164 History of Monsters | Ulisse Aldrovandi

is "Always, Not Always," since wisdom always flows in, and ignorance does not always hinder. There was also an ingenious device attributed to the city of Padua, in which an armed Minerva is seen holding a shield adorned not with a Gorgon’s head, but with that of a lion, bearing the Greek motto: *mēketi gorgoion kephalēn* ("no longer a Gorgon's head"). This suggests that Pallas's shield is no longer decorated with the Gorgon’s head; indeed, the image of the lion—the coat of arms of the Venetians—demonstrates the greatest reverence toward the Venetian Republic, which everyone living under the power of another should show to their own natural princes.

Percivallus mentions someone who depicted a most beautiful and graceful woman, namely Pandora, with the motto: "To Whom Minerva Yields." The poets of old imagined that Pandora was fashioned by Vulcan at Jupiter’s command, and afterward each of the gods bestowed their own gift upon her: Minerva gave her wisdom, Venus beauty, Apollo music, and Mercury eloquence—which is how she received her name.

Contile depicted a woman representing Truth, holding a scepter in her right hand and a mirror in her left, shining all over with rays of light, with the motto: "With Her Leading the Way." Thus is the upright mind revealed, for when truth leads, paths that are impassable and inaccessible are avoided. The same author presents an image of Faith: a woman seated upon a square stone, holding lilies in her right hand, with the motto: "To Both." By this, the author suggests that he will be faithful both as a nobleman and as a follower of Christ. Russell also painted Justice with the motto: "To Each Their Own." This emblem is attributed to a most prudent Prince, signaling that the people’s harmony springs from the administration of justice.

Again, Russell presented a picture of a woman expressing Patience with the Greek motto *houtōs hapanta*, which in Latin means "Thus All Things." A certain prince, the author of this device, wished to suggest that all things must be managed with tolerance and constancy.

Percivallus records a device in which an image of a woman representing Night is seen, with the motto: "Mistress of My Desire." It should be noted that Night is taken here as the shadow of the earth opposed to day, as if it draws away the sun’s power. Among the poets, Night is proclaimed as the daughter of the Earth and the mother of the Fates and the Furies. In her, silence reigns; and sometimes silence is used to represent secrets and the reticence that lovers tend to seek. Therefore, Ovid sang: "Cytherea especially commands that her rites be kept silent."

Furthermore, Russell displayed a figure of a woman representing Fortune with the motto: "I Help the Bold," provided this is understood as boldness in governing matters with the best reasoning.

Percivallus also mentions a clever man who depicted an image of a beloved woman with the motto: "Sense Begets Sense." To understand this, one must note that the word *sensus*, when used in the masculine, properly signifies the external senses, but when used in the neuter gender, it indicates opinion, the mind, and the internal sense. Finally, the Italian writer Camillo de Camilli designed an image of a nymph clutching a cornucopia in her right hand and pouring water from an urn with her left, with the motto: "More Abundantly." We believe the explanation of this is known to everyone.

Sometimes authors depicted two human figures in their devices. Russell portrayed a kneeling man touching a book placed on a king’s knees, with the motto: "Stronger Than Blood." This image represents Faith; and since the bond of blood is the closest of all, he signaled with this motto that faith is to be valued even more highly. He also painted an image of Death striking a kneeling man with a sword, with the motto: "The Wicked Man is Swayed by No Submission." Thus he shows that men defiled by every kind of cruelty can never be swayed by any acts of obedience. Percivallus also painted two men—specifically two slaves—pulling a chariot, with the Italian motto: "Jupiter Comes Chained Before the Chariot." To understand this, one should read Seneca, who explained that mutual love represents a kind of chain.

In the work of Luca Contile, one may see an image of a woman who, grasping an infant by its feet, dips it into a river, with the motto: "Less Than Human Prudence." This picture refers to Thetis, who dipped her son Achilles into the Stygian marsh, so that it