As we have said, the sculpture of Italy was quite different from that of the more northern countries of Europe. One great reason for this was that individualism in art was a strong power in Italy much earlier than in more northern countries. In Germany the early sculptors of the Middle Ages did not put their names upon their works; they practised their art as a religious service, and their pious devotion made them forget themselves. Not so in Italy: there each artist wished to be known in his works, and regarded them as works of art, done for the sake of art, and not as acts of piety. One result of this difference was that the northern sculptures had more of deep feeling and profound thought in them, while the Italian works had more perfection of form.

In Italy sculpture held the second place in the decoration of churches. Painting was preferred before it, and in spite of the influence of the Gothic style, which extended south of the Alps, the Italians would not give up their large wall-spaces and the splendid Christian paintings which were their glory. They built their edifices with this end in view, and as the same person was frequently an architect, painter and sculptor, he knew how to arrange his plans so as to suit his ideas of the merits of each art.

So it happened that the principal works which the sculptors did for the church were separate objects, such as altar-pieces, fonts, pulpits, and tombs. It rarely occurred that whole fronts of churches were covered with sculptures, as in Germany or France, and there were few richly sculptured portals of churches in Italy. The material mostly used for Italian sculpture was fine white marble, which was very rarely colored; sometimes a little gilding was used; but as a rule painting and sculpture were not united, as they had been north of the Alps.

However, the sculptors of Italy had a wider range in art than in other lands; for being less devoted to the service of the church, they were employed for more secular works. It is true that the separate statues of the Madonna were very numerous, and that tomb-sculpture was important; but added to these there were civil monuments to show forth the glory of the cities and their great men, and there were public fountains and other sculptures which told of the splendor and fame of each one of the many petty powers into which the whole country was divided. The council-halls of the free cities were very fine, and gave great opportunity to Italian artists to give variety to their works, and the sculptors very early excelled in reliefs, which told historical stones with great clearness.

As early as the beginning of the thirteenth century we can trace the progress of Italian sculpture by telling the story of the lives of separate artists. The first man of importance who thus claims our attention is NICOLA PISANO, who was born at Pisa between 1205 and 1207, and who, according to the custom of his time, was both architect and sculptor. When he was but fifteen years old he received an appointment as architect to Frederic II., with whom he went to Naples; he served this sovereign ten years, and then went to Padua, where he was employed as the architect of the Basilica of St. Anthony.

In 1237 Nicola made his first essay in sculpture, and executed a relief representing the Deposition from the Cross, which still remains in its place over one of the side doors of the Cathedral of San Martino at Lucca. This work was most excellent as the attempt of a young artist, and it was also excellent when compared with the work of other Italian sculptors who had preceded him. (Fig. 79.)



During the twelve years following this time Nicola Pisano was chiefly employed as an architect, and it was not until 1260 that he established his fame as a sculptor; but when we consider the pulpit for the Baptistery of Pisa, which he now did, it is plain that he must have given much thought and study to sculpture since his first work at Lucca; and this last work has such qualities as indicate that he had studied the sculpture of classic days. The work upon this pulpit is a wonderful advance upon the sculpture of the period; and though there are marks of his inexperience in its arrangement, as a whole it is above criticism when the time to which it belonged and the circumstances of its sculpture are taken into account. (Fig. 80.)

Nicola went next to Bologna to make a sarcophagus to contain the remains of St. Dominick, who had died there in 1221. This burial-case was completed in 1267, and is very interesting as an illustration of the art of the thirteenth century. The next work of this sculptor was a pulpit for the Cathedral of Siena. When he undertook this work he agreed to live at Siena until it was completed, with the exception of short visits to Pisa—four in each year. He had assistants in this work, and it was completed in about a year and a half. Meantime he exerted a great influence upon the sculpture of Siena, which up to this time had amounted to little more than good stone-cutting. Indeed, Nicola Pisano had an effect upon the art of all Italy: in the north at Padua, in the south at Naples, and in Central Italy at Pisa, Lucca, and Siena.



In 1269 he was commissioned to build a convent and an abbey at La Scorgola, which are now in ruins. In 1274 Nicola commenced his last work, the Fountain of Perugia. He did not remain constantly in that city, but after making the plans he left his son Giovanni in charge of the work, while he returned to Pisa and occupied himself with making the figures for its decoration. This fountain was held in such esteem that laws were enacted for its preservation, and it was called the most valuable possession of the city, while some went so far as to say that it could not be surpassed in the world. Even now, after all it has suffered from time and weather, it commands our admiration.

In 1278 Nicola died, after a life of great achievements. He left an untarnished name, too, for he had been loved and respected by all his associates, and as patron, friend, and servant had done all his duty. Mr. Perkins, in his "Tuscan Sculptors," says of him: "Inestimable were the services rendered to art by this great man. He gave the death-blow to Byzantinism and barbarism; established new architectural principles; founded a new school of sculpture in Italy, and opened men's eyes to the degraded state of art by showing them where to study and how to study; so that Cimabue, Guido da Siena, the Masuccios and the Cosmati all profited by his pervading and enduring influence. Never hurried by an ill-regulated imagination into extravagances, he was careful in selecting his objects of study and his methods of self-cultivation; an indefatigable worker, who spared neither time nor strength in obedience to the numerous calls made upon him from all parts of the peninsula; now in Pisa, then in Naples, Padua, Siena, Lucca, or Florence; here to design a church, there to model a bas-relief, erect a pulpit, a palace or a tower; by turns architect and sculptor, great in both, original in both, a reviver in both, laying deep and well the foundations of his edifices by hitherto unpractised methods, and sculpturing his bas-reliefs upon principles evolved from the study of antique models long unheeded. Ever respected and esteemed by the many persons of all classes with whom he came in contact, he was truly a great man—one to whom the world owes an eternal debt of gratitude, and who looms up in gigantic proportions through the mist of five centuries, holding the same relation to Italian art which Dante holds to Italian literature."

FRA GUGLIELMO D'AGNELLO (1238-1314?), also a Pisan, was a pupil of Nicola Pisano, and worked with him at Bologna. There is little to be said of his works after his master's death.

GIOVANNI PISANO (about 1240-1320) was born at Pisa, and though a pupil of his father and a co-worker with him, he seems to have fallen under some other and a very different influence. In architecture he preferred the Gothic style, and in sculpture he was fond of all sorts of fantastic action and expression; his works were full of exaggeration. He was an architect as well as sculptor, and was a master in his own right when twenty years old, and in 1268 he went to Naples to design a church for the Franciscans; he was also the architect of the episcopal palace there.

After the death of his father the Pisans were anxious to retain Giovanni in their service; he first transformed an old church into a new one in the pointed style of architecture. It was named Santa Maria della Spina, because a rich merchant had presented one of the thorns from the crown of Christ to it. This was the first building in Italy of this style of architecture. Giovanni next built the Campo Santo of Pisa. Many shiploads of earth had been brought from Palestine to Pisa in order to make a burial-place in which Christians could be laid in the sacred earth. Giovanni Pisano inclosed the spot where this earth was laid with walls and arranged the interior of the inclosure in such a way that it could be extensively decorated with works of art. He made it the most beautiful Campo Santo in Italy. Many of the sculptures are by his own hand. (Fig. 81.)

This allegorical representation of Pisa was the first attempt at making large statues in Italy since the days of the Emperor Constantine. The city stands alone, and is a proud princess with a diadem, holding in her arms two infants to indicate her fruitfulness. Below her are four statues of the cardinal virtues, Temperance being a nude figure. It is a very strange work, and in some respects not attractive, but it shows the originality of the sculptor; the principal figure has much intensity of expression.



From this monument and his other works in Pisa, Giovanni became famous, and was called to Siena to build the front of the cathedral. The people of Siena held out every inducement to him to make his home there, by freeing him from taxes for life; but after three years he went to Perugia, where he erected a monument which has been destroyed. After this time he devoted himself entirely to sculpture, and executed a variety of works at Arezzo, Pistoja, Florence, Perugia, and Cortona. In 1312 he commenced the rebuilding of the cathedral at Prato.

We have not the space to speak of his works in detail. The Campo Santo has more of interest than the others, and is Romanesque in its character; and yet it is true that he employed Gothic forms far more than any other. Some authors credit Giovanni with having introduced an independent art into Italy; but let that be as it may, he had not the feeling for beauty, neither had he the repose which was such a charm in the works of his father. At the same time his works are full of life and dramatic action, and could never have been designed or executed by any man who had not an uncommon genius.

ARNOLFO DI CAMBIO (1232-1310) was also a pupil of Nicola Pisano, and though eight years older than Giovanni Pisano he did not become an independent master until after Giovanni had won much fame. There are some works in Rome which are attributed to Arnolfo, but as there are uncertainties about his being their author, it is not best for us to discuss them here. He erected at Orvieto, in the church of San Domenico, a monument to the Cardinal de Braye. It was a very elaborate work, and the statue of the Madonna, which is placed above that of the cardinal, is full of majestic spirit and dignified repose. This is the only well-authenticated sculptural work by Arnolfo, but this is one of the most finished monuments of the art of the Pisan school, and is quite sufficient to bring his name through the centuries with honor.

ANDREA PISANO (1270-1345) is principally famous as a bronze-caster, and his chief work was the making of the gates to the Baptistery of Florence, which have since been replaced by those of Ghiberti. When these gates were finished, in 1339, the Signory went in procession to view them; this proves in what esteem they must have been held, for the Signory never left the Palazzo Vecchio in a body except on the most important occasions. After examining the gates they conferred the honor of citizenship upon the sculptor. These gates told the story of John the Baptist, and the work is full of sentiment, beauty, and simplicity, while the design is pure, the draperies full of elegant grace, and the execution of the whole almost perfect.

NINO PISANO was the son of the latter. The time of his birth is not known; he died before 1361. His works are pleasing, and he especially excelled in drapery. They are not numerous, and are seen in the churches of Pisa.

But by far the most important pupil of Andrea Pisano, and, indeed, the most important Tuscan master of the end of the fourteenth century, was ANDREA ARCAGNUOLO DI CIONE, commonly called ANDREA ORCAGNA (1329-1376?). This artist was the son of Maestro Cione, a goldsmith of Florence. Orcagna was an architect, goldsmith, sculptor, painter, mosaist, and poet. Painting is the art by which he is best known and of which he executed the greatest number of interesting works. In this place we shall speak of his most important work as a sculptor, which was the tabernacle in the church of Or San Michele, in Florence, made to hold the picture of the Madonna painted by Ugolino da Siena. This tabernacle is of white marble in the Gothic style. It rises from the centre high up toward the roof of the church, and has sculptures in bas-relief, statuettes and busts, all illustrating the life of the Virgin from her birth to her death. It is also enriched with mosaics, intaglios, enamels, gilded glass, pietra dura, and all of these arranged in a whole which is quite unique in art. It may be regarded as a piece of architecture or as a sculptural work, and it is full of symbolism; and whatever view is taken of it, it commands admiration for the artist who conceived and executed so difficult a task.

During the later years of the fourteenth century there were many sculptors in Italy of whom we know very little more than their names. They did a vast amount of work in all parts of the country, much of which is still to be seen. One of these, of whom few personal facts are known, exerted a large influence in Florence, where the fruits of his industry were almost marvellous. He was called PIETRO DI GIOVANNI and PIETRO TEDESCO, or "the German". The time and place of his birth are not known, but the records show that he worked on the Cathedral of Florence from 1386 to 1399. He worked in true German style; wherever scroll-work and simple ornamental designs were required he mingled a variety of leaves and flowers where the acanthus alone had before been used. He also made fantastic little human beings, dwarfs and grotesque beings of different sorts, and exhausted the animal world in his designs. Lions, bears, apes, dogs, lizards, crabs, birds and fish, bees, butterflies, and all manner of insects may be seen nestling among vines and branches, while angels play on pipes and violas. The whole effect of these works is cheerful and natural, and would be as suitable to decorate a music hall or a theatre as they are for a church.

The works of this master are too extreme in the realistic element to be taken as a fair example of the Italian sculpture of this time, but NICCOLO OF ARREZZO, the MASSEGNE, and the BON or BUONI family, and many others in different portions of the country contributed to put aside the stiff, formal manner of the past, and to bring in the more sympathetic and natural one of the fifteenth century. In truth, the last decades of the fourteenth century were a transition period, when art was bursting its bonds, and was preparing for the glorious works of the golden days of sculpture in Italy.



CHAPTER V.

ITALIAN SCULPTURE IN THE FIFTEENTH CENTURY.

There was no one great influence or circumstance which led up to the revival of art and letters which took place in the fifteenth century, and which is known under the general name of the Renaissance. Its causes were many, and may be traced in every department of the life of the Middle Ages—in religion, politics, learning, and the habits of the people. This is far too great a topic for us to enter on here, and we must keep to the one matter which we have in hand.

In Italy, heretofore, as we have shown, sculpture had been almost entirely separated from other arts, and stood by itself. Its works had been the smaller objects of which we have spoken; and though these were oftentimes splendid in their design and execution, they did not afford the sculptor the same broad field for his work as he has when his productions are combined with architecture. Now all this was changed. The French and German artists had brought out a style of architecture of their own, the Italians pursued another course, and went back to classic art for their teaching, and now every opportunity was given for sculpture to assume its utmost importance; and the art of ancient Greece was studied with all the enthusiasm of the Italian nature.

The masters of Florence, or, rather, of Tuscany, were of great importance in the beginning of the new movement, and I shall speak first of them. FRANCESCO SQUARCIONE, who lived from 1396 to 1474, was a painter, and travelled into Greece to collect antique objects, and made many drawings from the monuments which he saw. He established a school in Padua, and his museum was of advantage to sculptors as well as to painters. Other Tuscan artists who were in love with classic art wandered among its remains in Rome and other parts of Italy, and brought back to their homes a greater knowledge of sculpture, as well as the drawings which they had made; and in this part of Italy the Renaissance early made itself a living, active power.

Among the very first of these sculptors was JACOPO DELLA QUERCIA (1374-1438), who was so called from the little market town of Quercia, near Siena, in which he was born. His father was a goldsmith, and instructed his son in his art; but the boy loved sculpture, and studied it under one Luca di Giovanni. When but nineteen years old he made an equestrian statue of wood, and covered it with cloth, and painted it to represent marble in a manner which proved him to be an artist. About this time he left his home, and the next that we know of him was about ten years later, when his design for the gates of the Baptistery of Florence was pronounced to be next in merit to those of Ghiberti and Brunelleschi.

In 1408 Quercia went to Ferrara, where he did several works. While there he was called by the Signory of Siena to make a new fountain in the Piazza del Campo. This was a beautiful work, and even in this century, though much injured, its remaining sculptures prove that it must have been a wonder in its day. It has been restored after the original model by Quercia, who was often called Jacopo della Fonte on account of this work. He executed some sculptures in Lucca, but his masterpiece was the decoration of the great portal of the Basilica of San Petronio, at Bologna. (Fig. 82.)

The fifteen reliefs here represent the history of Adam and Eve, and other stories from the creation to the deluge. They show the full freedom and power of Quercia's style, and are among the most attractive of all the Tuscan sculptures of this period. Duringd the last years of his life this artist was employed as superintendent of the works upon the Cathedral of Siena, in which city he died.



We come now to speak of the famous LORENZO GHIBERTI (1378-1455), who was born in Florence, and was both a goldsmith and sculptor; and though his fame rests upon his bas-reliefs, yet the exquisite detail and careful finish in them came from his practice of the goldsmith's art. In 1398 a plague broke out in Florence, and Ghiberti fled to Rimini for safety. While there he painted a few pictures; but his name is so linked with the splendid gates which he made for the Baptistery of Florence that it is of those that one naturally thinks when his name is heard.

We have spoken of the gates which Andrea Pisano had made to this Baptistery long before; these were for the south side; and when, in 1400, the plague again visited Florence the people believed that the wrath of Heaven should be appeased by a thank-offering. Accordingly the Guild of Wool-merchants promised to add gates on the north and east of the Baptistery of St. John the Baptist.

A time was appointed for the examination of designs, and many artists entered into the competition, and sent in their drawings and models. A great number of these represented the Sacrifice of Isaac. At length all the models were set aside but two, and these were made by Brunelleschi and Ghiberti; then the former declared that he thought his rival's design the best, thus showing a nobility of character which cannot be too much praised.

The commission was thus given to Ghiberti, who first executed the northern gates. He began them in 1403, and finished them twenty-one years later. They illustrate the life of Christ in twenty scenes; they have also the figures of the evangelists and the four Fathers of the Church in a beautiful framework of foliage, animals, and other ornamental figures, which divides and incloses the larger compositions. These gates are done in a manner much in advance of that of Pisano, and yet they retain some features of an earlier style which are not found in Ghiberti's later works. But from the first he showed original talent, as one may see by his model of the Sacrifice of Isaac, which is preserved in the Museum of the Bargello, beside that of Brunelleschi.

These northern gates are very beautiful, but those on the east are far more so; it is of these last that Michael Angelo declared, "They are worthy to be the gates of Paradise!" These are divided into ten compartments, representing: 1, Creation of Adam and Eve; 2, History of Cain and Abel; 3, Noah; 4, Abraham and Isaac; 5, Jacob and Esau; 6, History of Joseph; 7, Moses on Mount Sinai; 8, Joshua before Jericho; 9, David and Goliath; 10, Solomon and the Queen of Sheba (Fig. 83).

This sculptor showed great skill for one in his age, but to us there is some disappointment in them on account of the crowded appearance of the figures. Familiarity with them, however, reveals their beauty, and we find that, in truth, the stories Ghiberti wished to tell are brought out with much distinctness. They will ever remain one of the great monuments of the sculpture of the Renaissance.

Ghiberti endeavored to introduce fine backgrounds to his reliefs, which gave him an opportunity to add figures illustrating other incidents than the principal one of the work. His sculptures show the influence of the Gothic style, the study of nature and that of the antique all combined; with these are united his own power of conception, his ability in design, and his wonderful delicacy of execution. These gates have been continually studied by the artists of his own and succeeding generations.

The next work of importance by Ghiberti is the sarcophagus of St. Zenobius in the Cathedral of Florence. Other lesser sculptures are in other churches in Florence and in the Cathedral of Siena.

We come now to one of the most interesting sculptors of the fifteenth century. DONATELLO he was called, but his real name was DONATO DI BETTO BARDI (1386-1468). He was born in Florence, and from his boyhood was a member of the family of the rich banker Ruberto Martelli, who was the firm friend of the sculptor for life, and when he died he provided in his will that the works by Donatello which he bequeathed to his family should never be pledged, sold, or given away, but kept as a perpetual inheritance for his heirs. Donatello was a realist, and followed nature with great exactness. This was not always productive of beauty in his works; indeed, some of them are very ugly, and a story which illustrates this is told of himself and Brunelleschi. Donatello had made a crucifix, carved from wood, for the Church of Santa Croce, and when it was finished he asked Brunelleschi's opinion of it. This latter artist was principally an architect; but as he had learned the goldsmith's trade, he executed some sculptures, and a close friendship existed between himself and Donatello. Relying on their love for each other, Brunelleschi frankly told Donatello that his crucifix was very ugly, and his figure of Christ like that of a day-laborer, whereas it should represent a person of the greatest possible beauty.



Donatello was very angry at this, and exclaimed, "It is easier to criticise than to execute; do you take a piece of wood and make a better crucifix!" Brunelleschi determined to do this, and when his work was finished he invited Donatello to sup with him. He placed the crucifix in a conspicuous place in his house, and then took Donatello with him to the market to buy their food. He gave the parcels to Donatello, and asked him to go before to the house, saying that he would soon follow. When Donatello entered and saw the crucifix he was so delighted at the sight that he forgot everything else, and dropped the eggs, cheese, and all on the floor, and stood gazing at the carving as motionless as if he were a statue himself. When Brunelleschi came he said, "What are we to do now? You have spoiled all the dinner!"

"I have had dinner enough for to-day," replied Donatello. "You may have a better appetite. To you, I confess, belongs the power of carving the figure of Christ; to me that of representing day-laborers."

This famous crucifix by Brunelleschi is now in the Gondi Chapel of the Church of Santa Maria Novella; that by Donatello is in the chapel of Saints Ludovico and Bartolommeo in the Church of Santa Croce.

The Annunciation cut from sandstone, which is in Santa Croce, is one of his earliest works, and is full of grace and nobleness (Fig. 84). He made some beautiful groups of dancing children, which are now in the Uffizi Gallery; but he considered his David, which is in the same gallery, as his masterpiece. He was so proud of it that he swore by it, saying, "By the faith I have in my Zuccone!" This word means bald-head, and had come to be used as the usual name for the David.



But in spite of his liking for the David, it is generally thought that his St. George, on the exterior of the Church of Or San Michele, is far better. The German art-writer Grimm thus speaks of this work: "What a man is the St. George in the niche of the Church of Or San Michele! He stands there in complete armor, sturdily, with his legs somewhat striding apart, resting on both with equal weight, as if he meant to stand so that no power could move him from his post. Straight before him he holds up his high shield; both hands touch its edge, partly for the sake of holding it, partly in order to rest on it; the eyes and brows are full of expectant boldness.... We approach this St. George, and the mere artistic interest is transformed suddenly into a more lively sympathy with the person of the master.... Who is it, we ask, who has placed such a man there, so ready for battle?" (Fig. 85.)



Donatello's impetuosity led him into many rash acts. Among other instances of this it is related that a rich Genoese merchant gave an order for a portrait bust of himself in bronze; when it was finished the great Duke Cosimo de' Medici, who was a friend of Donatello, admired the work so much that he placed it on his balcony, so that all Florentines who passed by could see it. When the merchant was given the price of the bust he objected to it, and it was referred to Duke Cosimo for settlement. In the conversation the Genoese said that the bust could be made in a month, and that he was willing to pay the artist a dollar a day for his time and labor.

When Donatello heard this he exclaimed, "I know how to destroy the result of the study of years in the twinkling of an eye!" and he threw the bust into the street below, where it was broken into fragments. Then the merchant was deeply mortified, and offered the sculptor double the price he had asked if he would repeat the work; but though Donatello sadly needed the money he would not do this, and persisted in his refusal, even when Cosimo de' Medici tried to persuade him to consent.

When Donatello was old Duke Cosimo gave him an allowance which would support himself and four workmen; but in spite of this Donatello wore such shabby clothes that Cosimo sent him a red surcoat, a mantle and hood. These Donatello returned, saying they were far too fine for him. When the sculptor at length became feeble and bedridden his benefactor had died, but Piero de' Medici, the son of Cosimo, was careful to keep him in comfort; and when he died his funeral was attended with much ceremony. He was buried near Duke Cosimo, in the Church of San Lorenzo.

Several of Donatello's works are in this church, and are a more suitable monument to his memory than any that could be made by other hands.

The works of Donatello are numerous, both in marble and bronze, and in both these substances he made statues and reliefs. We cannot speak in detail of all that he accomplished; but as he lived in an age when every advance in art was an event in history, we must not forget to say that he made the first equestrian statue which had been produced since the time of the Romans. This statue is in Padua, in front of the Church of San Antonio; it is of colossal size, and represents the Venetian General Gattamelata; and though it does not satisfy our conception as an equestrian statue, it is worthy of some praise when we remember all the circumstances of its origin. It is not probable that Donatello had ever seen an antique equestrian statue, unless it might have been that of Marcus Aurelius, which was found in the Forum in 1187; no modern statues existed as examples for him; he was not familiar with the modelling of horses, and for every reason it was a bold thing for him to undertake such a work.

Donatello had more influence upon the art of his time than any other Tuscan sculptor, with the single exception of Michael Angelo. As a man he was honest, simple, and upright in all his dealings; as a friend he was loyal and faithful; as a Christian he was humble and charitable, and left behind him a name which has been handed down through more than four centuries with respect and honor.

LUCA DELLA ROBBIA (1400-1481) is another native of Florence, whose name is widely known. Like many others, he began life as a goldsmith, and in this way gained a mastery over detail and a finish of style that are remarkable in all his works. He turned his attention to sculpture early in life, and was so enthusiastic in his pursuit of this art that he worked night and day, minding neither cold nor hunger and fatigue; in the beginning he made numerous wax models, which have perished, and with all his industry we have no work of his before he was forty-five years old, except the reliefs of Music, Philosophy, Geometry, Grammar and Astronomy, Plato and Aristotle, Ptolemy and Euclid, and a man playing a lute, which are set into the side of the Campanile at Florence, and two scenes from the life of St. Peter, which are in the Uffizi.

In the same gallery are also the series of reliefs which Luca began when forty-five years old for the balustrade of an organ in the cathedral. These reliefs represent boys singing, dancing, and playing on musical instruments (Fig. 86). The attitudes are so graceful and so varied, and the expressions on the faces are so many, that there is much to admire in a subject which in unskilful hands would be very monotonous.



No sculptures since the classic days represent child-life with such freshness and charming qualities, and these alone would have raised Luca to a high rank as a sculptor. In the Uffizi one is able to examine these works closely, and they gain by this nearness to the eye, which enables one to see the minuteness of his finish. There are various works of his in bronze and marble still to be seen in the churches of Florence, but the special art to which he gave his attention was to the perfecting of enamel upon terra-cotta—on the making of what is known as the Robbia ware. In this he achieved a great success, and his bas-reliefs are very beautiful. At first he used but few colors, but later he increased their number, and was able to produce a combined effect of painting and relief that is very pleasing.

These works were used for altar-pieces, medallions on exteriors, fountains, wall decoration, and a great variety of purposes. Twelve medallions representing the months, which are in the South Kensington Museum, are said to have been made by Luca to decorate a writing cabinet for one of the Medici.

Luca worked with his nephew, Andrea, who had four sons; and when Luca died his secrets belonged to them, and made their fortunes. They were occupied eleven years in making a frieze to a hospital in Pistoja; it represented the Seven Acts of Mercy. One of them went to France and decorated the Chateau of Madrid for Francis I. Pope Leo X. employed another to pave the Loggie of the Vatican with Robbia tiles, and these wares, in one form and another, were used in numberless ways, both useful and decorative.

The Robbia family was followed by other workers in glazed ware, and during about a century it was a prominent feature in art, and then was gradually given up.

The most noted pupil of Donatello was ANDREA DEL VEROCCHIO (1432-1488). He was born at Florence, and was early apprenticed to a goldsmith called Verocchio, from whom the sculptor took his surname. It is said that this name came from the fact that the elder Verocchio had remarkable exactness of sight.

Neither the metal works nor the paintings which Verocchio did remain, and after about 1466 he devoted himself entirely to sculpture. It is difficult to associate him with Donatello; his execution is finished like most sculptors who were also metal-workers; his nude parts are true to nature, but not graceful or attractive, and his draperies are in small folds, which give a tumbled, crumpled effect rather than that of the easy, graceful falling of soft material.

His best works are a David in the Museum of the Bargello, Florence; a bronze Genius pressing a Dolphin to itself on a fountain in the court of the Palazzo Vecchio (Fig. 87); an equestrian statue of Colleoni before the Church of San Giovanni e Paolo, Venice (Fig. 88); and a group of St. Thomas examining the Wounds of Christ at the Church of Or San Michele, Florence. This last work is in his best and latest manner; the expression is powerful, but the drapery is still very faulty.



Although this equestrian statue is called by Verocchio's name, he did not live to see it completed; and though it was without doubt made from his design, still some credit for its execution is due to Alessandro Leopardo, who finished it. When Colleoni died he left all his large fortune to the Republic of Venice on condition that they should erect an equestrian monument to him in the square of St. Mark. As it was forbidden by the laws of Venice to place such things in the Piazza of St. Mark, it was placed in its present position, before the Church of San Giovanni e Paolo, on the square of the School of St. Mark, and it was thought that this answered the requirements of the will.



When Verocchio had gone to Venice and had modelled the horse, he was told that the Signory intended to have the rider made by another sculptor. He felt this to be an insult, and broke off the head and legs of the horse, and left Venice for Florence. The Signory issued a decree forbidding him to set foot again on Venetian soil under pain of death. The sculptor replied that he should not take the risk, as he well knew that the Signory could take off his head, and he could not put it on, while he could replace his horse's head with a better one. The Venetians knew that this was true, and repealed their decree, and doubling his pay, asked him to come to complete his work. Verocchio consented to do so, but had not been long in Venice when he died. Verocchio is said to have spent much time in drawing from the antique, and his works prove him to have been diligent and painstaking; these qualities made him the sculptor that he was; but we see no traces in his work of the heaven-born genius which makes the artist great, and so inspires himself that his works fill all beholders with an enthusiasm in a degree akin to his own; the works of such artists as Verocchio, who have only the excellencies which come from patient industry, interest us, but they cannot move our hearts.

It often happened in Italy that a number of artists belonged to the same family, as in the case of the Robbias. One such family had the name of GAMBARELLI, but were known in art as the ROSSELLINI. There were five sculptors of this name, all brothers. Two of them had great ability, Bernardo and Antonio. Bernardo was most distinguished as an architect, and some very celebrated edifices were built from his designs; he also executed some excellent sculptures, among which are the fine monument of Lionardo Bruni in the Church of Santa Croce, and that of the Beata Villana in Santa Maria Novella, Florence. The first is one of the best monuments in Tuscany. In the Uffizi are a bust of St. John, a charming work, and a portrait bust of Battista Sforza.

ANTONIO ROSSELLINO (1427-1490), called PROCONSOLO, from the quarter of Florence in which he was born, was by far the best sculptor of the family. He is called a pupil of Donatello, but his work very closely resembles that of Ghiberti. Among his best works are the monument to Cardinal Portogallo, in the Church of San Miniato, near Florence; that of Mary of Aragon in Monte Oliveto at Naples; a relief of the Nativity in the same church, and a relief of the Adoring Madonna in the Uffizi Gallery. His characteristics were grace, delicacy of treatment, sweetness of expression, and all these combined with a noble dignity.

Other Tuscan sculptors of this period were DESIDERIO DA SETTIGNANO, MINO DA FIESOLE (1400-1486), ANDREA FERRUCCI (1465-1526), and BENEDETTO DA MAJANO (1442-1498), who was eminent as an architect as well as for his sculpture. His father was a stone-cutter, and two other sons in the family were artists. Benedetto began life as a worker in wooden mosaics, or intarsiatore, as it is called. He made two beautiful inlaid chests, and carried them to Hungary as a gift to King Matthias Corvinus, whose fame as a patron of art had reached his ears. But the young artist was doomed to a dreadful disappointment, for when he unpacked his chests in the presence of the king it was found that the sea-damp had spoiled them, and the mosaics had fallen apart. Benedetto then determined to work in more durable materials, and executed some sculptures in marble and terra-cotta while he remained in Hungary.

After his return to Florence, Benedetto worked as an architect, and the Strozzi Palace was built after his design. His masterpiece in sculpture was the monument to Filippo Strozzi, in the Strozzi Chapel in Santa Maria Novella, and it also merits mention among the best works of the fifteenth century. A pulpit in Santa Croce, by Benedetto, is also very fine, and his skill was shown here in his supporting the pulpit against a column and putting the staircase by which the pulpit is entered inside the column; thus it was concealed, and the building in no wise weakened, while the pulpit is far more beautiful than it would be were the staircase in sight.

Benedetto was summoned to Naples by the Duke of Calabria, who gave him commissions which occupied him for two years. Few Tuscan sculptors have produced more pleasing works than Benedetto's; though not profound they are pleasing and unaffected, and in whatever frame of mind one may be, they do not disturb, but rather soothe and charm, as they could not do if they were false in sentiment or executed in an affected manner.

MATTEO CIVITALI DI GIOVANNI (1435-1501) was born in Lucca, but studied art in Florence. His statue of St. Sebastian in the Cathedral of Lucca was so much admired by the painter Perugino that he copied it in his picture of the Entombment.

Civitali's chief work in sculpture was the tomb of Pietro da Noceto in the same cathedral. In Genoa, in the Chapel of St. John the Baptist, he executed six statues and five bas-reliefs. A bas-relief of Faith by Civitali in the Uffizi Gallery is a fine work, full of earnestness and deep religious feeling.

Civitali was also an accomplished architect, and did much to improve the style of building in Lucca. The beautiful temple of the Volto Santo in the cathedral was designed by him.

This sculptor may be said to have had four different styles of work. The St. Sebastian was in his earliest manner, and is simply realistic; his second manner was the best; it is pure and dignified in conception, while deep feeling pervades all; the tomb of Noceto was in this second style; his third manner was more free and less pure, while the fourth, as seen in his work at Genoa, is full of extravagant exaggeration.

Next to the sculptors of the Tuscan or Florentine school of this period were those of Venice in importance and independence of manner. This school was much influenced by that of Tuscany because of the nearness of the two cities and the constant communication between them, as well as by the fact that Tuscan sculptors were more or less employed in Venice. One of the earliest Venetian sculptors was ANTONIO GIOVANNI BREGNO, called ANTONIO RIZZO or RICCIO (about 1430-1498?). Although he was born in Verona, and there had the opportunity to study the Roman ruins which are the pride of the city, he is yet essentially an artist of Venice, since he spent most of his life there, and was even at the head of the workshop for the sculptors who worked upon the palace. One little episode in the life of this artist was an expedition to Scutari with the Venetian soldiers, who went to its defence against the Turks. Rizzo showed himself so brave in action, and was so severely wounded, that after his return to Venice the Senate gave him a pension which lasted through twenty years. Rizzo so won the confidence of the Venetians that he was appointed to important offices with large salaries, and it is sad to be forced to add that he proved to be a dishonest man, and when his accounts were examined he fled to Foligno, where he soon died. We will not speak of him as an architect; as a sculptor he is known by statues of Adam and Eve in niches opposite the Giant's Staircase in the Ducal Palace, and by sepulchral monuments in the Church of the Frari. While his works cannot be highly praised for beauty, they do show the style of the Renaissance distinctly.

LOMBARDO is the family name of three sculptors of this period in Venice. They were PIETRO and his two sons, TULLIO and ANTONIO, and the three together are spoken of as the Lombardi. Pietro, the father, was as much an architect as a sculptor, and the works of the father and son are so associated that it is difficult to speak of them separately. We know that Tullio was the superior artist of the three, but there are no works of theirs that command a detailed description here. The monument to the Doge Pietro Mocenigo, in the Church of SS. Giovanni e Paolo, the angels of the font in San Martino, an altar-relief in the altar of San Giovanni Crisostomo, reliefs on the front of the Scuola di San Marco, and two reliefs in the Church of San Antonio at Padua, are the principal sculptures of the Lombardi.

ALESSANDRO LEOPARDO, who flourished about 1490, was the most eminent bronze-caster of his time, and was distinguished for the happy manner in which he adapted classic ideas to his needs in his works.

Very little is known of the life of this sculptor, and that little is not to his credit. He lived in Venice, and had a studio in the Piazza del Cavallo, and in 1487 committed a forgery, for which he was banished from the city. But when Verocchio died, leaving the Colleoni statue unfinished, the Senate desired to have it completed by Leopardo, so they sent him a safe-conduct for six months, and he returned to Venice. As there is no account of his again leaving the city, it is supposed that he was allowed to remain as long as he chose. There has been much difference of opinion as to which artist—Verocchio or Leopardo—should be credited with the excellence of the Colleoni statue. The truth, as near as it can be told, seems to be that Verocchio designed and modelled it, that Leopardo completed and cast it, and made the lofty pedestal upon which it stands, and which, taken by itself, is a splendid work. It is of fine proportions, and has six Corinthian columns, in the capitals of which there are dolphins, while the frieze is composed of trophies and marine animals, all of which are symbols of the City on the Sea which erected the monument.

After the Colleoni statue was unveiled the Senate gave Leopardo an order for three standard bases of bronze to be placed in the Piazza of St. Mark's. He also made three splendid candelabra for the Venetian Academy. Leopardo was also an architect. The time of his death is very uncertain, but a writer speaks of him in 1541 as "the new glory of our age, who shines like a star in the Venetian waters."

Although an immense amount of sculpture of this period remains in various parts of Italy, it is very difficult to trace the story of separate artists and to give a satisfactory account of those whose works are worthy of high praise. There is scarcely an Italian city of any size which has not some splendid remains of this morning of the Renaissance. In Ancona there are the portal of San Francesco and the front of Mercanzia, with which the name of Giorgio da Sebenico is associated. At Rimini the Church of San Francesco, with its wealth of plastic ornament, cannot be ascribed to any one artist or to any number with surety; it is in the style of Luca della Robbia and Donatello, but in the execution does not reach their standard. In Cesena, Padua, and Verona there are fifteenth-century sculptures, and in the Milanese territory the plastic art of this period is very interesting.



In Milan, in the Church of Santa Maria delle Grazie, in the Ospedale Grande, and in the cathedral there is a wealth of sculpture to reward the student of this art who visits them; and in the Museum of the Breda there are many interesting works. The terra-cotta decoration of the Ospedale excels all other works of this sort in upper Italy, and the immense facade of this edifice is a marvel in its way (Figs. 89, 90). The differences between this hospital and the wonderful Milan Cathedral afford a remarkable contrast in works of the same period.

GIOVANNI ANTONIO AMADEO, or OMODEO (1447-1520), was born on a farm near the Certosa of Pavia. When but nineteen years old his name appears as one of those who were employed upon this splendid edifice, and the records of his payments show that his work was well considered, even then. Omodeo was undoubtedly the best sculptor of his time in all Lombardy, and his sculptures in the Colleoni Chapel at Bergamo would be sufficient to make any artist famous. The whole work may be called his, for he designed the building and the sculptures of the facade, which are in the richest style of the Renaissance; there are statuettes, colonettes, busts, medallions, and bas-reliefs, and wherever a flat surface exists it is divided into diamond-shaped slabs of colored marbles. The portal is very much ornamented: on each side of the rose window above this entrance there are busts of Caesar and Augustus in contrast with numbers of angels' heads not far away. There are bas-reliefs representing children playing upon musical instruments, and the whole front of the chapel, with its numerous pilasters and colonettes, has been compared to a gigantic organ, by Mr. Perkins, in his "Italian Sculptors".

Of the interior decoration we can only say that it is much in Omodeo's style, though the monument to Colleoni, the founder of the chapel, is said to be the work of German sculptors, and to have been done after Omodeo left Bergamo.

At Pavia, Omodeo succeeded Guiniforte as chief architect of the Certosa, and designed the facade, which was made by him and his successors. The bas-relief of the Deposition from the Cross, which is on the front of the high-altar here, is the work of Omodeo. At Cremona and at Isola Bella he executed some monuments, but at length, in 1490, he began his work on the Cathedral of Milan. Here a cupola was commenced after his model and under his direction; but when it was partly done doubts of its solidity were expressed, and Omodeo was commanded to leave it and design the north door to the cathedral. He also constructed the spiral staircase leading to the roof through an elegant Gothic turret, where the medallion portrait of Omodeo may be seen. It has since been proved that the cupola of Omodeo was solid enough, for it has sustained the spire which was put upon it in 1772; but he was tormented concerning it in many ways, and died without justification.

Omodeo stands at the head of northern Italian sculptors in his dexterous use of his chisel; his ease in composition and his skill in the management of drapery would have made him eminent; but the effect of all these good qualities was injured by his mannerism, and the fact that his standard of beauty was not a high one. This may be partly accounted for by the fact that in Lombardy an artist had no opportunity to study the remains of classic art, and this one circumstance very largely excuses the inferiority of the northern sculptors to those of Tuscany, whose taste had been much improved by close study of ancient plastic art.

There are many sculptors mentioned as having done some part of the work upon the Milan Cathedral, but very few are known, except by casual remark. CRISTOFORO SOLARI, called "IL GOBBO, or DEL GOBBO," was one of the most prominent, and yet we know almost nothing of his history until, in 1490, he was so disappointed when Omodeo was made architect of the cathedral instead of himself that he went to Venice, and remained there during several years.

After a time Solari was appointed ducal sculptor to Ludovico Moro, and the monument which he erected to Beatrice d'Este was one of his principal works. When Ludovico lost his power Solari went to Rome, and remained until he was recalled to Milan to execute sculptures for the cathedral. He was very independent in his reply, and refused to go unless his conditions were complied with; one of these conditions was that he should not be under the direction of any one, but should select his marbles and his subjects to please himself. The statues he made are not as fine as we might expect them to be after this beginning; however, he was at length appointed head architect. Soon after this he was engaged in making a new model for a cupola, and then suddenly his name ceases to appear upon the registers.

The Cathedral of Como is another of those vast edifices which afforded opportunities for artists to make themselves famous. The principal part of the facade to this cathedral was ornamented by TOMMASO and JACOPO RODARI. The first was at one time architect of the cathedral, and together they executed a large portion of the sculptures. Their best work was in the ornamental parts.

In the southern parts of Italy, both in the states of the Church and in Naples, there are many works of the fifteenth century which were executed by artists from Florence and other parts of Italy. Thus there is nothing new to be said concerning sculpture in Southern Italy during this period, since the works which are not by foreign artists are in the same style as theirs; for the native sculptors copied those from Central and Northern Italy, and no great progress or original manner can be found in these southern districts.



CHAPTER VI.

SCULPTURE IN GERMANY, FRANCE, ENGLAND, AND SPAIN, FROM 1450 TO 1550.

In Italy, as we have seen, the sculpture of the Renaissance was much advanced by the fact that in the beginning of its growth the architecture of the country was largely an imitation of Greek architecture; and as the same artist was frequently an architect, sculptor, and painter, edifices were designed with the purpose of placing the works of the sculptor in the most favorable positions.

In the countries north of Italy sculpture had no such aid or advantages. The Gothic style of architecture was a hindrance to the sculptor, whose works were combined with it. The Gothic construction afforded no broad, generous spaces for sculpture; all plastic work must be confined in limited spaces between columns and baldachins, or in arched niches, or between narrow flutings; and though something had been done to vary the upright stiffness of the statues of its earliest days, there was no freedom for the realistic and natural tendencies of the Renaissance art to develop in.

Another advantage on the side of Italian art was the fact that Italy was a land of grace and beauty; its people were more refined in manner, more elegant and picturesque in their costumes than were those of Northern Europe, and all the influences surrounding the Italian artist were far more favorable to a development of his artistic nature than were those of France or Germany. Then, too, the remains of antique art which were within reach of the Italian sculptor were quite shut off from others. For all these and other reasons the sculpture of the north was more tardy in taking on the better spirit and form of the Renaissance, and as a whole it never became as pleasing to most people as was the sculpture of Italy.

In a former chapter we have spoken of the sculptor Claux Sluter and his work at Dijon in the fourteenth century; the desire which he showed to make his figures like the men they represented, and a general study of nature rather than of older works of sculpture, had much effect upon the sculpture of his time, and gradually became much exaggerated. German sculptors tried not only to make exact portraits of the faces and heads of their figures, but they gave the same attention to imitating every detail of costume and every personal peculiarity of the model from which they worked. This tended to weaken and narrow their own designs, and the whole effect of their work is fantastic and exaggerated—an effect quite opposed to the noble and harmonious treatment of the whole which the best Italian masters strove to attain.

The attempt to produce startling effects in German art made such subjects as the Passion of Christ, the Temptation of St. Anthony, and the Martyrdoms of the Saints to be constantly repeated, and many reliefs are overloaded with such details as may very properly be used in painting, and which belong to picturesque art, but which take away the dignity and calm grandeur which should make the spirit of sculpture. But there is one feature of German sculpture at this time which appeals to our sympathy—that is, the deep, earnest feeling which pervades it, and which constantly tried new methods of expression.

In Germany there were guilds or trade-associations, and the members of these guilds were allowed to work in the special branch only of sculpture which belonged to their company, so that this art was divided by more fixed lines than in Italy, where, in truth, at the period of which we speak, the Florentine school was a supreme power, and its sculptors, as we have seen, worked in as many sorts of sculpture as pleased them.

The schools of Germany were far more independent of each other, and the entire organization of art in Germany was very different from that of Italy.

One of the most prominent effects of the architecture of Germany was to drive the sculptors to seek for such work as had no relation to architecture, and an important result from this was the great attention which they paid to wood-carving; indeed, this was the favorite pursuit of the German sculptors for many years. About the middle of the fifteenth century the importance of this art in Germany was far greater than those of bronze-casting or stone sculpture.

The principal works in wood-carving were the altars, which finally came to be colossal in size, and with their multitude of reliefs, statuettes, and ornaments were marvellous monuments to the industry and skill of the wood-carvers. The reliefs in these works are usually arranged on landscape backgrounds, and so much resemble pictures in many ways that the colors and gilding which were freely used on them do not seem out of place, and it appears to be quite natural that wood-carvers should often have been painters also.

The Swabian school, the principal seat of which was Ulm, was the earliest to adopt the new, realistic style. There are works by Swabian artists which show this tendency as early as 1431. JOeRG SYRLIN, who flourished during the last half of the fifteenth century, was an eminent wood-carver, and as he did not color his works he can be better judged as a sculptor than he could be if the effect of the whole depended partly upon painting. The choir-stalls in the Cathedral of Ulm and the fountain in the market-place, called "Fischkasten," are his most important works; but a singing-desk, now in the museum, and other lesser pieces are also excellent examples of his style. The choir-stalls have an immense number of figures and a mass of ornament, which made them far richer than any such work of an earlier date, and none that have since been made have equalled them. It is almost incredible that they were completed in four years, and yet there are no marks of haste upon the work. The figures are dignified and graceful, the faces delicate and expressive, the hands well formed, and a beauty of design and execution marks the whole. The lower figures, which come nearest the eye, are finer than those which are higher up, so that a unity of effect is preserved throughout the whole. He sometimes took occasion to give touches of humor in his works, and in these stalls he introduced his own portrait and that of his wife.

The "Fischkasten" is sculptured in stone, and has three knights upon it which appear to be boldly advancing, as if about to step off and walk away. Other works by this master are less important, and it is doubtful if all that are called by his name are really his own. Joerg Syrlin, the younger, trained by his father, adopted his style, and became an excellent artist.

We have not space to speak of the Swabian sculptures in detail. Fine works exist in Tiefenbronn, Rothenburg, Blaubeuren, Herrenberg, Gmuend, Ravensburg, and many other places.

The influence of the Swabian school was very wide; it can be traced in many parts of Germany, in Hungary and Transylvania, and even in Switzerland, Austria, and Bavaria. Swabian artists were often summoned to adjacent provinces, and thus did much work away from their homes. The reliefs upon the door of the Cathedral of Constance were executed by Simon Hayder, a Swabian, in 1470. The altar of the cathedral at Chur was the work of Jacob Roesch, another Swabian master, who thus labored on the very boundary of Italy. The school at Augsburg was the second Swabian school in importance, and much influence went out from that centre, though its sculptures were not as fine as those of Ulm.

In some cases fine old sculptures still exist in the churches and other places for which they were intended. Again we find them either whole, or in parts, in museums to which they have been removed when they were no longer required for the uses for which they were made, or when they were replaced by more modern works. So few facts are known concerning them that it is almost impossible to do more than repeat descriptions of the subjects they represent; and this is neither profitable nor entertaining in a book of this kind; therefore I shall now speak only of such artists as have left some record behind them, and of works whose authorship can be given.

VEIT STOSS, who flourished about the middle of the fifteenth century, was an eminent wood-carver. Very little is known about him. His name is sometimes said to be Wit Stwosz, and Cracow and Nuremberg both claim to have been his birthplace. But it is now believed that he was born in Nuremberg, as it is known that in 1477 he gave up his citizenship there and went to Cracow, and in 1496 he paid a small sum to be again made a citizen of Nuremberg.

We also know that his reputation as a man was not good. In a Nuremberg decree he is called a "reckless and graceless citizen, who has caused much uneasiness to the honorable council and the whole town." He was convicted of crimes for which he should have suffered death, but the sentence was changed, and he was branded: both cheeks were pierced with a hot iron. After this he broke the oath he had taken to the city, and joined her enemies in plotting against her; he was subsequently imprisoned, and at his death, in 1533, he was very old and perfectly blind.

It seems almost like a contradiction to say that this master was one of the most tender in feeling of all the wood-carvers of his time. He was especially successful in representing the purity of the Madonna and of youthful saints. His principal works are in the churches of Cracow and Nuremberg. In the Frauenkirche at Cracow the high-altar, a part of the stalls in the choir, and some other sculptures are his. In Nuremberg his best works are a bas-relief of the Crowning of the Virgin, which is preserved in the Burgkapelle; the great Madonna statue, which was placed in the Frauenkirche in 1504; and the colossal Angel's Salutation, which is suspended in the choir of the Church of St. Laurence. This last is an unusual and important work. The angel appears as if flying, and the drapery is much inflated; the Virgin is queenly and majestic, yet graceful; all around are medallions in which are represented the Seven Sorrows of the Virgin. The style of these reliefs is charming if we except the drapery; that has the faults of the time, and is bad in style; but the female heads are all that we could ask; the whole design is distinct, and few reliefs could surpass these in simple beauty and genuine artistic feeling.

Another remarkable work of his is a panel of roses, now in the Burgkapelle. The panel is seven feet high by five wide; more than half of this is covered by a wreath of roses; there are besides four rows of small half-length figures arranged round a cross of St. Anthony, a representation of the Last Judgment, scenes in the history of man from the creation to the death of the Virgin, and many other saints and like subjects in bits of reliefs, which fill up all spare spaces. The style is very distinct, and the draperies better in this work than in others from his hand.

There are other works in Nuremberg and elsewhere which are attributed to Veit Stoss, but these that are known to be his are quite enough to establish his fame as a gifted artist and a remarkable sculptor for his time.

Though Stoss is among the early masters of Nuremberg, it is yet true that others had been at work while he was in Cracow, and the way had been prepared for him and his work when he returned to his native city in 1496. Among the most active artists in Nuremberg was MICHAEL WOHLGEMUTH (1434-1519), who is generally considered as a painter only; but we know that he made contracts for entire works in which sculpture and painting are combined, and must have had the oversight of the whole; and in this view it is proper to mention this master's name. The altars at Haller Cross Chapel, Nuremberg, one at Zwickau, another at Schwabach, and that of the Heilsbronn Monastery, near Nuremberg, are all ascribed to Wohlgemuth.

ALBRECHT DUeRER (1471-1528), who was one of the great masters of the world, was an architect, painter, and sculptor. He was a pupil of Michael Wohlgemuth, and sculpture was less practised by him than other arts; yet the few works of his which remain are much valued.

Duerer probably executed his carvings about 1510-1520. In the British Museum there is a relief of the Birth of St. John the Baptist, which was purchased in the Netherlands more than eighty years since for $2500. It is cut in a block of cream-colored stone, seven and one half by five and one half inches in size, and is a wonderful work. The companion piece, which represents the same saint Preaching in the Wilderness, is in the Brunswick Museum, where there is also an "Ecce Homo" carved in wood.

Duerer executed many little carvings in stone, ivory, and boxwood, and the existing ones are seen in various collections in Germany. It is quite probable that others are in private hands.

There are in Nuremberg many most excellent wood-carvings by unknown masters; one who cares for this art is well repaid for a visit to this old city, and, indeed, this is true of other old German towns. Bamberg, Marburg, Frankfort-on-the-Main, Dortmund, Halle, and many other towns have riches in this kind of art.

The stone sculpture of Germany in the fifteenth century was of less importance than the wood-carving until toward the close of the period. The exteriors of the churches and other edifices erected at this time had but little sculptural ornament, and that consisted principally of traceries and figures in geometric designs. Some small detached works, such as fonts, pulpits, or fountains, were made in stone, but the chief use of stone sculpture was for monuments to the dead.

ADAM KRAFFT (about 1430-1507), of whose early history almost nothing is known, is a very important master of this time, and his principal works add another charm to the city of Nuremberg. A remarkable series of works by Krafft are the Seven Stages, or seven bas-reliefs placed on the way to the Johannis Cemetery, the designs representing the seven falls of Christ on his way to Golgotha.

These reliefs are much crowded, and the only part that is at all idealized is the figure of Christ; that is noble and calm in effect, and the drapery is simple and dignified. The other figures are coarse and dressed like the Nurembergers of the time in which Krafft lived.

In the churches of St. Sebald and St. Laurence and in the Frauenkirche there are other splendid works of Krafft, and in some dwelling-houses of Nuremberg there are sculptures of his. A Madonna on the houses, 1306, in the Hirschelgasse, is one of the finest, perhaps the very best in all Germany. We do not know whether this was by Krafft or not, but it has a purity and nobleness that scarcely any other German sculptor attained.

That Krafft had a sense of humor is shown by a bas-relief above the entrance to the Public Scales. The weigher stands observing the beam, and beneath it is written, "To thyself as to others." Another man adds a weight to one scale, and the man who is to be taxed puts his hand into his money-bag very reluctantly.

Perhaps his most artistic work was the tabernacle in the Church of St. Laurence. It is sixty-four feet high; the lower part is supported by the kneeling figures of Krafft and two of his associates. Above this rises a slender Gothic pyramid ornamented with bas-reliefs and statuettes. He was employed upon this tabernacle from 1496 to 1500. It is believed that a "Burial of Christ," in the chapel of the Johannis Cemetery, was his latest work, and executed in 1507, the year in which he died, in the hospital of Schwabach. Krafft led a most industrious life, and was so skilful a workman that he could work with his left hand as readily as with his right.

TILMAN RIEMENSCHNEIDER was an important sculptor, born at Osterode, in the Hartz Mountains, probably about 1460. In 1483 he went to Wuerzburg, and was elected to one honorable office after another, until, in 1520, he was head burgomaster. After the Peasants' War, in 1525, he was deprived of his office; he lived but six years after this, and kept himself in close retirement, not even practising his art.

His sculptures are mostly in stone, and are quite numerous in Wuerzburg and its vicinity. His monument to the Knight Eberhard von Grumbach, in the church at Rimpar, was probably his earliest important work. In it he has contrived to express strength and bravery of character in spite of the stiff costume, every detail of which is worked out (Fig. 91).



In 1495 Riemenschneider received the important commission to erect in Bamberg Cathedral a splendid monument to the Emperor Heinrich II. and his wife Kunigunde. This occupied him until 1513, and is a splendid example of his skill. The figures of the two royal personages lie upon a large sarcophagus; the statues are more than life-size, and are dressed in the fantastic costume of the fifteenth century. Upon the sides of the sarcophagus are five reliefs, representing as many scenes from the lives of the emperor and empress. The monuments and religious subjects executed by this sculptor are very numerous. In the church at Maidbrunn there is a relief representing the "Lamentation over the Dead Body of Christ," which is probably his latest work. It is cut from sandstone, and the figure of Nicodemus is believed to be the sculptor's own portrait.

We give here four figures from the portal of the cathedral at Berne, in Switzerland. The really splendid sculptures were the work of Nicolaus Kuenz, and from their style seem to belong to about 1520. They show the influence of such artists as the painters Nicolaus Manuel (1484-1531) and Hans Holbein (about 1459-1524). The statues of the Wise and Foolish Virgins are fine, and that of Justice, whose pose is full of grace, and whose almost transparent garment is an exquisite work, affords an excellent illustration of the most pleasing sculpture of this period (Figs. 92, 93).



Another art, which had its headquarters at Nuremberg in the fifteenth century, is bronze-casting, and its chief master was the famous PETER VISCHER, who was the son of another brasier, HERMANN VISCHER. The date of Peter Vischer's birth is given as 1460, and he was admitted to be a master in his art in 1489. Five years later than this he was summoned to Heidelberg together with a sculptor, Simon Lamberger, to aid the Elector Philip with advice and skill. Nothing is known of any work which Vischer did there.

Vischer's foundry at Nuremberg enjoyed a great fame, and orders were sent to it from far and near. No doubt a great many monuments were cast here which were not designed by Vischer at all. His works were numerous, but I shall only describe his masterpiece, which was the shrine or tomb of St. Sebald, and occupied Peter Vischer from 1508 to 1519, he being assisted by his five sons. The son Peter was admitted as a master in the thimble trade in 1527. Hans was called "the caster," and seems to have superintended the carving of models; Hermann went to Italy and brought home designs and models; and Jacob and Paul seem to have had no special departments. Between 1495 and 1508 so little was recorded of Peter Vischer that it leads to the belief that these years must have been given to study and to the improvement which the tomb of St. Sebald shows over the work of the monument to Archbishop Ernst, in the Magdeburg Cathedral, which was done in 1495.

The bones of St. Sebald had been inclosed in a sarcophagus of the Middle Ages, and the work required of Vischer was a fitting tomb for such precious and honored relics, for St. Sebald is the special patron saint of Nuremberg, and dwelt in a cell near that city. His legend relates that he was the son of a Danish king, who came to Germany as a missionary and settled at Nuremberg, where he did many miraculous works of charity. On one occasion, during very cold weather, he is said to have found a family nearly frozen and without fuel; he commanded them to bring the icicles hanging from the roof and make a fire of them. They obeyed, and were thus warmed. Many such wonders are told of him, and Vischer in his statue makes him to appear as a pilgrim, with shell in hat, staff, rosary and wallet, while in his hand he holds a model of a church intended to represent that in which the tomb is erected. This Church of St. Sebald is now used for the Lutheran service, and the shrine still stands in the centre of the choir. (Fig. 94.)



The architecture of this remarkable work is of the richest style of Gothic, and the whole of it is in bronze, except that the oaken sarcophagus is encased in silver plates. This rests beneath a fret-work canopy supported on slender pillars. There is an abundance of ornament everywhere, but the close examination of its detail shows beauty and fitness in every part. For example, if we compare the statue of the saint, of which we have spoken, which stands at the end of the shrine most exposed, with the statue of Vischer himself, which is at the opposite end, we shall see how the saint, with his symbols and his flowing drapery, is an ideal work, and seems to be advancing with authority and the air which befits the son of a king, while Vischer, with his round cap, leather apron, and German face, is simply the representation of a worker bent upon doing his best (Fig. 95).



The sarcophagus rests upon a base on which are four reliefs of scenes from the life of the saint, all in the purest manner of the time. One of these represents the burning of the icicles recounted above (Fig. 96).

This base and sarcophagus and the fret-work above it form the centre of the tomb. Then outside of this are eight pillars supporting a baldachin, or canopy, in the richly ornamented Romanesque style, and the combinations of the Gothic and the decorative architecture are so skilfully made as not to offend our taste. But it is generally acknowledged that the chief beauty of this work is the series of the figures of the apostles, which are upon the pillars. They are slender in proportion, gracefully draped, and bear their distinctive symbols. They are perfectly free from the realism of the earlier works of Vischer, and have more of the purity and nobleness of the works of Ghiberti than are seen in the statues of any other German artist of this age (Figs. 97, 98).



Above the apostles are figures of prophets and other Biblical personages; Perseus and Hercules are also represented, and other statues typify Strength, Justice, Prudence, and Moderation. The figure of the Infant Christ is upon the centre of the highest, or middle dome. Between the pillars at their bases stand graceful candelabra, and the base itself rests upon snails. Besides all these principal figures there are almost numberless others and many ornamental designs. There are harpies, sirens, satyrs, fawns, and all sorts of fantastic creatures. The whole work is full of the deep feeling of the north and the beauty and richness of the south, and is a most remarkable production.

We are told that Vischer was but poorly paid for this labor, with all its thought and skill. He inscribed upon it these words: "... He completed it for the praise of God Almighty alone, and for the honor of St. Sebald, Prince of Heaven, by the aid of pious persons, paid by their voluntary contributions." There is a satisfaction in remembering that Vischer lived ten years after this tomb was completed, and must have heard many praises of his work.

The later works of Vischer were a few reliefs and two important monuments at Aschaffenburg and Wittenberg. His sons Hans and Hermann executed a few monuments, which are done in the manner of their father, but do not equal him in design or finish. There are numerous works which must be regarded as productions of Vischer's studio and foundry of which we cannot give clear accounts, not knowing whether they were the earlier works of the father, or were executed by the sons or other pupils, of which he had many.



PANKRAZ LABENWOLF was one of Vischer's pupils, and completed the splendid lattice-work over the Town-hall which the master left unfinished; Labenwolf added some ornaments and coats-of-arms to it. In 1550 he cast the fountain in the court-yard of the same building, which is a graceful and creditable work; but another fountain in the vegetable market, behind the Frauenkirche, is truly original; the water flows from the mouths of two geese held under the arms of a peasant; the whole effect is droll and unique (Fig. 99).



You will remember how, about 1390, Claux Sluter, by his works in Dijon, had a great influence upon French sculpture. A century and more later this art in France was largely under the influence of Italian masters, who had been called into France by Francis I. and other patrons of art. Splendid works of sculpture were also imported from Italy, and the effect of the Italian Renaissance, which was so plainly seen upon the painting of France, was also at work upon its sculpture.

Where the sculptures were a part of an architectural decoration, as in the case of the choir screen in the cathedral at Amiens, and other like works, the change was not as complete as in cases where the work was one of independent sculpture, as in monuments and statues to commemorate the dead, or in portrait sculpture.

The wealth and power of the nobility of France at this period enabled them to gratify their desire to leave fine monuments of themselves, in order to keep their names in memory in future centuries. In these the Italian manner was adopted, and the works when completed were far more splendid and elegant than were the corresponding works in Germany. But they have a grave fault, which makes them much less interesting than are the German sculptures: they are more conventional, less expressive, and far less artistic in spirit. They impress one as if the soft, luxurious court atmosphere had passed over them, and taking away their strong points, had left them only a general air of being well-bred and well-kept persons, of little importance to the real life of the world.

In the Louvre, in the Museum of Modern Sculpture, all this change can be traced, and the traveller in France may see such monuments as we refer to in all the cathedrals and most of the churches all over the country. Many of them cannot be traced to any one master. A fine specimen is the Amboise Monument in Rouen Cathedral, which is said to have been the work of one Roulland de Roux and his assistants.

JEAN JUSTE of Tours was one of the best French artists of his day. In the Cathedral of Tours is a monument to two young children of Charles VIII., which proves him to have had much delicacy and tenderness of execution. The sarcophagus is covered with graceful designs, and on the lid lie the two babies, for the eldest was but three years old. The whole work is exquisite, and gives one a feeling of satisfaction.

About 1530 Juste erected the splendid monument to Louis XII. and Anne of Brittany in the Church of St. Denis. While the general form of the monument is much like that of the Visconti in the Certosa at Pavia, the figures of the dead couple are quite different from the Italian manner. Below on a bier the two nude bodies are stretched in all the realism possible, and the heads are noble and touching in expression. Above, on the upper part of the monument, where in Italy the patron saint or some other figure usually is placed, the king and queen again appear; they are kneeling, with full drapery about them, while the faces are characteristic and very expressive. This monument, taken all in all, is in the perfection of the French art of the time. Another work by Juste now in the Louvre is the monument to Louis de Poncher, one of the ministers of Francis I., and his wife, Roberta. These statues are in alabaster, and were formerly in the Church of St. Germain l'Auxerrois, which was built by Poncher.

PIERRE BONTEMPS must have been a famous sculptor, as he was chosen to erect the monument to Francis I., his wife Claude and their three children. This is also at St. Denis, and is even more grand than that to Louis XII. On the upper platform the five figures are kneeling; they are noble and simple, with an air of great repose. These examples serve to give an idea of the religious sculpture of the time.

Secular subjects were unusual. A house in Bourges is decorated with the figures of the master and mistress above the entrance, as if they would speak a welcome, while reliefs of industrial scenes, such as might be seen outside and inside of the house, are placed in various positions over the building and in the court-yard. Something of a like sort is upon the Hotel Bourgtheroulde at Rouen, where the friezes show scenes between Francis I. and Henry VIII. Biblical scenes are also distributed over the building.

Bruges is almost the only city of the Netherlands that has any sculptures of this period of which one would speak. Just at this time the art of that country was painting preeminently, and the Van Eycks and their followers had done such things as held the attention of all to the neglect of other arts. At Bruges in the cathedral, the Church of St. Jacques, and the Liebfrauenkirche there are some fine monuments, and the Palais de Justice has a carved chimney-piece which is magnificent, and a work of the highest rank.

In England sculpture was of less account even than in the Netherlands. One circumstance is worthy of notice. Pietro Torrigiano, after quarrelling with Michael Angelo and breaking his nose, fled to England, and his monument of Henry VII. and his queen in Westminster Abbey, erected in 1519, marks the introduction of the style of the Italian Renaissance into England. The structure is of black marble; the statues of the king and queen are in gilt bronze, and are grandly noble in design and finished in execution. The smaller figures and all the details of the monument are fine. The master received L1000 for this work. Torrigiano executed other works, and entered into an agreement to make a monument to Henry VIII. and Catherine of Aragon, but for some reason he went to Spain in 1519 and never returned, as he was destroyed by the Inquisition three years later.

It is probable that Torrigiano may have been led to Spain by hearing of the revival of art which was taking place there. Flemish and Italian artists went there, and the influence of their styles was felt by the native masters. The result was that they brought forth a manner of their own, combining certain features of northern and of southern art, and used to express the thoughts of the Spaniards themselves. The carved altars of Seville, Toledo, and Burgos show how splendid this art was; and though we cannot trace the lives and works of Spanish sculptors as we should like to do, we can be sure that there were men among them equal to any demand that could be made upon decorative sculptors.

This is proved by the portals and fronts of the churches, by the highly ornamented chapels, the wall niches and choir screens of the interiors, while the monuments are also equal to those of other nations. That of Ferdinand and Isabella in the Church of the Guardian Angel, at Granada, is noble and magnificent. It is believed to have been erected before the death of Ferdinand in 1516, and was probably the work of an Italian sculptor. This monument has a large marble sarcophagus, with a structure above it in the Renaissance style. At the corners of the sarcophagus there are griffins of excellent workmanship, and on the sides reliefs and statuettes of the Four Fathers of the Church; on the lid repose the figures of the royal pair, executed in a grand and dignified simplicity.



CHAPTER VII.

ITALIAN SCULPTURE IN THE SIXTEENTH CENTURY—CELLINI, MICHAEL ANGELO, AND OTHERS.

By the beginning of the sixteenth century sculpture occupied a different place with relation to architecture from that which it had held in the previous centuries which we have just considered. The architecture of Italy became much more plain, and its union with sculpture in any large degree was rare.

Painting, too, had now an effect to lessen the sphere of sculpture. This art was always preferred by the Christians, as has been shown before, and now, when it had reached most satisfactory heights, it was used in many places where sculpture had before been placed. One important example of this is seen in the decoration of altars; where bas-reliefs had been used paintings were now preferred, and the end of all was that sculpture was limited to monuments and to separate pieces—reliefs or single statues or groups of figures.

In some ways this separation of the arts was a benefit to all. Under the old rule sculptors had often been forced to sacrifice their design to the needs of the architecture their work adorned. At other times they were compelled to put aside their own feeling and their artistic ideas as to how a subject should be treated, and suit themselves to such forms as were approved by the particular priest or bishop whose church they decorated. Now, when left to itself, sculpture became more individual in its expression, and far more free and interesting in itself. In the beginning of the sixteenth century the works of Italian sculpture were splendid in the extreme. It was delicate and beautiful; the drapery was made to show the figure and its natural motion, while it added an exquisite grace to the whole; many works of this period were fine in conception, good in their arrangement, and executed in a noble, spirited manner. Some critics believe that during the first four decades of this era Italian sculpture equalled the antique art of the Romans. Others make 1520, or the time of Raphael, the limit to the best epoch of this art; but it is scarcely possible thus to fix an exact bound; the important point is that this excellence was reached, and the regret follows that it could not endure for a longer period.

A far greater variety of subjects was represented in this age of sculpture than before. Formerly the rule was the production of religious effects. Scenes from the life of Christ and his disciples, others from those of the saints, or the illustration of scriptural stories, with the portrait tomb-sculpture, had been the sculptor's work. Now all the stories of mythology were studied as diligently as they had been in classic days, and artists studied to clothe the pagan personages with new forms; and in all this effort much appeared that was original. It is easy to see that such sculpture from the hand of a Christian artist must lack the important element of pure sincerity. An artist who believed in Jesus Christ could not conceive a statue of Jupiter, with all the glorious attributes, that an ancient Greek would have given to his god of gods. In this view the sculpture of classic subjects of this sixteenth century may be said to have been two-sided—the work illustrated a religion in which the artist pleased his imagination, but for which he had no reverence or love. But in spite of all it was a golden age, and many of its works are a "joy forever."



Although the first public work which Leonardo Da Vinci did at Milan was to model an equestrian statue, we can scarcely speak of him as a sculptor. But the first Florentine of this period whom I shall mention is GIOVANNI FRANCESCO RUSTICI (1476-1550), who was a fellow-pupil with Leonardo under Verocchio. Very few works by this master remain, but a prominent and important one is the bronze group above the northern portal to the baptistery at Florence. It represents the "preaching of St. John The Baptist," and is grand in the free action of its figures. The Drapery is in a pure style, very much like that of Ghiberti (figs. 100, 101). This work was ordered by a guild of merchants, and they failed to pay the price which had been fixed for it. Rustici was so embarrassed by this that he undertook no more large works, and after the Medici were expelled from florence he went into the service of Francis I. in France he had executed various works, and was finally commissioned to model an equestrian statue of the king in colossal size, when the sovereign died. Rustici survived but three years, and we are told that he only executed small works, and those "for the most part for the sake of kindness."

ANDREA CONTUCCI DAL MONTE SAN SAVINO, called SANSOVINO (1460-1529), was a very important sculptor, because large works were committed to him, and his name must remain associated with them. Like Giotto, Sansovino was a shepherd-boy, and drew pictures upon the stones of the fields. Like Giotto, too, he was sent to Florence to study, and in the school of Pallajuolo made good progress. When thirty years old he was appointed architect and sculptor to the King of Portugal. After an absence of ten years he returned to Florence, and later to Rome, where Pope Julius II. commissioned him to erect monuments to the Cardinals Rovere and Sforza, in the Church of Santa Maria del Popolo.

These monuments were his best works, but they cannot be praised. The statues are in positions which seem to be uncomfortable, and there is such a mass of ornament and so many statuettes that the whole has an effect of confusion.

In 1513 Leo X. sent Sansovino to Loreto to adorn the temple which incloses the "Casa Santa" with bas-reliefs. This Casa Santa is believed to be the house in which the Virgin Mary was born at Nazareth; and when the Saracens invaded the land four angels are said to have borne the house to the coast of Dalmatia, and later to a spot near Loreto; but here some brigands entered it, and again it was removed to its present position in the Church of Loreto; this is said to have been done in 1295. Naturally this "Casa Santa" is a sacred object to all Roman Catholics, and it is visited by thousands and thousands of pilgrims each year.

The decoration of this shrine was very important, and an honorable work for any artist. Sansovino did not execute all the reliefs, and the highest praise that can be given to those he did is to say that they are superior to the others that are beside them. He was a most skilful workman, and it seems as if marble became like wax under his hand; but this very skill led him to multiply his ornaments, and to repeat acanthus leaves and honeysuckle vines until the whole was a weariness and confusion, and conveyed no meaning or sentiment whatever.

Sansovino's most important pupil was JACOPO TATTI, who, on account of his master, is called JACOPO SANSOVINO (1477-1570). He was born at Florence, and when Andrea Sansovino returned from Portugal Jacopo became his pupil. Early in life he went to Rome, and there studied and copied the works of antiquity; among other things he made a copy of the Laocoon, which was cast in bronze at a later time. Soon after his return to Florence, in 1511, Jacopo received orders for some works, but the most important statue which he made about this time is the Bacchus, now in the Uffizi. In this work he showed how completely he was in sympathy with the classic spirit; this Bacchus is a triumph in this manner, and has been called "the most beautiful and spirited pagan statue of the Renaissance period." It is full of gladness, and is simple, delicate, and beautiful. The young god is advancing and holding up a cup, which he regards with an expression of delight; in his right hand he has a bunch of grapes, from which a Pan is eating stealthily (Fig. 102).



In 1514 Jacopo Sansovino was employed upon the decorations for the visit of Leo X. to Florence. Soon after this he went again to Rome and submitted plans for the Church of San Giovanni de' Fiorentini, which the Florentines were about to erect—for this master was an architect as well as a sculptor. The taking of Rome by Constable de Bourbon, in 1527, drove Sansovino away; he went to Venice, intending to go to France, but Venice charmed him, and his work pleased the Venetians, and the result was that from 1529 he served the Venetians as long as he lived. He was appointed Protomastro of the Republic of Venice, and had the care of St. Mark's, the Campanile, the Piazza, and the surrounding buildings. He received a good salary, and was provided with a handsome house to live in.

He first restored the cupolas of St. Mark's; then completed the Scuola della Misericordia; he next made the interior of San Francesco della Vigna; then the Zecca, the Fabbriche Nuove, and the Loggietta of the Campanile. He also erected other churches and palaces, besides smaller sculptural works. But his architectural masterpiece was the Library of St. Mark's. The bronze gate to the Sacristy of St. Mark's was one of his principal works. It is subject to criticism as being too crowded; but it is a fine work and full of strong feeling.

His statues are numerous and seen all over Venice; indeed, it is proper to speak of him as a Venetian, so thoroughly did he adopt that city, and so industriously did he work for it during forty years. Had he remained in Florence he might have been a better artist; the splendor and luxury of the Venetians brought out corresponding traits in Jacopo, and he fell short of the purity which the influence of Florence might have given him. He is one of the masters in whom the sensual influence of the study of pagan art was fully manifested. Many of his subjects were mythological; among them were the story of Phrixos and Helle, Mercury, Apollo, Pallas, Mars, and Neptune, the last two being colossal figures on the steps of the Doge's Palace.

Among the pupils and associates of Sansovino were NICCOLO BRACCINI (1485-1550), called IL TRIBOLO, and FRANCESCO SANGALLO (1498-1570), neither of whom were important artists, though many works by them are seen in various places in Italy.

BENVENUTO CELLINI (1500-1572) is a far more interesting study than were many sculptors of his time. His life was an eventful one, and his own account of it is one of the most interesting books of its class in existence. His statement of the origin of his family is that "Julius Caesar had a chief and valorous captain named Fiorino da Cellino, from a castle situated four miles from Monte Fiascone. This Fiorino having pitched his camp below Fiesole, where Florence now stands, in order to be near the river Arno, for the convenience of the army, the soldiers and other persons, when they had the occasion to visit him, said to each other, 'Let us go to Fiorenza,' which name they gave to the place where they were encamped, partly from their captain's name of Fiorino, and partly from the abundance of flowers which grew there; wherefore Caesar, thinking it a beautiful name, and considering flowers to be of good augury, and also wishing to honor his captain, whom he had raised from an humble station, and to whom he was greatly attached, gave it to the city which he founded on that spot."

When this artist was born his father was quite old, and named him Benvenuto, which means welcome, on account of his pleasure in the child of his old age. The father had a passion for music, and from the first wished that his son should study this art; but the boy loved drawing, and was determined to be an artist; thus his time was divided between these two pursuits until he was fifteen years old, when he was apprenticed to a goldsmith.

Benvenuto had a fiery temper, and when still very young he became involved in so serious a quarrel that he was obliged to flee from Florence. He went first to Siena, and thence to Bologna, and at last back to Florence, where he resumed his work. It was not long, however, before he became angry again because his best clothes were given to his brother, and he walked off to Pisa, where he remained a year. He had even then become so skilful in his art that some of his works done there have never been excelled either in design or execution.

When Cellini was eighteen years old Torrigiano came to Florence to engage artists to go to England to aid him in some works he was to execute. He wished to have Cellini in the number; but Torrigiano so disgusted Benvenuto by his boasting of the blow that he had given Michael Angelo, that though he had the natural youthful desire to travel, he refused to be employed by such a man as Torrigiano. We can safely assume that this predisposed Michael Angelo in Cellini's favor, and was the foundation of the friendship which he afterward showed to the younger sculptor.

From his eighteenth to his fortieth year Cellini lived mostly at Rome. He was employed by Pope Clement VII., the cardinals and Roman nobles. The Pope desired to have a cope button made and a magnificent diamond set in it. This jewel had cost Julius II. thirty-six thousand ducats. Many artists sent in designs for this button, and Clement chose that by Cellini. He used the diamond as a throne, and placed a figure of the Almighty upon it; the hand was raised as if in blessing, and many angels fluttered about the folds of the drapery, while various jewels were set around the whole. When other artists saw the design they did not believe that it could be executed successfully; but Cellini made it a perfect work of art and of beauty.