New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1893-07-09
RELICS OF COLUMBUS.
II.
AN INTERESTING COLLECTION OF foh-
TRAITS OF THE GREAT DISCOVEREH
SHOWN AT THE CHICAGO En-
TIIRJTION
,,ooy sr.ry CORRESPONDENT OF THE TRIBuNE)

=. 7, Rabdo. "a il stands to-day on the shores OF
Lake Michigan, is situated the room IN which
Columbus is supposed to have explained lis
strange theories to the prior AMI the monks oi 'io
convent As compared with the other rooms III
this interesting structure, 1t Is large anu wei
or,ionad Tpon IFS walls Mr.. Curtis has
Gathered many valuable and interesting portraio'
or what are, more properly speaking peiic'cu "
bc portrats Of Columbus, for 1t seems a2tco"
after two centuries more OF dlscusSio"' 'i'"o
,bo f,co If .he great discoverer never painter
or slsetcheJ or craven in his lifetime. His por-
trait has been painted, like that OF the Madohla
and those of the saints. by many famous ar'i''''
each dependent upon the verbal descriptions given
of thp man by cOntemporaneous wrlteis' anu '"0
conveying TO the canvas his own concep'l'h VI
what the famous sailors face must nave NV"
bnt il cannot be said that any one OF 'he poi
traits is genuine and it must be assumed '"i' al
-, ,h.,, arc more or less fancful. Five contem-
noranrous writer's who knew hlin-lhiee' WIZ
were intimately associated with him in his career
have left descriptions Of his features an' HIS
person His son, Fernando, says:
"Tbe Admiral was a well-madc man, of height
oboyc the medium with long face, ana ch'eN-
oncs somewhat prominent neither too fat nor 'oo
loan He had an aquiline nose light-cooieh
owes and n rnddy complexion. In his youth ne
had been fair. and his hair had been OF ileh'
color hut after he was thirty years old II tuihei
white In eating and drinking he was an exam
plo of sobricty. DIS well a. simple and modest ABOUT
his person. III.
GonzaIes Fernandez dc Oviedo of Valdez wit
messed the triumph Of the Discovercr al Darccoh''
was present at several of his receptions anu d.
his interviews with Queen Isabella Colnmpus
he writes. was man of honest parentage AMI
sober life lie had noble bearing good looks
and n HEIGHT above the medium which was well
carried He had sharp eyes, and the other parts
Of his visase were we'll proportioned. Ills mar
was bright red, his complexion husled' anu
marked with freckles His language was easy
prudent, showing great genius, ana ne was
gracious in manner 49,,
Andres Bernalcz who was known as u"
Good cnrato Of Los Palacios. and at whose house
in Grenada Columbus made his home Tor moh'hs
., . timc. wrote the Historic de los Reyes "a
,holico,. and gave a description of the person OIL
tbc Admiral Columbus, he said, was man
of fine stature. strong of limb, with an elongated
yisanc. fresh and rudGy Of complexion, market
with fr,cl,cs He had noble bearing. was Dig
ritcd Of spcech. and bore kindly manner.
Peter MARTYR. or Pctrus Martyrs Anglerlus
,,or,r,rd secretary T. Charles " described the
Admiral in similar terms
Tray PartLolomc dc Las Casas was also an ih'-
mat. oicnd If Columbus. lie says that Tn, DIS
covcrnr had red hair and freckle-, Keen gr'y eN''
and auuilin, nose "A largo mouth and sai eAPie'
-iou of countcnancc. which wa, the result OF much
mental suffering From him we know, roo, tha'
me- was unusually rctcont, but spoke WIN graf
lcryor and nuoncy when 80 inclined. lie d'ecrio'S
linn to, a. 4 lover Of Justice, but quick in anger
when there was reason for 1t.
,ft.r r..rusinp these verbal portraits Of tolIln-
hu.-,nd il must be admitted that In the main
they a.,rcc with each other-one l. AT JOSS 10
reconcile them with the seventy-clght poi'rdi'S
which Mr.. Curtis's industry has here gath'rel
tooctber With possibly the single exception OF
thc Lorenzo Lotto portrait. there Is not on" tha' III
tie least suggests the distinctive traits ~ lo''"
bv Columbuss friends To account Tor 'I'i> II
o,I,. necessary 70 consider that in those DAYS tn"
art Of painting portraits was IN Us INFANCY Mo'
aver il WAS an honor almost exclusively reserve
for Kings and Queens and dignitarle> OF TN" heh-
cst rank Columbus was simply an importunate
a1.or.,rer who. Al the Close OF his first voyage,
.oniorcd = hriof triumph. hit who. from the ter
r,in,ti,r Of his second voyage down to the close
-, hi. .,-nntful career was nothing but the victim
of .n,-r anil mi>represe NATION He was deri'"'
and condemncd was brought in chains Ike c'ih-
mon feon from the continent he had dscoNerco'
and FIR nonrly two hundred years his DESCENDANTS
contested IN the courts for IN" dgnitirs AMI em'la
unn,s he dcmar.ed of the crown of Spain o'tor"
Undertaking what was then the most perllonS
and uncertain Of adventures. Even the glcry oil
giving hi, name - The lands he dlscovcre' was
transferred t. anothcr-a man who follower III
hi. track It i not surprising Therefore, tua'
,ho Sn,ni.h artist, of that day didn't paint the
,,or,rait of one who said Of himself that he was
a., hcr,or. "without a penny 10 buy food
To Capton Frank II. Mason. United states
Cou.ul.Gcn.rL AZ Frankfort belongs the crent
.oC securing the so-callel Lorenzo Lotto portra'
for This country He bought 1t for James W.
Ellsworth. If Chicsgo. who contributes II 10 'nl'
collection. OF It's artistic worth there can d. II"
,,n.ti,, and a. to its authenticity there
lno,,,. o.>i., but few dissenting opinions Will
M, ,vo,rv vou with its history. only remarkin|
- nassir,, that il was painted in 1912 for Donrni-
ca Nolinicr,. a Venetian senator and historian !
,.hn b,1 followed closely the career OF COLUMBUS
aud lend become on, of his stanchcst frlen's ana
admirers This portrait served as moa"i LOT
TIN, face OF Columbus upon the souvenir coiii' an"
,,,s awarded a silver medal at the Colinoiih
Historical Exposition AT Madrid, IA perS 'he
most authentic likeness of the lh'coN'rcr
What /. probably the most ancient portrait vi
Columbus in existence is also II De seen III '''i
colection II is the so-called lanez portrait anu
,yos secured AZ the request of the President IRON
,h, National Library in Madrid. It's history
,cculi,r. and worth summarizing II was one
of the four portraits purchased ny the 'p'"''u
Government in ,G3 from senior y. lanez' vi
Grenada The critics We're at once a9r'ed 'ha'
IT, bore a striking resemblance to the Ai'lSsi'ho
nortrait in the Inlzi Gallery, at Florence ARTISTS
who grvc il a close study, wer" satisfied tha' IL |
had been tampcred with and obtained PERMISSION
70 make an examination. On the upper margin
of the canvas were the words. Christof Column |
bns nov orbs inventor" When suhIected 10
chemical test this inscription DISAPPEARED. ana
another was found beneath it which read, Co
lumh Lvgur novi orbs reptor.' Further investi- |
cation demonstrated that the original hal Deem