la, and now the wife
of Count Clemente Pietra, occupied herself with drawing and painting, as
she still does, after having been taught by Alessandro Allori, the pupil
of Bronzino; as may be seen from many pictures and portraits executed by
her hand, which are worthy to be praised by all. But Sofonisba of
Cremona, the daughter of Messer Amilcaro Anguisciuola, has laboured at
the difficulties of design with greater study and better grace than any
other woman of our time, and she has not only succeeded in drawing,
colouring, and copying from nature, and in making excellent copies of
works by other hands, but has also executed by herself alone some very
choice and beautiful works of painting. Wherefore she well deserved that
King Philip of Spain, having heard of her merits and abilities from the
Lord Duke of Alba, should have sent for her and caused her to be
escorted in great honour to Spain, where he keeps her with a rich
allowance about the person of the Queen, to the admiration of all that
Court, which reveres the excellence of Sofonisba as a miracle. And it is
no long time since Messer Tommaso Cavalieri, a Roman gentleman, sent to
the Lord Duke Cosimo (in addition to a drawing by the hand of the divine
Michelagnolo, wherein is a Cleopatra) another drawing by the hand of
Sofonisba, containing a little girl laughing at a boy who is weeping
because one of the cray-fish out of a basket full of them, which she has
placed in front of him, is biting his finger; and there is nothing more
graceful to be seen than that drawing, or more true to nature.
Wherefore, in memory of the talent of Sofonisba, who lives in Spain, so
that Italy has no abundance of her works, I have placed it in my book of
drawings.

We may truly say, then, with the divine Ariosto, that--

Le donne son venute in eccellenza
Di ciascun' arte ov' hanno posto cura.

And let this be the end of the Life of Properzia, sculptor of Bologna.

FOOTNOTE:

[8] The translator is unwilling to use the somewhat ugly word
"sculptress."

ALFONSO LOMBARDI OF FERRARA, MICHELAGNOLO DA SIENA, GIROLAMO SANTA CROCE
OF NAPLES, DOSSO AND BATTISTA DOSSI

LIVES OF ALFONSO LOMBARDI OF FERRARA, MICHELAGNOLO DA SIENA, AND
GIROLAMO SANTA CROCE OF NAPLES

SCULPTORS

AND DOSSO AND BATTISTA DOSSI

PAINTERS OF FERRARA

Alfonso of Ferrara, working in his early youth with stucco and wax, made
an endless number of portraits from life on little medallions for many