March 27, 1879] 



NATURE 



489 



^vhich adorn the Naples Museum, reappears in the six- 



— Bas-re'ief in baked earth, of the %'„;;>cl:.:. i?„ch (Velletri). 

 horses harnessed together, walking at a foot-pace. 



Three 



teenth century in a painting by Albrecht Diirer (Fig. 



But the representation of the foot-pace, more difficult 

 than the preceding, is rarely faithful. Examples, scarcely 

 satisfactory, are found in all the epochs; take, for in- 

 stances. Figs, 24 and 25. 



The foot-pace is correctly represented in the two figures 

 borrowed from the column of Trajan (Figs, 26 and 27). 

 This column also displays oxen and other animals faith- 

 fully represented. 



These paces, it should be noted, are a little varied with 

 respect to the instant chosen ; almost invariably the horse 

 raises only one fore-foot. 



The gallop is in general the pace of which the repre- 

 sentation leaves most to be desired. Without speaking 

 of contemporary- art, I will refer only to the paintings of 

 the two or three last centuries. The horses therein 

 deemed to be galloping are represented in a sort of 

 prancing attitude, posed upon the two hind-feet, and 

 raising the two fore-feet to an equal height. We have 

 seen, by the preceding notations, that this s>-nchronous 

 action of the right and left limbs does not exist. 



In the grandest epoch of Greek art we find admirable 

 representations of the gallop. Fig. 28 is an example. 

 The attitude chosen is the first step of the gallop as in 

 Fig, 16. The first step has been taken. The diagonal 



Fig. 27. — Mule laden wi 



b.->.gg?.ge, walking at a fo:t- 

 Trajan.) 



',:e. (,C;Iumn of 



Fig. j5. — Captain of the Guards riding at a foot-pace. (Column of Trajan.) 



" The Cavalier and Death " ). The classic statue of 



Henri IV. on the Pont Xeuf is an example of the correct 

 trot (Fig. 23). 



Fig. 28. — Frleie of the Parthenon. (Bas-relief remaining at Athens.^ 

 Right hand gallop. 



limbs which make the second step are approaching 

 towards the ground, and the right hand fore-foot which 

 wiU make the last step is held high in air. 



I have already admired the reproduction in plaster of 

 another bas-relief from the same frieze, in which a 

 galloping horse is represented with equal correctness, 

 and I was led to believe that in the age of Phidias, artists 

 were in possession of the science of paces. But subse- 

 quently, in examining the reproductions of the entire 

 frieze, I have become convinced that the results were 

 obtained by a happy chance, for the greater part of the 

 horses are represented in false attitudes, which is all the 

 more to be regretted in contemplating the exquisite 

 elegance of their forms. 



It is incontestable that at the present day, artists make 

 great efforts to represent the horse with truthfulness, and 

 many among them succeed. But I will not permit 

 myself to criticise the works of my contemporaries. 

 Such, then, is the graphic method, and such are its nume- 

 rous applications, extremely varied, and often of enormous 

 importance. In this discourse, the length of which you 

 will excuse, I have only sho\vn you a little corner of the 

 subject, but that will suffice, I hope, to give you a desire 

 to study more deeply, and in its entirety, a method which 

 appears to me to be full of promise, and to the develop- 

 ment of which I have already consecrated much effort. 



