Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1885-02-08
THE TELFAIR ACADEMY.
IT'S INFORMAL OPENING ON
THURSDAY NEXT.

What the Unique Collection will Bring
Before the People OF savannah-The
History of Mans Progress and Civil
zation as Told In His HandiwOrk.
The work OF placing in position, in the
Telfair Academy, the works OF art that
Mr.. Brandt has collected is progressing
rapidly. 1t has progressed so far, in fact,
that en- Thursday next, between the hours
of 10 a. m. and p. m, number of the
friends Of the members of the academy
viii be permitted to view the art treas
ures. Only those who are provided with
cards of invitation will be admitted.
In order to aid those who may visit the
academy next Thursday to understand
the plan upon which Mr.. Brandt has pro-
ceeded in his work, and also to inform the
public what the academy contains, the
MORNING News has had the following
interesting article prepared:
a history of the arts of design from
their origin with the cave jewellers of the
pre-Adamite world, through Pelasgian,
an:e-Homeric. Assyrian. Egyptian, At
lantean, Greek. Italian, Spanish, French.
German, Flemish, English and American
channels down to our own day is what
Mr.. Brandt, under the auspices of the
trustees, proposes to furnish to the citi-
zens Of Savannah on the walls of the Tel
fair Academy. He understands that it is
not TO be mere museum in which works
of the brush, the chisel and the burin are
to be exhibited for the amusement Of an
hour, but a real art academy, in which the
chief object is to furnish examples of
study for young and old cultivatOrS of the
line arts. and in which the methods used
and the results obtained by great artists
OF all times are to be illustrated BY pho
tOgTaphic copies of their original works.
These, together with a few choice statues.
a complete collection Of casts Of all cele-
bTated sculptures. painting, and brief no
tices OF the artists and their works.
make a valuable collection, and IN regard
TO the range OF the Photographic repeti-
tons are equal, II not superior, to any in
the world. Tne labor, patient perseyer-
ance, knowledge and richness Of resource
required 10 accomplish such work can
only be appreciated properly by a .hor-
Oughly educated artist, and in giving Mr..
Brandt the entire control of it the trus-
tees have acted with much more wisdom
than Is generally displayed by committees
Of nen-pTOfessiOnals in like cases.
One, if not the most interesting. result
IF -, effort is that il shows the progress
OF the him. AIAH1 AAOHl the AIsI dt-
ter1rts of tho o., ,-e jewellers to give beau
ty to their flint ana none weapons by
earning Of animal and yegeg:s oiq i9 Tdn On
them, up to the time of Raph,, = S--s.L
10 da Finci and Michel Angelo. Wa
them painting and sculpture was raised
to les highest point since the days of the
their Influence through all the Western
and Northern nations, till an American
Benjamin West-threw aside Greek
and Roman costumes as the only ones fit
for modern heroes, and in the Death of
Wolfe on the heights OF Abraham
created the first independent step Of
American genius in art by clOthinS -.
actors in their proper habili", anita MS
TuE GAVE JEWELLERS.
Geological researches prove that in
times so remote that no calculation can
be made Of them the human race existed
in a state represented by the lowest form
OF ear present stage of savage life. From
this they rose by steps well represented
bF the state Of eXtant tribes-Australian
Oceanic, Asiatic and American-tO the
grades represented by Assyrian, Egyp-
tan and Greek civilization. But with
the advance OF true science there is
growing conviction that the Mosaic &C
count Of the cosmos, or creation of
wOrlds, is the true one, but that the unity
Of the races must be abandoned as not
taught in the Hebrew Bible. The man
of the sixth day creation was essentially
a man. but in him creation went no
farther than to make him the highest OF
animals. To breathe into him the higher
life-the spiTitual-the isolation and edu-
cation OF Eden was necessary. The ami
NAL man was Il creature OF 'arbOreal
habits" or a ''cave dweller," with the
germs Of moral and intellectual growth,
but entirely unable by the use OF the
senses only to rise much above the level
of the beasts. TO do this he needed In
struction from higher teachers. This con-
sidered, many points of conflict between
science and theology will be removed, and
the iudicious selections made by Mr..
Brandt will be acknowledged by the
archeOlogist and the historian as well as
by the artist.
Archaeology, or a description OF ancient
things, is now one Of the most interesting
of all studies connected with human pro-
gress. Men seem to be more interested
in the past than in the future; very nat
urally. sc the bygOne is meaSurably tam
gible. while the future must be almost en-
tirely coniectural. We judge Of the de-
gree Of intellectual development of all
peoples by their advance in art, and in
this our day the civilization of COM
munity is made evident by its apprecia-
hon and application Of art 10 the uses
and Identification OF life. In his first
stage man used implements of bone and
stone, and the photographs show what
they were. Even needles, as nearly OF the
size OF our own and IN no wise different in
design, are shown, but the thumb-bell or
.'thimble' is not there, probably because
the bTittleness of the bone precluded the
80 .N-frr Il
sire for OrnamentatiOn is made plain in
the form and decorative character of
many articles, for while things like lance
and arrow heads, which may be lost in
the using, are as rough as may be. parts
of them, and Of domestic utensils that
are to remain, are much adorned with
the work OF the hand. These implements
have given to their time the name Of the
..StOne Age.v The next step was taken on
the discovery of native copper as NAL
leable metal capable of being used in
place Of flint and bone. or spread out into
plates; but the idea Of fusing and mould
ing il by fire had not been conceived. But
this once seized, the melting of copper
and tin came into use, and the mixed
metals gave its name TO the Age OF
Bronze" ATmOT. weapons, household
utensils, and tools so hard as TO cut
granite, were made from it, and when
further advances in knowledge taught
that i'd could be melted and moulded into
form. furniture, masks and the images of
the GODS were formed from it. In the Tel
fair photographs we find all these things
Represented, and one shield shows where
it has been pierced in three places by hos
tile weapons.
MORE INTRACTIBLE THAN COPPER,
iron was for a long time unknown as use
ful metal, and its conversion into steel was
made known to the Romans only after
their intercourse with the Germans.
While a more abundant aud useful metal
than either gold, silver, copper, lead or
tin, II is so much more destTuctible than
either by exposure 10 moisture OF air that
few. if any. articles made from it have
been discovered among ancient remains.
Its use began in historic ages and gives
name to the "Age Of Iron,' as the appli-
cation Of steam to practical purposes
lives the title OF age Of Steam" to our
own era. The huge stones of the Egyp-
tian pVramids are supposed to have been
worked bv copper tools, and the inference
is that the grand sculptures of Greece
were produced DY the use of the same. A
superficial research does not justify one in
thinking otherwise.