his death, Vasari secretly prevailed upon Duke Cosimo de' Medici to
persuade the Pope by means of Messer Averardo Serristori, his
Ambassador, that, since Michelagnolo was much reduced, a diligent
watch should be kept on those who were about him to take care of him,
or who visited him at his house, and that, in the event of some sudden
accident happening to him, such as might well happen to an old man, he
should make arrangements for his property, designs, cartoons, models,
money, and all his other possessions at the time of his death, to be
set down in an inventory and placed in security, for the sake of the
fabric of S. Pietro, so that, if there were things pertaining to that
fabric, and also to the sacristy, library, and façade of S. Lorenzo,
they might not be taken away, as is often wont to happen; and in the
end, all this being duly carried out, such diligence had its reward.
Leonardo, the nephew of Michelagnolo, was desirous to go during the
coming Lent to Rome, as one who guessed that he was now come to the
end of his life; and at this Michelagnolo was content. When,
therefore, he fell sick of a slow fever, he straightway caused
Daniello to write to Leonardo that he should come; but the illness
grew worse, although Messer Federigo Donati, his physician, and his
other attendants were about him, and with perfect consciousness he
made his will in three sentences, leaving his soul in the hands of
God, his body to the earth, and his substance to his nearest
relatives, and enjoining on his friends that, at his passing from this
life, they should recall to him the agony of Jesus Christ. And so at
the twenty-third hour of the seventeenth day of February, in the year
1563 (after the Florentine reckoning, which according to the Roman
would be 1564), he breathed his last, to go to a better life.
Michelagnolo was much inclined to the labours of art, seeing that
everything, however difficult, succeeded with him, he having had from
nature a genius very apt and ardent in these most noble arts of
design. Moreover, in order to be entirely perfect, innumerable times
he made anatomical studies, dissecting men's bodies in order to see
the principles of their construction and the concatenation of the
bones, muscles, veins, and nerves, the various movements and all the
postures of the human body; and not of men only, but also of animals,
and particularly of horses, which last he much delighted to keep. Of
all these he desired to learn the principles and laws in so far as
touched his art, and this knowledge he so demonstrated in the works
that fell to him to handle, that those who attend to no other study
than this do not know more. He so executed his works, whether with the
brush or with the chisel, that they are almost inimitable, and he gave
to his labours, as has been said, such art and grace, and a loveliness
of such a kind, that (be it said without offence to any) he surpassed
and vanquished the ancients; having been able to wrest things out of
the greatest difficulties with such facility, that they do not appear
wrought with effort, although whoever draws his works after him finds
enough in imitating them.
The genius of Michelagnolo was recognized in his lifetime, and not, as
happens to many, after death, for it has been seen that Julius II, Leo
X, Clement VII, Paul III, Julius III, Paul IV, and Pius IV, all
supreme Pontiffs, always wished to have him near them, and also, as is
known, Suleiman, Emperor of the Turks, Francis of Valois, King of
France, the Emperor Charles V, the Signoria of Venice, and finally, as
has been related, Duke Cosimo de' Medici; all offering him honourable
salaries, for no other reason but to avail themselves of his great
genius. This does not happen save to men of great worth, such as he
was; and it is evident and well known that all these three arts were
so perfected in him, that it is not found that among persons ancient
or modern, in all the many years that the sun has been whirling round,
God has granted this to any other but Michelagnolo. He had imagination
of such a kind, and so perfect, and the things conceived by him in
idea were such, that often, through not being able to express with the
hands conceptions so terrible and grand, he abandoned his works--nay,
destroyed many of them; and I know that a little before he died he
burned a great number of designs, sketches, and cartoons made with his
own hand, to the end that no one might see the labours endured by him
and his methods of trying his genius, and that he might not appear
less than perfect. Of such I have some by his hand, found in Florence,
and placed in my book of drawings; from which, although the greatness
of that brain is seen in them, it is evident that when he wished to
bring forth Minerva from the head of Jove, he had to use Vulcan's
hammer. Thus he used to make his figures in the proportion of nine,
ten, and even twelve heads, seeking nought else but that in putting
them all together there should be a certain harmony of grace in the
whole, which nature does not present; saying that it was necessary to
have the compasses in the eyes and not in the hand, because the hands
work and the eye judges; which method he used also in architecture.
No one should think it strange that Michelagnolo delighted in
solitude, he having been one who was enamoured of his art, which
claims a man, with all his thoughts, for herself alone; moreover, it
is necessary that he who wishes to attend to her studies should shun
society, and, while attending to the considerations of art, he is
never alone or without thoughts. And those who attributed it to
caprice and eccentricity are wrong, because he who wishes to work well
must withdraw himself from all cares and vexations, since art demands
contemplation, solitude, and ease of life, and will not suffer the
mind to wander. For all this, he prized the friendship of many great
persons and of learned and ingenious men, at convenient times; and
these he maintained. Thus the great Cardinal Ippolito de' Medici loved
him greatly, and, having heard that a Turkish horse that he possessed
pleased Michelagnolo because of its beauty, it was sent as a present
to him by the liberality of that lord, with ten mules laden with
fodder, and a serving-man to attend to it; and Michelagnolo accepted
it willingly. The illustrious Cardinal Pole was much his friend,
Michelagnolo being enamoured of his goodness and his talents; also
Cardinal Farnese, and Santa Croce, which latter afterwards became Pope
Marcellus, Cardinal Ridolfi, Cardinal Maffeo, Monsignor Bembo, Carpi,
and many other Cardinals, Bishops, and Prelates, whom it is not
necessary to name. Others were Monsignor Claudio Tolomei, the
Magnificent Messer Ottaviano de' Medici, his gossip, whose son he held
at baptism, and Messer Bindo Altoviti, to whom he presented that
cartoon of the Chapel in which Noah, drunk with wine, is derided by
one of his sons, and his nakedness is covered by the two others; M.
Lorenzo Ridolfi, M. Annibale Caro, and M. Giovan Francesco Lottini of
Volterra. But infinitely more than any of the others he loved M.
Tommaso de' Cavalieri, a Roman gentleman, for whom, being a young man
and much inclined to these arts, he made, to the end that he might
learn to draw, many most superb drawings of divinely beautiful heads,
designed in black and red chalk; and then he drew for him a Ganymede
rapt to Heaven by Jove's Eagle, a Tityus with the Vulture devouring
his heart, the Chariot of the Sun falling with Phaëthon into the Po,
and a Bacchanal of children, which are all in themselves most rare
things, and drawings the like of which have never been seen.
Michelagnolo made a life-size portrait of Messer Tommaso in a cartoon,
and neither before nor afterwards did he take the portrait of anyone,
because he abhorred executing a resemblance to the living subject,
unless it were of extraordinary beauty. These drawings, on account of
the great delight that M. Tommaso took in them, were the reason that
he afterwards obtained a good number, miraculous things, which
Michelagnolo once drew for Fra Sebastiano Viniziano, who carried them
into execution; and in truth he rightly treasures them as reliques,
and he has courteously given craftsmen access to them. Of a truth
Michelagnolo always placed his affections with persons noble,
deserving, and worthy of them, for he had true judgment and taste in
all things.
[Illustration: UNFINISHED FIGURE
(_After =Michelagnolo=. Florence: Museo Nazionale_)
_Brogi_]
M. Tommaso afterwards caused Michelagnolo to make many designs for
friends, such as that of the picture for Cardinal di Cesis, wherein is
Our Lady receiving the Annunciation from the Angel, a novel thing,
which was afterwards executed in colours by Marcello Mantovano and
placed in the marble chapel which that Cardinal caused to be built in
the Church of the Pace at Rome. So, also, with another Annunciation
coloured likewise by the hand of Marcello in a picture in the Church
of S. Giovanni Laterano, the design of which belongs to Duke Cosimo
de' Medici, having been presented after Michelagnolo's death by his
nephew Leonardo Buonarroti to his Excellency, who cherishes it as a
jewel, together with a Christ praying in the Garden and many other
designs, sketches, and cartoons by the hand of Michelagnolo, and
likewise the statue of Victory with a captive beneath, five braccia in
height, and four captives in the rough which serve to teach us how to
carve figures from the marble by a method secure from any chance of
spoiling the stone; which method is as follows. You take a figure in
wax or some other solid material, and lay it horizontally in a vessel
of water, which water being by its nature flat and level at the
surface, as you raise the said figure little by little from the level,
so it comes about that the more salient parts are revealed, while the
lower parts--those, namely, on the under side of the figure--remain
hidden, until in the end it all comes into view. In the same manner
must figures be carved out of marble with the chisel, first laying
bare the more salient parts, and then little by little the lower
parts; and this method may be seen to have been followed by
Michelagnolo in the above-mentioned captives, which his Excellency
wishes to be used as exemplars for his Academicians.
Michelagnolo loved his fellow-craftsmen, and held intercourse with
them, as with Jacopo Sansovino, Rosso, Pontormo, Daniello da Volterra,
and Giorgio Vasari of Arezzo, to which last he showed innumerable
kindnesses; and he was the reason that Giorgio gave his attention to
architecture, intending to make use of him some day, and he readily
conferred and discussed matters of art with him. Those who say that he
was not willing to teach are wrong, because he was always willing with
his intimates and with anyone who asked him for counsel; and I have
been present on many such occasions, but of these, out of
consideration, I say nothing, not wishing to reveal the deficiencies
of others. It may be urged that he had bad fortune with those who
lived with him in his house, which was because he hit upon natures
little able to imitate him. Thus, Pietro Urbano of Pistoia, his pupil,
was a man of parts, but would never exert himself. Antonio Mini was
willing, but had no aptitude of brain; and when the wax is hard it
does not readily take an impression. Ascanio dalla Ripa Transone took
great pains, but of this no fruits were ever seen either in designs or
in finished works, and he toiled several years over a picture for
which Michelagnolo had given him a cartoon. In the end, all the good
expectation in which he was held vanished in smoke; and I remember
that Michelagnolo would be seized with compassion for his toil, and
would assist him with his own hand, but this profited him little. If
he had found a nature after his heart, as he told me several times, in
spite of his age he would often have made anatomical studies, and
would have written upon them, for the benefit of his fellow-craftsmen;
for he was disappointed by several. But he did not trust himself,
through not being able to express himself in writing as he would have
liked, because he was not practised in diction, although in the prose
of his letters he explained his conceptions very well in a few words.
He much delighted in readings of the poets in the vulgar tongue, and
particularly of Dante, whom he much admired, imitating him in his
conceptions and inventions; and so with Petrarca, having delighted to
make madrigals and sonnets of great weight, upon which commentaries
have been written. M. Benedetto Varchi gave a lecture in the
Florentine Academy upon that sonnet which begins--
Non ha l'ottimo artista alcun concetto
Ch'un marmo solo in se non circonscriva.
Michelagnolo sent a vast number by his own hand--receiving answers in
rhyme and in prose--to the most illustrious Marchioness of Pescara, of
whose virtues he was enamoured, and she likewise of his; and she went
many times to Rome from Viterbo to visit him, and Michelagnolo
designed for her a Dead Christ in the lap of Our Lady, with two little
Angels, all most admirable, and a Christ fixed on the Cross, who, with
the head uplifted, is recommending His Spirit to the Father, a divine
work; and also a Christ with the Woman of Samaria at the well. He much
delighted in the sacred Scriptures, like the excellent Christian that
he was; and he held in great veneration the works written by Fra
Girolamo Savonarola, because he had heard the voice of that friar in
the pulpit. He greatly loved human beauty for the sake of imitation in
art, being able to select from the beautiful the most beautiful, for
without this imitation no perfect work can be done; but not with
lascivious and disgraceful thoughts, as he proved by his way of life,
which was very frugal. Thus, when he was young, all intent on his
work, he contented himself with a little bread and wine, and this he
continued when old until the time when he was painting the Judgment in
the Chapel, taking his refreshment in the evening when he had finished
the day's work, but always very frugally. And, although he was rich,
he lived like a poor man, nor did any friend ever eat at his table,
or rarely; and he would not accept presents from anyone, because it
appeared to him that if anyone gave him something, he would be bound
to him for ever. This sober life kept him very active and in want of
very little sleep, and often during the night, not being able to
sleep, he would rise to labour with the chisel; having made a cap of
thick paper, and over the centre of his head he kept a lighted candle,
which in this way threw light over where he was working without
encumbering his hands. Vasari, who had seen the cap several times,
reflecting that he did not use wax, but candles of pure goat's tallow,
which are excellent, sent him four bundles of these, which weighed
forty libbre. And his servant with all courtesy carried them to him at
the second hour of the evening, and presented them to him; but
Michelagnolo refused them, declaring that he did not want them; and
then the servant said: "They have broken my arms on the way between
the bridge and here, and I shall not carry them back to the house. Now
here in front of your door there is a solid heap of mud; they will
stand in it beautifully, and I will set them all alight." Michelagnolo
said to him: "Put them down here, for I will not have you playing
pranks at my door."
He told me that often in his youth he slept in his clothes, being
weary with labour and not caring to take them off only to have to put
them on again later. There are some who have taxed him with being
avaricious, but they are mistaken, for both with works of art and with
his substance he proved the contrary. Of works of art, as has been
seen and related, he presented to M. Tommaso de' Cavalieri, to Messer
Bindo, and to Fra Sebastiano, designs of considerable value; and to
Antonio Mini, his pupil, all his designs, all his cartoons, and the
picture of the Leda, and all the models in clay and wax that he ever
made, which, as has been related, were all left in France. To Gherardo
Perini, a Florentine gentleman who was very much his friend, he gave
three sheets with some divine heads in black chalk, which since
Perini's death have come into the hands of the most illustrious Don
Francesco, Prince of Florence, who treasures them as jewels, as indeed
they are; for Bartolommeo Bettini he made a cartoon, which he
presented to him, of a Venus with a Cupid that is kissing her, a
divine thing, which is now in the possession of Bettini's heirs in
Florence, and for the Marchese del Vasto he made a cartoon of a "Noli
me Tangere," a rare thing; and these two last were painted excellently
well by Pontormo, as has been related. He presented the two Captives
to Signor Ruberto Strozzi, and the Pietà in marble, which he broke, to
Antonio, his servant, and to Francesco Bandini. I know not, therefore,
how this man can be taxed with avarice, he having given away so many
things for which he could have obtained thousands of crowns. What
better proof can I give than this, that I know from personal
experience that he made many designs and went to see many pictures and
buildings, without demanding any payment? But let us come to the money
earned by him by the sweat of his brow, not from revenues, not from
traffickings, but from his own study and labour. Can he be called
avaricious who succoured many poor persons, as he did, and secretly
married off a good number of girls, and enriched those who served him
and assisted him in his works, as with his servant Urbino, whom he
made a very rich man? This Urbino was his man of all work, and had
served him a long time; and Michelagnolo said to him: "If I die, what
will you do?" And he answered: "I will serve another master." "You
poor creature," said Michelagnolo, "I will save you from such misery";
and presented two thousand crowns to him in one sum, an act such as is
generally left to Cæsars and Pontiffs. To his nephew, moreover, he
gave three and four thousand crowns at a time, and at the end he left
him ten thousand crowns, besides the property in Rome.