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PREFACE

‘As early as the time of Cicero and Varro,’ says Gibbon, ‘it was the opinion of the Roman augurs that the twelve vultures which Romulus had seen represented the twelve centuries assigned for the fatal period of his city.’ This prophecy, as we learn from writers of the age, such as the poet Claudian, filled men’s minds with gloomy apprehensions when the twelfth century of Rome’s existence was drawing to its close, and ‘even posterity must acknowledge with some surprise that the interpretation of an accidental or fabulous circumstance has been seriously verified by the downfall of the Western Empire.’

The traditional date of the founding of Rome is 753 B.C., and if we hold that its Empire ended with the capture of the city by the Vandal Gaiseric and the death of Valentinian III, the last Emperor of the great Theodosian dynasty, both of which events occurred in A.D. 455, the fulfilment of the prediction will certainly appear surprising. Nor need it wholly shatter our faith in ancient auguries if we feel compelled to defer the date of the final downfall for some twenty-one years, during which brief period no less than nine so-called Emperors assumed the purple : one the assassin of Valentinian, the next the nominee of the Visigoth king at Arles, five others the puppets of the barbarian general Ricimer, another an obscure palace official elected by a Burgundian noble, and the ninth the son of a Pannonian soldier in Attila’s army-the ‘inoffensive youth,’ as Gibbon calls him, who had inherited or assumed the high-sounding names of Romulus Augustus (derisively or pityingly belittled into Momullus Augustulus), and whom in 476 the barbarian Odovacar deposed and with contemptuous

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generosity allowed to retire to spacious and luxurious imprisonment in the villa built by Marius and adorned by Lucullus on the heights that overlook the bays of Baiae and Naples.

This date, 476, is generally accepted as that which marks the end of the history of ancient Rome and the beginning of Italian history. Nevertheless the ‘Roman’ Empire is considered by some writers to have continued its existence under the Eastern Emperors, if not for nigh a thousand years, till the capture of Constantinople by the Turks, anyhow for more than 300 years, until its usurpation by a woman--that inhuman wretch, the pious Irene. This event, according to such writers, justified the Romans in reviving by papal unction the imperial dignity in the person of the Frank monarch Charles the Great. This revived Empire, which went on existing in a fashion till the death of Henry VII in 1313 (when all real connexion with Italy ceased), or lasted even, some would say, till the abdication of Francis II in 1806, was of course a fiction; but the belief in the so-styled ‘Holy Roman Empire’ was a fact which much influenced medieval history, and therefore cannot be ignored by the historian. However, whatever arguments may be adduced in support of these various views, it is simpler and more reasonable to hold that the ancient Roman Empire-that is, the world-wide Imperium of which Rome herself was the metropolis-if it did not come to an end when Constantine si fece Greco and transferred the imperial seat from Rome to Byzantium, or when the last Theodosian Emperor was murdered in Rome shortly before the arrival of the Vandal Gaiseric, did certainly suffer final extinction when, in 476, the barbarian Odovacar deposed the boy-emperor Romulus Augustulus and assumed the powers, if not the title, of a King of Italy.

We may therefore assume that the history of medieval Italy begins from the year 476. After that date Italy was only temporarily and indirectly connected with that Eastern Empire which some would persuade us to call the ‘Later Roman’ Empire, but which, seeing that ‘Constantinopolitan’ is a long word, I think we had better call ‘Byzantine’--

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especially as the word possesses a sufficient flavour of Orientalism to be useful as a distinguishing term in questions of art as well as of history.

It is true that for a certain period this Byzantine Empire did re-establish its sovereignty over Rome (which it regarded as merely a provincial town of its Italian diocese) and over almost the whole of the peninsula, and that for centuries it retained its supremacy in some important Italian cities and districts-the Exarchate and the southern marina especially-so that at times we shall be much occupied by the presence of Byzantines in Italy. It is also true that the Byzantine rulers claimed to be, and were often acknowledged to be, ‘Roman’ Emperors. (1) Moreover, it must be allowed that the history of this so-called Eastern Empire in its later stages-with its Greek, Syrian, Armenian, Macedonian, Latin, Flemish, and French monarchs and dynasties and with its wealthy and luxurious Oriental offshoots known as the ‘Empires’ of Nicaea and Trebizond-is exceedingly picturesque and interesting.

Nevertheless, seeing that our subject is Italy and not Byzantium, it will be better to assume that the real Roman Empire ended with the deposition of the last successor of Augustus at Rome in 476, and to limit our attention after that date almost wholly to Italy, casting only now and then a glance across the Adriatic.

But, although the history of medieval Italy may be said to begin its main course from this date, I have thought it advisable to go back to the age of Constantine in order to trace from their early origins certain religious, political, artistic, and literary characteristics, as well as to be able to relate more fully and consecutively the story of the barbarian invasions. After this has been done there will remain the still more difficult task of showing how amid all these diverse elements and forces began to work that new spirit which after so many

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centuries has in our days at length evolved an Italian nation. My subject, which extends to the first dawn of the new art and literature, covers the space of a thousand years, and it would be a most wearisome and unprofitable task if I were to attempt to crowd my pages with the innumerable persons that move in such rapid succession, and in such intricate and swiftly changing groups, across the ever-varying scenes of these ten centuries. Even in the spacious and luminous narrative of Gibbon the reader who has not ample leisure and rare perseverance must often despair of finding his way amid the labyrinthine mazes of barbarian invasions and religious discords, or of following continuously the drama of the Empire--a drama so complicated that on more than one occasion no less than six Emperors appear together on the stage.

With limited space and such a vast amount of detail before him, he who wishes to give something better than a dry catalogue of names and events must devise some method which, while it allows him to present in a connected narrative whatever historical facts may seem essential, will also permit him to treat other matters of importance in a less formal and statistical fashion--to fill in with a free hand, so to speak, the bare historical outline.

The plan that I have adopted is to prefix to each of the five parts into which my subject naturally divides itself a brief account of the political events of the period in question. These summaries, together with various tables and lists, will enable the reader to frame, or perhaps I should say to arrange in chronological order and perspective, the contents of those chapters in which with a freer hand I sketch certain interesting episodes and personalities, endeavouring by means of quotation and description to add a little in the way of local colour and portraiture.

I have thus been able to avoid interrupting my narrative by disquisitions on architecture, literature, and art, and have relegated what I had to say on these subjects to supplementary chapters.

Any fairly full list of the multitudinous writers on the history,

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the art, and the literature of Italy during the period covered by this volume would need more space than I can spare, and if the titles of their works were added a large number of pages would be required. I shall therefore only mention a few old and recent acquaintances to whom I owe especial thanks, and whom I can recommend for further information. I have not thought it necessary to give any names of the almost innumerable compilers of local handbooks, authoritative or amateur.

Balzani (Cronache it.del Med.Evo) ; Bo‘thius (DeCons.Phil.) ; Bryce; Capelletti ; Cassiodorus (and Jordanes ; also his Letters, edited by Hodgkin) ; Compagni (Dino) ; Crowe and Cavalcaselle ; Engel et Serrure (Numismatique du Moyen Age) ; Eusebius ; Ferrero ; Gaspary (Scuola Poet. Sicil.) ; Gibbon ; Gregorovius (Gesch. Stadt Rom) ; Gregory the Great ; Hodgkin (Italy and her Invaders) ; Sir T. G. Jackson (Romanesque Architecture) ; Jordanes (Hist. Goth.) ; Kugler ; Liber Pontificalis (ed. Duchesne) ; Machiavelli (Istorie Fior.) ; Mothes (Baukunst d. Mittelalters) ; Muratori ; Paulus Diaconus (Hist. Lomb.) ; Priscus ; Ricci (especially on Ravenna) ; Rivoira (Orig. dell’ Arch. Lomb.) ; Rotari (Editto) ; St. Augustine (De Civ. Dei) ; Sismondi ; Symonds ; Villani (Giov.) ; Wroth (Brit. Mus. Catal. Goth. and Lomb. Coins).

The Invasioni barbariche and L’Italia da Carlo Magno alla Morte di Arrigo VII of S.E. Professor Pasquale Villari I have found very pleasant and useful guides through the mazes of political events and biographical details.

My thanks are due to the Delegates of the Oxford Press for allowing me to make use of my little volume of Selections from Dante’s Inferno, published just forty years ago.

In the List of Illustrations, where the necessary information is given about the pictures, due acknowledgment is made of permission to make use of photographs, etc. Some of the line engravings inserted in the text I copied from my own notebooks, some from old books or photographs.

In regard to the coins, it gives me pleasure to repeat here my thanks that are due to Mr. J. Allan, of the British Museum.

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For my first four maps I have accepted in the main the political divisions given in Professor Villari’s Invasioni barbariche ; the fifth is (with permission) founded on a map published by the Cambridge University Press to illustrate the Cambridge Medieval History.

Perhaps it may be well to add that I am aware that nobody can express opinions on subjects such as medieval architecture without exposing himself to a fucilata from various quarters.

H. B. COTTERILL

Rome, April 1915

P.S. A note on the Papal Tiara has been most kindly sent me by Professor Villari. As it has arrived too late to be inserted in the List of Illustrations, I append here a translation of the more important passages:

“The tiara probably came from the East.... The Jewish High Priest’s tiara had three crowns.... It is certain that the tiara adopted by the Popes represents the temporal power, whereas the mitre represents the spiritual. The rites used in placing the episcopal mitre on a Pope’s head and in placing a tiara are different. The tiara (also called the regnum) had first one crown, then two, and then three. The tiara with three crowns was called the triregnum. The crowns have been said to symbolize the Church militant, tribulant, and triumphant, or the Trinity, or else the three theological virtues ; but such interpretations are fantastic.... After 1059 the tiara is often mentioned. It may be said to appear [as natural] with the programme of Gregory VII [Hildebrand]. After some years of his pontificate Boniface VIII added a second crow n[evidently after 1299 ; see explanation of Fig. 50](Susan note re-space), but it is difficult to say who added the third. Some think it was Urban V [1362, at Avignon], and some fancy that the motive was to imitate the High Priest of the Jews. I have heard of the hypothesis that the first crown symbolized the papal sovranty over the Patrimony of St. Peter, and the other two the sovranty which the Popes pretended to have over the kingdoms of Apulia and Sicily. This hypothesis might have been suggested by the fact that in some of the oldest tiaras with three crowns there is a single crown above, while below the two others are united, the lower being upside down.”

Some further details are given by Gregorovius. See vol i, pp. 812, 929, and vol. ii, pp. 653, 673, of the splendidly illustrated Italian edition of his History of the City of Rome. On p. 489 of vol. i will be found a photograph of the stature of Gregory the Great (said to have been begun by Michelangelo) where the tiara has three crowns--which is of course a blunder. Gregorovius says that the original tiara was a conical head-dress made of white peacock feathers.

H. B. C.

Viareggio, May 1915

Footnotes:

1. But the Caroling Louis II had much reason on his side when, in answer to a contemptuous letter of the Byzantine Emperor Basil, he asserted that the Eastern ‘Emperors’ were no Imperatores Romanorum, and justified his own claim to the imperial office (as Charles the Great used to do) by appealing to the case of David.

FIG.

1. DANTE                                                           Frontispiece

Bronze bust. Naples, Museo Nazionale. The face perhaps copied from the Bargello mask, which is said to have been taken after death. In any case a very fine work and a most satisfactory representation of what one hopes the poet of the Divina Commedia looked like. The much-restored Bargello fresco, originally perhaps by Giotto, presents rather the lover of Beatrice and the writer of the Vita Nuova. Photo Brogi.

2. BATTLE AT SAXA RUBRA                                                                                             4

Part of the Arch of Constantine, Rome. The central rude and grotesque relief, dating from about 312, represents the battle at Saxa Rubra, near the Milvian Bridge, where Maxentius was drowned. See pp. 3, 40. Note above the much finer sculptures of the age of Trajan and the Antonines. See p. 260. In a Stanza of the

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Vatican there is a celebrated fresco of the same scent, designed by Raffael and painted by Giulio Romano. Photo Anderson.

3. BUSTS OF CONSTANTINE THE GREAT AND JULIAN

Uffizi, Florence, and Capitol Museum, Rome. For Constantine’s curls and finery, see p. 51 n. The Julian bust is doubtful, the inscription being medieval. Photos Brogi.

4. S. PAOLO FUORI LE MURA, ROME

Founded in 388 by Theodosius and Valentinian II. (See p. 58 and under ‘Churches’ in Index.) Burnt down, except the choir and apse, in 1823. the reconstruction (1824-54) on the old lines is very impressive, and the more modern character of some of the alterations does not prevent the edifice from being one of the grandest basilicas in existence. Photo Alinari.

5. S. MARIA MAGGIORE, ROME

See p. 67 n. and Index under ‘Churches.’ Photo Anderson.

6. PULPIT, S. AMBROGIO, MILAN

With the so-called tomb of Stilicho. As he was killed at Ravenna (p. 80) it is unlikely that he was buried here. The sarcophagus dates probably from about 500. The ancient Lombard pulpit was removed about 1150, during restorations, and re-erected in later Romanesque style, etc., about 1200. Some of the quaint reliefs may date from 800, or even 500. Photo Alinari.

7. MAUSOLEUM OF GALLA PLACIDIA, RAVENNA

See pp. 91, 260, 271. The middle sarcophagus is that of the Empress. Those to right and left (the latter invisible) are supposed to be the tombs of her husband, Constantine III, and her son, Valentinian III. Photo Alinari.

8. POPE LEO AND ATTILA

Fresco by Raffael in one of the Stanze of the Vatican. See p. 102. Raffael transfers the scene to the vicinity of Rome (Colosseum in background) and gives Leo I the features of Leo X (cf. Fig. 29). For Attila’s personal appearance, see p. 96. Note that SS. Peter and Paul are seen only by the Huns. In St. Peter’s, over the altar of Leo I, there is a theatrical relief by Algardi (c. 1650) representing the same scene. Reproduction, with permission, of a heliotype in the ‘Rafael-werk,’ published by E. Arnold (Guthier), Dresden.

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9. COINS, PLATE I: CONSTANTINE I TO JUSTINIAN

(c. 306-565)

See Notes, p. 117

10. BAPTISTERY OF THE ORTHODOX RAVENNA

See pp. 80 n., 92 and 271. The dome, as that of S. Vitale, is formed o terra-cotta vessels. See p. 267. Photo Alinari.

11. MAUSOLEUM OF THEODERIC, RAVENNA.

See p. 165. Photo Alinari.

12. S. APOLLINARE NUOVO, RAVENNA

See descriptions, pp. 168 sq., 272. Photo Alinari.

13. S. PIETRO IN CIEL D’ORO, PAVIA

See under ‘Churches’ in Index. The church was (if not still older) originally Lombardic, founded perhaps by Agilulf, c. 604; but it was rebuilt in Romanesque style. The main portion of the portal dates (says Mothes) from 950 to 1000. For the tomb of Bo‘thius see p. 177, and for that of St. Augustine see description of Fig. 52 (1). Coronations of the Kings of Italy (see under Fig. 19) were sometimes held at Pavia, the old Lombard capital, in S. Pietro, or else in S. Michele, which was then the cathedral. Photo Alinari.

14. BOèTHIUS

See p. 175 sq. The painting (imaginary or from some old portrait?) is by Giovanni Santi, Raffael’s father. It is in the Barberini Gallery, Rome. Photo Brogi.

15. MONASTERO DEL SACRO SPECO, SUBIACO

See p. 188. The church and monastery, as also the Abbey Church of Monte Cassino and the Collemaggio at Aquila (Fig. 49), are said to have suffered from the recent terrible earthquake (January 13, 1915). Photo Brogi.

16. S. VITALE, RAVENNA

See under ‘Churches’ n Index. Cf. Fig. 23 Photo Alinari.

17. MOSAICS OF JUSTINIAN AND THEODORA, RAVENNA

See pp. 203-4, 272. Photo Alinari.

18. S. APOLLINARE IN CLASSE, RAVENNA

See under ‘Churches’ in Index. For the mosaics, see p. 273. Photo Alinari.

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19. (1) THE IRON CROWN

Preserved in the Treasury of Monza Cathedral (p. 256 n.). With this the Lombard kings, it is said, were crowned in Pavia, their capital, or Milan (e.g. Agilulf), or perhaps Monza. The Frank and German monarchs until Henry II (1002) seem to have been crowned, as Kings of Italy, generally at Pavia, but later at Milan. The ‘Italian’ king Berengar II (c. 950) was crowned at Pavia. Frederick Barbarossa, at feud with Milan, was crowned at Monza, or perhaps at Pavia (c. 1155), which city took his part. Since then the Iron Crown has been preserved at Monza. It was used by Charles V, who crowned himself with it at Bologna in 1530, and by Napoleon (at Milan) in 1805. In 1859 it was carried off by the Austrians, but was restored in 1866. Perhaps the original was a simple iron crown, or possibly only the interior circlet of iron (visible in the picture) which tradition asserted to have been formed of one of the nails of the Cross, brought by Helena from Jerusalem (p. 39). The golden, jewelled exterior dates perhaps from about 1100. It is a simpler and apparently later work than the imperial crown figured below. Muratori repudiates the nail legend. Bonincontro, a Monza chronicler of the fourteenth century, does not mention the legend, though he speaks of the iron crown and tells us that iron is a strong and regal metal. Numerous nails from the Cross were supposed to exist. See p. 43. The legend, if it was not originated, was certainly confirmed by the fact that Matteo Villani (c. 1350) called this crown Sda Corona, which was wrongly explained as Sancta Corona, whereas it meant Seconda Corona--the first crown being the silver one at Aachen and the third being the golden one at Rome. Photo G. Binachi, Monza.

(2) THE SO-CALLED CROWN OF CHARLEMAGNE

This magnificent crown, surmounted by a cross and arched diadem, is in the Imperial Treasury at Vienna (in the Hofburg), the Keeper of which was good enough to give me the permission to use the photograph. There is great divergence of opinion as to its date. Some authorities, as Bock--with whom I agree--believe the crown itself to be early Italian work, and the diadem with the name ‘Conrad’ to have been a later addition. In this case there is just a possibility that the crown is actually that which was used by Leo III to crown Charles the Great. But some patriotic Teutons, such as v. Falke, who has written a richly illustrated monograph on the subject, assert that both parts were undoubtedly made in Germany, and they insist that the whole cannot be

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anything but eleventh-century work, and therefore must be an imperial diadem made specially (at Mainz?) for the coronation of Conrad II and his consort Gisela in 1027 (see p. 348). There exists also--found in excavating a street in Mainz not very long ago--a collection of beautiful brooches, spangles, earrings, necklaces, etc., which may very probably have been the coronation finery of Gisela. She was a very energetic and ambitious lady. She was descended through her mother from Charles the Great, and, after having had two husbands, married Conrad when he was only a Count. She was not content till she had got him and herself crowned with the imperial diadem at Rome--an occasion on which much bloodshed was caused, as so often, by quarrels between Germans and Romans, and also by the jealousies of the rival archbishops of Ravenna and Milan. The arched diadem bears, worked in pearls, the words, Chuonradus Dei gratia Imperator Augustus. The crown itself is a mass of precious stones, gold filigree, and pearls. It has three pictures in enamel representing (1) Christ, between two archangels, as King of Kings; (2) David as the King of Manly Courage; (3) Solomon as the King of Justice and Wisdom; (4) Hezekiah as the King of Piety. Photo by S. Schramm, Vienna, photographer to the Court of Rumania.

20. THEODELINDA’S HEN AND CHICKENS

See footnote, p. 256. They perhaps represent the Lombard kingdom and its seven provinces. They are silver-gilt. The copper disk on which they stand is modern. Photo G. Bianchi, Monza.

21. (1) S. MARIA IN COSMEDIN, ROME

Close to the Tiber and the Round Temple (formerly ‘Temple of Vesta’). built c. 775 Small, but interiorly very beautiful in its proportions. The bell-tower (eighth century) is a good example of a Roman campanile. See Index under ‘Campanile.’ Photo Anderson.

(2) THE PHOCAS COLUMN, ROME.

In the Forum. For centuries ‘The nameless column with a buried base.’ Excavated with the help of English money, soon after Byron wrote that line. The inscription shows that the column (taken from some ancient building) was erected in 608 by the Exarch Smaragdus in honour of the odious tyrant Phocas, of Constantinople, whose gilt statue stood on its summit. See pp. 67 n., 220, 258. Photo Anderson.

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22. S. CLEMENTE, ROME

The upper church. See under ’Churches’ in Index. Photo Alinari.

23. S. VITALE, RAVENNA

See under ’Churches’ in Index. Cf. Fig. 16. Photo Alinari.

24. MOSAICS IN S. PUDENZIANA AND ST. PRASSEDE, ROME

See description, p. 269, and p. 525. The two saints were daughters of Pudens, the host of St. Peter in Rome, and the first-named church is, tradition says, built on the site of the house where the apostle lodged. In the lower picture note that Pope Paschal (817-24), who holds a model of his church, has the square nimbus, which shows that he was still living when the mosaic was made. Note also on the palm-tree a phoenix with a radiate nimbus. Photos Alinari.

25. S. PIETRO, TOSCANELLA

See. p. 280 and under ’Churches’ in Index. Photo Anderson.

26. S. MARIA MAGGIORE, TOSCANELLA

As Fig. 25. Photo Anderson.

27. CATHEDRAL AND S. FOSCA, TORCELLO

See p. 283 and under ’Churches’ in Index. For the marble seat in the foreground (‘the chair of Attila’) see p. 286 n. Photo Anderson.

28. CATHEDRAL OF GRADO

See pp. 101, 285. Grado and Aquileia, both ancient Italian towns and intimately connected with Italian history, have been for more than a century appropriated by Austria. They will doubtless ere long be restored to their mater antiqua. In 568, when the Lombards came streaming down over the Venetian Alps, the citizens of Aquileia (rebuilt after its destruction by Attila in 452) fled once more for refuge to Grado. The Patriarch, Paulinus, brought with him all the relics and treasures of the Aquileian churches, and his successor, Elias, obtained the title of Patriarch of Grado. Patriarch Elias (c. 578) built the present Cathedral of Grado, doubtless on the site of a more ancient church, taking for his model the basilicas of S. Apollinare, in Ravenna. The columns and mosaic floor are evidently from the older church (Byzantine-Ostrogoth). Note the (further) pulpit, with curious reliefs (Ostrogothic ? Lombard ?) of the evangelistic beasts, and surmounted by a Venetian (Byzantine) canopy. Note also the silver pala of the altar, and the (thirteenth century ?) frescos in the apse. Built on to the church there is an ancient baptistery, which has stone

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shutters, as at Torcello. The church has been often restored, and probably under the plaster of the triforium might be found mosaics or frescos. In this church is sung the old medieval liturgy of the Grado patriarchate, the Cantus patriarchinus. Photo Alinari.

29. THE DONATION OF CONSTANTINE TO SILVESTER

In the Vatican Stanze. By Raffaello da Colle, designed probably by Raffael. Silvester has the features of Clement VII. Among the spectators are depicted Raffael’s friend Castiglione and his pupil Giulio Romano. The scene takes place in the old basilica of St. Peter. Reproduction, with permission, from ‘Rafael-werk,’ published by E. Arnold (Guthier), Dresden.

30. S, MINIATO, FLORENCE

See p. 442 and Index. Photo Brogi.

31. TOMB OF BEATRICE, MOTHER OF COUNTESS MATILDA, CAMPO SANTO, PISA

Interesting firstly on account of the famous Countess Matilda, whose mother Beatrice was the wife of Boniface, Marquess of Tuscany (pp. 349, 353, 430; and note that the predecessor of Boniface was the Marquess, or Margrave, Ugo, called by Dante il gran barone, whose tomb is well known to visitors of the Florentine Badia, and whose mother, Willa, founded the original Badia). Boniface died in 1052, and Beatrice, who had married Godfrey of Lorraine, was captured by Henry and, together with her daughter Matilda, taken to Germany, but they were released in 1056, and it was not till the year before the scene at Canossa (viz. 1076, as stated on the tomb) that Beatrice died and Matilda succeeded. Some state that her body was first deposited in this ancient (late Roman) sarcophagus in 1116. The hexameter means ‘Although a sinner I was called Lady Beatrix [i.e. blest, or sainted].’ The following words one expects vainly to make a pentameter, such as In tumulo jaceo quae comitissa fui. They mean ‘Placed in a tomb I lie, who [was] a countess.’ The pentameter was perhaps spoilt by an illiterate stone-cutter in order to insert a rime. He should have also altered it to In tumulum missa . . . As for the connexion of the relief with Niccol˜ Pisano, see p. 533. Photo Alinari.

32. BAPTISTERY PORTAL, VOLTERRA

The octagonal Baptistery dates originally perhaps from the seventh century. The finely proportioned and simply decorated portal is a good example of Tuscan Romanesque quite untouched by the Pisan style (as are also the richer fa�ades of the Toscanella churches, Figs. 25, 26). Photo Brogi.

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33. CAPPELLA PALATINA, PALERMO

‘Palace Chapel,’ attached to the royal palace of the Norman kings at Palermo. The style is Norman influenced by Saracen architecture. Built about 1130 by King Roger. The walls, arches, and apse are richly covered with very fine mosaics of the Norman-Sicilian school (see pp. 446-448). Note the slightly pointed arches showing (as at Monreale) what may be Arab influence. See Fig. 43. Photo Alinari.

34. ROGER OF SICILY CROWNED BY THE SAVIOUR

Mosaic in La Martorana, Palermo. See pp. 407,448. Photo Brogi.

35. KING ROGER’S TOMB

In the Cathedral of Palermo. In other porphyry sarcophagi are buried here Frederick II (Fig. 47), his father, Henry VI, his mother, the Empress Constance (Roger’s daughter), and in an old Roman sarcophagus lies Frederick’s wife, Constance of Aragon. About 1780 the sarcophagi were brought from a side chapel and after being opened and examined, were placed under these baldachini. Photo Alinari.

36. PALERMO CATHEDRAL

Originally built, in the place of an ancient church that had been turned into a mosque, by Archbishop Offamilio (Walter Of a Mill). This south side of the cathedral and the east front date mainly from about 1170-1200, and show many interesting evidences of Saracen influence. (The gable over the beautiful south porch is a fifteenth-century addition and the very disfiguring dome dates from 1800.) The west front is later (c. 1350). It is attached to a vast ancient campanile (the upper part restored) by an arch that spans the street. Photo Alinari.

37. S. MARCO, VENICE

See under ’Churches’ in Index. Photo Brogi.

38. THE BAPTISTERY, FLORENCE

See p. 78. Photo Brogi.

39. FERRARA CATHEDRAL

Might perhaps have been better reserved as an example of transition from Romanesque to Gothic, The lower part dates from about 1130, and not only the lowest arcade and the doors but also the main features of the whole building are Romanesque. They are however curiously Gothicized and the general result is not very satisfactory, though the building is impressive. The

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protruding porch is a later addition, partly in Romanesque style, with lions, and partly in a kind of Venetian Gothic. Photo Alinari.

40. BAPTISTERY, CATHEDRAL, AND CAMPANILE, PISA

See p. 441 and under ’Churches’ in Index. Photo Brogi.

41. S. MARTINO (CATHEDRAL), LUCCA

See pp. 280 and 442. Also for Guidetto’s equestrian statue of St. Martin and the Pisan’s Deposition (neither easily recognizable in the picture) see pp. 532 and 536. The bell-tower is a fine specimen of Lombard campanile. Note the crenate Ghibelline merli. Photo Alinari.

42. LA COLLEGIATA, S. GIMIGNANO

See p. 443. Cf. also Fig. 54. The church is richly adorned with frescos by Benozzo Gozzoli (ACCENT) (pupil of Fra Angelico), Ghirlandajo, and others, and contains an altar dedicated to S. Fina, the girl patron saint of the town, by Benedetto da Maiano. Photo Brogi.

43. CATHEDRAL OF MONREALE, NEAR PALERMO

Built by William the Good, c. 1175-89. Its fine towers and other features seem to denote influence of Northern, perhaps English, Norman. See p. 445. The beautiful curves of the slightly pointed arches may denote Saracen influence. Magnificent mosaics cover the walls and apse. See p. 448. Photo Alinari.

44. CATHEDRAL OF CEFALô

For its resemblance to St. ƒtienne, Caen, see p. 445 n. For the splendid mosaics see p. 448, and note the crenate antipapal battlements of the tower. Photo Alinari.

45. COINS, PLATE II; HERACLIUS TO HENRY VII (c. 650 to 1313)

See Notes, p. 449

46. CASTEL DEL MONTE

In Apulia, some fifteen miles inland from Trani, on the Adriatic. Built in 1228 by Frederick II and much used by him for hunting purposes. (He is said to have written here his book on falconry, the MS. of which is in the Vatican.) At another such Apulian castle, that of Fiorentino, near Lucera, he died. Photo Alinari.

47. TOMB OF FREDERICK II. PALERMO CATHEDRAL

See note on Fig. 35. When the sarcophagus was opened the Emperor’s body was found swathed in Saracen robes; a crown was on its head; his sceptre and a sword lay by its side. Photo Alinari.

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48. CHARLES OF ANJOU

In the Capitol Museum, Rome (badly placed and lighted). Probably erected by the Romans after the dastardly execution of the youthful Conradin in 1268, when Charles, who is here robed in a Roman toga and is furnished with crown and sceptre, was re-elected Senator of Rome. The face is repellently coarse and cruel and ‘the nose is very large,’ as Gregorovius remarks--quite rightly, seeing that Dante himself, who met Charles in a pleasant glade of Antipurgatory (instead of in Hell, where he should surely have been !), mentions his maschio naso, and calls him nasuto. This feature, I think, Dante may have noticed in this very statue when he was at Rome in 1300and 1301; and, perhaps in Dante’s company, Giovanni Villani may have noticed it too, for he describes Charles as ‘having a fierce countenance and olive complexion and a large nose.’ See p. 476 n. The big nose is also visible on Charles’s coins. See Plate II, coin 10 (p. 450), where the face has a decided resemblance to that of the statue. Photo Brogi.

49. S. MARIA DI COLLEMAGGIO, AQUILA

Aquila is in the Abruzzi. This church is interesting in connexion with the story of the poor old hermit-Pope, Celestine V, whose tomb one may see here, as well as frescos, by a pupil of Rubens, depicting his miracles. See p. 481 n. The architecture is also very interesting, being a specimen of Southern, probably twelfth-century, Lombard Romanesque, with fine rose-windows, but with an inlaid marble fa�ade which shows decided Saracen influence. It suffered seriously from the terrible earthquake of January 13 this year. It is said to be fortemente lezionata e pericolante, and is being propped to prevent collapse. Photo Anderson.

50. (1) BONIFACE VIII PROCLAIMING THE JUBILEE OF 1300

A fragment of a fresco by Giotto suspended on a pier of the nave in the Lateran Basilica, Rome. It proves that Giotto remained at Rome until at least shortly before 1300. See p. 525. It also proves that at this date Boniface had not assumed the second coronet, which is seen in the Statue (and also may be seen on the half-length figure in the Grotte of St. Peter’s). The original papal head-dress (tiara) was simply a high conical cap of cloth of gold, copied probably from the Phrygian (GREEK font), or the apices of Roman flamens. The first coronet was perhaps adopted by Bishop Silvester on the strength of the gift of Constantine. (In the fabricated ‘Donation’ the word frigium, i.e. Phrygian cap,

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 is used.) Why Boniface assumed the second is unknown; but I think it may have intimated suzerainty over Sicily and Apulia (see p. 483), at which he was for ever aiming. The third coronet of the ‘triple-tyrant,’ as Milton calls the Pope of Rome, was adopted, it is thought, by the Avignon Pope Urban V--but on what grounds is unknown. Photo Alinari.

(2) THE STATUE OF BONIFACE VIII

Once adorned the fa�ade, but is now inside the Duomo, at Florence, where it seem to glare angrily round a huge pier towards the portrait of Dante, who is depicted amid scenes of that Inferno to which he condemned his great enemy. Photo Alinari.

51. TOMB OF HENRY OF LUXEMBURG

In the Campo Santo, Pisa. By a Sienese sculptor, c. 1351. Photo Brogi.

52. (1) TOMB OF ST. AUGUSTINE

In S. Pietro in Ciel d’oro, Pavia. See Fig. 13 and pp. 231 and 280. The body was rescued from the Saracens, and brought from Sardinia by Liutprand, c. 723, and was deposited in the ancient Lombard church, built by Agilulf. The present tomb, profusely ornamented with reliefs and statuettes, was made about the year 1370. When the church was turned for a time into a storehouse (1844-75) the tomb was taken to the cathedral, and the bones were transferred to a glass coffin. Photo Alinari.

(2) TOMB OF ST. DOMENIC

In S. Domenico, Bologna. Said by Vasari to be early work (1231 !) of Niccol˜ Pisano, completed by his pupil, Fra Guglielmo; but probably executed entirely by the pupil about 1267. Having received no pay, it is said, the friar stole a rib of the saint. One of the kneeling angels is said to be an early work of Michelangelo. Photo Alinari.

53. ASSISI

Monastery and upper church (c. 1250) from the west. The monastery is secularized and used as a seminary. Photo Anderson.

54. S. GIMIGNANO

Photo Brogi.

55. S. ZENO (MAGGIORE), VERONA

A very fine Romanesque basilica dating from the eleventh century (choir from c. 1260). The castellated building

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 (with the crenate Ghibelline merli) is said to have been sometimes used by Emperors on their visits to Italy. Photo Alinari.

56. PALACES LOREDAN AND FARSETTI, VENICE

Both Venetian Romanesque of about 1150, and of exquisite proportions. The Loredan (to the left) Ruskin calls the most beautiful of all the palaces on the Grand Canal. Photo Anderson.

57. (1) MOSAIC IN S. MARIA IN TRASTEVERE

For the upper part (c. 1140), see p. 525, and for the general character of such mosaics, p. 270. Photo Alinari.

58. PULPIT AT LA TRINITË DELLA CAVA, NEAR SALERNO

Both the pulpit and the spiral column for the Easter candle are very beautiful specimens of South Italian ’Cosmati’ work (c. 1250). Photo Brogi.

59. COSMATI TOMB IN S. MARIA SOPRA MINERVA, ROME

See p. 527. Photo Alinari.

60. S. CROCE, FLORENCE

See pp. 529-30. Photo Alinari.

61. THE BAPTISTERY PULPIT, PISA

By Niccol˜ Pisano. See pp. 532 sq. Photo Brogi.

63. THE RAVELLO PULPIT

See p. 535. Ravello is not far from Amalfi. Photo Brogi.

64. PALAZZO PUBBLICO, SIENA

One of the finest of Italian Gothic palaces. See p. 532. The campanile, some 335 feet high, called La Torre del Mangia, was built c. 1330-40; the palace itself between 1289 and 1305. Siena became Guelf in 1270 (see p. 517), consequently we have the square Guelf merli, which should be compared with the crenate merli in Figs. 41 and 55. In the Florentine Palazzo Vecchio the main

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 building (c. 1300) has the square, and the tower (c. 1460) has the crenate, battlements. Photo Brogi.

65. SIENA CATHEDRAL

See p. 529. Photo Brogi.

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