of rare beauty, with bent knee, not to the ground but on a
plinth, with her face and both her hands raised to heaven, so that she
seems to breathe love in every part. On the other side, that is to say on
the left of Moses, is Active Life, with a mirror in her right hand, into
which she gazes attentively, meaning by this that our actions should be
governed by forethought; and in her left hand a garland of flowers. In
this Michael Angelo followed Dante, of whom he was always a great student,
for in his Purgatorio he feigns to have the Countess Matilda, whom he
takes to represent Active Life, in a field full of flowers. The Tomb is
altogether beautiful, especially the binding of the several parts together
by the great cornice, to which no one could take exception.

LII. Now that is enough for this work; indeed, I fear it is only too much,
and that instead of giving pleasure it will have been tedious to the
reader. Nevertheless, it appeared to me necessary, in order to remove
those unfortunate and false scandals, rooted in men's minds, that Michael
Angelo had received sixteen thousand scudi, and then would not carry out
the work he had undertaken. Neither the one nor the other was true,
because he had from Julius for the Tomb only one thousand ducats, spent in
those months of quarrying marble at Carrara. How then could Michael Angelo
have received money for it from him, since he changed his purpose and
would hear no more of the Tomb? As to the money Michael Angelo received,
after the death of Pope Julius, from the two cardinals, his executors,
Michael Angelo possesses a written public acknowledgment--by the hand of a
notary, from Bernardo Bini, Florentine citizen, who was trustee, and payed
out the money--that the payments amounted to about three thousand ducats.
Never was man more anxious about his work than Michael Angelo in this, as
much because he knew how great fame it would bring him as for the loving
memory in which he always held the blessed spirit of Pope Julius, for that
reason he has always honoured and loved the House della Rovere, and
especially the Dukes of Urbino, for that reason he has contended with two
Popes, as has been said, who wished to withdraw him from the undertaking.
But what grieved Michael Angelo the most, is that instead of thanks all he
got was odium and disgrace.

LIII. But returning to Pope Paul. I must tell you that after the last
agreement made between his Excellency the Duke and Michael Ang