Diary of Annie Adams Fields

Wednesday 25th Reception at Mrs. Cooley’s where we saw Mr & Mrs Powers & some pleasant people beside. We go almost daily to the Pitti and Uffizi but they are inexhaustible.

Thursday 26th Jamie proposed today that we should study the galleries taking the works of one great artist each day. We began of course with Raphael and I felt that I had never before seen his marvellous genius.

Friday 27. Poor Lissie still ill. Dined with the Kennards.

Saturday 28th Passed the afternoon with the Alexander’s on Bello Sguardo. We took a walk over the farms and saw the Contadine who have been the models so often for Fanny Alexander’s pictures. Most interesting it was. On our return one of the pretty girls called to us to know if we would like...

Sunday 29th Jamie went to hear Miss Chapman sing today. I stayed with poor Lissie. It was a lovely afternoon just the day we thought for Fiesole; so we started early and reached the summit in season to watch the sun die down among the Olive trees in the valley. The convent bell was calling to...

Monday 30th Passed the afternoon at San Miniato. Walking up the Via Croce’s between the Cypresses and Crosses, high in the purer atmosphere the world looked far, heaven was near and the sanctity of devout lives glorified the spot. 500 years after Christ this church was founded and long years...

Tuesday 31st Strolling about today we found the Casa Guidi.

Wednesday 1st Lissie was able to drive to Bello Sguardo with us. The day, and evening were exquisitely beautiful. Comparing with other days as a pearl among gems.

Thursday 2d Grand Festa. Snowing. Raw. Walked a short distance. Dr Wilson called Lissie, was better. Dined at home.

Friday 3d Great morning at the Uffizi!! Saw the archangel by Granacci.

Saturday. 4th Passed the evening with Miss Blagden at the Casa Guidi. Talked somewhat about Spiritualism and a good deal of the Brownings whose essences seem to be about one in that ghostly room. We had mistaken our night and left early with a promise to return Sunday evening.

Sunday 5th To church with Lissie and directly after Jamie and I drove to call upon Walter Savage Landor. He remembered Jamie at once although it is 10 years since they met and his reception of us was most cordial. Ah! said he I am 86 now and forget everything. I cant remember the name of my new...

Monday 6th Lissie went to Mrs Chapman’s. Went to see the altar by Orgagna [sic, for Orcagna] in San Michele. Mr Trollope in the evening. Their house is one of the most beautiful modernised antique residences I ever saw. The stair-case would have stabbed the great Goethe with envy and the...

Tuesday 7th Dined at 3 with Mr Landor. We entered the room as the clock was striking whereupon he found occasion to compliment us upon possessing the virtue of punctuality. Ah! said he I gave a dinner party once and the dinner being ordered to the table at the hour precisely I was obliged to sit...

Wednesday 8th Miss Blagden called at 12 o’clock and drove with us to her home on Bello Sguardo. How we enjoyed her brilliant talk and pictures of her Villa life. Such sun-sets and such moons, such renewing of life’s mornings as seen from her home she needed not to describe. It entered in and...

Thursday 9th Jamie at home with a headache. Very poor society I call that! Mr Jarvis made us an early morning visit, and brought me Kiana which he had previously told me was written in a tranced state, or rather a highly visionary condition of his mesmerisation which lasted nearly three months.

Friday 10th A lowering sky dropping gently from time to time. All this accorded well with our own state. We were very sorry to say good bye to Florence. Miss Blagden sent us a little good bye note to the cars and we were soon spinning along the rails quietly enough except that as far as Pisa we...

Sunday 12th In Rome. The day was mild and somewhat rainy. Just my idea of Rome days. The very atmosphere shadowed by the past. We went at once to St. Peters and passed several hours. It did not seem large to me, wonderful in its inexhausible detail but without a largeness in itself which I had...

Monday 13. Ascended the tower of the Capitol to overlook the forum and the 7 hills. How my heart beat as I found we were climbing up this dizzy height over the Roman steps of brick-work. Went to the Capitol and saw 4 perfect things. The Venus, the Adonis, the dying Gladiator and the Faun.

Tuesday 14. We are to see the Brownings today and can think of nothing else. We don’t say much about it but I believe both long for 2 o’clk to come. In the meantime we visit Rogers’ studio and see his famous doors. Oh! tell it not in Gath but are not these doors as wonderful as Ghiberti’s?

Wednesday 15th Pleasant party at the Tiltons.

Thursday 16th Theodore Parker called in the morning but finding us overrun with people went away with only a few friendly words. The day was gorgeous and we drove far out on the Appian way to the mysterious tomb of Cecilia Metella and thence quick quick across the country to the graves of...

Friday 17th At the Vatican. The evening at the Pages. How queer and dark it was climbing up the stair-case but how cheerful and happy we were after our arrival. He repeated “All’s Well” wonderfully. The Venus gleamed out upon us from the black corner of the studio. Her beauty was our lamp.

Saturday 18th Drove on the Campagna with the Pages in the exquisite sun-set light. It was something unearthly.

Sunday 19th Walked several hours on the Pincio and in the gardens of the Academy basking in the warm sun lighting a fire at another altar of memory. Drove to see Michael Angelo’s Moses. The glory of his genius burns about this figure like a perpetual halo. I felt dumb before such majesty and...