brush that had done such wonderful work. Durer gladly laid his
brushes before Bellini and indicated the one he had used. The Venetian
picked it up, made the attempt to use it but failed to produce
anything unusual, whereupon Durer took the brush wet with Bellini's
own color and painted a lock of woman's hair in so marvelous a way
that the old artist declared he would not believe it had he not seen
it done.

The most important picture Durer painted while in Venice was the
"_Madonna of the Rose Garlands_." It was painted for the artist's
countrymen and is now in a monastery near Prague. Durer evidently
valued it highly himself for he writes of it to Pirkheimer, "My panel
would give a ducat for you to see it; it is good and beautiful in
color. I have got much praise and little profit by it. I have silenced
all the painters who said that I was good at engraving but could not
manage color. Now everyone says that they have never seen better
coloring."

After little more than a year's sojourn in Venice, he returned to
Nuremberg. He had been sorely tempted by an offer from the Venetian
Council of a permanent pension if he would but remain in their city.
But the ties of affection which bound him to his home city drew him
back to Nuremberg, even though he had written while in Venice, "How
cold I shall be after this sun! Here I am a gentleman," referring
indirectly to the smaller place he would occupy at home.

Although Durer studied and enjoyed the works of the Italian masters,
there is hardly a trace of the influence of this study in his own
works. His mind was too strongly bent in its own direction to be
easily turned even by so powerful an influence as Venetian painting.
We are grateful indeed for the steadfast purpose of Durer that kept
his art pure German instead of diluting it with Italian style so
little adapted to harmonize with German thought and method.

[Illustration: PRAYING HANDS _Durer_]

On Durer's return to Nuremberg he did some of his best work. He
painted one of his greatest pictures at this time, "_All Saints_." It
is crowded with richly dressed figures, while the air above is filled
with an angelic host which no one can count. In the center is the
Cross on which hangs our suffering Lord. Below, in one corner, is
Durer's unmistakable signature, which in this case consists of a full
length miniature of himself holding up a tablet on which is this
inscription, "Albertus Durer of Nuremberg did it in 1