A TOMB AT RAVENNA 



of " the divine forest " in Paradise to the rustling of 

 the wind and the joyous singing of the birds in the 

 pine-trees on the shore of Classis. 



But the tomb which forms the subject of our illus- 

 tration belongs to a later age. The old Franciscan 

 church, round which the proudest memories of medi- 

 aeval Ravenna cluster, once held another sepulchral 

 monument, which has lately been removed to the neigh- 

 bouring museum known as the Accademia di belle Arti. 

 It is the effigy of Guidarello Guidarelli, a soldier of 

 renown in his day, and was the work of a great sculptor, 

 Tullio Lombardo. Of Guidarello himself we know 

 little, but both his valiant deeds and the mysterious 

 and tragic fate which ended his career in the flower of 

 his manhood are typical of the age in which he lived, 

 while the statue which the Venetian master carved in 

 his honour is of surpassing beauty. 



The family from which our hero sprang originally 

 came from Florence, and settled in Ravenna early in 

 the fifteenth century. Here they soon acquired 

 wealth and renown. Their palace stood near the 

 Duomo, in the old street now called the Via Guida- 

 rello, and they owned considerable property in land 

 and houses in the neighbourhood. Francesco Guida- 

 relli held several important posts under Government, 

 and was sent on one occasion as ambassador to Venice. 

 When, in December 1468, the Emperor Frederic III 



visited Ravenna, Francesco's son, Guidarello, was one 

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