of the time: the idea of the existence of giants in ancient days. All of this work formed the bases for his tractatus on sepulchres. He worked diligently to provide correct interpretations of ancient works of Roman law and, for his successful explanation of a section of the Pandects of Justinian, as he himself tells the story, he was embraced and kissed by Robertello. In Pisa, he probably obtained his doctoral degree in 1546, and returned to his native land two years later. In 1548, he was requested by his fellow citizens to visit Cosimo I de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany. He began this endeavor in Venice, the city where in those times, the greatest Italian minds lived quietly and profited greatly from their studies, due to the vast commerce of books fueled by the carefulness and tolerance of the government; there he again saw Robortello, and started a friendship with the famous writer Pietro Aretino. Maggi, who had nothing to offer, may have sought protection from Aretino, or hoped to avoid harsh criticism from him, when he sang the following hendecasyllabic verses, published in his 1551 Guerro di Fiandro (Canto II, verse 56): Pleased by the words, Aretino sent this poem on the Flemish wars to Chiapino Vitelli, the famous Spanish mercenary general, in February 1551, along with a letter praising Maggi's talents. Vitelli's family owned much land around Anghiari, in an area only a few miles from the Maggi estate. So, Maggi endeavored to please Vitelli, a soldier of Cosimo, to obtain good entrance at the royal court in Florence. He also praised Giovanni dalle Bande Nere, father of Cosimo I, whose daring son's rise to the throne of Florence well represented Maggi's goal. In five canti, Maggi often complained about his sad fate, showing himself unhappy with the legal profession exercised by him out of necessity. Ottoman invasion He was a judge and military defense engineer in Famagusta on Cyprus when the island was invaded by Ottoman Turks in 1571. Besieged by the Turks, he invented machines to defend Famagusta against their attacks. When the island was conquered, Maggi was sent to the dungeons at Constantinople where, locked in chains, he wrote from memory two detailed treatises, De tintinnabulis, on bells and carillons, and the explicitly illustrated De equuleo, on torture devices. In attempts to be freed, he dedicated the first treatise to Carolus Rym (Charles