ITALIAN GARDENS OF THE RENAISSANCE 



But what pleased the Marchesa more than all were 

 the superb antiques which adorned the gardens. One 

 of these was a colossal Jove, lately dug up in Cardinal 

 Armellini's Vigna^ which, besides being of the finest 

 marble, was evidently the work of a most excellent 

 master. The head, it is true, was divided from the 

 bust, the arms were gone, and the legs mutilated, but 

 the subtle beauty of the head and beard excited the 

 admiration of all the best connoisseurs, who pronounced 

 it to be one of the finest things found in Rome for 

 many years past. In a postscript written by her own 

 hand, Isabella tells her son how honourably she was 

 entertained at the Pope's villa, eating off His Holiness's 

 own dishes and being waited on by his servants, while 

 at the end of supper she was presented with a costly 

 pair of gloves, and each of the other ladies received a 

 casket of perfumes. " The place/' she adds, " although 

 unfinished, is most delightful and full of wonderful 

 antiques which we longed to carry off to one of our 

 own houses." * 



Isabella was almost the last guest who saw Raphael's 

 villa in its perfection. On the 2nd of May 1527 the 

 Imperialist armies crossed Monte Mario and stormed 

 the walls of the Borgo. Bourbon fell as he led the 

 assault, and his wild hordes of German and Spanish 

 soldiery were let loose on the defenceless city. 

 1 A. Luzio in Archivio storico lombardo, x. 15. 



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