Greek and Roman methods of painting : some comments on the statements made by Pliny and Vitruvius about wall and panel painting / By A.P. Laurie.

  • Arthur Laurie
Date:
1910
Catalogue details

Licence: In copyright

Credit: Greek and Roman methods of painting : some comments on the statements made by Pliny and Vitruvius about wall and panel painting / By A.P. Laurie. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    only fitting to state in this place, that all students of this subject are immensely indebted to him for his learned publications. Before going further, however, it is necessary to mention the actual texts of Vitruvius and Pliny consulted and quoted from in the course of this paper. These are: the edition of Pliny’s Natural History, edited by Carl Mayhofl, and issued by Teubner in 190G; and the most recent edition of Vitruvius, De Arcldtectura, by Valentine Rose, issued by Teubner in 1899, and containing some corrections on the earlier editions by Rose and Miiller-Strubing. To return to the pigments used in classical times, they can be briefly dealt with, because, though there are obscure descriptions in Pliny,'and many pigments, especially those prepared from organic colouring matters, are difficult to identify, there is a sufficient amount of exact information to enable us, partly by the analysis of actual samples, and partly by the descrip- tions given by Pliny, Vitruvius, and others, to decide without doubt on the nature of a sufficient number of pigments to supply the painters of classical times with an extensive palette. As, moreover, there is no dispute as to the identity of those I shall mention, and I have little new to add to what is common knowledge, it would bo tedious to give all the proofs and references. It is, in the first place, evident, both from the
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