‘CHARACTERS. 
are coloflal. This is brought by 
fome as a proof of the exact pro- 
‘portions kept, and of the prodi- 
gious fpace occupied, by the area 
of this immenfe edifice; and urged 
by others, as a peculiarity of the 
human body to deceive fo at a dif- 
tance, moft unjuftly: for one is 
furprifed exaétly in the fame man- 
ner by the doves which ornament 
the church in various parts of it. 
They likewife appear of the natural 
fize, and completely within one’s 
reach upon entering the door, but 
foon as approached, recede to a 
confiderable height, and prove their 
magnitude nicely proportioned to 
that of the angels and other deco- 
rations, 
The canopied altar, and its ap- 
purtenances, are likewife all col- 
Joffal, I think, when they tell me of 
four hundred and fifty thoufand 
pounds weight of bronze brought 
from the Pantheon, and ufed to 
form the wreathed pillars which 
fupport, and the torfes that adorn 
it. Yet airy lightnefs and exqui- 
fite elegance are the charatteriftics, 
of the fabric, not gloomy great- 
nefs, or heavy folidity. How im- 
menfe then muft be the fpace it 
ftands on! four hundred and fixty- 
feven of my fteps carried me from 
the door to the end. Warwick 
caftle would be .contained in its 
middle ai/le. Here are one hun- 
dred and twenty filver lamps, each 
Jarger than I could lift, conftantly 
‘burning round the altar; and one 
mever fees either them, or the 
Tight they difpenfe, till forced upon 
the obfervation of them, fo com- 
pletely are they loft in the general 
‘grandeur of the whole. In hhort, 
with a profufion of wealth that 
aftonifhes, and of {plendour that 
Vor. XXXII. 
_and that was all. 
49 
dazzles, as foon as you enter on - 
an examination of its fecondary 
parts, every 2 ae jrft impreflion 
at entering St. Peter’s church,. 
mutt be furprife at feeing it fo clear 
of fuperfluous ornament. Getting 
on the top of this ftupendous edi- . 
fice, is however the readieft way 
to fill one’s mind with a defervin 
notion of its extent, capacity, sa 
beauty; nor is any operation eafier, 
fo happily contrived is the afcent. 
Contrivance here is an ill-chofen 
word too, foluminous, fo convenient 
is the walk, fo fpacious the galle- 
ries befide, that all idea of danger 
is removed, when you perceive that 
even round the undefended cornice, 
our king’s ftate coach might be 
moft fafely driven. 
The monuments, although in- 
comparable, fcarcely obtain a fhare 
of your admiration for the firit ten 
times of your furveyiug the place; 
Guglielmo della Porta’s famous 
figure, fupporting that dedicate 
to the memory of Paul the Third, 
was found fo happy an imitation 
of female beauty by fome madman 
here however, that it is faid he was 
inflamed with a Pigmalion-like 
paffion for it, of which the Pontiff¥ 
hearing, commanded ‘the ftatue to 
be draped. The fleps at almoft 
the end of this church we have all 
heard were porphyry, and fo the 
are; how many hundred feet long 
I have now forgotten:—no matter ; 
what Ihave not forgotten is, that 
I thought as I looked at them— 
why fo they /2ould be parphyry— 
While the vafes 
and ciflerns of the fame beautiful 
fubftance ‘at Villa Borghefe at- 
tracted my wonder; and Clement 
X.’s urn, at St. John de Lateran, 
appeared to me an urn fitter for 
p*} the 
