FLORENCE, BEGINNINGS TO UCCELLO 



The picture of the Reception of the Stig^nata in the 

 Louvre has in the right-hand panel of the predella a 

 version on a small scale of the Preaching to the Birds 

 at Bevagna. The story is thus given by Bonaventura : 

 " When he drew near to Bevagna he came to a place 

 where a great multitude of birds of different kinds 

 were assembled together, which when they saw the 

 holy man came swiftly to the place and saluted him 

 as if they had the gift of reason. They all turned 

 towards him and welcomed him. Those which were 

 on the trees bowed their heads in an unaccustomed 

 manner, and all looked earnestly at him, until he went 

 to them and seriously admonished them to listen to the 

 word of the Lord. . . . While he spoke these and other 

 such words to them the birds rejoiced in a marvellous 

 manner, swelling their throats, spreading their wings, 

 opening their beaks, and looking at him with great 

 attention." 



Such was the thought which Giotto so sympatheti- 

 cally interpreted: "You shall see things as they are, 

 and the least with the greatest, because God made 

 them." The upper part of the group has been badly 

 damaged, and some of the birds are half obliterated, 

 but the congregation seems to have included a gold- 

 finch, a chaffinch, jays, turtle-doves, thrushes, quails, 

 woodpeckers (green and spotted), a jackdaw, a great 



17 B 



