Page:Vasari - Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculptors, and Architects, volume 5.djvu/27

Rh way as merchants in France and at Ferrara. It is true that he found himself to be somewhat heavily afflicted with the gout, insomuch that he was compelled to remain almost always in his house, or if he went out had to be carried in a chair, yet he endured that complaint with much patience, and showed similar equanimity in respect of certain misadventures which befell his sons.

In this his old age Ridolfo still bore much love to all connected with art, and liked to hear of, or, when he could, to see, whatever was most commended in the way of buildings, pictures, and such other works of similar kind as were always in course of execution. One day that the Signor Duke had gone out of Florence, Ridolfo caused himself to be carried in his chair to the palace, where he dined and remained the whole day, examining the whole of that building, which was so greatly altered and transmuted from what it had formerly been, that he scarcely knew it again. In the evening when he departed, the old man said, “Now shall I die content, since I shall be able to carry to our artists who are in the other world intelligence to the effect that I have seen the dead revived, the deformed made beautiful, the old made young again.” Ridolfo lived seventy-five years, and died in the year 1560, when he was buried with his forerunners in Santa Maria Novella.

Michele, the disciple of that master, who, as I have said, is called by no other name than that of Michele di Ridolfo, painted three large arches in fresco over certain of the gates of Florence, and this he did after his master had resigned the practice of art. Over the gate of San Gallo, for example, he painted a figure of Our Lady, with those of San Giovanni and San Cosimo, which are executed in a very able manner; over the gate of Prato, likewise, he painted other figures of similar character; and at that of the Croce he depicted Our Lady with San Giovanni Battista and Sant’ Ambrogio. Pictures and paintings of all kinds were besides produced by this artist in almost unlimited numbers, and all giving proof of ability. I have myself, in consideration of his goodness and sufficiency, employed him several times with others