speaking, so has it been always richly furnished with excellent masters in painting and architecture, as will now be seen, in addition to all we have yet related from the lives of Francesco Monsignori, Domenico Moroni, and Francesco his son; as also from those of Paolo Cavazzuola, of the architect Falcorietti, and, finally, from those of the miniaturists, Francesco and Girolamo.
Francesco Monsignori,[1] the son of Alberto, was born ♦at Verona, in the year 1455, and having attained a fitting age, was advised by his father, who had always greatly delighted in painting, to devote himself to the arts of design, although Alberto had never practised painting himself, except for his pleasure: Francesco accordingly went to Mantua, there to seek Mantegna, who was then working in that city, and under whom he laboured with so much zeal, impelled by the fame of his instructor, that no long time elapsed before Francesco, second Marquis of Mantua, who found great pleasure in painting, took him into his own service, gave him a house to dwell in within the city of Mantua, and assigned him an honourable j)rovision. For these benefits Francesco was not ungrateful, but always served that prince with the utmost fidelity and afiection; wherefore he became daily more and more beloved by the Marquis, insomuch that the latter was unwilling to leave the city, for however short a time, unless he were attended by Francesco, on whom he was constantly conferring new benefits, and was once heard to declare that the artist was as dear to him as his whole state.
The latter executed numerous works for the Marquis Francesco therefore, not only in the Palace of San Sebastiano in Mantua, but at the Castello di Gonzaga, and in the beautiful Palace of Marmitolo.[2] At the last mentioned place, after having completed many other pictures, he brought to a conclusion certain triumphal processions and portraits of different gentlemen belonging to the court; and this happened on Christmas Eve, in the year 1499, on which occasion the Marquis bestowed on him an estate, comprising a large number of fields, at a place called Marzotta in the Mantuan
