and accompanied on one side by ever-verdant
Hope, who had a chameleon on the head, and on the other by pallid Fear,
with the head likewise adorned by a timorous deer; and he was seen
followed by the lovers, his captives and slaves, dressed for the most
part with infinite grace and richness in draperies of flaming gold, for
the flames wherewith they are ever burning, and all girt and bound with
most delicate gilded chains. After these (to avoid excessive minuteness)
there was seen coming, to represent Beauty, in a graceful habit of
turquoise-blue all interwoven with his own flowers, the beautiful
Narcissus, likewise accompanied, as was said of Love, on one side by
Youth adorned with flowers and garlands, and dressed all in white, and
on the other by Proportion, adorned with draperies of turquoise-blue,
and recognized by the spectators by an equilateral triangle that was
upon the head. After these were seen those who seek to be esteemed for
the sake of their beauty, and who appeared to be following their guide
Narcissus; and they, also, were of an aspect youthful and gracious, and
had the same narcissus-blooms most beautifully embroidered upon the
cloth of silver wherein they were robed, with their blonde and curly
locks all crowned in lovely fashion with the same flowers. And after
them was seen approaching Fame, who seemed to be sounding a great
trumpet that had three mouths, with a globe on her head that represented
the world, and with immense wings of peacock's feathers; having in her
company Glory, who had a head-dress fashioned likewise of a peacock, and
Reward, who in like manner carried a crowned eagle on the head; and her
followers, who were divided into three companies, Emperors, Kings, and
Dukes, although they were all dressed in gold with the richest
embroideries and pearls, and although they all presented an aspect of
singular grandeur and majesty, nevertheless were distinguished very
clearly one from another by the forms of the different crowns that they
wore on their heads, each in accord with his rank. Then the blind Pluto,
the God (as has been told) of Riches, who followed after these with rods
of gold and silver in the hands, was seen, like the others, accompanied
on either side by Avarice dressed in yellow, with a she-wolf on the
head, and by Rapacity robed in red draperies, who had a falcon on the
head to make her known; but it would be a difficult thing to seek to
describe the quantity of gold, pearls,