as he lived at the time when Gualtieri was in Italy, we may be permitted to believe that they were done by Cavallini, and even in obedience to orders received from the duke himself. But let every one think as best pleases him of this matter. The work, as an old work, is not undeserving of praise; and the manner, as well as common report, makes it obvious that Pietro was the artist. In the church of Santa Maria, at Orvieto, where the most holy relic of the Corporale is preserved, Cavallini painted various events from the life of Christ, with stories of the sacred Host,* all executed with great care; and these he is said to have done for Messer Benedetto, son of Messer Buonconte Monaldeschi, then lord, or rather tyrant, of that city. Some affirm that Pietro also executed works in sculpture, and that he succeeded in this art extremely well; displaying, indeed, great talent in whatever he attempted. It is further said, that the crucifix, in the great church of San Paolo, without the walls of Rome, is by Cavallini ;† and this, as is asserted, and as we are bound to believe, is the very crucifix which spoke to St. Bridget in the year 1370.‡ There were certain other works, in the same manner, by this artist, in the church of St. Peter, but all were destroyed when the old building was demolished, to make way for the new church. Pietro Cavallini was diligent and careful in all his undertakings; he spared no effort for the acquirement of honour and fame as an artist; he was, moreover, a good man and devout Christian, most charitable to the poor, and much beloved for his excellence, not only in his native city of Rome, but by all who krew either himself or his works. In the latter years of his life he devoted himself so earnestly to religion, and lived so exemplary a life, that he was esteemed almost a saint. Therefore it need cause no wonder if the above-named crucifix, made by his hand, uttered words, as it is said to have done to St. Bridget, or that a figure of our Lady, also by him, should have performed, and Including the miracle of Bolseno; but this portion has suffered greatly, while the rest is still in good preservation. † Pistolesi maintains that a crucifix in wood, still to be seen in this church, is from the hand of Cavallini. This highly venerated crucifix is ascribed to Pietro Cavallini by the Abate Titi also, who supports his opinion by a quotation from Alberti.-Trattato della Pittura. still be performing, an infinite number of miracles. This last-mentioned work I do not intend to pronounce Cavallini's best, although it has so great a name throughout all Italy, but I am entirely and fully convinced, from the mode of its execution, that this picture is from the hand of Pietro,* whose most praiseworthy life, and piety towards God, were worthy to be imitated by all men. Nor let any one suppose that a man ever attains a truly honourable station, without purity of life and the fear of God, for that is well-nigh impossible, as our daily experience fully proves. Giovanni of Pistoja, who painted some pictures, but of no great importance, in his native city, was a disciple of Pietro Cavallini. The latter died at Rome, in the 85th year of his age, of pleurisy, caused by his labours in fresco, and by the damp to which he was exposed, in a too long continued exercise of his occupation. He painted about the year 1364, and was honourably interred in the church of St. Paul, without the walls of Rome, where the following epitaph was placed on his tomb: "Quantum Romanæ Petrus decus addidit urbi Pictura, tantum dat decus ipse polo." I have been unable to discover any likeness of this artist, in spite of all the pains I have taken for that purpose. † SIMON AND LIPPO MEMMI, PAINTERS, OF SIENA Most truly may those men be called happy who are by nature disposed to the cultivation of the arts, for not only may they derive great honour and profit therefrom in their It will be readily comprehended, that Pietro here speaks of that figure of the most holy Annunciation, which is still venerated in the church of the Servites, in Florence.-Bottari. See also Lanzi, vol. i, p. 332. † A portrait of Cavallini was discovered at a later period, and may be seen in the Bolognese edition of Vasari; the third namely, published in 1647. See Lanzi, History of Painting, vol. i, p. 278. lives, but what is more important, they secure never-dying fame. Still more fortunate are they who to such dispositions add a character and manners calculated to render them acceptable to all men; but happy above all men is he (I am here alluding to artists) who, with natural talent cultivated by education, with a noble disposition and refinement of manners, possesses also the advantage of living at the same time with any renowned author, from whom, in return for some little portrait, or similar expression of artistic courtesy, he obtains the reward of being once mentioned in his writings, thereby securing to himself eternal honour and fame. This advantage is above all to be desired by those who practise the arts of design, and most especially by the painter, since his work, lying simply on the surface, and being dependent on colours which cannot endure, may not hope for that perpetuity which is secured to the sculptor by his bronze and marble, as it is to the architect by the durability of his erections. Great, then, was the good fortune of Simon, in that he lived at the same time with Messer Francesco Petrarca, and that he further chanced to meet that love-devoted poet at the court of Avignon. For Petrarch, being desirous of possessing the image of his Madonna Laura from the hand of Maestro Simon, and having received it, beautiful as he could imagine or desire, at once immortalized the memory of the painter in two sonnets, one of which begins thus :-* "Per mirar Policleto a prova fiso Con gli altri, che ebber fama di quell' arte"; and the second commences as follows:- -† Quando giunse a Simon l'alto concetto, Ch'a mio nome gli pose in man lo stile." For it may be truly said that these Sonnets, and the mention made of the painter in the fifth book of Petrarch's familiar letters, and in the epistle beginning "Non sum nescius," have given more lustre to the poor life of Maestro Simon, than it has received, or ever will receive, from all his works.‡ * Sonnet xlix, or, in some editions lvi. † Sonnet 1, or lvii. The commentators do not agree with Vasari in this estimate of Simon Memmi, whom they place among the best painters of his day. But Vasari himself does Simon full justice in the sequel, These are indeed rapidly perishing, and must finally be lost, while the works of Petrarch shall survive to all eternity. Simon Memmi of Siena was nevertheless an excellent painter, highly distinguished in his day, and greatly esteemed at the court of the Pope. In so much that, after the death of his master Giotto, whom he had accompanied to Rome, at the time when the latter executed the Navicella in mosaic and other works, he attained high credit for his successful imitation of that artist's manner. This was more particularly exemplified in the execution of a Virgin in the portico of St. Peter, and in that of two figures, representing St. Peter and St. Paul,* on the wall between the arches of the portico on the outer side, and near the bronze Pine. Especial praise has been given to the portrait of a sacristan of St. Peter's, whom Simon has depicted in this work hurriedly kindling lamps before the saints, and the merit of the whole caused the artist to be summoned, with very pressing instances, to the court of Avignon, where he produced so many good pictures, both in fresco and distemper, that his works justified the name by which he had been preceded. Having then returned to Siena in high estimation, and being much favoured on that account, he was appointed by the Signoria to paint one of the halls of their Palace in fresco, the subject being a Virgin, with many figures around her, all which Simon executed admirably well, to his great honour and profit. And to prove that he could do no less in distemper than in fresco, he painted a pictureț in the same Palace, which caused his being appointed to paint two others in the cathedral, § with a third picture of the Virgin holding the Child *The figures of St. Peter and St. Paul have perished. That of the Virgin is now in the Grotte Scure. This colossal pine is mentioned by Dante, in the Inferno. It is now at the lower end of the Vatican garden, beneath an alcove erected by Bramante. This picture has long been lost. Of these two pictures, the first, painted in 1331, remained long in the sacristy of the cathedral, but was afterwards cut to pieces; and Della Valle mentions having seen relics of it in the Gallery of the Advocate Mariotti, in Rome. The second, an Annunciation, is now in the Gallery of the Uffizj. It bears the following inscription:-"SIMON MARTINI ET LIPPUS MEMMI DE SENIS ME PINXERUNT, A.D. 1333." This picture does not retain its primitive form. Two other pieces-figures of Sant' Ansano, and Santa Giulietta, both in the same gallery-also belong to it. in her arms, over the door of the superintendent's room in that church. The attitude of this figure is very beautiful, and the angels which support a standard and hover around the Virgin while they turn their eyes towards certain saints who stand below, display much grace, and infinitely increase the beauty of the work. When all this was completed, Simon was invited to Florence by the General of the Augustines, where he painted the chapterhouse of Santo Spirito, evincing wonderful powers of invention and admirable judgment in his figures and horses, more particularly in representing the Crucifixion, a work of which every part has been executed with mature consideration and extreme grace of manner. In this painting the thieves on the cross are seen expiring, the soul of the repentant thief being joyfully borne to heaven by the angels, while that of the impenitent departs, accompanied by devils, and roughly dragged by these demons to the torments of hell. Equal powers of invention and similar judgment are evinced by this master in the attitudes of other angels standing around the crucifix, and their grief is eloquently ex pressed by their bitter weeping, but remarkable above all is the manner in which these spirits seem visibly to cleave the air, while, turning almost in a circle, they still sustain the movement of their flight. We should indeed have much more satisfactory proof of the excellence of Simon in that work, had it not, in addition to the injuries received from time, been further spoiled by the monks of the convent in the year 1560 for these fathers, unable to use the chapterhouse on account of its humidity, constructed an arch to replace some worm-eaten wood-work, in doing which they ruined what little yet remained of this master's paintings About the same time Simon painted a picture of the Virgi with St. Luke and other saints, in distemper; this is now in the chapel of the Gondi in Santa Maria Novella, and bears the name of the master.† He also painted three of the walls of the chapter-house of Santa Maria Novella, a very successful work. On the first wall, over the door of entrance, he depicted the Life of San Domenico; and on that which * This fresco was not over the door of the superintendent's room in the cathedral, but on the front of the Petrucci palace. It was destroyed in the earthquake of 1798. + This picture was removed, to make way for a crucifix in wood, by Brunellesco (of which more hereafter); where it now is. cannot be ascertained. |