waters were not by any means sufficient to effect all that he had it in his 

 thoughts to do. He therefore gained permission from the Duke to 

 conduct the waters of the Petraia to Castello, and caused another 

 aqueduct to be made. He then began to build the grotto, adding the 

 three niches, as also the two fountains, one on each side of the grotto. . . . 

 " Tribolo then began the fountain of the labyrinth, and the lower 

 part of this he formed of marine monsters in marble, twined together in 

 full relief, and wholly detached from the base, the tails of these animals 

 being interlaced after such sort that nothing better in that manner could 

 well be effected. Having completed this part he then formed' the vase, 

 for which he availed himself of a piece of marble which had been long 

 before brought to Castello from the Villa dell' Antella, together with 

 a large table, also of marble, purchased by Messer Ottaviano de' Medici 

 from Giuliano Salviati, 



" The possession of these resources caused Tribolo to prepare the tazza 

 for this fountain earlier perhaps than he might otherwise have done. 

 For the decoration of the same he designed a dance of children, which he 

 arranged around the mouth of the tazza and close to the edge or lip 

 thereof ; the little boys composing this dance hold festoons of marine 

 plants, which are detached from the marble with the most admirable art. 

 The pedestal also, which Tribolo erected within the tazza, is adorned 

 with figures of children and masks throwing water, which are all of 

 extraordinary beauty and excellence. On this pedestal it was the 

 intention of Tribolo to place a bronze statue, three braccia and a half 

 high, representing Florence, and signifying that from the Mounts 

 Asinaio and Falterona come the waters of the Arno and the Mugnone to 

 Florence ; and for this statue the master had prepared a most exquisite 

 model exhibiting the figure in the act of wringing with her hands the 

 luxuriant tresses of her hair, whence the water comes streaming on every 

 side." 



This most beautiful tazza, with the bronze statue here described, is 

 now at the Villa Petraia, to which place it was removed by order of the 

 Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo. 



" Having brought the collected waters to the first quadrangle of thirty 

 braccia, before described as situate beneath the labyrinth, Tribolo then 



92 



