worthy of a hair is used to describe the most contemptible sort of man, since nothing can be found more worthless than a single hair or strand of fur. *To shear the hair* is used to mean "to make a fool of," for the hair of those who are stupid or senseless is often shorn as a mockery. Indeed, it is even common today for people to say "Don't shear me," meaning "Don't make a fool of me." *You are plucking a bald man* is said of someone who undertakes a useless task. *A bald man with long hair* is used to describe a person who, having squandered his true assets, boasts of borrowed ones, or an unlearned man who publishes another’s work as his own.

The adages concerning the forehead are as follows. *On the first forehead*—that is, at first glance or upon first sight. *The forehead is before the back of the head*. In antiquity, this adage signified that it is better and more efficient to manage a business when the person whose business it is is actually present; for the word "before" is interpreted as "preferable" or "better," and it was known to everyone that the forehead is the front part of the head and the occiput the back. *From the front and back at once* is said of those who display an admirable knowledge of all things, consisting of a knowledge of the present, a memory of the past, and a foresight for the future. *To perceive from the forehead* is said of those who grasp a matter as if by a mere nod. This adage is taken from the physiognomists, who claim to know a person's character from the lines of their face. *By his own forehead* is said of someone who proposes something freely and openly, rather than by compulsion or in secret. *To rub the forehead* is said of those who have no sense of shame; for the forehead was consecrated to modesty by the ancients. Thus, people were said to have a "rubbed forehead" when they cast off all modesty, as if shame had been wiped away from their brow. Finally, *to smooth the forehead* and *to furrow the forehead* are two opposing adages, for the brow is relaxed in joy and wrinkled in sorrow. It was not without reason that Pliny wrote that the human forehead is the indicator of sadness, joy, clemency, and severity.

Now let us turn to the eyes. *A neighbor's envious eye* is said of malevolent neighbors. It was perhaps with this in mind that Ovid sang: "The crop is always more fertile in another's field, and a neighbor's flock has a larger udder." *A woman's eye* is an adage used for something ruinous, which is why Virgil once sang: "...and the woman burns by looking."

Moreover, it has been explained elsewhere that love enters through the windows of the eyes, a subject on which Ovid rightly sang: "And through your eyes, which have seized mine." *He carries eyes in the back of his head* is said of a shifty man who is very difficult to deceive; for this reason, Persius called such a man a "Janus." Homer likewise praised a prince for being sharp-eyed *prósso kaì opísso*—that is, "before and behind." This adage has survived even to our own age, as common people today say a crafty man "carries eyes in his back." *More trust should be placed in the eyes than the ears*, because things that are seen are more certain than those heard. On this point, Horace sang:

"Things sent through the ear stir the mind more slowly than those subject to faithful eyes."

We can therefore affirm the truth of that maxim: one eyewitness is worth more than ten who have only heard. *To gaze with fixed eyes* is used when we contemplate something very attentively and accurately. The adage seems to be taken from lovers, who look upon the object of their love without ever averting their gaze. *To throw dust in the eyes* is said when someone deliberately obscures a matter and robs an opponent of his judgment. The proverb seems to have originated in military affairs, where victory is achieved by stirring up dust against the enemy. Today, this is said of a buyer who purchases an otherwise expensive item at a low price, as if he had thrown dust in the seller's eyes so that he would not see the value of the precious object. *With eyes and hands* is used when something is proven in every possible way; for some people are so stubborn that even if they see something, they will not believe it unless they touch it with their hands. *To sleep on either eye* is a proverb similar to "sleeping on either ear," used primarily of those who live without any troubles