THE LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS, R.A. COMPILED FROM HIS JOURNALS AND OTHER SOURCES BY JAMES BALLANTINE WITH ETCHINGS AND FACSIMILES OF PEN-AND-INK SKETCHES BY THE ARTIST EDINBURGH ADAM AND CHARLES BLACK, NORTH BRIDGE MDCCCLXVI TO CLARKSON STANFIELD, R.A., WHO, FROM YOUTH TO AGE, WAS EVER THE AFFECTIONATE, APPRECIATING, AND VALUED FRIEND OF DAVID ROBERTS, THIS BOOK IS DEDICATED BY HIS FRIEND JAMES BALLANTINE. PREFATORY NOTE. In an invaluable manuscript volume left by Mr. Roberts, which contains pen-and-ink sketches of almost all his pic¬ tures, he says:— ‘ I have jotted down from time to time the chief incidents connected with my career as an artist, thinking it might be interesting to my dear daughter Christine, and instructive to her children, to know something of the difficulties I have had to encounter and overcome. Should she and her husband, Henry Bicknell, in whose judgment 1 have the most implicit confidence, think that these jottings may be in any way useful to young artists who may be similarly situated with me, they are wel¬ come to publish such portions as may seem best adapted to servo such a purpose.’ These ‘ jottings,’ together with many other memoranda, journals, and letters, having been put into my hands, and feeling sure that they will be instructive and interesting to all who can appreciate sterling worth and genius, I have throughout, as far as possible, given the story of his life in the words of the artist, convinced that its simplicity and power would have been marred by any attempt at in¬ terpolation or digression. PREFATORY NOTE. viii I have gratefully to acknowledge the loan of many im¬ portant letters addressed by Roberts to his early and much-attached friend D. R. Hay, who, by a singular coincidence, died while these sheets were passing through the press. I am also indebted to Messrs. Dawson, Mac- niven, Nasmyth, and Hunter for similar contributions ; and to E. W. Cooke, R.A., for the drawing of the house in which Roberts was born. JAMES BALLANTINE. DAVID ROBERTS was elected— Honorary Member of the Royal Scottish Academy (founded 1826), February 27, 1829. Associate of the Royal Academy of Arts, London, November 5, 1838. Member of the Royal Academy of Arts, London, September 26, 1841. Honorary Member of the Royal Academy of Antwerp, September 6, 1853. Honorary Member of the Royal Academy of Amsterdam, February 14, 1855. Honorary Member of the Society of Belgian Artists, Brussels, July 1, 1862. Honorary Member of the Academy of Philadelphia, U.S., March 9, 1863. One of the Commissioners of the Great Exhibition of 1851. He received the Freedom of the City of Edinburgh, September 21, 1858. CONTENTS. CHAPTER I. 1796-1821. Parentage—Boyhood—Schooling—Early love of Drawing—Apprenticeship— First Framed Picture—Engaged Foreman House-decorator—First Attempts at Scene-painting—Engagement with a Company of Strolling Players; Carlisle ; Newcastle ; York—Returns to House-painting—Engaged as Scene- painter at Edinburgh Pantheon; Theatre Royal, Glasgow—Marriage_ Engagement with Mr. Murray, Theatre Royal, Edinburgh—First Oil-painting exhibited ..... Page 1-20 CHAPTER II. 1822-1832. First efforts in Cobourg Theatre, London—Engagement at Drury Lane— Admitted Member of Suffolk Street Gallery—First Pictures exhibited in London—Visits Dieppe, Rouen, and Havre de Grace—First Commission from Lord Northwick—Engagement at Covent Garden—Royal Scottish Academy —Numerous Pictures, among others the ‘ Israelites leaving Egypt ’—Elected President of the Society of British Artists, Suffolk Street—Becomes Member of the Garrick Club—Etchings of Monastic Antiquities of Scotland . 21-41 CHAPTER III. 1832-1833. Tour in Spain : Bordeaux—Madrid—Cordova—Granada—Seville—Gibraltar— Malaga—Tangiers—Paints two large Pictures : ‘ Interior of Seville Cathedral, with the Ceremony of Corpus Christi,’ and the * Giralda,’ a Moorish Tower 42-68 CONTENTS. CHAPTER IV. 1834-1838. Paoe Exhibitions at the Royal Academy, the British Institution, and Suffolk Street Gallery—Drawings for Book Illustrations—Designs for Scott Monument— Numerous Paintings of French and Spanish Subjects—Drawings for Land¬ scape Annual of 1836—Retires from Suffolk Street Society—Large Picture of ‘ Chapel of Ferdinand and Isabella at Granada ’—Visit to the Old Abbeys and Monasteries of England—Publication of Picturesque Views in Spain— Pictures of ‘ St. Paul’s,’ the ‘ Alhambra,’ and others .... 69-79 CHAPTER V. 1838. Wanderings in the East: Alexandria—The Nile—Sphinx—Pyramids—Dendera —Luxor—Karnak—The Memnonium—Edfou—Philce, etc. etc. . . 80-102 CHAPTER VI. 1838-1839. Wanderings in the East, continued : Cairo—Numerous Sketching Expeditions— Panorama of Cairo . . . . . . . . . .103-114 CHAPTER VII. 1839. Expedition to the Holy Land : Suez—Wilderness of Sinai—Mount Sinai— Mount Horeb—Red Sea—Petra—Hebron—Gaza—Jaffa—Rameh . 115-126 CHAPTER VIII. 1839-1840. Travels in Holy Land, continued : Jerusalem—Jericho—The Jordan—Dead Sea —Convent of St. Saba—Bethlehem—Nabulus—Samaria—Nazareth—Cana of Galilee — Mount Carmel—St. Jean d’Acre—Tyre—Sarepta—Sidon— Lebanon—Zahleh—Baalbec—Beyrout.—Return to England—Arrangement for the Publication of his Views in the Holy Land .... 127-143 CONTENTS. xi CHAPTER IX. 1841. Paoe Elected R.A.—Numerous Pictures—‘ Jerusalem from Mount of Olives ’—Publi¬ cation of the First Part of the Holy Land, April 1842—Exhibitions in Royal Academy—Entertained at a Public Dinner at Edinburgh . . . 144-154 CHAPTER X. 1843-1852. Visit to Brittany and Normandy—St. Malo—Dinan—St. Lo—Mount St. Michael —Granville—Bayeux—Caen.—Completion of Drawings for the Holy Land —Death of his Mother—Visit to Belgium—Pictures of the ‘ Temple of Karnak ’ and ‘ Jerusalem from the South-east,’ and numerous others— Drawings from his Sketches in Egypt and Syria, and for Scotland Delineated —Large Picture of ‘ Destruction of Jerusalem by Titus ’—Completion of Egypt and Syria, 1849—Tour through Italy, 1851—Crystal Palace Picture —Picture of ‘ Cathedral of St. Stephen's, Vienna’.155-174 CHAPTER XI. 1853-1857. Large Picture of ‘ Venice’—Tour to Rome—Picture of ‘ Interior of St. Peter’s ’— Returns to London—Various Pictures—Presentation of Large Picture of ‘ Rome ’ to the Scottish Academy—Pictures of ‘ Tyre ’ and ‘ Sidon ’ Ap¬ pointed a Member of Committee to decide on the Designs for the War and Foreign Offices in London—Residence at Isle of Wight .... 175-190 CHAPTER XII. 1858-1859. Visit to Scotland with Mr. Stanfield—Freedom of the City conferred by Town- Council of Edinburgh—Stanfield and Roberts entertained at Dinner by the Royal Scottish Academy—At a Meeting of the Royal Academy carried a Resolution that the Pensions to Academicians, Associates, and others, be taken into consideration, with a view to their being increased—Numerous Important Paintings—Interest in Roslin Chapel d 191-202 xii CONTENTS. CHAPTER XIII. 1860-1864. Pack Conclusion—Series of Pictures of ‘ London from the Thames,’ etc. etc.—Visit to Belgium—Art Congress at Antwerp—Visits to Scotland and Isle of Wight—Death, 25th November 1864 ....... 203-229 CHAPTER XIV. Remarks on Roberts’ Character and Career ...... 230-236 Notes . 237-239 APPENDIX. Historical and Descriptive Jottings in connection with Etchings . . .241-246 List of Pictures painted by Roberts; where and when they were exhibited; and Prices at which they were sold 247-255 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. Portrait of David Roberts, R.A. After Picture by Sir John Watson Gordon, R.A., P.R.S.A., engraved by Thomas Oldham Barlow. Roberts’ Birthplace . Page 1 From a Drawing by E. W. Cooke, R.A. ETCHINGS. Falkland Palace. Ruins of St. Andrew’s Cathedral. Ruins of the Monastery of Black Friars, St. Andrews. Chancel of the Cathedral, Iona. Near the Great Altar, St. Mary’s Church, Iona. Caerlaverock Castle, Dumfriesshire. Sweetheart Abbey, Dumfriesshire. Melrose Abbey. Leuchars Church. FACSIMILES OF ROUGH PEN-AND-INK SKETCHES OF PICTURES FROM MR. ROBERTS’ JOURNAL. 'AGE 20 First Pictures, 1821 (three Sketches) New Abbey, and Melrose 24 XIV LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. taoe Antwerp Cathedral.41 Court of the Lions, Alhambra.72 Old Houses, Granada.72 Chapel of Ferdinand and Isabella, Granada.75 Portico of the Great Temple at Baalbec.143 Portico of the Great Temple at Dendera.144 Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives . . . . . . . 144 Interior of the Chapel of St. Helena.147 Ruins of the Temple of Kom Ombo.147 Descent to the Crypt, Roslin Chapel.154 Cathedral of St. Stephen, Vienna.174 Venice.175 Rome, from the Convent of St. Onofrio.182 Ruins of PzESTUM (two Sketches).184 Tyre.188 Sidon.189 Venice.190 Edinburgh from the Calton Hill.191 At Rome ............. 198 Interior of the Church of St. Mark at Venice.199 Fete-Day at St. Peter’s.203 St. Paul’s from Waterloo Bridge.208 The Houses of Parliament, and Westminster Bridge . . . . 208 Temple of the Sun, Baalbec.209 These facsimiles are printed from blocks produced by Mr. Ramage of Edinburgh, through a photo¬ graphic process discovered by him, and are more perfect counterparts of the originals than could have been procured by any other method. House at Stockbridoe, Edinburgh, where David Roberts was born 24th Out. 1796. CHAPTER I. Y parents moved in a very humble sphere of life, but by unwearied industry and frugality maintained and educated their family. My father, who was the second son of a small farmer near Forfar, and by trade a shoemaker, married and settled in the village of Stoekbridge, near Edinburgh, where I was born, the first of five children, on the 24th October 1796. Three of these children, a sister and two brothers, died when very young, and within a short time of each other, and the heavy expenses at¬ tending their illness and death caused my dear father to work with a heavy heart almost unceasingly day and night. My mother also was very industrious; and although we were very poor, my beloved parents never asked or received eleemosynary assistance. The villagers were almost all equally poor. There were three or four shops kept by old women, and the men generally were engaged E LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. [1808. in out-door occupations, such as masons, carpenters, quarrymen, and carters—a somewhat primitive, and, as my poor mother used to say, * a godless race.’ My parents, 011 the contrary, were strictly religious, and on the Sabbath-days our family turned out regularly to church, tidily and well dressed. My schooling cost but little, some threepence or fourpence a-week being paid to an old dame in the village, more to keep me out of the way of being run over by carts or drowned in the Water of Leith, than for anything she could or would teach me. At eight years of age I was sent to a school in Edinburgh, where, like other boys at that period, I was very cruelly treated, often getting the skin flayed off my legs and fingers. This gave me a dislike to the school, and on expressing my determination to leave, it was resolved that I should be apprenticed to a trade. Long previous to this, how¬ ever, I had acquired an intense love of pictures, although those which came in my way were of the humblest description, consisting of half¬ penny picture-books, such as ‘ The Life and Death of Cock Robin,’ ‘ Little Red Riding Hood,’ and similar productions. Panoramas and collections of wild beasts were frequently exhibited on the Earthen Mound, the site of the Royal Scottish Academy’s Exhibition; and the outsides of the wooden structures and caravans were generally decorated with representations of their contents, painted on cloth. These were sources of great attraction to me, and 1 was wont, on going home, to attempt to give my mother an idea of what they were by scratches on the whitewashed kitchen-wall, made with the end of a burned stick and a bit of keel,* which representations she obliterated by whitewash whenever her curiosity had been satisfied.! My aptitude for copying whatever attracted my attention in¬ creased, and I began to imitate such pictures or engravings as I could * A kind of red chalk. t In connection with this description, and as an illustration of its graphic fidelity, I give the following anecdote, related to me by an octogenarian still alive :— This gentleman employed Roberts’ father to make and mend his shoes, and 011 calling one day he found the side of the wall covered with representations of lions, tigers, etc., done with red keel and charcoal on the wall, so boldly and truly delineated, that his attention and admiration were both excited, and he inquired of Mrs. Roberts who was the artist. 1 Hoot!’ said the honest woman, ‘it’s our laddie Davie; he’s 18 io.] LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. 3 procure. A lady, whom I recollect with profound respect and gratitude, took a deep interest in me, and gave me drawings to copy, after which she showed my productions to Grahame, then the Master of the Trustees' Academy in Edinburgh, with a view to my becoming an artist-pupil there. Grahame, however, took the correct view of the case, and gave judicious advice, saying, that as the parents of the boy were poor, he had best be apprenticed to a house-painter, where he might still practise drawing, and learn an art by which he could earn his living. ‘ When his apprenticeship is completed,’ Mr. Grahame added, * he can attend the Academy, and if his love of art and his acquirements warrant him, he can then endeavour to support himself as an artist/ This advice was followed, and I was apprenticed for seven years to Mr. Gavin Beugo. At first my apprentice-master was very kind to me, allowing me occasionally a little time to practise drawing; but he was passionate, fitful, and tyrannical, and as he kept more apprentices than men, the newest comer was always the favourite ; and when a younger apprentice came to the shop I lost his favour, and any opportunity I had previously enjoyed of improving myself in my favourite pursuit. My remunera¬ tion was two shillings weekly during the first year, with a rise of six¬ pence weekly every succeeding year. During the first year I had to go to my master’s house for the key of the shop every morning at five o’clock. I often knocked loud and long before I could rouse him, and had to take care and keep behind the outer railing when he opened his bed-room window, from whence he threw the large key in my direction, as if he meant to hit me, making it whistle over my head. His house was distant about a mile from the shop, which, during been up at the Mound seeing a wild beast show, and he’s caulked them there to let me see them.’ ‘ And what are you going to do with the boy 1 ?’ inquired my friend. ‘ I fancy,’ said Mi’s. Roberts, ‘ he’ll just need to sit doun on the stool aside his father there, and learn to mak and mend shoon.’ ‘ That will never do,’ said my friend, * Nature has made him an artist; he must be a painter.’ I may here add, that the result of this and similar efforts on the part of the boy was, that he was apprenticed to Beugo, a celebrated ornamental house-painter, and it is a curious coincidence, and evinces the kindness of the artist to his early friends, that in the last years of his life the daughter of his apprentice-master, and the person who communicated this story, were both partakers of his bounty.—J. B. 4 LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. [1812. eight months in the year, 1 was obliged to have open before six o’clock. The smell of this dungeon, after being shut all night, was very nauseous, and often made me ill; but here I had to grind colours all day long till eight at night, excepting an hour each for breakfast and dinner, during which I had to run to and from my father’s house, which was above a mile distant. In the winter months, however, the hours were from nine till four, so that I could devote my evenings to drawing and reading. So closely did I apply myself, that I felt quite unhappy in the morning if I could not see something I had done on the previous evening. As my poor father worked at night, he kept a well-trimmed lamp, which served us both, and a chest which stood close by was used by me for a drawing-desk. Here was I to be found at work night after night, and my father’s customers, when they came in, were wont to examine my draw¬ ings and exclaim, ‘ Hoo has the callant learnt it?’ I cannot say that my father ever encouraged me much, but my mother did, and was very proud of her ‘ Davie.’* My reading was very desultory, and consisted of such books as could be had at a small village library, and were paid for by the penny which my father allowed me to buy a roll with at midday. Arnot’s * History of Edinburgh’ and Scott’s ‘ Border Ballads’ inspired me with a love of antiquities, and the ‘ Life and Adventures of Captain Boyle,’ ‘ Blackboard the Pirate,’ ‘ Gil Bias,’ and * Don Quixote,’ with a love of adventure and a desire to visit foreign countries. Among other books I had read one on fortune-telling and the indication of moles; and as 1 had a mole on my leg, the book said it indicated that I was destined to be a great traveller. This pleased me much, and after the wandering life I have led I have sometimes thought that mole might have had * The following anecdote, told me by an old lady still alive whose parents resided in the same tenement, or, in Scotch parlance, were ‘ next-door neighbours wi’ the Robertses,’ may be introduced here :—One day when Mrs. Roberts was ‘ redding up’ the house, her ‘ next-door neighbour’ called, and, as the old lady was very proud of her artistic son’s productions, she opened the rude portfolio in which his drawings were kept, to show some of them to her neighbour, when, to her amazement, a one- pound note appeared. She felt alarmed lest such a sum of money should have come into her son’s possession in any improper way; but, without mentioning the circum¬ stance to her husband, she followed the advice of her neighbour, and resolved to LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. 1813.] something to do with it. It is sometimes difficult to ascertain whence the young mind derives the impressions that guide it through life. Years passed on, and though severely treated by my master, I got little sympathy at home. Sometimes, after having told how I had been kicked and cuffed, the only response I got to my complaint was, ‘ Respect and obey your master.’ This would have rendered my situation un¬ bearable, had it not been that several of my fellow-apprentices were fond of drawing, and as some of them were my seniors, I derived con¬ siderable benefit from seeing their productions. By far the best artist among them was my late friend William Kidd, who afterwards painted many excellent pictures, embodying the humour and pathos of Scottish life in a most delightful manner. He had for some time previously been with Howe, a celebrated animal painter of the day, and was of course looked up to by us as an authority in art. Another of my neighbour apprentices was named William Mitchell, and he had a half-brother called John Dick, who used to paint such subjects as Mary Queen of Scots escaping from Lochleven Castle, but was chiefly employed repair¬ ing and copying pictures for a dealer called Anderson, then considered the Woodburn of Edinburgh. Mitchell occasionally ground Dick’s colours and set his palette, which invested him in our eyes with great dignity; and he used at the breakfast-hour to gather round him half-a-dozen of us, and excite our admiration and astonishment by taking out of his pocket and exhibiting little pictures in oil which he had painted over night. Mitchell was considerably my senior, and I looked up to him with grateful admiration. His mother, a widow, occupied a low flat in Picardy Place, and in her house we drew and painted together, he direct¬ ing my progress, and giving me the benefit of his experience. He had a brother a picture-frame maker, who agreed to make a frame for my first picture for 2s. 6d., to be paid in instalments of 6d. weekly. I remember, as vividly as if it had occurred yesterday, the supreme liap- ‘ speir at the callant when he cam hame hoo and whan he had gotten the siller.’ Davie, on being asked, hurst out into a loud guffaw, and told his mother that, on the previous evening, Beugo had given him a one-pound note to pay to a merchant whose shop was shut, and that, as the figures on it had excited his admiration, and he had to keep it all night, he had made a copy, which he was proud had been so like as to deceive his mother.—J. B. 'C LIFE OF DAVID KOBE RTS. [i8 is. 6 piness I experienced in seeing that picture framed. To have painted it was a great achievement, but to have it actually placed in a gilt frame was a glory of which I had scarcely dared to dream. Mitchell’s mother afterwards removed to an old-fashioned house in Mary King’s Close, immediately under the Royal Exchange buildings. The entrance was by a flight of steps leading from the close, and the house was dark, but the apartments large and commodious. The only light was from windows that faced the north, and looked out into a back- green. The rooms at the back of the house were beneath the Exchange Court, and were quite dark during the day. One of these rooms at night, however, under the joint direction of Mitchell and Kidd, was con¬ verted into a Life Academy, and became most attractive to a host of their young artistic aspiring friends. The first model we had was a donkey, which being kept in this dark cell at night alarmed and annoyed the neighbours by its braying ; but as certain houses in the neighbour¬ hood were said to have been haunted, the unearthly sounds which issued from this subterranean den were but what might have been expected in a locality associated with such gloomy superstitions. I remember well the dread with which I descended the staircase, totally dark even at mid-day, leading to this mysterious close. A number of huge heavy doors there were said to have been shut ever since the great plague. They were choked up with rubbish, covered with cobwebs, and rusty iron bolts were drawn across them, fastened with large antique padlocks. It was generally believed that any one daring enough to peep through some of the keyholes might have seen num¬ berless uncofflned and unburied skeletons. In spite of all these horrors, even in the darkest and wildest winter nights we enthusiastic students made our way to our self-instituted Life Academy, where, in addition to the donkey, we alternately stood as models, and derived much benefit therefrom, instructing and encouraging each other. The progress we made was so great, that we ventured on opening an exhibition of ora' pictures. Kidd and Mitchell took the lead, and I produced a large picture of the Battle of Trafalgar. For this I was dubbed by my chums ‘The Young Vanderveldt,’ and my neighbour artists were com pared to artists equally famous in their respective departments of art. LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. 7 1815.] These exhibitions were repeated during three or four successive years, the number and quality of our contributors and contributions yearly increasing. At length, having completed my seven years’ apprenticeship, I left my old master without regret, and, to the grief of my parents, went to Perth, where I was engaged as foreman by Mr. Conway, a house- decorator, who had come from London to paint Scoon Palace. This was in the summer of 1815, and I remained there till the spring of the following year, when I returned to Edinburgh. At this time, in addition to the Theatre Royal, there was a Circus opened in North College Street. The entertainments here were origin¬ ally confined to feats of equestrianism, gymnastics, and the usual ring performances, and the establishment was conducted in a highly respect¬ able manner by a very gentlemanly person of the name of Bannister. He had during several winters been very successful in his visits to Edinburgh, and had now resolved to add to the attractions of his house a stage and a company of pantomimists. Of course scenery was re¬ quired, and as I was at that time unemployed, a friend who had con¬ fidence in my artistic powers proposed to me that I should attempt to paint the scenes. I thought that it would be presumptuous on my part to make such an attempt, but my friend insisted on my meeting Mr. Bannister and showing him my drawings. I shall never forget the tremor I felt, or the faintness that came over me, when I ascended to the second floor of a house, No. 5 Nicholson Street, and after much hesi- tati6n at length mustered courage to pull the door-bell. I was very kindly received by Mr. Bannister; my drawings were approved, and I was engaged to paint a set of wings for a palace. Canvas was bought, and laid down on the dining-room floor; and after having ground the colours I completed the painting. This was the commencement of my career as a scene-painter—at that time the highest object of my ambition; for my knowledge of art was chiefly derived from the scenery of the Edinburgh Theatre Royal, as seen from the shilling gallery. I knew little of the ancient and still less of the modern masters. The scenery of Aladdin and the Forty Thieves had irresistible charms for me. Bagdad, with its countless minarets, 8 LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. [ i 816. was quite familiar to me, and scarcely a night passed on my return from the theatre without my having made sketches of what I had seen. When I got the palace-wings finished my employer was very much pleased with my work, and treated me with great kindness. At the close of the circus for the season, I was engaged as a regular member of the company, to go with them to England, at a salary of 25s. a-week, my travelling expenses to be paid by the manager. The following is a copy of the terms of my engagement:— ‘ Edinburgh, 10 th Apr il 181(3. ‘ 1 hereby agree to give David Roberts the sum of one pound five shillings sterling per week for the space of twelve months from the above date; for the which sum lie, David Roberts, does oblige himself to paint all scenery, etc., that may be required for J. Bannisters Circus, and also to make himself useful therein; his travelling conveyance to be found him. £ Jas. Bannister. ‘ David Roberts.’ I entered upon this agreement much against the wishes of my dear parents, but it was an opening for which I had long wished. To travel in company with strolling players and equestrian performers might not be very respectable, but it gave me an opportunity of seeing England, and of painting pictures on a large scale. The same month 1 left Edin¬ burgh along with a part of the company—viz. the members of the band and their wives—in a caravan, for Carlisle, and the treatment we met with on the road soon opened my eyes to the low place we held in public estimation. On our arrival at the village of Middleton, about fourteen miles from Edinburgh, we were refused upputting; but as the nio-ht was wet, and we were very weary, the landlady consented to allow us to sit by the fire. After some conversation, during which she learned my history, she expressed a deep interest in me, and said she was astonished to find me in such company. She urged me most strenu¬ ously to return to my poor old mother, and afterwards provided me with a good supper and bed. The following morning she got quit of the * vagabonds ,’ as she termed my companions; and partly in ac¬ cordance with her injunctions, and partly from the disgust with which 1816. LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. 9 I had witnessed the conduct of my fellow-travellers, I started at day¬ break by myself, and reached Hawick in the evening. At Carlisle I painted my first series of scenes in the Town-Hall, which had been hired for the occasion. This hall was where the unfor¬ tunate followers of Prince Charles had been tried and condemned; close by was the castle where they suffered; and this kept me in a continual state of excitement. The scenes I painted here were chiefly after the sketches I had made, and the recollections I had of those in the Edin¬ burgh theatre, and I am afraid they must have been very indifferent. They were painted during the six weeks we were at Carlisle to enable Mr. Bannister to open the circus in Newcastle with a stage as well as a ring company. About midsummer he opened a new building called the Forth with a comic pantomime ; and here, in accordance with my agreement to make myself generally useful, I first appeared as an actor. My part was a barber, who was to have shaved, but is shaved by, the clown. I liked the fun, and, on the whole, I believe gave general satis¬ faction, rather overdoing than underdoing that and other similar parts with which I was entrusted. At this time the Theatre Royal, Newcastle, was under the manage¬ ment of Macready, father to the eminent tragedian of that name, and he in courtesy allowed all the members of the £ Forth’ company free entry to his theatre. The scenery was painted by Dixon, many years scene-painter at Drury Lane, who was, with the exception of old Phillips of Covent Garden, unquestionably the best painter in England of architectural scenery. I visited the theatre often, and studied Dixon’s works with great care. The chop-scene was a copy of the celebrated one in Covent Garden called the Shakspeare Gallery, and represented a hall leading to a domed chamber by a flight of steps, on which stood the great dramatist, surrounded by the muses, and supported by leading- dramatic authors. The original scene at Covent Garden was designed by Smirke, and a great portion of it painted by Dixon. Many years afterwards, when I belonged to that establishment, that scene—certainly one of the most chaste and elegant in design and execution that ever was produced—was brought to me to paint out; this I refused to do. I made a literal copy of the Newcastle chop, which was afterwards D 10 LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. 18 16. produced at Hull when we went there. Indeed, it was only by literally copying what I saw in Dixon’s scenes that I could produce what was re¬ quired ; for at that time I was entirely ignorant of perspective, and did not know what was meant by the point of vision. While we remained in Newcastle a new piece was produced every week, the scenery for which kept me continually employed. We then went to Hull, to which I sailed in a collier along with a poor player who had been discharged, and who had a wife and child to provide for. I paid their passage-money, gave up my berth to the mother and child, stood godfather to the baby, which was only three days old, and interceded successfully with the manager, who again gave the poor fellow employment. We were now pretty well provided with scenery, and I had many opportunities of visiting the surrounding country, which, although not what a painter would call picturesque, is rich and luxuriant. The clean, cheerful villages, with which that portion of England is so thickly studded, pleased me much, and I was charmed with Beverley Minster ; the rich and florid style of its architecture ex¬ cited my admiration, and it remains still as fresh in my memory as when I first saw it. We remained some months in Hull, and left for York in the latter end of autumn. The Theatre Royal in York was closed, but I contrived to get access and to see some of the scenes. The act-drop was a composition of ruins, and charmed me. The artist, whose name I think was Wallace, excelled in aerial perspective, and blent his objects together without showing the hard and accurate lines of Dixon; and in many pictures I have painted since may be traced the effects of the lesson 1 learned from this scene in the York Theatre. The magnificent Min ster overpowered me, and besides making a general view of the building, L drew in detail canopies, crocketing, mouldings, and tracery. During the winter days I have been amid snow for boms, sketching without feeling cold; and there are few of my early studies I look back to with so much pleasure as those of York Minster. In January 1817 we left York and returned to Edinburgh, where our company was to open its campaign ; and our manager, Mr. Bannister, entered into partnership with an Italian musician named Corri, pro- 1817. LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. 11 prietor of a music hall called Corn’s Rooms, 011 the site of the present Theatre Royal. A stage was erected, a ring made for equestrianism, and the house was opened under the name of the Pantheon. The specu¬ lation turned out a failure, the house was closed in May, and my career of scene-painting terminated for a time. Bannister went with his company and horses to Portugal—was unsuccessful—and died a ruined man. Corri struggled on a little longer, and, I fear, ultimately shared the same fate. Being thrown out of employment, I was obliged reluctantly to re¬ turn to work at house-painting, and I entered into an engagement with a Mr. Irvine in Perth as foreman and principal workman. I was chiefly employed at Abercairny, a large mansion newly erected from the designs of Mr. Gillespie Graham, an architect at that time extensively patronised by the leading nobility and gentry in Scotland. While here I began to work at five in the morning, and continued, with the usual interval of an hour' each for breakfast and dinner, till seven in the evening. We lived in a temporary bothy—cooking our own meals and making our own beds. I never neglected the beauties of nature, and after my long day’s work made many draw¬ ings in the woods of Abercairny. I was afterwards engaged paintino- imitations of woods and marbles in Condie, a new mansion upon the Earn, and was very kindly treated by my employer ; but at the earnest desire of my parents I returned to Edinburgh in January 1818, when 1 engaged with Mr. John Jackson, a well-known decorative painter, and a sincere lover and patron of art. During the spring I was employed, first at Dunbar House, the seat of Lord Lauderdale, and afterwards at Craigcrook, the seat of Francis Jeffrey. My imitations of woods and marbles were much commended, and I painted the library of Jeffrey imitation of dark old oak, to match some carvings that he had purchased belonging to Stirling Castle. I never neglected to cultivate my artistic powers, and while at Dunbar made many drawings of the old castle, the church, and other objects of interest in the neighbourhood, and these had always the warm approval of my kind employer Mr. Jackson. All this time I had been fretting and worrying myself at not having an opportunity of pursuing my career as a scene-painter. The Pantheon 12 LIFE OF DA VID ROBERTS. [ 1818. had been opened with a London company, who had brought with them their own artists, and of course there was no opening for me. At last, however, a gleam of sunshine shone through the darkness. The London company left, and Corri resolved to have the house newly decorated, and meeting me in the street, asked me whether I was willing to assist in the decorations, and make myself generally useful afterwards in the painting-room. This was a most unlooked-for chance, and I did not fail to take full advantage of it, for I never had any doubt of my own artistic capability. The following letter from Mr. Corri shows the terms of my engagement:— * Edinburgh, July 25, 1818. ‘ Sir,—I agree to engage you as a scene-painter for the ensuing- season at the Edinburgh Pantheon; salary £l :5s. weekly. You are not to give your assistance at any other theatre or public place of amuse¬ ment, during our season, within fifty miles of Edinburgh/ ‘ For Self and Mr. N. Gorki, £ To Mr. David Roberts. M. D. Corri.’ The chief scene-painter was a Mr. Deerlove, an artist, and an ingenious man, who could make paper helmets, banners, etc., such as may still be seen in pantomimes. It was intended that the decorations of the theatre, previous to its opening, were to be done under the direction of this gentleman, and I was expected to assist him; but an engagement which I had with Mr. Jackson prevented me from coming to the theatre till it was opened for the winter season, when I commenced my labours in a state of great glee and excitement. Deerlove had a very limited capacity for art, which, as I was engaged as his assistant, opened the way for my advancement. There was no painting-room, and we had to paint the scenes on the stage; but as it was occupied during the greater part of the day by rehearsals, and in the evening by the usual per¬ formances, we worked under many disadvantages, and in getting up a new piece, with a series of scenes, we had to paint the principal scenes during the night. On these occasions I generally went to bed in the early part of the evening, and made my appearance fresh and ready for work in the theatre as the curtain fell. Poor Deerlove, who, LIFE OF DA VID ROBERTS. 13 i 8 18.] in addition to painting and rehearsing during the day, acted in almost every piece during the evening, was often so overpowered by fatigue that he was obliged to lie down and sleep, after indicating what he wished done, leaving the execution to me, although he very frequently gave the work what he called a few finishing touches—disgusting me by obliterating any artistic feeling there might have been. In painting thus by snatches, I acquired great rapidity and decision; and on one occasion, when a new scene—a street in Rome—was to be painted, I advised Mr. Deerlove, who was much exhausted, to go home to bed, and I would take care to have the scene ready in time for the rehearsal on the following morning. He took my advice. I had the stage all to myself—finished the scene—had it rolled up and put away, so that it was not seen until it was lowered during the performance in the evening, when it excited much astonishment, and the general wonderment was who could have been the artist, for everybody knew it could not have been Deerlove. I was in the front of the house; the stage-manager, Monro, one of my earliest and best friends, stood behind me. He touched me, and inquired whether I was the artist, and on being answered in the affirmative, asked me where I was going when the theatre closed, which would be in a few days. I told him I had no alternative but return to my original profession of house-painter, and that I had every reason to believe Mr. Jackson would again give me employment. Mr. Monro then said that he had been engaged as stage-manager by Mr. Mason of the Theatre Royal, Glasgow, and that he would recommend me as scene painter. I, however, placed little reliance on this promise, and again worked for Mr. Jackson as a journeyman house-painter; but six weeks after the Pantheon had closed I received from Mr. Monro a. letter, stating that he was authorised by Mr. Mason to engage me at 30s. a-week. This unexpected burst of good fortune was hailed by me with grateful enthusiasm, as I felt it would give me an opportunity to make my way onward as an artist. An incident occurred at this time which I may as well mention. A week previous to my receiving this offer from Mr. Mason, I had obtained permission to study in the Trustees’ Academy, of which Andrew Wilson was then the master, and during that week 1 had only copied two heads. E 14 LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. [1819. Mr. Wilson was wont to claim me for his pupil, and I always re¬ membered one of his remarks on one of the two drawings I made in his school. I thought I drew well in outline, and was proud of doing so. ‘Ah!’ said Mr. Wilson, ‘in nature there are no outlines.’ I never forgot this remark. I had been for some time unwell, and on my journey to Glasgow became so ill that I had difficulty in finding my way to a lodging. Here I remained for some time in a high state of fever, and without a friend. A doctor attended me, who, unlike the great majority of his brethren, had little compassion for my poverty, and complacently relieved me of my last shilling ; for when I experienced joy at the hope of being- able to leave my bed, and told him that my first study would be to call on him and settle his bill—‘ Why,’ he said, ‘ it is only 30s., and you must pay it now.’ It was all I had in the world, so I emptied my purse into his hand, and wrote to my dear mother for a little money, which was forwarded me without delay. This was the only pecuniary assistance I ever asked or received. In the meantime my friend Monro, who had now heard of my illness, lost no time in visiting me, and brought with him Dr. M‘Leay, father of my friend, the eminent miniature-painter, Kenneth M £ Leay, R.S.A., who was the very reverse of him who had taken from me my last shilling. Thank God, I had it in my power afterwards, in London, to make this excellent man some return for his kindness. I thus commenced my career as principal scene-painter in the Theatre Royal, Glasgow. This theatre was immense in its size and appointments, in magnitude exceeding Drury Lane and Covent Garden. The stock scenery had been painted by Alexander Nasmyth and his family, and consisted of a series of pictures, far surpassing anything of the kind 1 had ever seen. These included chambers, palaces, streets, landscapes, forest scenery, etc. One, I remember particularly, was the outside of a Norman castle, and another a cottage, charmingly painted, of which I have a sketch. But the act-scene, which was a view on the Clyde, looking towards the Highland mountains, with Dumbarton Castle in the middle distance, was such a combination of magnificent scenery, so wonder¬ fully painted, that it excited universal admiration. These productions 1 studied incessantly, and on them my style, if I have any, was originally LIFE OF DAVID HO BE RTS. 15 1819.] formed. Talking of styles, by the way, I may here introduce a little anecdote, related to me by Stanfield, whose acquaintance and friendship I afterwards made in Edinburgh. Stanny had shown his sketch-book to the veteran Nasmyth, and told him that he wished to form a style of his own. ‘ My young friend,’ exclaimed the experienced artist, ‘ there is but one style an artist should endeavour to attain, and that is the style of nature. The nearer you get to her the better.’ During my stay in Glasgow I saw all the leading London actors—Miss Stephens, Miss O’Neil, Mrs. Davidson, Clara Fisher, Kean, Macready, Farren, Dowten, etc. Sheridan Knowles then resided in Glasgow, and I painted the scenery for his play of Virginius, which was first brought out at this theatre. I also painted the scenery for Rob Roy, the well- known Mackay playing the Bailie. Mr. Murray and his sister, Mrs. Henry Siddons, of the Theatre Royal, Edinburgh, came to play two nights, and Mr. Murray was so pleased with my scenery, that at his request Mr. Mason allowed me to go for a short time to Edinburgh, where I painted two scenes for the Heart of Midlothian, which met with general approval. One morning after my return from Edinburgh Mr. Mason came to me, and expressed in the warmest terms his deep obligations to me for the manner in which I had got up the scenery for so many pieces; and said, ‘ I am sorry that, notwithstanding all my exertions, the theatre is not paying, and it is not in my power to add to your salary ; but I have been thinking of a plan by which you may be equally well rewarded :—You know Edinburgh scenery well, and what is wanted for the Heart of Midlothian, and suppose you were to get up a series of new scenes, we will get Mackay through to play Dumbiedykes, bring out the drama, and you shall have the opening night for your benefit.’ This offer I at once closed with, and worked night and day to get this heavy undertaking completed. The scenes were numerous, and exceeded those at Drury Lane by a yard in height. Yet, to save expense to the management, I refused to have an assistant. The play had been very successful in Edinburgh, and painting the scenery of my native town had given me much pleasure. 1 expected that the opening night would yield me fortune, and the after-representations permanent fame. My astonishment may well be guessed when one morning, on my way 16 LIFE OF DA VID HUBERTS. 1820. to the theatre, I saw the walls covered with large placards, giving a list of the entire new scenery, painted by Roberts, regardless of expense, and stating that the first representation was to be given for the benefit of the manager Mr. Mason. This was a stunner, and you might have knocked me down with a straw. This gross act of injustice and ingrati- tude the manager attributed to his necessities. Notwithstanding this conduct on the part of Mason, I completed my engagement with him, and went with the company to Ayr and Dumfries.* This year, 1S20, I married; and having accepted the offer contained The following extracts from a letter by W. L. Leitch, the eminent artist, show how early Roberts had acquired artistic skill, and how his productions, when a scene- painter in Glasgow, had inspired Mr. Leitch with a love for the art in which he has now become so eminent:— Mr. Leitch, writing in 18SS, after Mr. Roberts’ death, says—‘ It is impossible to give any idea of the extraordinary effect the first productions I ever saw by Roberts had upon me, and nothing has ever weakened that effect. Whether it was chance, or fate, or providence, that made me familiar with these early works of my dear friend, it was a happy piece of good fortune. At first I was captivated by their beauty, and every succeeding year of my life has more and more convinced me that they had all the sterling qualities of true art. ‘The act-scene was the first thing I saw when, in 1819, for the first time, I entered Mason’s Theatre, Glasgow. I spent most of next day attempting to copy it from memory m distemper on a sheet of brown paper, and I have the most lively recollection at this moment of its leading features. My first introduction to Mr. Roberts was when I was fourteen years of age. I was an apprentice to Mr. Hubert, a house-painter, who worked for Mason, and was sent to the theatre with a small pot of colour, which I was in¬ structed to take to the stage-door. When I got there I told the doorkeeper that the paint was for Mr. Roberts, and must be delivered immediately. The dignitary, who was somewhat burly and gruff, said—‘ Hoot, laddie, just tak in the parcel yourseT ; your legs are fitter to carry you than mine are. You’ll find Mr. Roberts in the pentin-room at the vera tap o’ the house.’ Accordingly, after passing through a mysterious confusion of dark labyrinths, ascending stair after stair, and trudging along a platform surrounded by quantities of unearthly-looking machinery, I at last reached a place where on a monstrous frame was stretched a sheet of canvas like the mainsail of a ship, m front of which stood Roberts busy painting. I recollect his asking me some ques¬ tions, of my telling him who and what I was, and of his saying some kind things to me. ‘ 1,1 1824 1 was engaged as scene-painter in the same theatre, and began to study the works of Roberts with deep interest, and found that, especially in architectural scenes, the simple beauty of his outline, combined with the masses of light and shade, gave them a grand and most impressive effect; and it is impossible for me to say how much good I received from their excellent teaching.’ LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. 17 1820.] ill the following letter from Mr. Murray of the Theatre Royal, Edin¬ burgh, I sent my wife to reside with my parents, while I went with the company to Ayr and Dumfries. ‘ Edinburgh, July 17, 1820. ‘ Sir,—You appear to have misunderstood the terms of my last letter, as I think it is there stated that your employment will be con¬ stant. If you like to find your own colour-boy * the salary will be £2 ; but pray answer this by return, as the last offer I made exceeds what Pyett would return for, and we are anxious to decide.—Yours, ‘ W. H. Mubray. ‘ Mr. David Roberts, Artist, Theatre Royal, Glasgow.’ To this note T returned the following answer:— ‘ Theatre Royal, Glasgow, July 18, 1820. 1 Sir,—I have this moment been favoured with your reply to my last, and close with the offer made therein. You will be good enough to favour me with fourteen days’ notice previous to the time you will require my services, and you may rely on my punctual attendance.— Yours, David Roberts. ' W. H. Murray, Esq., Theatre Royal., Edinburgh.’ At Ayr, during leisure hours, my principal places of resort were Alloway’s auld haunted kirk, and the banks and braes o’ bonny Doom I made drawings of the Auld and New Brigs, the Wallace Tower, Burns’ Cottage, the Brig 0 ’ Doon, etc. etc. After a short season here we left for Dumfries, walking the distance, as we had previously done from Glasgow to Ayr. Players are proverbially happy, and we were particularly so during these walking excursions, notwithstanding our poverty, for we had not for weeks been paid our salaries ; and here let me record an incident which illustrates the generosity of Edmund Kean. * In the autumn of 1822 I had the honour of being colour-boy to Mr. Roberts in the Theatre Royal, Edinburgh. I had just entered on my apprenticeship as an ornamental house-painter with the person who executed the painting work of the theatre, and supplied colour for the scenes; and having evinced some aptitude for art, I was selected as likely to be useful to Mr. Roberts.—J. B. E 18 LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. [1820. That celebrated actor had entered into an engagement with Mason to play three weeks in Glasgow, Ayr, and Dumfries, agreeing to take half the receipts. Kean was much attached to Mason ; and having been deputed to present him with a very elegant silver snuff-box, subscribed for by the company, addressed him thus:—‘ Now, Mason, I know that you have laboured under great disadvantages in the management of the Glasgow Theatre. The money due to me’ (amounting to £700 or £800) ‘ I am in no hurry for; and being anxious to promote your success, if you give me your bills for it at four and six months, it will satisfy me, and may benefit you.’ This offer of course the manager readily accepted, took the Belfast and other theatres in Ireland, lost all lie had, left his company without a penny, and Kean’s bills unpaid. I started from Dumfries for Edinburgh one fine autumnal morning, minus many weeks’ salary, and having little in my pocket, but with a heart buoyant with hope. My traps were easily carried, and after walking twelve miles, I breakfasted at a cottage on the roadside, for which I paid a shilling. This lasted me all day; and after crossing the Moffat hills—a romantic and wild mountainous district—■I reached in the evening a small inn called the Bield, thirty-six miles from Dumfries. Next morning I started very early, breakfasted at an inn called Noble House, and by midday reached Edinburgh, having walked seventy odd miles in a day and a half. I entered on my duties as scene-painter in the Theatre Royal, Edin¬ burgh, in October 1820, and do not recollect anything worthy of being noted, save that in the following summer I painted scenery for the second part of Henry IV., in which the ceremony of the corona¬ tion of George IV. was to be introduced. During this period the minor theatre called the Pantheon was opened with a very powerful company, under the management of Mr. William Barrymore, and Mr. Stanfield came as their scene-painter. He had a letter to me from his father, whom I had known as an actor in Glasgow, and called on me at the Theatre Royal, where we met for the first time. We soon became fast and true friends, and the sceneiy he produced at the rival theatre astonished and delighted me, as it did everybody else. I profited much bv the works and conversation of my new friend : for Stanfield had not i 8 jti.] LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. 19 only seen the best specimens of scene-painting in London, but knew personally many of the leading artists of the day. In addition to his scenes he painted pictures in oil, several of which appeared in the Edinburgh Exhibition of 1821 ; and at his suggestion I had painted and sent one there, which was rejected, while those of my companion were the talk of the town. I had, however, previously braved too many hardships to be easily frightened, and I went on painting on a small scale, which I found of immense advantage to me as a scene- painter, in teaching me composition, light and shadow, and, above all, aerial perspective. I sent three pictures to the Exhibition of the follow¬ ing year, and on the opening of the rooms was astonished to find that they were all hung, and two of them were sold at 50s. each—one to Baron Clerk-Rattray, and the other to James Stewart of Dunearn. My hopes from this time began to brighten; and many a night, after my hard day’s work at the theatre, did I light my lamp and paint till midnight. During the recess of the theatre I made an excursion to Melrose, walking there and back, and made a number of sketches of Melrose and Dryburgh Abbeys, which have been of great service to me. Mr. William Barrymore, well known as the getter-up of spectacles and pantomimes at Drury Lane, was engaged by Mr. Murray to bring out a Christmas pantomime this year, the scenery for which I painted. He was so pleased with my productions that he advised me to try my fortune in London, and promised to recommend me to some of the managers there, but I felt little inclination to leave Edinburgh. I had furnished a snug little house from my earnings, consisting of 37s. 6d. per week from Mr. Murray (for I paid 2s. 6d. a-week for my colour-boy off the 40s. I received), and the price of an occasional picture or transparent window- blind, which I painted and sold cheap. Thus, being very comfortable, and knowing that the artists engaged as 'scene-painters in the capital must be men of very high talent, I felt that 1 had little chance, when Stanfield, so immeasurably my superior, was only painter in Astley’s, a minor house. There was at this time in Edinburgh an actor named Alexander, who played the character of Radcliffe in the Heart of Midlothian, and made a great point in the play. Murray and he quarrelled ; and lie, being 20 LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. anxious to try his fortune as a manager, had taken the minor theatre in Glasgow, but had neither properties nor scenery. The latter I under¬ took to paint for him, although I had to do the work at night, unknown to Murray. I painted half-a-dozen of the scenes in my house in the Canongate, and Alexander and his brother carried them on long barrels or rollers on their shoulders across the Calton Hill to the Convening Boom, whence they were removed to Glasgow. Alexander’s funds were low, and he offered me £5 or £6 on account; but I refused to accept it, and said to him—‘ Keep it, my dear fellow, till I want it. You will require all the money you can get till you have your theatre opened. You are sure to succeed, and if you do I know you will pay me liberally.’ We supped together, and drank success to the future manager, and he promised to pay me handsomely; but I left shortly thereafter for London, and never asked, nor did he offer, payment. He was very successful in Glasgow, and became proprietor of the Theatre Royal, which he rebuilt, and there amassed a con¬ siderable fortune. Note.— The following facsimiles are from Mr. Roberts’ journal, in which ho made pen-and-ink sketches of almost all the pictures he painted, and from which a number of others will he given in the course of the Avork.—J. B. :^v- !J2_1 • £ut«^ — /t-CsA rS'tn " • • Q y o / / / ~/~ , ... y s' • 7 if/ A / f/ f ‘+r-s n A •/!., / '' ^ ' / »/ Ur-At,^ 0 , /t _ ^ C> ^ /? *-*'*-' y $jjSty.Z*7,t*^ / U^'-C-C < ^ . rt.-/ •/ / x H\x- o^sj tP fivulituuk by Aa>utm.- ttoit- IhrfZva j cXz-to-0 'yU.i* JSuZUjjy "Syc^y ' ^ tliwlyuy fiA^ob OJL^. Ay Um-uju ySj^wl- <-[ UjUu*^ jt Z"’0'D CHAPTER II. Early in the year 1822 Mr. Murray sent me a letter stating that he would dispense with my services for three or four months in summer and autumn, and that if this should lead to my retirement from the theatre I would carry with me his best wishes. I was puzzled how to act on receipt of this unexpected and unwelcome announcement, when I suddenly recollected the promise of my friend Mr. Barrymore, and wrote him a letter, to which I received the following reply :— ‘ Royal Cobourg, August 4, 1822. £ My dear Sir,—I have had an interview with Mr. Elliston of Drury Lane, and recommended you as an artist worthy his notice. He requests me to say, if you are desirous of becoming a member of his establishment, he will be happy to hear from you immediately, stating terms, etc. At all events, if you feel inclined to visit London, either at his theatre or mine, we shall be happy to give you good employment.—Yours sincerely, ‘ Mr. I). Roberts. W. Barrymore.’ On receiving this note, I popped myself into a Leith smack for London, and was there as soon as any letter could have been. Barry¬ more received me cordially. Elliston was out of town, but his stage- manager, Houston, suggested that, until his return, I should assist a Mr. Andrews, who, with Marinari, was the principal painter there. This my friend Barrymore objected to, saying that I should paint my own scenes or none; and he suggested that, in the meantime, I should paint along with Stanfield one or two scenes for a piece called Guy Fawkes, to which I agreed, and my first efforts in London were in the G LIFE OF DAVID HUBERTS. ,s 2 > Cobourg Theatre. One scene was the vaults under the old House of Lords, the other a Gothic screen, long afterwards used as a stock scene in the theatre. On Elliston's return I agreed to paint two scenes—old and modern St. Paul’s—on trial, and while I remained with him was paid £i per week, that being the salary I had at the Cobourg. Meantime I felt a strong desire to return to Edinburgh, and wrote to Mr. Murray, asking if he would give me three guineas a-week, which I thought would be equal to the £i I got in London. To this he at once assented, stipu¬ lating that six weeks’ notice of parting should be given on either side. Elliston was astonished when he understood that I had engrafted to no back to Murray, and was determined honestly to fulfil my agreement. Elliston then proposed that I should go to Edinburgh and complete my six weeks’ engagement with Murray, after which I should enter into an arrangement with him on terms so liberal that I could not refuse. The following was the agreement:— ‘ Drury Lane Theatre, l'2th October 1822. ‘ Mr. Elliston agrees to engage David Roberts as a scene-painter at Drury Lane Theatre for the term of three years from the above date, at the weekly salary of five guineas for the first year, and six guineas for the last two years: And the said David Roberts agrees to engage with the said Mr. Elliston for the term and salary above mentioned : And it is further agreed that the said David Roberts shall have leave of absence from Drury Lane Theatre until the 1st of January 1823. ‘ David Roberts. ‘ R. W. Elliston.’ I returned to Edinburgh in October, and remained there till the end of the year, painting for Mr. Murray new scenery for the Christmas pantomime and what else he required that season. Early in January, having arranged all my affairs, I selected the best portions of my house¬ hold furniture, took leave of my dear father and mother, and many other friends, and sailed from Leith in a smack for London, where my wife and I arrived after a long and tedious passage of three weeks. This being a month behind the time at which I should have entered upon my engagement with Elliston, it was of course cancelled. 1S23-J LIFE OF DAVID HUBERTS. 23 On presenting myself at Drury Lane I learned that Elliston had written to Murray, requesting him to let me away in time for the panto¬ mime, and promising to let him have me double the time in summer; but Murray not having consented, Elliston had been obliged, at heavy expense, to bring up Nasmyth from Edinburgh to supply my place. 1 learned also that the proprietor of the Cobourg Theatre having fled from England, Stanfield and Marinari were installed in the painting-room of Drury Lane. Notwithstanding this, however, and although my engage¬ ment had been forfeited, I heard no grumbling or demur, so I com¬ menced operations at once for the next new pieces. I soon found out that Marinari had his choice of all architectural scenes, and knowing that in the other departments I had little or no chance with the great talent of Stanfield, I quietly resigned myself to my fate, which was to have the refuse of the others as my share. Here I found that having- been accustomed to dabble in all sorts of things at the Edinburgh Theatre was of great service to me, and I quietly worked on, striving to make indifferent subjects effective, until at last I contrived to win my¬ self a name. Stanfield soon got decidedly the lead of Marinari, and my name was generally associated with Stanfield’s in all the important new scenery. I was not so constantly employed at Drury Lane as to prevent my having some time to devote to painting pictures, and an event occurred at this period which induced me to pursue that branch of art more than 1 had hitherto done. During the winter of this year the Society of British Artists, who exhibited their pictures in the Suffolk Street Gallery, was formed. My friends John Wilson and Stanfield had joined the society, and, on their recommendation, I was admitted a member, chiefly because I painted architectural subjects. This association was much wanted at that time from the encouragement given to art and the rapid progress and success of its professors. The rooms of the Royal Academy at Somerset House were not large enough to contain the numerous pictures sent for exhibition, and the British Institution was exclusively under the direction of its members, the nobility and gentry, the artists having no voice or control whatever. The new society was to be conducted entirely by the artists themselves, among whom were Glover, 24 LIFE OF DAVIT) RUBE RTS. [1S24. Holland, Linton, Martin, Wilson, Stanfield, Hawkins, Nasmyth, and myself, painters; Ross and the two Hennings, sculptors; and Heath, Burnet, and Meyers, engravers. Nash undertook to build the rooms for £5000, and the yearly ground-rent was £300. Each member on entering was to pay £10, or more if he chose, and was to receive in¬ terest thereon. Other subscribers were invited, who were to be paid five per cent on their money. A number of the nobility and gentry gave handsome donations, so that we were able to pay Mr. Nash £1000 on taking possession. I may here, in a few words, state something of the early history of this society. By our laws all the offices were to be held by the members in rotation, but however well this might look in theory, it did not work well in practice; and in consequence of the inefficiency of some of the office-bearers the affairs of the society became confused; and this, coupled with a lawsuit into which we got with Nash, and which, after years of litigation, was decided against us, caused a number of the leading members to withdraw. After having given the matter mature consideration, and done all I could to extricate the Society from its difficulties, I also withdrew, paying the statutory fine of £100, and forfeiting the sums I had paid from time to time, amounting to about £50. In the spring of 1824 I exhibited, for the first time in London, a small picture at the British Institution. It was a view of £ Dryburgh Abbey/ and was afterwards engraved. This year I also sent two pic¬ tures to the opening Exhibition of the Suffolk Street Gallery—one the ‘ East Front ; and the other the ‘ South Transept of Melrose Cathedral.’ They were bought by Sir Felix Booth at twenty-five guineas each—a large sum of money to me at that time. During the vacation at Drury Lane I went to Edinburgh, and got up the scenery for Cherry and Fail’ Star—a piece that was highly success¬ ful. This year I accompanied my much-esteemed and talented friend, John Wilson, to France, where we visited Dieppe, Rouen, and Havre de Grace, when I made a series of drawings, from which I painted pictures that brought me both profit and fame. 1 afterwards went to Harris’s Theatre, Dublin, and, without any assistance whatever, painted for a new pantomime a series of fourteen views in as many days, for 1 82 5-] LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. 25 which I was paid £100. These were so successful, that I received offers from many of the leading towns in England to get up some¬ thing similar, which I was obliged to decline. During that autumn Stanfield and I painted a series of scenes for a moving panorama, illustrating the bombardment of Algiers by Lord Exmouth. These were executed for a Mr. Laidlaw, and were exhibited on the Continent. In the Suffolk Street Gallery I exhibited, in the spring of 1825, a picture of the ‘ West Front of Notre Dame, Rouen,’ which was pur¬ chased by Sir Felix Booth for eighty guineas. This picture was noticed in the Times as follows :—‘ The bold and masterly style in which this rich and beautiful specimen of Gothic architecture is executed places Mr. Roberts among the best who have excelled in similar productions. It is a feature in the arts of this country that may challenge compe¬ tition, both in drawing and painting, with the highest of our Continental neighbours.’ This picture also led to the following letter from one of the earliest and kindest of my patrons, Lord Northwick, whose knowledge and love of art were equal to the generosity with which he fostered and encour¬ aged it:— ‘ 2 Connaught Place, April 30, 1825. ‘ Lord Northwick writes under the cover of an enclosure to Mr. Stanfield, to say how much he has been pleased with Mr. D. Roberts’ admirable picture of ‘ Notre Dame de Rouen,’ and that the oftener he has seen it the more gratification it has afforded him, and that he has found it more and more attractive every time he has visited the gallery. Indeed, he likes the picture so well, that he should be glad to have one painted for him of the same size (and if Mr. Roberts could vary it to his own satisfaction) of the same cathedral, for one of the Exhibitions next year. He has also proposed that Mr. Stanfield should paint him a com¬ panion picture of the same size ; and Lord N. proposes, if both accept the commission, that the two picturef'be exhibited together next season. ‘ Lord N. would be glad of the favour of a line from Mr. Roberts, and desires that he will name the price that he shall expect for his picture, which he begs may be proportioned to the time and labour he may feel inclined to bestow upon it, in order to make it a highly-finished H LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. production, and creditable to the talents Mr. Roberts lias already evinced.’ I also exhibited ‘ Entrance to the Church of St. Maclou, Rouen,’ and ‘ South Transept of the Cathedral, Rouen,’ which were purchased by Michael Angelo Taylor, M.P., at twenty-five guineas each ; also a small picture of the ‘Lady Chapel of St. Jacques, Dieppe,’ purchased by W. Robins, Esq., for twelve guineas. In Somerset House I exhibited in 1826 4 Exterior of Rouen Cathe¬ dral,’ and in the British Institution ‘Chancel of the Church of St. Jacques at Dieppe,’ both of which were painted for Lord North wick. The price of the first I had fixed at £80, and the second at £60; but his Lordship was so pleased with the pictures, that he presented me with £200, being £60 more than the price fixed. This was felt by me as being so noble and generous, that it made an impression on me which time has never effaced. His Lordship also sent the following very kind letter— 4 Northwick Park , February 4, 1826. 4 Dear Sir,—I was agreeably surprised to find that your picture of the 4 Interior of St. Jacques, Dieppe,’ is exhibiting at the British Institu¬ tion, and that justice has been done to it by giving it an advantageous situation, where it has met with such well-merited praise. I esteem myself fortunate in being the possessor of this much-admired picture ; and I trust that your success on this occasion will be an encouragement to you to devote more of your time in future to this most attractive style of painting, on which your fame as an artist will hereafter event¬ ually depend; and that both the British Gallery and the Royal Academy will more frequently than heretofore be enriched by the exhibition of your pictures, in both of which places works of sterling merit are sure to be justly appreciated. Northwick.’ In the same year I also exhibited in Suffolk Street 4 The Interior of St. Genevieve at Paris,’ which was bought by the Duke of Sutherland, then Marquis of Stafford, for eighty guineas; also the 4 Rue de Change, Rouen,’ purchased by Hodgson, of Hodgson and Graves, for £30; and 4 Exterior of the Church of St. Jacques at Dieppe,’ bought by Beckford, 1826 .] LIFE OF-1JAV1D ROBERTS. 27 of Fonthill Abbey, for fifty guineas. The Times, in reviewing these works, says:—‘ Roberts, whose pencil seems to acquire force and beauty in every new picture, has two street views—one in Rouen, another in Dieppe, which are as true as nature itself. The latter is particularly remarkable for the effect of sunlight and shade. In the * Church of St. Genevieve at Paris’ he has been equally successful.’ This autumn I left Drury Lane, and transferred my services to Co vent Garden, the proprietor of which agreed to pay me £10 per week for working six hours a-day. When I entered on this engagement 1 commenced a series of scenes for a new opera called the Seraglio,—the views consisting of seventeen scenes, with wings, borders, set-scenes, etc. These were entirely painted by me without any assistance, a feat unpre¬ cedented in the annals of scene-painting. I was occupied nearly eighteen months on this work, and the piece was produced with great success in December 1827. The following quotations show how the work was noticed :—‘ The whole of the scenery has been painted by Roberts. This was a stupendous task for one person, but it has been performed in a manner which stamps that individual as a genius of 110 common power. We cannot imagine anything more beautiful than the opening scene, the ‘ Temple of Bacchus at sunrise.’ The * Barras Palace and Canal, with the approach to the Gondola,’ also forms a gorgeous picture,’ etc. etc.— Times . * The scenery is, without exception, the most beauti¬ ful we have ever seen exhibited in a theatre, comprising a succession of the richest classic pictures which could be imagined as belonging to a Greek island adorned with the noblest remains of ancient art, and shown in the most delicious lights that ever were by sea or land. It is entirely painted by Roberts, whom Drury Lane has lost, and who on this occasion has certainly left even Stanfield behind him .’—The New Monthly Magazine. In 1827 I painted two small pictures for Mr. Colnaghi—viz. ‘En¬ trance to the Church of St. Germains, Amiens,’ and * Interior of the Choir of York Minster.’ I also painted for Robert Vernon the ‘ Marche au Bl’e at Abbeville,’ which was exhibited in the British Institution, and for it he paid me sixty guineas. I also had in the same exhibition 28 LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. [ 1827 . ‘ Part of the Hotel de Ville at Louvain,’ purchased by Sir Francis Freeling for forty guineas ; and ‘ Interior of the Church of St. Gudule, Brussels, with its oaken pulpit-,’ purchased by a dealer. In the Suffolk Street Gallery was a picture by me of ‘ Roslin Chapel,’ which was purchased by Lord Carysfort for fifty guineas; as also at the Exhibition the 1 Shrine of Edward the Confessor at Westminster Abbey,’ and 'Antwerp Cathedral,’ both of which were purchased by Lord Northwick. The price I asked for the first was sixty guineas; his Lordship paid me eighty. For the second, which was the largest picture I had painted, my charge was one hundred and twenty guineas; his Lordship generously presented me with a cheque for one hundred and fifty, saying—' You cannot live by painting at your prices; accept mine/ * In the autumn of this year Stanfield and I painted four pictures, each 27 feet high by 38 feet wide, for a Mr. Hamlet. The subjects were—‘St. George’s Chapel, Windsor,’ the ‘Ruins of Tintern Abbey,' the ‘ Kent East Indiaman on fire,’ and a ‘ View of the Lago Maggiore.’’ They were exhibited early in the following year in the Royal Bazaar, Oxford Street, now the Princess’ Theatre, and wo received £800 for the four pictures. The exhibition was very successful. In this year the first exhibition of the Royal Scottish Academy took place, and as Mr. Roberts was always a warm and steady supporter of that institution, year after year sending his works to the exhibitions, and presenting to it his magnificent picture of ' Rome,’ the following ac¬ count of its origin has been deemed necessary here. I 11 1819 an Institution for the Encouragement of the Fine Arts in Scotland had been established in Edinburgh, and the management of its affairs was vested in directors chosen from among the subscribers. No artist was eligible to be elected on any committee, or of voting as a governor, while he continued a professional artist. The exhibitions were at first confined to the works of the ancient masters, * Facsimile pen-and-ink sketch of this picture given at end of Chapter II. 1827 .] LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. 29 but were afterwards extended to those of living artists. In 1824 the directors proposed to associate a limited number of artists with the institution, but these were not to have the power to vote and take part in its immediate manage¬ ment; and although the exhibition of their works consti¬ tuted the principal source of revenue, the exhibitors were not permitted to exercise the slightest control over the application of the funds. Sir Henry Raeburn had written to the directors of the institution protesting against this, and proposing the establishment of an Academy in Edin¬ burgh similar to the Royal Academy in London ; but his lamented death deprived the scheme of the benefit of his powerful influence, and it was only after various unsuc¬ cessful attempts had been made to get the directors of the institution to countenance this project, that the artists of Scotland formed themselves into an association under the name of the Scottish Academy of Painting, Sculpture, and Architecture—a national institution of which every Scotch¬ man is justly proud. The following letter from the eminent decorative painter David Ramsay Hay, the fellow-apprentice and devoted friend through life of David Roberts, will be read with interest, as it explains very clearly the motives of the originators of the Scottish Academy :— ‘ Edinburgh, January 9, 1827. ‘ My clear Roberts,—Annexed you will find a communication from the Scottish Academy, of which you most likely have already heard. This is their first exhibition, and they are particularly anxious it should be a good one; and I am sure that were you aware of all the circum¬ stances connected with this institution you would be amongst its warmest supporters. Their views are to place the Scottish artists on as independent a footing as those of the sister kingdom, and to let them have the management of their own concerns—a privilege they 1 ' M LIFE OF DAVID HUBERTS. [ 1827 . Imve not hitherto enjoyed. I am quite certain this will harmonise with your views in these matters, and therefore calculate on the pleasure of seeing some of your productions at their exhibition. Sir Thomas Lawrence and Mr. Peel are warmly interested in their favour, and are kindly using then- exertions for a royal charter.—Your affectionate D. Ramsay TTay.’ Roberts replies as follows:— ' 18 Mount Street, Lambeth, Hogmanay 182V. ' My dear Friend,—While I write you my mind is in Auld Reekie, thinking of the jolly manner in which you are finishing the old year, and the jovial welcome you are giving the new. I should like again to see a new year’s morning in Edinburgh. All is dull here to-night; but I shall have a few friends to dinner to-morrow, and the toast ‘ absent friends’ shall not be forgotten. ‘ Stanfield and I are now engaged on a panorama, so that I do not expect to be able to exhibit a picture here this season, but I have one on the easel which I hope to have ready for the Scottish Academy. Please let me know, per return, the latest day on which it can be received. I have also a picture, which has already been exhibited in London, which 1 promised Mr. Allan to send to the Royal Institution in Edinburgh. Now, my dear friend, you must not say I blow hot and cold with the same breath, for although I by no means approve of the management of the Institution, I cannot attach myself to either party exclusively; and my word having been pledged to Mr. Allan as well as to you, I must either send to both or to neither. D. Roberts.’ I 11 1828 I exhibited in the Suffolk Street Gallery ‘ Tower of the Church of St. Rumbold, Mechlin,’ bought by the Duke of Bedford for twenty-five guineas ; a ‘ View of Abbeville,’ purchased by the Marquis of Lansdowne for twenty-five guineas; ‘ Church of St. Wulfran, Abbe¬ ville,’ for Mr. Buchan, Southampton, price £40; and ‘ Entrance to a Church,’ for Mr. Westmacott, price eight guineas. I also painted ‘ Bar- gate, Southampton,’ for Mr. Buchan, price fifteen guineas; and the ‘ Town- Hall of Louvain,’ sold to Mr. Wells of Redleaf for twenty guineas; also a duplicate of the ‘ Tower of St. Rumbold,’ for twenty-five guineas. 1829 ] LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. 31 1 painted for the Christmas pantomime at Covent Garden a series of many scenes representing the naval victory at Navarino. A voyage to Gibraltar was first shown, then the Archipelago, and finally the battle. I also painted a new drop-scene of a monument supposed to be erected in the metropolis in honour of our great dramatic poet. This represented a temple, with a statue of Shakespeare in the centre, supported by Thalia and Melpomene; around were ranged the other muses, and the dome and campanile tower of St. Paul s were seen in the back¬ ground. Many were the commendations bestowed by the public journals on these productions, and in noticing the drop-scene the New Times concludes a commendatory notice as follows :—‘ The effect is actually magical. The edifice appears to form a fourth side of the theatre, with which it harmonises perfectly in tone and colour, and one feels disposed to imagine he can walk right through the canvas.’ I may here mention that for the purpose of having the harmony between the drop-curtain and the other parts of the theatre complete, the decoration and painting of the audience department were done under my superintendence. In the spring of 1829 I painted for my kind patron Lord Northwick ‘ Chapel of the Virgin in the Church of St. Pierre, at Caen,’ for which he paid me eighty guineas; a small picture of the ‘ Church of St. Eemy at Amiens’ for Mr. Samuel; and the ‘ Town-Hall of Louvain, all of which were exhibited in the Suffolk Street Gallery. I also fulfilled my promise, and sent two pictures to the exhibitions in my native city—a duplicate of the ‘ Chapel of St. Jacques at Dieppe’ to the Scottish Academy, and a repeat of £ Antwerp Cathedral’ to the Royal Institution. The first of these was purchased by Mr. Trotter, Lord Provost of the City, the other by a Mr. Gritton. These pictures, which were the first Mr. Roberts had sent to Edinburgh since leaving his native city, were much praised by the press; and among other laudatory letters was one from his friend Mr. Hay about ‘ Antwerp Cathe¬ dral,’ from which the following is an extract :— 32 [ 1829 . LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. ‘ No wouder that ll i= nobility of England will scarcely allow a picture of yours to come to poor Scotland, but I trust that some of our neb nobs will prevent those works which have at last reached us from returning. I own I was prepared to see something very fine, but could form no idea that in so short a time you could have reached such per¬ fection. There is such Rembrandt depth and clearness in your shade, such sparkling brilliancy in your lights, such delightful management in the chiaroscuro, and such exquisite perfection, that it gives me an idea of looking on reality through a diminisliing-glass. There is one excellence which I do not recollect ever having seen in any picture of the kind before,—I mean the aerial effect you have given to the upper part of the spire. It makes the illusion complete.’ The following letter from Mr. William Nicholson, the first secretary of the Scottish Academy, shows the pro¬ gress that association was making in public estimation :— 1 Scottish Academy, Waterloo Place, 1st May 1829. ‘ Dear Sir,—At the time I received your letter of the 14th April we were so engaged preparing for our first Academy dinner that I had not time to answer it, or to thank you for the liberal contribution to the funds of the Academy, by which it was accompanied. You will, no doubt, have received the newspaper containing an account of our dinner, which, I can assure you, went off with great eclat, and has made a very powerful impression on all who were present, as well as the public at large. “ The members of the Scottish Academy have had a severe struggle for the independence of their profession, but I am happy to say that the public are beginning to be sensible of their claims, and are coming for¬ ward with then- support. The influence and prejudice against us is much weakened, whilst the favour of Lord Hopetoun and other in¬ fluential characters has completely paralysed the attempts of those -who wished to crush us. ‘ The artists who clung to the Institution are at last ashamed of the connection, and have thrown off their allegiance, but without any settled plan what to do. In the meantime we go steadily on gaining friends LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. 33 1829 .] according as our views begin to be understood. With the best thanks of the members, who are deeply impressed with a sense of your liberality, I remain, etc. Wm. Nicholson. * David Roberts , Esq! During this summer I painted the ‘ Town-Hall of Ghent’ and the ‘ Church of St. Maclou at Rouen’ for J. Pickering Ord, Esquire—the price sixty guineas. I also painted a small picture of * Hindoo Archi¬ tecture’ for Captain Grindly, and a duplicate of the ‘ Church of St. Rumbold’ for Lord Flamborough—the price of the first being twenty, the second fifty guineas. In the latter end of June I accompanied Mr. Watson and Mr. Shields of Edinburgh, and my attached friend Mr. Alexander Fraser, to Paris, which tour occupied us fully a month. On our return, Mr. Fraser and I went to Scotland, and visited Falkland, St. Andrews, Stirling, Lochlomond, Inverary, Staffa, and Iona, where I made numerous sketches, returning to London by Glasgow and Edinburgh. I painted, along with Stanfield, a second series of dioramic views for the Queen’s Bazaar, Oxford Street, which promised to be as popular as their predecessors; but the premises took fire shortly after the opening, and the pictures, as well as those of the preceding years, were burned. This series consisted of four views—the ‘ City of York, with the Minster on fire’ and the ‘ Entrance to the Village of Virex, in Italy,’ by Stan¬ field ; and the £ Temple of Apollonopolis ’ and the ‘ Interior of St. Sauveur, in Caen,’ by me. For these we received £800. I also painted for the Christmas pantomime at Covent Garden some views representing the march of the Grand Russian Army to Turkey. This year I also painted the historical picture of the ‘Israelites leaving Egypt,’ which was exhibited in the Suffolk Street Gallery much against the wish and advice of Lord Northwick, for whom it was painted, as will be seen by the following extract from his letter :— ‘ Your engagements with the Suffolk Street Gallery are unknown to me. I think you have at all times deserved well of that institution in having so largely contributed to their exhibitions, and that it would be unworthy and unjust in them to exact from you any stipulation that might operate to your prejudice, and that on the present occasion having K 3 i LIFE OF DAVIE ROBERTS. L ,82 9 painted a picture of a character superior to any of your former pro¬ ductions, drawn entirely from the resources of your or™ mind, and on which both you and your friends confidently rely as on a work that is to establish your fame in a totally new career, which you will from this time have open before you, as a young man, I think it both due to yourself and to your family to pursue that course which will lead most to your advantage ; and as your sincere friend (putting aside any influence I may be supposed to have in having commissioned the picture), I am bound to tell you that it would be more for your interest to send it to the Royal Academy, where its merits would be more ex¬ tensively appreciated, and might secure for you the highest patronage in the kingdom, than to Suffolk Street, where it would probably be (as several of your pictures have already been) overlooked or but slightly regarded, and that by a limited number of visitors. Be persuaded, my young friend, that it is your interest only that I have sincerely at heart in giving you this advice, and I shall make no apology or attempt to justify this well-intended interference, but leave it with you to deter¬ mine what course you will pursue.—Your friend, Northwick.’ I regret to say that I did not follow his Lordship’s kind and sensible advice. The picture was highly praised by the public journals. The Morning Journal said :—' The Egyptian architecture is splendid in the extreme. The tens of thousands of the chosen people depart from the house of bondage arrayed in the borrowed jewels of their masters, who gaze on them with fear and anxiety from the hanging gardens of their rich palaces. It is impossible to look on this work without the deepest interest. In conception and execution it is without a rival in this department of art. The perspective, the distant effect of scene, and the eternal pyramids wrapt in the mist of the morning, are painted with the utmost delicacy and care.’ In the spring of 1830 I exhibited at Suffolk Street ‘ Church of St. Pierre, Caen,’ bought by W. Wells of Redleaf for eighty guineas; ‘ Chapel of the Virgin, in Church of St. Pierre, Caen,’ for James Pickering Ord, price eighty guineas; ‘ Ruins of the Monastery of Greyfriars, St. Andrews,’ purchased by Mr. Walker for twenty guineas; and ‘ Ruins of 1830. LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. 35 the Cathedral Church of St. Rule, St. Andrews,’ sold to Mr. Redfern of Warwick for twenty-five guineas. I exhibited at Somerset House the ‘ Shrine,’ a composition which was badly placed. It was afterwards sold to Mr. Gritton, and ultimately passed into the possession of the Marquis of Lansdowne. I painted small pictures of ‘ Church of St. Pierre, Caen,’ and ‘ South Transept of Rouen Cathedral,’ for my worthy friend Childe, the painter; as also c Church of St. Lawrence, Rotterdam,’ and Castle of Nuremberg,’ the first of which I presented to my old fellow-apprentice D. R. Hay, and the second to my old employer Mr. John Jackson of Edinburgh. This summer I visited the Rhine, with the intention of going to Strasburg, but while at Cologne the news arrived of the Three Days’ Revolution, and the massacre of the Swiss Guard, and I returned to England. After my return I painted a new drop-scene for the Edin¬ burgh Theatre Royal, consisting of a Gothic foreground, -with Edin¬ burgh in the distance. This was very favourably received, and a letter from my friend Hay, from which I extract the following passage, gratified me exceedingly :—‘ Your drop-scene was received with a loud and long peal of applause, which it richly deserved. You have really made it a masterpiece. I had no idea that such a picture could be produced in size-colour. It is a thousand pities it is not done in some more permanent material. The sky is the finest I have ever seen painted, and the illusion of the architecture is so complete, that I never can believe myself to be looking on a flat surface; while the manner in which you have managed the light and shadow, and relieved the centre group, are excellences which cannot be sufficiently admired.’ This year I painted three scenes for the Christmas pantomime at Covent Garden, and these were the last I painted for this theatre. I also received a commission from the Marquis of Stafford to paint the grand staircase at Stafford House, which I was very proud of, and the view of which I find described in a letter written to Hay:—‘ The grand staircase is lit from the top. The lantern is supported by immense bronze caryatides. The staircase is square, and a magnificent corridor runs round three sides of it, the soffits of which are supported by Corinthian columns, the pedestals of which are connected by massive 36 LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. [1830. balustrades. The height of the staircase is about 100 feet, and the walls, pillars, etc., are of the richest marbles. Fancy this lighted up, as I saw it the other evening, with 400 people present in the richest dresses, and you may form some idea of the splendour of the scene.’ This year Mr. Roberts’ picture of the ‘ Departure of the Israelites from Egypt,’ belonging to Lord Northwick, was exhibited in the Scottish Academy. The following note from the secretary shows how it was appreciated:— ‘ Edinburgh, 13 th July 1830. ‘ dear Roberts,—Your picture, in the most perfect condition, arrived at ten o’clock this morning, and our exhibition opened to-day. It is a beautiful picture, and commands general admiration ; and who should be sitting in the room listening with heartfelt delight to that admiration but your little daughter, who, I can assure you, seemed to exult in the general satisfaction it gave as much as any one. ‘ Wm. Nicholson.’ This year Roberts was elected President of the Society of British Artists in Suffolk Street, and exerted himself to the utmost to get his artist friends in Scotland to contribute to the exhibition. George Harvey sent his famous picture of the Covenanters, Watson Gordon three portraits, and Ewebank and Williams each two landscapes. The following- letter was sent Roberts by his kind friend Lord Northwick on the occasion:— ‘ Northwick Park , March 2, 1831. ‘ I)ear Sir —I congratulate you on the well-merited distinction shown to you by the members of your gallery in electing you their president. I should (in the language of King Richard to the Lord Mayor in pre¬ senting a city address) lament that your honours, like those of his Lordship, were by custom from year to year only. ‘ I am gratified by your anticipation of the brilliant exhibition I am to expect under your auspices. If your five or six pictures are all as i S 3 i ] LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. 37 much admired as the one you sent to the British Institution, I am sure that the English artists, with a view to their own fame, would proclaim you president for life.—Yours, etc. Northwtck.' The following letter gives a graphic account of the pre¬ sidential dinner:— ‘ My dear Hay,—A newspaper w'as sent you containing an account of our annual dinner and the speech of the ‘ worthy president.’ Pray don’t laugh at it. No one knows what qualities he possesses till he is called on, and this was the case with me it seems, for I was eloquent without knowing it. I am happy to say that all went off with great eclat, and what we wanted in eloquence we made up in jollity. Our exhibition this year is better than ever, and I have reason to believe that our receipts will be equally good, and that I shall have the satisfaction of retiring from office with the consciousness of having discharged my duties in a manner beneficial to the society. D. Roberts.’ Harvey’s picture of the ‘Covenanters,’ which first stamped that artist as a great historical painter, and was afterwards engraved, and became, as it still continues, universally popu¬ lar, having been exhibited in the Suffolk Street Gallery during the year Mr. Roberts was president, the following extracts from letters by Mr. Harvey are given:— 1 Some of my friends here have suggested that I should endeavour to have the picture engraved. In compliance with their request I opened a subscription-list towards the conclusion of the exhibition here, and the accompanying duplicate list of names is the result. If it is not incon¬ sistent with the rules of your institution, I should like if you could allow the subscription-book to lie with the clerk, and either state in the catalogue or on a small card on the frame that it is proposed to have the picture engraved.’ ‘ I feel extremely obliged by the kindness you have shown in taking so much trouble about the engraving. I am bound, you will see by my L 38 LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. 1831. prospectus, to have it done in the very best manner; and if Mr. Bromly will, in your opinion, bear me out, as he is employed by Mr. Grieve, I would just as soon have it done by him as any other, and if you think proper you can say so. With regard to the expense, I anticipated that it would cost as much as you have stated, but am much obliged by Mr. Grieve’s information on that point. ' I shall endeavour next year to send you my picture of the ‘ Baptism,’ now exhibiting in the Academy here, if you will be as kind to it as you have to its predecessor. The good folks here capable of appreciating Tam O’Shanter’s stockings, etc., think it better than the picture you have now exhibiting.’ This year the Garrick Club was originated, and in com¬ pliance with the following invitation Mr. Roberts became a member, and continued so during life :— Theatre Royal , Drury Lane. ‘ Sir >—b being the intention of the noblemen and gentlemen whose names I have the honour to enclose, in conjunction with many others, to establish a dramatic club in the neighbourhood of the theatre, upon such a principle as may best suit the convenience of the members, and tend to the regeneration of the drama, I am desired by the committee to request to know whether you would wish your name to be inserted among the number of those members who will be elected without ballot. An immediate answer will oblige, Sir, your obedient servant, 1 33 Charles Street, Covent Garden , ,J. Winston £ 19 th August 1831. ‘ P.S .—No expense whatever will be incurred unless the Club can be carried completely into effect. 1 His Koyal Highness the Duke of Sussex. The Marquis of Worcester. Lord Saltoun. Lord Glengall. Lord Castlereagh. Sir Andw. Barnard. Capt. Polhill. Lord Clanricarde. Lord Mulgrave. S. J. Arnold, Esq. John Murray, Esq.’ LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. 39 1831.] Roberts’ very dear and mucli-attaclied friend Patrick Nasmyth died this year in Hercules Buildings, Lambeth, and the following twelve resident Scottish artists erected a stone to his memory in Lambeth New Churchyard :— Anthony Stewart, John Wilson, Andrew Geddes, Andrew Robertson, Clarkson Stanfield, John Burnett, Robert Edmonstone, William Kidd, David Wilkie, James Stewart, Alexander Fraser, David Roberts. The following letter from Alexander Nasmyth, the father of the artist, and who may be said to have been the father of the Scottish school of landscape-painting, will show how Mr. Roberts’ exertions on this occasion were appreciated by the Nasmyth family :— ‘ 47 York Place, Edinburgh, September 19, 1831. ‘ My dear Friend,—Your most active and excellent assistance in doing everything in my absence requisite in consequence of the lamented death of my eldest son Patrick, has placed me and my family under obligations which it is out of our power ever to repay. I am fully informed of the kind intentions of you and liis artistic friends to put up a stone as a memorial of how his great talents were appreciated by those best qualified to form a correct opinion, and shall be obliged by your allowing me and my family to contribute our share. I hope you will inform your friends of my high sense of their kindness; and with Mrs. Nasmyth and my family’s kindest remembrances, and every wish for your health and prosperity, I remain, my dear friend, yours most sincerely, Alex. Nasmyth.’ This year I exhibited in Suffolk Street 1 Grand Entrance to Rouen Cathedral,’ 6 feet by 5 feet, but not selling there it was afterwards sent to the Scottish Academy, and bought there by my friend Hay for one hundred guineas. Of this picture the Times said : ‘ Nobody paints more delightfully the massive Gothic buildings of this country and the Continent, the character of which he has carefully studied, than this artist, and his pencil has never been employed on a more worthy 40 [■S 3 2. LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. subject.' This picture was sold in 1858 at Christie and Manson’s for three hundred and fifty guineas. I also exhibited some small pictures - fauns, a composition,’ bought by R. Vernon, Esquire, for thirty-five guineas; ‘ Interior of a Church,’ purchased by the Earl of Essex for twenty guineas; ‘Ruins of the Cathedral of St. Rule, St. Andrews’ sod to the Duke of Bedford for twenty-five guineas; and an ‘In- tenor of a Church,’ which I presented to my friend John Faucit of Co vent Garden. During this summer I also made a series of water¬ colour drawings for a namesake, a well-known dealer called ‘ Spectacle Roberts, for which he paid me £160. The principal portion of these was for the collection of Ralph Bernal, Esquire. This year I visited Scotland chiefly to complete a series of drawings of monastic antiquities, several of which I had previously made and etched with a view to their publication.* arly this year Mr. Roberts completed the large picture of the‘Grand Staircase in Stafford House,’ for which he received £200. He also executed a series of drawings for the Continental Annual, for which lie was paid £280. He also painted and exhibited at Suffolk Street, ‘ Ruins a composition,’ sold for £105; a replique of the ‘Cathedral of St. Laurence, Rotterdam/ bought at £26 ; 5s.; the ‘ Lady Chapel, Church of St. Pierre at Caen,’ sold for £26 : 5s. ■ Fallen Tower at Heidelberg/ not sold; and ‘ Edinburgh Castle from the Grassmarket/ bought by Lord Wharncliff for £63. In October Mr. Roberts set out for Spain, his inten¬ tion of visiting which he thus indicates in a letter to his friend Hay, dated 28th June :— • I think on altering my route from Italy to Spain, as nothing has been done that gives any idea of the magnificent remains of the Moorish architecture which are there.’ these etchings, impressions of which are given in this volume, and are for the of art P ’ show Eoberts “ great a master in this as in other departments 832 .] LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. 41 In another letter to the same friend, dated 24th Sep¬ tember, he thus describes his intended tour:— ‘ I hope to leave in a fortnight from this date. I owe no man in England a shilling. I have sufficient means to sustain me for twelve months. I am burning to retrieve the time I have lost, and am deter¬ mined either to ‘ mak’ a spoon or spoil a horn.’ I intend going by way of Paris, Bordeaux, and Bayonne. The first towns I stop at in Spain will be Burgos, Valladolid, Madrid, Toledo, and Cordova; thence I go to Seville, Cadiz, and Gibraltar; thence to Malaga and Granada, visit the Alhambra ; then hey for merry England! ’ llld-Ur-tw!/ ( CHAPTER III. The following letters will be found to contain a graphic description of the chief objects of interest which attracted Roberts attention, and excited his artistic enthusiasm, during his Spanish tour :— ‘Bordeaux, 29th October 1832. My dear Hay, I left London on the evening of Thursday the 17th ult., and on Sunday evening at nine o’clock reached Paris, where I had to stop three days to get my passport signed by the English and Spanish ambassadors. I left Paris for Bordeaux on the evening of the 24th, and arrived about daybreak at Orleans. Our route during the greater part of the day was along the beautiful banks of the Loire, the country all the way appearing an endless garden, covered with fruit-trees and vineyards. I bought on the road a large bunch of grapes for two sous that in England would cost 2s. 6d. or 3s. The wines are equally cheap, and yet the people appear squalid and poor. Nothing can surpass the picturesque scenery of the Loire or the romantic situations of the old chateaux, whose towers seem made for the painter. The smaller castles are similar to those in our own country, and the Scottish Lowland or flat bonnet is universally worn by the peasantry; so that, although I have never seen it noticed, there can be little doubt we are indebted to the French for this head cover. In the evening we came to Tours_ a fine old city; and having travelled all night, in the morning we reached Poictiers, the scene of the celebrated battle. The town appears very old; but I saw very little of it, as we continued our route, and 1832.] LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. 43 in the afternoon reached Angouleme—rather a large town, with a fortress situated on the height. Here we dined, and, while one of the wheels of the diligence was being repaired, I strolled along the streets, where, among other things that attracted my attention, was an ancient edifice, surrounded by high walls, and approached by a dilapidated gateway, towards which several very beautiful young ladies were walking. They rang the bell, and the door was opened, not by a churlish porter, but by a venerable dame. I now knew it was a convent, and looking in saw a terrace faced with balustrades, along which ran an ancient vine, making an open trellis-work, which sheltered the terrace from the heat of the sun. The vesper-bell rang; the sun was setting; the sisterhood were assembling for prayers, and there was a sanctity and repose about the whole that riveted me to the spot; but I was aroused from my reverie by the cracking of the postilion’s whip, when, having taken my place in the coupe of the diligence, we rattled away out of Angouleme, expecting to see Bordeaux in the morning. I fell asleep, and awoke about five o’clock a.m., when I found the diligence was by the side of a river. The horses had been taken out, and I conjectured we were waiting till the gates of the town were opened; therefore, seeing we were at the door of an auberge or public-house, and being cold, I descended from my seat, and entered to get myself warmed. The kitchen was antique and pic¬ turesque ; at the further end, round a table, were a number of farmers. Others were seated round a large antique fireplace, in which logs of timber were blazing, and an old woman was busy cooking something in a stewpan. The light from the fire that fell on all around had a pecu liarly striking effect, and I took my seat beside a female enveloped in a brown cloak, who sat still as a statue. My attention was attracted by a very small foot peeping out beneath the cloak, and on looking more narrowly I saw a rosary with an ivory skull and cross suspended round her neck. Her head was bent forward over the fire, but I got a glimpse of a face, young and beautiful. She was a nun, who took no part in the conversation, but seemed a bride of heaven, completely weaned from this world and all its concerns. The morning brightened, and we went on board the ferry-boat, which, instead of crossing in ten minutes, took nearly 44 LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. [ lS 33- an hour. After crossing the river we were nearly six miles from the city, on the road to which we saw about sixty men chained together in couples, guarded by mounted gensdarmes. They were convicts on their way to the galleys, and as they approached they held out their caps for charity. Poor wretches! their looks were far from ferocious. We at last reached this city, which has a very imposing appearance. The heat here is very oppressive, and the city is nearly equal in beauty to Paris. 1 have already made several drawings. Perhaps you will kindly read some of this letter to my dear father and mother, and tell them I never was in better health.—Tours ever, David Roberts.’ Madrid, January 8, 1833. ‘ My dear Sister—1 have been for three long weeks hoping to hear from you in answer to my last letters, but now begin to think they have never reached you, which grieves me more, because you may imagine that I am either dead, drowned, or something else, whereas I never was in better health. In case my letters have not reached you, I may mention that on entering Spain I was detained in a sort of prison in quarantine, on account of the cholera, for thirty-five days, and my lodgings were far from comfortable. While there, I wrote to you and several others, but have received no replies. I have not heard from England, direct or indirect, since I left; and as I had no way of sending my letters but by a fellow who runs messages at the lazaretto, he may have kept them up. ‘ I left that place on the 4th of last month in good health, and crossed the Pyrenees, which journey occupied two days. The cold was intense, and the first town we came to was Vittoria, where the battle of that name was fought, after which the French were driven out of Spain. There we stopped all night, and the following night we reached Burgos, where there was some severe fighting between the English and French, and the storming of the castle of which cost Wellington a number of men. The castle is now a heap of ruins, but the cathedral is one of the finest in Spain. There I stopped a week, and made a good many drawings. The town is very ancient, and was formerly the capital of Castile. In my opinion it is much finer than Madrid, though not so extensive. LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. 45 ■833-] ' 1 arrived at Madrid on the 16th. The town consists almost entirely of churches and convents, and I have made a number of sketches. The weather is not cold for winter, but the wind is more piercing and keen than in Scotland, which may be accounted for by the city being several thousand feet above the level of the sea. There is no fog here, such as we have in England, the air being as pure as it is with us at mid¬ summer, and the sun is very powerful at mid-day. I live in the same house with an English gentleman; and I am told, that with the excep¬ tion of the British ambassador, we are the only Englishmen in Madrid. As for the Spanish cooking, I fear I shall never stomach it, although £ I hae a crap for a’ corn and ane for rough bear/ Between oil and garlic it is difficult to tell what you are eating. I leave this to-morrow for Seville, a distance of 400 miles. I understand the winter is scarcely felt there, and while you in Scotland are warming your fingers before the fire, the people there are in the middle of their spring, which may be called their summer—for summer is so hot that it burns and scorches everything. The diligence takes five days, stopping at night. I mean to stay a few days at Cordova, where there is a very fine mosque built by the Moors. Thence 1 shall proceed to Seville, then to Cadiz and Granada, where the celebrated palace of the Alhambra is. I shall return to Madrid about the beginning of March, and visit Toledo, Segovia, and the Palace of the Eseurial; then to England with what speed I can, laden, I hope, like the bees with honey. Show this letter to Mr. Hay, and tell him to write me and give me all the news, for I long much to hear from him. Let him address his letter to the care of Don Julian Williams, British Vice-Consul, Seville, and be sure to pay the postage out of England. Remember me kindly to all friends ; and wishing you all the compliments of the season, and many returns, believe me your affectionate brother, David Roberts.’ The following letter from Wilkie to Roberts will be read with interest :— ' Brighton, 282/i January 1833. ■ Dear Mr. Roberts,—1 cannot delay assuring you how happy 1 felt in receiving your esteemed favour from a place that recalls to me so N LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. 46 LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. [is 33 . many agreeable recollections. Tile Calle di Alcala, tile Prado, the Returo, and the Altorae live in my mind like the dexterous touch and glowing colours of Velasquez and Murillo that are hard by; and I think still with pleasure of a -wintry week passed at the Escurial, re¬ lieved as it was by the ameliorating beauties of Raphael and of Titian. I wish I could mention anything in Madrid that you should see, and which might not be pointed out to you. Of course the Musee del Prado, as also the pictures in the Academy of St. Fernando, you will see again and again ; also collections of the Duke del Infantado and the Duke di Berwick, as well as the ceilings in the palace by Mengs, in fresco ; also the frescoes there painted by my esteemed friend Don Cavalier Vincente Lopez. In the line of your own pursuits, you seem, from what you say, already to have found much; still the south will be your harvest.’ The Alhambra, if at all paintable, will excite from your hand the highest expectations. After all we have heard and read, it remains for your art to give us an idea of the visible appearance of that romantic fortress. M ith best wishes and regards, I am yours very truly, ‘ David Wilkie.' ‘ Cordova, January 30, 1833. ‘ M y dear Hay,—I am in excellent health, and in a new^ world here. The spring is in its full glory, and the weather as mild as with us at the end of May. Where I now sit writing, the roses and lilies are in full bloom in my window, the garden around me is filled with orange-trees laden with fruit. A large palm-tree stands in the courtyard. The hedo-es around consist of the aloe and other plants peculiar to a southern climate. Winter is scarcely known; but you must not suppose from all this that it is quite a paradise, for I am stung all over with mosquitoes, so that I can scarcely sleep at night. The situation of the town is beautiful; it rises by the side of the Guadalquiver, the banks of which are clothed with rich verdure, while the picturesque mountains of the Sierra Morena extend almost to the walls; and although modern Cordova is one of the most decayed and miserable cities in Spain, to the artist and the antiquary it is rich beyond measure. The lion of Cordova is 1833 .] LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. 47 the Mosque, once second only to that of Mecca. The ground it oceu pies measures 512 feet by 428, besides the cloisters and garden. It stands on the site of a Roman temple, out of the ruins of which it is said to have been built; but it must have been from a series of temples, for I find from the ground-plan which I have taken that there are 632 pillars of polished marble, exclusive of smaller ones—all of the Corin¬ thian order— -varying in shape and size, some of them very exquisite in proportion. The city, previous to being in possession of the Moors, was celebrated as the birthplace of Seneca and Lucan, and is rich with the finest remains of Roman architecture. There is scarcely a house in which Roman capitals, friezes, etc., are not built in the walls. Every gateway, every house facing a street or alley, is graced by a marble column, and in most places fluted. Here is a field of inquiry for antiquarians. The fact is, that nothing is known of Spain ; those who could have appreciated the richness of its architecture have generally gone to Italy or Greece. My portfolio is getting rich, the subjects are not only good, but of a very novel character. I begin to doubt whether I shall be able to paint half of them, they already amount to nearly 100, and I have yet six towns to visit, from which I expect many fine subjects; and if I am spared in life and health, I hope to return to England in April or May, with ample material to keep me working. It is needless to say, that amidst all those magnificent scenes my thoughts are ever roaming to Caledonia— ‘ Their groves of sweet myrtle let foreign lands reckon,’ etc. Although the fruits here are delicious, and the wines exquisite, a wee drap o’ the peat-reek, and the tail o’ a spelclrin, and a haver wi’ an auld frien’ like yourseT, wad to me be a treat whilk I could relish better. I expect to get to Seville next Sunday, when I hope to meet my old friend Lewis, who was down with us at Newhaven in Lucky Linton’s, and a precious blether we will hae thegither anent her and the artists o’ Auld Reekie. ‘ By-the-byc, I forgot to mention the great treat I had at Madrid. The collection of paintings at the museum there is exquisite. If you see our friend Allan, tell him they will amply repay a visit. Velasquez 48 [ i8 33- LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. is magnificent. It is impossible to form any idea of his works from what we have in England. Murillo is great, but not, in my opinion, to compare with the other. There are many capital Spanish painters whose names I never heard before; and there is a glorious collection of works of Titian, Rubens, Rembrandt, Teniers, Ostade, etc. etc. With regard to the present state of art, judging from what I have seen I cannot say much for it. The living is not to my taste—all is garlic and oil. My great luxury is cigars, of which I get twenty for twopence. I am now going to smoke, and then tumble into bed, where I daresay you wish yourself, after wading through this zigzag rigmarole letter about Romans, Goths, Moors, and Christians. But in these long nights, when 1 have nothing else to do, it is a relief to me to unburden my mind to an old friend like you ; so, wishing you pleasant dreams, and the compliments of the season, believe me ever your sincere friend, ‘ David Roberts.’ ‘ Granada , 13 th February 1833. ‘ M y dear Sister,-A few days ago, for the first time, I received letters from England, and one from my friend Fraser, who informs me you are all well. This gave me much pleasure ; and now that the weather will be getting milder with you I hope my dear father will be able to take his usual exercise. ' I am happy to say that I am in excellent health ; and, in a profes¬ sional point of view, my tour has been most successful. Nothing can excel in picturesque effect the towns I have visited, and the costume of the people seems to have been made for the painter. Since writing you last I have seen Cordova, where I stopped three weeks. I wrote Mi-. Hay a short description of it, which, I daresay, he has shown you. It was my intention to have gone thence to Seville, but an opportunity having occurred to cross the mountains to this place in company with a German merchant who spoke English, I availed my¬ self of it, and after a tedious journey of three days, riding on mules, fording streams, and climbing rocks-for roads there are none-we’ reached this fine old town. The weather was fine, and as hot as with us in June ; so it was to me no hardship, but great pleasure. Our mules 1833-] LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. 49 were heavily laden, and walked very slowly ; so, with a good oak stick in my hand and my sketch-book in my pocket, I jogged on a considerable part of the way on foot, happy and contented. ‘ Granada is in the most beautiful situation that can be ima¬ gined. It lies at the foot of a ridge of high mountains, called the Sierra Nevada, or Mountains of Snow. So great is their height that even in the intense heat of summer they are covered with snow. In front of the city stretches an immense plain called the Vega, at least 20 miles in length, highly cultivated, and, although it is still winter with you at home, here the spring is far advanced. So hot is the sun dining the day that I cannot stand to sketch for ten minutes together, but am obliged to cross into the shade. On a hill immediately above Granada rises the old Moorish palace of the Alhambra, a great part of which is in the most perfect preservation. Courts, halls, terraces, galleries, and fountains out of number are here, and golden fish still disport them¬ selves in the numerous ponds. The gardens are filled with orange and lemon trees laden with fruit, and even at this early season the flowers are in full bloom and beauty. I have been here ten days, and have not seen a drop of rain. You may imagine that I spend my time very pleasantly in such a place. There are so many beautiful objects to sketch that I am at a loss which to take first. My breakfast is generally over by eight o’clock, when I go out to draw. I dine at two, and out to work again. Although I have nobody to speak to, I never feel the time long; indeed, if I feel inclined to grumble at all, it is at the shortness of the days. The architecture is so peculiar and elaborate that it would take months to do it justice. Still I hope by about the end of this month to have got much of the best of it; after which I intend going to Malaga, which is within two days’ journey, and where I expect to meet Mr. Lewis. I go thence to Gibraltar; then to Cadiz, Seville, and home. £ And now I am going to smoke a cigar and go to bed, to dream of Moors and Christians, tournaments and battles, painting and architecture. In the morning I go to the Court of the Lions, which is so called be¬ cause its beautiful fountain of white marble is supported by twelve lions, and I mean to finish a drawing of it which has already taken me all this o LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. 50 LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. j lS33 day—Meantime, believe me, my dear sister, asleep or awake, ever yours affectionately, David Robeets.’ Lewis and Roberts were in Spain at the same time, and frequently within two or three days’journey of each other, yet never met. The following extracts from Lewis’s letters are interesting:— ‘Seville, February 6, 1833. ‘ My deal- Roberts,—I got your last letter safely, in which you say you are about to start for Granada. By this time you will have arrived, and I trust you may meet with the same satisfaction and delight I did in the short time I stayed there. The time of year is against you. I fear you will meet with cold weather so near the mountains; but, however, to be m the Alhambra, under any circumstances, to you will be every¬ thing. I regretted then, for the first time in my life, that 1 did not draw architecture, and almost intended to commence, but as you are there now, lucky man am I who let it alone. ‘ When you write again tell me what your plans are. I cannot help regretting that we do not meet here, as had we done so we might have gone together to Cadiz, Gibraltar, Tangiers, Malaga, and then, perhaps, to Granada, for I wish much to see it again. J. R. Lewis ’ ‘ Seville, March 13. ‘ My dear Roberts,—You are a very nice man, I don’t think. Who said anything about Tangiers ? Perhaps I may give a run over there when I get to Gibraltar, but that won’t be just yet, Davy. You see, my boy, there are some things here I must do. I must send, somehow or other’ a drawing home by the packet for England; then I want to copy a Murillo or two; then comes the Holy Week here, which I would not lose for twenty such places as Tangiers. By-the-bye this ought to be a sine qua non with you. You must, in spite of all things, be in Seville m the first week in April, or you may as well not come at all. I am told it is nearly as fine as Rome during that time—the cathedral and processions beyond all description; therefore, until the end of that week, I am here, so pray strain every nerve to join me,’ etc. etc. ‘ J. F. Lewis.’ LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. 51 1833-] * Gibraltar, 29 th April 1833. ‘ My dear Davy,—The devil has thwarted us, and we are not to meet. The fates have done us ; and to think that we must have passed each other so near upon the road, and, I fancy, have slept in the same beggarly town of Vega together without knowing it! Well, it can’t be helped. Here am I in Gibraltar—and there are you in Seville. I must confess that I should have liked much to have met you and looked over our portfolios together; but it was not to be, and we are done. I dined at Sir William Houston’s yesterday. I brought letters to him from the Duke of Bedford, and I asked Colonel Long to show me your sketches, saying that I had your permission to that effect. He promised to show me them this morning; but, lo and behold, down comes a letter, stating that on due consideration he had come to the conclusion that he could not break the seal but in your presence! This was very annoying, as I expected a great treat, but this must be postponed till we meet in England. I don’t know how you will like Seville; I did not care much about it, but as I was staying there with friends, I stayed there in pre¬ ference to any place without them. The Fords have left now, else 1 should have been delighted to have introduced you to them; they are gone to Granada. Williams, the consul, is an excellent person, and I feel he will take the greatest pleasure in doing for you anything in his power. e And now, my dear Roberts, wishing you all success in your journey, and hoping to hear soon of your welfare, believe me, ever yours most faithfully, J. F. Lewis.’ ‘ Malaga, March 2, 1833. £ My dear Hay,—Many thanks for the chit-chat anent Auld Reekie. Nothing gives me more pleasure than to learn that art is advancing in my native city, and that some friends, whose career I have watched from infancy, are progressing rapidly. For instance, Robert Lauder, even when a child, was an enthusiast in painting, before he well knew what it meant, and I am inclined to think this the true criterion of genius. Report speaks highly of his productions this year, and Fraser writes me that Simpson has sent a capital picture to the Royal Academy. 53 LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. | 1833. Let Scotland go on thus ; with Wilkie at our head we have little to fear. ‘ I have been very kindly received here by H.M. consul, Mr. Mark, a gentleman from Berwickshire, who, on hearing I was an artist, re¬ quested to see my sketches, after which he offered his services to point out the objects most worthy my attention. He and his family have shown me every kindness and attention—driving me about in their carriage to see the most beautiful of the sceneiy, and receiving me at their house with the greatest hospitality. Mr. Mark has been an officer in the navy—was secretary to Lord Nelson—and since his appointment he has done much for liis countrymen here. Among other things, he has procured, in spite of bigotry and superstition, burial-places for Protestants in every town in Spain. Previously the dead were smuggled at night to the sands by the shore, and interred in an upright position with their faces to the sea. ‘ In a former letter I told you something about Granada, which, to say nothing of its historical interest, is, in a picturesque point of view, unequalled. The remains of the fortress of the Alhambra occupy ground nearly a league in circumference, and the surrounding scenery consists of majestic mountains and the most fertile and luxuriant plains. The fields and gardens are interspersed with the palm, the pomegranate, the plantain, and the aloe ; while the mountains are covered with wild thyme, the smell of which is delicious. Woods of cane as high as houses make me sometimes think I am in the West Indies, whereas I am only eleven hundred miles from England. The Alhambra, which has never yet been painted, ought to make a fine picture, and if I am spared in life and health, I hope to make it repay me for all my trouble. I stopped three weeks in Granada, and left sooner than I intended, having been stopped by the military authorities when engaged in taking a panoramic view of Granada and the surrounding country from the Alhambra. David RoBEETg/ ‘ Tcmgiers , Africa, March 29, 1833. ‘ % dear Hay,—Since writing you last I have visited Gibraltar, and an opportunity having occurred that allowed me to visit this coast, I 53 i3 3 3.] LIFE 0F DA VID ROBERTS. embraced it, and have been here several days, where 1 find myself in a new world. I thought Spain great, but this excels all I have seen. Yesterday was the market-day—an African market; and I am so bewildered that I cannot trust myself to write about it, only rely on it I am not idle. It would be unpardonable if I were so, seeing that I have opportunities here of making studies that no artist has ever had. I am in excellent health and spirits, and on my return to Gibraltar, which will be in a few days, I will write a long letter home.—Yours, David Roberts. * Gibraltar, April 20, 1833. ‘ My dear Sister,—I lose no time in informing you that I have re¬ turned from my African trip all safe and sound, and have made a valuable addition to my stock of drawings. It is impossible for me in a letter to describe the race of savages I have been among. After having been some time in Tangiers, I was anxious to visit some of the towns in the interior, which are more strictly Moorish than those on the coast; and as a Christian cannot appear unless with a Moorish soldier to guard him, 1 got letters for our consul at Tetuan, the only Christian allowed to reside in the city. I set out on my journey, with a guide, and a Moorish soldier for my guard; and had you seen me in their company, all mounted on Arabians, you would have said I was somebody. Our journey lay through a beautiful country, the valleys all well cultivated, and at present in the highest state of vegetation. I slept in an Arab’s tent; and though my bed was hard, and my fare, which we had to carry with us, was humble, I never enjoyed anything so much. Through the ignorance of my guard I got into a scrape, for it appears that no Christian is allowed to enter within the gates of a town without his arrival being previously announced to the sheik or governor, and re ceiving his permission to enter. My soldier was some distance before me, and I, being wet and weary, rode after him right into the heart of the town, when I was stopped by the guards of the bashaw, earned before him, and asked to give an account of myself, which I did through the medium of a Jewish interpreter. The bashaw, who was a remarkably fine-looking old man with a long beard, was sitting cross-legged in the p 54 LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. Ji«33- courtyard of liis stable. He asked me the object of my visit to Tetuan, and I told him I was anxious to see a city of which I had heard so much. He then asked me what country I was from ; and on being told I was an Englishman, he said he was more pleased to see people' from my country than from any other. I was then dismissed, and allowed to take up my abode in the Jews’ quarter—a distinct town from the Moorish one; and fortunate it is for the ‘ chosen people of God’ that it is so, for nothing can be more degrading than the manner in which they are treated; the veriest child insults them with impunity. They are compelled to wear black caps and slippers to distinguish them from the Moors, who wear yellow slippers, and whenever they reach a certain distance of a Moorish mosque, they must walk barefoot; and yet all this they bear patiently, and generally become rich. The week I remained here was that of the Passover, therefore I had to live on unleavened bread. I left Tetuan after having been there eight days, and got back to Tangiers after undergoing a good deal of fatigue, and thence took ship to Gibraltar, where I was delighted to find myself among Englishmen. There are six regiments stationed here, and I met with great kindness from many persons to whom I had letters. Sir W illiam Houston, the governor, invited me to dinner, but I apologised, as 1 had no clothing fit to appear m. In the evening, however, I went, expecting to meet a quiet family party, but found a large assemblage in the drawing-room, consisting principally of the officers of the garrison in full uniform. I was received with open arms by Sir William and his lady, a sister of Lord Lauderdale, and was invited to dine with them to-day without a coat if I had not one. Sir William also insists upon taking charge of my drawings and sending them direct to England, to avoid the risk of their- again passing through Spain, and this offer I gratefully accepted, as my sketches now exceed two hundred. I am about to start on the most pleasing part of my journey homeward. To-morrow I leave for Cadiz, and then to Seville. I shall lose as little time on the way as possible, but do not expect to be home before June. Kind love to my dear father and mother, yourself, and my dear friend Hay, from whom I expect a letter at Seville; and be¬ lieve me, etc. David Roberts.’ '833-] LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. 55 ‘ Gibraltar , April 22, 1833. * My clear Hay,—1 wrote my sister yesterday a short description of my tour in Africa, which I have desired her to show you. Nothing can exceed the beauty of the land I have just visited. I fancy that I must have seen it at the most favourable period—viz. before the sun begins to get oppressive. The fabled perfumes of Arabia were here realised ; the scent from the orange and citron groves surpasses anything that we sons of the cold north can imagine. This, with the singing of birds, their beautiful plumage, the rich vegetation of the plains, and the wild and picturesque grandeur of the chain of the Atlas mountains, made the whole seem an earthly paradise, were it not for the savages who inhabit it; but even these, with their peculiarities of gesture and costume, had charms for me which none but a painter could appreciate. Fancy me sleeping amidst a host of wandering Arabs, surrounded by picturesque tents and cattle, and yet feeling myself safer than when travelling in government diligences in Spain. These Arabs travel about like the patriarchs of old, in search of food for their cattle. They are as responsible to the governor for your safety, and for that of all your property, as is the soldier sent with you by the governor. You will no doubt be surprised that I should have ventured among a people of whom so little is known ; but the fact is, that having seen the splendid architectural remains left by the Moors in Spain, I felt a wish to see them in their present state, and was furnished with a letter from Mr. Mark, our consul at Malaga, to Mr. Drummond Hay, consul-general at Tangiers. On arriving there I found Mr. Hay and his family absent, but my letter secured me the kind attention and friendship of Mr. Cooper of the commissariat, who introduced me to the contractor for the supply of cattle from Barbary to the garrison of Gibraltar, and who was a person of greater influence there than the king of Great Britain. I went with his two sons, one of whom speaks Arabic like a native, and through their influence I got many useful pictorial materials—such as costume, etc.—which nobody else ever had, and indeed which is so strictly prohibited, that some of the officers here who have seen my sketches, and have visited the coast of Barbary, have expressed their astonishment that I have picked up so much. As I was the first artist 56 LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. 1833 . who lmd been there, I was determined I would not throw the chance away, and the *filthy lucre', which had its influence there, as elsewhere, I cheerfully gave. But I find that it is self, self, self, I am talking about. Like King Bichard, I have crept in favour with myself, but my friends here have spoiled me by praising my works so highly, which now number no fewer than two hundred and six finished drawings, a great many of them coloured, in addition to others in my small sketch¬ book. I believe you are correct when you say there is something in my phiz-mahogany that gets me friends. I have been very kindly treated here, and have dined with the officers at their mess-table, as well as with Sir William Houston at his residence. I am in the best health, and hope soon to be among you again. My love to Allan, Norrie, Macgregor, and our other Edinburgh friends. You cannot imagine how it cheers me in my wanderings to learn that I am remembered by them. You will be pleased to learn that my friend and patron Lord North wick has also been kindly inquiring after me, and that I have sent him a full account of all my proceedings. ‘ I shall expect letters from you at Cadiz or Seville, from which latter town I don’t expect to get away till the end of May. ‘David Roberts.’ ‘ Seville, May 4, 1833. ‘ My dear Hay,—I daresay you begin to vote my letters a bore, but I have more pleasure in communicating my ideas to you than to any one else. ‘ I waited for some days in Gibraltar, expecting to have met my friend Lewis there ; but finding no chance of his coming, I took my de¬ parture for Cadiz, travelling along execrable roads, but through a beau¬ tiful country; and, with the exception of my horse falling twice, by which my leg was slightly bruised, I reached in safety the ‘ city of the dark blue sea.’ The fortifications are unique, the mansions princely, and the women beautiful ; but the most attractive feature to the painter is the beautiful bay thickly studded with the picturesque craft peculiar to this coast. After spending a few days in Cadiz, I took my departure for Xerez, where I spent several days; and having letters to some Scotch 1833-. LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. 57 friends there they received me very kindly. Xerez is, like most of the other towns in Andalusia, of Moorish origin, and retains many interesting relics of that brave people. The churches, the alcazas, and the city-walls are the most remarkable. After having examined some of the im¬ mense cellars, and tasted sherries in perfection, I took my leave, got into a coach—the first I had seen since leaving Cordova—and found my¬ self on the following morning in fair Seville, which far exceeds my most sanguine expectations. It is surrounded by Moorish walls, flanked by towers, all in perfect preservation, and contains one hundred and sixty churches in addition to convents. The cathedral is partly Moorish, partly Gothic, and partly bastard Roman; and is one of the most pictur¬ esque and magnificent structures in the world. To see the Moorish tower alone is worth a journey from London ; but I must not say too much, or you will be expecting more from me than any painter can carry away, suppose he remained years here. The ancient Roman city of Italica is about four miles from the town, and is said to have supplied most of the materials for the building of Seville. Not a house but abounds with fine remains of Roman sculpture. The common shop-fronts are built with fragments of marble, and porphyry columns, with capitals, friezes, etc., without taste or order ; and I regret to say that the present race of Spaniards seem as dead to their beauties as the present Moors are to those of Carthage. Only a few years ago a great part of an amphi¬ theatre at Italica was used to make an embankment for the river. 1 went to-day, with our countryman Mr. Drummond Hay, H.M. consul- general for Morocco, to visit the ruins of that fine old city, and they are magnificent. They say that there is not a day in the year that the sun does not shine on Seville, and the climate is the finest in the world ; but as my money is drawing to a close I intend leaving about the end of the month, by way of Badajos and Merida to Madrid, where I will be some time, as I have to visit Toledo and Segovia, and thence proceed to Saragossa, cross to Barcelona, and so along the south to France. The heat to-day is intolerable, so much so that from ten till four o’clock I cannot work in the open air. Remember me kindly to all friends. I am delighted to learn that you are now a patron as well as a practiser of art, and that the Edinburgh Exhibition is doing so well. I have a Q LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. 58 I 1 s 33- letter from our worthy friend Fraser, and after what Wilkie said to me about his present picture, if it be but hung in the Eoyal Academy, they ought to make him an A.R.A. As to myself, the fable of the fox and the grapes may be applicable ; at all events, as a member of Suffolk Street I am not eligible; and a hundred pounds is not always easily found, although my friend Stanfield paid it before putting down his name as a candidate for Academical honours. One thing I am ambitious of, and that is, to paint better than I have done; and, on my return, I shall certainly exert myself to the utmost to do so. Between ourselves, I think, or rather feel, myself equal to it, and God grant that I may not be disappointed. One thing I have learned since coming abroad ‘ There is nothing like having a good conceit of ourselves,’—a maxim, I fear, too much neglected by many worthy fellows. Remember me kindly to all,’ etc. etc. * David Roberts.’ ‘ Seville , June 18, 1833. ‘ My dear Father and Mother,—You are, no doubt, wondering why I remain in this town so long, but the fact is that I am painting two pictures. One, the interior of the cathedral during one of the grand ceremonies which are here carried out on a scale of grandeur of which you can have no conception. You will easily understand my reason for painting on the spot when I tell you that I have got all the characters introduced in the picture to stand for me. This was not accomplished without great exertions on the part of kind friends; and you have no idea of the sensation my picture is exciting among the people here. In¬ deed every day I am surrounded by bishops and monks, of all orders and colours, and I have even been honoured by a visit from the Captain- General, a greater man here than the Lord-Provost is in Auld Reekie. I am, thank God, in perfect health ; my mind is easy ; I have nothing to divert my attention from the subject in hand : and this has such a sen¬ sible effect on my works that I feel convinced they will excel anything I have hitherto done. After this explanation you will not blame me for remaining a few weeks longer than I originally intended. ‘ I daresay you wondered when you heard that I had been among the black savages of Africa; but I think some of the drawings I made LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. 59 1833-] there will create a sensation in England. They will have, at least, novelty to recommend them, and that is something in these enlightened times. Altogether I shall have a curious, although a motley, collection. * During my stay of six weeks here I have made a great many sketches of figures. The dresses of the people are remarkably pictur¬ esque, and there is little alteration in those now worn from those worn four hundred years ago. Every province of Spain has its peculiar costume, but that of Andalusia is allowed to be the most gay and grace¬ ful. I have been for some time residing with Mr. Brackenbury (H.M. consul for Cadiz) at a beautiful village some miles from Seville, and whilst with him I had many opportunities of making sketches of country- people, and particularly gipsies, a distinct race from the Spaniards, but exactly the same people who are spread over all Europe. They are even better suited for the painter than the Spaniards are, and retain more of the African character than they do with us, and are quite as black as any Hottentot on this side the Cape. The heat is intense, so much so that I am told an egg may be poached in a few moments by merely placing it in the sun. No person ventures out here but before seven in the morning or after seven at night, and at this season all move from the upper to the lower parts of their houses, which are cool and refreshing. Every house has its patio or little court, covered with an awning, and each has in the centre a fountain of pure water. Every house is sepa¬ rated from the street by a handsome iron gate, through which you can see into the court, which, in the evening, presents a gay appearance- guitars sounding, and people lounging about happy and jolly. * I hope to get my work finished in a fortnight or three weeks, when I will proceed to Madrid and home. David Roberts.’ ‘ Seville , 2 cl July 1833. ‘ My dear Hay,—You will have learned from my last letter to my father the cause of my delay here. I had a great desire to paint a picture or two while in this country, but it was only since coming to Seville that I had determined on doing so. Mr. Williams, the vice- consul here, has one of the finest collections of pictures in Seville, and being an amateur artist, and fond of the society of artists, he intro- 60 LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. [ 1833 . duced me to several painters here, who, although wofully behind their townsmen, Velasquez and Murillo, are very good fellows. Lewis had already staggered them by his skill in an art of which they were pro¬ foundly ignorant, and they having furnished me with pencils and colours, I painted three small pictures and a background to a portrait. Of scum¬ bling and glazing they had no idea; and the effects of light and shadow, as constituting all that was great in art, seemed to be beyond their com¬ prehension. These three pictures I presented to Mr. Williams and Mr. Brackenbiuy, as a small return for their great kindness, and they advised me to paint some important picture here. After some con¬ sideration I selected the subject of the c Corpus Christi/ a festival similar to our Sacrament, with this difference, that instead of eating the bread and drinking the wine, as we do, it is placed with great pomp in a magnificent silver temple of the most exquisite workmanship, twelve feet in height, in addition to the pedestal on which it stands, and this is borne through the streets by thirty men concealed within the pedestal. The procession is of the most magnificent description. The dresses and robes of the clergy are of the richest stuffs—velvet, satin, gold and silver brocades, enriched with precious stones. Among other emblems carried is an exquisite silver shrine, containing, it is said, the real thorns that bound the head of our Lord. There are also two figures of females in rich silk modern dresses, and there is a legend that they supported the great tower here during an earthquake. Their eyes are made to work by concealed wires, and excite the astonishment and edification of the pious spectators. Awnings are suspended over all the line of streets through which the procession moves ; the balconies are hung with rich tapestries of all colours and patterns, and being filled with beautiful women, and the light being reflected upwards, the effect is altogether dazzling and imposing. The point I have selected for my picture, which is 6 feet 6 inches by 4 feet 6 , is when the principal dignitary is receiving the Host preparatory to its being placed in the silver temple. This, of course, is in the cathedral, and gives me an opportunity of showing the richness of the interior, together with the gorgeous and picturesque dresses of the clergy. Among other figures are the dancing boys in old Spanish dresses. These dance and play the castanets before S33-J LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. 61 the high altar during the continuation of the festival, which lasts for six days. This is a privilege confined to this cathedral, and well it may be, for I don’t think it would be allowed anywhere else under the name of religious worship. What would my worthy mother think if she saw so many ‘friskin’ and loupin’, like so many antics, in the kirk V ‘ My next picture will be the Giralda, or Great Spanish Tower, with Spanish characters of all descriptions, which I expect to have completed about the end of the month, and then for home. The artists are much interested in what I am doing; and the clergy—poor simple souls!—are quite in a bustle, thinking, I suppose, that the king of England is to be converted, and that I have been sent on purpose. Kind love to all. —Yours ever, David Roberts.’ 1 Seville, August 10 , 1833. ‘ My dear Hay,—I have been detained here longer than I expected, but the painting of two pictures 6 feet 6 inches by 4 feet 6 inches, with a number of figures, all taken from the life, is no joke. The one is now completed, and the other far advanced, and I think the novelty of their having been painted in Spain will add to then- value. The figures are large, and I have done my best to render them truly and effectively. I will start for Madrid early next month, and expect to reach London some time in October. I have had crowds to see my first picture ; among others, the Archbishop, a greater man than King Ferdinand. He is a picture in himself, and never moves out but in his rich cardinal dress, with his pages in constant attendance. The Church of Rome is as absolute here as ever it was in the darkest times in England, and with six times the pomp. The march of mind seems retrograde, yet the people are happy. They have little to care for, and say their Ave Marias and Paternosters with as little concern as you would hum over an old song. They require little, and when the soil is so prolific that little is easily obtained. A melon, a few figs, or a bunch of grapes, makes them truly happy ; and they neither care for nor require wine. Give a Spaniard a glass of cold water and a paper cigar and he cares not for to-morrow. As to clothing, that is an article of luxury that some of them almost entirely dispense with ; indeed the R LIFE OF DAVIE ROBERTS. [1833. 62 term fashion is unknown, and the garments of the fathers descend to the son and grandson; and you may conceive from this what a motley and picturesque people I have about me. In addition to this, the churches abound with the finest specimens of Murillo and Velasquez, and the works of many other glorious masters whose productions are almost unknown in England. ‘ I mentioned in a former letter the little respect that is shown to the remains of ancient art, and it is a matter of deep regret to see so many beautiful Roman remains condemned to neglect, if not to destruc¬ tion. The monuments, statues, bas-reliefs, etc., discovered at the ancient town of Italica, are of the most beautiful description. Some of the torsos in particular, in my opinion, are quite equal to anything they can have in the Vatican, yet they are lying neglected in a lumber-room in the Alcazar. How different the feeling in our country, where, if the ‘ brogues’ of Sir William Wallace or the ' lioggirs’ of Robert Bruce were turning up, they would be enshrined in gold! To show the ignorance of even the better classes, I will mention a circumstance -which occurred to myself the other day. I went to visit an old Moorish mansion in the street in which I live—the residence of a canon, whom one would suppose a man of learning. After seeing the house I strolled into the garden. A fountain played in the centre, sur¬ rounded by low benches covered with painted tile, the whole delight¬ fully shaded by orange, citron, and pomegranate trees. At the termina¬ tion of a little arbour leading from this I observed an oblong basin, into which flowed a stream, and on examination I found it to be a beautiful Roman sarcophagus of white marble, having represented in bas-relief, on the two sides, the labours of Hercules. One side showed the hero gathering the fruit in the garden of the Hesperides, of which the country around Seville is said to be the scene. I asked the holy man if he knew what it represented, and he said he believed it represented Adam and Eve in the garden of Paradise. This is one of many specimens I could give you of the ignorance which universally prevails here with regard to art. It is said that in the town of Seville there are not fewer than eighty thousand marble columns, almost all of which are Roman. The Moors seem in their early works to have paid little respect to the arehi- 1833.] LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. 63 tectural treasures left them by that highly-refined people, but in their later works many imitations of the Corinthian and Ionic orders are to be seen, with this difference, that they are more richly ornamented with the arabesque. ‘ Perhaps all this may be of little interest to you, but as I am surrounded by them, they are uppermost in my mind, and I write as I feel. I generally take a stroll in the evening; my favourite ramble is round the walls of the city, on which, I believe, there is little difference since they were left by the sons of Ishmael. The whole wall is battlemented with flanking towers about 100 feet apart; and the city, with its numerous towers and churches seen gilded by the setting sun—that portion, in particular, near the Guadalquiver— is extremely beautiful. But you have enough of this. Give my kind love to all, and tell my father that I have got a pair of slippers for him of the real Morocco leather, which I brought all the way from Tetuan, the workmanship of which he will be able to report on when he sees them.—Yours, etc. David Roberts/ * Seville , September 4, 1833. ‘ My dear Hay,—In my last letter I attempted to give you an idea of the happy state of indifference in which the Spaniards spend their time. I regret that that state, happy or not, as you choose to term it, is now interrupted by that scourge the cholera, which for some time past has been extending itself from Lisbon to Oporto, and has at length reached this country. About two weeks ago it was known to be at Hulsa, a seaport about fourteen leagues from this city, and about five days ago it broke out here,—another proof that it follows the course of rivers. All communication has now been cut off with the surrounding country, and the greatest consternation prevails everywhere. All who were able left the town, but this was soon put a stop to by the refusal to admit people into the neighbouring towns. The steamer that left for Cadiz came back with all her passengers, so here is an end to my returning through Spain, which I regret much, as I will be unable to see three or four interesting towns there. Still I am thankful that I will be able to leave Seville for England soon, as there are several English vessels in the 64 LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. [ 1833 . river, some of which will sail within ten or twelve days, and I shall, please God, if all is well, book myself to sail with the first. Three English gentlemen here are caught in the same trap, so that I will have company. The average passage is three weeks, and I hope to be in England early in October. ‘ The cholera first broke out in a suburb called Trenna, on the op posite side of the river, connected -with this side by a bridge of boats, which has just been destroyed. The monks and friars are as busy as bees, confessing and administering the last sacrament, etc. etc. Even the great bell of the cathedral is tolling Ave Marias, I suppose to frighten the appalling disease away. The bones of San Ferdinand have been exposed to the vulgar gaze, and everything that bell and book can do has been done. * And now, my dear fellow, you will be glad to learn that I have nearly completed my task, which, from the size of the pictures, the want of material, and the intense heat, was no easy undertaking. As a proof that some of the Spaniards believe in me, one of them, a grandee of the first class, has offered to purchase the ‘ Corpus Christi,' but as I have determined to bring the pictures to England I have refused the offer. So now, I leave you to do with this epistle what you like, sending it in whole or in part to my dear father, mother, and sister, as you think proper. Although forced to give up an interesting part of my intended journey, I am not sorry, for I shall the sooner see you all, and I have made more sketches than T expect ever to be able to paint. As this letter will be steeped in Spanish vinegar you need not be afraid of its carrying you the cholera; and as it is the last you will receive from me from Spain, I conclude with wishing you all the success you so richly merit.—Yours, etc, David Roberts.’ ‘ Falmouth , October 22 , 1S33. ‘ My dear Hay,—I have this moment landed here from Seville, after a stormy passage of five weeks. You may easily believe I am right glad to have my foot once more in merry England. I am quite well; and as it is close on the post-hour I have no time to write my dear father and mother, therefore I beg that you will lose no time in acquainting LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. ■833-] them and my sister of my safe arrival. 1 shall leave this to-morrow morning for London. 1 may thank God and congratulate myself for having got out of Seville, as the cholera there was like a plague—the people dying in hundreds. Write me per return, addressing me to Colnaglii and Son, Pall Mall East.—Yours, etc., David Roberts.’ ‘ Edinburgh , 25th October 1833. ‘ My dear Roberts,—A thousand welcomes to your native land. 1 have this instant had the pleasure of reading yours of the 22d. Your father, mother, and sister are all well, and I need not say how much elated by the glad tidings of your safe arrival. I was out when your letter came to hand, but Mrs. Hay saw it was from you, and knowing the anxiety which the worthy old folks felt, she immediately sent over to Castle Street, and your mother was here in an instant. The observa tion to Mrs. H. was that their anxiety for some time past was such that they could scarcely say they were living at all, but this news ‘ wad gie them new life.’ For my own part I must own that I had many queer dreams about you, which, in spite of all my philosophy, threw a cloud over my spirits, which the good news contained in your letter has entirely dispelled. You will see that I am writing in haste ; I shall therefore make no more palaver, but just conclude by insisting that you will eke a little bit to the tail of your long journey and come to see these worthy old folks, whose feelings have been so long on the rack on your account, to say nothing of the pleasure that ‘itherfolk’ would receive by your visit.—My dear R., D. R. Hay.’ ‘ Tavistock Hotel, November 1, 1833. £ My dear Hay,—Many thanks for your kind welcome of the 25th, which I duly received. I need not tell you how happy I was to learn of the welfare of my dear father and mother. I am afraid my last letter to you from Seville gave them some uneasiness, but I thought it best they should know the exact state of matters, lest anything might have happened to me. Strange to say, however, that after having embarked in good health, and set sail with my pictures, leaving the cholera behind me, 1 was nearly sent elsewhere in a way I had not anticipated —namely, by a bullet through my body. I mentioned to you in my s LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. 6 ‘G 183 letter that a cordon liad been placed round Seville, by 'which all com¬ munication was cut off with the unfortunate city. We thought the road to the sea was open, but in this we were mistaken; for on our arrival at San Lucar, a town at the mouth of the Guadalquiver, we found a vessel placed there with orders to prevent all egress, and as our captain did not comply with this reasonable order so promptly as the authorities expected, they took the liberty of firing a volley of musketry across our decks, which settled the question. Three passengers besides myself were on deck at the time, and, although we were not a little astonished, none of us were hurt. We were ordered back to Seville, but as our pilot had left us this was impossible, and as no one would venture near us we were ordered to lie still till further notice, and to have no communication with the shore. Having been kept here for ten days, with three out of seven of our crew in a dangerous state, we were instructed to proceed immediately to sea, without assistance or provisions, and with but little water. Even here our troubles did not end, for we were four days knocking about in a gale of wind in the Bay of Biscay, during which I thought we should have lost every sail we had. I am a good seaman, and did not experience any bad effects either from the storm or from living for two weeks upon biscuits; and after five weeks from the day we left Seville we made the Lands End, and that same evening I found myself once more in an English parlour, where a cheerful fire looked more picturesque than I had ever before seen it. Next day I was on the top of the London coach, and in three days more found my¬ self among my friends, who gave me a hearty welcome. ‘ All are now on the qui rive to see what I have done, but nobody has seen my productions excepting our friend Fraser. I am already waylaid by publishers, and my terms will be of my own making. What do you say to coming up and seeing me ? Will not my pictures and sketches tempt you ? Say ‘ Yes,’ and add another obligation to the many I already owe you.—Yours, etc., David .Roberts/ ‘ Tavistock Hotel, ls£ November 1833 . ‘My dear Father and Mother,—From my letter to Hay, you are already aware of my safe arrival in England, and it gives me much LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTA. G7 1833.] pleasure, after so long an absence, to learn that you enjoy your usual good health. Hay says I must come down and see you, and I have all the wish, but having extended my stay to nearly double the time I had intended, and as much has been going out and nothing coming in, after such a long game at play I must now have a game at work. The ball is now at my foot, and it will be my own fault if I do not play it well, so you must not expect to see me for a while yet. ‘ My dear Christine sends her kind love to grandfather, grandmother, and aunt, in which she is heartly joined by your affectionate son, ‘ David Roberts.’ ' 33 Howland Street, ‘ Fitzroy Square, November 25, 1833. ' My dear Hay,—I have just concluded an engagement to do the illus¬ trations for the Landscape Annual for next year, consisting of twenty drawings and a vignette, for which I am to receive four hundred and twenty pounds, and to have the choice of my own engravers. This I incline to think is the highest price any artist, with the exception of Turner, has received for drawings of a similar nature. My journey has been expensive, and my risks not few; but the subjects I have selected and drawn stagger all who see them, and are deeply interesting in a his¬ torical as well as a pictorial point of view. David Roberts.’ The following extract from a journal kept by Mr. Mark, the British consul at Malaga at the time of Roberts’ visit, gives a very vivid description of his general character and manner; and wherever he travelled similar testi¬ monials prove that his genius and kindness were warmly appreciated :— ‘ 1 6th March, 1 S83.—Mr. David Roberts, artist, has been here for about three weeks. He has been passing some time in Spain sketching the Gothic remains of Burgos, some of the lighter things of Madrid, the celebrated mosques of Cordova, the precious ruins in Granada, the Alhambra, the walls of the fortress, the Generaliffe, and the Tower of 68 LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. [1833 the Seven Vaults, etc. These architectural remains will form a beautiful and noble collection, and as Mr. Roberts stands alone in that depart¬ ment, and has made such excellent use of his time wherever he has travelled, his imagination will have received a useful fillip for future performances. Nothing can exceed his good nature. He has shown and re-shown all his sketches,—nay, even copied some of them into our albums. He is very amiable, spends every evening with us, and has always his pencil in his hand, either taking a likeness of some one round the table, or striking out some imaginary thing to serve as a lesson in drawing to some of my children. ‘ Since his arrival here he has heard so much about the trouble I had in conquering all prejudices, so as to obtain from his Catholic Majesty a Protestant burial-ground, that on a visit to the place, and observing the pains I was taking to improve the situation, by planting trees in the adjoining ground, thereby forming an agreeable promenade, he made a drawing of the whole, including some of the battlements of the Moorish Alcazaba, the tower of the cathedral, the mole, and adjoining buildings. He has also transferred the same view to a lithographic stone, that 1 may have numerous copies for the use of my friends. £ I have made this note as a token of my respect for so much talent, combined with so much good nature; and while we have endeavoured to be useful to Mr. Roberts in showing him everything worth notice, we have been delighted with his society by our comfortable fireside. ‘ Wm. Makk.’ CHAPTER IV. The ‘ Interior of Seville Cathedral during the Ceremony of Corpus Christi’ was exhibited at the British Institution in 1834, and afterwards at Liverpool, where it was awarded a premium of £25. It was afterwards purchased by Mr. D. R. Hay of Edinburgh for £300. On its appearance in London, it was thus noticed in the Times :— ‘ Among the most striking of the pictures in the exhibition is a painting by Mr. Roberts (one of the results of his recent travels in Spain) representing the interior of the Cathedral of Seville as decorated for the festival of Corpus Christi. The architectural parts of the picture are treated with great power, and the groups which fill the lower por¬ tions, consisting of Franciscans, Capuchins, and Dominicans, with the officiating priests and assistants, are introduced with great taste, and have a very happy effect. The picture is highly creditable to the artist, and is another proof of the wholesome effects which may be produced on apt minds by the contemplation of new scenes.’ The Moorish tower called the Giralda, also painted at Seville, was exhibited in the Suffolk Street Gallery this year, as also the ‘ Interior of a Church,’ both of which pictures were highly praised by all the leading journals. The first of these was bought by Mr. G. G. Barrett of Leamington for £120, and the other by Mr. Fairley for £50. T 70 LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTA. [1834. Roberts also painted this year for General Phipps the ‘ Interior of a Church in Flanders/ price £50. During this summer Roberts made twenty-one finished drawings and nine vignettes from his Spanish sketches, for the Landscape Annual, for which he received £420. He also made four drawings for Finden ancl Murray’s Bible, and one for the Souvenir. Of those in the Land¬ scape Annual the Athenaeum says :— ‘ The scenes are treated with consummate skill by the painter, and translated no less excellently by the engraver.’ The Literary Gazette says :— 1 A more picturesque and romantic series of views it is impossible to conceive; and although, at one moment, we may be tempted to regret that so much beauty is confined within such narrow limits, at the next we are compelled to acknowledge that, however large the space that might have been allowed, it would have been difficult to introduce into it a greater number of those qualities which constitute the charm of art. In some of these admirable plates natural scenery, in others architectural magnificence, predominates; while the figures introduced in the pic¬ turesque costume of the country add much to the interest of this delightful publication.’ During this year Roberts painted ‘ Tower of the Church of St. Nicholas at Cordova,’ for his friend Mr. Caxton, and a small portion of the Giralda at Seville for Mr. Dyson— price of each £40. At the close of the summer he visited Edinburgh, and assisted his friend Hay in decorating the pavilion in which the great banquet was given to Earl Grey. Roberts had been requested by the committee for erecting a monument in Edinburgh to Sir Walter Scott to favour them with a sketch of such a monument as he 1834.] LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. would consider appropriate to the object, and suitable to the position which might be selected as its site,—the sum for the monument to be limited to £5000. It was also stated in the secretary’s letter that there were positions in the city adapted to the erection of a granite obelisk, plans for which, recently prepared for another object, were at the disposal of the committee, but that they preferred the idea of a Gothic structure—such as the Waltham Cross— and this with or without the accompaniment and combina¬ tion of a sculptural memorial with reference to the person to whose honour it was to be erected. Roberts entered into this work with all the energy of his nature, and forwarded two beautiful drawings, still in the possession of his friend Hay. One was a Gothic cross, the other an Egyptian obelisk. These were publicly exhibited, and the Gothic design was universally admired; but as it was stated that it could not be erected at the sum named, and as the committee had resolved to have a figure of Scott introduced, Robei'ts’ design was set aside, and ulti¬ mately the matter was opened up to competition, the result of which was the selection of the design by George Kemp, which is still unrivalled by any monument, ancient or modern, and which partakes of the leading features of Roberts’ design. On receiving intimation of the result, Roberts writes to Hay as follows :— 1 1 am not at all surprised at the decision come to with regard to the Scott Monument. Those of the committee who stick to the good old fashion, and think that a monument cannot he a monument unless it contains some dumbie imitation of the person it is intended to comme¬ morate, should look at the figure of Lord Melville on the top of his column which already graces your fair city. As to my own designs, I thought they might give an idea to others, and that was the reason I LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTA. [1835. made them. I knew there would be a prejudice against employing a person like me, who had never been directly engaged in such work.’ During the year 1835 Roberts painted for Mr. Sheep¬ shanks 'Old Houses in the Durro, Granada/ price £54, 10s.; the ‘ Cathedral of Burgos/ exhibited at Somerset House, and bought by Captain Barret for £150 ; ' Fort¬ ress of the Alhambra, for Lord Nortliwick, price £52 : 10s. ; two small pictures—‘ Lady Chapel in Bordeaux Cathedral,’ and ‘ Chapel in Cathedral of Bayonne’—price £20; ' Moorish Tower on the Bridge of Cordova/ sold at Liverpool for £52, 10s.; part of the ‘Cathedral of Burgos’ for the Duke of Sutherland ; ‘ Court of the Lions, Alhambra/ for Count Jennison, the Bavarian minister, price £31 : 10s.; ‘Old Houses in the Durro, Granada/ for Monsieur Artaria of Manheim, £26 : 5s. This summer Roberts also painted the ‘ Gate of St. Jean at Bordeaux/ for Mr. Hastings, price £21; ‘ Part of the 835-] LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. 73 Castle of Mardinella, Andalusia / ‘ Interior of the Cathedral at Burgos/ for Mr. Vernon, £38 : 10s.; ‘ Interior of Chapel, Cathedral of Bayonne/ for Mr. Wadmore, £37 : 15s.; ‘ Gate¬ way of the Monastery of the Carmelites at Burgos/ for Mr. Clark. During this season his time was much occupied in making drawings for the Landscape Annual for 1836, consisting of views chiefly in Andalusia. There were twenty-one of these for which he was paid by Mr. Jennings £420; and in addi¬ tion to these, he made drawings on wood for ten vignettes for the same work, for which he was paid £50. A con¬ siderable portion of his time was taken up in making designs for two dioramas for Mr. Hamlet. One was the ‘ Court of the Lions in the Alhambra / the other, the ‘ In¬ terior of the Chapel of Ferdinand and Isabella at Granada.’ For some cause the engagement was not fulfilled, and much valuable time lost. In October the Landscape Annual for 1836 was pub¬ lished, and the first edition of five thousand was sold; as also another edition of two thousand. Jennings, the publisher, sold Roberts’ drawings for £40 each, being double the sum he had paid for them. Thomas Roscoe, the author of the letterpress, says with regard to Roberts’ share in the work :— ‘ By a series of rapid sketches, as varied, interesting, and amusing as abundant materials and close research could supply, the editor has anxiously sought to give additional zest to the pictorial charms con¬ ferred upon the book by an artist who studied carefully on the spot every subject which he has here delineated. It may be proper further to state, that for much of the information comprised in the notes descrip¬ tive of the plates and wood-engravings, the author is indebted to the personal observations of the same individual.’ u 74 LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. [1836. In reviewing this work, the Athenceum says :— ‘ Roberts is pre-eminent as an architectural draughtsman, and his knowledge of perspective enables him to give that appearance of size which is so essential to the grandeur of a stately pile of building. In this particular, indeed, he is equal to Turner, while in minute accuracy of detail he is superior, but he does not come up to him either in the truth or variety, the breadth or brilliancy, of his effects of light and shade. This year, however, he has made a great stretch in advance of his former efforts. The novelty and magnificence of the scenes, com¬ bined with the artist’s skill, lead us to anticipate that this will be the most popular, if not the most beautiful, of the tourist Annuals.’ During this year Roberts retired from being a member of the Suffolk Street Society of Artists, because he had been found fault with for having sent his picture of ‘ Seville Cathedral ’ to the British Institution, although he had sent the ‘ Girakla ’ to Suffolk Street. He had also de¬ termined to send his ‘ Cathedral of Burgos ’ to the Royal Academy, where he had not exhibited for six years, and he knew that this would further excite the displeasure of the members. This caused him to retire, and in doing so he paid the fine originally agreed to be paid by retiring members of £100, besides relinquishing his claim, about £90 previously advanced to the Society. Mr. Hay of Edinburgh at that time had begun to make his noble collection of pictures, and had built a gallery, in which Roberts’ picture of Seville held a prominent place. The following advice from Roberts to his friend is so per¬ tinent to all similarly situated that it appears well worth quoting:— ‘ I rejoice to learn that you are making such additions to your col¬ lection of pictures, and have no doubt that, with your knowledge of art, 1836.] LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. it will be judiciously done. Still, if a friend might give you a jog on the elbow, I would say, Don’t hurry over much, and pride yourself more on the pictures being select than numerous. This caution it may appear presumptuous in me to give; but from several collections I have seen formed in London, and afterwards weeded, I have come to the conclusion that it would have been better had the weeds never been there.’ In a letter to Hay, dated March 29, 1836, Roberts says 1 1 stand well in the British Institution this year; I have five pictures never before exhibited, occupying the best places in the gallery. Four of them are sold, and one has led to an important commission from the Marquis of Lansdowne. I have also two in Suffolk Street, both of which are sold. I have just completed a large picture for Somerset House of the ‘Chapel of Ferdinand and Isabella’ at Granada. Since Christmas I have painted this picture, and made fourteen of the twenty drawings for next year’s Annual. The publisher is to pay me £25 each for them, instead of £20 as formerly.’ 76 LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. 1836. The large picture alluded to, of which the foregoing fac¬ simile of Roberts’ own pen-and-ink sketch gives an idea, was purchased by William Beckford of Fonthill for £202 :10s. During this summer Roberts entered into an engagement with Messrs. Hodgson and Graves to make twenty-six large drawings, facsimiles of those done in Spain, to be engraved on stone,—he undertaking to superintend and touch on the 1 stone when required, for £350. In the autumn he visited some of the old abbeys and monas¬ teries in the north—viz. York, Beverley, Ivirkstall, Foun¬ tains, Richmond, and Durham, of which he made a number of drawings ; after which he paid a visit to his native town, where he spent some time with his father, mother, and friends, returning by sea to London. In De¬ cember he began another series of twenty drawings for the Annual, comprising views in Spain and Morocco, for which he was to receive £500. He worked less or more on every stone for Hodgson and Graves’ publication of Roberts’ Pic¬ turesque Views in Spain —the figures in many of them being entirely his own drawing; and this, together with the draw¬ ings for the Annual, took up all his time till March 1837, leaving him no time to paint in oil, although he had many commissions. The Picturesque Yiews, when they were pub¬ lished, had an enormous sale, and since then the work has gone through more printing than any work in lithography ever published. Roberts had calculated on being able to complete the views in two months, but was so annoyed at the imperfect way in which some were being engraved that he worked on the stones with his own hand, erasing some of them entirely; so, instead of two, the work occupied him nearly seven months. In noticing this work the Literary Gazette says :— LIFE OF DAVID EGBERTS. >83 7.] ‘ Every artist, quoad artist, must lament tlie Reformation. As a man he may be rejoiced at the liberation from the superstitions, bigotry, and intolerance of the Romish Church, but, as a painter, he cannot re¬ flect without regret on its magnificent and picturesque ceremonials, and on the facilities which the noble edifices where these ceremonials were performed afforded for the exhibition of the finest productions of the pencil and chisel. This is a feeling which the superb volume before us will greatly increase. There is no country in which all the gorgeous pageantry of the Catholic religion has been, and still is, so profusely and ostentatiously displayed, as in Spain; and a large proportion of these sketches are devoted to its illustration by Mr. Roberts, with what suc¬ cess his former works render it unnecessary to say.’ The following letter from Sir Martin Arthur Shee, then the president of the Royal Academy, acknowledging a pre¬ sentation copy of the work, shows how he appreciated the genius of Roberts:— ‘ Cavendish Square, April 3, 1837. ‘ My dear Sir,—Accept my grateful thanks for your magnificent present. I assure you that no ordinary terms of acknowledgment can do justice to the sense I entertain of your liberality as manifested in so valuable a gift. The work does you the greatest credit, and is not more admirable for the picturesque character of the scenery which it repre¬ sents, than for the eminent talent displayed in its execution. I trust the public will have sufficient taste to appreciate your labours, and justice enough to reward them. Sincerely wishing you every success you can desire, I remain, my dear Sir, your much obliged and very faithful, Martin Arthur Shee. ‘ David Roberts, Esq.' By the end of June Roberts had completed his drawings for the Landscape Annual for 1838. These consisted of a series of views in Spain and Morocco; and to render the work as complete as possible he made many of the draw- x 78 LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. [1*37-8. ings from sketches by his friends. Lieutenants Smith and Eldridge, Colonel Harding, and Richard Ford. This Annual completed the Spanisli views, and was equally well received with the three preceding volumes. All the public journals lauded it highly, and, in the words of Roberts himself, ‘ he retired without losing any of his former credit.' This year he painted 1 St. Paul's, with the Lord Mayor’s Procession’ for Mr. Goodall to engrave as a companion to a drawing of ‘ Westminster Abbey, with the Procession by water.’ He received for St. Paul’s £42. He also painted the same subject from a different point of view for Mr. John Clark in part payment for painting his house in Mornington Place. He presented to Stephen Price, manager of Drury Lane, a small picture of the ruins of an abbey, and one of Edinburgh Castle to his friend Joseph M‘Gregor. He also painted the celebrated picture of the ‘Alhambra’ for the Marquis of Lansdowne, for which he received £300; also the ‘ Mosque of Cordova’ for Frank Hall Standish of Dux- bury Park, price £105 ; also ‘ Tomb of the Percy Family in Beverley Minster;’ ‘ Tower of the Church of St. Mark, Seville ;’ and a small picture of the ‘ Alhambra.’ In 1838 Roberts painted the ‘High Altar, Cathedral of Seville,’ for Mr. Standish, as a companion to the ‘ Mosque of Cordova,’ price £105. He also painted ‘Entrance to the Chapel of Ferdinand and Isabella,’ which he afterwards presented to E. Bicknell, Herne Hill; and having com¬ pleted some other works on which he was engaged, he made preparations to set out on his journey to the Holy Land—a journey which had been the dream of his life from boyhood. His friend Mr. Mark, who had been consul at Malaga when Roberts was there, and from whom he had experienced many kindnesses, procured for him the neces- IS 3 S.] LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. 79 sary introduction to tlie British functionaries in the places he intended visiting. In a letter to Boberts Mr. Mark says :— ‘ I am glad you are satisfied with the letter of introduction I pro¬ cured you from the Foreign Office. I so managed it that it will not only serve to make you known to Captain Campbell at Alexandria, but to any other British functionary in your way. You must indeed have plenty to do before adopting so long a march. Take your talent-box with you, and a fig for everything else. Return loaded with lore, and if you meet with any old coin or lamp, or other memento of the ancients, which would be useful in my cabinet to distinguish your visit to Egypt, pray bring it with you, that I may be able to label it as having been furnished by my friend D. R.’ CHAPTEE V. The following jottings are from the diary and letters of Mr. Eoberts during his wanderings in the East, and will give the reader an idea of the difficulties he had to en¬ counter in carrying out his gigantic undertaking:— ‘ I left London for France on tile 31st August 1838, and passed a few days in Paris, where I was very kindly received by my friend Count Jennison, the Bavarian ambassador. My course lay down the Bhone and the Seine, passing through Lyons, Avignon, and Arles, to Marseilles, which having left in a steamer, we coasted fair Italy, passed half-a-day at Civita Vecchia, and in about six days reached Malta. Here I was transferred from one steamer to another, and in about three days we reached Lysa, one of the Greek islands. Here we again changed steamers, and on reaching Alexandria, on the 24th September, I was kindly received by Colonel Campbell.’ The following letter to his daughter, written on his ar¬ rival at Alexandria, gives a graphic and detailed account of his journey there, and of the impression made on him by the ancient city :— ‘Alexandria , 24 th September 1838. ' My dear Christine,—I am delighted to inform you that after a de¬ lightful voyage I am here safe and sound in Egypt. I left Marseilles in the steamer, the ’Dante,’ on the 11th, and encountered much stormy 1838. LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. 81 weather until we reached Civita Vecchia, where I first set foot on the shore of Italy, which was rather tantalising, as we were within ten hours’ journey of the eternal city. We continued our passage amid de¬ lightful weather to Malta, and I was much pleased with the city of Valetta and its immense fortifications, which seem in dimensions to exceed Gibraltar. We changed steamers here, and proceeded to Lyra, a small island in the Greek Archipelago. The ancient city crowns a hill, on the summit of which there is a Greek convent. I landed and ascended the eminence, and was amply repaid for my exertions. On the right lay the island of Delos, and, stretching far away in the ocean, Crete, or as it is now called Candia. We changed vessels here, and the ship which we now went aboard was crowded with pilgrims from Constantinople on their way to Mecca : Turks of very varied costume- men, women, and children—carrying with them luggage and provision for their passage through the desert. They were all deck passengers, and I never saw such a picturesque assemblage. Of course my sketch-book and I were busily employed. They prostrated themselves and prayed five or six times a-day, which was a most impressive sight. This morn¬ ing we were all early astir, and Alexandria lay before us, its mosques and palm-trees giving it a different character from anything I had seen ; while immediately over it rose the remains of the ancient city, now a mass of rubbish, but which at one time contained a population of 600,000 inhabitants. In the bay were numerous ships, many of them vessels of war. Our ship was soon surrounded by the most pictur¬ esque boatmen in the world, pulling, hauling, and bawling—each fighting for which should have the passengers. On landing from the boats the scene was still more exciting: such scrambling among the poor black porters to get hold of the luggage, that it was with great difficulty you could keep it under your eye; and they submitted to be kicked and buffeted, all for the sake of a few halfpence. On entering the city we saw long trains of loaded camels and donkeys; Turks in rich dresses; negroes, some nude ; with Greeks, Jews, and people of all nations. Hav¬ ing taken up our abode, we sallied forth to see the lions, visited the bazaars and the slave-market, the latter peculiarly disgusting. The slaves were mostly girls : some from Circassia were well dressed ; others, Y 82 LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. [1838. negroes, squatted on the ground, with scanty bits of matting thrown round them, and in a sun that would have killed a European. It was alto¬ gether a sickening sight, and I left it proud that I belonged to a nation who had abolished slavery. In the evening, having procured guides and donkeys, we proceeded to the ancient city. We passed through a burial- ground, where a few poor Turks were scooping a shallow grave in the sand. The corpse, wrapped up in an old brown covering, lay on a sort of barrow, and half-a-dozen of women were wailing. One, in particular, seemed overpowered by grief: she had on her knee an infant, apparently about two years of age. Immediately over this group rose Pompey’s Pillar, with which I was somewhat disappointed. Afterwards rode to see Cleopatra’s Needle. ‘ 25th .—I have been again over the ruins of the old city, and, with the exception of the portico of a Roman temple, half excavated, saw little beyond what I had seen yesterday. The expense of laying the whole of this temple open would be trifling, the price of labour is so low; the work is generally done by girls at about 2d. a-day. There is a double row of granite columns, and on the walls are Roman paintings. ‘ I have met with the greatest kindness here. To-day I dine with Mr. Tliorburn, the consul, and to-morrow with Colonel Campbell, who is indefatigable in his endeavours to serve me, and has given me letters of introduction to Mehemct Ali. ‘ I suppose you arc inhaling the sea-breezes. Remember me kindly to Mr. Cooke, Edward, and the young ladies. David Roberts.’ ‘Alexandria, September 24^.—Landed at 9 a.m. Visited the Bazaar and Slave-Market, Pompey’s Pillar and Cleopatra’s Needle. Pom¬ pey’s Pillar consists of five slabs—pedestal, plinth, base, shaft, and capital. Must have been surmounted by a statue, unless it was one of many belonging to a temple, which is probable from the appearance of the mound on which it stands. Cleopatra’s Needle appears to be buried. It seems probable it may have stood on a pedestal of similar dimensions and character, which is lying close by. ‘ 2 5th .—At half-past 5 a.m. rode round the town. Found the re¬ mains of a portico consisting of six granite columns, the inner walls LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. 1838.] painted with ornamental scroll-work. Hired a servant called Ismael to go up the Nile, and ordered provisions for four months. * 2 6 th .—Made three coloured sketches, and took the dimensions of Pompey’s Pillar and Cleopatra’s Needle. Rode to Cleopatra’s Baths, and the Catacombs, the burial-place of the ancient city. They form a sort of octagonal hall, with recesses on four sides, surmounted by a bastard pediment of the fifth and sixth centuries. ‘ 2 7th .—Left Alexandria at 6 p.m. Went to a lake a mile distant from the gate of Rosetta, and made a drawing of an ancient idol there. Numbers of pillars lie about, probably the remains of the temple in which the idol had been. The figure is colossal, of black polished basalt, the head Greco-Roman, with an Egyptain head-dress. ‘ 28 th .—At 9 a.m. arrived at the junction of the Mahmoudielo Canal with the Nile, and at the village of Asfeli discharged our boat and took one of larger size. Made a sketch of a village called Fouah. Further on is a very ruinous village called Salahiyeh, with three picturesque minarets, and palm-trees to the water’s edge. Higher up is Segiel, with a mosque and three minarets; and further on is Sa el Hajar, where the temple was which contained the celebrated statue, of Nature, with the inscrip¬ tion, ‘ I am all that has been, is, or shall be, and no man hath ever lifted my veil.’ We passed round other villages ; and at night, wrapt in my cloak, I slept in the bottom of boat. £ 29 th .—Landed at Nikleh, where there was an Arab fair. People arriving from all directions, with cattle, goats, fowls, fruits, and tobacco. The Nile here flows very rapidly; the water is brown and thick, and the country, as far as can be seen, is richly cultivated and thickly inter¬ spersed with villages, generally surrounded by palm-trees, which, com¬ bined with the minarets of the mosques, form very picturesque scenes. The minarets are white, and the houses, which are mere hovels, are formed of the mud of the Nile. Maize is generally grown in the fields, which are irrigated through troughs, to which the water is raised by a large vessel suspended over wheels by cords, and drawn up by an ox or camel, assisted by two fellahs. ‘ 30 th. —11.30 a.m. Caught a glimpse of the Pyramids. What sensa¬ tions rush through us at first sight of these stupendous monuments of LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. 84 [1S33. antiquity! 4 p.m. Reach Boulak, the port of Cairo. Our ship drew up beside a boat full of negroes for sale, some of them perfect models in form. We hired donkeys and proceeded to Cairo, which we reached after passing along a raised roadway flooded on each side; streets long, narrow, and crowded with projecting shops. Made our way to Hill's, the only English Hotel there. * 1st October. —This morning waited on the consul. Hired donkeys and a dragoman, and proceeded to view the town. The. Mosque of Sultan Hnssan astonished me by its magnitude, the beauty of its decorations, and the costliness of the materials. The view from the Alcazar or Citadel is very novel and beautiful: Cairo with its domes and minarets, then the suburb of Boulak and the windings of the Nile, and in the distance the pyramids of Gizeh with the hills of Lybia. ‘ 3d. —Started this morning for the Pyramids; distance twenty miles. Not much struck with the size of the great one till I began the ascent, which is no joke. The Sphinx pleased me even more than the Pyramids. ‘ 5th. — To-day visited the tombs of the Caliphs, which are in ruins and inhabited by poor squalid wretches. Nothing I have ever seen equals the beauty of the mosaic work of the floor and walls under the great dome, which are principally inlaid with mother-of-pearl and precious stones. ‘ 6 th. —Left for Boulak. Got into our boat, and the wind being against us we lay-to all night. ' 7th. —At the ferry to Pyramids at Old Cairo, got foul of some old houses close to the bank ; lost our mainyard, and had to stop till it was spliced. No sleep all night. Bitten cruelly by mosquitoes and ants. Moonlight beautiful. 1 8th and 9th. —No wind; row most of the way; country mountain¬ ous, consisting of fields of maize, with mud hamlets here and there, and clumps of palm-trees loaded with fruit. Arrive at Benisouef, having dur¬ ing the last night and day sailed sixty miles. Here there was a fair or bazaar; numerous groups of country people flocked along the banks to the town—women, old and young, all clothed alike, in blue cotton dresses, open in front, with hanging sleeves, and almost all carrying i8 3 8 .]. LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. 85 on their heads baskets with fruit or pigeons. The men with flocks of sheep and goats—very picturesque. ‘ 1 Oth. —About 11 a.m. off the village of Sheikly, formerly Cynopolis, where there are extensive mounds on the left bank, and the chain of sand hills terminates in the stream. Go ashore at Onaseh, where, if the waters of the Nile did not prevent the people from burrowing in the ground, they would prefer it to their wretched dens. They don’t bury their dead under ground, probably because the graves would be filled with water, but lay the bodies in small vaults of sun-dried bricks, which soon fall into ruins, and everywhere skeletons with tattered grave-clothes are seen lying about. About 5 we arrived at Minieh, where there are the ruins of a mosque, with polished marble or granite pillars having Corinthian capitals. ‘ 11 th. —Having left Minieh in the middle of the night with a good wind, at daybreak we were at Wadi Metahara, and within an hour after reached the celebrated cave or catacombs of Beni Hassan. The chief cave has Doric columns, and is covered with hieroglyphics. In a recess are the remains of one large and two smaller statues carved in the rock. Other caves or apartments are in the face of the rocks rising over the left bank of the Nile. They are of white sandstone, and are arranged in a line nearly on the same level. The walls are covered by paintings, showing the domestic employments and sports of the ancient Egyptains, and these are all done on a white ground, and only five colours are used—viz. red, blue, green, yellow, and black. They look as if they had been done in size-colour and varnished. All of these caves have wells or pits—some perpendicular; others inclined. Each cave has a recess, all or nearly all opposite the door ; and I imagine these must have been the temples where the funeral obsequies of the dead were performed previous to the bodies being deposited. * The view here is beautiful; the Nile broad and winding, and the plain covered with vegetation, but no trace of a human being anywhere. About 3 o’clock we arrived at Shekh Abadeh, the ancient Antinoe. In passing through the village I looked in vain for the temples and triumphal arches described by Dr. Richardson. Here and there are polished granite pillars standing, or rather leaning, many half-buried in the rubbish sur- z LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. 86 [1838. rounding them, contrasting rudely with the modern mud huts. 1 presume that the stones of the triumphal arches have shared the fate of the one which Dr. Bichardson, at his visit, saw being taken down to make lime. I made a sketch of the fragment of a cornice and capital of a Corinthian column, which, though far from being correct, is much better than those at Alexandria. The acanthus-leaf and volutes are solid, not open. About the centre of the town are some large polished granite pillars, which I measured : circumference 9 feet 9 inches, circum¬ ference of lower part of capital 12 feet 6 inches, or including foliage 13 feet 9 inches. On all sides are high mounds of rubbish, with fragments of pottery. Having given a few paras for some coins, wo left Antinoe ; and passing Eshmouneyn or Hermopolis, we arrived on the morning of the 12 th at Honata. ‘12 th .—Sailing on, we came to Manfalont; rather a large town, with a bazaar and several mosques. Like all the other towns here, this is in ruins, a considerable portion being undermined by the en¬ croachments of the river. We went ashore and purchased six fowls for 9 piastres, about 2s. 9d., but our bread, which we brought from Cairo, being mouldy, and not being able to procure either horn' or bread here, we left within an hour. At sunset we approached Benim- hamed, and on the morning of the 13th found ourselves at Siout, said to be the site of the ancient Lycopolis, which took its name from the inhabitants having worshipped the jackal, and which is said to be the place where the \ irgin and Child took refuge from their oppressor. Some mounds of rubbish and sepulchral excavations are all that remain of the ancient town. A great portion of the country is overflowed, but the gardens are beautiful: palms, willows, sycamores, acacias, and pome¬ granates are in great abundance. The town is above the level of the sur¬ rounding country, is bounded by dykes, and approached by a bridge of several arches. The first object of importance seen on entering is the large mosque of St. John, with its minarets, of which I took a sketch. The mosque contains four galleries or terraces for the Imaum, which are enriched from top to bottom with elaborate arabesques. The bazaars are numerous and busy, but the gravity of their inmates is almost ludicrous, they scarcely deigning to take the chabouk from their mouths to answer LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. 87 1838 .] a question. The town is the largest I have seen since leaving Cairo, and much more cleanly and thriving than usual. We crossed the cause¬ way to the celebrated caves, where we met a caravan with a numerous party of slave-dealers conveying their slaves to market. O 11 entering the caves we saw traces of the mummy-seekers having been there, the ground being strewed with tattered wrappings and shrivelled bodies disjointed and mutilated. The entrance to the lower cave is by a porch cut in the rock, nearly square, with the top slightly arched. The door¬ way is covered with hieroglyphics, and two figures of the usual form guard the entrance. The walls and ceiling of the first chamber are also covered with very minute hieroglyphics, which have all been painted. The ceiling of the outer porch has light stars on a dark ground, but 1 could not distinguish a vestige of gold in all the decorations. The upper cave contains the remains of three pillars, and is also covered with hieroglyphics. * 14 tli .—This morning by sunrise we resumed our upward voyage, and landed at Aboutig (the ancient Abutis), which we found surrounded with mounds of rubbish overtopping the town in opposite directions. Near the river are two enormous circular slabs of polished granite, the side of one having a carved figure, holding in his hands the secret or key. ‘ 1 5th .—At AntEeopolis I sought but found no trace of the temple undermined by the river in 1819. The sun was setting, and beaming full upon the hills—deep broad shadows on one side of the amphi¬ theatre, a red purple glow on the other—long lines of green maize here and there broken by the palm and acacia—the solitary ibis stalking lazily along the banks; altogether the scene was embued with a serenity and beauty I have never seen equalled. ‘ 1 6 th .—Went ashore at Maragheh, where there was a fair. We were soon surrounded on all sides, and seemed the great attraction. We were conducted by several armed Arabs to the sheik or governor, who invited us to be seated, gave us chabouks, and presented us to his son. All the people gathered round, staring in wonderment, while the guard kept them back by hitting right and left with their sticks and guns. Bought a sheep for 25 piastres, or 5s. The town is prettily situated LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. 88 [1838. amongst gardens. Tlie female dress is remarkably simple and elegant. It is tied in a knot on each shoulder, and the arms are left free. f 1 7th .—We landed at Girgeh, and visited the bazaar and other parts of the town, and were accosted by the padre or superior of the Catholic convent, who, although a Florentine, was dressed in the Eastern fashion, and wore a red turban. There was nothing to note here, so we returned to our boat, and proceeded on our voyage. ‘ 18 th .—A glorious morning. Nothing can be more beautiful than the craft here, skimming along the water, their white sails flapping and shivering in the breeze, and I have the supreme delight of being at present commander of a vessel with a crew of eight or nine men. I now and then look up to the British ensign over head with no small degree of pride as some passing vessel shows its tattered flag and Arabic inscrip¬ tion, or the Pasha s crescent and stars. On we went, and on a sandbank saw about half-a-dozen crocodiles sniffing the morning air, some of them being twelve or fourteen feet in length. On our shouting they plunged leisurely into the water, without seeming in any way overpowered by our presence. We have come 400 miles, and the whole line is as if cast in a mould—the same mountains in outline, form, and colour— the same line of land, low and flat, with endless groves of palms, and the same miserable villages; but we are now drawing near Dcndera, the most beautiful of the Egyptian temples, and I shall soon see whether my expectations are to be realised. ‘ Denclera, 19 th .—By daybreak I was astir, and went to the ruins with my friend Captain Nellie, who assisted me in taking the dimensions. The city stands in the middle of an immense plain, about two miles from the river. On entering the portico of the temple, I was struck with amazement at the perfect preservation of every part of the struc¬ ture, except where it had been purposely defaced, and at the endless labour bestowed on the carving—for every part is covered with hiero¬ glyphics, outside as well as inside, even the staircases where daylight could not penetrate. Figures here are fifteen feet in height, others so small they require to be examined by a glass; and the whole is so varied, so perfect, and so vast, that it must have been the work of ages. To the north-west of this is a temple called the Typhonium, from the 838 .] LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. 89 figure of Typhon being often repeated on its walls; and the whole structure is covered with elaborate carving. Among the ruins of the city I could not perceive a stone; all was sunburnt brick, contrasting strangely with the time when these temples rose in all their splendour. I felt sad and solitary—not a soul but myself and my black guide with¬ in miles ; all around was the Lybian Desert; far distant was an Arab encampment; the setting sun gilded the high peaks of the hills, throwing the shadow of the temples across the plain; and I reached my boat overcome by melancholy reflections on the mutability of all human greatness, and the perishable nature of even the most enduring works of human genius. * 20 th. —To-day I have been employed in drawing the ground-plan and elevation of Dendera, which I finished before dinner. ‘ 2\st, Sunday .—Arrived at Goorna. Hired donkeys and proceeded to the ruins. The first we came to was a small temple much dilapi¬ dated. Further on is the Memnonium, with the magnitude of which I was rather disappointed, but surprised at the massive stones of which it is composed. The proportion of the pillars is beautiful. The head and shoulders of Memnon lying on the ground is enormous ; one can only wonder how it got there. There is also a small and very beautiful head and body of the same figure in black basalt. On the left there is a huge propylon shattered to pieces, with a battle-scene carved on it. The statues which are further south in the plain are very ruinous, but suffi¬ cient remains to give an idea of what they have been. Near these is a heap of stones, once forming the temple of which these figures were supposed to be the guardians. We next visited the Medinet Abou, and afterwards a very small temple, with iris head pillars of the most exquisite proportion. On our way back to the boat we met several Arabs with beautifully painted and ornamented mummies, which they offered us for sale. £ 22 d .—Returned and carefully examined the temple, then set out for Baban el Molook, the tombs of the kings of Thebes. The tomb called Belzoni s is in an excellent state of preservation, and in the hiero¬ glyphics I think might be traced the entire system of Egyptian myth¬ ology. This splendid mausoleum never having been finished, you have 2 a 90 LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. [ 1838 . the whole process from the smoothing of the rock to the red chalk outline; then follows the correcting with a black outline, in size- colour; and, lastly, the scooping out into the form. We visited several other tombs, all much dilapidated; and on our way to the boat witnessed the performances of some dancing-girls, very eleo-ant and graceful. 1 23 d, Luxor. —This morning I walked over the vast remains of this mighty edifice, which is buried amid the mud houses of the modern town. The great propylon facing the north is in a tolerable state of preservation. On each side of the gateway there are two colossal sitting- figures buried up to the chest and sadly mutilated. Following my guide, I clambered to the top of the propylon, where I could see the remains of this magnificent temple, with the modern houses twisting here and there among the pillars. Adjoining these is a mosque, with minarets scarcely reaching so high as the huge propylon; while the Obelisk, one entire stone, rises like the work of a divinity,—all proving the grandeur of ancient art, and contrasting sadly with the wretched modern dwellings around them. ‘The main pillars are 30 feet in circumference, the capitals with their lotus-leaves must be about 50 feet outside. All are covered with carving, and are painted in the most glowing colours, much of which retains its pristine purity. ‘ We then proceeded to Karnalc, which is still more magnificent. The circumference of the pillars is 33 feet 6 inches, so that a man beside them looks a pigmy. The plains are so vast on which these temples stand that, until you come near them, you have no idea of their magnitude. There are rows of sphinxes with rams’ heads ranged along both sides of the approaches. Surrounding the whole is a colonnade of smaller pillars, from which branch off cloisters supported also by colossal figures, their arms crossed over their breasts, and their hands holding the scourge and crook. Beyond these columns are gateways seen through gateways, and stupendous obelisks, one of which is without a flaw, and the polish as perfect as if the workmen had just left it. Every¬ thing is covered with carving, much of it very beautiful, and on the outer walls are processions and battles without number. After exa- 838 .] LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. 91 mining the two great gates and seeing other two smaller temples, we bade adieu to Karnak, and at 5 o’clock got under weigh for Esne and Nubia. 1 2itli .—This morning visited the ruins of Hermenthes, which, with the exception of Luxor and Karnak, are the most picturesque I have seen. The principal objects among the hieroglyphics with which the walls are covered are cats, serpents, and monkeys. The ruins, like others, are sur¬ rounded with huge mounds of earth covered with fragments of pillars. ‘ Esne, ancient Latopolis. The temple here is used as a powder- magazine. The walls are black and covered with the usual deities. The pillars are large and of the lotus form. ‘ 2,5th .—About 4 o’clock we reached the ancient city of Eilethyse, the walls of which are in an excellent state of preservation. No vestiges of temples are to be seen here, and it seems to have been a fortress or citadel. I crossed the plain, where I found the foundations of what had been a stone building; and afterwards visited the caves, the paintings on which are now much defaced. ‘ 26 th .—This morning landed at a village, and walked about five miles across the country to Edfou. About midway we found a sheik’s tomb, in which were jars of water for the thirsty traveller. A lean hungry dog and two immense white eagles were gorging themselves on a dead camel, and they scarcely stopped when we approached them. Wending my way through the wretched huts with which the village is crowded, I stood in front of the most beautiful temple in Egypt. It is not so large as some, but from every point of view it is a beautiful picture. The two propylons are exquisite in proportion, and the repre¬ sentations on them of Isis and other deities are large and expressive. The colonnade runs round the dromos, and all the pillars and capitals are different. On the frieze of the portico is a line of long-tailed baboons, and the whole is enclosed with a wall covered with carving. Near this is the cella of a small temple dedicated to Typhon, but the remains are almost buried. ‘2 1th .—Scarcely a breath of wind. Crocodiles lie sunning them¬ selves on the banks. The cooing of the wild pigeons, and the notes of numerous birds, are heard from the groves of palms, and the solitary crane stalks along by the river-side. Will this desert ever again be- 92 LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. [1838. come the busy haunt of men ? Nothing is more probable, as Egypt is the medium of our direct intercourse with India. ‘ 28th, Sunday .—Reached Kom Ombo, which rises on a gentle emi¬ nence, and has a most imposing effect. The Nile has gradually been en¬ croaching on this part of the shore, and the end of one propylon similar to that of Karnak is the only part left standing. It is covered with the usual hieroglyphics and representations of deities, and a number of immense blocks of stone, parts of a former temple, are lying about. The colours of the winged globe, the usual roof-decoration, are in good pre¬ servation. There have been fifteen pillars, but the two angular ones have been thrown down. There are one or two capitals with the head of Isis. A few houses peeping above the sand which has been drifted from the desert is all that can now be seen of the once proud city of Ombo. On ascending the esplanade on which the picturesque ruins stand I was more and more struck with their beauty, and each side of the structure seemed better than the other. ‘ 29/A.—Sycne or Asouan. We walked over the ruins of this ancient city, which crowns the height of a rock jutting out into the stream. Nothing remains but the brick walls ; so, after making a drawing of this part of the river, we crossed over to the island of Elephanta, where we found no vestiges of its ancient temples save a few columns and masses of rubbish. I saw one solitary figure, with the arms folded on the breast, holding flagellum and crook; and on examining the wall next the stream I found it composed of stones covered with hieroglyphics, which must formerly have belonged to a temple. ‘ 30 tli ,—This morning we hired donkeys and started for Philoe. Our route lay through a long straggling line of tombs scattered about among huge granite rocks, some of them covered with hieroglyphics. A high ridge of rocks lay between us and the Nile, while here and there were tombs of saints. All around was bare and sterile, not a green blade enlivened the scene. After riding for some hours we came in sight of the little island of Philoe, a paradise in the midst of desolation. To me it recalled the first time I had seen Roslin, and it has ever since been associated in my mind with my father-land and the happy days of my youth. The whole of the space that is not covered ■with the remains of LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. 93 1838.] the temples is strewn with the debris of the former town. There are four temples. The first we visited is on the south of the island, having lotus-formed, capitals. It seems never to have been finished. It is of a light sandstone, and the detail is all so sharp and beautiful that it looks as if the masons and carvers had just left their work, and I could scarcely believe that I was looking at a ruin of two thousand years’ standing. Two of the lower screens are carved with hieroglyphics, as is also the lower part of one of the pillars. With the exception of the winged globe, which had just been commenced, no painting is to be found, and this, I think, shows that the structure had never been com¬ pleted. A long esplanade is in front of the two propylons, between which is the main entrance to the great temple. On either side is a colonnade of small pillars, beautifully proportioned, and not rounded at the base, like those of Thebes. The capitals are chiefly of the lotus and palm, but they all differ. This esplanade terminates abruptly, over¬ looking the river at a considerable height. The propylons and gateway are carved with the usual emblems. On the back walls of the colonnade, next the river, the colours of the dresses of the different deities are yet quite distinct. Nothing can excel the elegant proportions of the great temple. It is supported by ten columns, the capitals of the full-blown lotus form, inlaid with green, blue, and yellow, still in excellent preser¬ vation. The cella probably for the idol is completely blackened by the smoke from the lamps burning before the shrine. The other temples and ruins are equally interesting. * 31s£.—This morning a steamboat, which had been up the Nile with the Pasha, returned without her rudder, and the Bey invited us to his tent, where my friends and I were served with coffee and pipes. He told us that he had the Pasha’s orders to give us all the assistance in his power, and he offered to provide us with camels for ourselves and our baggage, while our boats were being taken up the cataract; but this kind offer we declined. ‘ Nov. 1.—After considerable exertion and difficulty we got our boats up the rapids. During the time this was being done I made a large sketch of the temple called Pharaoh’s Bed, which in every direction is exceedingly beautiful. At sunset we entered Ethiopia. 2 B 94 LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. [1838. ‘ 2d .—This morning we went ashore at Wady Dabod, where there is a small temple which seems never to have been completed. The two outer columns are rough as they' were hewn, and offer evidence of the Egyptian sculptors having cut the hieroglyphics after the columns were erected. There is a shrine of red granite, which seems to have been for the statue of Isis, and from the carving it appears more ancient than the temple. We next visited Wady Kardassy, on which is a beau¬ tiful little temple, built on a rock overlooking the river. It is similar in character to the other, but Greek crosses in many places give evi¬ dence of its having been used as a Christian church. ‘ 3d .—This morning reached Kalabshe, a village on the west bank, containing a magnificent temple, approached by a landing formed of immense square stones, stretching from the water’s-edge to a platform in front of the propylon. Over the gateway is the winged globe, and on the architrave of the door are symbolical figures. The whole has been surrounded by a double wall, the inner the higher. The portico has a very noble appearance, consisting of four columns of the lotus form. The shafts, capitals, and friezes, lie in heaps half the height of the walls, round which are painted numerous Greek inscriptions, and some faint vestiges of saints with the nimbus round their heads. ‘ 4 Ik .—Pulled up to-day under the small temple of Dandour, which appeared insignificant after the great temples we had just left. During the night we passed the temples of Gyrshe and Dakke, and found ourselves on the morning of the 5th at the upper part of the island of Derar, which, with the land on either shore, is well cultivated. The sun had just risen, and lit up the sparkling white sand, amid which rises the temple of Offalina, with the dark purple hills seen in the distance. This temple has been surrounded by a colonnade of sixteen pillars, fourteen of which are standing. Many of the capitals have never been carved, and from the total want of sculpture the temple has evidently never been com¬ pleted. There are, however, Greek paintings, showing that it must have been at one time used as a Christian church. In one is a repre¬ sentation of a figure driving two others, their hands raised as in despair; and from the trees in the background being represented as laden with fruit, I would imagine it is intended to represent the expulsion from LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. 95 1838.] Paradise. There is a figure with a nimbus round his head, seated on a throne, as if sitting in judgment. These figures are exceedingly well drawn, and the arrangement of the limbs is very unlike the profile out¬ line of the Egyptians. The stones have been put together without mortar, and must have been connected by clamps of some kind or other. All the temples I have seen since leaving Nubia are unfinished, and seem to have been only progressing to completion when they were abandoned in consequence of the advance of the new religion. 1 5 th .—The thermometer 96° in the shade—no wind. In the evening a slight breeze sprang up, and in the morning of the 6th we found our¬ selves within a short distance of the ruined temple of Wady Saboua. ‘ A great portion of this temple is buried in the sand. There was an avenue of sphinxes, with two colossal figures, fourteen feet in height, in front of the dromos, one of which I sketched. They are similar to those in the British Museum. ‘ 7th .—Tins morning we are near the town of Kosocko, and remained here during the day, having sundry interesting adventures. At night we sailed past Hassaia and Derr, and in the morning had reached Tharsa Ibrim. We passed on by the Castle of Ibrim, determining to examine it on our return; and on the evening of the 8th we arrived at Aboosimbel. On the morning of the 9th I was in the celebrated temple cut in the rock, which has often been described. There are four colossal figures in a sitting posture carved on the face of the rock. This is said to be the oldest of the Egyptian temples. If so, in what a labyrinth does it involve the history of those stupendous edifices ! The beauty' of the workmanship and colossal dimensions are not surpassed even by those at Thebes. In the splendid hall a double row of colossal figures, attached to square pillars, support the roof. The walls and pillars are covered with sculpture in excellent preservation. From this hall, branch various apartments also covered with sculpture. There is another tem¬ ple, the northern, equally interesting. 11 th .—At nightfall we began to descend the stream, and stopped at the Castle of Ibrim, which rises between two and three hundred feet above the river, and which, with the surrounding country, presents a perfect picture of desolation. The whole debris, towering up layer 96 LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. [1838. above layer, shows that one town has been built on the ruins of another. The castle itself must have been a place of great strength, and here and there are fragments of art indicating an Egyptian origin. ‘ 12 th. —To-night we arrived at Derr, the capital of Nubia, which is the largest town I have seen since passing the cataract, and the houses are better built and cleaner than any in Lower Egypt. They all in¬ cline inward in the pyramidal form. The temple here, which is small, is cut in the face of the rock, and is of great antiquity. In the middle of the town is an immense sycamore, which was quite a relief, after the endless repetition of palms we had seen on our route. ‘ 13 th. —We pulled down to the small temple called Amada, which is a complete ruin, and more than half buried in sand. A few mud- walls of former houses are stuck round it, and on the top of the dromos is a clumsy mud-dome, most probably added on its being converted into a Christian church. The sanctuary is entire, and its walls, as well as those of other two apartments with which it communicates, are covered ■with small beautifully-executed hieroglyphics, more minutely sculptured than is generally found in similar edifices. The colouring is still nearly perfect, and could easily be transferred to paper. * Ikth. —Having sailed all night, we got this morning to Maharraka, of which I took a sketch, and passed on to Korti, where there are the remains of a very small temple scarcely worth a visit. The town, how¬ ever, is worth seeing. The inhabitants seemed frightened by our approach, especially the women and children, who ran away. This, we learned, was caused by their being frequently carried away as slaves, and this makes them frightened whenever they see a white man. When I attempted to sketch them, they seemed still more frightened, and I found this generally in Barbary. * Leaving Korti, two hours brought us to Dakke. This is an exquisite ruin, and any one who wishes to convey to Europe an idea of the beauty of Egyptian sculpture in its best period need not go further. ‘ 15 th. —Gyrslie. We arrived here last night, and by daybreak this morning I was on my way to the hill where the temple is excavated. The ascent seems to have been originally a flight of steps, on each side of which the sphinxes now lying scattered about have been placed. The LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. 97 1838.] portico, originally consisting of twelve columns, only two of which remain, supporting an entablature, projects from the face of the rock. There are inner chambers, colossal figures, and decorations, but the whole are much mutilated and blackened, and it is with difficulty the subjects on the walls can be made out. On the opposite hill are the remains of an extensive town and suburbs. We left, and towards evening again reached the most beautiful of the Nubian temples— Kalabshe. None of the Egyptian temples can compare with it in point of situation. Embosomed in a recess among sterile rocks, and sur¬ rounded by the palm and acacia,, it is only on a near approach you see that it is a ruin. The carving is as sharp as if newly chiselled, and the whole, in elegance of proportion and delicacy of detail, is unsur¬ passed even by Philoe. ‘ 1 6th .—Having ordered my boat down to Wadi Kardassy, I had time leisurely to examine the ruins, which extend nearly to Kardassy. There are two temples similar to those already described, and numerous en¬ closures of immense square stones put together without mortar. All the layers are curiously built with a sweep like an inverted arch. These enclosures are generally eight or ten feet high, and they seem divided into chambers, which are now filled with rubbish. I walked along to Kardassy through lines of villages, the black inmates of which turned out to see me; I bought from a female some copper coins, and from an Arab a long sword, like a Highlander’s, a small one which hung at his girdle, a charm which was slung round his left arm, a buckler of the hide of the hippopotamus, and a water-bottle slung in a leathern pouch decorated with shells, for all of which I paid about 30s. ‘ 17 th. —Philoe. ‘ 1 9th .—Made some large drawings of the double colonnade from the south, and I copied several of the emblematical figures on the walls, which are in excellent preservation. c 20th .—Descended the falls to-day, which is not free from danger. Our reis was in a fever until we were through. We stopped an hour at Asouan, and next morning we were at the remains of the magnificent temple of Kom Ombo, and by daybreak our tents were pitched in front 2 c LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. 98 [1S38. of the portico. 1 made two coloured sketches of this glorious ruin, and at sunset made an oil-painting of the whole scene. ‘ 22 d .—Having been on our way all night, we this morning passed Hadjar Silsilis, but as I had examined it in passing up, and my men having taken a fit of rowing, I did not stop, but muddled the day away in washing my sketches with gum-water. I 11 the evening we reached Edfou, of which I took a leisurely view, and found it not to have lost but gained in comparison with what I had seen. * 23 d. —To-day I made two large drawings of the portico, and from it looking across the dromos to the propylon. ‘ 24th, —Made two large drawings of the dromos, also a small general view. The heat was 100° in the shade; and, even with the aid of um¬ brella and tent, it was very difficult to do any work. ‘ 2 5th. —Esne. Thanks to the bullying of my servant, the men pulled all night, and at sunrise we are here, thirty miles from Edfou. I was unwilling to pass this temple without doing something, although after Edfou it is seen to great disadvantage, to which, however, it is not much inferior in detail. While I was making a drawing, I was very kindly received by the Copts or Christians, who seemed to consider me one of themselves. I introduced a group of them in my drawing, with which they seemed highly pleased. This is the last Christian town 011 the Nile till you reach Abyssinia. When I returned to my boat, I found my faithful servant in paroxysms of pain, and, guessing it to be cholera, I administered to him thirty drops of laudanum. He lay apparently dead, and I was much alarmed, but after sitting by him for some time, he whispered £ Tyhe,’ to my intense delight. He gradually recovered, and in two hours was at the oars again. So much for quack Doctor Roberts. 1 2 6th. —Got during the night to Erment. Went on shore by day¬ break, and made two drawings of the ruins, which are very picturesque. Set out at 11 for Thebes. 1 o’clock, the propylons of Luxor in sight. Landed at Karnak. ‘ 2 7th. —Made two drawings of Karnak. £ 28 th. —Made two drawings of the Great Temple at Karnak. £ 29 th. —Made three drawings of Karnak. £ 30 th .—Made two studies in oil, and one general view in pencil. i» 38 .] LIFE OF DAVIE ROBERTS. 99 ‘ December 1st.—Commenced and finished at Luxor. Made three large sketches, one of the mountains of Baban el Molook, coloured. ‘ ^d, Sunday. —Goorna. Visited Medinet Abou, sitting statue, etc. ‘ 3d.—Visited the Tombs of the Kings. Made a coloured sketch of the valley. Ascended the mountain, and crossing to the opposite valley found the ruins of a temple. ‘ ^th — -Made three coloured sketches of colossal statue in the plain of Thebes. ‘ 5th. Have been very industrious to-day, thanks to a thunder¬ storm, accompanied with rain, a very rare event in this part of the world. I made two large coloured sketches of the Memnonium, and two of the Medinet Abou. Took leave of Thebes, and, for the first time on our going down the river, had our sails up. ‘ 6th .—Arrived at Dendera about 11 a.m., and made a drawing of the interior of the temple, which is in a better state of preservation than any in Egypt, and in variety and exquisite finish its sculptures take precedence of all others, though to me they want the simple grandeur of the earlier monuments. 7th. All day at Dendera. After much trouble, got an excellent view of the temple looking inwards. This and an interior were all that I could do. ‘ 3th. —To-day I drew the gate to the south-east of the temple, also numerous details and studies of the sculptures, among others those along the frieze of the promos. This finished my series of drawings from llgyptian temples. I may not have done them justice, but few artists of my standing could afford more time, and I daresay few could have produced more in the same number of days. Now for Cairo and the architecture of the Moslems, which is not so well known as that of the Egyptians. ‘ 3 th. —Rowing all last night and all this day. Spent the day in overhauling and correcting my sketches, of which I find I have upwards of one hundred, all of them paintable subjects,—-pretty well for one month’s work. The weather is now delightful; the nights are such as we have in England about the end of September. To-day I saw an enormous crocodile. I was close to him as he was getting into 100 LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. [1838. the water, and bis body seemed equal in circumference to an ox. My servant told me be bad lately eaten a man belonging to tbe adjoining village, and certainly be was big enough to have eaten a donkey. To¬ night we reached Babares; to-morrow I purpose riding to Arabat Abydas, tbe ancient Abydos, and tbe birthplace of Memnon. ‘ 1 0 th .—This morning, having procured a man and donkey, I started early, and after a two hours’ ride came to the village, after passing through which we began to ascend vast heaps of sand mixed with broken pottery and stones. At first no ruins were visible, but at last we saw some fragments of broken stone of the colour of chalk, and came upon a small apartment below the surface of the sand, on which were repre¬ sented the deities usual in Egyptian edifices. They were painted, the colours still very vivid. As we wandered on we found, amidst frag¬ ments of statues, whitened bones of the dead and fragments of mummies, to me a most painful and disgusting sight. Passing on, we came to the celebrated palace, which was difficult to discover, the sand being on a level with the top of it. Descending into one of the apartments, I found the roof supported by the short squat columns found in Karnak, etc. The capitals alone are visible, but the walls and roof are covered with hieroglyphics, and in every part the cartouche of Baineses is seen. I copied from the walls two splendid galleys, used in the processions of the priesthood, whfch are more exquisitely finished than any 1 have yet seen. While here, I could not help looking at the wretched, naked, and filthy beings by whom I was surrounded, and feeling how completely civilisation had been swept from the country it had once adorned. ‘ Leaving Arabat Abydas for Girgeh, we passed along by the ancient canal through a. well-cultivated country, which appeared as if recently dried up after the inundation. T noticed that the mountains were per¬ forated with caves, very probably the necropolis of Abydas. The plain seems larger than that of Thebes; numerous villages are scattered over it, through which we passed, and in about two and a half hours reached Girgeh, where I found my boat waiting me. 1 11 th .—This morning we stopped the boat about three miles below Girgeh, and I ascended the mountain to examine the numerous cavities LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. 101 ill the face of the rock. In one I visited I found the roof supported by elegantly-formed pillars, with capitals of the Osirite form. There are also under-chambers or catacombs, but these are filled up by rubbish. The other caves, I have no doubt, are similar. I went to the summit of the mountain to get a view of the valley of the Nile, and found a large pile of stones, which we in Scotland call a cairn, and great quantities of rock-crystals lying about. ‘ 12 th .—Passed Eklimim; saw flocks of pelicans along the banks. ' 13t/i.—Siout. On the morning of the 11th, when ascending the mountain below Girgeh, I left one of my sketch-books behind me, filled with views in Nubia, having taken it with me to compare some of the drawings I had formerly made with the caves, which I expected might be similar. Something engaged my attention, and it was only this morning I discovered my loss. While debating what was to be done, a boat with the English colours hove in sight, with a fair wind and her sails set. With the permission of the gentleman to whom the boat belonged, my servant and Hassan were allowed to go with him and endeavour to recover this valuable book. The distance by water was eighty miles. I could not expect them to return within a few days, so I enployed myself as well as I could till the 17th, when my men returned all safe with the sketch-book. The finding of my book was almost a miracle. It was not in the place I had imagined and described to my men, who, after ascending the mountain, returned to the cave which 1 had first entered, where they found the treasure they had come to seek. They had to return to Girgeh, and apply to the sheik for camels, which he could not give them, but they got a boat for 75 piastres, or 17s., and rowed here, about eighty miles, in thirty hours. To-day, having the wind with us, we used the sails, and being anxious to receive letters from home, I pushed on towards Cairo. ‘ 18 th. —To-day arrived at Minieh. Went ashore and visited the bazaar. Left at 12, but the wind blew a hurricane from the north, and we stopped all day, amusing myself as usual by touching up and gumming my sketches. The day w T as cold as a November one in Eng land, and clouds of sand rose, totally obscuring the sun. ‘ 1 9th .—Night was bitterly cold. Morning cloudless, and a delight 2 D 102 LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. 1838. ful breeze from the south-west, we going six or seven miles an hour. 7 p.m. arrived at Benisouef. 1 20 til .—This morning we are to the north of what are called the False Pyramids. My boatmen have been singing all the morning, joyous at the hope of reaching home to-night. I am now so used to my reis and men that I feel somewhat unhappy at the prospect of leaving them. The voyage has been a pleasant one, and certainly by far the most important I have ever taken. My drawings, I feel, are possessed of great interest, independent of their merits as pictures. I am the first English artist who has been here, and there is much in the French work that conveys no idea of these splendid remains. We shall see what impression they make in England. Subjects of another class and equal interest remain at Cairo, and the ground is equally untrodden. If God spares me in health, I hope to make much of the mosques and tombs of the Mamelukes, Caliphs, etc. CHAPTER VI. ‘ 21rf > Friday .—Arrived safely at Cairo. Found that my packet of letters had been sent up the country, and must have passed me on the river. One, however, from my dear daughter Christine, congratulating me on my election as an Associate of the Royal Academy, consoled me so far for the temporary want of the others. Experienced great kindness from Colonel Campbell. ‘ 22 d, Saturday .—Took a house for which I am to pay 8 piastres or 20d. per day. Dine with Colonel Campbell on Christmas day. Wrote to dear Christine.’ Extracts from this letter :— ‘ Cairo, 22 d December 1838. ‘My dear Christine,—I have just arrived here from Nubia after an absence of nearly three months, thank God, in better health and spirits than I have been for many years. Your welcome letter of the 7th ultimo greeted me on my arrival with the title of A.R.A. This is an honour which I value chiefly on account of the pleasure it affords you and those who wish me well. I shall endeavour by future exertions to deserve it, and I think I have got materials that will enable me to do so. As yours is the only letter from England I have seen since leaving, everything in it is full of interest. A packet of letters for me, which had been some time lying here, unfortunately Colonel Campbell had forwarded by a traveller to Thebes, whom I missed on my way down the Nile. I am delighted to learn that you are well, and progressing in Italian and other ornamental branches of your education. I have no LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. [1838. 104 doubt you are not unmindful of the useful, and are trying your hand at shaping and sewing, stitching and back-stitching; knowing that you will do all that a good girl can do to fit you to fill any sphere in life you may be destined to fill, whether high or humble. * I shall follow your advice and lose as little time as I can in getting home ; but, first of all, I must tell you what I have been doing since I last wrote you. Being anxious to get to the extremity of my journey before beginning my work, after a few days’ stay in Cairo I engaged a boat with a small cabin about six feet long by five feet broad and five feet six inches high. This was manned by eight men, including the reis or captain. An Arab servant and myself completed our comple¬ ment in seaman phrase. In order to clean the boat, or drown the vermin with which it was infested, I had it sunk for a night in the Nile, and well scrubbed. I laid in a stock of provisions for three months— stoves, pots, kettles, plates, knives, forks, cups, saucers, etc.; provided myself with bed and bed-clothes, and an awning to cover a portion of the deck where I could sit, and having hoisted an English fiag at the mast-head, we set sail from Cairo for Nubia on the 6th October. I will not attempt to describe my voyage up to the second cataract beyond the 22d degree of southern latitude, but I have rarely enjoyed better health ; and with the exception of swarms of mosquitoes, fleas, bugs, lizards, etc., from whom I suffered martyrdom, running over me all night, eating my victuals, and even nibbling my straw-hat, on the whole I was tolerably comfortable and as independent as any king in Christendom. There I sat, sketch-book in hand, smoking my long Turkish chabouk, with a servant to attend to all my wants, and a boat with eight men at my command to stop or go on as I liked, and who never received an order without insisting on kneeling and kissing my hand. The climate delicious, the evenings especially ; the moonlights such as you cannot conceive in your dismal foggy atmosphere. During my progress I passed ponderous re¬ mains of places once inhabited by peoples and dynasties long, long for¬ gotten; then succeeded Christian edifices, deserted and tottering to their fall, or half-buried in the sand of the desert; splendid cities once teeming with a busy population, and embellished with temples and edifices, the wonder of the world, now deserted and lonely, or reduced i 8 3 8 .] LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. 105 by misgovernment and the barbarism of the Moslem creed, to a state as savage as the wild animals by which they are surrounded. Often have I gazed on them till my heart has actually sickened within me. But this may have arisen from my having sat for days in some of these mag nificent temples without any indication of life, not even the mannikin step of the lizard or the trail of the serpent. The result of my journey, however, has been, that I have got a portfolio of most interesting sketches, and I hope to get another not less so in Cairo, the mosques in which are equal to any in the world. The only difficulty will be contending with the prejudices of the Mohammedans, who will not allow an infidel to enter their mosques, and certainly not to sketch them. ‘ Colonel Campbell, however, is doing all in his power to get me this privilege; he is in high favour with the Pacha, and I hope he will be successful in his efforts. I think it will take five or six weeks before I can finish all I wish to do here. ‘ Two gentlemen here, going to Syria by the way of Petra, are anxious that I should join them, and it is not unlikely I may do so if the weather is at all favourable. ‘ Again, my dear child, let me congratulate you on having been the first to apprize me of the A.R.A. having been added to my name, and give my kind love to Mrs. Cooke, Edward, etc., and believe me, ever, etc.,* David Roberts/ ‘ 23 d .—Wrote to Sir David Wilkie and to my sister. Visited the Tomb of the Caliphs, and took possession of my house, which, by laying out 200 piastres, I have made very comfortable. ‘ 24 th .—Waited on Mr. Waghorn to thank him; introduced to Mrs. W. Visited the citadel; principal apartments all modern, and gaudily painted. Saw the Bath of Mohammed Ali, Hall of Audience, etc. etc. The effect to-night was grand : the sky was clouded and overcast—the * Previous to leaving England on his journey to Spain, Roberts had placed his only daughter, now Mrs. Henry Bicknell, under the charge of Mrs. Cooke, the wife of George Cooke, the famous engraver, and mother of Edward Cooke, R.A., who took pupils at her house in Barnes Terrace, near Richmond. Miss Roberts remained there, and was educated along with the Misses Cooke until her father returned from the Holy Land.—J. B. 2 E 106 LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. [ 1838 . setting sun from time to time bursting through the haze—the pyramids towering black as the clouds that overhung them; the Nile reflected the glimpses of the sun, while the city extended as far as the eye could reach, studded with minarets of the most varied and fantastic shapes, that of Sultan Hassan rising in all its majesty. I enjoy my Christmas eve alone, and feel grateful that I am in good health and have got over the most fatiguing part of my journey. This is a city unequalled in the world for the picturesque. Abba Pacha has promised me a firman or order to draw in the various mosques. This is all that I could desire. To-morrow must be a day of exploration, then to work. e 25th, Christmas-day. —Good morning to you in Grand Cairo. Some kind friends will be thinking of me when sitting down to their Christinas dinner. Well, God bless them all, say I. ‘ Visited the tombs of the Mamelukes—very ruinous; much varied in general form, but similar in detail. Visited the mausoleum of Mohammed Ali, in which the carvings are barbarous, and show the degraded state of modern art here. Dined with Colonel Campbell, and spent a delightful evening. c 26th — -Made two large drawings of the mosque of Sultan Hassan from the great square of the Rumeyleh. Made also one from the gate of the citadel of the same mosque. Got the guard, who assisted in keeping back the crowd while I was at work. Met on my way home a marriage- party. The bride in height and form appeared a mere child; the face completely concealed. ‘ 2 7th .—Made a large drawing of the gate called Babel. In the evening went to Hills Hotel to hear the news from England. Received through Colonel Campbells janissary the firman for Syria. ‘ 28th. —To-day made two drawings of the gate of Bab Zuweyleh, with its minarets. I am still bewildered with the extraordinary pic¬ turesque streets and buildings of this most wonderful of all cities. ‘ 29th .—Made two large drawings,—one of a street leading to the Lunatic Asylum, and another view of the same street from a point opposite. These are glorious subjects, but difficult to draw in the crowded streets, although, on the whole, the people behave exceed¬ ingly well. LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. 107 1839 ] ‘ 30th. —Went to the tombs of the Mameluke kings, and made three drawings. The day fine, but cold. ‘ 31st.—Made a drawing of the principal bazaar—the best I have yet done in Cairo. Letter from my dear Christine; all well at home, thank God. This is the last night of the old year. How many happy hogmanay nights have I spent! My best wishes to all kind hearts in dear Scotland. ‘ ls< January 1839.—To-day I have stood working in the crowded streets of Cairo, jostled and stared at till I came home sick. No one in looking over my sketches will ever think of the trouble the collection of them has cost me ; but as they will add to the knowledge in Europe of the various styles of architecture existing in different countries and ages, I am well satisfied. Two drawings done to-day—‘ Entrance to the Mosque of Sultan Hassan,’ and the ‘ Summit of a Mosque ’ in one of the close streets. ‘ 2d .—Had a visit from Mr. Wane, the consul, who informs me that, before I can visit the various mosques, or make drawings of them, I must assume the Turkish dress. I have therefore purchased a suit, and to-morrow must have my whiskers shaved off. This is too bad; but having taken such a long journey, I must not stick at trifles ; and having been the first artist who has made drawings here, I hope for a suc¬ cessful result. To-day, not feeling very well, I took a stroll through a part of the city which I had not visited, and was more and more astonished at the extent and splendour of its pictorial remains. ‘ 3d. —Very unwell during last night, and to-day in the forenoon. In the afternoon was able to take a short stroll. ' 4 th. —Colonel Campbell, having learned from my servant that I was unwell, came and saw me, smoked a pipe, and spent an hour very delightfully. Wrote a long letter to my friend Hay, and amused my¬ self with touching up my drawings. ‘ 5 th. —Felt much better, and had a long reeonnoitering walk through the town. 1 6 th. —To-day assumed my Turkish dress, and accompanied by the janissary of Abba Pacha, visited a number of mosques, among others the Lazar, which is the richest and most frequented, but is made up of 108 LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. [1839. marble pillars and other detail of all shapes and sizes, evidently gathered from older buildings of various dates and styles. The Hassaneen is con¬ sidered the most sacred of all the mosques. It contains the tomb of the said Hassaneen, an immediate descendant of the prophet. I was allowed to look through the gratings, and was told that if I took a bath I might be allowed to enter to-morrow. The interior seems richly decorated, and the shrine in which the tomb is placed is of silver. I next visited the mosque of Sultan Kaitbey, which, though much dilapidated, is beautiful in form, and its internal decorations are gorgeous. Here I was shown a copy of the Koran exquisitely illuminated. The mausoleum has coloured glass in the windows much mutilated, resembling as nearly as possible the pattern of a Turkish carpet. ‘ The mosque of Maguey is of immense size, and is an oblong square, surrounded with piazzas. In the centre is a fountain covered with a pavilion of modern workmanship of the most tawdry description. The mosque of Sultan Hassan is the finest in Cairo. Underneath is a mosque, which is said to have been shut up for two hundred years. I visited several others, all of which were similar in appearance. * 7th. —To-day visited that part of the desert called the Petrified Forest, where trees lie in all directions in the state in which they fell, but all petrified. They seem to have been palms. ‘ 8th. —To-day the ceremony of the sacred camels departure with covering for the tomb of the Prophet, took place, and all the popu¬ lation of the city and the surrounding country were crowded to¬ gether to see the grand procession. As far as the eye could reach the tops of the houses and windows were filled chiefly by women and children. I made sketches of many of the more picturesque groups and figures, and at night dined with some friends in the fashion of the country—viz. sat round a small table on cushions, and tore the meat to pieces with our fingers. £ 9th .—Made some oil-studies of the interior of the mosque of Sultan Kaitbey. ‘Made an oil-sketch of the mosque of Metwalis. In the evening was present at the opening of a theatre in Cairo. The house is small but elegant; the play was in Italian. ‘ 839 ] LIFE OF DAVID ROBERTS. loy ‘ l\th. —Made several sketches of the Tombs of the Caliphs. Letter from Christine ; all well, thank God. ‘ 12 th. —Drew the mosque of Sultan Hassan. Made only one draw¬ ing of the court. Met with Ishmael Effendi, who dined with me, and who speaks English well. Much pleased with him ; told me he was baptized in Glasgow. ‘13 th. —To-day the grand caravan starts for Mecca. With some friends left Cairo at sunrise, and proceeding ten or twelve miles into the desert, we reached the encampment before it had broken up. ‘ There were about two thousand camels and two or three hundred horses. In the centre was the Emir’s tent, surrounded by an immense gathering of all tribes and nations in the most picturesque derangement, those from Constantinople being most conspicuous. At mid-day or noon prayers, all the camels, as well as the worshippers, faced the east, and on a signal from a gun the whole mass of human beings, which stretched as far as the eye could reach, began to move—the guahmal with its sacred load being in the centre—recalling vividly the children of Israel bearing the ark through the wilderness. The harness, the rich trappings, and gay coverings of the tents, bom on the backs of camels, gave the whole a gay rather than a solemn appearance. I had my sketch-book, but there was so much to see that I could do little work. We had a de¬ lightful ride home. ‘ 14 th. —Bought several articles wanted on my journey to Syria— pistols, sabre, etc. ‘ 15 th. —Made a drawing of a street in the suburb of Boulak. After¬ wards rode to the island of Rhoda, and made several small sketches. ‘ 16L Ac y J^u kt-£u>u<^ » f**r A<_ iLdLcUutl j» Q ‘-1*0^. ctj Lu-y CHAPTER IX. On the 10th February 1841 Roberts was elected a Royal Academician, and that year he exhibited in the Royal Academy two pictures painted for George Knott, Esq. —viz. the ‘ Bazaar of the Coppersmiths, Cairo,’ and the ‘ Ruins of Baalbec, Lebanon in the distance.’ The price of the first picture was £210, of the second, £420. He painted, by order of the Queen, a small picture of the ‘ Bridge of Toledo,’ to be presented by her to Prince Albert on his birthday, price £52 :10s. He also made for Her Majesty’s album drawings of the ‘ Holy Sepulchre at Jeru¬ salem and Fountain on the Prado at Madrid,’ price £20 : 5s. He afterwards painted the latter subject for Her Majesty, for presentation to Prince Albert on Christmas-day, and the following notes show how these works were appre¬ ciated by royalty:— ‘ St. James’ Palace, May 28 , 1841 . ' My dear Sir,—I have delayed writing to you till I could convey the Queen’s and Prince Albert’s perfect approbation, both of your painting and also of the two sketches which you have finished. Her Majesty highly approves of both ; and I have only to request that you will kindly send mo the account for these as soon as possible, and it shall be immediately settled. I have the honour to be, dear sir, your faithful, humble servant, | [ WheAtly ’ ‘ Sir Henry Wheatly presents his compliments to Mr. Roberts, and has great pleasure in informing him that both the Queen and Prince t- t-ki. Uct-nuJ- ►/ , tf'Lv foiSisy - /Vv-5 *«.*_ ' a *-*-<-i. £c cJL- /v>- / //, > ,• / <■ / •j A, J'La^l ' ,% ^\Att— t*\) /u. &A-./D , /iu J. k >< y< L^f^l _ Lv-t-i.it) 7 HO I '. /u.tf /fw^. ' /% ~t7 * /r< 7>.*+ L Lord Northwick 1 84 0 » Antwerp ...... j ( 157 10 „ 25 Alloway Kirk—the scene of Burns’ ‘ Tam o’ Shanter’ ..... 1828 26 Chancel of St. Rombauld, Tirlemont 31 10 British Instit". 27 Tower of St. Rombauld, Mechlin Duke of Bedford 26 5 British Artists. 28 Entrance to a Church—composition E. M. Westmacott 8 8 „ 29 Exterior of St. Wulfran, Abbeville . Buchan . 40 0 ' 30 View in Abbeville .... Marquis of Lansdowne 26 5 31 The Bargate, Southampton Buchan . 15 15 ■ J 248 LIST OF PICTURES. Date. No. Subject of Picture. Buyer. Price. First Exhibited. 1828 32 Exterior of Town Hall, Louvain William Wells £21 0 33 Tower of St. Rombaultl, Mechlin—a replica 26 5 34 Chapel of the Virgin, St. Pierre, Caen Lord North wick 84 0 British Instit". 1829 35 Exterior of Church of St. Remy, Amiens . Scarnel . 15 0 36 Interior of St. Jacques, Dieppe—a replica W. Trotter Edinburgh. 37 Exterior of Antwerp Cathedral—a replica Grit ten . 38 Exterior of Town-Hall, Client J. P. Ord . 31 10 39 Exterior of St. Maclou, Rouen 31 10 40 Interior of St. Rombauld, Tirlemont Lord Farnborough 52 10 British Artists. 41 Departure of the Israelites out of Egypt— a composition ..... Lord N orthwiek 1830 42 Choir of the Church of St. Pierre, Caen William Wells 84 0 43 Exterior of the Chapel of the Virgin, St. Pierre, Caen ..... J. P. Ord 84 0 44 Ruins of the Monastery of the Black Friars, St. Andrews ..... Walker . 21 0 45 Ruins of Cathedral of St. Regains, St. Andrews ...... Redfern . 26 5 46 Composition of Hindoo Architecture Captain Griudlay 21 0 47 Exterior of St. Pieire, Caen—given to E. Childe 48 Exterior of South Transept, Rouen Cathedral —given to ..... E. Child 49 Exterior of Church of St. Lawrence, Rotter- dam—given to . D. R. Hav 50 The Castle of Nuremberg, on the Rhine — given to ..... John Jackson 51 The Shrine—a composition Marquis of Lansdowne R.A. 1831 52 Exterior of Great Entrance to Rouen Cathedral ..... D. R. Hav 105 0 British Artists. 53 Interior of Church of St. Sauveur, Caen . Marquis of Lansdowne British Instit". j 54 Ruins—a composition .... Robert Vernon 36 15 55 Interior of a Church—a composition Earl of Essex . 21 0 56 Ruins of Cathedral of St. Rule, St. Andrews Duke of Bedford 26 5 British Artists. 57 Part of the South Front of the Courtyard of Falkland Palace .... „ 58 Interior of a Church, a composition— given to ..... John Fawcet . 1832 59 Grand Staircase, Stafford House Marquis of Stafford . 200 0 60 View on the Rhine .... Charles Farley 14 0 61 Ruins—a composition .... 105 0 British Artists. 62 Exterior of St. Lawrence, Rotterdam—a replica ...... 26 5 British Instit". 63 Interior of Lady Chapel, St. Pierre, Caen . James Stewart 26 5 British Artists. 64 The Fallen Tower, Heidelberg „ 65 Edinburgh Castle from the Grassmarket . Lord Wharncliffe 63 0 „ 1834 66 Interior of Seville Cathedral . D. R. Hay 300 0 British Instit". 67 Exterior of the Tower of the Giralda— Painted at Seville .... G. G. Barrett . 115 10 British Artists. 68 Interior of a Flemish Church . General Phipps 36 15 „ 69 Interior of a Chinch .... J. Fairlev 52 10 „ 70 Tower of Church of St. Nicholas, Cordova Cawston 14 0 71 The Tower of the Giralda, Seville T. Dyson 25 0 72 View on the Rliine .... Charles Farlev 10 10 R.A. 1835. 73 Old Houses on the Durro, Granada . J. Sheepshanks 54 10 LIST OF PICTURES. 249 Date. No. 1 Subject of Picture. Buyer. Price. 1 First Exhibited. | 1835 74 Exterior of Cathedral, Burgos Captain Barrett .£150 0 R.A. 75 Fortress of the Alhambra, Granada . Lord IS orthwick 52 10 76 Interior of Chapel in the Cathedral, Bayonne Gritten . 20 0 „ 77 Exterior of Lady Chapel, Bordeaux Cathe- dral ...... 20 0 78 Moorish Tower and Bridge, Cordova 52 10 British Artists. 79 Part of Exterior of Cathedral, Burgos Duke of Sutherland . 50 0 80 Court of the Lions, Alhambra Count Jenisou . 31 10 81 Old Houses on the Darro, Granada . Artaria . 26 5 82 Gate of St. Jean, Bordeaux Hastings . 21 0 83 Part of the Castle of Marchinella, Anda- lusia—given to .... Bright 84 Interior of the Cathedral, Burgos Robert Vernon 38 10 85 Interior of Chapel in Bayonne Cathedral . Wadmore 37 15 86 Gateway of Monastery of the Carmelites, Burgos—given to ... J. Clarke 183G 87 Interior of Chapel of Ferdinand and Isa- Leila, Granada ..... William Beckford 262 10 R.A. 1837 88 St. Paul’s from Ludgate Hill, with the Lord Mayor’s Procession E. Goodall 42 0 89 Exterior of St. Paul’s Cathedral, with the Lord Mayor’s Procession J. Clarke 90 Ruins of an Abbey—given to Alexander Perie 91 Edinburgh Castle—given to . J. M‘Gregor 92 General View of the Alhambra, Granada . Marquis of Lansdowne 315 0 93 General View of the Alhambra—a small replica ...... Thomas Miller 94 Interior of the Moscpie of Cordova . F. Hall Standish 105 0 95 Tomb of the Percy Family, Beverley Min- ster—given to .... Mrs. H. Bicknell 96 Tower of the Church of St. Mark, Seville 97 Part of the Alhambra .... Count Jenison 1 1838 98 High Altar of Cathedral at Seville . F. Hall Standish 105 0 99 Exterior of Church of Ferdinand and Isa- bella, Granada—given to . E. Bicknell 1840 100 Interior of the Greek Church of the hi a- tivity, Bethlehem .... F. Hall Standish 200 0 „ 101 Outer Court of the Temple of Edfou, Egypt „ 200 0 „ 102 Gate of Metwalis, Cairo H.M. The Queen 105 0 „ 103 Remains of the Portico of the Lesser Temple at Baalbec .... E. Bicknell 250 0 „ 104 Statue of the Vocal Memnon, Thebes— Sunrise ...... 100 0 „ 1841 105 Bazaar of the Copper-smiths, Cairo . G. Knott 210 0 British Instit 11 . 106 Ruins of Baalbec—Lebanon in the distance „ 420 0 RA. 107 Bridge of Toledo . .... H.M. The Queen 52 10 „ 108 Fountain on the Prado, Madrid „ 52 10 109 Portico of the Great Temple, Dendera, Upper Egypt. D. Barclay, M.P. 330 0 „ 110 Do.—a replica ..... Rev. W. Hurnard 100 0 „ 111 Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives Lord Monson . 330 0 „ | 1842 112 Interior of the Church of St. Miguel, Xerez E. Bicknell 105 0 „ 113 Thebes, looking across the Great Hall, | Karnac ..... Llewellen 200 0 3 s 250 ! i' i 1 n LIST OF PICTURES. Date. No. Subject of Picture. 1 Buyer. Price. First Exhibited. 1842 114 Termination of the Ravine leading to Petra—given to E. Bicknell jun. 115 Interior of Church of St Helena, Mount Sinai .... D. Barclay, M.P. 116 Ruins of Temple of Ivom Ombo—given to ” 117 Gateway of Temple of Baalbcc—diploma ” picture ... Royal Academy 1843 118 Ruins on the Island of Phil®, Nubia J. Pell . 119 Interior of Roslin Chapel J. Sheepshanks ” 120 The Gate of the Mosque of Metwalis, Cairo 121 Entrance to the Crypt, Roslin Chapel G. Knott ” 122 Interior ot Church of Stanford-on-Avon . ” 1844 123 Ihe Pyramids of Ghezeh—Sunset . " 124 The Temple called Pharaoh’s Bed, Phil® . Grundy . ” 125 Interior of Chapel in the Church of St. ” Jean, Caen Bacon 126 Interior ol Chapel of the Virgin, St. Pierre " 127 Interior of Roslin Chapel J. Feilden 84 0 128 Ruins of the Temple at Baalbec 129 Ruins of Temple of Erment 1845 130 Ruins of the Great Temjile of Karnac J. Arden 131 .Jerusalem from the South-East 132 Porch of Roslin Chapel—given to 133 Interior of Roslm Chapel—given to P. S. Fraser 134 Street in St. Lo, Normandy 135 Interior of Melrose Abbey E. Bicknell 136 Interior of Church ot St. Pierre, Caen 184G 137 Ruins of the Temple of the Sun. Baalbec G. Young 138 Graml Cairo from the lugh ground to the East of the City 139 Tombs of the Caliphs, Cairo . G. Young 140 Bums of the Temple of the Sun, Baalbec James Foster . 141 Street in Grand Cairo . 142 High Altar of St. Antoine, Ghent . 1847 143 Edinburgh from the Castle S. Jones Loyd, M.P. 144 Interior, a Recollection of Spain—Coraposi- tion J. Arden 145 West Front of Antwerp Cathedral 146 Baalbec, Surprise of a Caravan—given to 147 Craigmillar Castle—given to . 148 Ruins of Baalbec . 1848 149 Chancel of the Collegiate Church of St Paul, Antwerp . 150 Ruins ot Temple of Hermonthes Upper ” Egypt.. 151 Mount St. Michael, Coast of Normandv James Foster . 152 Mount St. Michael, from the Sands—mven ” to . Mrs. H. Bicknell 153 1 Interior of a Church, composition—given to 184!) 154 Destruction of Jerusalem bv Titus . 155 Roberts’ Interview with the Pacha of ” Egypt 1850 j 156 | Interior of St. Gomar, Lierre . E. Bicknell . . | 315 0 LIST OF PICTURES. 251 Year. No. Subject of Picture. Buyer. Price. First Exhibited. 1851 157 Interior of St. Jacques, Antwerp S. Rucker £315 0 R.A. 158 Shrine of St. Gomar, Lierre . R. Newsham 105 0 159 The Sanctuary of the Koran, Mosque of Cordova ...... T. G. Fonnereau 52 10 160 Entrance to the Great Temple of Aboosim- bel in Nubia 52 10 161 Remains of the Eastern Portico of the Temple of the Sun at Baalbec, Mount Lebanon in the distance S. Rucker 157 10 162 View looking from under the Portico of the Great Temple of Edfou, Upper Egypt . Gambart 80 0 163 Ruins, Egypt—given to . F. Rogers 164 The Sea of Galilee—given to . Mrs. H. Bicknell 165 The Simoom—given to . Charles Dickens 166 Portico of the Temple of Philrn 250 0 British Instit“. 167 Donaldson’s Hospital, Edinburgh W. H. Playfair 200 0 168 High Altar of St. Jacques, Bruges . R.A. 169 Entrance to the North Transept, Crystal Palace . ..... II.M. The Queen 170 Surprise of the Caravan—Scene in Syria . James Davis 500 0 171 Interior of St. Ann’s, Bruges . T. Jackson 400 0 1852 172 Interior of St. Stephen’s Cathedral, Vienna T. Cubitt 500 0 173 Venice—the Piazzetta and Ducal Palace . 400 0 174 Exterior of Antwerp Cathedral 300 0 175 Lucerne—given to .... Mrs. H. Bicknell 1853 176 Proposed restoration of the Temple of the Sun at Tivoli on a rock called Dun- sapie, near Edinburgh S. Christie, M.P. 84 0 177 Gibraltar and the African Coast—given to Mrs. H. Bicknell 178 Entrance to Carmona—given to J. Mereweather 179 Elgin Cathedral, from the Lossie Gambart 50 0 180 Dunblane Cathedral .... 50 0 181 Ruins of the Temple of Kom Ombo, Morning 125 0 182 Ruins of the Temple of Kom Ombo, Evening 125 0 183 Caerlaverock Castle .... 125 0 184 Church of the Jesuits, Grand Canal, Venice „ 125 0 185 Venice, the Ducal Palace Lord Londesborough 525 0 186 Rome from Mount Onofrio—Finished Sketch for the Edinburgh picture Mrs. H. Bicknell 187 Inauguration of the International Exhibi- tion, May 1851 PI.M. The Queen 630 0 188 Interior of Cathedral of St. Stephen, Vienna J. Davis . 525 0 ,, 189 Street in Verona ..... J. H. Turner 136 10 190 Bethlehem, looking towards the Dead Sea . W. Bashall 165 0 1854 191 View on the Canal of the Guidecca, Venice A. Brooks 250 0 ,, 192 Town of Tiberias, Mount Hermon in the distance ...... „ 150 0 Winter Exhib". 193 Saida, looking towards the range of Le- banon ...... ,, 150 0 „ 194 The Dogana and St. Maria della Salute, Venice—given to . . Mrs. H. Bicknell 195 Interior of St. Peter’s, Rome—Christmas Day, 1853 . T. Cubitt 1050 0 R.A. 1855 196 Rome from the Convent of St. Onofrio— given to . . . . . . | R. Scottish Academy j 1 LIST OF PICTURES. No. Subject of Picture. Buyer. Price. First Exhibited. 197 Ruins of Temple at Prestum . R. Newsham i'157 10 198 Ruins of Temple of Prestum—different view W. Williams . 157 10 199 Fajade of the Temple of Neptune, Prestum Llewellen 200 0 200 Approach to the Grand Canal, Venice Jos. Miller 150 0 R.A. 201 St. Peter’s, Rome, from the Villa Madama —given to Mrs. J. Arden . 202 Interior of St. Stephen’s Cathedral, Vienna —small replica .... W. Wethered . 157 10 203 The Opening ol the Crystal Palace, Syden- ham, finished Sketch—given to Sir J. Paxton, M.P. 204 Tower of Santa Fosca, Torcello—given to Mrs. H. Bicknell 205 Roslin Castle—given to Rev. James White 206 Interior of St. Jacques, Bruges Tlios. Miller . 210 0 207 Monuments of the Scaligeri, Verona Rollins . 210 0 208 Monument to Bartolomeo Colleoni, S.S. Giovanni e Paolo, Venice . 209 Mount St. Michael, Normandy James T. Caird 210 0 210 Interior of Church of St. Gomar, Lierre . T. Baring, M.P. 600 0 211 The Basilica of San Lorenzo, Rome — Interior Aldn. Salomons, M.P. 525 0 212 The Piazza Navona, Rome 213 Tyre ..... E. Bicknell 157 10 214 Sidon .... 157 10 215 Interior of the Duomo, Milan J. Holdsworth . 650 0 216 San Giorgio Maggiore, Venice . 217 Ruins of Baalbec—given to Mrs. E. Berry . 218 Distant View of Edinburgh Mrs. H. Bicknell 219 The Ducal Palace, Venice 220 The High Altar in the Church of S.S. Giovanni e Paolo, Venice . James T. Caird 630 0 221 Edinburgh from the Calton Hill Robert Napier . 0 222 Ruins of the Forum Romanum William Herbert 220 0 223 Entrance to Pisa . Gambart 200 0 224 Exterior of St. Maria della Salute, Venice James T. Caird 225 View on the Via Appia, Rome—given to Mrs. H. Bicknell 420 0 226 Market Place, Verona Gambart 200 0 227 Interior of Mark’s Cathedral, Venice H. W. Eaton . 630 0 228 Interior of St. Mark’s,Venice—another view Theophilus Burnand 262 10 229 Interior of Cathedral, Pisa B. Preston 525 0 230 The Forum, Rome W. Wethered . 52 10 231 Forum and Temple of Jupiter, Rome 52 10 232 Arch of Titus, Rome—given to Mrs. H. Bicknell 233 Ruins of Kom Ombo, Nile Rev. James White 234 Ruins of Temple of Neptune, Pozzuolo 235 Temple of Pallas, Rome Gambart 100 0 236 Ruins of the Forum of Nerva, Rome 100 0 237 Great Square of St. Mark, Venice . 525 0 238 Street in Antwerp J. B. Bunning . 150 0 239 Approach to the Forum, Rome R. Ravenliill 210 0 240 The Colosseum, Rome—Evening „ 210 0 241 The Cathedral and Piazza, Brescia . Flateau . 157 10 242 Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives— painted on a Proof of his unpub¬ lished Plate ..... 105 0 LIST OF PICTURES. 253 Date. No. Subject of Picture. Buyer. Price. First Exhibited. 1860 243 On the Grand Canal, Venice—given to James Mereweather 244 Piazza of St. Mark, Venice, looking to- wards the Canal .... Gambart . £200 0 R.A. 245 Piazza of St. Mark, Venice, from the Canal 200 0 246 Jerusalem, looking south 400 0 247 Castle and Bridge of St. Angelo, Rome— given to . Mrs. H. Bicknell 248 A Fete-Day at St. Peter’s, Rome—Interior Robert Napier . 840 0 249 Interior of Collegiate Church of St. Paul, Antwerp—given to . Mrs. J. T. Caird 1861 250 Interior of Church of S.S. Giovanni e Paolo, Venice Mrs. H. Bicknell 251 Temple of the Sun, Baalbec D. Dunbar 700 0 252 Interior of Chancel, St. Paul’s, Antwerp . A. Burnand 525 0 253 The Houses of Parliament from Millbank C. Lucas . 210 0 254 Somerset House and the Adelphi from Hungerford 210 0 255 St. Paul’s from Waterloo Bridge 210 0 256 Houses of Parliament and Westminster Abbey .... 210 0 257 The New Palace of Westminster from the Thames ..... 525 0 258 Greenwich Hospital from the River 0 259 St. Paul’s Cathedral from Blackfiiars 525 260 Interior of Chapel in the Cathedral of Notre Dame, Bruges Lancaster 420 0 1862 261 Egyptian Temple and Pyramids, a com- position—given to Mrs. H. Bicknell 262 Egyptian composition—given to Dr. Bence Jones 263 The Ducal Palace from the Grand Canal, Venice ..... Gambart . 210 0 French Gallery. 264 The Dogana and Santa Maria, Venice 210 0 R.A. 1863 265 Edinburgh from Calton Hill, looking west 105 0 266 Edinburgh from Calton Hill, looking east 105 0 267 The Brig o’ Doon, Ayr—given to . James Ballantine 268 Interior of St. Stephen’s Cathedral, Vienna J. B. Banning . 210 0 269 Interior of Milan Cathedral T. Burnand 525 o ! 270 St. Paul’s from the River, looking east C. Lucas . 210 0 271 St. Paul’s from the Thames, looking west —sunset ...... 210 0 1 272 Site of the Capitol from the Tiber, Rome . Gambart 262 10 273 Interior of Church of St. Jacques, Bruges 262 10 274 Rome, View on the Tiber looking towards Mounts Palatine and Aventine 262 10 275 Interior of Church of St. Jean, Caen 262 10 276 View of the Mausoleum of Hadrian, better known as the Castle of St. Angelo, from the Villa Barberini, Rome . T. J. MiRer, M.P. . 630 0 1 277 Interior of Chapel in the Church of Dix- mude ...... J. Pender, M.P. 630 0 278 Interior of Basilica of St. Peter, Rome— small replica of Mr. Napier’s Gambart 525 0 279 St. Andrews from the Sea—given to Mrs. H. Bicknell 3 T 254 LIST OF PICTURES. Though Huberts repeated many of his subjects, and often painted the same church from a different point, he always varied his figures and the effect of light and shade, so that, though many of his pictures are called replicas, no two are alike. An illustration of the rise of price in some of his pictures is given below. 23 in the foregoing li.' t, original cost £84 0 resold for £315 0 26 „ 31 10 „ 320 0 52 „ „ 105 0 „ 367 10 68 36 15 120 0 85 „ „ 37 15 135 0 94 „ 105 0 300 0 98 „ 105 0 300 0 100 „ 200 O 483 0 101 „ 200 O „ 378 0 118 „ 100 0 462 0 128 „ 31 10 )> 95 11 170 500 0 » 840 0 171 400 0 „ 1000 0 188 „ 525 0 1820 0 215 „ 650 0 „ 1070 0 237 „ 525 0 „ 1050 0 278 » » 525 0 945 0 Seven pictures painted for Elhanau Bicknell, costing £1045, sold at the Hernehill sale for £4373 : 5s. ; and on the same occasion one of the Spanish sketches, originally sold to Jennings at £20, brought £430 :10s., and another £262 :10s. Mrs. Henry Bicknell, being anxious that the mass of her father’s works which had not been seen by the public should be more generally known, had them exhibited in the Architectural Society’s Rooms, Conduit Street, London, in Feb¬ ruary 1865. There were about 70 sketches in oil, and about 800 water-colour draw¬ ings and sketches; and the exhibition, which remained open for three months, was visited by many thousands of the lovers of art, and excited universal wonder and admiration, not more at the beauty of the drawings, than the facility of exe¬ cution which had enabled one artist to produce so great a variety of charming pictures. Such of the drawings and sketches as Mrs. Bicknell did not select to keep were sold in May at Christie’s. The sale lasted six days, and consisted of nearly 1100 lots, realising between £16,000 and £17,000. Roberts contributed illustrations to many publications, of which the following are the most important :— Bulwer’s Pilgrims of the Rhine, 1834. The Landscape Annual for four years, 1835 to 1838. LIST OF PICTURES. 255 Boberts’ Picturesque Vieivs in Spain, published 1837. The publication of Boberts’ great work, Sketches in the Holy Land , Syria, and Egypt, commenced in 1842 and was completed in 1849. The large plates measured 19 inches by 13, the vignettes 13 by 9. He also furnished a number of drawings for Scotland Delineated, published in 1847. His ‘ Departure of the Israelites from Egypt ’ was engraved in mezzotint by Quilley—size 28 inches by 18. ‘ Destruction of Jerusalem by Titus ’ was lithographed in colours by Louis Haghe—size 42 inches by 27. ‘ Interior of the Crystal Palace of 1851/ from a picture in the royal collec¬ tion, was lithographed in colours by Louis Haghe—size 24 inches by 18. ‘ Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives’ was commenced in mezzotint by D. Lucas, but is still unfinished and unpublished—size 36 inches by 20|. Printed by R. Clark, Edinburgh. te-fcww LttU+ litiaMyjv* liTu~f.lt TTS/\\h~ii -v<" /■*“<■&$ A*ti*t* % *\:A. /(U . " ';. 6? > ‘^'~r~~zx ~w. 4 W 7 ^-' l-v ,-> -, yj-i-v ' / ./ ' °^ ,7 Va< i y j ! ’t