Then with hands which trembled with excitement the pupil arranged the picture in the best light, and went to fetch the purchaser.
Now meanwhile Botticelli and his other pupils had made eight caps of scarlet pasteboard such as the citizens of Florence then wore, and these they fastened with wax on to the heads of the eight angels in the picture.
Presently Biagio came back panting with joyful excitement, and brought with him the citizen, who knew already of the joke. The poor boy looked at his picture and then rubbed his eyes. What had happened? Where were his angels? The picture must be bewitched, for instead of his angels he saw only eight citizens in scarlet caps.
He looked wildly around, and then at the face of the man who had promised to buy the picture. Of course he would refuse to take such a thing.
But, to his surprise, the citizen looked well pleased, and even praised the work.
'It is well worth the money,' he said; 'and if thou wilt return with me to my house, I will pay thee the six gold pieces.'
Biagio scarcely knew what to do. He was so puzzled and bewildered he felt as if this must be a bad dream.
As soon as he could, he rushed back to the studio to look again at that picture, and then he found that the red-capped citizens had disappeared, and his eight angels were there instead. This of course was not surprising, as Sandro and his pupils had quickly removed the wax and taken off the scarlet caps.
'Master, master,' cried the astonished pupil, 'tell me if I am dreaming, or if I have lost my wits? When I came in just now, these angels were Florentine citizens with red caps on their heads, and now they are angels once more. What may this mean?'
'I think, Biagio, that this money must have turned thy brain round,' said Botticelli gravely. 'If the angels had looked as thou sayest, dost thou think the citizen would have bought the picture?'