Page:Catholic Encyclopedia, volume 12.djvu/329

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PORTA


283


FORT


theologise D. Thomse . . . cum elucidBtionibus forma- libus . . ." (Venice, 1612; Padua, 1698; Rome, 1773). To the first volume were added: (a) De altitudine doctrinse Thomistica>; (b) Regulae ad lectorem; (c) Five indices. Echard censures the addition of Fr. Javelli's "E.xpositio in primam partem" and "Tractatus de pra;scientia et praedes- tinatione"; "Veritates aures supra totam legem veterem. . . ." (Venice, 1590); "Commentaries on St. Matthew" (Venice, 1602); "St. John" (Venice, 1604); those on St. Mark and St. Luke were not pubUshed; "Scholia super comp. theologicae veri- tatis Alberti Magni" (Venice, 1.5S8, 1.590). Echard says the compendium was not by Albertus Mag- nus (I, p. 176); "Tota theologia S. Th. Aquin. in compendium redacta" (Venice, 1.597); "Commen- tarii in psalmos" (one volume pubUshed, Bologna, 1692).

Qu£tif .4ND Echard, Scnpt. Ord. Prird., II (Paris. 1721). 392; MicHELE Pio, Vita e morte del ven. P. M. Fr. Serafino delta Porrecta (Bologna, 1615).

D. J. Kennedy.

Porta, Carlo, poet, b. at Milan in 1775; d. there, 5 January, 1821; educated by the Jesuits at Monza and in the seminary at Milan. Finding uncongenial the mercantile pursuits for which his family had destined him, he obtained posts in the treasury de- partment first at Venice and later at Milan. He served under the government of the Cisalpine Re- public and, without ceasing to be an Italian patriot, welcomed the return of the Austrian rule, since it seemed to promise peace and prosperity. At Milan he enjoyed the companionship of noted men of letters, among them Foscolo and Monti. His fame is based upon his felicitous use of the Milanese dialect for poetical purposes. He was a Romanticist and argued in favour of the doctrines of his friends Manzoni and Grossiin the cantica "El Romanticism", the "Dodes Sonittal'abaaGiavan" (i.e. Giordani),the "Meneghin Classegh ", and others. Some of his views are opposed to the French, who had brought so much misery into Italy. He is most successful in humorous composi- tions, in which he truly delineates Milanese types, especially in "Le desgrazi de Giovannin Bongee" and "Le olter desgrazi de Giovannin Bongee". In his use of dialect Porta evinces the greatest skill; his language is the language of the people adapted in a most masterly way to the purposes of literary ex- pression.

Barbigra, Poesie edite, inedite e rare, scelte e illustrate (Flor- ence, 1887): Poesie rivedute sugli originali (Milan, 1887, with a bibliography by Robecchi) : Lettembrini, II Melt, it Cardone il Porta in Morandi, Antologia ; D'OviDio and Sailer, Porta e il Mamoni in Discussioni Manzoniane (Citti di Caatello, 1886).

J. D. M. Ford.

Porta, GiACOMO della, architect and sculptor, b. at Porlizza on Lake Lugano 1541; d. 1604. He was a pupil of Michelangelo and succeeded Vignola as archi- tect of St. Peter's. Here he removed the temporary choir built by Bramante and with the aid of Domenico Fontana finished the dome and lantern by 1590 or 1592. He completed the plan of II Gesd, the ground- plan and other chief architectural features of which are the work of Vignola, departing somewhat from his predecessor. Delia Porta's fa<jade was, in connexion with Vignola's work, an authoritative model for large numbers of buildings in the Baroque style. The fagade, fairly simple in design, is built in two stories, is topped by a gable, and divided by half-pillars and pilasters, panels and niches. It can hardly be said to possess a clearly defined ecclesiastical character; the windows anrl entrances recall rather the style of a palace. In Santa Maria ai monti, he followed the ground-plan of the church of II Gestl. He made the facade of >San Luigi de' franccsi a piece of decorative work entirely independent of the body of the struc- ture, a method much copied later. Another architec-


tural work is Santa Catarina de' funari at Rome. With Carlo Maderna he built the church of San Gio- vanni de' Fiorentini from the designs of Sansovino. Sometimes the Sapienza at Rome is ascribed to Michel- angelo; however, della Porta had charge of the erec- tion and work on the interior of the building although he did not complete it. In constructing an addition to Maria Maggiore he altered the plans of Michel- angelo. He had something of the spirit of this great master, although he had neither the ability nor the desire to follow him in everything; yet he did not fall into the uncouth exaggerations of the laler period. In the Palazzo Farnese his work is associated with that of Sangallo and Michelangelo. The Villa Aldobrandini with its superb gardens shows what beautiful work della Porta could construct when free to follow his own ideas. At Genoa he built the Annunziata, not with pilasters, a method much admired in the Baroque style, but as a columned basilica, without, however, infringing on the spacious width customary in this style. This is one of the most beautiful churches of the period. As a sculptor della Porta worked on the Certosa of Pavia. He has left some fine groups for fountains, especially the fountains at the Capitol and on the Piazza Mattel. In sculpture his teacher was il Gobbo.

Becker, Kunst u. KUnstler d.ie.,17. u. IS. Jahrh. (Leipzig, 1863-6.51 ; Btrckhardt, Cieerone, 7th ed.. Bode (Leipzig, 1898) ; Quateemere de QniNCT, Hist, des arehitectes (Paris. 1830) ; GcR- LiTT, Gesch. d. Baroekstih in Italien (Stuttgart. 1887).

G. GlETMANN.

Portable Altar. See Altar, sub-title Port- able Altar.

Portalegre, Diocese of, suffragan of Lisbon, Portugal, established by Pope Julius III in 1550. Its first bishop was Julian d' Alva, a Spaniard, who was transferred to Miranda in 1557. On 17 July, 1560, Andiz' de Noronha succeeded to the diocese, but he was promoted to Placencia in 1581. Frei Amador Arraes, the next, bishop, was the author of a cele- brated book of "Dialogues"; he resigned in 1582, and retired to the college of his order in Coimbra, where he remained till his death. Lopo Soares de Alber- garia and Frei Manoel de Gouvea died before re- ceiving the Bulls confirming their nomination. Diego Conra, nephew of the Venerable Bartholomew of the Martyrs and Bishop of Ceuta, became bishop in 1598, and died on 9 October, 1614. Among the bish- ops of Portalegre during the seventeenth century was Ricardo Russell, an Englishman, who took possession of the see on 17 September, 1671, and was subsequently transferred to Vizeu. The present bishop is Antonio Mutinho, transferred from Ca- boverde in 1909. The diocese contains 197,343 Catholics, 16 Protestants, 148 parishes, 286 priests, 447 churches and chapels.

Port Augusta, Diocese of (Portaugustana), suffragan of Adelaide, South Australia, created in 1887. Its boundaries are: north, the twenty-fifth degree of S. latitude; east, the States of Queensland and New South Wales; west, the State of West Australia; south, the counties Musgrave, Jervois, Daly, Stanley, Light, Eyre, and the River Murray. As the limits originally fixed were found insufficient, the counties of Victoria and Burra were added. At its inception the diocese was heavily burdened with debt and the Catholic population, numbering about 11,000, became much diminished owing to the period- ical droughts to which a large portion of the diocese is subject. The town of Port Augusta commands a splendid position at the head of Spencer's Gulf, overlooking which is the cathedral, a fine stone edifice. Its Catholic population is still small, but is bound to increase when the great overland railways to West Australia and to Port Darwin in the far Northern Territory become linked together.