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LETTER X.

Theatre.

A

Turin, O&. 20th.

S I find you doat upon long letters, I am determined not to fpare you, but shall endeavour to crowd into this all I have to say on the fubject of Turin and its environs. In my laft, I had scarce gone through the palace, not having made mention of the Library nor the Theatre; the former is faid to contain curious manufcripts, but we could not fee them, an excuse being made, that fome perfon was out of the way who had them in charge. Plans of all prince Eugene are preferved here. else remarkable in this apartment.

the battles of There is little

They fhew a moveable staircase, which is neatly finished, but is very common in all confiderable libraries in England.

As to the Theatre it is ftrikingly magnificent, and so far superior to any theatre I ever saw before, that at first fight I could not believe it admitted of criticism. Notwithstanding which, I am at present convinced of the justness of Cochin's obfervations, which are fo clear as to render every reader a competent judge of its proportions, &c. if endued with the smallest degree of taste, or the moft fuperficial knowledge in architecture. I could wish, with all my heart, to see a theatre at

London

London but half as well built; and would willingly compound for all the faults Cochin has juftly discovered. The form is that of an egg cut acrofs. There are fix rows of boxes; narrow indeed in front, but very convenient within; and hold eight perfons with eafe*. The King's box is in the second row, fronting the stage; it is 30 feet wide, Paris measure; and the back part, covered with looking-glass, reflects the stage in fuch a manner, that those who happen to have their backs turned to the actors, either converfing, or at play, may fee the performance in the glaffes. These glaffes form a partition, which can be moved whenever they choose to enlarge the box, there being a room behind. The very great breadth of the stage produces a most noble effect. The profcenium measures forty five Paris feet [this measurement I took from Cochin], he does not give the extent of the stage behind the couliffes; the depth of the stage 105, beyond which they can add a paved court of 24 feet +. A gentle rifing is contrived at the fides. By which may be introduced triumphal cars, for great proceffions,

*The Italians play at cards, receive vifits, and take all forts of refreshments in their boxes; they refemble little rooms, rather than boxes at a theatre. There are no benches, but what is much more convenient, chairs, which are moved about at pleasure.

+ M-measured it, and found it thus, according to Englifh measure; ftage 96 feet broad, including 36 feet behind the coulies, and 125 deep.

horses,

Palace of

the Prince of Pied

mont.

horfes, &c. They can also throw a draw bridge
across when the scene requires it, and have a con-
trivance for letting in water, fo as to prefent a jet
d'eau of
30 feet high. Sixty horfes at a time have
been brought upon the ftage, and have manou-
vred with eafe in reprefentations of battle: the
orchestra is fo curiously conftructed, as, by having
a place left underneath, which is concave and
femicircular, to augment the found of the inftru-
ments very confiderably. I am forry that, as it is
not carnival time, we have no chance of being
prefent at an opera, there being none performed
in this theatre but at that feafon, when they re-
prefent the serious opera. The only theatre now
open is that of Carignan, which, though called
finall here, is, I affure you, by no means defpi-
cable. Here they give none but operas bouffon at
this time of the year; I fhall have occafion to fay
more upon this fubject before I quit Turin.

That part of the palace of the duke of Savoy which is modern, is fronted, in the most ornamental manner, by Philip Juvara (the reft being old); and is in the best stile of architecture of any building at Turin. The Corinthian pillars, with their entablature, terminated by a fine balluftrade, upon which are placed ftatues, vafes, &c. make a ftriking appearance. But the ftair cafe is admired here to fuch a degree, that they affert it to be the

*This palace is now called that of the Prince of Piedmont, as he occupies it at prefent; for the duke of Savoy has apartments in the King's palace.

firft in the world; it is double, and unites at top, from whence you enter the grand faloon. Cochin's remark thereupon feems well founded, "Cet efcalier eft en, general fort beau, quoique l'on trouve que la cage qui l'enferme, feit trop etroit pour fa longeur, il y a des details fort ingenieufement decorés, & d'autre de mauvais goût, & d'une architecture trop tourmentée, &c. The apartments are well furnished, and would appear much more grand and confiderable than they do, was it not for the ftair cafe; the noble appearance of which indicates your finding a more magnificent and extenfive fuite of rooms. -- Another great palace grows on to that of the King's, which is called,, The Academy. The Manége is very large, and finely vaulted; the apartments neat, and fit for the purposes for which they are defigned.—I believe I did not mention, to you the gallery in the King's palace, where the archives are kept. These are arranged with fuch method, that, although they are extremely voluminous, the King can, at a moment, turn to the population, extent, and productions of the fmalleft fubdivifion, of his hereditary dominions, or of thofe acquired by him at the conclufion of the war in 1744, commonly called, Les païs conquis; their prefent and paft revenue, at or for any given period within the two last centuries, by the day, week, or year; their capability of bearing a further increase of taxes, in cafes of neceffity; their value, and cafual increafe, or decreafe, in different branches

of

Table

Ifiaque.

of manufactures, as well as the number of militia, and of recruits, which each can furnish upon any

emergency.

The Table Ifiaque is one of the most celebrated Egyptian antiques in all Italy. This flab or table is of copper; it is covered all over with hieroglyphics. The principal figure is an Ifis, fitting; she has a kind of hawk on her head, and the horns of a bull. Many and various are the conjectures formed by the learned in regard to the meaning of the figures upon the table. Some have imagined, they could prove it to be a compass; others, a perpetual calendar; and not a few have pretended to find in it principles of philofophy and politics; while, more ingenious ftill, fome have afferted, that it contains a complete body of theology. After what I have faid, you cannot expect from me an opinion upon this fubject. I am not impertinent enough to pretend I discovered any thing more, than a strange chaos of men, women, ugly birds, and other animals, frightfully delineated, by straight lines fometimes fpringing all from a point, like rays, then fuddenly turning into angular figures, formed by filver incrufted into copper. It is evident, that much filver has been taken out of this table, as the grooves remain. Notwithstanding the feeming confufion of the representations, the filver lines are very neat, and extremely well inserted into the copper.-Monf. Groffo Cavallo gave himself a great deal of trouble to procure us a very learned differtation on the subject

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