his day not only
in his native place, but throughout all Tuscany; and that certainly not
without reason, as I could clearly prove, if it were permissible for me
to speak as freely of him as I have spoken of others. But, since I was
born of his blood, it might be readily believed that I had exceeded all
due bounds in praising him; wherefore, leaving on one side the merits of
the man himself and of the family, I will simply tell what I cannot and
should not under any circumstances withhold, if I would not fall short
of the truth, on which all history hangs.

Lazzaro Vasari, then, a painter of Arezzo, was very much the friend of
Piero della Francesca of Borgo a San Sepolcro, and ever held intercourse
with him while Piero was working, as it has been said, in Arezzo. And,
as it often comes to pass, this friendship brought him nothing but
advantage, for the reason that, whereas Lazzaro had formerly devoted
himself only to making little figures for certain works according to the
custom of those times, he was persuaded by Piero della Francesca to set
himself to do bigger things. His first work in fresco was a S. Vincent
in S. Domenico at Arezzo, in the second chapel on the left as one enters
the church; and at his feet he painted himself and his young son Giorgio
kneeling, clothed in honourable costumes of those times, and
recommending themselves to the Saint, because the boy had inadvertently
cut his face with a knife. Although there is no inscription on this
work, yet certain memories of old men belonging to our house and the
fact that it contains the Vasari arms, enable us to attribute it to him
without a doubt. Of this there must certainly have been some record in
that convent, but their papers and everything else have been destroyed
many times by soldiers, and I do not marvel at the lack of records. The
manner of Lazzaro was so similar to that of Piero Borghese, that very
little difference could be seen between one and the other. Now it was
very much the custom at that time to paint various things, such as the
quarterings of arms, on the caparisons of horses, according to the rank
of those who bore them; and in this work Lazzaro was an excellent
master, and the rather as it was his province to make very graceful
little figures, which were very well suited to such caparisons. Lazzaro
wrought for Niccolo Piccino and for his soldiers and captains many
things full of stories and arms, which were held in great price, with so
mu