s life thirteen men occupied the papal chair. Besides
being great as a painter, an architect, and a sculptor, he was a poet, and
wrote sonnets well worthy of such a genius as his. His whole life was so
serious and sad that it gives one joy to know that in his old age he
formed an intimate friendship with Vittoria Colonna, a wonderful woman,
who made a sweet return to him for all the tender devotion which he
lavished upon her.

Italians associate the name of Michael Angelo with those of the divine
poet Dante and the painter Raphael, and these three are spoken of as the
three greatest men of their country in what are called the modern days.
Michael Angelo died at Rome in 1564, when eighty-nine years old. He
desired to be buried in Florence; but his friends feared to let this be
known lest the Pope should forbid his removal. He was therefore buried in
the Church of the Holy Apostles; but his nephew, Leonardo Buonarroti,
conveyed his remains to Florence secretly, disguised as a bale of
merchandise. At Florence, on a Sunday night, his body was borne to Santa
Croce, in a torchlight procession, and followed by many thousands of
citizens. There his friends once more gazed upon the face which had not
been seen in Florence for thirty years; he looked as if quietly sleeping.
Some days later a splendid memorial service was held in San Lorenzo,
attended by all the court, the artists, scholars, and eminent men of the
city. An oration was pronounced; rare statues and paintings were
collected in the church; all the shops of the city were closed; and the
squares were filled with people.

Above his grave in Santa Croce, where he lies near Dante, Machiavelli,
Galileo, and many other great men, the Duke and Leonardo Buonarroti
erected a monument. It has statues of Painting, Sculpture, and
Architecture, and a bust of the great man who sleeps beneath.

In the court of the Uffizi his statue stands together with those of other
great Florentines. His house in the Ghibelline Street now belongs to the
city of Florence, and contains many treasured mementoes of his life and
works; it is open to all who wish to visit it. In 1875 a grand festival
was held in Florence to celebrate the four hundredth anniversary of his
birth. The ceremonies were very impressive, and at that time some
documents which related to his life, and had never been opened, were, by
command of Victor Emmanuel, given to proper persons to be examined.

Thus it is that the great