House and Garden 
LIIIIII1IIIIII1IIIHII.LHIIII11III 
WINDOW GRILLES IN THE CATHEDRAL, LUCCA 
FLORENTINE STANDARD BEARER 
of handicraft and individual freshness of touch gives 
way to a cold mathematical precision. 
The iron work of Siena, on the other hand, that 
proud, glorious rival of Florence, which was more 
influenced by the Gothic spirit, preserved up to the 
last its purity of line. Wandering through its narrow 
streets and passages, that still preserve in great part 
the characteristics of an 
earlier day, it is impossi¬ 
ble to overlook the great 
quantity of wrought iron 
used in its architectural 
decoration. The sump¬ 
tuous palaces, the mean 
houses piled up along its 
steep cliff's, the columns 
that soar in the midst of 
its piazze, all, in short, 
have some ironwork orna¬ 
ment to show, twisted 
into that cord-like rope 
which was so dear to 
the Sienese smith. And 
when a feast day dawns, 
one of those beautiful 
feste that re-evoke the mediaeval sentiment, then the 
city presents an unforgetable aspect. On those 
occasions the multicolored standards of the different 
Contrade, fixed into the characteristic and graceful 
banner holders of worked iron, wave from every 
palace, every house, in the piazze, the alleys, on 
the steps, from the towers, while from the windows, 
the terraces, hang ancient 
stuffs, fine tapestries and 
crested banners. Then, 
too, behind railings artis¬ 
tically executed, shine 
forth softly the reds and 
greens of century-old 
damasks, and the eye, 
surveying this phantas¬ 
magoria, feels an irre¬ 
sistible fascination. All 
that surrounds it is 
beautiful; it is art of the 
purest, most vivid and 
glowing. The heart ex¬ 
pands at the sight and is 
filled with joy. And what 
a difference between the 
