holding a knife), Thaddeus and Benedict. No. 23. Simone Martini and Lippo Memmi. The Annunciation. Triptych. An exquisite work signed and dated 1333. Although un- fortunately restored, we have here a beautiful example of Sienese art. The golden light, which lends such a wonderful sheen to the composition, is obtained by the application of colour upon gold-leaf. The Angel and Virgin, the former especially, are exquisite figures. The martyrs SS. Ansano, THE UFFIZI GALLERY 121 with the black and white banner of Siena, and Giulitta, patrons of the city, are characteristic. No. 1 551. Giovanni di Paolo. Virgin and Saints. A fine example of the Sienese technique which united golden colour in the flesh tints with a singular transparency. Note the Archangel with peacock-hued wings. No. 17. Fra Angelico. The Virgin Enthroned with SS. Joh7i the Baptist, Peter, and Mark. The artist's genius and his limitations are alike conspicu- ous in this great work, in which the trammels of his early training as a miniaturist hinder breadth of treatment. The Guild of Flax-weavers commissioned this picture in 1433 for their chapel dedicated to their Patron S. Mark, whose figure, be it noted, is repeated twice upon the tabernacle doors, visible thus whether open or closed. The Virgin and Child are conceived upon traditional and formal lines, but in the choir of musician-angels ascending around the frame we have twelve of the most exquisite conceptions of the art of Fra Giovanni, justly surnamed the Angelic painter. The predella depicts S. Peter preaching to the Gentiles, the Adoration of the Magi, and the Martyrdom of S. Mark, wherein the Saint is dragged to execution with a rope round his neck through the streets of Alexandria, the attempt to burn his dead body being frustrated by a violent hailstorm (Golden Legend). No. 1302. BENOZZO GOZZOLI. Predella, The Pieta Sup- ported by SS. John and Mary Magdalen, The Mystic Nuptials of S. Catherine, and to the right SS. Anthony, Abbot, and Benedict. A charming little composition. The figures are vigorously characterized. No. 1310. Gentile da Fabriano. Four Saints : SS. Mary Magdalen, Nicholas of Bari, John the Baptist, and George. These beautiful figures formed the wings of a triptych commissioned in 1423 by the Quaratesi family for the high altar of San Niccolo Oltr' Arno. The centre panel with the Virgin and Child — long supposed to be lost — is in the Royal Collection at Buckingham Palace. A water-colour copy, by the Hon. Mrs. Carpenter, was presented to the gallery by the Countess of Brownlow. Vasari's praise that " they could not be more beautiful nor better done " exactly describes the 122 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES artist's work. Note especially the delicate rendering of the Magdalen and S. George, and the gorgeous vestments, wrought with numberless little figures, of S. Nicholas. No. 39. Lorenzo Monaco. The Adoration of the Magi. Triptych. A finely coloured, impressive composition in spite of damage and restoration. The Annunciation above the centre panel and the half figures of the Saviour and Prophets in the pinnacles are by Cosimo Rosselli. No. 1304. Neroccio di Siena and Francesco di Giorgio. Scenes from the Life of S. Benedict. These Sienese artists who flourished in the latter half of the fifteenth century have lavished all the resources of their art upon these exquisite little episodes. The architectural framework, depicted with the minutest and most delicate precision, is the work of Francesco di Giorgio, and recalls Mantegna's exquisite triptych (compare No. 11 11). The miracles of the Saint are told with a charming simplicity. In the first scene he is seen kneeling in his grotto of Subiaco. The Evil One tempts the Saint to doubt Providence, terrify- ing him by calling him Maledetto — accurst — instead of by his name Benedict. Monte Cassino is visible in the back- ground. The central scene depicts the prodigy of the broken cribble, mended by the Saint's prayers, which his nurse brings to the church as a votive offering, with episodes of his childhood and his early life. The third scene depicts the visit to S. Benedict at Monte Cassino of Totila, King of the Goths, who had doubted his miraculous power of healing a deaf and dumb youth (Golden Legend). On an Easel No. 1290. FraAngelico. The Coronation of the Virgin. This deservedly popular composition is one of the artist's most exquisite productions. Note the soaring choir of angels on either side who seem to float in a sea of gold. We recog- nize that Saint in the Bishop in the blue robe to the left, beside S. Dominic. The other Saints, arrayed beneath the Saviour and His Mother, comprise Apostles,, Prophets, Bishops, Confessors, and Virgin-Martyrs, mostly recognizable by their attributes. THE UFFIZI GALLERY 123 Hall of Botticelli Nos. 70-73. Antonio and Piero Pollaiulo. Justice — Charity, These are two of the series of the seven Cardinal Virtues, commissioned in 1469 by the Tribunal of the " Mercanzia " for their Hall. The Virtues, each with her symbol, filled the panels surrounding a painting of the Virgin. The latter, long supposed to be lost, was traced to England, and is now at Strassburg. The figure of Charity is the more striking, but both pictures were in a very damaged state and have been almost entirely re-painted. No. 1299. Botticelli. Fortitude. One of the Virtues above-mentioned. Executed at the early age of twenty-four, it displays, nevertheless, all the maturity of the artist's genius. Note the fine modelling of the features, especially the hands. Nos. 1151-1158. Botticelli. Judith, The Death of Holophernes. These exquisite little compositions were, it is stated, given by the Florentine nobleman Rodolfo Sirigatti to Bianca Capello, the wife of Francis I dei Medici. Botticelli's Judith is no Jewish heroine. Stepping lightly across the greensward she carries an olive branch, as a maiden would her distaff. She is followed by an attendant who seemingly is as unconscious as her mistress of the weight of their tragic burden. Neither does the scenery of vernal grace confer reality to the biblical drama depicted in the companion picture (No. n 58). The artist was above all a lyric poet. The brilliantly coloured scene of the death of Holophernes affords him only an opportunity of displaying his dexterity in characterizing the figures with a miniature-like precision and delicate colour. No. 1 1 82. Botticelli. The Calumny of Afielles. Lucian relates how Apelles accused by Antiphilus, a rival artist, of conspiracy against the life of Ptolemy, at once vindi- cated his innocence and revenged himself upon his accuser by painting a picture of Calumny. Botticelli certainly follows Lucian's description, but treats his theme with characteristic grace. The figures are modelled with vigour, although a certain mannerism is not absent. The attitudes are somewhat theatrical ; notably of Calumny attended by her handmaidens, i2 4 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES Malice and Deceit, who are twining roses in her tresses, whilst she, bearing the torch of Discord, drags Innocence — in the guise of a helpless Youth — before the Judge — with asses' ears — sometimes called King Midas, who is listening to the whisperings of Ignorance and Suspicion ; whilst Envy — a man in ragged attire — is bearing false witness against him. The beautiful nude figure of Truth, from whom Re- morse — a sour-visaged hag — turns indignantly, should be com- pared with his Venus (No. 39). This fanciful composition was doubtless intended for the adornment of one of the chests in which the Insignia of Justice were kept in the Law Courts. Durer also depicted this subject for the Rath-Haus of Nurem- berg, in 1522. No. 3436. Botticelli. The Adoration of the Magi. A disappointing work, inasmuch as we can only hazard a guess at the artist's intention. The vigorous design and masterly grouping of horses and men are concealed beneath the colour added by a later craftsman. It is noteworthy that the knight on horseback and Verrocchio's statue of Colleoni at Venice seem inspired by the same mind. No. 1306. Antonio Pollaiuolo. Prudence. This is yet another of the series of the Virtues. The sym- bolic accessories are skilfully rendered, and the colouring is warm and deep. No. 1 1 79. Botticelli. S. Augustine. Vasari, describing " the very beautiful picture in the pos- session of the Florentine merchant, Bernardo Vecchietti," ascribes this charming and perfectly preserved little com- position to Filippo Lippi. The attitude of the Saint in his study is true to life ; note the pens and papers strewn at his feet. Compare with the fine fresco in the Church of Ognis- santi, which would seem to have inspired this little panel. No. 1 1 54. Botticelli. Portrait of Piero di Lorenzo dei Medici (?). Discussion has been rife concerning the identity of this personage. Pico della Mirandola, Giovanni dei Medici — the second son of Cosimo the Elder — or again Giuliano the younger brother of II Magnifico, murdered in the Pazzi con- spiracy have all been suggested. The resemblance, however, to a miniature portrait at Chantilly attributed to Gherardo, favours Piero, the elder son and luckless successor of Lorenzo II Magnifico. The features are strongly marked. Note also JUDITH Frotnjhe fainting by ]>otticelli in iJic Uffizi Galler THE UFFIZI GALLERY 125 the beautiful landscape background. We recognize the familiar profile of Cosimo the Elder in the gilt-plaster medal. No. 39. Botticelli. The Birth of Venus. This fine picture, one of " the many nude females " which, according to Vasari, Botticelli "painted in the city," was one of a series commissioned by Lorenzo di Pier-Francesco dei Medici for his villa of Castello, probably about the years 1484-5, after the artist's return from Rome. Recent re- search traces the sources of Botticelli's inspiration for these mythological paintings to the poems of Messer Angelo Poli- ziano and Lorenzo II Magnifico himself, where exact descrip- tions of several subjects are to be found. The poetry of motion is here rendered with perfection in the flower-laden atmosphere, and the sunlit waters, whereon the shell seems actually to glide landwards. A graceful Nymph spreads a flower-embroidered mantle before the goddess. No. 1289. Botticelli. The Madonna of the Pomegran- ate. This very beautiful composition shows us the artist in one of his tender and deeply mystic moods. His familiar fem- inine type recurs again and again, but never with deeper feeling than in the Virgin's pensive countenance and sorrow- laden eyes. The expressions of the attendant Angels are equally typical and diversified. No. 1286. Botticelli. The Adoration of the Magi. The masterpiece of the artist's early maturity. The colour is clear and harmonious ; the composition of the scene masterly. Botticelli has here assembled the leading members of the Medici family around the head of their house. Cosimo the Elder kneels at the feet of the Virgin and Child. The two other Kings are his sons Piero in red, and Giovanni in a white robe ; the latter predeceased his father. Amid a group of Florentine citizens in the foreground, all being evidently portraits, stands Lorenzo II Magnifico, a graceful youth in a crimson doublet and grey hose. The handsome Giuliano dei Medici, styled " II Bel Giulio " (the father of Pope Clement VII), stands behind Piero and Giovanni, his uncle and father. The fair-haired young man in an orange-coloured robe to the right is traditionally believed to be Botticelli him- self. No. 1267 bis. Botticelli. The Virgin and Child^ The " Magnificat ". 126 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES A masterpiece of sacred art. Botticelli's most ideal re- ligious composition. The Virgin and Child and the attendant Angels are resplendent with an ethereal loveliness. Though unfortunately restored and re-painted, few works by this artist convey a more impressive rendering of the Mystery of the Incarnation. No. 76. School of Botticelli. Virgin and Child. The colour scheme is warm and harmonious, and the attitude of the Virgin recalls the notable painting by Filippo Lippi recently brought from San Salvi to the Riccardi Palace. No. 1316. Botticelli. The Annunciation. Placed by the side of other works, this composition presents anomalies which have raised doubt concerning its authen- ticity. The inspiration, however, is certainly Botticelli's own ; the landscape is exquisite, and the movement of the Angel and the Virgin's attitude are most graceful. No. 1303. School of Botticelli. The Virgin En- throned with the Infant Christ. A very beautiful work, in which the art and influence of Filippo Lippi and Botticelli are equally marked. The expres- sion and attitude of the Virgin are characteristically graceful. The rose-garden recalls the fine painting by Botticelli in the Louvre (No. 1296). Hall of Leonardo. Da Vinci No. 3452. Lorenzo di Credi. Venus. This work, though sadly damaged and restored, possesses for us a two-fold interest : nude figures are rare in the fifteenth century, and this work is a solitary exception to Lorenzo di Credi's exclusive attachment to religious subjects. His Venus resembles Botticelli's ideal creation (compare No. 39) sufficiently to mark the distance between the two compositions. No. 1305. Domenico Veneziano. The Virgin En- throned with Attendant Saints. A new departure in Florentine art. The architectural setting of the composition and the apse behind a colonnade where the Virgin sits enthroned in her niche recall the artist's Venetian traditions. The figures are nobly modelled, and the profile of S. Lucy is charming. The other Saints are : , THE UFFIZI GALLERY 127 SS. John the Baptist (whose red mantle strikes a brilliant note of colour), Francis, and Nicholas of Bari. Nos. 71, 72, 69. Antonio and Piero del Pollaiuolo. Temperance, Faith, Hope. These figures formed part of the series of Virtues already mentioned, painted for the Hall of the Merchants' Exchange — Mercanzia. Much injured and re-painted, they possess only an historical interest. No. 1252. Leonardo da Vinci. Adoration of the Magi. Too close proximity to the spectator mars the effect of this fine work. Nevertheless, the masterly grouping enables us to form some idea of its impressiveness had the painting been completed. The Virgin recalls the u Vierge aux Rochers " in the Louvre and the National Gallery. Vasari describes this work as "unfinished," like so many of the artist's undertakings. No. 1288. Att. to Leonardo da Vinci. The Annuncia- tion. Stated to be a work of the artist's early youth — he was barely twenty-two — this composition may be dated about 1475, when the influences of classicism had asserted their mastery in Florentine art. In the severe almost sculptural ordering of the composition in which architecture and verdure form a contrast of singular beauty with the land- scape, Leonardo seems to have interpreted the scenery of his familiar Tuscany with the foreknowledge of the later fruits of travel. The dignified mien of the Virgin shows consciousness of her future state, and the gesture of the Angel foreshadows his mission with striking forcefulness. No. 65. COSIMO ROSSELLI. Adoration of the Magi. A harsh, overcrowded composition. Vasari, who errone- ously describes this picture to Pesellino, records the scholar Donato Acciajuoli as being among the bystanders ; he is possibly the figure in a black doublet with a red cloak thrown over his shoulder. No. 52. Paolo Uccello. Battle Scene. The Rout of San Romano. — This is one of a series painted, as Vasari records, for the Florentine merchant Bartolini. In its present condition Paolo Uccello's attempt — a novelty in his day — to render the heat and stress of battle through a wild medley of struggling mass of horse and foot-soldiers pro- 128 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES duces amusement. Note the foreshortening of the horse kick- ing with both hindlegs. The composition should be judged rather as a landmark in the progress of art and a notable ad- vance in the science of perspective — then in its infancy — whilst Paolo Uccello's genius can best be appreciated in the frescoes of Sta. Maria Novella and the fine equestrian figure of Sir John Hawkwood in the Duomo. Hall of Michelangelo No. iooi. Antonio del Pollaiuolo. SS. Eustace; Ja?nes, and Vincent. The vigorous design and harmonious colouring of this work display the art of the Pollaiuolo brothers to great ad- vantage. S. Eustace, the soldier-Saint, is by Piero del Pollaiuolo, and his earliest known work. The others are : The Protectors of the youthful Prince of Portugal, James, Cardinal of the title of San Eustachio, nephew to King Alphonso, who died in Florence in 1459 on ms wav t0 Germany as Papal Legate. No. 1295. Domenico Ghirlandajo. Adoration of the Magi. Brilliant colour distinguishes this fine work, executed, as the inscription states, in 1487. No. 131 5. Sebasttano Mainardi. SS. James, Stephen, and Peter Martyr. A harmonious composition. Note the deep warm colour and vigorous design. The artist was a brother-in-law and pupil of Ghirlandajo. No. 1307. Filippo Lippi. The Virgin and Child. One of Filippo Lippi's best works. His conception of feminine beauty is inspired by his romantic passion for Lucrezia Buti, whom the Virgin is said to portray. The scenery is depicted with characteristic delicacy. Painted for the private chapel of Cosimo the Elder in the Riccardi Chapel, probably about 1450. The fresco decoration of the chapel by Benozzo Gozzoli was completed some eight or ten years afterwards, when the altar-piece of the Nativity (now at Berlin) was substituted for this picture. No. 1297. Ghirlandajo. The Virgin Enthroned with the Archangels Michael and Raphael, SS. Zanobi and Giusto Kneeling. . THE UFFIZI GALLERY 129 This striking composition is deservedly praised by Vasari. He notes how the artist was the first to ftaint his accessories, flowers, ornaments, etc., without enhancing the effect by raised plaster- work, gilt and coloured. The landscape, open- ing from the architectural "garden enclosed," is very beauti- ful. S. Zanobi, the Bishop of Florence, is distinguished by the red lily on his cope. No. 1 160. Lorenzo di Credi. The Annunciation. The Virgin and the Archangel lack originality, but the artist has lavished all his skill upon the exquisite landscape. A formal garden extends beyond the handsome loggia, offering us a charming glimpse of the highly developed country life of Tuscany. The birth of Eve and the Fall are depicted in grisaille with cameo-like vigour and precision in the predella. No. 1 139. Michelangelo. The Holy Family. We have here Michelangelo's single unfinished easel painting. The sumptuous original frame was executed for Angelo Doni, whose portrait by Raphael hangs in the Pitti (No. 61). Vasari, who notes with gusto the wealthy mer- chant's ostentatious parsimony, tells us how, seeking to save something out of the stipulated price of seventy ducats, he sent the artist forty for his pains. Michelangelo demanding 100 gold pieces, Doni forwarded the original amount, but was finally constrained to pay 140 ducats to obtain possession of the picture. The lack of religious feeling in the composition is disappointing, but admiration must be unreserved for the brilliancy and sculptural qualities, es- pecially in the masterly grouping of the smaller figures. No. 74. Luca SlGNORELLl. The Holy Family. Signorelli's influence upon Michelangelo's earlier art (No. 1 1 39) is distinctly traceable in this beautiful composition. The Virgin's blue and red robes strike a warm colour note in the cool grey and green key of delicately painted vegeta- tion. Vasari records the gift of this picture by Signorelli to Lorenzo dei Medici. No. 1 29 1. Luca Signorelli. The Holy Family. This superb work is imbued with a deep and tender re- ligious sentiment. Note the attitude and expression of the child over whom S. Joseph bends devoutly. The character- istics of childhood, youth, and maturity are rendered with rare skill in the figures ; modelled with the vigour which i 3 o FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES distinguished Signorelli's art. Note the Roman scarf upon S. Joseph's shoulders. No. 75. Florentine School. Fifteenth century. The Virgin and Child. Possesses much charm of expression. No. 1298. LUCA SlGNORELLl. Predella, The Annun- ciation, The Nativity, The Adoration of the Magi. Despite restricted dimensions and the introduction of numerous small figures, Signorelli's composition imparts a striking sense of spaciousness. Note especially the Annun- ciation with a beautiful landscape background and the Adora- tion of the Magi. No. 1547. Perugino and Signorelli. The Cruci- fixion, with SS. Jerome, Francis, John the Baptist, and Mary Magdalen. A work interesting only through the introduction beside the Cross of Beato Colombini in a pale grey robe. Colombini was the founder of the Order of Ingesuati, to whom the Church of La Calza, for which this picture was painted, belonged. No. 1549. FiLiPPiNO Lippi. The Virgin Adoring the Christ-Child. The sunset glow, a rare quality in the paintings of the period which usually favoured high noon for their atmos- pheric effect, suffuses the scene. The green cypresses, upright like bronze pillars, set off the colour of the Virgin's robes, borrowed seemingly from the sky. The light is two- fold, irradiating both from the horizon and from the figure of the Christ-Child. Venetian School : First Hall Several unimportant paintings are omitted. No. 387. Paris Bordone. Portrait. A good portrait. Note the brushwork of the furred robe. Attributed also to Bernardino Licinio. No. 614. Att. to Titian. Portrait of Giovanni Dei Medici. The ascription of this portrait to Titian cannot be upheld. It is most likely a school copy of the lost original. Giovanni dei Medici (1498- 1526) was a descendant of Lorenzo, the younger brother of Cosimo the Elder, and the ancestor of the Grand-Ducal line. A soldier of fortune in the fullest THE HOLY FAMILY Front the painting by Ltica Signorelli in the Uffizi Gallery THE UFFIZI GALLERY 131 sense of the word, he met his death at Mantua fighting the Spaniards. His son Cosimo succeeded to the Dukedom of Florence after the murder in 1537 of Alessandro dei Medici. v". No. 585. School of Tintoretto. Portrait. Formerly attributed to Pordenone. c No. 609. Copy of Titian. The Battle of Cadore. l A copy of Titian ; large painting of the battle of Cadore, which was destroyed by fire in 1570 in the Ducal Palace at Venice. No. 615. Tintoretto. Portrait. Tintoretto portrays old age with singular felicity. Note the furred robe falling in stately folds. No. 589. Paolo Veronese. The Martyrdom of S.fustina. An early work ; a sketch probably for the large altar-piece in the Church of S. Justina, at Padua. No. 638. Tintoretto. Portrait of Sansovino. The celebrated Venetian sculptor and architect Jacopo Tatti, surnamed Sansovino (1479- 1570), was born in Florence. Advancing years are again depicted with singular force and psychological insight. Note the fine modelling. No. 578. ROMANINO. Portrait of a Boy. A charming little work. No. 577. Tintoretto. Portrait. A fine portrait. No. 3458. Sebastiano del Piombo. Portrait, " D Uomo Ammalato " (the invalid). The languor of a consuming sickness is admirably rendered in the melancholy countenance and hopeless look of the youthful nobleman. No. 1 1 36. Paolo Veronese. The Mystic Marriage of S. Catherine. The gold of the Saint's tresses and her gleaming robe irradiates the picture. Veronese shows himself here a master of exquisite colour harmony in the most delicate shades. No. 648. Titian. Portrait of Caterina Cornaro, Queen of Cyprus (1 454-1 510). Titian, it is known, painted in 1542 a portrait of Caterina Cornaro, who had then been dead some thirty-two years, for her family. Many replicas were made, and this painting, which discloses little if any trace of his art, was one of Cardinal Leopoldo dei Medici's purchases at Venice. The grand- daughter of the Doge Marco Cornaro, Caterina married in i 3 2 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES 1468 Jacques de Lusignan, King of Cyprus. Proclaimed " Daughter of S. Mark," she ruled her kingdom in troublous times during the fourteen years of her widowhood with con- spicuous ability, abdicating in 1489 in favour of the Republic of Venice. Caterina Cornaro retained her queenly title and state, and died in 1 5 10 at her villa of Asolo, near Treviso, the residence assigned to her by the Senate of Venice. No. 601. Tintoretto. Portrait of 'the Venetian Admiral Sebastiano Ve?iier (1501-78). A fine work of Tintoretto's maturity. Sebastiano Venier commanded the Venetian squadron at the battle of Lepanto. His tactics assured the victory of the combined forces of the Holy See, Spain, Venice, Genoa, and Malta under Don John of Austria over the Turkish fleet. Unanimously elected Doge of Venice in 1577, he died a year later. His naval successes are indicated by the Ionian Islands and ports seen in the offing. No. 571. G 10 van Francesco Caroto. Portrait of a Knight and his Esquire. This fine work was formerly given to Giorgione. The distinct resemblance between the beardless Cavalier and Giorgione's portrait of the Knight of Malta (No. 622) marks Giorgione's influence upon contemporary art. No. 1540. School of Titian. Portrait of Pope Sixtus 7^(1414-84). A copy of some earlier portrait. Francesco della Rovere was the son of a fisherman at Celles, near Savona, and was raised to the Pontificate in 1471 in succession to Paul II. No. 1 1 16. Titian. Port ait of A rchb is hop Beccadelli. In this characteristic work, executed, as may be learned from the inscription, in 1552, Titian displays strikingly his science of vigorous flesh modelling. The sombre colour scheme of the robes is harmonious, although recent restoration has in some measure disturbed the balance. Lodovico Beccadelli was Papal Legate in Venice. No. 1569. Giovanni Busi Cariani. Holy Family. A brilliantly coloured composition. The artist, a pupil of Palma Vecchio, was influenced also by Giorgione. No. 642. G. B. Moroni. Portrait of Giovamii Pa?i- tera. A spirited portrait. Giovanni Antonio Pantera holds an open book, a treatise entitled " Monarchia di Cristo " which THE UFFIZI GALLERY 133 he published in 1535, and dedicated to King Francis I of France. No. 586. G. B. Moroni. Portrait of a Man. This fine likeness, signed and dated 1 563, is said to portray Secco-Suardi, a nobleman of Brescia. Critics deplore the recent restorations whereby the harmony of the colour scheme has been disturbed. Note the inscription Et quid volo, nisi ut ardeat. No. 629. G. B. Moroni. Portrait of a Scholar. Among the artist's works in this gallery, this is the finest character study. Note the shrewd thoughtfulness expressed in the close-knit brow, and the accessories rendered with almost photographic clearness. No. 613. Att. to Tintoretto. Portrait. An interesting head. The carefully characterized linea- ments point rather to the school of Paris Bordone ; possibly Becaruzzi. No. 607. Paris Bordone. Portrait of a Young Noble- man. The handsome youth has issued victorious from the tournament ; his lance rests behind him ; the victor's chap- let lies beside the helmet surmounted by Fortune ; and the reward of his valour is shown in the small inset picture of a lady receiving Cupid's message at her balcony. The nuptial ring is attached by a cord to the aiguillette, the symbol of service, upon which letters are visible, possibly their joint names. Second Venetian Hall A few unimportant works are omitted. No. 1568. Bartolommeo Vivarini. 5. Louis of Tou- louse. A good example of the primitive Venetian school. No. 1562. Jacopo Bellini. The Virgin and Child. A fine painting, one of the few pictures known to exist by this master, the father of Giovanni Bellini. N o. 5 8 5 b is . Car p acc 10. The Fi7iding of th e Tru e Cross. A fragment of a larger composition, representing probably the Crucifixion. The figure of the youth seated looking upwards at the high priest is very striking. No. mi. MANTEGNA. Triptych—The Adoration of the Magi, The Circumcision, The Ascension. 134 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES This exquisite composition, without doubt one of the most masterly achievements of Mantegna's youth, was executed under the influence of his kinsmen, the Bellini. The " Pre- sentation in the Temple " is conceived with statuesque dignity ; note the group of the aged Simeon and the Virgin and Child. The gesture of the little lad beside them, turn- ing to hide his face in his mother's dress, adds the familiar note to the sacred episode. The " Adoration of the Magi " is no less remarkable for brilliancy and felicitous grouping of the figures. An exquisite landscape. No. 94. Giovanni Mansueti. Christ Among the Doctors. A forerunner of Giovanni Bellini. The scene is laid in a noble court, recalling that of the Doges' Palace at Venice. The Oriental garb expresses the "international character of the street life of mediaeval Venice with notable fidelity ". Nos. 630, 621. Giorgione. The Judgment of Solomon, The Child Moses Undergoes the Ordeal by Fire. These beautiful little compositions are Giorgione's earliest known works, and are the sole paintings of which the ascrip- tion has never been questioned. Executed at seventeen years of age, the distinctive characteristics of Giorgione's art, his brilliancy, the graceful grouping of his figures and an exquisite sense of natural beauty, are already conspicuous. No. 622. Giorgione. Portrait of a Knight of Malta. Despite unfortunate restoration about the head, this is one of Giorgione's finest works. The glow of the amber flesh tints gives additional value to the sombre tones of the drapery. No. 628. Bonifazio Veneziano. The Last Supper. The brilliant scene, framed in a delicate setting of white marble, is typical of Venetian art. No. 631. Giovanni Bellini. a Sacra Conversazione." Bellini's fancy has full scope in this beautiful composition which we may interpret as an allegory of the birth of Christian- ity, and the sway of Venice over Eastern nations. The Virgin is enthroned with S. Catherine crowned, and another female Saint (possibly the Magdalen) wearing the character- istic Venetian garb, a black shawl. The Christ-Child and His brethren are at play beneath the tree of Life. Asceticism and Martyrdom, prefiguring the Christian virtues, are symbol- ized by two nude figures, the hermit S. Onofrio, and S. Sebas- tian ; whilst S. Paul — the Church — stands by S. Joseph THE UFFIZI GALLERY 135 outside the balustrade, typifying the union of the old and new order. The Shepherd with his flock typifies the Venetian people ; the Centaur in his cave, Paganism in the Venetian Greek possessions ; and the Turk and Arab, seen moving away, symbolize the Eastern nations under her rule, and complete the terms of the allegory. Note the beautiful landscape with a Venetian nobleman's country residence amid the cypresses. No. 583. Vincenzo Catena. Pieta. A fine composition in grisaille, highly finished, and formerly attributed to Giovanni Bellini. No. 574. Bernardino Licinio. The Virgin and Child with S. Francis. Fine landscape. No. 1025. Mantegna. The Virgin and Child, "Ma- donna of the Quarries ". Scarcely inferior to the great triptych (No. mi), this ex- quisite little work possesses all the delicacy of a miniature, combined with the spaciousness of a vast composition. Note the pursuits of agriculture and house building depicted with microscopic minuteness in the background. Vasari, men- tioning this work, relates. that Francesco dei Medici numbered it among his dearest possessions. No. 354. Giovanni Bellini. Portrait. This characteristic and interesting head, formerly in the collection of Painters' Portraits, was believed from the inscrip- tion to be the artist himself. Note the colour contrast of the bright auburn hair against the blue sky. No. 584. Bissolo. The Virgin and Child with S. Peter and the Donor. Formerly attributed to Cima da Conegliano. Brilliant colour characterizes this work. The donor, a nun with a child in swaddling clothes, suggests its having been painted for a foundling hospital. No. 645. G. Savoldo. The Transfiguration. A fine work. . The only example of this artist in Florence. His art was strongly influenced by Giovanni Bellini. No. 584 bis. Cima da Conegliano. The Virgin and Child. A strikingly coloured painting. Note also the graceful attitudes of the mother and Child. No. 3390. Tintoretto. Portrait. 136 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES A powerful likeness. The red scarf across his shoulders makes an effective colour-note. No. 575. Lorenzo Lotto. The Holy Family with SS. Anne, Joachim, and Jerome. Signed and dated 1534 ; a very charming work. S. Anne is a most attractive figure ; note the tender devotion of her gesture. No. 639. Venetian School. Sixteenth century. Por- trait. Formerly ascribed to Moretto of Brescia, this spirited though somewhat darkened likeness is possibly by Lorenzo Lotto. No. 592. Sebastiano del Piombo. The Death of Adonis. A fine early work executed at the beginning of the six- teenth century. Venus and her nymphs are grouped in a beautiful Venetian landscape, wherein we recognize the city of Venice, including the Doges' Palace. No. 579. Paolo Veronese. The Annmiciation. A very charming representation. The grey-white archi- tecture mingles harmoniously with the delicate rose and blue colour-sc-heme of the draperies. The movement of the Angel is graceful, if somewhat theatrical. No. 155. Venetian School. Early sixteenth century. Portrait of the Poet Teofllo Folengo, " Merlin Coccaio " (1491-1544). Teofllo Folengo was born near Mantua in 1491. He joined the Benedictines at the early age of sixteen, but soon wearied of monastic life and left his Order with a young and beautiful girl Girolama Diedo. His title to celebrity rests upon a poem which he published under the name of" Merlini Coccai poetae Mantivani Macaronices libri XVII," whence arose the name of a burlesque metre styled " macaronic rhyme ". This fine portrait, however, shows us an older man than Folengo, who was little more than fifty-two when he died. No. 619. Palm a Vecchio. Judith. This painting is a replica of the picture in S. Maria della Salute at Venice. Compare the dramatic force of Cristo- fano KWon's Judith (Pitti, No. 96). No. 1524. Titian. Mater Dolorosa. A late work, recalling the painting in the Prado at Madrid. THE UFFIZI GALLERY 137 No. 617. Tintoretto. The Marriage Feast of C ana. This is a copy by the artist himself of the larger composi- tion in the Church of S. Maria della Salute at Venice. Nos. 174, 175. Bernardo Bellotto. Landscapes : Sunset amid Ruins and Sunset over the Lagoons. These very charming and fantastic little scenes glow with warm colour, especially No. 175. This is the nephew and pupil of Antonio Canale-Canaletto, whose name he adopted. His best work is at Dresden. Nos. 1064, 1077. Antonio Canale-Canaletto. Land- scapes : The Ducal Palace and the Grand Canal, Venice. Two beautiful compositions. The Doges' Palace glitters in the sunlight. A marvellous golden and pale blue sheen suffuses the water. No. 1520. G. B. Tiepolo. Portrait of a Page. An attractive picture. The attribution to a French eighteenth-century artist of Greuze's school is suggested. No. 1 52 1. G. B. Tiepolo. The Erection of a Statue. The decorative centre panel of a ceiling. The lightness and grace of the figures cannot be appreciated in its piesent position. No. 1522. G. B. Tiepolo. Cupids Flying. This graceful little composition is also the fragment of a ceiling. Nos. 1570, 1 57 1. Francesco Guardi. Landscapes. The Lagoon and the Canals of the Brenta are both rendered with characteristic charm. Note the cool grey colour- scheme. No. 3388. Tintoretto. Leda. This early work distinctly recalls his Venus and Vulca?i (Pitti, No. 3). The familiar type of the handsome Venetian courtesan is, however, portrayed with commendable restraint. No. 599. Titian. Portrait of Eleonora Gonzaga, 'Duchess of Urbino (1493- 15 50). The Consort of Francesco- Maria I della Rovere, the daughter of Isabella d'Este, Marchioness of Mantua, is por- trayed here at the age of some forty-four years. Titian's admiration for her beauty and intellectual gifts is manifest in the frequent reminiscences of her type, notably the Venus (Uffizi, No. 1 1 17) and the Bella (Pitti, No. 18). A masterly delineation, this is perhaps the artist's finest female portrait. The mountain scenery of Urbino, seen from the open window, i 3 8 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES is charming. The conjugal virtues of the Duchess are symbol- ized by the white and brown spaniel beside her. No. 605. Titian. Portrait of Francesco-Maria I delta Rovere, Duke of Urbino (1491-1538). A superb portrait of this great soldier, statesman, and patron of Art and Letters. The Duke died at the early age of forty-seven, poisoned, it was believed, by Pier Luigi Far- nese, the son of Pope Paul III. Portrayed in his armour as the victor in a tournament, the oak-sapling of the Delia Rovere, with their motto " se sibi," stands beside his lance. No. 596. Paolo Veronese. Esther before Ahasuerus. A magnificent composition ; the fine grouping can best be appreciated from a distance. No. 595. Jacopo Bassano. The Painter's Family. Jacopo Bassano is seated between his two sons, Francesco and Leandro ; their wives and children, handsomely arrayed, are grouped around them. The faces are forcibly character- ized, notably an old couple of attendants in the right corner. On an Easel No. 626. Titian. Flora. A deservedly admired work of Titian's early period, about 1 5 1 5. The beautiful though perhaps not very refined features of the sitter are said to portray Violante, the daughter of Palma Vecchio. Note the warm tone of the white robe and amber-flesh tints to which the amethyst-coloured cloak over one arm gives a distinctive value. Passing through the Third Tuscan Hall into the Corridor we enter the Second Tuscan Hall The paintings in this room, though of unequal value, cover a brilliant period of Florentine painting. The least important works are omitted. No. 1264. Franciabigio. The Virgin and Child, with the Baptist and the Prophet fob. Painted, as Vasari records, for the " Compagnia di San Giobbe ". No. 1 26 1. Jacopo Chimenti (L'Empoli). S. Yves, Guardian of the Fatherless. The artist's best work. The composition is striking and gs THE UFFIZI GALLERY 139 dignified. S. Yves in the robes of the gonfaloniere — Standard- bearer of Florence — receives the petitions of widows and orphans. This picture was painted in 16 16. No. 1280. Francesco Granacci. The Virgin giving her Girdle to S. Thomas. This painting is one of the artist's finest works. The figures of the Apostle and S. Michael are very beautiful. No. 81. Piero di Cosmo. The Virgin and SS. Peter and Antonine, Archbishop of Florence, John the Evangelist, Philip Benizzi, Founder of the Servite Order, and SS. Margaret and Catherine Kneeling. Vasari states that this fine painting was commissioned for the Tebaldi Chapel in the SS. Annunziata. It is notable as one of the earliest representations of the Immaculate Concep- tion. The composition, apart from the close characterization of the heads, is instinct with poetic charm ; note the land- scape with a representation of the Nativity and flight into Egypt. No. 1 28 1. Vasari. Portrait of Alessandro dei Medici. This spirited portrait was presented by the artist himself to Duke Alessandro (151 1-37), who gave it to his son-in-law Ottaviano dei Medici in 1537. No. 1257. Filippino Lippi. The Adoration of the Magi. In this finely coloured but somewhat crowded composition we behold the altar-piece commissioned in 1496 by the Friars of San Donato a Scopeto to replace Leonardo's unfinished painting (compare No. 1252). The Medici portraits of the junior line are interesting. The old man in the yellow furred robe holding a quadrant is Pier- Francesco the Elder, the son of Lorenzo, a younger brother of Cosimo II Vecchio. The youth proffering a jewelled cup is Pier-Francesco the Younger, his grandson. Giovanni dei Medici, the younger son of the first- named Pier-Francesco, is depicted as the youthful king whose crown a page is removing. ' No. 1268. Filippino Lippi. The Virgin Enthroned with SS. Victor and John the Baptist, Bernard and Za?iobi. One of his most impressive early paintings. Note the Angels crowning the Virgin and scattering roses. The Saints are vigorously depicted, especially S. Bernard and S. Zanobi who wears a beautiful amethyst-coloured cope. Nos. 1283, 1238. Botticini. Descent from the Cross, Predella with Scenes fro?n the Gospels, Christ and the i4o FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES Woman of Samaria, The Ejection of the Money-changers from the Te?nftle, The Entry into Jerusalem. This artist, so influenced by greater painters as to merge his art in theirs, is noted for his delicate colouring. The predella scenes are especially noteworthy for their brilliancy and for the grace of the small figures. No. 1 27 1. Angelo Bronzino. The Descent of the Saviour i?ito Limbo. This colossal work, dated 1552, displays to the full the baleful influence exercised upon his contemporaries by Michelangelo's " sculptural " genius. Painted for the Zan- chini family chapel in Santa Croce, the picture was removed by the patron Leopoldo Ricasoli on account of its inappro- priateness for a church, and presented to the Gallery in 1821. Vasari names Pontormo, II Bachiacca, and other Florentines among the Saints delivered from Hell, and " Madonna Costanza, the wife of Giovan-Battista Doni, still living in his day, and Madonna Camilla Tebaldi del Corno " as the two beautiful female figures in the foreground. This picture was singled out for especial execration by Ruskin. No. 1 1 12. Andrea del Sarto. "Madonna delle Arpie." Deep religious feeling is united with stateliness in the fine grouping. We recognize the familiar features of Lucrezia del Fede in the Virgin. Its recent restoration has been the subject of much criticism. The reliefs of sphinxes, or harpies, on the pedestal give the picture its name. No. 1265. Fra Bartolommeo. Holy Family. This colossal unfinished work was commissioned in 15 12 by the Gonfaloniere P. Soderini for the Council Hall of the Palazzo della Signoria. Uncompleted at the painter's death in 1 5 17, Ottaviano dei Medici caused the picture to be taken* to the Church of San Lorenzo, whence it was brought to the Gallery. Vasari has just praise for this fine work which, had the artist lived to finish it, would have proved his masterpiece. Fra Bartolommeo is said to have portrayed himself in his Dominican habit among the ten Patron Saints of Flor- ence. No. 44. Mariano Graziadei. The Holy Family with S. Anne. This picture is the only known work by this artist, a pupil of Ridolfo Ghirlandajo. THE UFFIZI GALLERY 141 No. 1254. Andrea del Sarto. S. James with Two Children. Commissioned by the Compagnia di San Jacopo (known as " II Nicchio " or shell, from the Saint's attribute) as a processional banner for the children of the Confraternity. Highly and deservedly praised by Vasari. No. 27. Giovanni Biliverti. The Chastity of Joseph. A good example of the non-religious sacred art of the seventeenth century. Nos. 1275, 1277- Ridolfo Ghirlandajo. Miracles of San Zanobi. These two brilliantly coloured compositions are the artist's best pictures. Notable not only for their warm transparent colour and expressive figures, they are interesting for their accurate representation of mediaeval city life. In No. 1275, wherein the Saint resuscitates the child fallen out of the win- dow, we recognize the precincts of Santa Croce. No. 1277, the translation of the Saint's remains from San Lorenzo to the cathedral, depicts a prodigy commemorated by the pillar which stands to this day beside the baptistery. The saint's bier touched the branches of a dead tree which forthwith burst into leaf. No. 1259. Mariotto Albertinelli. The Visita- tion. The painter's masterpiece, this picture is one of the finest existing representations of the subject. Note the beautiful colour and the simple dignity of the composition. No. 93. Andrea del Sarto. " Noli Me Tangere" This beautiful early work, whilst revealing the faults of a still immature technique, is yet fraught with earnestness and depth of feeling. Note the very beautiful Magdalen. No. 1279. Sodoma. S. Sebastian. A work, in Vasari's words, " truly beautiful and worthy of praise ". The pathetic and graceful figure personifies the beauty of sorrow. Note the beautiful landscape in which the Lombard influences of his early life are perceptible. Formerly used as a processional banner for the Compagnia di S. Sebastiano di Camollia, this fine painting borne aloft in the streets of Siena must have been most impressive. Painted in 1525. 142 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES Room of the Maps of Tuscany These interesting wall-paintings of the topography of mediaeval Tuscany were brought to light in 1906. Two fine panels of Flemish tapestry with episodes in the lives of the Caesars decorate the end wall, against which are set up the antique sculpture, No. 320, the Genius of Death, No. 228, Bacchus and Ampelos (restored by Michelangelo), and No. 1 50, the Young Nero (?). The pictures are displayed upon easels. No. 1300. Piero della Francesca. Portraits of Federigo II Montefeltro, First Duke of Urbino (1444-82), and his Consort, Battista Sforza (1446-72). If these two beautiful panels, the doors of a tabernacle or triptych, were painted to commemorate the marriage in 1459 of Federigo and Battista Sforza, the placid-looking matron whose delicate features contrast so strongly with the eagle profile and steel-trap jaw of her lord has little to remind us of the thirteen-year-old child wedded to the soldier three times her senior. The exquisite landscape depicts the country-side of their joint possessions in Romagna and Umbria. The allegories represent the Triumph of Fame and Chastity. The Duke is seated upon a car drawn by white horses ; Victory holds the crown above his head, and he is accompanied by the four Cardinal Virtues of Prudence, Justice, Fortitude, and Temperance ; whilst that of the Duchess, horsed by unicorns symbolizing Purity, is conducted by Love, and it carries the figures of Hope, Innocence, Faith, and Charity. Nos. 1563, 1564. Melozzo da Forli. The Archangel Gabriel. The A nnunciation. The sole specimens in Florence of this great master's art. The figures of the Virgin and Archangel form one of the most ideal conceptions of the mystic scene. The half-figures of two Saints on the back (of which the upper portions have disappeared) represent SS. John the Baptist and Benedict. They are drawn with vigour, and convey a sense of power akin to Signorelli's art. No. 1558. Fiorenzo di Lorenzo. The Virgin with SS. Peter and Paul, and on the outer panels SS. Sebastian and Anthony Abbas. Purchased in 1905 and unfortunately much damaged. The THE UFFIZI GALLERY 143 small, delicately drawn figures on a gold ground possess much beauty. No. 1308. Venetian School. Fifteenth century. Curved Pedestal, Reading-desk Decorated with Representa- tions of Petrarch's Triumphs. The Trimnph of Fa?ne. The car, surrounded by poets and philosophers, is drawn by elephants and distinguished by scrolls with their names. The Triumph of Love. The Triumph of Religion is represented by God the Father with the Saviour in Paradise surrounded by Angels and Saints. The Triumph of Death. The car is drawn by black horses, preceded by knights riding and peasants on foot, to mark the equality of mankind before death. We retrace our steps through the Second Tuscan Hall to the First Tuscan Room A large number of unimportant paintings here are omitted. Nos. 1 168, 131 1, 1313, 1314. Lorenzo di Credi. The Virgin with S.John, " Noli Me Tangere" Christ with the Woman of Samaria, The Annunciation. These four charming compositions once surrounded a wooden crucifix in the Church of San Gaggio. They are of unequal merit, Nos. 131 1 and 1168 being the best. The incident of the sorrowing Virgin with S. John in a beautiful landscape is treated with great tenderness. No. 1220. Pontormo. Portrait of a Man. A spirited portrait, vigorously modelled. No. 1 185. Vasari. The Prophet Elisha. This carefully composed little picture is a sketch for the altar-piece of San Pietro Cassinese at Perugia, represent- ing the miracle of the Prophet Elisha sweetening the waters (2 Kings 11. 19-22). No. 3413. Att. to Piero di Cosimo. Portrait. An interesting, thoughtful head, formerly supposed to be the portrait of Andrea del Sarto by himself. No. 1 195. Zuccheri. The Golden Age. This attractive composition with its numerous small figures, painted with miniature-like delicacy, recalls the younger 144 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES Breughel in finish. The companion paintings, No. 121 5, an Allegory, and 1200, the Silver Age, are inferior. No. 1 161. Fra Bartolommeo. The Presentation in the Temple, The Nativity. An early work. These exquisite little panels formed, as Vasari records, the doors of a tabernacle for a bas-relief by Donatello of the Virgin and Child, ordered by the Florentine merchant Piero del Pugliese ; on the outer panels is the Annunciation in grisaille. No. 1 198. PONTORMO. The Birth of S.John the Baptist. Gifts to women in childbirth were proffered on these platters. The birth of the Baptist was the subject usually chosen. Nos. 1162,1178,1184. FraAngelico. The Birth of S. John the Baptist, The Espousal of the Virgin, The Pass- ing of the Virgin. These beautifully painted little scenes formed part of the predella for his fine Coronation of the Virgin, No. 1290. No. 1230. Andrea del Sarto. Portrait of a Gentle- woman. The artist's wife (?). Her familiar features recur in many of the artist's works — notably in the " Disputa" (Pitti, No. 172). No. 1217. Perugino. Portrait of a Youth. Formerly ascribed to Lorenzo di Credi. A charming likeness but marred by restoration. No. 3450. Florentine School. Fifteenth century. Portrait of a Lady. This striking likeness was formerly attributed to Piero della Francesca, whose manner the sharply drawn profile against a sky-blue ground distinctly recalls. No. 1 167. Filippino Lippi. Portrait of an Old Man. An interesting fragment of a fresco formerly ascribed to Masaccio. No. 1 169. Domenico Puligo. Portrait of Pietro Came- secchi. This fine picture, formerly ascribed to Andrea del Sarto and supposed to portray a friend of his, clerk to the monastery of Vallombrosa, is now said to represent Pietro Carnesecchi, the Florentine statesman and scholar. Carnesecchi was one of the leaders of the Italian Reformation ; convicted of heresy and imprisoned in Rome, he was executed in 1 567, despite the efforts of Cosimo I to save his life. THE UFFIZI GALLERY 145 No. 3461. Lorenzo di Credi. Portrait of a Youth. The attractive pensive figure is delicately painted. Note the charming landscape. No. 34. Lorenzo di Credi. Portrait of a Young Man. An attractive likeness formerly believed to be that of Credi himself. No. 30. Antonio Pollaiuolo. Portrait of Galeazzo- Maria Sforza, Duke of Milan (1444-76). This interesting though sadly damaged likeness has been identified with the portrait of Galeazzo as entered in an in- ventory of 1553 of the pictures in the Palazzo della Signoria. The vigorous modelling and the care bestowed upon acces- sories — gold chain, etc. — place this picture amongst the Pollaiuolo brothers' best works. No. 1 1 53. Antonio Pollaiuolo. Hercules Slaying the Hydra, Hercules Strangling Antceus. Vasari records three compositions of the Labours of Her- cules. The praise he awards to the larger work is well deserved by these beautiful miniature replicas executed about 1460 and originally the property of Lorenzo dei Medici. No. 1241. G. B. Rosso ("II Rosso Fiorentino "). A?2gel Playing the Guitar. This charming fragment probably formed part of an altar- piece of the Virgin and Child. No. 1 183. Alessandro Allori. Portrait of Bianca Caftftello, Wife of Francis I dei Medici (Fresco). The portrait was painted by this versatile artist on a wall in 1871. No. 1 165. Cristofano Allori. The Infant Christ on the Cross. Change in public taste favoured symbolism in religious art rather than direct representation. This early instance of the atonement may therefore be regarded as a landmark. No. 3414. Tuscan School. Fifteenth century. Por- trait of a Lady. Said to portray Caterina Sforza, a natural daughter of Galeazzo- Maria, Duke of Milan, who married as her second husband Giovanni di Pier-Francesco dei Medici. Giovanni " Delle Bande Nere," her son, was the father of Cosimo I. No. 1227. Angelo Bronzino. Portrait of Bianca Caft- pello. i 4 6 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES An allegorical representation of the Youth's Dream is painted on the back. No. 1 1 73. Angelo Bronzino. Venus and Cupid. A delicately painted mythological scene. Nos. 1203, 1207. Tuscan School. Portraits of Petrarch and Dante. No. 1205. Girolamo Genga. The Martyrdom of S. Sebastian. Transparent colour and a keen sense of natural beauty are salient features of "this painter's art, which was strongly influenced by Signorelli. Dated about 1498. No. 131 2. Piero di Cosimo. Perseus Delivering Andro- meda. Vasari's general praise is excessive, but certain minor epi- sodes and single figures possess great charm. No. 121 1. Angelo Bronzino. The Dream of Felicity. A happily conceived composition of many small figures. The Virtues crowning Felicity are especially good. No. 1244. Manzuoli ("Maso da San Friano "). Por- trait of Elena Gaddi-Quaratesi. A spirited little portrait unfortunately hung in an indifferent light. No. 1 1 89. Angelo Bronzino. Portrait of Eleonora de Toledo, Wife of the Grand-Duke Cosimo I. Vasari describes this portrait as " painted for the Grand- ' Duke and placed in his closet ". The Tribune This fine hall was intended by the Grand-Duke Francis I for the gems of his collection of pictures. Here are placed also the Venus dei Medici (No. 342). This ex- quisite Greek statue by Cleomenes, son of Apollodorus, was found in Hadrian's villa at Tivoli in the sixteenth century and taken to the Medici villa on the Pincio. Brought to Florence, together with the " Knife Whetter " and the "Wrestlers," by Cosimo III about the year 1677. The Wrestler by a Greek artist (No. 343). The Dancing Faun (No. 344), attributed to Praxiteles ; the head and arms re- stored by Michelangelo. The small Apollo, known as UApollino (No. 345), to distinguish it from that of the Belvedere, is probably also by Cleomenes, and the Knife THE UFFIZI GALLERY 147 Whetter, also a specimen of Hellenic art (No. 346). The distributions of the paintings has followed the changes of critical taste in the course of centuries. No. 1 141. Albert Durer. The Adoration of the Magi. This is the first large composition entirely by Diirer's own hand prior to his first sojourn in Italy. The figures are perhaps crowded, but the colour and wealth of detail are admirable. The features of the second king reproduce the artist's own likeness. No. 285. Perugino. Portrait of Francesco delle Opere. This fine likeness, one of Perugino's most characteristic delineations, was long thought to be the artist's own portrait. Francesco delle Opere, who died at Venice in 1496, was the brother of the Florentine artist Giovanni, surnamed " delle Corniole " for his talent as a sculptor of intaglios. No. 1 135. Bernardino Luini. The Beheading of S. fohn the Baptist. A fine work, long attributed to Leonardo da Vinci. No. 1 1 1 5. Van Dyck. Portrait of/oh?i de Montfort. This masterly likeness of the burly Spanish nobleman is one of the artist's most powerfully characterized works. The heavy features are treated with great distinction. John de Montfort was Master of the Mint and Great Chamberlain to the Archduke Albert (15 59-1 621), Stadtholder of the Low Countries for King Philip II of Spain. No. 1 108. Titian. The Venus of the Tribune. This superb work (the companion picture, No. 11 17, is the finer of the;two) was painted about 1 547 for Francesco- Maria I, Duke of Urbino. The likeness is that of Titian's daughter Lavinia. Brought to Florence and placed in the Tribune so early as 1646. No. . Perugino. The Virgin and Child with SS. fohn the Baptist and Sebastian. The expression of the Virgin is marked by great tender- ness. No. 1 107. Daniele da Volterra. Massacre of the Innocents. An impressive composition, notable for the vigorous and scientific grouping of the numerous small figures. No. 1 121. Veronese School. Fifteenth century. Portrait of Elisabetta Gonzaga, Wife of Guidobaldo I Montefeltro, Duke of Urbino. I 148 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES This very interesting portrait, formerly ascribed to Man- tegna, is the companion picture to the likeness of the Duke (No. 195, Pitti), although far superior as a work of art. Elisabetta Gonzaga was a gifted princess whose Court be- came the centre of literary and artistic renown. Her virtues and grace were celebrated by Pietro Bembo, the humanist, who spent several years of his life at the Court of Urbino. No. 1 1 3 1 . Raphael. Portrait of Pope Julius II ( 1 440- I * I 3)- Raphael, in this masterly delineation, lays bare the very soul of the soldier Pontiff. Unflinching against all obstacles whether set by man or by fate in the path of his ambition, appear those stern steel-grey eyes, whose glance could strike terror into the bravest. A despot in every sense of the term, the patronage of Julius II left an imperishable stamp upon his age. This superb likeness, which shows us Pope Julius at the age of 71 was painted about 1511, and is probably the original of the several replicas dispersed in public and private collections. That of the Pitti, No. 79, is held to be the best. No. 1 1 24. Francia. Portrait of Evangelista Scappi. This striking likeness is the painter's masterpiece in portraiture. The modelling of the expressive face is more subtle here than is usual with Francia, and contrasts forcibly with the delicate landscape. Note the fine sixteenth-century frame. No. 1 1 17. Titian. Venus of Urbino. This masterly study of the nude is carried out with restraint and distinction. A certain general resemblance, together with the little spaniel lying upon the couch, have suggested the identity of the very attractive figure with the Duchess Eleonora, wife of Francesco- Maria della Rovere, for whom the picture was painted in 1573. No. 1 1 20. Raphael. Portrait of a Gentlewoman. This portrait, executed probably about 1 505, belongs to Raphael's early period. The features show many points of similarity with the two fine female likenesses of Maddalena Doni and " La Donna Gravida" (Nos. 59 and 229, Pitti), es- pecially the former. The hands are modelled with notable force, the details and colouring of the draperies being treated with conspicuous breadth and finish. No. 582. MORONI. Portrait of a Man. POFE JULIUS II From the painting by Raphael in the Uffizi Gallery P- 148 THE UFFIZI GALLERY 149 An interesting head, probably the fragment of a larger painting.' No. 1 1 40. Rubens. Hercules betweefi Vice and Virtue, An uninteresting but brilliantly coloured work. No. 1 123. Sebastiano del Piombo. Portrait of a Woman. This fine portrait, painted about 15 12, was formerly errone- ously identified with Raphael's " Fornarina " (Pitti, No. 245). We note here all the artist's best qualities, restraint in com- position and warm, deep colour. The contrast of the auburn hair and pale flesh tints with the richly embroidered fur- trimmed bodice is most effective. No. 1 132. Venetian School. The Head of S.John the Baptist. Formerly ascribed to Correggio. No. 1 125. Franciabigio. The Virgin and Child, com- monly styled " La Madonna del Pozzo ". The transparent colour and graceful composition led to the former attribution of this charming work to Raphael. Epi- sodes in the life of Christ are depicted with much grace in the pleasing landscape. Nos. 1 126, 1 1 30. Fra Bartolommeo. The Prophets Isaiah and Job. These striking figures formed the wings of the vast triptych, the centre panel of which — the Saviour with the four Evangelists — is at the Pitti (No. 159). The influence of Michelangelo upon Fra Bartolommeo's art, during his sojourn at Rome, is strongly marked in these works. No. 1 127. Raphael. S.John in the Desert. This striking work of Raphael's later period is entered in the Palace inventory of 1589. No. 1 129. Raphael c The Virgin of the Goldfinch (" Ma- donna del Cardellino "). Together with the "Madonna del Granduca" (Pitti, No. 266) and the picture at the Louvre, " La belle Jardiniere," this exquisite work forms a trio of unrivalled loveliness and spirituality. The Virgin and the Child taking the goldfinch from the youthful S. John are in Vasari's words, " so well painted and with so much care that they seem of living flesh. . . . Our Lady has an air full of divine grace, . . . and all the rest of the work is most beautiful ". Raphael painted this picture in Florence in 1 506 as a wedding-gift for iSo FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES his friend Lorenzo Nasi. Damaged in the earthquake of 1547, which wrecked the Nasi Palace, the panel, br6ken in several pieces, was carefully restored by Giovan-Battista Nasi, the son of Lorenzo. No. 1 133. Annibale Caracci. A Bacchante. Titian and his school painted Venus asleep or reclining. Caracci, fifty years later, shows a new development of the nude in art. The movement of the Bacchante rising from her couch is most graceful. No. 1 1 34. Correggio. The Virgin Adoring the Child. This charming little early work is noteworthy for Correg- gio's suavity, characterized by the maternal love rather than devout adoration expressed in the Virgin's attitude. No. 1 1 18. Correggio. The Flight into Egypt. This fine composition, a study for the " Madonna della Scodella" at Parma, is, according to expert authority, the centre panel of a triptych executed for the Franciscan com- munity at Correggio, the artist's birthplace. Nos. 1 138, 1 142. Lucas Cranach. Adam a?id Eve. The Museum at Brussels possesses two pictures resem- bling these fine paintings in important particulars. The artist treats the nude here with marked distinction and delicacy. Signed with the painter's mark and dated 1528. No. 197. Rubens. Portrait of Isabella Brandt. A beautiful portrait of the artist's first wife. The delicate modelling of the face and hands places this picture among the artist's best feminine likenesses. The rich dark tones of the dress and diaphanous lace about the collar and cuffs of the sitter are rendered with a masterly touch. Rooses believes the painting at Windsor to be a replica of this picture. No. 1 143. Jacobsen (Lucas of Leyden). The Man of Sorrows. An impressive work. No. 1 104. Spagnoletto. S.Jerome. A fine painting though somewhat darkened. Hall of the Italian Schools This room contains a large number of small paintings of minor importance. We mention only the following : — No. 3417. Boltraffio. Head of a Youth, Narcissus (?). THE UFFIZI GALLERY 151 An exquisite little work. Note the melancholy expression of the profile, "Sorrow more beautiful than Beauty's self". Observe also the landscape. No. 1002. CORREGGIO. The Virgin and Child, with Angels. A delicate little work, formerly ascribed to Titian. No. 1096. Parmegianino. The Virgin and Child with SS. John, Zachariah, and Mary Magdalen. No. 1 03 1. Caravaggio. Medusa. A wooden shield used at tournaments. This repulsive composition displays the excesses to which the pursuit of realism led the artists of the Eclectic school. No. 30 bis. Ambrogio de Predis. Portrait. The modelling is forcible and the accessories treated with a miniature-like finish. Note the heavily embroidered doublet. No. 1016. CORREGGIO. Head of a Child. No. 1032. L. Mazzolini. The Virgin and Child with SS. Anna, Joachi7n, and John the Evangelist. Charmingly grouped. This painter is notable for his rich clear colour. No. 1034. Mazzolini. The Circumcision. No. 1038. Garofalo. The Annunciation. This artist also was a colourist of much distinction. " No. 1559. Lorenzo Costa. S. Sebastian. A fine painting but unfortunately restored. No. 1557. Cosimo Tura. S.Dominic. An excellent work. The subtle modelling and severe folds of the draperies are characteristic. No. 100. L. Mazzolini. The Nativity. Very charming. No. 1572. Maineri. Christ Bearing His Cross. A noteworthy example of the Pre-Correggio Parma school. No. 995. L. Mazzolini. The Massacre of the Innoce?zts. A striking composition with many little figures. No. 1005. Salvator Rosa. Landscape. The sunlight effect amid characteristic mountain scenery is very beautiful. No. 1060. Tintoretto. Portrait. A charming miniature portrait painted with conspicuous breadth and vigour. No. 1095. Marco Palmezzano. The Crucifixion. iS2 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES The figures of the Virgin and Holy Women are strik- ingly grouped. Dutch School This collection was formed in a great measure by the Grand-Duke Cosimo III, and contains a number of very charming works of the later Dutch and Flemish schools, though few are of first-rate importance. We mention only the following : — No. 854. Franz Mieris. The Fortune Teller. One of Franz Mieris' best works. Nos. 837, 870. Heemskerk the Elder. Portraits of an Old Man and an Old Woman. No. 969. Cornelius Bega. The Lute Player. No. 858. Jan Breughel (Breughel de Velours). A Landscape. An exquisite little work. Note the small figures amid charming woodland scenery. No. 3449. Van Huysum. Flowers. An exquisite piece of work remarkable for variety and delicacy. No. 981. Franz Mieris. The Painter and his Family. Vrouw Mieris, wearing a violet fur-trimmed gown, is seated drinking from a glass held towards her by her young son. Her elder daughter, in a wonderfully painted white satin gown, turns to her father who is playing with a monkey. No. 878. Poelenburg. View of Rojne. The artist is exceptionally well represented in the collection. Note this among his most effective pictures. Nos. 884, 904. Jan Breughel (De Velours). The Four Elements, A ir and Fire, Earth and Water. Brilliantly painted, with a wonderful wealth of detail, especially the first mentioned. No. 892. Peter Breughel the Elder. The Way to Calvary. The scene is interpreted with characteristic fanciful realism. Note the quaint group of goblins. No. 897. Berkheyden. The Groote-Kirk at Haarlem. Depicted with photographic fidelity. No. 941. Franz Mieris. The Courtesan. Painted with an exquisite minuteness. Presented by the artist to Cosimo III. ^ THE UFFIZI GALLERY 153 No. 918. Gabriel Metsu. Lady Playing the Guitar. No. 865. Steenwyck. The Death of S.John the Baptist. The figures are by Franz Francken. No. 972. Gabriel Metsu. Hunter and Lady. A spirited composition and one of his best works. No. 928. Peter Breughel the Elder. Country Fete. The quaint figures are set amid most attractive wooded scenery. No. 926. Gerard Dow. The Pancake-Seller. A characteristic work, delicately finished. No. 934. Godfried Schalcken. Girl Sewing by Candle-light. A very striking effect of chiaroscuro. No. 945. Franz Mieris. The Midday Meal. The expression of the old folk is singularly true to life. Note the accessories, flower-pot and victuals, depicted with rare finish and delicacy. No. 957. Gaspar Netcher. A Sacrifice to Love. The attitude of the young lady playing the guitar is most graceful. No. 952. Mieris. The Aged Lover. The inscription, " Gold is not the master this time ! " adds an amusing significance to the episode. No. 879. Herkules Seghers. Landscape. A superb work formerly attributed to Rembrandt and to Ruysdael. Note the wonderful atmospheric effect and sense of space. No. 953. Rachel Ruysch. Fruit and Flowers. The artist's best work ; dated 171 1. Compare No. 961. No. 958. Gerard ter Borch. A Dutch Gentlewoman. This fine painting has been engraved under the name of " The Woman Drinking ". No. 960. Hendrik G. Pot. The Miser. A striking figure forcibly presented. The miser's expres- sion is rendered with singular felicity and truth to nature. No. 977. Jan Steen. The Repast. The group of diners is well characterized. Note especi- ally the figures listening to the fiddler and his party. No. 891. Van der Heyden, View of the Rathhaus of A jnster dam. One of the artist's best works. i54 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES No. 978. Adrian van Ostade. A Peasant with a Lantern. The lantern-light produces a striking effect of chiaroscuro. No. 985. Adrian van der Werff. The Adoration of the Shepherds. A very charming composition, and one of the artist's best works. On an Easel No. 882. Ruysdael. After the Storm. The effect of sunshine upon the distant fields through the grey clouds and storm-tossed trees is most striking. An ex- cellent production. Flemish and German Schools A number of the least important paintings are omitted. No. 766. Albert Durer. Portrait of the Artist's Father. The worthy and God-fearing artisan is depicted here with evident filial deference by the young artist, scarcely out of his apprentice's articles. The achievement in maturity of technique — note the vigorous modelling of the face and hands — is therefore all the more remarkable. Signed and dated 1490. No. 776. Peter Nelfs. Interior of a Church. A striking example of this artist's proficiency in achieving effective contrasts of light and shadow. No. 851. Albert Durer. The Virgin and Child. An interesting though not a first-rate example of this master. The painting is also known as the " Madonna of the Pear ". Nos. 768, 777. Albert Durer. The Apostles SS. fames the Great and Philip. Inscribed with the names of the Saints and dated 15 16, these paintings of a series of the Apostles are strikingly diversified and evidently drawn from life. No. 772. Elzheimer. The Angelic Vision. This interesting German minor artist displays the char- acteristic charm, and also the mannerism of the seventeenth- century school of Roman landscape painters. This is one of his best works. THE UFFIZI GALLERY 155 No. 790. David Teniers the Younger. The Aged Lovers. Characteristic realism marks this work. No. 799. Att. H. Holbein the Younger. Portrait of Sir Thomas More. A sadly damaged but interesting portrait of the famous English statesman. No. 895. Lucas van Leyden. Portrait of the Infant Ferdinand of Spain (1 503-1 564) at the Age of Twenty -one. The second son of Duke Philip of Burgundy,* and the younger brother of the Emperor, Charles V, whom he suc- ceeded in 1588. The under-hung jaw, characteristic of the Burgundy and Hapsburg families, contrasts oddly with the sitter's amiable if irresolute expression rendered with evident fidelity. No. 779. Att. Quentin Matsys. S. ferorne. No. 794. Flemish School. Portrait of Viglius van Ayta de Zuichem. Ascribed formerly to Holbein, and erroneously identified with the great Swiss Reformer Zwinglius. The artist has given us a refined and pleasing likeness of the Privy Council- lor to the Emperor Charles V and King Philip II of Spain. No. 765. Hans Holbein the Younger. Portrait of Richard Southwell, Privy Councillor to King Henry VIII. This is a superb work, remarkable for breadth combined with exquisite finish. Note the subtle modelling of the face and hands. Inscribed with the date "X. Jul. H. VIII. XXVIII " and the age of the sitter. No. 788. Christopher Amberger. Portrait of Cam- illas Cross. This fine painting is the single authentic work by this master in Italy. It is an excellent likeness of the wealthy Augsburg merchant, also portrayed by Paris Bordone. No. 792. Abraham Mignon. Fruit and Flowers. Skilful technique almost amounting to sleight of hand dis- tinguishes this painter's art. Note the exquisite bloom on the grapes. No. 812. Rubens. Venus and Adonis. A highly finished and decorative work, probably the sketch for a larger composition. Nos. 821, 839. Bernard van Orley. Portraits. „ 156 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES That of the gentlewoman (No. 839) is the more striking work. No. 845. LUCAS Cranach. Portraits of the Electors John and Frederic of Saxony. These vigorously drawn and very life-like portraits are signed and dated 1583. No. 829. Vinckeboom. Landscape with Skaters. • This is a charming little winter scene in Holland. The tiny figures are full of life. No. 847. Lucas Cranach. Double Portrait of Luther and Melanchthon. Companion pictures to No. 845 ; dated 1545. Nos. 822, 838. Lucas Cranach. Portraits of Luther and His Wife Catherina Bore. The painter gives us a subtle character study in the like- nesses of the great Reformer and his wife ; doubtless painted with photographic fidelity. No. 783. Van Dyck. The Virgin and Child Sur- rounded by Angels. The cool grey tones of the grisaille confer a distinctive charm to the scene. No. 842. Rubens. The Three Graces. A graceful and interesting sketch in grisaille for a larger composition. Flemish and German Schools This room, like the preceding, but indifferently lighted, contains only a few important paintings. No. 1 1 59. Flemish School. Sixteenth century. Medusa: This striking but somewhat repulsive composition was formerly attributed to Leonardo da Vinci. Vasari's descrip- tion of a painting of Medusa in the possession of Duke Cosimo I must, according to Prof. Bode, have inspired this anonymous Flemish artist. NOS. 654, 669. COURTOIS (IL BORGOGNONE). Battle Scenes. These compositions were, it is said, commissioned by Prince Matthias dei Medici, the brother of Ferdinand II, to commemorate his military achievements. No. 654 depicts the assault upon the castle of Radicofani. No. 705. David Teniers the Younger, A Physician. ^ I & THE UFFIZI GALLERY 157 The homely incident is rendered with marked realism. Nos. 729, 740 bis, 740,, 713, 713 bis, 784, 7^4 bis, 724. Kulmbach. Scenes from the Lives of the Apostles SS. Peter and Paul. These brilliantly coloured paintings, formerly ascribed to Schauffelein, are now rightly given to this notable artist, a pupil of Albert Diirer whose influence is strongly marked. No. 713, showing S. Peter walking upon the waters of the Sea of Galilee, is the finest of the series. Note the beautiful scenery. No. 730. Hendrik Bles (II Civetta). The Coppet Mines. The painter's masterpiece. The working of that human ant-heap a mine has given the artist opportunity to display his marvellous skill in the grouping of the numberless small figures. The landscape glows with beautiful colour. Hen- drik Bles was accustomed to introduce a small owl in his pictures instead of a signature, hence his surname of Civetta. No. 731. Flemish School. Sixteenth century. The Adoration of the Magi. This decorative triptych was formerly attributed to Van Eyck. No. 733. Cornelis VROOM. A Sea Piece. Nos. 699, 709. Sustermans. Portraits : the Florentine Noble?nan Puliciani and his Wife. Both excellent portraits, especially No. 699. No. 704. German School. The Crucifixion. A forcibly grouped composition in a fine landscape. The donor, at the foot of the cross, a knight, and his family, are portrayed with conspicuous care. No. 714. Miel. Landscape with Figures. The artist was Court painter to the Dukes of Savoy (1650-64). French School This room contains few paintings of first-rate importance, and only the most interesting works are mentioned. No. 684. RlGAUD. Portrait of Bossuet, Bishop of Meaux. Rigaud painted this eminent French divine several times. No. 774. Claude Lorrain. Sunset by the Sea. 158 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES A beautiful vision of Italian atmosphere and scenery, and one of Claude's best pictures. Tihe sunlight upon the waters is admirably rendered. No. 656. Att. Boucher. The Infant Christ with S.John and Angels. No. 695. Philippe de Champaigne. Portrait of Nicholas Fouquet (1615-80). A striking likeness of the celebrated Financial Secretary under Louis XIV, whose brilliant career came to an abrupt termination. Dismissed from office he spent the last nineteen years of his life in banishment. Nos. 672, 696. Grimoux. Youthful Pilgrims. Very charming little pictures, especially No. 696, which is said to be a likeness of the celebrated French actress, Marianne Botot Dangerville (1714-96). No. 677. Jouvenet. 5. Anne and the Virgin Read- ing. This sentimental theme has inspired much modern religious art. No. 848. Claude Lorrain. Landscape. A subtle rendering of the charm of the Roman Campagna. Included by Claude in the " Liber Veritatis ". No. 692. Simon Vouet. The Annunciation. No. 689. Francois Fabre. Portrait of the Countess of Albany (1752-1824). A fine likeness of Louise de Stolberg, Countess of Albany, married to Prince Charles-Edward Stuart, the Young Pre- tender, in 1772. A widow sixteen years later, she continued to reside in Florence until her death in 1824. Her romantic friendship with the poet Alfieri is attested by the sonnet inscribed with the poet's own hand at the back of this picture. The artist, Francois Fabre, was an intimate friend of both the Countess and of Alfieri. Nos. 651, 652, 653. COURTOIS. Battle Scenes. Characteristic but inferior paintings. Compare his more important works Nos. 654 and 669. No. 685. Charles Lebrun. The Sacrifice of Jefththa's Daughter. A finely coloured composition. Purchased in Paris by the Grand-Duke Pietro Leopoldo in 1763. The celebrated Mile, de la Valliere is said to be portrayed as Jephtha's daughter. THE UFFIZI GALLERY 159 No. 689. Francois Fabre. Portrait of Vittorio Al- fieri. A notable work, the companion painting to No. 689. Pre- sented to the Gallery in 1824 by the artist after the Countess of Albany's death. At the back of the picture is a sonnet in Alfieri's own writing. No. 693. Nicolas Poussin. Venus and Adonis. A sketch for a larger work. No. 3460. French School. Portrait of Marguerite de Valois, the First Wife of Henri IV '(1 553-161 5). No. 744. Nicholas Froment of Avignon. Triptych — The Resurrection of Lazarus, Martha at the Feet of the Saviour, The Magdalen Anointing His Feet. Outside : The Virgin and Child and Three Donors. This interesting work enables us to compare the uncom- promising, almost painful realism of northern artists in the rep- resentation of sacred episodes with the idealizing grace of Florentine art. Nicolas Froment's best work is " The Burning Bush " in the Cathedral of Aix in Provence. The artist was Court painter to King Rene, whose likeness he painted. No. 667. Francois Clouet (dit Janet). Portrait of King Francis I of Fra?ice. One of several replicas of this artist's portrait of King Francis at the Louvre. The colour is clear and delicate. Note the details, armour, etc., executed with miniature-like finish. No. 670. Mignard. Portrait of Pauline de Grignan (1648-1705). A charming likeness, despite some unfortunate re-painting, of Mme. de Sevigne's beautiful daughter. No. 694. Dufresnoy. The Death of Socrates. A somewhat crowded composition. No. 674. Nicolas Largilliere. Portrait of the Poet f. B. Rousseau. A noteworthy example of this artist's skill. The colour contrast of the rose doublet and deep blue cloak and cap is most effective, whilst the interesting humorous countenance is rendered with notable subtlety. No. 697. La Hyre. S. Peter Healing the Sick. A good example of this painter's art. La Hyre was one of the twelve founders of the French Academy of Painters, under Cardinal Richelieu's auspices. i6o FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES Second Corridor The ceilings of this and the third corridor are decorated by Cosimo Ulivelli and other seventeenth-century painters. Fine tapestry lines the walls, and the few pictures are placed near the Cabinet of Gems. Amongst the statuary note No. 3, the Doryphorus of Polycletus ; No. 138, "77 Giovane della Spina " (Youth with a Thorn in Foot), a replica in the Capitol, and No. 145, Venus Anadyo7iiene. Cabinet of Gems This collection was commenced by Lorenzo II Magnifico and continued by Ferdinand II and his successors. Amongst the numerous articles of virtu we note : two sardonyx vases with Lorenzo's name engraved ; the agate and rock-crystal fluted pillars and statues of the Apostles intended for the high altar of S. Lorenzo ; two bas-reliefs in gold on jasper, attributed to Cellini ; a plaque dated 16 19 of Cosimo II in his coronation robes ; a triangular tazza carved in a single emerald ; a gold statuette of Hercules by Mazzafirri ; a turquoise bust 2§ in. high of Tiberius, mounted in gold by Cellini. In the centre, a rock-crystal casket by Valerio Belli of Verona, with twenty-four scenes from the Life of Christ, the gift of Clement VII to Francis I upon his son's afterwards Henri IPs marriage to Catherine dei Medici. In the Corridor Nos. 681, 686. Pillement. A Seaport, A Storm at Sea. Charming gouache paintings. The grey and white colour- scheme is very luminous. Pillement was marine painter to Marie-Antoinette. Third Corridor The Halls of the Painters' Portraits, the Corridor leading to the Pitti, the Halls of Van der Goes, Rubens, Baroccio, Statuary and Inscriptions, Niobe, Giovanni di San Giovanni, and Miniatures and Pastels, open from this corridor. The paintings on the wall are of secondary interest only. We note however : — THE UFFIZI GALLERY i6j No. i 39 i. Sustermans. Portrait of Charles of Lorraine, Duke of Guise ( 1 57 1 - 1 640). Snyders. A Boar-hunt. Nos. 3403, 3405. Pourbus. Portraits of Louis XIII and his brother Gaston, Duke of Orleans, sons of Henri IV and Marie de Medicis. No. 98. Pompeo Battoni. Achilles at the Court of Lycomedes. No. 1584. ALESSANDRO Allori. Torquato Tasso the Poet (1544-95). No. 1532. Largilliere. James Stuart the Old Pretender, son of King James II, and his sister the Princess Louise. No. 1 181. Sustermans. Francesco dei Medici (1614- 34). This Prince, the fourth son of Cosimo II, fought in Germany and died at Ratisbon of the plague. No. 145. Sir Peter Lely. Portrait. Admiral Lord Ossory, K.G., was Lord Deputy of Ireland (temp. Charles II). No. 142. Sir Peter Lely. Portrait. That distinguished soldier, Prince Rupert, Prince Pala- tine of the Rhine, was the grandson of James I, created Duke of Cumberland (1619-82). The Painters' Portraits Cardinal Leopoldo dei Medici initiated this unique collection with the purchase of the paintings belonging to the Accademia di S. Luca at Rome. The Grand-Duke Pietro Leopoldo acquired Abate Pazzi's collection in 1768, and the series of artists' likenesses is being continued to our day. The early English school is only tolerably well represented. The recent re-arrangement has resulted in the removal of a number of inferior works, so that the remainder are now seen to better advantage, notably the French eighteenth-century artists. Several of the portraits mentioned possess an historical rather than artistic value. Room I Early English Artists No. 752. George Romney. Painted with great spirit. 11 162 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES No. 783. Hogarth. Full of character. No. 540. Sir Joshua Reynolds. Painted in 1775, a striking work. No. 713. Gavin Hamilton. A delicate pastel. No. 546. Richard Cosway. Water-colour and pencil. No. 494. Jas. Northcote. Brilliant colour. No. 510. Sir Godfrey Kneller. No. 230. Sir Peter Lely. German Artists, Fifteenth to Eighteenth Century No. 442. Zoffany. No. 434. Albert Diirer. A replica of the Madrid portrait signed and inscribed in German, " Painted from myself, when I was six-and-twenty ". No. 232. Holbein. In black chalk on paper. A doubtful attribution despite the signature. No. 471. Angelica Kauffinann. A very charming and graceful likeness. No. 436. George Pencz, surnamed the " Paris Bordone " of the North. Brilliantly coloured. No. 224. Lucas Cranach. A fine likeness, inscribed with the artist's mark, a winged dragon and his age, J7 years. No. 535. Liotard. An interesting pastel portrait inscribed " Le peintre turc ". Spanish Artists, Seventeenth Century Nos. 216, 217. Velasquez. Fine, though not first-rate works ; the authenticity of No. 217 is dubious. French Artists, Seventeenth and Eighteenth Century No. 497. Vivien. A fine pastel. No. 53. Nanteuil. A good likeness ; the artist was also a noted engraver. No. 542. Coypel. THE UFFIZI GALLERY 163 No. 474. Rigaud. A spirited work. Note the fine deep colour. No. 473. J. F. de Troy. No. 549. Mme. Vigee le Brun. One of the most attractive portraits in the collection, full of youthful gaiety. She is shown as engaged upon a portrait of Queen Marie-Antoinette. No. 479. F. de Troy. No. 485. Le Brun. No. 512. Callot. Best known by his engravings of fantastic scenes, pageants, etc., with innumerable minute figures. Room II Flemish and Dutch Artists ', Fifteenth to Seventeenth Century No. 223. Van Dyck. Painted with great spirit. No. 462. Antonis Mor. A fine likeness. Mor was Court painter to King Philip II of Spain. No. 445. Franz Pourbus the Younger. The artist was a favourite with the royal Princes of France and Tuscany, whom he portrayed frequently. Nos. 976, 890, 455. Mieris. The favourite painter of Cosimo III. No. 976 is the best likeness. No. 441. Gerard Hondhorst. Surnamed " Gerardo delle Notte " from the fantastic light- ing of his pictures. Nos. 233, 228. Rubens. Two excellent portraits. No. 288 is the finer work. No. 238. Jordaens. A vigorous delineation. No. 437. Douven. Court painter to the Elector-Palatine John William, and his consort Anna-Maria Lodovica dei Medici, whose likeness he is showing. Nos. 432, 451. Rembrandt. Between these indifferent works, and in superb contrast, is 1 64 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES placed the magnificent likeness of the artist, brought from the Pitti (Pitti, No. 60). No. 218. Sustermans. Room III Florentine Artists, Fifteenth to Seventeenth Century No. 1 1 76. Andrea del Sarto. A superb likeness. The artist painted his own picture re- peatedly (No. 280), and Pitti (Nos. 66, 118, 184 (?) ). Nos. 306, 1248. Baccio Bandinelli. The latter is the better painting. The artist is best known as a sculptor, the pupil of Michelangelo. No. 290. Michelangelo. The work of one of his pupils. No. 280. Andrea del Sarto. Vasari records how the artist, having some colour left after completing another portrait, summoned his wife to paint her picture. But on her demurring and Andrea " deeming his end to be near, he took a mirror and painted himself". No. 292. Leonardo da Vinci. A contemporary copy probably of an original portrait of Leonardo, now lost. No. 1584. Taddeo Gaddi, Zenobi Gaddi, Agnolo Gaddi. Fourteenth century. Characteristic heads of Giotto's pupils and followers. No. 1 163. Verrocchio, painted by Lorenzo di Credi. This is one of Verrocchio's most notable works. Cleaning revealed the identity of this portrait with the likeness engraved by Vasari. Erroneously described formerly as a portrait of Luther by Holbein. No. 291. Vasari. An interesting likeness of this man of many talents, painter, architect, and writer. No. 286. Filippino Lippi. One of the most attractive pictures here. Painted in tempera on terra-cotta. No. 269. Alessandro Allori. An interesting head. No. 271. Buontalenti. The architect of Francesco I, who designed the Tribune of the Uffizi. THE UFFIZI GALLERY 165 No. 294. Pietro da Cortona. The Grand-Duke Ferdinand II commissioned this artist to decorate the ceilings of the Halls of Apollo, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn at the Pitti. No. 262. Carlo Dolci. The artist holds a paper with another likeness, dated and inscribed to " His Most Revd. Highness ". This was his patron Cardinal Leopoldo dei Medici, the founder of the col- lection. No. 312. Poccetti. This artist designed the ceiling decoration of parts of the First Corridor and the small Rooms adjacent to the Tribune. No. 263. Cristofano Allori. A vigorously modelled head. Compare with that of Holo- phernes in his fine painting of Judith (Pitti, No. 96). No. 305. Giovanni di San Giovanni. A spirited likeness. The artist's best work is at the Pitti, the ceilings of the suite of ground-floor rooms. No. 300. Tiberio Titi. This painter's best claim to notice is his charming infant portrait of Cardinal Leopoldo dei Medici (Pitti, No. 49). Room IV Bolognese, Roman, Venetian, and other Italian Artists, Fiftee?ith to Seventeenth Century No. 396. Guercino. Nos. 360, 374. Annibale Caracci. Vigorous likenesses. No. 402. Domenichino. No. 405. Guido Reni. An interesting head, painted with much distinction. No. 288. Raphael. This charming portrait may be dated about 1506. The picture remained in the possession of Raphael's uncle, Simone Ciarla, at Urbino. Purchased by the Academy of S. Luke at Rome, this portrait was included in the collection bought by Cardinal Leopoldo dei Medici. A number of miniature portraits on copper fill a large frame, that of Giulio Clovio being the finest. No. 276. Zuccheri. This artist was Court painter to the Dukes of Urbino, Guido- 1 66 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES baldo II (Portrait, Pitti, No. 138) and Francesco-Maria II (Uffizi, No. 1 1 19). No. 406. Jacopo Bassano. A vigorous likeness. No. 378. Tintoretto. A striking work, but not of the quality of his other com- positions. Nos. 384, 384 bis. Titian. These likenesses are replicas of the fine Berlin portrait. No. 150. Romanino. This eminent artist's finest work is at Brescia and Verona. Represented here only by a small picture (No. 578). No. 407. Francesco Bassano. No. 395. Leandro Bassano. No. 373. Pordenone. A powerful head. No. 275. Luca Giordano. This artist surnamed " Fa presto " on account of his facility, is seen to the best advantage in decorative work, notably the fine fresco in the Delia Crusca Hall in the Palazzo Ric- cardi. No. 209. Salvator Rosa. A good portrait (compare Pitti, Nos. 2 and 188). Room V Italian Artists \ Nineteenth Century No. 523. Hayez. No. 708. Boldini. No. 729. Domenico Morelli. Room VI British Artists ; Nineteenth Century No. 585. Watts. No. 722. Alma Tadema. No. 746. Holman Hunt. No. 764. Sargent. No. 588. Millais. No. 600. Leighton. No. 714. George Richmond. No. 538. Hayter. THE UFFIZI GALLERY 167 No. 623. Poynter. No. 715. Orchardson. No. 724. Herkomer. Room VII German and French Artists, Nineteenth Century No. 518. Overbeck. No. 571. Franz Winterhalter. No. 584. Lehmann. A fine work. No. 779. Lenbach. An excellent portrait. No. 785. A. Besnard. A portrait of the artist and his wife. Nos. 774, 594. Bonnat. No. 721. Bouguereau. No. 718. Fantin-Latour. No. 531. Ingres. No. 618. Henner. No. 682. Corot. A charming likeness of the great landscape painter. No. 713. Louis David. A replica of the portrait at Versailles. No. 621. J. P. Laurens. No. 589. Puvis de Chavannes. No. 611. Ernest Hebert. Room VIII and the passage leading to the Corridor con- tain no portraits of interest. The Corridor, over a mile long, leading to the Pitti opens from the next door. In pursuance with recent alterations, the remainder of the Painters' Portraits line the first portion. Then follows an artistically worthless but historically most interesting collection of Portraits of Eminent Personages. The collection was initiated by Cosimo I with the series copied by Cristoforo Papi, surnamed " L'Altissimo," from the likenesses authentic and traditional of Celebrities formed by the scholar, Mgr. Paolo Giovio, Bishop of Nocera, for his monumental work of Universal Biography upon the lines of Plutarch's " Lives of Great Men ". The series numbers over 500 portraits, to which many more were added at later dates, thus forming a vast International Portrait Gallery of Popes, Rulers, Pre- 1 68 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES lates, Soldiers, Scholars, Statesmen, Cavaliers, and Ladies of Quality, of surpassing historic interest. Cosway's portrait of the Corsican Patriot, General Paoli (No. 131), deserves a more favoured place, and the same may be said of a charming child-portrait (No. 12 13) of the unfortunate Don Carlos, the son of King Philip II of Spain by his first wife Mary of Portugal. We re-enter the Corridor proceeding to the Hall of Van der Goes The contrasting qualities of Northern and Italian religious ideals in fifteenth-century Art are forcibly displayed in this choice collection, of which every picture merits attention. No. 698. Hendrik Bles. The Virgin and Child En- throned. This exquisite composition was formerly ascribed to Van der Goes. Opening from a richly decorated portico, a charm- ing view of wooded park-land, a castle, etc., is painted with the most delicate finish. No. 237. Quentin Massys. Double Portrait of the Artist and his Wife. Both likenesses are remarkable for careful modelling, that of Massys himself being the more subtle. No. 762. Just van Cleef. Pieta. The sorrowing Virgin is beautifully characterized by a realism widely different from that of contemporary Italian Art. Nos. 761, 761 bis. Breughel the Younger and Albert Durer. Diptych, The Way to Calvary. This masterly drawing in grisaille by Albert Durer, dated 1 505, was copied in colour by Breughel, to whom it belonged, in 1604. The copy enables us to appreciate the science of the composition, the charming details of the landscape, and the tumultuous movement of the numberless tiny figures. No. 703. Hans Memling. The Virgin and Child En- throned with Two Angels. No contemporary Italian artist has produced a composi- tion uniting in the same degree the majesty of religion with the familiar grace of domestic life. A castle standing in park-land, and to the right of the throne a yeoman's home- stead symbolize religious equality alike in stately and ^^^^— THE UFFIZI GALLERY 169 humble homes. Vasari records a picture commissioned at Bruges by the elder Cosimo. In beauty and exquisite finish, this painting rivals the great Bruges triptych, " The Marriage of S. Catherine ". Flemish School. Fifteenth century. Portraits of Pier- Antonio Bonciani and his Sister Maria Baroncelli. Wings of a triptych. Delicate finish characterizes the likenesses, formerly at- tributed to Peter Christus, of these benefactors of Santa Maria Nuova. Note the charming landscape and the care bestowed upon the accessories. The Annunciation is painted in monochrome on the back. No. 708. Att. Gerard David. Adoration of the Magi. No. 906. Flemish School. Fifteenth century. The Crucifixion. The scene is set amid mountain scenery of striking beauty. Note the grouping of the holy women at the foot of the Cross. No. 801 bis. School of Memling. Portrait of a Youth. No. 846. Gerard David. The Descent from the Cross. A " Pax ". On the obverse, figures of Adam and Eve are engraved on gilt copper. Executed with miniature-like finish. Note the enamel and gold antique frame. No. 1525. Van der Goes. The Adoration of the Shepherds — Triptych. This is the artist's most important work. The vigour and brilliancy of his art exercised a notable influence upon Florentine painting, revolutionizing the methods of those artists. This vast composition was commissioned at Bruges about the year 1476 by Tommaso Portinari. This repre- sentative of the Medici in Flanders desired to commemorate at once the birth of his daughter Margaret and the connexion of his family with the Hospital of Santa Maria Nuova, founded two centuries earlier by Folco Portinari, the father of Dante's Beatrice. The scene is set amid typical Flemish surroundings. The shepherds with their expressive homely faces are of the quality of Ghirlandajo's peasant groups, and the angels if lacking in his grace, share the ethereal quality of Fra Angelico's conceptions. The accessories are fraught with symbolic meaning : the wheatsheaf signifies abundance, the scattered violet blossoms are sacred to the Earth-Mother, 170 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES and the red lilies of Florence appear in a vase of Italian manufacture. The donors kneeling before their patrons, SS. Anthony Abbas and Thomas, Margaret, and Mary Magdalen, offer refined if not handsome types. The paint- ing has suffered somewhat from restoration, and the outer panels with the Annunciation are much damaged. No. 778. Memling. 5. Benedict. A subtle and expressive head. Said to portray the Bene- dictine Monk Benedetto, a kinsman of Tommaso. No. 780. Memling. Portrait of a Youth. An interesting likeness, formerly ascribed to Antonello da Messina. No. 795. Rogier van der Weyden. The Entombment — Triptych. This beautiful composition is one of the artist's finest works. The wings of the triptych depict Adam and Eve with kneeling figures of the donors. The minute finish of the heads and draperies merits careful study. No. 801. Memling. Portrait of a Youth. No. 769. Memling. Portrait of Tommaso Portinari (?) Praying. The open book bears the date 1442. The Portinari con- nexion with S. Maria Nuova, whence this fine portrait was brought, lends weight to the traditional assignation. The head is forcible ; compare with Tommaso Portinari (No. 1525) ; note also the landscape. Hall of Rubens The best paintings only are mentioned. Nos. 140, 147. Rubens. Henri IV at the Battle of 'Ivry. These magnificent compositions formed part of the series illustrating the life of Henri IV, commissioned by Marie de Medicis for the Luxembourg Palace. Although unfinished, they are, unlike those at the Louvre, entirely by Rubens. Sent to Florence by the French Queen as a gift to her family. No. 1536. Jordaens. Portrait of a Widow. A notable work. The pleasing countenance is modelled with subtle care and delicacy. No. 1563. School of Van Dyck. Portraits of Lords fohn and Bernard Stuart. > i ■Fv.3 "^S^^t^ J THE UFFIZI GALLERY 171 No. 144. Van Dyck. Portrait of the Artist Sustermans'' Mother. An interesting study. Nos. 143, 146. Mierevelt. Portraits of a Lady and Gentleman. The pleasing features are rendered with marked distinction. No. 216. Rubens. Bacchanalia. A replica of the painting at St. Petersburg. Formerly in the collection of Queen Christina of Sweden and afterwards in that of the Duke of Orleans. No. 148. Gerard Hondhorst. The Revellers. A good example of this artist's fantastic colour-scheme. He imitated Caravaggio in his night effects. No. 147. Rubens. The Entry of Henri IV into Paris. Companion painting to No. 140, and the finer of the two. The King's portrait is the best likeness known of this monarch. No. 3400. Sustermans. S. Margaret. We recognize the familiar likeness of the artist's patron, the Grand Duchess Vittoria della Rovere. No. 3415. Pourbus. Portrait of Louis XIII, King of France. Finely coloured. The King wears the green scarf of the military Order of S. Lazarus. Nos. 3424, 3426. Sustermans. Portraits of the Grand- Duke Ferdinand II and his Consort Vittoria della Rovere. Typical official portraits. Nos. 91, 1527. POURBUS. Portraits of Madame Elisabeth of France. This Princess, the daughter of Henri IV and Marie de Medicis, was married to King Philip IV of Spain. No. 1527 represents her in Spanish Court dress. No. 196. Van Dyck. Portrait of Margaret of Lorraine. A fine portrait painted in 1634 at Brussels. The second wife of Gaston Duke of Orleans, her eldest daughter, Mar- guerite-Louise, married Cosimo III. " La grande Madem- oiselle " was her step-daughter. On an Easel No. 763. Sustermans. Portrait of Princess Claudia dei Medici. The eldest daughter of Ferdinand I, she was married 172 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES first to Federigo Prince of Urbino (Pitti, No. 55), and secondly, 1625, to Leopold brother of the Emperor Ferdinand II. Carlo Dolci also painted her under the name of the Empress S. Galla Placidia (No. 207, 3rd Cor.). Hall of Inscriptions, Cabinet of the Hermaphrodite The two next Rooms contain notable examples of antique statuary, amongst them No. 306, Hermaphrodite, a fine specimen of Hellenic art purchased from the Ludovisi family by Ferdinand II in 1669. Hall of Baroccio Only the more important pictures are mentioned. No. 211. Andrea Salaino. The Holy Family. A charming replica of the fine painting by Leonardo da Vinci in the Louvre. Salaino was one of Leonard's most gifted pupils. No. 157. Gerard Hondhorst. The Holy Family. Note the striking illumination of the scene, worthy of the art of Rembrandt. No. 193. ALESSANDRO Allori. Portrait of Giuliano dei Medici (1478-15 16). This striking portrait is believed to be a copy of the likeness painted by Raphael and recorded by Vasari in the possession of Ottaviano dei Medici. The third son of " II Magnifico," Giuliano was noted for his amiable disposition. His tomb by Michelangelo is in San Lorenzo. No. 180. Rubens. Portrait of Hellne Fourment, the Artisfs Second Wife. We are familiar with her comely though scarcely refined likeness, introduced by the painter in all his later religious and mythological compositions (compare Pitti, No. 139). POURBUS. Portrait of Pierre Franqueville, Sculptor, of Cambrai (1 548-1618). A fine portrait, more vigorously modelled than his Royal likenesses. No. 163. Sustermans. Portrait of Galileo. This is one of the artist's most powerful delineations. Nos. 79, 169. Baroccio. " La Madonna del Popolo." The artist's greatest work and a masterpiece of colour. Commissioned by the Fraternita of Arezzo as a votive picture after the plague of 1579. We recognize the princi- THE UFFIZI GALLERY 173 pal buildings and churches of the city. The grouping of the beggars, peasant folk, etc., is carried out with masterly breadth. No. 162. GuiDO Reni. The Cumaean Sibyl. No. 1 1 14. GUERCINO. The Samian Sibyl. Commissioned by Matthias dei Medici in 165 1. No. . Carlo Dolci. The Magdalen. A beautifully coloured but insipid painting. No. . Gerard Hondhorst. The Adoration of the Shepherds. An impressive composition. The artist has once more had effective recourse to a fantastic play of light and shadow. No. 191. Sassoferrato. Mater Dolorosa. This popular work, notable for perfect technique, is also an example of the insipid sentimentalism then pervading religious art. No. 172. Bronzino. Portrait of Eleonora de Toledo, Wife of Cosimo I, with her Second Son, afterwards Ferdi- nand I. Biographers describe the identical dress worn by the Duchess at her State entry into Siena in 1570. The little figure in lavender-blue at her knee is one of the artist's prettiest child-portraits. No. 167. Bronzino. Portrait of a Gentlewoman. The pensive, delicate features, modelled with greater force than is usual with this artist, offer a marked resemblance with those of Margaret of Austria, natural daughter of Charles V and the widow of Alessandro dei Medici, who afterwards was married to Odoardo Farnese, and became Governor of the Netherlands for Philip II (1522-82). No. 204. AURELIO LUINI. The Virgin and Child, with SS. Anne, Margaret, a?id Mary Magdalen. Nos. 159, 154. Bronzino. Portraits of Bartolommeo Panciatichi, and his Wife Luisa Strozzi. These admirable likenesses may be regarded as the masterpieces of sixteenth-century Florentine portraiture. Vigorous composition, and warm colour reminiscent of Venice, are here united with a rare perfection of technique, that caused Vasari to exclaim that these portraits only lacked breath to give them life. No. 1 155. Bronzino. Portrait of Prince Garcia, Younger Son of Cosimo I. 174 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES The pretty little lad smiles at us with childhood's innocence. Note the gold-finch usually associated with the Christ-Child, here denoting the parents' love for their youngest born. No. 1 164. BRONZINO. Portrait of Maria dei Medici ) Daughter of Cosirno I. An attractive child-portrait. No. 1266. Bronzino. Portrait of a Man. Santi Alberighi, the son of Giovanni, surnamed " Delia Cammilla," a sculptor, is known to have carved a statue of Venus, and has been suggested for this portrait, which is remarkable for finish and distinction. No. 188. Andrea del Sarto. Portrait. Critics recognize here the single real likeness of the artist's wife, although he introduces her type in most of his religious paintings, either as the Virgin or a female saint. No. 1 144. Giulio Romano. The Virgin and Child. This charming composition possesses much of his master Raphael's grace. Unfortunately damaged by restoration. No. 1 1 19. BAROCCIO. Portrait of Francesco- Maria II delta Rovere, Duke of Urbino. We have here Baroccio's masterpiece in portraiture. This prince was noted for his amiability, perhaps too faithfully interpreted in the weak mouth and chin. The technique is faultless, and the accessories of dress and armour are admir- ably rendered. Francesco- Maria II survived his only son Federigo, whose daughter, Vittoria della Rovere, inherited all her grandfather's private wealth, whilst the Dukedom itself reverted to the Church. Four fine Florentine mosaic tables complete the decoration. The large octagonal table in the centre was commenced in 161 3, and took twenty-five years to complete. Hall of the Niobe This handsome Hall was built in 1779 by the Grand-Duke Pietro-Leopoldo to contain the Sixteen Statues of Niobe and her Children, brought from the Gardens of the Medici Villa on the Pincio in 1772. The fate of the Niobids, who succumbed to the jealousy of Latona, is represented in art by groups of varying numbers, though Niobe, according to Homer, had twelve children. This superb statuary was dis- covered on the Esquiline amidst the ruins of the Temple of THE UFFIZI GALLERY 175 Apollo and bought by Cardinal Ferdinand dei Medici in 1 583 for 7938 gold florins. Note also in the centre the Medicean Vase, a beautiful example of Hellenic sculpture. The Hall contains some good Florentine tapestry. Hall of Giovanni di San Giovanni Only the more important paintings are mentioned. No. 3462. Angelica Kauffmann. Portrait of Stanis- laus-Augustus Poniatowski, King of Poland (1732-98). A brilliant portrait painted with much force and distinction. No. 305. Lampi. Portrait of Elisabeth, Princess of Wurtemberg. She was the first wife of Francis I, Emperor of Austria (1767-90). No. 3399. GuiDO Reni. Susanna and the Elders. Cabinets of Pastels and Miniatures The fine miniatures, drawings, portraits in pastel and on copper are worthy of close study. Note especially, in the first room, four exquisite Views of Rome in gouache by Van Vittel, surnamed " Gaspero degli Occhiali ". In the second Room : in the cases in the centre. No. 3491. Profile Portrait of the Emperor Frederic II (1212-50), painted on vellum. No. 2380. Francois Clouet. Portraits of Henri II, Catherine dei Medici and their Family. Painted on cop- per. Note also the beautiful enamel frame. Nos. 3363, 3364, 3365, 3366, 3367, 3368. Bronzino. Portraits of the Medici. These six cases contain the likenesses of all the prominent members of that House from Giovanni dei Bicci to Catherine dei Medici, and those of the Grand- Ducal line down to the artist's own day. Bronzino painted the contemporary por- traits from life, and they are numbered among his most successful works. The fine original drawings by the great masters, Italian and other, of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries displayed in cases by the windows in the corridors should not fail to attract notice, 176 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES Plan of the Pitti Galieet 1 Hall of the Iliad 2 Hall of Saturn 6 3 Hall of Jupiter 4 Hall of Mars 5 Hall of Apollo 6 Hall of Venus 5 7 Room of the Education of Jove 14 4 13 1 12 11 - 1 1 xo 3 9 8 Room of Ulysses 9 Room of Prometheus lO Corridor of the Columns 8 2 11 Room of Justice __ 12 Room of Flora 13 Room of the Putt Room! i i 7 Camera □ Delia Stufa 14 Gallery of Poccetti. 15 Entrance Hall and stairs 1 16 Vestibule to Corridor leading to the Umzi 15 | 16 THE PITTI GALLERY This historic and magnificent Picture Gallery is entered by a doorway under the northern arcade of the Palazzo Pitti, and is approached by means of the handsome new staircase and vestibule adcted by Del Moro in 1897. The Gallery itself occupies a finely decorated suite of lofty rooms on the first floor {piano nobile) of the palace, of which the front windows afford charming views of the city and the distant hills. The Grand-Duke Cosimo II, his consort the Arch- duchess Maria-Maddalena, and their sons, the Cardinals Leopoldo and Giovan-Carlo dei Medici, may be described as the principal founders of this splendid collection, which was greatly enhanced in size and value under Ferdinand II, whose marriage with Vittoria della Rovere of Urbino secured in addition the important artistic treasures of the House of Urbino. A generous patron of the arts and a willing donor to this Gallery was also found in Cosimo III, whose two sons, Ferdinand and Gian-Gastone, were likewise interested in enlarging the Gallery. By an agreement entered into between Gian-Gastone (the last Medicean Grand-Duke) and his sister the widowed Electress-Palatine, at the death of the latter in 1743, the contents of the Pitti Gallery were settled in perpetuity on the city of Florence, whilst the private collection of Dutch and Flemish pictures of the Electress was divided between the Pitti and the Uffizi. This arrange- ment was faithfully upheld by the succeeding Grand-Dukes of the House of Lorraine, and Pietro- Leopoldo I himself made some notable additions to this collection. During the French occupation of Tuscany several of the choicest paintings were removed to Paris in 1 799, but were restored in 181 5. The later purchases of Ferdinand III for this Gallery included the famous " Madonna del Granduca " by Raphael. The acquisition of the entire Gerini Collection in 12 177 1 78 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES 1 8 1 8 necessitated the addition of another large hall, the Hall of the Iliads through which we first enter the present Gallery. Numerous alterations in the hanging of the pictures have been carried out in recent years, and many former ascrip- tions have been changed. In spite of the numerous reforms, however, the pictures themselves have not been re-numbered ; and, whilst it has been found advisable to follow the sequence of the official catalogue in their description, the order of the rooms has been inverted. The comparative scarcity in this collection of fifteenth-century paintings and the absence of all earlier works may be accounted for by a circumstance often overlooked. Much of the art of the T re-cento and Quattro- cento preserved in churches and convents disappeared with the suppression of religious houses. What remained has found worthy surroundings in the Accademia di Belle Arti and the Uffizi. Hall of the Iliad The ceiling of this, the first of the series of Halls, was adorned by Luigi Sabatelli and his son Francesco Sabatelli, with episodes from the Iliad of Homer. No. 184. Andrea del Sarto. So-called Portrait of the Artist. The unexpressive countenance and dull colouring render this work one of Andrea's least successful attempts at self- portraiture. No. 185. Giorgione. The Concert. This celebrated picture has also been ascribed to Titian, and the authorship of Giorgione is still disputed. The atti- tude of the friar seated at the clavichord glancing backwards at his companion with the lute, as though to compare the notes of the two instruments, has suggested a portrait of the Venetian friar, Fra Giovanni Spineto, the actual inventor of the spinet {circa 1 503). The heads of these two Dominican musicians are drawn with much force of character. Note also the beautiful hands of the player. No. 186. Paolo Veronese. Baptism of Christ. A decorative but somewhat uninteresting example of this painter. No. 188. Salvator Rosa. Portrait of the Artist (No. 293)- 5 ? THE PITTI GALLERY 179 A quasi-replica of the painting in the Uffizi. No. 190. Justus Sustermans. Portrait of the Prince of Denmark. One of the best " royal portraits " by this prolific artist, Court painter to the Grand-Duke, the Emperor, and several other sovereigns. Born in 1646 Prince Christian was sent on his travels at the age of some sixteen years, succeeding his father Frederick III in 1670 as the first hereditary King of Denmark and Norway. Most successful in rendering his sitter's pleasing mien, thoughtful beyond his years, Suster- mans' dexterity in the treatment of accessories may be ap- preciated in the damascened armour set off by a brilliant blue and white sash. No. 191. Andrea del Sarto. The Assumption. This fine composition, the artist's last important work, remained unfinished at his death in 1 531. Bartolommeo Panciatichi had commissioned Andrea in 1 5 19 to paint this picture for the city of Lyons to which he desired to leave a remembrance. The composition is impressive, and the colour warm and harmonious. Note the grace of the Angels grouped around the Virgin. The artist has portrayed himself as the Apostle leaning upon a book, to the left. Vasari, writing some thirty years later, records this painting " in the chapel " erected by Piero Salviati in the Baroncelli Villa. No. 192. Scipione Pulzone. Portrait of Marie de MedictSy Queen of France, Second Wife of Henri IV (1 593- 1642). A pleasing likeness, though Marie de Medicis looks older than her years, for Pulzone died when she was only eighteen. She was married to Henri IV in 1600. No. 195. Veronese School. Fifteenth century. Por- trait of Guidobaldo I Montefeltre, Duke of Urbino. This interesting portrait, despite its sadly damaged con- dition, compels attention. Guidobaldo and his Duchess Elisabetta Gonzaga (companion portrait, Uffizi, No. 1121) initiated the tradition of patronage of Art and Letters at their Court which continued through changing dynasties for a century and a half. Henry VII conferred the Garter upon the Duke, in return for which he sent the King Raphael's painting of S. George and the Dragon, now at St. Petersburg. No. 198. Anonymous. Seventeenth century. Portrait. 180 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES A striking portrait, until recently attributed to Velazquez. No. 200. Titian. Portrait of Philip II of Spain. A replica by the artist's own hand of the fine portrait at Madrid painted for Cosimo I. Philip 1 1 is depicted at the age of some twenty years. The pallid cheek and impassive ex- pression already connote the calculator whom fate was to pursue with relentless persistency. Titian read the character of his sitter with his customary insight. The grey and white tones of the dress strike a minor keynote of singular effective- ness. No. 218. Salvator Rosa. Portrait. A characteristic and powerful work. The charming land- scape background displays conspicuously the artist's sense of natural beauty. No. 202. Giovanni Biliverti. The Angel Refusing the Gifts of Tobias. Brilliantly coloured, purely secular, interpretations of sacred themes satisfied a public to whom the spirituality of an earlier age had become a sealed book. Grace and clear harmoni- ous colour characterize this composition ; according to Bal- dinucci, the artist's best work. Nos. 204, 206. Angelo Bronzino. Portraits of Francis I dei Medici and Bianca Capello. The refined but irresolute character of the prince who allowed his life to be swayed by the Venetian adventuress whom he made his wife is skilfully rendered. The companion painting if inferior in execution is no less telling as a character study (compare Uffizi, Nos. 1183, 1227). No. 160. Van Dyck. Head of the Virgin. The fragment of a larger composition. No. 371. ALESSANDRO Araldi. Portrait of Barbara Pallavicini. The resemblance of this charming portrait to the well- known lineaments of Beatrice d'Este, Duchess of Milan, suggested the former ascription to a Lombard artist. Ales- sandro Araldi is a representative master of the early Parma school of the fifteenth century. No. 208. Fra Bartolommeo. The Virgin Enthro7ied and Surrounded by Saints. Fra Bartolommeo's sojourn at Venice shows its fruits in the magnificent colour-scheme and majestic grouping of this composition. The kneeling figure of S. Catherine is especi- THE PITTI GALLERY 181 ally fine, and the angels playing on musical instruments yield but little to Raphael. The collaboration of Mariotto Alberti- nelli, Fra Bartolommeo's talented pupil, is discernible in the drapery. No. 209. Sustermans. Portrait of the Emperor Ferdi- nand II. This carefully studied likeness falls short of his other royal portraits. No. . ANGIOLO Bronzino. Portrait of Cosimo I Vasari describing this, to us, disappointing portrait, lays stress upon the likeness to " His Excellency at the age of 40 years ". The impassive features give no hint of the master- mind concealed under the somewhat heavy expression. No. 215. Titian. Portrait. The alleged likeness of Don Diego de Mendoza, Ambassa- dor of the Emperor Charles V to the Venetian Republic, scarcely deserves Vasari's praise. " The very beautiful pre- sentment " is much darkened, but Titian has modelled the features and hands with characteristic subtlety. No. 326. Venetian School. Portrait of Pope Paul III (1 466- 1 549). A good replica of Titian's portrait at Naples. Cardinal Alessandro Farnese succeeded Pope Clement VII dei Medici. His pontificate was marred by the intrigues of his family, to whom the Pope sacrificed alike his peace of mind and reputation. No. 219. PiETRO PERUGINO. The Virgin Adoring the Infant Christ. A most attractive representation of a familiar theme. The scene is laid amid the blue-green hills of Umbria with char- acteristic charm. In the Virgin and the little S. John kneel- ing beside her, we recognize the prototypes of Raphael's earlier compositions. Though unfortunately restored this painting deserves to rank with Perugino's best work. No. 224. RlDOLFO GHIRLANDAJO. Portrait of a Gentle- woman. The transparent colouring, the delicate flesh tints, and the careful delineation of all the accessories proclaim the art of the Quattro-cento, whereof the artist's father, Domenico Ghirlandajo, was one of the leading Florentine exponents. The sitter's homely but agreeable features also recall certain of Raphael's female types. 182 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES No. 225. Andrea del Sarto. The Assumption of the Virgin. This fine work, which may be described as the companion picture to No. 191, was commissioned, according to Vasari, about the year 1526. The grouping is somewhat theatrical, but the female figures are instinct with artistic charm. The patron saint of the donor, Margherita Passerini, kneels beside S. Nicholas of Bari. No. 227. Carlo Dolci. S. Margaret. Dated 11 August, 1664. A typical example of secular portraiture under the guise of religious art. No. 228. Titian. The Saviour. This great artist's conception of the Divine lawgiver is admirably rendered in the Saviour's tranquil mien. The noble features stand out in bold relief against a typical blue and golden sky. This picture, executed about the year 1532, ranks as one of Titian's finest achievements of a religi- ous character. No. 229. Raphael. Portrait, " La Donna Gravida ". This early work already foreshadows the master's genius. He invests the sitter's homely mien with an air of quiet dignity, the firm modelling of the features and characteristic short, plump hands showing distinctive insight. Note the delicate brush-work of the accessories, the inheritance from an earlier generation of artists. No. 230. Parmigianino. Madonna and Angels, " La Madonna del cello lungo ". The Virgin's swan-like neck has given its name to this paint- ing, the artist's best work. Vasari lays stress upon " that Manner of his " ; indeed, we detect already the mannerism of the later Renaissance that was to rob religious art of all its significance. The Virgin and attendant Angels are "full of grace," and the fine composition, in spite of admitted faults, is very charming. No. 144. G. Franco (II Semolei). The Battle of Mont e- murlo. Painted to commemorate the victory of Cosimo I in 1 537? whereby all overt opposition to his rule was finally broken. Vasari praises the artist's " fanciful " treatment of the subject, yet withholds credit for the figures filched, so he maintains, from Michelangelo's drawings. No. 369. Florentine School. Fifteenth century. " Ecce Homo:' THE PITTI GALLERY 183 Formerly ascribed to Pollaiuolo. The landscape back- ground possesses great beauty. No. 232. Sustermans. Holy Family. This work unites the interest of the sacred theme with secular portraiture, a practice customary with the artists of the time. The Grand-Duchess Vittoria della Rovere is seated with her little son Cosimo by her side. The Prior, Dante da Castiglione, Chamberlain to the Grand-Duchess and tutor to the Prince, whom he accompanied in his later travels to Eng- land and Holland in 1669-70, is portrayed as S. Joseph. No. 237. Il ROSSO FiORENTlNO. The Virgin Enthroned and Surrounded by Saints. This fine composition — note the attendant Saints, especially S. Bernard — was placed in the Dei Chapel in S. Spirito as the substitute for Raphael's "Madonna del Baldacchino ". Now replaced by a copy by Petrucci. A brilliant and facile colourist though lacking in originality, Rosso dei Rossi v/as summoned to Paris by Francis I to decorate the Palace of Fontainebleau. A statue of Charity^ by Bartolini, stands in the centre, whilst four tables supporting vases of nero antico marble mounted in gilt bronze and silver, fine examples of seventeenth-century art, complete the decoration of this Hall. The Hall of Saturn The fine ceiling, ornamented with gilded stucco work, is painted by Pietro da Cortona. This, the last of the allegorical series illustrating the achievements of Cosimo I, represents him in mature years being led by Valour and Wisdom into the presence of Time to receive the Crown from the hands of Fame and Eternity. A few unimportant paintings in this room are not mentioned. No. 37. Paolo Veronese. Portrait of the Artist's Wife (?). An unpleasing but strikingly modern likeness, uncompro- mising in its realism. No. 148. DOSSO Dossi. Bambocciata, the Revellers. This composition might be entitled the " Rake's Progress," or the " Prodigal Son ". The youth holding a distaff and his companion proffering flowers are striking figures. No. 151. Raphael. Madonna della Seggiola, known also as Madonna della Sedia. 1 84 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES This justly celebrated painting, so called from the chair in which the Virgin is seated, was brought to the Pitti so early as 1 589. A pretty legend surrounds the painting of the picture about 1 5 16, when Raphael seeking, it is said, a model in the vicinity of Rome, espied a country woman with her children, one of whom ran up to his mother with two crossed pieces of wood whereupon Raphael painted the group upon the lid of a cask laid upon the ground. The Virgin's somewhat conven- tional loveliness certainly lends some colour to the tale. The picturesque effect is enhanced by the brilliant colour-scheme. No. 152. Andrea Schiavone. The Death of Abel (?). The artist was a pupil of Titian, although the striking com- position and vigorous draughtsmanship recall the influence of Tintoretto. The murderer's weapon, the jawbone of an ass, appears to justify the earlier description of this fine painting as Samson slaying the Philistine. No. 153. Baroccio. Head of a Child, This charming little sketch on paper of a cherub was formerly ascribed to Correggio. No. 154. Carlo Dolci. The Child Baptist Asleep. This carefully finished picture was painted, so Baldinucci records, for the Grand-Duchess della Rovere for her private chapel, and though much vaunted at the time, has not stood the test of modern criticism. No. 156. Il Guercino. Madonna of the Swallow. A pleasing example of this master's art. Note the de- parture from tradition in the introduction of a swallow in the place of the gold-finch. No. 1 59. Att. Titian (?). Bacchanal. This picture is alleged to be a fragment of the painting of Bacchus and Ariadne formerly in the possession of the Duke of Ferrara, and now in the National Gallery of London. No. 158. Att. Raphael. Portrait of Cardinal Bernardo Dovizi da Bibbiena. The typical churchman, scholar, and diplomatist is port- rayed here with conspicuous insight, his somewhat vulpine expression being redeemed by the humorous smile. Ber- nardo Dovizi was tutor to the children of Lorenzo II Magnifico, the second of whom, Pope Leo X, made him a Cardinal. No. 159. Fra Bartolommeo. The Risen Saviour with the Evangelists. This fine painting was the centre panel of a triptych ; the THE PITTI GALLERY 185 two wings, with the Prophets Isaiah and Job, are at the Uffizi (Nos. 1 1 26, 1 130). The Saviour standing in the act of benediction is unsurpassed for majesty, whilst the Evangel- ists receiving the Word are most impressive figures. No. 451 bis. Lo SPAGNA. Marriage of S. Catherine. A charming work by this artist, noted for the miniature- like delicacy of his colour. Unrepresented otherwise in Florence, Lo Spagna — a pupil of Perugino — is known by his paintings at Foligno and Spoleto. No. 167. Giulio Romano. The Dance of the Muses. This attractive little panel probably adorned the case of a clavichord. Giulio Romano shows his mastery of the minor graces of purely decorative art. The Muses weave their dance with incomparable grace around the leader of their choir, Apollo. No. 42. Perugino. S. Mary Magdalen. An exquisite little work. The golden flesh tints and the warm brown of the Saint's robe unite in a colour symphony of singular effectiveness. No. 163. Andrea del Sarto. The Annunciation. The familiar theme is treated here in the key of pure spirituality. The Virgin and Archangel seem to float in the radiancy of Divine promise. The altar-piece, now at Berlin, of which this picture is the lunette was commissioned by Giuliano della Scala for the Church of the Annunziata, and the addition of the green curtain enhances the effect. No. 164. Perugino. Entombment. This fine painting was executed, so Vasari records, for the Convent of Poor Clares at Perugia. Perugino has inter- preted the beauty of Umbrian scenery with characteristic tenderness. The composition is impressive, and, in spite of unfortunate restoration, remains one of his greatest achieve- ments. No. 165. Raphael. Mado?ina del Baldacchino. The influence of Fra Bartolommeo is clearly discernible in this fine painting, begun only by Raphael and finished by his pupils. Commissioned for the Dei Chapel in 1 508, the artist abandoned the work upon his summons to Rome. Although the master's mind and not his craft mark the composition, we would call attention to the boy Angels standing at the foot of the throne, unsurpassed for their devout reverence allied to child-like charm. 1 86 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES No. 59. Raphael. Portrait of Maddalena Doni. The artist has given us here a living likeness of the typical Florentine gentlewoman of his day, the placid and sober-minded housewife whose price is above rubies. The thoughtful serenity of Maddalena Strozzi-Doni must have acted as a soothing influence upon her masterful consort (compare No. 61). No. 61. Raphael. Portrait of Angelo Doni. The companion portrait to the above, painted about 1 506. Seldom has Raphael displayed deeper insight. The hidden character of the close-fisted yet ostentatious merchant bent upon obtaining good value for his outlay, and of the collector, may be read in the keen glance and lean, hawk- like features as in an open book. Note the contrast of the smooth, plump hand. No. 174. Att. Raphael. The Vision of Ezekiel The overmastering grandeur and perfect balance of the composition suffice to set the mark of Raphael's genius upon this fine work, although the ascription to Giulio Romano is justified by a certain imperfection. " A painting of Christ, Jove-like in the skies, executed by Raphael for Count Erco- lani of Bologna in 1 510," is recorded by Vasari. No. 171. Att. Raphael. Portrait of Tojnmaso Inghir- atni, surnamed " Phaedra ". A favourite of successive Popes whose service he entered at the age of thirteen, Inghirami was accredited Ambassador to the Emperor Maximilian by Alexander VI when barely twenty-five years old, whilst Julius II appointed him his librarian and secretary. His scholarship and dramatic gifts earned for him the surnames of " Cicero " and " Phaedra ". Pope Leo X commissioned this portrait in 15 14, two years before his friend's death at the early age of 46. The heavy features, ennobled by the scholar's inspired glance, are rendered with characteristic fidelity, not omitting the cast of the sitter's eye, thus imparting a singular vitality to this portrait, which is a replica, probably by Raphael himself. The original, until recently in the possession of the Inghirami family, is now in the Gardner Collection at Boston, U.S.A. No. 172. Andrea del Sarto. The Dispute on tJie Tri?iity. One of the painter's masterpieces. Vasari has just praise for the diversity and expressiveness of the attitudes of the dis- - THE GRAXDLCA .MADONNA From the painting by Raphael in the Pitti Palace t. l$7 THE PITTI GALLERY 187 putants. The majesty of age and the deference of youth are forcibly typified by the vigorous delineation of SS. Augustine and Lawrence. Commissioned by the Augustinian Friars for their church outside Porta San Gallo, the picture was taken to San Jacopo tra Fossi after the siege of Florence. The great floods of 1555 damaged the lower portion, and it was taken thence to the Pitti. No. 166. Annibale Caracci. Head of an Old Man. No little originality and power are displayed in this study of the strongly characterized rugged features. No. 401. SUSTERMANS. Portrait of Pandolfo Ricasoli, Canon of Florence. This is an interesting painting. Pandolfo Ricasoli (1 58 1 - 1657), a distinguished theologian and preacher, whose writings gave umbrage to the Inquisition, was sentenced to perpetual imprisonment for heresy in the Convent of Sta Croce, where he spent the last sixteen years of his life. The heterodoxy of his teachings is indicated by the demon of spiritual pride whispering in his ear, introduced afterwards into the portrait. No. 178. Raphael. Madonna del Gran Duca. Simplicity, repose, and spirituality are the salient features of this exquisite painting, Raphael's loveliest conception of the Virgin- Mother. The masterwork of his first period, it constitutes a landmark in his art. Painted about the year 1 505, the picture was lost to view until the reign of Ferdinand III. Sold by a poor woman to a bookseller, one Gaetano Gaglier, for a trifling sum, the latter disposed of the picture to Cav. Puccini, the Director of the Grand-Ducal Gallery, for five hundred and seventy-one scudi. The Grand-Duke placed the picture in his own private chapel, and took it with him on his journeys, whence the name. No. 77. NicCOLb SOGGI. The Virgin and Child with SS.fohn the Baptist and Eustace. A typical composition of Florentine fifteenth-century art. The colouring is harmonious, and the charming landscape, visible beyond the fantastically piled-up rocks, recalls the country about Arezzo, the artist's birthplace. Handsome mirrors cover the window- wall, and three fine marble tables inlaid with agates, etc., complete the decora- tion. 1 88 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES Hall of Jupiter The ceiling decoration by Pietro da Cortona depicts the Grand-Duke Cosimo I, led by Fortune and Valour to receive the crown of Immortality at the hands of Jupiter. A few unimportant paintings are omitted. No. 109. Paris Bordone. Portrait \ The Nurse of the Medici Family. This traditional designation shows us a typical family servant in rustling holiday silk, the texture and colour of which are perfectly rendered. The influence of Titian and Palma Vecchio is unmistakable in this fine portrait. No. no. Venetian School. The Three Ages of Man. The similarity of the grouping here and in "The Con- cert " (No. 185) led to an attribution of this interesting com- position to Giorgione, and also to Lorenzo Lotto. The damage through unfortunate restoration is considerable, but the heads of the two older men are full of character. No. 112. COURTOIS (II BORGOGNONE). Battle-piece. A fine painting and one of his best works ; the artist exhibits characteristic vigour and diversity in the treatment of single episodes. Note that of the soldier in the foreground with his unhorsed adversary. No. 245. Raphael. "La Donna Velata" Portrait of Margherita, La Fornarina. The recently discovered will, dated 161 1, of Marchese Botti, the last descendant of the Florentine merchant in whose possession Vasari saw this painting, recording the same in glowing terms, describes " the painting of a young woman by the hand of Raphael of Urbino," which he devises with the residue of his property to the Grand-Duke Cosimo II. The identity of " the Veiled Lady," with Mar- gherita, the baker's handsome daughter, Raphael's mistress, is therefore established. His masterpiece in " secular " feminine portraiture ; the cool glance and self-possessed carriage reveal the wilful, pleasure-loving beauty, as much as her rich attire betokens the painter's bounty and admira- tion. Restoration has fortunately spared the pearl coloured brocade which, with the muslin veil and deftly pleated smock, form an incomparable symphony of white tones. No. 118. Andrea del Sarto. Double Portrait so called of the Artist a7id his Wife. THE PITTI GALLERY 189 Its sadly damaged condition deprives this work of much interest. The artist had married Lucrezia del Fede in 1 5 1 7, and the letter he is showing her has been interpreted as the summons of King Francis I to Paris in the following year. The attribution is doubtful. No. 243. Velasquez. Equestrian Portrait of King Philip IV of Spain. A replica of the Madrid portrait. The Florentine sculptor, Tacca, had received the commission of a statue of the King for the Buen Retiro Palace, and this painting was sent for his guidance. No. 33. Att. Flemish School. Portrait of a Lady. Nothing is known with regard to this interesting work beyond the date and name " Ioh. Starnlers vxor," inscribed on the back of the canvas. No. 123. Andrea del Sarto. The Virgin Enthroned upon Clouds, and Four Saints. This picture, unfinished at the artist's death, has been sadly damaged by restoration. The landscape background representing the Casentino range was added by his pupil Vincenzo Bonilli of Poppi, who indicates his birthplace in the small castle amidst the hills. In the S. Catherine we behold once more Lucrezia del Fede's familiar features. No. 124. Andrea del Sarto. The Annunciation. The artist's most successful interpretation of the familiar theme. The attitude of the Virgin — here again Lucrezia — is full of grace. The inscription on the desk tells his intention to raise a monument to her. The colour is characteristically clear and brilliant. No. 125. Fra Bartolommeo. S. Mark the Evange- list. This fine painting has been called the artist's act of hom- age to the genius of Michelangelo. Painted after his return from Rome, Fra Bartolommeo has striven here to express Divine inspiration and the gift of Prophecy by means of a colossal form that recalls the giants of the Sixtine Chapel. Intended to be seen from a distance, the effect is somewhat theatrical and marred by too close proximity. No. 126. Philippe de Champaigne. Portrait. A moderate work by this painter, best known by his portrait of Cardinal de Richelieu at the Louvre. No. 316. Carlo Dolci. Portrait of a Youth. i 9 o FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES Painted, as the inscription states, at the age of 14 years, the work shows promise of subtle character-portraiture which the artist's later work did not keep. Note the warm colour of the flesh tints. No. 131. Tintoretto. Portrait of Vine enzo Zeno. A fine portrait, justly esteemed as one of the artist's most successful delineations. The kindly intellectual countenance, typical of honoured age, and the subtly modelled face and hands are rendered with marked refinement. The Zeno family of Venice gave notable politicians and jurists to the State ; nothing, however, is known about Vincenzo Zeno himself. No. 113. Giov. Batt. di Jacopo (II Rosso). The Three Fates. The now generally accepted attribution to this versatile but by no means first-rate artist instead of Michelangelo, robs this picture of its spurious renown. The types are, how- ever, treated with distinction and realism. No. 64. Fra Bartolommeo. Pieta. The range of Fra Bartolommeo's art embraces no figure more truly pathetic than the Mother bending over her dead Son. Maternal anguish, the grief of the beloved disciple, the sorrow of the Magdalen at the loss of her Redeemer, are told with singular poignancy in their attitudes. The pale, re- cumbent form of the dead Christ strikes a contrasting note in the deep colour-scheme. No. 272. Andrea del Sarto. 5. John the Baptist. Restoration amounting to virtual re-painting mars in some measure the effect of this attractive picture of youthful man- hood. No. 179. Sebastiano del Piombo. The Martyrdom of S. Agatha. Michelangelo's influence doubtless inspired the sculptural character of this composition. The group of executioners is powerfully drawn, whilst the fine colour compels attention, despite the secular feeling of a work religious in name only. No. 138. Zuccheri. Portrait of Guidobaldo If, Duke of Urbino (1538-74). A spirited likeness of this distinguished soldier and states- man, the son of Titian's patron. No. 18. Titian. Portrait, " La Bella" . The identity of the sitter has been widely controverted. Tradition sees here the idealized portrait of Eleonora Gonzaga, THE PITTI GALLERY 191 Duchess of Urbino (compare Uffizi, No. 599). Titian shows us there the matronly Regent of Urbino at the age of 44, whilst the artist's ideal of youthful feminine beauty is laid here at the sovereign's feet. Titian has surpassed him- self in the delicacy of his amber flesh tints. The velvet glance asserts triumphantly the claim of Isabella d'Este's daughter to the royalty of beauty in addition to intellectual pre-eminence. This fine portrait, painted approximately about the year 1526, was brought to Florence by Vittoria della Rovere on her marriage to Ferdinand 1 1 . Six unimportant paintings by Franceschini, Ligozzi, Guercino, and Lanfranchi cover the window-wall, beneath which we note a magnificent table exquisitely inlaid with chalcedony, jasper, and other semi-precious stones. Hall of Mars The ceiling is by Pietro da Cortona. Mars points to the Medici scutcheon supported by Genii with warlike trophies, to symbolize the military achievements of Cosimo I. Tri- umphant Victory is crowned by Peace and Plenty. A number of unimportant paintings have been omitted. No. 447. Florentine School. Sixteenth century Portrait of Gian Bologna (?). The sculptor's tools and the marked resemblance of this likeness to a portrait in the Palazzo della Signoria suggest the identification. No. 476. Andrea del Sarto. Holy Family. A good specimen of Andrea's art. No. 6. Manfredi. The Fortune-Teller. A brilliantly coloured imitation of Caravaggio's somewhat coarse realism. A very popular picture. No. 82. Van Dyck. Portrait of Cardinal Guido Benti- voglio. A member of the family which ruled over Bologna for more than a century (1401-1508). Distinguished as a statesman and a historian of merit, Cardinal Bentivoglio was the favoured counsellor of several Popes from Clement VIII to Urban VIII. The massing of crimson tones forms a striking setting to the churchman's austere and intellectual mien. This is one of Van Dyck's best portraits. No. 81. Andrea del Sarto. Holy Family. 1 9 2 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES The group of the Virgin with the Child astride upon her knee is very charming ; and the aged S. Elizabeth, looking down upon the youthful S. John, is a beautiful dignified figure. No. 93. Rubens. S. Francis. A fine work, full of religious feeling. Note the rapt expres- sion of the Saint. The colour-scheme of warm brown is effective. No. 94. Raphael. La Madonna delP Impannata. Painted at Rome to the order of the Florentine merchant, Bindo Altoviti, in 15 14, as a gift to the city of his birth. The composition, inspired only by the master, is now re- garded as the work of one of his pupils, probably Giulio Romano. The name " L' Impannata " originated in the linen drapery of the window-frame. No. 86. Rubens. The Horrors of War. This designation commonly adopted is misleading. The artist, in a letter, sent together with the picture in 1638 to Sustermans, describes the finely coloured though somewhat confused composition as " the Allegory of the Thirty Years War, 7 ' which was raging at the time. " The blue-robed figure, who with uplifted eyes and despairing gesture seems the very embodiment of grief, represents unhappy Europe, suffering outrage, rapine, and every calamity." No. 90. Lodovico Cardi (II Cigoli). S. Francis in Prayer. The Convent of La Vernia in the fine mountain landscape is the single interesting feature of an otherwise worthless painting. No. 91. Carlo Dolci. S. Peter in Prayer. Painted in 1 564. No. 8. Tintoretto. Portrait of Luigi Cornaro. The artist has never rendered more felicitously the dignified repose of advancing years than in the sunken cheeks and long, thin, delicately veined hands of his sitter Luigi Cornaro (1467- 1 566). He was a distinguished scholar and prolific writer. This is one of Tintoretto's best portraits. No. 85. Rubens. Portraits of the Artist, his Brother Philip Rubens, and the Philosophers Lipsius and Grotius. This painting of a symposium of art and learning held under the eye of Seneca, whose bust may be observed in a niche, constitutes a feat remarkable for the painter's years. Grotius, the historian, seated with his dog beside him, looks THE PITTI GALLERY 193 inquiringly at Philip Rubens, the scholar, who followed his brother to Rome, and became librarian to Cardinal Colonna, returning to Antwerp in 1609. The lean, emaciated features of Lipsius, the jurist, who died in 1606, are subtly char- acterized. The artist's attitude, that of a mere onlooker, is held to denote his youthful inexperience in the art of com- position. The glass with tulips, the jurist's favourite flower, is held to be a graceful tribute to his learning. No. 95. Cristofano Allori (Bronzino). The Sacrifice of Isaac. One of the best works by this artist, noted for the brilliancy of his colour. * No. 16. Rembrandt. Portrait of an Old Man. A work of his later period, circa 1658. The colour has darkened, but the flesh tones are painted with characteristic vigour. Note the repose of the folded hands. No. 98. L. Cardi (II Cigoli). The Magdalen. A fair example of the artist's decorative style. No. 381. Att. Giampietrino. S. Catherine. A very charming picture, formerly ascribed to Aurelio Luini. On an Easel in the Window No. 147. DOSSO Dossi. Nymph Pursued by a Faun. A very beautiful work, formerly ascribed to Giorgione, with whom the Ferrarese artist here shows no slight affinity. The golden colouring, auburn locks, and soft glance of the Venetian courtesan, who symbolizes Beauty, are worthy of the master's genius. The lover's quest is subtly told in the eager gesture and open lips of the Faun. Hall of Apollo The ceiling, commenced only by Pietro da Cortona, was finished by his pupil Ciro Ferri. Cosimo I as Hercules lean- ing on his club is led by Virtue and Fame toward Apollo. The unimportant paintings have been omitted. No. 36. Girolamo Carpi. Portrait of 07iofrio Bar- tolini-Salirnbeni, Patriarch of Pisa. An early work by this artist, a pupil of Garofalo. Vasari has praise for " the fine head of delicate workmanship, ex- ecuted when Messer Onofrio was a student at the University of Bologna ". 13 i 9 4 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES No. 1 50. Van D yck. Double Portrait of King Charles I and Queen Henrietta-Maria of England. The King's thoughtful countenance and the justly celebrated beauty of Queen Henrietta-Maria are admirably portrayed in this work of the artist's maturity. Note the accessories, lace and jewellery, painted with rare delicacy and breadth. No. 38. Att. Palma Vecchio. The Supper at Emmaus. The attribution to Palma Vecchio, founded upon his initials in a corner is doubtful. The names of Zelotti and Girolamo da Santa Croce are suggested for this finely coloured example of the Venetian school. No. 40. Raphael Sanzio. Portrait-group of Giova?i?ii dei Medici {Pope Leo X) with his Kinst?ten the Cardinals Giulio dei Medici {afterwards Pope Clement VII), and Luigi de' Rossi, Papal Secretary of Briefs. The painter's masterpiece, and alike from an historical and artistic point of view, one of the most noteworthy paintings in Florence. This portrait was executed by Raphael in Rome in or about the year 15 18, when Leo X was little more than 40, though he appears much older. Without stoop- ing to flatter his sitter, Raphael, through his unique genius, has contrived to invest the coarse, sensual face and unwieldy frame with an air of real majesty. Note the shapely white hands, of which the Pope was inordinately proud, and the glass which his defective vision constantly required. Vasari praises this picture, and with justice, in the highest terms ; speaking of the exquisite rendering of the crimson velvet and white brocade of the papal robes, " of the illumin- ated parchment more real than life, and the little bell of wrought silver, beautiful beyond description". Depicted with equal power but with less minute detail are the figures of Giulio dei Medici (the future Clement VII), with his hand- some saturnine face looking straight at Leo X, and of Luigi de' Rossi discreetly standing behind his august relative's chair. The latter died in 15 19, and his fine Renaissance tomb can be seen in the portico of the neighbouring Church of Santa Felicita. No. 41. Cristofano ALLORI. The Hospitality of S. Julian. The Saint is represented receiving a leper in his house. Julian, according to the legend, suspecting his wife's fidelity, murdered the two persons whom she had harboured in her ^ THE PITTI GALLERY 195 chamber in his absence at the chase. The unknown way- farers proved to be his own father and mother. Appalled at this, Julian and his wife went forth into the world to do penance for the involuntary crime. Settling themselves by the ford of a river, they built an hospice for the travellers whom Julian ferried across. One of these, a youth afflicted with leprosy, whom the Saint housed and clothed, proved to be an angel sent by the Lord to inform them that their sin was forgiven. The group of S. Julian with the youth in his arms is grandly conceived. No. 300. Salvator Rosa. Portrait of an Old Man. A spirited likeness. No. 162. Baroccio. Portrait of Francesco- Maria delta Rovere /, Duke of Urbino (1 491- 1538). This interesting portrait is but a traditional likeness, the artist being only 10 years old when the Duke died (com- pare Titian's superb portrait, No. 605, Uffizi). The youthful nephew and heir of Guidobaldo Montefeltre, and the great- nephew of Pope Sixtus IV, Francesco-Maria succeeded to the Dukedom of Urbino in 1 508, in times of severe political stress. A born soldier, he led the forces of the Church for his kinsman Pope Julius II in the wars with the Venetians. No. 116. Sustermans. Portrait of Vittoria delta Rovere, Wife of Ferdi?iand II. The Grand-Duchess is portrayed in the character of the vestal virgin Tuccia. The granddaughter and heiress of the last Duke of Urbino, Vittoria's dowry, which included all the paintings and works of art accumulated by a long line of ancestors, served to enrich the Pitti and Uffizi Collections. No. 49. Tiberio Titi. Child-portrait of Cardinal Leo- poldo dei Medici (1617-75), Eighth Son of Cosimo II. This charming little picture shows us the future Cardinal, and the founder of the unique collection of Painters 5 Portraits preserved at the Uffizi, at the age of a few months. No. 50. Il Guercino. S. Peter Recalls the Widow Tab it ha to Life. An early work of this prolific artist who, Baldinucci tells us, painted 104 altar-pieces and 144 other pictures for kings, queens, cardinals, and princes, and many other works besides for private persons. Nos. 87, 88. Andrea del Sarto. Scenes from the Life of Joseph . 196 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES In the year 1528 the Florentine merchant Salvi Borghe- rini summoned the leading artists and craftsmen of the city to decorate and furnish the rooms destined for his son Pier- Francesco's bride, Margherita Acciajuoli ; whereupon Andrea del Sarto, together with Granacci and Pontormo, were com- missioned to paint a series of scriptural scenes for the adorn- ment of her nuptial chamber. King Francis I, hearing these paintings generally and justly praised, desired to purchase them, and commissioned his agent Giovan-Battista della Palla, with the assistance of the Signory, to obtain possession by all means in his power. Vasari records in graphic terms the ambassador's scornful dismissal at the hands of Margherita. No. 52. School of Titian. Holy Family with SS. Catherine and Mary Magdalen. Formerly ascribed to Pordenone. The characteristic Vene- tian landscape is charming. No. 47. Guido Reni. Bacchus. The mythological subject offers us one of the artist's most attractive examples of child- portraiture. No. 55. Baroccio. Child-portrait of Federigo della Rovere, Prince of Urbino. Federigo della Rovere, born in 1605, was the only son, by his second wife, of Francesco- Maria II, the last Duke. He led a dissolute life and predeceased his father at the early age of 18 years. He married Claudia, daughter of Ferdinand I dei Medici, and his only child Vittoria eventually became the wife of her cousin Ferdinand II. The solemn, wistful look of the little sufferer wrapped in the gorgeous but uncom- fortable swaddling clothes of the day, lends a peculiar charm to this specimen of " Royal portraiture ". No. 58. Andrea del Sarto. Ento7nbment. Religious feeling pervades this fine work, which recalls in many ways the same subject depicted by Fra Bartolommeo (Pitti, No. 64). The artist and his family had fled in 1 523 to escape the plague then raging in Florence to Luco, in the Mugello, where he painted this altar-piece for the nuns of S. Piero. Vasari's praise of this impressive work is deserved. The female figures, u living as though they had really intelli- gence and soul," are portraits : the artist's wife is the Mag- dalen ; the Virgin is her sister ; and the second of the holy women is her daughter by her first marriage. No. 129. Mazzolini. The Woman Take?i in Adultery. THE PITTI GALLERY 197 A good example of the brilliant but somewhat harsh colour of the Ferrarese school. No. 487. DOSSO DOSSI. The Flight into Egypt. A pleasing warmth of colour distinguishes this work. The landscape is attractive. No. 122. Garofalo. Sibyl Revealing the Mystety of the Incarnation to Augustus. The Tiburtine Sibyl points heavenwards at the vision before which the Emperor kneels in amazement. His fine colour places this artist's work among the best productions of the Ferrarese school. No. 62. Andrea del Sarto. Holy Family. A somewhat commonplace work. Painted in 1521. No. 63. Murillo. The* Virgin and Child. The fine colour harmony, the tender and sorrowful expres- sion of the Virgin's soft glance, the charming attitude of the Child, all unite to justify the general appreciation of this beauti- ful picture. If the majesty that compels reverence is absent, we are yet charmed by the artist's distinctive human sentiment. No. 483. Marco Vecellio. Our Lady of Mercy. A finely coloured and effective painting. No. 66. Andrea del Sarto. Portrait of Himself as a Youth. The subdued colour-scheme enhances the effect of this attractive portrait of the young artist, whose mind seems already oppressed by the future vicissitudes of his life. The expression of the amiable countenance is haunting. No. 67. Titian. The Magdalen. A beautiful likeness of a beautiful woman. The subject, a favourite one with Titian's patrons, afforded him ample scope for the poetic interpretation of the spell cast by auburn locks, appealing glances, and a form of ideal loveliness. The pictures hanging on the window-wall are unimportant. Three fine tables inlaid with precious stones and agates, and an elaborately carved ebony cabinet in the centre, complete the decoration. The cabinet contains a portable altar used by Cardinal Leopoldo dei Medici, and the inside panels dis- play paintings upon agate by Breughel. Hall of Venus The ceiling, by Pietro da Cortona, represents the youth Cosimo I led by Wisdom to eschew pleasure, towards Her- 198 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES cules, symbolizing Labour. Portraits of the Medici Princes ornament the lunettes. The less important pictures are omitted. Nos. i and 20. Albert Durer. Adam and Eve. These two paintings, probably the wings of a triptych, were executed about 1507 for the Guild- Hall of Nuremberg. Purchased by the Emperor Rudolph II (1 576-1612), they were replaced by copies. The greater beauty and vivacity of the two similar pictures at Madrid lead critics to seek the originals there ; they are inclined, however, to ascribe the Pitti pictures as replicas also to Albert Durer. No. 2. Salvator Rosa. Duplicity. The seated figure holding the mask is said to represent a rival, whose duplicity the artist stigmatizes in his Satires. No. 4. Salvator Rosa. Sea-piece. The artist shows himself here a worthy rival of Claude Lorrain and a forerunner of Turner. The Italian sunrise invests the scene with a glamour in which the shipping floats in masses of ethereal radiancy upon the waters shot with golden ripples. The dark foreground with the mole and light- house of Leghorn, where a great argosy is building, stands forth in sharp contrast with the magic spectacle of the rising sun. No. 79. Att. Raphael. Portrait of Pope Julius II. The skill of a Venetian artist, to whom we owe this fine replica of Raphael's masterpiece (Uffizi, No. 1131) has given rise to an attribution upon which authoritative critics cast some doubt. The painting was brought to Florence with the remainder of the Delia Rovere inheritance from Urbino. One of the most eminent members of a remarkable family, Giuliano della Rovere was born at Savona in 1453. He re- ceived the Cardinal's hat in 1471 and was raised to the Pontificate in 1 503. His martial instincts, it is said, led him to take the name of Julius in memory of Julius Caesar. Pope Julius II died in 15 13. He is commonly regarded as the true founder of the Temporal Power of the Roman Church. No. 176. Domenichino. The Magdalen. A somewhat theatrical, though finely coloured composition. No. 7. Franz Pourbus. Portrait of a Warrior. A spirited portrait. Note the care shown in the treatment of detail. No. 8. IL Guercino. Apollo and Marsyas. THE PITTI GALLERY 199 One of the painter's best works. He has treated his sub- ject with a vigour and impressiveness rarely met with in the art of his day. The peaceful landscape contrasts sharply with the dramatic scene. No. 9. Rubens. Ulysses a?id Nausicda. The adventure of the Grecian King plays but a minor part in this vast composition, which has afforded the artist full scope for his romantic fancy. A bustling seaport stretches far inland ; shipping flecks the summer sea with white wings, and Rubens' genius seems to have divined the Ionian coast-line where rocky headlands are interspersed with verdant slopes, dotted with villages and homesteads nest- ling amid chestnut and oak forests. No. 11. Jac. Ponte (II Bassano). The Martyrdom of S. Catherine. A fine painting, brilliantly coloured. Note the touching attitude of the Saint. No. 13. Matteo Rosselli. The Triumph of David. A characteristic example of the soulless religious art of the later Florentine school. No. 14. Rubens. The Return of the Harvesters. The soft glow of a Flemish summer day bathes the trees and the distant spires of Mechlin with a golden haze. The poetry of the plain has rarely been expressed with deeper charm. No. 15. Salvator Rosa. Marine Landscape. The atmosphere here is grey and the scenery rugged ; indeed, the piled-up crags produce an impression of confused unreality. The companion to No. 4. The picture was doubt- less intended to glorify the rising sea-power of Tuscany, as may be inferred from the galleys flying the ensign of the Naval and Military Order of S. Stephen. No. 17. Att. Titian. The Marriage of S. Catherine. The central group of this attractive composition with its charm of colouring suggests a replica of the fine picture now in the National Gallery of London. No. 137. Giovanni di San Giovanni. The Hunter's Home-corn ing. This spirited composition is one of the few easel pictures by this painter, whose art may best be appreciated in his decorative frescoes in the ground -floor suite of rooms of the Palace. 2oo FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES On an Easel in the Window No. 97. Titian. Portrait \ " The Englishman ". This superb portrait was brought from Urbino by Vittoria della Rovere. The traditional designation, " the English- man," and the unmistakable Anglo-Saxon type, lend colour to the suggestion that we have here the unfortunate Henry Earl of Surrey, statesman, orator, and poet, beheaded for treason in the year 1547, at the age of 35, or there- abouts, during his father's lifetime. The restless glance, the melancholy smile playing about the thin lips and the reserved and haughty bearing forcibly express the idealist's dissatis- faction with alien conditions of life beyond his power of control.^ Titian has never interpreted a character with deeper insight. The subtle modelling of the care-worn brow and the skilful massing of the sombre tones place this portrait, painted about 1 540, amongst Titian's finest delineations. The tra- ditional association with the Duke of Norfolk, Henry's father, is not so far unquestioned. A magnificent Sevres vase stands in the middle of this room, wherein three handsome inlaid tables complete the decoration. The vase was given by the Emperor Napoleon I to his sister Elisa Baciocchi, Duchess of Lucca, and after- wards of Tuscany. We retrace our steps to the Hall of the Iliad, whence opens The Hall of the Education of Jove No. 241. GiULlO Clovio. Descent from the Cross. A fine example of sixteenth-century miniature painting on vellum. The colour is beautifully transparent and delicate. Clovio occupies a foremost place in the art, which, from mere illumination upon parchment, was to develop into the ex- quisite miniature painting on ivory of later times. No. 139. RUBENS. Holy Family. This is one of the artist's most attractive family groups, in which we recognize the comely features of Helene Fourment, his second wife, and their two children. The children are especially charming. No. 270. GuiDO Reni. Cleopatra. The artist, so we learn from a letter dated 1640, spent much time and trouble over this picture, once greatly ad- mired. Cleopatra's attitude is singularly unconvincing. THE PITTI GALLERY 201 Her timid, upturned glance has nothing of the pride of Mark Antony's sovereign ruler. The colour is flat and lifeless. No. 246. BOCCACCINO DA CREMONA. Portrait, " La Zingarella " (The Gipsy-Girl). A delicate little painting, formerly ascribed to Garofalo. Nos. 251,261. BAROCCIO. Heads, The Virgin and Arch- angel. These are two attractive studies for an altar-piece of the Annunciation in the Basilica of Loreto. No. 248. Att. Tintoretto. Entombment. A fine vigorous composition set in characteristic Venetian scenery. No. 252. Att. Jean Clouet. Portrait, Claude de Lor- raine, Due de Guise. Formerly given to Holbein. This distinguished soldier led the French troops at Marignano, in 1 5 1 5, and received the Dukedom of Guise from Francis I for his services. No. 254. Venetian School. Holy Family. Formerly ascribed to Palma Vecchio. No. 255. Abraham de Vries. Portrait. An excellent portrait of the typical Dutch Burgomaster. The modelling of the pleasant florid features framed in deli- cately painted hair and beard, led to the former attribution of this fine work to Van der Heist. No. 338. School of Giov. Bellini. Sacra Conver- sazione. A charmingly grouped assemblage amid attractive scenery. Possibly by Marco Bello, a pupil of Giovanni Bellini. No. 257. Bonifazio Veronese II. Sibyl Revealing the Mystery of the Incarnation to Augustus. An interesting work ; formerly ascribed to Paris Bordone. The figure of the Emperor is striking. No. 262. Att. Clouet, dit Jehannet. Portrait of Henri II, King of France. Probably only a study for the full-length portrait of the King (No. 1 123, Uffizi, 2nd Cor.). No. 265. SUSTERMANS. Portrait of Prince Matthias dei Medici, son of Cosimo II. This fine likeness is one of the painter's best portraits. This Prince, a younger brother of Ferdinand II who served with distinction under Wallenstein in the Thirty Years War, became Governor of Siena, where he died in 1667. 202 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES No. 266. Carlo Dolci. The Martyrdom of ' S. Andrew. The artist painted several replicas. His fellow-pupil, Raphael Ximenes, is depicted under the features of the Centurion. No. 96. Cristofano Allori. Judith. This magnificent picture is deservedly considered the artist's masterpiece. We are dazzled by the gorgeous yellow robe of the Jewish heroine, in whom we recognize the hand- some courtesan " La Mazzafira," Allori's mistress. Her mother appears as the attendant, while the artist has intro- duced his own likeness in the features of Holophernes, having allowed his beard to grow for the occasion. In the adjoining room, " Camera del Stufa," are fine modern statues of Cain and Abel by Dupre. To the right of the passage leading to the Hall of Ulysses opens a small chamber with a marble bath. The ceiling is supported by four columns of verde antique marble. Hall of Ulysses A number of unimportant sixteenth and seventeenth cen- tury paintings have been omitted. No. 80. Att. Titian (?). Portrait of Andrea Vesalio (?). This fine portrait has given rise to discussion ; the several likenesses, at Vienna, Munich, and Padua, differing so much that the association of Vesalio with this picture is only recorded as being founded upon tradition. The ascription to Titian himself is doubtful, and the painting has suffered sadly from restoration. Andrea Vesalio, so called from Wesel, in Ger- many, the birthplace of his family, was born at Brussels, in 1 5 14. The. first to study anatomy by means of dissection, his teachings far in advance of his time, drew down the persecu- tion of religious bodies upon the precursor of modern surgery. No. 2 1 6. Paolo Veronese. Portrait ofDaniele Barbaro. A spirited portrait of this illustrious statesman, who repre- sented the Venetian Republic at the Court of King Edward VI in 1548. No. 301. Cigoli. Portrait. A good portrait formerly attributed to Carlo Dolci, his pupil. No. 69. Schiavone. Portrait. The artist is strongly influenced here by Tintoretto, JUDITH WITH THE HEAD OF HOLOFERNES From the pai7iting by Cristofano Alloriin the Pitti Palace p. 202 THE PITTI GALLERY 203 No. 304. Schidone. Holy Family. A work of considerable charm both in colour and com- position. Nos. 306, 312. Salvator Rosa. Landscapes. These charming small landscapes reveal a keen sense of the natural beauty and atmosphere of the Mediterranean sea- board. We note the familiar rugged outline of the Apuan Alps, whilst the " Towers" which give No. 312 its name are the lighthouses of Leghorn. No. 307. Andrea del Sarto. Madonna and Saints. This painting was executed by the artist for his friend, Becuccio Bicchieraijo of Gambassi, and brought thence to the l J itti. Vasari records the composition, in which, however, a certain weakness of design contrasts with the fine colour. No. 320. Agostino Caracci. Landscape. Painted in distemper on canvas. This little painting has all the grace of a delicate water-colour. No. 411. Jan Both. La?idscape. The colour of this fine work has assumed a uniform tint of orange, obliterating all the distinctive features. No. 493. Venetian School. Portrait. Formerly attributed to Moretto of Brescia, this excellent portrait recalls the art of Sebastiano del Piombo. No. 28. Att. Andrea del Sarto. Portrait of a Gentle- wotnan. An attractive composition, but its ascription to the artist is doubtful. No. 201. Titian. Portrait of Cardinal Ippolito dei Medici (1509-35). Ippolito, born in 1509, the natural son of Giuliano dei Medici, was Pope Leo X's favourite nephew. Destined for an ecclesiastical career towards which he had no inclination, we behold the young Cardinal (appointed 1528) in his favourite " Hungarian dress" in which Titian portrayed him during his sojourn at Bologna with the Emperor Charles V. The intensity of the young soldier's look, thoughtful beyond Ins eighteen years, and the square determined chin indicate qualities that, had his life not been cut short by poison but a few years later, might have changed the course of Florentine history. Note how the smooth cheek of youth contrasts with the extraordinary mental maturity of the brow in this portrait. one of Titian's most striking character studies. 2o 4 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES No. 223. JOOST van Cleeve. Portrait. The Barbaro portrait in this room (No. 216) enables us to compare the contemporary art of Flanders and Italy. The resemblance of this fine work to a portrait by Quentin Matsys at Frankfort, led to the earlier attribution. Note the careful, yet spirited modelling, and the delicately painted accessories, gloves, papers, etc. No. 311. Att. Titian. Portrait of Alphonso /, Duke of Ferrara. A representative Italian statesman, Alphonso d'Este, second Duke of Ferrara (1505-34), was the husband of Lucrezia Borgia. Their Court was a centre of art and letters, and he extended his protection to Ariosto. The interest of this fine portrait, ascribed also to Dosso Dossi, is mainly historical. A fine Sevres vase, a handsome inlaid cabinet, and a marble table complete the decoration of this room. Hall of Prometheus Several unimportant pictures are not mentioned. No. 377. Att. Fra Bartolommeo. " Ecce Homo" The fragment of a fresco, in which we can discern Leonardo da Vinci's influence. Note the Saviour's countenance instinct with the tenderness of Fra Bartolommeo's art. No. 102. Francesco Libertini (da Bachiacca). The Magdalen. A brilliant piece of colour by this talented pupil of Perugino, and Franciabigio, from whom he acquired the delicacy of his technique. Note the Magdalen's spikenard, a jar still in use in Tuscany for spices. No. 236. Filippino Lippi. Allegorical Scene. The artist has selected two passages from Ecclesiasticus to illustrate in the fanciful manner of his day the unwisdom of misplaced trust. Jesus, the son of Sirach, exclaims (xn. 13), " Who will pity a charmer that is bitten with a serpent ". The inscription finds an explanation in the passage (xxv. 15), " There is no wrath above the wrath of an enemy". The landscape with a contemporary view of the city of Florence is interesting. No. 256. Fra Bartolommeo. Holy Family. This interesting work is a quasi-replica of the picture in the Corsini Gallery at Rome, .MADONNA AND CHILD From the painting by Fra Filipfo Lippiin the Pitti Palace A 20J THE PITTI GALLERY 205 No. 345. Francesco Granacci. Holy Family. This charming composition, one of the artist's best paintings, was formerly ascribed to Baldassare Peruzzi. The delicate colour almost rivals the transparency of fresco painting. No. 341. Att. Eusebio di San Giorgio. Adoration of the Magi. This charming composition, formerly ascribed to Pin- turicchio and to Fiorenzo di Lorenzo, is characteristic of Umbrian art, in the skilful grouping of brilliantly clad multitudes within a restricted space, against a beautiful landscape. The giraffe, first seen in Italy about 1488, furnishes an approximate date, and the Vitelli coat-of-arms an indication of the ownership for this interesting work. No. 343. FlLlPPO LlPPl. The Virgin and Child. This admirable painting, almost the first example of the circular form within which the Florentine artists contrived the representation of an entire life-story, dates from about 1457. The refined features of the young nun of Prato, Lucrezia Buti, for whom the Friar Filippo Lippi disregarded the sanctity of their joint vows, are portrayed for us in the Virgin. Her sweetly pensive expression as she looks upon her Son (the infant Filippino, it is said), tells her story plainly. We are afforded a glimpse of domestic scenes in the background where the graceful figures of the attendants recall Botticelli's art. No. 340. School of Perugino. Virgin and Child. A very charming picture. No. 347. Botticini. Madonna of the Rose-Garden. The grace and delicate colour recall the art of Filippino Lippi to whom this fanciful " garden enclosed " was formerly ascribed. The love of flowers, so characteristic of the Florentine Quattro-centists, is shown once more in the beauty and variety of the flower-laden hedge behind the balustrade and the blossoms wound into garlands for the Christ-Child by the Angel's hands. Note also the exquisite landscape background. No. 348. School of Botticelli. Holy Family and Angels. A good school-piece. No. 364. Jacopo del Sellaio. Holy Family. Little is known about this artist, a pupil of Filippino Lippi. The figures are graceful. Here once more we admire 2o6 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES the Quattrocentists' sense of natural beauty displayed in the mingling of mountain and marine scenery. No. 204. Att. Bronzino. Portrait of Bianca Capello. This is a striking likeness of the Venetian adventuress, proclaimed "the Daughter of the Republic," who enslaved, and afterwards married the Grand-Duke Francis I. No. 372. Att. Botticelli. Portrait of a Youth. Formerly ascribed to Andrea del Castagno. An expressive and interesting type of the Florentine gallant wearing the scarlet " lucco " and black cap, " beretta calzarea," of the fifteenth century. He recalls a type frequently met with in the master's paintings. No. 353. Botticelli. Portrait of a Lady, "La bella Simonetta " (?). The attribution to Botticelli of this striking, if curiously homely portrait of the Genoese gentlewoman Simonetta Cattani Vespucci, known as " La bella Simonetta," is con- tested. No. 358. GHIRLANDAJO. The Adoration of the Magi. A somewhat inferior but finely coloured replica of the painting in the Uffizi. No. 355. LUCA SlGNORELLi. Holy Family. The familiar theme is treated with marked originality. The Child is dictating His message to S. Catherine, seated on the left, whilst S. Joseph looks over her shoulder. The brilliant colour of the draperies contrasts with the somewhat heavy flesh tints. This fine work yields little to Mantegna in depth and sincerity. No. 357. Att. Botticelli. Madonna and Child. The attitude of the Virgin is forced ; note, however, the symbolic rose-bush familiar to us in his other works. No. 365. Mariotto Albertinelli. Holy Family. The Virgin kneels before the Child, wrapped in red and white swaddling clothes, the colours of the Foundling Hospital at Florence, and the entire composition both in colour and feeling recall the art of Leonardo da Vinci and Lorenzo di Credi. No. 249. Il PONTORMO. Portrait of an Old Man. The keen, hawk-like profile reminds us not a little of Dante in the subtle modelling of the stern features. One of Pontormo's best portraits. No. 362. JACOPO Boateri. Holy Family. THE PITTI GALLERY 207 An attractive little picture formerly ascribed to Francia, whose delicate art has influenced his pupil. The trans- parency of the colour is especially noteworthy. No. 11. PONTORMO. Martyrdom of 'the 10,00c Christians o?i Mount Ararat, P rede I la. Considerable skill is shown in the grouping of the number- less small figures. The subject treated, notably by Carpaccio at Venice, is incorrectly described as the " Forty Crowned Saints ". These were four only, and the scene depicts the Armenian Christians on Mount Ararat. No. 354. Att. Lorenzo di Credi. Holy Family. A school-piece often repeated in several private collections in Florence. Note the flooded landscape. Nos. 367, 378. Andrea del Minga. The Creation of Eve, the Exile fro?n the Garden of Eden. These effective but somewhat theatrical compositions are drawn from the cartoons of Baccio Bandinelli. The sculp- tural rather than pictorial influence of Michelangelo upon the art of his day is well marked here. The serpent, it should be noted, is invested with human shape. No. 140. G. Bugiardini. Portrait of a Lady, "La Monaca " (the Nun). The traditional attribution to Leonardo accounts in a measure for the celebrity of this picture. Certain features, notably the Colonnade of Piazza della SS. Annunziata, where the Niccolini family lived, and the Convent of the same name, where, to judge from her mourning attire, she probably retired on her widowhood, being known in the family as " the Nun," support the suggestion of her connexion with that name. No. 382. SODOMA. Portrait. This powerful but unpleasing likeness is also ascribed to Girolamo Genga, a pupil of Luca Signorelli. No. 379. PONTORMO. Adoratio?i of the Magi. The composition departs in several particulars from tradi- tion. The King has no crown, the ox and ass are omitted, and the gifts are a single gold cup. Simplicity takes the place here of the pomp and circumstance dear to earlier artists. No. 384. Att. PlERO DEL POLLAIUOLO. S. Sebastian. The realistic representation in which suffering, as was usual with the Tuscan artists, is not idealized, points to a Northern Italian master. The small head, long limbs, and 2o8 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES well-developed feet are characteristic of Jacopo de' Barbari's art. No. 388. Att. Filippino Lippi. The Death of Lucretia. This decorative composition formed the front panel of a dower-chest. The story is told with all the graceful fancy of Botticelli. Mr. Berenson calls the artist Amico di Sandro, since he was evidently influenced by that painter. The central group is full of life, and the actors move with grace and freedom. Corridor* of the Columns So called from the two fine alabaster pillars supporting the ceiling. The collection of portrait miniatures of celebrities formed by Cardinal Leopoldo dei Medici, some 378 in number, is being catalogued. Among the likenesses identified so far we note : — No. 80. Henri II, King of France. No. 86. Stephen Bathory, King of Poland. No. 147. Bianca Capello. No. 148. The Grand-Duke Cosimo II. No. 151. Queen Elisabeth. No. 167. Cardinal de Richelieu. No. 271. Oliver Cromwell. No. 347. A lady of the Pitti family (compare with a portrait, No. 351, Hall of Prometheus, where she reappears in widow's garb). No. 207. Ridolfo Ghirlandajo. Portrait, " The Goldsmith ". This interesting likeness was formerly ascribed to Leonardo da Vinci, whose art no doubt influenced the painter. The features are carefully modelled. Note the jewel which gives the picture its name. No. 43. Franciabigio. Portrait. Delicate harmonies of green and grey tones form the key- note of this attractive portrait, probably of the artist himself, executed about 15 14. No. 44. Raphael. Portrait of a Youth. Nothing in the poorly modelled features and the coarse brush-work of the drapery recalls the contemporary masterly portraits of Angelo Doni and his wife (Nos. 59, 61). THE PITTI GALLERY 209 No. 375. MANTEGNA. Portrait of a Nobleman of the Gonzaga Family. The likeness of this shrewd, hard-headed statesman, painted about 1474, has been identified in Mantegna's frescoes at Mantua. No. 376. Lorenzo Costa. Portrait of Giovanni II Bentivoglio. This is a spirited portrait of the statesman under whose rule the city of Bologna attained a high degree of prosperity. Giovanni, the fifth in the line of the Bentivoglio rulers of Bologna, was overpowered by Pope Julius II, dispossessed of his state and driven into exile. He died at Milan in 1508. No. 370. Att. POLLAIUOLO. S.Jerome. The influence of Leonardo is plainly discernible in this interesting work, too much damaged, however, by restoration to be appreciated. Room of Justice No. 389. Att. Tintoretto. Portrait of a Sculptor. A school-piece. The model of a horse upon the table has given the picture its name. No. 221. School of Titian. Portrait of Costanza Bentivoglio. The homely countenance is set off by the rich attire of a Ferrarese gentlewoman. The painting, in which the careful treatment of drapery, characteristic of Titian's school forms a feature, is dated 1520. No. 409. Sebastiano del Piombo. Portrait. Though much darkened, this is yet one of the artist's most striking portraits. The sinister-looking merchant may be likened to Shakespeare's Shylock. No. 3. Tintoretto. Venus a?id Vulcan. An early work. No. 405. BONIFAZIO DE' PlTATi. Christ among the Doctors. An interesting and finely coloured painting of the artist's maturity. Note the life-like movement of the figures. No. 84. BONIFAZIO DE' PlTATi. " Sacra Conversazione.'" A brilliant piece of colour formerly attributed to Palma Vecchio. The subject commemorates the discovery of America by Spain, and the consequent extension of Chris- 14 2io FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES tianity to the New World. The kneeling figure with a crown by his side, to whom the Child hands the globe, is S. Ferdinand of Castile, and the female Saint is S. Elizabeth of Aragon, Queen of Portugal, known in Spain as S. Isabel de Paz. No. 130. Il BASSANO. Portrait of an Old Lady. A notable likeness of dignified old age. The pleasing features are subtly modelled. The crimson chair introduces a welcome note of colour in the scheme of grey and black tones. Nos. 121, 128. MORONE. Portrait of 'a Lady and Gentle- man. These are a pair of excellent portraits. No. 121 shows marked distinction in the portrayal of advancing years. Neither is the very modern-looking portrait of a Venetian gentlewoman (No. 128) less interesting. Note the rich attire, and scarlet and black slashed sleeve, contrasting with the homely simplicity of the head-dress. No. 161. BONIFAZIO DE' PlTATl. The Finding of Moses. This charming composition, the front of a dower-chest, was formerly ascribed to Giorgione. The figures move with characteristic grace in a luminous Venetian landscape. The biblical episode is surrounded with all the circumstance of a Venetian nobleman's courtly existence. No. 89. Bonifazio DE' Pitati. The Repose During the Flight into Egypt. In this fanciful representation of the sacred episode the Angels minister unto His needs. The stretch of blue-green sea in the distance invests the scene with a peculiar charm. No. 54. Titian. Portrait of Pietro Aretino (1492- 1557). The masterly breadth and vigour of Titian's conceptions are particularly visible in this superb portrait, wherein he lays bare the character of Pietro Aretino, literary adventurer and social parasite, for whom the world was an oyster to be opened.' We have a letter addressed by Aretino to Cosimo I from Venice in 1545, in which, whilst complaining of the painter's neglect of his silk-velvet and brocade gown and his gold chain, he pays him unconsciously the tribute due to his genius. " In very truth the countenance breathes life, blood flows in my veins, and I behold myself alive in effigy ; yet had I given the master but a few more coins, he would have THE PITTI GALLERY 211 painted my silk and velvet brocade and cloth with greater heed, the gold chain is well painted indeed." The man's character can be read in the lines of the handsome, coarse features, the insolent, self-satisfied glance, and the sardonic smile of the venal satirist feared by friend and foe alike. No. 65. Tintoretto. Portrait. An interesting work. Characteristic vigour is shown in the delineation of the rugged features. No. 495. Titian. Portrait of Tommaso Mosti. Originally painted on a panel, this fine portrait has suffered sad damage by transfer long since to canvas ; and recent restoration has destroyed the balance of tone altogether. Room of Flora No. 415. Sustermans. Portrait of Ferdinand II. Painted probably about 1624-27 between the artist's so- journ at Vienna and his departure for Rome. Nos. 441, 421, 436, 416. POUSSIN. Landscapes. No. 421 is the best of these scenes. The Roman Cam- pagna offered the seventeenth-century landscape painters a wide field for their interpretation of classical antiquity. The familiar hills are dotted with ruins, and the expanses of plain and distant sea are rendered with a distinct feeling for their peculiar charm. No. 135. Salvator Rosa. Battle-scene. A characteristic work by this artist. The struggle be- tween the horse and foot soldiers is rendered with a great sense of realism. No. 426. Francesco Furini. Adam and Eve. No. 427. Franciabigio. The Calumny of Apelles. Much darkened, this work conveys but an indistinct im- pression of the scene so dramatically interpreted by Botticelli (Uffizi, No. 1 182). Ignorance and Suspicion tempt King Midas ; Calumny, Deceit, and Cunning are grouped at the foot of the throne. Calumny drags the victim by the hair. His advocate, Sincerity, pleads for mercy. Truth, a nude figure, holds a mirror in her hand. No. 429. RUYSDAEL. Stormy Skies. This is an interesting though perhaps not a first-rate example of the master's art. The grey foaming waters, lower- ing sky, and storm-tossed trees are faithfully rendered. 212 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES No. 394. Lo SCARSELLINO. The Birth of a Prince. This curious work gives us an accurate picture of the domestic surroundings of bygone days. No. 149. Bronzino. Portrait of Guidobaldo II, Duke of Urbino. Vasari's description of a portrait of Ippolito dei Medici by Pontormo led to the former attribution of this striking work. The Prince is painted here again with a hound by his side (compare No. 138, evidently at an earlier age). Note the hard, dry colour characteristic of the earlier Florentine school of portraitists. No. 39. Bronzino. Holy Family. This is a charming work. The Virgin, a fine statuesque figure, watches over the Child's slumbers, extended in an attitude of perfect repose. The colour is warm and bright. No. 440. Douven. Portrait. This carefully executed work has also been attributed to Cornelis de Vos. No. 434. Bronzino. Portrait of Luca Martini. A first-rate likeness drawn with all the vigour of Sebasti- ano del Piombo. Luca Martini was Governor of Pisa under Cosimo I. He drained the marshes around the city. The villages where he worked are enumerated on the map in his hand. The celebrated statue of Venus, commissioned by King Louis of Etruria, for whom Canova had undertaken to copy the Venus dei Medici, stands in this room. Room of the Putti Later Italian and Dutch paintings, mostly of secondary importance, fill this room. We may mention : — Nos. 451, 455. Rachel Ruysch. Fruit and Flowers. The lizard sucking an egg, and the bird's nest and corn in the foreground, are most delicately painted, whilst the flowers are rendered with wonderful dexterity. No. 453. Salvator Rosa. An Allegory of Peace De- stroying the Weapons of War. No. 470. Salvator Rosa. Philosophers in the Grove. A work of the artist's maturity. The play of light and .shadow amidst the trees is skilfully rendered, and the group- ing of the figures is good. Note the act of Diogenes, about THE PITTI GALLERY 213 to throw away his cup at the sight of a youth drinking water in the palm of his hand. No. 400. HONDEKOETER. Farmyard- scene. A pleasing picture. Gallery of Poccetti Two pictures only are worth notice, viz. : — No. 437. School of Van Dyck. The Repose in the Flight to Egypt. The group of dancing angels in this picture was engraved under the title of " Queen of the Angels ". No. 408. Sir Peter Lely. Oliver Cromwell, A fine likeness of the great statesman painted at the ap- parent age of 50 years. Two colossal busts of Napoleon and of Jupiter, the latter a copy from a Greek original, together with three fine marble tables, complete the decoration. Vestibule Leading to the Corridor No. 133. Salvator Rosa. Battle-scene. This fine painting was the first important work executed after Salvator Rosa's arrival in Florence. The artist conveys the feeling of stress and heat in the tumult of battle with great skill and realism. The unhorsed soldier with a shield bearing the letters Saro is said to be intended for himself. 2i 4 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES Plan of the Ac cade mi a delle Belle artjl 1 1 o 1 1 3 2 4 6 1 1 7 1±L 10 1. Long Vestibule and Tribune 2. Room of Perugino 3. Room I of Botticelli, or Prim aver a 4. Room II of Botticelli 5. Hall I of the Tuscan Masters 6. Hall II of the Tuscan Masters 7. Hall III of the Tuscan Masters 8. Room I of Fra Angelico 9. Room II of Fra Angelico 10. Room of the XIV^S Century Masters THE GALLERY OF ANCIENT AND MODERN ART— ACCADEMIA DELLE BELLE ARTI Founded in 1784, and the third only in date, the Ac- cademia Delle Belle Arti yields nothing in importance to the other two great Museums of Florence. The Grand-Duke Pietro-Leopoldo determined to institute an Academy of Fine Arts, taking over the Hospice of San Matteo, and trans- ferring the foundation to Santa Maria Nuova. The premises of the hospital founded in the fourteenth century by the merchant Lemmo di Balduccio da Montecatini and dedicated to the Patron Saint of the Money-Changers, were rebuilt by the architect Paoletti to house the School of Art and Museum formed with the pictures removed from the churches and religious houses suppressed by the Grand-Duke and subse- quently by the N apoleonic Government. Though numbering comparatively few pictures, the collection affords a unique and comprehensive survey of four centuries of Religious Art. The collection of Modern Paintings on the first floor is only of relative interest. We enter the Gallery through a fine vestibule ending in a tribune or apse with two transepts, designed by Prof. De Fabris in 1882, where the colossal statue of David by Michelangelo is now placed. The year 1 504 witnessed the completion of the great statue, which was set up, in accordance with the artist's wish, upon the "Ringhiera" or terraced steps of the Palazzo della Signoria. Signs of damage to the marble determined the authorities to provide for its removal under cover, a task successfully accomplished in 1873. A fine copy placed in the original position (1910) admits of the better appreciation of a work for which Michelangelo's genius rightly divined the need of a massive architectural background. The walls of the vestibule are hung with arras and Florentine sixteenth-century tapestry, the most notable 215 216 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES being the seven panels depicting the Days of the Creation, especially " Adam " and the " Birth of Eve," after cartoons by Bronzino. The artist displays a quaint fancy in the " Naming of the beasts and fowls of the air ". Note the cats and mice walking in pairs, and the reptiles led by the tortoise and the snail. The gold thread woven in the tissue en- hances the brilliancy of the colours. In front are placed six unfinished statues by Michelangelo, from the Boboli Gardens, presented by King Victor-Emmanuel III (1909), and a collection of casts of his works elsewhere. The four Captives and the Genius of Victory (No. 2, on the left) were intended for the tomb of Julius II in Rome. The Genius of Victory bears a noteworthy resemblance to the statue upon the monument to Giuliano dei Medici in San Lorenzo. S. Matthew (No. 2) was one of a series, never carried out, of the Apostles for the facade of the Duomo, designs for which had been furnished by Michelangelo. The fine plaster and clay " torso" (south transept) may be recognized in the contemporary portrait of the sculptor above ; it was pre- sumably his own working model. Room of Perugino The most important paintings only are mentioned. No. 52. Cosimo Rosselli. 5. Barbara with SS. John the Baptist and Matthew. Delicacy and bright, clear colour distinguish this artist's compositions. Though lacking in originality, he influenced greater men, such as Ghirlandajo and Fra Bartolommeo. No. 97. Fra Bartolommeo. The Vision of S.Bernard. A beautiful composition displaying in a high degree the artist's poetic tenderness. The dignified figures of SS. Benedict and John the Evangelist are in marked contrast with the rapt expression of S. Bernard. This picture is held to be Fra Bartolommeo's first work after joining the Do- minican Order. The beautiful landscape is reminiscent of his birthplace, Prato. No. 54. Att. to Filippo Lippi. S.Jerome. An interesting work but somewhat grey in tone, formerly ascribed to Andrea del Castagno. No. 56. Perugino. The Descent from the Cross. Grief has rarely been expressed with a more masterly THE ACCADEMIA 217 dignity and variety of expression. Note the attitude of the weeping Magdalen and the Virgin, the embodiment of sorrowing motherhood. Perugino is said to have portrayed Raphael as the Evangelist. No. 57. Perugino. The Assumption. This great altar-piece, one of the artist's grandest compo- sitions, was painted for the monks of Vallombrosa in 1 500. The attitudes of the Saints are characteristic, one foot being always raised from the ground. The colour is fine but some- what ill-balanced owing to restoration. In S. Michael we seem to recognize the young Raphael. The other Saints are : SS. Benedict, Giovan-Gualberto (the Founder of the Monastery), and Bernardo degli Uberti, General of the Vallombrosan Order. Nos. 241, 242. Perugino. Portraits of Dom. Baldassare Abbot and Dom. Biagio of Milan, General of the Vallom- brosan Order. These speaking likenesses are treated with Perugino's accustomed subtlety. The devout upward gaze indicates their position, kneeling, as donors on either side of the Assumption (No. 57). No. 5. Fra Bartolommeo. S. Vincent Ferrer. The head of the Saint is drawn with power and feeling. Nos. 39, 60. Botticini. SS. Augustine and Monica. These sadly damaged paintings are part of a polyptych, formerly ascribed to Antonio Pollaiulo. No. 61. Andrea del Sarto. Two Boy Angels. These attractive little boys rival Raphael's most charming representations of child-life. This panel formed the centre, beneath an ancient effigy of the Virgin, of the artist's great altar-piece painted for the monks of Vallombrosa. The wings with the attendant Saints now form one picture (No. 76). No. 63. Mariotto Albertinelli. The Trinity. A fine composition of warm deep colour. The gold back- ground forms an effective setting. The little Angels and cherub faces possess great loveliness. No. 76. Andrea del Sarto. Four Saints. We have here the three Patron Saints of the Vallombrosan Order familiar to us in Perugino's Assumption (No. 57) be- sides S. John the Baptist. We recognize Lucrezia del Fede in the Archangel Michael. The two panels now joined together were the wings of the great altar-piece above-men- 218 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES tioned, together with No. 61. The composition is instinct with charm and tender feeling, but has suffered from restora- tion and exposure to weather. No. 66. Ghirlandajo. Madonna and Saints. The Virgin is enthroned amid architectural surroundings of great beauty. Saint Denis leans* upon his crozier. The Child blesses S. Dominic, S. Thomas Aquinas stands facing Him, whilst the Pope kneeling in the foreground is S. Clement. No. 67. Domenico Ghirlandajo. The Predella to the above depicts Episodes in the Lives of the Saints repre- sented above. The scenes are : (1) The execution of S. Denis and his miraculous resurrection : he walks away with his head under his arm. (2) A runaway horse kills a youth, his parents weep over the body ; S. Dominic brings him to life again, and the youth returns thanks to the Saint for the prodigy wrought on his behalf. (3) The Saviour entombed. (4) Pope Clement, exiled by Trajan to Kherson upon the Black Sea, causes water to flow from a rock to slake the thirst of the Christian prisoners sentenced to labour in the quarries. (5) S. Thomas Aquinas expounds the Dogma of the Incarna- tion to his scholars. First Room of Botticelli, or the " Primavera " The less important works are omitted. No. 68. Francesco Granacci. The Assumption of the Virgin. Brilliant colour distinguishes this artist's work. Vasari, recording this painting, executed for the nuns of Sto. Spirito (Costa San Giorgio), calls theesoldier-saint S. Fedele, a mis- take for S. Felix or S. George, whose church stood hard by the Nunnery. The others are SS. Catherine, Giovan- Gualberto, and Bernardo degli Uberti. No. 65. Luca Signorelli. Crucifixion. The distant view of the Red Sea — " the waters were a wall unto them on their right hand and on their left " (Exod. xiv. 22) — typifies the passage of Israel from the old order to the new. No. 71. Verrocchio. The Baptis7n of Christ. The tradition that Leonardo da Vinci, Verrocchio's great pupil, painted the figure of the kneeling Angel (profile) in the THE BAPTISM OF CHRIST From the painting by Andrea Verrocchio in Hie A trade). p. 218 THE.ACCADEMIA 219 foreground of his master's picture has been contested on technical grounds, but still finds supporters. This fine work affords conspicuous proof of that conscientious search for truth which is so distinctive a feature of Florentine art. The attitudes of the Saviour and S. John are sculptural. The landscape is very beautiful. No. 73. Botticelli. The Coronation of the Virgin. One of the artist's most poetic religious compositions. The Virgin, seated upon clouds, is crowned by God the Father. She looks benignly upon her votaries : SS. John the Evangelist, Augustine, Jerome, and Eloy. The Angels scattering flowers seem to move to unseen music, and recall Fra Angelico's heavenly choir. Damaged by restoration. No. 62. Filippo Lippi. The Coronation of the Virgin. The artist's most important work. He departs from tradition in setting the scene amid terrestrial surroundings, which, though impressive, produces a somewhat overcrowded effect. The diversity of the attendant Saints and kneel- ing Friars suggests life-portraiture. Fra Filippo himself kneels before S. John the Baptist. The lovely group of a female Saint with two children seems to forecast the painter's romantic passion, the features are so oddly suggestive of Lucrezia Buti, the fair Prato nun, who became the mother of Filippo Lippi. No. 74. Botticelli. Predella to the Coronation of the Virgin (73). These charming little scenes depict episodes in the at- tendant Saints' lives : (1) S. John the Evangelist at Patmos writing the Apocalypse. (2) S. Augustine in his study. (3) The Annunciation. (4) S. Jerome in prayer. (5) S. Eloy in his workshop. Eloy or Eligius was Master of the Mint under Clothaire II, and died as Bishop of Noyon in 659. No. 75. Andrea del Sarto. Pieta. A damaged fresco, formerly on the stairs leading to the Novitiate of the SS. Annunziata. No. 53. Perugino. Christ in the Garden of Olives. Unfortunate restoration has deprived this work of its colour-charm. But the grouping is effective, and the dis- ciples most natural attitudes justify Vasari's remark that " they show the power of sleep over grief". Painted about 1496. No. 77. Andrea del Sarto. Scenes from the Lives of Saints — Predella. 220 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES These pleasing little compositions adorned the predella of the Paradisino altar-piece (Nos. 61, 76): (1) S. Michael overcomes Lucifer. (2) The ordeal of S. Giovan-Gualberto. (3) The Decollation of S. John the Baptist. (4) The death of S. Bernardo degli Uberti. The central scene, now lost, probably represented the Annunciation. No. 78. Perugino. The Crucifixion. The Virgin is supported by S. Jerome, the Patron Saint of the Monastery for which the picture was painted. The characteristic charming landscape recurs also in his famous fresco in S. M. Maddalena dei Pazzi. No. 79. Filippo Lippi. The Virgin" Adoring the Christ-Child. Contessina de' Bardi, the wife of Cosimo the Elder, com- missioned this picture for the Hermitage of Camaldoli which is here suggested by the rugged crags and woodland of the background. The robes of Virgin and Child recall Fra Angelico's delicate colour. The Hermit-Saint kneeling is S. Romuald, founder of the Camaldolese Order. No. 80. Botticelli. The Allegory of Spring, "La Primavera ". Vasari's description of " Venus, whom the Graces bestrew with roses, denoting the Spring," is inadequate. Sometimes described as an allegory within an allegory allusive to con- temporary incident ; the beautiful scene may be interpreted rather to signify the birth and fruition of Love. Botticelli has chosen the sequence of the spring months to translate his theme in accents intelligible to his century of poets and scholars. Girlhood pursued by eager Youth — " the frolic wind that breathes the spring, Zephyr with Aurora playing," flees from the embrace of March. As Flora crowned " with . . . roses washed in dew," she scatters April blossoms. Her blithe step seems to mark the cadence of the mystic dance beyond. Upright amid " arched walks of twilight groves " stands Maia, the Earth- Mother, a stately figure of matronhood. Her warning hand is raised towards the three sister-Graces who, typifying Woman, tread Life's measure unconscious of Cupid's dart. Mercury, the son of Maia and Jupiter, symbolizes fruition, through the touch of the Caduceus upon the myrtle and orange-blossoms overhead. He resembles Giuliano dei Medici, and tradition sees a likeness to Simonetta Vespucci, his mistress, in the profile THE ACCADEMIA 221 turned to the left, amongst the Graces. Hence the sug- gestion of a reminiscence of the Joust of 1475. Be this as it may, Botticelli was probably inspired at once by his attachment to the Medici and the tragic end of " II bel Giulio," no less than by the poetry of Lorenzo II Magnifico, in this exquisite composition. No. 81. Pacchiarotto. The Visitation. The art of this representative Sienese painter strikes a tender contrast with the realism of contemporary Florentine art. Mark how the deference of Youth and the knowledge of a pre-ordained mission are revealed in the graceful attitude of the Visitants. The attendant Saints, SS. Anthony of Padua, the Baptist, Nicholas of Ban, Anthony Abbas, and Leonard, the patron of prisoners, kneeling, form an im- pressive group. No. 82. Filippo LlPPl. The Nativity. A charming scene. The radiancy proceeding from the Child which illumines the scene stamps this work as one of the earliest attempts at chiaroscuro. The Hermit Hilarion is said to portray Roberto, the brother of Annalena Malatesta, the foundress of the convent bearing her name, for whom the picture was painted. Second Room of Botticelli No. 84. School of Verrocchio. Tobias and the Arch- angels. The Archangels and their charge stride forward with blithe and graceful step along a winding road amid scenery of which the warm greys and browns have all the quality of a sepia drawing. This picture has been ascribed variously to Pollai- uolo, Botticini, and Botticelli, whose art it distinctly recalls. No. 85. Botticelli. Madonna and SS. John the Baptist, Ambrose, Augustine, Barnabas, Michael, and Catherine. The Virgin's expression recalls that of the beautiful pensive countenance portrayed in the Mado?ina of the Pomegranate (Uffizi, No. 1289). An impressive array of Saints in gorgeous robes lines the steps of the throne, and the figure of S. Catherine is most striking. Much re-painted. The upper portion has been added. No. 80. Filippo Lippi. Predella Scenes. Executed with characteristic delicacy, these charming little 222 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES scenes adorned the predella of the fine altar-piece (Louvre, No. 1344). Note the centre panel of the Virgin and Angels. The other two are S. Augustine in his study, and S. Frediano, Bishop of Lucca, arresting the flood of the Serchio, which threatened to destroy the city. No. 88. Botticelli. The Virgin Enthroned, with SS. Mary Magdalen, John the Baptist, Francis, and Catherine, and SS. Cosimo and Damiano kneeling. Sadly damaged by restoration, the attribution to Botticelli is disputed. The heads are forcibly drawn. Nos. 89, 93. Filippino Lippi. SS. Mary Magdalen and John the Baptist. Marked by a repellent austerity, these compositions formed the wings of a triptych, formerly ascribed to Andrea del Castagno. No. 90. Alessandro Capponi, surnamed Raffaellino del Garbo. The Resurrection. This is one of the earliest examples of oil-painting in Florentine art. A brilliantly coloured work, it is remarkable also for vigour and realism in the grouping. The graceful sleeping youth wearing an embroidered doublet is said to por- tray Niccolo Capponi. Vasari records how the painting com- missioned by the Capponi for their chapel at Monte-Oliveto was struck by lightning, so that all the gold upon the handsome frame expressly ordered vanished, leaving the picture intact ! No. 91. Att. to Filippino Lippi. S.Jerome. The composition is austere and grey. Painted for the Bene- dictine Community of S. Procolo, this picture has also been ascribed to Andrea del Castagno. No. 55. Filippo Lippi. Madonna and SS. Anthony, Francis, Cosimo, and Damiano. This fine altar-piece, so Vasari relates, was painted for the Chapter-house of Santa Croce. The attitudes of the attendant Saints are dignified and impressive. Note the decorative architecture. No. 72. Pesellino. Predella Scenes: Miracles of SS. Anthony of Padua, Cosimo, and Damiano, S. Francis Receiv- ing the Stigmata, the Nativity. Vasari's praise is not excessive. The drawing and soft colour are most delicate. The series consisted of five scenes, two of which were taken to the Louvre in 18 13 and not returned. S. THE ACCADEMIA 223 Francis receiving the Stigmata and a Miracle of SS. Cosimo and Damian are copies. The others are the Nativity, the Martyrdom of SS. Cosimo and Damian, and a Miracle of S. Anthony, wherein the Saint, reproving a usurer for his avarice, reveals how the man's heart is not found in his dead body but in his coffers (Golden Legend). No. 94. Lorenzo di Credi. The Nativity. A very beautiful composition. Note the impressive group- ing and the scenery painted with characteristic delicacy. Bethlehem and the Message to the Shepherds are seen in the distance. Nos. 162, 157, 161, 158. Botticelli. Predella Scenes. The actions in these charming little episodes having re- ference to the Saints in Botticelli's great S. Barnaba altar- piece (No. 85) suggests a link between the two compositions. The Vision of S. Augustine and his Death would be separated by the impressive Risen Saviour from the scene of Salome with the Head of the Baptist. No. 161. S. Augustine Meditating by the Sea-shore upon the Trinity. A child is pouring water into a hole in the sand. In reply to the Saint's query, the child replies that his occupation is no more useless than the Saint's attempt with human brain to solve the sublime mystery (Golden Legend). No. 92. Lorenzo di Credi. The Nativity. We are in the presence of a true lover of Nature. The wild flowers*' that carpet the meadows and Tuscan hill-sides in the spring find their counterpart here in an exquisite medley amid " the verdure " with which Vasari records, " Lorenzo took such pains for the Nuns of Sta. Chiara ". The artist shows himself a worthy disciple of Leonardo da Vinci, in this one of his most attractive works. No. 98. Filippino Lippi. Desce?it from the Cross. Vasari records the commission of this painting for the Servites of the SS. Annunziata for the high altar of their church. " But the artist sickening, of a quinsy, he died leaving the work unfinished, and the Friars to mark their satisfaction directed Perugino to complete the picture." Although the soldier and the swooning Virgin are alone by Filippino, col- laboration has not marred the unity of the composition. No. 154. BOTTICINI. The Archangel Raphael and Tobias. A charming picture but sadly damaged, The expressive 224 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES kneeling figure portrays the young Florentine nobleman Doni whose family escutcheon faces that of the Benedictines of the Badia. Rooms of the Tuscan Masters From the twelfth to the thirteenth century. The less important paintings have been omitted. Room I No. 99. Byzantine School. Thirteenth century. The Magdalen. An early Italian example of Graeco- Latin art. Note the episodes of the Saint's life, taken from the Apocryphal Gospels. No. 101. Bonaventura Berlinghieri da Lucca {circa 1235). Diptych — The Passion, The Virgin and Child, with SS. Peter, John the Baptist, and Clare. Progress is already noticeable in the marked individuality of the heads. The five Saints below are SS. Andrew, Anthony of Padua, Michael the Archangel, Francis, and John the Evangelist. No. 102. Cimabue. The Virgin Enthroned. This great work, in which we note for the first time an attempt at ideal representation distinct from convention, was commissioned, Vasari informs us, by the Benedictine Monks of S. Trinita, for the high altar of their church. The Old and New Dispensations are prefigured by the Major Prophets Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel,and Daniel, holding scrolls inscribed with their prophecies relative to the Incarnation. A frescoe by Andrea del Sarto, on the wall behind this painting, depicts this hall, formerly the women's ward of the old hospice. No. 103. Giotto. The Virgin Enthroned with Attend- ant Angels and Saints. As Miss Cruttwell justly observes, the placing side by side of these two works, by Cimabue and Giotto, enables us to appreciate the advance in art within a bare sixty years. The Virgin's attitude and mien are stately, but no longer conven- tional, and her semblance seems drawn from life. The foreshortening and perspective of the Angels and Saints is remarkable ; the latter are recognizable by their attributes. Nos. 104, 115. TaddeoGaddi. Scenes from the Gospels, The Life of Christ. THE ACCADEMIA 225 This series consisted of thirteen scenes, the last, depicting Pentecost, is now at Berlin (No. 1073). Formerly attributed to Giotto upon the faith of Vasari's statement that Giotto had painted the wardrobe doors in the sacristy of S. Croce. Taddeo Gaddi does not depart from traditional forms, yet his representation of certain episodes is characterized by distinct originality. Note especially No. 107, The Presentation, and The Dispute of Christ with the Doctors, No. 108. Nos. 117, 126. Ten Scenes from the Life of S. Francis. These scenes form part of the series above described, and should be studied for their realism and marked individu- ality. No. 117. The Bishop of Assist' vests S. Francis with the Friar's Robe. One of the best of the series. No. 118. The Dream of Pope Innocent III. S. Francis supports the falling Church of S. John Lateran in Rome, symbolizing the Holy See. No. 119. Pope Innocent III Approves the Franciscan Rule. No. 1 20. S. Francis Riding in a Chariot of Fire Ap- pears to the Brethren. No. 121. The Proto-Martyrs of the Order are Execitted at Ceuta, by order of the Sultan of Morocco. No. 122. Pope Honorius III Confirms the Franciscan Rule. This is a very striking scene. No. 123. The Miracle of Greccio. The Christ-Child lies in the arms of the Saint, who is serving Mass as an acolyte. It should be borne in mind that S. Francis never took priest's orders. No. 124. S. Francis Appears before the Friars at the Chapter of Aries, whilst S. Anthony of Padua is preaching. No. 125 1. S. Francis Receives the Stigmata. No. 126. The Death and Burial of S. Francis. No. 127. Bernardo Daddi. Fourteenth century. The Virgin Enthroned and Saints. Above are half-length figures of Apostles and Prophets. The Virgin is supported on her right and left by SS. Pancras, Nereus, and John the Evangelist, the Baptist, Achilleus, and Reparata. The lower portion contains seven 15 226 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES scenes from the life of the Virgin, the eighth, the " Sposalizio," was exchanged with other pictures in 1817 for a painting of Samson and the Philistines by Domenichino, now at the Lucca Museum. No. 116. NICCOLO DI PlERO Gerini. Fourteenth cen- tury. The Entombment. This interesting work marks the advance already effected in religious art. No. 6. NiccOLd di Piero Gerini. Triptych— The Virgin giving her Girdle to S. Thomas. The Virgin is very beautiful. The attendant Saints are SS. George (in armour), Giovan-Gualberto, and SS. Lawrence and Francis. No. 129. Niccolo di Piero, Spinello Aretino, and Lorenzo di NiccoiA The Coronation of the Virgin. An elaborate polyptych. The Angels and Seraphs are very charming. The attendant Saints are, to the left : SS. John the Baptist, Matthew, Felicitas, and Andrew. To the right : SS. John the Evangelist, James the Great, and Bene- dict. No. 22 bis. Neri di Bicci. Coronation of the .Virgin. The Virgin, bowed before the Saviour, is very graceful. S. Michael holds the scales in which the blessed soul is pray- ing, whilst the sinner is seized by Satan crouching at the Archangel's feet. No. 131. Giovanni da Milano. The Dead Christ. This characteristic work may be regarded as a link be- tween the Tuscan and North Italian artistic ideals. The dull grey tones of the flesh tints contrast strikingly with the warm deep colour of the drapery. Nos. 132, 136. Ambrogio Lorenzetti. Scenes from the Life of S. Nicholas of Bari. The predella of an altar-piece recorded by Vasari as exist- ing in the Church of San Procolo. The artist is revealed to us in the capacity of an exquisite and fascinating story- teller. Satan, under the guise of a pilgrim, strangles the lad who has brought him an alms from his parents' table, and the kinsfolk stand round the bed weeping whilst the Saint brings him to life again. The force of his intercession is typi- fied by the rays passing through an open window, whilst the child kneeling upon the bed returns thanks for the prodigy. In the second scene S. Nicholas entreats the masters of ^ THE ACCADEMIA 227 certain grain-laden vessels, passing by the seaport of Myra, in Lycia, on their way to Constantinople, to leave each one a hundred measures of corn for the sustenance of the famished inhabitants. The Saint assures them that their store will suffer no diminution, and we behold the Angels pouring fresh supplies from above over their heads. In the third scene S. Nicholas casts a purse of gold into the chamber of certain maidens lest through stress of want they be driven to lead an evil life. And lastly the Saint's enthronement as Bishop of Nicaea affords the artist the opportunity to display all the brilliancy of his colour-scheme. No. 134. Ambrogio Lorenzetti. The Presentation in the Temple. Though sadly damaged and restored, this composition — the centre panel of a triptych — is a very beautiful work. The features of each Saint are so subtly characterized as to suggest direct portraiture. No. 137. Giovanni del Biondo. The Annunciation and Attendant Saints, Polyptych. The names of the Apostles and Fathers of the Church are inscribed on their likenesses. No. 139. Florentine School. Fourteenth century. Virgin and Saints, Polyptych. Much damaged, but interesting through the large number of the Saints introduced. Nos. 7, 141. Lorenzo di Niccolo di Pietro Gerini. The Virgin and SS. Lawrence and John the Evangelist, Triptych. SS. Lawrence and John the Evangelist stand on either side, and episodes from the life of the Virgin are naively depicted in the predella. No. 142. Roselli di Jacopo Franchi. The Corona- tion of the Virgin. An unknown donor caused this elaborate triptych to be painted " for the good of his soul ". A number of small figures of Saints are introduced. On the left pilaster, SS. Julian, Helena, Lucia, and SS. Peter Martyr and Louis of Toulouse at the foot ; opposite, the King S. Louis of France, S. Peter Celestine (Pope and founder of an Order of Hermits bear- ing his name). S. Felicitas and her seven sons, SS. Bene- dict and Anthony, SS. Vincent, Apollonia, and Margaret, fill the lower part of the composition. 228 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES No. 147. Florentine School. Fifteenth century. The Marriage Procession of Boccaccio Adimari and Lisa Ricasoli. The civic architecture, social customs, and pageantry of mediaeval Florence are here pictured for us in striking and most attractive fashion. The bridal procession threads its way to church under a canopy of red and white, the city colours. To the left, where the musicians are seated, rises the " loggia degli Adimari," which stood in Via Calzaiuoli, near Piazza del Duomo. Two elderly gentlewomen, the parents of the bride and groom, seated in front of the baptistery, are quaintly characterized. Note their expression, in which unspoken opinions may be read. The busy attendants carrying the meats for the nuptial feast within doors remind us of Shake- speare's serving men. This fine panel off the dower-chest of Lisa Ricasoli (date about 1420) was bought in 1826 for fifty sequins. No. 133. Att. Pietro Lorenzetti. S. Umilta of Faenza (12 10- 1 3 10), Foundress of the Order of Vallombrosan Nuns, Polyptych. Eleven scenes from the life of the Saint surround her full-length figure. Rosanese de' Negusanti was the daughter of Alimonte de' Pasi, a nobleman of Faenza. Married reluctantly, in obedience to her mother, to Ugolotto de' Caccianemici, she bore him two children in nine years of marriage, after which they both agreed to embrace the re- ligious life. (1) The Saint prevails with her husband, obtain- ing her freedom. (2) Ugolotto is healed of his disorder through her prayers, and promises to take Orders. (3) Ugolotto is vested with the monk's habit. (4) Though illiterate, the Saint reads aloud in the refectory. (5) S. Umilta crosses the Lamone dry-shod. (6) She heals a friar by making the sign of the Cross on his hurt. (7) S. John the Baptist directs her to build a monastery in Florence. (8) Umilta begs alms in the city for the building. (9) A noble- man is restored to life through her prayers. (10) The Holy Ghost hovers about the Saint's ear inspiring her teachings. (11) The multitude behold with amazement the removal of the Saint's uncorrupted remains from their first burial-place. Her foundation of S. Giovanni was destroyed in 1529. No. 143. Lorenzo Monaco. The A?i?nmciation, with SS. Francis, Procolo, Catherine, and Anthony Addas, Triptych. THE ACCADEMIA 229 The Virgin and Archangel are very graceful. Nos. 144, 145, 146. Lorenzo Monaco. Predella, Scenes from the Lives of S. Onuphrius the Her?nit, The Nativity, and a Miracle of S. Martin of Tours. These little paintings tell their own story with character- istic charm and naivete. No. 95. Michele Ghirlandajo. Predella, Two Angels and Four Saints. Probably SS. Martin, Augustine, Nicholas, and Antonio. No. 140. School of Orcagna. The Trinity with SS. Romualdo and Andrew, Triptych. These delicately painted little episodes in the life of S. Romualdo are worthy of study. Curiously enough the Patron Saint of the donor, Giovanni Ghiberti, is ignored. Painted in 1365. No. 148. Neri di Bicci. The Virgin with SS. Lucia, Margaret, Agnes, and Catherine. Painted doubtless after 1475, as the artist's records do not mention this painting. The Saints may be recognized by their attributes, the cup, the wheel, etc. No. 149. Neri di Bicci. Predella, Episodes from the Lives of Saints. The naive charm of these little compositions recalls Filippo Lippi's art. The Saints are : The Virgin, SS. Apollonia, and Ursula, and to the left : SS. John, Agnes, and Catherine. No. 164. Luca Signorelli. The Virgin and Saints. This important work, though sadly damaged, is yet most impressive. Painted about 1491, it displays Signorelli's power of dramatic representation to a remarkable degree. The heads of the two Bishops, S. Augustine, and especially S. Athanasius, who is writing " Quicunque Vult" upon his scroll, are very fine. No. 161. Luca Signorelli. Predella to the above, The Passion. The most notable episode is the Garden of Gethsemane, full of spirit and movement. No. 165. Gentile da Fabriano. The Adoration of the Magi, Triptych. This magnificent painting offers us an unrivalled spectacle of mediaeval pageantry. It is the artist's masterpiece, and he has spared no pains to characterize every detail of the scene with exquisite minuteness. 230 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES The legend opens in the upper corner to the left, with the King's vision of the Star of Bethlehem. Their train, numbering over a hundred tiny figures, wends its way over sinuous mountain roads descending to be grouped in brilliant array before the Nativity. The heads, all forcibly character- ized, are evidently portraits. The man with a red turban looking over the young King's shoulder is Gentile da Fabri- ano himself. The gorgeous embroideries are carried out in raised work of coloured and gilt plaster. The predella com- prises three scenes ; the Flight into Egypt, painted on a gold ground, is especially beautiful. The Presentation in the Temple is a copy, the original panel having been taken to the Louvre. Signed and dated 1423. No. 195. DOMENICO Ghirlandajo. The Nativity. Vasari, describing this beautiful painting, observes with just pride : " A Nativity which must astonish every person of intelligence, in which he painted his own portrait, and some shepherds which are considered divine ". Indeed, Ghirlan- dajo's art has never surpassed this close characterization, and our knowledge of the artist's personality suggests that his own portrait is the shepherd kneeling with devoutly folded hands. The exquisite scenery melts into a blue distance of sky and mountains, whence a brilliantly coloured cavalcade descends, beneath a Roman arch, with characteristic " Quattro-cento " classicism, discernible also in the pilasters and sarcophagus of the manger. A copy is now placed in the Sassetti Chapel in Sta Trinita which the picture once adorned. Room II A number of unimportant pictures have been omitted. No. 151. School of Botticelli. The Virgin and Child. A charming composition, but sadly damaged. Nos. 152, 150. Jacopo DEL Sellaio. Predella Paint- ings, The Visitation, The Entombment. Delicately painted. The Visitation is the better of the two compositions. No. 159. Alessio Baldovinetti. The Trinity. Its damaged condition robs this painting of much interest. The attendant Angels and Cherubs are very charming. No. 168. Fra Bartolommeo. Five Heads, The Saviour and Saints (Fresco). THE NATIVITY From the painting by D. Ghirlandajo in the Accademia £-230 THE ACCADEMIA 231 The figures by Fra Bartolommeo, viz. : The Saviour, the two Dominican Saints, one with a finger on his lips, and the other wearing a cowl, SS. Catherine of Alexandria, and Mary Magdalen are drawn with characteristic grace. No. 169. Mariotto Albertinelli. The Annunciation. Much re-painted. No. 171. Fra Bartolommeo. The Virgin and Child (Fresco). No. 172. Fra Bartolommeo. S. Peter Martyr. The artist portrays his friend Girolamo Savonarola under the features of the Dominican Saint murdered near Verona in 1252. A forcible likeness. No. 175. Michele Ghirlandajo. Predella with Saints. These are : SS. Ippolito, Reparata, Matthias, Thecla, Jerome, Paul the Apostle, Anastasia, Virgin and Martyr, Lawrence, Euphrosyne, and Maurus Abbot. No. 167. Mariotto Albertinelli. Virgin and Saints. Nos. 285, 286, 287, 288, 289, 290. Granacci. Scenes from the Lives of Saints. These compositions were intended by the Nuns of S. Apollonia to surround an altar-piece designed, Vasari tells us, by Michelangelo. The subjects are : No. 285, The Trial of S. Agatha. 287, S. Lucia. 288, S. Agnes. 289, S. Catherine. 290, S. Apollonia. No. 179. Angelo Bronzino. Portrait of Cosimo I. This portrait of Cosimo I as a youth is recorded by Vasari. The fresh and vigorous laurel shoot typifies the younger branch of the family tree, of which the elder was cut off in the person of Alessandro dei Medici, murdered in 1537. No. 180. Angelo Bronzino. Portrait of Laudomia dei Medici. Laudomia dei Medici was the sister of Lorenzino, the murderer of Duke Alessandro dei Medici. She married as her second husband Piero Strozzi, the eldest son of Filippo Strozzi, the patriot and adversary of the Medici. On an Easel No. 166. Fra Angelico. Descent from the Cross y Triptych. The delicate colouring lends an ethereal charm to the 23 2 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES dramatic scene. The grouping, nevertheless, is forcible. The man with a black cap standing upon the ladder is Michelozzi the sculptor. This triptych, one of the artist's greatest works, was painted for Sta. Trinita. The pilasters are beautifully ornamented with figures of Saints and Prophets. The three scenes in the pinnacles, " Noli me tangere," Resurrection, and the Empty Tomb, are by Lorenzo Monaco, the master of Fra Angelico. Room III This room is filled with large but artistically unimportant works. Note, however, the following : — On an Easel No. 70. Masaccio. S. Anne Enthro7ied with the Virgin and Child. The union of these three persons in a symbolic represen- tation of the Trinity upon earth is uncommon in Italian art, though frequently met with in the northern schools. A fine work, impressive despite much unhappy restoration. No. 200. Florentine School. Fifteenth century. Por- trait of Niccolb Acciajuoli ( 1 3 1 o- 1 366). Niccolo Acciajuoli, the great Florentine statesman, and Grand-Seneschal of the Kingdom of Naples under Queen Joanna, was an enlightened patron of Art and Letters. The intimate friend of Petrarch and Boccaccio. We retrace our steps to the first Room of Fra Angelico. The most interesting pictures only are noticed. No. 243. Fra Angelico. Six Scenes from the Lives of SS. Cosiino and Da?niano. These interesting little compositions formed the predella of the altar-piece in the Chapel of the Corporation of Painters in the great cloister of the Annunziata. The episodes are : (1) Contrary to his vows Damiano accepts pecuniary reward from a patient. The Saviour appears to S. Cosimo to justify his brother's act. (2) Lycias, the Pro-Consul of Cilicia, commands the Saints and their three little brothers to abjure Christianity. (3) The five brothers cast successively into the sea are saved by Angels. (4) The Saints are thrown into a fiery furnace, whereupon the flames envelop the executioners. (5) They are sentenced to be shot and the arrows recoil upon the archers. (6) The five Saints at length achieve martyrdom by decapitation. THE ACCADEMIA 233 No. 246. Fra Angelico. The Entombment. Amongst the group of Holy Women we notice a beautiful S. Catherine, and the Beata Villana, whose relics were the property of the confraternity. Villana, a widowed Florentine gentlewoman, devoted her life to the care of the poor, and died in 1360 at the age of twenty-eight. Nos. 231, 247. Att. Fra Angelico. Alb ertus Magnus with his Disciples, The School of S. Tho?nas Aquinas, Predella. Part t of an altar-piece in S. Marco. Albertus Magnus was an eminent Dominican scholar and theologian. His lectures at Paris were so numerously attended that, forced to abandon the hall, he lectured out of doors. Appointed Bishop of Ratisbon by Pope Alexander IV, he resigned and died at Cologne in 1280. His most famous pupil was S. Thomas Aquinas, recognizable by the sun on his breast, whom we see in No. 247, the companion painting. The Saint has on his left S. Louis, King of France ; op- posite are the heresiarchs, Arius, Sabellius, and Averrhoes. Two symbolic figures, Speculative Theology with an eagle and Logic with the terrestrial globe, stand in the comers. Nos. 233, 234, 235, 236, 237, 253, 254, 253. Alessio Baldovinetti and other Pupils of Fra Angelico. Thirty -five Scenes fro7n the Life of Christ and the Virgin. These interesting little paintings decorated the cupboard or chest in which the treasure of the SS. Annunziata was kept in that church. The first series of three scenes, the Marriage Feast of Cana, the Baptism, and Transfiguration (No. 233), are alone by Alessio Baldovinetti. The Baptism should be compared with Verrocchio's great work (No. 71). Note the beautiful Flight into Egypt (No. 235). The Way- farers form a charming group, set in the characteristic and familiar landscape. No. 227. Fra Angelico. The Virgin Enthroned with Saints. The architectural decoration in coloured marbles of the throne forms a dignified setting to the impressive group of Saints assembled round the Virgin, SS. Cosimo and Damiano, John the Evangelist, Lawrence, Francis, and Peter Martyr. Nos. 257,258. Fra Angelico. Scenes from the Lives of SS. Cosimo and Damiano. These delicate little compositions are portions of the predella 234 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES of an altar-piece recorded by Vasari, being over the high altar of San Marco. The predella was broken up, and one episode, that of the execution of SS. Cosimo and Damiano, is now at the Louvre (No. 1298), whilst other portions are at Munich (Nos. 601-4). No. 257 depicts the miraculous healing of a man whose leg had been amputated, and replaced by that of a dead negro, the natural colour being restored through the Saint's intercession. No. 258 shows us their burial. No. 249. Fra Angelico. Pieta and Adoration of the Magi. A characteristic and charming work. No. 250. Fra Angelico. The Crucifixion. This picture was painted for, and brought from the Chapel of the Confraternity of S. Lucia in the SS. Annunziata. No. 265. Fra Angelico. The Virgin and Child with Six Saints. The Franciscan Saints are SS. Francis of Assisi, Anthony of Padua, Louis, Bishop of Toulouse, the Dominican, Peter Martyr, and the Medici Patron Saints Cosimo and Damiano. Nos. 263, 264. Filippo Lippi. The Archangel Gabriel and S. John the Evangelist, the Virgin and S. Anthony. Indifferent, somewhat darkened paintings, but still charm- ing. No. 266. Fra Angelico. The Last Judgment. The artist has evidently sought his inspiration in Orcagna's great composition in S. Maria Novella. The episode of the Blest led by dancing Angels entering the flower- starred precincts of the New Jerusalem, is perhaps one of Fra Angelico's most felicitous conceptions of Paradise. The idyllic scene stands forth in sharp contrast with that of the Wicked, whose feelings are depicted with a directness that enables us to read their besetting sins both in their counten- ance and attitudes. The portion depicting the torments of Hell is by a pupil of Fra Angelico. Second Room A number of unimportant or much damaged works are omitted. No. 9. Pacino di Bonaguida. The Crucifixion with Attendant Saints. Pacino was a contemporary of Giotto but does not attain _ ^> THE ACCADEMIA 235 his level of originality or breadth. Nevertheless, the Saints are powerfully characterized. Note to the left, SS. Nicholas and Bartholomew ; facing, SS. Florentius and Luke. No. 138. Att. Orcagna. The Vision of S. Bernard, Triptych. Painted about 1375 for the chapel at the Badia where Filippino Lippi's fine work now hangs. The predella paintings depict scenes from the life of S. Benedict. No. 130. Puccio Di SlMONE. The Virgin and Child with Saints, Polyptych. An interesting but much re-painted work by this notable Sienese fourteenth-century master. No. 128. Spinello Aretino. The Virgin Enthroned and Four Saints. A sadly damaged painting brought from the Convent of S. Andrea at Lucca. The Saints are, SS. Paulinus, Bishop of Nola, John the Baptist, Andrew, and Matthew. Note the graceful attitude of the Angel. No. 28. Neri di Bicci. The Annunciation. An interesting work of delicate colour. No. 16. Florentine School. Fifteenth century. Tobias and the Archangels. No. 10. Andrea di Giusto. The Crucifixion. An impressive work by this little-known Florentine artist, who flourished in the first half of the fifteenth century. MUSEUMS A RCH^EOLOGICAL MUSEUM (Museo Archeo- ^"^ logico and Galleria degli Arazzi). This museum stands in the Via della Colonna, to the south-east of the Piazza Annunziata, from which it is distant only three minutes' walk. The large building, formerly known as the Palace of the Crocetta and used as a guest-house by the Tuscan Grand-Dukes, at present houses three separate collections ; viz. the Etruscan Museum, the Egyptian Museum, and a fine Collection of Tapestries [Arazzi), the last named of ^hich it is intended to transfer ere long to a more sirrtable place (entrance fee, i fr.). The Garden, which is entered from the rooms on the left, will prove perhaps the chief attraction to the visitor who is pressed for time. Here are various Etruscan tombs containing their original statues and ornamenta- tion, excavated within Tuscany and removed hither intact to this spot. Specially trained and selected custodians with proper knowledge will conduct the visitor over these remarkable tombs, which are well worthy of inspection. The lengthy suite of rooms on the ground floor is filled with a valuable collection of cinerary urns, vases, jewellery, utensils, harness, and other domestic objects brought from the sites excavated in recent years, chiefly at Vetuionia, near Grosseto. All the objects shown bear descriptive labels, and the attendants are always ready to explain these important relics of the ancient and mysterious civil- ization of Etruria. On the first floor to the left is preserved the extensive 236 ARCHAEOLOGICAL MUSEUM 237 iZZlu^l < X > u< rt^ 313 3- "3 nj 3° >U -1 fc h > h h > h "3 E E « 238 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES Egyptian Museum, whilst the rooms and corridors to the right of the staircase contain some marvellous Etrus- can bronzes, vases, etc., an inspection of which will cer- tainly prove of the deepest interest. Rooms X and XI contain the principal bronzes, the inner chamber (Sala XI) possessing a small but very fine collection of bronze statues and figures. In the centre of the room is the Chimaera, the mythical monster with the head of a goat, the body of a leopard, and the tail of a serpent, which was slain by Bellerophon. This most important and celebrated early bronze, dating from the fifth century B.C., was discovered near Arezzo in 1554 and became the private property of the Grand-Duke Cosimo I, at whose command the broken figure was restored by Cellini and its present tail added. To the right of entrance is a fine Minerva , probably of the fourth century B.C., also found at Arezzo in 1554; and a small Bacchus with a Genius. To the left of door, a bronze Mask. In the furthest corner of the room is the well-known Statue of an Orator of a singular majesty, dredged up from Lake Trasimene in 1566. On the same floor, at the end of a long corridor filled with cases of terra-cotta vases and plates, are two more small rooms (Sala XVI), containing Greek and Roman statues and statuettes of bronze, many of which were originally collected and restored by Cosimo I. In the first room, to the right, on a pillar, an Infant Hercules strangling two snakes. Near left wall, a Hercules in Re- pose. In centre of room, curious bronze Candelabrum in the form of a branching tree. Inner Room. — In the centre, the so-called Idolino, a famous statue of a youth discovered at Pesaro in 1530, and added to the Grand-Ducal treasures in Florence through the marriage of Vittoria della Rovere of Urbino with Ferdinand II. It is a fine specimen of Greek art and stands on an elaborate Renaissance pedestal, bear- ing the following hexameter composed by the learned (but in this case mistaken) Cardinal Pietro Bembo : — ARCHAEOLOGICAL MUSEUM 239 u Ut potui hue veni Delphis et fratre relicto " ; for it is now no longer denominated a Bacchus, but is believed to represent an athlete, or possibly Mercury. In the far corner of the room is a fine bronze Head of a Horse. On the second floor of the museum is preserved the large and extremely interesting collection of tapestries, both of Florentine and foreign manufacture (Galleria degli Arazzi). Those exhibited here represent only a fraction of the vast stores of such fabrics still contained in the Pitti, Uffizi, and Riccardi Palaces. The collection fills sixteen rooms of various sizes, and contains fine specimens of the Grand-Ducal factory which was es- tablished in Florence under Cosimo I, who engaged the Flemish artists Karcher and Van der Roost to teach this art to the Florentines. After a prosperous existence of nearly two centuries, the famous Florentine establish- ment was closed after the death of the last Medicean Grand-Duke, Gian-Gastone, in 1737. By a curious coincidence the last piece of tapestry woven in the Florentine looms depicted the Fall of Phaethon, finished shortly before the death of Gian-Gastone and the con- sequent extinction of the House of Medici (Room VII). It was this factory that produced the numberless portieres or door curtains, scattered throughout the Florentine palaces, which display the Medicean coat-of-arms with its sixpalle and the Grand-Ducal crown. All these sets of tapestry, whether Florentine, French, or Flemish in origin, are of great beauty and value. Amongst the most interesting from a historical point of view are those Flemish pieces in Room VIII, which depict scenes in the life of Catherine de Medicis, Queen of France, and afford portraits of Henry II, Queen Catherine, and various members of the French Court. The most beautiful of the many Gobelins are perhaps the scenes of children acting as gardeners. Artists may frequently be observed in this gallery painting the designs of these fine textile works on to coarse canvas, producing thereby a species 240 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES of imitation tapestry, which is somewhat popular in Italy. The rooms to the left of the entrance of the Galleria degli Arazzi contain a small collection of vestments and fine brocades^ chiefly of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Bargello {Museo Nazionale). — The National Museum, commonly spoken of as "the Bargello/' is housed in the splendid old palace of the Podesta of Florence in the Via del Proconsolo at the angle of the Via Ghibellina. This building, which after the Palazzo Vecchio ranks as the most important of the various civic buildings of the Florentine Republic, was begun in 1250 on the site of a former palace of the Boscoli, whose ancient tower is incorporated with the palace itself, and it was originally intended to be the residence of the Capitano del Popolo. In 1266 it became the official residence of the Podesta, or chief magistrate, and in the succeeding century it was largely strengthened and extended. The magistracy being abolished in 1502, the palace became the head- quarters of the Consiglio della Ruota until 1574, when it was converted under the Medicean Grand- Dukes into a state prison under the rule of the Bargello^ or chief police official of Florence, a circumstance which has given the building its present name in common use. The grand old palace ceased to be a gaol under the good Leopold I, who had the execution block and the in- struments of torture publicly burned in 1782. In 1857 a movement was set on foot for the restoration of the building to its pristine form ; and in 1865 the palace, cleared of its prison cells and stripped of other anachronisms, was converted into the Museo Nazionale. The Bargello, of which the best view is to be obtained from the neighbouring Piazza San Firenze, is a massive rectangular structure with a heavy battlemented and machicolated cornice, and with the tower of the Boscoli attached to its north-west angle. In the tall arcaded belfry of the plain massive tower can be distinctly seen from below the famous bell known as La Montanina* F* 7 " 7 *!! 1 i m • ~ ^^^Bfl TB I £ ' e i t f, 1 ' ' ***'* THE BARGELLO THE BAKGE1.LO > The bargello 241 which was carried to Florence from the castle of Montale in 1302 and was placed in this tower with the inscription above it of Air onore di Dio e della Patria. Upon the side of this tower facing the Via Ghibellina used in olden times to be painted portraits of those enemies of the state who had escaped the executioner's hands, and amongst the many personages thus held up to public execration was Walter de Brienne, Duke of Athens. The artist Andrea del Castagno was even nicknamed Andrea " degli Impiccati " for having painted thus the enemies of Cosimo il Vecchio hanging in chains. The severe building is lighted by numerous elegant Gothic windows with marble pillars and tracery, and the whole structure gives a most marvellous impression of immense strength (entrance fee, i fr.). Entering by the doorway facing the Badia in the Via del Proconsolo, the visitor finds on the ground floor two gloomy vaulted chambers with a large collection of armour, banners, saddles, and artillery, including a mon- ster bronze cannon cast in 1638. Hence is reached the courtyard, the best mediaeval palace interior in Florence, and so beautiful in form and decoration that many persons will probably prefer it to any other of the famous sights of Florence. This courtyard is square and surrounded on three sides by Gothic arcades, whilst on the fourth a steep picturesque stairway leads to a three-arched loggia on the first storey. The massy stone walls are covered with innumerable shields of former Podesta, forming a perfect epitome in ornamental heraldry of the history of the palace during the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries. On the walls under the arcades below are the insignia in colours of the different quarters of the city, and the colonnades themselves are filled w r ith a number of pieces of statuary, among which may be noticed several works by Baccio Bandinelli, Tribolo, Gian-Bologna, Vincenzo Danti, and other Tuscan sculptors, as well as two figures by Michelangelo — a Dying Adonis with the fatal boar, and a Victory, a veteran vanquished by a youth, which 16 242 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES last was perhaps intended to form one of the many adornments for the projected tomb of Pope Julius II for which the great master laboured so long and so earnestly. Among the other statues that of Architecture by Gian- Bologna, with a handsome marble base and Medicean emblems by Tribolo, should be noticed. A lamp bracket of the seventeenth century by Giulio Serafini is a marvel- lous example of elaborately wrought iron-work. In proceeding through the various halls of the museum from this point, it may be remarked that all objects bear labels with the subject represented and the name of the master to whom it has been attributed (at least for the time being, for the learned authorities are constantly changing names both of artist and subject). Before the doorway leading to the first hall are two stone lions with gilded crowns, that formerly stood guard at the portals of the Podesta's palace, the crowns being placed on their heads on festivals. The first room contains a miscellaneous collection of sculptured tombs, Gothic tracery, statues, and other objects, with architectural frag- ments taken from various convents and destroyed build- ings, representing almost every phase of Tuscan art in stone from the thirteenth to the sixteenth centuries. The second hall, opening out from this, possesses some of the finest works of the Tuscan sculptors, and almost every object preserved in this room is worthy of close attention. Opposite the entrance is the extremely beautiful Chimney-piece (No. 112) from the Roselli del Turco Palace, one of the masterpieces of Benedetto da Rovezzano, which has even given the name of "Del Camino " to the whole room. By the same master are also the two elaborate marble niches with their masses of ornamentation from the Palazzo Cepparelli, which . are fixed on either side of the entrance. Benedetto da Rovezzano, too, executed the series of five Reliefs (Nos. 101-105), illustrating the history of San Giovanni Gual- berto, which were intended for the tomb of the founder of the Vallombrosan Order. Although terribly mutilated ST. GEORGE From the marble statue by Dana telle in the Museo Nazionale /• 243 J> MUSEO NAZIONALE 243 by the Spanish soldiery in 1530, these little scenes in marble are most remarkable for their exquisite finish and numerous figures. The hall contains some important works by Michelangelo. Near the mantle-shelf is his Bust of Brutus (No. in), an unfinished but popular work of the master. The following works by Michel- angelo are also in this room: (No. 124), Mask of a Faun, executed at the age of fifteen, when the young sculptor was studying from the antique in the historic gardens of the great Lorenzo dei Medici at San Marco ; (No. 128), The Drunken Bacchus, likewise a youthful work full of lively grace, undertaken for Jacopo Galli at Rome between the years 1496 and 1501 ; (No. 224), an unfinished David ; (No. 123), the unfinished tondo of the Virgin and Child with the Baptist in hig"h-relief, of great sweetness and power, also an early work. Near this last is a small copy in marble of the celebrated Moses (No. 122), intended for the tomb of Pope Julius II in Rome. Side by side with Michelangelo's Brutus is the excellent Bust of the Grand- Duke Cosimo dei Medici (No. 113), one of the comparatively few favourable examples of Haccio Bandinelli's art. The remaining statues are all well worth close inspection, though their interest pales somewhat beside those already mentioned by the un- rivalled hand of Michelangelo. Leaving the courtyard by the exterior open stairway,. we ascend to the broad three-arched loggia, the design of which has been attributed to Orcagna and which owns the local name of M Verone ''. It contains seven fine bells, the oldest dating from 1 184, but its chief interest is to be found in the splendid view of the courtyard itself, its octagonal well, the Gothic windows, and the masses of ornamental heraldry on the ancient stone walls. From this loggia a doorway to the right leads to the Great Hall (Sala Grande), now usually named " Sala di Donatello," from the circumstance that several original statues, as well as numerous casts of the Florentine sculptor's works, have been collected together in this noble chamber. In the 244 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES sixteenth century this lofty hall, which had long served as a meeting-place for the General Council,, was divided up by the Medici into thirty-two cells arranged in four storeys for the detention of prisoners of State, but the sweeping alterations of the past century have restored the hall to its former appearance. Near the entrance is the original of the " Marzocco," the couched lion with the giglio that is the heraldic emblem of Florence, the derivation of whose curious name still remains a mystery. The numer- ous Casts throughout the room, each with an explanatory label, ought to prove of service to students of Donatello's art. In the midst towers aloft a good cast of the colossal Statue of Gattamelata, the original of which adorns the piazza before the great church of Sant' Antonio at Padua. Behind this are a number of original works by the master, including Love (?) treading on a serpent ; and the graceful David, wearing a hat and gazing at the head of Goliath at his feet. Beyond these is a statue of the Baptist, one of Donatello's earliest works ; and on the wall near the door to the left is the low-relief of the Infant S. John (" San Giovannino "), a favourite work that is very fre- quently copied. In the Gothic canopy set in the wall itself is the celebrated S. George, which formerly adorned the exterior of Or San Michele, and is commonly accounted Donatello's noblest masterpiece, portraying, as it does so admirably, the sculptor's ideal saint and knight-errant of the age of chivalry. Most life-like yet undoubtedly repellent is the coloured terra-cotta Bust of Niccolb da Uzzano, the humanist, also a favourite subject for modern reproduction. Beside this is the Bust of a Young Warrior in bronze. From the Sala Grande one passes into two gloomy chambers fitted with antique coffers, chairs, and tapestry. The next room, a splendid apartment retaining its huge mediaeval chimney-piece and \ decorated with the armorial bearings of the detested Walter de Brienne, Duke of Athens, is one of the finest interiors in Florence. It '■'■■.. : X PORTRAIT OF DANTE BY GIOTTO IN THE BARGELLO AT FLORENCE From a drawing by Seymour Kirkttp A 2U MUSEO NAZIONALE 245 goes equally by the names of Sala del Podesta, as having been the chief magistrate's hall of justice, and also of the Sala del Duca d'Atene, on account of its connexion with the brief rule of that tyrant, whose coat-of-arms — Azure billette argent, a lion rampant or — is so constantly repeated in its scheme of decoration. Like the Grand Hall, this chamber was also converted into cells under the later Medici, and in one of its dark closets was imprisoned in chains for thirty-three years a certain notorious brigand known as Fra Paolo, an ex-friar who finally died here in captivity in 1676. The room contains the valuable Car- ra?id Bequest \ the collection bequeathed to the city by the antiquary Louis Carrand of Lyons, whose portrait-bust stands on a pedestal in the middle of the hall. The glass cases ranged down the centre of the room are filled with innumerable small bronzes, ivories, enamels, specimens of antique jewellery, and other objets d'art of extreme in- terest to the connoisseur. On the walls are armour, textile fabrics, Oriental faience, and a small collection of early paintings, chiefly of the Flemish and Italian schools. At the farther end of the room, below a coloured medallion of a Podesta adoring the Madonna and Child, is the portal of the Chapel, a small but lofty chamber containing some stalls and a lectern of good intarsia work and a collec- tion of choral books. The walls are covered with the remains of frescoes by Giotto (?), which were relieved of their whitewash in 1840 at the expense of some private persons. The faded fresco over the altar representing Paradise, contains the much discussed portrait of Dante in his youth, wearing the crimson hood or lucco, which is the best-known and on the whole the best-authenti- cated likeness of the poet. The fresco was ruthlessly restored in 1850, when the poet's face was actually re- painted. Fortunately, a sketch made by an English artist, Mr. Kirkup, in 1840 (hanging in a frame below the fresco), still exists to show the vast difference between the portrait as first revealed to the light in 1840 and as seen to-day. The second figure on Dante's right hand is said 246 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES to be that of Brunetto Latini, the poet's instructor. The coloured Death-Mask of the poet, preserved here, is of very doubtful authenticity. On either side of the altar are two frescoes, dated 1490, representing S. Jerome by an unknown master and the Madonna by Bastiano Main- ardi. On the other walls are painted the stories of S. Mary Magdalen (to whom this chapel is dedicated) and of S. Mary of Egypt, but the frescoes are either almost obliterated or else have been re-painted. In the small adjoining sacristy are to be seen some fine old vestments. In the Sala del Podesta, to the left of the fire-place, is the entrance to another good-sized hall filled with an additional collection of ivories, inlaid weapons, amber, carvings, church plate, and other precious objects, which are calculated to fill the beholder with amazement at the extraordinary profusion of the art treasures of the Bargello. From this hall we pass into the two Rooms of the Bronzes, which are to the art of the Italian Renaissance what the two halls of bronzes at the Naples Museum are to the art of antiquity. In the centre of the first room is the David of Andrea Verrocchio (No. 22), which though inferior to Donatello's David in the Sala Grande, recalls more faithfully the main idea of the Scriptural story of the shepherd-lad, who through Divine assistance was able to achieve what was, humanly speaking, impossible for a tender boy. On the wall to the left are the two specimen reliefs in gilt bronze of the Sacrifice of Abraham (Nos. 12 and 13), executed in rivalry by Lorenzo Ghiberti and 1 Filippo Brunelleschi for the members of the commission charged with selecting the best artist in Florence to undertake the new bronze doors for the Baptistery. Comparison between these two masterpieces in this case becomes especially interesting, and though both reliefs are of surpassing beauty and finish, it becomes easy to understand the ultimate award of the judges in favour of Ghiberti. By Ghiberti is also the exquisite Reliquary of SS. Protus and Hyacinthus (No. 21) near the entrance, DAVID BY DOXATELLO MERCURY. BY GIOVAN BOLOGNA p. 243 p. 246 Museo Xazionale SILVER ALTAR OF THE DUO.MO Opera del Daomo MUSEO NAZIONALE 247 completed in 1428. Amongst numerous other works of importance in this room mention may be made of the Frieze of Silenus with Children, placed between the two reliefs of Ghiberti and Brunelleschi ; a Roman battle-scene by Bertoldo (No. 19), and the so-called Bust of Contessina dei Bardi, wife of Cosimo dei Medici, formerly attributed to Donatello (No. 25). The glass cupboards in this and the next room contain a number of statuettes by various artists of the Renaissance, together with a few genuine specimens from the antique. The second room, containing chiefly works of the later masters, such as Gian-Bologna, Tacca, Danti, Cellini, etc. has in its midst the graceful figure of the Flying Mercury by Gian-Bologna (No. 82), one of the latest but also one of the most admired statues of the, Italian Renaissance. It was executed in 1598 for Ferdinand I, who intended it to adorn the gardens of the Villa Medici in Rome. Against the left wall is the ornate and highly finished but most unpleasing Bust of Cosimo I (No. 39) by Benvenuto Cellini, executed in 1546, whilst on either side are the two models (Nos. 38 and 40), one in bronze and one in wax, for that artist's masterpiece, the Perseus. The Relief of Perseus and Andromeda beside it (No. 42) is the original plaque removed hither from the base of the statue in the Loggia dei Lanzi. In addition to various busts and human figures, there are a number of bronzes of animals, including a Turkey -cock by Tacca (No. 79), who is said to have gained his nickname from this work. The handsome Candelabra, close copies of the antique, and the fine Door-knockers by Jacopo Sansovino are worthy of notice. A staircase leads from the first floor to the second, not far from the entrance to the first room of the bronzes. The first hall on this floor contains a few fresco frag- ments of the Florentine school, many cases of medals and seals, and a number of glazed terra-cotta reliefs by Luca, Andrea, and Giovanni Delia Robbia. Ranged along bare walls in meaningless rows and also in most 248 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES cases placed far too near to the beholder, these specimens of a most characteristic and beautiful Tuscan art seem to lose more than half their real charm thus divorced from their proper setting and surroundings. Nevertheless, the story of the development, perfection, and decadence of the art of the Delia Robbias can be easily traced here from a study of these museum-pieces in the Bargello. It will be observed that the earlier and more charming works contain invariably only white figures on a pale blue ground, whilst the introduction of numerous colours and the addition of heavy wreaths into the designs serve to mark the decay of the art. The collection of the Delia Robbias is continued into the second hall, in the middle of which are a number of glass cabinets filled with a most precious and interesting collection of old Italian faience. Some of the designs on the Urbino ware, with their numberless figures of pagan divinities and their classical myths, are exceedingly fine, many of them being chosen from pictures by Raphael. Besides the gorgeous products of Urbino, there are good examples of the factories of Caffagiolo, Pesaro, Gubbio, Faenza, etc., and also, besides the Italian majolica, there are some pieces of Hispano-Mauresque lustre-ware. The second hall leads into the sombre Tower Chamber, which has some hangings and pieces of furniture of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. In an adjoining cabinet to the right is a large glass case divided into three compartments, which are filled with scenes in coloured wax by Zumbo (seventeenth century), illustrating the Consequences of the Plague. Nothing can be more exquisite than the model- ling of this work, and nothing could be conceivably more gruesome than the subject chosen ; nor does the artist's treatment of his theme leave any possible horror to the imagination of the spectator. In one of the scenes is introduced the artist's portrait amidst all the terrors of the charnel-house. To the left of the entrance of the first hall, already de- scribed, are the two Rooms of the Renaissance Marbles, MUSEO NAZIONALE 249 corresponding in size with those of the bronzes on the first floor. They contain a fine collection of specimens of Tuscan sculpture, including several portrait busts of extreme historical interest, although some of the names placed below them are doubtful. (For example, the once- celebrated and popular Bust of Niccolb Machiavelli near the door is now labelled by the authorities as that of an unknown man by an unknown artist !) With this preliminary caution, however, the visitor will find "an extraordinary amount of interest in these rooms, notably in the many works preserved here by Mino da Fiesole and Andrea Verrocchio. Where nearly everything is worthy of note, the following are specially important : — Room I. — In the centre on pedestals, Bust of Piero di Lorenzo dei Medici (Piero II), by Andrea Verrocchio, and Bust of a Young Warrior, unnamed at present, by Antonio del Pollajuolo. Against the walls (No. 147), Bust of Francesco Sassetti, by Antonio Rossellino, and (No. 160) Bust of Matteo Palmieri. (No. 153) Bust of Pietro Mellini, by Benedetto da Majano. In a glass case in centre of the further wall a beautiful Madonna and Child, by Andrea Sansovino. Near doorway to next room, coloured terra-cotta Bust of Monna Tessa, the pious servant of Folco Portinari and a benefactress to the foundation of the Hospital of S. M. Nuova. Room II. — In the centre on pedestals a Bacchus, by Jacopo Sansovino, and a Ganymede, by Benvenuto Cellini. (No. 81) Bust of a Lady Unknown, by Andrea Verrocchio. (No. 179) San Giovannino, by Antonio Rossellino, middle of left wall. (No. 190) Tondo of Virgin and Child, end wall. (No. 146) Death of Francesca Pitti, wife of Giovanni Tornabuoni, who later commissioned Domenico Ghirlandajo to paint the apse of S. M. Novella — a fine and interesting work in high-relief by Andrea Verrocchio. (No. 210) Bust of Giovanni delle Bande Nere, by Francesco da Sangallo. To the right of entrance, a group of works by Mino da Fiesole of exceptional interest, including Busts of (No. 234) Piero dei Medici, " II Gottoso " ; (No. 250 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES 235) Rinaldo della Luna ; (No. 236) Giovanni di Cosimo dei Medici, brother of Piero " II Gottoso " ; and (No. 232) Virgin and Child. Both rooms contain a most precious and unique col- lection that requires to be examined with the greatest care and attention. From Room I a step leads to a third room, a lofty chamber hung with Florentine tapestry and containing a valuable and varied collection of coins in gold, silver, and bronze, chronologically arranged from the twelfth century to the nineteenth, and including fine specimens of the art of engraving from the hands of Benvenuto Cellini and other masters. Casa di Dante, the so-called House of Dante (open Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, n a.m. to 3 p.m.). A small thirteenth- century house situated in the Piazza San Martino, at the back of the church of the Badia and called on very doubtful authority the poet's birthplace, as the inscription over its doorway — Quinacque il Divino Poeta — calmly assumes. The interior (fee of 25 c.) con- tains a small and unimportant collection of objects and books indirectly connected with the poet. Opposite the house is a mediaeval tower, and close by is the tiny Church of San Martino, wherein, according to the tradition, Dante married Gemma Donati. The church itself, of ancient origin, contains some frescoes, attributed to Filippino Lippi, representing scenes from the life of S. Martin and the Seven Works of Mercy. Museo Buonarroti, or House of Michelangelo Buon- arroti, is at No. 64 Via Ghibellina, about .ten minutes' walk eastward from the Bargello. The house itself was bought by the great Michelangelo for his nephew Leon- ardo, was decorated in 16.20 by Pietro da Cortona, and was finally bequeathed with all its valuable contents by the last descendant of the family, Cosimo Buonarroti, to the Municipality of Florence (which admits strangers to visit it at 1 fr. a head). There is comparatively little of interest to see, except some drawings and original sketches MUSEUMS 251 by the master, a few good pictures, and some personal relics of Michelangelo himself. Of the many pictures preserved here, collected by the Buonarroti family, the best is perhaps a Death of Lucretia by Pordenone, but formerly attributed to Giorgione. In Room VI is an interesting wax statuette of the celebrated David. The same building now houses the Museo del Risorgi- mento, and the extensive Topographical Museum, opened in May, 1 909, and consisting of a great number of prints, pictures, sketches, plans, and illustrations of Old Florence, its inhabitants, and its former customs. To the student of past Florentine history this museum will prove of great interest. Museo del Centro. See Church and Convent of San Marco. Museo di San Marco. See Church and Convent of. Museum of Natural Sciences {Museo di Fisica e Storia JVaturale). This museum is in Via Romana, about three minutes' walk beyond the Pitti Palace. It was founded by Leo- pold I, and contains a large collection of anatomical specimens in wax, the usual cases of stuffed beasts and birds and other objects connected with natural science. The building also contains on the first floor the Tribune of Galileo, with a statue of the great scientist and an interesting collection of instruments formerly belonging to him. There are also some relics of that curious British exile, Robert Dudley, Duke of Northumberland. Opera del Duomo. See // Duomo. Stibbert Museum, housed in the Villa Stibbert, at Montughi, about a mile and a half beyond the Porta San Gallo. Open on Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday for a fee of 1 fr., and on Sunday mornings free. This collection, consisting chiefly of mediaeval armour and of costumes, was formed by the late Chevalier Stibbert, an English subject residing in Florence, who on his death in 1906 bequeathed his valuable collection to the city. The Museo Stibbert was formally opened in May, 1909. PALACES AND PUBLIC BUILDINGS PIAZZA and Palazzo della Signoria. The famous square around which most of the history of Flor- ence, both ancient and modern, has revolved, is a large rectangular space, one-fourth of which is occupied by the vast encroaching bulk of the Palazzo Vecchio^ or Delia Signoria^ itself, from which the piazza obtains its name. It is one of the most beautiful and interesting centres of civic life in the world, and it contains, besides the huge frowning palace, many buildings and objects of artistic or historical value. Originally named Piazza dei Priori, it was later re-christened Della Signoria, whilst under the rule of the Grand-Dukes of Tuscany the square became known until 1859 as the Piazza del Gran-Duca, since which date it has been re-named by its ancient title. Prominent on its southern side is the tall and elegant form of the Loggia dei Lanzi, or Loggia of Orcagna, as it is still popularly but erroneously called, although the building was only begun in the year 1376, eight years after Orcagna's death. The Loggia dei Lanzi (which owes this name to the Swiss lanzi ox landsknechts of the Medicean Grand-Dukes, who were quartered here) con- sists of an arcade of four arches raised on a platform of five steps, and was built for the convenience of the Priori of the great palace close by. In style it is tran- sitional between Gothic and Renaissance architecture. From this roomy and lofty Loggia the decrees of the Government were read aloud to the Florentine people assembled in the piazza below, whilst on 7 April, 1498, it was chosen for the scene of Savonarola's ordeal by fire 252 <^1 a m ._ ~: -■" " . ■ -• • i LOGGIA DEI LANZI 253 (cimento difuoco) with its unedifying circumstances and negative results. The Loggia therefore may be truly de- scribed as forming an integral part of the great civic palace itself, although it stands detached from it. Above the broad arches are to be seen some medallions of singular grace (completed between 1383 and 1387 by Giovanni d'Ambrogio and Jacopo di Piero), which represent the Theological and Cardinal Virtues. The roof with its or- nate arcading and parapet supports a broad platform, which can be entered from the corridor of the Uffizi Picture Gallery. It possesses a fine view of the piazza and of all Florence, and in former days was occasionally used by the Grand- Ducal family and Court when pageants were being held in the square below. The entrance through the broad middle arch of the Loggia is flanked by two marble lions rolling Medicean palle, the lion on the right being antique and that on the left a copy of the seven- teenth century. The interior of the building with its lofty groined stone ceiling has been gradually converted into a veritable museum of choice sculpture, which being ever visible to the eyes of the passers-by must have of necessity some beneficial influence on popular taste. It is to the Medici, as usual, that Florence owes most of the works of art collected here, for several were brought hither in the eighteenth century from the Villa Medici in Rome, notably the six beautiful draped statues of females ranged along the wall. Of these the finest is undoubtedly that of Ger mania Devicta — Conquered Germany — who in shame and sadness veils her features from the onlooker. Overhanging the piazza to the right is the celebrated Rape of the Sabines by Gian-Bologna (1583), one of the master's most spirited compositions in marble. The form of the handsome young warrior is said to have been modelled from the figure of Bartolommeo Ginori, a member of the well-known Florentine family, whom the artist subsequently rewarded for his service with the gift of a fine crucifix. Near this group,- and by no means unworthy of its position, is the modern Rape of Polyxena 254 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES by Fedi (1864). In the centre of the Loggia is an antique group, much restored, of Ajax Rescuing the Body of Palroclus } and beyond this is another fine work by Gian- Bologna, Hercules Slaying the Centaur, which was removed hither from the foot of the Ponte Vecchio in 1838. Beneath the single eastern arch is the diminutive group of Judith Slaying Holofernes by Donatello, which formerly adorned the palace of Cosimo il Vecchio, but was set up in this spot by the Florentine Republic after the expulsion of the Medici in 1494 with the warning inscription against tyrants : Exemplum Salutis Publicae posuere Cives, which the magnanimous Leo X refused to have removed and which still remains engraved on the statue's ornate circular base. Close to this historically interesting work is the famous Perseus of Benvenuto Cellini, the story of which has been described in the most detailed manner by the sculptor-jeweller in the racy pages of his Autobiography. Poised aloft above the corpse of Medusa, and proudly displaying her bleeding head, Cellini's splendid if somewhat theatrical hero seems to dominate the whole Piazza della Signoria. The statue stands on a richly sculptured marble fcase with four small bronze figures in its niches, below which is a square bas-relief in bronze of the Rescue of Andromeda, a copy of the original now preserved in the Bargello. If not the best in an artistic sense, Cellini's Perseus is certainly the most effective of the Florentine statues. So stately and so beautiful is the Loggia that it is much to be regretted that the Florentines were unable on the ground of expense to carry out Michelangelo's grandiose scheme of a vast arcade to surround the whole of the piazza. The western end of the piazza is occupied by a large modern building in the Florentine style, which in 187 1 replaced the historic Tetto dei Pisani, a roofed colonnade built by the Pisan prisoners brought in 1364 to Florence, where they were treated with every cruelty and insult that revenge could suggest. Amongst the picturesque PIAZZA DELLA SIGNORIA 255 houses on the northern side of the square may be re- marked the unfinished Uguccione Palace built in 1550 after a design attributed to Raphael. At the eastern end, separated from the Palazzo Vecchio by the broad Via dei Gondi, is the mediaeval building of the Mercanzia, adorned with coats-of-arms> which has been recently re- stored in admirable taste. The tribunal, which formerly lodged in this palace, was elected by the Arti Maggiori to act as the supreme court in all cases of bankruptcy, loss of merchandise at sea, etc. Facing the Mercanzia is the splendid equestrian Statue of Cosimo /, which Gian-Bologna erected here by order of Cosimo's son, the Grand-Duke Ferdinand I, in 1594. It is a magnificent work, and one worthy to serve as a memorial of the founder of the Grand-Duchy of Tuscany. The three bronze bas-reliefs represent Cosimo's entrance into captured Siena, his acceptance of the title of Grand Duke of Tuscany, and his investiture with the Grand- Ducal insignia by Pope Pius V. Close to the statue is the huge Fountain of Neptwie, an immense and elaborate work by Bartolommeo Ammanati, whose design was preferred to those submitted by Gian-Bologna and Cellini in 1571. The colossal statue of Neptune, which was formed out of one of the finest and purest blocks of Carrara marble ever quarried, stands guard over a bevy of marine deities and animals, but the miserable trickle of water that flows from this gigantic fountain does not con- duce to its beauty. Nevertheless, it serves well to em- bellish this magnificent piazza in spite of the inferiority of its details. Beyond the Fountain of Neptune all visitors to Florence will regard with interest the circular bronze plaque adorned with a profile of Girolamo Savonarola set between palm branches, which marks the exact site of the prior's execution a little beyond the end of the long- demolished Ringhiera, or platform that jutted out from the facade of the Palazzo Vecchio. For it was here that the great Florentine reformer and his two colleagues, Fra Domenico and Fra Silvestro, suffered a cruel and 256 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES ignominious death at the hands of the Florentine Re- public on the request of Pope Alexander VI (23 May, 1498). On the anniversary of this tragedy the bronze memorial is invariably heaped with wreaths and with bunches of roses or pinks. Occupying about one-fourth of the whole area of the piazza stands the glorious mass of the Palazzo Vecchio itself, the civic palace of Florence and the heart of the wonderful Republic that during the Middle Ages and the Renaissance truly merited the name of the Modern Athens. The huge rugged yet graceful building with its lofty overhanging tower is a conspicuous object in every part of Florence and its neighbourhood, but the two best views of it at close quarters are to be obtained from the farther end of the colonnade below the Uffizi Gallery and from the Via Vacchereccia, the narrow street that leads from the Via Por S. Maria into the square. The facade of the palace seen in the evening glow is singularly impressive. Begun by Arnolfo di Cambio in 1298 as a fortified residence for the Priori and restored by Michelozzo in 1434, the palace has ever served as the symbol and centre of Florentine civic government, and to-day it still contains the official head-quarters of the Municipality of Florence. During the sixteenth century the building was enlarged by Vasari and other archi- tects of the Tuscan Grand-Dukes, who completed the back portions of the palace. The exceedingly graceful tower with its curious overhanging upper portion is 308 feet in height, its uppermost storey being added in the fifteenth century. The belfry contained the historic " Vacca" (the cow), the great bell that used to summon the citizens of Florence to attend meetings and discuss matters of importance in the piazza. The palace is crowned with an elaborate arcaded gallery, below which are painted the arms of the city and other armorial chargings closely connected with the history of the Florentine Republic. These arms, which were re-painted in 1840, consist of (1) a white lily on a red ground — Gules, PALAZZO VECCHIO 257 afleur-de-lys argent — the ancient arms of Florence. (2) A shield divided into two portions, red and white — Per pale gules and argent — signifying the union between Florence and Fiesole. (3) A red lily on a white ground — Argent fleur-de-lys gules — the arms of Florence, assumed by the victorious Guelfs in 1251 and still borne by the city. (4) A shield of blue with the word Libertas in gold across it — Azure, the word Libertas in bend or — a device used by the Priori delle Arti. (5) A red cross on a white ground — Argent, a cross gules — the arms of the Florentine people, first used in the thirteenth century under Giano. della Bella, Gonfaloniere of Justice. (6) Two golden keys on a blue ground — Azure, two keys in saltire or — the ponti- fical device of Clement IV in 1265, bestowed by that Pope as a mark of esteem on the Guelfs who had supported Charles of Anjou against King Manfred. (7) An eagle trampling on a dragon, above the bird's head a golden lily — Argent, an Eagle proper trampling a Dragon, in chief a lily or — this heraldic device was also added by Pope Clement IV. (8) Golden lilies on a blue field, with a label — Azure semee offleurs-de-lys or, in chief the label of Anjou — the royal arms of Charles of Anjou, King of Naples and suzerain of Florence. (9) A parti- coloured shield, on one side similar to that already described and on the other red stripes on a gold ground — Per pale, Azure, semee of fleurs-de-lys or ; barry of or and gules — the arms of Robert of Anjou, King of Naples, nominated by the Florentines lord paramount of their city in 13 13. The coats-of-arms painted below the machicolations of the tower represent the four quarters and the sixteen^ Gonfalons of the city. Before the western facade stretches a low platform, at the northern end of which can still be seen some traces of the former Ringhiera or raised platform, which was re- moved early in the nineteenth century. To the right of the entrance stands Bandinelli's much-abused marble group of Hercules and Cacus, which is so fiercely criticized by Cellini in his Autobiography. Since the removal of 17 2 5 8 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES Michelangelo's famous statue of David in the last century, its site remained for many years unoccupied, until a marble copy of this statue was set up in this place in the autumn of 1910. At the end of the Ringhiera is a modern copy of the lion called "Marzocco," the emblem of Florence, the original having been removed hence to the collection of Donatello's works in the Bargello. Over the doorway is an interesting reminis- cence of the last days of the Florentine Republic in the marble ornament consisting of the sacred monogram guarded by Florentine lions and surrounded by rays of glory, which was erected here during the fatal siege of Florence in 1529. Originally, the accompanying legend, Rex Regum et Dominus Dominantium, was inscribed Rex Populi Florentini — " Jesus Christ is King of Florence " — a sentiment which did not apparently meet with the approval of the young tyrant Alessandro dei Medici, Duke of Florence, who altered the inscription. Amolfo's spacious but gloomy courtyard is entered by this portal, its sides being supported by immense pillars which are square or round alternately. The original structure was considerably strengthened by Michelozzo in 1434, whilst the present graceful stucco arabesques and the faded frescoes on the adjacent walls were added by the pupils of Vasari in 1565 on the occasion of the marriage of the Grand-Duke Francesco I with the Princess Joanna of Austria. In the centre of the court is a charming little Fountain of red porphyry surmounted by a bronze statue of a laughing child carrying a small dolphin, a beautiful work made by Andrea del Verrocchio for the gardens of Lorenzo dei Medici at Careggi. From the courtyard an archway leads to a large pillared hall whence a broad stone staircase ascends (on the left) to the principal rooms of the palace. The first floor con- tains the vast and resplendent Sala dei Cinquecento, one of the largest rooms in existence which are not supported by pillars. This immense hall was constructed by Cronaca in 1495 at the advice of Savonarola after the PALAZZO VECCHIO 259 expulsion of the three Medici brothers, in order to serve as a council chamber, which might even on occasions hold as many as 2000 persons. Under the Gonfaloniere Soderini, Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo were invited to prepare suitable cartoons for the decoration of its large wall spaces. For this purpose the former executed a cartoon of the battle of Anghiari, and Michelangelo a picture of the battle of Cascina, which introduced his well-known and celebrated study of soldiers bathing in the Arno. Whatever work by these two great masters was actually painted on the walls suffered greatly a few years later, when the hall was turned into barracks for the Spanish soldiers who accompanied Leo X on his recovery of Florence in 1512. Under Cosimo I the ceiling was raised, and walls and roof were painted by Vasari and his pupils with a series of frescoes commemorating the career and victories of Cosimo I. Although often des- pised for their artistic inferiority, these works are both brilliant and harmonious in their general effect as decora- tion of this vast bare chamber, whilst to those who study the history of Tuscany they will prove of considerable interest. The lower portion of the walls is adorned with Florentine tapestry of the sixteenth century and by a series of statues representing the labours of Hercules. On the raised part of the room are indifferent statues of Leo X, of Clement VII crowning the Emperor Charles V, of Giovanni delle Bande Nere, and of Duke Alessandro. At the farther end of the room has been placed Passaglia's highly theatrical statue of Savonarola (1882), who fre- quently harangued the Florentines in this hall. Amongst the numerous episodes of history that this splendid and impressive chamber has witnessed during the four hundred years of its existence, we may mention the proclamation of Cosimo dei Medici as first Grand-Duke of Tuscany in 1569 and the historic sittings of the Italian Parliament held here during the few years of the existence of Florence as the capital of United Italy. At the farther end of the Sala dei Cinquecento a 2 6o FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES doorway leads to the ante-hall of the suite of rooms known as the Quartiere di Papa Leone X. 1 The ante- room, or Sala di Leone X, contains a number of interesting frescoes from the hand of Vasari and his pupils, illustrating scenes in the life of the splendour-loving first Medicean pope. The large iresco over the fire-place represents Leo's creation of thirty-one cardinals in 151 7, a scene in which the portraits of Cardinal Bibbiena, Giulio dei Medici, Michelangelo, and other members of Leo's court are introduced. Opposite to this composition is the same Pope's state entry into the Piazza Delia Signoria in the winter of 1515, the papal train containing numerous portraits. Both these frescoes, though not actually the work of a contemporary artist, are of extreme interest to students of Italian history in the sixteenth century. Besides other frescoes relating to the history of the period are busts of Leo X, Clement VII, Cosimo I, and Giuliano dei Medici. The adjoining suite of rooms consists of the Sala di Clemente VLL, containing some interesting historical paintings, notably the military plan of Florence during the siege of 1529; the Camera di Cosimo 1 ; and the so-called rooms of Cosimo il Vecchio and Lorenzo il Magnifico. All of these contain frescoes by Vasari and his colleagues of some historical importance but of little artistic merit. At the top of the staircase, near the entrance to the Sala dei Cinquecento, is a beautiful Doorway of bronze gilt with twisted marble columns and a triple mask of Christ, which has been attributed to Donatello. Beyond this, at the foot of the next flight of steps, is the entrance to the Hall of the Two Hundred {Sala dei Duecentd), which is now the meeting-place of the Florentine Municipal Council. It is a handsome apartment with walls covered with Florentine tapestry, and with a splendid cassetted roof of elaborate carving by Benedetto da Majano. The stairway near the entrance to the Sala dei Duecento 1 A fee of 1 fr, has been fixed upon since the winter of 1909 for each visitor. PALAZZO VECCHIO 261 leads to the second floor of the palace, which contains the large suite of rooms formerly occupied by the Priori, and later by Cosimo I and his wife, the Grand-Duchess Eleonora of Toledo. The first room is the lofty Sala dei Gigli, so called from the golden fleurs-de-lys in the decoration of the walls. The coffered ceiling with its frieze of lions and its gilded ornamentation is very hand- some. The room contains some frescoes by Domenico Ghirlandajo representing S. Zenobius Enthroned with his attendant pupils, Eugenius and Crescentius, with two lions bearing banners of the people and city of Florence, and above them six Roman heroes in chiaroscuro. In the lunette above are the Madonna and Child. A fine and elaborate doorway of white marble with doors of intarsia work leads into the adjoining Sala d' Udienza, covered with frescoes by Salviati illustrating the story of Camillus. Hence is entered the Cappella dei Priori, at the altar of which Savonarola received his last Com- munion. Beyond the chapel are more rooms, some of which contain a few early paintings placed here in recent years. Returning to the Sala dei Gigli, we find on its further side a large room known as La Guardaroba with closed cabinets, all of which are covered with a series of curious maps painted by Padre Danti and Padre Buonsignori towards the close of the sixteenth century. On the first floor are shown the curious windowless chamber called the Studiolo di Francesco /, with its ad- joining secret Tesoretto, or treasure-closet ; on the second floor is the Quartiere degli Elementi, a handsome suite of rooms, decorated by Vasari and his pupils, which have only been made accessible since the spring of 191 1. Palazzo Pitti. — The vast Palazzo Pitti, well situated on the steep slope that ascends from the piazza of the same name, owes its erection to Luca Pitti, a wealthy merchant of the fifteenth century, who in a spirit of boastful rivalry commissioned Brunelleschi to build a palace of which the very windows were to be as large as the portals of the recently erected Palazzo Medici in Via Larga. From 1 44 1 to 1465 the work continued, and the great mansion 262 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES was completed so far as the second floor, but in 1465 the building operations were suspended for lack of the neces- sary funds. In 1549 the descendants of the ambitious Luca Pitti were glad to sell their huge but unfinished mansion to the Grand-Duchess Eleonora of Toledo, and in the following year, 1550, the Grand-Ducal family and Court moved from the Palazzo Vecchio to this palace, which has ever since ranked as a royal residence. Only the portion of the palace around the courtyard is the original structure raised by Luca Pitti. The two long wings, following the plan of Brunelleschi, were added by Ammanati, whilst the projecting porticoes and terraces that overhang the piazza were erected in the eighteenth century under the Grand-Dukes of the House of Lorraine. Even now the huge building is only partially finished, for the great bare slope in front of the palace was intended to have been laid out in curving approaches with terraces and balustrades. The roof ought also to have been crowned with a loggia, as in the case of the Palazzo Guadagni close by. Of recent years a good hall and staircase have been added by Del Moro (1897) under the Kings of Italy to serve as entrance to the Picture Gallery. The lofty position and the severe rustic architecture of this palace make of the Pitti the most imposing and the largest, though by no means the most beautiful, of the Florentine palaces. The effect produced is entirely due to the fine proportions and the plain massive style of the structure, which is almost wholly without external ornament. (The Royal Apartments of the Pitti Palace are shown free between noon and 3 p.m. on Thursdays and Sundays. Permits (permessi) are to be obtained at the Maggiordomo's office, which is situated beyond the left-hand corridor of the great courtyard.) In this same courtyard is a small suite of three rooms, of which the first contains some vestments and altar furniture, whilst over the entrance is hung an interesting early picture of the palace with the loggia on its roof which was never erected. The second PITTI PALACE 263 room is devoted to a valuable collection of porcelain formerly the property of the Grand-Dukes of Tuscany, which includes some fine dinner and coffee sets of old Capodimonte, Dresden, Worcester, Ginori, Vienna, Ori- ental, and other china. The third room, known as the Camera degli Argenti, contains a vast number of works of art, plate, reliquaries, and jewellery, including some magni- ficent specimens of the elaborate art of Benvenuto Cellini, Gian-Bologna, Tacca, Pollajuolo, etc. From the courtyard a broad stairway leads to the royal apartments, which, though for the most part tasteless and dull, contain some objects of interest, such as fine in- laid cabinets belonging to the later Medici, silver toilet sets, rooms hung with fine brocade and other ornaments usual to a palace. But the principal rooms, such as the Throne, Banquet, and Ball Rooms, were all re-decorated in the dismal style of the years 1865-71, the period that saw Florence the capital of Italy and this palace consequently the chief official residence of the reigning House of Savoy. The chief attraction of these rather dreary rooms is the celebrated painting by Botticelli of Pallas Athene and the Centaur^ described by Vasari in his life of that painter, which is preserved in one of the smaller saloons together with a few other pictures of some value. This famous composition of the great Florentine master (which after having been lost sight of for many years was re-discovered in 1894 by Mr. William Spence, an English gentleman residing in Florence) undoubtedly represents in an alle- gorical form the great moral victory won by Lorenzo il Magnifico over the treacherous and violent King Ferdinand of Naples in 1480, when the Florentine prince risked his life at the Neapolitan court in order to reason with Ferdinand against the dangers and misery of a pro- jected Italian war. The figure of Pallas, crowned with olive and draped in a robe covered with the diamond rings that served the Medicean prince for his emblem, is shown in the act of subduing a strong but crouching centaur, thereby exhibiting the triumph of Medicean 264 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES virtue and statecraft over brute force and selfish greed. The picture is one of the most interesting in Florence, so that it is greatly to be regretted it should still be kept in so comparatively inaccessible a place. The other pictures in this cabinet include a Holy Family formerly attributed to Botticelli, a good Madonna by Carlo Dolci, and a Female Portrait by Lucas Kranach. At the back of the Pitti Palace are the world-renowned Boboli Gardens, which are thrown open to the public only on Thursdays and Sundays, and then but from noon till sunset, although the palace itself is practically uninhabited, the Royal Family of Italy having only re- sided two days within the Pitti during the last eight years ! These formal gardens cover the slope of the hill up to the level of the citadel of Fort San Giorgio, whence the noon-tide cannon is fired daily. There are two entrances, one beneath the arcade to the left of the palace, near the entrance to the Picture Gallery, and the other in the Via Romana, about ten minutes' walk farther south. The gardens consist for the most part of long straight alleys of clipped ilex, bay, and laurustinus, interspersed with groves of cypresses and open lawns, which in springtime are gay with anemones, crocus, buttercups, and the purple salvia. The alleys and paths are skilfully planned in accordance with the sharp falls and rises of the ground on the steep hill-side. They were originally laid out by Tribolo under Cosimo I about the year 1550, Tribolo 's scheme being subsequently extended by Buontalenti and Gian-Bologna. Remaining much in its original state, the Giardino Boboli affords one of the best specimens in existence of the magnificent pleasances of the later Italian Renaissance ; whilst the exquisite views and vistas to be obtained from every point of these gardens render a visit to the Boboli on a fine day one of the highest forms of pleasure of which an educated mind is capable. The Boboli contains a large number of statues, fountains, grottos, a belvedere, and some minor gardens BOBOLI GARDENS 265 for the growing of fruit, flowers, and vegetables. The principal of the Grottos is that facing the entrance from the arcade of the palace. This curious rococo structure, formed chiefly of shells and pieces of rock, originally contained the four unfinished statues by Michelangelo, which were intended to decorate the immense tomb of Pope Julius II in Rome. 1 From this grotto near the chief entrance, a broad drive leads to the rear of the palace, whence there is a well-known and superb view of the city with its towers backed by the hi: Is around Fiesole. Here a natural hollow in the hill-side has been converted into a regular amphitheatre with stone seats, balustrades, and vases, where the Grand-Ducal Court used in former days to witness masques or dramatic performances. Above the amphitheatre is the Basin of Neptune, a circu- lar pool full of gold-fish and distinguished by a statue of Neptune with his trident. On a higher level and a little to the left is the small domed structure known as the Belvedere, whence there is to be obtained an extensive view of the city and the Val d'Arno (small fee to the custodian). Above the Basin of Neptune, to the right of the prominent statue of Abundance, and at the highest point within the gardens is the little flower-garden called Giardi?io del Cavaliere (small fee to attendant), the terrace of which commands a fine panorama of the country lying south of Florence. From this point the visitor had better make his way towards the part of the Boboli that extends to the Porta Romana on the south. Here a wide avenue known as the Viottolone adorned with statues leads downhill to the great fountain of the " Isolotto," an elaborate work designed by Gian-Bologna. A few minutes' walking beyond this fountain brings the visitor to the Scuderie Reali, or royal stabies, which contain some of the old state-coaches. This lower part of the Boboli is far less known to the average stranger than is the portion 1 These works were removed in the summer of 1909 to the Accademia delle Belle Arti, and their vacant spaces filled with modern copies. 2 66 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES nearer the palace, yet it is fully as beautiful, and the old city walls of the fourteenth century form here a most picturesque background. Some of the shady alleys radiating from the Viottolone have their branches pleached overhead, a form of garden architecture which has a most pleasing effect. Near the entrance in the Via Romana is the great stanzone, or lemon-house, a fine building wherein the lemon-trees are protected during the sharp Tuscan winters. The Palace, as we have said before, has practically ceased to be a royal residence since 1871, but a member of the Italian reigning House of Savoy usually occupies a small suite of rooms in the new wing of the palace, which abuts on the gardens. Palazzo Riccardi (formerly Medici), now the official seat of the Prefect of Florence, stands in the broad Via Cavour, which was formerly known from its width as Via Larga. The palace is of special interest as having been the seat of the senior branch of the Medici, so that its walls are closely associated with the magnificence, the learning, the patronage of art, and the festivities of Cosimo il Vecchio, of his grandson Lorenzo il Magnifico, and of his great-grandson Pope Leo X. The present palace was erected by Michelozzo for Cosimo il Vecchio in 1430, but the original structure was far smaller than the huge massive building that now meets the eye in Via Cavour, for the Riccardi, to whom the palace was subse- quently sold, added largely to the old Medicean mansion, although their additions were made in harmony with Michelozzo's architecture. From 1430 till the murder of Duke Alessandro in 1537 the Medici inhabited this palace, with the exception of the intervals of their en- forced exile between the years 1494 and 15 12, and again between 1527 and 1530. Cosimo I preferred to dwell in the Palazzo Vecchio and later in the Palazzo Pitti, but the old cradle of the Medicean family was not abandoned finally till 1659, when Ferdinando II sold it to the Marchese Riccardi. In 1715 the palace was enlarged, THE PROCESSION OF THE MA(,I l'rom the fresco by henozzo Gozzoli i;i the Chapel of the Palazzo Kit card V p. 266 PALAZZO RICCARDI 267 and the key, the armorial emblem of the Riccardi family, is conspicuous throughout the newer portions of the building. The basement is composed of great blocks of rough stone, and the windows of the two upper storeys have elegant Gothic windows with marble columns, in the arches of which are to be seen the usual Medicean emblems of the diamond ring and the plumes. The fine cornice is also by Michelozzo. The palace is said to possess the earliest examples known of the " kneeling windows " (inginocchiate), which are popularly believed to have been an ingenious invention of Michelangelo, for the convenience of persons watching from the case- ment. The courtyard is entered by a lofty archway facing the Via Cavour, and contains fine medallions with reliefs by Donatello, some antique busts, and some early sarcophagi, which are said to have been removed from the ancient Baptistery hard by. A staircase in the right-hand corner of the court leads to the famous Chapel of the Medici, now commonly called Cappella Riccardi (entrance fee, 50c). This tiny chapel on the first floor possesses a beautiful pavement of inlaid pieces of antique marbles and some doors and stalls of intarsia work, but its great glory consists in the splendid Frescoes executed on the walls by Benozzo Gozzoli be- tween 1459 and 1463 for Piero "il Gottoso," son and heir of Cosimo il Vecchio. Owing to the extreme darkness of the chapel these paintings (which according to popular tradition the artist was compelled to depict by lamplight owing to the absence of a window) are marvellously well preserved, so that from an artistic and an historical point of view this small oratory of the Medici ranks as one of the most important interiors in Italy. The chancel con- tains two groups of adoring angels with bright robes and peacock-hued wings, who with exquisite tenderness of expression regard the altar where formerly was shown a picture of the Nativity by Fra Lippo Lippi (now in the Gallery of Berlin). The remaining portions of the walls are covered by the Procession of the Magi with an immense 268 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES train of Florentine citizens, servants, and cavaliers. The three principal figures of the three kings portray the Patriarch of Constantinople on a white palfrey (near the modern doorway), Castruccio Castracane, tyrant of Lucca, and the Emperor of the East, John Palaeologus, in a green and gold robe with an Oriental diadem. A host of citizens and youths, most of them wearing the lucco or red head-dress of mediaeval Florence, follows in procession, many of the figures affording contemporary likenesses, including those of Cosimo dei Medici, his son Piero, and his grandsons Lorenzo and Giuliano. Amongst them may be recognized the portrait of the artist, who bears on his hood the inscription Opus Benotii. The scenery depicted is that of the Tuscan country-side with its walled towns and groves of cypresses ; yet an Oriental feature is introduced in the hunting leopards which the servants of the Emperor of the East have brought with them. It is no exaggeration to say that few buildings in Italy can claim greater attention or afford more pleasure of the intellect than this tiny chapel in the ancient palace of the great family of Medici. It was in this chapel also that Giovanni dei Medici, the future Leo X, received the tonsure of the scalp, denoting his reception into the Church, a circumstance which took place when he was but eight years of age. In the palace itself was born and lived the great Lorenzo, whose three children Piero, Giovanni, and Giuliano were also all born under this roof. It was in one of its halls that the high-spirited Clarice dei Medici, wife of Filippo Strozzi, denounced with withering scorn the two bastards of her house, the Cardinal Ippolito and the future Duke Alessandro, before these two youths were expelled from Florence in 1527 after the capture of Rome from their relative, Giulio dei Medici, Pope Clement VII. It was also within these walls that on the night of 6 January, 1537, the tyrant Alessandro, first Duke of Florence, was horribly murdered by his distant kinsman, Lorenzino dei Medici, in a chamber which was subsequently pulled PALACES AND PUBLIC BUILDINGS 269 down. To those who are acquainted with the extra- ordinary and fascinating story of the House of Medici, this palace will appeal with overpowering interest. The main staircase leads upwards to various rooms containing tapestry and some statues, the largest of which is the fine hall adorned with a ceiling painted in gorgeous colours by Luca Giordano with an apotheosis of the later Medici, notably of the Cardinal Leopoldo and the Grand- Duke Cosimo III, executed in 1683. Its windows look towards the church and piazza of San Lorenzo, which is so nearly connected with the famous Florentine family. At the farther end of the room on an easel is a Madonna and Child by Fra Filippo Lippo, a fine work recently dis- covered near Florence and placed here. Palace of the Uffizi. — This immense building Flor- ence owes to the t&ste and bounty of Cosimo I, first Grand-Duke of Tuscany, who being anxious to concen- trate all the various departments of state beneath one roof, commissioned his favourite architect Giorgio Vasari in 1560 to erect the present building which was finished in 1574. It is an exceedingly graceful structure with its wide colonnades and long lines of windows. At its southern end (overhanging the river) is to be seen the statue of Cosimo I by Gian-Bologna, supported on either side by allegorical figures of Justice and Power. The niches of the colonnades were filled in the early part of last century with a number of statues of distinguished Floren- tines, the work of various masters. This series of statues, many of which possess artistic merit, is well worthy of inspection, in order to realize the extraordinary number of great men — politicians, architects, artists, scientists, historians, painters, soldiers, poets — whose lives and labours contributed to swell the importance of the Florentine state during the period of its existence. The extensive building contains the present Post Office (adjoining the Loggia dei Lanzi), the vast collection of the State Archives, the largest Public Library [Biblioteca JVaziona/e), and, in the topmost storey of all, the priceless 270 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES Gallery of Painting and Sculpture, which takes its name from this official palace. The Uffizi is connected with the upper floors of the Palazzo Vecchio by means of an archway thrown over the intervening Via di Ninna, and it is also joined to the Pitti Palace by the long arcaded gallery which Vasari constructed for Cosimo I in 1564 for this special purpose. Part of the site of the Uffizi was formerly occupied by the Church of San Piero Scheraggio, which is frequently mentioned in Florentine annals prior to the construction of this palace. Besides the great official or royal palaces of the Signoria, the Pitti, the Riccardi, and the Uffizi, Florence contains an endless number of private palaces, dating from the thirteenth century to the present day, many of which can aspire to architectural or historical interest. These Palazzi are scattered throughout every portion of the city, so that it would be difficult to name any street which did not contain some dwelling of importance con- nected with the history of Florence. Perhaps the Via Maggio (a corruption of Via Maggiore), the broad straight street beyond the Ponte Santa Trinita, is the best example extant of a street almost wholly filled with palaces, chiefly of early date ; but the Via Tornabuoni, Via Cavour, Borgo degli Albizzi, and indeed several other streets can boast an almost equal number of this class of residence. Some of these palaces are still inhabited by the descendants of their original owners, but in the majority of cases the old mansions have been let out in private apartments or else have been turned into offices. None of the interiors of the Florentine palaces are shown to the stranger, with the solitary exception of the Palazzo Corsini ; but this deprivation is of small consequence, for few, if any of them, now possess works of art of any great interest or value. In any case, their architectural details are visible from the street, and in many instances it is not hard to penetrate into the courtyard, if the visitor be so minded, by a little civility or a small gratuity to the porter. It is impossible to enumerate PALACES 271 more than a very few of the notable private palaces of Florence. Palazzo Alberti. — The principal of the various palaces of the powerful family of the Alberti is the fine mansion at the corner of the Lung' Arno delle Grazie and the Via dei Benci, a street that contains many ancient houses as well as the picturesque cafe with the columns and pent-house roof at the angle of the Borgo Santa Croce, known as Le Colonnine. Palazzo Alberti was originally erected by that eminent member of his House, Leon- Battista Alberti, who himself inhabited it, but has been almost wholly rebuilt in modern times. The shield of the Alberti, the four chains joined — Azure, four chains conjoined in saltire argent — is frequently displayed on this palace. Palazzo Albizzi. — The chief seat of this Florentine family was at No. 1 8 in the ancient street of Borgo degli Albizzi, running eastward from the Via del Proconsolo to the quaint little Piazza San Piero Maggiore. .The coat-of-arms of the Albizzi, two golden circles on a blue field — Azure, two concentric circles or — is to be noticed on several houses in this gloomy old street. Their principal palace has long been called " degli Visacci " (of the ugly faces), owing to the grotesque coloured effigies of Florentine notabilities with which its facade is adorned. At No. 24 in the Borgo degli Albizzi is the old Montalvo Palace, built by Ammanati in 1568 for Don Antonio Ramirez di Montalvo, a favourite chamberlain of the Grand-Duke Cosimo I. Palazzo Antinori. — This palace, built towards the close of the fifteenth century by Giuliano da Sangallo for the Boni family, came into the possession of the Antinori about a century later. It stands in the small piazza of the same name at the northern end of the Via Tornabuoni and almost opposite the rococo facade of the Church of San Gaetano, a building of ancient foundation, but after- wards bought and rebuilt by the Theatines at the expense of Cardinal Carlo dei Medici in the seventeenth century. 272 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES The Antinori coat-of-arms in gold and blue — Chequy, or and azure^ a chief or— is conspicuously displayed at the corner of the palace, which is a most favourable specimen of Renaissance architecture. It is now the head-quarters of the Florentina Ars, an association for the sale of the modern artistic manufactures of Florence, and strangers are invited to visit the showrooms in this palace. Palazzo Buondelmonte. — The present palace of this name in the small Piazza Santa Trinita was erected by Giacone in the sixteenth century and possesses no parti- cular feature of interest, but its name recalls that of a family very famous in the early days of Florentine history, which had its origin in the castle of Montebuoni. Early in the twelfth century, when the castle of Monte- buoni was annexed to Florentine territory, a branch of this feudal family settled in the city. A scion of this stock, now risen to eminence in Florence, one Buondel- monte del Buondelmonte, " a gracious and comely knight," in 12 15 declined to marry a daughter of the Amadei family, to whom he had been formerly betrothed, and for various reasons allied himself with a maiden of the Donati. The Amadei and their friends, bent on vengeance for the slight offered to their House, assembled in the Church of San Stefano in Via Por Santa Maria and there decided on the assassination of the faithless bride- groom at the suggestion of Mosca dei Lamberti. The young Buondelmonte was accordingly waylaid on his return from Mass on Easter Sunday and brutally clubbed to death at the foot of the Ponte Vecchio, close to the statue of Mars, an antique piece of sculpture to which the early Florentines were superstitiously attached. The young widow of the murdered Buondelmonte now made a progress round the city with her slaughtered husband's body in a cart, calling on the citizens to avenge the foul deed, with the result that two powerful factions were thereby formed in Florence, which ultimately developed into .the distinct political parties of the Guelfs and Ghibellines. PALACES 273 Palazzo del Capitani della Parte Guelfa^ formerly one of the many mansions of the Lamberti, from whom the neighbouring Via Lambertesca is named. This fine palace (which has recently been restored) is situated in the Via delle Terme, which runs parallel with the Borgo Santi Apostoli and obtains its nomenclature from the ancient Roman baths {Thermae) once existing here. The building was erected from a design of Brunelleschi, and has a facade with sgraffiti decoration and a handsome loggia above. Close beside it is the secularized Church of S. Biagio, an ancient structure now utilized as the head- quarters of the Florentine firemen (pompier i). All this quarter of Florence is full of old-world houses and some remnants of mediaeval towers, so that a ramble in the quaint dark purlieus of the Via delle Terme and the Borgo Santi Apostoli is strongly recommended to all lovers of the picturesque. Palazzo Cappello. — This house, No. 26 in the Via Maggio, is interesting from its connexion with the beauti- ful Venetian Bianca Cappello, who resided here for some years both as a wife and as a widow before she was raised to the position of Grand-Duchess of Tuscany. The house is a gloomy-looking place covered with fast- decay- ing black and white decoration {sgraffiti) and distin- guished by the escutcheon with the heraldic hat of the Cappelli over the main portal. It was in the Via del Presto behind this house and close to the great Church of Santo Spirito, that Bianca's worthless husband, Pietro Buonaventura, was murdered in a street brawl, at the instigation, some said, of the Grand-Duke Francesco I, although the latter had especially placed the Buonaven- turas in this fine house near the Pitti Palace, after remov- ing them from their former humble abode in the Piazza San Marco (No. n). Palazzo Capponi. — This immense palace in the rococo style of architecture, which stands in the Via Gino Cap- poni (formerly Via San Sebastiano), was built by Fontana for the Marchese Alessandro Capponi in 1705. It is a 18 274 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES handsome building with a fine staircase and a good lib- rary, and is still the property of a branch of the celebrated family of Capponi, one of the most illustrious names con- nected with the history of Florence. The family, whose connexion with the city dates from the thirteenth century, gave numerous magistrates to the old Florentine Republic, and was possessed of great wealth and numerous palazzi in various parts of the town, so that their coat-of-arms, a shield divided diagonally into two equal parts of black and white — -Per bend, argent and sable — is familiar to the students of Florentine heraldry in many churches and streets, notably in Santo Spirito, where are the principal chapels of this House. Of this family, which has pro- duced many men of note from the thirteenth century almost to the present day, we may mention Neri Capponi, who won the battle of Anghiari for the Florentines and also annexed the district of the Casentino to the State. He died in 1457, but his nephew Piero is almost more famous in Florentine annals for his bravery in defying Charles VIII of France, when that King was occupying the city in 1494 after the expulsion of Piero dei Medici. An unfair and dishonourable treaty having been prepared by the royal secretary for the magistrates of Florence to sign as the price of peace, Piero Capponi boldly advanc- ing to the throne tore up the obnoxious document before the King's eyes with the historic remark : " Vol darete nelle trombe, e not nelle campane — If you sound your trumpets, then we shall ring our bells!" Alarmed at the earnestness and pluck displayed by Capponi, Charles yielded, so that milder terms for the city were suggested. Piero's son Niccolo also played a prominent part in the tragical last years of the Republic, prior to its extinction under Clement VII in 1530. Another celebrated mem- ber of this House in modern times was the Marchese Gino Capponi, from whom this broad street is named, and who on his death in 1876 was buried with a large monu- ment in Santa Croce. As a scholar, a high-minded patriot, and man of great influence, Gino Capponi was PALAZZO CORSINI 275 one of the leading statesmen who took an important part in the unification ot Italy in the middle of the past century. Of his literary works, his " History of the Republic of Florence " is a well-known and valuable contribution to modern Italian literature. Palazzo Corsini^ a large seventeenth- century mansion by Silvani, surrounds a wide courtyard and contains fine suites of rooms and a good gallery of pictures. The handsome south front is a conspicuous object on the Lung' Arno Corsini, but the main entrance and the porter's lodge are situated in the dingy Via Parione at the back. The palace is shown to the public on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays, free of charge, be- tween 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. The curving staircase is very handsome, as are also the great south gallery and the ante-chamber. The rooms beyond contain the Picture Gallery and also a very valuable collection of antique furniture, china, stuffs, tables, and other objects of interest, including many relics of Clement XII, the Corsini pope whose statue also adorns the grand staircase. In par- ticular, the glass case with albs of fine needlework made by the ladies of the great papal houses of Corsini and Barberini will prove interesting. In short, apart from its pictures, the Palazzo Corsini affords a good example of a fine Italian palace of the seventeenth century, and indeed it is the only private Florentine palace thus thrown open to the public. The views from the windows of the sunny State apartments are charming. The Corsini, whose coat-of-arms consists of a red and white striped shield crossed by a bar of blue — Paly of six argent and gules, over all a /ess azure — are one of the oldest and most distinguished of Florentine families, and at the present time the family ranks as the first of existing Florentine houses. The Corsini have given numerous magistrates in the past to Florence, and now hold important court appointments under the House of Savoy. 276 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES The Corsini Gallery This gallery is the only private collection in Florence open to the public. Twelve large rooms on the first floor contain a valuable collection of paintings and other works of art. The twelve rooms of the museum open out of one another. Room I contains no pictures of importance, and in Room II we note only landscapes by Salvator Rosa, replicas of the pictures in the Uffizi and Pitti, and battle-pieces by Courtois and Reschi. Only the most important works are mentioned, though many of course possess historical interest. Room III (on an easel) Sustermans. Portrait of Marchese Geri delta Rena. This is one of the artist's best portraits, and is char- acterized by a vigour and insight worthy of Van Dyck. No. 87. Van der Goes. The Virgin and Child. Clear delicate colour, but the expression of Mother and Child is lacking in originality. No. 92. Paris Bordone. ' Portrait. A likeness of great distinction. No. 129. Ridolfo Ghirlandajo. Portrait of a Youth. An expressive head. Compare with No. 3413, Uffizi, ascribed to Piero di Cosimo. Room IV No. 360. Giovanni da Milano. The Virgin and Child with SS. Benedict, Catherine, Louis of Toulouse, and Giovan- Gualberto. Triptych. No. 341. Pesellino. Scenes from the Life of S. Andrea Corsini. Predella. No. 416. Antonello da 'Messina. The Crucifixion. A beautiful little picture. Note the delicately painted scenery. Formerly in the Barberini Collection. No. 162. Filippino Lippi. The Virgin and Child with Angels. MADONNA AND CHILD WITH ANGELS From the painting by Filippino Lippi in the Corsini Gallery P- 275 CORSINI GALLERY 277 The gem of this collection, and one of the artist's finest compositions. The attitude of the angel proffering flowers is most graceful, and the Virgin may rank with his most ideal feminine figures. Mr. Berenson, however, doubts the ascription to Lippi. No. 340. Att. Botticelli. Five allegorical Figures. These fanciful figures are neither the Virtues nor (as has been suggested) the Muses, but seem rather to be intended for Philosophy and the Sciences of the Quad- rivium, i.e. Theology, Jurisprudence, Medicine, and Letters. This charming composition was the front panel of a dower-chest. Nos. 338-344. School of Giotto. SS. John the Baptist, Anthony, Paul, and Nicholas of Bar i. No. 157. Luca Signorelli. The Virgin and Child with SS. Jerome and Bernard. A superb picture to be set beside the Holy Family (Ufiizi, No. 1 291), painted about 1476. The warm colour of the draperies contrasts effectively with the pale flesh tones. The head of S. Bernard is expressive. No. 167. Botticelli. The Virgin and Child with Angels. An interesting comparison may be made with Filippino Lippi's work. No. 148. Raphael. Portrait of Pope Julius II. Cartoon. This superb composition initiates us into the artist's methods. Note the minute characterization of the brow and hands. The drawing was brought from Urbino by Vittoria della Rovere, and whether by gift or purchase is not known, passed into the possession of Marchese Bartolommeo Corsini, her Chamberlain. Modern critics are not inclined to set the stamp of Raphael's genius upon this drawing. No. 176. Filippino Lippi. The Virgin and Child. Brought from the Corsini Villa in 1870. Much restored. No. 160. Fra Bartolommeo. Holy Family. 278 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES A characteristic painting. A replica or early copy is in the Borghese Collection at Rome. Room V No. 200. Raffaellino di Carlo. The Virgin En- throned, with SS. Jerome and Bartholomew. Brilliant colour and graceful grouping distinguish this fine altar-piece painted in 1502, for the Corsini Chapel in S. Spirito. There are only two other authentic works by this master, who was strongly influenced by Lorenzo di Credi and Perugino. Room VI No. 210. Botticelli. Portrait of a Youth, " The Goldsmith ". This interesting and forcible likeness has been attributed to Pollajuolo and Antonello da Messina. The features recall the familiar Medici type ; moreover, the ring with a pointed diamond being one of their emblems, it sug- gests a likely connexion of the sitter with some member of that family. No. 208. Holbein. Portrait of a Man. No. 209. Memling. Portrait of a Youth. A comparison between the contemporary Northern and Florentine portraiture is interesting. The attribution of these two interesting portraits is disputed. No. 179. Carlo Dolci. La Poesia. The colour is beautiful and the technique faultless. The picture, however, fails to interest otherwise than by the likeness to Princess Claudia dei Medici, painted also as Galla Placidia (No. 200, Uffizi). 1 No. 241. Andrea del Sarto. Apollo, Daphne, and Narcissus. The fables united in this fanciful little scene are de- picted with quaint diversity of costume. Ascribed also to Franciabigio. PALAZZI DAVANZATI E SPINI 279 Room VIII No. 259. Piero di Cosimo. Holy Family, (Note here also the embroidered hangings of the State bed, after designs by Albano.) Room IX No. 292. Florentine School. Fifteenth century. The Execution of Savonarola. A painting of historic rather than artistic interest. Note the gilt statue of Judith by Donatello (now under the Loggia dei Lanzi). Palazzo Davanzati. — The fagade of this palace (formerly Davizzi), recently restored to something of its original splendour, is a conspicuous object in the central portion of the town, since from its situation in the Via Porta Rossa it faces northward towards the busy Via Vecchietti and Via Strozzi. Its tall narrow fagade topped by a loggia has a beautiful escutcheon bearing a lion rampant. The palace, which dates from the fourteenth century, was for a short time the residence of Pope Eugenius IV. The last member of the once celebrated family of Davan- zati committed suicide by throwing himself out of the topmost window of this house. The palace has recently been most carefully and suc- cessfully restored by Prof. Elia Volpi, so that it now affords an excellent example of a fourteenth-century Florentine rich merchant's residence. The curious and handsome contemporary furniture is especially interest- ing ; also the frescoes in many of the chambers, where the arms of the ancient Davizzi family are everywhere conspicuous — Argent and gules indented, per pale and per /ess. (Entrance fee, 1 fr. ; lift, 25c.) Palazzo Ferroni (formerly Spini), the conspicuous palace at the eastern angle of the Lung' Arno Acciajuoli and the Via Tornabuoni, and nearly opposite the bridge 2 8o FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES of Santa Trinita, was erected in the thirteenth century by Lupo, the master of the great Arnolfo. It is a grim, majestic building in the severe Tuscan style of architec- ture, its windows decreasing in size in the ascending storeys. The Spini, for whom it was built, have long been extinct, and in the eighteenth century the palace passed into the hands of the Ferroni, a family from the neighbourhood of Empoli. Early in the past century the palace was converted into the chief hotel of Florence, and later it became the head-quarters of Vieusseux's well-known public library. The ground floor is now occupied by the bank and agency of Messrs. French, Lemon & Company ; whilst the rest of the huge palace has been converted into various clubs and private apart- ments. The British Consulate is also lodged in this vast building. The main entrance contains some pieces of sculpture and frescoes of the armorial bearings of the civic divisions of Florence, etc. An archway near the Ponte Santa Trinita, which was removed in 1846, is to be seen in all old prints and pictures of this palace previous to that date. Immediately opposite the Palazzo Ferroni is the fine mediaeval mansion of the ancient Gianfigliazzi family, which has recently been restored. The Gianfigliazzi are amongst the Florentine families honoured by Dante's verse. Their coat-of-arms, a blue lion rampant on a golden shield, is still to be seen on the exterior of their former abode. Palazzo Guadagni. — With its fine proportions and spacious overhead loggia this appears one of the finest palaces in Florence. It stands at the corner of Piazza Santo Spirito and Via Mazzetta, and possesses good iron fanali, or lanterns, inferior only to those on the better- known Strozzi Palace. The palace was built by Cronaca, with additions by other masters of the sixteenth cen- tury. The Guadagni, now extinct in the male line, were once wealthy and powerful, and owned several palaces in the city, including the fine mansion at the rear of the Cathedral which still bears the name of Palazzo PALAZZI PANDOLFINI E PAZZI 281 Guadagni. The family arms are a golden notched cross on a blue ground — Azure, a cross engrailed or. Palazzo Pandolfini. — This simple but beautifully pro- portioned little palace, although one of the most elegant of all the private dwellings of Florence, is rarely noticed by the visitor. It is the only Florentine building of which the design can with certainty be attributed to the great Raphael. It stands in its own garden between the Via Cavour and the Via San Gallo, close to the English Church of Holy Trinity. The cornice of the palace con- tains a long Latin inscription in huge lettering, which tells the reader that Raphael designed the palace for Monsignore Gianozzo Pandolfini, Bishop of Troja, a favourite court-prelate at the Vatican in the time of Leo X (1513-21). The family of Pandolfini, long extinct although the name is still preserved by the present owners of the palace, was founded by one Ser Pandolfo who fought in 1260 at the battle of Montaperto. The family coat-of- arms consists of three golden dolphins on a blue ground surmounted by a red label with three golden fleurs-de-lys — Azure, three dolphins or, in chief the label of Anjou. Palazzo Pazzi. — The great family of the Pazzi, the bitter rivals at one time of the Medici, owned several palaces in Florence, amongst them being the Palazzo Non-finito, a baroque structure by Buontalenti (1592) in the Via Proconsolo ; and another which retains their coat- of-arms in the adjacent Borgo degli Albizzi. The corner of Via Proconsolo and the Borgo degli Albizzi is still known as the " Canto dei Pazzi," and it was here on Easter Eve that part of the fireworks from the "Scoppio del Carro " was till recently discharged, on account of the historic connexion between the Pazzi family and this time- honoured ceremony. The arms of the Pazzi include two dolphins back to back and four crosses on a blue field — Azure, two dolphins addorsed between four cross crosslets fitchee or. This coat is especially noticeable in the de^ coratioh of the celebrated Pazzi Chapel at Saqta Croce P 282 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES Palazzo Pucci, — The chief residence of this opulent Florentine family was the palace occupying a large space of ground at the angle of Via dei Pucci and Via dei Servi. The greater part of this palace was rebuilt by Falconieri in the seventeenth century, but certain portions of it are of earlier date, notably a loggia and windows by Ammanati. At the street corner is the fine papal escut- cheon of Pope Leo X by Baccio da Montelupo. The arms of the Pucci, a negro's head on a white field — Argent^ a blackamoor s head proper — is to be frequently met with, notably on the Loggia of the Annunziata, which was erected by members of this House. Palazzo Roselli Del Turco. — This fine palace stands in the quaint mediaeval street of the Borgo Santi Apostoli that runs parallel to the Lung' Arno Acciajuoli and is itself well worth visiting on account of its ancient build- ings and its many towers ; indeed, the Borgo Santi Apostoli is perhaps on the whole the most perfect and picturesque of the surviving mediaeval streets of Old Florence. The palace was erected by Baccio d'Agnolo for the Borgherini, but later became the property of the Del Turco family, who still possess it. At the corner of the palace abutting on the little Piazza del Limbo is a picturesque shrine with a Madonna and Child and a Head of Christ by Benedetto da Rovezzano. The very fine mantelpiece by the same artist, now preserved in the National Museum of the Bargello, was taken from a chamber of this palace. Palazzo Rucellai. — The principal fagade of this palace, one of the most important and elegant of the early Renaissance buildings of Florence, abuts on a little piazza half-way down the busy Via della Vigna Nuova. It was erected for the celebrated Bernardo Rucellai in the middle of the fifteenth century from a design by Leon- Battista Alberti, who in this palace first introduced a com- bination of the Rustic and Classical styles with a pleasing effect. The friezes of the fagade are adorned with the ship in full sail, that was the chief emblem of this mer- cantile family, and the same design is to be observed on __ PALAZZO RUCELLAI 283 the pretty little loggia opposite (now closed and converted into shops), which was also designed by Alberti. The palace has a beautiful courtyard with Corinthian columns and is said to contain a few works of art within. The family of the Rucellai, who still possess the palace of their ancestors, are said to have been of German origin and to have owed their subsequent wealth and influence to the fact that one Alamanno, the founder of the House, introduced with great profit to himself the plant orcella, a species of lichen much prized for purposes of dyeing. From very early times the Rucellai have played a pro- minent part in the civic life of Florence, and many members of the family have been distinguished in Florentine annals for their -learning, patriotism and wealth. By the marriage of Nannina dei Medici, sister of Lorenzo il Magnifico, with Bernardo Rucellai in the fifteenth century, the family became closely connected with the great Florentine quasi-royal house. Both this Bernardo and his son Giovanni were celebrated as scholars and poets of the Italian Renaissance ; and in the eighteenth century one Giulio dei Rucellai was well known as an energetic reformer of the Church. The coat-of-arms of this family, which is to be met with fre- quently in the great Church of S. M. Novella, consists of a shield divided diagonally with a silver lion on a red field above and a design of golden waves on a blue sea below — Per bend, gules a lion passant argent, azure three f esses wavy or. The porter of the palace keeps the keys of the Cappella Rucellai in the secularized church (always closed) of San Pancrazio in the neighbouring Via Delia Spada, one of the oldest ecclesiastical foundations in Florence but re- built by the Rucellai in 1480. The Cappella itself con- tains a curious model in precious marbles of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, which was erected here by order of Giovanni Rucellai in 1467. It is a fantastic structure, but interesting as the work of so great an architect as Leon-Battista Alberti. 284 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES Close by, at the corner of the Via della Spada, now marked with a commemorative marble tablet, is the house once inhabited by Sir Robert Dudley, natural son of Queen Elizabeth's Earl of Leicester, who, forsaking his wife and children in England, fled to Florence with a Miss Southwell and was created Duke of Northumber- land by the Emperor for his services at the court of Cosimo II. He constructed the new harbour at Leghorn and published several works on scientific and maritime subjects. This strange exile died in 1637, and was buried with his so-called Duchess in the Church of San Pancrazio already mentioned, hard by. It may be added that Charles I of England created Robert Dudley's widow in 1643 Duchess of Dudley in her own right. Palazzo San Clemente, a late seventeenth-century build- ing by Silvani, situated at the angle of theViaGino Capponi and the Via Micheli, is of peculiar interest to British visitors, since it was bought from the Guadagni family in 1777 by Prince Charles-Edward Stuart — the Charles III of the' Jacobites and the " Young Pretender " of the Hanoverians. It is a picturesque irregular pile, the top- most roof of which bears an ironwork pennant with the royal initials "C.R." and the date 1777, a sad memento of the unhappy exile who inhabited it for some years under the name of the Count of Albany. On the northern side of the palace is a curious old-world garden set with moss-grown statues of beasts and shepherds. On the southern side the Fiesole tram-line passes within a few feet of its ground floor. Here " Bonnie Prince Charlie " spent some of the most wretched and disreputable years of his life, drinking away his wits, quarrelling with his friends, and making himself a laughing-stock to the British Minister, Sir Horace Mann, and the Tuscan Court. From this house his young wife, Louise of Stolberg- Gedern, ran away to seek a refuge from her husband's violence in a convent in the neighbouring Via del Mandorlo (now Via Giuseppe Giusti) before her escape to Rome. Here, a little later, the unhappy Prince was PALAZZO STROZZI 285 joined by his natural daughter, Charlotte Stuart, so-called Duchess of Albany, who finally persuaded her father to quit Florence for Rome in December, 1785. After the Chevalier's death in Rome in January, 1788, the palace and its contents became the property of Charlotte, who sold the house to the Velluti-Zati family, Dukes of San Clemente, its present possessors. Palazzo Strozzi, perhaps the finest and most perfect example of an Italian Renaissance palace in existence, presents its principal facade to the Piazza Strozzi, whilst its northern and western sides abut respectively on the Via Strozzi and the Via Tornabuoni. Its southern side is separated by a narrow passage (now closed) from the adjacent houses of Via Tornabuoni. The great mansion was erected by Filippo Strozzi the Elder in 1489, when the first stone was laid at daybreak of the sixth day of August. The palace was erected from a design and under the superintendence of Benedetto da Majano till the death of that master in 1507, when the work was given over to Simone del Pollajuolo, surnamed Cronaca, who is responsible for the magnificent but unfinished Corinthian cornice that forms so marked a feature of this splendid building. Although far smaller than the Pitti and less massive than the Riccardi, the Palazzo Strozzi presents a more graceful and harmonious appear- ance than either of those edifices. The fana/i, or lanterns of vvrought-iron at the corners of the palace are amongst the finest specimens of ironwork known, and were made by Niccolo Grosso (called " II Caparro ") from a design furnished by Benedetto da Majano. Very fine, too, are the sphinxes' busts for torch-holders and the metal rings that are inserted in the facades. All round the huge rustic base of the palace runs a stone seat, formerly affording a resting-place to the humble toilers in the street and to the sellers of flowers, shells, papers, etc. The courtyard is handsome, but the interior of the palace, once so rich in works of art and paintings, now contains little of importance save the large collection of the Strozzi archives. a86 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES The powerful family of Strozzi is presumed to derive from a certain Ubertino, who flourished in the thirteenth century and whose descendants have always taken a prominent part in the civic history of their native city. The most celebrated member of the family was the handsome but dissolute Filippo Strozzi, who became the husband of Clarice dei Medici, niece of Leo X, and ulti- mately died in prison under Cosimo I. Since the death of Prince Piero Strozzi in 1907, the palace has been partly rented to a local dealer in works of art. The arms of the Strozzi, which are to be met with in all parts of Florence, consist of three silver crescents in a crimson band on a golden field — Or y on a /ess gules three crescents argent. The family device of three crescents conjoined is also frequently to be seen on houses that are or have been the property of the Strozzi family. On the eastern side of the Piazza Strozzi, facing the great palace, is a small but massive building known as // Strozzino, built by Michelozzo in 1460 for Palla Strozzi, the head of a younger branch of this dis- tinguished family. Palazzo Torreggiani. — This is the conspicuous pile of buildings at the southern end of the Ponte alle Grazie, , which consists of two palaces, both belonging to the Torreggiani family. The older and smaller house, de- corated with sgraffiti, is attributed fo Ammanati. The family escutcheon, containing a tower with three stars, is to be observed on the fagade. In the same little piazza is the former residence of the Mozzi family, an ancient edifice of the thirteenth century with gardens in the rear ascending to the old city walls. The Palazzo Mozzi was once occupied in 1326 by Walter de Brienne, Duke of Athens, and in later times came into the posses- sion of the Mozzi family, now extinct. Bridges. — The Arno is spanned by six bridges, form- ing the communication with Oltr' Arno. Four of these are ancient, and their history is, closely bound up with the progress and fortunes of the city. There are in addi- PALAZZO STROZZI f. 28 5 PALAZZO FERROXI (SPIXl) p. 2 7 Q PALAZZO CORSIXI AND THE LUNG ARNO CORSINI THE BRIDGES 287 tion two iron bridges erected in the last century, one opposite the hill of San Miniato and the other at the entrance to the Cascine. (A toll of 5 c. is exacted from the foot-passengers who use these two modern construc- tions.) The most easterly and also the most ancient of the four historic Florentine bridges is the Ponte alle Grazie, formerly called "Rubaconte," and as such alluded to by Dante in a famous passage in the opening cantos of the 14 Purgatorio ". It was built by Lapo, father of Arnolfo di Cambio, in 1237, and its sturdy piers and founda- tions have for nearly seven centuries withstood the tor- rential floods that often swell the Arno in winter and autumn. The bridge formerly possessed a small chapel built through the piety of the Alberti family, and con- taining a much -venerated statue of the Madonna delle Grazie. Small cells inhabited by nuns also were to be seen on this bridge so late as 1874, when the Ponte alle Grazie (so-called from the Madonna already mentioned) was considerably widened, whilst the chapel was re-erected on the Lung' Arno delle Grazie, and the nuns' dwellings were removed altogether. The wide open views to be obtained from this bridge are singularly beautiful, com- prising the whole sweep of the hills to the north of Florence as far as the Vallombrosan mountains. Ponte Vecchio, ''the Old Bridge," the most famous if not actually the most ancient in structure of the Floren- tine bridges, was erected by Taddeo Gaddi (?) in 1365, although the site had been occupied by a succession of bridges, more or less secure, since Roman times. With its masses of small shops, which have been appropriated since the time of Cosimo I by the Florentine goldsmiths and jewellers, and with its fantastic pinnacles and curious colonnaded gallery of the Uffizi overhead, the Ponte Vecchio appeals with singular force to all lovers of the picturesque. Artists of every land find an inexhaustible source of inspiration in its marvellous colouring and irre- gular beauties of outline, so that it is rarely seen without 2 88 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES the presence of several painters all busily employed in depicting its charm. On the thoroughfare of the bridge itself the picturesque Florentine crowd affords an endless source of interest, to say nothing of the contents of the many shops of jewellery, modern, antique, and sham- antique, which are spread temptingly before the casual visitor. The Ponte Vecchio, indeed, is as busy a centre of Florentine life and energy to-day as it was centuries ago, and the visitor cannot spend a more agreeable hour than in standing in the open space in the middle of the bridge, to watch the views up and down the river and to inspect the passing lines of people. The central portion contains some mediaeval inscrip- tions, one of them alluding to the great flood of 1333 which destroyed the predecessor of Gaddi's structure ; a curious gnomon ; and a bust of Benvenuto Cellini placed here on the fourth centenary of the birth of this prince of Florentine jewellers, who was born in 1500. In the little piazza on the southern side of the bridge is a fountain and a bronze statue of Bacchus, occupying the site of the old pagan equestrian statue of Mars, so beloved of the early Florentines, which was swept away in the great flood of 1333. It was before this figure of Mars that the young Buondelmonte was struck down by the Amadei and Lamberti in 12 15. Above the tiny houses of the jewellers runs the great corridor that Vasari built in 1564 for Cosimo I in order to connect the Pitti and Uffizi Palaces. The Ponte Santa Trinita was first erected in the four- teenth century, but after having been injured several times by the force of the floods, the old bridge by Taddeo Gaddi was finally swept away bodily in 1557, when Cosimo I commissioned Bartolommeo Ammanati to build the existing structure, which is a singularly graceful one with three broad, gently curving arches. It is adorned with statues of the Four Seasons by Caccini and other artists, which were placed here in 1608 to commemorate the wedding of Maria- Maddalena of Austria with the PONTE ALLA CARRAJA 289 Grand- Duke Cosimo II. At its south-eastern corner is the huge Frescobaldi Palace, a conspicuous building with a handsome rococo facade, which after various changes has now been converted into a school for the higher edu- cation of girls. Pontealla Carraja. — This bridge, first erected in 12 18, has been several times restored or rebuilt by various Florentine architects, including Ammanati in 1557. Enlarged and modernized in 1867, it is now crossed by the tram-line leading from the centre of the town to the Porta Romana by way of the Via dei Serragli. On May Day, 1304, this bridge became the scene of a terrible disaster, when some fetes were being provided for the populace. In order to see a realistic representation of Hell that some mummers were performing here, vast undiscip- lined crowds rushed suddenly upon the Ponte alia Carraja, with the result that the fabric gave away beneath the un- accustomed strain, and the whole mass of people was precipitated into the river, numbers being drowned or seriously injured. The little piazza on the north side of the bridge, formerly known as Piazza alia Carraja, has recently been re-named Piazzetta Goldoni, in honour of the Venetian dramatist, whose statue adorns the space close to the Hotel Bristol. Other Buildings. — Hospital of Santa Maria Nuova. — The facade of this historic institution, the oldest hospital in Florence, occupies the greater part of the piazza of the same name, a little to the east of the Piazza del Duomo. Founded by Folco Portinari, the father of Dante's Beatrice, in 1285, S. M. Nuova is still the largest and most import- ant of the many Florentine hospitals. It is a vast rambling building, dating partly from the fourteenth century, but naturally much altered and modernized, whilst more recent edifices connected with it adjoin it on every side. The long picturesque loggia and the fagade were the work of Parigi and Buontalenti between 1574 and 1612. . The Church of Sanf Egidio, which gives its name to the ad- jacent street, is incorporated with the hospital. It was 19 290 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES designed by Lorenzo di Bicciin 141 8, and contains a few works of art by that master, the Delia Robbias and others. In the church is preserved the Gothic monument of Folco Portinari. In the court is a bas-relief of Monna Tessa dated 1288, the old servant of Folco Portinari, who i: said to have urged her master to the noble work of found ing and endowing this hospital. (Another and better known portrait of this old woman in terra-cotta is now preserved in the Bargello.) The central portal (now closed) is adorned by two frescoes by Lorenzo di Bicci (?) (1420), and Andrea di Giusto (1435), tne former of which represents Pope Martin V consecrating the Church of S. Egidio, while the latter shows the same pontiff confirming the privileges of the hospital. The contents of the small Picture Gallery, which was once installed here, with its superb Van der Goes, have been removed to the Uffizi in recent years. Mercato Nuovo. — This square, which was once one of the chief centres of Florentine industrial life, is almost wholly occupied by the graceful loggia erected here by Cosimo I, between the years 1547 and 1551 byGian- Battista del Tassa. Its upper storey was intended for the reception of the State archives. In the middle of the pillared expanse is a white marble disc let into the pave- ment, on which in former and more severe times bank- rupts were compelled to sit. In the early part of the sixteenth century the Mercato Nuovo was especially the resort of the leading goldsmiths and jewellers, and here it was that Cellini worked during many years of his youth. The niches of the loggia are intended to be filled with statues of famous Florentines, like those in the Logge of the Uffizi, but only three figures, those of Cennini, Michele di Lando, and Villani, have so far been placed here. At the eastern side of the loggia is the celebrated Bronze Boar, a favourite fountain of the people in the form of a boar, which Tacca copied from the marble original in the Uffizi. It was placed here by the Grand-Duke Ferdinand II, The Mercato Nuovo is still the centre of the straw- a s MERCATO VECCHIO 291 plaiting industry, and straw hats, fans, etc., can be bought here. On Thursday mornings a flower-market is held here under cover, which is well attended by the foreign colony in Florence. In a little lane leading hence to the Via delle Terme is to be seen the picturesque old building of the Arte della Seta, with a graceful balcony and a magnificent coat-of-arms attributed to Donatello. Mercato Vecchio. — This square, the old historic " Centro " of Florence, has ceased to exist since 1889 when the Municipality of Florence condemned this in- tensely interesting but highly malodorous quarter, and eventually pulled down the Mercato Vecchio, together with many of the adjacent streets and lanes. The huge and ugly Piazza Vittorio Emmanuele now stands on the site of the old Florentine Centro ; whilst the archway connecting the piazza with the Via Strozzi bears a pomp- ous inscription calling public attention to the beauty and magnificence of the new square, which, from an archi- tectural point of view, is certainly not a credit to modern Florentine taste. In the middle of the piazza is Zocchi's heavy equestrian statue of King Victor-Emmanuel II, whilst the western side of the square has an arcade with good shops, cafes, and some places of entertainment. Glaring and uninteresting as is the new Centro, it is still the chief rendezvous of mercantile Florence, and its cafes are crowded day and night. A few of the old palazzi are still left standing around this dreary modern square, and certain of the old names are still preserved in the new streets. The objects of artistic or historical interest which were found in the various houses and churches of the demolished quarter were removed to the inner cloister of San Marco, where they can be inspected by such as take an interest in the vanished Mercato Vecchio, the disap- pearance of which has broken a valuable historical link with the past. FIESOLE THE Expedition to Fiesole should be included in every visit, however brief or hurried, to Florence, as much for the superb and extensive panorama to be obtained from this lofty spot as for the sake of inspecting the ancient city with its cathedral church. Fiesole can be reached either by electric tram or by carriage, the latter course implying an interesting but somewhat lengthy up- hill drive to the piazza of Fiesole, which stands about 800 feet above the level of Florence itself. The electric trams (often, not to say usually, most unpleasantly crowded, especially in the afternoons) start every twenty minutes from the Piazza del Duomo and make the ascent in about three-quarters of an hour. The tram-line follows the Via Gino Capponi, crosses the Viali and emerges out of the suburbs at San Gervasio below the large villa of Font' all' Erta, and thence ascends by curves past villas and vineyards to the piazza of San Domenico. The carriage road passes out of the Porta San Gallo and proceeds between walls almost the whole way to San Domenico, at which point there is a fine view, embracing the mountains and the valley of the Arno. San Domenico, a small village in the commune of Fiesole, possesses a Dominican convent founded by Bishop Altoviti of Fiesole and built at the opening of the fifteenth century. It is celebrated throughout the world owing to its connexion with the pious friar and famous painter, Fra Giovanni da Fiesole, better known as Fra Angelico, who resided here most of his life. The church, which has a pretty loggia, abuts on the piazza to the right, 292 FIESOLE 293 but it is rarely open save early in the morning. The interior formerly contained many important works by Fra Angelico, but all have been dispersed, with the exception of the altar-piece of the choir, a triptych re- presenting a Santa Conversazione. Another altar-piece, the Baptism of Christ, is by Lorenzo di Credi. The adjoin- ing convent is celebrated not only for its connexion with Fra Angelico, but also for its memories of other famous Florentine Dominicans, including the good Archbishop Sant' Antonino and Fra Domenico Buonvicini, the de- voted friend of Savonarola, who suffered death with his master in 1498. Opposite the church a road leads northwards towards the valley of the Mugnone in a few hundred yards to the Badia Fiesola?ia, a picturesque pile of buildings (now a Jesuit school), consisting of a church and a monastery founded in 1028. Until that date the ancient church here served as the Cathedral of Fiesole, but in 1028 Bishop Jacopo il Bavaro moved the episcopal see to Fiesole itself. Its old tenth-century facade of black and white marble still exists on the side facing the valley of the Mugnone to northward. The handsome interior, attributed to Brunelleschi, contains various monuments to members of Florentine families. It was at the high altar of this church that on 9 March, 1492, Giovanni dei Medici, afterwards Pope Leo X, received in state the hat of a cardinal at the age of sixteen. The adjoining monastery was frequently the scene of meetings of the Florentine Academy in the times of Lorenzo dei Medici, whose friend the humanist Pico della Mirandola wrote certain of his works here. The refectory contains the masterpiece of Giovanni da San Giovanni, a fresco, Christ ministered* to by Angels, painted in 1629. The whole of the fertile country-side around San Domenico is thickly studded with the villas of wealthy Florentine residents, chiefly erected in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. Prominent amongst them on the steep hill-side below the crest of Fiesole is the Villa 294 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES Medicea (not shown), a large square building with magni- ficent terraced gardens. This villa, one of the finest of Renaissance country residences, was built for Cosimo il Vecchio in 1458 by Michelozzo, and was long a favourite resort of the Medici of the elder branch of that House. The Platonic Academy often met here, and this retreat was originally intended by the Pazzi conspirators for the scene of the double murder of Lorenzo and his brother Giuliano in 1478 ; an attempt of which the execution was only baulked by the unexpected absence at the last moment of Giuliano dei Medici. The villa was sold by the Grand-Duke Cosimo III in 167 1, and since that date has been possessed in turn by many owners. At the end of a lane leading to the right out of the piazza of San Domenico is the large Villa Landor, once the favourite home of the poet Walter Savage Landor, 1 who found this villa " so hard to keep, yet harder to resign ". Later, it became the property of Mr. Fiske, the American scholar, but has recently again been sold. The huge Villa Palmieri (so beloved of the late Queen Victoria), which is out of sight from this point, lies not far off in the valley of the Mugnone, the boundary wall of its podere or estate following the line of the carriage road from Florence. To the east is to be observed the crenellated outline of Poggio Gherardo, the beautiful fourteenth -century villa of Mrs. Ross, the tower of which was overthrown by the earthquake of May, 1895. Beyond this can be seen the extensive woods of Vincigliata, a mediaeval castle restored and fitted up in a suitable manner by the late Mr. Temple Leader (d. 1903). To the right of Vincigliata stands the little town of Settignano on its hill- top, with the Vallom- brosan hills for a background. The walled monastery crowning the bare rounded hill to the right of Settignano is the Incontro, a religious house said by tradition to have been the meeting-place of SS. Francis and Dominic. It 1 Landor died at Florence in 1864, and is buried in the old Protestant cemetery at Porta Pinti. FIESOLE 295 would be impossible in this short space to describe more out of this mass of villas, great and small, which adorn the slopes below Fiesole, though many of them are as- sociated with the names of persons distinguished both in Florentine and in foreign history. From the piazza of San Domenico two roads lead up- ward to the city of Fiesole, situated on the little plateau lying between the two crests of the rocky ridge that overlooks Florence. The longer and better road, which is followed by the tram, goes eastward by broad curves to the Regresso da Majano, where the tram-cars are reversed before proceeding up the concluding portion of the hill. The older and more picturesque road, known as the Old Fiesole Road, leads by a steep ascent to the left from the piazza. It passes almost immediately the little villa known as II Rip so del Vescovo, at which spot the Bishops of Fiesole were in former times wont to exchange their coach for a wagon drawn by oxen so as to accomplish the very steep final ascent to their episcopal city. This road, after passing a clump of cypresses close to the Villa Medicea, leads straight up to the piazza of Fiesole. Fiesole, the classical Faesulae, the seat of a bishop and a commune in itself, contains a population of about 2000. The town is amongst the most ancient in all Italy, but its early history is lost in obscurity, although its former importance is easily manifested by its existing walls of Cyclopean construction. In later times Faesulae became a Roman city of some wealth and consequence, as is clearly shown by the various ruins of baths and temples and by the many objects of classical civilization unearthed and preserved in the Palazzo Pretorio here. Several fragments of ancient marbles are said to have found their way to Florence for the decoration of the Baptistery and other buildings. In the Middle Ages Fiesole was of small importance, and was only ruled by its own municipal officials, the Gonfalonieri and Podesta, after the year 1515, in the time of Leo X. The chief building in the town is the Cathedral, the slender crenellated tower of 296 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES which is so familiar an object from the streets of Florence that face the direction of Fiesole. This edifice owes its existence to Bishop Jacopo il Bavaro, who, deeming the old cathedral (now incorporated in the Badia Fiesolana) distant and inconvenient, decided to build a cathedral at this spot in 1028. Accordingly the present structure • was raised, largely out of the remnants of Roman ruins, and again in the thirteenth century it was restored and enlarged. Its severe external architecture affords a good example of the Tuscan -Romanesque style, and in 1885 it was restored to its supposed original appearance in a most drastic manner. The interior strongly resembles in its plan that of San Miniato al Monte, which is al- most a contemporary building, and in both cases are to be found raised choirs resting on pillared crypts. The font, perhaps of Roman origin, was taken from the neighbouring ancient Basilica of Sant' Alessandro. Over the entrance door is a statue of San Romulo in a niche richly decorated with glazed terra-cotta, a late Delia Robbia work. The choir has, in the Salutati Chapel to the right, the beautiful Monument of Bishop Salutati (d. 1465), one of the masterpieces of Mino da Fiesole. This work in white marble consists of the bust and sarcophagus of the prelate, and a marble triptych with reliefs of the Madonna and SS. John, Romulo, and Leonard. The fagade was added by Sant' Andrea Corsini, who was Bishop of Fiesole from 1349-73. The large piazza outside is bordered by several public buildings. Close to the cathedral are the episcopal palace and the seminary, the latter a large square building erected in 1637. (In Florence itself the little church and adjacent residence of Santa Maria-in-Campo, in the Via del Proconsolo, were formerly the property of the Fiesolan bishops, and the church contains many monuments of Fiesolan prelates and clergy.) On rising ground at the eastern end of the piazza is the small Palazzo Pretorio of the thirteenth century, covered with armorial shields of former Podesta. It contains a collection of FIESOLE 297 antiquities found in the local excavations. Adjoining is the little Church of S. Maria Primerana of the tenth century. Behind the cathedral to the north can be seen the sole existing remnant of the Cyclopean walls, near which a perfect Cyclopean arch was destroyed so late as 1849; and inside a gateway marked "Teatro Romano " are the excavated portions of an ancient Theatre and some remains of Thermae (entrance fee, 50c, which also admits to the Palazzo Pretorio). The amphi- theatre of these ruins, opened in 1809, consists of six- teen rows of stone seats arranged in the usual semi- circular fashion. From this point there is a fine view up the somewhat sterile valley of the Mugnone with the barren slopes of Monte Morello and Monte Senario for a background. A pleasant and by no means tedious walk, of about half an hour's length, can also be taken round the contour of the hill by passing beneath the fragment of the Cyclopean wail to the left, and returning to the Piazza di San Domenico by this road which joins the Old Fiesole Road near the Villa Medicea, already mentioned. Returning to the cathedral and taking the Via San Francesco that leads up-hill to the left, visitors should ascend to the ancient Arx, or Acropolis of Faesulae, a steep rocky peak now occupied by monasteries and churches. Half-way up is the ancient Basilica of Sant' Alessandro, the oldest Christian building in Fiesole, modernized but still retaining fifteen antique marble columns of cipollino. Tradition states that this church was erected on the site of a pagan temple by Theodoric, King of the Goths, in which case it must rank as one of the oldest churches in Tuscany. The highest point of the Arx is crowned by the Franciscan Convent and Church of San Francesco (ladies not admitted), from the terrace of which a particularly fine view of Florence and the valley of the Arno is to be obtained. Persons driving to Fiesole, and also good pedestrians, are strongly urged, if time and weather permit, to return 298 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES home by way of the road that passes through the woods of Vincigliata to the east, and eventually joins the Florentine tram-line at Ponte a Mensola, below the town of Settignano. It is one of the most beautiful walks or drives in all Italy, and the views are superb. (Carriages can be obtained on the piazza at Fiesole ; bargain beforehand advisable. The Hotel Aurora^ in the piazza, will supply meals and has a good terrace with a wide view over Florence. Good bedrooms at moderate prices can also be obtained in this hotel.) THE CERTOSA OF VAL D'EMA A VISIT to the Certosa, or monastery of Carthusian ^*- monks, in the Val d'Ema is recommended, not so much on account of the artistic or historical attractions of the place, as of the interest afforded by the observation of an important and typical Italian mediaeval conventual establishment. The short excursion thither may be easily made in from two and a half to three hours, and either a carriage may be hired at the fixed tariff of 6 fr., or else use may be made of the electric tram-line from Florence to Greve, which passes close to the lodge of the Certosa at Galuzzo. The way to the Certosa lies through the fine old Porta Romana, with its decaying fresco by Ghirlandajo and its marble tablets commemorating the State visits to Florence of Pope Leo X and the Emperor Charles V in 1515 and 1 535 respectively. A hundred yards farther on the left is the entrance to the principal shop and factory of the celebrated modern Cantagalli ware, in which the beauti- ful glazed terra-cotta of the Delia Robbias and the fine lustre and majolica ware of Italy have been so successfully imitated. A visit to Cantagalli's interesting warehouse outside the Porta Romana can therefore be conveniently combined with the excursion to the Certosa. Passing the top of the hill beyond and descending into the valley of the Ema, the large Protestant Cemetery of the Allori is seen to the right at about one and a half miles' distance from the Porta Romana. Shortly after traversing the piazza of the village of Galuzzo the entrance lodge of the Certosa is reached at which carriages are admitted. From 299 3oo FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES this point it is a walk or drive of about a third of a mile up the hill to the monastery itself. The monastery crowns the rounded hill of Montaguto covered with cypresses, that stands prominently in the deep valley of the Ema, and from a distance the building bears rather the appearance of a mediaeval fortress than of a conventual house. The Certosa was founded in 1341 by Niccolo Acciajoli, or Acciauoli, a member of a family that had just risen to considerable power in the Republic. This Niccolo became a merchant at Naples, where he quickly gained the good graces of the Empress Catherine, widow of Philip of Taranto, and later of Queen Joanna I. The monastery thus founded by a Florentine citizen from a distance was intended to compass the education of fifty students under Carthusian instruction, and for this purpose a fine library was collected in this house. In 1366 the founder died and was buried here, his monument by Orcagna (?) being one of the chief artistic treasures of the Certosa. The design of the convent is generally attributed to Orcagna, and its building was completed between the years 1369 and 1394, at which date it was consecrated. A comparatively small number of monks is permitted to reside here now, and one of these white-robed brothers always acts as cicerone to the numer- ous visitors that a fine afternoon invariably attracts to this spot. On arrival, visitors will be interested in noticing the immense thickness of the walls and the various contriv- ances for storing fuel, etc., in olden days. A steep paved corridor leads from the entrance to the courtyard above, from which is to be obtained a good view of the Val d'Ema to the south. Originally erected in the latter half of the fourteenth century, the extensive buildings of the Certosa exhibit also portions of almost every later period of architecture. The Church, much modernized, is divided into an outer and an inner part, the latter of which contains a handsome marble pavement, carved stalls and an elaborate high altar with a canopy wherein THE CERTOSA OF VAL D'EMA 301 are set eleven small bronze statues by Gian- Bologna. The chapel to the right in the form of a Greek cross is part of the original structure of the fourteenth century, and over one of its altars are some contemporary frescoes of the Trinity, various saints, and the Madonna (almost wholly re-painted). From this ancient chapel a staircase descends to a lower chapel where are four celebrated Monuments of the Acciajoli Fa mily, including the mural monument dated 1366 of Niccold of Naples, the founder of the convent, which has been attributed to Orcagna. In the adjoining Chapel of S. Andrew is the beautiful Renaissance Tomb of Cardinal Angelo Acciajoli (d. 1409), ascribed to Donatello. Returning to the church, it is usual to cross the pretty little adjacent cloistered court with a fine well-head and thence proceed towards the Grand Cloister, by way of the passage filled with stained glass by Giovanni da Udine. This passage admits, by means of a beautiful carved door, to the Chapter House, which contains in its pavement the recumbent Effigy of Leonardo Buonafede, sponsor to Catherine de Medicis, Queen of France, a fine work by Francesco da Sangallo, . dated 1545. The same chamber also possesses a good fresco of the Crucifixion over the altar by Albertinelli (i 5 o6). The Grand Cloister, laid out as a garden, is distin- guished by an ornate well-house, which, in combina- tion with white -robed monks drawing water, has long proved a favourite subject with artists. The lunettes of the spacious surrounding colonnades are filled with specimens of the Delia Robbia glazed and coloured ware. Some of these are modern copies, inserted to replace the originals which were destroyed in the dis- astrous earthquake of May, 1895, when the Certosa and all the villages in the valley of the Ema suffered severely. At the four angles of the cloisters are four Frescoes of the Passion, good works of Pontormo, painted in 1522. Round the court are some twenty sets of monastic cells, most of which remain empty. From a small terrace, 3 o2 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES entered from the north-west angle of the court, there is a glorious distant view over Florence and the Apennines. It is usual to visit the Refectory, where the tables are always seen set with their curious old-fashioned services of domestic ware. Not far from this point is the entrance to the suite of rooms occupied by the unfortunate Pope Pius VI, who spent nearly a twelvemonth of captivity here before being finally deported by the French army of occupation to Valence in France, where he died in 1799. The rooms contain a portrait and a few personal memorials of the ill-fated pontiff, and from the windows are to be obtained charming glimpses of the rich Tuscan landscape. At the Pharmacy can be purchased the excellent yellow Chartreuse liqueur [Certosa gialla) made by the monks according to an old recipe. The tram-line, after passing the Certosa, proceeds southward to Greve through a well-tilled, fertile wine- growing country by way of San Casciano, where is still shown the small house wherein Machiavelli wrote his most famous treatise, " The Prince ". From Galuzzo, close to the Certosa, a good carriage road leads uphill towards Impruneta, a large village with a flourishing industry for the making of terra-cotta jars , for oil or for garden plants. The interesting church contains the celebrated statue and wealthy shrine of the Madonna delP Impruneta^ and some works of art are preserved in the sacristy. THE FESTIVALS OF FLORENCE IN modern times the various festivals have lost much of their former interest and picturesque environment, especially the time-honoured Carnival, which was wont to be celebrated with great gaiety in the old Grand- Ducal days. In spite of. some recent attempts to revive its former jollity and significance, it has now degenerated into mere street rowdyism on Martedi Grasso, or Shrove Tuesday. The period before Lent is, however, still the most festal season in Florence, and is accompanied by good performances at the theatres and by much social entertainment. Ascension Day (Giorno dei Grilli) is ob- served largely by the Florentines, who go out to the country or the Cascine at daybreak in order to catch the little black grilli, or grasshoppers with the loud chirrup, whence the festival obtains its popular name. The con- tadini bring these little creatures to sell" in the city, en- closed in tiny cages of wire or of split reeds of a curious archaic pattern. On the Festa del Statu to, or anniversary of the Constitution, which falls on the first Sunday in June, a full-dress parade of the garrison is held, and at dusk the Palazzo Vecchio, the public buildings, and the various barracks are illuminated. The many festivals of the Church have naturally lost much of their old-time splendour, but the various cere- monies at Christmas-tide and during Holy Week are still conducted with pomp in several of the churches ; notably in the Duomo, the Basilica of San Lorenzo, Santa Trinita, and the Santissima Annunziata. The last-named church, the mother-church of the Servite Order, has long been 3°3 3ied at Rome, 1564. Studied under the patronage of Lorenzo dei Medici (II Magnifico) in his youth, when he executed some fine pieces of statuary at an early age. Laboured almost entirely in Rome and 344 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES Florence. Received many commissions from Popes Julius II, Clement VII, and Paul III. In 1529 he directed the defence of Florence against his patron Clement VII, who subsequently forgave him for his hostile action. After Clement's death in 1534 he resided chiefly in Rome, where he formed a deep attachment for the learned Vittoria Colonna, Marchioness of Pescara. In Florence his chief works are the New Sacristy of San Lorenzo and the Laurentian Library ; and in Rome the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel and the dome of St. Peter's. Michelozzo Michelozzi. Architect and Sculptor. 1391-1472. The favourite architect of Cosimo dei Medici (II Vecchio) for whom he erected the Palazzo Medici (now Riccardi) ; and of his son Piero il Gottoso. Mino da Fiesole. Sculptor. Fifteenth century. Montelupo, Raffaello da. Sculptor. 1505-1567. Montorsoli, Fra Giovanni. Sculptor. 1507-15 63. Nanni di Antonio di Banco. Sculptor. 13 73- 1420. Orcagna (Andrea di Cione). Architect and Sculptor. Also famous as a painter. 1329-1368. Executed the splendid " Shrine of Orcagna " in Or San Michele. Pisano, Andrea. 1 273-1 348. Sculptor. A native of Pisa, who executed many important works in Florence. Pisano, Nino di Andrea. Sculptor. Son of the above. Fourteenth century. Quercia, Jacopo della. Sculptor. 13 74- 1438. A native of Siena, who also worked in Florence. Robbia, the Delia. Sculptors and inventors of the beautiful glazed and coloured terra-cotta figures and ornaments that are so frequent in Florence. The origi- nator of this art was Luca (1399-1482), who was suc- ceeded by his nephew Andrea (1437-1528), who was in his turn succeeded by his son Giovanni (1469- 1529). Rossellino, Antonio. Architect and Sculptor. 1427- 1477. Rosso, Giovanni. Sculptor. Pupil of Donatello. Fifteenth century. Rovezzano, Benedetto da. Sculptor. 1476-1556, EMINENT ARCHITECTS AND SCULPTORS 345 Rustici, Giovanni. Sculptor. 1474-1554. Sangallo, Antonio da, the Elder. Architect. 1455- IS34- Sangallo, Antonio da, the Younger. Architect. Nephew of the above. 1485-1546. Sangallo, Francesco da. Sculptor. 1 494-1 576. Sangallo, Giuliano da. Architect. 1445- 15 16. Sansovino, Andrea da. Sculptor. 1460-15 29. Sansovino, Jacopo da. Architect. 1486-1570. Tacca, Pietro. Sculptor. Pupil of Gian-Bologna. 1586-1646. Talenti, Francesco. Architect. Fourteenth century. Tribolo (Niccolo Pericoli). Sculptor. 1485-1550. Verrocchio, Andrea. Sculptor. (See under List of Painters.) SAINTS AND THEIR SYMBOLS ': It :J THE ensuing list, of necessity very short and imperfect, of Saints and their Symbols is presented with the object of assisting the visitor in Florence to identify some of the more prominent amongst the innumerable figures of Saints, Martyrs, Doctors, Confessors, and Rulers of the Church which appear in the paintings of the Floren- tine galleries and churches. All Saints of a date later than the year 1500 — such as SS. Ignatius Loyola, Francis Xavier, Filippo Neri, Carlo Borromeo, Aloysius Gonzaga, j r and the like — have been purposely omitted from this list, which has been compiled exclusively for the identification of the various leading Saints represented either singly or in groups in the earlier works of the Italian schools of painting. For further information on this interesting subject, the reader is invited to study the well-known works of the late Mrs. Jameson, whose knowledge of her subject and charm of description will always stand unrivalled in that department of literature which deals with the intimate connexion between sacred art and sacred personality. Agatha. Virgin and Martyr, of Catania in Sicily. 5 February. Third century. Palm. Breasts on a dish. Shears (the instrument of her torture). Agnes. Virgin and Martyr of Rome. 21 January. Slain with the sword about a.d. 300 for refusing to abjure Christianity or to be married to a certain Sem- pronius. Palm. Lamb. Olive branch. 346 SAINTS AND THEIR SYMBOLS 347 Ambrose. One of the four Latin Fathers of the Church, Bishop and Patron Saint of Milan. 4 April. Died a.d. 397. A native of Gaul, S. Ambrose as Bishop of Milan became one of the most successful champions of the Catholics against the Arian heresy. His courageous refusal to allow the Emperor Theodosius to enter the cathedral of Milan, on account of his late massacre at Thessalonica, has been highly praised by Gibbon and other historians, and has often supplied a theme for artists. Episcopal robes. Books at feet or in hand. A scourge in hand. Sometimes a bee-hive beside him (a symbol of his eloquence, which was foretold by a swarm of bees at his cradle). Two human bones. Andrea Corsini. A member of the distinguished Florentine family. 4 February. Died 1373. As Bishop of Fiesole his memory is recalled at Fiesole and in the Carmine Church at Florence, where his gorgeous chapel is noticeable. Episcopal robes. Andrew, the Apostle. 30 November. Patron Saint of Scotland and Russia. An aged man with the transverse cross, or " Cross of S. Andrew," of his martyrdom. Anna. 26 July. The mother of the Blessed Virgin Mary and the wife of Joachim. Joachim and Anna are frequently represented together in such subjects as the Meeting of Joachim and Anna at the Golden Gate, the Birth of the Virgin, etc. S. Anna also appears in Raphael s beautiful Holy Family, known as L Impannata, in the Pitti Palace. Both are represented as aged, and S. Anna usually wears a long white veil. Anthony. The Abbot (Antonio Abbas) of Egypt. 17 January. Fourth century. Patron Saint of animals. Lived to a great age as a hermit in the desert, together with the anchorite Paul, subsisting largely on the bread brought for his sustenance by a raven. The temptation 348 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES of this Hermit-Saint by the Devil and his evil angels forms a favourite subject in art, especially with the Dutch and Flemish painters. Crutch. Pig. Bell. A burning hearth. Anthony of Padua. 13 June. Died 1231. (Not to be confused with the former.) This popular Saint was Portuguese by birth and a member of the Order of S. Francis. He resided in Padua during the reign of the tyrant Ezzelino, and after his death and canonization the splendid church bearing his name was erected in that town. Franciscan habit. He holds the Christ- Child in his arms, or watches Him seated on a book. Flame of fire in hand or on breast. Antonino. 10 May. Died 1461. "The good Archbishop of Florence." Antonino Pierozzi was born in 1389 and became a Dominican friar at Fiesole. His genuine piety, his unique powers of charitable organiza- tion and his foundation of the Buonomini di San Martino, entitle him to rank amongst the great Florentines of the Quattro- cento. His undoubted talents and virtues were much appreciated by Cosimo dei Medici, and in 1446 he was, at the suggestion of Fra Angelico, appointed Archbishop of Florence, a post which he filled with emi- nent satisfaction to the citizens, who deeply regretted his death. Many relics of him are preserved in the Church and Convent of San Marco, including his death-mask. An aged man in episcopal robes, or in the Dominican habit. Augustine. 28 August. One of the Four Fathers of the Latin Church. The son of S. Monica (who is often represented in art with her more famous son, as in Ary Scheffer's celebrated picture), Augustine became Bishop of Hippo in Africa. His writings are celebrated, notably his " Confessions " and " City of God ". The legend of S. Augustine meditating on the mystery of the Trinity and the Child on the shore has frequently been treated in art, a large painting of this beautiful story existing in the sacristy of Santo Spirito, SAINTS AND THEIR SYMBOLS 349 Episcopal robes. Books in hand or at feet. A flam- ing heart in hand. Barbara. Virgin and Martyr. 4 December. Fourth century. The patroness of soldiers, who still receive a holiday on her festival in Italy. According to her legend, her father Dioscurus imprisoned her in a tower, and eventually beheaded her with a sword on account of her faith. Tower. Chalice and wafer. Feather. Sword. Crown. Palm. Barnabas, ii June. "The Son of Consolation." The scroll of the Gospel of S. Matthew, which Barna- bas carried with him on his missionary labours in Italy and which was found intact in his tomb. Bartholomew, the Apostle and Martyr. 24 August. Knife. He sometimes bears on his arm his own skin, as in the " Last Judgment " of Michelangelo in the Sistine Chapel. Benedict. 21 March. Died 543. The founder of the Benedictine Order. Born at Spoleto and educated in Rome. Spent a long time in retreat at Subiaco, and personally founded the famous monastery of Monte Cassino, the cradle of the new Order, in which the Saint died. Benedictine habit. Broken cup with an asp. Raven with a roll in its beak. Bernard of Clairvaux. 20 August. Died 1153. Founder of the Cistercian Order of reformed Benedic- tines. A native of Dijon, he became one of the leading personages of his period, and it was at his advice that the Second Crusade was undertaken. His famous theolo- gical writings were said to have been inspired by the Blessed Virgin herself, a legend that has been translated into art in the beautiful picture by Filippino Lippi in the Badia. White habit. Writing-desk with papers and ink-horn. Demon bound at his feet. Three mitres (in allusion to the three sees refused by him). 35© FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES Bernardino of Siena. 20 May. Died 1444. Fran- ciscan friar and founder of the Order of Observants and originator of a pawn-house in Siena under the name of Monte di Pieta, to preserve the poor from the clutches of the extortionate Jews. He is almost invariably represented with the sacred monogram " I.H.S." encircled by rays of light, a pious and marketable device he himself invented for the benefit of one of his penitents, a reformed painter of playing- cards. He is aged; wears the Franciscan habit; and sometimes has near him three mounds surmounted by a cross, in allusion to his invention of the Sienese Monte di Pieta, Bernardo dei Tolomei. Died 1 3 1 9. Founder of the Olivetan monks, a branch of the Benedictine Order. A native of Siena and a member of a celebrated Sienese family. White habit. Branch of olive. Blaise, or Biagio. 3 February. Third century. Bishop of Sebaste in Cappadocia, who suffered death through a wool-comber's comb. An aged man in episcopal robes, holding the comb, the instrument of his martyrdom. Bonaventura. 14 July. Died 1274. The " Seraphic Doctor " of the Franciscan Order was a native of Tuscany. He is said to have been restored to life when a child by the intercession of his master S. Francis, who on his prayers being answered exclaimed, O buona ventura ! The friend of S. Louis of France, the author of many works, including a " Life of S. Francis," and a man of boundless piety and humility, Bonaventura ranks as the chief intellectual light of the Order of S. Francis. Franciscan habit with a cardinal's hat beside him. An angel with chalice or pyx. Bruno. 18 July. Died n 00. Founder of the Carthusian Order of the reformed Benedictines, with its head-quarters at the Grande Chartreuse. White scapular. SAINTS AND THEIR SYMBOLS 351 Catherine of Alexandria. 25 November. Third century. Virgin and Martyr, a princess of Egypt, who was crushed on the wheel under the Emperor Maximian for her adhesion to the Christian faith. Subsequently her dead body was conveyed by angels for burial to Mount Sinai, an incident frequently treated in art. Wheel of torture, sometimes with a man's head beneath it. Crown. Palm. Catherine of Siena. 30 April. Caterina Benin- casa, the daughter of a master-tanner, was born at Siena in 1347 in a house still standing and now transformed into a shrine to this famous Dominican Saint. Although not a professed nun, her extraordinary enthusiasm, her shrewd opinions, her able writings, and her political energy won her the applause of the Sienese, and indeed of all Italy. It was largely owing to her influence and argu- ments, advocated in person at Avignon, that Pope Gregory XI finally decided to return to Rome, thus ending the seventy years of the " Babylonish captivity " of the papacy in France. She died, deeply loved and revered, at the early age of thirty-three, and was canonized by her devoted countryman, Pope Pius II, in the succeeding century. Her memory is still warmly cherished in Siena. Dominican habit. Crown of thorns. Lily. " Stig- mata." Cecilia. 22 November. Third century. Martyr and patroness of music. A Roman lady of noble birth, Cecilia dwelt in a house on the site of the present church of S. Cecilia in Trastevere in Rome. Both she and her husband Valerian suffered martyrdom for their faith, Cecilia being beheaded. Organ, often with other musical instruments beside her. Wreath of red and white roses. Palm. Christopher. 25 July. Fourth century. A pagan giant of Canaan known as Offero, who one day consented to carry on his shoulders across a stream a weeping infant. Despite the smallness of the child and the vast strength of the giant, Christopher nearly sank under his 352 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES burden, to discover the Divine nature of the Child and to embrace Christianity on reaching the further shore. A giant bearing the Christ-Child on his shoulders and fording a stream in flood. In his hand a huge staff or palm-tree. Clara. 12 August. Died 1253. Founder of the Clarissines, or " Poor Clares," the first nuns to follow the rule of S. Francis of Assisi. She often appears in conjunction with S. Francis. Franciscan habit. Cross. Pyx in hand. Constantine. Died 335. The first Christian Em- peror of Rome. He is usually represented in classical costume, sometimes on horseback. He bears the labarum, or mystical standard of the cross. Cosmo and Damiano. 27 September. Two Arab physicians, who embraced Christianity and gave them- selves over to healing the sick, until they were beheaded on account of their faith. As tutelar Saints of the Medici, SS. Cosmo and Damiano are constantly represented in the art of Florence. Red robes, with red falling hoods. Surgical instru- ments and boxes of ointment. Palms. Dominic. 4 August. Died 1221. Founder of the Order of the Dominican friars. A Spaniard by birth, Dominic, or Domenico, laboured in France, Spain, and Italy, and was buried at Bologna. His alleged meeting with his contemporary »S. Francis of Assisi has oc- casionally been represented in art. Dominican habit. Star. Sometimes a lily. A dog with a torch in its mouth (" Domini Canis "), in allusion to the dream of his mother before the Saint's birth. Dorothea. 6 February. Fourth century. Virgin and Martyr. Beheaded for her constancy to the faith. Palm. An angel bearing a basket containing three roses and three apples, in allusion to the beautiful legend of the Saint, which relates how a young man named Theophilus was converted to Christianity by receiving a gift of heavenly fruit and flowers after Dorothea's death. SAINTS AND THEIR SYMBOLS 353 Elizabeth of Hungary. 19 November. Died 1231. Daughter of King Andrew II of Hungary and wife of Louis IV, landgrave of Thuringia. The pathetic story of her noble life, her devotion to the poor and sick, her affection for her generous husband Louis, and the harsh treatment of her confessor, Conrad of Marburg, is of surpassing interest. Royal robes and crown, with the cloak sometimes depicted full of red and white roses. At her feet, a beggar with sores. Eloi, Eligius, or Lo. 1 December. Seventh cen- tury. Bishop of Noyon. Celebrated for his miracles and skill in metal work. The Patron Saint of black- smiths and workers in metal. Episcopal robes. Blacksmith's tools, anvil, etc. Eustace. 20 September. Second century. Eustace, or Placidus, was an officer under the Emperor Trajan, who was converted by the apparition of a white stag with a crucifix between its horns. (Cf. the story of the German S. Hubert.) In armour. A stag bearing the crucifix on its head. Felicita. 23 November. Second century. A Roman matron who had seven sons, all of whom were martyred before their mother's eyes, after which Felicita herself was put to death. Palm. Her seven sons. Francis of Assisi. 4 October. Died 1226. The ever-famous founder of the Franciscan Order. Born at Assisi in 1182, Francis (whose baptismal name was Gio- vanni) after some vicissitudes at length obtained the papal sanction for his new Order, the fundamental rules of which were Poverty, Chastity, and Obedience. The various incidents and miracles of his life are to be found depicted in almost every Franciscan church throughout Italy, and notably in the Florentine church of Santa Croce. Franciscan habit. Lily. The " Stigmata/' or sacred wounds that were miraculously imprinted on the Saint's 23 354 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES body during one of his lonely vigils in the Tuscan mountains. Frediano, or Frigidianus. Sixth century. An Irish Saint, who visited Italy and became Bishop of Lucca. In Florence the well-known church with its conspicuous dome on the Lung' Arno Soderini is dedicated to him. Episcopal robes. Hammer. George. 23 April. Third century. A knight and martyr of Cappadocia, familiar as the Patron Saint of England. His destruction of the dragon forms the most popular incident of his career. In full armour. Usually trampling the dragon under- foot. Palm. Giles, or Egidius. 1 September. Eighth century. The legend of his protecting his tame doe from the arrow of a pagan prince out hunting occurs not unfrequently in art. Benedictine habit. Arrow in arm or thigh. Doe at side. Giovanni Gualberto. 12 July. Died 1073. The founder of the famous Order of reformed Benedictines settled at Vallombrosa. As a youth he distinguished himself by an act of forgiveness of a foe, for which a figure of Christ on the crucifix in the church of San Miniato bowed its head to imprint on the Saint's brow the kiss of peace — a subject frequently treated by artists of all periods. This crucifix is still preserved in the former Vallombrosan church of Santa Trinita in Florence. Grey habit. Always clean-shaven. Crutch. Gregory. 12 March. Died 604. Pope Gregory I, one of the Four Fathers of the Latin Church, and one of the most celebrated names in the early history of Western Christianity. Familiar to English people as the pope who sent S. Augustine of Canterbury to convert the Anglo-Saxons. Pontifical robes. The dove (of eloquence). Book in hand. Helena, the Empress. 18 August. Died 328. Said SAINTS AND THEIR SYMBOLS 355 to have been a British princess by birth. The mother of the Emperor Constantine I, and the discoverer of the long-lost True Cross of Jerusalem. The cross and the nails. Ignatius of Antioch. 1 February. First century. Martyr and Bishop of Antioch, who was torn to pieces by lions in the amphitheatre. Episcopal robes. Ives of Brittany, or Yvo. 19 May. Died 1303. A Breton lawyer of noble family, who used his knowledge of the law for the benefit of widows and orphans. The robes of a judge or doctor of laws. He is usually surrounded by widows and orphans, as in the fine picture by Jacopo da Empoli in the Uffizi Gallery. James, the Greater. 25 July. Apostle and Patron Saint of Spain. Pilgrim's staff and bottle. Scallop-shell and wallet. James, the Less. 1 May. Apostle and first Bishop of Jerusalem, martyred by the Jews, who flung him from a parapet of the Temple and killed him with a fuller's club, which serves for his symbol in art. Jerome, or Hieronymus. 30 September. Fifth cen- tury. One of the Four Fathers of the Latin Church. Constantly depicted in art, whether alone or in groups of other Saints. He is always represented old and worn and fre- quently half-naked. A cardinal's hat is near him, and he sometimes wears a cardinal's robes. Stones. Books and paper (as patron of scholars). Lion, in allusion to a well-known and popular legend. John the Baptist. 24 June. As Patron Saint of Florence, the Baptist figures endlessly in the pictures of the Florentine school. As a youth he is commonly known as " 11 Giovannino," and is so called in the various pictures or statues which are of frequent occurrence in the Florentine galleries, churches, and museums. Hair shirt. Lamb. Cross of reeds or twigs with a scroll. 356 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES John the Divine. 27 December. Apostle and Evangelist. Eagle. Chalice and serpent. Joseph. 19 March. Husband of the Blessed Virgin. Lily. Jude, or Thaddeus. 28 October. Apostle and Martyr. Halberd or lance. Julian Hospitator, or Giuliano Ospitale. 19 January. Fourth century. Patron Saint of travellers and boatmen. The so-called " Hospitality of S. Julian " is the subject of a beautiful painting by Allori in the Palazzo Pitti. Dressed as a youthful cavalier. Hunting-horn. Stag behind him. Usually a boat in the background. Laurence. 10 August. Third century. Served as deacon under Pope Sixtus II, whose almoner he was made. Thrown into prison, he converted his jailer Hippolytus, who was. himself martyred. He suffered death on a gridiron, whilst his body was buried on the site of the splendid Roman Basilica of San Lorenzo with- out the walls. Deacon's robes. Gridiron. Palm. Leonard. 6 November. Sixth century. A French courtier and afterwards a hermit. Patron Saint of slaves and prisoners. Deacon's robe. Holds chains and fetters. Longinus. 15 March. The Roman centurion who was converted on Calvary, and was subsequently martyred. Spear. Palm. In classical soldier's dress. Louis of France. 25 August. Died 1270. The famous Louis IX, Saint and King of France. Reigned for forty-four years and conducted two crusades against the Turks, finally dying at Tunis. He is known to the Mahommedans as Sidi Bou Said. (Not to be confounded with the Franciscan S. Louis of Toulouse, also a royal Saint.) Crown and royal robes embroidered with the fleur-de- lys. In his hand the Sacred Crown of Thorns. SAINTS AND THEIR SYMBOLS 357 Lucia. 13 December. Third century. Virgin and Martyr of Syracuse. Palm. Eyes on dish. Sword-wound in neck. Luke. 18 October. The Evangelist and Patron Saint of painters, owing to a very early tradition that he painted the Blessed Virgin herself. \ Winged calf. Picture of the Blessed Virgin. Margaret. 20 July. Fourth century. Virgin and Martyr of Antioch, who was terribly tempted by Satan in the form of a dragon, which she repulsed by means of a cross in her hand. Treading on a dragon. Cross in hand. Palm. Margaret of Cortona. 22 February. Died 1297. A penitent of Cortona in Tuscany who was subsequently admitted into the Third Order of S. Francis, being led by a small dog to the convent door. Franciscan habit. Small dog at her feet. Mark. 25 April. Evangelist and Patron of Venice. Winged lion. Martin of Tours, n November. Fourth century. Officer in the Roman army, celebrated for his charity. Bishop of Tours. Episcopal robes. Sometimes as a handsome knight. The incident of S. Martin dividing his cloak with a beggar is frequently represented. Mary of Egypt. 2 April. Fifth century. A penitent of Alexandria who expiated her former vicious life as an anchorite in the desert beyond Jordan. Here she was visited by an old priest named Zosimus, who gave her absolution and on her death buried the Saint with the help of a lion. Old and emaciated, with long hair. Ragged clothing. Three small loaves, which, according to her legend, she bought in Jerusalem and which were miraculously renewed for her use in the desert. Lion. Mary Magdalen. 22 July. Patroness of penitent women, and presumed sister of Martha and Lazarus, both of whom are occasionally introduced into pictorial art with her. 358 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES Long fair hair falling to her feet. Alabaster box of unguents. Skull. Matthew. 2 1 September. Apostle and Evangelist. Angel. Matthias. 24 February. Apostle elected to fill the vacant place of Judas. Axe or sword. Michael, the Archangel. 29 September. Represented either alone or in company with the Archangels Gabriel and Raphael. Michael usually bears the sword and scales, and is clad in magnificent armour. Miniatus. Third century. A Christian King of Armenia condemned to death by the Emperor Decius on the site of San Miniato al Monte. He is supposed to have been martyred in Florence itself. Royal red robes. Javelin. T-shaped cross. Lily. Palm. Monica. 4 May. Fourth century. Mother of S. Augustine of Hippo. Commonly represented as the first Augustinian nun. Nicholas of Bari, or of Myra. 6 December. Fourth century. Patron of children (" Santa Claus ") and sailors. He is frequently met with in groups of the more promi- nent Saints, and the numerous legends connected with his career — notably his resuscitation of the three children killed and salted by an ogre — form favourite themes with the Italian painters. Episcopal robes. Anchor. A tub. Three children standing in a barrel. Three golden balls. Nicholas of Tolentino. 10 September. Died 1309. A Saint of the Augustinian Order, whose birth was heralded by the appearance of a brilliant star or comet. Benedictine habit. Crucifix wreathed with lilies. Star above head. Pantaleone. 27 July. Fourth century. A physician of Nicomedia, who on account of his skill was chosen to attend on the Emperor Maximian. Converted to Christi- anity by an old priest named Hermolaus, Pantaleone was SAINTS AND THEIR SYMBOLS 359 bound to an olive-tree and tortured in this posture. Finally both he and Hermolaus were beheaded. Olive-tree. Sword. Paul. 29 June. Beheaded 65. The great Apostle of the West. Sword. Book. Peter. 29 June. Died 65. The first of the Apostles and traditional first Bishop of Rome. The lives of SS. Peter and Paul are sometimes treated in conjunc- tion. The gold and silver keys. Fish. As first Bishop of Rome, S. Peter is occasionally represented in pontifical robes with tiara. The Crucifixion of S. Peter, head downwards, is also a favourite subject with artist--, Peter Martyr. 28 April. Died 1252. Th second great Saint of the Dominican Order and the most vigor- ous persecutor of heretics in Italy during the thirteenth century. He was finally waylaid and killed in a wood near Como> his head being cut open with a dagger or cleaver. * Dominican habit. Knife-wound in head. Philip, i May. The Apostle. Said to have been crucified in Phrygia. Staff, surmounted by a cross. Philip, or Filippo Benizzi. 23 August. Interesting in Florence as the chief Saint of the " Servi di Maria," or Servite Order. He appears constantly in the cele- brated frescoes in the church of the Annunziata. Reparata. 8 October. Third century. Virgin and Martyr of Palestine, Patron Saint of Florence prior to 1298. Her religious cult in Italy was almost certainly introduced by Greek merchants from the East at a very early period. Banner with the red cross. Palm. Crown. Roch. 16 August. Died 1327. Patron Saint of the plague-stricken. A noble of Languedoc, who laboured much on behalf of the sick and in the founda- tion of hospitals. When stricken with the plague, he 360 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES was supported by a small dog that used to fetch his food for him. Pilgrim's shell and staff. Small dog by his side. Wound in thigh. Romualdo. 27 February. Died 1027. The founder of the Camaldolese monks, reformed Benedictines. A native and monk of Ravenna, he chose the famous site of Campo Maldoli in Tuscany for the first house of his new Order. White habit. Crutch. Always wears a long beard. Scholastica. io February. Sister and devoted helper of S. Benedict. Benedictine habit. Lily. Commonly in company with S. Benedict. Sebastian. 20 January. Third century. A Christian officer in the Roman army, who under Diocletian was first tortured by being transfixed with arrows, and after- wards executed. Arrows. Sometimes bound to a tree. Palm. Simon. 28 October. Apostle and Martyr. Saw (the instrument of his martyrdom). Stephen. 26 December. Protomartyr. Stoned to death by the Jews, as related in the Acts of the Apostles. Deacon's robes. Palm. Stones. Stephen, King of Hungary. 2 September. Died 1038. First Christian King and legislator of Hungary. Crown and royal robes. Sylvester. 31 December. Died 335. Pope. The friend of the Empress Helena and the alleged converter of Constantine, whom he is said to have baptized in the Lateran Church of Rome. Pontifical robes. Ox at feet. Dragon in his hand. Thomas. 21 December. Apostle. Among other incidents connected with the life and story of S. Thomas, that of the Cintola (the girdle which the Virgin gave this Apostle and which is preserved in the Cathedral of Prato) has frequently been made the theme of Tuscan artists . SAINTS AND THEIR SYMBOLS 361 Carpenter's square or rule in hand. Thomas Aquinas. 7 March. Died 1274. The celebrated " Angelical Doctor " of the Dominican Order was a native of Calabria, who spent most of his life in various monasteries in the kingdom of Naples. His writings and poems rank amongst the most famous pro- ductions of theological literature. Dominican habit. Chalice. Star on breast. Ursula and the 1 1 ,000 Virgins. 2 1 October. Patron Saint of girls. The Ursuline legend is of less common occurrence in Italian than in German art. Arrow. Banner with red cross. Crown. Palm. The Virgins in attendance. Verdiana. 1 February. Died 1242. A poor Floren- tine girl who fed the poor throughout a long famine, and finally became a Vallombrosan nun. Benedictine habit. Two snakes, sometimes feeding out of a basket. Veronica. A Jewish lady, who wiped the face of Our Lord on His way to Calvary, the kerchief being afterwards found impressed with the True Effigy of His face. The Sudario, or miraculous kerchief with the Saviour's features. Vincent. 22 January. Fourth century. Patron Saint of Lisbon. A young deacon who was horribly tortured under Diocletian. After his death his body was guarded by a raven. Deacon's robes. Palm. Raven. Zeno. 12 April. Fourth century. Patron Saint and Bishop of Verona, said to have suffered martyrdom under Julian the Apostate. Episcopal robes. Fish suspended from the crozier. Zenobius, or Zanobi. 25 May. Fifth century. A Florentine by birth, Zenobius became bishop of his native town, where he was greatly beloved for his virtues and revered on account of his many miracles, which have often inspired Ghirlandajo and other Florentine painters. One of the earliest of the great Florentines, the memory of 362 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES Zenobius still continues in the city, and on his festival, the mediaeval tower still known as the Torre di San Zenobio in the Via Por S. Maria is always decked with fresh garlands of roses. It is also customary on this date for the flower-sellers of Florence to bring their baskets of roses into the Duomo and allow them to touch the Saint's celebrated shrine ; " Le Rose di San Zenobio " being in great request all over Florence on this day. Episcopal robes. Tree bursting into leaf (in allusion to one of his miracles after death). MISCELLANEA SUGGESTED PROGRAMME FOR A WEEK'S VISIT TO FLORENCE Monday. Morning. — Duomo, Campanile, Baptistery, Bigallo, Opera del Duomo, and Cappella Riccardi. Afternoon. — To Fiesole. Tuesday. Morning. — Piazza Signoria, Palazzo Vec- chio, Or San Michele. Afternoon. — Convent of San Marco and the Annunziata. Wednesday. Morning. — Santa Croce (Church and Cloisters). Afternoon. — Uffizi Gallery. Thursday. Morning. — Santa Maria Novella (Church, Cloisters, and Piazza). Afternoon. — Pitti Palace and Boboli Gar- dens. Friday. Morning. — Badia, Bargello. Afternoon. — San Lorenzo with the Tombs of the Medici and Lauien- tian Library. Drive to the Church of San Miniato. Accademia delle Belle Arti. -Drive to the Certosa in Val d'Ema. All Public Galleries and Mu- seums open free. Afternoon. — Churches of S. Trinita, S. Spirito, and the Carmine. 363 Saturday. Sunday. Morning. Morning.- Afternoon 364 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES USEFUL INFORMATION— HOTELS The hotels and pensions of Florence are very numerous, and are scattered throughout various parts of the city, although the leading ones are chiefly to be found on the northern or sunny side of the Lung' Arno. The charges at the first-class hotels vary not a little, but from 1 March the prices at most of them are raised con- siderably in anticipation of the tourist season, which may be described as lasting from the beginning of March to the middle of May. At and about Easter-tide all hotels and pensions are filled to overflowing, so that many visitors find considerable difficulty in obtaining suitable rooms. During the autumn and winter the hotels are compara- tively empty, and in summer many of them are closed altogether. The prices charged at the leading Florentine hotels are usually — breakfast of tea, coffee, or cocoa, with rolls and butter, 1 fr. 50 c. to 2 fr. ; luncheon or dejeuner a la fourchette, 3 fr. to 4 fr. ; dinner, 5 fr. or 6 fr. Wine is never included, is usually dear, and is rarely of good quality. Charges for bedrooms with service, electric light, and central heating vary according to the size and position of the rooms selected, but from 5 fr. to 10 fr. may be taken as the customary charge. A bath in bed- room, 50 c. to 1 fr. ; large bath, 2 fr. Board- pension for seven days, or even sometimes for a shorter period, is commonly taken by travellers, and in such cases an in- clusive charge varying from 12 fr. to 18 fr. a day for each person may be reckoned on. It is of course more difficult to obtain moderate terms during the spring season than at other times. The chief first-class hotels on the Lung' Arno are : Grand Hotel, Hotel de la Ville, both in the Piazza Manin ; Hotel Grande Bretagne, on the Lung' Arno Acciajoli, near the Ponte Vecchio ; Hotel Bristol, Piazza alia Carraja ; Hotel d'ltalie, Hotel Florence et Washitigton, Lung' Arno A. Vespucci ; Hotel Paoli, Lung' Arno della Zecca Vecchia, opposite the hill of San Miniato ; Hotel Victoria et Begina, MISCELLANEA 365 near the Cascine end of the Lung' Arno ; Hotel New York, an old palace of the Ricasoli family, in the Piazza alia Carraja. All the front rooms of these hotels have good views and obtain plenty of sunshine. In the town itself, Hotel Savoia, Piazza V. Emmanuele ; Hotel Minerva, Piazza S. M. Novella ; Hotel Baglioni, Piazza dell' Unita Italiana. These two latter are near the central railway station. Somewhat less expensive are the following : Hotel Anglo- America?!, Via Garibaldi, near the Cascine ; Hotel Mila?io, in the Via Cerretani; Hotel du Nord, Hotel Helvetia, in or near Piazza Strozzi ; Hotel £ Europe, Piazza S. Trinita ; Palace Hotel, Lung' Arno Guicciardini ; Hotel d? Albion, Lung' Arno Acciajoli; Hotel Excelsior, Lung' Arno A. Vespucci. The following Italian houses can also be recommended : Hotel Porta Rossa, in a central position near the Via Tornabuoni ; Hotel Bonciarii, Via Panzani (near station) ; Hotel Centrale, Via Condotta ; Stella d^ Italia (unpretend- ing), Via Calzaioli ; Hotel Cavour, Via del Proconsolo. Pensions are innumerable, and only a very small selection can be mentioned here. Their charges vary considerably, the better pensions being in many instances as well provided with lifts, electric light, etc., as any of the larger hotels. The lowest charge is usually 6 fr. a day, and pension terms often rise as high as 10 fr., n fr., and even 12 fr. a day under certain circum- stances. Amongst the pensions may be mentioned Pension Piccioli, Via Tornabuoni, with outlook on the Lung' Arno Corsini ; Pension Lucchesi, Lung' Arno della Zecca Vecchia ; Pension Chapman, Via Pandolfini ; Pensio?i Berchielii, Lung' Arno Acciajoli, etc. Other pensions, less expensive, are : Pension White, Piazza Cavalleggieri, close to the Lung' Arno ; Pension Balestri, Piazza Mentana; Pension Moggi, Piazza dell' Indipendenza ; Pension Quisisana, Lung' Arno delle Grazie, etc. $66 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES On the south side of the Arno : Pension Godkin, i Lung' Arno Guicciardini ; Pension Clarke- Molini-Barbensi % in the same street ; Pension Innocenti % Piazza Soderini ; Pension Benoit, Lung' Arno Serristori, etc. Furnished apartments can be rented for the season, * and private villas or flats for the winter or spring months can often be hired by means of the various house- agencies in Florence. Cabs, open or shut, the former being comfortable victorias, are to be found in most of the squares. Their charges are i fr. the course {corsa) to any point within the barriers of the city. By the hour, 2 fr. (half-hour 1 fr. 20 a). After dusk the charge for a course is in- creased to 1 fr. 30 c. The tariff for driving in the country is usually 3 fr. the first hour and 2 fr. every subsequent hour, but the visitor is strongly recommended to allow the porter of his hotel to arrange the matter, since the tariff varies in certain zones outside the barriers. Roughly speaking, a one-horse open carriage ought not to cost more than 10 fr. for a full afternoon's excursion. Coinage. — The coinage of Italy is very similar to that of France, and is arranged on the decimal system of 100 centesimi to the lira or Italian franc, which is worth about iod. of our English money. The coins in common cir- culation are the 5 c. (equal to a halfpenny) ; the 10 c. (equal to a penny) ; nickel pieces of 20 c. and 25c; the lira and the two-lire silver pieces. Coins higher in value than a two-lire-piece are rare, and their place is supplied by bank-notes of 5 lire and 10 lire, and by notes of higher amount of 50 and 100 lire. Bad or ob- solete coins are very common, and the unsuspecting stranger is frequently made a recipient of them, unless he is very careful to count and examine his change in every shop, tram, railway station, and cate. The Churches are open from daybreak to noon, when they are closed. The principal ones re-open at 3 p.m., and remain open till dusk. The Anglican com- munion owns three places of worship in Florence — Holy MISCELLANEA 367 Trinity, the church of the former British Legation, in Via Lamarmora, near the Convent of San Marco ; the Ameri- can Episcopal Church, at present situated in Piazza del Carmine, but which is being rebuilt in Via Bernardo Rucellai, near the Cascine ; and S. Mark's, in Via Maggio. There is also an English Roman Catholic Church, S. Joseph's, in Via delle Ruote, near the Piazza dell' Indipendenza, and a Presbyterian Church in the Lung' Arno Guicciardini. Picture Galleries and Museums are open on week- days from 10 a.m. till 4 p.m., and a charge of 1 fr. a head is made for each visitor, except in some of the smaller museums where fees of from 25 c. to 50 c. are demanded. A gratuity of 10 c. is expected by the officials who take stick or umbrella at the entrance. On Sundays the galleries and museums are open free from 10 a.m. till 2 p.m., duiing which time they are somewhat inconveniently crowded. On certain high festivals of Church or State the public galleries remain closed all day. Electric trams run over all parts of Florence, the principal starting-point being the Piazza del Duomo, whence also depart the trams for Fiesole and the Viale dei Colli. For their times and directions the visitor should consult a copy of the " Florence Herald" or " Italian Gazette," English papers which are published weekly in Florence and contain much useful local in- formation of a practical nature. Copies of both papers are commonly to be seen in every hotel or pension. There are several English physicians residing in Florence, and also Italian doctors who speak fluent English. There are also good chemists' shops, of which only Roberts' British Pharmacy, in the Via Tomabuoni, need be mentioned here. In the Via Tornabuoni are to be found Cook's Office, Humbert's Agency, the banking offices of Maquay & Co., and of French, Lemon & Co. The British Consulate and the bank and forwarding agency of Messrs. French, Lemon & Co. are lodged here in the ground floor of the 368 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES great Palazzo Spini-Ferroni. The American Consulate is close by at No. 10 in Via Tornabuoni. Restaurants and Cafes. — Doney, Capitani (both with French cuisine), in Via Tornabuoni; Mellini, in Via Calzaioli ; Doney, Giacosa, in Via Tornabuoni ; Gilli, in Piazza V. Emmanuele and Via Calzaioli ; Gambrinus Bier-Halle, Piazza V. Emmanuele, etc. Tea Rooms. — Old Albion Tea Rooms, corner of Via Strozzi and Via Vecchietti, much frequented by English people ; Digerinis, Via Vecchietti, an Italian tea-house and pastry-cook's, next door to Vieusseux's Lending Library; Olandia Tea Rooms, Lung' Arno Corsini, etc. Theatres. — There are several theatres, two music halls (the Alhambra and the Apollo), and various halls for the cinematograph, the latter being very popular with the Florentines of all classes. The chief theatre is the Opera House of the Pergola, in the street of the same name, where operas are performed at Carnival time and other stated seasons as may be seen from the advertise- ments in the papers or in the streets. The Verdi, in the Via Verdi, close to the Piazza S. Croce, is the largest theatre, and opera with ballet is often given here in the winter months. The Arena (re-named Politeama), in the Via Nazionale, not far from the station, is much frequented, and good acting and singing are to be en- joyed there at popular prices. Other theatres are the Niccolini, in the Via Ricasoli, for plays, and the immense Politeama in Corsini Regina Elena over the Cascine, for opera and ballets. Vieusseux's Lending Library, Via Vecchietti. An old-established institution where English, French, German and Italian books of every description can be hired at very moderate charges. A separate charge is made for the use of the adjoining Reading Room. ^ MISCELLANEA 369 LIST OF GALLERIES AND MUSEUMS, PRICES OF ADMISSION, ETC. Pitti Gallery. (Palazzo Pitti.) Uffizi Gallery. (There is a lift; fee of 25 c.) Accademia delle Belle Arti. (52 Via Ricasoli.) Buonarroti Gallery, or House of Michelangelo. (64 Via Ghibellina.) The Bargello, or National Museum. (Via del Pro- consolo.) Archaeological Museum and Gallery of Tapestries. (2 6 Via Colonna.) Tombs of the Medici. (Church of San Lorenzo.) Museum of the Convent of San Marco. Entrance fee of 1 fr. Opera del Duomo, or the Cathedral Museum. (24 Piazza del Duomo.) Cappella Riccardi, in Palazzo Riccardi. (Via Cavour.) Cenacolo (Fresco of the Last Supper) of Andrea del Sarto, at San Salvi. Cenacolo di Foligno (at 56 Via Faenza). Cenacolo of Andrea del Castagno at Sant' Apollonia. (1 Via Venti-sette Aprile.) Fresco of Perugino in S. M. Maddalena dei Pazzi. (1 Via Colonna.) Entrance fee of 50 c. Cenacolo of D. Ghirlandajo, in the Cloister of Ogni Santi (at 34 Via Borgognissanti). Frescoes of the Cloister of the Scalzo. (69 Via Cavour.) Entrance fee of 2 5 c. Palazzo Vecchio, or della Signoria. Hall of the Cinque-cento, Quarter of Pope Leo X, Rooms of Eleonora of Toledo, etc. Open daily, 10 to 3. Entrance fee of 1 fr, 1 Palazzo Corsini. Private Palace and Picture Gallery. Open Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays, 10 to 3. Free, 1 Imposed since the winter of 1909-10. *4 370 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES Palazzo Davanzati. Private Palace. Opened to the public in 1 910. Fee of ifr. (Lift, 25 c.) Palazzo Pitti. State Apartments. Open Thursdays and Sundays, Noon till 3 p.m. Free. Boboli Gardens open same days, Noon till Dusk. Free. Natural History Museum. (19 Via Romana.) Open 10 to 3. Entrance fee of 1 fr. Tuesdays and Saturdays. Free other days. Villa Stibbert (at Montughi). Open Tuesdays, Thurs- days, and Saturdays, 10 to 4. Entrance fee of 1 fr. Sundays, 9 to 1. Free. Except where otherwise expressly stated in this list, the Public Galleries and Museums of Florence are open daily from 10 to 4 on week-days at the various charges which are given above. On Sundays all Galleries and Museums are open Free from 10 to 2. On certain festivals of Church and State they are all closed to the public; e.g. New Year's Day, 6 and 8 January, Easter Day, Ascension Day, Corpus Christi Day, the first Sunday in June, 24 and 29 June, 15 August, 8 and 20 September, 1 and 11 November, 8 and 25 December. But this list by no means exhausts the number of public holidays whereon the Florentine galleries, etc., are closed. BIBLIOGRAPHY The following list of books connected with Florentine art, history, and literature, out of the vast mass of works bearing on these subjects, may prove of service to the reader : — E. Grifi. " Saunterings in Florence." Firenze : Bem- porad e Figlio, 1899. C. Yriarte. " Florence.'' London : Sampson Low, 1882. Colonel and Mrs. Goff. " Florence." London : Black & Co. 1906. Edmund G. Gardner. "The Story of Florence. ,, London: J, M f Dent & Co. 1908. MISCELLANEA 371 Edward Hutton. " Florence and Northern Tuscany.' ' London: Methuen, 1906. Edward Hutton. "Country Walks about Florence/' London: Methuen, 1908. E. Bacciotti. "Firenze Illustrata." Firenze, 1899. H. E. Napier. " Florentine History/' London, 1846. Prof. Pasquale Villari. " History of Florence. " 1 90 1 . "Life and Times of Savonarola." 1897. " Life and Times of Niccolo Machiavelli." London: F. Unwin, 1898. S. and J. Horner. "Walks in Florence." London: Smith, Elder, 1884. Mrs. Oliphant. "Makers of Florence." London: Macmillan, 1887. Edgcumbe Staley. "The Guilds of Florence." London : Methuen, 1906. Rev. J. Wood-Brown. "The Builders of Florence." London: Methuen, 1908. Herbert M. Vaughan. " The Medici Popes, Leo X and Clement VII." London: Methuen, 1908. John Ruskin. "Mornings in Florence." G. Conti. " Firenze Vecchia." Firenze : Bemporad, 1899. "Firenze dai Medici ai Lorena." Bemporad, i9°9 : G. Carocci. " I Dintorni di Firenze." Firenze, 1904. Janet Ross. " Florentine Palaces and their Stories." London : J. M. Dent & Co. 1905. E. Armstrong. "Lorenzo dei Medici." New York and London: Putnam's, 1896. J. A. Symonds. " The Renaissance in Italy." New York: Holt & Co. 1887. "Life of Benvenuto Cellini." Macmillan, 1905. " Life of Michelangelo Buonarotti." Macmillan, 1901. Maud Cruttwell. "A Guide to the Paintings in the Churches and Minor Museums of Florence/' London: J. M. Dent & Co. 1908. 372 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES Maud Cruttwell. " Luca and Andrea Delia Robbia." London : J. M. Dent & Co. 1902. C. G. Leland. " Legends of Florence." London : D. Nutt, 1896. Mrs. Jameson. " History of Our Lord," " Legends of the Madonna/' " Sacred and Legendary Art," " The Monastic Orders ". London : Longmans, Green & Co. v.d. G. Vasari. "Lives of the Painters, Sculptors, and Architects. 7 ' Bohn's Edition. London. 1850. E. A. Greene. " Saints and their Symbols. 7 ' London : Sampson Low, 1891. Dr. Doran. " ' Mann ' and Manners at the Court of Florence." London: R. Bentley & Son, 1876. G. Del Badia. " Diario Fiorentino di Luca Landucci." Firenze : Sansoni, 1883. Colonel Young. "The Medici." London: Murray, 1909. Francis A. Hyett. "Florence: her History and Art to the Fall of the Republic." London: Methuen, 1903. MISCELLANEA 373 S o a c/3 p o H O o < s r ^ s 1/3 .2 O B H o ft a Q PL. O o <+-> _ N O M cQ o 2 *■ II — o O M 5"^" HH y.« . o - ^ - 0) _&« m s o £^' e-s "55 CU «5 E'5 5 « 2"^ -3 H i3 O 6..S 0) t^ ,j*s en -3 «? O +, 2s rt O O 3 33 < 5 I "3 c Is 5° ■-, N en - in «» M 5? _3 un Q M J£- Q c - 0) >> fc£ 3 .2 o HO rl CI 374 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES II.— PEDIGREE OF THE JUNIOR OR GRAND- DUCAL BRANCH Lorenzo dei Medici (younger brother of Cosimo " II Vecchio "), d. 1440. Pier-Francesco=Laudomia Acciajoli. Giovanni (2nd son)=Caterina Sforza. Ludovico (commonly called "Giovanni=Maria Salviati. delle Bande Nere "), d. 1527. Cosimo I (First Grand-Duke of=Eleonora of Toledo. Tuscany), d. 1575. Francesco I (Second=(i) Joanna of Ferdinando I (Third=Christina of Grand-Duke), Austria. Grand-Duke), d. 1587. =(2) Bianca Cappello. d. 1608. Lorraine. Cosimo II (Fourth Grand-=Maria-Maddalena of Austria. Duke), d. 1620. Ferdinando II (Fifth Grand- =Vittoria della Rovere of Urbino. Duke), d. 1670. Cosimo III (Sixth Grand-=Margaret-Louise of France. Duke), d. 1723. Gian-Gastone (Seventh and last=Anna of Saxe- Anna-Louisa, Electress Grand-Duke), d.s.p. 1737. Launemburg. Palatine, d.s.p. 1743. (The last of her House.) INDEX jciajoli, monuments of the, 301. :corso, Francesco, 315. bizzi, Rinaldo degli, 10. exander VI, Pope, 14, 256. fieri, Count Vittorio, 73, 315. ighieri. See Dante, nadei, 288. ltonino, Saint and Archbishop, 74, 75, 315, 348. rchitects and sculptors, list of, with dates, 342-45. *etino, Guido, 316. .10, river, 24. abbiati, 14. ists, list of, with dates, 330-41. iens, Duke of (Walter de Brienne), 8, 244, 316. .dIa Fiesolana, 293. Alosguardo, 23. enedetto da Fojano, 316. -anca Cappello, 19, 273, 316. anchi, 6. Lbbiena, Cardinal, 317. gallo, 42, 43. ©graphical details of — Albany, Countess of, 315. \lfieri. Count, 315. intonino, 315, 348. Uhens, Duke of, 316. Benedetto da Fojano, 316. iBianca Cappello, 316. Bibbiena, Cardinal, 317. Boccaccio, 317. I Brunetto Lattni, 317. Bruni, Leonardo, 317. Buonarroti, Michelangelo, 343, 344. apponi, Gino, Neri and Piero, 318. Biographical details of — Cellini, Benvenuto, 342. Cesalpino, Andrea, 318. Clement XII, Pope, 318. Dante Alighieri, 319. Farinata degli Uberti, 319, 320. Ferruccio, Francesco, 320. Galileo Galilei, 320, 321. Guicciardini, Francesco, 321. Hawkwood, 321. Leo XI, Pope, 321. Machiavelli, Niccolo, 322. Medici, Alessandro dei, 322, 323. — Catherine de, 323. — Cosimo "il Vecchio," 323. I, Grand-Duke, 324. — Giovanni (Pope Leo X), 324, 325. " delle Bande Nere, 325- — Giulio (Pope Clement VII), 325. — Lorenzo il Magnifico, 325, 326. Pico della Mirandola, 326. Savonarola, Girolamo, 326, 327. Soderini, Piero, 327. Strozzi, Filippo, 328. Vespucci, Amerigo, 328. BoboL Gardens, 28, 264-66. Boniface VIII, Pope, 8. Bridges (Pontealla Carraja ; Ponte alle Grazie ; Ponte Santa Trinita ; and Ponte Vecchio) ; 24, 287-89. Brunetto Latini, 84, 246, 317. Bruni, Leonardo, 45, .56, 317. Buildings of Florence, chrono- logical list of, 308-14. Buonarroti. See Michelangelo. Buondelmonte, 5, 272, 288. 375 376 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES Calcio, game of, 54, 84. Campaldino, battle of, 7. Capponi, family of, 105, 273-75, 317, 318. Careggi, 31. Carrand Bequest, 245. Cascine, 25, 27, 28. Cavalcanti, 318. Cellini, Renvenuto, 342, 343. Cennini, Bernardo, 66, 290, 318. Cerchi, 8. Certosa di Val d'Ema, 299-302. Cesalpino, Andrea, 318. Charles V, Emperor, 16, 17, 299. — VIII, King, 13. — of Anjou, 5. — of Valois, 8. Churches and Convents — SS. Anunziata, 47-51. S. Apollonia, 51. . SS. Apostoli, 51, 52. Badia, La, 52-4. Baptistery,or San Giovanni, 39-42. S. Biagio, 273. Cathedral, or S. M. del Fiore, or II Duomo, 33-9. S. Croce, 54-62. S. Egidio, 289, 290. S. Felice, 62. S. Felicita, 62, 63. S. Gaetano, 271. S. Jacopo sopr' Arno, 64. S. Lorenzo, 64-71. S. Marco, 73-9. S. Maria del Carmine, 80-3. in Campo, 296. Maddalena dei Pazzi, 83, 84. Maggiore, 84. Novella, 84-93. S. Martino, 250. S. Miniato al Monte, 94-7. Ogni Santi, 97, 98. S. Onofrio, 99. Or San Michele, 99-103. S. Pancrazio, 283. S. Salvatore, 42. al Monte, 93. S. Salvi, 103. Scalzo, 103, 104. S. Spirito, 104-7. S. Stefano, 107. S. Trinita, 107-9. " Ciompi, ' Tumult of the, 9. Clement IV, Pope, 5. £) — VII, Pope. See Medici, Giuli -> — XII, Pope, 275, 318. Compagnacci, 14. Compagni, Dino, 109, 318. Corsini, Bishop Andrea, 296, 34 — family of, 275. 7- Crescentius, 2, 36. Dante, 5, 8, 54, 56, 245, 319. — Casa di. See Museums. Donati, Corso, 8. Dudley, Robert, Duke of Northur berland, 19, 251, 284. n " Eugenius, 2, 36. Farinata degli Uberti, 5, 31} 320. Ferruccio, Francesco, 320. Festivals of Florence, 303-7. Ficino, Marsilio, 35, 320. Fiesole, 1, 2. — description of, 295-97. Florence, Climate of, 32. — General description of, 23-31 — Historical sketch of, 1-22. ' Fortezza da Basso, 17, 28. — di San Giorgio, 23, 264. Frederick II, Emperor, 4, 5. Galileo Galilei, 320, 321. Galleries, Accademia delle Bt,. Arti, 215-35. h — Corsini, 276-79. — Pitti, 177-213. — Uffizi, 111-75. Gavignana, battle of, 320. Ghibellines, 4-6. " Giorno dei Grilli," 303. Gonfaloniere, office of, 7, 14. Gregory VII, Pope, 2. Guelfs, 4-6. Guicciardini, Francesco, 63, 3 Guido of Poppi, 5. Guilds, 7. Hawkwood, Sir John, 35, 32: Henry VII, Emperor, 8. Hospitals, S. M. Nuova, 289, s Bigallo, 42, 43 ; Innoceh' 46. INDEX 377 MPRUNETA, 302. I ncontro, convent of, 294. ACOPO IL BAVARO, 293, 296. Julius II, Pope, 15. ^AMBERTI, 288. l^andini, Cristoforo, 321. J .eo X, Pope. See Medici, Gio- I- vanni. - XI, Pope, 321. - ibraries of Florence, 27 ; Lauren- L tian Library, 71-73. -ogge. Loggia del Bigallo, 42, I 43 ; dei Lanzi, 252-54 ; del Mercato Nuovo, 290 ; di San Paolo, 84 ; dei Rucellai, 283. (orraine, House of, Grand-Dukes of Tuscany ; Francesco II, 21 ; Leopoldo I, 21 ; Ferdi- nando III, 21, 22 ; Leopoldo II, 22. VlACHIAVELLI, Niccolo, 14, l6, 83, 322. 'anfred, King, 5. - !ann, Sir Horace, 21, 284. larzuppini, Carlo, 57. Matilda, Countess of Tuscany, 2-4. ^ 'ausoleum of the Medici, 67, 68, M 314. iedici, rise of the family of, 9-1 1. M- pedigrees of, 373, 374. -- tombs of the, 68-71. -- Alessandro, Duke of Florence, 16, 17, 71, 97, 258, 268, 322. - Anna-Maria, Electress Palatine, 20, 21, 68. - Carlo, Cardinal, 271. - - Catherine, Queen of France, 15, H 323. Clarice, 16, 328. - Cosimo " il Vecchio," 10, 11, 66, — ! 79, 3 2 3- / — I, Grand-Duke of Tuscany, — ' 17, 18, 324. II, Grand- Duke of Tuscany, - 19, 68. Ill, Grand-Duke of Tuscany, 19, 20. Ferdinando I, Grand-Duke, 19, 68. — II, Grand-Duke, 20. 24* Medici, Francesco I, Grand- Duke, 18, 19. — Gian - Gastone, Grand - Duke, 21. — Giovanni d'Averardo, 10, 67. di Cosimo, 67. (Rope Leo X), 11, 13, 15, 259, 299, 324. "delle Bande Nere," 17, 325. — Giuliano di Piero, 12, 294. di Lorenzo, 12, 68, 69. — Giulio (Pope Clement VII), 15- 17, 68, 71, 259, 325. — Ippolito, Cardinal, 16, 268. — Leopoldo, Cardinal, 20, 269. — Lorenzino, 17. — Lorenzo di Giovanni, 10. I, "II Magnifico," 11-13, 3 2 5, 326. II, Duke of Urbino, 15, 68, 70. — Piero I, "II Gottoso," 11, 67. II, 12, 13. — Salvestro, 9. Mercanzia, 255. Michelangelo Buonarroti, 16, 68, 96, 97, 343- Michele di Lando, 9, 290, 326. Micheli, Pietro, 326. Misericordia, Confraternity of the, 29, 42, 43. Montaperto, battle of, 5. Monte Morello, 23. Montemurlo, battle of, 17. Monte Oliveto, 24. Monte Senario, 297. Mugnone, valley of the, 297. Museums — Archaeological Museum, 236-40. Bargello (National Museum), 240-50. Casa Buonarotti, 250. — di Dante, 250. Museo del Centro, 80. National Science Museum, 251. Opera del Duomo (Cathedral Museum), 44, 45. Stibbert Museum, 251. Neri, 6-8. Nerli, family of, 94. 378 FLORENCE AND HER TREASURES Oltr' Arno, 24, 28. Opera del Duomo, 44, 45. Ottimati, 9, 11. Painters, list of. See Artists. Palaces, public and private- Albert i, 271. Albizzi, 271. Antinori, 271, 272. del Bargello, or del Podesta. See Museums. Buondelmonti, 272. dei Capitani della Parte Guelfa, 273- Cappello, 273. Capponi, 273-75. Corsini, 275. Davanzati, 279. Frescobaldi, 64. Gianfigliazzi, 280. Guadagni, 280. Medici, 266-69. Pandolfini, 281. Pazzi, 281. Pitti, 261-64. Pucci, 282. Riccardi. See Medici. Roselli del Turco, 282. Rucellai, 282, 283. San Clemente, 284. della Signoria. See Vecchio. Spini-Ferroni, 279, 280. Strozzi, 285. Strozzino, 286. Torreggiani, 286. Uffizi, 268, 269. Uguccione, 255. Vecchio, 256-61. " Paiio dei Cocchi," 84. Palleschi, 13, 15. Pallone, game of, 28. Paterini, 42, 90. Pazzi, conspiracy of the, 12, 37, 294. — family of the, 281, 306. — " Canto dei Pazzi," 281. Pazzo dei Pazzi, 306. Petrarch, 326. Piagnoni, 14. Piazze. See Squares. Pico della Mirandola, 326. Podesta, 5, 240. Politian, 326. Portinari, Folco, 289, 327. Prato, town of, 31. Proconsul, office of, 7. ID Protestant Cemetery, Old, 24. j of the Allori, 299. Pulci, Luigi, 327. Ramagliati, Tower of the, 64. Redi, Francesco, 322. Rosso della Tosa, 8. Rubaconte, 287. Rucellai, Bernardo and Giovann 327. Saints and their Symbols, list o with dates and biographies details, 346-362. San Domenico, 292-94. — Salvi, 103. — Stefano, Order of the Knigh of, 18. Savonarola, Girolamo, 13, 14, 7 78, 251, 255, 327. " Scoppio del Carro," 304-7. Settignano, 294. Soderini, Cardinal Francesco, 32 — Piero, 14, 15, 83, 328. Squares (Piazze) — Piazza SS. Anunziata, 46. — d'Azeglio, 25. — del Carmine, 81. — alia Carraja, 26, 364. — Cavour (Porta San Gall(^ 21, 292. -— S. Croce, 26, 54. — del Duomo, 26, 42. i — S. Felicita, 62. — S. Firenze, 240. — S. Giovanni, 42. — dell' Indipendenza, 25. — del Limbo, 51, 282. — S. Lorenzo, 64. — Manin, 97, 364. — S. Marco, 73. — Michelangelo, 94. — S. M. Novella, 26. — del Mercato Nuovo, 290. — Peruzzi, 2. — Pitti, 26. — Della Signoria, 26. — S. Spirito. — S. Trinita. — Vittorio-Emmanuele II., 21 291. d a " (ts INDEX 379 Streets — Borgo degli Albizzi, 269, 281. — SS. Apostoli, 28, 51. 1 — S. Jacopo, 28, 64. — Ognissanti, 26. — S. Spirito, 104. Corso dei Tintori, 62. Lung Arno Acciajoli, 24, 30, 64. Corsini, 24, 275. Guicciardini, 24. A. Vespucci, 24. Via dei Bardi, 28. Benci, 26. — Calzaioli, 26. — Gino-Capponi, 273, 284. — Cavour, 26. — Cerretani, 26. ( — della Colonna, 236. — Faenza, 99. — dei Fossi, 4, 26, 31. — del Fosso (now Via Verdi), 4. — San Gallo, 281. I — Ghibellina, 240. — del Giglio, 4. — dei Gondi, 255. Gori, 6^. — Guicciardini, 26. — Lambertesca, 28. — Laraarmora, 73. — Larga (now Via Cavour), 73, 266. — Maggio, 31. — Mazzetta, 286. — Micheli, 284. — di Ninna, 270. — Parione, 109, 275. — Por S. Maria, 3, 2156. — Porta Rossa, 279. — Proconsoio, 3, 33, 240. - — Ricasoli, 44. — Romana, 62, 264. Streets— Via della Scala, 84. — dei Serragli, 289. — dei Servi, 45, 282. — della Spada, 283. — Strozzi, 30. — delle Terme, 2, 291. — Tornabuoni, 26, 30, 107, 270, 271. — Vaccherecchia, 256. — dei Vecchietti, 26. — della Vigna Nuova, 282. Viale dei Colli, 24, 93. Viali, 25. Strozzi, Filippc, 17, 328. Stuart, Prince Charles Edward, 284. — Charlotte, 285. .< TETTO DEI PlSANI," 254. Toscanelli, Paolo, 328. Tuscany, Margraves of, 2. Uberti, 4. Ugo, Count, 2, 52, 53. Vespucci, Amerigo, 98, 328. Villa Landor, 294. — Medicea, 294. — Poggio Gherardo, 294. — Vincigliata, 23, 294. Walls, Ancient city, 2, 4, 6, 7, 3i4- Willa, 52. Zenobius, or Zanobi, Bishop of Florence, 2, 4, 35, 260, 361. — Shrine of, 37, 304. — Tower of, 304, 361. ABERDEEN I THE UNIVERSITY PRESS I9's2 •.■■■'..,..& LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 020 145 998 9