sentation of personal grace. Their limited and absurd ideas of religion were a decided bar to improvement, and led them to debase rather than improve the human form; hence we sometimes find the heads of animals attached to the bodies of men, and the ridiculous imputed acts of their idols are represented in strange unnatural positions, and those frequently repeated; hence the idea of grouping their figures was decidedly banished, except in a few cases, when the same outline occurs to the depth of four and five persons, each performing the same act, with the uniformity of a set of recruits, under the care of a drilling serjeant.

The errors of the Egyptians on this head cannot be more forcibly illustrated than by mentioning their manner of expressing a general punishment; a gigantic figure wields a weapon with one hand, and with the other grasps the hair of a group of kneeling figures, placed in a circle, with three ranges of heads appearing above each other, the hands, knees, bodies, and profiles exactly parallel. A second mistake in their sculpture was the disproportion of their figures to the object decorated with them, as it frequently happens that the same building contains hieroglyphics not three inches in length, which in another part of the structure are extended to several feet; indeed, all their productions in this art were a compound of littleness and vastness. Thus the temple of Apollinopolis Magna, at Etfu, has its side covered with figures half the height of the building, and the front with others not a sixth part of their size.

Very few of the detached figures or statues sculptured by the Egyptians deserve notice, otherwise than as objects of curiosity; indeed to examine them critically would be mere waste of time, as they are too frequently wilfully distorted to suit my thological conceptions: it is therefore impossible to select a subject deserving of examination, by which to judge of their skill in delineating the swells of the mus. cles in various positions. Denon has given several valuable specimens of their remains, amongst which are a species of caryatides, or naked figures, standing erect with their arms crossed on their breasts: these, how. ever, are very little calculated to raise our opinion of the merit of the artists who made them; and, indeed, the only instances we recollect of correctness and propriety, are the sphinx, and the enormous clenched hand, now in the British Museum. Of the former, Denon speaks with enthusiasm:

"I had only time to view the sphinx, which deserves to be drawn with a more scrupulous attention than has ever yet been bestowed upon it. Though its proportions are colossal, the outline is pure and graceful; the expression of the head is mild, gracions, and tranquil; the character is African; but the mouth, the lips of which are thick, has a softness and delicacy of execution truly admirable; it seems real life and flesh. Art must have been at a high pitch when this monument was executed; for, if the head wants what is called style, that is to say, the straight and bold lines which give expression to the figures under which the Greeks have designated their deities, yet sufficient justice has been rendered to the fine simplicity and character of nature which is displayed in this figure."

These observations corroborate what we have already advanced of the capability of the Egyptians to execute had their conceptions been equally correct; but as those were limited, their genius for excellent sculpture can only be collected from detached objects, where a ray has accidently emanated, and meeting with apathy from the public, perhaps another has never been excited in the mind of the artist; hence it is that we must look for elegance in their representations of animals, foliage, and flowers, which being admired by all, and not subject to the changes and varieties exhibited in the human frame and countenance, are more readily copied. In this part of our pursuit we are again assisted by Denon, who has presented us with many traces of simplicity in the capitals of their pillars, some of which are of about the same degree of excellence with the best specimens of Saxon sculpture, and in some cases strongly remind us of the works of that people; and it may be worthy of observation, that the shape of the Egyptian capital differs very little from those invented by the Greeks: one in particular might be supposed to be the work of the latter, as it is surrounded by a range of beautiful full-grown leaves of the palm, disposed as the acanthus leaf afterwards was; another formed of a collection of palm stalks, before the branches and leaves are fully developed, shows that a very little taste, added to the disposition, would have raised the reputation of Egyptian sculpture to a level with that of their more polished imitators, as there can be no doubt that they have afforded hints to the Greeks. The frieze of the great temple at Tentyra, also shows that the ideas of the Egyptians,

then confined to objects intended merely for ornament, approached very near perfection; in this instance, the sculptures of the wings of birds, variously and tastefully disposed, deserve the approbation of the enlightened observer.

We must now turn our attention to the acknowledged masters of the sublime art of sculpture, the ancient Greeks, to whom every nation of the earth still pays willing homage, and from whose matchless works each sculptor is happy to concentrate and improve his observations on the human figure, presented by them to his contemplation in its most graceful perfection. Such, indeed, has been the excellence and correctness of their imitations of nature, and the refined elegance of their taste, that many ages have elapsed, not one of which have afforded a single instance of improvement, even in the disposition of their scrolls, or other fanciful ornaments.

As modelling figures in earth has been a practice for ages, previous to their sculpture in stone, it may be supposed that this was the original method of making isolated resemblances of men; indeed, the facility with which alterations and improvements might be accomplished, seems to point out the propriety of using that material before the art of cutting stone was invented. Calisthenes, who was an Athenian, made a number of models, with which he adorned his residence; but it is of the sculptor,and not the modeller, that we are to treat at present. Of the latter, we might mention a very considerable number, whose names have reached us with their works, were they necessary, and yet compared with the statues distributed in every part of Europe, they are a very inconsiderable portion of the eminent men who have flourished in the different states of Greece. When we contemplate the beautiful specimens of their consummate art, we are at a loss which most to admire, the softness and delicacy given to the marble, or the exquisite skill demonstrated in every feature and muscle, which could only have been acquired by the most attentive observation of living subjects placed in each natural and easy attitude. Had not the people generally admired and respected the arts, so great a degrees of perfection would never have been attained, for the operation of producing a fine figure requires a mind at ease, and the means of subsistence beyond the mere wants of the day; it is therefore extremely probable that those who employed statuaries to perpe

tuate the memory of great men, and to honour their gods with their representations as votives to the numerous temples, made liberal remuneration, and it is to be hoped equal to the merit of the work.

The Romans were fully sensible of the superior excellence of the Greeks in sculpture, and although we cannot approve of their motives in plundering them of their best works, yet we involuntarily feel satisfied that it is through their rapacity that we now possess those fascinating models for imitation, which has formed the taste of the Italian sculptors, and excited that emulation which enabled artists to rouze the public mind to a state of enthusiasm sufficiently powerful to crowd churches and palaces with mementos of the great and the good. Besides this superior branch of the art, we are not less indebted to the ancient Grecians for the invention and distribution of the most refined taste in the inferior parts of sculpture: under this head we need only remind the reader of the grand conceptions distributed from the base to the summit of Grecian buildings, in reliefs of various rich ornaments.

It appears almost superfluous to mention the Laocoon, the Venus di Medicis, the Apollo Belvidere, the Meleager, the Antinous, the Niobe, &c. &c. of the Grecian school, as efforts never to be exceeded, or perhaps equalled. How does this fact exalt the character of the people thus favoured, and how does it humble the pride of the moderns! And yet the knowledge of infinite superiority attached to them should not depress the efforts of the student, but rather rouze him to increased exertion; at all events recollecting, that Phidias, Praxitelles, Agesander, Polydore, and Athenodorus studied models far beyond the reach of perfect imitation, even the animated human form.

Our limits will not permit us to enlarge, or enter into an inquiry as to the comparative merits of the different modern schools of Europe, of which Italy bears away the unrivalled palm through several concurrent circumstances, and of those it is immediately obvious, that piety and superstition are the principal; the legends of their saints produce an incredible variety for illustrating the violent emotions of the soul in ardent devotion and the pangs of martyrdom, and it cannot be disputed, that they have in many instances very nearly approached the expression and excellence of their masters; of those Michael Angelo

was on their backs, and with the hands joined in prayer: under this obvious disadvantage our ancient sculptors contrived to make many excellent and interesting figures in beautiful transparent alabaster, although almost all the males are represented in armour. As the effigies of persons were frequently accompanied by that of their consort, more scope for genius and variety prevailed in the latter, and consequently we find females in the habits of their times, and represented in the rich ornaments of the sex, and making due allowance for the stiffness of their cumbent position, the drapery is frequently placed in true and well conceived folds; as to expression in the features beyond a mere state of quiet, as it would not have been proper, it is not to be discovered in any instance. Some of the tombs under consideration are divided into compartments, in each of which small bas reliefs are introduced of the children of the deceased, or monks or nuns telling their beads; these are frequently well exe cuted, and so far so as to make us wish the artist had been indulged to the full extent of his abilities.

It appears, upon an attentive comparison, that the figures, executed between the reigns of Henry III. and Henry VII. are infinitely superior to those placed on tombs during and after the time of Henry VIII. as in his, and the two preceding reigns, the effigies were generally exhibited either kneeling at prayer, or cumbent, in a most miserable taste indeed, which was made still more disgusting by the custom of painting and gilding the drapery. In the period of the interregnum, nothing was done in the art of sculpture, as, unfortunately, the era alluded to completed the destruction begun at the reformation, by the application of a blind principle of dislike, which prevented the preservation of the statues of saints, not as objects to excite devotion, but as the only mementos that existed that the art had ever been encouraged in England.

As might have been anticipated, sculpture sunk into a state of total neglect, if not of contempt; but, after the restoration, the ancient habits of the people recurring, statues of the dethroned king, and of his son and successor, were erected in every direction, and in some instances they are tolerable figures; but the monumental of the same date are wretched indeed, as they are clad in Roman armour, and their heads and shoulders sustain enormous wigs. Encouragement increasing, the art began to

rouze from its torpid state, and at length Cibber flourished, to whom we are indebted for many very excellent, statues, and some rich embellishments at St. Paul's cathedral. Without invidiously mentioning names and making comparisons, it would be impossible to enter more fully into the progress of sculp ture since the date just mentioned; we shall therefore merely say, that numerous proofs exist that the modern English possess a genius for sculpture equal to the inhabitants of any nation, but unfortunately it seems to be nearly confined to the execution of monuments, on which a routine of genii, ancient gods and goddesses, and virtues, are constantly introduced, to the total extinction of taste, as they must each possess their attributes to point out their names.

Little need be said of the mechanical part of this art, as various chissels, a mallet, compasses, and materials for polishing marble, are all that is required; the essential is seated in the mind, and as Roubiliac used to say, "the figure is in the substance of the marble, I only extricate it from the enclosure, or pick it out."

SCUTAGE, was anciently a tax imposed on such as held lands, &c. by knight's service, towards furnishing the King's army: hence scutagio habendo was a writ that lay for the king, or other lord, against tenants holding by knight's service, to serve in person, or send a sufficient man in their room, or pay a certain sum, &c.

SCUTELLARIA, in botany, skull-cap, a genus of the Didynamia Gymnospermia class and order. Natural order of Verticil lata. Labiatæ, Jussieu. Essential character: calyx with an entire mouth, after flowering closed by a lid. There are sixteen species; these are all perennial plants, chiefly herbaceous, with square stalks, and opposite leaves; the flowers are either solitary, axillary, and naked, or else in terminating bracted spikes, with one bracte, or floral leaf to each flower; they are chiefly natives of the South of Europe.

SCUTTLES, in a ship, square holes cut in the deck, big enough to let in the body of a man, serving to let people down into any room below upon occasion, or from one deck to another. They are generally before the main-mast, before the knight in the forecastle; in the gun-room, to go down to the stern-sheets; in the round-house, to go down into the captain's cabin, when forced by the enemy in a fight aloft. There are also some smaller scuttles, which have gratings over them: and all of them have

Covers, that people may not fall down through them in the night. Scuttle is also a name given to those little windows and long holes which are cut out in cabins, to let in light.

SCYLLEA, in natural history, a genus of the Vermes Mollusca class and order. Body compressed, and grooved along the back; mouth consists of a terminal toothless aperture; tentacula, or arms, three on each side, and placed beneath. Two species are noticed, viz. the Pelagica and Gomphodensis.

SCYTHROPS, the Channel-bill, in natural history; a genus of birds of the order Pica. Generic character: the bill large, convex, cultrated, furrowed at the sides, hooked at the tip; nostrils round, naked at the base of the bill; tongue cartilaginous, split at the point; toes two before, and two behind; tail of ten feathers. Of this genus only one species is known. This is an inhabitant of New South Wales, and is geuerally designated as the New South Wales Channel-bird. Its size is that of a crow; but its length is considerably greater, measuring two feet seven inches. It is seldom seen, excepting in the morning and evening, generally in pairs, sometimes in very small flocks; its noise resembles the screaming sound of alarm uttered by poultry in danger. It is migratory, and supposed to feed on the seeds of trees, on fruits, and the exuviæ of beetles. The tail is sometimes unfolded like a fan, both during the flight and sitting of the bird, and gives it an interesting and dignified appearance. It appears not to be easily tameable; but of the nature, manners, and habits of this bird, little is at present ascertained.

SEA, is frequently used for that vast tract of water encompassing the whole earth; but is more properly a part or division of these waters, and is better defined a lesser assemblage of water, which lies before, and washeth the coasts of, some particular countries, from whence it is generally denominated, as the Irish Sea, the Mediterranean Sea, the Arabian Sea, &c.

What proportion the superficies of the sea bears to that of the land, is not precisely known, though it is said to be somewhat more than two-thirds. As the waters of the earth must necessarily rise to the surface thereof, as being specifically lighter than the earth, it was necessary there should be large cavities therein, for receptacles to contain them, otherwise they would have overspread all the superficies VOL. VI.

of the earth, and so have rendered it utterly uninhabitable for terrestrial animals; for the centre of the earth being the common centre of gravity, and the nature of fluids being such, that they equally yield to equal powers; and the power of attraction being every where equal at equal distances from the centre, it follows, that the superficial parts of the water will every where conform themselves to an equidistant situation from the centre, and, consequently, will form the surface of a sphere, so far as they extend. Hence, that the sea seems higher than the earth or land, results from the fallacy of vision, whereby all objects, and the parts of land as well as sea, the further they are off from us, the higher they appear; the reason of all which is plain from optics; for it is well known, that the denser any medium is, through which we behold objects, the greater is the refraction; or the more their images appear above the hori zontal level; also the greater quantity of the medium the rays pass through, the more will they be bent from their first direction; on both these accounts, the appearances of things remote, and on the sea, will be somewhat above the horizon, and the more so as they are the more remote.

With regard to the depth or profundity of the sea, Varenius affirms, that it is in some places unfathomable, and in other places very various, being in certain places 28, 1, 18, 178, 218, 44 English miles, in other places deeper, and much less in bays than in oceans. In general, the depths of the sea bear a great analogy to the height of mountains on the land, so far as is hitherto discovered and it is a general rule among sailors, and is found to hold true in many instances, that the more the shores of any place are steep and high, forming perpendi cular cliffs, the deeper the sea is below, and that, on the contrary, level shores denote shallow seas. Thus the deepest part of the Mediterranean is generally allowed to be under the height of Malta. And the observation of the strata of earth and other fossils, on and near the shores, may serve to form a good judgment as to the materials to be found in its bottom. For the veins of salt and of bitumen doubtless run on the same, and in the same order, as we see them at land; and the strata of rocks that serve to support the earth of hills and ele vated places on shore, serve also, in the same continued chain, to support the immense quantity of water in the bason of the sea.

The coral fisheries have given occasion

E