- 
) 
of P dinies Naturall inane 
A meanesare decaied and perifhed. ButI marvailenothing hereat: for thus it is verelyand no 
otherwife, when we have no refpect or care in the world to leave good s behindus, as the 
images of our minds,wee doc neglect the lively pourtraitures and fimilitudes alfo of our bodies; 
Inour forefathers dayes ywis itwas otherwife: their hils and ftately courts were not fer out with 
images and portraitures afterthis fort ; there werenotin thein to bee {eene any ftatues or ima- 
ges wrought by artifane ftrangers,none of braffe they had, none of marble, their Oratories and 
Chappels were furnifhed with their own and their aunceftors *pourtraictures in wax, and thofe 
lively and expreflely reprefenting their vifages ; thefe were fet outand difpofedin order, thefe 
were the images that attended the funerals of any that was to bee enterred out of that ftocke and 
linage. Thus alwaies as any Gentleman died,a man fhould fee a goodly traine of all thofe which 
B were living of that houfe,accompanying the corpes, caufing allo the images of their predecef- 
. . c=) > . . 
fours to march ranke by ranke in order, according to their feverall defcents :1n which folemne 
fhew,the whole generation that ever was of that familie, reprefented by thefe images, is there 
prefent,teadie tc performe that Jaft dutie and honour to their kinfman. Moreover,wherefoever 
thefe images ftood within the oratorie or chappell beforefaid, there were lines drawn from them 
upon the wall, directing to the feverall titles and infcriptions which contained their ftile their dig- 
nities,and honours,& c.As for their {tudies and counting houfes, full they were of books, records, 
and rolls,reftifying all acts done & executed by them both athome and abroad, during the time 
they were in place to beare office of ftare.Over & befides thofe images within houfe,refembling 
the bodily fhape & countenancesthere were others alfo without dores,& namely,about the por- 
C ailes and gates of the houfe,which were the teftimonies of brave minds & valiant hearts : there 
hung fixed the fpoiles conquered and taken from the enemies, which nowwith{tanding any fale 
oralienation,it was not !awtull for the purchafer to pluck downe; in {uch fort, as the houfeitfelfe 
triumphed ftill and retained the former dignitie, notwithf{tanding it had anew lord and maifler. 
And verely, thiswas to the maifter and owner a great {pur unto valour and vertue: confidering, 
that if he were not in heart and courage an{wereable to his predeceflour,he could never comein 
at he gates, but the houfe was readie to reproch and upbraid him daily for entering intothe tt- 
umph of another. Extantthereis upon record, an Oration or at of Me(fala(a great Oratour in 
his time) wherein upon a great indignation he expreflely forbad that there fhould bee entermin- 
gled one image that came from another houfe of the Zevini,among thofe of his owne name and 
D linage,for feare of confounding the race of his familie and aunceftours. The likeoccafion mo- 
ved and enforced old ~e//ala to put foorth and publith thofe bookes which he had made of the 
defcents and pedigrees of the Romane houtes: tor that upon atime ashce pafled through the 
galletie belonging to Scipio Africanus his houfe,hee beheld therein his ftile, augmented by thé 
addition of Sa/tco,(for that was one of his {urnames) which fell wnto him by the laft will and te- 
_ ftament of a certaine rich man fo called ,who adopted him for his owne fonne :as being greatly 
difcontented in his mind that fo bafe a name as that (to the fhame and difhonor of the 4fricans) 
fhould creepe into the noble familie of the Sc:proms,But if Imay fpeake without offence of thefe 
wo -Meffzla,it {hould in my conceit be fome token of anoble {piritand good mind thatloverh 
and embraceth vertue,to entitle his owne name,although untruly,to the armesand images of o- 
E  thers,folongas they be noble and renowmed: andI hold ita greater credit fo to doe,than to de- 
meane ourfelves fo unworthily, asthat noman fhould defire any of our armes or images. And 
feeing that I am fo far entered into this theame, I muft not pafle over one new devife and inven- 
tion come up of late, namely,to dedicat and fet up in libraries the ftatues in gold or filver, or at 
leaftwife in braffe,of thofe devine and heavenly men,whofe immortall (pirits doe {peake ftill and 
* ever fhall,in thofe places where their bookes are. And alchough it bee unpoffible to recover the 
true andlively pourtraits of many of them, yet we forbear not for all that to devife one image or 
other to reprefent thei face and perfonage,though we are {ure it bee nothing like them: and the 
want thereof dooth breed andkindle in us a great defire and longing, to know what vilage that 
might be indeed which was never delivered unto us : as it appeareth by the ftatue of Homer.Cer- 
F tes,ia my opinion there can beno greater argument of the felicitie and happineffe of any man, 
than to have all the world evermore defirous to know, What kind of perfon hee was whiles he li- 
ved ? This invention of erecting libraries, efpecially here at Rome,came ftom 4/finivs Pollio,who 
by dedicating his Bibliotheque, containing all the books that ever were written, was the firftthae 
made the wits and workes of learned men, a publicke matter and abenefit to a Commonweale. 
But 
523 
*Thefe images 
were no orber 
: 
than the vifage 
and head as far 
asto the fhoul. 
ders, 
