B L O 



B L O 



of aquatic ammals from all parts of tlie globe, he dctemiined 

 to write a natural hiftoiy of fifhes ; and in this dtfign he was 

 encouraged and aided by obtaining pofleffion of the original 

 MSS. of father Plurnitr, who had made three voyages to 

 America, and brought with him many objefts highly intercft- 

 ing to the natural hiftorian. M. Bloch firll publiflied, in 

 German, four numbers of an " Economical Natural Hiftory 

 of Fi!he5, particularly thole in the ftates of Pruffia, with 

 figures from original drawings;" Berlin, 1781 and 17S2, 

 large 4to. In the following years appeared an "Economi- 

 cal Natural Hiftory of the Fifhes of Germany," in 3 volumes, 

 confifting of 108 plates, and including the three numbers al- 

 ready mentioned. He afterwards pubhfhed, in 9 volumes, 

 *' The Natural Hiftoi-y of foreign Fiflies ;" fo that his whole 

 •work was comprL-hended in 12 volumes, and contained 432 

 plates. The lall appeared in 1795. He a!fo, at his own 

 cxpence, procured a French tranflation of his work, by 

 C. Laveaux, then at Berlin, which he publiflied under the 

 title of " Hiftoire general et particuliere des Poiflbns," Ber- 

 lin, 1785^1788, in 6 vols, folio, with 216 plates. In order 

 to defray the cxpence of this v.'ork, his only fon, a young 

 man dillinguifhed by his talents, undertook a tour through 

 France and England for the purpofe of procuring fubfcrip- 

 tions ; and in the profecution of his journey died at Paris, 

 in 17S7. This lofs, and the embarraffment of his circum- 

 ftances, preyed upon the fpirits of this ingenious naturalilf, 

 and funk him into the deepell affliclion. However, he flill 

 continued to employ himfelf in his favourite work, the hiftory 

 of fifties, and having completed it, undertook a journey to Pa- 

 ris. He died at Carlfbad in Bohemia, Auguft 6th 1799. Be- 

 fides the above voluminous works, Mr. Bloch publifhed 

 many memoirs on fubiccts of natural hiftory, in the tranf- 

 adlions of different focieties. That on the murxna, in the 

 Memoirs of the Friends of Nature, has been already men- 

 tioned ; he alfo communicated, in the fame Memoirs, " Ob- 

 fervations on the regular deprefiions in vitriform ftones ;" 

 " On the worms in the inteftines and lungs of birds ;" "An 

 Eftay towards the natural hiftory "f the worms which live in 

 other animals ;" " On worms of the bladder ;" " Defcrip- 

 tion of the buftard, and fome kinds of birds found in 

 marflies ;" " On the oil of herrings ;" " On the vulgar opi- 

 nion that the organ of generatian in the ray and ihark is 

 double ;" " On the myxina glutinofa of Linnxus," &c. 



BLOCK, Daniel, an eminent portrait-painter, was born 

 at Stettin in Pomerania, in 15S0, and educated for his pro- 

 feflion under Jacob Scherer. As a painter of portraits, he 

 gained great reputation, and had the honour of painting the 

 portraits of Chriftian IV. king of Denmark, and of Guftavus 

 Adolphus, king of Sweden. His merit recommended him 

 to the prince of Mecklenburg, in whofe fervice he was re- 

 taiiied for 44 years, and for whom he painted the portraits 

 of his whole family, at full length, as large as life, and in the 

 antique habit. By the agreeable manner of his colouring, 

 and the eafy attitudes of his figures, he obtained fo much 

 employment, as to enable him, before the decline of his life, 

 to amafs a large fortune ; of which, however," he was unfor- 

 tunately deprived by a plundering party, preferving, with 

 great difficulty, his own life. He died in 166 1. Pil- 

 kington. 



Block, Jacob Roger, was born at Gouda, where he ac- 

 quired the art of painting, particularly in reference to per- 

 fpeftive and architecture, which he principally cultivated. 

 Having fpent feveral years in Italy, where he imbibed that 

 tafte of grandeur and elegance in his compofitions, by which 

 he was advanced in the public efteem above all his contem- 

 poraries, he returned to his own country, and was appointed 

 itate-painter to the archduke Leopold, whom he attended in 

 all his campaigns ; but whilft. he was palling a fraall rivulet, 



over a bridge of planks to view the fortifications of St, 

 Vinox in Flanders, his horfe flipped, and he was unfor- 

 tunately drowned. Whilft; he lived at Gouda, he was vifited 

 by Reubens, who, having examined his works, tefl;ified to 

 his honour, that he had not feen any painter in the Nether- 

 lands, who could Hand in competition with him for the fab- 

 jefts he painted. The time of his birth and death are not 

 afccrtained. Pilkington. 



Block, Benjamin, fon of Daniel Block, was born at 

 Lubeck in 1631, and, with a view of improving him.felf in 

 colouring and defign, refided for fome time at Rome, Venice, 

 and Florence. Having thus acquired a good tafte, and a 

 pltafing tone of colouring, he was introduced to the court of 

 Saxony, where he painted feveral portraits of the eleftor and 

 prime nobility ; and he alfo painted feveral altar-pieces for 

 the churches and convents of Hungary, which are much com- 

 mended. His capital performance is the portrait cf Kircher 

 the Jefuit, which, even at Rome, was exceedingly admired. 

 The time of his death is not afcertained. Pilkington. 



Block is ufed lor a piece of marble as it comes out of the 

 quarry, before it has aflumed any form from the hand of a 

 workman. 



Block, in the Mechanic Arts, a large piece of folid wood, 

 whereon to faften work, or to faftiion it ; ftrength and lia- 

 bility being the requifite properties. 



In this fenfe we fay a chopping block ; a fugar-finer's 

 block ; a fmith's block, on which his anvil is faftened ; an 

 executioner's block, on which the criminal's head is laid to 

 be ftrnck oiF. 



Block, Mounting. See Anabathra. 



Bloci:, among Cutters of JVooJ, is a form made of pear- 

 tree, box, or other hard and clofe grained wood, free from 

 knots, on which they cut their figures in relievo, with knives, 

 chiffeh, &c. I'he like are in ule for card-making ; and from 

 the fame firft arofe the modern art of printing. Phil. Tranf. 

 N°3io. P.2J98. 



Block, among Bowlers, the mark which is aimed at, being 

 a fmall-lized bowl laid on the green for this purpofe ; it is 

 called alfo \.\\cja:h. 



Block, in Falconry, denotes the perch whereon a bird of 

 prey is kept. This is to be covered with cloth. 



Block JJland, in Geography, called by the Indians 

 " Manilfes," lies about 21 miles S.S.W. of Newport, in 

 Newport county, and ftate of Rhode ifland. It was creeled 

 into a townfhip, named " New Shoreham," in 1672. This 

 illand is 46 miles in length, and its extreme breadth is 38 

 miles. It has 6S2 inhabitants, including 47 flaves. It is 

 famous for cattle and fheep, butter and cheefe ; and round its 

 coafts are caught confiderable quantities of cod-fi(h. The 

 fouthern part of it is in N. lat. 41° 8'. 



Block, in Naval ArchitcSme, denotes an eight fquare, or 

 round part below the heeling of the main and fore top- 

 mafts. 



Blocks are Ihort pieces laid under a maft to laife it from 

 the ground. 



Blocks are alfo pieces of wood belonging to (hips, in 

 which the (hivers, or iheaves, of pulhes are placed, and v.here- 

 in the running ropes go. Accordingly they polfefs the pro- 

 perties and powers oi puUies, and they have from one to 

 eight (heaves. The blocks in general ufe are the fingle 

 block, the double block, the treble block, and the four-fold 

 block ; but when heavy weights or bodies are to be raifed or 

 moved, blocks with a greater number of (heaves are applied, 

 the increafing power being as two to one for every Iheave 

 moving with the object. See Pulley. 



Blocks diftering from the common (hape are the bee-block, 



tlie check-block, the long-tackle-block, the main-fneet-block, 



the monkey-block, the niiie-pin-block, the rack-block, the 



4 I a (hoe. 



