I HAD to deal in like manner with another fellow, but I did not ruin his
house; I only threw all his furniture out of doors. This time Madame
d’Etampes had the insolence to tell the King: “I believe that devil will
sack Paris one of these days.” The King answered with some anger that I
was only quite right to defend myself from the low rabble who put
obstacles in the way of my serving him.
The rage of this vindictive woman kept continually on the increase. She
sent for a painter who was established at Fontainebleau, where the King
resided nearly all his time. The painter was an Italian and a Bolognese,
known then as Il Bologna; his right name, however, was Francesco
Primaticcio. [1] Madame d’Etampes advised him to beg that commission for
the fountain which his Majesty had given me, adding that she would
support him with all her ability; and upon this they agreed. Bologna was
in an ecstasy of happiness, and thought himself sure of the affair,
although such things were not in his line of art. He was, however, an
excellent master of design, and had collected round him a troop of
work-people formed in the school of Rosso, our Florentine painter, who
was undoubtedly an artist of extraordinary merit; his own best qualities
indeed were derived from the admirable manner of Rosso, who by this time
had died.
These ingenious arguments, and the weighty influence of Madame
d’Etampes, prevailed with the King; for they kept hammering at him night
and day, Madame at one time, and Bologna at another. What worked most
upon his mind was that both of them combined to speak as follows: “How
is it possible, sacred Majesty, that Benvenuto should accomplish the
twelve silver statues which you want? He has not finished one of them
yet. If you employ him on so great an undertaking, you will, of
necessity, deprive yourself of those other things on which your heart is
set. A hundred of the ablest craftsmen could not complete so many great
works as this one able man has taken in hand to do. One can see clearly
that he has a passion for labour; but this ardent temper will be the
cause of your Majesty’s losing both him and his masterpieces at the same
moment.” By insinuating these and other suggestions of the same sort at
a favourable opportunity, the King consented to their petition; and yet
Bologna had at this time produced neither designs nor models for the
fountain.
Note 1. Primaticcio, together with Rosso, introduced Italian painting
into France. Vasari says he came to Paris in 1541. He died in 1570. He
was, like many other of the Lombard artists, an excellent master of
stucco.