Italian Hours Chapter 18 - Florentine Notes Part 2

In which the author leisurely revisits the Pitti Palace and other Florentine galleries, meditating on the distinct qualities of painters like Andrea del Sarto, Raphael, and Botticelli, whose works combine grace, imagination, and spiritual subtlety in varying degrees. Alongside these reflections, he wanders through the sombre grandeur of ancient palaces, delighting in their austere dignity and the lingering presence of bygone lives, finding in their faded splendour a complex animation that rivals the allure of nature itself.