# The History of Monsters, 273

that it is impossible to know while a person is silent whether they are wise or a fool. The theme of this emblem is taken from the first book of the *Greek Anthology*, which contains the following couplet: *Any uneducated man is wisest when silent, for by saying nothing he hides his words as if they were a most shameful disease.* In other words:

Pierre Coustau once depicted a man fishing for something or other in a well, with the inscription: THE TRUTH DROWNED IN A WELL. He was alluding to the teaching of Democritus, who, through his constant investigation of truth, eventually asserted that it lies hidden in a well—his way of convincing people that truth is concealed within the innermost recesses of nature.

Andrea Alciati, on the other hand, portrayed a man supported in the water by his own shield, titled: NEVER-FAILING HELP. Since a shield offers protection both in war and in the waves, it serves as a type and symbol of the assistance provided by a true and faithful friend. Alciati drew the inspiration for this emblem from a Greek epigram in which the soldier Myrtilus celebrates his shield with these words: *In one shield, I, Myrtilus, escaped a twin danger, by fighting bravely and by swimming. I seized my shield when the ship's keel sank in the river, saved from both the surging waters and the warring men.* These verses are rendered into Latin as follows:

Alciati also depicts a man in the guise of a beggar, holding a bowl in his right hand and a bundle of grain in his left, with the inscription: ON THE STATUE OF HOPE. Indeed, this emblem represents a favorable outcome. A bowl is included in this likeness because Lilio Gregorio Giraldi wrote that he had seen a depiction of Hope on a gold coin of the Emperor Hadrian, represented by a woman holding a bowl and graced with the title: THE HOPE OF THE ROMAN PEOPLE.

In contrast, Coustau depicted a man counting pebbles on a table to denote "Aspirants"—that is, courtiers—who frequently tally up their hoped-for successes yet are nonetheless frustrated in their expectations, for hope is said to be a dream for those who are awake. Regarding this, Alciati portrayed a man held fast by golden shackles, titled: ON COURTIERS, explaining it with the following verses:

In this way, he intended to represent courtiers (or, as others would have it, a husband dominated by a wealthy wife), drawing from an anecdote about Diogenes. The cynic used to say that the courtly philosopher Aristippus was restrained by golden shackles so that he could not leave; captivated by the more spendthrift life of princes, he was no longer able to lead a philosophical life. Consequently, Seneca remarked in this same vein that it is vain and absurd to fall in love with one’s own chains simply because they are gold.

Coustau also depicted a man measuring a square stone with a "Lesbian rule," under the title: THE GOOD JUDGE. This rule signifies equity, as the ancients preferred the flexible Lesbian rule over all others.

In the work of Florentius, one finds a picture of a man sitting and using bellows to light coals, with the inscription: ON ALCHEMISTS. The verses are as follows:

Alchemists are called "wretched" because they promise gold to the very people from whom they beg for gold. Furthermore, they invent various names in their chemical art—such as the Green Lion, the Fleeing Stag, the Flying Eagle, the Dancing Fool, the Dragon devouring its own tail, the Swollen Toad, and similar nonsense—to prevent others from understanding them. Indeed, after they have wasted their lives in vain experiments and consumed all their possessions—which have literally turned to smoke and ash—they end up old, ragged, hungry, and always smelling of sulfur