PAIN 
delay gave O&avian time to have it copied, which was 
done by Andrea del Sarto, who imitated even the little 
fpots that were upon the canvas. This piece was fo like 
the original, that Octavian himfelf could hardly diftin- 
guilh the one from the other; and, that he might not 
be deceived, he put a private mark upon the copy, and 
in a few days after fent it to Mantua. The duke received 
it with all poflible fatisfaftion, not doubting but it was 
the work of Raphael and Julio Romano : the latter, who 
■was then in the fervice of that prince, had no l’ufpicion 
that his part of the picture w’as not done by himfelf; and 
he would have remained in this error as long as he lived, 
if Vafari, who had feen the copy while it was drawing, 
had not undeceived him ; for this Vafari, coming to Man¬ 
tua, was well entertained by Julio Romano, who fhowed 
him all the duke’s rarities, and, among the reft, this pic¬ 
ture of Leo X. which he informed him was done by Ra¬ 
phael. Vafari faid, “ It is a very good pidhire, but it is 
not Raphael’s.” Julio Romano, looking on it more at¬ 
tentively, replied, “ How ! is it not Raphael’s 1 and do I 
not know my own work in it ? do not I fee the ftrokes of 
my pencil, and remember the ftriking them ?” Vafari an- 
fwered, “ You do not obferve it clol'ely enough ; I affure 
you I faw Andrea del Sarto draw this very picture; be¬ 
hind the canvas you will fee a mark which was put upon 
it to diftinguifli it from the original.” Julio Romano, 
turning the pifture, and perceiving it was matter of faff, 
held up his hands with aftonifhment, faying, “ I value 
it as much as if it were Raphael’s, and even more ; for it 
is very furprifing to fee fo excellent a mafter fo well imi¬ 
tated as to deceive one who is likewife a profeffor.” Now, 
fince Julio Romano, with all his fkill, after having had 
notice given him, ftill perfifted in the deceit of his judg¬ 
ment as to his own work, we muft not think it ftrange 
that painters lefs lkilful fiiould fometiines be miftaken 
about the works of others. 
An anecdote of Peter Mignard is not lefs curious. 
This great man painted a Magdalen on a canvas fabrica¬ 
ted at Rome. A broker, in concert with Mignard, went 
to the chevalier de Clairville, and told him as a fecret, that 
he was to receive from Italy a Magdalen of Guido, and 
his mafterpiece. The chevalier caught the bait, begged 
the preference, and purcbafed the pifture at a very high 
price. Some time afterwards he was informed he had 
been impofed upon, for that the Magdalen was painted 
by Mignard. Although Mignard himfelf caufed the 
alarm to be given, the amateur would not believe it; all 
the connoilfeurs agreed it was a Guido, and the famous 
Le Brun corroborated this opinion. 
The chevalier came to Mignard : “ There are (he fays) 
fome perfons who affure me that my Magdalen is your 
work.” ‘Mine! they do me great honour; I am fure 
that Le Brun is not of that opinion.’ “ No : Le Brun 
fwears it can be no other than a Guido. You ftiall dine 
with me, and meet feveral of the firft connoilfeurs.” On 
the day of meeting, the picture was more clofely infpec- 
ted than ever. Mignard hinted his doubts whether the 
piece was the work of that great mafter ; he infinuated 
that it was poftible to be deceived ; and added, that, if 
it was Guido’s, he did not think it in his belt manner. 
It is a Guido, fir, and in his very beft manner, replied 
Le Brun with warmth ; I am perfectly convinced. And 
all the critics unanimoufly agreed with him. Mignard 
then fpoke in a firm tone of voice ; “ And I, gentlemen, 
will wager three hundred louis that it is not a Guido.” 
The dilpute now became violent : Le Brun vras defirous 
of accepting the wager. In a word, the affair became fuch 
as could add nothing more to the glory of Mignard. 
“No, fir, (replied the latter,) I am too honeft to bet 
when I am certain to win. Monfieur le Chevalier, this 
piece coft you 2000 crowns ; the money muft be returned ; 
the painting is mine.'" Le Brun would not believe it. 
“ The proof,” Mignard continued, “ is eafy s on this can¬ 
vas, which is a Roman one, was the portrait of a cardi-' 
nal; I will Ihow you his cap.” The chevalier did not 
TING. 243 
know which of the rival artifts to believe : the propofi- 
tion alarmed him. “ He who painted the pifture (hall 
mend it,” faid Mignard. He took a pencil dipped in oil; 
and, rubbing the hair of the Magdalen, difcovered the 
cap of the cardinal. The honour of the ingenious painter 
could no longer be difputed. 
We need not, then, wonder at the following miftake, 
which happened when the French were in Modena as 
conquerors, and were felefling the pidlures they were to 
carry away. There was a very fine Crucifixion, the fin- 
gle figure of Our Saviour on the crofs, by Guido ; and an 
excellent copy of it hung not far diftant. The French 
officer, commiffioner, or whatever might be his title, who 
was entrufted to feledt thofe pidlures which were to be 
prefented to Parifian admiration, after much puzzling, 
fixed at length on the copy, which was accordingly car¬ 
ried off, and hung in the Louvre, where it paffed for an 
undoubted original, to the great delight of the Modenefe, 
who, befides keeping the picture itfelf, enjoyed the plea- 
fure of knowing their oppreflors to be thus notably de¬ 
ceived. Sketches of Italy ; Lond. 1820. 
It remains to fay fomething of thofe pictures that are 
neither originals nor copies, which the Italians call paf- 
ticci, from pajbj; becaufe, as the feveral things which 
feafon a pafty are reduced to one tafte, fo counterfeits that 
compofe a pafticci tend only to effedl one defign. A painter 
that would deceive in this way ought to be well imbued 
with the manner and principles of the mafter of whom 
he would give an idea, whether he take any part of a pic¬ 
ture which that mafter has made, and puts it in his own 
work, or whether the invention is his own, and he imi¬ 
tates only the manner of that particular mafter. It often 
happens that painters who thus propofe to counterfeit 
another’s manner, and aim at imitating fuch as are more 
lkilful than themfelves, really make better pictures of 
this kind than if they were to do fomething entirely of 
their own. Among thofe who took delight in counter¬ 
feiting the manner of other painters, we fhall content 
ourfelves with naming David Teniers, who has deceived, 
and ever will deceive, the curious, who are not aware of 
his dexterity in transforming himfelf into Baffano and 
Paolo Veronefe. There are fome of his pafticci made with 
fo much art, that the moft judicious are deceived by 
them at firft fight; and it requires averyclofe infpeftion, 
and great judgment, to find out the trick that is played 
them. 
QUALIFICATIONS of a PAINTER. 
The well-known aphorifm of Hippocrates, that “ Art 
is long, and life is Ihort,” applies to no peculiar art fo 
well as to painting ; fince not only has no fingle man un¬ 
aided been able to carry it to perfection, but, in the pro- 
greftive accumulation of knowledge through the lapfe of 
ages, fucceeding ones benefiting by the experience and 
examples of the former, no man has yet arrived at that 
degree of excellence in the practice of it, which a perfect 
union of all its principles and qualities would produce. 
The power of exercifing this ufeful and delightful art 
has at all times been flow of acquirement, as the liiftory 
we have given of its progrefs evidenFy Ihows. It has 
this diverfity in its growth from that of poetry ; which has 
fhone with confpicuous luftre at very early periods of hu¬ 
man culture, whilft painting has never flourilhed but in 
gradual advance with the general improvement of man¬ 
kind ; and has been truly confpicuous only at thofe times 
when the arts of civilization have rifen to their higheft 
pitch of excellence in the countries where it has been 
praftifed. 
In no art has the profeffor greater or more numerous 
difficulties to encounter than in painting; fince he not 
only is under a neceflity, equally impofing as is the hifto- 
rian or the poet, of obtaining accurate ideas of the events 
he records, or the fcenes he difplays ; but he has alfo to 
invent and perfeft himfelf in the medium, or language, in 
which he communicates his ideas, before he proceeds to 
