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Book FirstPart LXV
Part LXV
As we were in the habit of meeting daily, the necromancer kept urging me
to join in his adventure. Accordingly, I asked him how long it would take, and
where we should have to go. To this he answered that we might get through with
it in less than a month, and that the most suitable locality for the purpose
was the hill country of Norcia; ^1 a master of his in the art had indeed
consecrated such a book quite close to Rome, at a place called the Badia di
Farfa; but he had met with some difficulties there, which would not occur in
the mountains of Norcia; the peasants also of that district are people to be
trusted, and have some practice in these matters, so that at a pinch they are
able to render valuable assistance.
[Footnote 1: This district of the Central Apennines was always famous for
witches, poisoners, and so forth. The Farfa mentioned below is a village of
the Sabine hills.]
This priestly sorcerer moved me so by his persuasions that I was well
disposed to comply with his request; but I said I wanted fitst to finish the
medals I was making for the Pope. I had confided what I was doing about them
to him alone, begging him to keep my secret. At the same time I never stopped
asking him if he believed that I should be reunited to my Sicilian Angelica at
the time appointed; for the date was drawing near, and I thought it singular
that I heard nothing about her. The necromancer told me that it was quite
certain I should find myself where she was, since the devils never break their
word when they promise, as they did on that occasion; but he bade me keep my
eyes open, and be on the look out against some accident which might happen to
me in that connection, and put restraint upon myself to endure somewhat
against my inclination, for he could discern a great and imminent danger in
it: well would it be for me if I went with him to consecrate the book, since
this would avert the peril that menaced me, and would make us both most
fortunate.
I was beginning to hanker after the adventure more than he did; but I
said that a certain Maestro Giovanni of Castel Bolognese had just come to
Rome, very ingenious in the art of making medals of the sort I made in steel,
and that I thirsted for nothing more than to compete with him and take the
world by storm with some great masterpiece, which I hoped would annihilate all
those enemies of mine by the force of genius and not the sword. ^2 The
sorcerer on his side went on urging: "Nay, prithee, Benvenuto, come with me
and shun a great disaster which I see impending over you." However, I had made
my mind up, come what would, to finish my medal, and we were now approaching
the end of the month. I was so absorbed and enamoured by my work thataI
thought no more about Angelica or anything of that kind, but gave my whole
self up to it.
[Footnote 2: Gio. Bernardi had been in the Duke of Ferrara`s service. Giovio
brought him to Rome, where he was patronised by the Cardinals Salviati and De`
Medici. He made a famous medal of Clement VII., and was a Pontifical
mace-bearer. He died at Faenza in 1555.]
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