B E A 



B E A 



rtiifed ivitli liis thuijJerboIt, or leaning on liis fccptrc, pre- 

 fints the habitual aft of governing tirj ur.ivfile. Winkel- 

 rian has judicioufly remarked, that th'j Greek fcnlptors prc- 

 icrved the family refemblance ::: ll'e Saturnian race, with as 

 much exaftuefs as if they had been real portraits ; therefore 

 Jupiter's brothers llronjly partake of the fame charadtcr, 

 excepting that Neptune's countenance is morefevcrc and his 

 hair more ditturbed. Pluto's hair hanging over his forehead 

 gives a gloomy call to his countenance, which is increafed 

 by his more open and ftaring eyes. Winkelman has ob- 

 ferved, that fomething of the lion may be traced in the nofe, 

 forehead, and hair of Jupiter, which ac'ds might and mar^na- 

 nimity to the benevolence, wifdom, and awful majcdy of his 

 charadicr. In the youthful beauty of Apollo, Bacchus, and 

 Mercury, the fame benevolence and wifdom are exprelTed, 

 modified by their peculiar chara<fteriilics and offices. Apollo 



is light and ilrong in his make ; Bacchus more foft and luxu- 

 rious, and Mercury more athletic. The peculiarity of Her- 

 cules is magnanimity and unconquerable llrength. The 

 heroes have a more fimplc charafter throughout, approach- 

 ing nearer to common nature. The fauns may be placed 

 in the lowcil clais of beauty expreffed in the human figure. 

 Although their perfons are youthful, and rather handfome, 

 their proportions are fhorter than thofe of the clafTes above- 

 mentioned ; and fometimes their m.ufcles are turgid and 

 tendinous, accommodated to their fylvan habits and adivity ; 

 their rounded faces have a portion of ruftic good nature ; 

 but their united eye-brows, eyes placed diagonally to the 

 nofe, fmall hollowed nofes, and grinning mouths, exprcfs 

 fome mixture of favage, ftrvile, and milchievous diipofitions. 

 The moil engaging and captivating fpecies of beauty exills 

 in the female fex ; and was reprefented in perfection by the 

 Greeks in their fuperior clafTes of ftatues. The large eye 

 and full under lip of Juno, give an air of haughtinefs to her 

 countenance ; her limbs are round and her figure is majellic. 

 Minerva's figure partakes of Juno's majeily ; but her face is 

 not fo full, awd has an exprefiion of abilrafted wifdom. 

 Venus is reprelcnted as an affcmblage of female charms ; 

 her form is delicate, perfect, and elegant in the higheft de- 

 gree ; her motion graceful, and her countenance cxprefTive 

 of love and fweetncfs. 



The beautiful he^ds of antiquity are oval in the front 

 view ; in profile, the low forehead and nofe form nearly 

 one flraight line ; the lips are rather full and the chin 

 rounded. Juno has the largcfl eye of the goddeffes, according 

 to Homer's epithet of " Ox-eyed ;" the neck is rounded like 

 a column ; the cheft is high and expanded ; in the male fub- 

 jeft tlie abdomen is flat ; and, as Winkelman remarks, " fuch 

 as it appears after found fleep and gooddigcflion j" the arms, 

 dtfcending from full flionldcrs, arc tapered downwards to 

 the wrift with a very gentle flattened hollow towards the 

 inner elbow, to diilmguifli the bend of the arm ; the back 

 of the hand is one mafs ; the fingers rather long and tapered, 

 with knuckles indicated in a manner al.noll imperceptible ; 

 the lower limb tapers more fenfibly than the arm, becaufe 

 the thigh is larger in its commencement ; the knee-pan 

 in youthSul ftatues is nearly oval ; and the inner fide of 

 the tibia, or principal bone of the kg, is perceptibly m.arked 

 by a curve cf about 30 degrees ; the great toe is large, and 

 divided by a confiderable fpace from the lefler toes which 

 are llraight, and not bent over each other like fuch as have 

 been confined in fhoes. 



In the female form, the limbs are more round and deli- 

 cate : the knuckles of the hand and foot are exprefled by 

 flight dunples ; the fingers are more tapered ; and their 

 outline determined by a long curve, a little reverfed towards 

 the end. The principal difftrence of relative p/oportions 



is, (hat the female figure fhould be about one face fhortef 

 than the male ; each having eight heads in height. The 

 female figure is alfo narrower in the fhoulders and loins, 

 and fome what broader from the os pubis to the extremities 

 of the nates. The Greeks reprefented the goddeffcS with 

 virgin bofoms. Winkelman, in his " Monument! inediti," 

 has treated largely on the beauty of the antique ftatues. 

 Profeffor Camper, in his " Principles of Defign," has alfo 

 given excellent obfervations and rules on the beauty and 

 proportions of the human head and figure, abfolute as 

 well as comparative. For his account of beauty, as exhi- 

 bited in ancient fculpture and engravings, fee his treatife, 

 entitled " Verhandeling over het natuurlyk verfhilder wezen- 

 llnkken," &c. or, on the natural difference of features in 

 perfons of various countries and ages, publifhed by his fon, 

 at Utrecht, 1792, ^to. In his differtation on the beauty 

 of forms, fubjoincd to his " Leclures," publifhed bv his 

 fon at the fame place and in the fame year, entitled " Ro- 

 den Voeringen," &c. it is his objett to prove, that no par- 

 ticular form can, abltraclcdly confidered, contUtute beauty; 

 that the real bafis of beauty confi:fs in the means being 

 adapted to the end ; and that, exclufively of this, our ideas 

 are influenced by cuftoms, national prejudices, implicit con- 

 fidence in the talle and opinions of others, &c. 



Proportion is an eflential quality of beauty in the huma« 

 form ; and ftriking coincidences are afforded in its relatiou 

 to perfect geometrical figures, and the harmony of founds 

 and numbers. A man, ftanding upright, can ilretch out 

 his arms to a length equal to his height ; confequently his 

 figure may be included in a fquare ; by itretching the arms 

 not fo much, and the legs a little, the figure may be con- 

 tained in a circle, whofe centre is the top of the os pubis. 

 The ancients divided the height of the human figure into 

 eight heads, and the face into three parts ; five of thefe parts 

 are the breadth of the loins ; three parts, or nofes, meafure 

 the upper part of the thigh ; two, the calf of the leg, and 

 one, the ankle. A well proportioned figure meafures three 

 equal parts from the top of the Ihoulder to the fpine of the 

 ilium next the refius abdominis ; from thence to the top of 

 the knee-pan ; and from thence to the bottom of the inner 

 ankle. 



The term grace, as a quality of beauty, however it may 

 haife puzzled the moderns in its definition and application, 

 was clearly underllood by the ancients. The graces or 

 gratias of the Romans were the charities of the Greeks. 

 XAPIS, is grace, beautv, fairnefs, endearing, agreeable, ele- 

 gant ; and the groupes, gems, &c. are comments which 

 are fatisfaftory and convincing. The graces are three 

 beautiful fillers, whofe innocence is their only garment, em- 

 bracing each other in the gentletl manner. The Greek 

 Chrillians have preferved the ancient fignification of this 

 word in its application to all thofe endearing duties which 

 preferve happinefs to, and beftow it on others ; nor is it 

 furprifing, tiiat thefe charaClerillics are given to women, 

 becaufe' all the milder and endearing virtues are ftiU more 

 amiable in the female fex. If by grace, the fuccefTion and 

 variation of undulating lines be intended, it is feen moil pcr- 

 feftly in an elegant female figure moving flowly. It is remark- 

 able, that man, of all creatures, prefents the moft perfeft view 

 of his figure in front. Quadrupeds, birds, and fillies, are bed 

 feen in profile, and we look on the backs of reptiles and in- 

 feiils. It is neceffary, to the moll advantageous appearance 

 of man, that we (hould contemplate the alTeiflions of his 

 heart, snl operations of his reafon continually beaming in 

 his countenance ; the waving lines of his body, moving on 

 the centre of gravity, and varied curves and angles formed 

 by his limbs, perfect the whole of his figure, with an union 



of 



