“Pel monte che il Metauro e il Gauno pende
Passa Apennino e più non eta a man dritto.”
[14] The pass of Furlo. An inscription at the north end records its construction by the order of Vespasian. There is no trace of the inscription in honour of Augustus which Montaigne mentions, but this emperor was interested in the maintenance of the Flaminian Way. “And that the Avenues on every side to the City might be more passable, he took in hand himselfe to repaire the high way or Cawsie Flaminia, so farre as to Ariminuum.” Suetonius, Oct. Cæsar Aug., c. 30 (Holland’s trans.).
[15] The famous palace built for Duke Federigo di Montefeltro by Luciano di Laurana and Baccio Pontelli. Castiglione, in “The Courtyer,” agrees with Montaigne that the site of Urbino leaves something to be desired: “The which for all it is placed emong hylles, and those not so pleasaunt as perhappes some other that we behoulde in manye places” (Hoby’s trans.). But seeing how appreciative Montaigne shows himself of mountain scenery in other parts, it is strange that he should withhold praise from the distant prospects from Urbino, which are particularly grand and beautiful.
[16] This is a mistake. No ruler of Urbino ever bore this name; and the palace was built by the great Federigo di Montefeltro, who became count in 1444 and duke in 1474.
[17] Montaigne is again in error. The reigning duke was Francesco Maria II. He was the great-great-grandson of Federigo, the builder of the palace.
[18] Federigo and his son Guidobaldo I. were both Knights of the Garter.
[19] Oddantonio di Montefeltro. He was killed in a popular rising in 1444, which was probably instigated by certain emissaries of Sigismondo Pandolfo Malatesta of Rimini. There is no extant portrait of him at Urbino. What Montaigne saw was probably the picture of the “Flagellation,” in the sacristy of the Duomo, by Piero della Francesca, on one side of which are three figures supposed to represent Oddantonio and the evil counsellors sent by Malatesta to lead him to ruin. This assumption is, however, entirely unfounded.
[20] Lucrezia d’Este, born in 1535 and married to the duke in 1570. She spent almost all her time at the court of Ferrara. After her death her husband married Livia della Rovere and had one son, Federigo Ubaldo, but this youth died in his father’s lifetime in 1623, and the following year Francesco Maria surrendered the duchy to Urban VIII.
[21] This portrait is almost certainly the one which is now in the Uffizi at Florence. On the death of Francesco Maria della Rovere in 1631, Claudia dei Medici, the widow of his son, returned to Florence, and took with her several of the pictures from the palace of Urbino—notably the portraits of Federigo di Montefeltro and the Duchess Battista, by Piero della Francesca—and transferred them to the Uffizi. The portrait of Pico probably went at the same time.