CHAPTER IX 



WOMEN IN AECH^EOLOGY 



Archaeology, in its broadest sense, is one of the most 

 recent of the sciences, and may be said to be a creation 

 of the nineteenth century. In its restricted sense, how- 

 ever, it dates back to the beginning of the Italian Renais- 

 sance. For it was at this period that the collector's zeal 

 began to manifest itself, and that were brought together 

 those priceless treasures of ancient art which are to-day 

 the pride of the museums of Rome and Florence. It was 

 then that Pope Sixtus IV and Julius II, his nephew, laid 

 the foundations of the great museums of the Capitol and 

 the Vatican, and enriched them with such famous master- 

 pieces as the Ariadne, the Nile, the Tiber, the Laocoon and 

 the Apollo Belvidere. Their example was quickly followed 

 by such cardinals as Ippolito d'Este, Fernando de' Medici, 

 and by representatives of the leading princely houses of 

 the Italian peninsula. In rapid succession the palaces of 

 the Borghese, Chigi, Pamphili, Ludovisi, Barbarini and 

 Aldobrandini became filled with the choicest Greek and 

 Roman antiques. In the course of time many of these 

 treasures found their way to the museums of Venice, Ma- 

 drid, Paris, Munich and Dresden, while still others were 

 purchased by wealthy art connoisseurs in various parts of 

 Europe and Great Britain. 



In the beginning these antiques in marble and bronze 

 were used chiefly for decorative purposes. ' * Courts, stairs, 

 fountains, galleries and palaces were adorned with statues, 

 busts, reliefs and sarcophagi applied in such a manner as 



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