Page:Vasari - Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculptors, and Architects, volume 4.djvu/215

Rh guislied among the young painters who were then in Florence, Bronzino, Pier Francesco di Sandro, Francesco Bachiacca, Domenico Conti, Antonio di Domenico, and Battista Franco of Venice.

On the Piazza of San Marco likewise, a horse of twelve braccia, with the fore feet raised in the air, was erected by Tribolo on a pedestal ten braccia high, on which last Broznino had depicted two very beautiful historical representations in the socle above the cornices. A figure of due proportions and fully armed was seated on the horse, having men dead and wounded lying beneath the animal; and that figure represented the valiant Signor Giovonni de’ Medici, father of his Excellency. This wmrk was conducted by Tribolo with so much art and judgment that it was admired by all wTho beheld it, and a circumstance which caused much astonishment w^as the celerity with which he accomplished his task. Tribolo was on this occasion assisted, among other artists, by the sculptor Santi Buglione, who had a very serious fall at that time, by which one of his legs was lamed, and he had very nearly died.

It was also under the direction of Tribolo that the very beautiful scene for the drama which wras performed on the same occasion, was executed by Aristotile da Sangallo, who was of a verity most truly excellent in these things, as will be related in his life. For the dresses used in the interludes also, which w^ere written by Giovan-Battista Strozzi, who had charge of the whole comedy, Tribolo displayed the most extraordinary powers of invention; designing head-dresses, buskins of various kinds, and every sort of vestment, in the most graceful and pleasing forms that can possibly be imagined, and with the richest variety; all which caused the Duke afterwards to avail himself of Tribolo’s ingenuity for many a masking, that of the bears for example, that of the race of buffaloes, that of the crows, and many others.