The Sun.
London, England, 1864-01-09 00:00:00

CHIMENTr S PICTURES.

The old adage that there is nothing new under ibt
sun would seem to have received another and unlooked.4%.
confirmation. We all know that the effect of relief prod'scc;
by the stereoscope is owing to binocular vision, what
two copies of the same object planed side by side melt to
one. Those who are familiar with the history of the .'
arts are also aware that there lived at Florence in the De,:
ginning of the 17th century an artist, Jacopo Chimenti "-
Empoli, who died in 1640, and who, though not en
sally known as the great masters, has left a few very OA"
pictures in some of the churches of the Tuscan capital- `;
dispute has arisen between Professor Emerson, of Do
University, U.S., :and Sir David Brewster, about cerm
m
ta drawings of that old master, executed in d.ovidA'
like stereoscopic photograhs, and which, vi
through the stereoscope, appear in relief, Proteo",
Emerson attributes this effect to accident, and so
" Let any one execute a pen-anel• ink sketch, ats
then let him make as perfect a copy of it as he can with
careful measurements ; now place these two drawings 7,0
the stereoscope, and you get the same kind of effect se011;,
the Chimenti drawings." Sir D. Brewster, on the conten
considers these drawings to be a proof that stereoscopY
been attempted as far back as the 17th century, and ace Iv
ingly replies in this month's Philosophical Hagazine3/41°° A
ing Professor Emerson whether he himself has executeet yo
such sketch and obtained the required relief, or whethel;tl
ever made a correct copy of one or other of the CltrirOv'y
drawings, and if he did, why he did not advise any one, 1(Ito
the same, and thus obtain the only satisfactory proof of 0
relief's being accidental ? Sir D. Brewster had been ti.)
of the masters of the School of Art at Edinburgh, and
quested him to obtain from his pupils copies of each of i/10$
Chimenti drawings. Of the six copies thus obtained, 1),,
one could produce in the stereoscope the effect of the CPOO
menti drawings. This at once did away with the opi' 014
that one of the drawings might be Chimenti'e, and to 00
its side a copy of one of his pupils. Sir D. BroW:ift
now defies Professor Emerson to produce one roll' je.
a hundred sketches by different individuals to
which the stereoscopic relief exists at all ; Bud' 01
to Chimenti, it may be asked what led so elAiildiet
an artist to make so uninteresting a sketch as -4 iit
of a man sitting upon a stool with a pair of comptiOe'oo
one hand and a string ill the other; what led him tap or
a copy of it the very same size, and without any cha Ogetf
improvement whatever ; what led him to preserve 811011
interesting pictures ; and, above all, what led him to ri10,03
those two figures side by side, and in such a manner tpt,
the instant they were seen by an intelligent traveller/
yo
Crum Brown, he conceived they were intended
brought into relief by binocular vision, and °co.
ally brought them into stereoscopic relief 13„re
tiring and combining the two separate pictures. ti
over these drawin.gs were executed about 1620, at the heso
when Baptista Porte had called the attention of philosoc 0
to the subject of binocular vision, and had shown rot
diagram so far resembling a stereoscopic slide that 0t4,,
objects, that is, objects in relief, were seen binocularve,
the combination of a right-and-left-eye picture of t'llr,
Dr. Brewster states, in conclusion, that Professor I-4-I°o
Director of the Industrial Museum of Scotland, Ow' „to
turn-out of the Museum at Liverpool, what appeareclt;
a stereoscope, bearing the date of 1670, and suppoocd

of Italian origin I
ot
ACCIDENT TO SIR JAMES VrILDE.—We learnt let
Sir James Wilde, the judge of the Divorce Court, 11115 itol
with an accident of a somewhat serio us nature. 1/0 was rieo
week thrown cut of an open carriage, and received
ugt
so swore that he is still unable to leave.. his bed, tho'ojo
will, we are assured, shortly be able to discharge
duties, t°
PROBATE AND DIVORCE.—WO are requesl3/ .
1140
state that, owing to an accident, Sir JaJamesltie
will be prevented sitting in Chambers or in Covrt ett "(cto
day, Jan. 12. The summonses and motions Wbicji vpe
fixed for that day will, should the judge be able .t° 1;00
taken on Saturday the 16th. The probate causes Yci,t,,
juries will be taken on Friday, the 22d. We regret '-opell
that the learned judge was last week thrown out of 61:1 00
carriage and received injuries so severe that be ad?
unable to leave his bed, though he will, we are
14°-
heal), be able to discharge his public duties. ait
Wboso bathes his hand in blood, must Vl-
with tears, says a German Proverb.