The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1818-03-21 00:00:00

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• 1.(11

I. . .
OF /WENS.
Mears. BAUR* end Stiltirilen, of the girl'
have just opened • splendid Pam/Arnie View
Athens. • We hardly kowir • Am-fret more laden-
rably calculated than this fora picturesque sketch'
or every thing that can delight the eye, or informs
the .sins'—it has the meet pelislied remains of or«
ehiteeturel grandeur, displayed on a toil Where
every thing combinec to give effect to their spiew
dottrii.-a has bath • land cape full of beauty end
variety, end a see view full of richness end that
calm serenity which accords with a subject so perg.
neat with the most interesting reflection... Though
it. the words of Lord Brno*. whose poetical muse
this subject inopired. a Cephistrs' merino is lodged
sonny, and Dimes hos 110.600•111 At OIL" jet•-•
On old itioe's reek, satlidnes isle,
The God of Gladsome Ahab his parting sails ;
Ow hie moo regions lisserkesr lams to Aloe,
Timm% there his altars ere so wore divire."
Contrasted with the gresideer of the fragments of
Athena's poor remains," you have—
s Iss elsomilie turret of the gay Lush,
Awl, deo snot ooeibre 'mid the holy calm.
Near Them's' hoe yen solitary polio.
All tiered with toriosss bees arrest the err—
Add shall were Ido that heedless passed theta by.*
Independent of idea nature of the sehject, the
execution of the 'seek is uncommonly picturesque
and broutifet. and reliever Hie *Wiest credit
upon the ornate. A description of a sultject
of this kind must osecesiorily convey but • few.
ble idea of that which can oily lie frit ion its
proper force from the !lentil of the crust; but
as a specimen .1 net, It ie impoiellile to over.
look this Panoramic Exhibition. The first «emo-
tion which strikes the mind of the t?ectistor on
entering this Exhibition a the troth of time fact,
that in the more compendium destruction of
Turkish hawk, than to the ravage« of time. we
have to trade the ruinous deve«tation of .• those
nentatuseuts of art which iaseicLes retired at en
expense of tomidetably snore than a third of
the public stock of the Atlienisui. Many of
the scattered columns which Imre supported
and adorned the Temples of Athens, remain
little off-seed by the physical operation of time,
while every thing in the shape of sculpture or
statuary hears the iocontestahlr proof of the wither-
ing and deoolotseig hand of tnin--the monument
of PIMILOPAPPUS IS I dreadful iustance or this de.
vastatioss. The proud fragment, of the Parthenon
still sweet the rye with much of architectural
brandeur. The remains of the °drum, and other
uilding. of a similar description, are an mixed up
with Venetian and Turkish piles, Ilia little re.
mein, of that conical ferns of roof (by no menus
the best style in Athens) on which, according to
PLUTARCH. CRATIIros Red 10 rally p RI C LILA. ••••••
" As Jure, se olden ow his head he wean;
" As Pericles, a whole orchestra hears." /s.

c s-

But the ezteut of Athens is very clearly marked
in the Panorama., and the site and Olttime of
some of the principal edifices correctly marked,
oecoribig to the b. 4 eurhorities ; above all, the
locality of the beautiful scenery from ‘, high fly•
metier to the plain"—end again, So " the glorious
gulf. unconquered Sailsini.," is exquisitely pour.
trayed—the peropective is adiairable, and that part
tof she Soon Sew.-
.4 *ht *eh Ilse sietere erilettehilltillettilit.' • ' •

anniNi

Tint hove —white gentler peel; seems Se " sweik,"
is beautiful in theextreme—it has all the tints a of
sapphire rod of gold." which poetry after nature
has given to it. The artists have, with greet pro-
priety. deettelvii *over the iiiirfece of the Panorama
revers' groupes of Turks, Greeks, and Albanians,,
together with souse one specisnelis of tune rich vege-
tation of this fertik mil, the besintiful colouring of
which bas a line effect is the paroling. The Turkish
war-borse iii the groupe, with the disdar of the
Acropolis, is inimitably executed—it has the
spirit, we hail almost said the enotomical eniuute.
nem, .f COOPIR'S awed ; and the ermine of
Greek females, (lueing the Itonsaika, is. no doubt,
from tenure. though the firer-es are by am means
so elegant es they are described by travellers, or us
they ire represeuted in Mr. Twinge's admirable
landscape in the Kett Exhibition at the Kuril
Academy the flouts perhaps belong to • lower
elms of Greek females then those who dwell ou the
Albanian mountains.
A catalogue, drawn op with a critical accuracy,
describes die part* of the Exhibition which are
well' illeatrateil by Gotham frIMU ACILIMM•MNIS
-Lithographic Press. This catelogoe. we ere from
the following passage. keno to the 'swims that
PHIDIAS slid nut sctuafly erectile any of the sculp-
ture of which the Elgin tumbles are so splendid a
specimen. " The celebrated statuary. PHlDias,
liartued the dengue. and superintended the whole
work." We know that Mr. PAYIIR KNIGHT, in his
Warned dissertation before the Committee on the
Elgin marbles. said, that PHIDIAS, on the entho-
rity of PLUTARCH, did -sot execute the works of
the Parthenoo ; and Mr. ‘‘'t !AIN. thought the
worded PLUTARCH clearly proved that PHIDIAS
had nothing at all to do with the works of the Par-
theusa.• Now the author. when speaking fur him-
self, neither says that INitous did ,tot execute
them, nor attempts far an instant to prove any
thing osi the subject. • Alt he stets is this—
tint PUMAS, thiesgh the friendship of PEsicuis,
• was appointed " superintendent of all the public
ediitees ;" and that "he had the direction of
every thing, sad all the artists were to receive
his orders." PLUTARCH neat* the architects of
the Parthenon. the -vestibule of the Citadel, the
long wall. endow or two other works ; but almost
the nolike of the sculptors ii, that PHIDIAS
executed the breams sad golden Mama* of Ahipree
—he, in feet, passes over the sculpiere lath a
sweeping itsdifference. It is a singular seppositieti
that Palmas, the must accomplished scalptir of
his time, eliould for years have sisperiateutled such
extensive works, nod left the whole execution of
the sculpture to his pupils and the other artists.
PLUTARCH probibly moaned his mention to the
brazen amid golden statues, on tl.e suppositioss that
nobody Could ever doubt the *collider'. claim to at
least * part of the other workmanship in his own
particular line of art. It is unit irrekvent. we
tram, to put its this claim for the fame of • greet
artist, now •ileat we hove so massy fregawma of
Athenian grandeur in this country, roll so beautiful
a picturiel representation pia this Panorama fur-
nishes. Besides, we h.tve (if we are not touch 111111.