EXHIBITORS’ DESCRIPTIVE CATALOGUE.
[Illustration: PLAN OF SPACE FOR EXHIBITION.
A}
B} Non-Selling Division.
C}
⁂ The Selling Division comprehending the South Gallery and the Galleries
on the South-Eastern side are devoted to Miscellaneous Articles.]
INDEX TO ADVERTISEMENTS.
GROUND FLOOR:--SOUTH-WEST SIDE: Page
STATIONERY COURT.--COURT OF INVENTIONS 179
HARDWARE COURT 180
BIRMINGHAM COURT 181
SHEFFIELD COURT.--MINERAL MANUFACTURES COURT.--HEATH’S BATH
WHEEL CHAIR DEPARTMENT 182
GROUND FLOOR:--SOUTH-EAST SIDE:
FOREIGN GLASS MANUFACTURES COURT 182
FRENCH COURT:--CARRIAGE DEPARTMENT 183
EAST GALLERY:--CENTRAL TRANSEPT 184
SOUTH-EAST GALLERY 185
SOUTH GALLERY:--PICTURE GALLERY 186
WEST GALLERY:--CENTRAL TRANSEPT 187
NORTH TRANSEPT:--TROPICAL DEPARTMENT 189
BASEMENT:
MACHINERY 189
AGRICULTURAL IMPLEMENTS 190
EXHIBITORS’ DESCRIPTIVE CATALOGUE
Stationery Court.
SPECIMENS of ORNAMENTAL DESIGN for BOOK-BINDING, &c. Exhibited by JOHN
LEIGHTON, F.S.A.
GEORGE ROWNEY & Co., 51, Rathbone Place, London.--Specimens of Drawing
and Painting Materials. Specimens of Chromo-Lithography.
NATURE PRINTING.--The specimens exhibited of this new process for
obtaining life-like or physiotypic impressions of plants are mostly of
FERNS and MOSSES, but the process is still further peculiarly
applicable to the representation of the GRASSES, the LICHENS, and the
SEA-WEEDS. These results are obtained by placing the specimen to be
copied upon a plate of soft lead, with a highly-polished surface, and
passing it, at a high pressure, between hard steel rollers. The
specimen leaves its impression upon the lead, and gives not only its
outline, but also the most delicate elevations and depressions of its
surface with that sharpness and fidelity as to present a _perfect
fac-simile_ of the original specimen in its natural size. The lead
plate thus impressed--not being practically available for printing
purposes--is copied by the electrotype process, by which a copper
plate (the image on which is perfectly identical with the original
impressed lead plate) is obtained, which can be printed from at an
ordinary copper-plate press.
NATURE PRINTING was introduced into England by Mr. HENRY BRADBURY, in
1853; the first application of the process has been most successfully
exemplified by him in the magnificent folio Edition of “THE FERNS OF
GREAT BRITAIN AND IRELAND,” NATURE PRINTED. Descriptions by THOMAS
MOORE, F.L.S.; Edited by Dr. LINDLEY. Imperial folio, with 51
Nature-Printed plates. Price £6 6_s._
[Illustration]
J. JONES & CO.,
21, SOHO SQUARE, LONDON.
First Class Pianofortes from Twenty-four Guineas.
EXHIBITORS IN LONDON AND PARIS EXHIBITIONS.
JARRETT’S IMPROVED EMBOSSING, COPYING, and PATENT ENDORSING PRESSES.
Chief Depôt, 37, Poultry, City.
WATERLOW & SONS, London Wall, Birchin Lane, and Parliament Street,
London, Stationers, Account Book and Envelope Manufacturers.
Court of Inventions.
BRYAN CORCORAN & CO., 36, MARK LANE,
OBTAINED Prize Medal at the London Universal Exhibition, 1851, for
finest Specimen of METALLIC CLOTH; and in Paris Industrial Exhibition
of 1855, MODEL of IMPROVED DRYING KILN for Malt and all other Grain,
on a scale of one inch to the foot. The improvements are economy of
fuel, regularity of heat, and prevention of condensation of steam.
Specimens of Paper Machine Wires of all widths to 108 inches. Woven
Brass Wire, No. 150 X 160, 24,000 holes to the square inch, half yard
wide. Twilled Copper and Brass, 1,120 shoots in one inch, the finish
woven. Iron Woven Wire, 1,000 holes in one inch. Copper Wire or
Thread, 3,000 yards to one ounce. Brass Wire or Thread, 1,300 yards to
one ounce. Iron Wire or Thread, 542 yards to one ounce. Improved Wire
Work for Screens, Sieves, &c. Strong Woven Wire for Malt Kilns, Smut
Machines, &c. Swiss Silk for dressing flour. French Millstone for
grinding wheat.
AWARDED A PRIZE MEDAL UNDER CLASS XIX.
TO THE CARPET TRADE.--ROYAL VICTORIA FELT CARPETING.
The Patent Woollen Cloth. Company beg to inform the trade that their
NEW PATTERNS in CARPETS and TABLE COVERS for the present season are
now out, and will be found far superior to any they have hitherto
produced, both in style and variety. The public can be supplied at all
respectable Carpet Houses in London and the country.
The Company deem it necessary to caution the public against parties
who are selling an inferior description of goods as Felted Carpets,
which will not bear comparison with their manufacture, either in style
or durability; and that the genuineness of the goods can always be
tested by purchasers, as the Company’s carpets are all stamped at both
ends of the piece, “Royal Victoria Carpeting, London,” with the Royal
arms in the centre.
The Company’s Manufactories are at Elmwood Mills, Leeds, and Borough
Road, London. Wholesale Warehouses at
8, LOVE LANE, WOOD STREET, CHEAPSIDE.
Hardware Court.
A FIRST-CLASS SILVER MEDAL has been awarded to NYE and Co., at the
Paris Universal Exhibition, 1855, for their Improved
[Illustration]
Patent Sausage-making and General Mincing Machine,
For private families, hotel-keepers, &c. Price £1 10s., £2 2s., and £3
3s. Also a small Mincer for the dinner table, to assist digestion,
loss of teeth, &c., price from 30s. A Patent Coffee Mill, price 10s.
Testimonials sent free.
79, WARDOUR STREET, SOHO.
FLAVEL’S PRIZE KITCHENER.--The only Kitchen Range which obtained a
Prize Medal and Special Approbation at the Great Exhibition. Sole
Agents, BENHAM & SONS, 19, WIGMORE STREET, LONDON.
BENHAM & SONS, Manufacturers of Drawing Room and other Stoves,
Fenders, Fire Irons, Gas and Hot Water Apparatus, Baths, Kitchen
Ranges, and Dinner Lifts. 19, WIGMORE STREET, CAVENDISH SQUARE,
LONDON.
THE PAXTON FLOWER BASKETS.--W. COGGER, Manufacturer, and Ornamental
Wire Worker to the Crystal Palace Company. Garden Arches, Aviaries,
Rose Temples, Flower Stands, Trainers, &c. Address, Westow Hill, Upper
Norwood, Surrey, S.
JAMES RUSSELL & SONS, Crown Tube Works, Wednesbury, and 81, Upper
Ground Street, Blackfriars, S. Patent Lap-Welded Tubes for Gas, Steam,
and other purposes.
GEORGE JENNINGS, Engineering, Building, and Sanitary Appliances, 5,
HOLLAND STREET, BLACKFRIARS ROAD, LONDON.
PATENT COOKERY STOVES, which obtained a Prize Medal from England and
France. DALEY & SONS, NORTHAMPTON.
BY HER MAJESTY’S ROYAL LETTERS PATENT.
THE LOVERS’ LAMPS, price Five Shillings each. No dressing or trimming
required.
EDMUND SPILLER, 98, HOLBORN HILL, LONDON.
BACHELORS’ KETTLES, from 3s. each. Self-acting Cooking Apparatus to
Fit the above, 1s. 6d. each.
EDMUND SPILLER, 98, HOLBORN HILL, LONDON.
PIERCE’S IMPROVEMENTS IN FIRE-LUMP GRATES.
PIERCE’S CELEBRATED
FRESH AIR WARMING AND VENTILATING
FIRE LUMP GRATES,
FOR the production of HEALTHFUL WARMTH and CONTINUOUS VENTILATION--for
which the PRIZE MEDAL of the GREAT EXHIBITION of 1851 was awarded to
PIERCE, the INVENTOR and SOLE MANUFACTURER--at prices from 50s. to
150s. upwards.
[Illustration]
PIERCE’S PYRO-PNEUMATIC
Warming and Ventilating STOVE GRATES,
WHICH received the SOCIETY of ARTS’ LARGE BRONZE MEDAL in 1859, is now
in universal use, warming CHURCHES, PUBLIC BUILDINGS, HALLS,
BANKING-HOUSES, SCHOOLS, WAREHOUSES, SHOPS, &c., &c., &c. Prices, £7
10s. to £25.
Also his IMPROVED COTTAGER’S GRATE, for warming two rooms with only
one fire. Price 30s. and 35s. And his ECONOMICAL RADIATING FIRE LUMP
DRAWING-ROOM GRATES, made in a VARIETY OF ELEGANT DESIGNS.
Prospectuses and Testimonials will be forwarded on application to
PIERCE, at his Manufactory and Warehouse,
5, JERMYN STREET, REGENT STREET.
TWO Prize Medals were Awarded, at the Paris Exhibition, for LYON’S
SAUSAGE CUTTING and MAKING MACHINE, Manufactured in Four Sizes, price
£1 10s. to £6 6s. Also his Small Machines for the Dinner Table, used
to assist digestion, Loss of Teeth, &c. These are made to keep the
cooked food hot while being cut up.
An Improved Chopping Knife, for chopping suet, parsley, &c., fitted to
a strong board. Also an Improved Cucumber or Potato Slicer.
Prepared Skins for Sausages, warranted to keep in any climate. A
much-approved Seasoning Mixture for Sausages, &c.
A. LYON, Patentee and Manufacturer, 32, WINDMILL STREET, FINSBURY,
LONDON.
Circular, with Plates, Price, and Testimonials, sent post free.
Birmingham Court.
JOSIAH WOOLDRIDGE, Manufacturer of Cabinet Brass Foundry, Brass
Fittings, Brass Toy Cannons, Mortars, Anchors, Bells, and a variety of
other Brass Toys. 38, St. Paul’s Square, Birmingham.
G. B. LLOYD & Co., Manufacturers of Lapwelded Iron Tubes for Steam
Boilers, Gas and Steam Tubing, &c., Berkeley Tube Works, Gas Street,
Birmingham.
JOHN C. ONIONS, Manufacturer of Smiths’ Bellows for Anchor Smiths,
Machinists, and others, Patent Circular, House, Library, and every
description of Fancy Bellows, Patent Water and other Tue Irons,
Anvils, Vices, and Hammers, Improved Blowing Machines, &c., Bradford
Street, Birmingham.
CHARLES ALLDRIDGE & SON, Cabinet and Stationery Case Manufacturers,
Regent Parade, Caroline Street, Birmingham.
THE PATENT CRYSTAL WINDOW BARS, adapted for Domestic Windows, Shop
Fronts, Conservatories, Skylights, Verandahs, Exhibition and Counter
Cases, Aquariums, Fern Cases, &c., &c., combining perfect transmission
of light, durability against rust or decay, and economy in the
facility with which they are kept clean.
Aquariums with Slate or Marble Bottoms of various sizes, with or
without Fountains, also of glass.
Manufactured by LLOYD & SUMMERFIELD, Park Glass-Works, Birmingham.
All kinds of Flint Glass, cut and plain, Coloured Window Sheet,
Optical Sheet, Coloured Lenses, &c., &c.
GEORGE HAINES PARKES, General Coach, and Harness Furniture
Manufacturer, for Home and Exportation, 10 and 11, St. Mary’s Row,
Birmingham.
MESSRS. ELKINGTON, MASON, & Co., Exhibit Specimens of their
Electro-Plate and Fine Art Manufactures, between the Sheffield and
Birmingham Courts, in the Nave.
Sheffield Court.
ÆOLIAN PITCH-PIPES, TUNING FORKS, CHROMATIC FORKS, PORTABLE
METRONOMES, TUNING HAMMERS, REED METAL. EDWARD GREAVES, 76, Milton
Street, Sheffield.
Mineral Manufactures Court.
TO GOLD, SILVER, ANTIMONY, STEEL, AND BRASS MELTERS AND REFINERS.
THE PATENT PLUMBAGO CRUCIBLE COMPANY, BATTERSEA WORKS, LONDON, S.W.,
MANUFACTURERS to the ROYAL MINTS OF ENGLAND, FRANCE, RUSSIA, PRUSSIA,
HOLLAND, BELGIUM, AMERICA, CALIFORNIA, AUSTRALIA, &c., and every Gold
and Silver Refiner in London, direct attention to the great
superiority of their Patent Plumbago and other Melting Pots and
Crucibles.
PRICE LISTS AND TESTIMONIALS ON APPLICATION.
Heath’s Bath Wheel Chair Department.
J. HEATH, 4, Broad Street, Bath, Maker to the Sovereigns of England,
France, Spain, &c. &c., Manufacturer of the Chair presented by Her
Majesty to the Empress of the French.
Foreign Glass Manufactures Court.
FRANCIS STEIGERWALD, Bohemian and Bavarian Coloured Glass
Manufacturer, Munich.--Large Assortment constantly exhibited at the
Crystal Palace, Sydenham.
French Court.
=JEWELLERY.=--Bracelets, Brooches, Chains, Lockets, Charms, Keys,
Seals, Ear-rings, Studs, Sleeve Links, Gem and Signet Rings, &c., in
Gold, Silver, Pebble, Tortoiseshell, Ivory, Jet. Also in
Electro-plating and Gilding.
=FANS.=--Bone, Ivory, Pearl, Enamelled, and Sandal Wood (with Spangles
or Painting), in Paper, Linen, Battiste, Kid, Silk, &c. Pocket Opera
Glass, Shade, Bouquet, and other novelties.
=LEATHER GOODS.=--Reticules, Etwees, Housewifes, Bags (fitted or
unfitted), Dressing Cases, Desks, Blotters, Papeteries, Envelope,
Stationery, and Etui Cases, Pocket Books, Porte Monnaies, City Purses,
Season Ticket and Sermon Cases, Music Rolls, Needle Books, Cigar and
Card Cases, &c. PAPIER MACHE of every variety, in Plain, Inlaid, and
Mediæval Work.
=CABINET WARE= of all descriptions, in Mahogany, Walnut, Ebony, Oak,
Rosewood, Amboyna, Cedar, Coromandel, and other Woods.
=SUNDRIES.=--Pearl, Ivory, Scotchwood, and other works, in variety too
numerous to particularise.
CUTLERY, PERFUMERY, BONBONS, PRINTS, &c., &c., CLOCKS, BRONZES,
MODERATEUR LAMPS, &c., &c.
RUMSEY’S IMPROVED PLATE POWDER.
MANUFACTORIES--LONDON, BIRMINGHAM, SHEFFIELD, WHITBY, PARIS,
FRANKFORT, DIEPPE, AND BERLIN.
ROBERT HOLT,
PROPRIETOR.
Carriage Department.
CARRIAGES BY THE AID OF MACHINERY.
KINDER & M^{c}NAUGHT,
MANUFACTURERS,
WORCESTER,
BEG respectfully to invite the attention of all purchasers to the many
Improvements recently introduced by them into modern Carriages. The
style and excellence of their work is rarely equalled by the most
expensive builders in London, and has the advantage of being produced
at a moderate price,--a result mainly arrived at by an extensive
adaptation of machinery, such as no other house in the trade
possesses.
A communication by letter, or the favour of a call at their
Works,--where, in addition to employing upwards of 100 hands, they
have erected engines of 25-horse power, which, with the above, and
several newly patented adjustments, may be seen in full operation,--is
respectfully solicited.
SWAINE AND ADENEY, Whip Manufacturers to the Queen and Royal Family,
Prize Medal awarded at the Exhibition of 1851.--No. 185, Piccadilly,
London.
ROCK AND SON, Patentees of the Dioropha and other improved Carriages.
Manufactory at Hastings. Export orders carefully packed.
[Illustration]
BLACKWELL’S
PATENT SADDLERY AND HARNESS MANUFACTORY, &c.,
359, OXFORD STREET, NEAR THE MARBLE ARCH, LONDON.
AWARDED THE PRIZE MEDAL,
LONDON.
and
THE ONLY 1st CLASS SILVER MEDAL FOR
SADDLERY, PARIS.
“GUTTA PERCHA JOCKEYS,” for Breaking Horses Temperate and
Easy-mouthed, with vulcanized Rubber Spring Reins of varied strengths,
54s. to 60s. Above a thousand in use; Hire, 2s. per week.
SAFETY SPRINGS FOR RIDING AND DRIVING REINS TO BOTH BITS, one Rein in
hand 4s. to 6s.
STRAPS TO PREVENT CRIB-BITING, LINED WITH CLOTH, 18s. Three sorts of
crib-muzzles, 18s.
VULCANIZED INDIA-RUBBER SPRINGS FOR SADDLE STRAPS, GIRTHS, ROLLERS,
BELTS, ETC., 2s.
BRASS, IRON, AND GERMAN SILVER (VULCANISED RUBBER SPRING) HOOKS FOR
BRIDLES, REINS, WHIPS, CHAINS, ETC., Waterproof Kersey Knee Wrappers,
Driving Aprons, Loin Cloths, and Horse Clothing. Web Fetlock, Speedy,
Splint, Leg, Strengthening, and Knee Boots, with Rubber Knee Caps, 8s.
to 12s.
To be seen, and the utility explained, in the Carriage Department,
Crystal Palace.
East Gallery--Central Transept.
GOODYEAR’S “VULCANITE” COURT,
CENTRAL TRANSEPT GALLERY, GARDEN SIDE.
VISITORS to the Crystal Palace should inspect the above beautiful
Court, which is built and furnished throughout with “Vulcanite,” or
hard India Rubber, and where may be purchased
Combs,
Canes,
Brooches,
Boxes,
Opera Glasses,
Penholders,
Book-marks,
Cigar Cases,
Pencils,
Rings,
Brushes,
Flasks,
Drinking Cups,
Paper Knives,
Surgical Instruments,
&c. &c.
The Patent Woollen-Surfaced Waterproof Coats and Capes, equal to
finest cloth--Overshoes--the Percussion Pencil--The Musical Toys--and
innumerable other things made of the same material.
This new manufacture of India Rubber excels Ivory and hard wood in
beauty of polish, durability, and elasticity. The Council Medal, Great
Exhibition, 1851, and Grande Medaille d’Honneur, Exposition
Universelle, 1855, were awarded, and are on view as above.
Wholesale Warehouse, 47, Leicester Square, London, W.C.
South-East Gallery.
[Illustration]
THE BEST AND CHEAPEST TEAS IN ENGLAND
ARE AT ALL TIMES TO BE OBTAINED OF
PHILLIPS AND COMPANY,
TEA MERCHANTS,
8, KING WILLIAM STREET, CITY, LONDON.
For the convenience of Visitors to the Crystal Palace, SAMPLE PACKETS
of PHILLIPS & CO.’S RARE TEAS, COFFEES, and CHOCOLATES may be obtained
at their Stand, in the South-East Gallery.
FRENCH CHOCOLATE,
As supplied to HER MAJESTY and the ROYAL FAMILY, may be obtained of
PHILLIPS & COMPANY, in the South-East Gallery, and at 8, King William
Street, City.
TEAS, COFFEES, AND SPICES SENT CARRIAGE FREE
To any Railway Station or Market Town in England, if to the value of
40s. or upwards.
PHILLIPS & COMPANY, TEA AND COLONIAL MERCHANTS, 8, KING WILLIAM
STREET, CITY, LONDON. SUGARS ARE SUPPLIED AT MARKET PRICES.
_A Price Current is published every month, containing all the
advantages of the_ LONDON MARKETS, _and is sent free by post on
application_.
South Gallery.
PERAMBULATORS, ROCKING HORSES, NURSERY YACHTS, BABY JUMPERS, &c.--MEAD
and POWELL, Manufacturers and Patentees of the above articles, invite
the attention of Parents and Guardians to the above useful inventions
for Children. They have always on hand an extensive stock to select
from; with every description of FOREIGN and ENGLISH TOYS. Also, a
large assortment of BAGATELLE BOARDS, FANCY GOODS, &c., &c.
Agents for the Sale of Crystal Palace Season Tickets.
SOUTH EASTERN BAZAAR, 6, 7, 9, RAILWAY ARCADE, LONDON BRIDGE.
[Illustration]
GLASS SHADES.
CLAUDET AND HOUGHTON,
89, HIGH HOLBORN.
PAINTED, STAINED, AND ORNAMENTAL WINDOW GLASS.
CLAUDET AND HOUGHTON, 89, HIGH HOLBORN.
Picture Gallery.
Having passed through the Picture Gallery, we arrive at the
West Gallery--Central Transept.
JOSEPH MORGAN,
PLATTED CANDLE WICK MANUFACTURER for all descriptions of Hard Material
Candles. PATENTEE of SELF-CONSUMING WICK for Tallow, Mould, and Dip
Candles. Patent Moulding Machines for making Spermaceti, Stearine,
Composite, or Tallow Candles. Pewterer and Manufacturer of all
descriptions of Candle Machinery.
DUCIE WORKS, MANCHESTER.
PHILLIPS AND COMPANY’S
CELEBRATED TEAS AND COFFEES,
AS EXHIBITED HERE, MAY BE PURCHASED AT THEIR STAND, IN THE SOUTH-EAST
GALLERY, OPPOSITE. SEE CATALOGUE OE S.E. GALLERY.
[Illustration]
SAMPLES OF RARE AND CURIOUS TEAS,
EXHIBITED BY
PHILLIPS AND COMPANY,
TEA MERCHANTS,
8, KING WILLIAM STREET, CITY, LONDON.
JONAS BROOK AND BROS.,
MELTHAM MILLS, NEAR HUDDERSFIELD.
THE ONLY PRIZE MEDAL FOR SEWING COTTON, &c., AT THE LONDON EXHIBITION,
1851.
The only First-Class Prize Medal for Sewing Cotton, &c., at the Paris
Exhibition, 1855.
WHITE, BLACK, AND COLOURS.
Patent Glacé--6 and 9 Cords--Patent Cord--Sewing Machine Cottons. The
Name and Goat’s Head Crest is on every reel.
Embroidering and Crochet Cottons--Upholsterer’s Colours--All lengths
are guaranteed.
May be obtained retail of all respectable Haberdashers in London and
the Provinces.
WHOLESALE: 20, CANNON STREET WEST, LONDON.
See their Case as it appeared in Paris in this Gallery. Specimens of
their Manufacture are on sale by E. SUMNER, SOUTH GALLERY, CRYSTAL
PALACE.
PERFUMERY, COMBS, BRUSHES, TURKEY SPONGE, and every requisite for the
Toilet, of the very best description, and in great variety, at J. & E.
ATKINSON’S, 24, Old Bond Street, London.
J. & E. ATKINSON beg leave to recommend their New Perfumes, the
CRYSTAL PALACE and TURKISH BOUQUETS, samples of which, with several
others, are always open for inspection.
EAU DE COLOGNE, from J. M. Farina, opposite Julliers Place, Cologne.
THE POCKET SIPHONIA,
Or WATERPROOF OVERCOAT, weight 10 oz.
NOTICE.--Name and Address stamped inside. None other are genuine.
EDMISTON & SON, WATERPROOFERS, 69, STRAND.
RUPTURES--BY ROYAL LETTERS PATENT.
WHITE’S MOC-MAIN LEVER TRUSS is allowed by upwards of 200 Medical
Gentlemen to be the most effective invention in the curative treatment
of Hernia.
ELASTIC STOCKINGS, KNEE CAPS, &c.
JOHN WHITE, Manufactory, 228, Piccadilly, London.
RICHARD GUNTER, Motcombe and Lowndes Street, Albert Gate.
Bride Cakes.--Wedding Breakfasts furnished complete with Wines and
Attendance.
WALTER EVANS & CO., Boar’s Head Cotton Manufactory, DERBY, EXHIBIT:--
SPOOLS IN CROCHET, GLACE THREAD, 3, 6, and 9 Cord SEWING COTTONS.
BALL COTTONS (various sizes).
SEWINGS, TAMBOURS, CORDS, AND BONNET COTTONS, in Skeins.
KNITTINGS, MENDINGS, FRENCH AND ENGLISH EMBROIDERING COTTONS.
COTTONS IN PROCESS.
STAYS SUPERSEDED.--RUMBLE’S IMPROVED ELASTIC BODICE, recommended by
eminent Physicians.--This superior and much-improved Elastic Bodice
can with confidence be offered to Ladies as surpassing any yet made;
it fastens easily in front, retains its firmness and elasticity, and
by a peculiar system adopted by Mrs. RUMBLE, a perfect fit is ensured.
Prices of Bodices, 12s. 6d., 14s., 16s., 21s. to 42s., and upwards. To
be obtained only of the Manufacturer, M. RUMBLE, 2, Welbeck-street,
Cavendish-square (opposite the Savings Bank), London.
CORK SOLES.
SAMPLES of various descriptions, chiefly remarkable for thinness and
durability, PATENT CORK LININGS, for the upper parts of boots and
shoes, for promoting warmth without interrupting perspiration. The
Sheet Cork is rendered strong by a preparation, its extreme thinness
prevents any perceptible increase in bulk or weight.
W. F. COLES, 61, Paul Street, Finsbury, E.C.
JAMES CARLILE, SONS, AND CO.,
Bank End Mill, Paisley,
MANUFACTURERS of COTTON and LINEN SEWING THREADS, viz.--6, 3, and 2
Cord, Crochet, Patent Glazed, and Wire or Bonnet Threads. Embroidery
Flowering. Moravian and Darning Cottons, and Linen Slop or Beat
Thread.
COMFORT TO THE FEET.
[Illustration: EASE IN WALKING]
THE PANNUS CORIUM BOOTS and SHOES are extremely soft and easy,
yielding to the action of the feet, without the least pressure or
painful effect in walking. A valuable relief to all who suffer from
Corns, Bunions, Gout, Chilblains, or any tenderness. The Pannus Corium
sold by the yard or piece.
HALL & CO., Patentees, 2, WELLINGTON STREET, STRAND, leading to
Waterloo Bridge.
LIGHT, CHEAP, AND DURABLE ROOFING.
CROGGON’S PATENT ASPHALTE ROOFING FELT effects a saving of half the
timber usually required; has been extensively used, and pronounced
efficient, and particularly applicable for warm climates.
Price, One Penny per Square Foot.
Samples, Testimonials, and full instructions, on application to
Croggon & Co., 2, Dowgate Hill, London.
LADIES, LET YOUR SERVANTS USE
RUMSEY’S IMPROVED PLATE POWDER,
WITHOUT QUICKSILVER--the Largest Quantity for ONE SHILLING, and you
will never desire another preparation. Also RUMSEY’S CHEMICAL
POLISHING PASTE, in large 6d. and 1s. Pots, for brass, steel, and
other white metals; as well as his superior URN POWDER, in 6d. and 1s.
Boxes. Sold almost _everywhere_, and by R. HOLT, FRENCH COURT, AND
SOUTH-EASTERN GALLERY, CRYSTAL PALACE, SYDENHAM. Manufactory, No. 20,
CLAPHAM ROAD PLACE, KENNINGTON, London, S., from whence the trade is
supplied on exceedingly liberal terms.
WILLIAM TONKS & SONS, Cheapside, Birmingham, General Brass-Founders
and Manufacturers of every Description of Brass work.
J. SOLOMON,
WHOLESALE OPTICAL & PHOTOGRAPHIC WAREHOUSE,
22, RED LION SQUARE, LONDON.
CATALOGUES GRATIS.
North Transept--Tropical Department.
[Illustration]
A SUNDIAL, like this, is placed on the Terrace of the Crystal Palace;
it shows the time at eight different parts of the world at one sight,
and also at the spot where it is placed.
Made by H. WEST, Optician and Sundial maker to the Queen, 41, Strand,
opposite the Lowther Arcade.
Basement--Machinery.
ALFRED WRIGHT & CO.,
MANUFACTURERS of Smiths’ Bellows, Improved Blowing Machines, Portable
Iron Forges, with bellows attached, of all descriptions, to Her
Majesty’s Honourable Board of Ordnance, the Honourable East India
Company, Retail and for Exportation. Also House and Fancy Bellows.
16, LITTLE ALIE STREET, WHITECHAPEL. LONDON.
REEDS OR SLAYS.
AMONG the various samples of REEDS or SLAYS, the only ones that
received Honourable Mention by the Commissioners of the PARIS
UNIVERSAL EXHIBITION were
A. BROWN’S, of BARNSLEY, YORKSHIRE.
RICHARD JOHNSON & BROTHER, Iron Manufacturers, Wire-Drawers and
Galvanizers, 27, Dale-street, Manchester.
I. P. CLARKE, Manufacturer of Sewing Cottons, King-street Mills,
Leicester. The interesting process of winding by steam power may be
seen in the Machinery department.
C. A. PRELLER, 4, Lant-street, S.E., London, Specimens of Leather
Lashing Laces, Twice-Stretched Machine Driving Bands, specially
prepared for hot climates; Leather Ropes for grooved pullies, &c.
THORNTON & SONS, Birmingham, and 16, Fish-street Hill, London,
Contractors, Merchants, and Manufacturers of all kinds of Railway
Stores and General Ironmongery, exhibit Screw and Hydraulic Lifting
Jacks, Railway Signals, Lamps, &c.
Agricultural Implements.
RANSOMES AND SIMS,
IPSWICH,
ENGINEERS, IRONFOUNDERS, AND MANUFACTURERS OF AGRICULTURAL IMPLEMENTS.
MANUFACTURERS of Patent and other Iron Prize Ploughs, for Pony, One,
Two, and Four Horse Power; Double Furrow Ploughs, Moulding, Subsoil,
and Trenching Ploughs; Horse Hoes; Scarifiers, of two, three, and four
horse power; Iron Harrows; Field Rollers; Crosskill’s and Cambridge
Clod Crushers; Horse and Hand Drag Rakes; Portable and Fixed Prize
Steam Engines; Prize Steam Thrashing Machines; Portable and Fixed,
one, two, three, and four horse power Thrashing Machines; Barley
Awners; Dressing-Machines; Chaff Cutters, for hand, horse, and steam
power; Turnip Cutters and Graters; Bruising and other Mills for
linseed, oats, and beans; Flour Mills; Oil Cake Breakers; Malt Mills;
Saw Benches; Scotch and other Carts; Horse Gears; Cattle and other
Feeding Troughs; Sack Barrows; Carriage Lifting Jacks; Grass Cutters,
Hay Makers; Patent Stable Fittings; Copying Presses, &c., &c.
ILLUSTRATED CATALOGUES
MAY BE HAD ON APPLICATION TO THE WORKS, IPSWICH, SHEPPARD RANSOME,
LONDON AGENT,
31, ESSEX STREET, STRAND, LONDON, W.C.
OR OF
C. GARROOD,
AGRICULTURAL SUPERINTENDENT, CRYSTAL PALACE, SYDENHAM.
Stand 43.--Corn and Seed Crushing Mills, Chaff Cutters, &c.
E., R., and F. TURNER have received the Royal Agricultural Society’s
First Prizes for the above Mills at the Annual Exhibitions of 1853,
1854, and 1855 (the last occasion when a prize was offered). Also the
1st Prize and Gold Medal at the Paris Imperial Universal Exhibition of
Agriculture, 1856; Large Silver Medal at the Grand Austrian Imperial
Exhibition, Vienna, 1857. Illustrated Catalogues sent free on
application to
ST. PETER’S IRON WORKS, IPSWICH.
RICHARD GARRETT & SONS, Leiston Works, Saxmundham, Suffolk; Patentees
and Manufacturers of Agricultural Machinery of all kinds, and of the
most approved construction.
Route to the Works: Per Eastern Counties Railway from
Bishopgate-street, London, booking direct to Leiston.
MARRIOTT’S Improved Humane Bee-hives, for taking pure Honey without
destroying the Bees, to be obtained of E. RIGBY and Co., 80,
Gracechurch-street.
EDWARD HAMMOND BENTALL, Ironfounder, Patentee and Manufacturer of
Agricultural Implements.
Works: Heybridge, near Maldon, Essex.
Warehouses: Swan Lane, Upper Thames Street, London, E.C., and 48, Rue
des Marais, St. Martin, Paris.
THE
PORTRAIT GALLERY
OF THE
CRYSTAL PALACE.
BY
SAMUEL PHILLIPS.
[Illustration]
CRYSTAL PALACE LIBRARY;
AND
BRADBURY AND EVANS, 11, BOUVERIE STREET, LONDON.
1854.
BRADBURY AND EVANS,
PRINTERS TO THE CRYSTAL PALACE COMPANY,
WHITEFRIARS.
PREFACE.
The object of the following pages is to extract from the valuable
collection of Statues and Busts, that will be found adorning the vast
area of the Crystal Palace, some of the interest and instruction which
such works, if properly addressed, are certain to yield. Man looks at
his own image with a more feeling curiosity than he regards the
architectural remains of a city, however ancient, or of any structure,
however beautiful. The broad brow of the poet whose works we have read,
or the martial air of the soldier whose deeds we have heard, excite an
instant desire for more intimate acquaintance with the men; and such
acquaintance can never be formed without lasting advantage to all who
are susceptible of instruction.
The limits of the present small volume have prevented my doing more than
record, as briefly as I might, the salient points in the characters of
the various personages whose statues and busts constitute the Portrait
Gallery of the Crystal Palace; but I trust sufficient has been done to
throw a little light upon the various features which the visitor will
contemplate on his pleasant journey, and to indicate, however
indistinctly, the universal path which, in life itself, leads to all
true greatness. A portrait gallery exhibits the men who have worked
their way to eminence. Biography teaches how they travelled the
difficult and thorny road.
The collection of Statues and Busts in the Crystal Palace is necessarily
imperfect; but it begins with a goodly array. It is the intention of the
Directors to extend and, as far as the nature of the subject allows,
complete it; and there can be no doubt that we have already the elements
of one of the finest portrait galleries in Europe.
I desire in this place to express my thanks to my friend M. Regnier, the
eminent French comedian, to whose kindness I am indebted for much
information in connexion with the French busts. I am also anxious to
acknowledge the services of my assistant, Mr. Shenton, who, under severe
pressure, has rendered me great help in the collecting and verifying of
our interesting materials.
SAMUEL PHILLIPS.
CRYSTAL PALACE,
_June, 1854_.
CONTENTS.
ANTIQUE PORTRAITS.
GREEK COURT.
PAGE
SOUTH SIDE COURT--
GREEK POETS AND DRAMATISTS 13
NORTH SIDE COURT--
GREEK PHILOSOPHERS, STATESMEN, AND GENERALS 19
ROMAN COURT.
ROMAN EMPERORS 29
AVENUE IN FRONT OF ROMAN COURT 41
COURT OF THE ROMAN LADIES 43
COURT OF ROMAN GENERALS AND POETS 46
THE ITALIAN PORTRAITS--
INTRODUCTION 54
ARTISTS AND MUSICIANS 56
POETS AND DRAMATISTS 69
SOLDIERS AND STATESMEN 76
PRELATES AND THEOLOGIANS 78
KINGS AND QUEENS 79
THE FRENCH PORTRAITS--
INTRODUCTION 80
ARTISTS AND MUSICIANS 83
POETS AND DRAMATISTS 91
SCIENTIFIC MEN AND WRITERS 98
SOLDIERS AND STATESMEN 109
PRELATES AND THEOLOGIANS 121
KINGS AND QUEENS 124
THE GERMAN PORTRAITS--
INTRODUCTION 134
ARTISTS AND MUSICIANS 136
POETS AND DRAMATISTS 145
SCIENTIFIC MEN AND WRITERS 149
SOLDIERS AND STATESMEN 157
PRELATES AND THEOLOGIANS 162
KINGS AND QUEENS 163
THE ENGLISH PORTRAITS--
INTRODUCTION 168
ARTISTS AND MUSICIANS 169
POETS AND DRAMATISTS 179
SCIENTIFIC MEN AND WRITERS 188
SOLDIERS AND STATESMEN 202
PRELATES AND THEOLOGIANS 218
KINGS AND QUEENS 220
INTRODUCTION.
Portraiture is associated with the earliest attempts at representing
living objects, both in sculpture and in painting. Even amongst savages
we find resemblances, carved or painted, or both, of the human form,
generally grotesque, but always presenting an idea of Art. With the
advance of civilization, the demand for portraits increased, as the
knowledge of the means available for painting and sculpture improved.
Men in authority, or possessed of great wealth, or renowned by deeds of
arms and feats of strength, became the first subjects for the art.
That the Egyptians early practised portrait-painting, is evident from
the discovery of mural sculpture, at a date anterior to the time of
Rameses, representing painters delineating men and animals, and
sculptors carving out of granite the very figures reproduced in another
material, in the Egyptian Court of the Crystal Palace. Herodotus records
the fact that Amasis sent his portrait painted on wood to Cyrene as a
present; and some portraits of this kind were found in the tombs at
Thebes. On comparing the heads of Rameses and Amenoph, several of which
are to be seen in the Egyptian court, the individuality of each is at
once perceived. Rameses has an aquiline nose and thin lips, while
Amenoph has the turned-up nose and thick lips of the African.
In Clarac’s “Musée de Sculpture,” are collected many accurate engravings
of the portraits of the Egyptians contained in the Louvre, which,
according to this authority, are all verified, as many as eighty-six of
them having their names attached. In the Imperial Library, at Paris,
there is a collection of a hundred Chinese portraits of great antiquity.
They were brought from China by the well-known Jesuit missionary, Père
Ameot. Pauthier, author of a History of China, refers to these
portraits, and considers them to be those of celebrated men and women
living at a period long anterior to Confucius.
Croesus, King of Lydia, had the image of his baking woman set up in
gold: and Herodotus has preserved the names of two Argive youths, Biton
and Cleobis, who for their piety in drawing their mother, the priestess
of Juno, to the temple, when the oxen for her car in a great solemnity
did not arrive, had their statues placed by their countrymen at Delphi.
To the Greeks, indeed, we owe the finest examples of portraits in
Sculpture. Their temples, forums, and other public places, as well as
their private dwellings, were ornamented with the busts and statues of
heroes, kings, poets, orators, and others distinguished by their
achievements. Many of these examples have fortunately been rescued from
destruction, and preserved to the present time.
The Romans, although not themselves, either by the gift of Heaven, or by
their own tastes, artists, were great patrons of art. Many a rich Roman
citizen had the court of his house converted into a kind of forum, which
he adorned with his favourite portrait statues. From the precious ruins
of Ancient Rome--from her temples, palaces, villas--countless statues
and busts have been dug out. Her tombs also were furnished with
portraits, busts, and statues, recumbent, or in other postures.
In all times, and in all countries, we note a desire to perpetuate the
memory of the dead; and the pious as well as humane intention was
carried out in various ways. The Egyptians enclosed their mummies in
wooden and stone cases, carved and painted in order to resemble, more or
less, the inhabitant within. The tombs of Etruria are usually surmounted
by a half recumbent statue, which although but rudely representing the
features and attitude of life, clearly reveal the intention to produce a
portrait of the deceased person, but never--which became the custom in
after ages--as though he were dead.
From the employment of sculptured portraits upon the monuments of the
dead, and from the use of other images in the funeral rites, such
representations came to be called “busts,” from the Latin word
_Bustum_, signifying a tomb, or rather place where the burning of the
body took place. Since the majority of persons could not afford a
statue, the less expensive memorial, consisting of the head and
shoulders, was the more generally adopted; and hence the name now
current amongst us.
Portraits played a still more important part in the economy of the
ancient Romans. Images, or rather masks, made in wax and representing
their ancestors, were kept by the Romans in the vestibules of their
houses, placed in cases formed like temples, and there constantly
exposed to the notice of the family and of visitors. When a member of
the family died, these masks were worn by the friends who assisted at
the funeral, as were the dresses and robes of office belonging to the
ancestors whom they personated. After the ceremony, the images were
faithfully restored to their sanctuaries in the vestibule.
Another use of portraiture was originally peculiar to the Greeks, but it
became subsequently adopted by other nations. We refer to the practice
of painting upon a metal shield the portraits of a family--often with
the father in the centre--and of hanging it up as sacred to the gods.
There are similar portraits extant, in _terracotta_, of Demosthenes in
exile at Calauria, and of Thales. The ancients also painted portraits on
wood in encaustic, and some portraits formed in mosaic still exist.
In proportion to the growth of luxury, and to the development of the
arts, do we find the increased employment of portraiture. Every kind of
work was decorated with a portrait. This was especially the usage of the
Greeks under the successors of Alexander, at Alexandria, Antioch, and
Pergamus; and with the Romans, towards the close of the Republic, and
under the Emperors.
Engraved stones of seals and rings are exceedingly valuable in enabling
us to identify antique busts and statues; their hardness having
preserved them from injury. Very frequently they give the impression of
being most accurate portraits. In the Greek Court is a large collection
of casts of these extremely interesting works, which merit careful
examination. Many of the heads are wonderfully beautiful--far surpassing
in execution any similar work of the present time.
In like manner the portraits upon coins, being connected with writing,
have been most useful in contributing to the knowledge and naming of
antique busts and statues. Of these illustrations also, the visitor is
enabled to study a very complete series from very early times.
The universal taste for portraiture exhibited by the ancients, and the
encouragement to art which the vast wealth of many enabled them to
afford, soon led to the formation of a gallery of portraits in every
house of importance. Such a gallery contained portraits, both sculptured
and painted, of great men in art, science, letters, and arms, and was
called “The _Pinacotheca_.” The desire to render such a collection as
complete as possible, led to the production of an infinite number of
copies from those originally taken from the life: just as with us,
houses are adorned with plaster-casts of the busts of Wellington,
Shakspeare, and Milton.
It will now be understood how it has happened that so large a number of
portrait-busts have remained to us from antiquity. Unless they had been
multiplied in the manner described, the acts of ignorance and the
accidents of time would have effaced all record of the features and
aspect of the good and great in ancient story. Most of the works,
executed in metal, were melted down and converted into money. One
valuable mine, however, was happily discovered in the ruins of
Herculaneum, completely preserved, and was removed to the Museum at
Naples, where it still exists. Of several, so recovered, we possess fine
copies in the Crystal Palace.
During the reign of Hadrian in Rome (A.D. 120), art enjoyed a revival--a
Medicean period. A multitude of works of every kind were produced, and
portraiture was carried to its height through the very zealous loyalty
to which sculptors gave way, in their desire to flatter their imperial
and magnificent patron, by representing the members of his family as so
many gods and goddesses. The like encouragement was afforded under the
dominion of Antoninus Pius (A.D. 140), and his adopted son, Marcus
Aurelius; followed, unfortunately, by the destructive propensities of
the odious Commodus, who would have limited portraiture to the
representation of his own face.
We see the first efforts of portraiture in Christian art, in the
representations--sculptured and painted--of saints in the early ages of
the faith. Some examples of these will be found in the Byzantine and
Mediæval Courts. A certain conventional form was adhered to in all these
works, in which we remark especially a general elongation of the face
and features, as if the aim had been to impress upon them the natural
effects of emaciation from penance and fasting, the body and limbs being
also subjected to the same treatment. The eyes are always almond-shaped,
half closed, and sloping upwards from the nose. The portraits of
Justinian, Theodora, Nicephorus, and Charles the Bald, on the façade of
the Byzantine Court, bear evidence of their authenticity.
In forming our idea of an individual portrait painted in the early
Christian period, we must never forget to allow for the formalities by
which an artist of that time was inexorably directed. Statues and
pictures were then produced (as indeed they are to this day by the monks
of Mount Athos,) in accordance with rule and system--a sort of holy
heraldry. At the time of which we now speak, we trace no general and
popular use of portraits, such as we observed amongst the ancients,
although they were still to be found in the hands of the most wealthy
and cultivated. These were of an expensive kind, in mosaic and in
miniature painting, the latter style being frequently employed when a
valuable manuscript or missal was copied for presentation, and a
portrait of the author or donor was usually painted upon it.
Mediæval portraiture shows a considerable advance upon the Byzantine,
but is still inferior to the antique and to the portraiture of our own
time. It was confined, almost exclusively, to monumental effigies, in
which the artist was constrained to present the lifeless form, in the
stiffness of very death--whether sleeping the sleep of eternal peace, or
kneeling in the attitude of prayer. Some of the finest examples are to
be seen in the Mediæval Court: of these more than one are doubtless
portrait-statues of the time. The same may be said of some of the
effigies of the Knights Templar, which exhibit great individuality,
having been executed in a very hard kind of marble, that has well
retained the features originally carved out of it. Busts of this period
are exceedingly rare; inasmuch as portraiture of the kind was not in
accordance with the religious feeling of the age. We must be content to
take the effigies of mediæval art as portraits of the time; treated, of
course, after certain conventionalities, but nevertheless truthful and
most interesting.
The art of portraiture revived under the creative genius of Giotto and
Orcagna, and of the great men of the _Renaissance_--Domenico Ghirlandaio
and Giovanni Bellini--until it reached the highest dignity and beauty in
the superb works of the mightiest of the mighty Italians--Michael
Angelo, Raffaelle, and Titian. The most remarkable portraits of this
period are paintings, and are therefore not to be found in large numbers
in the Crystal Palace. In the beautiful gallery, however, of copies from
the old masters, will be found several fine examples. In the Renaissance
and Mediæval Courts, will be seen some of the statues from the tombs of
Maximilian and Albert of Saxony--the finest portrait-statues of their
kind. In the Italian Court, too, there are the immortal monumental
statues of the Medici, and a superb bust of Cosmo de’ Medici by the
inimitable Cellini.
The antique statues and busts described in the following pages are from
THE VATICAN, AT ROME,
THE CAPITOLINE MUSEUM,
THE NAPLES MUSEUM,
THE FLORENCE GALLERY,
THE LOUVRE,
THE BERLIN MUSEUM,
THE BRITISH MUSEUM.
[Illustration: ΗΡΟΔΟΤΟΣ.]
THE PORTRAIT GALLERY.
ANTIQUE PORTRAITS.
GREEK COURT.--SOUTH SIDE-COURT.
POETS AND DRAMATISTS.
[28]1. HOMER. _Great Epic Poet of Greece._
[Born, probably B.C. 850. Place of birth unknown.]
A majestic antique Bust. The kingly and venerated Patriarch of all
Poets, for the western civilization--or, the sound of a Name! The two
wonderful poems which bear down this name--whatever signifying--through
the lapse and revolutions of time, preserve, as it were, the image of an
extinct world: although of a world, perhaps less than half real, and
more than half ideal:--for the manners _were_: the persons and events
may, or may not have been: and the gods and goddesses of the “Iliad” and
the “Odyssey” were, we know, only a believed-in, waking dream. But, by
the potency of the song, the picture lives! The war, imaginary or no,
raging between the Hellespont and the foot of Mount Ida, remains, to
the educated memory of the nations, like the beginning--if not of the
world’s, yet of its western half’s--history. And those heroes and
heroines, with their high actions and their deep passions--the
unrolling, embroidered web of their fortunes and fates:--the king of
men, Agamemnon,--the swift-footed son of the sea-goddess,
Achilles,---the sage, long-lived Nestor,--the shrewd, enduring
Ulysses,--Ajax, a tower in the fight,--Diomed, favoured of Minerva
present beside him in the storm of spears;--and that grey-headed,
imperial sire of Troy, with all his falling sons, Priam,--the gallant
and good Hector,--the loving and faithful Andromache,--the aged, too
fruitful mother, Hecuba;--even the fatal and criminal, but divinely
beautiful Helen--Is it not a strange magic that dwells in the creative
thought of the poet, and in his modulated words, and that thus, in a
language, and with manners, a faith, an age--all so long since dead and
gone--can, as if reviving all, render those Shadows, to us--now,
here--the earliest objects of a wondering and aspiring enthusiasm:--the
first enkindlers in our bosoms of that glowing, intense, comprehensive,
and intelligent sympathy, which transports us out of the central self,
and beyond the close-drawn horizon of our own particular life, to feel
the conditions and to understand the spirits of all our fellow men? Let
the theory be true, which denies to these incomparable works an
individual author--which supposes them woven together of many songs,
first sung in many places, by many singers; let the benignly august,
fillet-bound head before us, be--that which only at last it can be--a
conjecture of the Grecian chisel;--we see at least here how the
consummated art of sculpture has chosen to express, in corporeal form,
the one soul of power which animates those immortal twins of poesy. We
see in what shape of a human head, crowned with its own irradiations,
the fountains of all song might have sprang. We see what the living and
wandering minstrel of Greece, beloved and honoured wheresoever, in hall
or on green, he and his harp came,--what the individual Homer, for whose
birth seven cities contended, and whom in the after-day the land
numbered amongst her half-divine and worshipped heroes--WOULD HAVE
BEEN:--or, WAS!
[Although modern antiquaries agree with Pliny that busts of Homer are
apocryphal, yet there can be no doubt this is the true Greek
conventional portrait of that poet. A headless marble was dug up
inscribed with his name and shortly afterwards the head itself was
found in the same hole, and it fitted precisely to the marble
previously discovered. The bust, so found, is now in the Naples
Museum. The same head is constantly found in other representations of
the ancient poet. The head is bound with the “strophium,” an ornament
given by the Greek artists to their gods and heroes. The attitude of
the head would seem to express the blindness with which Homer,
according to tradition, was afflicted. This bust is from the marble in
the Stanza dei Filosofi of the Capitoline Museum, Rome.]
[28] The objects forming the Portrait Gallery in the Crystal Palace,
are numbered in red figures throughout.
2. ARCHILOCHUS. _Greek Poet._
[Born at Paros, about B.C. 700. Killed in battle, about B.C. 635]
A satirical poet of great renown, whose acrid pen spared neither friend
nor foe. A writer also of licentious verse. Fragments only of his
compositions have come down to us. To him is attributed the invention of
the Iambic measure, and he shares with Thaletas and Terpander the honour
of establishing lyric poetry in Greece. The victors in the Olympic games
were accustomed to sing one of his hymns in their triumphal procession.
The countenance of his statue denotes impudent boldness.
[The two early poets united: a mode of portraiture adopted by the
Greek artists when two celebrated men were of the same country, and
of kindred pursuits, as Herodotus and Thucydides, parallel historians;
Metrodorus and Epicurus, philosophers of the same sect (see No. 20).
This double terminal or Janus was found at Rome on the Celian Hill: it
is now in the Vatican. The ends of the noses are modern, as are some
other parts in the Homer. That portraits of Archilochus existed so
long after his death is proved by the existence of an inscription in
the Analecta of Thucydides written for his portrait.]
2A. HOMER. _Great Epic Poet of Greece._
[For life see No. 1.]
3. ÆSOP. _Writer of Fables._
[Born in Phrygia, about B.C. 620. Died about B.C. 560.]
The reputed author of the fables to which his name has been for
centuries attached. According to the general account, he was originally
a slave, and gained much notice for his wit, and especially for his
talent of communicating useful maxims in the form of apologues. His
talent procured him favour at the court of Crœsus. He is said to have
been thrown from the top of a rock and killed, by the priests of Delphi.
His fables, at first preserved by tradition, were at a later period
converted into Greek and Latin verse by Babrias and Phædrus. We have
them in Greek prose, told naturally and in the utmost simplicity. In
stature Æsop is described as small and hump-backed, with a prominent
stomach and pointed head, yet the intellectual expression of his
countenance is not that usually given to dwarfs.
[From the very remarkable half-figure in marble in the Villa Albani,
at Rome; the whole of which is of great antiquity. It has been
maintained that Æsop was not deformed, inasmuch as the circumstance is
not mentioned by writers, before the time of the Greek monk, Planudes
Maximus. There are, however, traditions affirming his deformity, and
Plutarch, in his Feast of the Sages, makes him sit upon a low stool at
the feet of Solon. The countenance has a thoughtful and elevated
expression. Lysippus sculptured the portrait of Æsop to be placed
amongst the sages of Greece at Athens. Phædrus refers to this work,
and the celebrity of the man is fixed by the fact that the court
sculptor of Alexander employed himself upon his statue.]
4. HOMER. _Great Epic Poet of Greece._
[From the marble. Once in the Capitoline Museum; now in the Louvre.]
5. EPIMENIDIES. _Poet and Prophet of Crete._
[Flourished about B.C. 596]
St. Paul in his Epistle to Titus (i. 12) is supposed to allude to
Epimenides. But little more than his name and existence are known, apart
from tradition. About B.C. 596, he was invited to Athens, in order to
stay the plague brought upon the city by an impious outrage committed by
Cylon, one of the Athenian rulers, on the altars of the Acropolis.
Succeeding in arresting the pestilence, he augmented his already great
fame--but he refused any other reward beyond the goodwill of the
Athenians in favour of the inhabitants of Gnossus, where he dwelt. He
was a native of Crete.
[From the marble in the Vatican. One of the conventional portraits of
the ancient Greek poets. The closed eyes are to represent the sleep
which tradition says he fell into for fifty-seven years.]
6. ÆSCHYLUS. _Tragic Poet._
[Born at Eleusis, in Greece, B.C. 525. Died at Gela, in Sicily, B.C.
456. Aged 69.]
The founder of Greek tragedy as it existed in its greatness. He
introduced a second actor upon the scene, and gave dramatic interest to
his act, by rendering dialogue the most important element in the play.
He improved the masks and dresses of the actors, and raised the
character of the choral dances. The scenes painted under his direction
were, it is said, the first in which the idea of perspective was
maintained. Sublimity and magnificence characterize the style of his
tragedies, in which the action and plot, with an unparalleled simplicity
of structure, move on, in commanding and stern strength, to their
catastrophe; supported by grand imagery, with diction wrested to the
height of energy and solemn passion. The characters drawn by Æschylus
are as lofty as the language which they speak. We almost yearn for the
simple voice of Nature as we listen to the sustained thunder-tone of
this great master. His mind seems ever attuned for discourse with the
Gods; yet in the “Prometheus,” though dealing with a demigod, he
describes with awful power, human suffering and human passion in its
saddest and most thrilling aspect. The family of Æschylus were
remarkable for their valour, and he himself fought bravely at Marathon
and Salamis. He was an actor in his own plays.
[From the marble in Stanza dei Filosofi, of the Capitoline Museum, at
Rome.]
7. SOPHOCLES. _Tragic Poet._
[Born at Colonus, in Attica, about B.C. 495. Died probably at Athens,
B.C. 405. Aged 90.]
In Sophocles, Æschylus found a rival and a conqueror. When Cimon (B.C.
468) returned from the Isle of Scyros, with the ashes of Theseus, the
first play of Sophocles (“Triptolemus”) was preferred to the composition
of Æschylus, who in chagrin retired to Sicily. From this time Sophocles
stood alone, until he, in his turn, met a successful rival in Euripides.
In 440, he produced “Antigone,” for its calm beauty, and the pure
picture of heroic, feminine self-devotion, one of the finest antique
tragedies extant, and the occasion of his promotion through the favour
of Pericles. In the person of Sophocles was represented the ideal of
Greek perfection. He was very beautiful; he excelled in gymnastics,
music, and dancing; in temperament he was calm and contented; in
disposition kind and cheerful; he had a ready wit, a serene piety, and
intellectual grandeur. His tragedies have an advantage over those of
Æschylus, in being essentially human; they appeal to the feelings of an
auditory, and are written in a less magniloquent style than that of the
sublime father of Greek tragedy,--to whom, however, Sophocles lay under
the obligations of a pupil to his instructor. Both are profound masters
of their art.
[This bust is from the Capitoline Museum, and is identified by another
in the Vatican--found in 1778--on which all the letters of the name
remained, except the SO. It was for a long time called PINDAR,*
because of the inscription; Bottari has proved it to be Sophocles,
whom it completely resembles. Compare the Lateran statue, No. 325,
standing in the great Transept, near the monument of Lysicrates.]
*. PINDAR. _Greek Poet._
[Born probably at Thebes, about B.C. 522. Died there, about B.C. 442.
Aged about 80 years.]
The most famous lyric poet of Greece. Sent at an early age to Athens, he
became the pupil of Lasus. He sung the victors in the Olympic, Nemæan,
Pythian, and Isthmian games,--the great festivals of assembled Greece.
Forty-five of these odes of triumph are all that have descended to us;
they are characterized by great boldness of style, spirit, and
trumpet-toned enthusiasm, but the brilliant diction does not escape
obscurity; and the modern student often follows with difficulty the
excursive wing of “The Theban Eagle,” through the wide regions of
Hellenic mythology. Pindar’s earliest extant work was written in his
twentieth year. He is described as a man of strong religious feelings,
and a devout worshipper of the gods.
8. ÆSCHINES. _Greek Orator._
[Born in Attica, about B.C. 389. Died in the Isle of Samos, B.C. 314.
Aged about 75.]
One of the greatest Greek orators. Was at the battle of Mantineia (B.C.
362), and distinguished himself at the battle of Tamynæ in Eubœa (B.C.
358). Afterwards entered into political life, and became a partizan of
Philip of Macedonia. Accompanied Demosthenes on two embassies to Philip,
and was accused by Demosthenes of betraying the interests of the state
to that monarch. The speech of his accuser and his own admirable defence
are extant. His last great public act was the prosecution of Gtesiphon
for illegally proposing to present Demosthenes with a golden crown for
his services to the state. Demosthenes defended the accused, and the
speeches of the two orators delivered on this occasion are also
preserved. The prosecution failing, Æschines at once went into exile
(B.C. 330). As a popular leader and orator worthy to be called the rival
of Demosthenes. He lacked the vehement passion and powerful invective of
that consummate master, but his lucid arrangement, his facility and
perspicuity, have never been surpassed.
[For an account of this statue, so long called Aristides,* see
Handbook to Roman Court and Nave, No. 326.]
*. ARISTIDES. _Athenian Patriot._
[Born (uncertain). Died about B.C. 468.]
His unbending integrity procured him the title of “The Just.” Was at the
battle of Marathon (B.C. 480), where he fought bravely. Opposed to the
extreme democratical party in Athens, headed by Themistocles, by whose
influence he was banished (about B.C. 483). He was still in exile at the
time of the sea-fight of Salamis (B.C. 482), but he raised a band, and
fought for his country in this battle. Recalled by the Athenians from
banishment, and commanded their army at the battle of Platæa (B.C. 479).
His sense of justice spotless: his self-denial unimpeachable. At his
death he was very poor, although he had borne the highest offices of the
State. The Athenians became more virtuous from the contemplation of this
bright example. It is related that in the representation of one of the
tragedies of Æschylus, a sentence was uttered in favour of moral
goodness. The eyes of the audience turned involuntarily and at once from
the actor to Aristides.
9. EURIPIDES. _Greek Poet._
Born at Salamis, B.C. 480. Died in Macedonia, B.C. 406. Aged 74.]
The father of Euripides, putting his own interpretation upon the oracle
which promised that his son should be crowned with “sacred garlands,”
had him carefully trained in gymnastic exercises, and whilst yet a boy
Euripides won the prize at the Eleusinian and Thesean games. But the lad
was soon allured from physical sports, by the fascinations of philosophy
and literature. He became the ardent pupil and friend of the philosopher
Anaxagoras, and the instruction thus derived is visible in many of his
productions. At the age of 18, Euripides wrote his first tragedy. He
gained the first prize B.C. 441, and continued to exhibit his plays
until within two years of his death. He died in Macedonia, and is said
to have been torn in pieces by the dogs of the Macedonian king. Twenty
of his plays are extant. Like Anaxagoras, Euripides was of a serious
temper, and averse to mirth. He was intimate with Socrates, and the
contemporary of Herodotus, Xenophon, Thucydides, Pindar, Aristophanes,
Æschylus, and Sophocles. To assign him his poetical rank we must look
back. In the three great Attic tragedians we trace a natural progress of
their theatre. In Æschylus, the stage appears attracted with predominant
force to the high mythological ideas which it arose to embody: the muse
stalks sublimely above the heads of men. In Sophocles, the art tempers
and adjusts, with admirable equipoise, the superhuman and the human
element; the spirits and hearts of men are more closely approached by
the poet, still overshadowed by the heroic and the divine. In Euripides,
although the story which he represents is still drawn from the same
source of divine and heroic fable, the sympathy with passions, events,
interests, and sufferings, incident to humanity, prevails in excess.
With him, amidst strewings of beautiful poetry, and whilst penetrated
with strokes of singular pathos, we too much feel that we step on our
own daily and common earth. We miss the elevation of an art which
should, in reflecting ourselves, lift us above ourselves: as we have
experience in our own Shakspeare. Sophocles said that “he himself
represented men as they ought to be, but Euripides as they are.”
[This bust is verified by another in the Louvre, and one in the Naples
Museum, which has the name of Euripides engraved on the breast. There
is also a cameo of exceeding beauty in the Louvre, on which we find
the same head. Portraits of Euripides were common at Athens, and even
as late as the 5th century his statues were to be seen at
Constantinople. A small seated statue of Euripides will be found in
the Bas-relief Gallery, No. 215. It is inscribed with his name, and
has a list of his plays, upon the slab which supports the statue. See
Handbook to Greek Court, No. 215.]
10. ARATUS. _Astronomer._
[Flourished about B.C. 270.]
A fellow-countryman of St. Paul, who quotes one of his works in his
address to the Athenians. Called to the Court of Antigonus Gonatas, King
of Macedonia. He there pursued physics, grammar, and philosophy. He also
versified two astronomical treatises by Eudoxus. There are many errors
with much want of precision in the descriptive portions of these works,
proving the poet to have been neither a mathematician nor an acute
observer. As a poet, Aratus was hardly more eminent. He is wanting in
originality and poetic feeling; yet his verses obtained popularity both
in Greece and Rome.
[The well known head, representing, as it is supposed, the Poet of the
Stars, in the attitude of viewing the heavens. The same head is found
on medals, of which the best is preserved in the Hunterian Museum of
the College of Surgeons, London.]
GREEK COURT.--NORTH SIDE-COURT.
GREEK PHILOSOPHERS, STATESMEN, AND GENERALS.
11. BIAS. _Greek Philosopher._
[Born at Priene, in Ionia. Flourished, it is believed, about the
middle of the Sixth Century B.C.]
One of the Seven Sages; and of the four to whom alone the title was
universally conceded: the remaining three being Thales, Pittacus, and
Solon. His profession was that of an advocate; his philosophy was
practical--the fruit of experience. Many of his sayings and doings have
been recorded. He died at a very advanced age.
[From the marble in the Vatican, which bears his name and the motto:--
ΟΙ ΠΛΕΙΣΤΟΙ
ΑΝΘΡΩΠΟΙ
ΚΑΚΟΙ.
“The majority of men are bad.”
A curious mistake of the engraver is observable in the word ΠΡΗΝΕΥΣ,
in which the I is omitted; it should have been ΠΡΙΗΝΕΥΣ, the name of
his birth-place. This bust was found at Tivoli, with that of
Periander, No. 29.]
12. THUCYDIDES. _Greek Historian._
Born at Athens, B.C. 471. Died (place uncertain) B.C. 395. Aged 76.]
This great historian, holding military command in Thrace, suffered
Amphipolis to be surprised and taken by the Spartan general, Brasidas;
and for this misfortune was banished by his countrymen during the space
of twenty years. It would have been a greater misfortune for the world
had Thucydides proved a warier soldier; for it was during his exile,
that he collected with infinite care the materials of his immortal
history. That history chronicles, in eight books, the events of twenty
out of the twenty-seven years of the Peloponnesian War:--a record of
most interesting facts. Where political and moral observations occur,
they reveal great knowledge of human character and motives. The style is
pregnant, precise, and severely simple. Demosthenes is said to have
copied the entire history many times with his own hand as a lesson of
composition. The principal actors in the war were the historian’s books
of reference. As an historical monument the work is matchless. It has
been always believed that Thucydides came to a violent end, but it is
not known whether he died at Athens, or in Thrace.
13. SOCRATES. _Philosopher._
Born near Athens, B.C. 468. Died at Athens, B.C. 399. Aged 69.]
One of the greatest names in ethics, philosophy, and religion before the
Christian era. It was the belief of Socrates that he was specially
charged by the Deity to awaken moral consciousness in men. He had no
school, neither did he, like the sophists of his time, deliver public
lectures. But he stood in the market-places, or entered the work-shops,
or visited the schools, in order to teach the people his ideas
respecting the scope and value of human speculation and action.
Aristophanes, the comic poet, ridiculed and misrepresented the
philosopher, who proceeded, nevertheless, with undaunted perseverance.
After the banishment from Athens of the “Thirty Tyrants,” Socrates was
impeached for corrupting the youth, and despising the tutelary deities
of the state. He was condemned, and, preferring death to acknowledging,
by a supplication for pardon, that he deserved punishment, he swallowed
poison. Whilst the cruel draught was performing its work, he developed
the grounds of his immovable conviction of the immortality of the soul,
and with his very last breath pointed to a future state, as the true
recovery from impurity and disease. He left no writings behind him. We
derive our knowledge of his doctrines and character, mainly from his
illustrious disciples, Xenophon and Plato. He effected a grand
revolution in philosophy, for he first connected with Supreme
intelligence, the attributes of goodness, justice and wisdom, and the
idea of direct interposition in human affairs, and recalled Reason from
vain disquisitions, to the questions which come home to the business and
bosoms of men. In person, Socrates was said to resemble the god Silenus.
His looks were as repulsive as his life was irreproachable and perfect.
His peculiar method of teaching, since called the Socratic, was, by a
series of artfully contrived questions, to draw out from the mind of his
colloquist the truths which lay unconsciously embosomed there, or to
entangle proud and false reasoning in self-confutation.
[A countenance so little expressive of wisdom and goodness, that it
might be mistaken for that of a Silenus, whom he also equalled in the
almost deformed rotundity of his figure. But this bust, which is from
that in the Louvre, and an exceedingly fine work, has been proved to
be a portrait of him by its close resemblance to the other busts of
the same subject, and to that in particular in the Farnese Collection
which bears his name, and the motto which Plato gives him (_Criton_).
Busts and cameos of Socrates are numerous. No. 13A is from the Stanza
dei Filosofi of the Capitoline Museum; it is inferior to the first
described.]
13A. SOCRATES. _Philosopher._
14. HIPPOCRATES. _Physician._
[Born at Cos, in the Ægean Sea, about B.C. 460. Died about 357. Aged
104.]
The great fame acquired by Hippocrates, would seem to have been won by a
steadfast adherence to the sagacity of common sense. He had no chemical
knowledge, and his acquaintance with anatomy appears to have been scanty
and uncertain; yet, knowing how to turn a rare experience to account,
and confining his operations mainly to the watching and assisting of
Nature, he succeeded in obtaining credit for superhuman skill. His
nephew, who is reputed to have possessed almost equal merit with his
uncle, was murdered in a fit of jealousy, by Hippocrates, who shortly
afterwards fell a sacrifice to the torments of remorse. A great number
of works are extant under his name, but most of them were written by his
disciples.
[From the marble in the Louvre, which has been verified by a medal
bearing the name of Hippocrates, and showing a perfect resemblance to
the head. There are several busts of Hippocrates in existence--one in
the Capitoline Museum, another at Florence, and two in the Louvre.]
15. ISOCRATES. _Rhetorician._
Born at Athens, B.C. 436. Died B.C. 338. Aged 98.]
It is said that Isocrates was the first man to describe the true value
and objects of oratory. His language is the purest Attic; his style,
which he elaborated with great pains, elegant and polished. As teacher
of rhetoric, he became the instructor of the chief youths of his time.
He composed several discourses on great political occasions, and
amassed considerable wealth. He had throughout life a constitutional
timidity, and a weakness of voice that prevented him from speaking in
the assemblies of the people. Socrates had been one of his masters. His
character appears to have been spotless.
[From the bust in the Villa Albani at Rome, bearing the name of
Isocrates. A statue of him was sculptured by Leochares for the temple
of Eleusis, and another is described by Pausanias as in the temple of
Jupiter Olympius, which statue is spoken of by Christodorus, as being
at Constantinople in his time.]
16. PLATO. _Greek Philosopher._
[Born at Athens, B.C. 430. Died B.C. 347. Aged 83.]
The most illustrious amongst the disciples of Socrates. The doctrines of
the great teacher have descended to us chiefly through the writings of
this eloquent hearer. Whence, a singular and inextricable conflict. The
sturdy, keen, practical plain sense of the master, and the soaring,
brilliant imagination, and subtly-dividing wit of the pupil, have come
down to us mingled ever in the same composition. In these extraordinary
dialogues, which display the spoken Greek of Athens in its utmost
purity, beauty, and melody, how much is Plato’s?--how much is of
Socrates? The two busts may go as far as any other authorities, in
affording the almost discretionary reply. The lip on which, whilst in
the cradle, tradition says that the bee settled--signifying the
sweetness of the speech which should flow from it--is before us, in part
of the answer. Plato was, in his earlier life, a poet, but gave his
poetical compositions, amongst which are mentioned an epic poem and a
tragedy, to the flames. He excelled in bodily exercises, being
distinguished as a wrestler. He travelled much in the quest of
knowledge. Like his illustrious preceptor, he taught that wisdom, under
which we must comprise goodness, is the attribute of the Godhead,--that
philosophy is an intellectual necessity, and, as the fountain of virtue,
which it thus includes, the most estimable of all the goods within the
reach of man. Abstruse and sublime, seeking to rest science and morals
on an immutable basis, Plato trains the intellect more than he teaches.
In reading his writings, we enter the Socratic school as hearers, as
disputants. The Socrates, who constantly leads the discussion, is rather
the presiding Spirit, than the Man. We come out, whatsoever else,
worshipping students of the True, of the Fair, of the Good.
[From the very beautiful little bust in the Florence Gallery. He wears
the “strophium” as a mark of his great honours. This bust possesses a
great claim to authenticity, on account of the name being deeply cut
upon it in Greek letters of the antique form. There is a similar bust
in the Naples Museum, of the same size, and inscribed with the name of
Plato.]
17. ANTISTHENES. _Philosopher._
[Date and place of birth unknown. Died at Athens. Aged 70.]
He is the founder of the Cynic philosophy and flourished about B.C. 375.
He taught the love of poverty and labour, the renunciation of all the
pleasures and conveniences of life, and contempt for everything but
virtue, in which only he allowed true happiness to consist. It is said
that Antisthenes left more books than scholars. But Socrates was his
friend and Diogenes his pupil. His countenance did credit to his creed:
it was severe, and looked the more terrible from his dishevelled hair
and hanging beard. He taught in the Gymnasium at Athens, called
Cynosarges; and hence the name of his school--the Cynic.
[From the marble in the Vatican. It was found in the ruins of
Hadrian’s Villa, and is of great beauty. It resembles another bust in
the Vatican, which was found in the villa of Cassius at Tivoli, but
which is of less merit, except that it bears his name. The portrait
agrees precisely with the descriptions given of Antisthenes by the
ancients.]
18. DIOGENES. _Philosopher._
[Born at Sinope, in Asia Minor, about B.C. 412. Died at Corinth, B.C.
323 or 324. Aged 90.]
Having been detected with his father, a banker, in some dishonest
transaction, Diogenes went to Athens, where he became the pupil of
Antisthenes, and adopted the Cynic philosophy. He carried his contempt
for riches and the usages of society to an extravagant excess. He
subsisted on charity, and slept where he could. Some doubt is thrown
upon the story of his living in a tub. He said that all the vicissitudes
of fortune which constitute tragedy, had been realized in him, but that
patience had raised him above them all. When advanced in years he was
taken by pirates to Crete, and there sold as a slave. Regaining his
freedom, he revisited Athens and Corinth, and in the last-named city had
his memorable interview with Alexander the Great. He inculcated
morality, but despised intellectual pursuits. His disposition was kind
and humorous, though his statue has an acute and caustic countenance.
[From the marble in the Sala delle Muse of the Vatican. It is verified
by its close resemblance to the head of a little statue in the Villa
Albani at Rome, representing the Cynic perfectly nude, and accompanied
by his dog. It is said that he sometimes appeared in the streets in
this state, after having anointed his body, a piece of eccentricity
that gave rise to the joke of Juvenal, that the Stoics differed from
the Cynics only in the shirt, “_tunicâ tantum_.” There is in the Villa
Albani an antique bas-relief representing Alexander the Great standing
before the Cynic in his tub.]
19. DEMOSTHENES. _Greek Orator._
[Born at Athens, B.C. 381. Died in the isle of Calauria, opposite
Argolis, B.C. 322. Aged 59.]
A chief, if not the chief of--
“Those ancients, whose resistless eloquence
Wielded at will that fierce Democracie,
Shook th’ Arsenal, and fulmin’d over Greece,
To Macedon and Artaxerxes’ throne.”[29]
This eloquence in Demosthenes--to the modern mind, the one unrivalled
exemplar of the ancient Greek oratory---was like a trained athlete,
living nerve and bone. When Athens lay daunted under the successes of
Philip of Macedon, Demosthenes, by the sole power of speech, roused the
people to energetic warfare. His style was fit for sustaining argument
on the destinies of great nations. It was simple, severe, lofty,
vehement, and of irresistible power. He acquired this consummate
mastery, having, by an invincible perseverance, vanquished seemingly
invincible natural obstacles. At one period of his life Demosthenes was
accused of receiving a bribe from Harpalus, a Macedonian General, who
fled to Athens, to escape the vengeance of Alexander. He quitted Athens.
Upon the death of Alexander he returned to the city; but the Athenian
arms proving unsuccessful against Antipater, the ruler of Macedonia, the
life of the orator was demanded by the conqueror. Demosthenes fled
again--this time to the isle of Calauria--where he took poison to save
himself from the swords of the soldiery. Looking upon the deep,
contemplative, sad brow, figured in stone, we might well fancy that we
see, gleaming there, a too real consciousness of the requital awaiting
even the greatest Athenian, for services which no reward could measure.
[From the marble in the Louvre. Several busts in various collections
had been called Terence, Pythagoras, Plato, and other names, when
there were dug up in Herculaneum two bronze heads, on one of which was
the name of Demosthenes; it was at once perceived that the busts above
referred to had been wrongly named; for they one and all represented
the great orator. A very beautiful carved medallion in amethyst exists
also at Rome, which is an undoubted likeness of him. For an account of
the statues of Demosthenes see Nos. 308 and 321 in the Handbook to the
Roman Court and Nave.]
[29] _Paradise Regained._
20. EPICURUS. _Philosopher._
[Born probably at Samos, in Greece, B.C. 342. Died at Athens, B.C.
270. Aged 72.]
The system of Epicurus has been much misrepresented. He did not teach
mere refined animal enjoyment. He considered indeed human happiness as
the end of philosophy, and he defined happiness as pleasure,--pleasure
itself being defined as perfect independence, self-reliance, and
contentment. The great aim of his ethics was to point out the way to the
attainment of such happiness. The habits of Epicurus were temperate and
frugal. During the later years of his life, he was afflicted with much
physical suffering, and he bore it with fortitude and patience. He held
his celebrated school, which founded the sect bearing his name, in a
garden purchased by him at Athens.
20A. METRODORUS. _Greek Philosopher._
[Born either at Lampsacus or Athens, B.C. 329. Died B.C. 277. Aged
52.]
A devoted follower of Epicurus, between whom and his disciple the
closest friendship subsisted. Upon the death of Metrodorus, Epicurus
provided for his children. But Metrodorus failed to do justice to the
philosophy of his master; and was the first to attach to the Epicurean
idea the sensual notions that have ever since, more or less, been
identified with it.
[The master and his intimate friend and disciple united. Busts of
Epicurus are common. Such was the enthusiasm of his followers, that
his portrait was multiplied in every way, and even the furniture of
rooms engraved with his name. This double terminal is from the
Capitoline Museum, at Rome, and bears the names of the two
philosophers. It was dug up at Rome in 1742, when the foundations were
making for Sta. Maria Maggiore. Epicurus is identified also by a
beautiful and perfect little bronze found at Herculaneum amongst the
remains of a library of a disciple of Epicurus; which bronze is now in
the Naples Museum.]
21. ZENO. _Founder of the Stoic Philosophy._
[Born at Citium, in the Isle of Cyprus, about B.C. 362. Year of death
uncertain.]
The son of a merchant, and himself a trader. Whilst pursuing his
vocation, he obtained some works on the Socratic philosophy; read them
with eagerness, and resolved to abandon trade for philosophy. Became a
disciple of the Cynics; then a pupil of Stilpo of Megara; then lent an
ear to the expositors of Plato. After twenty years’ study and inquiry,
he turned aside from all existing schools, and created one for himself.
The place chosen by him for his instructions was a portico, adorned on
the wall with paintings by Polygnotus, hence called “The Variegated
Porch” (_Stoa Poicilē_). Thus he and his pupils were called Stoics.
They placed happiness in virtue. Virtue is--to live, by the rule of
right reason, a life consistent with itself and with universal nature:
and lifts above _all_ consideration of pleasures and pains. The absolute
moral rectitude of volition and action is the steering star. But that
secured--the humanities, courtesies, and customs of life are not, after
the fashion of the Cynics, to be slighted and trampled upon. Zeno
commands our respect by the purity of his life. He lived to a great age,
though of weakly constitution, by dint of regularity and moderation. He
had a serious and thoughtful countenance, corresponding to the severity
of the doctrines he taught. In his 98th year, quitting his school, he
fell to the ground and broke his finger. “Why am I thus importuned?” he
exclaimed. “Earth, I obey thy summons.” He went home, and strangled
himself.
[From the marble in the Sala delle Muse of the Vatican. It was
identified by the stooping attitude of the neck, a slight deformity
which is referred to by the contemporaries of Zeno. For an account of
the statue of this philosopher, see No. 327, Handbook to Roman Court
and Nave.]
22. ALEXANDER THE THIRD, surnamed THE GREAT. _King of Macedonia_, B.C.
336-323.
[Born at Pella, in Macedonia, B.C. 356. Died at Babylon, B.C. 323.
Aged 32.]
The pupil of Aristotle, and the conqueror of the world. He ascended the
throne of Macedon in the twentieth year of his age. Shortly afterwards
he reduced the chief cities of Greece, and rased Thebes sparing only the
house of the poet Pindar. In his twenty-second year, he crossed the
Hellespont, and turned his arms against the Persian king, Darius, whom
he defeated. He conquered Phœnicia, Damascus, and Tyre. Taking Gaza, he
passed into Egypt, subdued it, and founded the city of Alexandria. Here,
in the madness of his ambition, he claimed divine honours. In 331, B.C.,
he again attacked Darius, and destroyed the Persian monarchy. Babylon,
Susa, and Persepolis, next paid homage to his arms. A change now came
over the victor, hitherto temperate and forgiving. He gave rein to his
passions, and committed acts of cruelty and excess. But his activity was
still incessant. He advanced victoriously to the Indus, and marched back
in triumphal procession to Babylon, where, still full of mighty plans of
conquest, he fell a victim to intemperance, took fever and died in the
thirteenth year of his reign. There was no mediocrity in the character
of Alexander. His vices were great, and his virtues magnificent. His
heart and mind led him to the extremes of good and evil. His lust of
dominion amounted to insane passion. In accordance with his wish, his
body, enclosed in a golden coffin, was conveyed to Alexandria, and there
deposited in a richly adorned sarcophagus,--now supposed to be in the
British Museum. The military skill of Alexander was of a high order. His
movements were rapid, decided, and well-directed:--he made great use of
his cavalry. His conquests rendered eastern Asia accessible to European
enterprise. He retained his affection for his early instructor,
Aristotle, to the last, sending, from the scenes of his Eastern
conquest, strange animals for the study of the great naturalist. In
Asia, to this hour, the exploits of “Iskander,” are told by the people
to their children.
[From the marble in the Louvre, inscribed with his name. It was dug up
near Tivoli in 1779, and afterwards presented to Napoleon by the
discoverer, the Chevalier d’Azara. It was by this bust, aided by the
evidence of the coins, that all the portraits of Alexander were
verified. Notwithstanding the numerous statues, busts, and pictures
of this renowned conqueror which are mentioned by ancient writers,
only few now remain. One of the characteristics of the head is the
curling up of the hair at the back, as though a circlet had given the
hair that form, and it is said he was the first to wear a diadem. The
peculiar rising up of the hair in front is also a characteristic of
Alexander. A very beautiful little equestrian bronze was found at
Herculaneum in 1751, conjectured at the time to be a copy of the
statue of Alexander, by Lysippus. No. 22A, the inscription on which is
evidently modern, is from the Berlin Museum.]
22A. ALEXANDER THE THIRD, surnamed THE GREAT.
23. PHOCION. _Athenian Statesman and General._
[Born in Attica, B.C. 402. Died at Athens, B.C. 317. Aged 85.]
He rose from the ranks of the people, and soon obtained military
distinction; exhibiting, whenever tried, great bravery and foresight. He
was forty-five times named general. He was opposed to the Macedonians,
over whom, by his moderation, valour, and prudence, he obtained signal
advantages. When, in his age, Athens--placed through the rejection of
his sagacious counsels at the mercy of the Macedonians--was occupied by
a foreign garrison, Phocion, whose integrity was invulnerable, was
suspected by his countrymen of treachery, and forced to swallow hemlock.
His body was denied burial, and cast beyond the confines of Attica; yet,
according to the spirit of those singular times, in which the wildest
barbarity co-existed with the purest heroism, and towering ingratitude
seemed to be enacted only to make way for splendid remorse, his ashes
were subsequently brought back to Athens, his accusers put to death, and
a statue was raised to his honour. Phocion was surnamed “the Good.”
Alexander, surnamed “the Great,” endeavouring to win him from his
loyalty, offered him riches and the choice of four cities in Asia. The
answer of Phocion bespoke the spotless character of the man. “If
Alexander really esteems me,” he said, “let him leave me my honesty.”
[From the statue, No. 324, for account of which see Handbook of Roman
Court and Nave.]
24. ALCIBIADES. _Athenian General._
[Born at Athens, B.C. 450. Died in Phrygia, B.C. 404. Aged 45.]
The nephew of Pericles, in whose house he was brought up. He was
beautiful in his youth, and he maintained his beauty throughout life,--a
personal advantage of which he was not a little conscious. He was the
pupil of Socrates, towards whom he entertained a sincere regard and
friendship to the last. He entered early into the service of the
Republic, and soon distinguished himself by his eloquence and feats of
arms. Accused of irreligion, he quitted Athens and took refuge in
Sparta, where he betrayed the designs of his country, and also abused
the hospitality of the Spartan king. Returning to Athens he gained
several victories at the head of her armies, and recovered his position,
but only to lose it again in consequence of his ill-success in an
expedition against Andros. By order of the “Thirty Tyrants,” established
by Lysander in Athens, he was at length assassinated. Alcibiades was
remarkable for activity, eloquence, and address. He was very plausible,
very versatile, very unscrupulous, and a great dissembler. His unabashed
audacity was matchless, but it was relieved, as well as heightened, by
good nature, and good humour. He was also selfish, and ambitious, and
inordinately vain. He had a slight defect in his speech, and could not
pronounce the letter R.
[From the marble in the Sala delle Muse of the Vatican. It has upon it
the first four letters of Alcibiades’ name. By an inferior artist, and
probably of a late date. It conveys no idea of the beauty of this
fiery-hearted soldier. No. 24A is a much finer head, but is not
entitled to the same confidence as a portrait. Alcibiades is said to
have been the model for Cupids and Mercuries in his youth. He received
all the honours of portraiture from the Athenians, who made several
statues of him in bronze, and the Romans placed his statue in the
Forum by the side of one of Pythagoras.]
24A. ALCIBIADES. _Athenian General._
25. MILTIADES. _Athenian General._
[Date and place of birth unknown. Died B.C. 489.]
An Athenian. Succeeded his father Cimon as “Tyrant” of the Thracian
Chersonesus. He accompanied Darius on his expedition into Scythia. He
was subsequently driven out of the Chersonesus by the Persians, and fled
to Athens, where he resumed his rights as an Athenian citizen. He was
one of the ten generals chosen by the Athenians to resist the Persian
invasion, but by the consent of his colleagues he was invested with sole
command. He defeated the Persians under Datis and Artaphernes, at
Marathon (B. C. 490), and saved Greece. The victory, as well for the
import of its consequences as for the disproportion between the numbers
engaged, is one of the most memorable recorded in history. Afterwards
intrusted with the command of a fleet, with which he attacked the Island
of Paros, to gratify a private enmity. This expedition proving
unsuccessful, Miltiades was impeached, condemned to a fine, and thrown
into prison, where he died of his wounds.
[The hero of Marathon received all portrait honours from the
Athenians. Pliny relates that Panænus, the brother of Phidias, painted
a picture of the battle with portraits of the generals; and the great
sculptor himself made a statue of the conqueror, the cost of which was
appropriately paid out of the spoils of the Persians. It was placed in
the Temple of Apollo at Delphi. The bust, No. 25A, is in the Louvre;
it was found on the Celian Hill at Rome. The back part of the helmet
has sculptured upon it the furious bull of Marathon which Theseus
killed, and which Miltiades wears as a trophy of valour. This portrait
has been identified by a bust engraved with the name, described by
Fulvius Ursinus, but which is unfortunately lost.]
25A. MILTIADES. _Athenian General._
26. ASPASIA.
[Born at Miletus, in Asia Minor. Date of birth and death unknown; but
in the fifth century B.C.]
A woman of great beauty and intellectual power, and the contemporary of
Pericles, who was her lover, and over whom she gained unbounded sway.
Her house was the resort of the greatest and most learned men in Athens,
and Socrates, Plato, and Alcibiades were her frequent guests. She is the
first of her sex whose portrait has been handed down from hoary
antiquity unto the present time. It is related that Pericles learnt
political wisdom from her instruction, and took eloquence from her lips.
Pericles rewarded his instructress by saving her life through his
eloquence and tears, when, like Socrates, Aspasia was arraigned on the
charge of impiety. After the death of Pericles, Aspasia attached herself
to an obscure man of the name of Lysicles, whom she advanced by her
instructions to high office in the Athenian republic.
[From the marble in the Vatican, which is inscribed with her name.
This form of bust is rare for women; but it is thought to have been
chosen purposely, to show the superiority of one who gave counsel to
Pericles and taught, they say, Socrates eloquence. Her great celebrity
is guaranteed by this monument, which is the earliest antique Greek
portrait of a lady.]
27. PERICLES. _Athenian Statesman._
[Born at Athens, B.C. 494. Died B.C. 429. Aged 65.]
For forty years at the head of the administration in Athens; twenty-five
years in conjunction with others, and fifteen years alone. He was the
pupil of Anaxagoras, from whom he derived philosophic equanimity and
lofty principle. The eloquence of Pericles was a grand characteristic of
the man, but not the grandest. When dying, he affirmed that his greatest
honour had been, “that no Athenian, through his means, had ever put on
mourning.” He promised the Athenians immortality; he secured it by means
of the memorials of beauty which he left on the Athenian soil, now
upwards of two thousand years ago. His oratory was rapid, penetrating,
condensed, energetic, persuasive, graceful, and fertile in resources.
His boundless influence was never degraded to unworthy purposes.
Architecture, sculpture, and literature, reached their highest point
under his protecting hand. Phidias was his director of public works;
Sophocles and Euripides were his favoured friends. He governed with
moderation and justice, and eschewing all aggression for the mere sake
of conquest, endeavoured by every means to consolidate the dominion and
to confirm the maritime power of Athens. His eloquence was the golden
sceptre of his rule. He died in the great plague of Athens.
[Pliny mentions a painted portrait of him by Aristolaus, and
Christodorus states that his statue in bronze existed at
Constantinople. Phidias, it is said, sculptured the portrait of his
illustrious patron on the shield of the great Minerva, and the busts
of him are taken from this figure. This bust is from the British
Museum. There is also a bust of Pericles in the Vatican, which has the
name on the breast. He wears the Corinthian helmet.]
28. PISISTRATUS. _“Tyrant” of Athens._[30]
[Born about B.C. 612. Died at Athens, B.C. 527.]
A prince who made his way to power by questionable means, but who made
of power a noble and an exemplary use. When Solon established his
constitution, and quitted Athens, Pisistratus headed one of the rival
factions that instantly rose up. He seized the citadel of Athens (B.C.
560), but was subsequently driven from the city by the united efforts of
his foes. After six years’ absence he regained Athens by a stratagem,
but, again expelled, suffered another exile for the space of ten years.
He returned for a second time, and vanquished those who opposed him,
assumed power, and maintained his position until his death. His rule was
moderate, just, and productive of great benefit to the Athenian people.
He encouraged literature and the drama, protected religion, and regarded
the interests of the poor. To him we owe the first written text of the
whole of the poems of Homer. He is also said to have been the first in
Greece to collect a library for public use. He gave Athens repose,
during which she nourished the elements of her future strength and
power.
[From the marble, which has hitherto been called a Pericles, in the
Rospigliosi Palace at Rome.]
[30] The title “Tyrant” in the old republics, meant only “absolute
monarch.”
29. PERIANDER. _“Tyrant” of Corinth._
[Born at Corinth, about B.C. 670. Died about B.C. 585.]
One of the “Seven Wise Men of Greece,” and the son of Cypselus, “Tyrant”
of Corinth, whom he succeeded B.C. 625. The first years of his
government were distinguished by moderation and wisdom, but afterwards
he exercised great cruelty towards his family and people. He reigned
many years.
[From the marble in the Vatican, which is remarkably well preserved.
It bears his name in Greek letters. It was found in 1780, near Tivoli,
in the house of Cassius, with the heads of Bias, Solon, Thales,
Pittacus, and Cleobulus, and probably formed part of the Gallery of
Cassius, the letters being of the Roman time. In the British Museum
there is another original marble of this philosopher, which formerly
was in the Palace of Sixtus V. at Rome.]
30. LYCURGUS. _Lawgiver._
[Date and place of birth and death unknown.]
Lycurgus holds an ambiguous place between tradition and history. Nothing
authentic is known of him, and a touch of the fabulous pervades his
story. He is said to have been of the line of Spartan kings, and, after
having travelled in nearly all countries of the world, to have brought
back his laws to Sparta, whose constitution he remodelled. Quitting
Sparta, he exacted a promise from the Spartans that they would not alter
his laws until his return. He never returned. He was honoured with a
temple and a yearly sacrifice. He inculcated, according to the
tradition, rigid discipline, unquestioning obedience, and military
ardour.
[From the head of the statue in the Sala delle Muse of the Vatican,
Rome. It is another example of conventional or traditional
portraiture, but possesses one very remarkable confirmation of an
accident related in his life. In one of the disturbances of the
populace, he was struck in the eye; and it will be observed that one
eye of the bust has the peculiar appearance of being useless.
Visconti, who noticed this peculiarity, first named the statue
Lycurgus. There is a head in the Naples Museum which corresponds with
this, and both are confirmed by the medals which bear his name. The
drill holes about the beard are interesting, as they prove that the
ancient sculptors worked on the same plan as the moderns.]
31. POSIDIPPUS. _Comic Poet._
[Born at Cassandreia, in Macedonia. Date of birth and death unknown.]
Nothing is known of his life or death. He was an Athenian comic poet, of
“The New Comedy,” and his first dramas appeared B.C. 289. He was the
last, in order of time, of the six who are mentioned by the anonymous
writer on comedy, as the most celebrated poets of the New Comedy. He is
said to have written forty plays, of which little more than the titles
of eighteen are preserved. No accurate judgment can be formed of his
style; some of his subjects, judging from the titles, must have been
licentious.
[For account of this statue, see Handbook to Roman Court and Nave, No.
291.]
32. MENANDER. _Comic Poet._
[Born at Cephissia, near Athens, B.C. 342. Died probably at Athens,
B.C. 290. Aged 52.]
The model writer of “The New Comedy,” which substituted for the
personalities of the “Ancient Comedy,” a more faithful portraiture of
the vices and follies of men. A few fragments only remain of his
numerous works. His plays are said to have presented a most true and
lively reflexion of the manners and morals of his age. He had many
imitators amongst the Greeks and Romans, and Plautus and Terence
profited by his writings. Only eight of his plays were crowned. He was
probably in advance of his time and audience.
[For account of this statue, see Handbook to Greek Court, No. 290.]
33. POSIDONIUS. _Greek Philosopher._
[Born at Apameia in Syria, about 135 years B.C. Died, probably at
Rome, about 51 B.C.]
A writer on History, Astronomy, Astrology, Cosmography, and Grammar, but
none of his works remain; a great scholar and traveller. A Stoic in
philosophy, yet desirous of bringing all systems of philosophy into
harmony. He suffered much from illness. Pompey visited him during a
sharp attack of gout, but during his agony he sustained an argument with
the orator Hermagoras to prove that pain is no evil. “Torment me if you
will, oh Pain!” he exclaimed, “I shall not admit pain to be an evil, a
bit the more for that.”
[For account of this statue, see Handbook to Roman Court and Nave, No.
307.]
ROMAN COURT.
ENTERING BY THE CENTRE ARCH FROM THE NAVE.
(_Numbers commencing on the right._)
ROMAN EMPERORS.
34. NUMA POMPILIUS. _Second King of Rome._
[Born at Cures, in the country of the Sabines.]
The life of Numa Pompilius belongs to the realm of fable. “His name,”
says Dr. Smith, “represents the rule of law and order, and to him are
ascribed all those ecclesiastical institutions which formed the basis of
the ceremonial religion of the Romans.” The legend attached to Numa
describes him as the mildest, wisest, and most virtuous of men. After
his election to the throne, vacated by Romulus, his first care was to
ameliorate the condition of his people, and to legislate on behalf of
religion. He reigned thirty-nine years in uninterrupted peace. It is
suggested that as Numa was reputed chosen from amongst the Sabines, the
Romans, in all probability, drew their religious institutions from that
nation, rather than from the Etruscans.
[From the bust in the Vatican at Rome.]
35. AUGUSTUS. _Roman Emperor_, B.C. 30-A.D. 14.
[Born at Rome, B.C. 63. Died at Nola, in Campania, A.D. 14. Aged 76.]