Germany from the Earliest Period, vol 4

Germany from the Earliest
Period, vol 4 (tr Mrs George
Horrocks) [with accents]

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Title: Germany from the Earliest Period Vol. 4
Author: Wolfgang Menzel, Trans. Mrs. George Horrocks

Release Date: July, 2005 [EBook #8401] [Yes, we are more than one
year ahead of schedule] [This file was first posted on July 7, 2003]
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HISTORY, V4 ***

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GERMANY
FROM THE
EARLIEST PERIOD
BY
WOLFGANG MENZEL
TRANSLATED FROM THE FOURTH GERMAN EDITION
By MRS. GEORGE HORROCKS
WITH A SUPPLEMENTARY
CHAPTER OF
RECENT EVENTS
By EDGAR SALTUS
VOLUME IV

THE HISTORY OF GERMANY

PART XXI
THE RISE OF PRUSSIA
(CONTINUED)
CCXLIV. Art and Fashion
Although art had, under French influence, become unnatural,

bombastical, in fine, exactly contrary to every rule of good taste, the
courts, vain of their collections of works of art, still emulated each
other in the patronage of the artists of the day, whose creations,
tasteless as they were, nevertheless afforded a species of consolation to
the people, by diverting their thoughts from the miseries of daily
existence.
Architecture degenerated in the greatest degree. Its sublimity was
gradually lost as the meaning of the Gothic style became less
understood, and a tasteless imitation of the Roman style, like that of St.
Peter's at Rome, was brought into vogue by the Jesuits and by the court
architects, by whom the chateau of Versailles was deemed the highest
chef-d'oeuvre of art. This style of architecture was accompanied by a
style of sculpture equally unmeaning and forced; saints and Pagan
deities in theatrical attitudes, fat genii, and coquettish nymphs peopled
the roofs of the churches and palaces, presided over bridges, fountains,
etc. Miniature turnery-ware and microscopical sculpture also came into
fashion. Such curiosities as, for instance, a cherry-stone, on which
Pranner, the Carinthian, had carved upward of a hundred faces; a
chessboard, the completion of which had occupied a Dutchman for
eighteen years; golden carriages drawn by fleas; toys composed of
porcelain or ivory in imitation of Chinese works of art; curious pieces
of mechanism, musical clocks, etc., were industriously collected into
the cabinets of the wealthy and powerful. This taste was, however, not
utterly useless. The predilection for ancient gems promoted the study of
the remains of antiquity, as Stosch, Lippert, and Winckelmann prove,
and that of natural history was greatly facilitated by the collections of
natural curiosities.
The style of painting was, however, still essentially German, although
deprived by the Reformation and by French influence of its ancient
sacred and spiritual character. Nature was now generally studied in the
search after the beautiful. Among the pupils of Rubens, the great
founder of the Dutch school, Jordaens was distinguished for brilliancy
and force of execution, Van Dyck, A.D. 1541, for grace and beauty,
although principally a portrait painter and incapable of idealizing his
subjects, in which Rembrandt, A.D. 1674, who chose more extensive
historical subjects, and whose coloring is remarkable for depth and
effect, was equally deficient. Rembrandt's pupil, Gerhard Douw,

introduced domestic scenes; his attention to the minutiæ of his art was
such that he is said to have worked for three days at a broomstick, in
order to represent it with perfect truth. Denner carried accuracy still
further; in his portraits of old men every hair in the beard is carefully
imitated. Francis and William[1] Mieris discovered far greater talent in
their treatment of social and domestic groups; Terbourg and Netscher,
on the other hand, delighted in the close imitation of velvet and satin
draperies; and Schalken, in the effect of shadows and lamplight.
Honthorst[2] attempted a higher style, but Van der Werf's small
delicious nudities and Van Loos's luxurious pastoral scenes were better
adapted to the taste of