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was again in the possession of Napoleon, who at first gave it a nominal independence as a republic, but afterwards annexed it to France, forming out of it the three departments named Genoa, Monte-notte, and the Apennines. In 1814, the city surrendered to the English forces commanded by Lord William Bentinck, and the following year it was united to the government of Sardinia, by the Congress of Vienna. Since that time much has been done for the strengthening of its garrison, the improvement of its port and harbour, and the advancement of its commercial interests. The approaches to the city also have been widened, new streets formed, and public institutions founded for the benefit of the community.

Genoa has been repeatedly increased in size, and its walls as frequently extended. Traces of the Roman walls are said to be still discernible; and some of the gates of the circuit raised by the Genoese, in 1155, are yet standing. Another circumvallation was completed in 1537, which included many of the previous suburbs of the city. This line is in the semi-modern style of fortification, but very strong; and the ramparts, which afford delightful promenades, are connected with a public garden of great beauty, named the Acqua Sola. An additional circuit extends all around the neighbouring hills, forming a vast semicircle, supported by forts, redoubts, and outworks, and constituting a line of fortification second only to the defences of Paris.

Passing from this brief glance at the historical records and general features of Genoa, we proceed to a brief description of the palaces and public buildings of the city. But where to begin, and where to end, are difficult points to determine: to describe whole streets of palaces, each palace a rich repository of art, would require volumes in place of pages.

The Strada Nuova consists entirely of palaces, all, with the exception of two, constructed by Alessio. The colossal magnitude of the doors and windows in the fronts of these edifices, gives them an air of magnificence, of which no description could convey an adequate idea. On entering their portals, the spectator cannot repress his admiration of the grand and imposing spectacle which opens upon him. "Gallery rises above gallery around the whole quadrangle, pierced by arcades and sustained by marble columns. The vaults and walls are painted in fresco, and adorned with rich moulding, gilding, and bas-reliefs. You ascend by spacious stair-cases, composed entirely of marble, each broad step being generally a single slab, and sometimes a solid block. The apartments are almost universally painted in fresco, and adorned with rich furniture and the finest productions of the arts." This brief description may serve generally for the buildings themselves; but in the decorations of the saloons and apartments, and in the value of the works of art which they contain, some of these palaces enjoy a celebrity far beyond the rest. The Palazzo Brignolo contains the most valuable private collection of pictures in Genoa, amongst which are found, a St. Sebastian by Guido, an Annunciation by Ludovico Caracci, a Flight into Egypt by Carlo Maratti, and a number of portraits by Vandyke, admitted to be the finest specimens of this master existing in Italy. The architecture of this structure has been much admired, but the façade is less imposing than that of some others; the cortile is very fine, and from the marble terrace of the upper story, a beautiful view is obtained over the contiguous gardens and palaces. The Palazzo Serra is chiefly remarkable for the gorgeous magnificence of its saloon, which has obtained the appellation of Palazzo del Sole, the Palace of the Sun. "The decorations of this apartment, exclusive of the pictures and porcelain, which are of great value, are said to have cost forty-four thousand pounds. This ill-judged magnificence in one room throws the rest of the apartments into the shade, and gives the impression that the palace is not sufficiently grand for it. Each side of

this saloon is supported by marble columns, richly gilt, and between them are placed mirrors which extend from the frieze to the floor. There is a fire-place at each end, with mantlepieces of great beauty, and exactly similar, and on them stand vases of ancient Sevres china that excite the admiration, if not the envy, of every connoisseur. The doors are frosted with powdered lapis lazuli, which produces a very rich effect, and the architraves and pannels are finely carved and gilt. The furniture of this saloon is of the most splendid description, and the ensemble has more solid grandeur than is to be found in any other apartment throughout Italy." The saloon of the Palazzo Cataneo contains several pictures of great merit: amongst others, a Philosopher in his Study, by Domenichino; the Stoning of Stephen, by Ludovico Caracci; and St. Joseph and St. John adoring our Lord, by Raphael.

The old ducal palace, Palazzo Ducale, though now no longer a regal residence, being used only for government offices, is one of the most magnificent erections in Genoa, and carries the fancy back to the middle ages more powerfully than any other; although the edifice, as it now stands, is almost, if not entirely, a refacimento, the original building having been destroyed by fire. The marble statues of all the heroes of the Genoese republic, which once adorned the hall of the grand council, were pulled down and broken to atoms by the French, and the niches which they occupied have been filled by statues of straw, with plaster heads, and white calico draperies. There is something exceedingly ludicrous in the idea of the substitution, but the general effect, on entering the room, is astonishingly delusive.

In the Strada Carlo Felice, stands the Palazzo Pallavacino, justly celebrated for its saloons of paintings. A mere catalogue of these works of art would be uninteresting. It may suffice to mention that they include fine specimens of the following masters :-The two Caracci, Rubens, Spagnoletto, Guercino, Vandyke, Raphael, Albano, and Franceschini. The Palazzo Reale, in the Strada Balbi, formerly in the possession of the Durazzo family, but now a royal residence, contains a choice collection of pictures, some good antique statues, and a number of excellent frescoes. The Palazzo della Università, a noble building, is distinguished by its extensive library, and museum of natural history. To attempt a detail of all the palaces in Genoa, would far exceed the limits of the present work; one, however, remains to be mentioned which is in several respects more interesting than any of those to which we have adverted, namely, the Palazzo Doria. This building, originally the Palazzo Fregoso, was almost entirely rebuilt, under the direction of Montorsoli, a Florentine architect, and the celebrated Perino del Vaga, to whose pencil the palace is indebted for its richest decorations. The frescoes of Perino are beyond all praise; and it is subject of regret that the hand of decay has already touched several of his finest works. In the gallery of the palace, leading to the terraced garden, are portraits of Andrea Doria and his family. The garden itself is decorated with fountains, statues, and vases; and the walks of cypress and orange, unite in magnificent picturesque, with the arches and columns of the structure. The descendants of the Dorian family reside in Rome, and leave the palace of their great ancestor to its fate. The beauty of the edifice, the exceeding value of its works of art, and, beyond all, the historical associations inseparably connected with it, deserve more generous treatment.

Next to her palaces, the churches of Genoa deserve high regard; the most splendid of these structures were erected by private individuals and families; and though they, in common with all the buildings and institutions of Italy, suffered severely during the occupation of this country by Bonaparte, they retain enough of grandeur to attest their former greatness.

The metropolitan church of San Lorenzo was built in the eleventh century. The archi

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tecture exhibits a combination of Gothic and Saracenic ornament; and the exterior of the building is cased with black and white marble, disposed in alternate stripes, producing an effect more startling than tasteful. The interior is chiefly remarkable for an altar, adorned with four columns of porphyry, and for an iron urn, which is said to inclose the remains of the saint to whom the church is dedicated. A remarkable relic, named the Sacro Catino, is yearly exhibited to hundreds of prostrate and admiring devotees. According to tradition, it is a plate, composed of a single emerald, presented by the Queen of Sheba to Solomon, and subsequently placed before the Saviour at the Last Supper. "The Sacro Catino was taken by the crusaders when they conquered Palestine in the twelfth century; and when the plunder was divided, this supposed valuable prize fell to the lot of the Genoese." The French afterwards took possession of this treasure, and sent it to Paris with the intention of converting the gem into specie; a scientific examination, however, proved the matchless emerald to be nothing more than a plate of coloured glass. It was eventually restored to the church of Lorenzo, through the intercession of the king of Sardinia, on which occasion his Majesty assured its adorers "that it was the real, true, genuine, and inestimable emerald, sinking the history of its mineralogical examination at Paris, any hint of which would incur the penalty of excommunication at Genoa." This relic is preserved in the Sacristy, the keys of which are entrusted to the Clavigeri, who are solemnly bound to retain them in safe custody.

The Church of San Stefano contains a fine painting of the martyrdom of St. Stephen, by Raphael and Giulio Romano. This work of art is deservedly esteemed, and gives celebrity to

a building not otherwise remarkable. During the Napoleon era, it formed a principal ornament of the Louvre, at that time enriched with the choicest spoils of Italy. The Church of Saint Ambrogio is a magnificent structure, displaying rich marbles and paintings in great profusion; and it contains, amongst other works of great merit, two pictures by Rubens, and the celebrated Assumption by Guido Reni. Over one of the altars, there was recently a figure of the Virgin most extravagantly attired: her robes formed of flowered brocade and tissue, and her neck graced with a coral necklace. To blend the horrible with the ridiculous, eight swords were thrust into her breast. On the same altar, was laid an effigy of the infant Saviour, dressed in a costly robe, and fine lace cap! The Church of San Matteo, erected by the Dorian Family, is remarkable for its statues of the Evangelists, and more so as being the last resting place of Andrew Doria, whose tomb, enriched with the sculptures of Montorsoli, attracts universal regard, both as a work of art, and as the reminiscence of a man justly renowned. The Piazza di San Matteo is the spot whence Doria proclaimed liberty to the Genoese, and on one side of it stands the house presented to him by his countrymen.*

-'Tis less in length and breadth,
Than many a cabin in a ship of war ;
But 'tis of marble, and at once inspires
The reverence due to ancient dignity.
He left it for a better; and 'tis now

A house of trade, the meanest merchandize

* There is a discrepancy amongst writers regarding this public gift to Doria: some state that the Palazzo Doria was presented to him; others affirm that the small house in the Piazza San Matteo was the only gift of the citizens. and that Andrew removed thence, as his wealth increased, to the Palazzo Fregoso, and after nearly reconstructing it, gave it the name of his family.

Cumbering its floors. Yet, fallen as it is,

'Tis still the noblest dwelling-even in Genoa !
And hadst thou, Andrew, lived there to the last,
Thou hadst done well; for there is that without,
That in the wall, which monarchs could not give,
Nor thou take with thee, "that which says aloud,
It was thy Country's gift to her Deliverer."

One of the objects of interest in Genoa, and not the least, is that singular and bold arch called the Bridge of Carignano; interesting in the first place, from its construction, hanging, as it does, over a huge ravine between two hills, and having houses of six or seven stories high underneath it; and in the second place, from the motive assigned to the proud patrician by whom it was erected, who, not bearing to see the commonalty of the city, fagging from one part of it to another, by the steep ascent of the hills, caused this imperial accommodation to be provided for them.

Amongst the public buildings of Genoa, none can be regarded with greater interest than the edifices connected with the noble charities of the city. The Albergo de' Poveri gives shelter to a multitude of poor within its walls, and dispenses extensive charities beyond them. In the centre of this Institution, stands the church of Santa Maria, containing a celebrated bassorelievo by Michael Angelo, representing the Virgin bending over the dead Christ. The Ospe

dale del Pammatone unites the splendour of a palace to all the necessary details of an extensive hospital. And the Sordi Mutti, founded in 1801, by a poor monk, named Ottavio Assarotti, for the reception of the deaf and dumb, is much celebrated. There are no fewer than fifteen conservatories in Genoa, devoted to the protection and assistance of the female sex. Some are houses of refuge, some penitentiaries, others schools and asylums; in all, the great design is to rescue the weaker sex from poverty and vice, to raise up the fallen, to shelter the oppressed, to teach the ignorant, and to comfort and cherish the forlorn outcast aud helpless orphan for whom no other home is open. The French, to their lasting disgrace, ruined some of the charitable institutions of Genoa, and greatly injured others; but the Sardinian government contributed munificently to those which remained and required assistance, and it continues to uphold all that have survived the rapacity of Napoleon.

The character of the Genoese people and territory is not very favourably pourtrayed in the Italian proverb: "Land without trees, sea without fish, men without faith, and women without virtue." These censures have been discountenanced in part by intelligent travellers; and we apprehend that the entire proverb has gained currency rather by its point than its verity. It cannot be denied, however, that this traditional aspersion has been cast upon the Genoese, and perpetuated upon them, from the time of Virgil down to that of Dante. The latter poet denounces them as a race of men who ought to be swept from the earth by some signal destruction. Nevertheless, it must be remembered, that poets are not the best authorities for historical truth; and we may indulge an occasional doubt of their veracity, knowing, as we do, that fiction is their peculiar province.

LERICI.

HE town of Lerici is situated between Cape Corvo and Spezzia, in the concave of a valley which terminates in a bay offering one of the most secure harbours on the coast. It is supposed to owe its designation to a hill in the neighbourhood which was formerly clothed with the Quercus Пlex, and which for many ages bore the name of Mons Illisis. The etymology is not, however, determined with much precision either from the shrub or the mountain. A mythological origin is likewise assigned to this place; but, so far as the derivation of the name is concerned, with no happier results. Hercules is reported to have erected a temple here to deprecate the wrath of Venus, after he had slain her son Eryr-whence, as the etymologists say, comes Lerici.

Lerici was anciently held by the Pisans, to whom the emperors of Germany delegated an authority to prevent the erection of any fortress on the Mediterranean shore, between Monte Corvo and the mouth of the Arno. From the Pisans, the possession of the place passed to the Genoese, who, in 1256, became masters of Lerici, and surrounded its castle with walls and towers. Thenceforward the town remained under the sovereignty of Genoa, which successfully resisted the efforts of the neighbouring powers, at distant intervals, to regain possession. It was here, as history records, that Andrea Doria renounced his allegiance to Francis I., and entered into the service of Charles V.; an event which is commemorated by a stone still existing in a garden at Lerici. Charles V. afterwards set sail from this port with a powerful naval armament for the conquest of Algiers.

The harbour, formed by the Gulf of Spezzia, constituting the port of Lerici, is enclosed by semicircular hills, terminated on the left by a rock, upon which rises, amidst the batteries, the solid tower, seen in our view. The battery of Maralonga stands towards the mouth of the gulf, whilst on the headland, which shuts in the harbour on the north, lies the rock of Occa pelata, and the battery of St. Theresa. The Gulf of Spezzia particularly attracted the regard of Napoleon, who considered it so much finer, as a harbour, than that of Genoa, that he projected converting it into a vast naval establishment; but for this, among the rest, he was not ordained. This gulf is rendered interesting to the classical reader, by the assertion of the Ligurian commentators, that it is the gulf, described by Virgil, into which Æneas was driven by the storm. The general features harmonize sufficiently with the description, to render the opinion plausible; though they may not suffice to vouch its accuracy, and establish it as a fact. A cavern situated about a mile to the north-east of the town of Spezzia, and a ruined edifice, bearing over the door, the inscription Nympharum domus, seem to offer "confirmation strong" in favour of the assumed identity.. The description referred to is in the Æneid, book I. and lines 158-169. The death of Shelley, the poet, is associated with Lerici. On the 7th July 1821, he went to Leghorn to have an interview with Mr. Leigh Hunt, and returning thence to Lerici, his boat was lost in a violent storm, off Via Reggia.

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