Pisa, Monumental Cemetery: “Thebaid”, Stories of the Hermits and the Holy Fathers inspired by the Vitae Patrum by the Dominican Domenico Canon Cavalca. Right in the centre of the lower section of the fresco there is a bridge leading to a road that runs alongside a stream, where a monk is fishing. A gentleman elegantly dressed in blue is crossing the bridge, on horseback, pointing forward but looking back at a hermit standing behind him, with whom he is conversing. The hermit is Saint Macarius of Egypt, and the dignified gentleman on horseback is the Devil (the claws on his foot are a clue). The Devil is revealing his cunning plan to tempt the monks on the road with the delicious liquids contained in the flasks he carries with him—each of a different variety, to suit every taste.Frescoes by Buonamico Buffalmacco, 1336/1341.
