R I C 



the greateft utility ; and it was warmly applauded by fbme 

 of the molt diftinguiihed mathematicians of the age. Hav- 

 ing been induced to enter into the church, he relinquid-ied 

 his mathematical purfuits, and wholly devoted his attention 

 to the afliduous ftudy of divinity, and the duties of his new 

 profeflion. He filled feveral ecclefiaftical ftations, and, 

 among others, thofe of fecretary to the congregation of in- 

 dulgences and of relics, and of confultor of the holy office. 

 In the year 1681, pope Innocent XI. raifed him to the 

 purple ; an honour which he wilhed to decline, but was 

 compelled to accept by the pontiff's abfolute command. 

 He poffeffed it, however, only for a ihort period, as he 

 died in 1682, at the age of 64. One of his " Differta- 

 tions" is preferved in cardinal Brancaccio's " Works ;" 

 another in Charles Dati's " Epiftola ad Philalethos ;" and 

 one of his " Letters" in the firfl volume of the collection, 

 entitled " Lettere Memorabili." Gen. Biog. 



Ricci, Sebastian, was born at Belluno, near Trevi- 

 i'ano, in 1659; and having difcovered an early genius for 

 painting, was condufted by his father to Venice, and placed 

 as a difciple with Fred. Cervelli, a Milanefe artift of good 

 reputation, with whom he itudied for nine years. He 

 afterwards improved his pra&ice at Bologna, &c. by copy- 

 ing, and obtained the favour and patronage of Rannuccio, 

 the lecond duke of Parma. 



By the liberality of that prince, he was honourably main- 

 tained at Rome, lludying the productions of the belt ancient 

 and modern mailers; and there he formed that manner 

 which diitinguifhes his productions, and exhibits a ready 

 and fplendid invention, a free and mafterly handling of the 

 pencil, with a full luxuriance of colour, which for a while 

 raifed him into the highell elleem, and confequently im- 

 menfe employment. 



Having quitted Rome, he returned to Venice, where he 

 was fo eagerly folicited for his paintings, that he had 

 fcarcely time to take even neceffary refreshment. His fame 

 fpread through Europe, and he received an invitation to the 

 court of the emperor at Vienna, to adorn the magnificent 

 palace of Schoenbrun. From thence he was encouraged to 

 vifit London, where he was immediately and inceflantly 

 employed by the court, the nobility, and perfons of for- 

 tune. Here he remained ten years, with his nephew and 

 co-adjutor, Marco Ricci, who painted flulfully fcenea of 

 architecture and landfcape. He acquired great wealth by 

 the immenfe occupation he found ; and then returned to 

 Venice, where he paffed the remainder of his days till his 

 75th year, when he (hared the common fate of mortals. 



Ricci was one of the few, comparatively fpeaking, who 

 enjoy during their lives the utmoft extent of their fame. In 

 his hiftory, that portion of renown which attaches to him 

 died with him, or nearly fo. In faft, he was a machinift, 

 one who, being converfant in the rules of art, and fkilful in 

 the application of the means, dazzled where he could not 

 inflruft, and deluded by ingenuity without judgment, and 

 art without exprefiion. His works are to be found in many 

 of our o-reat houfes, as well as thofe of his nephew. At 

 Chelfea and at the Britifh Mufeum there are confiderable 

 pictures of his painting, but they do not rife in elteem by 

 continued obfervation ; and yet, unfortunately, they had 

 fufficient influence in their day to lead the artifts altray from 

 the contemplation and imitation of the works of Raphael, 

 and the greater mailers of the Italian lchool. 



RICCIA, in Botany, a cryptogamic genus of plants, 

 named by Micheli after a Florentine Senator of his time, 

 Peter Francis Riccio, Prefident of the Order of St. Ste- 

 phen, Auditor of the Academy of Pifa, &c. ; who feems 

 to have been rather a patron, than a pra&ical cultivator, of 



R I C 



botanic fcience. — Mich. Gen. 106. t. 57. Linn. Gen. 566. 

 Schreb. 766. Mart. Mill. Dift. v. a. Schmidel. Ic. t. 44, 

 45. Hedw. Theor. 116. t. 29. Jufl. 8. Lamarck Illullr. 

 t. 877. — Clafs and order, Cryptogamia Hepatic*. Nat. Ord. 

 Algte, Linn. Hepaticne, Jufl. 



Eff. Ch. Male, fcattered warts I 



Female, Germen globofe, funk, with the Jlyle, in the 

 frond. Capfule expofed, globofe, crowned with the ftyle, 

 of one cell. Seeds numerous, elliptical. 



The genuine fpecies of this genus grow on the earth, 

 flourifliing in the damp cold feafon of the year, and difap- 

 pearing in hot dry weather. Hence they are fuppofed to 

 be annual. Such are three of the Britifh fpecies ; R. glauca. 

 Linn. Sp. PI. 1605. Engl. Bot. t. 2546; R. minima. 

 Linn. Sp. PI. 1605. Mich. Gen. t. 57. f. 6 ; and R. cryf- 

 tallina. Linn. Sp. PI. 1605. Dickf. H. Sice. fafc. 15. 20. 

 Mich. Gen. t. 57. f. 3. — Thefe form fmall glaucous patches 

 on the ground, in fandy or moid places. The other two 

 Britifh fpecies float in frelh water pools ; R.jluitans. Linn. 

 Sp. PI. 1606. Engl. Bot. t. 251, whofe frond is forked 

 and linear ; and R. natans. Linn. Syll. Nat. ed. 12. v. 2. 

 708. Engl. Bot. t. 252, whofe inverfely heart-fhaped 

 form, with copious linear ferrated fcales, like radicles, be- 

 neath, has a very peculiar appearance. Nothing is known 

 refpe&ing the fructification of thefe two laft. R. fruticulofa 

 of Dicklon is a Jungermannia, Engl. Bot. t. 2514, pro- 

 bably a variety ol the furcata. 



Riccia, La, in Geography, a town of Italy, in the Cam- 

 pagna di Roma ; I mile S.E. of Alb3no. 



Ricc/A, a town of Naples, in the Molife j 15 miles E. 

 of Boiano. 



RICCIARELLI, in Biography. See Volterra, 

 Daniel da. 



RICCIOLI, John-Baptist, a learned Italian Jefuit, 

 and an eminent philofopber, aftronomer, and mathematician, 

 in the 17th century, was born at Ferrara, a city belonging 

 to the papal juriididlion, in the year 1598. At the age 

 of 16 he commenced his noviciate in the fociety of Jelus. 

 When he had completed his courfe of academical lhidies, he 

 was felefted to teach fucceflively rhetoric, police learning, 

 philofophy, and fcholaftic divinity, in the Jefuits' colleges 

 at Parma and Bologna. While he difcharged the duties of 

 thefe appointments with great fuccefs and reputation, he 

 devoted his leifure hours to the ftudy of geography, hydro- 

 graphy, chronology, experimental philofophy, and alfro- 

 nomy. During the difpute which took place in his time, 

 refpefting the correftnefs of the Gregorian reformation ot 

 the calendar, he inlifted himfelf among the advocates for 

 the reform, and publifhed fome little pieces on the fubjedt at 

 Bologna, under the name of Michael Manfredi. His prin- 

 cipal attention, however, was occupied on productions of 

 greater magnitude. He projected a grand work, which 

 was to be divided into three parts, containing a complete 

 fyltem of philofophical, mathematical, and allronomical 

 knowledge. The firlt of thefe parts was given by him to 

 the public in 1 65 1 , in two large and clofely printed volumes, 

 folio, under the title of " Ahnageftum Novum, Aftrono- 

 miam Veterum, Novamque Compleftens," &c. In imita- 

 tion of the " Almageft" of Ptolemy, it prefents us with a 

 collection of the dilcoveries and improvements in allrono- 

 mical fcience, from the earlieil ages of antiquity to the 

 author's own time. From a table of contents which is pre- 

 fixed to this part, it appears that the fecond part was to be 

 divided into five books, treating of trigonometry, or the 

 dodlrine of plane and fpherical triangles, allronomical in- 

 ltruments, the optical part of altronomy, geography, and 

 chronology ; and the third part into ten boks, compre- 

 hending 



