Cincinnati daily press. [volume] (Cincinnati [Ohio]) 1860-1862, 1861-04-04
Treasures Of ART in Vienna Its Great
Picture Galleries.

A correspondent writes, from Vienna to
the Rochester IN. " Express, in late let
ter:
We have passed three or four days among
the magnificent galleries of paintings. All
Italy does not contain SO many pieces by the
old masters-sO many rare aud wonderful
efforts of genius-as the principal galleries
of Vienna. To sag they are beautiful, sub.
lime, expresses nothing you must see them,
and then you can feel the beauty, and glory
aDd great ness of art.
First the Upper Belvidere," palace
built by the Prince Eugene. 1t contains
the imperial gallery-eighteen or twenty
immense rooms, splenddly ornamented and
hung with the wonders of the world in
painting, by the old masters. There are, in
all these rooms, more than 400 of the very
first pictures in the world; one hall alone
contains twenty-three of the best Of Van
dykes. You are absolutely oppressed sur
fsited with so much beauty; and you turn
away with almost utter indifference from
living Breathing forms aud faces of beauty
with whom you entered, to contemplate and
admire q more beautiful ideal by Guido
REM, De Vi9ci, Rubens, Vandyke, Lampi,
and hest ofothers almost equally cele-
bfated ard meritorious,
Of female faces and form, however, can
rot help mentioning a Venus, by Lampi,
which no one looks upon without remain
ing TO gaze, and TO return again for yet an
other sight.
Anotber-Oieopatra dying, by Cagnacci.
The coloring of this picture is somewhat ex-
traordinaIy-an still another, Cleopatra
dropping he pearl into the cup. The painter
forget, hut it has face of wonderful beauty
and power. A female portrait by Correg-
eio-l can not describe it. The baptism of
child, by Guido Reni, one that will fill the
hesrt with emotion and the eyes with tears,
you look upon it long; the celebrated pic
tuTe Of the wife of Georgione, the "Love is
Life " of Byron. .
Then there are bewitchiug landscapes,
portraits, marine pieces, the mightiest efforts,
the greatest successes Of the first artists of
the ord You become bewldered and un-
appIecatjve by loitering through so many
bllls, filled with such pictures, aud it is when
you reach your room ia quiet, thrust your
self into dTessing-gown and slippers, aud sit
Gown TO think upon them, that you will say
wonderful and you will decide to see them
again and again, before you leave collec-
ton the ike of which you may never see
more.
Next is the palace of the Prince of Lich-
tenstein, with twenty-five rooms in a long
range of balls, filed with almost innumer-
ahle pictures.
There is also the collection of Prince Es
t rbszy, equally fine almost, as well as that
of Count SchOubrun, and as many as fifty
splendid private collections. Returning
from the e, there is The Lower Belvidere
Palace, be tween which and the upper, runs
magnificent wide avenue or park, a favorite
and beautiful promenade. Here lin the
Lower /, ividerel in the floor of the great
hall, is the mosaic copy of Da Yinci's "Last
Supper" lC is wonderful when you con.
slider the materials of which it is composed.
The building is ful of halls, containing
numerous collections Of antiquities, dating
bsck into the days of the first crusade, gi-
Psntic SUITS of armor, that giants only could
have worn, banners that may have hoated
over the Ilumes of Richard Occur de Lion,
models OF every style of military apparatus,
offensive and defensive, ancient and modern,
including many specimens of American in-
vention and improvement, vessels, buildings,
towns, nridges-a great wilderness of curiosi.
ties.