to the Cathedral of Milan which
appears the work of Sylphs. The outside of this Duomo of Florence is
decorated and incrusted with black and white marble, which increases the
massiveness of its appearance. The steeple or Campanile stands by itself,
altogether separate from the Cathedral, and this is the case with most of
the Churches in Italy that are not of pure Gothic architecture. This
_Campanile_ is curiously inlaid and incrusted on its outside with red,
white and black marble. The Baptistery is another building on the same
_Piazza_. It is in the same stile of building as the Duomo, but incloses
much less space, and was formerly a separate church, called the church of
St John the Baptist. The immense bronze doors or rather gates, both of the
Duomo and Battisterio, attracted my peculiar notice. On them are figured
bas-reliefs of exquisite and admirable workmanship, representing Scripture
histories. It was the symmetry and perfection of these gates that induced
Michel Angelo to call them in a fit of enthusiasm _The Gates of Paradise_.
At the door of the Battisterio are the columns in red granite, which once
adorned the gates of the city at Pisa, and were carried off by the
Florentines in one of their wars. Chains are fastened round these columns,
as a memorial of the conquest. The cupolas both of the Duomo and
Battisterio are octangular. There is a stone seat on the _Piazza del Duomo_
where they pretend that Dante used occasionally to sit; hence it is called
to this day _Il Sasso di Dante_.

You will now no doubt expect me to give some account of the theatres. At
the _Pergola_, which is a large and splendid theatre, I have seen two
operas; the one, _L'Italiana in Algieri_, which I saw before at Milan last
year; the other, the _Barbieri di Seviglia_ by Rossini, which afforded to
my ears the most delightful musical feast they ever enjoyed. The cavatina
_Una voce poco fa_ gave me inconceivable delight. The _Ballo_ was of a very
splendid description and from a subject taken from the Oriental history
entitled _Macbet Sultan of Delhi_. How the Mogul Sultan came to have the
name of Macbet I know not. On the _plafond_ of the _Pergola_ is an
allegorical painting representing the restored Kings of Europe replaced on
their thrones by Valor and Justice. The decorations at this theatre are not
quite so splendid as those of the _Scala_ at Milan, but living horses and
military evolutions seem to be annexed to every historical _Ballo_.