Rensselaer Union, Volume 8, Number 42, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 6 July 1876 — Mosaics at the Centennial. [ARTICLE]

Mosaics at the Centennial.

_ In tegiffl ning a notice of ghe mosaics, | IlAw* f&l are represented to an extent unprecedented at . ppiitiou* Exhibition*; whilp, of, Ute more ’ HpfnJfS wrltn; the supply is hardly adequate. Of course, there is always great risk in transporting articles* of value io* great distance, and especially across the ocean; but it does seem as though we ought to have had at least one piece as good as that which Jfopc Pius IX. sentp> the < ’rests) Palace "Exhibition in Issß. That was a copyiof Guereino’s Bt. John the Baptist; and its value was $60,000. But- then, it jvas not for sale, while all of iS ttW-s |<O aye labeled ’ Wth their price. Tiie most expensive specimen is |*»*ii*l»i» (l bj r 4s|ivieri, of Venice. This is • »M>k«abouPAur feet In diameter, < in-n----far in shape, anti supported by a .single I stamifd. liEanclsag out near Jte base into several tigers' ft*en The orfMmentnl work .tUMML Jfoe .stttface pf thß tAle is, most HSi»b»f« 111 t£l pattern had been of a less studied regularity, I think.the ettect angles so predommate aut even to cause a stiffness of expression. However, the fault, if fault it is—and no douht there are very many artists who would claim it as a virtue —is atoned for by the remarkable variety and brilliancy of the coloring. ' 'The thousands of little pieces of glass that go to make up the table are imitated after all kinds of rare and precious stones. It would be difficult for one not thoroughly acquainted with mosaics to distinguish their ingredients from tne real stones. There may lie seen malachite, and and porphyry, and alabaster, and hundreds of other materials. A composition tilled the rold-doiie is alto prominent. The price of the table is $6,000. ,It was exhildted at Vibnna in' 1873, r Unt 'did no tint] a -purchaser. Very likely it will not be allowed to leave this country, especially as the ]>opular interest, in Art has taken a new impetus from the Exhibition. I notice font large numbers of articles in mosaic are already marked as told. Of’ the two styles of 'mosaic*. rather more of the Rcsnan than the Florentine are here represented. As is generally known, in the Florentine only pieces of atone or shell in their natural colors are employed, and the scope of the mosaic is, therefore, limited to such simple forms of ornamentation ns wreaths, and Howers, 3d arabesque designs. It is to the Roni mosaics, therefore, that we look for the wore elaborate expression of the art, introducing landscape and the human figure. Lives have been spent and .genius lavished upon the production of pieces of this class of work. Titian and Tintorretto did not disdain to furnish cartoons for the mosaics of the Venetian and Geneose • cathedrals. Indeed, there are three mosaics nt thc Caihedral of St. Roque, at Li»boa, whose value is estimated at $4,000,000.

Id ibe preparation of the Rom an mosaic, the first essential is a cartoon, giving the acene—if it be a picture—and the exact proportions as they are to be produced upon the marble. This is then given the proper colors u]>on another canvas. Then, with chisel and other tools, the workman proceeds to perforate or indent the slab according to the profile of the model. The pieces of glass or smalt are carefully constructed of all tints; and the workman proceeds to the delicate task of fitting them into their places, so as to produce a perfect whole. The Florentine process is shown to the - wiskor by means of specimens of mosaics hl all stages of construction, quite filling a show-case, near the center of the Italian Department. Here may be seen all kinds <rf shelj and stone in irregularly-shaped pieces. Malachite is generally used to represent verdure; while, for the delicate piak petals of the rose, the conch-shell is rarm atas Andrea Tali, who was probably the greatest of the old mowiriati. ’flie pictures in mosaic are all small, though representing some of the finest ctaas of woric. Of the half-dozen*"exhib-Jtedhy Olivieri, one of the most striking nßHreaents the interior of a fisherman’s The rude furniture is apply departed—♦she rough cot, the cross-legged cJtaiire.tfhe iron kettle hanging Over the fire-place. In the center oi the room titania the fisherman, bare-headed and bore-facted, dressed in the careless fashion .of the Adriatic waterman. Leaning one lltamd. Jipon ‘the table, with the other he VahHWAte eyes while gazing through the npen door out upon the boisterous sea. The ctaioring is simply perfect. Another picture presents an Italian landarape withal! the traditional accompaniHM9IIS of headland, sea and reined shrine. Tlmsc are both about six inches square,

exclusive of frame, and their price is (300 each. A somewhat different effect is.pro dueed In a pair of mosaics representing a female figure reclining, in the one, on a grassy Imnk, and in the other on a gorgeous couch. Here the surface of the picture!* not smooth, but covered with rounded pieces of glass of uniform size. Tliis style is called the jiearl mosaic. Besides these, there are great numbers of other articles in whose construction the mosaic forms an im|a>rtant part. There are counties* jewel-cases whose rare workmanship renders them fit receptacles for the most costly brilliants. Handkerchiefboxes, gtore soxes, card-cases, albums, and all manner of fancy things are aisplayod. , A white marble toilet-stand, whose surface presents a succession Of culiee in various colors, is also a striking object. ■Turning to the collection of Rocchoggiani, of Rome, one is impressed with the extreme artistic beauty of his tables. Here is one aliout four feet in diameter, having arzblack marble ground. In tlie center is a medallion representing Romulus and Remus and the motherly wolf. Half-way between tlie border of the table and this charming picture fedfl wreath, connecting, at equidistant points, four smaller medallions rejlreaenting the Four Seasons. The price of Jhis fine piece of art is (2,000. A pair of smaller tables arc similar in style, tlte center-piece showing two boys leading a tiger.— Philadelphia Cor. Chicago Tribune.