The religious fervour of the Middle Ages was not a sign of great virtue among all the people.

Some were far more cruel, savage, and unrestrained than we are to-day.

Very wicked men even became powerful dignitaries in the Church.

But it was the Church that fostered the impulses of pity and charity in a fierce age, and some of the saints of the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, such as St.Francis of Assisi and St.Catharine of Siena, are still held to be among the most beautiful characters the world has ever known.
The churches of the eleventh and twelfth centuries in Florence were lined with marble, and a great picture frequently stood above the altar.
It is difficult to realize to-day that the processes which we call oil and water-colour painting were not then invented, and that no shops existed to sell canvases and paints ready for use.

The artist painted upon a wooden panel, which he had himself to make, plane flat, and cut to the size he needed.