A Popular Handbook to the National Gallery, Volume I, Foreign Schools

1. The Adoration of the Magi.

2. The Crucifixion.

3. The Coronation of the Virgin.

4. St. Anthony visiting St. Pablo.

5. A Group of Rustics drinking (the picture known as "Los Borrachos").

6. The Forge of Vulcan.

7. The Surrender of Breda (the picture known as "Las Lanzas").

8. The Tapestry Fabric of St. Isabel at Madrid (the picture known as "Las Hilanderas").

9. Velazquez in his painting room, with various members of the Royal Family and their Attendants (the picture known as "Las Meninas").

10. "Mercury and Argus."

11. Equestrian Portrait of King Philip III.

12. Equestrian Portrait of Queen Margarita de Austria (wife of Philip III.).

13. Equestrian Portrait of King Philip IV.

14. Equestrian Portrait of Queen Isabel de Borbon (first wife of Philip IV.).

15. Equestrian Portrait of Prince Baltasar Carlos, as a child.

16. Equestrian Portrait of the Duke of Olivares.

17. Portrait of Philip IV. as a young man, in court dress.

18. Portrait of the Infanta of Spain, Doña Maria, Queen of Hungary (sister of Philip IV.).

19. Portrait of the Infante, Don Carlos, second son of Philip III., in court dress.

20. Portrait of King Philip IV. in hunting dress.

21. Portrait of the Infante, Don Fernando de Austria (brother of Philip IV.), in hunting dress.

22. Portrait of Prince Baltasar Carlos, at the age of six, in hunting dress.

23. Portrait of King Philip IV., at the age of fifty (?), clad in half armour.

24. Portrait of Doña Mariana de Austria (second wife of Philip IV.).

25. King Philip IV. kneeling at prayer.

26. Queen Mariana de Austria, second wife of Philip IV., kneeling at prayer.

27. Portrait of Prince Baltasar Carlos, son of Philip IV., at the age of fourteen, in court dress.

28. Portrait of the Infanta, Maria Teresa de Austria, daughter of Philip IV. and afterwards Queen of France.

29. Portrait (bust length) of the Cordovan poet, Don Louis de Góngora y Argote.

30. Portrait of Doña Juana Pacheco, wife of the author (bust length; in profile).

31. Portrait of a Girl (daughter of Velazquez?).

32. Portrait of a Girl (another daughter of Velazquez?).

33. Portrait of a middle-aged Lady (half length).

34. Portrait of Don Antonio Alonso Pimentel, ninth Count of Benavente, Groom of the Bedchamber to King Philip IV.

35. Portrait of the Sculptor, Martinez Montanes (half length).

36. Portrait of Pablillos de Valladolid, a Jester of King Philip IV.

37. Portrait of Pernia, a Jester of King Philip IV. (commonly known as the Portrait of "Barbarroja").

38. Portrait of a Jester of King Philip IV., nicknamed Don Juan de Austria.

39. Portrait of a Dwarf of King Philip IV., called "El Primo."

40. Portrait of a Dwarf of King Philip IV. (Sebastian de Morra?)

41. Portrait of Don Antonio, an English (?) Dwarf of King Philip IV. (with a mastiff).

42. The Boy of Vallecas.

43. The Idiot of Coria.

44. Æsop.

45. Menippus.

46. The God Mars.

47. Portrait of a Man (bust length).

48. Portrait of a Man (bust length).

49. Portrait of Alonso Martinez de Espinar, Groom of the Bedchamber to Prince Baltasar Carlos (bust length).

50. View in the Garden of the Villa Medici, Rome.

51. View in the Garden of the Villa Medici, Rome.

52. View of the "Calle de la Reina" in Aranjuez, with a Royal Cavalcade on the road.

53. Study of an old Man's head, in profile.

54. Study of an old Man's head (a smaller copy).

55. Portrait of Philip IV., in court dress.

56. Portrait of Prince Baltasar Carlos, as a child, in court dress.

57. A Group of Figures, presumably painted by Velazquez, in the foreground of a "View of Zaragoza", by Juan Bautista Martinez del Mazo.

58. Another group of Figures in the same picture.

59. Portrait of Doña Mariana de Austria, second wife of Philip IV., dressed in mourning (now attributed to Juan B. M. del Mazo).

II. —REMBRANDT

A second collection (also presented by Lord Savile) consists of forty copies, painted in oil-colour, on a reduced scale by Herr Paul Roemer, from pictures by Rembrandt in the Imperial Gallery of the Hermitage, St. Petersburg. The subjects are as follows: —

Enclosed in one Frame —

1. The Denial of St. Peter.

2. Portrait of Rembrandt's Mother; half length; seated, holding a book on her knees.

3. Portrait of Rembrandt's Mother; half length; seated.

4. Portrait of a young Warrior in armour.

5. Portrait of an aged Jew; half length; seated.

6. Portrait of a Man; half length; standing.

7. Portrait of a Woman; half length; seated.

8. Portrait of the Rabbi Manasseh ben Israel; seated.

9. A young female Servant, with a broom.

10. "Le Benedicite." (A Peasant family saying grace.)

Enclosed in one Frame —

11. Abraham at Table with the Angels.

12. Jacob's elder Sons showing him Joseph's garment.

13. Potiphar's Wife accusing Joseph.

14. The Parable of the Labourers in the Vineyard.

15. The Incredulity of St. Thomas.

16. Portrait of Rembrandt's Mother; half length; seated.

17. Portrait of a young Jewess, crowned with flowers.

18. Portrait of a Turk; half length.

19. Portrait of a Man.

20. Portrait of a young Man, with long fair hair.

21. Portrait of a young Man, dressed in black.

22. Portrait of an old Man.

Enclosed in one Frame —

23. The Sacrifice of Abraham.

24. The Holy Family.

25. The Return of the Prodigal Son.

26. Danaë.

27. Portrait of an old Officer.

28. A Young Girl at her Toilet.

29. Portrait of a Man.

30. Portrait of a Woman.

31. A Landscape; with figures representing the journey to Emmaus.

32. View on the Rhine.

33. The Toilet of a young Jewish Girl.

Enclosed in one Frame —

34. The Disgrace of Haman.

35. The Descent from the Cross.

36. Portrait of Lieven Willemszon van Copenol, the Calligrapher.

37. The Mother of Rembrandt; half length; seated.

38. Portrait of an aged Jew.

39. Portrait of an old Man.

40. A Nun teaching a Child to read.

III. —MURILLO, Etc

A third collection (presented by Dr. E. J. Longton, of Southport) consists of forty-five small water-colour copies, by W. West, from pictures by old masters, principally in the Prado Gallery at Madrid. The following are the subjects: —

After Murillo —

1. The Adoration of the Shepherds. Prado, Madrid.

2. St. Elizabeth of Hungary tending the Sick. Academy of St. Fernando, Madrid.

3. The Dream of the Roman Senator and his Wife. Ibid.

4. The Roman Senator and his Wife telling their Dream to Pope Liberius. Ibid.

5. St. Thomas of Villanueva giving alms. Museum, Seville.

6. Christ on the Cross, supported by St. Francis. Ibid.

7. SS. Justa and Rufina. Ibid.

8. St. Anthony with the Infant Saviour. Museum, Seville.

9. St. Felix restoring the Infant Christ to the Virgin. Ibid.

10. La Vergen de la Servilleta. Ibid.

11. Moses striking the Rock in Horeb. La Caridad, Seville.

12. St. John the Baptist as a Child, with the Lamb. Ibid.

13. The Charity of St. Juan de Dios. Ibid.

After Zurbaran (?)

14. A Legendary Subject.

After Velazquez —

15. Los Borrachos (The Tipplers). Prado, Madrid.

16. Portrait of Philip IV. (with a Dog). Ibid.

17. Prince Balthazar as a Boy on his Pony. Ibid.

18. Portrait of the Infanta Doña Margarita. Ibid.

19. Portrait of a Male Dwarf, with a Dog. Ibid.

20. Las Meninas (The Maids of Honour); Velazquez in his Studio painting the Infanta Margarita Maria. Ibid.

21. Equestrian Portrait of Philip IV. Ibid.

22. Portrait of the Earl of Nottingham. Ibid.

After Titian —

23. Portrait of Philip II. as a Young Man. Ibid.

24. Equestrian Portrait of Charles. Ibid.

25. The Bacchanal. Ibid.

26. Portrait of Charles V., with a Dog. Ibid.

27. Portrait of an Officer.

After Rubens —

28. The Three Graces. Ibid.

29. The Garden of Love. Ibid.

After Van Dyck —

30. The Betrayal of Christ. Ibid.

31. Portrait of Henry, Count de Berg. Ibid.

32. Portrait of a Cavalier. Ibid.

After Ribera —

33. Jacob receiving Isaac's Blessing. Ibid.

34. Jacob's Dream. Ibid.

After Jordaens —

35. Family Group in a Garden. Ibid.

After Raphael —

36. The Holy Family (La Perla). Prado, Madrid.

37. The Holy Family (La Rosa). Ibid.

38. The Holy Family (Del Lagarto). Ibid.

39. Christ bearing the Cross (Lo Spasimo). Ibid.

After Correggio —

40. Noli me tangere. Ibid.

After Claude —

41. Landscape, with St. Mary Magdalen kneeling. Ibid.

After Giorgione —

42. The Virgin and Child, with St. Bridget. Ibid.

After Rembrandt —

43. Queen Artemisia. Ibid.

After Sir A. More —

44. Queen Mary of England. Ibid.

After Parmigiano —

45. Portrait of a Lady with three Children (probably Riccarda Malaspina, Wife of Lorenzo Cibo). Ibid.

IV. —THE ARUNDEL SOCIETY'S COLLECTION

The Arundel Society was formed in 1849 in order to meet "a revived interest in art by suitable instruction." In the case of early Italian art, "the materials for such instruction were abundant, but scattered, little accessible, and, in some instances, passing away." The Society set itself to secure engravings and other records of works of art which came within the description just given. A large collection of water-copies from the Old Masters was thus accumulated, and the Collection was in 1897 deposited in the National Gallery on loan. Two years later, the Society was wound up, and the collection was given to the nation. It is of great interest and value to all students of mediæval art. Many of the Arundel copies are familiar from reproductions in chromo-lithography. "The latter," as a well-known critic has remarked, "although they undoubtedly did good service in their time by calling attention to the less known and less easily available masterpieces of the earlier Italian art, were often enough lamentable caricatures of the things which they professed to represent. The drawings themselves are, however, in many cases, of an exquisite accuracy, of which the reproductions give little or no idea. Of course, when the attempt is made to copy in this medium the great achievements of Giovanni Bellini, Giorgione, Titian, Palma Vecchio, Paolo Veronese, – or even of such earlier colourists as the Van Eycks and Memlinc, – failure, more or less complete, must inevitably be the result. It would be difficult, on the other hand, to overestimate the value of such copies as those of the famous frescoes of Mantegna in the Church of the Eremitani at Padua, those of Benozzo Gozzoli at San Gimignano and Montefalco, of Piero della Francesca at Arezzo, or of the great galaxy of Quattrocento painters – Perugino, Pinturicchio, Botticelli, Ghirlandajo, Signorelli, Cosimo Rosselli, and Piero di Cosimo – who worked in the Sixtine Chapel before Michelangelo came to dwarf and efface them with his stupendous ceiling, and, thirty years later on, with his 'Last Judgment.' For the purposes of study and comparison these copies, lent by the Arundel Society, fulfil much the same role as does a good museum of casts from antique masterpieces. They do not enable the student of art to form a complete idea of the originals, any more than the copies of the Pheidian and Praxitelean sculptures do; but they enlarge his view of the scope and significance of Italian and Netherlandish art in their greatest phases, and happily they fill up gaps which must occur even in the most various and representative collection, such as is the National Gallery."263

It is hoped that the following catalogue may serve to bring before the notice of visitors the importance of a collection which deserves much greater attention than it has hitherto received. The artists represented are arranged alphabetically, with references to such of them as are also represented by original work in the National Gallery. After the title of each work, information is given as to the nature of the original from which the copy is made, and the place where the original is. The numerals after each picture refer to the numbers at present on the frames.

Albertinelli (see under 645).

The Visitation (11): picture, Uffizi, Florence.

Andrea del Castagno (see under 1138).

The Last Supper (120): fresco, Convent S. Apollonia, Florence.

Angelico, Fra (see under 663).

Christ and Magdalen (51): fresco, Convent of S. Marco, Florence.

Christ at Emmaus (76): " " " "

The Transfiguration (49): " " " "

The Crucifixion (91): " " " "

The Entombment (50): " " " "

The Marys at the Sepulchre (53): " " "

Madonna and Child, etc. (65): " " "

The Presentation (54): " " " "

The Annunciation: " " " "

Coronation of the Virgin: " " " "

Christ as a Pilgrim (70): " " " "

Ordination of St. Stephen (55): fresco, Vatican, Rome.

Adoration of the Magi (166): " " "

Lives of SS. Stephen and Lawrence (128, 131, 134, 193, 194, etc.): frescoes, Chapel of St. Lawrence, Vatican.

["The remote little chapel containing Fra Angelico's masterpieces." Without seeing it, no one can have any conception of "the strength and freedom of the artist." "These frescoes are the highest expression of that which the friar for many years had been striving after. They are an anthology of his artistic virtues" (Fra Angelico, by Langton Douglas: see pp. 141-158 for a full discussion of them).]

Avanzo, Jacopo d' (Veronese: painted 1377).

St. Lucy and her Judges (36): fresco, S. Antonio, Padua.

Martyrdom of St. George (183): fresco, S. Giorgio, Padua.

Bartolommeo, Fra (see under 1694).

Christ at Emmaus (72): fresco, S. Marco, Florence.

Vision of St. Dominic (45): " " "

Virgin and Child (24): " " "

"Noli me tangere": " " "

Bellini, Giovanni (see under 189).

Virgin and Child (62): picture, Frari, Venice.

["The art of Bellini is centrally represented by two pictures at Venice: one the Madonna in the sacristy of the Frari with two saints beside her, and ten angels at her feet; the second, the "Madonna with four Saints" over the second altar of San Zaccaria. In the first of these the figures are under life size, and it represents the most perfect kind of picture for rooms; in which, since it is intended to be seen close to the spectator, every right kind of finish possible to the hand may be wisely lavished; yet which is not a miniature, nor in any wise petty or ignoble, etc." (Ruskin: Relation between Michael Angelo and Tintoret, p. 14).]

Boccaccio Boccaccino (see under 806).

Christ among the Doctors (57): fresco, Cathedral, Cremona.

Botticelli (see under 1034).

Spring (86): picture, Belle Arti, Florence.

[The most probable explanation of the allegory is this: – The picture represents a masque or joust of Spring given by Giuliano de' Medici in honour of his mistress, "La Simonetta Vespucei," who is here represented as Spring, Giuliano himself figuring as Mercury. In the centre is Venus with Cupid above her head, pointing an arrow at Giuliano. Shortly after the joust, Giuliano was murdered, and La Simonetta died. The death-like figure to the extreme left, breathing upon Spring, represents the premonition of these coming disasters. Simonetta was a favourite model of Botticelli's, the same slender and long-throated lady appearing in many of his works, though sometimes spiritualised almost past recognition (cf. Ariadne Florentina, Appendix iv.; and a sonnet by D. G. Rossetti describing this picture).]

Destruction of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram (180): fresco, Sistine Chapel.

Moses at the Well (185): fresco, Sistine Chapel.

The Temptation (110): " " "

Venus rising from the Sea (87): picture, Uffizi, Florence.

[For an interesting description and interpretation of this picture, see Pater's Studies in the History of the Renaissance: "The light is cold – mere Sunless dawn; but a later painter would have cloyed you with sunshine; and you can see the better for that quietness in the morning air each long promontory as it slopes down to the water's edge. Men go forth to their labours until the evening; but she is awake before them, and you might think that the sorrow in her face was at the thought of the whole long day of love yet to come. An emblematical figure of the wind blows hard across the grey water, moving forward the dainty-tipped shell on which she sails, the sea 'showing his teeth' as it moves in their lines of foam, and sucking in one by one the falling roses… What is unmistakable is the sadness with which Botticelli has conceived the Goddess of Pleasure as the depositary of a great power over the lives of men."]

Giovanna Tornabuoni and the Graces.

Lorenzo Tornabuoni and the Liberal Arts.

[Copies from the frescoes formerly in the Villa Lemmi, near Florence, now in the Louvre: for a description of them, see Ruskin's Art of England, § 69.]

Buffalmacco (Florentine: 1262-1351).

Raising of Lazarus (216): fresco, Assisi.

Carpaccio (see under 750).

St. George baptizing the Princess (79): picture, S. Giorgio degli Schiavoni, Venice.

St. Jerome in his study (89): " " "

The Calling of St. Matthew (77): " " "

St. George and the Dragon (190): " " "

[See for full descriptions of these pictures Ruskin's "St. Mark's Rest," Shrine of the Slaves.]

St. Vitale and Saints (259); picture, Church S. Vitale, Venice.

[Signed, and dated 1514. An admirable example of the master.]

Cimabue (see under 565).

Frescoes in the upper church of Assisi (137-155).

["In these works there is an evident struggle in the mind of the artist to give to traditional form the expression of a living intention; but all that belongs to a closer imitation of nature in her individual peculiarities – all that belongs to the conception of characteristic or graceful action, – is still wanting. The form of the countenance is alike throughout; the expression, as conveyed by mien, always constrained. Yet, notwithstanding all these defects, these works must be regarded as having been mainly instrumental in opening a new path to the free exercise of art." – Kugler.]

Domenico di Bartolo (Sienese: died 1449).

Copies from two of the frescoes in the Hospital of S. Maria della Scala, at Siena (Nos. 1 and 6 of the series, "The Rearing, Education, and Marriage of Foundlings," and "Pope Celestine's approval of the building of the Hospital").

Dürer, Albert (see under 1938).

St. John and St. Peter (99): picture, Pinakothek, Munich.

St. Mark and St. Paul (103): " " "

Adoration of the Trinity (101): picture, Belvedere, Vienna.

Eyck, Van, The Brothers (see under 186).

Adoration of the Lamb (107): altar-piece, Cathedral, Ghent.

[This famous picture has been put together, in the copy, from the originals, which are now distributed among Ghent (three central panels), Brussels (the Adam and Eve), and Berlin (the remaining panels).]

Foligno, Niccolo da (see under 1107).

Virgin and Child (40): altar-piece, Gualdo Tadino, Umbria.

Forli, Melozzo da (see under 755).

Pope Sixtus VI. (38): fresco, Vatican Gallery, Rome.

Angels (68, 76, 206, 217): fresco, sacristy, St. Peter's, Rome.

Francesca, Piero della (see under 665).

The Resurrection (32): fresco, Palazzo Communale, Borgo San Sepolcro.

Battle for the Recovery of the True Cross (178): fresco, S. Francesco, Arezzo.

St. Helena finding the True Cross: fresco, S. Francesco, Arezzo.

Dream of Constantine (161): fresco, S. Francesco, Arezzo.

["The movement and life in the compositions, the variety in the expressions of the numerous figures, their energy of action, and the grand treatment of the draperies, are all equally remarkable." – Kugler.]

Francia (see under 180).

Marriage of St. Cecilia: fresco, St. Cecilia, Bologna.

Burial of St. Cecilia: " " "

Gaddi, Agnolo (Florentine: died 1396).

Nativity of the Virgin (207): fresco, cathedral of Prato.

Betrothal (179): " " "

Gaddi, Taddeo (see under 215).

Adoration of the Magi (113): fresco, lower church, Assisi.

Ghirlandajo (see under 1230).

Calling of the Apostles (115): fresco, Sistine Chapel, Rome.

The Last Supper (88): fresco, Ognissanti, Florence.

St. John the Baptist (90): fresco, S. Maria Novella, Florence.

Zacharias Naming his Son (92): " " "

Birth of the Baptist (111): " " "

Angel appearing to Zacharias (132): " " "

Baptism of Christ (159): " " "

Expulsion of Joachim (171): " " "

Birth of the Virgin (172): " " "

Marriage of the Virgin (175): " " "

The Salutation (195): " " "

Massacre of the Innocents (196): " " "

Presentation in the Temple (226): " " "

[For a criticism of Ghirlandajo's frescoes in this church, see Ruskin's Mornings in Florence, pp. 25, 26.]

The Emperor Augustus and the Sibyl (84): fresco, S. Trinita, Florence.

Death of St. Francis of Assisi: fresco, S. Trinita, Florence.

Death of S. Fina (47): fresco, Cappella S. Fina, S. Gimignano.

Burial of S. Fina (158): " " "

Giorgione (see under 269).

Virgin and Child (9): altar-piece Castelfranco.

[This according to Ruskin, is one of the "two most perfect pictures in existence; alone in the world, as an imaginative representation of Christianity, with a monk and a soldier on either side, the soldier bearing the white cross of everlasting peace on the purple ground of former darkness." —Oxford Lecture, reported in Cook's Studies in Ruskin, p. 251. For a further description of the picture, see Stones of Venice, Travellers' edition, ii. pp. 177-179.]

Giotto (see under 568).

The Life of St. Francis (2, 95, 199-205, 215-220): frescoes, upper church of S. Francesco, Assisi.

The Virtues: frescoes, lower church of S. Francesco, Assisi.

[Here, in "the cradle of Florentine art," the young Giotto worked out his apprenticeship as a painter. For Ruskin's estimate of Giotto's work at Assisi, see Fors Clavigera for 1877.]

Vices and Virtues (82 A, etc.): frescoes, Arena Chapel, Padua.

Pietà: " " "

Gozzoli (see under 283).

Scenes from the Life of St. Francis (208, 222, 242, 267): frescoes, church S. Francesco, Montefalco.

Virgin and Child (97): altar-piece, church of S. Francesco, Montefalco.

Scenes from the Life of St. Agostino (46, 224, 243, 244): frescoes, church S. Agostino, S. Gimignano.

The Journey of the Three Kings to Bethlehem (37, 39, 41, 123, 248): frescoes, Riccardi Palace, Florence.

["The chapel in the Palazzo Medici, now Riccardi, is made the scene of the journey, represented in a sumptuous procession of knights, squires, and pages, with dogs and hunting leopards. He has also introduced portraits of various members of the Medici family and of some of the principal citizens of Florence." – Kugler's Italian Schools, i. 164.]

Marriage of Isaac and Rebecca: fresco, Campo Santo, Pisa.

Guido da Siena.

Virgin and Child (241): picture, S. Domenico, Siena.

[Stated on an inscription to have been painted in 1221. Relying on the date, the Sienese have disputed the claims of the Florentines to have been the regenerators of Italian art. But it has been proved that the numerals have been tampered with, the true date being 1281.]

Holbein (see under 1314).

The Meier Madonna (102): picture, Palace Princess Charles, Darmstadt.

[This is from the original, of which there is a celebrated copy at Dresden. "The received tradition respecting the Holbein Madonna is beautiful, and I believe the interpretation to be true. A father and a mother have prayed to her for the life of their sick child. She appears to them, her own Christ in her arms. She puts down her Christ beside them – takes their child into her arms instead. It lies down upon her bosom, and stretches its hand to its father and mother, saying farewell." – Ruskin's On the Old Road, i. pp. 234, 235.]