WILLIAM BLACKWOOD, NO 17, PRINCE'S STREET, EDINBURGH; AND T. CADELL AND W. DAVIES, STRAND, LONDON; SOLD ALSO BY ALL THE BOOKSELLERS OF THE UNITED KINGDOM. [OLIVER & BOYD, Printers, Edinburgh.] EDINBURGH MAGAZINE. No XXIX. AUGUST 1819. VOL. V. RESTORATION OF THE PARTHENON FOR THE NATIONAL MONUMENT. MR EDITOR, The public attention appearing to have been much roused by an article on the subject of the National Monument, in your last Number, I trust you will give admission to a few remarks on the same topic, for the reception of which that article has ably paved the way. Complaints have been made, that the country has been backward upon this occasion; and the reasoning used in the article alluded to, endeavours to exexplain this, by supposing, that the patriotic principles which lead nations to raise such trophies in remembrance of past glories, are not fully understood. It is to be hoped, that in this respect the writer of the article in question is not quite correct. If he be, however, his strain of argument is well calculated to remedy the evil of which he complains. The true cause, however, of the evident tardiness (not to call it lukewarmness) of the public on this occasion, seems to arise very naturally out of the uncertainty which prevails, as to the plan and situation of the monument itself. We are described as being a cautious nation; but caution such as ours is not the offspring of cold indifference; nor of the narrow prudence of selfishness; it is the wise circumspection of a deliberating and enlightened people; and is quite compatible with the warmest and most enthusiastic nationality; and with those ennobling feelings of pride and patriotism, which ought to spring from the recollection of triumphs in which Scotland has had so eminent a share. VOL. V. We are not, however, so highly excited as to throw away our money for no other purpose, than to give a show of sincerity to the expression of these strong emotions. We feel, that instead of contributing to the national honour, we should be degrading it, were we to countenance the erection of a monument inadequate to the full expression of our sentiments. While we are in the dark, therefore, as to the plan of any proposed monument, we must be in perpetual alarm lest, by raising an edifice unworthy of so great an object, our triumphs, as well as our appreciation of them, would come to be undervalued by posterity, and thus one of the most obvious advantages of the national monument would be destroyed. Nor should we, in our own day, be free from some feeling of humiliation, were we to display to our rivals in arms, a memorial that, instead of sustaining, should tend to depress the lofty character we have so nobly achieved. It is no answer to this to assert, that such fears are groundless. We must judge on this as on every other occasion, by what we know. And what does this knowledge furnish? Let us look over the whole empire-shall we anywhere find, amidst modern structures, one edifice in any respect worthy of the object in view?-or can any person be found bold enough to prophecy for the works of this country, a celebrity as undeviating and enduring as that which, for more than two thousand years, has been bestowed on the magnificent structures of Antient Greece! Innumerable attempts have been 3 T2 made in all countries, to rival these works. They have all failed; and as this is admitted on every hand, the inference is irresistible, that although it be not, in the nature of things, impossible to reach, or even to surpass, that degree of excellence, yet it is in the very highest degree improbable, that the invention of any modern architect shall produce, all at once, a plan approaching, even remotely, to the perfection of those models which have been handed down to us from antiquity. It ought to be borne in mind, that the public taste in Greece was not the growth of any particular occasion, but was the result of centuries of patient cultivation. Many Grecian temples are still in existence, which sufficiently indicate its gradual progress towards the perfection which, in the age of Pericles, it finally attained. The temples of Pæstum and Agrigentum mark the step from the heavy architecture of Egypt to the more grace ful, though not less solid, proportions of the Doric order. The temple of Jupiter Panhellenius, not only in the construction of its parts, and the proportion of its columns, but in the rude sculpture of its Frize, tells, what we know from history to be true, that it was erected prior to that era of public taste which gave birth to the celebrated temple of Minerva. Thus, both from theory and experience, we are entitled to say, that long ere the sun of Grecian taste had shed its meridian lustre on the Acropolis, there must have been many bright indications of the light which was to come a light of which we, in this country, cannot as yet perceive even the dawn. How presumptuous were it then in us to hope, that, by the mere effort of our will, however powerfully seconded by talents and wealth, we can reach at once an excellence which it cost even the Greeks so many centuries to accomplish. And what folly were it, with that admitted excellence fully within our grasp, to think of raising in its stead an edifice which, by every conceivable analogy, must be of very doubtful beauty, and almost necessarily inadequate to the great purpose at present in view. There is but one opinion upon this subject, amongst those who have either visited Athens, or who have studied the works which describe that city. But as the great majority of those persons who are expected to contribute to this monument never saw the Parthenon, nor even a drawing of it, it cannot be expected, unless some mode be adopted of extending the knowledge of this subject, that any very general feeling will be expressed for its being adopted as the model of the national monument. There is very little doubt, however, that were means afforded to the public of comparing the Parthenon of Athens with any modern plan whatsoever, the decision would speedily be pronounced in favour of the former. The committee of management would therefore be doing the highest service to the cause of good taste, were they to circulate a drawing of the Parthenon, in a situa tion very nearly resembling its original position-that is to say, crowning the rock of the Calton-hill. Yet although such a measure would be very impor tant, in as much as it could not fail to expand the public taste, yet, with reference to the object immediately under consideration, it would be of little avail, unless it were accompanied by a pledge that this model, the finest beyond all question which the world ever saw, was in fact to be adopted as the national monument. The advantages which would flow from such a decision are numerous and striking. The prudential dread alluded to in the early part of this article, would be instantly removed; and subscriptions would flow in from those who most assuredly will not give their money towards the erection of any modern structure whatsoever. Again, it is well known what efforts have long been made by the taste and wealth of England to procure models of Grecian architecture in this country. Societies have been formed; artists sent out; and ships have been In order that full justice might be done to the subject, such a drawing ought to be executed by the hand of a master; and we feel confident that in such a cause Mr Hugh Williams would cheerfully lend his powerful assistance. This gentleman, to the command of matchless skill in execution, and the most refined taste and observation, adds the advantage of having studied the original at Athens. freighted to transport Athenian remains to our northern shores. But while numberless detached pieces of art have, by means of this perseverance, labour, and expense, been brought to this country, it has hitherto been found impossible to erect one building on the model of the temples of antiquity. This has arisen, not from any want of an ardent desire to accomplish such an object; not from any blindness to the incalculable benefits which would thereby be conferred on public taste; but principally from the enormous expense with which such a structure would be attended in London. The vicinity, however, to the capital of Scotland, of the finest freestone quarries in the world, gives to the people of this country the ready means of accomplishing this desirable object, at an expense vastly inferior to what would be required in any other part of the empire. We have, moreover, the very important advantage of possessing a finer situation for so noble a structure, than any other city can boast of; a situation, be it recollected, which resembles, in the most striking manner, the spot selected for a similar monument by Phidias himself. The object, then, so long and so ardently wished for by every man of taste and education in England, will now be placed within their reach. Can any one doubt that under the proposed circumstances the subscriptions from that enlightened and enterprising country would be immense? Yet without some such powerful stimulus we have no title to expect that our neighbours will assist in accomplishing an object in which they are not directly concerned. They have enough at home to occupy their attention and their wealth, and they would justly consider their resources misapplied if directed towards any modern edifice out of their own country. But the restoration of the finest of all the ancient models is an object of such general importance; one that comes home so immediately to every classical recollection and early association, that, in its support, we might safely calculate upon the assistance of our classical neighbours. They would see that the erection of such a temple as the Parthenon any where within their island, would confer benefits as lasting and important upon the progress of the arts in England, as in this country; being sensible too, that such an object can be looked for in this metropolis alone, they would be far above jealousy, and would cheerfully and liberally contribute towards its accomplishment. Much of the same reasoning will apply to India; where the taste for Grecian architecture has far outstripped that which prevails here. The Scotch form a great proportion of the society in that country; and as they have the deepest and most lively interest in their country's renown-and are possessed of considerable wealth, they become a body of men whom it is extremely important to engage heartily in this cause. They have witnessed the triumphs which this monument is intended to commemorate, though at a distance, with a degree of ardour and enthusiasm not less heartfelt than it was here; but from the absence of the distracting causes which surround us, the sentiment has proved even more lasting. Consequently, most of the Scotch in India may be expected, under any circumstances, to subscribe to a certain extent. But as they retain, even in that country of liberality and profusion, all their national good sense and caution, they will not easily be induced to engage in this subscription, to the full extent of their means, while the present uncertainty as to the plan and situation of the monument exists. But it is no less certain, that if our countrymen in India were to be assured that the Parthenon of Athens was indeed to be restored, and in the capital of their native land, they would cooperate in this great cause with an efficiency worthy of their birth-place. The influence of public opinion is, perhaps, no where so strongly felt as in India; there is no country, indeed, in which enlarged and liberal ideas are so generally felt and acted upon: and those who best know the state of society there, will deem it no extravagance to assert, that so unexception We possess also more than one architect whose powers of execution are fully equal to such a task. And surely, even the most eminent of these would, upon due reflection, feel more highly honoured by becoming the actual restorer of the Parthenon, than from being the original planner of any modern edifice. |