SCHWANTHALER
593
SCHWARZ
also discovered the cells of the nails and feathers,
what are called the Tomes fibres of the teeth, the
nuclei of the smooth and striped muscle-fibres, and
the envelope of the nerve-fibres (Schwaim's envelope).
Moreover, in 1836 he discovered that pepsin was the
substance that produced albuminous digestion in
the stomach; in 1844 he produced the first artificial
gastric fistula, and called attention to the importance
of the gall in digestion. He discovered the organic
nature of yeast at the same time as Cagniard Latour,
although independently of the latter, and proved
that the yeast-cells take the material necessary for
reproduction and development from the substance
capable of fermentation. In a separate treatise
he proved the weakness of the theory of spontaneous
generation. Besides the works already mentioned
Schwann WTote a number of papers for medical
journals and for the reports of the Belgian Academy.
Biographisches Lexikon der hervorragenden Aerzte, V, 315; Berliner klinische Wochenschrift (1882), 63, necrology.
Leopold Senfelder.
Schwanthaler, Lxtdwig von, founder of the mod- em Romantic school of sculpture, b. at Munich in 1802; d. there, 1848. He received a thorough classi- cal education but even as a boy was fond of modelling in wax; then, led by patriotism, he took to the painting of battle scenes and with Pocci he drew up the scheme of a procession of ro- mantic knights proceeding to a tournament. King Maximilian I commissionedhim to ik'sign mytho- logical reliefs for an epergne, which was never wholly carried out and was later melted down. A few wax models that have been preserved are very fine. Schwanthaler Ltdwig Schwanthalek ^ade a great
many reliefs, taken from the stories of the Greek gods and heroes, for the salons of the Glyptothek at Mu- nich. Before they were actually executed he visited Thorwaldsen at Rome. At a later date he spent a considerable length of time at Rome, where he was honoured by a large number of commissions from King Louis I of Bavaria. He prepared the models of the twenty-five statues of artists of the Pinakothek and made the drawings for the Greek poets intended for the new palace. He modelled a "Triumphal Pro- cession of Bacchus" on a frieze 143 feet long for the palace of Duke Maximilian. This was followed by the large reliefs at Ratisbon for the princes of Thurn and Taxis. He carried out in a free manner one of Ranch's designs, the victorious "Germania", on one of the pediments of the Walhalla near Ratisbon. A design of his own, the "Battle of Arminius," is executed on the other pediment.
Entirely his own composition also is the "Bavaria" as protectress of the arts on the pediment of the ex- hibition hall. The colossal statue of Bavaria, 62 feet high, above the Hall of Fame at Munich greatly added to his reputation. He constantly received commis- sions both from near and far for monuments in hon- our of nilers, generals, and artists. The impatience of those who gave him commissions, especially the in- sistence on haste of King Louis and of the architect Klenze, led Schwanthaler into the error of overpro- duction and perfunctoriness. On the other hand he XIIL— 38
exhibited an astonishing inventive faculty which
seemed never to repeat itself, which showed freshness
and animation in the presentation, and a grasp of
monumental size and classic beauty in the general con-
ception of works that usually were arranged in cycles.
It must be acknowledged that the execution of the de-
tails was frequently faulty. He exhibited great skill
in the treatment of medieval and modern dress. Con-
trary to his natural inclination he was constantly
obUged to treat antique subjects, but he brought to his
task a classically-trained mind and taste.
LuBKE, Gesch. der Plastik (Leipzig, 1871), II, a carefully-con- sidered judgment; Pecht, GescA. der Miinchener Kunst (Munich, 1888); VON Reber, Gesch. der neueren Kunst, II (1864).
G. GlETMANN.
Schwartz, Peter George. See Niger, Peter George.
Schwarz (Schwartz), Berthold, a German friar, reputed the inventor of gunpowder and firearms. There has been much difference of opinion regarding the bearer of this name and his shan; in the discovery attributed to him. He was a Francis- can, and is said to have been born in Freiburg in the first half of the thirteenth c e n - tury. He took the name of Ber- thold in religion, to which was ap- pended the ad- jective Schwarz (black), either on account of the colour of his habit or because he was looked on as being ,, Bkrtholu Scuwauz
^AAi^t^ri +« tu^ I'rom a woodcut in Thevet 8 Livre des addicted to the y.^j, Pourtraits, Paris, 1584
black art. It was
in the course of his studies in alchemy that he discovered the explosive properties of gunpowder which he ap- plied to firearms. A monument was erected to him in his birthplace in 1853. The history of the invention of gunpowder is WTapped in obscurity. The Chinese and Arabs are said to have been familiar with burning mixtures, and as early as a. d. 660 Greek fire was brought to Constantinople. Roger Bacon (1246-94) mentions the explosive properties of saltpetre mix- tures in his "De secretis operibus artis et naturae", c. 6, though he does not lay claim to the discovery. The first to attribute it and its subsequent applica- tion to the friar of Freiburg seems to have been Felix Hemmelin (1389-1464) of Zurich in his " De nobilitate et rusticitate dialogus" (c. 1450). He states some- what vaguely that the discovery was made within 200 years of the time of his WTiting. This would apparently make Berthold a contemporary of Bacon. Many later wTiters, however, place him in the four- teenth century, and while some give 1354, the date inscribed upon his monument, as the time of his discovery, others simply give him credit for the in- vention of firearms and notably of brass cannon. For a critical study of the question cf. Hansjacob, who concludes that Berthold lived in the thirteenth century, and suggests the possibility of Bacon having learned the discovery from him. While it is perhaps impossible to determine with certainty whether he was the first to make the discovery of gunpowder, it is commonly admitted that the invention of fire- arms is due to him.
Hansjacob, Der Schwarze Berthold, Der Erfinder des Schies- pulvers u. der Feuerwaffen (Freiburg, 1891).
Henry M. Brock.
