designs of great interest, by which a new light would probably be thrown upon several doubtful problems were it possible to study them with precision.  Criticism must therefore be guarded, and their position is such as to make examination difficult.  The Roundels of the Evangelists are modelled with boldness and severity, qualities which one is not surprised to find in Donatello, but which are here emphasised, for they stand out in spite of the coats of whitewash.  In some ways they resemble the Evangelists of the Capella Pazzi.  Here one notices a delicacy of decoration on the seats, desks, &c., contrasting with the rugged grandeur of the figures themselves, and with the absence of ornament, which is so marked a feature of the other reliefs in the Sacristy.  The four scenes from the life of St. John (Vasari says from the lives of the Evangelists) are even more interesting than the panels just mentioned.  It appears from the few words Vasari devotes to the Sacristy that Donatello also painted views upon the ceiling, but no trace remains.  The incidents depicted in the roundels are St. John’s Apotheosis, Martyrdom, and Sojourn on Patmos, and the Raising of Drusiana.  There are landscapes and architectural backgrounds; many figures are introduced, and there is a good deal of nude study.  We also notice a feature of frequent occurrence—­a trick of giving depth to the scene and vividness to the foreground, by letting figures be cut off short by the frames.  Men seem to be standing on the spectator’s side of the relief, and only appear at the point where they can be partly included in the composition.  The field becomes one that would be included within the range of vision as seen through a round window or telescope.  Mantegna made great use of this idea.  The more one looks at these eight medallions the more one regrets their present condition:  washing is all that is required.  If they could be carefully cleaned we would certainly find details of interest, and in all probability facts of importance.  The frieze of angels’ heads which surrounds the Sacristy is of secondary interest, as there are only two different cherubs, which are reproduced by moulds all along its entire length.  Signs of gilding and colour are still visible.  Pretty as they are, these angels cannot challenge comparison with the Pazzi frieze or with Donatello’s similar work elsewhere—­for instance, on the base of the Cantoria or upon the Or San Michele niche.  The marble balustrade of the altar may have been designed by Donatello.  The Sacristy shows how well adapted terra-cotta was for decoration on a large scale.  But Donatello was too wise to cover the walls with his reliefs, as is the case in the Capella Pellegrini at Verona.  Here the sculpture is used to decorate the chapel walls, there the walls are merely used to uphold the sculpture.

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[Illustration:  Alinari

BRONZE DOORS