In Two Parts, 16mo., and bound in extra cloth by Bradley. AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BENVENUTO CELLINI. THE COMPLETE AND ANNOTATED EDITION OF ROSCOE. Notices of the Work. "Cellini was one of the most extraordinary men in an extraordinary age; his life, written by himself, is more amusing than any novel I know." Horace Walpole. [From the Retrospective Review.] "This is, perhaps, the most perfect piece of autobiography that ever was written, whether considered with reference to the candour and veracity of the author, the spirit of the incidents, or the breathing vitality of the narrative. It has also the recommendation of having been written at a very interesting period of literary history, and of recording some curious particulars relative to the private character of the great men of the time. * * We never, in the whole course of our life, read a book of a more engaging description. * "Benvenuto Cellini, a man of great genius, and uncommon versatility of talents; caressed alike by kings, popes, and dignitaries of the Church of Rome; esteemed by men of learning; lauded by the most eminent artists of his time; and beloved by all his acquaintance. Admitted into the privacy of the most elevated in rank and station, he never forgot what was due to himself as a man: he was neither servile to kings nor their mistresses; he neither flattered popes nor their favourites; he neither worshipped a cardinal's hat nor the tiara; he was bold for the right, and thought not that St. Peter's chair could sanctify wrong, or hallow injustice-he dared to speak the truth; an audacity fatal to the hopes of the followers of courts, and the aspirers to place. "Quick, bold, ardent and enterprising, he was eminently gifted by nature with those talents which are essential to achieve excellence; and although confined for a great portion of his life to the humble walk of the goldsmith's business, it is evident, from his extraordinary success in bronze-casting and in sculpture, that he was equally calculated to excel in the higher departments of art. Of this, his statue of Perseus and the piece of sculpture which he executed, after his vision, of a Christ upon the cross, described by Vasari as an exquisite and wonderful performance, afford sufficient proofs. His merits as an artist, indeed, are allowed by those who were best able to appreciate them—by his friends Michael Angelo and Julio Romano. Uniting the different branches of the fine arts,—at the same time a musician, a poet, and a soldier, he seems to have been exceeded by few in the capability of his intellect, and in its various and successful application." FROM THE ITALIAN POETS: BEING A SUMMARY IN PROSE OF THE POEMS OF DANTE, PULCI, BOIARDO, ARIOSTO AND TASSO; WITH COMMENTS THROUGHOUT, OCCASIONAL PASSAGES VERSIFIED, AND CRITICAL NOTICES OF THE LIVES AND GENIUS OF THE AUTHORS. BY LEIGH HUNT. IN THREE PARTS. PART I. NEW YORK: WILEY AND PUTNAM, 161 BROADWAY. |
