COSTUMES OF THE THIRTEENTH CENTURY: FEORENCE 



During the thirteenth century the judicial functions of Florence were intrusted to the 

 Podesta, a foreign nobleman of legal erudition, elected for a period of six months at first, 

 which term was afterward increased to a year. In 1215 Florence became divided into two 

 factions, the Guelphs and the Ghibellines, and their rivalries became so bitter that the people 

 themselves, in 1250, organized a kind of national guard and first coined the golden florin, 

 which soon was to Isecome the world's standard of value. 



A HISTORIC ARSENAL 



To' the left lies the arsenal, with its 

 huge docks and magazines, watched over 

 by the stone lions which were brought 

 from Athens by Morosini. Centuries 

 long this arsenal enjoyed a great Euro- 

 pean reputation, and no other in the 

 world was considered comparable to it. 

 The superintendence of it was intrusted 

 to three "Patroni," who were chosen 

 from the ranks of the nobles, and were 

 changed every night at the same time 

 with the sentinels on guard. 



The AmmiracjUo dell Arsenale had to 

 watch over and protect the Ducal Palace 

 during the election of the Doge ; he com- 

 manded the Bucentaur, on which the 

 newly elected Doge put out to sea to drop 



his ring into the Adriatic : a swarm of 

 workmen was under his orders. 



During the time when the Republic 

 was at the height of its power 10,000 

 noble oak stems lay constantly steeping 

 in the water, to serve for the construction 

 of new ships. Every rope and every 

 pulley had its private mark, and the theft 

 of even a nail was punished with five 

 years of the galleys. 



Here, too, lay the world-renown Bu- 

 centaur at anchor — the pompous vessel 

 of the Doge all overhung with gold and 

 red velvet, and with a depth inlaid of 

 ebony and mother-of-pearl. Eighty-four 

 golden oars propelled the bark over the 

 blue waters, and the shouts of an exultant 

 multitude accompanied her course ! 



The collection of arms in the arsenal 



608 



