e city and to consider in what manner and in
what places his forces could be distributed to the best advantage,
ordained that a plan of the city should be made secretly, with all the
country for a mile around it--the hills, mountains, rivers, rocks,
houses, churches, and other things, and also the squares and streets
within, together with the walls and bastions surrounding it, and the
other defences. The charge of all this was given to Benvenuto di
Lorenzo della Volpaia, an able maker of clocks and quadrants and a
very fine astrologer, but above all a most excellent master in taking
ground-plans. This Benvenuto chose Tribolo as his companion, and that
with great judgment, for the reason that it was Tribolo who suggested
that this plan, for the better consideration of the height of the
mountains, the depth of the low-lying parts, and all other
particulars, should be made in relief; the doing of which was not
without much labour and danger, in that, staying out all night to
measure the roads and to mark the number of braccia between one place
and another, and also to measure the height of the summits of the
belfries and towers, drawing intersecting lines in every direction by
means of the compass, and going beyond the walls to compare the height
of the hills with that of the cupola, which they had marked as their
centre, they did not execute such a work save after many months; but
they used great diligence, for they made it of cork, for the sake of
lightness, and limited the whole plan to the space of four braccia,
and measured everything to scale. Having then been finished in this
manner, and being made in pieces, that plan was packed up secretly and
smuggled out of Florence in some bales of wool that were going to
Perugia, being consigned to one who had orders to send it to the
Pope, who made use of it continually during the siege of Florence,
keeping it in his chamber, and seeing from one day to another, from
letters and despatches, where and how the army was quartered, where
skirmishes took place, and, in short, all the incidents, arguments,
and discussions that occurred during that siege; all greatly to his
satisfaction, for it was in truth a rare and marvellous work.

The war finished--during the progress of which Tribolo executed some
works in clay for his friends, and for Andrea del Sarto, his dearest
friend, three figures of wax in the round, of which Andrea availed
himself in painting in fresco, on the Piazza, n