Page:Vasari - Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculptors, and Architects, volume 1.djvu/130

116 his fellow citizens, but of all who had known him, or even heard his name. He was honourably entombed, as his high deserts had well merited that he should be, having been beloved by all in his life, but more especially by the eminent men of all professions. Of Dante we have already spoken as his intimate friend ; his character and talents were equally admired by Petrarch, insomuch that this last poet, as we read in his testament, bequeathed to Francesco da Carrara, Lord of Padua, among other things which he highly valued, a picture of the Virgin by Giotto, as a rare and acceptable gift, which is thus distinguished in that clause of the will which relates to it :—

“Transeo ad dispositionem aliarum rerurn ; et praedicto igitur domino meo Paduano, quia et ipse per Dei gratiam non eget, et ego nihil aliud habeo dignum se, mitto tabulam meam sive historiam Beatae Virginis Mariae, opus Joeti pictoris egregii, quae mihi ab amico meo Michaele Vannis de Florentia missa est, in cujus puchritudinem ignorantes non intelligunt, magistri autem artis stupent : hanc iconem ipsi domino lego, ut ipsa Virgo benedicta sibi sit propitia apud filium suum Jesum Christum”, etc.

Petrarch further remarks, in a Latin epistle to be found in the fifth book of his familiar letters, to the following effect :

“ Atque (ut a veteribus ad nova, ab externis ad nostra transgrediar) duos ego novi pictores egregios, nec formosos, Jottum Florentinum civem, cujus inter modernos fama ingens est, et Simonem Senensem, novi scultores aliquot”, etc.

Giotto was buried in, where an inscription on white marble to the memory of this great man was placed on the wall to the left of the entrance. The commentator of Dante, who was contemporary with Giotto, has spoken of him, as we have related in the life of Cimabue, in the following words : “Giotto was and is the most eminent of all the painters in the city of Florence, and to this his works bear testimony in Rome, Naples, Avignon, Florence, Padua, and many other parts of the world.”

The disciples of Giotto were Taddeo Gaddi, who, as I have said, was his godson, and Puccio Capanna, a Florentine. The latter painted an admirable fresco for the church of San Cataldo, in Rimini, belonging to the preaching friars. It represents the abandonment by her crew of a ship on the