The Extremely
Beautiful Apollino; The Spotted Faun; The Remouleur Or Figure Which Is
In The Act Of Whetting A Sickle.
All these were in Paris, and are now
restored to this Gallery.
In this chamber two pictures struck me in
particular: the one the Venus of Titian, a most voluptuous figure; the
other a portrait of the mistress of Rafaello, called "La Fornarina," from
her being a baker's daughter.
Returning to the Gallery I was quite bewildered at the immense number of
statues, pictures, sarcophagi, busts, altars, etc. Among the pieces of
sculpture those that most caught my attention were: the Venus genetrix
(which I had seen before at Paris); the Venus victrix; the Venus
Anadyomene; Hercules and Nessus, a superb groupe; a young Bacchus; and an
exquisitely chiselled group representing Pan teaching Olympus to play the
syrinx, tho' the attitude of the former is rather indecorous from not being
in a very quiescent state; a fine statue of Leda with the swan; a Mercury,
both worthy of great attention. I remarked also in particular a statue of
Marsyas attached to a tree and flayed. It is of a pale reddish marble, and
tho' I perfectly agree with Forsyth, that colored marble is not at all
adapted to statuary, yet in this instance it gives a wonderful effect and
is strikingly suitable, as the slight reddish colour gives a full idea of
the flesh after the skin is torn off. It makes one shudder to look at it.
In one of the halls are the statues of Niobe and her daughters, a beautiful
group. Then there is the celebrated copy of the group of the Laocoon by
Bandinelli, which none but the most perfect and skilful connoisseur could
distinguish from the original. But it is totally impossible for me to
describe the immense variety of paintings, historical, portrait and
landscape; the statues single or in groups; the sarcophagi, altars,
bas-reliefs, inscriptions, bronzes, medals, vases, baths, candelabra,
cameos, Etruscan and Egyptian idols with which this admirable Museum is
filled. In a line on each side of the Gallery near the ceiling is a
succession of portraits in chronological order of the Grand Dukes of
Tuscany, the Germanic Emperors, the Kings of France, of England, of Spain,
of Portugal, of the Popes and of the Ottoman Emperors. Among the
antiquities I particularly noticed a large steel mirror and a Roman Eagle
in bronze of the 24th Legion.
Having passed full four hours in this Museum, I descended the steps,
crossed the Arno and repaired to the building in which is preserved the
Cabinet d'Histoire Naturelle. In this Museum what is most remarkable are
the imitations in wax of the whole anatomy of the human body. It is the
first collection of its kind; indeed it is unique in Europe. These
imitations are kept in glass cases and are so true and so perfectly correct
as to leave nothing to desire to the student in anatomy. These imitations
in wax not only include all the details of anatomy, but also the progress
of generation, gestation, and of almost every malady to which the human
body is liable.
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