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houfes, I mean the fimple Bourgeoife; for the noble ladies have magnificent terraffes that communicate with their apartments, and which are shaded in the most convenient manner, with filk awnings, and alleys formed of orange and lemon trees, in tubs. -We have destined to morrow for feeing palaces and pictures. I fhall leave the customs and manners of the Genoefe to my laft letter from this place, in order to be as full as I can upon thofe fubjects. We never let pafs an opportunity of procuring information from those we converse with, in order to compare and judge of the truth by their differing or agreeing upon the fame matter, &c. There arrived here yesterday two

English gentlemen of our acquaintance

to us.

This has been a very agreeable circumstance

M 4

LET

LETTER XVI.

November the 5th.

W

E have vifited two palaces only; the days being short, and the sky overcaft, it was not poffible to fee more pictures than these con

tain, namely, that of Giacomo Balbi, and the Giacomo other (fituated in the same street that bears their Balbi Pa- name) Marcellino Maria Balbi. In both are a Marcelli- great many paintings worthy the attention of the curious; but there are fome few in the first, which

lace.

no Maria

Balbi pa

lace.

I think Cochin fays more of than they merit. One is a St. Sebaftian, large as Nature, by VanVandyke. dyke; it wants life, is flat, and, I think, altogether, one of the worst pictures I have feen by the hand of this great mafter Another, reprefenting a poffeffed woman, two old men, and a child; fo very black, that I think I could fafely defy a connoiffeur to fhew me its merit.-A Refurrection, by Tintoretto. The afcending figure very heavy, and poorly attempted. A wretched little picture (in my opinion), faid by Cochin to be une Esquisse finie de Rubens, and much Lucca commended by him.-In the first faloon is a large Giordano picture, by Lucca Giordano, reprefenting Diogenes feeking a man. There are two incomparable faces in the group, and a dog, who, putting him

Tinto

retto.

felf

-

del Sarto.

felf in a pofture of defence between his master and Diogenes, fhews his teeth to the latter.-A Magdalen, by Andrea del Sarto, as they pretend; Andrea but I was fo ftupid as to mistake it for a family portrait. Two family portraits, by Vandyke, Vandyke. large as life, of a fenator of Genoa and his wife; they are very good, but refemble each other fo ftrongly, that I was on the point of crowning one fottife with another, by asking the Conceirge, whe ther they were not brother and fifter?-Two large landscapes, by Rubens. He has placed the point Rubens. of view fo high, as to difcover a greater extent of profpect than can generally be seen in Nature. One is the representation of a flat country; in the other, is a rainbow, which by its weight, and want of glow in the colouring, falls very far fhort of its brilliant original,-A picture of Dives and Lazarus, faid to be by Jacopo Baffano.-A Car- Jacopo dinal in converfation with Luther and Calvin; a very fine picture; the keeping admirable, and the perfonages wonderfully natural. It appears to be the production of Gulio Romano; but the Con- Gulio ceirge attributes it to Sebaftien del Piambo. There Sebaftien is a fly fo well painted on this picture, that ftran- Piambo. gers always attempt to brush it off, although it is uncommonly large, and placed in the moft confpicuous part of the piece. The portrait of a Nun, very beautiful; (I think) by Capucino. Capucino. Two little pictures, by Brughel, on copper, re- Brughel. prefenting Adam and Eve. They pleafed me much more than they did Cochin; their nice proportions,

Baffano.

Romano.

ordano.

portions, the dignity and manly expreffion in the face and limbs of Adam; the delicacy, foftnefs, and beautiful fimplicity, blended with the innocence which our firft mother here expreffes (for probably the moment the painter chose was prior to her acquaintance with the devil), renders the character of this picture fo amiable, that you may look at it a confiderable time, nor find its merit diminish by the moft rigid examination. Cochin fays, these pictures are highly finished; but cold, and of a colouring void of freshness in all which criticism, the height of finishing excepted, he appears to be totally mistaken.-A very large picLuc. Gi- ture, by Luc. Giordano. The colouring is fine, the drawing falfe in many of the figures. By the horror and agitation, with distortions, ftrongly expreffed in the female figures, confused among the Roman foldiers, the picture ftruck me, at first, as representing the Murder of the Innocents; but, upon a nearer examination, I perceived it to be the Rape of the Sabines. There are two of these Sabines, whose figures are ftrikingly well executed one, whom a foldier is lifting up from the ground with great violence; her fright, difordered hair, drefs, and countenance are fo expreffive, that I could have fancied I heard her fçreams: another, whose back is turned to the fpectators, lofes no expreffion by not fhewing her face; her distress is to be read in the countenance of the fol dier, who is forcing her away, and who difcovers more feelings of compaffion upon the occafion

than

than any of the others.-Oppofite to this piece is one by the fame hand; the fubject, Perfeus conquering his enemies, by turning towards them the Medufa's head, fixed in his fhield: they transform into marble at that horrible afpect; and the painter has very ingeniously tinted these warriors, so as to represent the gradual metamorphofe, from great ftiffness of mufcles to abfolute hard marble, the carnation of the flesh declining through the degrees of paleness to tranfparent whitenefs, with a variety in the effect that is admirable; fuch as, one man attempting to fly, having caught a glance of the Fury's face, his features, and part of his body, are already hardened into marble, whilst his legs are endeavouring in vain to aid him to escape the petrifying power. Another, aiming a ftroke of a fabre at the fhield, has just time to fhew in his countenance, his horror and amazement at the coldness and impotency of his whitening arm. Another, by the fame author; the fubject, Jezebel devoured by Dogs. This picture may not be inferior to the other two; but the history it represents is fo horrible, that although I am perfectly convinced one might, by confidering it, have discovered great merit, yet, after a curfory view, I could not bring myself to dwell upon the representation of a catastrophe attended with There is a fo many disgusting circumstances.

man on horseback in this picture, no doubt Jehu, who by his paleness, and the expreffion of his features, looking on at this frightful piece of justice,

feems

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