Page:Joseph Drew - Art Treasures and their Preservation scan.pdf/1



ART TREASURES AND THEIR PRESERVATION.

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It may be thought by some that the address we are about to deliver hardly comes within the pale of archæological science, but we think, upon more mature consideration, you will agree with us in considering the study of statuary and ancient paintings a very desirable adjunct in connection with archæological pursuits, for, from the accessories generally introduced in the works of the old masters, we become acquainted with the manners, customs, arts, sciences, domestic life, implements of war and industry, and also the costume of the various grades of society depicted by the sculptor's and painter's art, we therefore look upon the preservation of such art treasures as an obligation we owe to posterity; we view them as the sacred symbols in which we can most correctly trace the social, political, and religious status of our ancestors, and, though the literature of a country may perish and its records decay, still there are certain monuments amongst the art treasures of a nation which appear to defy the rust of time, and outlive even the memory of those whose genius and labour called them into existence. Now the object of my address to you this evening is to call attention to the decadence which, under some form or other, has become apparent in many of the higher departments of our present schools of art, for where the art itself is still in the zenith of its power and freshness, the elements and materials employed to give form and colour to the creations of the mind are frequently in themselves of a more fragile and perishable character than were formerly used, and this we date to the peculiar characteristic of the age, namely, that spirit of rivalry and competition amongst our manufacturers which lead them to produce, irrespective of durability, inferior