Sculpture

(skulpt'yür.) [From L. sculptura; from sculpo, I carve.] The art of giving form and expre ion, by means of the chisel and other implements, to ma es of stone or other hard substances, so as to represent figures of every description, animate and inanimate; the term carving, sometimes applied to sculpture, being more generally limited to works in wood and ivory. It is supposed that S. had its origin from idolatry, as it was found nece ary to place before the people the images of their gods to enliven the fervor of their devotion. But to form conclusions concerning the rise and progre of the arts and sciences, without the aid of historical evidence, by analogies which are sometimes accidental, and often fanciful, is a mode of reasoning which, at best, must ever be liable to suspicion. In whatever country the earliest attempts were made, the Egyptians were the first who adopted a certain style of art. Their works were gloomy and grave, but still they were full of deep sentiment, and connected, as would appear by the hieroglyphics which covered them, with poetry and history, and by the mummies, with the belief of immortality. Interesting as the subject would doubtle prove, it is far beyond our limited means to trace the progre of this beautiful art through all its stages in the cla ic days of Greece, till its decline in Rome, where, though all the treasures of the Grecian sculptors had been carried to deck the Roman capital, the art never became naturalized. During the long and gloomy interval of barbarism that succeeded the downfall of imperial Rome, S., with the sister arts, lay dormant and forgotten. At length, however, through the genius of Michael Angelo Buonarotti, and the skill and perseverance of some of his distinguished succe ors, seconded by the patronage of the illustrious house of Medici, the treasures of antiquity were collected, and modern art nobly tried to rival the grace and sublimity which existed in the Fig. 583.- VENUS DE MEDICI, (Florence.) ancient models. The sculptor's art is limited in comparison with others, but it has its variety and intricacy within its proper bounds. Its e ence is correctne ; and when to correct and perfect form is added the ornament of grace, dignity of character, and appropriate expre ion, as in the Apollo Belvidere, the Venus de Medici (Fig. 583) -which is the finest remnant of ancient art-the Laocoon, the Moses of Michael Angelo, and many others, this noble art maybe said to have accomplished its purpose. Few American sculptures worthy of note were executed previous to Greenough's time, but within the last 30 years the works of Hiram Powers, Crawford, Brown, Clevenger, Rogers, Palmer, Mi Hosmer, Vinnie Ream, and others,have brought American talent, in this department of art, to a pinnacle of reputation not inferior to that of contemporary European sculptors. [s. 807]