ITALIAN SCHOOL OF ENGRAVING. 



verfing with his Miflrcfs ;" are all after the works of this 

 great painter. 



After Parmcgiano, he has engraven, a philofopher feated, 

 with a book open before him, and in tlie hack ground, to 

 the right, a bird, with its feathers plucked off; probably 

 intended for Diogenes, and the cock which he plucked in ri- 

 tlicule of Plato's definition of man. This is a large and 

 curious folio print, fome of the iniprcflions of which are 

 printed in four different colours. " The Holy Virgin, with 

 St. Sebaflian, and St. Nicholas." " A Satyr fathoming 

 Water with his Flute." All of thefc prints are of folio 

 dimenfions. 



Dominico Micarino of Sienna, furnained Beccafiimi, was 

 born at Sienna, or in fome neighbouring village, in the year 

 J484, and died in 15-49 in tlie fame city, which, by his 

 various works in fciilpture, architccliu-e, paintin^r, and en- 

 graving, he greatly contributed to adorn He was of poor 

 parents, and like Andrea Mantegna, paffed the early years 

 of his life in keeping fheep. His family name was Mica- 

 rino ; but fignor Beccafumi, a difcerning citizen of Sienna, 

 obferving him bufied in tracing forms upon the fund with his 

 crook, conceived a favourable opinion of his natural abilities, 

 and raifed him from obfcurity. 



From this kind patron, who fucceffively placed our young 

 artift under Antonio Vercelli, and Pietro Perugino, he took 

 the nameof BeccarV.nii. He travelled to Rome tocompleat 

 his ftudies from the works of Raphael and Michael Angeio ; 

 after which he returned to Sienna, where he was employed in 

 feveral works both in frcfco and oil, which acquired hiui 

 great applaufe, but nolliing contributed more to the 

 eftablilhment of his reputation than the Mofaic pavement 

 ■tvith which he ornamented the cathedral of Sienna. 



Micarino appears to have worked occafionally in all the 

 modes of engraving which had thei; been invented. He was 

 a very good engraver on wood, and particularly excelled in 

 chiarofcuro, fomctimes working from his own defigns, and 

 at others from thofe of Titian and other mailers. He alfo 

 etched feveral plates in a very fpirited ilyle, and we have 

 fome few prints executed by him with the graver only. In 

 thefe the hfind of the mailer is very evident ; the figures are 

 drawn in a fpirited ilyle, and the extremities are finely 

 marked, but, from want of fkiU in the management of the 

 point and the graver, the mechanical part of the work has a 

 harfli and unpleafing appearance to an eye accuftomed to 

 neatnefs and preciGon. 



His engravings, of which the following h!l fpecifies the 

 principa', are fomelimes marked with his name at length, 

 and at others with the cypher which will be found in our 

 Plate I. of thofe of the Italian School. — A large foho print 

 of " The Nativity," after Titian, cut in wood in a very 

 fpi-ited manner. " The Holy Virgin embracing the Infant 

 Chriil," printed in chiarofcuro, in three colours, and pro- 

 bably from his own compofition. Four prir.ts executed in 

 the fame manner of " St. Peter," " St. Philip," " St. An- 

 drew," and "St, Jerome." "A Philofopher fitting 

 v/rapt in his Mantle." Portrait of pope Paul III. Three 

 engravings on copper, of v.'hich the fubjefts are groups of 

 academy figures; and ten engravings on wood of alchemical 

 fubjefts. 



The next engraver of decided talent that Italy produced 

 was Marc Antonio Raimondi, whofe name marks a memo- 

 rable era in the hiliorv of engraving. He v/as bom at Bo- 

 logna in the year 1487 or 88, and died in the fame city about 

 the year 1539. Like many of \\k contemporaries rmd pre- 

 deceffors, he was brought up to the bufinefs of a goldfmith, 

 but ftudied drawing, in which he fo mucii excelled under 

 Fra.'icefco Raibalini, furnamed Francia, from his attachment 

 to whom, Raimondi. himfelf obtained the cognomen of 



Francia. His earlicft prints, as far as is known, were 

 "The four Heroes," and " Pyramus and Thifhe," the 

 latter of which is dated in the year 1502, when he could 

 have been only 1 4 or ly years of age ; thefe early works are 

 both engraved after the defigns of this mafter, and the let- 

 ter F, which forms part of the monogram, affixed to them, 

 may be fuppofed to lland for either Francia or fecit. 



Our artilt, however, is now generally known by his bap- 

 tifmal names. Marc Antonio. Being eager for improve- 

 ment in his art, he travelled to Venice, where he firlt met 

 with the works of the Geriran engravers, particularly a fct 

 of woodcuts by Albert Durer, reprefenting "The Life and 

 Paffion of our Saviour." Th?fe pleafed him fo much, that 

 he purchafed them, though they coft him nearly all the 

 money he had brought with him ; and he copied them v/ith 

 great exaftnefs on copper. Tlie deception, it feems, 

 aiifwercd well to Marc Antonio ; for, we are told by Vafari, 

 t!\at they were frequently fold for the originals. This cir- 

 cumllance, according to the fame author, coming at lalt to 

 the ears of Albert Durer, he complained to the fenate of 

 Venice of the injury which he had fullained, but ail the re- 

 drefs he could obtain was, that Marc Antonio fiiould not, 

 for the future, add the cypher or monogram of Albert 

 Durer to any of the copies he might make from his en- 

 gravings. This Itory, if true, is i;ot without its difiiculties, 

 and one of the moft ilriking is, that the copies which Marc 

 Antonio made from the Life and Paffion of Chriil, by Albert 

 Durer, have not the mark of that artiil at all upon tliem, but 

 the cypher of Marc Antonio only. Vafari indeed might 

 have millaken the life of Chriil for the life of the Virgin, 

 by Albert Durer, becaufe Marc Antonio copied them both 

 with equal precifion. The latter are much larger than the 

 former, and have the monogram of Albert Durer repre- 

 fented in the fame manner as upon the originals ; and to thefe 

 Marc Antonio has not put his own cypher, except upon the 

 lad plate ; but even that has the monogram of Albert Durer 

 alio. Of courfe, thefe prints will much better a.rec with 

 the llory above related, than thofe mentioned by Vafari. 



When Marc Antonio quitted Venice, he went to Rome, 

 where his merit foon recommended him to the notice of Ra- 

 phael, who not only employed him to engrave a confiderable 

 nuinber of his defigns, but formed an intimate friendlliip 

 with iiim, and it has been faid, though without fufficient au- 

 thority, that he afiilled him in tracing and correfting the out- 

 lines upon the piatcs. 



The firil plate he engraved from a drawing of Raphael's 

 was, " Lucretia ilabbing herfelf," in which he feems to have 

 exerted all his abilities to make it neat and delicate. Soon 

 afterwards he execi:ted the plate of "The Judgment of 

 Paris," which, though not fo neat as the former, has more 

 freedom and fpirit. Raphael himfelf was fo perfeftly well 

 plealed with the works of this admirable engraver, that he 

 fent many fpeiimens of them, as a complimentary prefent, 

 to Albert Durer, which he thought well wortliy of his ac- 

 ceptance. 



The great reputation which Marc Antonio acquired under 

 the patronage of Raphael, brcugh.t many young Italian 

 artifts -o Rome, in order to Rudy under him; and among 

 them were the foUowii^g : Agollino dc Mufis, Marc dc Ra- 

 venna, Giulio Bonafoni, Niccolo Bea'rici, and Enea Vico, 

 who all of them became his pupils, and ;;s his name began 

 to be known abroad, Bartolemeo Beham, George Penz, 

 and James Binck, with others, natives of Germany, came 

 into Italy, and frequented his fchool. For engraving fome 

 plates after the defigns of Julio Romano, of which the fubjetts 

 arc taken from the lewd fonnetsof Aretin, he was committed 

 to piilon by pope Clen>ent VII., but recovered his freedom 

 through the intcrcll of Baccio Bandinelli. 



