contradiction. Invincible activity, and inexhauftible ftrength, are his characteriftics. The ancient artist has erred, not only in giving him an attitude which fuppofes his strength wants recruiting, but in the nature of the ftrength itself, the character of which should not be passive, but active.

Near to Hercules, under the arcades of the fame Palezzo Farnefe, is a most beautiful ftatue of Flora. The great advantage which ancient artists had in attending the exercifes of the gymnafia, has been repeatedly urged as the reafon of their fuperiority over the moderns in fculpture. We are told, that besides the usual exercises of the gymnafia, all those who proposed to contend at the Olympic games, were obliged, by the regulations, to prepare themfelves, by exercifing publicly for a year at Elis; and the ftatuaries and painters conftantly attended on the Arena, where

they

they had opportunities of beholding the finest shaped, the moft graceful, and most vigorous of the Grecian youth employed in thofe manly fports, in which the power of every mufcle was exerted, and all their various actions called forth, and where the human form appeared in an infinite variety of different attitudes. By a conftant attendance at fuch a fchool, independent of any other circumftance, the artifts are fuppofed to have acquired a more animated, true, and graceful ftyle, than poffibly can be caught from viewing the tame mercenary models, which are exhibited in our academies. On the other hand, I have heard it afferted, that the artift, who formed the Farnefian Flora, could not have improved his work, or derived any of its excellencies, from the circumstances above enumerated; because the figure is in a standing pofture, and clothed. In the light cafy flow of the drapery, and

in

in the contour of the body being as diftinctly pronounced through it, as if the figure were naked, the chief merit of this ftatue is thought to confift. But this reasoning does not feem juft; for the daily opportunities the ancient artifts had of feeing naked figures, in every variety of action and attitude, must have given them advan-. tages over the moderns, in forming even drapery figures. At Sparta, the women, upon particular occafions, danced naked. In their own families, they were feen every day clothed in light draperies; and so secondary was every confideration, even that of decency, to art, that the prettieft virgins of Agrigentum, it is recorded, were called upon by the legiflature, without dif tinction, to fhew themselves naked to a painter, to enable him to paint a Venus. Whilft the moderns, therefore, muft acknowledge their inferiority to the ancients in the art of fculpture, they may be allow

ed

ed merit, on account of the cause to which, it seems, in fome measure at least to be owing.

The fine fpecimens of antique fculpture are to be seen in the Vatican. In these the Greek artifts difplay an unqueftionable fuperiority over the moft fuccessful efforts of the moderns. For me to attempt a description of these master-pieces, which have been defcribed a thousand times and imitated as often, without once having had juftice done them, would be equally vain and fuperfluous. I confine myself to a very few obfervations. The most infenfible of mankind must be ftruck with horror at fight of the Laocoon. On one of my vifits to the Vatican, I was accompanied by two perfons, who had never been there before: one of them is accused of being perfectly callous to every thing which does not immediately touch his own perfon; the other is a worthy, good man: the first, after staring for fome time with marks

marks of terror at the groupe, at length recovered himself; exclaiming with a laugh,-" Egad, I was afraid thefe d-d "ferpents would have left the fellows they

are devouring, and made a fnap at me; "but I am happy to recollect they are of "marble."- 66 "I thank you, Sir, most "heartily," said the other, "for putting t me in mind of that circumftance: till you mentioned it, I was in agony for "those two youths."

66

Nothing can be conceived more admirably executed than this affecting groupe; in all probability, it never would have entered into my own head that it could have been in any respect improved. But when I first had the happiness of becoming acquainted with Mr. Locke, a period of my life which I fhall always recollect with peculiar pleasure, I remember my converfing with him upon this fubject; and that Gentleman, after mentioning the exe