The sibyl's left arm drops a curve across the upper part of the
figure, and this curve is repeated a little lower down by the creases
in the drapery across the lap. Such are the few strong, simple lines
which compose the picture, producing an effect of grandeur which a
confusion of many lines would entirely spoil.




XII

THE CUMÆAN SIBYL


Of all the sibyls, the one we hear most about is the Cumæan. The
legend runs that, having asked a boon of Apollo, she gathered a
handful of sand and said, "Grant me to see as many birthdays as there
are sand grains in my hand." The wish was gratified, but unluckily she
forgot to ask for enduring youth, so she was doomed to live a thousand
years in a withered old age. Thus we always think of her as an old
woman, as Michelangelo has represented her.

She is called the Cumæan sibyl because she is supposed to have lived
in Cumæ, which was the oldest and one of the most important of the
Greek colonies in Italy. Her real name, we are told, was Demos. She
lived in a great cavern, where the people came to consult her, and her
answers to their questions were regarded as oracles, or answers from
the deities. She used to write on the leaves of trees the names and
fates of different persons, arranging them in her cave to be read by