In the Resurrection, the soldiers sleep beside the red porphyry tomb where Christ was laid, and on which, at head and foot, sit the white-winged, white-robed angels. Nearly in the centre kneels the Magdalen in a long robe of crimson, which shrouds her form from head to foot all but her face; to the extreme right of the picture stands Christ, half turning away from the kneeling woman, one arm outstretched as though warning her "noli me tangere."

38 and 39. The Ascension, and the Descent of the Holy Spirit.—The former of these two frescoes, which form the concluding ones of the series, is very formal in its arrangement—the Christ being in the centre of the picture, with hands raised to the choir of angels, who hover on both sides. Below, the disciples are also in two groups, nor is there very much to dwell upon in their expression or gestures. The whole fresco seems as if Giotto had felt himself more fettered by the traditional manner of representing the scene, or less at liberty to treat it in his own peculiar fashion, than in the preceding scenes of the series. The Descent of the Holy Spirit is very similar in the arrangement of the seated figures to that of the Last Supper, and is only remarkable for its very delicate colouring.

"NOLI ME TANGERE."
FRESCO BY GIOTTO.
IN THE CAPPELLA DELL' ARENA, PADUA.

This picture of the Descent of the Holy Spirit completes the series of the history of the Virgin and our Saviour, and we have only now to mention the symbolical figures in monochrome, which are painted at intervals beneath the lowest row of frescoes, and which it is probable were an after thought of Giotto's, possibly suggested to him by Dante, who, as I have said, was living at Padua during the time when Giotto was occupied in painting the Arena Chapel.

Be that as it may, it is the fact that in no other place does Giotto show much tendency towards symbolical representation; these are the only figures of the kind that we know to have been executed by his hand. In this arrangement all the Virtues are painted upon the right side of the chapel, and have their faces turned to the heavenly side of the great fresco above the door; the Vices are on the left, and look in like manner to the part of that fresco representing hell. The list is as follows:—

Virtues.Vices.
1.Hope.8. Folly.
2. Charity.9. Inconstancy.
3. Faith.10. Anger.
4. Justice.11. Injustice.
5. Temperance.12. Infidelity.
6. Fortitude.13. Avarice.
7. Prudence.14. Despair.

This list is in the order in which the frescoes are placed round the chapel, beginning on the right hand of the doorway and returning to the left of the entrance; it will be seen, therefore, that the corresponding Virtue and Vice face each other throughout the series.

Some of these allegorical figures are very beautiful; especially there should be noticed Charity, holding a basket of fruit in one hand and stretching forth the other to the Almighty, who bends down from heaven to place some fruit in her hand. As Mr. Ruskin has remarked, the figure is made to trample upon money-bags, as if in contempt. Hope also is a very beautiful figure flying upward with outstretched arms, and an expression of rapture and longing upon her face. After these Justice and Temperance are the finest. Of the Vices, Injustice is perhaps the most interesting, if it is only for the sake of giving a clear example of how far Giotto understood the nature of trees. The foreground of this fresco being a wood, behind which sits Injustice in a cave, with a sword in his left hand and a grappling-hook in his right, to catch the unwary traveller, who is represented in a small predella to the picture, being robbed and stripped of his clothes. Anger too is a fine figure, rending her garment apart in futile wrath, and so is Despair, with clenched fists and downcast head. On the whole, this series of Virtues and Vices is a remarkable one for the plainness with which the thing symbolised is shown, and the penetration which has led Giotto in almost every case to the real root of the Virtue or Vice. For a full description of these most interesting frescoes the reader cannot do better than refer to the little book written for the Arundel Society by Mr. Ruskin, entitled Giotto and his Works in Padua.