_Sixth side_. A knight, riding a headless horse, and wearing a
chain armor, with a triangular shield flung behind his back, and a
two-edged sword.
_Seventh side_. A figure like that on the fifth, wearing a round
helmet, and with the legs and tail of a horse. He bears a long mace with
a top like a fir-cone.
_Eighth side_. A figure with curly hair, and an acorn in its hand,
ending below in a fish.
SECTION LVII. NINTH CAPITAL. _First side_. Faith. She has her left
hand on her breast, and the cross on her right. Inscribed "FIDES OPTIMA
IN DEO." The Faith of Giotto holds the cross in her right hand; in her
left, a scroll with the Apostles' Creed. She treads upon cabalistic
books, and has a key suspended to her waist. Spenser's Faith (Fidelia)
is still more spiritual and noble:
"She was araied all in lilly white,
And in her right hand bore a cup of gold,
With wine and water fild up to the hight,
In which a serpent did himselfe enfold,
That horrour made to all that did behold;
But she no whitt did chaunge her constant mood:
And in her other hand she fast did hold
A booke, that was both signd and seald with blood;
Wherein darke things were writt, hard to be understood."
SECTION LVIII. _Second side_. Fortitude. A long-bearded man [Samson?]
tearing open a lion's jaw. The inscription is illegible, and the somewhat
vulgar personification appears to belong rather to Courage than
Fortitude. On the Renaissance copy it is inscribed "FORTITUDO SUM
VIRILIS." The Latin word has, perhaps, been received by the sculptor as
merely signifying "Strength," the rest of the perfect idea of this virtue
having been given in "Constantia" previously. But both these Venetian
symbols together do not at all approach the idea of Fortitude as given
generally by Giotto and the Pisan sculptors; clothed with a lion's skin,
knotted about her neck, and falling to her feet in deep folds; drawing
back her right hand, with the sword pointed towards her enemy; and
slightly retired behind her immovable shield, which, with Giotto, is
square, and rested on the ground like a tower, covering her up to above
her shoulders; bearing on it a lion, and with broken heads of javelins
deeply infixed.
Among the Greeks, this is, of course, one of the principal virtues; apt,
however, in their ordinary conception of it to degenerate into mere
manliness or courage.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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