Page:Encyclopædia Britannica, Ninth Edition, v. 24.djvu/192

Rh 172 VERONA Giolfino, still has its frescos in a good state of preservation, and gives a vivid notion of what must once have been the effect of these gorgeous pictured palaces. The episcopal palace contains the ancient and valuable chapter library, of about 12,000 volumes and over 500 MSS., among them the palimpsest of the Institutiones of Gaius which Niebuhr Squares, discovered. The Piazza delle Erbe (fruit market) and the Piazza dei Signori, both in the oldest part of the city, are very picturesque and beautiful, being surrounded by many fine mediaeval buildings. In the former of these a copy of the lion of Venice has recently been erected. Popula- Verona had a population of 67,080 in 1871, which by tion, in- 1881 had increased to 68,741. In spite of its pleasant dustry, an( j nea ithy site, Verona is in winter liable to be cold and rainy, like other places which lie along the southern spurs of the Alps. The Adige, a rapid but shallow river, shrinks to an insignificant stream during the summer. Verona possesses some silk, linen, and woollen manufactures, and carries on a considerable trade in these goods and in grain, hides, flax, hemp, marble, drugs, &c. Amongst the public institutions of the place may be mentioned the public- library (1802), the agricultural academy (1768), the botanical garden, various good schools and colleges (in cluding a theological seminary, a lyceum, and gymnasia), and numerous hospitals and charitable organizations. Roman Roman Remains. The most conspicuous of the existing Roman remains, remains is the great amphitheatre, a building of the 2d or 3d cen tury, which in general form closely resembled the Colosseum in Rome. Almost the whole of its external arcades, with three tiers of arches, have now disappeared ; it was partly thrown down by an earthquake in 1184, and subsequently used as a stone-quarry to supply building materials. Many of its blocks are still visible in the walls of various mediaeval buildings. The interior, with, seats for about 20,000 people, has been frequently restored, till none of the old seats remain. Traces also exist of extensive baths and of a Roman theatre, the latter outside the most ancient line of walls, close to the left bank of the river. In 1885 portions of a number of fine mosaic pavements, dating from the 3d century, were discovered extending over a very large area under the cloister and other parts of the cathedral, about 5 feet below the present floor level. A large number of different patterns exist in a good state of preservation, elaborate in style, but, like all late Roman mosaics, rather coarsely executed with large tesserx. The Museo Lapidario contains a fine collection of Roman and Etruscan inscriptions and sculpture, mostly collected and published by Scipione Mallei in the 18th century. Artistic Importance. In many respects the resemblance between Verona and Florence is very striking : in both cases we have a strongly fortified city built in a fertile valley, on the banks of a winding river, with suburbs on higher ground, rising close above the main city. In architectural magnificence and in wealth of sculpture and painting Verona almost rivalled the Tuscan city, and, like it, gave birth to a very large number of artists who dis tinguished themselves in all branches of the fine arts. Painting. Painting in Verona may be divided into four periods, (i. ) The first period is characterized by wall paintings of purely native style, closely resembling the early Christian pictures in the catacombs of Rome. Examples dating from the 10th to the llth century have been discovered hidden by whitewash on the oldest parts of the nave walls of the church of S. Zeno. They are a very interesting survival of the almost classical Roman style of painting, and appear to be quite free from the generally prevalent Byzantine influence, (ii. ) The Byzantine period seems to have lasted during the 12th and 13th centuries, (iii.) The Giottesque period begins contemporaneously with Altichiero da Zevio and Giacomo degli Avanzi, whose chief works were executed during the second half of the 14th century. These two painters were among the ablest of Giotto s followers, and adorned Verona and Padua with a number of very beautiful frescos, rich in composition, delicate in colour, and remarkable for their highly finished modelling and detail, (iv.) To the fourth period belong several important painters. Pisanello or Vittore PISAXO (q.v. ), a very charming painter and the greatest medallist of Italy, was probably a pupil of Altichiero. 1 Most of his frescos in Verona have perished ; but one of great beauty still exists in a very perfect state in the church of S. Anastasia, high up over the arched open ing into one of the eastern chapels of the south transept. The scene represents St George and the Princess after the Conquest of the Dragon, with accessory figures, the sea, a mountainous land- 1 There is every reason to doubt Vasari s statement that Pisanello was a pupil of Andrea del Castagno. scape, and an elaborately painted city in the background. The only other existing fresco by Pisanello is an Annunciation in S. Fermo Maggiore. For Pisanello s pupils and other painters of sub sequent date, see SCHOOLS OF PAINTING, vol. xxi. p. 443. Domenico del Riccio, usually nicknamed Brusasorci (1494-1567), was a pro lific painter whose works are very numerous in Verona. Paolo Cagliari or Paul VERONESE (q.v.), though a native of Verona, belongs rather to the Venetian school. Verona is specially rich in early examples of decorative sculpture. Sculp- (i.) The first period is that of northern or Lombardic influence, ture. exemplified in the very interesting series of reliefs which cover the western facades of the church of S. Zeno and the cathedral, dating from the 12th century. These reliefs represent both sacred sub jects and scenes of war and hunting, mixed with grotesque monsters, such as specially delighted the rude vigorous nature of the Lom bards ; they are all richly decorative in effect, though strange and unskilful in detail. Part of the western bronze doors 2 of S. Zeno are especially interesting as being among the earliest important examples in Italy of cast bronze reliefs. They represent scenes from the life of S. Zeno, are rudely modelled, and yet very dramatic and sculpturesque in style. 3 Many of the 12th-century reliefs and sculptured capitals in S. Zeno are signed by the sculptor, but these merely constitute lists of names about whom nothing is known, (ii. ) In the 13th century the sculpture seems to have lost the Lom bard vigour, without acquiring any qualities of superior grace or refinement. The font in the baptistery near the cathedral is an early example of this. Each side of the octagon is covered with a large relief of a Biblical subject, very dull in style and coarse in execution. The font itself is interesting for its early form, one common in the chief baptisteries of northern Italy : like an island in the centre of the great octagonal tank is a lobed marble recep tacle, in which the officiating priest stood while he immersed the catechumens. A movable wooden bridge must have been used to enable the priest to cross the water in the surrounding tank, (iii.) The next period is that of Florentine influence. This is exemplified in the magnificently sculptured tombs of the Delia Scala lords, designed with steadily growing splendour, from the simple sarco phagus of Martino I. down to the elaborate erection over the tomb of the fratricide Can Signorio, adorned with statuettes of the virtues, to the possession of which he could lay so little claim. 4 The recumbent effigies and decorative details of these tombs are very beautiful, but the smaller figures of angels, saints, and virtues are rather clumsy in proportion. The latest tomb, that of Can Signorio, erected during his lifetime (c. 1370), is signed &quot; Boninus de Campigliono Mediolanensia Dioscesis.&quot; This sculptor, though of Milanese origin, belongs really to the school of the Florentine Andrea Pisano. One characteristic of the 14th and 15th centuries in Verona was the custom, also followed in other Lombardic cities, of setting large equestrian statues over the tombs of powerful mili tary leaders, in some cases above the recumbent effigy of the dead man, as if to represent him in full vigour of life as well as in death. That which crowns the canopy over the tomb of Can Grande is a very noble, though somewhat quaint, work. (iv. ) In the 15th century the influence of Venice became paramount, though this was really only a further development of the Florentine manner, Venice itself having been directly influenced in the 14th century by many able sculptors from Florence. The architecture of Verona, like its sculpture, passed through Architec Lombard, Florentine, and Venetian stages, (i.) The church of S. ture. Zeno and the cathedral, both of which were mainly rebuilt in the 12th century, are very noble examples of the Lombardic style, with few single-light windows, and with the walls decorated externally by series of pilasters and by alternating bands of red and white, in stone or brick. The arches of this period are semicircular and rest on round columns and capitals, richly carved with grotesque figures and foliage. Most of the external ornamentation is usually concentrated on the western front, which often has a lofty arched porch on marble columns, resting on griffins or lions devouring their prey. (ii. ) The Florentine period (c. 1250 to 1400) is repre sented by the church of S. Anastasia, and by many more or less mutilated palaces, with fine courts surrounded by arcades in one or more stories. The arches are mostly pointed, and in other respects the influence of northern Gothic was more direct in Verona than in Florence. Solidity of mass and simplicity of detail are among the characteristics of this period, (iii.) The Venetian period (c. 1400 to 1480) was one of little originality or vigour, the build ings of this date being largely rather dull copies of those at Venice, (iv.) The early Renaissance developed into very exceptional beauty in Verona, mainly through the genius of Fra Giocondo (1435-1514), 2 They are frequently stated to be of beaten bronze, but they are really castings, apparently by the cire perdue process. 3 Part of these doors are covered with bronze reliefs of scenes from the Bible, which are of still earlier date, and were probably brought to Verona from the Rhine provinces. 4 See an eloquent description by Ruskiu, Stones of Venice, iiL p. 70 sq.