name, by reason of his labouring and serving innumerable persons,
working in bronze as well as in silver and gold, it chanced that there
fell into the hands of Giovanni, son of Cosimo de' Medici, a very large
cornelian containing the flaying of Marsyas by command of Apollo,
engraved in intaglio; which cornelian, so it is said, once served the
Emperor Nero for a seal. And it being something rare, by reason both of
the size of the stone, which was very great, and of the marvellous
beauty of the intaglio, Giovanni gave it to Lorenzo, to the end that he
might make a gold ornament in relief round it; and he, after toiling at
it for many months, finished it completely, making round it a work in
relief of a beauty not inferior to the excellence and perfection of the
intaglio on the stone; which work brought it about that he wrought many
other things in gold and silver, which to-day are not to be found. For
Pope Martin, likewise, he made a gold button which he wore in his cope,
with figures in full-relief, and among them jewels of very great
price--a very excellent work; and likewise a most marvellous mitre of
gold leaves in open-work, and among them many little figures in
full-relief, which were held very beautiful. And for this work, besides
the name, he acquired great profit from the liberality of that Pontiff.
In the year 1439, Pope Eugenius came to Florence--where the Council was
held--in order to unite the Greek Church with the Roman; and seeing the
works of Lorenzo, and being no less pleased with his person than with
the works themselves, he caused him to make a mitre of gold, weighing
fifteen libbre, with pearls weighing five libbre and a half, which, with
the jewels set in the mitre, were estimated at 30,000 ducats of gold. It
is said that in this work were six pearls as big as filberts, and it is
impossible to imagine, as was seen later in a drawing of it, anything
more beautiful and bizarre than the settings of the jewels and the great
variety of children and other figures, which served for many varied and
graceful ornaments. For this work he received infinite favours from that
Pontiff, both for himself and his friends, besides the original payment.

Florence had received so much praise by reason of the excellent works of
this most ingenious craftsman, that the Consuls of the Guild of
Merchants determined to commission him to make the third door of S.
Giovanni, likewise in bronze. Now, in the door that he had made befo