N selecting certain pictures from the collection of H.R.H. Prince Albert for reproduction in THE BURLINGTON MAGAZINE, prominence has been given to two pictures of the Sienese school on account of the special interest at the moment taken in this school of painting, through the exhibitions of Sienese art at Siena itself and at the Burlington Fine Arts Club in London.

In 1845 H.R.H. Prince Albert acquired from Dr. Metzger of Florence a very interesting triptych by Duccio di Buoninsegna, that great artist of original genius who may be regarded as the founder of the Sienese school. The triptych represents the Crucifixion in the centre with the Virgin Mary and St. John, and on each wing two subjects, one above the other, the right wing of the triptych containing above the Annunciation and below the Virgin Mary enthroned with four angels, and the left wing above St. Francis receiving the Stigmata and below the Virgin and Christ enthroned with six angels behind the throne.

This triptych is a particularly interesting specimen of Duccio's art, as it shows the artist at the stage when he had reached the fullness of his craft, but had not yet shaken. off the Byzantine tradition in favour of the Gothic style, which pervades his later and more developed works. In this painting we see the austere devotion of the church as shown in its wall paintings and illuminated service books, and not the rich sculpturesque ornament and chasing, the smith's and carver's work, which prevailed so soon afterwards.

The second picture is one of less importance in every way, but is a fair illustration of Sienese art in its most highly developed convention. It formed part of the collec

tion made by Prince Ludwig von OettingenWallerstein, which was purchased by Prince Albert. Sano di Pietro, the painter of this picture, can hardly claim to rank among the best painters, but as a painter of the Sienese school he is very typical of his time. In this painting the Virgin is seen at halflength with the Child in a curiously distorted position seated on her right arm. On either side of this group are seen heads, protruding in a peculiarly Sienese way from the side of the frame, of St. Jerome and St. Bernardine, and of six angels, the latter having a kind of special charm not uncommon in the works of Sienese artists.

The writer has been favoured with the following remarks by Mr. R. Langton Douglas upon the Duccio triptych; both pictures are here reproduced for the first

time.1

LIONEL CUST.

The study of the achievement of Duccio di Buoninsegna reveals to us that there were three distinct periods in his artistic career. These periods may be styled his Byzantine period, his Roman period, his Gothic period; it being understood that in his second period he was still under Byzantine influence, and in the third period influenced by Byzantine and Roman masters, as well as by the leaders of the new movement in Italy.

In the works of his first period, the thrones, which are semi-oriental in design, are of turned wood and have a high footstool; the Virgin, too, is of a thoroughly Byzantine type. We note in the Madonnas of this his early time the large elliptical iris of the eye; the slanting mouth turned down at the corners; the long, arched nose; the curved, bony hands; the angular, and often purely calligraphic folds of the drapery. The Child, too, is small, and not of a pleasing type. To this period belong the little

1 See page 351.

Madonna (No. 20) of the Siena Gallery, and the altarpiece of S. Maria Novella, long regarded as a work of Cimabue, as well as two other Madonnas-in which, however, no throne is visible-the triptych of our National Gallery, and the little Madonna in Count Stroganoff's collection.

In the paintings of Duccio's second period the thrones are of stone, and are of a Cosmatesque type; they are made of coloured marbles, and are adorned with panels of rich mosaic. In these pictures the iris of the eye is smaller than it is in Duccio's earliest works, the mouth straighter, the nose somewhat shorter and less arched; the hands, too, are less bony, and there is a marked improvement in the design and modelling of the drapery, which is arranged in broader, more natural folds. In the types represented, no less than in the garments which clothe them, we see the influence of Roman models. Dignified, well-formed figures take the place of the ascetic, melancholy forms of Byzantine art. The typical work of the second period is this triptych of the Royal collection.

In the great altarpiece of Siena, the masterpiece of Duccio's third period, the throne is still of a Cosmatesque type, but it has some Gothic features. In several of the pictures of this period, such as the Christ healing the Blind Man in the National Gallery, and The Temptation in Mr. Benson's collection, there are representations of Gothic architecture. In the drapery, too, we find here and there traces of gothic influence. The northern movement also reveals itself in the master's renderings of trees and animals. It is, however, in the expression of emotion that is to be found the one great difference between the works

of Duccio's third period and all his earlier achievement. These later panels show that the new movement had affected the artist's whole conception of the subjects he painted. Compare, for example, the Crucifixion of the Royal collection with the three existing Crucifixions of Duccio's last period, the Crucifixion of Mr. Pierpont Morgan's collection, the Crucifixion of the Opera del Duomo at Siena, and the Crucifixion belonging to Lord Crawford. In the first picture only two figures stand wrapt in mournful contemplation at the foot of the cross. The note of the representation is a recollected and dignified sorrow. In the three other panels we trace a growing intensity of expression, a gradual crescendo of passionate utterance. Swaying crowds of friends and foes stand below the Crucified. The Virgin falls back fainting with grief, whilst scribes and Pharisees mock, soldiers gesticulate, and angels weep.

Living in a city that for several years was the home of Giovanni Pisano, Duccio came to devote himself to the expression of strong emotion, to the presentation of the most dramatic moments in the great World Tragedy. The triptych of the Royal collection demonstrates that there was a period in his career when his work had something of the calmness, the dignity of the antique. It is because this picture illustrates an epoch in Duccio's life that has been neglected, if not ignored-because it proves that the Sienese master was influenced by his great contemporaries of the neo-Roman school, that it is especially interesting to students of art history. But it has also qualities which will endear it to all who love beautiful things.

LANGTON DOUGLAS.