diuertissement here to throw a halfpenny loaf into the moat among the Carps and to see how they will mumble and iumble it to and fro how others will puff and snuff and take it ill not to haue part of it and how in fine they will plainly fall to blowes and fight for it You would wonder how such hoat passions should be found in cold water but euery thing that liues will fight for that which makes it liue its Vittails Hauing seen Fontainbelleau I saw on extraordinary thing in the rest of the way to Lyons but an old Inscription in letters of gold vpon a woodden Fabrick a mile before I came to Montargis importing that the English being encamped here had been forced to rayse their Seige before Montargis by reason of great raynes and suddain inundations Some of the French historians will haue it that it was the Count de Dunois that forced the English to rayse the Seige here but I had rather beleeue publick inscriptions then priuate flattery and it was more honourable for the English to be ouercome by God then by men From hence I passed through Montargis a neat pleasant towne in the great Hall of whose Castle is painted the history of the dog that fought a Duel with the Murderer of his Master and it is not strange that the Dog that had put on humanity ouercame him that had put it of to espouse the deuouring humour of a Dog This is the chief towne of the Gastinois From hence I went to Briare where I saw the cut channel that ioynes Loire and Sene together in trafick whose bedds oftherwise stand wide from one another in situation From thence to Cosne la Charité Pougues famous for wholesome stincking waters Neuers famous for glasse houses Moulins famous for kniues and Cizars la Palisse where they make excellent winter bootes Roanne where Loire beginns to be nauigable and so ouer Terrara hills to Lyons Lyons is one of the greatest and richest townes in France It stands vpon the riuers Saone and Rhosne Araris and Rhodanus and intercepting all the merchandize of Burgondy Germany and Italy It licks its fingers notably and thriues by it It expresseth this in its looks for here you haue hansome people noble houses great jollity frequent balls and much brauery all markes of a good towne and could it but intercept either the Parlament of Aix or Grenoble it would be as noble as its name or as its Catedral Chapter whose Deane and Prebends are all counts and noble of four descents they got the title of counts thus A great contest arriseing between the Chapter of S. Iohns Church and the Count de Forests called Guigo for some rights ouer the towne of Lyons which they both pretended to at last anno 1166. they came to an agreement vpon this condition that the Count should leaue to the Chapter his County of Forests which he did and so euer since the Decane and Prebends haue been called Counts of S. Iohn The cheif things to be seen in Lyons are these 1. The great Church or Cathedral called Iohns Church It s the Seat of an Archbishop who is Primat of Gaule S. Irenaeus was a great ornament of this Church as was also Eucherius Vpon solemne dayes the Canons officiate in Miters like Bishops They sing here all the office by heart and without booke as also without pricksong musick organs or other instrumens vseing onely the ancient plainsong The High Altar is like those of Italy that is open on all sides with a Crucifixe and two little candlestiks vpon it I neuer saw any hangings in this Church not vpon the greatest dayes but Venerable old walls The clock here is much cryed vp for a rare peice 2. The stately new Towne house of pure white freestone able to matche that of Amsterdam and indeed they seemed to me to be twinns for I saw them both in the same yeare as they were in building The curious stair-case and Hall aboue are the things most worthy taking notice of the owne for its contriuanc the other for its painting 3. The Jesuits Colledge and fair Library 4. The Carthusians Monastery vpon a high Hill 5. The Minimes Sachristy well painted 6. The rests of the old Aqueduct vpon the Hill 7. The Mail and the sweet place of Belle Cour. 8. The Heart of saint Francis de Sales in the Church of the Visitation in Belle Cour. 9. The Charité where all the poore are kept at worke with admirable oeconomy It looks like a little towne haueing in it nine courts all built up with lodgeings for the poore who are about fifteen hundred and diuided into seueral Classes with their seueral Refectories and Chappels 10. The Head of S. Bonauenture in the Cordeliers Church 11. The Castle of Pierre Ancise built vpon a rock 12. Nostre Dame de Fouruier standing vpon a high hill from whence you haue a perfect view of Lyons 13. Lastly the rare Cabinet of Monsieur Seruier a most ingenious gentleman where I saw most rare experiments in Mathematiks and Mechanicks all made by his owne hand as the sympatheticall balls one springing vp at the approach of the other held vp a pretty distance off the demonstration of a quick way how to passe an army ouer a riuer with one boat and a woodden bridge easily to be foulded vp vpon one cart the mouse dyall where a little thing like a mouse by her insensible motion markes the houres of the day The Lizard Dyal is much like the former onely the mouse moues vpon a plain frame of wood which hath the houres marked on it and the Lizard creeps vpward from houre to houre The night dyall shewing by a lighted lamp set behinde it the houres of the night which are painted in colours vpon oyled Paper and turne about as the time goes The Tortoise dyall where a peice of cork cut like a Tortoise being put into a puter dish of water which hath the twelue houres of the day marked upon its brims goeth vp and downe the water a while seeking out the houre of the day that is then and there fixeing it self without stirring The Rare engine teaching how to throw Grenados into beseiged townes and into any precise place without fayling The way how to set vp a watch-tower with a man in it to looke into a towne from without and see how they are drawne vp within the towne a way how to change dineing Roomes three or four times with their tables the Seats and ghests being by the turning of a wheele transported sitting out of one Roome into another and so into three or four more Roomes variously hung with tables couered The Desk dyall which throwes vp a little ball of yuory without rest and thereby marketh the houre of the day and sheweth what a clock it is the Dyall of the Planets representing the dayes of the week by seueral figures in iuory of the planets the
countryes with other rich stones all aboue marble and all so neatly polished and shining that the Art here exceeds the materials This Chappel is round and round about are to by fixed within the walls as high as a man can reach the Tombes of all the Great Dukes of Florence in a most gallant manner and of most exquisit polished stones with a great cushen of some richer stone and a Ducal crowne of pretious stones reposeing vpon that cushen Ouer these Tombes the Statues of all the Great â—ukes at full length and in their Ducal habits all of brasse guilt are to be placed in Niches round about the Chappel The roof is to Vaulted all ouer with an ouercrusting of Lapis Lazuli a blew pretious stone with vaines of gold in it which will make it looke like heauen it self Between each tombe are inlayd in the walls the armes or Scutchions of the seueral townes of the Great Dukes dominions all blazoned according to their seueral colours in herauldry by seueral pretious stones which compose them and these are not made in little but are fair great Scutchions made purposely of a larg sise for to fill vp the voyd places between the Tombes The townes are these Florence Siena Pisa Liuorno Volterra Arezzo Pistoia Cortona Monte Pulciano c. which contributed I suppose something each of them to this costly Fabrick in fine this Chappel is so rich within with its owne shining bare walls that it scorns all hangings painting guilding mosaick work and such like helpers off of bare walls because it can find nothing richer and hansomer then its owne pretious walls It s now aboue threescore years since it was begun and there are ordinarily threescore men at work dayly here and yet ther 's onely the Tombe of Ferdinand the Second perfectly finished The very Cushen which lyeth vpon his Tombe cost threescore thousand crownes by which you may gesse at the rest indeed these stately Tombes make almost death it self looke louely and dead mens ashes grow proud againe As for the Altar and Tabernacle of this Chappel I will speak of them by and by when I describe the Gallery of the Great Duke where they are kept till the Chappel be finished 2. The Church of S. Laurence which belongs to this Chappel or rather to which this chappel belongs is a very hansom church designed by Brunellischi himself The things that grace this church are the neat double row of round pillars which hold vp the roof of this Fabrick The picture ouer the Quire painted in the roof representing the genaral judgement It s a bold peece and of Pontorno The two Brazen pulpits wrought into hystorys by rare Donatello The curious designed picture of S. Anne and our Blessed Lady in chiaro e oscuro by Fra Bartolomeo commonly called Del Frate is so wel a designed peece that a Duke of Mantua haueing seen it offered to buy it at any rate but was refused The new Sacristy made to serue the fine Chappel described aboue deserues to be carefully visited because of the bodyes of the Princes of the Family of Medices which are depositated here till the Chappel mentioned aboue be finished In this new Sacristy also are seen the four statues made by Michael Angelo representing The Day the Night Aurora and the Euening the four parts which compose Time by which all men are brought to their Graues That which represents Night is a rare statue and hugely cryed vp by all Sculptors and Virtuosi See also in the Wall of the old Sacristy the neat Tombe of Iohn and Peter Medices sonns of Cosmus surnamed Pater Patriae It s the worke of Andrea Varochio In the midst of this Church before the High Altar lyes buryed Cosmus Pater Patriae the Rayser of the Medicean family In the Cloister ioyning to this Church is erected the Statue of Paulus Iouius the Historian and neare to this statue you mount vp a pair of stairs to the rare Library of Manuscripts called Bibliotheca Laurentiana the Catalogue of whose bookes is printed at Amsterdame an 1622 in octauo 3. The Gallery of the old Pallace This is that Gallery so famous and so frequently Visited by all Strangers At your entrance into this Gallery you see a Vast long roome made like an L on the left hand of this Gallery there runns a perpetual glasse window on the other side are set a row of pictures in great of those of the Medicean Family vnder the windowes and also vnder the sayd Pictures stand a row of curious Marble statues ancient ones all and of prime hands Ouer the sayd windowes and Pictures runns a close row of lesse Pictures representing to the life the most famous men of later times for learning and Armes the soldiers being on the right hand and the schollers on the left The statues aforesayd are well nigh a hundred in all but all rare ones Some whereof I yet remember and they are these That of Leda of Diana of Bacchus of Hercules of the Gladiator standing on his gard of Scipio Africanus in brasse shewing the ancient habit and dresse of the old Romans farre different from our modes that of a little yong youth in brasse with his sword in his hand that of a little boy sleeping vpon a touchstone The head of Cicero in marble that of Seneca the Head of Michael Angelo Bonarota in brasse of his owne hand makeing in fine the head of Brutus one of Caesars murderers It was begun in marble by Michael Angelo but informedly and so left by him If you will know the reason why he finished it not read the distick written in brasse vnder this head by the sayd sculptor himself thus M. Dum Bruti effigiem Sculptor A. de marmore ducit B. In mentem sceleris Venit F. abstinuit The four corner letters signifying that Michael Angelus Bonarota Fecit Among the pictures I tooke particular notice of these Souldiers of Hannibal that frighted Rome of Scipio that tooke Carthage and vanquished Hannibal of Pyrrhus that made the Romans glad to make peace with him of Scanderbeg that made the Great Turk afrayd to fight with him of Venerius that helpt to winn the battle of Lepento of Alexander Farnese that neuer lost battle of Cortesius that found out new countryes of Magellanus that found out new Seas of Andrea D'Oria who beat the French by Sea of Gaston de Foix who had beat the Spaniards by land if he had but knowne how to vse his Victory of the Duke of Alua who onely lamented deying that he had neuer fought a pitchd battle with the Turks of Anne de Montmorency who dyeing was glad to dye in a pitchd batle against the Hugonots of Eccelino the Paduan Tyrant of whom no man can Speak any good of Castrucio of whom no man can speake any ill with a world of other braue Heros with whose true lookes I was very glad to be acquainted Among the pictures of the learned men
passe their time more cheerfully But for the most part they liue alone condemned to the melancholy horror of their crimes and the solitude of seauen whole weeks in Lent when vpon payne of rigorous punishments and imprisonment they dare not admitt of any customers The like rigour is vsed against them also in Aduent that dureing the space of those holy times these vnholy women may haue time to think of themselues and admit of Gods holy inspirations for their amendment Is it not a punishment to them to be obliged to enter their names publickly in the list of whores For if Tacitus obserues that the old Romans satis paenarum aduersum impudicas in ipsa professione flagitij apud Aediles credebant thought it punishment enough against vnchast women in their very profesing themselues to be such before the Aedils I cannot but think it a great punishment to Christian whores who are at least as sensible as the heathens of the horrible disgrace of haueing their name listed to be thus defamed for euer by remaining whores vpon Record Is it not a punishing of them to depriue them all their life time as long as they liue whores of the holy Sacraments and after their death of Christian Burial Is it not a punishment and a deterring of them from vice to throw their bodyes when they dye into an obscure place out of the walls of the towne as if they deserued no other Burial place then that of Asses Is it not in fine a punishment to them not to be allowed to make any Will or Testament but to leaue all their goods confiscated either to the Hospitals of poore honest girles or to the maintaining of those gards that are to watch ouer their deportments If these punishments both of body soul and honour be inflicted vpon whores in Rome as they are do not vrge any more that whores are not punished in Rome nor discountenanced But why doth not the Pope punish them home and roote them quite out by banishment This hath been attempted by diuers Popes and namely by Pius Quintus of happy memory as Thuanus in his history writes but seeing greater inconueniences and greater sinns arose vpon it prudence which is the salt that must season all moral actions thought it not fit to carry on that rigour nor yet allow of fornication neither So that all the permission of whores in Rome that can colourably be imagined is onely a not punishing of them in all rigour and euen that too for a good end and to hinder greater euils But the Pope being both a Temporal and an Ecclesiastical Superiour is bound in my mind to break through all respects and settle innocency in the world It s zealously spoken and I wish he could do it but difficilem rem optas generis humani innocentiam he wisheth a hard thing who wisheth for the innocency of mankinde sayth a wiseman And if Princes sometimes do not punish factious subiects when they see that the punishing of them would pull the whole State in peeces ouer their heads and put the whole kingdome in danger as it did in Henry the Thirds time in France vpon his causeing of the Duke of Guise to be killed in Blois If Generals of armyes take no notice of some treacherous commander who is vniuersally beloued by the soldiers least the punishing of one man loose them the affection of the whole army as we saw latey in the case of Lubemirsky how truely guilty I know not and some yeares ago I remember in the case of Walstein whose punishment had almost vndone the Emperor why may not the Pope without approueing the sinn of whores prudently waue the punishing of it with all rigour when he sees that such rigour would cause greater disorders in that hot nation and in that citie where all nations seeme to club vices as well as vertues Hence learned Abulensis a great Diuine sayth Licet leges humanae aliqua mala permittant non puniendo nullum tamen malum permittunt statuendo But the Pope should not gouerne according either to human policy or human Lawes and Examples You pretend zeale but you would do well to take her sister Prudence with her as our Sauiour did who when he heard his disciples desireing him to let them call downe fire from heauen vpon the criminal Samaritans answered them calmely you know not of what spirit you are Nay doth not God himself who being able to punish all criminal persons and roote them quite out of the world suffer both his Sun to rise and shine vpon sinners and sinners to offend in this sunshine and often by it Hence S. Thomas sayth much to my purpose Humanum regimen deriuatur a diuino regimine ipsum debet imitari Deus autem quamuis sit omnipotens ac summâ— bonus permittit tamen aliqua mala fieri in vniuerso quae prohibere posset ne iis sublatis maiora bona tollerentur vel maiora mala sequerentur Humane gouerment is deriued from diuine gouerment and ought to imitate it Now God allthough he be allmighty and highly good yet he permits euils to be done in the world which he could hinder least by taking away them greater goods should be taken away or greater euils should follow But I wade too farre into this puddle yet remember who thrust me into it and you l pardon me Behinde the Church and Conuent of the foresayd Penitents stands the Church of San Syluestro in Capite so called from the picture of our Sauiours head and face which our Sauiour himself made by miracle and sent to Abagarus King of Edessa as you may read at length in Baronius and in Bosius in his rare booke called Roma Sotterranea Now this picture is kept here in this monastery and with great probability seing it was here that diuers Greek Monks driuen out of their country by Constantin Copronimus for the defence of sacred Jmages were entertained by the Pope Paul the First and it s very likely that these good men brought with them this famous picture of our Sauiour to saue it from the fury of the Iconoclasts Returning from hence into the Corso againe I went to see there the Colonna d'Antonino the Great Pillar of Antoninus the Emperor It s built iust like that of Traian described aboue It was built by Marcus Aurelius Antoninus the Emperor in honour of his Father Antoninus Pius It s all of white marble engrauen without with a basso rilieuo from top to bottom containing the memorable actions of Marcus Aurilius It s 175 foot high hath in it 206 stairs which lead vp to the top of it and 56 little windows giuing light to those stairs and yet this high Pillar was made of 28 stones of marble The caruing that is vpon it contains the braue actions of Marcus Aurelius ouer che Armenians Parthians Germans Wandals and Sarmats or Polonians but age hath so defaced these
adorne S. Peters High Altar And though the People and Pasquin two equaly sensless things murmured much at the takeing away of this brasse yet seing the Pantheon receiued no damage therby and seing it was improued to that height that it became Ecclesiae Ornamentum Vrbi Munimentum the wiser sort of men thought it well employed and let the people and malice talke I had almost forgot to tell you that this Temple was made by Agrippa who had been thrice Consul as the words in the Architraue of the porch yet shew From hence I went through the Campo Marzo vnto the Church of S. Lorenzo in Lucina which is serued by Cherici Regolari Minori It s an ancient Church neatly repaired of late and the greatest Parish Church in Rome From hence I went to see the Pallace of Burghesi which is hard by This is one of the noblest Pallaces in Rome It giues you a faire broad-side of windowes three storyes one ouer another and its lenght is prodigious Mounting vp to the Chambers J found a fair open Gallery built vpon arches and pillars round about the Court This Gallery lets you into seueral appartiments and on that side which ouerlooks the Piazza J saw a row often or twelue great Chambers through which I looked at once In these chambers and the other roomes I obserued these things 1. Rich hangings and ouer them rare painting made by a Capucin Lay-brother The history of the Queen of Sabas comeing to visit Salomons Court and the rapt of the Sabines which make this Fregiâ— ouer the hangings are so rarely well done that Raphael and Michel Angelo would not haue mended them for colours 2. A great Cabinet of Ebeny set with historyes cast in gold and set with rich pretious stones it s valuâ—d at threescore thousand crownes 3. A rare picture of Hercules and Anteus 4. Raphaels owne picture 5. The last supper by Titian 6. The Terrasse and garden with boxe kotts and fountains of water all at the very top of the house and ouer looking the street riuer meadows and S. Peters 7. The little back gallery of pictures where among others I was showne the pictures of Martin Luther Nicolas Macchiauel and Caesar Borgia There great Corruptors of Religion Polioy and Manners 8. The low coole gallery full of statues and pictures especially of the Borghesian Family That of Paulus Quintus in a small Mosaick worke is scarce to be discouered from painting as also the Assumption of our Lady in the same worke There I saw also Titians owne picture and the rare Crucifix made by Michel Angelo so to life that some men haue fabulously giuen out that he drew it after a crucifyed man From hence I went to see the Mausoleum Augusti or the Tombe of Augustus Caesar standing neere S. Rocks Church in a priuate place hard to be found out It was once one of the neatest structures in Rome And it was but fitting that the first of the Emperours should haue an honorable tombe and that hee who hauing found Rome built of brick onely had left it all of marble should haue a marble monument erected to him after his death Vrbem Lateritiam inueni marmoriam relinquo sayd Augustus The Mausoleum was a round building of white marble going vp with four storyes set round with pillars and each story growing lesser and lesser with green trees set abâ—â—t euery story hauing at the top of â—ll the brazen statue of Augustus It was two hundred and fifty cubits high But how it s much defaced and we see something of the greatness of it but little of its beauty Going from hence to the Church of S. Antony of Padua belonging to the Portughesi I saw the Tombe of the Great Canonist and Casuist Nauarre or Martin Aspelcuita with his statue in busto ouer it This good man hearing how his great friend Caranza was called to Rome to answer for himself in points of doctrine which he was falsely accused of followed him thither of his owne accord to deffend his cause and cleare his innocency and hauing done it died here Neare to this Church stands the Church and Conuent of the Austîn Friers In the Church I saw the Tombe of S. Monica mother to S. Augustin Here also lyes buryed Onufrius Panuinus a Fryer of this Conuent learned in sacred antiquityes and in the Hebrew tongue In the Conuent I often saw the neat Library called Bibliotheca Angelica becâ—se Angelus Rocca a Bishop and Master of the Popes Sacristy gaue it at his death to his Conuent with an obligation of letting it be open in the mornings Among many curious bookes I remember to haue seen there the Prophecies of Joachim where among other things he sayth that the Turks shall be ouercomne and ruined by three nations by the French propter bonos equos by the English propter bonos marinarios and by the Venetians propter bonum consilium These are his very words Neare to the forsayd Church stands the Church of S. Apollinaris and the GermaÌ„ Colledge Here the best singers of Rome meet constantly Ouer against this Church stands the Pallace of the Duke of Altemps In which I saw the great Hall and in it the Triumph of Bacchus in a basso rilieuo cut in marble with exquisit arte I saw also here the representation of a Towne cut in wood an ancient and curious peece The picture of our B. Lady with her son in her armes valued at fiue thousand pistols it is of Raphaels hand The neat Library full of diuers good manuscripts and other books In fine the noble Chappel with the Tombe of S. Anaclet Pope vnder the Altar with the head of this Saint in the Sacristy enchased in syluer and set thick with rich stones The rich ornaments here for the Church seruice cost the Duke a hundred and twenty thousand crownes From hence in fine I went to S. Iohn Florentins a neat Church belonging to the Florentins at whose cost it was built Here is in one of the Chappels the picture of our Sauiours Resurrection made by Lanfranc a rare peece And being lodged neare this Church I found that I had wandered ouer all Rome and was now come againe to the Bridg of S. Angelo were I began my first dayes iourney through Rome But seing that in such townes as this there is alwayes something to be seen after all I made many irregular excursions vp and downe Rome to view many things which I had not taken in my direct way before as some pallaces some rare fountains diuers antiquities studies of virtuosi and the like which I haue been forced for methods sake to passe ouer yet because there are whole bookes of all the pallaces fountains statues and antiquityes set forth in cutts and pictures I remit my Reader to them while I aske one question Where are now those rare peeces of antiquity which historyes rather mention then we finde now in Rome as the Cymboum
will say I change stile often and sometimes ruâ—n smoothly sometimes joltingly Truâ—â—raueled not allwayes vpon smooth ground and paceing horses Swisserlande and Sauoye are much different from Campania and Lombardy and its one thing to describe a Pleasant garden an other thing to describe a Venerable Cathedrall and if in the one and the other we haue seueral lookes much more ought we to haue seueral words in describing them Others will say I affect a world of exotick words not yet naturalized in England No I affect them not I cannot auoyd them For who can speak of Statues but he must speak of Niches or of Churches Wrought Tombes or inlayd Tables but hee must speak of Coupolas of bassi rilieui and of pietre commesse If any man vnderstand them not it s his fault not mine Others will say I hunt too much after Ceremonies and Church antiquityes No I onely meet them And as a man cannot speak of Hercules but he must speak of clubbs of combats of Labours and victories so I cannot speak of Rome the Christian but I must speake of Relicks Ceremonies and Religion Yet I beleeue I giue my Reader a full drought toâ— of prophane antiquityes Mascarades Shews dressings and passetimes Others in fine will say that I do but a thing done allready seeing two others haue written of this subiect in English Well if others haue written vpon this subiect why may not I They did the best they could I beleeue but they drew not vp the ladder after them The one writes much of Italy and says little the other writes little and leaueth out much which I impute to the ones writing out of old Geographers long after he had been there and to the others short stay in Italy when he was there And if these ingenious gentlemen haue painted out Italy in busto onely and profile why may not I paint her out at full face and at her full length If they like ancient Statuaryes haue represented Italy vnto vs like a naked statue I haue set her out in all her best Attire and Iewels And thus much for my owne sake For my countryes sake To read to my countrymen two profitable Lessons The first of the Profit of traueling The second of Traueling with profit 1. For the first to wit the Profit of Traueling its certain that if this world be a great booke as S. Augustin calls it none studdy this great Booke so much as the Traueler They that neuer stirr from home read onely one page of this booke and like the dull follow in Pliny who could neuer learne to count further then fiue they dwell allwayes vpon one lesson They are like an acquaintance of mine who had alwayes a booke indeed lyeing open upon a deske but it was obserued that it lay allwayes open at one and the same place and by long custome could lye open no where else He then that will know much out of this great booke the world must read much in it and as Vlysses is setforth by Homer as the wisest of all the Grecians because he had traueled much and had seen multorum hominum mores Vrbes the Cittyes and customes of many men so his sonn Telemachus is held for a very shallow witted man and Homer giues the reason because his mother Penelope instead of sending him abroad to see forrain countryes had allwayes kept him at home and so made him a meere Onocephalus and a homeling Mammacuth So true is the saying of Seneca that Imperitum est animal homo sine magna experientia rerum si circumscribatur Natalis soli sui fine 2 Traueling preserues my yong nobleman from surfeiting of his parents and weanes him from the dangerous fondness of his mother It teacheth him wholesome hardship to lye in beds that are none of his acquaintance to speak to men he neuer saw before to trauel in the morning before day and in the euening after day to endure any horse and weather as well as any meat and drink Whereas my country gentleman that neuer traueled can scarce go to London without makeing his Will at least without wetting his handkercher And what generous mother will not say to her sonn with that ancient Malo tibi malè esse quà m molliter I had rather thou shouldst be sick then soft Indeed the coral-tree is neither hard nor red till taken out of the Sea its natiue home And I haue read that many of the old Romans put out their children to be nurced abroad by Lacedemonian nurces till they were three yeares old then they put them to their Vncles till seauen or tenn then they sent them into Toscany to be instructed in Religion and at last into Greece to studdy Philosophy 3. Traueling takes my yong nobleman four notches lower in his self-conceit and pride For wheras the country Lord that neuer saw any body but his Fathers tennants and M. Parson and neuer read any thing but Iohn Stow and Speed thinks the Lands-end to be the Worlds-end and that all solid greatness next vnto a great Pasty consists in a great Fire and a great estate Wheras my traueling yong Lord who hath seen so many greater men and Estats then his owne comes home farre more modest and ciuil to his inferiours and farre lesse pufft vp with the empty conceit of his owne greatness Indeed nothing cured Alcibiades his pride so much as to see in a Map shewd him for the nonce by Socrates that his house and lands of which he was so prowd either appeared there not at all or onely a little spot or dab and nemo in pusillo magnus 4. Traueling takes off in some sort that aboriginal curse which was layd vpon mankind euen allmost at the beginning of the world I meane the confusion of tongues which is such a curse indeed that it makes men who are of one kind and made to be sociable so strangely to fly one an other that as great S. Austin sayth A man had rather be with his dog then with a man whose language he vnderstands not Nay this diuersity of language makes the wisest man passe for a foole in a strange country and the best man for an excommunicated person whose conuersation all men auoyd Now traueling takes off this curse and this moral excommunication by making vs learne many languages and conuerse freely with people of other countryes 5. Traueling makes vs acquainted with a world of our kinred we neuer saw before For seing we are all comne from one man at first and consequently all akinn to one another it s but a reasonable thing that a man should once at least in his life time make a journey into forrain countries to see his Relations and visit this kinred haueing allwayes this saying of young Joseph in his mouth quaero fratres meos 6. Traueling enables a man much for his countryes seruice It makes the merchant rich by shewing him what abounds wantes in other countryes that so he
exquisitly carued with historical statues representing the most remarkable actions of that Doctor 4 In the same Church we were showne the Tombe of Seuerinus Boëtius author of that great little booke de Consolatione Philosophica which he wrote in his exile to comfort himself He was a Consul of Rome for dignity an other S. Denys for learning loosing his head and held a Martyr by many 5 In the Cloister of this Conuent of the Augustins lye buryed two Englishmen of note the Duke of suffolke and an English Bishop called Parker of the house of Morley I read their seueral Epitaphs vpon the wall of this Cloister neare the little doore that goes from hence into the Church but haue forgot them since 6 The Chappel where the Bones of the Frenchmen killed in the Battle of Pauia are kept and showne to strangers 7 In the Franciscans Church here lyes buryed Baldus the famous Iurisconsult 8 The long wodden Bridge couered ouer head with a perpetuall penthouse to deffend men as well from the Sun as from the rayne Of this towne were Ennodius Ticinensis and Lanfrancus Archbishop of Canterbury who wrot so learnedly against Berengarius for the Reall Presence He that desires to know the particular history of Pauia let him read Antonio Spelta and Sacco From Pauia we went to Milan same twenty miles off and in the way saw the famous Monastery of the Carthusians neare vnto which vpon S. Mathias his day a day fauorable to Charles the V seeing he was borne on that day crowned Emperour on that day and got this Victory on that day was fought that memorable battle between the sayd Emperours forces and the French King an 1525. where Francis the I. of France was taken prisoner haueing lost the day not for want of courage but conduct for he had a little before sent away halfe of his army to the conquest of Naples by which he so weakened the rest of his army here that he both lost the day and did nothing against the kingdome of Naples A great fault obserued by one that was present there to wit Monsieur Monluc Francis being thus taken prisoner was presently conducted to the Carthusians Monastery which was hard by Entering into the Church and finding the Monks singing in the third houre this verse of the Psalme Coagulatum est sicut lac cor eorum egovero legem tuam meditatus sum he struck up with them at the next verse and sung aloud with a piety as great as his losse or courage Bonum mihi quia humiliasti me vt discam iustificationes tuas that is it s well for mee that thou hast humbled me that I may learne thy iustifications After he had heard Masse here he was carryed to dinner in the Monastery and was serued by three Generals of the Spanish Army Launoy Bourbon and the Marquis of Vasti the one holding the basin the second powring water vpon his hands and the third presenting him the Towel Some say he refused to bee serued by Bourbon looking vpon him as a revolted Trayter rather then as an ennemy indeed the braue Frënch Knight Bayard surnamed the Cheualier sans peur who died in this battle being found expireing in the feild by Bourbon who sayd to him Poore Bayard I pitty thee answered him with all the courage and life that was left him No Traytor J am not to be pittyed who dye nobly seruing my King and country but thou rather art to be pittied who liuest à Traytor to thy king and country As for the King he was led prisoner into Spayne where he was kept at Madrid till he payed his ransom Hence the Spaniards brag that they had once a French king prisoner and the French had neuer any King of Spayne prisoner but the French answer that their King had not been prisoner had he fought as the Kings of Spayne do of late that is by Proxie and not in person Howeuer this Francis the first deserued better fortune being A Prince of great courage and honour and a great louer of his souldiers For not long before he had beaten the Swissers in the battle of San Donato where his souldiers fought for him with singular courage and zeale And hee had deserued it all For he was so good to his souldiers in that expedition that he would ride vp and downe the campe in the night to visit the wounded souldiers and help them to all necessaries commanding euen His owne sheets to be cut in peeces to binde vp their wound◠As for the Monastery it self of the Charthusians it s one of the most stately Monasteries of Jtaly and I beleeue the second of that Order The great Cloister is all couered with lead The Church is one of the hansomest of Italy though built a la Tedesca The Frontispice of it is adorned with a world of heads and figures of white marble The Chappels within are richly adorned and painted The Tabernacle is worth fourscore thousand crownes The tombe of their founder Iohn Galeazzo Visconti Duke of Milan which stands a little without the Quire with the cumbent statues of Ludouico Moro the last Duke of Milan and his wife lyeing vnder the other is a stately Monument In the Sacristy we were showne many fine Relicks much rich Church-plate and a curious back of an Altar of Yuory cut into histories after a rare māner Passing from hence we came to Milan This towne is surnamed the Great and rightly seing it carryes full ten miles in compasse within the walls It hath ten gates to it two hundred Churches within it and three hundred thousand souls dwelling in it Hence it was anciently called Altera Roma a second Rome both because of its greatness and because of its other titles which made it looke like Rome It s the Head of the best Dutchy in Europe which is a hundred miles long from North to South and containeth four hundred townes in it It s called Milan quasi Midland being a pure Mediterranean Towne and hauing which is a wonder not so much as a riuer of its owne running by it but is onely serued by two Channels cut out of the Ticine and the Adder This towne hath heretofore suffered much by warre great townes being the fairest Markes to shoot at and Milan hath been forty times shot at by Sieges and twenty times Hit and taken haueing had the misfortune to haue been vnder diuers factions and Rulers as the Emperours the Turriani the Visconti the Sforze the French and the Spaniards who now keep it mercè al Castello which staueth of all tempts of strangers France pretends to this Dutchy as heire of Valentia Visconty who was marryed to Lewis Duke of Orleans whose house was excluded from this Dutchy by Francis Sforza who possessed himself of this State As for the things which I saw in Milan they are these 1. The store of Gentry and Nobility here which I perceiued to be very numerous
the greatness of this family came from Cosmus Medices surnamed Pater Patriae This man being very rich and of a liberal mind spent four hundred thousand crownes in publick and priuate buildings and one hundred thousand crownes more in loane monyes to the poore citizens These generous actions which should haue got him the loue of all men purchased him the hatred of some of the great ones who accuseing him of affecting Souerainty raysed a strong faction against him The heads of this faction where Rinaldo Albizzi Pala Strozzi Ridolfo Peruzzi and Nicolo Barbadori These men corrupting the suffrages of the Senate caused Cosmus to be clapt vp with an intention to take away his life Cosmus in prison fearing poyson abstained from meats four dayes together and dyed almost for feare of being killed At last hee was rescued from this melancholy humor by his honest keeper who gaue him such assurances that he should not be poysoned that he tooke meat againe and kept in his vital breath which was almost come to his lips Then his keeper not content to be half courterous haueing recouered his body stroue to recouer his mind too which was sore spent with feares and melancholy and for this purpose brought vnto him the buffon of Bernardo Guadagni then Confaloniero The chief Magistrate of the Republick who with his witty ieasts so cheared him vp with mirth that he began not onely to think of liuing againe but also of getting out from thence that he might liue long To this end he works with the buffon to carry a promise in writeing from him to the Confaloniero of 1000 crownes of gold vpon condition he would free him The buffon vndertakes it and money takes with the Confaloniero who vnder pretence of examining the cause to put him to death finds him onely worthy of baÌ„nishment to which he condemns him and the place of his banishment was Venice This was it that he desired For being at Venice he wrought so well by Freinds with the people that loued him that he was restored againe to his country and got the title of Pater Patriae by a publick decree By this title his family grew into that esteem that it ouertopt the rest and in time wrought it self into Souerainty For the Gouerment of Florence it is now Monarchical and despotical the Great Dukes will being absolute all great businesses passing through his knowledge and likeing so that he wants nothing of a King but the name and that too he almost hath vnder the name of Great Duke As for the Strength of this State it hath 20 Episcopal cittyes 500 litle walled townes strong Forts on the confines and can make an army of forty thousand foot three thousand horse twelue Gallies two Galleasses two Galleonies and twenty ships of warre For the Gentry it is a Gentry dyed in graine that is it s both witty and rich The subtil ayre of this country and the Academy of the Crusca haue sharpened them into much wit and their good husbandry and vnder-hand traffick hath put them notably into purse For they think it no disgrace to haue a banco at home and meet dayly at the exchange about traffick and trayding while their wifes Lady it in coach with their hansome liueries This makes them hold vp their nobility by the chinn and not onely preserues their familyes from sinking but rather makes them swime in a full sea of honour they being enabled thereby to buy great offices for their children in other courts whereby they often make them mount to the highest dignityes when they are there no man reproches vnto them the way they tooke to come thither whether by water or Land by traffick or by the sword by the schoole-booke or count-booke If the French gentry would follow this way they might haue shoos and stockings for their children which some of them want in the country where with to keep their noble blood warme in winter For the Riches of this Prince they are about a million and a half of Piastri or crownes These are his annual reuenews besides his iewels forfeitures and his Datij which last are of vast profit to him The Interest of this Prince is much Austrian and consequently Spanish yet not so farre as to break with France to which he opens his ports and passages for his owne sake He loues to haue no warre in Jtaly because he hath something to loose and though he loue to haue the Pope his freind yet he cares not for hauing any of his subiects Pope A Pope of his family Clement the VII hauing made him what he is he is affrayd a Pope of some other Florentin family would striue to make him what he was As for the Language of Florence its pure but in their books not in their mouths They do so choke it in the throat that it s almost quite drownd there nor doth it recouer it self againe till it come to Rome where Lingua Toscana in bocca Romana is a most sweet language The Academy of the Crusca hath much contributed to the enriching of this language with choice words The rich Dictionary made by this famous company and called from them the Crusca was forty yeares in compileing but it will be in vogue as long as men shall speak Italian Finally for the Learned men of of this towne in later times they are these Marsilius Ficinus the Christian Platonick Dante and Petrarck in Poëtry Guicciardin in History Poggio in raillery Vespâ—cius in Geography Accursius in law Michel Angelo in painting Ioannes Casa in practical morality Naclantus in diuinity Galilaeo in Astronomy Doni Luigi Alemanni and others in belle lettere He that desires to know the History of Florence let him read Giouanne Villani Matthaeo Villani Scipione Ammirato and the life of Gran Cosimo Hauing thus seen faire Florence we desired to see Ligorne and make an excursiue iourney by Pistoia Lucca and Pisa Pistoia is an ancient towne in a plain country Of this towne is Clement the IX this present Pope of the ancient Family of Rospigliosi aÌ„d that is all I can say of it For it looks baldly of it either out of pure old age els by reason of our neighbourhood to Florence which hath fleeced it or which I rather think by reason of its ciuil factions heretofore which almost ruined it quite Lucca is a prety little Commonwealth and yet it sleeps quietly within the bosome of the Great Dukes State But that State may wisely feare none which no State feares and the great Duke is vnwilling to measure his sword or take vp the cudgels against little Lucca least the world should cry shame vpon him and bid him meddle with his match This little Republick looked in my eye like a perfect mapp of old Rome in its begining It s Gouerned by a Confaloniero and the gentry The great Counsel consists of 160 citizens who are changed euery
lyeing in its Churches and so many Churches within its precincts which are aboue there huÌ„dred in all 6. For hauing been the happy occasion of conuerting most of the Nations of Europe and many others out of Europe vnto the faith of Christ by Prachers sent from thenc 7. For haueing been the Depositary as S. Irenaeus calls her of the Holy Apostolical Traditions and doctrine which haue alwayes been conserued in her Church 8. For hauing alwayes conserued the Symbole of the creed inuiolably saith S. Hierome and for neuer hauing runn in a by-channel of errour Besides these foresayd reasons Rome may deseruedly be called Holy for the many singular acts of Charity which are done there dayly more then in any other place Charity is the Queen of Vertues and if euer I saw this Queen in her throne it was in Rome For there I saw no euil either of body or mind but it had its remedy if curable at least its comforts if incurable For the first to wit Euils of body it hath is Hospitals and those many and many of those are Hospitals in folio Besides no Pilgrim comes to Rome but he findes Rome as Adam did Paradise with the table couered and bed made ready for him Poore yong girles finde portions either for husbands or nunneries according to their choice Infants whom cruel vnlawfull mothers like wolfes expose to death Rome receiues to life and thinks it but a sutable Antipelargesis to nurrish wolfes children seing a shee wolfe nurrished her Founder being exposed by men Fooles too and Madmen so much the more miserable as not being so much as sensible of their condition for saepe calamitatis solatium est nosse sortem suam haue here those that take care of them Poore men finde Hospitals when they are sick and gentlemen whom nature hath not exempted from common miseries Rome exempts from common Hospitals and not being able to giue them better health she giues them at least better accommodation in their sickness Here you shall finde an Apothecaries shop founded by Cardinal Francis Barberin with an yearly reuenue of twelue thousand crownes and this for euer to furnish the poore with physick gratis Here you shall finde the Hospital of the Holy Trinity which in the Jubily yeare of Clement the VIII is found to haue treated at table in one day fifteen thousand pilgrims and in the whole yeare fiue hundred thousand The last Iubily yeare 1650 I my self was present one day when the sayd Hospital treated nine thousand Pilgrims that day the Pope himself Jnnocent the Tenth and many of the Cardinals hauing been there to wash the feet of the pilgrims and to serue them at table Adde to this that euery nation hath here its seueral Hospital and Refuge with Church and Churchmen to serue it As the English Colledge once an Hospital for the English That of the Anima for the Germans That of the S. Lewis for the French That of S. Iacomo for the Spaniads That of S. Antony of Padua for the Portuguesi That of S. Iulian for the Flemmings That of S. Ambrose for the Lombards That of S. Iuo for the Britons That of S. Hierome for the Illyrians That of S. Marie Egyptiaca for the Armenians That of S. Stephano for the Hungarians That of S. Stanislaus for the Polonians Besides a world of others Nay almost euery corporation or body of artisans haue their Hospital among themselues which they maintaine In the Church of the 12 Apost they choose yearly 12 noblemen one Prelat who is called their Prior These go into every corner of Rome to seeke out poore men who are ashamed to beg yet are in great want These bashfull poore men put their names into a coffer well locked vp and standing in a publick place by which meanes these charitable noblemen finde them out and relieue them What shall I say of the publick charity of the Pope himself well knowne to all Besides a world of priuate charities which he giues by his Secreto Limosiniâ—ro to those that are ashamed to beg publickly The like do many Cardinals by their owne hands and in that high measure that Cardinal Montalto to name no more is found by his books of Accounts to haue giuen away aboue a hundred and seuen thousand crownes to the poore Of which pious Cardinal I cannot omit to write this following story as I haue learned it from very good relation A poore widdow of Rome mother of one onely daughter both yong and hansome got her liuing honestly by her owne and her daughters labour and rubbed out poorly but yet honestly Now it happened that this widdow falling sick and her daugther haueing enough to do to tend her their wrork went on so faintly and their gains came in so slowly that at her recouery she found her purse as much spent as her person Whereupon being called on for the quarter rent of her chaÌ„ber and not knowing what to doe she was aduised by her Confessarius to go to Cardinal Montalto who gaue publick audienc thric a week to all the poore in Rome and to beg as much of him as would pay her little debt Pressed therefore by her great necessity emboldened by the fame of the charity of this good Cardinal she entred the pallace and found him in his great hall giuing care and almes to all those that could giue him a good account of their wants In her turne she and her yong daughter approached vnto him sitting at his tables end and expresing modesty her wants caused by her three months sickness she humbly besought his Eminence to giue her fiue crownes for to pay the rent of her chamber and pacify her Landlord who otherwise threatened to put her out of dores The Cardinal seeing as much modesty in her looks as sickness in her countenance and likeing well that she did not go about to fright him into charity by vrgeing the danger of being forced one day to expose her daughter to lewd courses a common Rhetorical figure of begars in all contryes wrote downe in a little paper 50 crownes to be giuen to her and folding vp the paper he bid her carry it to his seruant below at the entrance of the pallace who kept the Cardinals bills and payed the contents of them She did so with humble prayers of thankfulnesse and the seruant vpon sight of the paper presently threw her out 50 crownes and bid her make an acquittance for it The poore woman seing 50 crownes counted out for her who had asked but 5 and fearing least the seruant vpon sight of her hansome daughter might haue done this by way of bribery told him smartly that though she were poore yet she was honest and that she scorned to go by one corruption to an other The honest seruant ciuily replyed that he vnderstood not her words nor I your deeds sayd she I asked the Cardinal 5 crownes he granted me my request and why then do you
Santo stands the Statue of the Veronica vnder the peece of the Holy Crosse the statue of S. Helen Vnder the top of the lance the Statue of Longinus vnder the Head of S. Andrew The statue of S. Andrew These statues are of Colossean greatness and made by masters as great as themselues In the midst of the Crosse of this Church and perpendiculary vnder the very Cupola stands the High Altar of this Church This Altar may well be called the High Altar Altare quasi alta Ara or the Altare mains being the noblest Altar in the world both for matter and forme The Altar it self stands ouer the Tombe S. Peter half of whose body together with half of S. Pauls lyes buryed here and the other half of their bodyes in S. Pauls Church Ouer this Altar four stately pillars of brasse beare vp a Canopie of the same mettal wrought about the edge like a Canopie indeed with Valances and a guilt fringe yet all of brasse Ouer the corners of this Canopie stand four great Angels of brasse guilt and in the midst of it is mounted high a round ball of brasse guilt and a faire Crosse vpon it of the same mettal These four pillars are as great in compase I speak by experience hauing taken the measure of them vpon their model as three ordinary men are thick Their forme is is serpentine wreathed about with vinetrees and leaues but all of brasse as also adorned with little Angels of brasse clambering vp those leaues and branches and with Bees here and there also relating to Pope Vrbans armes who made them These pillars are fifty foot high from the ground Euery on of them weigheth fiue and twenty thousand pound weight and all of them together make this Altar The Altar antonomastically as this Church is The Church of the world So that if the Climax be true as â—rue it is that Churches are for Altars Altars for Priests Priests for God I know no Religion which payeth such honorable Tributs of worship to God as the Roman Catholik religion doth which hath the noblest Church the noblest Altar the noblest Priest the noblest Sacrifice and all this to the noblest God Deus Deorum Dominus Hence the Pope may say with Salomon Domus quam aedificare cupio magna est magnus est enim Dominus noster super omnes Deos. Behind this Altar not in respect of him that comes into the Church by the great dore but in respect of him that stands at the Altar stands the Confession of S. Peter so called because that in the primitiue times the place where the bodyes of Saints and Martyrs where kept was called Confessio and in the Greek Church Martyrium For in ancient writers the word Confessor was taken often for a martyr who had confessed Christ so farre as euen to dye for him so that martyrs were sometimes called Confessors and Confessors Martyrs though they did not actually dye in tormens as you may see plainly in the Anotations of learned Pamelius vpon Tertullians booke ad Martyres Now this place because it conserues the body at least half of the body of S. Peter is called the Confession of Peter As for this Confession it s made like a hollow caue open aboue and rayled about with low rayles so that the people kneeling may looke downe to the iron dore and grate behinde which the Tombe of S. Peter stands vnder the Altar for these rayles fetch in a demi-circle from one corner of the Altar to the other There are also a double pair of open stairs of some twelue steps a peece for those to descend by who officiate and there are two little half dores which let them in to those stairs And I conceiue at the bottom of these little dores the Limina Apostolorum to bee For though I know its generally held that to visit the Limina Apostolorum which Bishops by the Canon law are obliged vnto is to visit S. Peters Church and that diuers learned Authors think the Limina Apostolorum to be the very steps of the entrance of the great dore of the Church yet I am of opinion that these little half dores and the steps about the Altar are most properly the Limina Apostolorum because I found these very words written in golden letters in the bottom of the like little dores which stand about the High Altar in S. Pauls Church where the other half of the bodyes of S. Peter and S. Paul are intombed Round about this Church stand side Chappels some six and twenty in all called ancienly Cubicula and those whom we call Chaplains were anciently called Cubicularii hence the title of Cubicularius S. Petri. Now these Chappels haue for the most part some remarkable thing in them In one of them is alwayes reserued the B. Sacrament for the dayly vse of Pilgrims that desire to communicate in S. Peters Church and other deuout people In that of S. Gregory Nazianzen is the body of that Saint translated hither out of the Church of the Nunns of Campo Marzo In the Chappel of the Canons reposeth the body of S. Chrysostome In the Chappel called the Clementina reposeth the body of S. Gregory the great who being Pope of Rome and moued by Godly instinction as Iohn Stow sayth sent Augustin Iustus Melitus and other Monks liuing in the feare of God to conuert the Angles or English to the faith of Christ and therfore I tooke particular notice often of his tombe as being as Venerable Bede calls him our Apostle In a Chappel at the very further end of the Church is set vp the Chair of S. Peter held vp by four Doctors of the Church all cast in brasse in a stately posture This Chair is of wood but much spent with old age and therfore Pope Alexander the VII caused it to be set vp here and enchased curiously to preserue it I once saw it neere at hand being exposed to publick view in the middle of the Church vpon the Feast day of S. Peters Chair in Rome In an other Chappel is the Crucifix made three hundred yeares ago by rare Pietro Caualino In an other Chappel you see cut in white marble the history of S. Leo's meeting Attila out of Rome and his deturning him from comeing any nearer to the City As for the Relicks and bodies of Saints which are in this Church besides those mentioned already there are the bodyes of SS Simon and Iude of S. Petronilla of SS Processus and Martinianus of ten first Popes after S. Peter with a world of other precious Relicks Kept in the Sacristy As for the Tombes which are in this Church aboue ground they are these That of Sixtus IV. of Paulus III of Vrban the VIII of Leo the XI of Innocent the VIII of Gregory the XIII of Innocent the X and lastly that of the Countesse Matilde the onely secular person that I finde to haue a
haue been twenty three in all haue hartened and aduanced this work that the prime Architects of the world Sangalla Bramante Baldassere Buonarota Giacomo della Porta Giouani Fontana Carlo Maderno and now Caualiero Bernino haue brought it on to this perfection that the whole Church it self is nothing but the Quintessence of wit and wealth strained into a religious designe of making a hansome house to God and of fulfilling the diuine oracle which promised that magna erit gloria domus istius nouissimae plusquam primae Going at last out of this Church and summing vp in my thoughts all the rarityes I had seen in it I began to think of Ammonius a holy primitiue Saint and afterwards Bishop in the Council of Sardis of whom it s written that comeing to Rome with S. Athanasius he desired to see nothing there but S. Peters Church and knew not the way to any place els I think that if this good man had seen S. Peters Church as it is now he would neuer haue cared for seing any thing els in the world and would euen haue forgot his way home too Neare to the Church of S. Peter stands the Vatican Pallace where the Popes use to winter To describe it to you all at length would take me vp too much time nor indeed is it fit for me to dwell there I will therefore passe through it quickly and rather point you out what 's to be seen there then paint you out in words what I saw there 1. From the Church of S. Peter you ascend into this Pallace by an easy stately pair of stairs capable of ten men a brest These stairs render you vp at the great Hall called Sala Regia because the Pope receiueth here Embassadors of Kings in their Embassies of state It is beautifyed with rare pictures in a great volume as that of the Emperour Frederick kissing the Popes foot of the hand of Gioseppe del Saluiati Garfagnino That of the Ligue in France that of Coligni that of the Pope condemning heresy That of the Pope returning from Auignon are all of the hand of Georgio Vassari That of the Emperour Charles the Great signing the Brief of the donation is of the hand of Thadeo Zuccari that of the battle of Lepanto with the picture of Fayth at the side of it is of the hand of Donato Formello 2. This great Hall stands between two Chappels the Paulina and the Sista In the Paulina is seen a rare picture of the crucifying of S. Peter by Michel Angelo The roof of it also was rarely painted by Federico Zuccari but the smoke of the candles vpon Manday Thursday when this Chappel serues for the Sepulcher hath so defaced these pictures that a farre worse hand would haue serued there 3. The Chappel of Sisto is that in which the Pope holds Capella vpon certain dayes and were all the Cardinals interuene In the end of this Chappel vpon the wall is painted the last Iudgement by Michel Angelo a peece famous ouer all the world The green garments of S. Katharine and the â—ead of S. Biagio are of the painting of Daniel of Volterra who was presently set a worke to make those garments when the Pope had giuen expresse order that this rare picture should be defaced because of some nakedneess in it Vpon great dayes this Chappel is hung with a rare sute of hangings of the designe of Raphael Vrbin wrought with gold and silk containing the Acts of S. Peter and S. Paul 4. Beinde this Chappel stands the Popes Sacristy a place scarce knowne to strangers and therefore seldome seen by them though very well wroth the seeing It s kept alwayes by a Prelat who is alwayes an Augustin Fryar and a Bishop and called Monsignor Sacrista In authors of high times we finde mention of this officer vnder the name of Cimiliarcha or chief Sacristan Here I saw rare Church ornaments for the Popes vse These in particular I cannot let passe without mentioning The cope of saint Syluester Pope thirteen hundred yeares a goe The neat Chasuble of cloth of tyssue with the pictures of the ministring the seauen Sacrements all embrodered in it in silk and gold so rarely that the late Lord Mareshal of England Tho. Earle of Arundel got leaue to haue it painted out and so much the more willingly because it had been giuen to the Pope by King Henry the VIII a little before his Schisme Then the incomparable sutes of ornaments for Priest Deacon and Subdeacon to be vsed in high Masse which were giuen by King Sebastian of Portugal and set all ouer with pearle and these pearles were the first that came out of the Indyes and were in all eight hundred pound weight of pearle The other rare things here were the Head of S. Laurence which I saw neare at hand through a crystal a peece of the spunge in which the Jewes gaue our Sauiour gall to drink the Camisia of S. Prisca a primitiue Saint martyred in it 1400 yeares ago the Crucifix in which is set vnder a crystal a peece of the Holy Crosse carued with the passion of our Sauiour in it a thorne of our Sauiours crowne of thornes which belongd to Pius Quintus a crosse set with Diamans and Pearles which the Pope wears at his brest in great functions a great ring which he also weareth in such functions it s set with a fair Saphir and four great pearles a fair Crucifix enameld and beset with store of pearle and Iewels the Popes Pallium which he wears in great functions the fistula or pipe of gold wherwith the Pope receiues the consecrated blood of our Sauiour in the Chalice vpon great dayes the rare Chalices of gold set with pearle and yet more pretious for their workmanship then for their matter the great Chalice of gold into which the Cardinals put their written Votes in chuseing the Pope by scrutiny the fiue triple crownes called Regni four wereof are set thick with pretious stones and pearle of great value and therfore ordinarily kept in the Castle Angelo two miters of the same richness the chrystal Pixe in which the Blessed Sacrament is kept in the Sepulcher vpon Manday Thursday in fine the booke of the Ghospels painted in miniature by the famous Giulio Glorio for whose first picture here of the last Iudgement Paulus Tertius sent him fifteen hundred pistols as Monsignor Sacrista assured me 5. Passing from hence through the Sala Regia againe I was led into the great roome hard by where the Pope washeth the feet of thirteen Pilgrims vpon Manday Thursday and then giueth euery one of then a great Meddal of Gold with four pistols and an other of syluer 6. Thence I was led into the open gallerie which looketh vpon the court I meane the second lodge for there are three such open galleries where the histories of the Bible are painted most curiously in the roof of it by prime masters That of Adam and the
Creation that where Adam sowes that where the sheep drink that were Jacob saw the ladder that of the last Supper of Christ with his Apostles that where Moyses shews the Laws are all of the hand of Raphael Vrbin That of the Deluge of the adoration of the golden Calf are of the hand of Raphael dal Borgo That where Josue commands the Sun to stop that of Bersabee and the like are of the hand of Pierino del Vago That of the Chariot and some others are of the hand of Carauagio That of Moyses strikeing the Rock that of the iudgement of Salomon and some others are of the hand of Iulio Romano That of the Baptisme of Christ with other such like are of the hand of Pellegrino da Modena Yet because in all these pictures Raphael Vrbin giue either the designe or some touches this Gallery is called Raphaels Gallery indeed nothing but the diuine history it self can be finer then this painting of Diuine Raphael And it belongs onely to Rome to haue the Bible set out thus in its owne colours and if pictures be the best bookes for ignorant people who can say that the Bible is kept from the people here seing its painted and printed here in the most Vulgar tongue and knowne language pictures In a word Raphaels colours seemed to me to illustrate the text very much and to be an excellent Comment vpon the Holy scripture 7. From this gallery I was led into the great chamber where Constantins Victory ouer Maxentius is so rarely painted vpon the walls by Raphaels owne hand that this painting serues this chamber not onely for a rich Tapistry but also for an eternal Trophee to that Emperour The seueral postures here of men and horses all in confusion yet all in such due proportion make this picture in the judgement of Monsieur Poussin a famous painter the rarest thing in the world for designe In the other fellowing rooms there are diuers other rare peeces of the same hand as that of Attila and Pope Leo that of S. Peter in prison a peece much admired for the perspectiue of it That of the B. Sacrament that of the burning of the Borgo that of Aeneas carrying his Father Anchises out of the flames are of Raphaels hand The history of HoHeliodorus ouer the chimney is of the hand of Iulio Romano Raphaels scholler 8. Going vp from hence into the highest open gallerie you l finde it painted with Geographical Maps of the hand of Antonio da Varese The roof of it is also well painted by Pomerancio Paris Romano and Bronzini excellent painters all 9. Then comeing downe I saw the Sala Clamentina a noble roome The rare perspectiues in the roof and in one of the corners both of them expressing the armes of Clement the VIII are worth your attentiue consideration 10. Then the diuers Chambers of his Holyness hung all with Damask hangings in sommer and veluet hangings in winter are very neat In the Popes bed chamber I saw the graue picture of our Lady with her Sonne in her armes called Saint Mary Maior it s painted curiously vpon a white transparent stone three fingers thick and yet shewing the picture on both sides if held before the sun 11. The great roome guilt ouer-head where the Pope treats at dinner great Princes when they come to Rome 12. The old appartament of Pius Quintus with the great wodden bed or rather the little wodden chamber of Paulus Quintus 13. The rare peece of perspectiue ouer the dore of the long roome leading to the Gallery of Maps At the first looking vpon it you see nothing but certain types or figures of the Blessed Sacrament out of the old Testament but being placed directly vnder it and looking vpwards you see all the foresayd types contracted into the forme of a Calice and an hoast ouer it so shew that those old types and shadowes prefigured onely the body and blood of our Sauiour in the holy Sacrifice of the Altar 14. The long gallery of the Maps of Italy painted vpon the walls on both sides by Paulus Brillus a Flemming and others and that so distinctly that you see plainly euery State Prouince City Riuer Village Castle highway of Italy and where any famous battle was fought either in the Romans time or since A Gallery which I wish I had spent as many houres in as I spent dayes in going vp to Rome Diuers other Galleries there are in this house which I passe ouer in silence 14. But I cannot passe euer so the long Gallerie leading to the Beluedere in which is kept the Conclaue of all Popes in this one great roome fifty or thresecore Cardinals lodg and haue euery one two chambers one for himself and the other for his Conclauist Ex vngue Leonem you may judge by this what the whole house is or els by this what they assure you when they tell you that there are fiue thousand Chambers in that Pallace 15. From the middle of the foresayd Gallery you enter into the Vatican Library famous all the learned world ouer for hauing in it besides the Registers of the Roman Church the choycest manuscripts of rhe world in holy languages This Baronnius found who drew from hence notable succour for the maintaining of this Ecclesiasticall history against the Centuriators of Magdebourg who wanting these assured aymes and being otherwise wrongly biassed made faults in their history as many as their Centuries and as great as their Volumes The description of this Library hath been made by learned Angelus Rocca in Latin and by Mutius Pansa in Jtalian yet for the sactisfaction of my curious countrymen I shall say something of it First the roome is a vast long roome speading it self in the furter end into two wings of building which are all full of presses where the manuscripts are kept carefully from mice and rats and moist weather At the entrance into this Library you are let into a fair chamber full of desks for a dozen of writers who haue good stipends to copie out bookes in all languages and they are bound to be writeing so many houres in a morning Round-about this roome hang the Pictures of all the Cardinals that haue been Bibliothecarii since Sixtus Quintus his time Then entrâ—ng into the Library it self I saw the vast wide roome supported like a Church by great squar pillars about which are as many cupbord were the manuscripts are conserued On the wall on the right hand are painted in Fresco the General Councils of the Church with the Bible in the midst laying open vpon a stately throne and with the order and place of precedency obserued in them as also some notable accidents in Ecclesiastical history On the left hand are painted all the famous Libraryes anciently mentioned by authors and vpon the great pillars are painted the first Inuentors and promotors of learning This long roome spreads it self at last into two wings on
each hand both which are full of curious bookes both manuscripts and printed bookes diuers of which were showne me with great ciuility by Monsignor Holstenius then keeper of this Library whom I had formerly knowne The chief of these bookes were these A vast Hebrew Bible too heauy for any man to lift vp An ancient copie of the Septuagints translation in Greek after which the Bible hath been printed both in Rome and London The Acts of the Apostles in Greek curiously written in golden letters The Ghospel written by S. Chrysostoms owne hand An Hebrew Bible written in sheets of parchment pasted to one another and rowled vp hence the word Volumen for a booke A little booke written in barke of trees hence the word folium for a leaf in a booke Certain old Roman Table bookes A China Tablebooke of wood in which they wrote with a pointed steele A curious China booke all in Hieroglyphs and folded vp in many folds our Purchas in his curious nauigations hath both printed and deciphered it Polidor Virgils history of England written with his owne hand An old booke of Sermons in Latin in whose margin S. Thomas of Aquin had made notes with his owne hand An old Virgil with the pictures of the history in old painting An old Terence written twelue hundred yeares a goe and the ancientest that euer Politian saw as he testifyeth vnder his owne hand in the inside of the couer of this booke Baronnius his Annals in his owne hand writeing The rare quotations out of the ancient Fathers painfully and faithfully collected out of the best copies by learned Cardinal Sirleto in the time of the Council of Trent and sent by him weekly by the Poste from Rome to the Fathers in the Council who proceeded to their definitions by the ancient tradition of the Church found so plainly and vnanimously in those Fathers Those quotations make six Volumes in folio and this was it which out aduersaryes call the sending downe of the Holy Ghost to Trent in a cloak-bag when it was onely the seding downe of these faithfull testimonies of the Tradition of the Church gathered out of the most ancient and authentick copies The letters of Henry the VIII of England to Anne Bolen his mistresse then in his owne hand writeing Some in English some in French but all amatory It is easy to imagine them written by him if you compare the hand-writing of these letters with those two Verses written by the Kings owne hand in the frontispice of the following Booke to wit The booke which the sayd Henry wrotte against Martin Luther and dedicated it by a couple of Latin verses written with is owne hand in the Frontispice of it to Pope Leo the tenth which booke purchased to King Henry the honorable title of defender of the faith Then I was showne the Library of the Duke of Vrbin who dyeing without heires male bequeathed his Library to the Vatican Library here In this I saw many rare manuscripts written in parchment and painted in miniature especialy that booke in whose margins are painted by a rare hand and wonderfull diligence all the insects in nature in their liuely colours and true resemblance Ouer against this Library they shewed me in the same roome the Library of Heidelberg sent to Rome by the Duke of Bauaria after he had dispossessed the Elector Frederick Prince Palatin of Rhein of his country as well as of the kingdome of Bohemia which he had seazed on at the instigation of Bethleem Gabor and others See the Mercure François They shewed me here among diuers other bookes the booke of designes of the sayd Prince Elector Palatin which he had designed being yong Happy Prince if he had not designed to himself an other mans crowne In the great roome of this Library there is an iron dore which leteth you into a more secret roome where the Registers of the Church of Rome are kept the keeper of which Registers was anciently called Chartularius an office much like to that in the Greek Church called Cartophylax In fine I was showne here diuers letters of great persons and Princes written with their owne hands as of S. Charles Boromaeus to Cardinal Sirleto who had had a hand in his education of Queen mary of England of King Philip the second of Spayne hir husbād stileing himselfe King of Spayne England and France of Francis the First of France of Margaret of Parma that Gouerned Flanders when it reuolted of President Vargas a Spaniard and a great statesman in Flanders but no great Latinist as it appeared by his answer to the Doctors of Louain petitioning him in Latin for their priuiledges when he se sayd Non curamus vostros priuilegios Mali faxerunt templa boni nihil faxerunt contra ergo debent omnes patibulari the tearmes of the expostulation being as harsh as the Conclusion of it and some old polite Orators had rather haue been hangd indeed then threatened in such bad Latin A little before I went out of this Library I sawe neere the dore the Statue of Hippolitus Bishop of Portua who liued 1400 yeares ago sitting in a chair of stone vpon which is cut in Greek letters the ancient Canon Paschalis vpon which Scaliger and others haue written It s a curious peece of learned antiquity and worthy to he taken notice of 16. Hauing seen the Library we were led on by the long Gallery mentioned before vnto the Beluedere were we descended into the Popes priuate garden full of orange trees fine walkes and fountains Here are three or four vnauoidable wetting places to those that are not acquainted with them Henc you goe downe to see the rare fountain of the iron ship In this garden I saw the Pineapple of brasse guilt which is as great as three men can fathom about and twice as high as the tallest man can reach Here also stand by it the two great Peacocks of brasse guilt which stood anciently vpon Scipio Affricanus his tombe and are some three or four yeards long 17. From hence we were led hard by to see the Beluedere of the Maschere which Michel Angelo called his Studie It s a squar Court sett with Orange trees in whose walls are great Niches with leaues to them of wood where the choyce statues of the world are conserued vnder lock and key and free from ill weather The chief statues here are these that of the riuer Nilus and that of Tyber both in cumbent postures That of Antinous minion of the Emperor Adrian it s of pure oriental marble and rarely cut that of Cleopatra that of Venus comeing out of a bath that of Commodus the Emperor that of Laocoon and his sonns inuolued about with serpents This statue of Laocoon is the master peece of sculpture That in the middle of the Court of Hercules without armes leggs or head is so rare a trunck that Michel Angelo professed
picture of our Sauiour in the very Tribuno or Abside was the first picture that appeared publickly in Rome and which was miraculously coÌ„serued in the burning of this church There are diuers in others pictures in that Vaulted Tribun in Masaick worke and some simbolical figures relating to our Sauiours life and passion which were much vsed anciently in Churches as you may see in many other Churches and in the rare booke called Roma Soterranea 4. The High Altar here within which is shut vp the Woodden Altar which S. Peter and the primitiue Popes made vse of in saying Masse vpon it during the persecutions and before they had any setled Churches S. Syluester in the dedication of this Church fixed it here and none can say Masse at this Altar but the Pope or dureing the Popes indisposition some Cardinal with a particular dispensation or Apostolical Brief which must be fastened to one of the four pillars of the Altar during the Cardinals saying Masse there Ouer this Altar stands a great Tabernacle of Marble borne vp by four pillars not onely seruing for a Canopy to the Altar but also for an Arca to the Heads of S. Peter and S. Paul which are kept within it and showne there to the people vpon great dayes through an iron grate which enuirons them 5. The Altar of the B. Sacrament adorned by the cost of Clement the VIII With a curious and pretious Tabernacle of rich polished stones and with four pillars of brasse guilt about fifteen foot high Ouer this Altar is the Table it self vpon which our Sauiour eat the Paschal Lambe before his Passion and then presently instituted the Holy Sacrament of which the Paschal Lambe was but a figure 6. The brasen Tombe of Martin the V of the house of Colonna who was chosen Pope in the Council of Constance 7. The Tombe of Alexander the III of the house of Bandinelli in Siena neatly adorned by Pope Alexander the VII who tooke his name of Alexander from him 8. The Tombe of Laurentius Valla a learned Roman and Chanon of this Church of whom as the restorer of pure Latin language after Gotick Barbarousness Latonius sung thus Romulus est Vrbis Valla est idiomatis author Hic reparat primus primus vt ille strâ—it 9. In old Gotick Letters vpon the Architraue of the portch of this Church you read these Leonine verses Dogmate Papali datur ac simul Jmperiali Quòd sim Cunctarum Mater Caput Ecclesiarum 10. In the Cloister of this Church I saw the Chaire of Porphiry which vseth to be placed neare to the Great dore of the Church on that day the Pope taketh possession of his charge in this Church in which Chaire the Pope is placed a while and at his riseing from it againe the Quire sings this verse of the 112 Psalme Suscitat de puluere egenum de stercore eregit pauperem and this Ceremony and pierced Chair are onely to put the Pope in minde of his humane infirmityes amidst His glorious exaltations and the peoples applauses For so also the Greek Emperors on the day of their coronation had a great many marble stones of seueral colours presented to them to choose which of them they would to make their Tombe of This was to put them in mind of their mortality admidst those great honours But it s strange to see how the enemies of the Popes giue out maliciously that this Chair whose vse we see so plainly in the vety Ceremonial of Rome was onely intended ad explorandum sexum and to hinder the inconueniency of another Pope Ioanne For this reason I think it not amisse to examin a little this fable of a shee Pope or of a Pope Ioanne I am not affrayd at all to call this a fable both for the vnlikelinesse of it in generall as also for the suspected authority of its first broachers the contrarietyes in the story and the little credit giuen vnto it by the learnedest aduersaryes of the Roman Church First what can be more vnlikely then that a woman should surprise such a wise nation as the Italians are and so grossely what more vnlikely then that a woman should passe her youth in those seuere studyes which are required in Popes without being knowne to have wrongd or discouered her sexe and that she must just do it when she was in a declineing age at which age Popes ordinarily are chosen What more vnlikely then that a woman findeing her self great with child should venture to go so farre a foot in a procession What more vnlikely then that if there had been such a shee Pope the Greek Church which then was at odds with the Roman Church should haue passed it ouer in silence and not haue obraided her with such a disgracefull Pastor especially seing the Roman Church had obraided the Greek Church with hauing an Eunuch for her chief Patriarch What in fine more vnlikely then that there should haue been such a shee Pope so publikly conuinced to haue been a woman that Anastasius Bibliothecarius who worte the liues of the Popes some thirty yeares after that pretended time and who must haue liued in her time speaks nothing of any such woman or any such strange accident Secondly the first broachers of this story make it Very much suspected seing Martinus Polonus and some others of the Emperors faction then at Variâ—nce with the Popes are the first that mentioned this fable and Platina who quotes no higher authors for it grounds a story of this consequence vpon no better authority then a weake si dice us fayd Thirdly the apparent contradictions in the Tale conuince it of falsity as that this Ioanne was an English woman borne in Mentz which all men know to be a Rhenish towne in Germany and that she had studyed at Athenes in Greece which long before this time had been destroyed Fourthly the little credit giuen to it by the learnedest aduersaryes of the Roman Church to wit four prime Ministers of France who take this history for a meere fable proues sufficiently that its worse then an old wifes tale For M. Blondel a French Minister whom I knew in Paris aboue twenty yeares ago and a man of that account there that he was chosen to answer the learned booke of Cardinal Peron this Blondel I say made a booke in French printed at Amsterdam by Bleau Anno 1647 in octauo On purpose to shew that this story of a shee Pope called Joanne was a meere fable And that we may not think that Blondel alone of all Protestant Ministers held this for a Fable Monsieur Serrauius a great Caluinist and Counselor of the Parlament of Paris in a letter of his to Salmasius hauing mentioned to him this booke of Blondel addeth these words Noli autem credere primum aut solum è nostris Blondellum ita sensisse quamuis Fortassis nemo vnquam fortius pressius istud solum
conclaueait Fuere enim in eadem sententia non incelebres inter Reformatos Theologi adhuc vigent in hac Vrbe insignes fide pietate viri qui audierunt ex ore Camerii se istam historiam Vulgo creditam fabulosis deputare Vidi nuper scriptas literas docti vegeti senis tibique mihi amicissimi Petri Molinaei quibus idem semper sibi esse visum affirmabat Penes me sunt literae Samuelis Bocharti quibus testatur sibi esse pro comperto vanum fictitium quicquid hactenus de ea sit proditum Thus Monsieur Serrauius in a priuate letter though his sonn after his death printed his litters to a freind of the same religion And thus you see how this fable maintained highly a long time by the Aduersaries of the Roman Church expired at last as all lyes do and was carryed to its graue vpon the shoulders of four French Ministers Blondel Chamier du Moulin and Bochart If I haue been a little too long in this digression you will pardon me We are all debtors to Truth and all men ought to be glad to see themselues disabused Going out of the little back dore of this Church I went to see the Baptistery of Constantin the Great Our most Noble Countryman and the first Emperour that publickly professed Christianity This Baptistery is built round and in the center of it in a descent of four steps stands the very Font in which the sayd Emperor was baptized by Pope Syluester It s enuironed with low rayles of marble and adorned with ten or twelue great pillars of Porphyrie the fairest in Rome which beare vp the painted Vault ouer the Font so that people standin about these rayles may see conueniently the baptizeing of Jewes and Infidels in the pitt below Vpon the Walls of the round Chappel are painted in Fresco the most memorable actions of Constantin the Great as his Vision of the Crosse in the ayre with these words aboue it In hoc signo Vinces his ouercomeing the Tyrant Maxentius his baptisme here by S. Siluester his burning the Libels against Catholike Bishops preferred to him by the Arrians his kissing the wounds of those good Bishop in the Council of Nice who had either their fingars cut off or one eye put out by the Tyrants On the other side of S. Iohn Laterans Church stands the Scala Santa and the Sancta Sanctorum The Scala Santa is called from the stairs twenty eight in all vp which our Sauiour was led in this passion to Pilats house Vpon some of them you see the places where the pretious blood of our Sauiour had fallen and for that reason they are couered with little grates of brasse which let in eyes but keep of knees I say knees for none go vp these holy stairs otherwise then kneeling and this out of reuerence to him who often fell vpon his knees as he was draggd vp and downe these stairs It s painfull enough to go vp these stairs vpon your knees yet I saw it done hourly in the Iubily yeare by continual flocks of deuout people both men and women of great condition as well as of great deuotioÌ„ these holy staires were Sent from Hierusalem to Constantin the Great by his Moter Queen Helen together with many other Relicks kept in S. Iohn Laterans Church They are of whit marble and aboue six foot long At the head of these stairs stands the Chappel called Sancta Sanctorum because of the Holy things kept in it Hence ouer the Altar in this Chappel are written these words Non est in toto Sanctior Orbe Locus Vpon the Altar is kept the miraculous picture of our Sauiour it represents him about thirteen yeares old and onely his half body It s about a foot a halfe long and it s sayd to haue been begun by S. Luke but ended miraculously by an Angel Others say that S. Luke hauing onely prepared the ground and before he had drawne one stroke fell to his prayers to beg of God that he might draw his Son right and riseing vp againe he found his picture already finished Hence Domenico Magri a learned Antiquarie is of opinion that this pisture of our Sauiour is that very picture which Anastasius Bâ—bliothecarius in the life of Steuen the II calls Achyropaeta that is made without hands Round about this picture goes a set of great iewels enriching the frame of it Vnder the Altar reposeth the body of S. Anastasius of whose head and picture I spoke aboue in the description of the Church of this Saint at the Tre Fontane Here are also kept the Heads of S. Agnes and S. Praxedes with many other pretious Relicks Anciently as the Records here mention the Holy Prepuce or Foreshin of our Sauiour was kept here too but being taken away in the sack of Rome by one of Bourbons soldiers it was left in a a country towne called Calcata some fifteen wiles distant from Rome by the same soldier who could not rest day nor night as long as he had that relick about him I once passed by that towne Calcata by chance and by the ciuilityes of the Lord of the towne Count of Anguillara at whose house we were nobly entertained all night had the happiness the next morning to see this pretious Relick through the crystal case This Count keeps one key of it and the Parish Priest the other without both which it cannot be seen Neare to the Scala Santa is seen a famous peece of Antiquity of Christian Rome called Triclinium Leonis where is seen a Mosaick picture of our Sauiour resuscitated and holding out a booke to his Disciples in which are written these words Pax vobis Peace be to you Which picture Leo caused to be made eight hundred yeares ago as an emblem of his peaceable returne againe to his seat after he had been chased out by his enemyes Vpon a pillar on the right hand is painted our Sauiour sitting vpon a Throne and giuing with one hand the Keys of the Church to S. Peter and with the other the Imperial standard to Constantin the Great Vpon the other pillar on the left hand is represented in Mosaick worke also S. Peter sitting in a Chair and with one hand giuing vnto Pope Leo the III the Papal stole and with the other the Imperial standard vnto Charlemagne who had restored this Pope Leo to his seat againe From hence passing againe by S. Iohn Lateranâ— Church I saw first the pallace of the Pope here built by Sixtus Quintus then the great Guglia with Egyptian Hyeroglyphes figured vpon it which had stood anciently in the Circus Maximus it s aboue 100 foot high was brought from Alexandria to Rome by Constantin the Great lastly in a low roome ioyning to the Church I saw the Statue in Bronze of Henry the IV of France set vp here by the Canons of S. Iohn Laterans
Marij the Gregostasis the Curia Hostilia the Golden House of Nero the Theater of Pompey of which Tertullian sayth Pompeius Magnus solo suo theatro minor the Forum Neruae the Theater of Statilius Taurus the Septizonium Seueri the Tower of Mecenas the Hippodromus the House of Gordianus the Circus Flaminius the Circus Maximus the Atrium Libertatis Scipios house the Triumphal Arch of Augustus Caesar of Domitian and a world of other such rare buildings whereby the Romans thought to haue eternized their memories if you aske for these things in bookes you shal finde their names onely if you looke for them now in Rome you shall finde no markes at all of them which makes me cry out with Petrark Crede mihi aliis quam lapideis fundamentis eget gloria vt sit mansura beleeue me true permanent glorie stands in need of other foundations then those of stone Hence Ianus Vitalis an ingenious Italian Poet hauing obserued that all the old massiue buildings of Rome are moultered away and that Fluide Tyber onely remains still cryes out with this sweet moral Disce hinc quid possit fortuna immota labascunt Et quae perpetuo sunt fluitura manent But I cannot leaue Rome without taking notice of the Deuotion Musick Ceremonies shows Gouerment and the inhabitants of this place of each of which I will giue a touch both for my Trauelers sake and my Readers And first for the Deuotion of Rome I found it to be very great and real in those places where the Quarante Hore and Stations are kept For all the yeare long the Quarante Hore go from one Church to an other through all the Churches of Rome and there you shall alwayes see a world of deuout people praying and meditating and hearing the sermons and giuing of almes and all this with that profund respect and silence with that assiduity and concourse with that feruour and zeale that you need not aske where the station is but onely obserue where you see the people flocking so fast in the morneing and where the poore make the greatest hedge and lane In other Churches of Rome vpon their festiual dayes which happen almost euery day in one place or other they haue the best musick can begot and though this seems to draw mens eares to the Church rather then their hearts yet when I remember what eleuated thoughts it breeds in the minde and how innocently it detaines men from doing worse I cannot but place Church musick among the acts of deuotion Now as for this musick it is the best in the world and in the best kinde which is voyces For my part hauing read in a learned Author that the hateing of musick is a signe of a soul quite out of tune and not right strung for predestination and that the Scythian king who held the neighing of his horse to be farre better musick then the pipe of famous Thimotheus was held for an asse himself I thought it both comely and lawfull to loue musick being in a place where the best musick was I frequented it often with singular satisfaction Now the best musick I heard was the musick of the Popes Chappel consisting of pure voyces without any organ or other instruments euery singer here kowing his part so well that they seem all to be masters of musick Then the musick of the Chiesâ— Noua of S. Apollinaris vpon S. Cecilyes day in the Church of that Saint the Patronesse of singers of the Oratory of S. Marcello euery Friday in Lent of the Iesuits dureing the Quaerante hore in Shroftide of euery good Church of Nunns vpon their patrons day especially that of the Nunns of Campo Marzo where I heard often Fonseca sing sorarely well that she seemed to me to cheere vp much the Church in its combats to make the Church Militant either looke like the Church Triumphant or long for it In a word whosoeuer loues musick and hears but once this of Rome thinks he hath made a saueing iourney to Rome and is well payed for all his paynes of comeing so farre Haueing giuen my eares many a break-fast vpon the musick I gaue my eyes many a Collation vpon the Ceremonies of Rome which were chiefly these The Ceremony of the Popes opening of the Porta Santa of S. Peters Church in the Iubily yeare The Ceremonies of the Popes Chappel when he assists there especialy vpon Candlemasse day Palmesunday Mandy Thursday c The Ceremony of the Popes washing of thirteen pilgrims feet of his singing masse publickly in S. Peters Church vpon S. Peters day and other great dayes the Ceremony of Beatifyeing and of Canonizeing of Saints the Ceremony of his creating new Cardinals and giuing them their capp in publick Consistory the Ceremonie of the Masse sung in Greek and according to the Greek rites in the Church of the Greek Seminary vpon the Feast of the Epiphany and S. Athanasius his day the Ceremony of baptizeing the Iews with a world of others One ceremony I was not vnwilling to misse in my fiue seueral voyages because it alwayes implies the death of a Spiritual Father I meane the Ceremony of a Sede Vacante and of all the bad complimenâ—s that euer I heard made I like none so ill as that of a noble man of Germany who being asked by Pope Innocent the X whether he had seen all the Ceremonies of Rome answered that he had seen all but a Sedâ— Vacante as if he had sayd Holy Father I haue seen all the fine sights of Rome but your death A horrible Tramontane compliment which put euen the Pope himself to a smile As for the Showes I saw diuers both Sacred and Prophane As the wipping Processions in the Holy week The great Procession from S. Marcellos Oratory to S. Peters Church vpon Mandy Thursday in the Holy yeare The Spanish Procession in Piazza Nauona vpon Easter day in the morning in the Holy yeare The Procession of the Zitelle vpon our Ladyes day in Lent The Procession of the Priests of the Oratory vpon shrof-tuesday to the seauen Churches with fiue or six thousands persons following of them all whom they treat in an open field giuing euery one a couple of hard eggs and a slice of salsigia with bread and wine The seueral Caualcatas of the Pope and Cardinals The Spanish Caualcata vpon S. Peters Eue when the Spanish Embassador presents the purse of gold and the Gennet The Girandola and fire workes vpon S. Peters Eue and diuers such like sacred triumphs For the Prophane Showes I saw the solemne Entryes of Embassadors especially those of Obedience whâ—ere each Princes Embassador striue to out vye the other and by excessiue expences make their masters greatness appeare aboue that of others Their Caualcatas to Court vpon their publick audience their reception in a publick Consistory their audience of Leaue are all stately Then the curious Opere or musical Drammata recited with such admirable art and set
forth with such wonderfull changes of Scenes that nothing can be more surprizeing Here I haue seen vpon their stages riuers swelling and boats rowing vpon them waters ouerflowing their bankes and stage men flyeing in the aire serpents crawling vpon the stage houses falling on the suddain Temples and Boscos appearing whole townes knowne Townes starting vp on the suddain with men walking in the streets the sunn appearing and chaseing away darkeness sugar plumms fall vpon the spectators heads like haile rubans flash in the ladyes faces like lightning with a thousand such like representations In fine the Carneual pompes in the streets exhibited by noblemen with great cost and glory As for the Gouerment of Rome I found it diuided into two parts the Gouerment of the Citie and the Gouerment of the Church That of the Citie is exactly performed by a Gouernour some Prelate of great parts constituted by the Pope to watch ouer the Citie carefully and to render him an acount weekly of all that passeth This Gouernour liueth alwayes in the heart of the Citie and hath besides his owne gards a Barigello or Captain of the Sbirri or Sergeants to keep all in order and awe both day and night This Barigello hath Argus like a hundred eyes to spy into the deportments of all that liue in Rome and Briareus like as many hands to carry to prison those that infringe the Lawes Hence iustice here is as exactly performed as orders are discreetly giuen out The prices of all things are printed and affixed in publick places and shops Inns and Tauernes are bound to haue them set vp in their entrance that strangers may know the rates of all prouisions and blame none but themselues if they be couzened So that it s as hard a thing to be couzened here as its hard not to bo cozened in other places And for those that cannot read or speake the language well Sbirri wil aske of them what they payd a meale how much for a pound of meate how much for a pinte of such and such wine c. and if they finde them to haue been cozened either in the quantity weight or price they le right the stranger beyond his expectation and punish the delinquent beyond his desire The last Iubily yeare I was showne some of the Sbirri in Pilgrims habits on purpose to mingle themselues with the other pilgrims the better to obserue how they were vsed or abused by their Hostes in Inns and Tauernes and accordingly punish them In fine iustice is so well administred here and imprisoning cases so many that the last Prince of Conde being in Rome sayd he wondred much at one thing there which was to see so many men go out of their houses in the morneing and returne home againe to dinner without being imprisoned A kinfe in a mans pocket a darke Lanterne a sword worne without leaue c. will suffice to make a man be sent to prison and a pockes pistol found about you or in your cloakbag is enough to make you be sent to the Gallyes with tre tratti di corda that is the strappada thrice yet they mitigate the rigour of these lawes to strangers who offend out of ignorance As for the gouerment of the Church that 's done partly by the Pope himself in seueral Congregations held before him partly by his Vicar General a Cardinal who hath vnder him a Vice-Gerent a Bishop to help him There 's scarce a day in the week but the Pope holds one Congregation or other about Church affairs in which Congregations not onely Cardinals interuene but also Bishops and Doctors and where all businesses are headed as well as handled with great deliberation Euery three weeks the Pope holds a Concistory where all the Cardinals that are in Rome meet his Holyness as at a Grand Counsel to aduise with him concerning the necessary affairs of the Church And its pretty to see how like the motions of a well ordered watch all businesses here moue at once and yet neuer interfere or clash with one another As for the Inhabitants of Rome they follow the fortune of their Citie and as when Rome was but yet a new towne the inhabitants where but three thousand in all sayth Dionysius and when it was comne to its full grouth it had three or four millions of people in so much that in a great plague the Bills of mortality came to ten thousand men a day and this for many dayes together so now Rome haueing been six times sâ—ckt and ruined as I sayd aboue is not the tenth part so populous as heretofore it was and euen those inhabitants that are now in Rome are for the most part originary from other parts of Italy and Europe and haue been drawne to take vp here either by preferments or business The Nobility it self is for the maior part forrain and sprung out of such families of Popes Princes and Cardinals as haue been forrain before their promotions and preferments The true ancient and illustrious Roman families I found to be these few Vrsini Colonna Sauelli Frangepani and some few others Hauing thus as Painters do taken Rome in all her postures I confesse it happened to mee as it did to Apelles takeing the picture of Compaspe that is by looking so often and so attentiuely vpon Rome I began to be so farre in loue with it as not onely to subscribe to Cassiodorus his opinion who affirmes it to be akind of crime not to liue in Rome when you can do it Piaculi genus est absentem sibi Romam dintius facere qui in ea constitutis possit laribus habitare but also to subscribe to our old Britain Kings Cadwallader Cedwalla Coenred offa Ina and Burrhed who thought Rome also to best place to dye in For if those places be thought by all men the best places to liue in where a man may learne the most experimental knowledge how to menage great affairs where can a man learne more knowledge then in Rome where all languages are spoken all sciences are taught the ablest men of Europe meet all the best records are found all wits appeare as vpon their true theater all forrain Embassadors render themselues all Nuncios at their returne to Rome vnload themselues of the obseruations they haue made abroad and where euery stone almost is a booke euery statue a master euery inscription a lesson euery Antichamber an Academy And againe if those places be the best to dye in where all comforts of the soul are best had what place can be better to dye in then Rome the very center and bosome it self of Catholick Communion and where there is so much Deuotion and so much Vertue partised and where you haue this comfort also in you graue that you lye in a ground which hath been bathed in the blood of so many thousand martyrs And thus much of Rome in the describeing of which if I haue been too Frolixe
then before Then it flamed and cast out a cloud of ashes which had the wind stood toward the Citie had couered all Naples and buryed it in those ashes Then it began to roare as if Madame Nature her self had been in labour Thunder was but pistolcrack to this noyse and the mouth of a Cannon a full mile wide must needs giue a great report It bellowed and thundered againe Naples trembled the ground swelled The Sea it self shiuered for feare when the hill tearing its entrals with huge violence was brought to bed of a world of vast stones and a fludd of Sulphurious matter which ran from the top of the mountain into the Sea for the space of three miles All this he tould me and this he shewed me afterward in a publick inscription vpon a fair marble stone erected hard by And all this made me but the more desirous of seeing this mountain Wherefore spurring on we came soone after to the foot of the hill where leauing our horses we began to crawle vp that step hill for a good mile together to the midlegg in ashes At last with much a doe we got to the top of the hill and peeping fearfully remembring Plinyes accident into the great hellow from the brinck of it found it to be like a Vast Kettle farre greater then those Hell Kettles near Deslington in the Bishoprick of Durham made by earthquakes For the orifice of this Kettle is a mile or two wide and very nigh as deep In the bottom of it is a new little hill riseing out of the hollow of the old and fumeing perpetually with a thick smoke as if it also would play tricks too in its turne Hauing gazed a while at this Chimney of Hell for Tertullian calls Aetna and Vesuuius Fumariola inferni we came faster downe then we went vp Hee that is not content with this my short description of the burning of this Hill let him read Iulius Caesar Recupitus who hath made a little booke alone of it called De Vesuniano incendio Nuntius Hauing recouered our horses againe we came back to Naples and the next morning takeing a new guide we went to see the wonders of Nature about Baiae and Puzzuâ—lo Horseing then againe betimes in the morneing we passed by the Castle Vouo and soone after to Margelino to see the Tombe of Sannazarîus the Poët who lyes buryed in the Church of Santa Maria del Parto which was once Sannazarius his owne house which dyeing he left to be made a Church of vnder that title so that in his Testament he wrote de Virginis partu as well as in his booke and he might as well haue written vpon the Frontispice of this Church as vpon the Frontispice of his Booke opera Sannazarij de Virginis parâ—u His Tombe here is adorned with marble figures and with this ingenious Epitaph made of him by Cardinal Bembo Da sacro cineri flores Hic ille Maroni Sincerus Musâ proximus vt tumulo His name was Iacobus Sannazarius but he changed his name for that of Sincerus at the request of Pontanus who also changed his name too and caused himself to be called Iouianus as Iouius in Elogiis virorum Doctorum sayth Not farr of this place nor farr from the entrance of the Grotte of Pausilipus in the Gardens of S. Seuerino stands Virgils tombe couered almost ouer with Laurel or Baâ—-trees as yf that Poëts Laurel were growne into a Shadybower to make a whole tombe of Laurel for the Prince of Poëts From thence we returned againe into our way and presently came to the entrance of the Grotte of Pausilipus this Mountain lyeing at the very back of Naples and rendering the passage to Naples extreamly inconuenient for carriages it was thought fit to cut a cart way vnder ground quite through the mountain some say it was Lucullus that caused it to be thus boared others say it was Cocceius Nerua Certain it is that it is ancient seing Seneca makes mention of it Entring into the Grotte of Paulisipus we found it to be about forty foot high and broad enough for two carts laden to meet with ease They say here that it is a full mile long but I thought it scarce so much We rid some forty paces by the light of the wide entrance but that Vanishing we were left in the darke a good while till we came to the halfway where there hangs a burning Lamp before the picture of our Sauiour in the B. Virgins armes The light of this Lamp was very gratefull vnto vs and I am confident a Puritan himself were he here would be glad to see this Lampe and Picture and loue them better for it euer after All the way of this Grotta is very euen and Leuel but hugely dusty as a roome must be that hath not been sweept these sixteen hundred yeares The people of the country meeting here in the darke know how to auoyd one another by going from Naples on the right hand and returning on the left that is by keeping on the moutain side going and returning on the Sea side and this they expresse by cryeing out often A la Montagna or a la Marina To the mountain side or to the Sea side to giue notice whether they come or go Our guide vnderstood the word and he giuing it vnto mee and I to my next man it rann through our whole Brigade which consisted of a dozen horsemen in all Almost all the way we rid in it we shut our eyes haueing little vse of them and our mouths and noses too for feare of being choked with the dust so that our exteriour senses being thus shut vp our interiour begaÌ„ to worke more freely and to think of this odd place My thoughts comeing newly from Sannazarius and Virgils tombes fell presently vpon Poetry for all this country is a Poetical country and I began to think whether this were not Polyphemus his den because Homer makes it to haue been neare the Seaside as this is and capable of holding great heards of sheep as this also is Sometimes I thought that it might haue been here that Iupiter was hidden from his deuouring Father Saturne who came into Italy for certain as also because Sophocles makes mention of Iupiter Pausilipus But at last I concluded that this was the place where the merry Gods and Goddesses after their iouial suppers playd at hide and seek without being hood-winckt By this time we began to see the otheâ— end of the Grotte a farre off by a little light which grew greater and greater till at last we came to the yssue of it Being got out of this Cymmeran rode we began to open our eyes againe to see if we could find one an other and our mouths too to discourse vpon this exotick place Thus we rid discourseing vpon this wonder till we came to the Grotta del Cane a new wonder Arriueing there we presently had a dog ready though for the most
emptyed of all their blood but she was designed to this ill vsage long before For being foretold when she was with child of Nero that she had in her wombe a son who should be Emperor but withall who should kill her she cryed out Occidat modò imperet Let him kill me so he bee but Emperor and she had her wish It s sayd also that this Parricide for Nero nunquam sine publici paricidii praefatione nominandus est sayth Valerius Maximus after his mother was killed would needs haue her ript vp that he might see where he had lodged nine months together and I beleeue that nothing hastened more the conspiracy of the Romans against him then rhat they could now no longer endure him who could not endure his owne mother Hard by the Shoare stands yet the Tombe of that vnfortunate Princesse Then taking boate againe we rowed by the ruines of Marius and Caesars Villas and diuers others scrapps of antiquity and all along in the water in a cleare day you may see the foundations of Baiae and some Arches and the pauement of the very streets all now in the Sea Omnia fert aetas and Tim◠which in all other places is called Edax rerum may here be called Bibax rerum haueing sipped vp here a whole towne Rowing on still by the Shoare we came to the foot of Neros Pallace neere to the ruines of which stands mounted a strong Castle built a la moderna vpon a high Hill Leauing here our boate againe we were wished to put our hands into the sand of the very sea which we found to burne vnder the cold water Then we went hard by to Ciceros bathes a great squar place where anciently were written ouer head in old letters the names of the diseases which these waters cured which letters some Physitians caused to be defaced pretending that they where superstitious characters when indeed they where vnwilling men should be cured by anything but the strange characters in their recipes Neare these foresayd Bathes are those of Tritola where we were led into the long Grotte and presently put into a sweat by a stifling heat which mett vs violently in that long entry I followed my guide and findeing the steme to be choking I stouped downe low behinde the guide to let him break the hot ayre before me As I thus stooped I found out by experience what others finde by hearesay that the nearer the ground a man stoops here the cooler he findes himself Thus Antëus like fetching now and then succour from my mother earth I found humility to be a safe remedy In the middle of this long narrow Entry there 's a place for those that stand in need of sweating to stand on stradling wide and so sweat abundantly They told me that at the end of this Grotta there are bathes of souerain Vertue but I being well without them had no minde to be choked in seeking out health Returning from hence we had a huge walke of it to the Lacus Auernus made by the Riuer Acheron idest sine gaudio a fit name for the riuer of Hell This Lake is famous for its stincking ayre which was obserued to kill birds as they flew ouer here On the further side of it was the Temple of Apollo Leauing this Lake on our right hand we made towards the Grotte of Sibylla Cumaea so called from the City Cumae which stood not farre off this long Grotta was once a subterranean passage to the City of Cumae as that of Pausilipus is yet to Naples and the Sibylles Grotte is that little darke Entry which stikes out of the long Grotta This leads you to the Chamber of the sayd Sibylle and her bathes It s a fine retireing place for a chaste mayd that fears as well to see as to be seen Tam timet Videre quam videri and such the Sybills were who for their Virginyties sake had the guift of Prophecy giuen them sayth S. Hierome This Sibylla Cumaea prophecyed very particularly of our Sauiours birth and for that reason Iulian the Apostata burnt her prophecyes sayth Ammianus Marcellinus a Heathen Historian of those times As we returned againe from hence to our boat we gazed vpon a great Mountain called Monte Nuouo because it was cast vp in one night on Michelmasse night anno 1536 by an earthquake which the Philosophers call Brasmarichus that is when the earth is throwne vp and mountains are formed Some hold this mountain to be three miles high but I think it enough to giue it a full mile It couered at its riseing vp a great part of the old Lacus Lucrinus which was quite sucked vp by this great sop Then takeing our boat againe we returned to Puzzuolo and at night to Naples where we stayd but one day more as well to rest our horses as to see the silk shops where they make curious silk wastcoats stokings scarfs c. He that desires to know the History of Naples let him read the booke called Il Compëndio dell ' Historia di Napoli di Collenuccio Hauing thus seen Naples we returned againe towards Rome the same way we came without any danger of Banditi but not with out some trouble caused vs by the officers of the Gabella at Fundi who met vs a quarter of a mile out of the towne and stopt vs vpon the rode to search vs and see whether we had any thing lyable to the Gabella or more money of the country then the Law allows men to carry out For my part I had taken care of all this a forehand and had nothing lyable to the greatest rigour But some of our company that did not beleeue the rigour to be so great found it For to some they pulled of their bootes searched their pockets breeches doublets nay euen their saddles horses tayles and the very horses feet From one gentlman they tooke four pistols of gold because he carryed so much more then was allowed though with much adoe we got the gentleman his money againe I haue knowe diuers that haue not escaped so well hauing been stript in the open fields euen to their shirts c. their watches taken from them though they had brought them with them to Naples and not bought them there This is to learne my traueler to be inquisitiue in all his iourneys of the Laws of the country where he traueleth especially such obuious ones as concerne publick passages bridges ferryes bearing of armes and the like the knowledge of which customes will make thim auoyd many inconueniences which I haue knowne others fall into In an other voyage to Naples in our returne to Rome we made little excursions to take in some places about Rome which we had not seen before as Albano Castel Gandulfo Frescati and Tiuoli which lay almost in our way Riseing therefore betimes at Veletri we crossed ouer the hills and came to Albano anciently called Longa Alba and now one
pictures of all the Dukes of Ferrara â—ere the Popes Legate lyeth 5. The Diamand Pallace as they call it is of white marble without whose stones are all cut diamant wise into sharp points Hauing seen it without I longd to see it within hopeing that a diamant pallace without would be all carbuncle and Pearle within But I was deceived for entring in I found nothing worth the paynes of going vp the vgly stairs and the poore woman that kept the house told me as much as well as the cold kitchen I wonder the master of this house doth not keep it alwayes lockt vp that strangers might value it by its outside onely which is admirable indeed 6. The Monastery of the Benedictins is stately in whose church I found the Tombe of Ariosto author of the long Poëme called Orlando Furioso He was esteemed in his life time a great Poët and as such was crowned Laureat Poët by the Emperor Charles the V. but he was oftentimes seen euen in the streets to be too much transported with Poëtick fury and to become Ariosto furioso while he was penning his Orlando He had a rich Vaine but a poore purse and while his head was crowned with Laurel his breeches were often out behinde as well as those of Torquato Tasso of whom Balzac sayth that though he were a good Poët yet he had des fort mauuaises chauses 7. The Carthusians church is neat full of good Pictures 8. The Church and Conuent of the Carmelits is also neat in whose Library I saw a Manuscript of Iohn Bacon and an other of learned Thomas Waldensis both Englishmen and both Learnedmen Here 's an Academy of Wits called Gli Elevati of this towne was Hieronymus Sauâ—narola author of the Triumphus Crucis and Baptista Guarini author of the Pastor Fido. He that desires to know the history of Ferrara let him read GioGiouanni Baptista Pigna who hath written of it ex professâ— From Ferrara we went to Padua in two dayes the season being good and dry otherwise in winter it s too deep a way to go by Land therefore most men embarke at Ferrara and go by boate to Venice The first day Passing ouer the Po in boat at Francalino We reached Ruigo the first towne of the Venetian State This towne is built neare where Adria from whence the Adriatick Sea is called once stood and almost vpon its ruines It s gouerned by a Podesta and a Capitano Grande as the other townes of S. Mark are Of this towne was Coelius Rodiginus a man of Various learning as his books shew and Bonifacius Bonifacij an other learned humanist From Ruigo we arriued at Padua betimes but the desire of seing Venice made vs hasten away the next day deferring to see Padua till our returne from Venice Embarking then betimes in the morning at Padua in a Piâ—tta a neat little barge taken to our selues and much more honorable then to go in the great tiltboate where all sortes of loosy ruffians and idle people throng you vp we saw a world of stately Pallaces and gardens standing vpon the bankes of the riuer Brenta and sewing vs that we were approching to a great towne indeed Some fiue miles short of Venice we left the riuer and the horses that drew vs and â—owed through the Shallow Sea which enuironeth Venice on all sides for aboue fiue miles space This low Sea is called here La Laguna and the water is so shallow that no great ships can come to Venice little vessels come by certain channels which are well fortifyed with castles forts chaynes so that no man can come to Venice but with Leaue or knocks We arriued there betimes and all the way we admired to see such a stately Citie lyeing as it were at anchor in the midst of the Sea and standing fixed where euery thing els floats Venice at first was nothing but a company of little dry spots of ground which held vp their heads in a Shallow Sea furnished by Saeuen riuers Piaua Sila Liuenza Po Adige Brenta and Tagliamento Which runn into it To these little dry spots of ground fisher men repayred anciently for their fishing and built little cottages vpon them But afterwards Italy being one runn by Goths Huns and Vicegoths diuers rich men from seueral parts of Italy as well as from Padua fled hither with the best of their goods to saue them and them selues in these poore cottages vnknowne to those Barbarous nations and findeing by experience this to be a safer place then any else they began to prouide against those frequent disasters of barbarous incursions by building good houses here This many men did made at last a fine towne here and greater then her mother Padua This happened twelue hundred years agoe which makes Venice glory that she is the ancientest Republick in Europe To which purpose I cannot omit to tell here a pretty story which was told me in Paris of à Venetian Embassador who resideing in the Court of France and finding himself in a visite where there were many Ladyes was seriously asked by a graue old Lady who heard him speak much of the Seignorie of Venice Whether the Seignorie of Venice were fair or no yes Madame sayd hee one of the fairest in Europe Is she great sayd the Lady again yes Madame sayd the Embassador she is great enough Is she riche sayd the Lady 〈◊〉 worth millions replyed the Embassador Me thinks then sayd the Lady she would be a good match for Monsieur the Kings Brother yes Madame replyed hee againe but that she is a little too old Why how old is she I pray you sayd the Lady Madame answered the Embassador she is about twelue hundred years old At which the company smileing the good Lady perceiued her errour with blushing and Monsieur was vnmarryed for that present Indeed Cosmography and Topography are hard words and as the old saying is aliud sceptrum aliud plectrum a looking glasse is not the same thing with a Map As for Venice now it s one of the fairest Cities in Europe and called by the Proverbial Epithete Venetia la Ricca Venice the Rich. It s well nigh eight miles in compasse and in forme something like a Lute It hath no walls about it to defend it but a mote of water that is fiue miles broad which surrounds it It hath no suburbs but a world of little Ilands close by it The Streets of Venice are all full of water and for this reason they vse no câ—aches here but visit in boats These boats they call here Gondolas and there are aboue twenty thousand of them For besides that euery noble Venetian or rich man hath two or there of his owne there are alwayes a world of them standing together at seueral publick wharfs so that you need but cry out Gondola and you haue them lanch out presently to you these Gondolas are pretty neat
in any towne It runns from the Sea side vp along the Pallace to the Church of S. Mark and from thence turning on the left hand it spreads it self into a more large and longer open place most beautifull to behold for the whole piazza euen from the Sea side to the further end is all built vpon arches and marble pillars and raysed vp with beautifull lodgeings fit to lodge all the Procuratori of S. Mark all the rich forrain merchants a world of persons of condition the Mint and the famous Library In that part of the piazza which lyes vnder the Pallace the Nobili Venetiani walke altogether twice a day to conferre about business of State This meeting here of the Noblemen is called the Broglio And in the end of it close by the Sea side stand two great pillars of rich marble the one bearing vpon it the Image of S. Theodorus the other the Lyon of S. Mark these two Saints S. Mark and S. Theodore being the two Patrons of this City These two pillars were erected here by a Lombard who required no other recompence for his paynes then that it might be lawfull for dice-players to play at dice between these two pillars without being punished or molested nay though they playd false play Here also between these two pillars they execute malefactors to shew that they deserue not the protection of those two patrons who break the orders of that towne which is vnder their protection It s pitty that the Lombard himself was not whiped here at least for makeing himself the Protector of idle rogues there where the Saints are Patrons of honestmen Ouer against the Pallace stands the Mint in a place called La Zeccha and from hence the gold coyned here is called Zecchino a peéce of gold worth some seauen shillings fixpence of our mony Hard by it stands the Library famous both for the quantity and quality of the bookes that are in it Petrark once Canon of the Church of Padua gaue his Library to it and Bessarion a Greek Cardinal of great Learning and worth gaue as many Greek Manuscripts vnto it as cost him thirty thousand crownes and yet by this Legacy Bessarion was but euen with the Venetians who honored him in such a particular manner as to send out the Bucentauro it self to bring him into Venice being sent thither Legat by the Pope 8. Going from hence into the other part of the Piazza which stands before the Church I espyed vpon the very out corner of the wall of the Church as you come out of the Pallace four Porphiry Statues of four marchants embraceing one another Haueing enquired what those Statues were set for there I was told by a graue old gentleman of Venice that those whom these Statues represent were four marchants and strangers who brought hither most of the Iewels mentioned aboue in the Treasury and that afterwards poysoning one another out of couetousness left this State heire of all Iust before the Church stand three tall masts of ships vpon curiously wrought Piedestals of Brasse and each mast bearing vpon great dayes a stately flag and streamers These three mastâ— signify the three noblest parts of the Venetians dominions to wit the kingdomes of Cyprus and of Candy and the State of Venice In this Piazza I found alwayes a world of strangers perpetually walking and talking of bargains and traffick as Greeks Armenians Albanians Slauonians Polonians Iewes and euen Turks themselues all in their seueral habits but all conspireing in this one thing to sell deare and buy cheape Here also they haue euery night in sommer a world of Montibancks ciarlatani and such stuff who together with their drudges and remedyes striue to please the people with their little comedies puppet playes songs musick storyes and such like buffonnerie It s strange to see how they finde dayly either new fooling or new fooles not onely to heare them but euen the throw them money too for such poore contentments In this Piazza also stands the Campanile or High steeple of Venice distant some fifty paces from the Church of S. Mark It s built forty foot squar on all sides and two hundred and thirty six high The top of it is couered with guilt tiles which in a sunshine day appeare gloriously a farre off The foundation of it is almost as deep vnder-ground as the top of it is high aboue ground a wonder if you consider rhat it stands in Venice From the top of this Campanile we had a perfect view of Venice vnder us and of all its neighboring Ilands Forts Sea and Townes about it as also of the outside of S. Marks Church its Frontispice its Cupolas and the four horses of brasse guilt which stand ouer the Frontispice These horses came out of the shop not out of the stable of Lisippus a famous statuary in Greece and were giuen to Nero by Tiridates King of Armenia They were carryed by Constantin the Great from Rome to Constantinople and from thence they were transported hither In fine from the top of this steeple we saw the compasse of the great Arsenal of Venice which looked like a little towne in our sight Indeed some make it three miles about but I cannot allow it so much The sight of this Magazin of warre a farre off made vs hasten downe from the steeple to go see it nearer hand 9. Takeing therefore a Gondola we went to the Arsenal Where after the ordinary formalityes of leauing our swords at the dore and paying the Porters fees we were admitted and led through this great Shop of Mars It s so well seated neare the Sea side and so well built that it might serue the Venetian Senators for a Castle in time of danger and in it there is a Well of fresh water not to be poysoned because of two peéces of Vnicornes horne set fast in the bottom of it I confesse I neuer saw any where such Oeconomie as is here obserued Fifteen hundred men are dayly employed here and duely payed at the weeks end according to their seueral employments and works The expences of these workemen amount to a thousand Ducats euery day in the yeare so that they make accompt that they spend in this Arsenal four hundred thirty thousand crownes a yeare Enough almost to maintain a pretty army constantly Euery workeman here hath wine twice a day and that very good too but that it is a little mingled with water We were led through all the vast rooms of this Magazin rooms like vast Churches In one of them I saw nothing but great â—ares for Gallyes seauen men going to one oare In another nothing but vast sternes In another nothing but vast nayles for Gallyes and ships In another they were making nothing but Salpeeter for gunpowder In another they were casting great Cannons Morter peéces and Chambers In an other they had nothing but a pair of vast Scales to weigh Cannons with In another Masts for Gallyes and ships of a