BookI I

*

Cs.

-

I

PAINTING

POPULARLY E X P L A I N E D :

Fresco, Oil, Tempera, Moslic, Encaustic, W~ter-Colour, Miniature, Miss?],

Painting cr. Pottery, i'orcel3in, E m m e l , Glass, &c.

91

'rTf 03ldS JOHN' GULLICIi, PAIXTER,i\"

JOHN TIXBS, F.8.d.4 1 'I H O B O F " C I B I O s l T l F S O F

LOI~OT."

1iEXT dKD CO.

(LATE

BOGUE), FLEET STREET.

PREFACE.

NUMEROCS eloquent and poetical books have been written onthe theory of painting. Xodern German writers, more especially, hare speculated very ingeniously upon the nature of those high faculties in man through which he derives pleasurable perceptions and refining emotions from the beautiful in the material world; and these speculations have been, under the name of zsthetics, elevated to the dignity of a science. The history of Art has afforded more tangible subjects for + large class of authors ; while practicaI treatises for the guidance of art-students, perhaps, already exist of adequate authority and in sufficient number. We are, however, acquainted mith very few books containing precisely those esplawrltions of the processes 2nd materials employed in painting which we believe can be given and would materially assist the general public to understand certain appearances in pictures, and to estimate how far mere material and technical relations have had historical influence on painting -books whirh in fact contain the particular information which an artist might be presumed best capable of communicating.

-

To supply (from practical acquaintance mith painting) such infornlation is the chief aim of the present volume. I n working out such a design, the opportunity mill not always beZ,

PREFACE.

afforded for even attemy~tingto increase the attractiveness of einbellisliment: but our desire is to be the snliect 'u-j 1 i t e r . x ~ useful, and n7e are co~iteiltto rough-hew the corner-stone, if n e may not foliate the capital. Severtheless, as the better part, beyond all comparison, of painting, coi~sistsof tliose ~ u e ~ i t and i:~?agiilstire al elemciit!: which entitle i t to ranB with the sister-art of poetry, n-e would be the first to pay a tribute to tlie littrary ability competent to the elucidation of tliese higlier qna!i:ies, i-nd to the eleration of feeliiig and conception coil:liieiisurats with their illustration.And xve x~~oillil not, from professional prejudice, and still ~ l less disitlgLwuous)\-, ~ t ?toi obt;tin the rec~lrtionof an overestimate cf tlie v~.loe tecl~iiica!atid professional l;no\~ledge. of' \Vithout such l i l i ~ ~ i ~ l e itruth, beauty, and seritinleilt in l~e, pictures may tuidoubted1~- eujoyed. But \re subnlit that, be eren this elijoym?nt rnny be heightened in degree, other gratification assnredl~ derived, and, above all, the power of appreciatiug the relatire liieritv and comparative value of paiutings certitiuly gained t l ~ r o u ~ tlie Iinov;ledge to which \ve have ll alluded. All silo liarc pritctised l~ai~itilig lilierrise, we \rill think, allou;, tliat experience thus gained has renloved illany misconceptions respectilig at least surface appearauCes in pictures. Brother artists will, I\-e &el assured, candidly admit that son~e portiou of the art-and (to make t l ~ e parallel still closer) Illore esirecially n.lien the paintil~gis of the scale of cabinet pictures or miniatures-is scarcely Inore than delicate TTorlirnansllip,thong11 requiring a regular apprenticeship and lollg practice. To c a r q out tlie comparison, tllen, to its legitinlate issue, ire beg the good-nstured rbader who would listen t o tile Inail xho could illalie o~lly indifferent watch, if he an had anytliirrg to say abont its mechanism, to kindly lend his 1rhe11 one of ourselres has more particularly anything to sa-j about the iliechanisnl of a picture.

-,

,

As all nlen ca~lnotbe painters or vatchluakers-cannot all learll " h o \ ~ do it," or eren see it done-surely the next to best thing must be to get a trustaorthy description of l o w it

is done. This \rill at all eT-ents sare them from maliing some awk~r-ard mistalies. If P1iii~-, esaiople, could hare anticilor pated the numerous sneers n-it11 xvllicil his sl~ade been inllas sulted, he xvould 11ot ha1-e attc:npted to rrrite abont painting while ignorant of some of its siml)i%t operation*. This consideration may touch self-respect, but nnotlier ~ n n i treach of self-interest. We allocle to tile fkct that a k l ~ o w l e d ~ e t!le wiii nature of the nlaterials enlpldj-ed lbr l ~ a i n t i n ~ aiao allnost ~iecesaarilgillclude acquaintance with tilt. ltrecaiitiolis indispensable for the llosseasor of liictures to ta!;? ill order to secnre of the l~reserratiol~ his art-treasnres, and to displng them to the beat advantage. But tlle reader who accompailies us througli tllis rolurne als 11-ill baldly deily the ilnportnnt i~liluznceof n ~ s ~ e ~ i and processes up011 the paillter's fidelity oi' imitatio:l ; and even upon his modes ot' conception, and the liigher manif'estations of pdinting as a for111 of iioetica! utterance. The reader ill, in succession, see what gave value to the rllcanstic picture, in collectors, and that the illore mediathe ej-es of rich Xo~l~ail nical prscess or" mosaic, hastei~edtile decliilc and degradation of art. H e \rill see ho1r the scl~nrateiatroduction of gold iiito tile lllediatvai teillprra picture led to hard ont!inri, a pdtchwork character, absence of " tone,"* and trn u:~~iatural scale of colour; xvhile the material liil~itatiollsof fresco seelm, on the contrary, o ~ d y have cowp?l!cd greater attention t o to the higher and niore essential qualities of art. He will see of how "depth," the g r e a t m neom~~iendation oil painting, is simply a property of the " rehicle "f- emplo>-ed; and horn chiaroscuro,$ or light and shade of pictures, depends on the painter's habitual use of a light or dark grou~ld, his custom or of painting in full daylight or a darkened studio. L;iatlg, the reader will see that the early Fleiuish painters follorred a definite series of processes, which \I-odd alol:e secure tlie purity of c~oloar,the transpa~encg,and accuracy of detail so noticeall exta

it

:An

*

See Sote, p. 15. t See Sote, pix 4 and 10?. Italian cumponnd rrord, signif) u:g literally Lyht-dark.

Vi

PREFACE.

able in their works :-a system which present.; a marked contrast to what has been the too prevalent practice in modern painting, b,stli in oil and water colours-in which, from the facility of making alterations, meaningless licence has been allowed to the play of the brush, and effects have been repeated in proportion as they are easily gained.s

tl tia a d

fi

The chronological arrangement adopted in this work is explained in the Introduction. Early Christian and Xedizval Art having become, if me may so speak, quite a popnlar topic, and possessing besides a kind of geological, norel interest, \re have, trust, \Torlied out this rich vein with satisfactory t industry. Great importance has also been attached to histoi rim1 inqoirics into the origin of methods and nlaterials ; but s where individual painters have rendered enliiient service to t art, they are noticed in a more biographic spirit. At the same f time we have entleavourecl to render the took in every respect . 1. as complete as possible : it has in fact been attempted not only to give a description of erery liincl of painting, but also some 1 account of the art in every age, together with sketches of the 1 principal painters of the direrent schools. I W e repeat that our great ambition has been to be useful; and no inconsidzrable result %-ill have been achieved if me only succeed in directing attention to the great stores of information (indispensable to the artist, and of the g r e a t e ~ t value and interest to the connoisseur, amateur, and general reader) accumulated in such morks as those by Sir Charles Eastlake and JIrs. Xerrifield. To the fornler as an author, and the latter as an eclitor of valuable ancient XSS., we have, it will be seen, acknowleclged our obligations; but, in the words of Quintilian, "if we can say what is right we shall be delighted, thongh it may not be of our own invention." The explanation of every k i d of technicality has been one of the objects of this work; in every instance, therefore, where a technical term first occurs, it is explained either in the text itself or in a note ; so that the reader who follows!

,

It

the order of tlie h a k t~ced a:-,t:.ipatr lo difficult? in this par1;; : the exact meaning of o ticular. S O L ,1 ' e r any artistic word or phrase be lost, a copious index has been added, the references of wllich, instead of affording the dry supply, will, it is hopecl, be definitions a mere glossary ~vo~ild fonnd at once t o define t!le word and illustrate its applicztion. I n conclusion, the inquiry may possibly, and riot nnreasonably, suggest itself-horn it happened that one of the authors of this volume, to whose name "painter" is attached, did not prefer, like and in the n-ords of hnnibale Carracci, " only to speak by n-orlis." The answer to this is, that in him, as in many others, the natural tendency mas nearly equally strong to literary as to artihtic pnrsuits. And the obseroation may he ventured, thouah at the risk of proroking nnfavourable compariso~ls,that many painters have bee11 better lmown by the procluctio:;~ of t k i r pen than by those of their pencil. I n this instance, hornever, his literary efforts \vonld probably have been confined to contributions to periodicals, had ncjt an accident occurred to him n-hich, though it compelled for a long period a comparative cessation from the practice of art, did not prevent his undertaliing, with a former literary associate, a task, the accomplishment of which, they trust, mill serve some useful purpose.

Vlll

...

TlIZ 1 - ;--,:T-i2z, : ;y THE sublin~e Titaiilc form?, the " arrful sgnoil," as Fustli calls them, of Proi~llets 1 d Sibglac~n ceiiing of t h e Si.tine Chnpel, are described w1 the a t p. ltii as being by geiliral coilsellt tbe grandest cil?:le Cgures of moderu paii~ting. I n a note 011 the same page, rrfvrence is l l ~ a d e o t tlie circun~stallceswhich led t o the bibyts becoming f a ~ o u r i t e subjecis of pictorial representation, and t o their elevation T allnost equal rank o with tlie Prophets of the Old Testament. I n Cllristian A r t each Sibyl is occasionally distinguished by a legcnd or inotto selected from her reputed l~rupl~ecy.Tile follorving is t h a t appropriated to the sal>ject of our Frontispiece: " h propilet bl~a!l be boru of a ~.ir;in, a ~ i dlie shall be c r o n ~ l e dwith t l ~ o r ~ i s . "T!ie ~vell-kliorrnoracle of Apollo a t Delphi w a s consulted by all Greece, and tile Pytliia, or Sib!-1, seated ou tlie mystic tripod, v a e tlie accredited medium, ~\-hile ulider prophetic influence, of transmitting :he ansITers of tlie god. The Delyllic Sibyl of JIicl~ael Augelo is t l ~ e n ,v;e are t o understand, tlie entllu$iastic representative of classical art. poetry, and philosol>hy. SIr. IIarford, Herlooks are fraught with i n hid L(ri oflllicla .1k

C O X T E S T S.

7 1

.c the ISTRODUCTIOS

er

.................

PAGE

I 4

onticby 1

2t

PBIZ;TISG IS T E S I P E I i h

:tic!jrd.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . GILDISG. ETC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . I I X ~ C I I I L G . YD S T I P P L I S G ; TCPIOS O F TISTS. ETC . . . . . \ TIIE V . ~ ~ < S I $ ~ I. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . T I I E C O L O L H S. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

10

15 19 22

25

.ith

ITAS pA~IS'1'1SG. R ESCACSTIC O

. . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

.ace

hed The

T E V P E P . h A S D EXCAUSTIC IS A S T I Q C l T Y A S D T H E 3IIDDI.E AGES 30

,.I

atasUl'tS

. . . . . . 2. TIIE ASSIHIASS . . . . . . . 3. TIIE G R E E K S . . . . . . . . 4 . TIIE E T I ~ I ~ C A S S . . . . . . 5 . T H C ROJI.\SS. . . . . . . . 6 . RE\I..,ITS OF AZCIEJT PAISTISG .1 TRE EGYPTIASS

bust

. . . . . . C H R l S T I l S A R T I3 T E > I P E R I A S D ESCALSTIC . . 7.fiTEMPER., A J D E S C - K S T I C I S X O D E R J TI>IES

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

3IOS.i IC P A I S T I S G the idtnt

alone

llal is

A S C I E S T JIOSAICS C I I R I S T I% S N O J I C S : T H E L A T E R O 3 L i X STI.LE ~ CHRISTIAX 31OSIICS: T H E B1-ZAXTISE S T l L E T H E ROlIASESQiE S T I L E : A S D T H E L A T E R HISTORY O F ZIOS~IC

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

. . . . . 75 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79

97

30 36 37 51 53 54 57

61 64

63

Lrcely

.,thewhich

ius of

111SSIL A X D OTHER 3fhSLTSCRIPT ILLU.\IIXATIOSS ; 3IISISTUE,E P A I S T I S G OX IVOILP. -LSD ESAAIEL. P a I S I'ISG OX POTTERY. ETC . :-

1. 3 I I S S 1 L A J D O T R E R l S I L L K Z I I S A T I O X S2 HISTORICAL S K E T C H O F I I S . I L L C ~ l l S h T I O h S 3 3 I I N I A T C K E P A I S T I J G OX I T O K Y AXE) E X A X E L4 OX COIIOURED PIIOTOGRAPHIC

zht

. ..

.

. . . . . . .ARD ES.~.VEL

be

5 TIXE

. .

)lished

6 7 G L A S S P.UXTlKG

.

PORTRAITS E-IRLIER XISDS O F ART-ESAPELS PAIsTlsG P A I S T I 3 G O S POTTERY A N D P O R C E L A I S

. . . . . . . 114

...... .....

99

103 106

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120

. . . . . . .1 3 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .136

COSTEXTS

.PAGE

FRESCO PAISTISG

...............

141

OTIIEK IiISDS OF P A l E T I S C ALLIED TO BUT XISTAKEII FOR FRESCO 149 1. DID THE ASCIESTS P A I S T I S TRUE FRESCO:' 151 4 FRESCO PAIST12G 1 5 THE FIFTEEXTII CESTCRY 152 3 FRESCO P51>T1S(z I S TIIE SIXTEESTH CESTURY 1;s 4 FREZCO F A I > T I > G I S ITALY 15 THE SE'ESTEESTII ASD E I G H T E E l T H CESTLRIES 1PO 5 FIiESCO P.USTI>G 13 TIIE S I S E T E E S T R CESTCRT IS1

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . .

.

..

..... .... ..... . . .

OIL PAISTISG

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ~ ~ I S T I S ( I TT'ATEK COLOTES . ;S

THE PAI>TISG-ROOII T H E I~IPLEIIESTS, ETC VEHICLES OILS T-XRSISIIES OF TIIE LSE OF T.iIISlSII WITH THE COLOURS. A S D OX TARSISF~ISG CASVAS. PASELS. ETC GKOTSDS T R E COLOLRS PROCESSES A S D JI.4SIFTLATIOSS. 1 OIL I'Al>TISG rRACTISTD BEFORE T H E VAN E l C h S 2. TAX 13IPRO\.F.3IEST OF V l S ETCIC: I S WHAT K COSSISTED T 3 011 P.\ISTLSG. EARLY FI.EJIISII A S D GER>IAS 4 I>TR\)DUCTIOS Of OIL PIISTISG ISTO ITALY 5 TIlE L.\TEE GEKSl.A>~, FLEMISEI. AND D i T C H SCHOOLS 6 THE, S P A l I S H SCIIOOLS 7 TTIE I'RESCH SCHOOL S TIIE BHLTISEI SCIIOOL

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ?UI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20i

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .IS9 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 197

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . "5 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 215 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 220

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2 0 9 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .el?

'

.

. . . . . . . . . .? 2 i . . . 235

. .

.

. . . .

THEPAPER PIGJIETTS. RH C I A S D PRESERvr\TiOR THE RISE OF AIODERS WATER-COLOUR P-USTISG

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2% . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 292

. . . .

. . . .

1 2TSINTISG," Coleridge felicitously said, "is a something betiveen a thought and a thing." \iTith a little more 220 +A 227 "circumlocution," painting is the art of conveying 235 thoughts by the inlitation of things. The ruling principle of 2,4 imitation in painting is, however, abstractly unreal ; for imita251 259 tion, to be co~nplete,must include the relief or roundness of 261 objects, as in sculpture, while painting is restricted to a flat 266 surf:a.ce. But no art pretends in the fullest sense to imitate 271 2'"ature, that is to say, to realize all her infinity. Inlitation carried as far as possible \voulJ. only end with reproduction. , 265 2s5 Each art has characteristic ql~alities,mhich its rivals do not . ?9? possess in equal degree ;and upon these stress is laid, in order 296 300 to compensate for the deficiencies. Thus, although painting . ao? has not the power of giving actual relief like sculpture, it yet can, by means of imitating the effects of form, light, and shadow on the eye, su6ciently secure the impression of relief, so that no want suggested; and, in the addition of colour, . 3 0 i it. has the means isof imitating a very beautiful class of facts . soi . 301 in nature, beyond the scope of sculpture. So, on comparing ali representation with description: language, as a vehicle for . 311 conveying ideas of natural oh,jects, is far less definite than 31? XE painting; but it can narrate the succession of events, n~hich i c 31s . 311 painting cannot do. On the other hand, painting can embody 1 in~pressions of simultaneous action and effect, and thus obtain innumerable harmonious combinations, mhich i t woldd213

~f

. ..

.

B

PAISTIKG POPULARLY EXPLAISED.

be impo~sible mere words, eren if the highest poetry, to for do more t l ~ a n indefinitely suggest. Although a degree of inlitation is necessary in a work of art for tlle conreyance of thought, the qi~aittity exactitude of or imitation in a picture forms by no means a measure of the anloulit oftl~ought enlotion which it may a~valten, or apart from t11e simple ideas ~~-1lich mind receives through the paiuted the zeseinblance of natural objects. Indeed, literal inlitation is sometin~eso much dissociated from imaginatiorr, that Haydon s rent so Car as to saj-, that " the polver of r e p r e ~ e n t i n ~ things as t!iey are, constituted nlerelj- the p:iiriter of doriiestic art ;" adding, wit11 characteristic prrsumpticn, " wliile tllat of restoring tile111 to what they w r e at creation [?] col~atitutestlie p e a t painter in High Art." When \ye reflect, ho\rerer,upon t!le inexhaustible richness of nature, a more humble spirit of inlitation appears not o n l j excusable, Lut laadable. ;\loden1 pre-Raphaeiitism is on this ground-riz , that of protestclliefiy serviceable to art. For i t is a lnistalie to suppose that artistic i~nitationcan ever be entirely mechanical, that it is a means to an elid, or that it is but as language is to tllought. The eye has its own poetry, and the faithful renderiiig of the siinpleat object in nature has a special value and beauty that touches some of the pleasantest ellords of our being. Still we must unhesitatingly gire the preference to tllose in ~rhich hare not o~ily we the inherent and intrillsic poetry of art, bnt also subject and incident conveying tilought, expression, and sentiment. Noreover, thoug11 art is finite, yet nearly every branch is too con~prehensirein its means for one man to do jurtiee to al! its capabilities ; 11eilce a larger measure than usual of the jiidgment and taste necessarily s h o ~ in selectioj~ ~l and adaptaiiow is justly allorred to distinguish and elevate the artist. " Style " in the highest sellse arises from the peculiar bias the artist takes in this selection and adaptation. But " style " is also applied to the several lllethods of painting materially considered ; for the painter is a curious conlbination of poet and mechanic, as his picture is a curious compromise "between a thought and

lurto

in"J" , is its Ice esto ,est his the the as and

There haye been, in the history of art, talcing the word in the last sense, four grand s t ~ l e of inlitaling nature-Tempera, s Encaustic, Fresco, and Oil. These, together with the nli~lor modes of painting, I\-e propose arrangitig in soinething like chronological sequence; but our design beiilg to offer an esplanation of the art derived from acqnaintance: rather than attenlpt to gire its history, 15-e shall confine ourselves for the most part to so tnuch only of the history of as is necessary to elucidate the origin of the different practices \~-hich have obtained at different periods. TITeshall therefore give, in the first place, a full description of each inethod of painting, together with esplanations of its techuicalities, and then add connecting notices, follolring the order of time. I n this m y we shall trace Tempera from rcinote antiquity to the ~rorkaof the later Roman painters. After long neglect, it rill reappear in the thirteentli centilry, and till supplanted by the introduction of Oil painting. Ellcaustic ~vill u r ~ ~ i s h episode at the period of the greatest f an refineinent in Greece. The Byzantine school of Christian art illust be estimated from mosaics, TI-hichfor sonle four renturies were alnlost the only form of art; and for the Romanesque style and period we must dip into Xissals. The fourteenth century gave us (ge~iuinc) Fresco, in n-hich, in the sisteenth century, the lobl lest nlonunlents of the art of painting viere esecated. The improvement effected at the commencelllent of the fifteenth centuly in oil painting by the Vein Eyclis haring led to such remarkable results, the sobject will engross a large share of our attention, nlore especially as recent resesrch has thrown considerable light on clueations connscted therewith. Nodern Water-colour painting is in reality but a rariety of tempera. I t has, horever, received such distinct and extraordinary development d l ~ r i i i ~ the last fifty years, that i t is entitled to the separate consideration we have given it.

PAIS CISG POPULARLY ESPLAISED.

place ten~pera first, becat~se iz unquestionably tlle it maat ancient method of p ' h t i n g ; but n e sh,ill confine our attention more particulallr in the firat instance to t,lic process employed by the painters of Cl~ristian in Italy, art both becanse their tvorlis are preservecl and rnaj- be estinlined, and because they have of late risrn so rapiclly in pubiio estimation. IIerely from any dissimilarity i n the appearance of the painting, i t ~ - o u l doccur to few visitors to a coilectiou of pictured whicli included worlis by the earliest Italian painters, tlmt these are not oil paintings a t all. Indeed, it llas been found impossible t o distinguish betxeen a painting exeeutell nit11 oil colours ancl a tenipera pictnre which has imbibed t h e oil varnish. Tet, before the introduction of the so-called illvention of oil painting by the T a n Excl.y be seen in the large altar-piece by d:idrea Orcagna. I n .:,.d the ezrly Franliish or Carlovingian l i d s . silver is Srequenil~ tilz bleilded with gold. The bacl;grounds in the oldest Italian picture^ (Sienese school) is pure sinooth gold; acharacteristic r,,rS burruwed from the 111ost richly-illuminated SISS. of the sa~lle ie of period: but snbsequentiy the gold had patterns or diapers klid. stained, embossed (as in booiiiiinding), or psil~tedon it. srom TT'llen the background was not gold i t ~ v a sdiapered occa,ellb ~io1m"1~-, in the estrao~diuary as painting preserved at \Tilton :allT\ House', believed to be the \vorl< of a foreign artist, but 1v11ich >hind eontailla the most authentic portrait of our Richard 11. The - perij

,

-

silill'

:lilt! .

witk l~cel!

JIan: of the greatest sculptors, painters, and architects of the best period in Italy, eitller i;aued fro111 tlle goldamit11.s ~ ~ u r l i s l ~ o p or successart. fully ~,ractiacdthe goldamitl~'~ TTe need only melltion, in addition t o Gllirlandaio, Brunellesci~i, Lucca clella l l o b b ~ a ,Cil~iberti, Paolo cello, Lutou!o del Pollajuolo, Andrea del Teroecli?~,and Cclliui.+

PAISTISG POPULARLY ESPLAIXED.

(a gold and diapered backgrouncls ha\-e been revived bg Hess h' and other nioclern painters of tlie Gerluan school; aud in 4' Mr. Hol~nnnHunt's already Etii-lous picture, '' Tlle Light of P' the \iTorld," tile head or our Yarioor is encircled with a st golden nimbus. I n Greel; (Byzantine) ~ r o r k s the earlifst and SI1 Italian paintiugs, even the liYllts on the dresses of the figures 8' are heiglitened with gold apl,lied iu lines. After the !-ear 1.100 all painters seen1 to have disctirded tlie flxt gold back11: ground, with tlir exception of Fra Angelico cia Fiesole. 111 the re north, open bacl;grounds il: tent:>c.rn pictures, before the time o f C T'an Eyc!;, are extren~ely rare. In Gerulau art tllc nirr:bus is comparatively seldom seen ; n.11ere gold objects are repreIt sented in the picture itself, :hey are laid in ~ v i t h flat leaf, tlie or then outlined, nnil tile sllaclo\vs, as it were, etched n ith te pure lilacli liner, snch os we find in large early \voodcuts. be Sornetirnes the lines are crossed and sometimes c!otted, as in SL the \I-oodcuts of A. Dilrer. set The gilding on many old wall paintings is in snch a re. ,! y marltable state ~ f ' ~ r e i r r v a t i o that it is desirable to ascertain tu n, l ~ o i r gold ~ r a a tlie al,pliecl. TIie gold-leaf' itself nas thicker, PC the n~unberof leaves obtaixlrcl i i o ~ nan equal quantity ot ies metal having been gradually increased since the t i u e of the ea! Romans. The n~ordants* $vere of' two Iiincls, one of which ne served for miniatures and places not exposed to d a ~ n p the ; pri otlier and niore durable being, accorciing to some documentary ti, evidence, an oil mordant; but the niost ancient \vas probablr tf,, P ~ o f Branchi, (roll1 a cliemical analysis of some e< t . I'ortions of :lie gold gl.ont~dof the mural paintings bj pel Bellozzo Gozzoli and Buff~tlmacco, in the Canipo Santo a1 El, Piad, concludes that wax x a s the prillcipal ingredient of thc g;l morcl;lnt there used. tis The p!d \vas alivays supplied by the persons who orclere~ tile pictures; and when the-e \rere e i t l ~ w unable or univiiliu! 3 t o pay for the precious nretal, it was nhual to subijtitute fbr it a: bar em \yall pailltings leaves of tin-iiil corered\~,itl~yellow varnid hi a-

-- ---

-

-

par

,qIordnnt, the adiiesive lrratter used by gililera t o secure the go) but leaf; alro a gubitaaee used in d ~ e i r l g calico pl'iuting to fix or bited COU or tiie eolours-hence the name mordar~t, froin nzolrleo to bite.

*

PAINTISG IX TE3IPERA.

I ( a ~ r i ~ e t r u m ) . n orcler t o econoniize gold, the old rnssters SS had another invention called "porporino," a coml~ositiouof in quicksilver, tin, arid sulphur, that produced a yellow lnetallie o f potvder, and which they employed instead of gold. B suba stance of siriiilar nature is used to this day i n England as a ?st substitute for gold on coloured n-oodcuts and chromolithor es graphs. Silver likewise servtlcl as a foil over which yellow ear and other colours ground with oil were glitzed; it mas also nsed in representatio~is of armour, as may be seen in tlie r ~ ~ n a r l i a b picture of " The Battleof Sant' Egidio," by Yaolo le pis C'cello, in the Il'atiorial Gailery. s1 Eeaicles these, other decorations were introduced into the pe- Italian pictures of tlie fburteeutli centnry, s~lcll as stncco leaf,i a ~ n e nin relief; a~iil or~ ts actual gems (or iriiitations of them), termed " nonclies," n-hiclr n-ere inserted v i e r e jeivellerg was to be represented, lilore especially in tile raised diadems of saints. .sin Such decorations, together wit11 the draperies xTliich xve shall see later, were nlrclidy esecutecl in oil,* an:l the carred frar11t.- Me tvork, tabernacle or surrounding o;*,icc,,zeicfo itlelf of tlie pic- rtain ture v e r e cornpli~tedfirst. The lace and llancls, 1~1iich tiiis at icker: ~ c r i o dwere alxva~sit1 tempera, lvere addeil aftcr~vards-at ty oi least after the drnperies and 'uacligroond \\-ere finished. In ~f the early tiriies tile artist executed ail the v a r i o ~ ~ s operatioris con- rvhich nected witfi his picture himself. Wcnce the number of arts ? ; the in the cloisters, and included in the practical clirec- 21itari tions given by tlie monks in n ~ e d i ~ v 31SS. I 1 later times al 1 ,babl! t h e xx-orli \\-as divided; and Sir Charles Eastlalie tells us that : somu "the clecorator or gilder was sometimes a more i ~ n p o r t a r ~ t ,gs b~ person than t h e painter. T i i ~ l ssonie ~ v o r l iof an inferior ~ ~ n t o Florentine artist \\.ere ornamented ~vitlistuccos, carrirlg, alld a; of thl giltling by tile celebrated Donatello, wlio i n liis youth practisi.4 this art in conxiexion with sculpture. Vasari obserred -- ----- ordeW i * Tempera pictures of the fourteenth and beginning of the fiftpellth forito: century fre(1uently exhibit a n inequality of szlrface, wrne portions . , having thick edges and being conairlerahly morc rai-ed than otherj. varl1ls' This generally results, as 11-e silall see more particularly later, f ~ o m tile

""

the

partial oil pair~ting u-ed for thore portions, arid tllc vi-cidity of the oil ; but it 111%~ have been occa-ionerl, i n >erne inltance-, by the differelit also bite COusi>terrceof the telnpera rllcclia emyloj-ed for various eoloura.

PhISTiSG POPULARLY EXPLAIXED.

the fol!ox:ing inscription under a picture : ' Eimonc Cini, a Florentine, u- ought the carved ~ r o r k ,Gabriello Saracini esecutcd t!lc gildin;., alidSpinello di Lucca, of Arezzo, painted tlie i i'ictnr?, in the year 1385.' " "\Ye lnny pan*e to consider for a moment," says a writer in : the Qurri.tei.ly Ret.ir,c (184,i), in ~ h o m reader \rill 21ardlj the i fail to recognisc tlie author of Xode,-2, Ptri~zfer.r," what effect t u ~ ~ o ~ t t h e n ~ e i ~ t a l I i athese s o f L ~ i t earlier schools miglrt res~rlt fro111 1. f; tlie separate and prt.rions conlpletion of minor details. I t is to be remenilered that the paiiiter's object in the bacligroundr C of \vorlis of this ]~eriod, (u~lirersall~, n m r l j so, of religious or t su\?,jects) was not the deceldve rqresentation of a 11atul.d 17 scene, but the adornmeiit and setting fhrth of the central 2 figures will1 Ixerious worli ; tlie coilrersion of tlie picture, as t! far as might be, into a gem, flushed \ritli colour alld alive d nit11 light. The processes necessary for this purpose rerr 5: altogether iueclrdnical ; a i d those of stamping and liurnislline e: tlie gold, 2nd of enamelling, mere necessarily performed before 1.' any delicate tempera ~ ~ - o rcould l,e execnted. Absolute dr li ci~ion design \vas therefore necessary throughont ; and Ilari of linear separations were unavoidable between the oil colour and 4 ' ' tlle tempera, or betrreen each and tlie gold or enamel. Gened C ai harmony of effect, aerial perspective [the effect of distana imitating tlie iiifluel~ce of atrnosl>here], or deceptirt ' g1 chia~oscuro[ligllt and shade] became totall- in~possible;ad the dignity of the picture depended exclusively on the line: of its drsigi, tlie pcrity of its ornaments, and the beauty a: expression which could be obtai~tedin those portions (tht 11 faces and hands) which, set off and framed by this splendor h( of decoration, became the cynosure of eyes. The painter' PC entire energy v;s given to t,heae portions, and me can Bard]: imagine any discipline more calculated to ensure a grand an tlloughtful ~cl!oolof art t h a i ~ necessity of discriminatin! the and raried espression impozed by this separate and prominent treatment of the features. The ei re' quisite drawing of the hand also, a t leaat in outline, remaine kx for this reason even to late periods one of the crowning exce, lences of the religious schools. It might be worthy the coi

! t

PAISTISG

IN TEXPERA.

15

r in rdlj ffect roln1s to

lnds ;iouh turd ntrai .e, as alive

si2eratio11of our present painters wl~ether some disadvantage ilxy not result from the exactly opposite tl.eatment 11om frequently ailopted, the finishing the liead b?fore the acidition of its accessories. A Ainlsy and indolent background is allnost a aecessayy consequence, aild probably also a false fled,-colour, i ~ c c o ~ e r a bbj- any after iqjposition." T l i ~ le technical operations so chnracteristic of the Italian art of this period cor~.i'spoild greatly n-it!\ what was the practice in Englalld ; a, ibr instance, in the splendid decoration of St. Stepllen's Clial~el,a h it {I-as rebuilt by Edward III., in the nliddle of tlic fiarteenth century; for the habits of the Ellglish (3) l~riiitersclosely resembled those of the follo\\-crs of Giotto. Severtl~eless l ~ practice of gilding, stamping ornaments, and t e the en~ploymentof mosaic, is tlloiight not to hare been ind'genons to this country. The rarity of exaniples in ~vllich sacil decorations occur, where tile rest of' the ~vol.k seelns Eilglis!~, puiilts to the conclusioa that they nercr forllled so es>eiltial an element in E l ~ ~ l iart ~ theg- did ill Italian (see s l as latter half of note B in Appendis). m ilie latcst nlodiiications of gold and siirer, glazed or lacquered rail-grounds, appear in the \vorlis of IIolbein alld his conte~n~oraries. The Italiaus did not lmint on gold grounds after the time of Titian, though large yellox\.-coloured sadiating glories arc connnon in his works, as well as in those of Tintoretto and Guido, Xurillo and other Spanish masters.BATCIIISG A S D STIPPLISG; FUSIOX O F TISTS, ETC.

,, (tht Is the finishing of their pictures the tenlpera painters met,

li" ut~0 .

elldo,, ho"erer, nit11 a great difricdty. I t Wac, \ve need not say, im- ainter possible to prepare as many tints as there are gradations, or hala as they are pol~ularlyternled, shades, in nature. The tints ind an wllenlnid, covered flatly certain definablepatches and breadths. illatin The vehicle dried too quickly to allom much blending or f u s i o ~ ~ cu5ad of the colours on the surface of the picture, and for the same ,,,he el reason they could not be readily lightened or darkened in

?mainc tone.* Therefore, for portions requiring very delicate grada-- - g exce * Tone is either general or particular: it may mean simply the degree the C@-- -

PBIXTISG POPULARLY EXPLAISED.

tions-such, for instance, as the features, in order to convey the impression of relief, or that palts are raised or project. beyond others, to do, in fact, on a flat surface what the 1 sculptor does rritli his nlodelling-it was necessary to adopt f the expedients of " hatching " and " stippling." Zutching < consists of lines-stippliizg of dots. By patiently pla"i"g t these, one by one, more or leas closely together, or of more r or less thic!iness, and with nl~chanicalregularity, it is forl~~d t that the most insensib:e or the most abrnpt gradations can be c obtained. Stipple gives its name to that fipecies of engraving brought to such by Bartolozzi, and employed 1 ( in ilnitatiolis of chall; drawing. '' Hatching " is a variation of the word "etching," and througl~~vliich it is derived from : the German Etzen. The methods are frequently mixed, stipi pling being used to soften and fill up spaces left by the crossed z hatchil~gs and both are of very general application, not on15 ; s in tempera, but it1 engraving, (Ira\\-ing, oil, missal, nliniature, f rater-colour, and fresco painting. One esplanation, will, 1 ho\\-\-2ver, serve for all. I Hatching is the ouly method tvhich can imply any knoa: 1 ledge of furnis beyond that distinctly developed by the appearances p~oducedhy the tinting. Several refinements, br . vhich lines were rendered more descriptive, were introduced . by the great masters in their drawings, and by the earl! Italian engravers? that were apparently unlino~vt~ the to ( lnore ancient tempera painters. Such was the principle, t borrowed probably from observatioll of striped draperies, that objects ~ h i c h rounded Irsve their rotundity best expressed 1 are by curved lines ; and that those portions mhich recede abo~u the level of the eye, or what is the saine thing, the horizonti ( line, sliould hare the lines arched like a bridge; vhile tt : represent the portions ~vllichrecede below that line, the curve

f

-

I(

of li,rrlit or shade in some specific part ; or i t may refer t o tlie generi 1 r character and complexion, so t o spesk, of tlie whole picture. T l ~ u s may say indiif'erelltly of a n engraying or a picture that it !rants nlor ( tolie-meaning, i n the first. siml~lyallacling ; but in the latter IT-e ma: ts also mean t h a t it ~ ~ n n illore general l~armonywith olie iudiridur : hue, warm or cold, juat as all the notes in a pianoforte are tuned! one particular key-note.

PAISTIKG IX TENPERA.

sllould be inverted, like the rcfleetion of the bridge in the rrater. I we \vere to suppose a nulllber of threads arranged f like a stave in music or the strings of a harp, and held between tlie light aild some irregular and rounded object, the shadows t, of the threads would follow the depressions and elevations of 7 the surface on which they fell, and illustrate the practice to 5 xvliich we allude, and ~1-bic11 carried to perfectioi~in lineis .e d engraving. Other conventional l)rincil~leswhich have been )e established are, that lines, \~lliloassisting the " ixodelling," rsllould be crossed, in order, by Cornli:lg retic~~latioiis, prevent to ; ,d tlre ese follo\ving their directioi~ to remore the impression of of the surfhce tiley are intended to describe being polisl~ed; ,1 11 and also to indicate tlie degree of roughness or srnoot1111e.z~ ipintended, by drawing the lines to intersect at a nlore or less ied acute or o!~tuse angle. The tempera painters, on the contrary, dS seldom curved the stroke oi' their brush ~vhen any distance at Ire, from the outline, or allo\~-edthe lilies to intersect, and proLably never upoil a scieiitific principle. The process of hatch{ill, ing m a still be been, after the lapat! of from four to six hmldred o,T. years, r e r - distinctl~ several of the tempera paintings, so in ma111of 15-liich hare lately been added to tlie Kational Gallery. , Wilere the touch is large, as in a s~llall" Holy Family" by uced Pietro Perugino, the straight (vertical) strokes are very con3arlS qiicuous ; but in others, as, fbr instance, the presumed portrait the of Isotta da Rin~iniby Piero dells Fraacesca, the lines (in this case oblique) are so fine as to be searcelr perceptible. ,that Tempera, we sliall see bv-and-bje, \Tas adopted as con~pleessed ~nentaryto fresco, and ~v11el1 used (to add at leisure force so and gradation to tlir necessarily hasti11 executed ground\rork

,,,.

zollti of trne fresco! hatching \\-as indispensable ; but hatchiilg was ile tc also employed in the actual process of fresco painti~lg. Herr, :urve. hu~vever,as indeed in Illany other cases, i t was serviceable not ollly for purposes of modelling and but to proFend cure a flat tint (\vhich is not easy to obtaill in fresco), and lilie.),US a >vise to conceal the joinings in the mortar. The re-touchings a of the great xvorks of Hichael Angela in tlle Sistine Chapel tr-e m 8 , i n are all effected by hatcllillgs (with lines which do not cross) ; unedi an elaborate nlechanical process, scarcely to be expected fromC

p.2INTING POPULARLY EXPLBISED.

his impatient temperament. The simple straight linrs of the 1;. tempera painters vere derived from the practice of the H ~ z a n ck ti^^.: missal painters ; but even in etcliings by Relnbrandt and o t l ~ e r n;ahters Ire freqnently sce ;I rounded surface repre sented by the sanle means. I n the frescoes of Raphael in the tb Vhtican there mas, ho\re\,er, no llatclling before they vere t) " restored" by Carlo 3Iaratta; nor is tliere in those of Cor tc "1 r2ggio. But in the earlier oil pictures by r\;~phaelthe hatch tl ing is often very evident-witnehs the St. Catharine in the Xational Gallery. Leonarclo da Vinci, in the xninnte stijijile ce of his wor!;a, fnrnisl~esanother es;:mple of a similar metllod, ol of and anlethod mliich mas adopted hy many other of the first ar Italian painters in oil, and has been contiuncd t o our day, as at nlay be seen in the nlore recent worlis of the learned President of t h e RoSal Licadc~iiv and also, thol~gllvery dissimilar, in ; tlie pictures of' our conteniporary pre-Rayhaelites. of These modes of finishing were, however, never in favour with rn the northern painters, either in te~nperaor oil, at least i t is nat ex n ill perceptible i n their slnallest atid highly-finishecl pictures. I these the touch is either ii.ec from mechxnical regularity, a P1 in Teniers, or the tints are laid t o appear :is nearly as prne. ticable 1il;e an even ~vahll,as in the p;irti:rllj tenlpera picture s ~ ' of l l e i s t r r Stephan, in the Sational Gallery; in tlte oil p i n t i n g s of Van EycIi, and later of Jlicriu, and Illany othe! o*' Dutch painters of cabinet* pictmes. This is surprising Ii.! \\,hen me reflect ho\v delicatel. wrought ,\-as the el~grarin; and pen-drawing they ol'ten practised; and that soirle of them including Van Eycli, were also illiuninators, in which stippiin; ac th is inevitable. For i n nlissal painting, f ~ u the iml,ousibili~ n~ of spreading a fl:tt tint on the vellurn of which the anciou: "' of books were composed, t h e illuminators were colnpelled tl all have recourse to what Fuseli calla tlie " elaborate anguish" [ t h e sjstem. The modern miniature painter is also place. under similar conditions, the hard srnooth surface of tb, ivory obliging him to finish, as i t is pleasantly ternled, vibI A te eo

'""

-- -

-

-

-

*

as to be readily contained

Cabinet pictures are so named because they are so sninll in sit in a cabinet.

st;

PAIXTIXG IN TEIIPERA.

the an ani ?re the rere :or.

tchthe 1 1 Ilod, first , ;dent in ,Tvith is lD tF, ai prae

etUrY:

Ie

othe! ,yisin$ rarin: ' then pplin: jibilit! lncief

'led " ~ish" [ place. of tb ,d, witjB in

line, "dot and go one." Finally the painter in mater colours chooses the.ie ~llethods,because by then1 he can obtain greater richness and finish. \Ye have said that tho fig-tree juice was replaced among the Gerxllan and English ternpera piiiiiters by riilegar ; but this noilld not retard the rapidly dryiiig reliicle suficiently to exl)laiil the cdreful rounding of iorms ancl fusion of' tints observable iu their w o ~ k s . This \\-as efftcted, i t al)pears, by tlle ;lciditioll of' honey. The more obviooi;ly laborious process was alone that rrliich was, n-it11 itrv escel~tions,kliown or practised bS the earlier artists of Italy. After the miclclle of tile fifteenth century t h e exceptions are lcss rare, but wax and other i l ~ ~ r z d i e nbesides liorley \\-ere prdbablg employecl ts at this period. The lines and dots of the tempera painters are generally of the same hoe, though lighter or darker t!ian the colour which tiley cover. occasion all^, howerer, as i n one of the examples of Botticelli in the Sational Gallery, n7e see soiiie iac!ication of a principle, invalnab:e for the attainment of purity and richness of eRect, carried to perfection by 3Ir. IF'. H u n t and other water-coiour artists; viz., the placillg but side by bide separate touches of ~~iibrolien, diverse colonr, and leaving them fbr the e r e to biend and unite. Thr sj-stem of slla~lingwit11 a "self-colour," as pink with crimson, and light blue or rellow with detxper tints of tile same colour, was afterwards shorvn in the Iionian schoo!s to be compatible with the moat elevated stglc of painting, t h o u g i ~not of actnal inlitatio11. I n t h e verJ early ~ r o r k sof' the Sienese this systeii~ find clicl not obtain: salmou-coloured lights we are placed in the flesh over very dissin~ilarhues, not to spealr of tile ghastly contrast they present with the green s1lado\vs and pink cheelis of the f ces.THE VAESISH.

SHORT inquiry into the nature of the variiijh used by the &mP+ra ~ a i l l t e r s t the end of the fourteenth c e ~ l t ~ ~acquires a ry, considerable interest for t h e general reader from the cil.curnstance that, as we shall see in treating oi. Oil Painting, it c d

pAIST1SG POPULARLY EXPLBISED.

xvas, tllere is little doubt, in search of a more eligil~levarnisl~, in tllat Tali Eycl; effected the grear improvenlent in the veiiicle d; of oil railltil~g\vhicll fi~rnlly every~rilere superseded teiiil~era. ea I t is probabie that varnishes coiiiposed of resills dissolved ti] ill oil hare been ns2d in the ~ ~ i o ai~cicr~t at ii~nes. Be-011d all oi ill doubt the con~position raraisli was I~IIOI~IIPersia, India, of to alld China before the best period of painting in Greece ; slid l.e it is,tiien,not to be supposed t11attlie Gree1i.s were unacqoai~ited a] rn wit11 this art. Yet sucli would have been the case, it' we girt credit to what may be inkrred ii.um a paragraph in Pli~ly, in in .shich 11e tells us that the gre,~t pitinter Apelles was indebted tc for his unequalled colouring to the euipioynlent of a liquid el which he calls "atrau~ent~un," with ~vliich lie corered hi> pl pictures 11 he11 theS r e r e finished, and \\-it11 w11ich 110 other tl painter n.as acquainted. Pliny obwrves, "There is in the I.; pictures of hpelles a certain etGct that ca~inotbe equ;~lled," and tl~a: " tone was obtained hy meals of ulra~~zriiiu,,!, nllich 1 1 fluid he passed ore: his pict1nc.s 1~11en painting was corn. the 1 1 pletelj- finislied." " This liquid," we are further told, " brongllt a1 out all tlie brightness and fuh~ess the colours, and a1.o pre of v e i ~ t t d dust or similar substances from iml~airiiigtheir tile q lustre. I t was so transpsre~it that it \\*\-as perccptiiile 111iti1 C not yon were very near to it." One of its greatest ad\-antaga I-' vas, that the brightest culours under its influei~ce, o lar fro13 s 1 1 dazzliilg the sight, seenled as if viexed from a distance, 01 0 through a. glassy niedium, ~rllichimperceptibly lowered thr tone of the most brilliai~ttints, rendering them more chast, li aiid agreeable to the e j e Sir J. Reynolds thought he sa* t' ill this passage an authority for glazing.* At all events th lrord atrn~izeizfuiiz ould seem to iiilply that the transpard w tint; and Sir Charles Eastlake ha varuish was of a bro~vnish even suggested tliat, as the varnishes of the medievalpni~lte~ were all of a red or bran-n tinge, their dusky hue was pssiG traditionaily derived fro111 tlie best ages of Greece. It ~ h ~ u i be re~nembered,however, that the clearest rar~iish\~-11enset

"

"

I

sl1, clr

'ra.

ied all %a, aid ited Sire -,in bted quid lii? bther , tlit led," :11ichCOlP

)ngl~t ' 1"" tilei! u~iti,b

I ~ R ~ T !

from Ice, 01 .d th: cl~astr le saj ~ t tb: s ;pard ~ k hr e inter lossib: , shoul en setnsparfe on(

in cousiderahle q u a n t i : ~ appears dark in colour, We have a distinct niention of a varnish by hetius, a medical writer of as early as the end of the fifth centnq-. Froin tile eighth century till tile time of Val, Eycli the mention of oil varnishes (linseedoil from its more readily dr!-in:$ being geiierally lmferred to nut-oil) occurs occasion;illg in 3ISS. ; saiidar;~~ mastic and resin being the ingredients coiilmoi~ly hoileil in tlie oil, although oil alone, tliicliened to the consistence of a varnish, rarni>llus co11tinni.d x-as used in tlie t~velftl: century. SLIC~I in use in Italy till the Ral)liael era, w11en the 1tali;uls 11r~:in to einl~log rnrnisl~es pre11art.d Ivitll the far more ~;ipidlg drying esw~itial oils. Varcisli, ill addition to its other use, 11-as einployed b - the early Venetian and other decorators in :$ilding the back of glass, and lilietvise for painting on glass, as distinguisllrd from glass en am ell in;^. in ~v11ic11 colours are fired in. the rem:lir~sto be determined-What was the But the ilatnre of the varnish ordinari!y enil~lo>-ed the t~i1111era by ~ a i n t e r s bout the tiii~e r a i l E-cl;, and spoken of by Cennini a of' and others under tile faluiliar title of " Vernice 1iquid;c ?" Tlie deriration of the word te~.icishrarn nlaterially on tile question. This word, 1-ariously ~nodified,is pioved by Sir Charles Eastlake, 1vit11 niuc!i plii!ological rehearcl~, to have been, in its prin~itireSorin, " Bereiiice," the original Crecli naine fvr amber. The possibility is even intiiliated that the 1ian:e Berenice, or Pherenice, borce b~ niore than one daughter of tlie Ptolemirs, !\-as the original word. Further-'< The literal coillcidence of this ilame and its modifications x-ith the rcriiice of the SIiddle Ages, might aln~oatwarrant the supposition that alnl~er,~vhich LJ- the best anciellt autllorities ~ v a s considered a mineral, lnay at an early period have beell distinguished by the rIaine of a constellation, the constellation of Bere~iice's(golden) hair."-IIIafe~~ials, &., p. 230. r' 111e original (?) anlber was, ho~verer, ronfounded with other materials, ~vllic11gradually served either as substitutes or entirely superseded it. Aillong these were copal aiid sandarac rrsiu. The latter reseinhles amber less than copal; but i t is prored, from aLuildsllt and conclnsire erilence, that,oii accoullt of its greater cheapness and easier solubility in oil, it was the

22

P A I S T i S G POPULARLY EXPLAINED.5 1( 1

usual s u b s t i t ~ ~tor arnher; and tliat, when dissolved by heat ts i n linseed oil, i t mas the " Vernice liquida," the customary varnish for tempera pictures. Concrete turper~tine(or the resin in its dry state). previously prepared over a slow fire until it ceased to stvell, was sc~nietimes addecl to assist the liquefixction, first in Venice, ~ r h e r etlie material v;as easily procured (hence t l ~ ename " Tenice turpentine"). and afterwards in Florence. All rarnirhes are aKtxcted by air sooner or later, and this is less durable than alnber or co!>nl. In some old tempera pictures, tlie nliole s~~ri:nce, 1~1rge or spaces, m a r be ob~ervcdfreed from tlie original varnisll. \vliile it rernaiiis in detached dark-brorn spots 011 others. Tliis crackitrp of the varnish selclorn affects the painting unclerneatll, a pl.oot tl.at it was applied when the tempera was qriite dry. The " Vernice liqiiida" was snlijrcted to long boiling, to renof der it more drying; but tlie disaclva~ita~e this ri~otlzof preparatioli ~ s a cot only that the varnish became so t!licl; as s actually to require to be spread with the Ii:ulcl, biit tliat by this long boilirg it became at tlle same tirile so dark as to materially affect tile tints over \viiich it was passed. " I t is not irupossiblc," says Sir Charles Ektatlake, " tliat the lighter style of colonring introdnced by Giotto iiiay have heen iritendecl by llim to co~uiternctthe eff'ects of this varnish. the appearance of \vhicli in the Greek pictures he co1il6 not Ski! to observe. Another peculiarity in the worbs of the ~~aiirters tile time referred to, particulasly those of the of Florentine ancl Sienese schools, is the greenish tone of their colouring in the tlesh ; psodoced by tile ii10~1e \rliicb thej in oftell prepared tlieir \vovlis, viz.. by a gwen under-pairiting 'i'iie appear;ince was ~ieiitsalized the red sand;trac raniish. by and pictures esecuteil in the manuer deacribecl n111at liar( looked better before it was removed." The medi;~valpaintea were so accnstomecl to this red appearance in uar~iishes,tba: they even supp!ied the tint \\-hen it dill not csist.T H E COLOEliS.

ex1 ink va: thc sta on' a1 n~i col Pi be go nlf rii~(a1

PT an bl aLl11:

Si P' bl P m A a; P'SI

a1

Orn l i n o ~ l e d ~ e respectin!: the colonrs nsed hv the painteri n classical times is derived chiefly from a few passage> ~r

tl1at lare lid, not ' the ' the their the! ,tin$ xish, llari ilittn , tlls

ancient authors ; but sonle information has been drawn from exlleriment;j on tile colours i n the remains of ancient paintings, and on pigments* that were found a t Pompeii, and i n vases beneath the ruins of the p l a c e of Titus at Rome. On the authority of a pnssagtx i n Pliny, i t lias been freqnently stated that Apelles a i d other celebrated Greel; painters used only four colours, viz., rhitr, yello\v, red, and ctt~trineiztum, a 1,lacl; (or bran-n); but it has been obierved that it rnult be a mistake to su!~!)ose tli;,t they were acqoninted only with these colol~rs, r t1l:lt the!- never used an!- others. Indeed, unless o to Piinv be sl~pl~osed point out a distinction in this reepect between tlie practice of the earlier and later the .. gosslplng connoisseur co~~trnilicts hin~se!t'; for in all he enu~ merates no l c than fire diiGrent I\-hites, three yello~vs, riine reds or pnrples, two blues, t ~ v ogreens, and one black (atramentiun), which, nioreorer, appear. to bc a generic espression that incindes bitumen, charcoal, ivory or lamp-h!acli, and probably a blue-blacli, which thinned would supply n blue t i n t ; and a longer list might be made out from ot!ler authors. 3Iost certainly, hovever, from the four colours nanied, innnmerable hues and tints might be composed; and Sir Humphrj- Davy says, very jnstly, in the acco~uit his exof peri~lientson the ancie~itcolours : " I f red nncl yello~vochres, blacks and u-hites, were the colours most en?plo~ed by Protogenes and Apelles, so they were lilte\vise the colours nlost enlployed by Raphael and Titian in their best style." And i t xuust be remembered that f r o n ~ superior importthe ance attached to design, great so1)erne.s~in the use of colours prevailed for a long time ill antiqriity. "Even the Ionic h school," according to Xiiller, " ~ v l ~ i cloved florid colouring, adhered to t h e so-cal!cct four colonrs even clo~vnto the time* " Colours" and " pigments" are comrnonly confounded; but pigment?, or, as they are popul;,rly termed. '. p:~ints?are tI1o.e substances possessin; colouring power in so eminent a degree tllat they are used on account of that property. P~gnierltsare, so to speak, material c u l o u n . '' Colours" are generally understood to mean the pigments applieil to the pictore. The reader !%-ill rri:,~patliink,!>-ith us, chat it p is hardly necessary always to observe the cibtinction.

of Apellee ; that is, four principal colouring mate ria!^, Ivhich, however, had not only natural varieties themselves, but also produced such by mising ; for the pure application of a few colours only belonged to the imperfect painting of the architectural works of Egypt, the Etruscan hypogea, and the Grecian earthe~~ware. Along n i t h these leading colours, nrhich appeared stern and lrarsli to a later age, brighter and dearer colouriiig materials Irere gradually introduced."Aizcient AT^ a i ~ dts Reri2aiizs. i The light tone of colouriiig so characteristic of no st of the worlcs of the later Cilristiaii painters in tenipera, has, we hare obscrred, beer1 referred to the allo~rance made fbr the darlp eniilg effect of the rari~ish. But there is another reason for the pale colouring of the period. Tlie pigments in use had little inteilsity of toile; the brorr-ns, for i!lstance, 11-ereby no means dark. Hence, with the imperfect n~onotonoussybtenl o of shading already described, those 1)ainters had no i u e a ~ ~fs producing depth of egect. But it Irould appear that they sought to collipeusate for this by preherring the local colouis in their full strength aiid purity. Tlie delicacy 1vhic11 they seem in most instai~cesto hare aii~led in their flesh tints, at may, however, have influeliced the treatment of the rest o f the work.

HE explanations given of tlie ancient v a s paintillg areallnost iiiextrici~bly confused aiid contndictory. There appears to have beell three distinct methods, so entirely dissiiiii1;ir that we sh:ill best itvoid confusion by describing them, according to t l ~ e best authorities, separately. Of the art of using calours prepared with !\-as, and of fixing pictnres so executed by the aid of fire, tlle apl~lication tlie of t w m '. encaustic," ~vliicl~trictly nieans " burlling in," is s scarcely sufficiently descriptive. Yet, in 11-liatever operations \\.ax was subjected to the action of heat, t!ie process appe;trs to ha!-e been considered by the ancients a sl~eciesof encau;itic. kausis, and Polislling \\.ails, for example, was denoiiiii~atc~d the rarnishers of statues TTere callrd encauslai. After the later P a z u paiilters, the prevalence of encaustic painting among the Christian artists led to tlie gradual application of the tern1 to all kiiids of' pailiting ; and ere11 \\-hen it was superseded by mosaic, aiid the process itself scarcely survived, tlie term was still applied to other illodes of pilinting. I n illuminating, for esalnple, the purple and rerniilion used for the iml~erial .;ignatures, and in caligraphy, receired the name of "encaustic." Later, the inore ordinary materials of writing \\.ere called by the m e d i ~ v a writers " incaustum ;" and this l has finally degenerated into the " iiichiostro " of the Italians, and the English " i~il;." According to Pliny* "there mere originally tmo modes of painting in encaustic, the one 1 ~ i t L ~vxx, other on irorJ-, the by means of the cestruiiz, or graver, till sl~ipsbegan to beTOPliny alone, among the ancient writers, are we indebted for a conllected and critical Iiictory of the fine arts. 'l'l~ia is contained i n t h e P-ith, 3St11, and 36th books of liisS(~tlo.nlBisfo,y. Panbanias relates uumerous facts and particulars respecting tile fine arts and the ancient artists, in his account of the statues, pictnrea, a i ~ d temyles of Greece, but lie does ilot furubh any connected notices.

he Te

1~ Eor ad no1'111

of 1e.Tul's

ley ,ts, of

p.li~~ted.This \vas tile third mode introclnced, and in t1:is the brush n7as usecl, the x r x 'Lcoloursj being clissolved by fire." -4,: the brnsh is only nientiorieil in t h e last, i t is eri.!e~~tthat in the two former n1o~1t.s 111etelinstrnment was employecl. a I n t h e first mode, then, we find t h a t a heutecl metal instrn nlent called the rhc:btlio,~(which niiqllt hitre variecl in shape, as b r n ~ h c s no\v) or ce.st,~,cm(ibr t h e terms are employed do sometimes i ~ ~ d i s c r i ~ i l i n : i t e was> ~i:ed t o blend tlle tints. i~) Tile valiourlY co1nutc.d w a s pigiiientfivere Ijrcl~aredin cakes or sticks, like cl~lonred cy O;I!J- suited for \\-orl;s of linlited dimensions, and its ~liificultypro!~:tl:ly eontribnted t o $re the of s, ernall encnustii. l'ict~~re.; P ; i ~ ~ < i ' \executed in this style, t!~i.ir proverbi~:lritliie in r!:e eyes of rich Eo1:1an co:lectors. 111 t!ie SP!.D:I~~ ~netllucl,tile illeta1 point, ce.st,wi,~,* c,r vi+ c:i?lrii,, aa it 11-asotliern-i>:. c:~i!etl, v a s useii ;b u t for t!:? ;~crpose out1in:s uil i v o r of a c t ~ i n lenyraving by lliealls of encx~istic l~ and other substances. Sir Cllarles Eastlalre, tio\vever,-n-l~o* ~lesuriptionsof the difi'rrent ~ t ~ ofl encaustic painting are ~ a tliat t h e best ~ v i t h \vllic!i we art: ncq~~ui~lt'd,-tl~i~llis even in this iilstnnce the x~-urilc:ic.c~:.tic need not be taken literallr, ~ i n c eorlns burnt cn ivory conld not have been very delicate f woriis of art. It luny ~ i t i l e rbe s~ipposcdtlint the ontline~ were first drawn on \\-r.::ecl ivory, fbr tLr f'aciiity of correcting then1 w!len necessary : t11:lt they n-er? aftern-ilrcls engraved like a heal, iri a cort of intaglio i n the substance ; and that tile fi~iisheclancl sh:rdoc.ed design was fillrd in with one or inore coluurs ; being uItim:itel~ covered ~ v i t h \\-ax varnish s

* The ce.;trum a Kcv;;w) \\-as n pointccl grxrcr; hut if mnst llave beell forn~tdlike the stylus, flat at one enti and rli;trp at the otl~er; since d:+igfl.: ~ I IW:IS esecntcd wit11 tl:e point coui~lonlY have reiemble(1the ,yjr,,-fiti(of the, Italians) on itor!- ; acll tllere cnnbe p no (Iortht tlint tlie early \\-ax ictures were nlucll more fini~!~cd.-I~:.~S~ L.:LE. .11o cc.n:llion in El;:-pti;ai vi:ieh), toget!lixr n i ~ 1 1 tile chcqne;.? as well as the basltets scro!l ancl Kr~filochi., ascribecl too 11as:iiy l o the cowpa~.a:irt.!~ Iuoclern Grcelis, were udopteil in Egypt 11iure than '1000 j-ears before our era. -111 i1:fi rite varirt!- 01' piirel:; co;rcc,2tioilc/l 'levices 1i;icl been invented and \\-ere in co:~!nlon use cli1riilR tile eigilteeiltil and niiiete2nth clj-~iasties,loirg bcl;~rc ;lie and ot!i~r o r i ~ ~ u t i e ~ ; t s ~ directly Trcjan wax., a s ?:ell tls the lc~tui imitated :i.o111 11at11r;ll oi>je~t*." Pai:lting irr E g y p t x a s practi~rc!uliiler pccn!inl. conditio~ls. Painters and scltiptors 1I-ei.e :orbidden I>>- a jca!otts priest1,ood to introduce :,i;)- charige or i~nioraticil rrliaterer i r ~ ti;? t~ ~"."~:ii~t.of t l l e i ~respective arts, or i n any I V ~ Jt-o atli to them. 'i'hus art reni:tii~ed st:.iio;iary i'ru111 gcner;itioii t o yvneriltion. It \\-as inc!ee~lco~lsii,erc.d nt.cxeq.;nl.y n part of tlie l;ut systein t h a t paintin:. nncl scnlptnre siloi~!~l i ~ e practised by iiliterufe peop!e, lest t l w j slionlil attem1,t a ~ r y t h i ncoii:mmS ~ t o the t.stubi~>hcdorder of' tliiiigs. The consecii~enci.~ n-ere th;:t art preaervec! ~liilir>-,o to ~i)eiLii, s illfnnti~ie h:!r:ictel.ijti~~,++ ~ E v e n t h e imitaiiun of nature II--~S not carried in l>::irltiilg beyolrd an outliriecl cliag:.arn, a r l i t r ~ : r i l -cc,lcicrecl; n!ucll less \\-as ax:. efijrt rrade t o attiiirl an!- iclc.1 ircuatJ-, \ ~ - l ~tile i ~ i~ Gl.eclts >\-eret h e first t o conlprehend and enlbocly. " S o r did tile Eg-ptians ~ulderstancl the beautJ a ~ i dtrue prorince of bas-relief like tlie Greelts: i n their battle scerles they at-

-

-~

tinn; . aonlf

,till$ je on roU9,

The child, anrl the u~linstruto adbril tlre fu1le:t rierv, a is deelllrd tlie Lest and mo?t natlwa! espy?-...on 0 f . i ~ . hi^ impre5.ion is but col~furrnable the firlt 11o:ionn entt.r:ailie~l to concer~li~lg aII- tlie l~tarallce objecta, sue11 norions beiug rnt.rtl>- refir;,hlr to tlie mohr of filllliiiilr alrd hiibiinal a s : o c i a t i o n s . " - E . ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ > ( ; tile I ' h i i ~ a o ~ i ~ ~ on ' , I 0 Pai?~ti,ig."

*

tempted to make a picture ; aud in order to obviate the con tra fusion resultiug from J. uulnber of sculptured figures oue are behind tlie other, thcy 1)laccd them in all parts of the same SCU fieiil, regardless of t11e sliy or of perspective, providing only out against everything ~vllichmiglit interfere with the hero of scr the subject-the liing; n-110 depended on colossal size, instead fro of art, for his importa~~ce."-Sii. J. Gni,rl,~ei.SF7i'j'lti~~soiz. 1110 Everything b e i ~ ~ g prescribed a~ldpredeter~uined inEgyptiac 10 1 a ~ tTX-e , shall not l ~ e s~rrprised tolenrl~ that there mas a regular sta s,vstem of conrentional proportions, and that prcrions t o leg pai coi:lmencing a painting the walls \\.ere squared out xtith in lines. Accordi~~gly, find that " the ditisions prescril~edl we !~ wit the canons or rl:.les then in use are very co~nmonlyfoui~don unfii~ished \vorl:a, aud are sometimes to be detectedunder the res paint in fiiiislieJ paintings aud statues. lire liliextiw possess the in the B1,itisll 1\Iusenm an ancieilt tablet, oil wliich is pre he served an outline, exhibiting tlie cacon of the proportions of T ~ I I the l ~ u n ~ aframe, in use anloug tlie painters and sculptoa n so1 of that countrj in the age of Arnunopth III., about 12i0 1I 1 years before our era."* The method of e s ~ c n t i n ga d l painting has been thus tin described by Xr. Owen Jones : " The \T-all\Tas first chiselled fig as sillooth as possil~le. the imperfections of tlre stone xerr pai filled up \vith cemeilt or plaster, aud the ~vliole was rubbed t rr smooth and corered wit11 a colollred n-ash ; lines were then grc ruled perpendicularly and horizo~ltallywith red colonr, fo~m cot ing squ:tres all over the \\-all, corresponding with the propor ad1 tions of the figlires to be drawn upoil it. The subjects o! U11 the paintiug and of the Iiierog!yphics were then drarvn on thi obj \tall with a ieil line, most probnblg b~ the priest or chit till scrihe, or by some inferior artist, fro111 a document divided C"1 iuto similar Fquares ; then came the chief artist, ~ v h o e n t ore; Pa r cht every figme a i d hieroglj-phic \\-it11 a black 7i11e, aud a fin ox1 and steady hand, giving eslire~sionto each c u r r c d e r i a t i ~ f thc here anil confirliiing there the fornler red line. Tile line t b l ~

ErTel

Tile P r o p r t i o ~ ~ sf the Humnia Filjztre. An o chure. by Mr. Uonomi.

*

interesting little bfl w l

01 1.011e

nne

)nlsof tead31.

~tiac .nlaI s to with d b: a on r thecsesr

1e 3 ' 1 s of 1 pior,

123

thuselleQxeTP

uhbeh:the:

fo'mrope"

x t s 0: on thr r chit! ,irided it or6 a filll riatius ie tho:tle bn'

traced was then follo\ved by the sculptor. I n this stage there are illstances of a foot or head liarilig been c o n ~ ~ l e t e l y sculptured [incised], ~vhilstthe rest of the figure rerii;~insin outline. The nest process XTas to l~aint figure in the pretlie scribed colours ; and in sonie cases tlie p a i ~ ~ t e d deriates line from the sculptured liue, sho~\-ingthat the pailiter Jvas the illore iiilportant \\-orI;il~an,and that ere11 i:i tliis last process no possible improvc.meiit wax omitted. Tliere are other instanres here a considerable derijtioli from the position of a leg or arlil has bee11 111ade after the Icuipti~rewas fiiiisheJ and painted : tlie part Tvas recarved, a d the deikctire portion filled in n.it11 plaater ; \\-ilich, haring silice iillel~ out, f u n ~ i s l ~us es %\-it11 tliis curioris eridellce of their l~racticc." Exactly corres~ondingvith this is the d e w iption given by Belzoni of tlie executing and painting of the Egyl~riau bassi-relieri \I-llich he found in the Bibau el Xolonled, but ior n-hite, tlie \\-llite ground, xvhich \\-as prepared as fine as letter paper, v a s of course su9icient. These coloura are sol~~etimes 11iodific.dby admixture xith clialli, but tlie- are alrvaj-s applied singly and uliiilixed together. Difi'erent colours \yere reserved for diEerent objects. Xen and ~volilen \\-ere 1)aintt.drrd-the inen of a darker tilit than thewomen. Black nlen al~-ofrec~uelitlyoccur,al~d some captives, of, i>robablJ-, a race ~v\-itli lighter coniplesions, are paiilted yellow, 15-it11 black beards. hccordiag to the best clieillical anall-sea of E g ~ p t i a ncolours, tlie blues appear to be oxides of copper ~ ~ 5 s h t small intein~isture iron : none of of the111 contain cobalt. Belzoi~i, therefore, ~vliosupposed the E ~ ~ - l ' t i ablues to be indigo, apljears to be in error. The n are red oxide of iron iilixed with liii~e. The ycllozcs, which are someti~llesof a pure bright sulpliiu. colour, a p p e aD

PBISTISG POPULARLY EXPLAINED.

to be generally regefable colours ; the greens are a misture of this vegetable yeilow with copper bioe; the vegetable, it has been suggested, might be the heizi~k plant, \vliich is still used in tlie East for such purposes. Tlie binish-green ~vhith sometirries appears on Eg?ptian antiquities is a faded blue. The blncks might be from wine-lees, burnt pitch, charcoal, or soot. Painters and sculptors held in Egypt a rank similarto that of architects ancl professional scribes-inclee~l, painting, sculpture, and architectnre vere so intimately united that i t i almost impossihle to separate t h e m " The same kind of wooden or inkstanil, mas used by the linlner in drawing out. lines, as by the scribe in writing upon a papyrus ; and the same kind of rezcl pen mas employed for both purposes. The inlistanil contained two colours, black and red, the latter being used at tlle beginning of a snbject, and fbr the iiirision ai certain sentencs-sho\~irlg this cn>tom to hare been as old as that of holding the per1 behind the ear, often portrayed in . the paintir~gs the tombs. Some palettes contained riiorr of than tir-o colours-blacli, red, blue. green, ancl white. The? were of the same long shape as the or2,inary inlistand, vitE tlle usual case in tlie centre for holding the pens, and some ~r-ere square or oblong form, made of ~\-ood stoile, ~vith of or a larger c a v i t ~ each coionr. Slabs ancl pestles [mnllersj for fur grinding colours are also conlrnoilly found in the tombs of Tliebes, as well as lumps of ochre, green, blne, and other colours. The sacred scribes Rere of the priestly orcler, but the royal scribes might be either priests or military men, and tiley were generally soils of the king, or of the chief mend the conrt. The public scril~eswere also men of great tms! and consequence, to whom the settlement of public and pri r a t e ac:couiits rvns committed, and they assisted or performed the oilice of magistrates, in condemniiig defaulters to punish. merit."-Sir J. Gai.cl/ze,* Zt-ilki,isoil. F o r further infor mation on this interesting subject, see this author's great work on T h e P r i d e L$e, Jf([iznri.s, and Cz~~tonts tjil Of d12cieizt Egyptians. The Egyptians, besides painting the bas-reliefs, pintea also detached statues : the group of the man, woman, @8

cl

P1 si (;$; -

bl

irsl

tcw

e: o g

tcrlg

g

o01l i

tlir

mc(

tl fiC(

Ir

"'

0 1

g! hi

I

tk tc

&-

Ire

it till ich ue. , or r to ng, .it la . den

chilcl, of sadstone, i n the British Jlnaeum (So. 31), has been painted. They also painted obelislcs, sarcophagi, and other sillliiar objects. There is a painted sarcophagus in the JIusenm (So. 39), v;hich has been varnished. Some of the Egyptian varllishes mere made of glue, otllers appear to be resinous. A bright on painted mood, on analysation, dissolrecl mith a yellom colour, and, by mising I\-zter 15-ith it, Tvas precipitatecl in masses, wllence it may be inferred to hare been a resinous clissolved, probably, in oil of turpentine. Another experinlent mas made on a varnish wliich was thickly spread over some colours on a sarcophag~is,I\-liich prored it to be 1ut. glue. When dissolred in Ti7arm water, it sl~o\~-eclthready a the texture, and dried into a hornr translucent sliin ; the solution The v a s immediately decomposed by alcohol a112 an infusion of :mg gal!s. From the r e v thread1 nature of the glue. it appears n of to hare been made from very hard hides, such as tlicae of the \ ol d d in rhinoceros or hippopotamus. A fern words may be considered not out of place on t l ~ hieroe llOfB glyphs (litera!ly '' sacred sculptares "1, the " picture-~~riting" The? of the Egyptians. The hieroglyphs !\-ere generally colonred mitE or1 the great moni~mentsTT-lien con~plete ancl three principal ; jomt liitlds have been remarked by 31. Cliampollion :-1. Sculpith r jf01 tured, but not painted. 2. Sculptured and paintecl. 3. D r a ~ m in outline mith a pencil and then pclintecl. Sesides which, they bs of )the1 may be classed as-4. PolyclZ~.r/me,or paintrcL TI-it11rarious ,but colouru. 5. 2foizoch1.o1ne, or having only one tint throughout the inscription. As it is probable that all 15-ere painted, the 9 first class can only apply to certain inscriptions of nhich the en 01 colonrs have disappeared. The second mas that in use for trns: I pn monuments of the highest importance, On these, bx means endea- ,rmei of simple primitirecolours and flat tints, the E g ~ p t i a n s the inish. voured to inlitate conventionally the objects ~ r l ~ i c h hiero- infor glyphs represented: thns the hearen was coloured blue, the red gar- great hills red, the moon yellow; men ~ r i t h flesh and ml~ite f tit ments, the folds of which are sometimes traced ill red, k c . Some idea may be formed in the Egyptian Court of the Crystal Palace of the beactiful appearaixe n-hich the tombs presented, and the gay and nrtistic efitct produced by D 2

PAINTIXG POPCLARLY EXPLAISED.

lines of these pure hieroglypl~s,appropriately coloured nith. sinlple colour to imitate t l ~ e objects tlieg represent. Alpha, betic mritil~g coinpared to it is as mean and tasteless as thg " Franlr" dress co~npnred with tile Oriental costume. It I evident, howercr, that so elaborate a systeln of ~vriting mas not calcnIated for monnments, tuliess tiley \yere of the greater! irllportance. Cocseqnelltly, for the books or roils of papp ancl other ol~jecta,such as sarcophagi ancl tablets, another liind of hieroglypl~s, tt-hich tlls term l i j ~ e ( thas been ap to r Irere used. Tlieae twre en7mrecl r i t h a pvinted tvl~ .sllen cut, ancl trncrcl \\- it!^ the reecl \\-11e11writtt.11it1 blacli or red ink; and either by tracing the outline of the object, o:

thth' bu 1'11 ofSll

ot! I'e llu

,,

d;!

ancl subclivisions of style, accorclii~gas they approac!i to, c. ,,., recede from, in their finish, the pure hierogl~phs. Tbeyfux a very large class and portion of the writing, They ar. us generally black, but the leii.cii:~g worils of' tile cllap~ersa,. clireetion pages are written in red li!ie tlic rubrics of pragep lla books ; and soilietiines tlie ~ ~ o r isi acconlpanied tllroughor ! a by vignettes, one to each cllnptcr, i'laborately pairlted B x! tlxose of missals." an Yet, with uncleniable ~neellariicnlmerit, scarcely a sing:, pr principle of art is illust~.atcd ally Icincl of Egyptian pain( a in i n s yet ~liscoverccl,if we except perhaps one or two of tt! m sn1i;ll cedar portrz~its ~v\-hichliave been found in mumq is cases, ancl in 5vllich we sce, in addition to the outline, th. ta

,,

,,

2. TIIE ASSTEIQSS.

tn

el:

Rer ~IR. LAYLED us that traccs of colour and tells foinlcl up011 nearly all the h:is-reliefs &scorered at Kinevet

dl

Eggptiarh Hie~~ql(/plis.

F o r further information on the various kinds of writing, as k i ~ i ~ ( l f i corsacerc!ota~ ILlallntr; tlit! d, l,lotic, orenc?~o~.in!; hepopulsr., f , t c;iis:olarv, sce Jlr. Satnu..-1 Birch's Iut,.odzrction to the Stl,rly c$1''

*

P G Pz

;ith ha. the

thus showing that the Assyrians, like otlier nations, painted their sculptnres and the architectural ornaments of tlleir builclings. The art displayed in the scn!pt~~rce,although ti rnde and pimitive, \ras clistingoished by considerable truth ma3 of outline and elegance of detail, and Tras in some re~pects 1teit sliperior to the Egyptian. I t liaa noTstalienits place anlonqst P>': ot!ier styles of ancient art, ancl is 2uiily rerogniaecl by its ,the: characteristics, especially in the treatment of the aP 11m11an form, marlted by the strong develoy~nent the limbs of t a ~ and muscles; in the nature of its ornamentation freqltently k O! distinguished by considerable grace and beaut!-: a1111 in the !t, c: conrentional mode of portraying ~latnral ol,jcct;, such as Tll, n~om~tains, tree?. rivers, k c . Tile colonrs enlploj-ed, as far as sioc: they ha\,? 5 cr been anal!-sed, \!-ere nlincral pigments. There to, T are, ho.;,.ever, gronnc1.s for h c l i ~ r i n gthat ~ e g e t a h colours l~ iir were not unl;no~rn to the Assyrians, bnt were eztensirelp y a: used in decorating the walls of thi-ir palaces: still, beins j 9. J su11,ject to more rapid decal than the n~ineralpigment.;, they rapep liare disappeared. The colours discorerecl in the rnins were gho: a blne of great brilliancy, derived from copper ; red, -eilom, rrhite, black, and green. Tl~esecolo!:rs, wit11 sereral shades 1!oi.! and tintst nlay bt: wen on bricks bronght from the ruins, and s~ng preserved in the British JTnscam. The clarli black oiltline is a distingnishing feature of Assyrian art. As on Egyptian paid oi tt mon~unents,colourq m r e probably used conrentionaily-that is to say, the same coloi~rs\rere al\\-ags en~plo-jed !hr a ccrurn8 le, tb tain class of objects. From the dran-ingx made frcm p i n t e d at ,vpti~ ~1x11s Khoraabad, recently sent to Paris, it n-ould appear, ho~rever,that human flesh was closely imitateil in colour. ilge The Assyrians seem also to have been fond of using only two colonrs, such, for instance: as yello~v and blue, in very elaborate decorations, combining them so as sliilfully to produce a very pleasing effect.3. THE GGEEliS.

PAISTISG said to hare passed through sereral stages in isGreece, commencing with simple sh.itrrji.~:i~hj,c r sh-do\vpainting; by which is meant giving the exterior ontline, or

38

PAINTING POPULARLY EXPLAIKED.

shape of the shadow of an object, without any internlediak lines. According to the well-known pretty fable, the origin of is attributed to an effort in skiagraphy-~iz., that of the Greek ~llaiden trace the outline of the shadoa to of her departing lover on the The ~izoizographicaty!~ consisted also of lines, but the inner lines or markings verc given as well as the exterior outline. I n ~no~iochi.oi?iatic compositions, as is intimated by the derivation of the ~ ~ o r d , one colour only was used (the black designs on the rases were probably considered l~~onochrome paintings) ; while i polychi*o,~iyseveral colours are, of course, employed. fin all^! zogmaphy appears to hare been the full art of painting to th life, and applyiilg colours duly subordinated to the l a w o: light and shade. Painting --as later than sculpture in becoming an indepe~ dent art in Greece, partly because the Grecian worship stood in little need of it. For a long time, therefore, all painting! consisted in colouriug statues and relids of wood and cia: Homer speaks only of red-proved and purple-pro~red ships he al!udes, however, to elegant and elaborate enlbroider~a: son~ething uncomnlon, and '' this is painting in principle not though not actually in practice; i t is textile painting, 01 p~inting with t!le needle, and this is what it is termed. bYth Romans; such expressions are used by Cicero, by Pir$ and by Horace."* But of painting itself there is little tc he said before about 500 B.C. Ariatotle n~entions very re. a markable piece of embroidery, which %as made for Blcisthen~* one of the luxurious natives of Sybaris. A description 01 this shawl, which was the wonder of the Heliots, d be found in Grote's H i s t o y of Greece. By the Greet artistic traditions, the first a d r a ~ ~ c ins painting are ahcribtb e t o the Corinthians and Sicyonians, who are mentioned d t 6 out much credibility, however, as the inventors of outlint drawing and monochrolue painting. At Corinth, "the ci! of potters," painting was certainly very early uniteit wt! the fabricatio~lof vases ; and the connesion of this citr B d

* Wo~xux$ Epochs of

Painting.

iate i gn i viz.,dorjt$t

nertlnfic

;ord, :ases e in iall~.o thr

rs

0:

epenstooC

itingr cia:. hips. " 1 iciple 15, 07 b thi r

"

tle t;

,q It.hener ion 0.

, nilGrek;crib; \rith, ~utlini le cit!,~t:

hare been the means of conreying the alltique Tariiuinii to Etruria, for tile Etruscans probably stSle of vase barro15-ed their art from the Greeks. The mam~facture of raysTITasfrom an early l~eiiod divided into ttvo maill branches: tile light pello\\. vases .ivithout gloss, of broader and illore depressed forms, with red, b r o ~ n ,and violet figures, m*hich, for the most part, represent ailiinal shapes of au a?abeque character; the dark yellow vases, xvl~icli were better varnished and of s illore tasteful form, wit11 blacli figures, chiefly of a mFtllological nature. Both were fabricated in Greece and ItnlJ. Tile archaic, or oldest ~ a i n t e d rases, furnish, by tlle rudelless aud clumsiness of tlleir figures, the lllost disthe tinct idea of the stages through ~ ~ l i i e h art of design must hare pnssed before i t could arrive at an established and regular 18.58. national style. See Biisc7~'s Aizcieizt P o f t e ~ ~ l , From about 600 B.C. to 400 E.C. n:a~ be dated the period 1 of derelopmcnt 11 painting. The esseitficrl qualities of for111 and sspressinn were exhibited ill historical painting, co:~stituting v.!lat has siuce been called High Art. Cinlon of Cleone, mh~: by sonle is believed to hare lived near11 a century befurr: ic Pol,~gnot~ls, t!le firit Grwk artist of importance. He made great progress in the perspective treatmeilt of sulic.cts. H e is recorded as the inrentor of fo~eshoi.teizi~zg," or the first to make oblique or incliiled viers of the figure, ~ ~ h i c h the Grrelcs, according to P l i n ~ ternled Ccrtrrg~apha. H e is , said also to hare been the first to mark the articulations, indicate the n~uscles veins, and give natural folds to drapery. and Vav-painting, \\-hie11 l ~ a d bee11 introdnced illto Italy alld Sicily from its two metropolises Corintli and Athens, remaiaed more restricted in ite resources ; so that the ~vorks,especially

y "id

* Fo?'cshorteni~~gis the apparent diminution of the length of a n olrject ill proportion ae the directiol~ its lellgtll is brougllt to coincide of nit11 the dircctio:~of the visual rays. Hitherto,in the llistory of art, Ke have llad :~oforesl~ortening, only the profile riem cf objects, but placed, as it were. flat on the \\-all. Foreshortening XTas therefore a bold inrention. Correct foreslrorteningis one of the greateqt difficulties ili art, and peculiar to psiuting, for the scnlptor doeskot require a knorrledge of its llrillciples, exccptiilg in taa-relief. Blicliael angel0 perhaps the greatest mastcr of foreshortening.

of the Chalciclian Greelis in Lort-er Italy (Nagna Greeia), took Attic models as their ground-mork, both in subjects and forms. Blacl; figures on reddish-yellow clay were nom the prevailing characteristic- I;? cnnied. Having in 1 1 1 ~ Lzctlures on stugury tahr \Y 1 t!lc liri:~gillan, the ac:tdeui~yn1scii.1, to il!~t~trate l)rl~c:b. a tlie iu fi.acttir.rs and clisIoc:itions, I 11-r-us;rcc~~toniecl introdoc?~~ a1 to t! ~ ~ o \ r t 'luubi.ulnr f ; . I l ~to~ class, \\-it11 t l i i ~apljeal: 'I,, r~~~l \ Iny k the exercise of )-our profi.,s,iu:; you Iinre to judge of tlie L:. s; p1acement of the limbs, and the joints clisfgurecl hy clislo~~~ tiona, fractnres, or tuinour; bat not one of - o n , perha erer 1ool;ed on the nat~iral bodv its;.lf.' I n giving t11e rnucll of tile structure oftlie lil sons, I becanie aware IIOIXcles nncl articnlationa ~uiglithe deinoristrat dissection.' * Tliis passage seems to us to dis clnerF Other interesting questions relate to to 1 p o l ~ c l ~ r o m y arcliitecture and tlie p:ril;ting of st;it~ies:'6 for a fe11- ri:marks on these we refer the reader to the App@ dis, note L). From the time of Alexander (or, at 310 B.c.) art rapidly deteriorated, scarcely note occurring. The subjects cliosen prove tlie decay liigl~er rnnclies. Caricatures are common, and rlryparo;.rap b

*

ETRUSCAN TEJIPER.1.

51

tLomtirp,

'

,fill-lifi or

i .?an!

1 ,, n?;

a,$ .

Yar.,

iw.ntl:YA, ]la:

9fi'2~"'0 lnakes its appearance, Pyreicus being its nlost fJ.mons master. Scenography was a l ~ i ~ l i rtto the decol ratioll o f t h e !~alact?s of t h e great. T h e love of nlngnificence ere11 demande:l the decoratioii of p a i ~ ~ t i fiir gfloors ; \vlience l~ art arose, ancl soon bcca~iicso clcve!opt.cl t h a t great coll~bnts f l~eroesand bnttle-scrnes \\-ere represented. Vaseo painting t1ic.d out cb.urirlg tliiz l)eriod, and soi~llest in the ~fiotlicrconntrj-. Pillage ai~clclewstation no\\- coiu~~ienced \?it11 tile victories of tlie I?oninn qt,ner;dx, till tlie porticos ailil t e ~ l i ~ l e s lionie \~-ert' at fi!lt'il n-kli sio1e:i n.oi.1i.i of art.4. TILE E I ' E U S C I S S .

,

is o ~ i l y bralich of tile Greek, though a mural ~iairiti~lg aeelii. to have been lirncti~ed Etruria sooiler it1 tlian \\-e hear of it in Greece. X n ~ u e ~ o sepolch~:ilchambers, ns rsy reit c,pe;.iiiliy at T i l r q ~ i ~ ~ i i : paiute.1 \\-it11 fi;ures, tlie coloilrs tire 0 : of \vl ich are laid iilniost 1)ureand u1;111iwtl on tlie stucco \\-it11 i? l: . \\.liicl: tile \v:tlls are coated, and tlioug!i not trne t o nature, . are Ii~trmo~iions.Tlic stJ-lc.of clra~vi~rg froni a severity passes let.- a n ~( are, \vllicii slio\v LII; :~ffinit!- \ r i i l ~earl?. Grceli I\-orlts, into l '1. the liaatj and caricature-1il;e 111zn1;~i. 11-liicli prev;liled i n tlie , later vurlis of the Etr;:.ennz. Creel; rabe-paiiiting, ~ v c a r e h lot? - said, \\-a3 earlier i;~lo\\-nto the Etruscans ; but it i probable , b that tllc Greek pottery n.as either introillicecl by cominerce, 1 . r:: that Greek artiats visit~'i1 the country. Tile colnparltively II'I..., f~ \-ales. inijrior in artistie yal~ie,which are inscribed \\-itll ~'tx-> Etrus~iincliaracteru, call alone afForil a sure ~.ritcrion which by to distinguish Etrnacnri and Greek l ~ r o ~ u c t i o n s .

ETRKSC~S

' Still-l(i6 is t!le csact inlitation of immobile oljjecta, sucll as fruit, floj~ers, eatables. Gorre is a Freticli \rord apglicd to tliose suband jects for vllicli tileye is no otllcr name, aud ~ ~ - l r i c l l tllerefore,classed are, as of 2 Certain *. genre" or l;i,lrl. Ylie subjects of gr7irr painting rieed cl~ not be low, a>in b ~ ~ r pictures, b u t tllej- must be f:tmiliar. A qeltre Picture, tllough it ulay not admit of being otlier!vise classified,yet may Plrtake of sometllingof t,ie q~lalitiei all. Tllc want of patronage of for the Stricter ti~atoric~l *ti.le in !;llpland has led to a compronliaetire 1iiatorical yefrre, of >\-i;ichsome of JIr. E. U.Ward's pictures are illustrations.E 2

5. THE ROJIASS.

vegetable and other form*, being strangely co~nlined villas, Fardens, streams, and all sorts of coinic situations, eff'kt. T1 ducing a pleasing and light, though fa~~tastic, the origin of' u ~ ~ n b e s i j or e I I O I ' C 1e.f - pictureof JIin z~ ~ S~ 1 by Fabullus, iiiSerr~'s Goiden IIouse, \\-as ad~ilireci, becaus goddess appeared to 1001; at every one from ~v!latt.rer situ the eyes were directed tolvards her. This probabl~ partly from the picture being in a dark sitiiatio~i;th lilalig 11ersoils \\.it11 a lively ililiigination (011 accoui~to

* " Pictor. ' cc:nomen ' of a I:oman painter, nsuallj- Bno kc. entire name Fzkblus 1'ictor."-Silli~~'sDictio~~nr?l. t This description of decoration discovered a t l'orn1,eii and

~ n ( 7Xrareutller, rlle former a t Berlin, the latter a t JIunic Glyptothel;, or aculpturc gallery.

EOJI-LS' TEMPERA AXD EXCAUSTIC.

flat surface) fancy, whenever eyes are p:Jnted looicing anything like straight out of the ca:lras, t h ~ , the represelltation t

of their own lrouses ; aird tlie custom obtaintmd for some tillle for the rzlatives, upon tl;c decrase of thc original, to conrcrt his bust into a f:iil-iengtli eEigy, irl~icll tlley carried and deposited i11 tlie temple wit!^ great cereliiony and state. A

t!lcir artists, atid Julius C';psar, dgrippa, and rlugustus were also great patrons of art ; but paintillg was? from the co~lln~oii decorative cliaracter it assumed, at length alinost left to be practised by slaves, and tlie painter ranked according to the 9'ialitity of work he could do in a day. S o v , as art is appreciated, so, naturallj-, is the artist he14 in eatilllation ; tlie conlilie\vise, rio doubt, holds good; we niaj easily infer, therehe, tlie extent of the " D6cadence des Xomains."" In the age of liadrian, painting ~ ~ i h s t , however, have revived n-it11 the other arts. a t i o n , \\.ho belonged to this age, is ranked b~ Lucian among the greatest artists, especially for his charmpicture of " Blexallder and Rosana." But from this time painting contiiiued steadily to decline, till all that in its prime distingnished it n ~ a g said to have be

PAISTIXG PCiPULhRLY ESPLAIXED.

tlie ibunci.ation of Constanti~ioyle(tlie ancient B>-zaatiuiii", Ronie was in its tun1 clespoileil to eiabcllish the new capita], 3 r d ~ r l i a t a s left !\-as clestrogecl 'uy tlic incursiolls of tlie bar .' r barinns. E ~ e r ~ i r h r r e , a!so, ignorance proc!uced neglect and ii~clifS~rence, religicins fxintic.i>n~ ancl co~itribliteil greatly 10 t h e deatractioi~ the ren~niilsof ancient art. Thce>talli>h.' of ment of C!iristiilnit\- \\.as, bt'iiil~s, a great clierli io tile !,rat. tice of art ; for tiic purity of tlie n i w religion coiltrasii'li so . great]: ~ i - i t hb e a t l ~ c ~c~ari1ptia11, that it* professors iidtc. , i rally loolced \ r i t l ~ little hro11r upon arts n-liicll Irere iiirntiiird ~vith pagan iclolatry so intirnate1~-11sto be scarcelj- posbible to clisnnite tlieiil, ~ i o to 111t11i:iori that a brailch of art 11:1cl loiig t been depmrcil to gratify t h e lolrest seiisnalit~. 3Ioreo~i.;,' cupiSiity had a share irl tlie general desticction : tliiligs ~rlliea conlil he 1iiritc:l Aov-11, sivcli as the bronze statue... , \rere tliur

t rt(

t(

1j

by awidcntiil tiyes.6. 1:ElIhISS O F A S C I E S T P A I S T I S G .

TTE h a r e incic!eiitaily 1i1entiont.d some remains of an paintiilg, but it 1n.i been reri~nr!;eil tile g e a t ~ ~ c i ; . painting of tile beat ages of a~itiquityare entilvlj- ! ~ z tt all tliat reniaiiis consists of Inere clecorative painting, ni tlie most part the con~moup!;tce proiiucti~>ils a rec in city of the infcrior artists of an inferio