 CHAPTER 57 While the workshop for executing my Perseus was in building, I used to work in a ground floor room. Here I modeled the statue in plaster, giving it the same dimensions as the brawn was meant to have, and intending to cast it from this mould. But finding that it would take rather long to carry it out in this way, I resolved upon another expedient, especially as now a wretched little studio had been erected, brick on brick, so miserably built that the mere recollection of it gives me pain. So then I began the figure of Medusa and constructed the skeleton in iron. Afterwards I put on the clay, and when that was modelled, baked it. I had no assistance except some little shop boys, among whom was one of great beauty. He was the son of a prostitute called La Gambeta. I made use of the lad as a model, for the only books which teach this art are the natural human body. Meanwhile, as I could not do everything alone, I looked about for workmen in order to put the business quickly through, but I was unable to find any. There were indeed some in Florence who would willingly have come, but Ben Dinello prevented them, and after keeping me in want of aid a while, told the Duke that I was trying to entice his work-people because I was quite incapable of setting up so great a statue by myself. I complained to the Duke of the annoyance which the brute gave me, and begged him to allow me some of the labourers from the opera. My request inclined him to lend ear to Ben Dinello's calamities, and when I noticed that, I set about to do my utmost by myself alone. The labour was enormous, I had to strain every muscle night and day, and just then the husband of my sister sickened and died after a few days illness. He left my sister, still young, with six girls of all ages on my hands. This was the first great trial I endured in Florence, to be made the father and guardian of such a distressed family. CHAPTER XVIII In my anxiety that nothing should go wrong, I sent for two hand labourers to clear my garden of rubbish. They came from Ponte Vecchio, the one and old man of sixty years, the other a young fellow of eighteen. After employing them of about three days, the lad told me that the old man would not work, and that I had better send him away, since beside being idle, he prevented his comrade from working. The little I had to do there could be done by himself without throwing money away on other people. The youth was called Bernadino Manolini of Mugello. When I saw that he was so inclined to labour, I asked whether he would enter my service, and we agreed upon the spot. He groomed my horse, gardened, and soon assayed to help me in the workshop, with such success that by degrees he learned the art quite nicely. I never had a better assistant than he proved. Having made up my mind to accomplish the whole affair with this man's aid, I now let the Duke know that Bandonello was lying and that I could get on famously without his work people. Just at this time I suffered slightly in the loins, and being unable to work hard I was glad to pass my time in the Duke's wardrobe with a couple of young goldsmiths called John Pagolo and Domenico Pagini, who made a little golden cup under my direction. It was chased in bar relief with figures and other pretty ornaments, and his excellence cemented for the duchess to drink water out of. He furthermore commissioned me to execute a golden belt, which I enriched with gems and delicate masks and other fancies. The Duke came frequently into the wardrobe and took great pleasure in watching me at work and talking to me. When my health improved I had clay brought and took a portrait of his excellency considerably larger than life-size, which I modelled while he stayed with me for a pastime. He was highly delighted with this piece and conceived such a liking for me that he earnestly begged me to take up my working quarters in the palace, selecting rooms large enough for my purpose and fitting them up with furnaces and all I wanted, for he greatly enjoyed watching the processes of art. I replied that this was impossible. I should not have finished my undertakings in a hundred years. The duchess also treated me with extraordinary graciousness and would have been pleased if I had worked for her alone, forgetting Perseus and everything besides. I, for my part, while these vain favours were being showered upon me, knew only too well that my perverse and biting fortune could not long delay to send me some fresh calamity, because I kept ever before my eyes the great mistake I had committed while seeking to do a good action. I refer to my affairs in France. The King could not swallow the displeasure he felt at my departure, and yet he wanted me to return, if only this could be brought about without concessions on his part. I thought that I was entirely in the right and would not bend submissively, because I judged that if I wrote in humble terms those enemies of mine would say in their French fashion that I had confessed myself to blame and that certain misdoings with which they wrongfully tax me were proved true. Therefore I stood upon my honour and wrote in terms of haughty coldness, which was precisely what those two traitors, my apprentices, most heartily desired. In my letters to them I had boasted of the distinguished kindness shown me in my own birthplace by a Prince and Princess, the absolute masters of Florence. Whenever they received one of these dispatches they went to the King, and besieged his majesty within treaties for the castle upon the same terms as he had granted it to me. The King, who was a man of great goodness and perspicacity, would never consent to the presumptuous demands of those scoundrels since he scented the malignity of their aims. Yet, wishing to keep them in expectation and to give me the opportunity of coming back, he caused an angry letter to be written to me by his treasurer, Messer Giuliano Bonacorsi, a burger of Florence. The substance was as follows. If I wanted to preserve the reputation for honesty which I had hitherto enjoyed, it was my plain duty, after leaving France with no cause whatsoever, to render an account of all that I had done and dealt with for his majesty. The receipt of this letter gave me such pleasure that if I had consulted my own pallet I could not have wished for either more or less. I sat down to write an answer and filled nine pages of ordinary paper. In this document I described in detail all the works which I had executed, and all the adventures I had gone through while performing them, and all the sums which had been spent upon them. The payments had always been made through two notaries and one of his majesty's treasurers, and I could show receipts from all the men into whose hands they passed, whether for goods supplied or labor rendered. I had not pocketed one penny of the money, nor had I received any reward for my completed works. I brought back with me into Italy nothing but some marks of favour and most royal promises, truly worthy of his majesty. Now, though I cannot vaunt myself of any recompense beyond the salaries appointed for my maintenance in France, seven hundred golden crowns of which are still due, inasmuch as I abstained from drawing them until I could employ them on my return journey, yet knowing that malicious foes out of their envious hearts have played some naivish trick against me, I feel confident that truth will prevail. I take pride in his most Christian majesty and am not moved by avarice. I am indeed aware of having performed for him far more than I undertook, and albeit the promised reward has not been given me. My one anxiety is to remain in his majesty's opinion that man of probity and honour which I have always been. If your majesty entertains the least doubt upon this point I will fly to render an account of my conduct at the risk even of my life. But noticing in what slight esteem I am held, I have had no mind to come back and make an offer of myself, knowing that I shall never lack for bread whither soever I may go. If, however, I am called for, I will always answer. The letter contained many further particulars worthy of the king's attention, and proper to the preservation of my honour. Before dispatching it I took it to the duke, who read it with interest. Then I sent it into France addressed to the cardinal of Ferrara, Chapter Sixty. About this time Bernardone Baldini, broker in jewels to the duke, bought a big diamond from Venice which weighed more than thirty-five carats. Antonio, son of Vittorio Landi, was also interested in getting the duke to purchase it. The stone had been cut with a point, but since it did not yield the purity of luster which one expects in such a diamond, its owners had cropped the point, and in truth it was not exactly fit for either point or table cutting. Our duke, who greatly delighted in gems, though he was not a sound judge of them, held out good hopes to the rogue Bernadaccio that he would buy this stone, and the fellow, wanting to secure for himself alone the honour of palming it off upon the duke of Florence, abstained from taking his partner Antonio Landi into the secret. Now Landi had been my intimate friend from childhood, and when he saw that I enjoyed the duke's confidence he called me aside. It was just before noon at a corner of the Mercata Nuovo, and spoke as follows. Benvenuto, I am convinced that the duke will show you a diamond which he seems disposed to buy. You will find it a big stone. Pray assist the purchase. I can give it for seventeen thousand crowns. I feel sure he will ask your advice, and if you see that he has a mind for it, we will contrive that he secures it. Antonio professed great confidence in being able to complete the bargain for the jewel at that price. In reply I told him that if my advice was taken I would speak according to my judgment without prejudice to the diamond. As I have above related, the duke came daily into our goldsmith's workshop for several hours, and about a week after this conversation with Antonio Landi he showed me one day after dinner the diamond in question, which I immediately recognised by its description both as to form and weight. I have already said that its water was not quite transparent, for which reason it had been cropped. So when I found it of that kind and quality I felt certainly disinclined to recommend its acquisition. However, I asked his Excellency what he wanted me to say, because it was one thing for jewelers to value a stone after a prince had bought it, and another thing to estimate it with a view to purchase. He replied that he bought it, and that he only wanted my opinion. I did not choose to abstain from hinting what I really thought about the stone. Then he told me to observe the beauty of its great facets. I answered that this feature of the diamond was not so great a beauty as his Excellency supposed, but came from the point having been cropped. At these words my prince, who perceived that I was speaking the truth, made a wry face and bad me give good heed to valuing the stone and saying what I thought it worth. I reckon that since Landi had offered it to me for seventeen thousand crowns, the duke might have got it for fifteen thousand at the highest. So noticing that he would take it ill if I spoke the truth I made my mind up to uphold him in his false opinion, and handing back the diamond said, You will probably have paid eighteen thousand crowns. On hearing this the duke uttered a loud, Oh! opening his mouth as wide as a well, and cried out, Now am I convinced that you understand nothing about the matter. I retorted, You are certainly in the wrong there, my lord. Do you attend to maintaining the credit of your diamond, while I attend to understanding my trade? But pray tell me at least how much you paid, in order that I might learn to understand it according to the way of your Excellency. The duke rose, and with a little sort of angry grin replied, Twenty-five thousand crowns and more, Benvenuto, did that stone cost me. Having thus spoken he departed. Giovanni Pagolo and Domenico Pagini the goldsmiths were present, and Bacciacca, the embroiderer, who was working in an adjacent room, ran up at the noise. I told them that I should never have advised the duke to purchase it, but if his heart was set on having it, Antonio Landi had offered me the stone eight days ago for seventeen thousand crowns. I think I could have got it for fifteen thousand or less. But the duke apparently wishes to maintain his gem in credit, for when Antonio Landi was willing to let it go at that price, how the devil can Bernadone have played off such a shameful trick upon his Excellency. Never imagining that the matter stood precisely as the duke averred, we laughingly made light of his supposed credulity. CHAPTER 61 Meanwhile I was advancing with my great statue of Medusa. I had covered the iron skeleton with clay which I modelled like an anatomical subject, and about half an inch thinner than the bronze would be. This I baked well and then began to spread on the wax surface in order to complete the figure to my liking. The duke, who often came to inspect it, was so anxious lest I should not succeed with the bronze that he wanted me to call in some master to case it for me. He was continually talking in the highest terms of my acquirements and accomplishments. This made his major domo no less continually eager to devise some trap for making me break my neck. Now his post at court gave him authority with the chief constables and all the officers in the poor unhappy town of Florence. Only to think that a fellow from Prato, our hereditary fulmin, the son of a cooper and the most ignorant creature in existence, should have risen to such a station of influence merely because he had been the rotten tutor of Cosimo de Medici before he became duke. Well, as I have said, he kept ever on the watch to serve me some ill turn, and finding that he could not catch me out on any side, he fell at last upon this plan, which meant mischief. He betook himself to Gambetta, the mother of my apprentice Sencio, and this precious pair together, that nave of a pedant and that rogue of a strumpet, invented a scheme for giving me such a fright as would make me leave Florence in hot haste. Gambetta, yielding to the instinct of her trade, went out, acting under the orders of that mad, navish pedant, the major domo. I must add that they had also gained over the Bargello a bolognese whom the duke afterwards dismissed for similar conspiracies. Well, one evening after sunset Gambetta came to my house with her son and told me she had kept him several days indoors for my welfare. I answered that there was no reason to keep him shut up on my account, and laughing her hoarish arts to scorn, I turned to the boy in her presence and said these words, You know, Sencio, whether I have sinned with you. He began to shed tears and answered, No. Upon this, the mother, shaking her head, cried out at him, Ah, you little scoundrel, do you think I do not know how these things happen? Then she turned to me and begged me to keep the lad hidden in my house, because the Bargello was after him, and would seize him anywhere outside my house. But there they would not dare to touch him. I made answer that in my house lived my widowed sister and six girls of holy life, and that I wanted nobody else there. Upon that she related that the major domo had given orders to the Bargello, and that I should certainly be taken up. Only, if I would not harbour her son, I might square accounts by paying her a hundred crowns. The major domo was her crony, and I might rest assured that she could work him to her liking. Provided I paid down the hundred crowns. This cousinage goaded me into such a fury that I cried, Out with you, shameful strumpet, were it not for my good reputation, and for the innocence of this unhappy boy of yours here, I should long ago have cut your throat with a dagger at my side, and twice or thrice I have already clasped my fingers on the handle. With words to this effect, and many ugly blows to boot, I drove the woman and her son into the street. CHAPTER 62 When I reflected on the roguery and power of that evil-minded pedant, I had judged it best to give a wide berth to his infernal machinations. So early next morning I mounted my horse and took the road for Venice, leaving in my sister's hands jewels and articles to the value of nearly two thousand crowns. I took with me my servant Bernadino of Mughello, and when I reached Ferrara I wrote word to his excellence of the Duke that though I had gone off without being sent I should come back again without being called for. On arriving at Venice and pondering upon the diverse ways my cruel fortune took to torment me, yet at the same time feeling myself nonetheless sound and health and hearty, I made up my mind to fence with her according to my want. While thus engrossed in thoughts about my own affairs I went abroad for pastime through that beautiful and sumptuous city, and paid visits to the admirable painter Titian, and to the Jacopo del Sansovino, our able sculptor and architect from Florence. The latter enjoyed an excellent appointment under the Signoria of Venice, and we have been acquainted during our youth in Rome and Florence. These two men of genius received me with marked kindness. The day afterwards I met Monsieur Lorenzo de Medici, who took me by the hand at once giving me the warmest welcome which could be imagined, because we had known each other in Florence when I was coining for Duke Alessandro, and afterwards in Paris while I was in the King's service. At that time he sojourned in the house of Monsieur Giuliano Buonacorsi, and having nowhere else to go for pastime without the greatest peril of his life, he used to spend a large part of the day in my house, watching me working at the great pieces I produced there. As I was saying, our former acquaintance led him to take me by the hand and bring me to his dwelling, where I found the prior Dele Strozzi, brother of my Lord Piero. While making good cheer together they asked me how long I intended to remain in Venice, thinking that I was on my return journey into France. To these gentlemen I replied that I had left Florence on account of the events I have described above, and that I meant to go back after two or three days in order to resume my service with the Duke. On hearing this, the prior and Messer Lorenzo turned round on me with such sternness that I felt extremely uneasy. Then they said to me, you would do far better to return to France, where you are rich and well known, for if you go back to Florence you will lose all that you have gained in France and will earn nothing there but annoyances. I made no answer to these words and departed the next day as secretly as I was able, turning my face again towards Florence. In the meanwhile that infernal plot had come to a head and broken, for I had written to my great master the Duke, giving him a full account of the causes of my escapade to Venice. I went to visit him without any ceremony, and was received with his usual reserve and austerity. Having maintained this attitude a while, he turned toward me pleasantly and asked where I had been. I answered that my heart had never moved one inch from his most illustrious excellency, although some weighty reasons had forced me to go arroaming for a little while. Then, softening still more in manner, he began to question me concerning Venice, and after this wise we conversed some space of time. At last he bade me apply myself to a business, and complete his Perseus. So I returned home glad and light-hearted, and comforted my family, that is to say my sister and her six daughters. Then I resumed my work and pushed it forward as briskly as I could. CHAPTER 63 The first piece I cast in bronze was that great bust, the portrait of his excellency, which I had modelled in the Goldsmith's work-room while suffering from those pains in my back. It gave much pleasure when it was completed, though my sole object in making it was to obtain experience of clays suitable for bronze casting. I was, of course, aware that the admirable sculptor Donatello had cast his bronzes with the clay of Florence. Yet it seemed to me that he had met with enormous difficulties in their execution. As I thought that this was due to some fault in the earth, I wanted to make these first experiments before I undertook my Perseus. From then I learned that the clay was good enough, but had not been well understood by Donatello, in as much as I could see that his pieces had been cast with the very greatest trouble. Accordingly, as I have described above, I prepared the earth by artificial methods, and found it served me well, and with it I cast the bust. But since I had not yet constructed my own furnace, I employed that of Maestro Zanobi Tipaño, a bell founder. When I saw that this bust came out sharp and clean, I said it once to construct a little furnace in the workshop erected for me by the Duke, after my own plans and design, and the house which the Duke had given me. No sooner was the furnace ready than I went to work with all diligence upon the casting of Medusa, that is, the woman twisted in the heat beneath the feet of Perseus. It was an extremely difficult task, and I was anxious to observe all the niceties of art which I had learned, so as not to lapse into some error. The first cast I took in my furnace succeeded in the superlative degree, and was so clean that my friends thought I should not need to retouch it. It is true that certain Germans and Frenchmen who vaunt the possession of marvellous secrets pretend that they can cast bronzes without retouching them. But this is really nonsense, because the bronze, when it is first being cast, ought to be worked over and beaten in with hammers and chisels, according to the manner of the ancients, and also to that of the moderns. I mean such moderns as have known how to work in bronze. The result of this casting greatly pleased his Excellency, who often came to my house to inspect it, encouraging me by the interest he showed to do my best. The furious envy of Bandinello, however, who kept always whispering in the Duke's ears, had such effect that he made him believe my first success is with a single figure or two prove nothing. I should never be able to put the whole large piece together since I was new to the craft, and his Excellency ought to take good heed he did not throw his money away. These insinuations operated so efficiently upon the Duke's lustrous ears that part of my allowance for work-people was withdrawn. I felt compelled to complain pretty sharply to his Excellency, and having gone to wait on him one morning in the via-de-servie, I spoke as follows. My Lord, I do not now receive the monies necessary for my task, which makes me fear that your Excellency has lost confidence in me. Once more, then, I tell you that I feel quite able to execute this statue three times better than the model, as I have before engaged my word. CHAPTER 64 I could see that this speech made no impression on the Duke, for he kept silence. Then, seized with sudden anger and a vehement emotion, I began again to address him. My Lord, this city of a tooth has ever been the school of the most noble talents, yet, when a man has come to know what he is worth after gaining some acquirements and wishing to augment the glory of his town and his glorious prince, it is quite right that he should go and labour elsewhere. To prove the truth of these words I need only remind your Excellency of Donatello and the great Leonardo da Vinci in the past and of our incomparable Michelangelo Buonarroti in the present. They augment the glory of your Excellency by their genius. I, in my turn, feel the same desire and hope to play my part like them. Therefore, my Lord, give me the leave to go, but beware of letting Bandonello quit you, rather bestow upon him always more than he demands. For if he goes into foreign parts, his ignorance is so presumptuous that he is just the man to disgrace our most illustrious school. Now, grant me my permission, Prince. I ask no further reward for my labours up to this time than the gracious favour of your most illustrious Excellency. When he saw the firmness of my resolution he turned with some irritation and exclaimed, Benvenuto! If you want to finish the statue you shall lack for nothing. Then I thanked him and said I had no greater desire than to show those envious folk that I had it in me to execute the promised work. When I left his Excellency I received some slight assistance, but this not being sufficient I had to put my hand into my own purse in order to push the work forward at something better than a snail's pace. It was my custom to pass the evening in the Duke's wardrobe where Domenico Poggini and his brother Gianpagala work upon that golden cup for the Duchess and the girdle I have already been described. His Excellency had also commissioned me to make a little model for a pendant to set the great diamond which Bernardoni and Antonio Landy made him by. I tried to get out doing it, but the Duke compelled me by all sorts of kindly pressure to work until four hours after nightfall. He kept indeed enticing me to push this job forward by daytime also, but I would not consent, although I felt sure I should incur his anger. Now one evening I happened to arrive rather later than usual, whereupon he said, I'll come may you be. I answered, my lord, that is not my name, my name is welcome, but as I suppose your Excellency is joking I will add no more. He replied that, far from joking, he meant solemn earnest. I had better look to my conduct, for it had come to his ears, that I relied upon his favour to take in first one man and then another. I begged his most lustrous Excellency to name a single person who I had ever taken in. At this he flew into a rage and said, go, and give back to Bernardone what you have of his. There! I have mentioned one. I said, my lord, I thank you, and beg you to condescend so far as to listen to four words. It is true that he lent me a pair of old scales, two anvils, and three little hammers, which articles I begged his workmen, Giorgio de Cortona, fifteen days ago to fetch back. Giorgio came for them his health. If your Excellency can prove, on referring to those who have spoken these Calumnes or to others that I have ever, from the day of my birth till now, got any single thing by fraud from anybody, be it in Rome or be it in France, then let your Excellency punish me as moderately as you choose. When the Duke saw me in this mighty passion, he assumed the air of a prudent and benevolent lord saying, those words are not meant for well-doers, therefore, if it is as you say, I shall always receive you with the same kindness as here to fore. To this I answered, I should like your Excellency to know that the rascaldes of Bernardone compel me to ask, as a favour, how much that big diamond with the crop point cost you. I hope to prove on what account that scoundrel tries to bring me into disgrace. Then his Excellency applied. I paid twenty-five thousand ducats for it, why do you ask me? Because, my lord, on such day, at such an hour, in a corn of mercato nuovo, Antonio Landi, the son of Vittorio, begged me to induce your Excellency to buy it, and at my first question he asked sixteen thousand ducats for the diamond. Now your Excellency knows what it has cost you. Domenico Porgini and John Pagallo, whose brother who are present, will confirm my words, for I spoke to them at once about it, and since that time have never once alluded to the matter, because your Excellency told me I did not understand these things, which made me think you wanted to keep up the credit of your stone. I should like you to know, my lord, that I do understand, and that, as regards my character, I consider of myself no less honest than any man who ever lived upon this earth. I shall not try to rob you of eight to ten thousand ducats at one go, but shall rather seek to earn them by my industry. I entered the service of your Excellency as sculptor, goldsmith, and stamper of coin. But to blab about my neighbor's private matters—never. What I am now telling you, I say in self-defense, I do not want my fee for information. If I speak out in the presence of so many worthy fellows as are here, it is because I do not wish your Excellency to believe what Bernadoni tells you. When he had heard this speech, the duke rose up in anger, and sent for Bernadoni, who was forced to take flight as far as Venice. He and Antonio Landi with him. The latter told me that he had not meant that diamond, but was talking of another stone. So then they went and came again from Venice, whereupon I presented myself to the duke and spoke as follows. My Lord, what I told you is the truth, and what Bernadoni said about the tools he lent me is a lie. You had better put this to the proof, and I will go at once to the Bargello. The duke made answer, Benvenuto, do your best to be an honest man, as you have done until now. You have no cause for apprehension. So the whole matter passed off in smoke, and I heard not one more word about it. I applied myself to finishing his jewel, and when I took it to the Duchess, her grace said that she esteemed my setting quite as highly as the diamond which Bernadoccio had made them by. She then desired me to fasten it upon her rest, and handed me a large pin, with which I fixed it, and took my leave in her good favor. Afterwards I was informed that they had the stone reset by a German, or some other foreigner. Whether truly or not I cannot vouch upon Bernadoni's suggestion the diamond would show better in a less elaborate setting. CHAPTER 65 I believe have already narrated how Domenico and Giovanna Pagolla Poggini, goldsmiths and brothers, were at work in the duke's wardrobe upon some little golden vases, after my design, chased with figures in bar relief, and other ornaments of great distinction. I oftentimes kept saying to his excellency, my lord, if you will undertake to pay some work, people, I am ready to strike coins for your mint, and metals with your portrait. I am willing to enter into competition with the ancients, and feel able to surpass them. For since those early days, in which I made the metals of Pope Clement, I have learned so much that I can now produce far better pieces of the kind. I think I can also outdo the coins I struck for Duke Alessandro, which are still held in high esteem. In like manner I could make for you large pieces of gold and silver plate, as I did so often for that noble monarch, King Francis of France, thanks to the great conveniences he allowed me, without ever losing time for the execution of colossal statues or other works of the sculptor's craft. To this suggestion the duke replied, Go forward, I will see it. But he never supplied me with conveniences, or aid of any kind. One day his most illustrious excellency handed me several pounds weight of silver and said, This is some of the silver from my mines. Take it, and make a fine face. Now I did not choose to neglect my Perseus, and at the same time I wished to serve the duke. So I entrusted the metal, together with my designs and models and wax, to a rascal, called Piero di Martino, a goldsmith by trade. He set the work up badly, and moreover ceased to labor at it, so that I lost more time than if I had taken it in hand myself. After several months were wasted, and Piero would neither work nor put men to work upon the piece, I made him give it back. I moved heaven and earth to get back the body of the vase, which he had begun badly, as I have already said, together with the ramhanger of the silver. The duke, hearing something of these disputes, sent for the vase and the models, and never told me why or wherefore. Suffice it to say that he placed some of my designs in the hands of diverse persons at Venice and elsewhere, and was very ill-served by them. The duchess kept urging me to do goldsmith's work for her. I frequently replied that everybody, nay, all Italy knew well I was an excellent goldsmith, but Italy had not yet seen what I could do in sculpture. Among artists certain enraged sculptors laughed at me, and called me the new sculptor. Now I hope to show them that I am an old sculptor, if God shall grant me the boon of finishing my Perseus for that noble piazza of his most illustrious excellency. After this I shut myself up at home, working day and night, not even showing my face in the palace. I wished, however, to keep myself in favour with the duchess, so I got some little cups made for her in silver, no larger than two penny milk-pots chased with exquisite masks in the rarest antique style. When I took them to her excellency she received me most graciously, and repaid the gold and silver I had spent upon them. Then I made my suit to her, and prayed her tell the duke that I was getting small assistance for so great a work. I begged her also to warn him not to lend so ready an ear to Bandinello's evil tongue, which hindered me from finishing my Perseus. In reply to these lamentable complaints the duchess shrugged her shoulders and exclaimed, of assuredly the duke ought only too well to know that this Bandinello of his is worth nothing. CHAPTER 66 I now stayed at home, and went rarely to the palace, labouring with great diligence to complete my statue. I had to pay the workmen out of my own pocket for the duke, after giving La Tanzio gorini orders to discharge their wages at the end of about eighteen months, grew tired, and withdrew this subsidy. I asked La Tanzio why he did not pay me as usual. The man replied, gesticulating with those spidery hands of his in a shrill gnats voice, Why do you not finish your work? One thinks that you will never get it done. In a rage I up and answered, May the plague catch you and all who dare to think I shall not finish it. So I went home with despair at heart to my unlucky Perseus, not without weeping. When I remembered the prosperity I had abandoned in Paris under the patronage of that marvellous King Francis, where I had abundance of all kinds, and here had everything to want for. Many a time I had it in my soul to cast myself away for lost. One day, on one of these occasions, I mounted a nice nag I had, put a hundred crowns in my purse, and went to Fiazoli to visit a natural son of mine there, who was at nurse with my gossip, the wife of one of my work people. When I reached the house I found the boy in good health, and kissed him, very sad at heart. On taking leave he would not let me go, but held me with his little hands, in a tempest of cries and tears. Considering that he was only two years older thereabouts, the child's grief was something wonderful. Now I had resolved in the heart of my despair if I met Bandinello, who went every evening to a farm of his above San Domenico, that I would hurl him to destruction. So I disengaged myself from my baby, and left the boy there, sobbing his heart out. Taking the road toward Florence, just when I entered the piazza of San Domenico, Bandinello was arriving from the other side. On the instant I decided upon bloodshed, but when I reached the man and raised my eyes, I saw him unarmed, writing a sorry mule, or rather, donkey, and he had with him a boy of ten years old. No sooner did he catch sight of me than he turned the colour of a corpse, and trembled from head to foot. Perceiving at once how base the business would be, I exclaimed. Fear not, vile coward! I do not condescend to smite you. He looked at me submissively and said nothing. Thereupon I recovered command of my faculties, and thanked God that his goodness had withheld me from so great an act of violence. Then, being delivered from that fiendish fury, my spirits rose, and I said to myself, if God but grant me to execute my work, I hope by its means to annihilate all my scoundrely enemies, and thus I shall perform far greater and more glorious revenges than have I invented my rage upon one single foam. Having this excellent resolve in heart, I reached my home. At the end of three days news was brought me that my only son had been smothered by his nurse, my gossip, which gave me greater grief than I have ever had in my whole life. However, I knelt upon the ground, and not without tears returned thanks to God, as I was want, exclaiming, Lord, thou gavest me the child, and thou hast taken him. For all thy dealings I thank thee with my whole heart. This great sorrow went nigh to depriving me of reason. Yet, according to my habit, I made a virtue of necessity, and adapted myself to circumstances, as well as I was able. End of Section 13. Chapter 67 About this time, a young fellow named Francesco, the son of a smith, Matteo, left Bandinello's employment, and inquired whether I would give him work. I agreed, and sent him to retouch my medusa, which had been new, cast in bronze. After a fortnight, he mentioned that he had been speaking with his master, that is Bandinello, who told him if I cared to make a marble statue, he would give me a fine block of stone. I replied at once, Tell him I accept his offer. Perhaps this marble will prove a stumbling block to him, for he keeps on provoking me, and does not bear in mind the great peril he ran upon the piazza of San Domenico. Tell him I will have the marble by all means. I never speak about him, and the beast is perpetually causing me annoyance. I verily believe you came to work here at his orders for the mere purpose of spying upon me. Go then, and tell him I insist on having the marble, even against his will. See that you do not come back without it. Chapter 68 Many days had elapsed, during which I had not shown my face in the palace, when the fancy took me to go there one morning, just as the Duke was finishing his dinner. From what I heard, his Excellency had been talking of me that morning, commending me highly, and in particular, praising my skill in setting jewels. Therefore, when the Duchess saw me, she called for me by Messas Forza, and on my presenting myself to her most illustrious Excellency, she asked me to set a little point diamond in a ring, saying she wished always to wear it. At the same time, she gave me the measure and the stone, which was worth about a hundred crowns, begging me to be quick about the work. Upon this, the Duke began speaking to the Duchess and said, There is no doubt that Benvenuto was formerly without his peer in this art, but now that he has abandoned it, I believe it will be too much trouble for him to make a little ring of the sort you want. I pray you, therefore, not to impotune him about this trifle, which would be no trifle to him owing to his want of practice. I thanked the Duke for his kind words, but begged him to let me render this trifling service to the Duchess. Then I took the ring in hand and finished it within a few days. It was meant for the little finger. Accordingly, I fashioned four tiny children in the round and four masks, which figures composed the hoop. I also found room for some enamoured fruits and connecting links, so that the stone and setting went uncommonly well together. Then I took it to the Duchess, who told me graciously that I had produced a very fine piece, and that she would remember me. She afterwards sent the ring as a present to King Philip, and from that time forward kept charging me with commissions. So kindly, however, that I did my best to serve her, although I saw but very little of her money. God knows I had great need of that, for I was eager to finish my Perseus, and had engaged some journeymen whom I paid out of my own purse. I now began to show myself more often than I had been recently been doing. Chapter 69 It happened on one feast day that I went to the palace after dinner, and when I reached the clock room, I saw the door of the wardrobe standing open. As I drew nigh it, the Duke called me, and after a friendly greeting said, You are welcome. Look at that box which has been sent me by my Lord, Stefano of Palestrina. Open it, and let us see what it contains. When I had opened the box, I cried to the Duke. The Duke was highly delighted to find the statue so beautiful, and put me a multitude of questions saying, Tell me, Benvenuto, minutely, in what consists the skill of this old master, which so excites your admiration? I then attempted as well as I was able to explain the beauty of workmanship, the consummate science, and the rare manner displayed by the fragment. I spoke long upon these topics, and with the greater pleasure because I saw that his excellency was deeply interested. Chapter 70 While I was thus pleasantly engaged in entertaining the Duke, a page happened to leave the wardrobe, and at the same moment Bandinello entered. When the Duke saw him, his countenance contracted, and he asked him dryly, What are you about here? Bandinello, without answering, cast a glance upon the box with the statue lay uncovered. Then breaking into one of his malignant laughs and wagging his head, he turned to the Duke and said, My Lord, this exactly illustrates the truth of what I have so often told your excellency. You must know that the ancients were wholly ignorant of anatomy, and therefore their works abound in mistakes. I kept silence, and paid no heed to what he was saying. Nay indeed, I had turned my back on him. But when the brute had brought his disagreeable babble to an end, the Duke exclaimed, Oh Benvenuto, this is the exact opposite of what you were just now demonstrating with so many excellent arguments. Come and speak a word in defense of the statue. In reply to this appeal, so kindly made me by the Duke I spoke as follows. My Lord, your most illustrious excellency was pleased to know that Bacchio Bandinello is made up of everything bad, and thus has he ever been. Therefore, whatever he looks at, be the thing superlatively excellent, becomes in his ungracious eyes as bad as can be. I, who incline to the good only, discern the truth with pure ascents. Consequently, what I told your excellency about this lovely statue is mere simple truth, whereas what Bandinello said is but a portion of the evil out of which he is composed. The Duke listened with much amusement, but Bandinello writhed and made the most ugly faces, his face itself being by nature hideous beyond measure, which could be imagined by the mind of man. The Duke at this point moved away and proceeded through some ground floor rooms, while Bandinello followed. The chamberlains twitched me by the mantle and sent me after. So we all attended the Duke until he reached a certain chamber, where he seated himself, with Bandinello and me standing at his right hand and his left. I kept silence, and the gentleman of his excellency's suite looked hard at Bandinello, tittering among themselves about the speech I had made in the room above. So then Bandinello again began to chatter and cried out, Prince, when I uncovered my Hercules and Cacus, I verily believe a hundred sonnets were written on me, full of the worst abuse which could be invented by the ignorant rabble. I rejoined Prince, when Michele and Yolo Bonarotti displayed a sacristy to view, with so many fine statues in it. The men of talent in our admirable school of Florence, always appreciative of truth and goodness, published more than a hundred sonnets, each vying with his neighbour to extol these masterpieces to the skies. So then, just as Bandinello's work deserved all the evil which he tells was then said about it, Bonarotti's deserved the enthusiastic praise which was bestowed upon it. These words of mine made Bandinello burst with fury. He turned on me and cried, and you, what have you got to say against my work? I will tell you if you have the patience to hear me out. Go along then, he replied. Did you can his attendants prepare themselves to listen? I began and opened my ration thus. You must know that it pains me to point out the faults of your statue. I shall not, however, utter my own sentiments, but shall recapitulate what our most virtuous school of Florence says about it. The brutal fellow kept making disagreeable remarks and gesticulating with his hands and feet, until he enraged me so that I began again and spoke far more rudely than I should otherwise have done if he had behaved with decency. Well then, this virtuous school says that if one were to shave the hair of your Hercules, there would be not skull enough left to hold his brain. It says that it is impossible to distinguish whether his features are those of a man or of something between a lion and an ox. The face, too, is turned away from the action of the figure and is so badly set upon the neck, with such poverty of art and so ill a grace that nothing worse was ever seen. His sprawling shoulders are like the two pommels of an ass's pack-sidle. His breasts and all the muscles of the body are not portrayed from a man, but from a big sack full of melons set upright against a wall. The loins seem to be modelled from a bag of lanky pumpkins. Nobody can tell how his two legs are attached to that vile trunk. It is impossible to say on which leg he stands or which he uses to exert his strength. Nor does he seem to be resting upon both, as sculptors who know something of their art have occasionally set the figure. It is obvious that the body is leaning forward more than one-third of a cubit, which alone is the greatest and most insupportable fault committed by vulgar, commonplace pretenders. Concerning the arms, they say that these are both stretched out without one touch of grace or one real spark of artistic talents, just as if you had never seen a naked model. Again, the right leg of Hercules and that of Kakos have got one mass of flesh between them, so that if they were to be separated, not only one of them, but both together, would be left without a calf at the point where they are touching. They say too that Hercules has one of his feet underground, while the other seems to be resting on hot coals. Chapter 71 The fellow could not stand quiet to hear the damning errors of his Kakos in their turn enumerated. For one thing I was telling the truth. For another, I was unmasking him to the Duke and all the people present, who showed by face and gesture, first their surprise, and next their conviction that what I said was true. All at once he burst out, ah, you slanderous tongue, why don't you speak about my design. I retorted, a good draftsman can never produce bad works, therefore I am inclined to believe that your drawing is no better than your statues. When he saw the amused expression on the Duke's face and the cutting gestures of the bystanders, he let his insolence get the better of him and turned to me with that most hideous face of his, screaming aloud, oh, hold your tongue, you ugly. At these words the Duke frowned and the others pursed their lips up and looked with knitted brows toward him. The horrible affront half maddened me with fury, but in a moment I recovered presence of mind enough to turn it off with a jest. You madman, you exceed the bounds of decency. Yet would to God that I understood so noble an art as you allude to, they say that Jove used it with Ganymede in Paradise, and here upon this earth it is practiced by some of the greatest emperors and kings. I, however, am but a poor humble creature who neither have the power nor the intelligence to perplex my wits with anything so admirable. When I had finished this speech, the Duke and his attendants could control themselves no longer, but broke into such shouts of laughter that one never heard the like. You must know, gentle readers, that though I put on this appearance of pleasantry, my heart was bursting in my body to think that a fellow, the foulest villain who ever breathed, should have dared in the presence of so great a prince to cast an insult of that atrocious nature in my teeth. But you must also know that he insulted the Duke and not me, for had I not stood in that august presence I should have felled him dead to earth. When the dirty, stupid scoundrel observed that those gentlemen kept on laughing, he tried to change the subject, and divert them from deriding him, so he began as follows, this fellow Benvenuto goes about boasting that I have promised him a piece of marble. I took him up at once. What? Did you not send to tell me by your journeyman Francesco that if I wished to work in marble you would give me a block? I accepted it, and mean to have it. He retorted, they very well assured that you will never get it. Still smarting as I was under the columnar's insults he had flung at me, I lost my self-control. Forgot I was in the presence of the Duke, and called out in a storm of fury. I swear to you that if you do not send the marble to my house, you had better look out for another world, for if you stay upon this earth I will most certainly rip the wind out of your carcass. Then, suddenly awaking to the fact that I was standing in the presence of so great a Duke, I turned submissively to his Excellency and said, My Lord, one fool makes a hundred. The follies of this man have blinded me for a moment to the glory of your most illustrious Excellency and to myself. I humbly crave your pardon. Then the Duke said to Bandinello, Is it true that you promised him the marble? He replied that it was true. Upon this the Duke addressed me, go to the opera, and choose a piece according to your taste. I demurred that the man had promised to send it home to me. The words that passed between us were awful, and I refused to take the stone in any other way. Next morning, a piece of marble was brought to my house. On asking who had sent it, they told me it was Bandinello and that this was the very block which he had promised. Chapter 72 I had it brought at once into my studio, and began to chisel it. While I was rough hewing the block, I made a model. But my eagerness to work in marble was so strong that I had not patience to finish the model as correctly as this art demands. I soon noticed that the stone rang false beneath my strokes, which made me oftentimes repent commencing on it. Yet I got what I could out of the piece, that is, the Apollo and Hyacinth, which may still be seen and finished in my workshop. While I was thus engaged, the Duke came to my house and often said to me, leave your bronze a while and let me watch you working on the marble. Then I took chisel and mallet and went at it blithely. He asked about the model I had made for my statue, to which I answered, Duke, this marble is all cracked, but I shall carve something from it in spite of that. Therefore, I have not been able to settle the model, but shall go on doing the best I can. His Excellency sent to Rome post-haste for a block of Greek marble in order that I might restore his antique ganymede, which was the cause of that dispute with Bandinello. When it arrived, I thought it a sin to cut it up for the head and arms and other bits wanting in the ganymede, so I provided myself with another piece of stone and reserved the Greek marble for a Narcissus which I modeled on a small scale in wax. I found that the block had two holes, penetrating to the depth of a quarter of a cubit and two good inches wide. This led me to choose the attitude which may be noticed in my statue, avoiding the holes and keeping my figure free from them. But rain had fallen scores of years upon the stone, filtering so deeply from the holes into its substance that the marble was decayed. Of this I had full proof at the time of a great inundation of the Arno when the river rose to the height of more than a cubit and a half in my workshop. Now the Narcissus stood upon a square of wood and the water overturned it, causing the statue to break into above the breasts. I had to join the pieces and in order that the line of breakage might not be observed, I wreathed that garland of flowers round it which may still be seen upon the bosom. I went on working at the surface, employing some hours before sunrise, or now and then on feast days, so as not to lose the time I needed for my Perseus. It so happened on one of those mornings while I was still getting some little chisels into trim to work on the Narcissus that a very fine splinter of steel flew into my right eye and embedded itself so deeply in the pupil that it could not be extracted. I thought for certain I must lose the sight of that eye. After some days I sent for my astro Raffaello De Pili, the surgeon who obtained a couple of life pigeons and placing me upon my back across a table took the birds and opened a large vein they have beneath the wing so that the blood gushed out into my eye. I felt immediately relieved and in the space of two days the splinter came away and I remained with my eyesight greatly improved. Against the feast of Santa Lucia which came around in three days I made a golden eye out of a French crown and had it presented at her shrine by one of my six nieces daughters of my sister Lippurata. The girl was 10 years of age and in her company I returned thanks to God and Santa Lucia. For some while afterwards I did not work at the Narcissus but pushed my Perseus forward under all the difficulties I have described. It was my purpose to finish it and then to bid farewell to Florence. End of section 14 Section 15 of autobiography of Benvenuto Cellini Part 2 This is a LibriVox recording All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain. For more information or to volunteer please visit LibriVox.org Recording by Sue Anderson Autobiography of Benvenuto Cellini Part 2 Section 15 Chapter 73 through 77 Chapter 73 Having succeeded so well with the cast of the Medusa I had great hope of bringing my Perseus through for I had laid the wax on and felt confident that it would come out in bronze as perfectly as the Medusa. The wax and model produced so fine an effect that when the Duke saw it and was struck with its beauty whether somebody had persuaded him it could not be carried out with the same finish in metal or whether he thought so for himself he came to visit me more frequently than usual and on one occasion said Benvenuto this figure cannot succeed in bronze the laws of art do not admit of it. These words of his Excellency stung me so sharply that I answered my lord I know how very little confidence you have in me and I believe the reason of this is that your most illustrious Excellency lends too ready an ear to my colluminators or else indeed that you do not understand my art. He hardly let me close the sentence when he broke in I profess myself a connoisseur and understand it very well indeed I replied yes like a prince not like an artist for if your Excellency understood my trade as well as you imagine you would trust me on the proofs I have already given these are first the colossal bronze bust of your Excellency which is now an Elba secondly the restoration of the Ganymede in marble which offered so many difficulties and cost me so much trouble that I would rather have made the whole statue new from the beginning thirdly the Medusa cast by me in bronze here now before your Excellency's eyes the execution of which was a greater triumph of strength and skill than any of my predecessors in this fiendish art have yet achieved look you my lord I constructed that furnace anew on principles quite different from those of other founders in addition to many technical improvements and ingenious devices I supplied it with two issues for the metal because this difficult and twisted figure could not otherwise have come out perfect it is only owing to my intelligent insight into means and appliances that the statue turned out as it did a triumph judged impossible by all the practitioners of this art I should like you furthermore to be aware my lord for certain that the sole reason why I succeeded with all those great arduous works in France under the most admirable majesty king Francis was the high courage which that good monarch put into my heart by the liberal allowances he made me and the multitude of work people he left at my disposal I could have as many as I asked for and employed at times above forty all chosen by myself these were the causes of my having there produced so many masterpieces in so short a space of time now then my lord put trust in me supply me with the aid I need I am confident of being able to complete a work which will delight your soul but if your excellency goes on disheartening me and does not advance me the assistance which is absolutely required neither I nor any man alive upon this earth can hope to achieve the slightest thing of value chapter seventy-four it was as much as the duke could do to stand by and listen to my pleadings he kept turning first this way and then that while I in despair poor wretched I was calling up remembrance of the noble state I held in France to the great sorrow of my soul all at once he cried come tell me Benvenuto how is it possible that yonder splendid head of Medusa so high up there in the grasp of Perseus should ever come out perfect I replied upon the instant look you now my lord if your excellency possessed that knowledge of the craft which you affirm you have you would not fear one moment for the splendid head you speak of there is good reason on the other hand to feel uneasy about this right foot so far below and at a distance from the rest when he heard these words the duke turned half in anger to some gentleman in waiting and exclaimed I verily believe that this Benvenuto prides himself on contradicting everything one says then he faced round to me with a touch of mockery upon which his attendance did the like and began to speak as follows I will listen patiently to any argument you can possibly produce in explanation of your statement which may convince me of its probability I said an answer I will adduce so sound an argument that your excellency shall perceive the full force of it so I began you must know my lord that the nature of fire is to ascend and therefore I promise you that Medusa's head will come out famously but since it is not in the nature of fire to descend and I must force it downward six cubits by artificial means I assure your excellency upon this most convincing ground of proof that the foot cannot possibly come out it will however be quite easy for me to restore it why then said the duke did you not devise it so that the foot should come out as well as you affirm the head will I answered I must have a much larger furnace with a conduit as thick as my leg so I might have forced the molten metal by its own weight to descend so far now my pipe which runs six cubits to the statue's foot as I have said is not thicker than two fingers however it was not worth the trouble and expense to make a larger for I shall easily be able to mend what is lacking but when my mold is more than half full as I expect from this middle point upwards the fire ascending by its natural property then the heads of Perseus and Medusa will come out admirably you may be quite sure of it after I had thus expounded these convincing arguments together with many more of the same kind which it would be tedious to set down here the Duke shook his head and departed without further ceremony Chapter 75 abandoned thus to my own resources I took new courage and banished the sad thoughts which kept recurring to my mind making me often weep bitter tears of repentance for having left France for though I did so only to revisit Florence my sweet birthplace in order that I might charitably sucker my six nieces this good action as I well perceived had been the beginning of my great misfortune nevertheless I felt convinced that when my Perseus was accomplished all these trials would be turned to high felicity and glorious well-being accordingly I strengthened my heart and with all the forces of my body and my purse employing what little money still remained to me I set to work first I provided myself with several loads of pinewood from the forests of Sarastory in the neighborhood of Monte Luppo while these were on their way I clothed my Perseus with the clay which I had prepared many months beforehand in order that it might be duly seasoned after making its clay tunic for that is the term used in this art and properly arming it and fencing it with iron girders I began to draw the wax out by means of a slow fire this melted and issued through numerous air vans I had made for the more there are these the better will the mold fill when I had finished drawing off the wax I constructed a funnel-shaped furnace all around the model of my Perseus it was built of bricks so interlaced the one above the other that numerous apertures were left for the fire to exhale at then I began to lay on wood by degrees and kept it burning two whole days and nights at length when all the wax was gone and the mold was well baked I set to work at digging the pit in which to sink it this I performed with scrupulous regard to all the rules of art when I had finished that part of my work I raised the mold by windlesses and stout ropes to a perpendicular position and suspending it with the greatest care one cubit above the level of the furnace so that it hung exactly above the middle of the pit I next lowered it gently down into the very bottom of the furnace and had it firmly placed with every possible precaution for its safety when this delicate operation was accomplished I began to bank it up with the earth I had excavated and ever as the earth grew higher I introduced its proper air vents which were little tubes of earthenware such as folk used for drains and such like purposes at length I felt sure that it was admirably fixed and that the filling in of the pit and the placing of the air vents had been properly performed I also could see that my work people understood my method which differed very considerably from that of all the other masters in the trade feeling confident then that I could rely upon them I next turned to my furnace which I had filled with numerous pigs of copper and other bronze stuff the pieces were piled according to the laws of art that is to say resting one upon the other that the flames could play freely through them in order that the metal might heat and liquefy the sooner at last I called out heartily to set the furnace going the logs of pine were heaped in and what with the unctuous resin of the wood and the good draught I had given my furnace worked so well that I was obliged to rush from side to side to keep it going the labor was more than I could stand yet I forced myself to strain every nerve and muscle to increase my anxieties the workshop took fire and we were afraid lest the roof should fall upon our heads while from the gardens such a storm of wind and rain kept blowing in that it perceptibly cooled the furnace battling thus with all these untoward circumstances for several hours and exerting myself beyond even the measure of my powerful constitution I could at last bear up no longer and a sudden fever of the utmost possible intensity attacked me I felt absolutely obliged to go and fling myself upon my bed sorely against my will having to drag myself away from the spot I turned to my assistants about ten or more in all what with master founders hand workers country fellows and my own special journeymen among whom was Bernadino Manolini of Mugello my apprentice through several years to him in particular I spoke look my dear Bernadino that you observe the rules which I have taught you do your best with all dispatch for the metal will soon be fused you cannot go wrong these honest men will get the channels ready you will easily be able to drive back the two plugs with this pair of iron crooks and I am sure that my mold will fill miraculously I feel more ill than I ever did in all my life and verily believe that it will kill me before a few hours are over thus with despair at heart I left them and betook myself to bed Chapter 76 No sooner had I got to bed than I ordered my serving maids to carry food and wine for all the men into the workshop at the same time I cried I shall not be alive tomorrow they tried to encourage me arguing that my illness would pass over since it came from excessive fatigue in this way I spent two hours battling with the fever which steadily increased and calling out continually I feel that I am dying my housekeeper who was named Monofiore da Castel del Rio a very notable manager and no less warm-hearted kept chiding me for my discouragement but on the other hand she paid me every kind attention which was possible however the sight of my physical pain and moral dejection so affected her that in spite of that brave heart of hers she could not refrain from shedding tears and yet so far as she was able she took good care I should not see them while I was thus terribly afflicted I beheld the figure of a man into my chamber twisted in his body into the form of a capital S he raised a lamentable doleful voice like one who announces their last hour to men condemned to die upon the scaffold and spoke these words oh benvenuto your statue is spoiled and there is no hope whatever of saving it no sooner had I heard the shriek of that wretch that I gave a howl which might have been heard from the sphere of flame jumping from my bed I seized my clothes and began to dress the maids and my lads and everyone who came around to help me got kicks or blows of the fist while I kept crying out in lamentation ah traitors enviers this is an act of treason done by malice perpents but I swear by God that I will sift it to the bottom and before I die will leave such witness to the world of what I can do as shall make a score of mortals marvel when I had got my clothes on I strode with soul bent on mischief toward the workshop there I beheld the men whom I had left air-while in such high spirits standing stupefied and downcast I began at once and spoke up with you attend to me since you have not been able or willing to obey the directions I gave you obey me now that I am with you to conduct my work in person let no one contradict me for in cases like this we need the aid of hand and hearing not of advice when I had uttered these words a certain maestro alessandro lastricati broke silence and said look you benvenuto you are going to attempt an enterprise which the laws of art do not sanction and which cannot succeed I turned upon him with such fury and so full of mischief that he and all the rest of them exclaimed with one voice on then give orders we will obey your least commands so long as life is left in us I believe they spoke thus feelingly because they thought I must fall shortly dead upon the ground I went immediately to inspect the furnace and found that the metal was all curdled an accident which we expressed by being caked I told two of the hands to cross the road and fetch from the house of the butcher capretta a load of young oakwood which had lain dry for above a year this wood had been previously offered me by madame genevera wife of the said capretta so soon as the first armfuls arrived I began to fill the grate beneath the furnace now oakwood of that kind heats more powerfully than any other sort of tree and for this reason for a slow fire is wanted as in the case of gun foundry alder or pine is preferred accordingly when the logs took fire oh how the cake began to stir beneath that awful heat to glow and sparkle in a blaze at the same time I kept stirring up the channels and sent men upon the roof to stop the conflagration which had gathered force from the increase combustion in the furnace also I caused boards carpets and other hangings to be set up against the garden in order to protect us from the violence of the rain Chapter 77 when I had thus provided against these several disasters I roared out first to one man and then to another bring this thing here take that thing there at this crisis when the whole gang saw the cake was on the point of melting they did my bidding each fellow working with the strength of three I then ordered half a pig of pewter to be brought which weighed about 60 pounds and flung it into the middle of the cake inside the furnace by this means and by piling on wood and stirring now with pokers and now with iron rods the curdled mass rapidly began to liquefy then knowing I had brought the dead to life again against the firm opinion of those ignoramuses I felt such vigor fill my veins that all those pains of fever all those fears of death were quite forgotten all of a sudden an explosion took place attended by a tremendous flash of flame as though a thunderbolt had formed and been discharged amongst us unwanted an appalling terror astonished everyone and me more even than the rest when the din was over and the dazzling light extinguished we began to look each other in the face then I discovered that the cap of the furnace had blown up and the bronze was bubbling over from its source beneath so I had the mouths of my mold immediately opened and at the same time drove in the two plugs which kept back the molten metal but I noticed that it did not flow as rapidly as usual the reason being probably that the fierce heat of the fire we kindled had consumed its base alloy accordingly I sent for all my pewter platters porringers and dishes to the number of some two hundred pieces and had a portion of them cast one by one into the channels the rest into the furnace this expedience succeeded and everyone could now perceive that my bronze was in most perfect liquid faction and my mold was filling whereupon they all with heartiness and happy cheer assisted and obeyed my bidding while I now here now there helped with my own hands and cried aloud oh God thou that by thy immeasurable power didst rise from the dead and in thy glory didst ascend to heaven even thus in a moment my mold was filled and seeing my work finished I fell upon my knees and with all my heart gave thanks to God after all was over I turned to a plate of salad on a bench there and ate with hearty appetite and drank together with the whole crew afterwards I retired to bed healthy and happy for it was now two hours before morning and slept as sweetly as though I had never felt a touch of illness my good housekeeper without my giving any orders had prepared a fat capon for my repast so that when I rose about the hour for breaking fast she presented herself with a smiling countenance and said oh is that the man who felt he was dying upon my word I think the blows and kicks you dealt us last night when you were so enraged and had that demon in your body as it seemed must have frightened away your mortal fever the fever feared that it might catch it too as we did all my poor household relieved in like measure from anxiety and overwhelming labor went at once to buy earthen vessels in order to replace the pewter I had cast away then we dined together joyfully nay I cannot remember a day in my whole life when I dined with greater gladness or a better appetite after our meal I received visits from the several men who had assisted me they exchanged congratulations and thanked God for our success saying they had learned and seen things done which other masters judged impossible I too grew somewhat glorious and deeming I had shown myself a man of talent indulged a boastful humor so I thrust my hand into my purse and paid them all to their full satisfaction that evil fellow my mortal foe Mr. Pierre Francesco Ricci Major Domo of the Duke took great pains to find out how the affair had gone in answer to his questions the two men whom I suspected of having caked my metal for me said I was no man but of a certainty some powerful devil since I had accomplished what no craft of the art could do indeed they did not believe a mere ordinary fiend could work such miracles as I in other ways had shown they exaggerated the whole of fair so much possibly in order to excuse their own part in it that the Major Domo wrote an account to the Duke who was then in Pisa far more marvelous and full of thrilling incidents than what they had narrated end of section 15 section 16 of autobiography of Benvenuto Cellini part 2 this is a LibriVox recording all LibriVox recordings are in the public domain for more information or to volunteer please visit LibriVox.org autobiography of Benvenuto Cellini part 2 section 16 chapter 78 through 83 chapter 78 after I had let my statue cool for two whole days I began to uncover it by slow degrees the first thing I found was that the head of Medusa had come out most admirably thanks to the air vents for as I had told the Duke it is the nature of fire to ascend upon advancing farther I discovered that the other head that namely of Perseus had succeeded no less admirably and this astonished me far more because it is at a considerably lower level than that of the Medusa now the mouths of the mold were placed above the head of Perseus and behind his shoulders and I found that all the bronze my furnace contained had been exhausted in the head of this figure it was a miracle to observe that not one fragment remained in the orifice of the channel and that nothing was wanting in the statue in my great astonishment I seem to see in this the hand of God arranging and controlling all I went on uncovering the statue with success and ascertained that everything had come out in perfect order until I reached the foot of the right leg on which the statue rests there the heel itself was formed and going farther I found the foot apparently complete this gave me great joy on the one side but was half unwelcome to me on the other merely because I had told the Duke that it could not come out however when I reached the end it appeared to me that the toes and the little piece above them were unfinished so that about half the foot was wanting although I knew that this would add a trifle to my labor I was very well pleased because I could now prove to the Duke how well I understood my business it is true that far more of the foot than I expected had been perfectly formed the reason of this was that from causes I have recently described the bronze was hotter than our rules of art prescribe also that I had been obliged to supplement the alloy with my pewter cups and platters which no one else I think had ever done before having now ascertained how successfully my work had been accomplished I lost no time in hurrying to Pisa where I found the Duke he gave me a most gracious reception as did also the Duchess and although the major Domo had informed them of the whole proceedings their excellencies deemed my performance far most appendice and astonishing when they heard the tale from my own mouth when I arrived at the foot of Perseus and said it had not come out perfect just as I previously warned his Excellency I saw an expression of wonder pass over his face while he related to the Duchess how I had predicted this beforehand observing the princess to be so well disposed towards me I begged Lee from the Duke to go to Rome he granted it in most obliging terms and bade me return as soon as possible to complete his Perseus giving me letters of recommendation meanwhile to his ambassador Averardo Saristori we were then in the first years of Pope Giulio de Monti chapter 79 before leaving home I directed my work people to proceed according to the method I had taught them the reason of my journey was as follows I had made a life-sized bust in bronze of Bindo Alto Viti the son of Antonio and had sent it to him at Rome he set it up in his study which was very richly adorned with antiquities and other works of art but the room was not designed for statues or for paintings since the windows were too low so that the light coming from beneath spoiled the effect they would have produced under more favorable conditions it happened one day that Bindo was standing at his door when Michela Nyolo Buonarotti the sculptor passed by so he begged him to come in and see his study Michela Nyolo followed and on entering the room and looking round he exclaimed who is the master who made that good portrait of you in so finer manner you must know that that bust pleases me as much or even more than those antiques and yet there are many fine things to be seen among the latter if those windows were above instead of beneath the whole collection would show to greater advantage and your portrait placed among so many masterpieces would hold its own with credit no sooner had Michela Nyolo left the house of Bindo than he wrote me a very kind letter which ran as follows my dear Benvenuto I have known you for many years as the greatest goldsmith of whom we have any information in henceforth I shall know you for a sculptor of light quality I must tell you that master Bindo Altoviti took me to see his bust in bronze and informed me that you had made it I was greatly pleased with the work but it annoyed me to notice that it was placed in a bad light for if it was suitably illuminated it would show itself to be the fine performance that it is this letter abounded with the most affectionate and complimentary expressions toward myself and before I left for Rome I showed it to the Duke who read it with much kindly interest and said to me Benvenuto if you write to him and persuade him to return to Florence I will make him a member of the 48 accordingly I wrote a letter full of warmth and offered in the Duke's name a hundred times more than my commission carried but not wanting to make any mistake I showed this to the Duke before I sealed it saying to his most illustrious excellency Prince perhaps I have made him too many promises he replied Michela Nyolo deserves more than you have promised and I will bestow on him greater favours to this letter he sent no answer and I could see that the Duke was much offended with him chapter 80 when I reached Rome I went to Lodge in Bindo Altoviti's house he told me at once how he had shown his bronze bust to Michela Nyolo and how the latter had praised it so we spoke for some length upon this topic I ought to narrate the reasons why I had taken this portrait Bindo had in his hands 1200 golden crowns of mine which formed part of 5000 he had lent the Duke 4000 were his own and mine stood in his name while I received that portion of the interest which accrued to me this led to my taking his portrait and when he saw the wax model for the bust he sent me 50 golden scudi by a notary in his employ named the Sir Giuliano Paccalli I did not want to take the money so I sent it back to him by the same hand saying at a later time to Bindo I shall be satisfied if he keep that sum of mine for me at interest so that I may gain a little on it when we came to square accounts on this occasion I observed that he was ill disposed towards me since instead of treating me affectionately according to his previous want he put on a stiff air and although I was staying in his house he was never good-humored but always surly however we settled our business in a few words I sacrificed my pay for his portrait together with the bronze and we arranged that he should keep my money at 15% during my natural life chapter 81 one of the first things I did was to go and kiss the Pope's feet and while I was speaking with his Holiness Messer Averado Cerestori our duke's envoy arrived I had made some proposals to the Pope which I think he would have agreed upon and I should have been very glad to return to Rome on account of the great difficulties which I had at Florence but I soon perceived that the ambassador had countermined me then I went to visit Michela Niola Buonarrotti and repeated what I had written from Florence to him in the duke's name he replied that he was engaged upon the fabric of St. Peter's and that this would prevent him from leaving Rome I rejoined that as he had decided on the model of that building he could leave its execution to his man Orbino who would carry out his orders to the letter I added much about future favors in the form of a message from the duke upon this he looked me hard in the face and said with a sarcastic smile and you to what extent are you satisfied with him although I replied that I was extremely contented and was very well treated by his excellency he showed that he was acquainted with the greater part of my annoyances and gave as his final answer that it would be difficult for him to leave Rome to this I added that he could not do better than to return to his own land which was governed by a prince renowned for justice and the greatest lover of the arts and sciences who ever saw the light of this world as I have remarked above he had with him a servant of his who came from Orbino and had lived many years in his employment rather as valet and housekeeper than anything else this indeed was obvious because he had acquired no skill in the arts consequently while I was pressing Michel and Yolo with arguments he could not answer he turned round sharply to Orbino as though to ask him his opinion the fellow began to ball out in his rustic way I will never leave my master Michel on Yolo's side till I shall have played him or he shall have played me these stupid words forced me to laugh and without saying farewell I lowered my shoulders and retired chapter 82 the miserable bargain I had made with Bindo Altoviti losing my bust and leaving him my capital for life taught me what the faith of merchants is so I returned in bad spirits to Florence I went at once to the palace to pay my respects to the Duke whom I found to be at Castello beyond Ponte Arifredi in the palace I met Mesapier Francesco Ricci the major domo and when I drew night to pay him the usual compliments he exclaimed with measureless astonishment oh are you come back and with the same air of surprise clapping his hands together he cried the Duke is at Castello then turned his back and left me I could not form the least idea why the beast behaved in such an extraordinary manner to me proceeding at once to Castello and entering the garden with the Duke was I caught sight of him at a distance but no sooner had he seen me than he showed signs of surprise and intimated that I might go about my business I had been reckoning that his excellency would treat me with the same kindness or even greater as before I left for Rome so now when he received me with such rudeness I went back much hurt to Florence while resuming my work and pushing my statue forward I racked my brains to think what could have brought about this sudden change in the Duke's manner the curious way in which Messas Forza and some other gentleman close to his excellency's person eyed me prompted me to ask the former what the matter was he only replied with a sort of smile benvenuto do your best to be an honest man and have no concern for anything else a few days afterwards I obtained an audience of the Duke who received me with a kind of grudging grace and asked me what I had been doing at Rome to the best of my ability I maintained the conversation and told him the whole story about Bindo Altoviti's bust it was evident that he listened with attention so I went on talking about Michele Agnola Bonarotti but this he showed this pleasure but Obino's stupid speech about the flaying made him laugh aloud then he said well it is he who suffers and I took my leave there can be no doubt that Sir Pierre Francesco the major domo must have served me some ill turn with the Duke which did not however succeed for God who loves the truth protected me as he has ever saved me from a sea of dreadful dangers and I hope will save me till the end of this my life however full of trials it may be I march forward therefore with a good heart sustained alone by his divine power nor let myself be terrified by any furious assault of fortune or my adverse stars may only God maintain me in his grace Chapter 83 I must beg your attention now most gracious reader for a very terrible event which happened I used the utmost diligence in industry to complete my statue and went to spend my evenings in a Duke's wardrobe assisting there the goldsmiths who were working for his excellency indeed they labored mainly on designs which I had given them noticing that the Duke took pleasure in seeing me at work and talking with me I took it into my head to go there sometimes also by day it happened upon one of those days that his excellency came as usual to the room where I was occupied and more particularly because he heard of my arrival his excellency entered at once into conversation raising several interesting topics upon which I gave my view so much to his entertainment that he showed more cheerfulness than I had ever seen in him before all of a sudden one of his secretaries appeared and whispered something of importance into his ear whereupon the Duke rose and retired with the official into another chamber now the Duchess had sent to see what his excellency was doing and her page brought back this answer the Duke is talking and laughing with Benvenuto and is in excellent good humor when the Duchess heard this she came immediately to the wardrobe and not finding the Duke there took a seat beside us after watching us at work a while she turned to me with the utmost graciousness and showed me a necklace of large and really very fine pearls on being asked by her what I thought of them I said it was in truth a very handsome ornament then she spoke as follows I should like the Duke to buy them for me so I beg you my dear Benvenuto to praise them to him as highly as you can at these words I disclosed my mind to the Duchess with all the respect I could and answered my lady I thought this necklace of pearls belonged already to your most illustrious excellency now that I am aware that you have not yet acquired them it is right name all it is my duty to utter what I might otherwise I refrain from saying namely that my mature professional experience enables me to detect very grave faults in the pearls and for this reason I could never advise your excellency to purchase them she replied the merchant offers them for 6000 crowns and were it not for some of those trifling defects you speak of the rope would be worth over 12 000 to this I replied that even were the necklace of quite flawless quality I could not advise anyone to bid up to 5000 crowns for it for pearls are not gems pearls are but fish's bones which in the course of time must lose their freshness diamonds rubies emeralds and sapphires on the contrary never grow old these four are precious stones and these it is quite right to purchase when I had thus spoken the Duchess showed some signs of irritation and exclaimed I have a mind to possess these pearls so pretty take them to the Duke and praise them up to the skies even if you have to use some words beyond the bounds of truth speak them to do me service it will be well for you I have always been the greatest friend of truth and foe of lies yet compelled by necessity unwilling to lose the favor of so great a princess I took those confounded pearls sorely against my inclination and went with them over to the next room whether the Duke had withdrawn no sooner did he set eyes upon me than he cried oh benvenuto what are you about here I uncovered the pearls and said my lord I am come to show you a most splendid necklace of pearls of the rarest quality and truly worthy of your excellency I do not believe it would be possible to put together 80 pearls which could show better than these do in a necklace my counsel therefore is that you should buy them for they are in good sooth miraculous he responded on the instant I do not choose to buy them they are not pearls of the quality and goodness you affirm I have seen the necklace and they do not please me then I added pardon me prince these pearls exceed in rarity and beauty any which were ever brought together for a necklace the duchess had risen and was standing behind a door listening to all I said well when I had praised the pearls of thousand fold more warmly than I have described above the Duke turned towards me with a kindly look and said oh my dear benvenuto I know that you have an excellent judgment in these matters if the pearls are as rare as you certify I should not hesitate about their purchase partly to gratify the duchess and partly to possess them seeing I have always need of such things not so much for her grace as for the various uses of my sons and daughters when I heard them speak thus having once begun to tell fibs I stuck to them with even greater boldness I gave all the color of truth I could to my lies confiding in the promise of the duchess to help me at the time of need more than 200 crowns were to be my commission on the bargain and the duchess had intimated that I should receive so much but I was firmly resolved not to touch a farthing in order to secure my credit and convince the Duke I was not prompted by avarice once more his excellency began to address me with the greatest courtesy I know that you are consummate judge of these things therefore if you are the honest man I always thought you tell me now the truth there at I flushed up to my eyes which at the same time filled with tears and said to him my lord if I tell your most illustrious excellency the truth I shall make a mortal foe of the duchess this will oblige me to depart from Florence and my enemies will begin at once to pour contempt upon my Perseus which I have announced as a masterpiece to the most noble school of your illustrious excellency such being the case I recommend myself to your most illustrious excellency end of section 16