CELLINI, Benvenuto, noo'-to, Italian sculptor of the Renaissance, engraver and goldsmith: b. Florence, 1 Nov. 1500; d. there, 25 Feb. 1571. It was his father's desire that his son become a musician. For this reason he spent his boyhood practising the flute, but when he became 15 years of age he was apprenticed to a goldsmith named Marcone. His hot temper soon manifested itself and led to a quarrel with some young men who had attacked his brother. He fled and wandered through Siena, Bologna and Pisa, supporting himself by plying his trade. At this period of the Renaissance the goldsmith's art was by no means a debasing profession and Benvenuto dis tinguished himself in it. In 1518 he returned to Florence and studied the works of Michel angelo, whom he always considered his beloved master and whose works influenced him pro foundly. His reputation secured for him an invitation from Torrigiana to visit England and enter the service of Henry VIII. But having little liking for the English and less for his companion, he refused to undertake the jourl ney. After a quarrel with his father he set out for Rome, where he remained for two years, diligently pursuing his trade. A brutal quarrel, in which he killed his enemy, caused him to leave Rome. He returned in 1523 and his extraordinary abilities secured for him the patronage of Pope Clement VII. Here he was employed in the making of various jewels, ornaments and services of plate. He served also in the Papal band. • When Rome was be sieged in 1527, Cellini took part in the protec tion of the Papal palace. His stirring account of the siege reveals his own vanity and boast fulness. He tells us that he himself shot the Constable of Bourbon and wounded the Prince of Orange. When peace was declared Cellini paid a hasty visit to Florence and assassinated the murderer of his brother. Later with a curious domestic fidelity he took upon himself the support of his sister and her children. To escape vengeance at the hands of the friends of the murdered man, Cellini took refuge in the house of the Duke of Civiti di Penna and re ceived the Pope's pardon. Free again, it was not
long before a passionate quarrel with a personal enemy resulted in another murder, for which he was again pardoned. He spent the next four years at Rome engaged in constant quarrels; and having differed seriously from the Pope, departed for France. He passed through Switz erland, stopping at Zurich, Geneva and Lyons and came eventually to Paris. He returned shortly afterward to Rome, was arrested by Paul III and thrown into prison on charge of having stolen the Pope's gold, but really because of the enmity of the bastard son of the Pope. He escaped with the greatest diffi culty, breaking a leg in the attempt, and came to the house of Cardinal Camaro, who pro tected him for a time, but finally gave him back to his enemy the Pope in exchange for a bishopric. Cellini was thrown into a dungeon, where he underwent those remarkable spiritual excesses of devotion in which his enthusiastic nature found consolation and outlet. On solic itation from Francis I, he was freed and entered the service of that king. He followed him to France; immediately forgot his spiritual awakening and once more turned to his pleas ure-loving existence. Francis made him a present of a castle which Cellini had to con quer by force of arms. His life in France was characterized by the same restlessness and passion. It was filled with law-suits, intrigues, violent outbursts of all sorts, which arose from a lack of ease of manner at court and his violent temper. From these embroilments he always extricated himself with Machiavellian disregard of all except private gain. He exe cuted many minor works for Francis, among them a nymph in bronze, "a long-limbed, life less figure without meaning—a snuff-box orna ment enlarged to a gigantic size)) In a fit of temper he forsook Paris and returned to Florence and the mean-minded patronage of Cosimo di Medici. The remainder of his life was spent here, in constant quarrels with his rival Bandinelli and the Duke's steward.