The campanile as a structure had been finished in 1387, but not for
many years did it receive its statues, of which something must be said,
although it is impossible to get more than a vague idea of them, so
high are they. A captive balloon should be arranged for the use of
visitors. Those by Donatello, on the Baptistery side, are the most
remarkable. The first of these--that nearest to the cathedral and
the most striking as seen from the distant earth--is called John the
Baptist, always a favourite subject with this sculptor, who, since
he more than any at that thoughtful time endeavoured to discover
and disclose the secret of character, is curiously unfortunate in
the accident that has fastened names to these figures. This John,
for example, bears no relation to his other Baptists; nor does the
next figure represent David, as is generally supposed, but owes that
error to the circumstance that when the David that originally stood
here was moved to the north side, the old plinth bearing his name was
left behind. This famous figure is stated by Vasari to be a portrait of
a Florentine merchant named Barduccio Cherichini, and for centuries it
has been known as Il Zuccone (or pumpkin) from its baldness. Donatello,
according to Vasari, had a particular liking for the work, so much that
he used to swear by it; while, when engaged upon it, he is said to
have so believed in its reality as to exclaim, "Speak, speak! or may
a dysentery seize thee!" It is now generally considered to represent
Job, and we cannot too much regret the impossibility of getting near
enough to study it. Next is the Jeremiah, which, according to Vasari,
was a portrait of another Florentine, but which, since he bears his
name on a scroll, may none the less be taken to realize the sculptor's
idea of Jeremiah. It is (according to the photographs) a fine piece
of rugged vivacity, and the head is absolutely that of a real man. On
the opposite side of the tower is the magnificent Abraham's sacrifice
from the same strong hand, and by it Habakkuk, who is no less near
life than the Jeremiah and Job, but a very different type. At both
Or San Michele and the Bargello we are to find Donatello perhaps in
a finer mood than here, and comfortably visible.

For most visitors to Florence and all disciples of Ruskin, the chief
interest of the campanile ("The Shepherd's Tower" as he calls it)
is the series of twenty-seven reliefs illustrating the history of
the world and t