— 
—— 
—s os... 
1803-] 
ries of portraits of literati and ftatefmen; 
was that of Dr. Hufeland, painted by 
Tifchbein, and engraved by Muller, jun. 
of Stuttgardt, in a ftyle worthy of his fa- 
ther. Two excellent pictures by Nahl 
(one of them the Birth of the Roje), en- 
graved in the dotted manner, by Durmer 
and Neidi; and a Parmegiano and Pouf- 
fin, etched by Geiger and Dallinger, 
were the principal new articles lately pub- 
lithed by Frauenholz, to, which we may 
add, a good drawing-book of horfes, by 
Rugendas (the celebrated painter of bat- 
tle-pieces), and engraved by Adam Batfch. 
Such a publication was very much wanted 
in Germany, as very few were able to pur- 
chafe the coftly figures by Pforn, and 
other fimilar prints, as, for inftance, Hels’s 
Riding-fchool) are upon too fmall a fcale. 
The Italian houfes of Teffari and Arta- 
ria, in Vienna (a branch of the latter of 
which is likewife fettled at Mannheim) 
are diftinguifhed among their competitors 
by the number of articles they fell, and by 
their watchful attention to the reigning tafte. 
‘They draw large fums from Germany by 
means of numerous troops of Piedmontefe 
and Milanefe pedlars, who traverfe the 
country in every direction, and hawk their 
wares from door to door. Thefe pedlars 
are not fupplied direétly from the foun- 
tain-head: but, through the medium of 
agents in the principal towns, who are ac- 
countable- for whatever they entrult upon 
credit to the emiffaries in their employ- 
ment. Artaria and Co. are the pubiith- 
ers of anumber of picturefque tours on the 
Rhine, Neckar,and Danube, whichdo not 
contribute to give foreigners a very high 
idea of the talte of the Germans for land- 
{cape-painting. In this branch of the 
art, the Drefden-fchool continues to pro- 
duce fome excellent pieces. In Vienna 
great expe€lations are formed from the 
{pirited undertakings of M. M. Holex and 
Sohreyvogel, who have engaged the moft 
eminent engravers in that city: Wrenk, 
Kininger, and Durmer, for figures ; Pi- 
ringer, Haldenwang, Duttenhoter, &c. for 
landfeape; Adam Batfch and Dorfmeifter 
for animals. 
have already been begun, fuch as views 
in the’Auftrian dominions, and the cof- 
tumes of Tirol; and, from the fpirit and 
large capital of the publifhers, we may 
confidently hope, that the whole will be 
completed without interruption. § They 
likewife purpofe to deferve well of their 
country, by engraving the mafter-pieces of 
a Fuger, and other celebrated painters in 
Vienna, . 
Notices relative to the Fine Arts in Germany. 
Several large feries of prints ' 
A835 
In the capital of thie North of Germany 
Berlin, the profpeét is not fo cheering. 
The principal printfellers in that city are 
Schiayonetti, who has a good affortment 
of Englifh prints; Weiffe, in Leipzig- 
ftreet, and a Jew of the name of Leffer, 
But very few of the articles they fell are 
the productions ot Pruffian artifts, In . 
the f{cenes from the Hittory of ‘Frederic 
the Great, where they feem to have united 
their forces, there is much to defiderate 
both in the defign and execution. Eigh- . 
teen plates of this feries have already ap- 
peared, drawn by Schadow, Wolf, Hampe, 
Jury, &c. and engraved by Ringk, Me- 
no, Haas, and fome young artilts. Berger 
and a few others of long-eftablithed repu- 
tation, feem to have retired, content with 
the laurels they have already acquired. 
The fchool, however, formed by Meil and 
Chodowiecki continues to produce excel- 
lent vignettes, and fmall charatteriftical 
pictures to decorate novels and romances, 
and other fafhionable publications: in this 
department of the art, Bott, Jury, and 
Catel, have particularly diftinguithed 
themielves, the two former as engravers, 
and the latter as a tafteful defigner. Bott 
fold, at the laft Leipzig Eafter fair, fome 
etchings, which dilplayed a rich vein of, 
wit and fatire. ' 
aL 
To the Editor of the Monthly Magazine. 
SIR, 
WME author of an Hifforical Memoir on 
TL Italian Tragedy {ays (App. p. 1.) — 
Though * Thomfon, in the elegant little 
Preface to his Sophani/ba, dees not ac- 
knowledge any obligations to the Sopamif- 
ba of Triffino, yet 1 am much inclined to 
think he has many.’ ‘Thefe he then 
proceeds to point out. If it had fallen 
within that gentleman’s plan, he might 
alfo have oblerved, that Thomfon is alfo 
filent in regard to his obligations to Ef~ 
chylus and Seneca 3 yet, in his Avamem- 
non, he is abundantly indebted to both, 
particularly to the latter, whom he has in 
many initances fervilely copied. ‘His 
Egyfthus is as fatiguingly tedious as the 
Egyfthus of Seneca; but the ravings of 
his Caffandra do not exhibit any of thofe 
marks of divine in{piration, which, ia the 
noble tragedy of Eichylus, occafionally 
raifethe lovely propnetefs above humanity. 
Inftead-of the fine, but irrelevant, defcrip-- 
tion of a ftorm in Seneca’s tragedy, 
Thomfon has given us a defcription 
equally beautiful, but equally mifplaced, 
of a defert ifland. Is it thento be won- 
3 Q'2 deed 
