ter countries. But we must refer to Mr. Hervey's publication. Were we to allow our perception of some faults in this work to merge in the exceeding admiration it has excited in us, we should not say a word in the way of objection; but as we, in our capacity of reviewers, have a duty to perform to the public and to our own critical character, we must look at the dark as well as the light side of the picture, and point out what appears to us its inequalities. In the first place and we rid ourselves of the ungracious part of our task-to one of the works of our revered countryman, the divine Flaxman, -the greatest sculptor since the days of ancient Greece, hardly excepting Michael Angelo, who, though possessed of more fire, yet lacked his true sculptural purity, simplicity, and grandeur,—to one of Flaxman's best works we cannot admit that justice has been done. Seeing the exquisite beauty of the other two plates, we are the more forcibly struck with the want of care and attention evinced in this by the stiffness in the left arm, the absence of likeness to the original in the face, and the bloated appearance of the abdomen of the Pandora, the want of breadth, the polished silvery appearance of the back, and the total absence of drawing, anatomical knowledge, and likeness, in the legs and left arm of the Mercury, and the hard, black, and spotty abruptness of the shadows. In our opinion, also, and we are borne out by several artists, the choice of light is incorrect and at variance with the sculptor's intention, who doubtless never contemplated a light that would throw the most interesting parts of his group into shadow: such would not have been the case had the light been admitted from the opposite side. To arrive at entire perfection in this branch of his art (namely, copying on a reduced scale from works in sculpture), the artist should (we speak with deference) pay the strictest attention to the theory of light and shade — we mean on the general scale; and to the fact that it rarely occurs that effects which look well in a large piece of sculpture, will appear similarly happy (without what is technically called treatment") in a small copy, although it may have been reduced in the strictest proportion. The masses of shadow in the engraving before us are much too ponderous, out of proportion, and obtrusive. We were rather disagreeably reminded of the want of a faint shadow behind the lower part of the left side of the group of the "Happy Mother," which, though a part least interesting, is thereby made hard, cutting, and offensively obtrusive on the eye, and disturbing the calm, enchanting repose of the group which

is its principal and pervading excellence; the absence of a plinth, too, gives it an unfinished appearance, and can answer no apparent good end. With these exceptions, comparatively trifling, we think it, as a faithful and well-executed engraving, one of the most perfect specimens of its kind, equally honourable to the engraver, Mr. P. W. Tomkins, and deserving of the highest approbation of the sculptor and a tasteful public. The engraving of the "Dancing Girl" is effective, clear, and well drawn, and, above all, is like the marble (a merit equally conspicuous in the foregoing.) It is one of Mr. W. Finden's happiest specimens in this style. Although we think there is too much shadow beneath the right arm and between the upper part of the limbs, yet, upon the whole, we can afford to it, with justice, our most unequivocal approval and admiration. Mr. Hervey, in his remarks on this figure, we conclude has been more influenced by diffidence, and by the absurd nonsensical cant of the Countess Albrizzi and M. de la Touche that pervades nearly the whole of their letter-press to Canova's works, than by the result of his own unbiassed consideration of the statue. Had not

this been the case, he must have seen that no human being, "after past excitement and toil," would or could "repose” upon tiptoes of one foot, and with the other off the ground; unless indeed it were some Bramin or Hindoo devotee, whose long-practised austerities would be hardly attributable to the "sweet and voluptuous" character of the Italian danzatrice. Assuming for a moment that she is at rest, how can Mr. Hervey's "relaxation and abandonment of the limbs," or the Albrizzi's expressions, "the right foot is carelessly thrown over the left, which is planted against the ground and gives firmness to her posture,' "be in any way applicable to a figure, which, as we before stated, is on tiptoes of one foot, with the other suspended against the supporting leg? But this difficulty seems to have been got over by a simple touch; and our worthy French commentator, who answers to that cognomen, has settled the matter at once by nailing our agile and slippery subject up against the stump of a tree, that the artist has in this, as in most cases, reluctantly been forced to encumber his figure with, to strengthen the lower limbs, otherwise incapable in marble of supporting the superincumbent weight. But M. de la Touche, who, like the Albrizzi, flourishes away with all the frenzy yclept " enthusiasm" of a legitimate inventor of "meanings never meant," shall speak for himself :—“ Appuyée sur un tronc d'arbre, elle cherche

un momen nde repos. Mais ses pieds, qu'on voit, pour ainsi dire, s'agiter encore -et dont l'un dédaigne de poser sur la terre." How different is all this to the concise, manly, elegant, and scientific observations of the friend, fellow-countryman, and biographer of Canova," the Count Cicognara!-we will attempt to translate them as literally as possible. Having spoken of one of the other dancing girls, he says," the second is of a character totally different; she holds one finger to her chin, and presents in the soft charm of the motion (or movement) that graceful, undulating line on which Hogarth founded too exclusively his system of beauty-it is more applicable to that of grace. The most delicate attractions are combined in this figure the inclination of the head, the exquisite form of the arm, the step, the drapery, &c." But we will not degrade the great sculptor of the work in question by assuming for an instant that his intention is, in the slightest degree, equivocal to the individual who has the opportunity of examining the original or casts from itthe action is intelligence itself; for, independent of the before-described position and action of the feet, the lines of the drapery, though not indicative of such strong motion as is that of the Hebe and the Girl with the Cymbals by the same artist, are composed upon the same principle and are somewhat similarly arranged.

Whatever are the faults in Canova's works, and there are many, yet we repeat that the want of intelligibility in the actions and intentions of his figures cannot be reckoned among them. Again, it is well known, that if a human figure stand erect upon both feet on tiptoes, and viewed in profile, the juncture of the collar bones at the bottom of the neck will" plumb" or hang directly over the centre of the toes, and if one leg be lifted up so as to throw its weight in front, the aforesaid juncture will plumb further behind the toes, in direct proportion to the projection of the uplifted limb. The above rule invariably obtains with a figure in repose; and the first thing that this figure must naturally do to put itself in motion or a running action, is to throw itself forward and place the juncture of the collar bones over the front of the toes; consequently the body is out of its equilibrium, and has a tendency to fall forward, which can only be prevented by the sudden advance of one of the feet for its support. Any person who will take the trouble to plumb"

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* The use of the word passo, instead of atto, is decisive as to Cicognara's idea of the intention and action of the figure.

the Dancing Girl in profile, will find the aforesaid juncture projecting about two or three inches over her toes in front; which proves beyond a doubt a motion forward, and the necessity for the instantaneous projection for support of the already uplifted foot, which seems to have been caught up, and will meet the ground with lightning-like rapidity, to repeat the spring or bound which the wild Italian antelope is making, doubtless to encounter her companion, whom Canova has represented as advancing in all the majesty of grace to meet her half way. But that our limits will not permit, we would endeavour to bestow praises of the highest order on the descriptive poetry, by Mr. Hervey, in this work; which is perfectly in character, chaste and elegant, evincing a charming and varying fitness of style to the subject which it illuminates. We anticipate the highest gratification from the forthcoming numbers, seeing the selection of subjects Mr.Hervey's taste has so judiciously made, and we hope he will redeem his pledge

not to neglect the work-room of the solitary artist." If, as phrenologists say, and few doubt, there be an organ of Benerolence, this pledge of Mr. H.'s must be a pure emanation from it. The heart of many a solitary" occupant of a "work room," literally speaking, will beat with hitherto almost unknown pleasurable anticipations of his long-neglected and unlooked-at offspring emerging into the light of competition with the works of his more fortunate, and perhaps not more accomplished, brethren in art.

Mr. Hervey's work is, upon the whole, got up with much propriety and purity of taste; the frontispiece is designed with classical elegance and fitness by Mr. Corbould. We tender to the Editor our most grateful thanks for the highly-important benefits his work must eventually confer upon the art of sculpture, especially in this country. We heartily wish him success, and trust that the public will do their duty to him and to themselves.

We shall hereafter find occasion to speak more at length of the literary merit of the publication.

PUBLICATIONS.

The Procession of the Flitch of Bacon.

Painted by T. Stothard, R.A.; engraved by James Watt.

"The Procession of the Flitch of Facon," which has, we believe, been in the hands of the engraver for several years, is at length published, and fully answers the high expectations we had formed of its merit and value. We have rarely

Eighth, containing a preface, index, title-page, &c. completing it. We have upon more than one occasion referred to its claims upon public patronage; we are much deceived if they have not been widely acknowledged. To the architect and the man of letters it is an invaluable acquisition. It is scarcely possible to conceive the minuteness with which every point in every building has been delineated. But if accuracy be its chief merit, it has other advantages-the grandeur of the whole is equal to the care and

nicety of the parts. In the greater number of prints some episode has been introduced characteristic of the peculiar customs or habits of the country; and the descriptive letter-press affords us a clear though a brief insight into the nature and history of the structure, with the condition of the city or town in which it stands. A more welcome or more valuable visitor will seldom find its way into the library or the studio of those to whom the grand and beautiful in art is ever a delightful theme to dwell upon.

ROYAL SOCIETY.

We are indebted for the following interesting notice, to a paper by Dr. W. F. Carter, of Abington, which has been read before the Royal Society. The MS. from which our extracts are made, is accompanied by some clever drawings of the objects which it endeavours to describenamely, an aboriginal Peruvian Indian, in a state of preservation closely analogous to that of a mummy, together with an adult head, and an infant, similarly preserved. The objects themselves were found in the same place of interment-a slope at the foot of a hill, to the south of the Morro, at Arica, which is a remarkably white headland, on the west coast of Peru. They were dug up by some persons connected with the Potosi Mining Company, and lay considerably above the level of the springs, in a dry, sandy soil. This naked and desolate spot, according to the tradition of the place, had been an aboriginal burial-ground. The mummies are at present deposited in the Museum of Natural History at Haslar.

"The pseudo-mummy, if it may be so termed, which is the subject of the above remarks, has been inhumated, according to the custom of the Indians in that part of South America, in a sitting or squatting posture. The body is doubled up with the breast upon the knees, the arms folded over the abdomen, the face depressed downwards, and the whole enveloped in two coverings. An opening has been made, by which the cranium and facial bones have been exposed; and also, a portion of the coverings of the outer and upper part of the right leg, showing the muscular parts. The inner envelope appears of a finer texture than the exterior, and to have been formed from white cotton, wove or spun, with blue stripes. The outer wrapper is a kind of poncho, of a dark brown colour, of a coarse nature, made from the wool of the "Came

lus Vicugna," an animal formerly much domesticated in Peru. It is strong, and well wove, and appears to have been dyed of a dark brown colour. At present, it yields a crisp, cineritious substance, and woollen odour, in burning. The body has been compactly put together in a square form, so as to occupy as small a space as possible; and is strongly confined by several turns with "Bejucos,” tough and luxuriant, creeping oziers, naturally twisted together, and knotted at regular rhomboidal distances. The bands of the neck and insteps have been several times passed round to strengthen and confine those parts; which are also strongly connected together by other bands, passing down from the neck to the space above the ancles. The face, as at present exposed, is still covered in part over the temples and cheeks, with a darkcoloured skin, having the appearance of dried leather, and the hair on the scalp and upon the sides of the head, is still visible, with its long, black, plaited tresses well preserved, and doubled into the chest. The teeth are wanting in the front of the alveoli, and the lower maxilla seems to have been detached from the head, which appears flattened posteriorly as seen through the coverings. The outer and upper part of the right leg, which is exposed, appears in a state resembling in consistence, and dark, reddish-brown colour, hung-beef, and is covered with a mouldy-saline efflorescence. The gastronomii and peroneal muscles are distinctively marked, and are pervious to a scalpel. The bones of the upper extremities appear to be only covered with muscles in part, and the carpal bones to be detached from each other. Within the lap were contained a considerable quantity of leaves of unknown, lateralnerved plants, mattè, and several heads of Indian corn, pods of capsicum, and two little globular vases. The mummy

of the child, which apparently was an infant about six months old, was also enveloped in two coverings, but in a pale red cotton, of a finer texture. From being found in the same Guacho with the female subject, it may be conjectured to have been her infant, and by the demise of the nutritive parent, to have been inhumated at the same time, a prevalent custom in Peru. The body is wrapped up in an upright position, and is tightly confined together by stems of some parasitical plant, twisted in lozenges, and within the coverings of the abdomen are also placed two little globular vases, and a quantity of leaves of some herb, probably the capsici. The muscles appear exsiccated as far as can be observed, and the bones to be detached from each other, with some portion of the integuments still adhering to the bones of the face. The detached head appears to have been that of a female Indian, probably from the peculiar care with which it has been preserved, the wife of a Cacique. It has been originally separated at the occiput, and was found enveloped in two thick napkins, now partially detached. The hair is still glossy, and in good preservation, very black, lank, coarse, and firmly plaited. Some portion of the integuments, and portions also of the temporal and masseter muscles, still cover the facial bones. The teeth are loose, though remaining in their alveolar processes, exhibiting no marks of decay. The cranium appears to have been emptied of the brain by the occipital hole, and to have been filled with some bituminous matter, and then covered by a cotton wrapper, of a light brown colour, striped and bordered with red, blue, and yellow, and secured behind with bands. The outer wrapper is composed of a peculiar brown wove woollen material, which covers the whole head and face. Over this, a broad, thick, knitted yellow woollen band passes from the front of the face over the crown of the head, and under the base of the cranium. This band is curiously worked in dark lozenges, in regular and opposite directions, of the form of the letter Alpha. It overlaps in the front, and is secured by two fillets of yellow and dark brown plaited woollen cords, across the head and face, and obliquely over the yellow band, terminated by knotted fringes of divers. coloured worsted, symbolical substitutes for writing or recording the history of the defunct-the "Quipa" of the Peruvians, an art used for oral tradition. Within the coverings, and under the base of the head, and within the cavity of the mouth, were deposited a quantity of leaves, and pieces of bituminous matter, having the characters of Storax, Tolu, and Croton

Sanguineum, with several very thin quadrangular plates of gold and copper ornaments, with a cord attached at one angle, and which seem to have been originally suspended from the ear, or worn round the neck by the Peruvian females. This head appears, at least as far as can be distinguished through the coverings, much flattened posteriorly, and the frontal bone depressed, as also is to be seen at Haslar in some Peruvian crania, picked up at Chorillos and Hilo, examples of the habits so general among the Indians to create an artificial deformity in their bodies, and by none more conspicuously displayed than by the aborigines of South America, as the compression of the heads of their progeny most remarkably testifies.

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"Captain Basil Hall, in 1821, mentions having seen a curious mummy or preserved figure which had been brought from a Peruvian village to the northward of Lima. It was that of a man in a squatting position, with the knees almost touching his chin, the elbows pressed to the sides, and the hands clasping the cheek bones; the mouth half open, exposing a double row of fine teeth; the body, though shrivelled up in a remarkable manner, had all the appearance of a mummy, the skin being entire, except on one shoulder. In the countenance, there was an expression of agony very distinctly marked. The tradition with respect to this and other similar bodies is, that at the time of the conquest, many of the Incas and their favorites were persecuted to such a degree, that they actually allowed themselves to be buried alive, rather than submit to the fate with which the Spaniards threatened them. They have generally been found in the posture above described in pits dug more than twelve feet in the sand; whereas the bodies of persons known to have died a natural death, are invariably discovered in the regular burying-places of the Indians in a recumbent posture, with the face towards the west. There was seated near the same spot, a female figure, with a child in her arms; the female crumbled into dust on exposure to the air, but the child remained entire. It was wrapped in cotton, woven very neatly, composed of a variety of brilliant colours, and quite fresh. Parts of the clothes also which the female figure had worn, were equally perfect, and the texture strong. The body of the male figure is now deposited in the Museum of the Royal College of Surgeons, and is still in a good state of preservation, extremely light, weighing about eight or ten pounds, hard and coriaceous, and bears evident marks of having been once enveloped in some kind of coverings, by the reticulated impressions on