ounded by a heavenly light, makes as
if to pardon him. The second picture represents Ranieri distributing
his property among God's poor, then mounting into a barque he has
about him a throng of poor and maimed, of women and children,
anxiously pressing forward to petition and to thank him. In the same
picture is when the saint after receiving the pilgrim's dress in the
church, stands before Our Lady, who is surrounded by many angels,
and shows him that he shall rest, in her bosom at Pisa. The heads of
all these figures are vigorous with a fine bearing. The third picture
represents the saint's return after seven years from beyond the sea,
where he had spent three terms of forty days in the Holy Land, and
how while standing in the choir and hearing the divine offices where
a number of boys are singing, he is tempted by the devil, who is seen
to be repelled by the firm purpose guiding Ranieri not to offend God,
assisted by a figure made by Simone to represent Constancy, who
drives away the ancient adversary represented with fine originality
not only as terrified, but holding his hands to his head in his
flight, with his head buried as far as possible in his shoulders, and
saying, according to the words issuing from his mouth: "I can do no
more." The last scene in the same picture is when Ranieri kneeling
on Mount Tabor sees Christ miraculously in the air with Moses and
Elias. All the parts of this work and other things which concern it
show that Simone was very ingenious, and understood the good method
of composing figures lightly in the style of the time. When these
scenes were finished he made two pictures in tempera in the same
city, assisted by Lippo Memmi his brother, who had also helped him to
paint the chapter-house of S. Maria Novella and other works. Although
Lippo did not possess Simone's genius, yet he followed his style so
far as he was able, and did many things in fresco, in conjunction
with his brother in S. Croce at Florence, the picture of the high
altar of the Friars Preachers in S. Catarina at Pisa, and in S. Paolo
on the River Arno, and besides many beautiful scenes in fresco, he
did the picture in tempera now over the high altar, comprising Our
Lady, St Peter, St Paul, St John the Baptist, and other saints, to
which work Lippo put his name. After these things he did by himself a
picture in tempera for the friars of St Augustine in S. Gimigniano,
and acquired such fame thereby, that he was obliged to se