Famous Sculpture as Seen and Described by Great Writers (Classic Reprint)

Excerpt from Famous Sculpture as Seen and Described by Great Writers

This volume, uniform with Great Pictures, etc., contains a selection of the most famous works of sculpture from the Sphinx to the Statue of Liberty.

Of all arts, sculpture is the one that receives least popular attention and appreciation. It has been suggested that this may be accounted for by the fact that the majority of the masterpieces are badly mutilated, and require imagination and special knowledge for their right comprehension.

I have tried to smooth away such difficulties by selecting descriptions that not only deal with the artistic qualities of the work, but also its individual history, or, if a portrait-statue, that of the person it represents. Thus, the great equestrian statue of Colleoni is doubly interesting when we are made acquainted with the career of the great general; and we view Cellini's Perseus with attentive sympathy after reading the sculptor's own description of the harrowing conditions under which the statue was cast. The difficulties and dangers attending the exploration, excavation and removal of ancient sculpture, especially in Egypt and Babylonia, also lend additional interest to the contemplation of such works as the Head of Memnon and the Winged Lion.

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