St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1880-02-27

represented In an attitude of deep med
ltation. On the same mausoleum are
the statues of Evening" and DAWN y
All these figures are familiar the world
over through prints and photographs.
THE CATHEDRAL.
Next we went to the Cathedral or the
Duomo. This celebrated edifice was
begun in 1894. 1t was designed by Ar
nOlfo del Cambio, who was succeeded
as architect, upon his death, by Giotto.
The latter had already designed the
beautiful Campanile. Other architects
came after Giotto, and the famous
dome, which is even larger, or loftier,
than those upon st. Peters and the
Pantheon, in Rome, was built by Bru-
nellesco. The facade was never finish
ed, but soon will be, thanks to generous
contributions from all parts of the world
The interior of the church is bare, dark
and gloomy. A service of some sort
was in progress at the time of our visit,
and there was IL concOurse of several
hundred priests. Priests are seen ev-
erywhere, and in great numbers i'll 1ta-
ly.
THE BAPTISTERY.
The Baptistery is an ancient edifice
in Octagonal form, believed to have
been built upon the site of n temple of
Mars. Accounts differ as to the age of
the present structure, but it Gel Itainly
dates back from seven to nine hundred
years. The three celebrated bronze
doors were added in the fourteenth and
fifteenth centuries. These are very
elaborate and beautiful. The doors are
divided into panels, and each depicts
some scriptural incident. Michael An
gelo is said to have pronounced one of
these doors as worthy of forming the
entrance to Paradise.
THE CHURCH OF SANTA CRoCE.
This is one of the most important
churches i'll Florence, and indeed in all
Italy. The edifice itself is not snowy,
ture ot six centuries ago, but it has been
made the burial-place of some of the
most distinguished of Italy's sons, in
Guiding Michael Angelo, Alfieri, Mac
chiavelli, GalileO, and other famous
artists. poets, and scientific men. The
church possesses additional interest on
account of the frescoes of Giotto, which
were discovered less than a score of
years ago, beneath a coating of white
wash. In front of the church stands Il
magnificent statue of Dante which was
inaugurated on the six hundredth ami
versary of his birth, in 1865. The great
poet is not buried in Florence but at
Ravenna, where he died in exile in
1921.
THE HOUSE OF MICHAEL ANGELO.
The visitor to Florence is continually
reminded of Michael Angelo Not far
from the church of sSanta Croce in tLe
Via Ghibbellina, is the house in which
the great sculptor and painter lived.
1t was restored in the last century and
is now maintained by the city us Il sort
of museum, in which are great num-
Der of relics of the celebrated master.
Many models and drawings are shown
which were the work of his own hands,
THE GALLERIES OF THE UFFIzI AND THE
PITTI PALACE.
The pride of Florence is the great art
collection in the Uffizi Gallery and the
Pitt Palace. These are two yeIy large
buildings, on opposite sides of the
river Arno, and the art treasures they
contain are of vast extent. Think of
standing in a room like the Tribuna-
and small room at that-which con-
tains the masterpieces of such painters
as Titan, Raphael, Michael Angelo,
Bartolommeo, Corregio, Paolo Vero-
nese, Guido Reni, Domenichino and del
Sarto, and in addition to these glorious
creations several of the greatest works
OF the sculptOr's art, including the
Venus of the Medicis, (found in the
villa of Hadrian at Tivoli), the Dancing
Faun of Praxiteles, and The Wrestlers,
another famous specimen of ancient
Greek art. One of the most celebrated
OF the pictures is Raphael's Madonna
and Child with the bird. 1t is picture
OF great beauty, often copied but never
reproduced. In the Pitt Palace are
two more of Raphael's famous Madon-
mas, viz: the "Madonna del Granducan
and the "Madonna della Sedia and
two others, partly from his hand, which
are of lesser interest. The Pitt Palace
contains some 500 works, and there are
several saloons of almost equal merit to
the Tribuda of Uffizi.
Much more should be written of Flor
ence and its treasures, but my letter is
already sufficiently long.
ATHENIAN.
Heating Houses by Steam.
Our readers may know that there is