Lynchburg daily Virginian. [volume] (Lynchburg [Va.]) 1852-1861, 1855-08-22
THE DRESDEN GALLERY.
BY JOIN r. THOMPSON.


by JOHN n. THOMPSON.
From "Aotes Of EuropeoR Tfduef' in The South
ern Literary Messenger.
The pride of Dresden is its gallery, renowned
beyond any other collection of paintings IN the
world, and filled with creations which cannot but
afford the highest delight to oil tastes. The ar
list aud the peasant may alike derive intense sat
isiaetion from visiting it, nor can imagine ma
turr 50 dend Ia of beauty as not to be rous-
ed to enthusiasm by looking upon the treasures
of art which hing upon its walls. If the render
of these sketches is offended with me for endeav.
oring to describe some of its fines. things, which
he or she has possibly rend Of dozen times be-
fore let him or her lay down the record or pass
on to something else. | trust Mademoselle who
complains of another picture gallery inilietion,
may one ofthe,e DAYS lounge through those en-
chanting rooms herself x see what glory shines
through them, reflected from the dream like images
of woman which the great masters saw and caught
for all time in their studies some centuries ago.
"A thing Of beauty is joy forever sing
poor kents and surely the world has been much
better for this gallery of Dresden. What graft
fcation has il not afforded to the lover of the
beautiful through rolling years Poets bay" set
down before lis Madonnas md recognized the
sweet idols of their fancy; the universal itcrn-
ture Of modern fumes is Illustrated by It's shapes
of ideal lnyeiness mighty captains OF arlnics,
bonbafdlDg tue Stbliru Guy Itohltss ol Nllul ht
struetion their shells might work, have grateful
ly ordered the gunners to spare the building
where 81 much of grace was enshrined; and the
idle Nanderer from other lands walks along the
chambers, So rich in genius aud in memories, Ia
the apartment Whole stands the immortal Nir
gin of Raphael, with ~ feeling Of thankfulncs.
that he Inns been permitted t. gaze GA excellence
rare.
The ) ddoana d San .Sisto is probably
r. ~, q
form. Copies Of il in oils, wretehrd enough it
must be admitted, abound iu.the United States
and there is scarcely picture shop in the land
where print of it cannot he obtanrd. Ii de
| rives its name from Pope SXtus, by whose order
! it was painted and whose episcopal person the
artist has transmitted 10 ms in sucerantal vest
ments, kneeling on the left hand Of the canvass.
| We ought to feel indebted 10 lis holiness for
having caused such II work 10 he executed
y ct we like him not in the picture at all; he j.
! decidedly de tfop; and the same thing may be
! sHid 81 81. Barbara, who kneels opposite Ia him
not that this young lady hicks any one point of
| female eonelinrss. She has an exquisite neck.
set upon charming shoulders. and supporting
head nearly perfect; indeed she is altogether sat
| istnctory IA saint or sinner, in whichever
| character yua choose to look at her. The oh
lection is not to her individually but TO the plac-
| ing her where she is. Take out from the can
/
child in the centre, and the Pope aud st. Barba-
! IA, between the faded green curtains, would look
verv much Ike Il iabicdu uirdnt at a French the
atre.
But it requires short time only for one to
forget MI the accessories of the picture in the
contemplation Of the heavenly faces Of the Ma
donna aud the infant Jesus. Sir David Wilkie,
speaking of this Madonna in the measured Ian
guage Of artistic criticism, says she Is 'tncarer
"a of Gnu La pln al
any thing in painting But surely she is much
more than this. The limit Mt which the thoughts
of other men have been stayed in the portal
| ture of female elegance by the &c of Che finite
has been transcribed here; aud countenance
| lighted up with the glory of actual transfgura
| ton looks down from the deep blue of the high
| est heaven, which falls around her in draper, -
eyes inefiably tender and lustrous and sad vel
never to know tears; lips Overlooking with low,
and roseate with the glow of the unfailing fire.
| of the Eternal Altar; brow heaming with being
nifty and the peace that passeth all understand
ing;& this vision of celestial JOY is stamped Will
| tho mmutabity of the Everlasting and fadelesi
| for evermore.
| have said that the eyes were sad. 1t is th
sadness which affects the beholder more perhap
than anything else, it connects the woman
with earth and assures that il was hot alto
| gethor as an angel, assoiled of all human faint
| that the great artist saw the Virgin in his dream
| In the face of the child Jesus, too, which bears
| mysterious resemblance TO that of Mary. there i
| an expression of earnest sorrow, as if there re
| sides in the soul of the yet unconscious infan
some presage of the day when the bitter cup o
atonement was TO be lifted To his lips and tn
will of the Father was to be accomplished, albei
to the indispensable anguish of the woman VIII
now bears him in her arms with the atfectonnt
grasp ofmattrnity. 1t is this blending of tn
human with the divine nature, this bodying fortl
of the immortal attributes of the Redeemer. thi
sauctlhcation. as it were, of the mother of God
without causing her TO resign all traces of he
earthly being, that speaks 10 the sympathy of al
who look upon the picture. 1t seems ike
glimpse of the spirit world vonchsafed 10 u
while yet dwelling within the barriers of clay;
chink through which there slants downward
from the regions of revoutioness day pencil O
light into the valley of bleeding and broke
hearts; and ESPECIALLY is this feeling experience
when one regards the angels who sit at tn
foot of the painting those fair repre- sentative
| Of the angel idea which has possessed tn
minds of all people since the world began, wit
their thoughtful upturned faces and ihei
wings of rainbow pumage.
There is one other picture in the world wbic
appeals as powerfully to the unartstc beholeer
| and this is suggestive of emotions directly c