gures, both in painting and in sculpture,
many by the hand of excellent masters, and likewise books, lutes,
and volumes of songs, which was a most grievous loss, particularly
for painting. Thither Baccio carried all the drawings of nudes that
he had made by way of studies, and he was followed by Lorenzo di
Credi and by many others, who had the name of Piagnoni. And it was
not long before Baccio, on account of the affection that he bore to
Fra Girolamo, made a very beautiful portrait of him in a picture,
which was then taken to Ferrara; but not long ago it came back to
Florence, and it is now in the house of Filippo di Alamanno
Salviati, who, since it is by the hand of Baccio, holds it very
dear.

It happened, after this, that one day the opponents of Fra Girolamo
rose against him, in order to take him and deliver him over to the
hands of justice, on account of the disturbances that he had caused
in the city; and his friends, seeing this, also banded themselves
together, to the number of more than five hundred, and shut
themselves up in S. Marco, and Baccio with them, on account of the
great affection that he had for their party. It is true that, being
a person of little courage, nay, even timorous and mean-spirited,
and hearing an attack being made a little time after this on the
convent, and men being wounded and killed, he began to have serious
doubts about himself. For which reason he made a vow that if he were
to escape from that turmoil, he would straightway assume the habit
of that Order; which vow he carried out afterwards most faithfully,
for when the uproar had ceased, and Fra Girolamo had been taken and
condemned to death, as the writers of history relate with more
detail, Baccio betook himself to Prato and became a monk in S.
Domenico, in that city, on July 26, in the year 1500, as is found
written in the chronicles of that same convent in which he assumed
the habit; to the great displeasure of all his friends, who were
grieved beyond measure at having lost him, and particularly because
they heard that he had taken it into his head to forsake his
painting.

Whereupon Mariotto Albertinelli, his friend and companion, at the
entreaties of Gerozzo Dini, took over the materials of Fra
Bartolommeo--which was the name given by the Prior to Baccio, on
investing him with the habit--and brought to completion the work of
the Ossa in S. Maria Nuova; where he portrayed from life the
Director of the Hospital at that ti