Page:Vasari - Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculptors, and Architects, volume 1.djvu/202

188 imagination, and was well versed in the best methods of composing his groups, in accordance with the manner of those days. When these pictures were finished, the master painted two others in distemper for the same city. In these he was assisted by Lippo Memmi, his brother, who had also helped him to paint the chapter-house of Santa Maria Novella, as well as other works. The latter artist did not attain to the excellence of Simon, but nevertheless imitated his manner to the best of his ability, and painted numerous frescoes in the church of Santa Croce at Florence. He also executed the picture of the high altar in the church of Santa Caterina at Pisa for the preaching friars, and in San Paolo a Ripa d’Arno, besides many good frescoes. Lippo Memmi painted the picture in distemper which is now on the high altar. The subject of this work is the Virgin, with St. Peter, St. Paul, St. John the Baptist, and other Saints, and on this Lippo placed his name. After finishing these pictures, Lippo executed one in distemper, for the brothers of St. Augustine, in St. Gimignano, whereby he acquired so great a name that he was called on to send a picture to Arezzo, for the bishop Guido de’ Tarlati; this work, which comprised three half-figures, is now in the chapel of St. Gregory, in the episcopal church.

At the time when Simon Memmi was painting in Florence, there was a certain cousin of his, an ingenious architect, called Neroccio, who undertook to make the great bell of the commune of Florence ring, although no man had been able to make it sound for seventeen years. Twelve men were required to move it; but Neroccio balanced this great bell so nicely, that two men then sufficed for that purpose, and being once set going, one man could keep it at its full sound, although it weighs more than six thousand pounds.

For this, besides the honour, Neroccio received a reward of three hundred gold florins, which was a large sum in those days.

But to return to our two Sienese painters, the Memmi. In addition to the works above described, Lippo executed a painting in distemper after the design of Simon, which was