lentless nudities, of such a master
as Luca Signorelli, whereas in Pietro's devotional art, with its
accurate training in drawing, colour, and perspective, his sunny
nature found room to expand, and his first visit to Florence (1504)
proved as inspiring to him as it had been to his master.

Meanwhile that busy master, his decorative commission of the Sala del
Cambio completed, had gone back at once to purely religious art in a
great painting for the high altar at Vallombrosa, which is now in the
Florence Accademia. The subject is the Assumption of Mary Virgin, who
appears in a mandorla surrounded by angels, while God the Father
bends to bless from heaven, and four saints on earth beneath await in
adoration. This was probably painted at the monastery, for Vasari says
distinctly, "At Vallombrosa he painted a picture for the high altar";
and this is quite likely, as well as that his two grand profile
portraits of the Abbot Baldasarre and of Don Biagio Milanesi date from
the same visit.

We have already noticed his finely virile portrait of Francesco delle
Opere in the Uffizi collection, and this, combined with the two
monastic portraits just mentioned, now in the Florentine Accademia,
proves that, if our master had devoted himself to portrait work, he
might have been one of the greatest portraitists of all time. In the
two last portraits the technique is of extreme simplicity. It is
simply the bare shaven head, seen in profile against a brown
background. But the drawing is faultless, the man himself is there,
and there is not a touch more than is needed to reveal the bones of
the skull beneath an upper surface covering of flesh and skin.

The Vallombrosan altar-piece dates from 1500, and in 1501 Perugino was
one of the Priors (Priori), and, being obliged to reside in the
Communal Palace and give the most of his time to magisterial and civic
duties, he probably had little time left for painting. But he took
occasion to contract for future work (1502)--for saints and angels to
be painted around a fine crucifix in wood for the Convent of S.
Francesco al Monte, which is now in the Perugian Gallery; for designs
for the intarsia work of S. Agostino, and a double altar-piece for the
same church, as well as a Sposalizio (Marriage of Mary) for the Duomo.

In 1503 we have seen that Pietro had returned to Florence, and taken
lodgings in the Pinti quarter. There followed the quarrel with
Michelangelo which I have mentioned, and ve