In like manner, at the time when his eldest son, the Signor Don Prancesco, was born to the Duke, there were sumptuous preparations to be made in the Church of San Giovanni, the whole charge of which was given to Tribolo. An extremely magnificent enclosure, capable of containing a hundred young persons, who had accompanied the Prince from the palace to that temple, wherein he was to receive his baptism, made part of these decorations, which were arranged by Tribolo, in company with the wood-carver Tasso,[1] with so much ability, and were so judiciously adapted to the place, that this church, which is indeed an old and very fine one, was made to appear like a new building in the modern manner and of the utmost beauty, the seats around it being richly adorned with pictures and gilding.
In the centre of the building, and immediately beneath the lantern, a large vase of wood, richly carved and formed with eight sides, was erected; the foot of this vase rested on four steps, at each angle of all the eight sides were lions’ claws, and from the earth there rose up enormous vine tendrils, on which were children, also of large size and in various attitudes. They supported the edge of the vase with their hands, and on their shoulders they bore festoons, which hung down to the hollow space in the centre of the vase, passing entirely around the same. In the vase itself Tribolo caused to be erected a pedestal, likewise in wood, and carved with beautiful and fanciful ornaments; on this, as the completion of the whole, he placed a figure of San Giovanni Battista three braccia high, by the hand of Donatello, and which was left by him to the house of Gismondo Martelli, as we have said in the Life of Donatello himself,[2] At a word, this church was adorned both within and without in the richest manner that could be devised, the principal chapel alone being omitted, where there is an old Tabernacle, with those figures in relief which were formerly executed by Andrea Pisano.
But it now seemed that as all else was renewed, so this old chapel, thus neglected, deprived everything that had
