BEL 



pitis ft PeAoi-iH ;" bviing, in faA, diftinft treatifcs on thofe 

 fubjert?, 4to. Bo^ion. This is a work of much refearch 

 n::d obf^rvation, though often obfcurc and too thLOrctica'. 

 It was much celebrated in its time ; and Dotihaavf , wl.o pub- 

 liihed nn edif.on of it in 1717, accompanied it with a com- 

 mendatoiy preface. For the titles of the remainder of Bel- 

 lini's produc"\io:is, fee Haller's Bib. Med. ct Anatom.- He 

 died in 170^.. Gen. Biog. 



Bellini, Gentile, a painter of hilloiy and portrait, 

 was born at Venice in 142 1, and inftrufted by his father Gia- 

 cotr.o, who was himfelf an arlill in the art of paintin;^, both 

 in di.lempcr and in oil. He was employed by the doge to 

 paint the hall of the great council, and he executed feveral 

 cinfiderable works for others of the nobility. His reputa- 

 tion reaching to the Ottoman courtj he was invited by Ma- 

 homet n. to C'onftantinople, where he was honourably en- 

 tertained, and employed in painting the portrait of the em- 

 peror, and in various other performances. It is laid, however, 

 that the emperor ordered the head of a flave to be cut off in 

 the prefence of Bellini, in order to convince him of the incor- 

 rettnefs of a pidure which he had painted, of the decollation 

 of St.John the Baptift ; but the light affefted his mind to fueh 

 a degree, that he was never eafy till he obtained leave to re- 

 turn to his own country. Mahomet, before his departure, 

 put a gold chain about his neck, and difmiiTedhim with lit- 

 ters of recommendation to the fcnate of Venice, which pro- 

 cured for him a penfion for life, and an admiffion into the 

 order of St. Mark. Vafari mentions a fea-fiifht, painted by 

 this mafter, which had extraordinaiy merit. He died in 

 1501. Pillcington. 



Bellini, Giovanni, the brother of the former, was born 

 at Venice in 1422, and furpaffed both his father and brother 

 in every branch of painting. He is accounted the founder 

 of the Venetian fchool, by introducing the practice of paint- 

 ing in oil, which had been communicated to his father by 

 Domenico and Andrea del Caftagno, as fome fay ; or which, 

 according to De Piles, he obtained from Antonio of Meffi- 

 n?. : and by teaching his fcholars to paint after nature, the 

 fchool of Giovanni produced two memorable difeiples, Titian, 

 and Giorgione, who brought the art of colouring to its 

 higheft perfeftion ; and Giovanni hirafelf, by obferving 

 the works of thefe famous artifts, improved his ov.-n manner 

 very conCderably ; fo tliat in his latter pictures the colom-iug 

 is much better, and the airs of his heads are noble, although 

 his dcfign is fomewhat gothic, and his attitudes not well 

 chofen. He died in 1512. Pilkington. 



BELLING, St. in Geography, a town of Italy, in the 

 Polefino di Rovi^no, 10 miles W.S.W. of Ilovigno. 



BELLINZONE, or Bellenz, one of the Itahan bailli- 

 agesof SivilTerland, on the eaft fide of the river Tefino, north 

 of the lake Maggiore, or lake of Locarno, and on the con- 

 fines of the Miianefe, which, together with the two bailliages 

 of Riviera or Polefi, and Val di Blenzo, Bregno or Brenna, 

 comprehend I to fqnare geographical miles, and 33,000 in- 

 habitants, and before the French revolution belonged to the 

 cantons of Uri, Schweitz, and Underwalden. In the 15th 

 century, this country belonged to the counts of Sax, who 

 fold it in 1422 to the original cantons ; but Philip Maria, 

 duke of Milan, oppofing this fale or exchange, exerted him- 

 felf to prevent from fsUing into their hands a town like 

 Bellinzone, fo important from its fituation and natural 

 ftrength, to check their inroads and cover his dominions. 

 Having therefore taken polTefTion of it by force of arms,^ a 

 body of 8000 Swifs palTed the Alps. The force of both 

 nations met ; the Italians were led on by Carmagnola ; a 

 bloody battle enfued, of which both fides ckimed the viilory : 



6 



BEL 



but the Swifs retired with a fiandard taken from the encmv, 

 and they n maincd mailers of the town. In 1500, however, 

 the three cantons obtained what they 'ong contended for; the 

 inhabitants of Bel'inzone, vexed by the frequent changes in 

 the Miianefe, fubmitted to them. The French, when they iiad 

 conquered t^e duchy, in vain reclaimed it; the Swifs retained 

 poU'efiion ; andthe feven Italian hailliagcs, and thisamongftthe 

 reil, were formally ceded to them by Maximilian Sforza, in 

 gratitude for their having reinlLited him in the ducal feat. 

 It was likewife n-.ade an article of the perpetual peace con« 

 eluded between Francis I. king of France, aed the cantons. 

 The bailiff remains in office two years; he is nominated al- 

 ternately by the three cantons, and is generally removed 

 from Riviera the pooreft, to Bellinzone, the mod lucrative of 

 the three governments. An appeal lies from his decilion to 

 the fyndicate, and from that court to the three cantons : in 

 ecclefiallical affairs, the inhabitants are cognizable to the 

 blfhop of Como, excepting three parifiics. The inhabitants 

 are catholics ; and moll of the natives underiland Itahan, 

 but the language is a corrupt German. After the French 

 revolution, Bellinzone, according to the divifion of i 798, 

 became a diftinft department or canton, including the bail- 

 liages of Bellinzone, Riviera, and Val Leventina, of which 

 the chief town was Bellinzone. By the conllitution of i Soi, 

 the Italian bailhages formed the i 7th department or canton 

 of Swilferland, and was empowered to lend five reprefenta- 

 tlves to the diet. The riches of this dillricl cmifiil in its 

 paflures and cattle ; the deficiency of corn is fupplicd by the 

 Miianefe ; and the plain nu'ar Bellinzone produces good 

 wine. 



Bellinzone, or Bellinz, Lat, Bi'ilio, BUiiioiia, Bel- 

 t'lona, or Btrinzona, the capital of the above bailiiage or de- 

 partment, is a beautiful town, fituate at the foot of mount 

 Cenero, on a delightful plain on the eaif iide of the Teiino, 

 a little below its junition with the Moefa or Mufa, and about 

 55 Britifli miles above the northern extremity of the lake 

 Maggiore. The town is encircled with ancient walls and 

 battlements in good repair ; on the right are feen the majef- 

 tic ruins of an ancient caftle, and on the left, feparately em. 

 bofomed in trees, are the caftles of the bailitTs of the three 

 regent cantons, Uri, Schweitz, and Underwalden. The 

 interior of Bellinzone is far from correfpundlng with its ex- 

 ternal beauty and fituation ; the ftreets being narrow, and 

 tlie houfes ill built. It is, however, rich in fine churches, 

 dedicated to St. Peter, St. Stephen, St. Blaife, and St. 

 Rock ; and it has numerous convents of Auguftines, Urfii- 

 lines, and Recollefts. There is alfo a convent, ur leminary, 

 called the " Relidcnce," lately founded for the education of 

 youth. The valley that lies between this town and the lake 

 is level, and laid wafte by numerous torrents : the road runs 

 along the fides of the hills through continued vineyards 

 bounded on the weft, and alfo on the eaft, by ridges which 

 are clothed to their fummits with woods of chcfnuts and wal- 

 nut trees, half concealing frequent fpirts and numerous ham.- 

 lets. N. lat. 46^ 4'. E. long. 8° 43'. 



BELLIS, formed from bcUus, pretty or handfome, Eng. 

 Jaify, Yr. paquerettc, in Boliiriy. Lin. gen. n. 962. Reicii. 

 1042. Schreb. 1300. Tournef. 280. Juft". 1S3. Gxrtiu 

 t. 168. Clafs and order, fynj;encfia polysomia fuper/lua. Nat. 

 Ord. Compojtla D'ljco'ides. Corymhiftrs. Juff. Gen. Char. 

 Cat. common, hemifpheric, upright ; leaflets ten to twenty 

 in a double row, lanceolate, equal. Cor. compound radiate ; 

 coroUules hermaphrodite, tubular, numerous in the diflc ; fe- 

 male ligulate, more in number than the leaves of the calyx 

 in the ray : — proper of the hermaphrodite funnel-form, fivc- 

 cleft ; of the female ligulate, lanceolate, fcarcely threc- 



toothtd. 



