Nor does he describe in any detail the fiery cross which was seen in the sky above Florence “in the beginning of her destruction,” which does not mean, as one might think, the legendary sack of the city by Totila, but the treacherous entry of Charles of Valois, “Totila secundus,”[373] in November 1301. This portent was of course considered as of ill omen for the Republic, and although Dante was still absent on his embassy to Rome, and cannot have seen it himself, it is rather remarkable that he says so little about it. It is described by an eye-witness, “Io, che chiaramente la viddi”[374] as a red cross which appeared in the evening over the Priors’ Palace; the vertical arm seemed to be 20 ells long, the transverse one a little shorter, and it remained visible for as long as it would take a horse to gallop two furlongs. Villani the historian describes it as like a comet with an immense trail, as of smoke, behind it. Dante merely mentions it, together with the ball of fire seen by Seneca at the death of Augustus, which, judging by Seneca’s own words, was also a large meteor, for he describes it as flashing into sight and moving very rapidly, disappearing as it moved.[375] ------------------------------------------------------------------------ [373] _V. E._ II. vi. 48. [374] “I, who saw it clearly.” [375] _Naturales Quæstiones_, Bk. I. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Dante calls meteors “kindled vapours,”[376] in accordance with the doctrines of Aristotle, but the popular idea of them is shown by his observation that they might be taken for stars in motion, only that no star vanishes from its place, and they are only seen for a short time.[377] Ristoro d’Arezzo had already alluded to this fallacy:— ------------------------------------------------------------------------ [376] _Conv._ II. xiv. 168-171, and _Purg._ v. 37. [377] _Par._ xv. 16-18. “Alquanti non savi credono ch’elle sieno stelle, che caggino del cielo e vengano meno.”[378] [378] “Some ignorant people think that they are stars which fall from heaven and vanish.” _Comp. del Mondo_, VII. v. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ He gives the same reason as Dante for disbelieving this, and Seneca had expressed it more forcibly, saying that if true there would be no more stars in the sky, for some meteors are seen every night.