Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculptors, and Architects/Marcantonio of Bologna, and others

by Giorgio Vasari

 

MARC ANTONIO OF BOLOGNA, AND OTHER ENGRAVERS OF PRINTS.

[End of the 15th, and first half of the 16th century.]

In our theory of painting we said but little of copperplate engraving, seeing that it was then sufficient for our purpose to show the method of engraving on silver with the burin, which is a square instrument of iron, cut diagonally, and with sharp points; we will, therefore, take the occasion of this life to say what may seem needful to the better understanding of the subject.

The commencement of the practice of copper-plate engraving was made by Maso di Finiguerra, about the year of our salvation 1460.^[1] Of every work which this artist engraved on silver preparatory to its completion in Niello,^[2] betook the impression in clay, then poured dissolved sulphur over it, whereby the impression was repeated, and appeared blackened with smoke, displaying in oil the subject which appeared on the plate of silver. He then did the same on damped paper, and with the same colour, going over the whole very gently with a round roller, the result being that these pictures not only appear as if printed, but have the effect of those designed with the pen.

Maso di Finiguerra was followed by the Florentine goldsmith, Baccio Baldini,^[3]who had no great power of design, for which reason all that he did was with the invention and design of Sandro Botticello.

This process having been brought to the knowledge of Andrea Mantegna, in Rome, gave occasion to his commencing the practice of engraving his works, as we have already related in the life of that master.^[4] At a later period the invention passed into Flanders,^[5] when a certain Martino,^[6] who was then considered by the people of Antwerp to be a most excellent painter, executed numerous works in that manner, and sent great numbers of impressions into Italy, all of which bore the impress M. C.^[7] The first which thus arrived was the Five Foolish Virgins with their lamps extinguished, and the Five Prudent Virgins having their lamps burning; this was accompanied by a figure of Christ Our Saviour on the Cross, with San Giovanni and the Madonna at the foot thereof. The last named work is so good an engraving that the Florentine painter in miniature, Gherardo,^[8] set himself to copy the same with the burin, and he succeeded in this attempt exceedingly well, but could not proceed therewith, seeing that he did not live long after having commenced it.

Martin afterwards published the Four Evangelists in four circular engravings, with Jesus Christ and the Twelve Apostles on small plates, and Veronica, with six saints of similar size. He also executed escutcheons of arms belonging to various German nobles, and having supporters of human figures, some nude, others draped.

Another work published by Martin was a San Giorgio destroying the Dragon, a figure of Our Saviour Christ standing before Pilate while the latter washes his hands, and the Assumption of the Madonna, a work of a rather large size, with all the Apostles therein; and this was one of the best engravings ever executed by Martin. In another he has exhibited Sant’ Antonio tormented by Devils, and in the act of being borne through the air by vast numbers of them, Avith forms of the most fanciful and varied character that can be imagined. This work pleased Michelagnolo so much when he was a youth that he set himself to colour it.

Martin was followed by Albert Dürer who with more power of design, superior judgment, and more copious invention, began to execute Avorks of similar character at Antwerp.^[9] He took much pains to imitate nature, and sought to approach the Italian manner, which he always appreciated; he thus produced works even in his youth which were considered equally beautiful with those of Martin, and engraved them with his own hand, signing them with his name.^[10] In the year 1503, Albert Diirer sent forth to the world a small figure of the Madonna, in which he surpassed both Martin and himself: this was followed by numerous plates with horses, two in each plate, they are taken from life and are exceedingly beautiful. On another he represented the Prodigal Son, who is in the habit of a peasant, kneeling with clasped hand and eyes raised to heaven, while the swine are eating from a trough: in this engraving there are huts or cabins after the German manner, which are exceedingly beautiful.^[11] He also engraved a figure of San Sebastiano, of small size, showing the saint bound, and with the arms raised aloft, and a Madonna seated with the divine Child on her lap; behind her is a window, the light from which falls on her figure, a small plate, than which it would not be possible to find any thing of the kind more beautiful.

In another of his works Albert Dürer represented a Woman in the Flemish costume on horseback, with a footboy in attendance on her; and on a large plate of copper he engraved a Nymph borne away by a sea monster, while other nymphs are seen bathing. Of the same size and executed with the most masterly perfection, is a work wherein the master has attained to the very perfection and ultimate term of this art; the subject is Diana inflicting punishment on one of her nymphs who is flying for shelter to the bosom of a Satyr: in this plate Albert designed to show that he understood the treatment of the nude form.

But although these masters were at that time highly prized and commended in those countries, their works are valued among us for the diligence and care to be remarked in the engraving only.^[12] I am nevertheless willing to believe that if Albert Dürer has not done better, that has perhaps been because for want of better models he took one or other of his disciples when he had to design the nude form, and these must have had ill-formed figures, as indeed the Germans for the most part have when undressed, although one sees many in those countries who when dressed appear to be very fine men. Albert likewise executed numerous small plates exhibiting figures of peasants and countrywomen in the Flemish costume, some dancing or playing on the bagpipes, others selling poultry or other wares, and some engaged in other occupations.

This master also engraved a plate representing a Man Sleeping in a Bath-room, while Venus is behind him inspiring his dreams with Temptation, and Love, mounted on stilts, capers and sports around him, while the Devil blows into his ear with a pair of bellows.^[13] He also twice designed St. Christopher bearing the Infant Christ, in two distinct manners,^[14] both exceedingly beautiful, and finished with great care, the separate tresses of the hair finely distinguished, and every part very carefully made out.

After having completed these works, Albert Dürer, perceiving that copper-plate engravings required a large expenditure of time, and having a vast number of subjects designed in different manners, set himself to the execution of wood cuts,^[15] in which method those who possess a more extensive power of design may find a wider field for the display of their advantages. In the year 1510, therefore, he sent forth two small plates in this manner, the one representing the Decapitation of St. John, and the other showing Herod seated at table and receiving the head of the baptist, which is presented to him on a charger; on other plates he represented San Cristofano, the Pope San Sixtus, San Stefano, and San Lorenzo.

Finding that this mode of proceeding offered much greater facility than the engraving on copper-plate, Albert then proceeded to the execution of other works, and produced a San Gregorio singing the Mass and accompanied by the deacon and sub-deacon; next, encouraged by success, he engraved a part of the Passion of Christ on royal folio, executing four plates that is to say, with the intention of completing the whole; these four plates represent the Last Supper, our Saviour Christ being led away by night in the garden; His departure to the Limbo or entrance of hell, for the purpose of recalling thence the souls of the holy fathers, and his glorious Resurrection: they were executed in the year 1510. The second of these plates Albert likewise painted in oil, a small but very beautiful picture which is now at Florence, in the possession of the Signor Bernardetto de’ Medici.^[16] There were afterwards published eight parts more, which were stamped with the signature of Albert Dürer, but it does not to us appear probable that they are really the work of his hand.^[17] They are indeed of very inferior execution, resembling his manner neither in the heads, the draperies, nor any other part, and it is believed that they were brought forward after his death, and for the sake of gain, by persons who cared nothing for the injury they were thus inflicting on the fame of Albert. As a further confirmation of the truth of this opinion, it may be remarked that in the year 1511, Albert Dürer executed the entire life of Our Lady in twenty plates of the same size, these being so beautifully done, that, whether we consider the invention, the composition, the perspective, the buildings, or the vestments and heads of old or young, they are all such that it would not be possible to produce anything better.^[18] It is indeed certain, that if this man, so highly endowed, so assiduous, and so varied in his powers, had been a native of Tuscany instead of Flanders;^[19] had he been in a position which permitted him to study the treasures of Rome, as we are able to do, he would have been the best painter of our country, as he was the best and most renowned that has ever appeared among the Flemings.

During the same year, and in pursuit of the varied fancies perpetually presenting themselves to his thoughts, Albert Dürer attempted to delineate the terrible visions of St. John, as written by that apostle in the Island of Fatmos. The size of this work, which was on fifteen sheets, was the same as that of the life of Our Lady, and having commenced his labours, the vivid force of his imagination, well adapted to the treatment of such a subject, enabled him to exhibit all those circumstances, as well celestial as earthly, to the eyes of the beholder, with so much reality that the performance is a true marvel. The variety of the forms which Albert has imagined for all those animals and monsters, has indeed been a shining light to many of our artists, who have largely availed themselves of the fine fancy and rich invention of the Flemish master. There is besides a nude figure of our Saviour Christ, cut in wood by the hand of Dürer, with the mysteries of the Passion around him. The Redeemer is weeping over the sins of the world with his face concealed in his hands; it is a small work, but not without merit.

The power and the boldness of Albert increasing with time, and as he perceived his works to obtain increasing estimation, he now executed engravings on copper, which amazed all who beheld them. On one plate, of half-folio, he delineated Melancholy, surrounded by all those instruments which are wont to bring thoughts of sadness to him who uses them, or to the man who listens to their strains; the whole being so well expressed that it is not possible for the burin to produce more delicate effects.^[20] In small plates he likewise engraved three figures of Our Lady, all varied, the one from the others, and of the most subtle and delicate workmanship. But if I were to attempt the enumeration of all the works which proceeded from the hand of Albert Dürer it would lead me much too far; for the present, therefore, let it suffice thee, oh reader, to know that having designed a Passion of Our Lord in thirty-six plates, and afterwards engraved it,^[21] he agreed with the Bolognese Marcantonio to publish the same, in company with him;^[22] and repairing to Venice for that purpose, this work afterwards became the cause of, and gave the impulse to, those admirable productions of the same character which were subsequently brought forth in Italy, as will be related hereafter.

At the time when Francesco Francia was pursuing the art of painting in Bologna, there was a youth among his disciples named Marcantonio, who, as being more ingenious than the rest, was brought much forward by Francia, from whom, having been many years with that master, and being greatly beloved by him, he had acquired the surname de' Franci.^[23] In design, Marcantonio possessed more force than his master, and as he also used the burin with much grace and facility, he executed Nielli^ which were at that time much sought for, applying them to girdles and other articles, which were exceedingly beautiful, seeing that he was of a truth very excellent in that branch of art. Having then conceived the desire which is felt by so many men of seeing somewhat of the world, and of the mode of proceeding in use among the artists of other lands, Marcantonio departed for Bologna, with the good favour of his master Francia, and repaired to Venice, where he was well received among the artists of that city. At the same time there arrived in the same place certain Flemings, who brought numerous copper-plate engravings and wood-cuts by Albert Dürer, which were then seen by Marcantonio exposed for sale on the Piazza di San Marco. Amazed at what he beheld, and charmed with the manner and execution of Albert, Marcantonio spent almost all the money which he had brought from Bologna in the purchase of those plates, and among others he bought the Passion of Our Saviour Christ, woodcuts in thirty-six plates which had been completed but a short time previously by the Flemish master, and which, commencing vlth the Fall of Adam and with his Expulsion by the Angel from Paradise, continued to the Descent of the Holy Spirit on the Apostles.

Marcantonio, perceiving to what honour and profit the man might aspire who should attach himself to that branch of art in Italy, determined to devote his own time thereto, and commenced his work with all possible zeal and diligence. He first began by copying those engravings thus obtained of Albert Dürer’s, carefully studying the method of each stroke, and every other particular of the prints which he had purchased, and which had obtained so much reputation by their novelty and beauty, that all were seeking to become possessors of them. Having thus imitated the wood-cuts with strong lines on a copper-plate, which he rendered as similar as possible to the work of Albert Dürer, until he had copied all the said Life and Passion of Chirst in thirty-six plates, and having added the signature used by Albert on his plates,— this A. D.,^[24] namely—he produced the most faithful similitude of his subjects, insomuch that, as no one knew them to be done by Marcantonio, they were supposed to be by Albert Dürer himself, as whose works they were accordingly bought and sold.

When intelligence of this thing was written to Flanders, and one of the counterfeit plates by Marcantonio was at the same time time sent to Albert, the latter fell into a most violent rage, and leaving Flanders he at once repaired to Venice. Here he had recourse to the Signoria, and made his complaint against Marcantonio, but could obtain nothing beyond the command that Marcantonio should no longer affix to his works the name or signature aforesaid of Albert Dürer. After this, Marcantonio repaired to Rome, where he devoted all his attention to design,^[25] and Albert returned to Flanders, where he found another competitor who had already commenced the execution of engravings, very delicately finished, in competition with his own manner. This was Luca of Holland,^[26] who, although not possessed of similar force in design with Albert Dürer, yet equalled him on many points in the use of the burin.

Among the large and beautiful works produced by Luca were two in a round form, which he published in the year 1509, and in one of which is Our Saviour Christ bearing his Cross, in the other his Crucifixion,^[27] He afterwards sent forth a figure of Samson, with one of David on horseback, and a St. Peter the Martyr, with his persecutors and tormentors. He likewise produced a copper-plate engraving of King Saul, in a seated position, with David, as a youth, playing on the harp, near him. No long time after this, having made extensive acquisitions both in fame and knowledge, Luca executed an exceedingly fine and delicately finished engraving, on a very large plate; the subject, Virgil suspended from the window in the Basket, with certain heads and figures so wonderfully beautiful, that they induced Albert, whose manner had been considerably improved and refined by this competition, to bring out others, which were of such perfect excellence, that better could not be conceived; and wherein, desiring to prove the wonders of which he was capable, he produced an armed man on horseback, as the symbol of Human Force, which is finished with such care, that the glitter of the arms and the gloss of the black horse’s coat are clearly to be distinguished, an efiect of very difficult production in design. This bold rider had Death with his hour-glass beside him, and the Devil behind. There was in the same picture a rough-haired Dog, executed with the most subtle delicacy that can possibly be given to an engraving.

In the year 1512 there appeared sixteen small copperplate engravings by the hand of the same master;^[28] these represent the Passion of Christ. They are admirable works, and exhibit the perfection of beauty, grace, and softness, in small figures, which have force and relief also in the highest degree. But this rivalry further incited Luca of Holland, who in his turn resolved on renewed efforts, and executed twelve similar,^[29] and very beautiful plates, but not equal in perfection to those of Albert, whether as regards design or execution. He likewise published a San Giorgio consoling the Damsel, who is weeping her sad fate when about to be devoured by the Dragon; as also others, representing Solomon worshipping Idols, the Baptism of Christ, Pyramus and Thisbe, and Queen Esther kneeling before Ahasuerus.

But Albert, on his part, would not suffer himself to be surpassed by Luca, whether in the number or excellence of his works;^[30] he therefore engraved a nude figure hovering. amidst the clouds; and one of Temperance, having wings of singular beauty, and holding a cup of gold and a bridle in her hand; beneath is a fine landscape, with the figure of Sant’ Eustachio kneeling before the stag, which bears the crucifix between its horns.^[31] This is an admirable engraving, more particularly for the beauty of the dogs in various attitudes delineated therein, and which could not be more entirely perfect than they are. Albert Dürer frequently took children for his subjects; and among the many wherewith he adorned escutcheons of arms, shields, and other things, are some which support a shield whereon is the figure of Death; this has for its crest a Cock, the feathers of which are so carefully and minutely rendered that it would not be possible for the burin to produce anything finer or more delicate.

Finally, Albert Dürer sent forth his plate of San Jeronimo, robed in the vestments of a cardinal, and writing, with the Lion sleeping at his feet. In this engraving the master has imitated a chamber with windows of glass, and the rays of the sun streaming through them, fall on the place where the saint sits writing, in a manner which is so natural as to be a marvel. There are, moreover, books, clocks, writings, and a large number of objects besides, all so well done, that in this branch of art there could not well be imagined anything better. He did little after this, and almost the last of his works was a small engraving of Christ with the twelve Apostles, executed in the year 1523. There are many portraits engraved from the life by this master, that of Erasmus of Rotterdam, for example, that of the Cardinal Albert of Brandenburgh, Elector of the Empire, and his own likeness also.^[32] But, notwithstanding the zeal with which he pursued the practice of engraving, Albert never abandoned painting; on the contrary, he constantly executed pictures on canvas, panel, and other substances, which are ail excellent works. Nay, what is still more, he left many writings on subjects connected with engraving, painting, perspective, and architecture.^[33]

But to return to the subject of copper-plate engraving. The works of Albert were an incitement to Luca of Holland, who did his utmost to follow in the traces of Dürer, and after the productions above enumerated, he engraved stories from the life of Joseph on copper, as also the four Evangelists, the three Angels who appeared to Abraham in the Valley of Mamre; Susannah in the Bath; David in Prayer; Mordecai led in triumph through the city on horseback; Lot inebriated by his Daughters; the creation of Adam and Eve; the Command of God that they shall not eat of an apple from the tree, which he points out to them; and Cain killing his brother Abel, all which he published in the year 1529. ^[34] But that which most of all contributed to give name and fame to Luca, was a large plate in which he engraved the Crucifixion of Christ, with another wherein Pilate brings forth our Saviour to the people, uttering the words Ecce Homo! These plates, which are large, as we have said, and comprise a vast number of figures, are considered exceedingly fine, as is also a Conversion of St. Paul, and another in which that apostle is represented as being led blind into Damascus; works which amply suffice to prove that Luca may with truth be numbered among those who have handled the burin with ability.

The composition and grouping of this master’s works are very peculiar, and have a clearness, and freedom from confusion, which makes the spectator doubt if the fact represented could have taken place in any other manner than that here given; there is also more of artistic arrangement in the groups of Luca than in those of Albert Dürer.^[35] It is likewise to be remarked, that Luca exercised much care as well as ingenuity in the execution of his works, since whatever portion of the picture recedes into the distance has precisely the degree of force required, each being less clearly made out as the distance increases, exactly as we find it in nature, becoming gradually lost to the sight, as it is known that natural objects become less and less clear to the eyes of the observer with increased distance: at a word, he treats every part so judiciously and with so much softness and harmony that better effects could not be produced, even, with colours; the results of this master’s careful thought have indeed opened the eyes of many subsequent artists. Luca likewise executed numerous plates of a small size, with many pictures of the Madonna; the twelve Apostles surrounding our Saviour Christ, various Saints, male and female, with arms, as, for example, helmets, and other objects of similar character. There is one also, and which is very fine, of a peasant who is in the act of having a tooth drawui, and is so completely absorbed by the pain which he suffers that he takes no notice of a woman who is robbing him of his purse All these productions of Albert Dürer and Luca have given rise to many other and similar works, which have been since executed by various Flemish and German artists.

But to return at length to Marcantonio.^[36] Arrived in Rome, he made a copper-plate engraving of a most beautiful design by Raffacllo da Urbino, the Roman Lucrezia namely, who is destroying her own life: this he executed in so fine a manner and with so much care,^[37] that the work having been carried by some of his friends to Raffaello, the latter determined to permit some of his own designs to be published by engravings, and the first that he selected for this purpose was one which he had previously made of the Judgment of Paris, wherein Raphael had taken it into his head to delineate the Chariot of the Sun, the Nymphs of the Woods, those of the Fountains, and those of the Rivers, with vases, the helms of ships, and other fanciful and beautiful representations, the whole of which were engraved in such a manner that all Rome was thro wn into amazement. After this the Slaughter of the Innocents, with its beautiful nude figures of women and children, was likewise engraved, and was in truth a remarkable work; next came the Neptune, with small stories of Eneas around it; the very beautiful Rape of Helen, also after a drawing by Raphael; and another in which was seen the death of Santa Felicita, who is in the act of being martyrized by means of boiling oil, while her Children are decapitated.^[38]

All these works acquired much fame for Marcantonio; his engravings were much more highly esteemed than those of the Flemings, in consideration of the superior beauty of their design, and the merchants made large gains by the sale of them. Now Raphael had for many years had a young man called Baviera with him, who was employed in the grinding of colours, and as he had also acquired some knowledge of art, Raphael commanded that Marcantonio should make the engravings, but that Baviera should take the impressions, to the end that his works might be thus all finished, seeing that he was selling these prints, both in the gross and in detail, to whomsoever might desire to have them. Having set hard to the work accordingly, they struck off vast numbers, which brought very great gains to the master; and all these plates were signed with the letters R. S. for the name of Raphael Sanzio, and M. F.^[39] for that of Marcantonio.^[40]

The works thus executed were as follows. A Venus with Cupid who is embracing his mother, designed by Raphael; a picture wherein the Almighty Father confers his Benediction on the posterity of Abraham, and in this is seen the Handmaid with two children;^[41] all the circular pictures which Raphael had painted in the rooms of the papal palace, the Knowledge of all things, namely. Calliope with the lute in her hand. Providence and Justice. Afterwards there followed the engraving of a small copy from the picture which Raphael had painted in the same apartment, the Mount Parnassus that is to say, with Apollo, the Muses and the Poets, with that of Eneas bearing his father Anchises on his back from the flames of Troy, and this was taken from a design which Raphael had made, proposing to execute a small picture of the subject.

They next engraved the Galatea of Raphael, she is on a car drawn upon the sea by Dolphins, and followed by Tritons who have carried off a nymph. These being finished, Marcantonio engraved many separate figures, also designs of Raphael, on copper plates: an Apollo with the lyre in his hand; a Goddess of Peace, to whom Love offers an olive branch; the three Theological Virtues and the four Moral Virtues, with a plate of similar size to those last named, representing our Saviour with the twelve Apostles. On a half folio plate he likewise engraved the Virgin, which Raphael had painted in the picture of Ara Coeli, with that also which was sent to Naples, for the church of San Domenico in that city, and wherein are the Madonna, San Jeronimo and the angel Raphael with Tobias: Marcantonio likewise engraved a small picture of the Madonna seated on a low stool and embracing the Infant Christ, which is but partially draped, and many others of the Madonna which Raphael has painted in different pictures.

After these things Marcantonio engraved a copper plate of San Giovanni Battista in the wilderness, represented as a youth, and seated; with the picture which Raphael painted for the church of San Giovanni in Monte, the Santa Cecilia, with other saints, that is to say, a plate which was considered to be a very fine one. When Raphael had prepared all the cartoons for the tapestries of the papal chapel, with subjects from the lives of San Piero, San Paolo, and San Stefano, and which were afterwards woven in cloth of silk and gold, Marcantonio engraved certain portions of the same, the preaching of St. Paul namely, the lapidation of St. Stephen, and the restoration of sight to the blind, all works which were so beautiful, the invention of Raphael, the grace of the design, and the care of Marcantonio’s engraving being all combined, that it was not possible to imagine the prodnctiori of anything finer. Marcantonio soon afterwards engraved an exceedingly beautiful Deposition from the Cross, after the design of the same master, with a figure of Our Lady in a swoon, which is most admirable; and this was followed by an engraving of the picture of Christ bearing his Cross, which was sent to Palermo,^[42] a plate which is also very beautiful, as was that of another design by Eaphael, the subject whereof was our Saviour Christ appearing in the air, with the Madonna, St. John the Baptist, and St. Catharine kneeling on the earth, while St. Paul the apostle stands upright near them; a large plate, which like those previously described, having been very much used, had become almost worn out and spoiled, when it was carried away, together with those above-named, by the Germans or others in the plunder of Rome.

Marcantonio likewise engraved the portrait of Pope Clement VII. in the form of a medallion, the face is in profile with shaven head: he afterwards executed that of the Emperor Charles V. who was then very young, and whom he portrayed once again when he had attained to a morb advanced age. In Rome he also engraved the portrait from the life of the famous poet Messer Pietro Aretino, and this was the finest portrait ever executed by Marcantonio. No long time after having finished the likeness of the poet, he executed heads of the twelve Caesars after ancient medals, and of these plates Raffaello sent copies into Flanders to Albert Dürer, by whom Marcantonio was highly commended, and who sent to Raffaello in return his own portrait, among many other works, a likeness which was reputed to be of the most perfect beauty.

The fame of Marcantonio having become widely extended, and his works having acquired great value, many disciples had resorted to him for the purpose of learning his art,^[43] but those who distinguished themselves above all others were Marco of Ravenna,^[44] who placed on his works the signature of Raphael, R. S. namely, and Agostino Veneziano,^[45] who signed his works with the letters A. V. These two engravers executed many of the designs of Raffaello, one of Our Lady namely, with the Saviour dead and extended at her feet, San Giovanni, the Magdalene, Nicodemus, and the other Maries being at the feet of the Redeemer, and another of much larger size, wherein is also represented the Virgin with her arms raised and her eyes turned towards heaven, while the Saviour lies extended in death, as in that previously mentioned.

Agostino afterwards engraved a large plate of the Birth of Christ with the Shepherds and Angels, the Almighty Father being above all: around the cabin the artist furthermore arranged vases, some of ancient and others of modern form, with a censer or fumigating vessel represented by two women bearing a perforated vase on their heads. He likewise engraved a plate, the subject of which is a Man changed into a Wolf, and stealing towards the bed of one who is sleeping and whom he is about to destroy; with another exhibiting Alexander and Roxana, to whom the king presents a royal crown, while certain little Loves are hovering around them, some are engaged in decorating the head of Roxana, and othejrs are sporting with the arms of Alexander.

The two artists together then engraved the Last Supper with the twelve Apostles on a tolerably large plate, and an Annunciation, both after the designs of Raphael, and they subsequently engraved two stories from the marriage of Psyche, which Raphael had executed some short time previously. Fiually, Agostino and Marco between them engraved almost all the works ever painted or designed by Raphael, and printed impressions of the same; they also executed many of the pictures which had been painted by Giulio Romano under the direction of his master; and ultimately, when there remained scarcely any work of Raphael which had not been engraved by their hands, they made engravings from the pictures which Giulio had painted in the loggie after the designs of Raphael.

P'here are still some of the first plates with the signature M. R., for Marco Ravignano, and others with that of A. Y., for Agostino Yeneziano; from which it is clearly apparent that other masters have engraved after them; as, for example, that of the Creation of the World, the Calling into Life of the different Animals, the Sacrifice of Cain and Abel, the Death of the latter, Abraham about to Sacrifice

• his son Isaac, the Ark of Noah, the Deluge, and the Animals leaving the Ark, the Passage of the Red Sea, the

Delivery of the Laws to Ikoses on Mount Sinai, the Distribution of the Manna, David slaying Goliah, which had before been engraved by Marcantonio. The Building of the Temple by Solomon, the Judgment of the latter between the two Mothers, the Yisit of the Queen of Sheba, with subjects taken from the New Testament, such as the Birth and Resurrection of Christ, and the Descent of the Holy Spirit, all which were engraved during the lifetime of Raphael.

After the death of that master, Marco and Agostino separated, when the latter was retained by the sculptor Baccio Bandinelli, who caused him to engrave a study of anatomy, after a design which Bandinelli had made, from meagre and dried up figures and bones of the dead. He also made him execute a Cleopatra soon after having completed the anatomical study; and both these plates were accounted very good ones. Encouraged by this success, Baccio designed and caused Agostino to engrave a large plate, of greater size indeed than any that had ever been executed at that time, and representing numerous women all clothed, with nude figures of men, who are destroying the innocent babes, by command of King Herod.

Marcantonio meanwliile continued Iiis engravings on copper-plate, and on plates of a small size lie represented the Twelve Apostles, in various attitudes, with many Saints, male and female; and this he did to the end that such poor painters as did not possess any great powers of design might avail themselves of the same in their need. He likewise engraved the nude figure of a young man, with a lion at his feet, and who is attempting to furl a large banner swollen by the wind, and driven in a direction contrary to that in which the youth would have it be; with another of a man who is bearing a load on his back, and a small one of San Jeronimo, in contemplation of Death, and placing a finger within the hollow of a skull which he holds in his hand. The invention and design of this last are worthy of Raphael himself. Marcantonio likewise engraved a figure of Justice, which he took from the tapestries of the chapel, and soon afterwards he executed another, representing Aurora in her chariot, drawn by two horses, on whom the Hours are placing the bridle. From the antique this master engraved the Three Graces, and he likewise delineated a figure of Our Lady ascending the steps of the Temple.

After these things, Giulio Romano, whose modesty would never permit him to have any of his own works engraved during the life-time of his master, lest he should seem to be attempting a competition with Raphael himself; Giulio Romano, I say, after the death of the divine Raphael, caused Marcantonio to engrave two combats of horses from his designs, on tolerably large plates, with all the stories of Venus, Apollo, and Hyacinth, which he had painted in the bath constructed at the Vigna of Messer Baldassare Turini, of Pescia. In like manner, Giulio Romano caused to be engraved the four Stories of the Magdalen and the Four Evangelists, those namely which are depicted on the ceiling of that chapel in the Church of the Trinity, which was originally erected by a courtezan, although it now belongs to Messer Agnolo Massini. A beautiful antique sarcophagus, with a Lion-hunt, which was formerly at Majano, but is now in the Court of San Pietro, was also designed, and subjected to the graver by the artist, with one of the stories in marble on the Arch of Constantine; and finally, many others which Raphael had designed for the corridor and loggie of the Palace. These have all been since copied by Tommaso Barlacchi, with those of the tapestries which Raphael prepared for the Concistorio Publico.

Giulio Romano next employed Marcantonio to engrave twenty plates of figures, the character of which was higldy offensive; and what was still worse, Messer Pietro Aretino wrote a most indecent sonnet for each, insomuch that I do not know which was the most revolting, the spectacle presented to the eye by the designs of Giulio, or the affront offered to the ear by the words of the Aretine. This work was highly displeasing to Pope Clement, who censured it severely, and if it had not happened that when it was pub^ lished Giulio had already left Rome for Mantua, he v^ould certainly have been very heavily punished by the Pontiff. Many of these designs were meanwhile discovered in places where they ought least of all to have been expected, and the work was not only prohibited, but Marcantonio, being arrested for his share in the same, was cast into prison, and would have fared very hardly if the Cardinal de’ Medici and Baccio Bandinelli, who was then at Rome and in the service of the Pope, had not interfered to procure his release. And certain it is that the endowments which God has conferred on men of ability ought not to be abused, as they too frequently are, to the offence of the whole world, and to the promotion of ends which are disapproved by all men.

Being released from prison, Marcantonio completed the engraving of a large plate, which he had commenced for Baccio Bandinelli, and wherein there is a large number of nude figures, who are roasting San Lorenzo on a gridiron. This work was considered to be a truly beautiful one, and was indeed engraved with extraordinary care, although Baccio, wrongfully complaining to the Pope at the time when Marcantonio was engaged with it, declared that the latter had committed various faults therein. But Bandinello received exactly what he deserved, as the recompence of his ingratitude and discourtesy; for Marcantonio, being informed of all, and having finished the plate before Baccio was aware of the fact, presented it for inspection to the Pope, who took infinite pleasure in all things appertaining to the art of design, showing him at the same time the original work, as it had been designed by Bandinello. Wherefore, the Pontiff perceived not only that Marcantonio had committed no fault, but that he had even with great judgment corrected many, and of no small importance, which had been committed by the sculptor himself; proving, in fact, that he was a more competent master of engraving than Baccio of design, since the imitation was a work of higher merit than the model.

Pope Clement thereupon commended Marcantonio greatly, and ever afterwards received him very graciously; it is even believed that he would have shown him many favours had it not been for the plunder of Rome, which took place shortly after: Marcantonio then became little less than a beggar, for besides losing all that he possessed, he was compelled to disburse a good ransom, as the only means of liberating himself from the hands of the Spaniards. Having effected this he departed from Rome, to which city he never returned more; nor are there many works now to be found which can be authenticated as having been executed by this artist after the time we now speak of. Our arts, meanwhile, are deeply indebted to Marcantonio, since it was by him that the first plates engraved in Italy were executed, and this introduction was much to the advantage of Art, as well as to the convenience and profit of all who exercise the same; for by this others have since been enabled to execute works of which we shall speak more at large below.

Agostino Yeneziano, of whom we have before made mention, repaired to Florence, after the circumstances related above, with the intention of attaching himself to Andrea del Sarto, who, after Raphael, was considered one of the best painters in Italy. Persuaded by Agostino to permit his works to be engraved, Andrea did accordingly design a figure of the Dead Christ supported by three Angels, as the subject of the first attempt; but this not succeeding exactly as he would have had it to do, he would never afterwards consent to have any of his paintings engraved. It is true that on the death of Andrea, his Visitation of Our Lady to Sant’ Rlizabetta was published by others, as was also the' picture of San Giovanni baptizing the people, both engravings being taken from the chiaro-scuro in the church of the Barefooted Friars at Florence.

Marco di Ravenna, likewise, in addition to the works already enumerated, and which he executed in company with Agostino, produced many others entirely with his own hand; they are known by his signature as above described, and are all good and commendable. There have, moreover, been many other artists since those here named, who have laboured well and successfully as engravers, and have effected so much that in all countries people are now enabled to see and enjoy the works of the most eminent masters. Nor have there been wanting men who have found means to produce works on blocks of wood which have aU the appearance of having been executed in chiaro-scuro with the pencil, an ingenious and difficult thing. This has been done, among others, by Ugo da Carpi, who, although but a moderately successful painter, did nevertheless give proof of a most acute understanding in many singular and curious productions. It was Ugo da Carpi who first attempted, as I have said in the thirtieth chapter of my Theoretic Discourse, to execute engravings with two blocks or plates, the one of which he used in the manner of a copper-plate for hatching in the shadows, while he gave the tint of colour with the other, leaving for this purpose the strokes of his engraving so white in the lights, that when the impression was taken off it appeared to have the lights heightened with white lead.

In this manner Ugo da Carpi treated a design which Raphael had made in chiaro-scuro, the subject of the work being a Sybil, who is seated and reading, while the clothed figure of a child stands near, and gives her the light of a torch. Finding that he had succeeded well in this, Ugo became emboldened, and attempted to produce prints of three tints from blocks of wood. With the first he made the shadow, from the second, which was of a somewhat paler hue, he obtained the middle tint, and the third being hatched supplied the brightest colour of the picture, and gave the lights of the white paper. In this attempt also our artist succeeded, and executed a plate wherein he represented Eneas bearing Anchises on his back, whileTroy is flaming behind them. He likewise produced a Deposition from the Cross shortly after, with that story of Simon Magus which had been executed by Raphael for the cloth of arras in the beforementioned chapel of the Papal Palace. These were followed by David slaying Goliah, and the Flight of the Philistines, of which Raphael had made the design, with intent to depict the same in the papal Loggie. Ugo da Carpi likewise executed many other works in the same manner, among which was a Venus, with a crowd of little Loves sporting around her.

But as Ugo was a painter, as I have before remarked, I will not omit to mention, that he painted in oil without using a pencil, but with his finger and other strange instruments of his own fancy and invention, and, using such contrivances, he painted a picture which is on the altar of the Volto Santo,^[46] in Rome. Now it happened one morning that I was hearing mass with Michelagnolo at that altar, and seeing on this picture an inscription to the effect that Ugo da Carpi had painted it without a pencil, I showed the same laughing to Michelagnolo, who, laughing also, replied, that it would have been better if he had used a pencil, since he might then have done it in a better manner. The method of executing wood-cuts with two blocks and the imitation of chiaro-scuro thus invented by Ugo da Carpi, was adopted by many who, following in his footsteps, have given existence to large numbers of very beautiful works.

Among those who succeeded Ugo in this manner was the Sienese painter Baldassare Peruzzi, who produced a plate in chiaro-scuro of similar kind, representing Hercules driving Avarice, a figure loaded with vases of gold and silver, from Mount Parnassus, where the Muses are seen in beautiful and varied attitudes; an admirable and much commended work. Francesco Parmigiano also engraved a figure of Diogenes on a royal folio laid open, and this was a much more beautiful print than any ever executed by Ugo.^[47]

It was from the same Parmigiano that Antonio of Trent acquired the method of executing prints from three blocks, and for Parmigiano Antonio then engraved a large plate of the Martyrdom of San Pietro and San Paolo in chiaro-scuro; he afterwards executed another, but with two blocks only, representing the Tiburtine Sybil, who is showing the Infant Christ on the lap of his Mother to the Emperor Octavian: it was this artist who executed the nude figure seated, and with his back turned to the spectator, the grace of attitude in which has been so much admired: there is an oval picture of the Madonna lying down, moreover, with many others also by the same master, but which were printed and sent forth after his death by Joannicolò^[48] Vicentino: the most admirable works of this kind produced after the death of Parmigiano were, however, those by Domenico Beccafumi, as will be related at length in the life of that artist.

Nor is the invention tobe considered other than commendable, whereby the execution of engravings with more facility than is possible to the burin has been rendered feasible, although the works produced by that invention are not so clear as are those performed with the graver, I mean, engravings with aqua-fortis, first covering the copper-plate with a coat of wax, varnish, or oil-colour, and then designing the subject to be engraved with a sharply-pointed instrument; this cuts through the wax, varnish, or oil-colour, as the case may be, when the aqua-fortis being poured over all, corrodes the copper in such sort that the strokes of the drawing remain hollowed, and impressions may then be taken from it. In this manner Francesco Parmigian^[49] executed many small pictures which are very graceful; the Birth of Christ among others, and Our Saviour lying dead, with the Maries weeping over him. He likewise engraved one of the pieces of arras made after the designs of Raphael for the chapel of the Palace, with many other things.

Following this master, Battista, a painter of Vicenza,^[50] and Battista del Moro^[51] of Verona, published fifty plates, exhibiting landscapes, which are varied and beautiful. In Flanders also the picture of the Riberal Arts was engraved in this manner by Jeronimo Cocca,^[52] and in Rome the Visitation, painted by Fra Sebastiano Veneziano, in the church of the Pace, was also thus engraved, as was the work of Francesco Salviati painted, on the same subject, in the chapel of the Misericordia.^[53] In Venice likewise the Festival of Testaccio, with many other works, were engraved in the same manner, by the painter Battista Franco, as well as by other masters.

But to return to the simple engravings on copper. After Marcantonio had engraved the large number of works mentioned above, it chanced that II Rosso arrived in Rome, when Baviera persuaded him to allow some of his works to be published in copper-plates, and Rosso accordingly gave a commission to that effect to the Veronese Gian Jacopo del Caraglio,^[54] who was at that time reputed to possess great facility of hand, and who was zealously labouring to imitate Marcantonio. The subject given by Rosso was an anatomical study of a figure holding a death’s head in the hand, and seated on a serpent, with a swan singing beside him. This design succeeded so well in the engraving, that Rosso caused the same artist to execute some of the Labours of Hercules on several tolerably large plates, the Slaying of the Hydra, for example, the Combat with Cerberus, the Killing of Gacus, the Breaking the Horns of the Bull, the Battle with the Centaurs, and the Centaur Nessus carrying off Dejanira. These plates also succeeded admirably well, rendering good and beautiful engravings, insomuch that Jacopo was next commissioned to engrave the story of the Magpies, who, pretending to dispute the prize of singing and compete with the Muses, were changed into crows.^[55]

Baviera afterwards procured from Rosso the designs for twenty figures of the gods placed in niches, with their appropriate attributes, which it was his purpose to use for a certain book, when these were engraved in a. very fine manner, and with much grace by Gian-Jacopo Caraglio, and when at no long distance of time the Transformations of these Gods also appeared, the engravings were in like manner executed by Caraglio. The whole of these last-named plates were not designed by Rosso, who had prepared two only, when he fell into a dispute with Baviera; the latter thereupon caused the ten required for the completion of the number demanded, to be designed by Perino del Vaga. The two by Rosso were the Rape of Proserpine, and Philyra transformed into a Horse;^[56] the whole of the twelve plates were engraved by Caraglio with so much care that they have ever been held in the highest estimation. Gian-Jacopo afterwards commenced the Rape of the Sabines for Rosso, and this would without doubt have proved an admirable work, but, the plunder of Rome supervening, it could not be finished, Rosso having left the city, and all the plates having been lost. It is true that the painting has since fallen into the hands of the copper-plate engravers, but the result is but a poor affair, having been executed by such as did not understand the subject and thought only of making money.

Caraglio likewise engraved a plate of the Marriage of the Virgin for Francesco Parmigiano, and executed other works by commission for the same master. For Tiziano Vecelli he also engraved a picture, the Nativity of Christ namely, which had formerly been painted by Titian and was a most beautiful thing. In this manner Gian-Jacopo had produced numerous engravings on copper, when, being a very ingenious person, he turned his attention to the engraving of cameos and crystals, wherein he succeeded no less perfectly • than in the production of impressions from copper-plates. He afterwards entered the service of the King of Poland,^[57] Avhere he no longer exercised the art of copper-plate engraving, which was then held to be beneath his pretensions, but devoted himself to the treatment of gems, to the production of intagli, and to architectural labours. Being largely rewarded for all that he did by the generosity of the above-mentioned sovereign, Caraglio was enabled to expend large sums which he invested in purchases of land in the territory of Parma, to the end that he might pass his old age in the enjoyment of his native country, and the society of his friends and disciples, securing at the same time that repose demanded by the labours of many years.

After the above-named masters came Lamberto Suave,^[58] also an excellent engraver of copper-plates. By his hand we have thirteen plates, representing Our Saviour Christ with the twelve Apostles, and which, as regards the engraving, are brought to the utmost perfection. If Lamberto had been as well versed in design as in execution, and as his works prove him to have been endowed with industry, thought, and care on all other points, he would have been a truly admirable master of his art. Of this we have clear proof in a small plate of San Paolo writing, and in a larger plate which contains the Story of Lazarus raised from the Dead, wherein there are many parts which are most beautiful. The hollow of a rock in the cavern, which forms the burialplace of Lazarus, is particularly to be specified, with the light which falls on some of the figures, as giving manifest evidence of rich and fanciful invention.

Much ability in the same pursuit was also displayed by Giovan-Battista of Mantua,^[59] a disciple of Giulio Pomano; this was rendered obvious in a picture of the Madonna among other works: Our Lady has the Divine Child in her arms, and the Moon beneath her feet. Certain heads, wearing helmets after the antique manner, engraved by Giovan-Battista, are also of great merit; as are two plates, in one of which is a Captain of the Forces, on horseback, and in the other a military leader of equal degree on foot. In another plate by this engraver is a figure of Mars in his Armour, seated on a couch, with Yenus, who is looking down at a Cupid, which she holds to her breast: this also is a work which has much of good in it. There are besides two large plates by the hand of Giovan-Battista, which prove the richest fancy; they exhibit the Burning of Troy, are well-designed, and display wonderful powers of invention, with the most attractive grace. These and many other plates by the same hand, are signed with the following letters, J. B. M.

Nor less excellent than those above-mentioned was Enea Vico of Parma,^[60] who engraved the Rape of Helen after a picture by Rosso, and on another plate the God Vulcan forging arrows in his workshop, with Loves for his assistants, also after a design by Rosso. There are, besides, in this plate Cyclops, occupied at their forges, and which are very well done; the whole work is indeed an exceedingly fine one. In another plate Enea Vico engraved the Leda of Michelagnolo, with an Annunciation, after the design of Titian; the Story of Judith, painted by Michelagnolo in the papal chapel, and the portrait of the Duke Cosimo de’ Medici,^[61] when he was very young: the figure last-mentioned, which is in armour, was designed by Baccio Bandinello. Enea Vico afterwards engraved the portrait of Bandinello himself,^[62] as he did likewise the Contest of Cupid and Apollo in the presence of all the gods.^[63] Had Enea been properly treated by Bandinello, and received from him the due reward of his labours, there is indeed no doubt but that he would have executed many other beautiful plates from the works of that sculptor.

At the time when Francesco, a disciple of Salviati, and a very excellent painter, was in Florence, he was enabled by aid of the liberality displayed towards him by the Duke Cosimo, to give Enea Vico a commission for engraving a large plate of the Conversion of San Paolo, for which the engraver obtained a very great increase of reputation; there are vast numbers of soldiers and horses in this work, which has ever been considered an exceedingly beautiful one. Enea likewise engraved the Portrait of the Signor Ciovanni de’ Medici, father of the Duke Cosimo, with a decoration or frame-work which is exceedingly rich in figures: he likewise engraved one of the Emperor Charles Y., with a framework appropriately exhibiting figures of the Goddess of Victory, and trophies of various kinds. For this the master was largely rewarded by his Majesty, and received the commendations of all who saw the work. In another plate which is admirably well executed, Enea Vico engraved the Victory obtained by Charles V. on the Albio; and. for Doni he executed certain Heads from Nature, with very beautiful ornaments in the manner of medals; these were Henry King of Frantje, the Cardinal Bembo, Messer Ludovico Ariosto, the Signora Laura Terracina, Messer Cipriano Morocini, and Doni himself.

For Don Giulio Clovio, a most distinguished miniature painter, Enea engraved a plate of San Giorgio destroying the Dragon, and although this may be considered to belong to the earliest works engraved by his hand, he has nevertheless acquitted himself exceedingly well therein. Possessing much elevation of genius, and desirous of devoting himself to greater and more important undertakings, Enea Vico afterwards applied his attention to the study of antiquities, more particularly to that of ancient medals. Of these he has published several books, wherein may be found the true eiSgies of many emperors and their consorts, with inscriptions, and reverses of medals in great variety: they are indeed of most varied character, and are well calculated to assist all who take pleasure therein, to a clearer and more exact understanding of historical events. For this work Enea has merited and will long deserve high praise, and those who have attacked his book of medals have proved themselves guilty of injustice, for whoever considers the great labour and pains he has bestowed, on the work, with the extensive utility as well as beauty of the sajne, should and will excuse him, even though he may have sometimes erred in matters of minor importance,^[64] seeing that faults committed merely from want of better imformation, or from a too easy credulity, are worthy of pardon. Nor have even Aristotle, Pliny, and many other great writers that might be named, wholly escaped the commission of such. There are besides occasions where an author may hold opinions differing from those asserted by others, and even though these may be erroneous, yet is he not to be censured for the expression thereof.^[65]

Enea likewise designed and engraved fifty plates which have contributed largely to the convenience as well as satisfaction of artists and others. These exhibit the various costumes of different nations, such as are worn that is to say in Italy, France, Spain, Portugal, England, Flanders, and other parts of the world, habiliments of men as well as women, and those worn by the peasantry as well as by citizens; this was a very ingenious thought, and is executed in a beautiful and fanciful manner. He also published a genealogical tree of all the emperors, which is also an exceedingly fine work; and finally, after many labours and turmoils, he now enjoys a becoming repose beneath the shadow of Alfonso the Second, Duke of Ferrara. For this prince Enea Vico has engraved a genealogical tree of all the Marquises and Dukes of the house of Este; and for all the labours here enumerated, as well as for many others which he has executed and still continues to perform, I have thought it well to add this honourable record to his merits among those here inscribed to the renown of so many other distinguished men.

Many artists, in addition to those here enumerated, have occupied themselves with the engraving of copper-plates, and if these have not attained to so high a degree of perfection as the masters I have named, they have at least done much service to the world by their labours, seeing that they have caused the works of the best masters to be more extensively known than they could otherwise have been, and have given the means of seeing and becoming acquainted with the different inventions and modes of proceeding adopted by great artists, to those "who would not have found it possible to visit the places wherein the original pictures are preserved. They have thus conveyed to the Ultramontane people and nations a knowledge of many things which those distant lands could not otherwise have obtained; and if it be true that many plates have been badly executed, because the avarice of certain engravers has led them to think more of making gain than of obtaining honour or of doing justice to the work they were treating, yet there is much merit, on the other hand, to be discovered in many, besides those of whose excellence we have spoken above. Of this we have an example in the large design, among others, which has been engraved by Giorgio of Mantua,^[66] from the façade of the papal chapel, the Last Judgment namely, by Michelagnolo,^[67] as also in the Crucifixion of St. Peter, and the Conversion of St. Paul, which are painted in the Pauline chapel at Rome, and have been engraved by Giovan Battista de’ Cavalieri.

By the last-named engraver other works in copper-plate have also been engraved from the designs of various masters, among these are San Giovanni Battista in meditation, a Deposition from the Cross, after that painted by Daniello Ricciarelli of Volterra, in the chapel of the Santa Trinita in Rome; a figure of the Madonna with numerous Angels, and many besides, of which I will not further speak. There were large numbers of engravings also made by other artists, more particularly from the works of Michelagnolo, and by commissions received from a certain Antonio Lanferri,^[68] who employed many engravers for that purpose. They have likewise engraved a book containing fishes of every kind; and furthermore there have by their means been published the Phaeton, the Tityus, and the Ganymede, the Archers, the Bacchanalia, the Dream, the Pieta, and the Crucifix, all made by Michelagnolo for the Marchioness of Pescara, with the four Prophets of the chapel, and other paintings and designs, some of which were however so badly engraved and printed that I think it better to be silent respecting the names of such engravers and printers.

But I will not omit to mention that the above-named Antonio Lanferri, with Tommaso Barlacchi,^[69] and others, have kept numerous persons employed, principally young men, in the engraving of designs from the hands of innumerable masters, nay, the amount of works thus produced has been such that it were better to avoid the mention thereof, lest we be found too prolix, seeing that in this manner there have been sent forth, to say nothing of other matters, arabesques, ancient temples, cornices, capitals, pedestals, and other things of similar kind, in every size and all manners; insomuch that the architect Sebastiano Serlio of Bologna, seeing everything thus treated in the worst manner and reduced to so grievous a plight, was moved to compassion, and from love to his art he has engraved plates in wood and copper, making two books relating to architecture, wherein, among other things, there are thirty gates and doors in the rustic manner, with twenty portraits of more ornate and elaborate architecture; this book has been dedicated by Sebastiano to Henry king of Fa nee.

In like manner with Serlio, Antonio Labbaco^[70] has published all the antiquities and remarkable edifices of Rome, with their proportions given after exact measurements; they are engraved also in a very good and delicate manner by

——————— Perugino.[71] Nor less efficient have been the services

rendered to art in this matter, by the architect Jacopo Barozzo da Vignola,^[72] by whom definite rules, easy of comprehension, were given for the diminution or increase of every part in all the five orders of architecture, together with copperplate engravings; this is a book which has been exceedingly useful in the art, and one for which all are bound to thank the author. Many acknowledgments are in like manner due to Giovanni Cugin^[73] f of Paris, for the engravings and writings which he also has sent forth on subjects connected with the study and practice of architecture.

In Rome, besides those already cited, must be mentioned Niccolo Beatricio,^[74] of Lorraine, by whom many works of great merit have been executed with the burin, and who has produced numerous plates which are highly worthy of commendation. Among these are two fragments of a sarcophagus, with combats of cavalry, which this master has engraved on copper-plates, and other prints, exhibiting animals of various kinds, executed with great ability. There is also one by this artist which represents the Daughter of the Widow raised from the dead by Our Saviour Christ, which last Beatricio executed very finely from a design by the painter Girolamo Mosciano,^[75] of Brescia. By the same artist is the engraving of an Annunciation, after a design by Michelagnolo; and he likewise engraved the Navicella of Mosaic executed by Giotto, in the Portico of San Pietro^[76]

From Venice also many fine plates on wood and copper have been brought; numerous landscapes engraved on wood by Titian, after his own works for example; among others, a Birth of Christ, a, figure of San Jeronimo, and one of San Francesco. In copper there are the Tantalus, the Adonis, and many other plates, which were engraved by Griulio Bonasone^[77] of Bologna, together with works by Raphael, by Griulio Romano, by Parmigiano, and by every other master from whom he could procure designs. A Venetian painter, Battista Franco,^[78] has also engraved many plates from the designs of different masters, executing his work partly with the burin and partly with aquafortis. Among his productions are the Birth of Christ, the Adoration of the Magi, the Preaching of St. Peter, certain subjects from the Acts of the Apostles, and many others from the Old Testament. Nay, this manner of producing pictures has proceeded to such lengths, that those who make a profession of the same keep designers constantly employed, who copy everything good and beautiful that appears, no sooner laying their hands on such works than they put them at once into their prints.

In France the same thing has been done, and after the death of Rosso everything that could be found by his hand was immediately engraved. Among other engravings from the works of Rosso are Clelia with the Sabines passing the river, certain Masks similar to the Parche, made for the King of France, an Annunciation of singular character, a Dance of ten female figures, and King Francis proceeding alone towards the Temple of Jupiter, and having behind him the allegorical figure of Ignorance, with other works of like character: these were engraved by the engraver Renato,^[79] during the life-time of Rosso; but many more appeared after his death, and among them all the stories of Ulysses; nay, even the vases, chandeliers, lamps, salt-cellars, and all the innumerable objects of that kind executed in silver after the designs of Rosso, were in like manner subjected to the same process.

Luca Perini,^[80] also, has published engravings; one of two Satyrs namely, giving drink to the god Bacchus, with a Leda drawing the arrows from the quiver of Cupid, Susannah in the Bath, and many others, some taken from the designs of Rosso, and some from those of Francesco Bologna Primaticcio, now Abbot of San Martino in France. To the latter belong the Judgment of Paris, Abraham about to sacrifice his son Isaac, Our Saviour Christ espousing Santa Caterina, Jupiter changing Calisto into a Bear, the Council of the Gods, Penelope weaving and surrounded by her women, and a vast number of other subjects, some in wood-cuts, and some on copper-plates. So large an amount of practice had the effect of sharpening the wits of engravers to such an extent, that smaller figures were executed in a manner more delicate than words could express, insomuch that it would not be possible to bring them to a higher pefection of finish. Who, for example, could behold without surprise and admiration, the works of Francesco Marcolini^[81] of Forli? His book, entitled “The Garden of Thoughts,” among others, with engravings on wood, and the Globe of the Heavens, with his own portrait, after a design by Guiseppe Porta da Castelnuovo della Garfagnana:^[82] in this book many fanciful objects are represented, such as Fate, Envy, Calumny, Timidity, Praise, and many other of similar kind, which have been held to be very fine. Neither are the figures which Gabriel Giolito, the printer of books, inserted in the Orlando Furioso, to be considered unworthy of commendation, seeing that they were executed in a very good manner of engraving; as were also the eleven large plates of anatomical studies which Andrea Vessalio engraved after the designs of Giovanni di Calcare,^[83] a most excellent Flemish painter, which were afterwards copied in reduced proportions, and published on small copper-plates, by Valverde, who wrote on Anatomy, after Vessalio.

Among the numerous plates, moreover, which have issued from the hands of the Flemish engravers within the last ten years are some very fine ones designed by one Michele,^[84] a painter who worked many years in Some, and painted two chapels in the Church of the Germans. These plates are the story of Moses with the Serpent in the Wilderness, with thirty-two stories of Love and Psyche^[85] which are reputed to be very beautiful. In like manner, Jeronimo Cocca, also a Fleming, has engraved a large plate after the invention and design of Martin Hemskerk: the subject of this work is Dalilah cutting the locks of Sampson; the Temple of the Philistines is seen in the distance, and here, amidst the ruined towers and the desolation of all around, may be perceived the fall and destruction of the dead and dying, with the terror of the survivors, who are seeking safety in flight. In three smaller plates the same master has engraved the Creation of Adam and Eve, the Eating of the Forbidden Fruit, with the Angel expelling our First Parents from Paradise; and in four other plates of similar size, he represented the Devil imprinting avarice and ambition in the heart of man, in the first; with the passions which proceed from this operation in the other three.

By the hand of the same master are twenty-six stories, in size resembling those just described, and setting forth those events of the Old Testament histories which succeeded the Expulsion of Adam from Paradise, all which were designed by Martin with a bold and practised hand, the manner being very like that of the Italians. Jeronimo afterwards engraved the History of Susannah in six circular plates, with twentythree Stories, in addition to those before-mentioned, from the history of the Old Testament, and similar to those of Abraliam, first named: six of these twenty-three plates relate to the life of David, eight to that of Solomon; in four he treats the Story of Balaam, and in five those of Judith and Susannah. From the New Testament this engraver took the subjects of twenty-nine plates, all of which he engraved himself, beginning with the Annunciation of the Yirgin, and proceeding through the 'whole of the Passion of Our Lord to his Death on the Cross. After the design of the same Martin, moreover, Jeronimo engraved plates of the seven works of Mercy, with that of Lazarus as a rich, and Lazarus as a poor man; he also published the Parable of the Samaritan fallen among Thieves in four plates, with that of the Talents, written by San Matteo, in the eighteenth chapter of his Gospel, in four others.

Liè Frynch^[86] soon afterwards entered into competition with Jeronimo, in rivalry of whom he engraved the Life and Death of San Giovanni Battista in ten plates, v/hen Jeronimo produced an equal number of plates exhibiting stories of the Twelve Tribes. In this work the artist has expressed Gluttony and Self-indulgence in the person of Reuben, whom he has shown mounted on a hog. Simeon 'wields a sword, to intimate Homicide, and the other heads of the Tribes are delineated with other attributes; such, namely, as the artist considered to be characteristic of each. In a finer and more delicate style of engraving, Jeronimo next put forth the Life and Acts of David, in ten plates, from the time when he was anointed by Samuel that is to say, to the moment when he appeared before Saul; and in six other plates he represented the Love of Ammon for Tamar his sister, with the Violation committed by the same Ammon, and his Death. Shortly after the completion of these plates, Jeronimo executed ten more of similar size; the subjects being chosen from the life of Job. He likewise took materials for five other plates of the same character from thirteen chapters of the Proverbs of Solomon.

Jeronimo subsequently engraved the Adoration of the Magi, with the Parable given in the twelfth chapter of St. Matthew, concerning those who, with various excuses refuse to appear at the nuptial invitation of the King, and of him who went to the feast not having on a wedding garment: this work is in six plates, and in six others of equal size the master engraved certain subjects from the Acts of the Apostles. Furthermore, and in eight engravings of like character, Jeronimo delineated eight female figures of the most perfect excellence; six from the Old Testament, namely, Joel, Ruth, Abigail, Judith, Esther, and Susannah, and two from the New; Mary the Virgin, the mother of Our Saviour Christ, and Mary Magdalene. By the same artist was engraved the Triumphs of Patience, in six plates, with fantasies of various kinds: in the first plate is the figure of Patience borne on a car, and holding a standard in her hand on which there is a rose amidst thorns; on the next is a Burning Heart laid on an Anvil, and receiving blows from three hammers; the chariot in this second plate being drawn by two figures, by Desire who has wings at his shoulders namely, and by Hope, who holds an anchor in her hand: behind them they lead Fortune prisoner, with her wheel broken; the third plate shows Christ on a Chariot, bearing the Standard of the Cross, the ensign of his Passion, in his hand: in the angles are the Four Evangelists in the forms of animals; the chariot in this plate is drawn by two Lambs, and has four prisoners behind it, the Devil, the World, Sin, and Death.

In the fourth plate of this series is a nude figure of Isaac seated on a Camel; on the banner in his hand is a pair of prison chains, and behind him he draws the altar, with the ram, the knife, and the fire. Another plate shows Joseph Riding in Triumph on an Ox, which is crowned with fruits and ears of corn: the patriarch holds a standard, whereon there is a bee-hive, and leads prisoners Zephira^[87] and Envy, who are devouring a Heart. In one of these Triumphs the master has exhibited King David on a Lion, with the Harp on his arm, and a Banner in his hand, whereon there is a bridle; behind him is Saul as a prisoner, with Shimmei, whose tongue is hanging from his mouth: another shows Tobias riding in Triumph on an Ass; the Standard he bears in his hand exhibits a fountain, and the prisoners whom he brings after him are Poverty and Blindness. The last of these six Triumphs is that of St. Stephen the Protomartyr, who is enthroned on an Elephant; he bears the Standard of Charity, and the prisoners following him are his Persecutors. An these fanciful and ingenious works display much ability, and all were engraved by Jeronimo Cocca, whose hand was a very bold, firm, and powerful one.

The same master engraved a plate wherein he represented Fraud and Avarice, in a singularly fanciful and beautiful manner; and in another, which is also very beautiful, he has engraved a Feast of Bacchanals, with a Dance of Children. There is in like manner a work by Jeronimo, representing Moses Passing the Red Sea, as that subject had been painted in the upper chapel of the ducal palace, in Florence,^[88] by the Florentine painter, Agnolo Bronzino. In competition with Jeronimo, and also after the design of Agnolo Bronzino, Giorgio of Mantua then engraved a Birth of our Saviour Christ, which was likewise very beautiful. Receiving his commission from the person who had invented the subjects; Jeronimo next engraved twelve plates, representing the Victories, Battles, and deeds of arms of Charles V.; and for Verese, a painter and very clever master in perspective of those parts, he executed twenty plates; exhibiting buildings of various character.

For Jeronimo Bos,^[89] our artist engraved a plate of San Martino, wherein there is a Barque filled with Demons of the most extraordinary shapes; and in another plate he represented an Alchymist who is making havoc of all that he possesses in divers modes among his crucibles, and, distilling his own brains, ultimately consumes and wastes everything he has, until he finally brings himself with his wife and children to the hospital. The last mentioned plate was designed for Jeronimo by a painter, who caused him also to engrave the Seven Mortal Sins, with Demons of various forms; a very fantastic and laughable invention. The same master engraved a plate of the Last Judgment with one of an Old Man, who is seeking with a Lantern for a place wherein he may enjoy repose amidst the turmoils of the world, but does not find it: by him also is the plate of a Great Fish, devouring numerous smaller Fishes, and an allegorical figure of the Carnival, enjoying itself at a well-spread table, and driving out Lent, with another of Lent in like manner expelling the Carnival, to say nothing of the infinite variety of fantastic and singular inventions which he has also engraved, but to describe the whole of which would be troublesome and fatiguing.

The manner of Albert Dürer has been studiously imitated by many other Flemings, as may be seen in their works, but more particularly in those of Alberto Aldegraft,^[90] who has engraved four plates, representing in small figures the Creation of Adam, with four from the life of Lot, and four more delineating the story of Susannah. By G.... P.... ^[91] in like manner, are the seven works of Mercy, engraved on seven small circular plates, with eight stories taken from the Book of Kings; a Regulus in the cask filled with nails, and an Artemisia, which is a truly beautiful engraving. J... B.. ^[92] has engraved the four Evangelists in a form so small that it would seem an impossibility to execute figures of such minuteness. He has also produced five other plates, which are exceedingly beautiful: in the first of these is a virgin conducted by Death to the tomb, while in her earliest youth; in the second there is the figure of Adam, in the third that of a Countryman, the fourth presents a Bishop, the fifth a Cardinal, but all are conducted, like the virgin, to their last account by Death. In some other plates the same artist has represented numerous Germans proceeding to a party of pleasure with their wives; with figures of Satyrs which are exceedingly fanciful and beautiful.

By...... are to be seen very carefully executed engravings of the four Evangelists, and equally beautiful are twelve stories of the Prodigal Son, engraved with much care by the hand of M... Finally, Francesco Flori,^[93] a painter of great renown in those parts, has produced a large number of works which have been afterwards engraved, and for the most part by the hand of Jeronimo Cocca. Among these engravings are ten plates exhibiting the Labours of Hercules, with a large one representing the various phases of human life; one exhibits the Horatii and the Curiatii already engaged in the lists and in combat; another presents the Judgment of Solomon, and there is one of a Battle between Hercules and the Pigmies. By the same engraver likewise is a plate of Cain, who has slain his brother Abel, with Adam and Eve, who are weeping over the body of the dead; as also one of Abraham, who is on the point of sacrificing Isaac his son, with many other plates exhibiting so much varied fancy that one cannot but feel amazement as well as admiration on perceiving that such things are produced from plates of copper and blocks of wood. Nay, the engravings to be seen in this our book of the portraits of the painters, sculptors, and architects namely, may of themselves suffice to exemplify what we have here remarked, designed as they are by Giorgio Vasari and his scholars, and engraved by Maestro Cristofano Coriolano,^[94] who has executed and still continues to produce numerous works in Venice, which are entirely worthy to be held in remembrance.

But above all is to be considered the advantage and pleasure obtained by the Ultramontane peoples and nations

1. Zani, Materiali per servire alia Storia dell' Intaglio, &c., has shown that the practice here attributed to Finiguerra had its origin at least teU years earlier than the date assigned to it by Vasari. A beautiful Pax, by Finiguerra, who was a distinguished worker in Niello, is now in the Gallery of the Uffizj at Florence; and two examples of the earliest impressions taken in sculpture, in the manner which Vasari has attempted to describe, are to be still seen; the one in Genoa, in the Durazzo Collection, the other in what was the collection of the Duke of Buckingham. Of the impression on paper discovered by Zani in the Cabinet of Engravings at Paris, a detailed description will be found in the above cited Materiali, &c. See also Denon, Histoire de l'Art.
2. Ottley, Early History of Engraving, See., and Duchesne, Essai sur les Nielles, remark on the insufficiency and obscurity of this description, and supply its deficiencies. See also Bartsch, Le Peintre Graveur, vol. xiii. pp. 1—35.
3. Born in Florence in 1436, and was still living in 1480. But little is known of this artist; his first works appeared in the Monte Santo di Dio, which appeared at Florence in 1477, and the copper-plates to Dante’s Inferno, which appeared in 1481, after designs by Sandro Botticello, are with probability attributed to Baccio Bandelli.
4. See his life, vol. ii. of the present work, p. 262.
5. The German writers will not admit that the assertion of the Art of Engraving having “passed from Italy into Flanders,” or Germany, is proved, describing works of this kind as executed at an earlier period than that cited by Vasari. See also Duchesne, Voyage d'un Iconophile, Paris, 1834; and Quandt, Entwurf zur Geschichte der Kupfersiecherkunst, Kunstblatt for 1833, No. 56.
6. Martin Schön, called also Schonganer and Hübsch Martin. For details respecting him see Ulms Kunstleben im Mittlelalter, Ulm, 1840. See also Zani, Enciclopedia Metodica, and Bentsch, Peintre Graveur.
7. For the numerous monograms of this master, see Bryan, Dictionary of Painters and Engravers, London, 1849.
8. See his life, vol. ii. of the present work, p. 197.
9. Not in Antwerp, but in Nuremburg; where he was born in 1471. His father was a goldsmith, of Hungarian extraction, and lived long in the Netherlands. Albert was himself designed for the goldsmith’s art, and was to have been placed with Martin Schdn, but that master dying, the youth was sent to Michael Wohlgemuth. For details respecting this admired artist, see Nagler, Künstlerlexicon, Bd. 3. He died in 1528, at Nuremburg, where a statue by Ch. Rauch of Munich, has of late years been erected to his memory.
10. The a/d namely
11. One of his finest works.—Förster.
12. When Raphael saw the works of Dürer, he exclaimed, “Of a truth this man would have surpassed us all if he had had the master-pieces of art constantly before his eyes as we have;” and that Vasari himself found more than “care” in the works of Albert, is apparent by what we find some few lines below.
13. This is etched on a plate of iron.—Förster.
14. They are distinguished chiefly by a diiference of attitude, the one being turned towards the left, the other towards the right. —Förster.
15. For such details with respect to the disputed periods of Albert Dürer’s works as cannot here find place, the reader is referred to Heller, Geschichte der Holzschneidekunst; Ottley, Inquiry into the Origin and early History of Engraving; and the authors before cited.
16. This plate is now in the Public Gallery of Florence.—Ed. Flor., 1832-8.
17. All good judges and writers on this subject have agreed in confirming the opinion here advanced by our author.
18. This work, which was engraved on copper-plates by Marcantonio, appeared in the year 1504, with the following title. Epitome in divae parthenices Mariae historiam ab Alberto Durero Norico per figuras digestam cum versibus annexis Chelidonii.
19. The error of Vasari in respect to Albert’s birth-place is known to all, and need not be further insisted on.
20. This admirable plate presents the seated figure of a winged woman, in a thoughtful attitude, and with much sadness of expression. It bears the date 1514.
21. Bartsch, Peintre Graveur, and Zani, Enciclopedia Metodica, &c., remark that Albert did not engrave these works himself, but, having designed them, caused them afterwards to be executed by able artists.
22. This is not in accordance with what Vasari afterwards says, nor yet with the facts known, since Albert’s journey to Venice took place in 1506.
23. Marcantonio’s family name was Raimondi. See Ottley, ut supra. See also Zani, as above cited.
24. For the monograms of this master see Bryan, Dictionary of Enyravers, London, 1849. See also Brulliot, Dictionnaire des Monogrammes, Munich, 1832.
25. Malvasia, Felsina Piitrice, ever ready to accuse Vasari of partiality, will here have him to insinuate that Marcantonio could not previously draw; hut other commentators rebut this charge, and with reason, as totally unfounded.
26. Better known among ourselves and to the Germans as Lucas of Leyden, as he is sometimes called by the Italians also; Luca di Leida, that is to say.
27. Bottari tell us that these circular engravings were intended as designs for glass windows.
28. Considered by the best authorities to belong to the most successful works performed by Albert Dürer.
29. The “Passion” of Lucas of Leyden consists of fourteen plates, and bears the date of 1521.
30. This account of an active competition between Albert and Lucas of Leyden is but apocryphal; no writer of authority confirms our author’s relation.
31. Or perhaps St. Hubert; both saints having been visited by a similar apparition.
32. Förster declares this portrait unknown to liim, but cites others which are not mentioned by Vasari; that of the Elector Frederick the Wise namely, with those of Philip Melancthon and Pirkheimer.
33. For details, which cannot here find place, respecting the literary labours of Albert Dürer, see Kugler, Characterik Durers, Museum, 1836, No. 8; Nagler, Kunstlerlexicon, Band 3. See also Heller’s work on this master, with the additions made by Schorn in the Kunstblatt for 1830.
34. The execution of these works, according to the best authorities, ranges from 1508, when Luca was but fourteen years old, to 1530.
35. Here, too, Vasari is at issue with more modem authorities, who will not admit that Lucas of Leyden surpassed Albert Dürer, as Vasari will have him to have done.
36. The reader who shall desire a more minute account of the works of Marcantonio than can here find place is referred to the Catalogo d’ vna collezione di stampe del celebre Marcantonio Raimondi, Florence, 1830.
37. Förster denies that the Lucrezia is among the better works of Marcantonio.
38. For the Legend of this saint see Mrs. Jameson’s Sacred and Legendary Art, vol. ii. p. 266. See also Richa, Chiese Fiorentine.
39. For the monograms of these and other masters, see Bryan and Brulliot, as before cited.
40. The best and richest collections of Marcantonio Raimondi’s engraving are those of the Biblioteque Royale at Paris, and of the Gaudio Cabinet in Padua; for a description of the latter, which has 360 engravings, see Marsand, Fiore dell’Arte d’Intaglio, Padua, 1823.
41. Zani, Encyclopedia Metodica, considers this work to be not the Benediction of Abraham, but Noah commanded to build the Ark; the female figure, and the three, not two, children, are supposed to represent the wife and sons of Noah.
42. The Spasimo of Sicilia, that is to say. Vasari’s praises have been repeated by all the best authorities down to our own times. Cicognara and Pietro Giordani more particularly express much admiration for this work.
43. The best known among the disciples or imitators of Marcantonio Raimondi, re Agostino Veniziano, Marco of Ravenna, Giulio Bonasone, Jacopo Caraglio, Niccold Beatricetto, Enea Vico, the Ghisi of Mantua, (Giorgio and Teodoro), the Mantuan Giambattista, and his two children Adam and Diana (the latter became the wife of Francesco Ricciarelli of Volterra), and certain Germans, among whom Sandrart enumerates Bartholomew Beham and George Pencz, who visited Italy for the purpose of improving themselves under his guidance.
44. Zani, Enc. Met., parte ii. tomo. v. p. 315, calls this engraver, Marco Dente. He was slain during the sack of Rome in 1527; his imitations of Marcantonio are said to have deceived good judges, who have taken them for repliche.
45. The family name of this engraver was Musi or Musis; his works range between 1509 and 1536, but the period of his birth and death is not known.
46. Volto Santo, the Holy Countenance. Our readers will remember that this is said to be the true image, Vero Icon, of our Blessed Lord impressed on the veil or napkin which had been presented to him by the compassionate Veronica on his way to Calvary, for the purpose of wiping the drops of agony from his brow. This image is exhibited, as all who are acquainted with Rome will remember, among the relics brought forth on high solemnities in St. Peter’s.
47. This Diogenes is by Ugo himself, and not by Parmigiano.
48. Giuseppe Niccolo rather. —Förster.
49. Zani considers Parmigiano to have been the inventor of this mode of engraving; Sandrart, on the contrary, attributes the invention to Albert Dürer.
50. Giambattista Pittoni, or Pitoni, called Battista Vicentino.— Masselli.
51. Battista d’Agnolo, called Del Moro, because he was the disciple, son-in-law, and heir of Francesco Torbido, called Il Moro.
52. Zani found this painter inscribed as follows: Hieronimus Cocceius Pictor. Antw., 1556. He was born in Antwerp in 1510, and died there in 1570. He was a painter also, but is better known as an engraver, having published almost all the works of Raphael, with many of the Roman antiquities. It was from this master that Vasari obtained the greater part of his intelligence respecting the artists of the Netherlands.
53. A fresco which is still in existence, but has suffered greatly from repeated restorations.
54. We learn from Zani that Caraglio flourished until the year 1551. Certain commentators reproach our author for having said so little of so excellent a master, but the Commendatore Dal Pozzo has said nothing of him, “wherefore there is no cause,” remarks Bottari, “for attributing Vasari’s silence to ill-will.”
55. Vasari is here obviously speaking of the daughters of Pierus of Emathia, who were transformed into magpies for venturing to contend with the Muses. —Förster.
56. Or rather Philyra caressing Saturn, who is changed into a horse.—Ibid.
57. Sigismund the First.
58. For the artists of this name, properly Suster or Sustermann, see Zani, Enciclopedia Metodica, &c.
59. The already mentioned father of Diana and Adam of Mantua.
60. There is but little known respecting the life of this excellent artist. His works bear date from 1541 to 1560.— Masselli.
61. The portrait of Duke Cosimo is not by Enea Vico, but by Niccold della Casa. —Bartsch, Le Peintre Graveur.
62. Bartsch considers the portrait of Bandinello to be the work not of Enea Vico, but of Niccolò della Casa.
63. The Contest of Cupid and Apollo, according to Bartsch, is by Niccolò Beatricetto.
64. Bottari observes that Enea Vico is to be treated all the more tenderly by his critics, inasmuch as that the subject chosen by him was at that time surrounded by difficulties, the science being then quite in its infancy.
65. Whatever our author here says in justification of Enea Vico may be urged with equal justice in his own defence.—Masselli.
66. Giorgio Ghisi, a distinguished worker in Azamina, or Agemina, called by Vasari Tausia, Damaschina namely, or the decoration of metals with various figures and devices.—Zani. See also Bartsch, who enumerates seventy-one plates by this artist. The times of his birth and death are alike unknown, but he was working in 1578, and is believed to have been born somewhere about 1520.
67. Bottari observes that this plate was afterwards engraved by Dorigny, and it has been published in our own times, with all the modem embellishments, by the Cav. Toschi.
68. Or rather Lafreri, or Lafrery, a dealer in prints, who left FrancheComte, his birth-place, for the purpose of driving a traffic as above described in Italy.
69. Barlacchi was like Lafrery, a buyer and seller of engravings.
70. Or L’Abacco, this architect was a disciple of Antonio da San Gallo; he subscribes himself ‘‘ Antonio, alias Abacco.” Further mention is made of him in the following life.
71. The name of this Perugian engraver has not before appeared, remark the Italian and Gernurn commentators. There was a painter called Domenico Perugino, who died at Rome in 1590, being then seventy years old. The goldsmith Polidoro Perugino lived about 1550.
72. Called Da Vignola, from his birth-place in the territory of Modena. Bom 1507, died 1575, and is considered one of the lawgivers of modem architectural art in Italy. See Quatremere de Quincey, Dictionnaire Historique d’Architecture, vol. i. p. 160.
73. Probably Jean Cousin, the author of the Livre de Perspective, Paris, 1560, and of the Livre de Portraicture avec figures en hois, Paris, 1593.
74. Or Beautrizet; bom at Luneville towards 1567. See Zani, as before cited.
75. Girolamo Moretto, or Moreto, called also Girolamo Bresciano; not to be confounded with Girolamo Muziano of Acquafredda, who is also occasionally called Il Bresciano, or Brescianino, as well as Girolamo de’ Paesi, (of the Landscapes).— Ed. Flor. 1832 -8.
76. Engraved in the Roma Sotterranea, &c., tom. i. p. 193.— Ibid.
77. Zani calls Bonasone the first engraver who has produced anything with the burin to resemble the effect of the colouring in a painting. His works, according to this authority, range from 1539 to 1592.
78. Bartsch, Le Peintre Graveur, describes 107 of the plates engraved by this painter, who was one of Michael Angelo’s most zealous imitators.
79. Beni Boyvin, or Boivin; also called, as in the text, Renato. He waa born at Angers about 1530, and died at Rome in 1598.
80. Luca Perini, the name given in the text, is most probably a mere error of the copyist. Luca Penni was a brother of Francesco Penni, the disciple of Raphael, and called Il Fattore. Luca accompanied Rosso to France, and thence crossed into England, where the biographers lose all trace of him. A fine Madonna by this artist, much in the manner of the school of Raphael, is in the possession of the Duke of Sutherland.
81. Temanza, Vita del Sansovino, has the following passage with respect to this engraver: “Although but a bookseller, his genius suggested the form of a bridge to be erected at Murano, to which Sansovino, when consulted, could not refuse his admiration.” Originally a printer at Venice, Marcolini afterwards settled in Verona.
82. Garfagnino, called also Giuseppe del Salviati, from having been a disciple of Cecchin Salviati.
83. Or Jan Kalcker, a successful imitator of Titian and Raphael,—Ed. Flor. 1832-8.
84. Michael Coxis or Coxcie, bom at Mechlin in 1497; died at Antwerp, 1592.
85. Bottari expresses amazement that Vasari should attribute the story of Psyche to the Fleming, since all know it to be by Raphael; but our author is most probably speaking of a totally different work from that of Raphael, although on the same subject; and this seems the more likely from his here giving thirty-two as the number of the plates; those of Raphael’s work, as engraved by Marcantonio and his scholars, behig thirty-eight.
86. Hans Liefrink of Leyden. He lived at Antwerp from 1540 to 1580. The Life of the Baptist above-mentioned was engraved after designs by F. Floris.— Förster.
87. Bottari suggests that this should be rather, L'Ira, Anger.
88. The Chapel, with the paintings of Bronzino, still exists in the Palazzo Vecchio. —Ed. Flor., 1832-8.
89. Hieronymus Bos, of Herzogenhusch, called Jerome the Joyous. Seven large pictures by this master will be found in the Escurial, with others in other parts of Spain. The plates ascribed to him are not of his engraving, but only invented by him.— Zani and Bottari.
90. In the Giunti Edition this name is left blank, but that of Albert Aldegreve (who is here meant) was inserted with good show of reason by Bottari in the Roman Edition. Aldegreve was a disciple of Albert Dürer, and studied in Nuremberg. See Bartsch, Le Peintre Graveur. See also Bryan, Dictionary of Engravers, where he is called Heinrich (Henry), as he is by Baldinucci and Zani.
91. George or Gregory Pencz, or Pens. See Bartsch and Bryan, as above cited.
92. James or Jacob Bink or Benck, of Cologne, according to some authorities, of Nuremberg, according to others: See Le Brun, Gallerie des Peintres; but the year 1510, given as the date of Pencz's death by that author, must needs be erroneous, since he was still working in 1523. Bartsch enumerates ninety-seven plates by this engraver. See also Zani and Bryan, as before cited.
93. Franz Floris, born at Antwerp in 1520, but studied the works of Michael Angelo and Raphael in Rome. Vasari speaks of this master with much praise in a subsequent life, remarking that Floris was in his time called the Flemish Raphael. This artist died at Antwerp in 1570, in consequence, as is said, of excessive drinking.
94. In the second Edition of Vasari, which was the first adorned with portraits, this name remained a blank. It was first introduced in the third, (the Bolognese) edition. For the little that is known of Cristofano, or Cristoforo, see Zani, as before cited.