di Pietà at Udine, are held in high estimation, although he conducted works upon a much larger scale, for various halls of many noble families, in all which we trace a fecundity of ideas, a decision of pencil, a power for vast compositions, sufficient to have distinguished him in his age not only in the limits of Como but at Milan. I omit the names of those professors of the art who merely designed without colouring, or who never attained to mature age; and those of a few others I have to reserve for foreign schools, and for different branches of painting. Proceeding towards the Marca Trevigiana, I meet with an artist's name that has been claimed by different schools of Italy, according to the place in which he painted, or studied, or gave instructions in the art. For this reason I have judged it best to speak of him as connected with his native place, which boasts a sufficient number of his works. This artist is Sebastiano Ricci, which the Venetians write Rizzi, one who can be reckoned second to none among the professors of our own epoch, in point of genius for the art, and the taste and novelty of his style. He was born in Cividal di Belluno, educated, as we have observed, by Cervelli at Venice, and afterwards conducted by his master into Milan; he there acquired, both from him and from Lisandrino, every thing that was of importance in the pursuit of his profession. Thence he went to study at Bologna and at Venice, subsequently transferring his residence to Rome and Florence. Lastly he made the tour of all Italy, employing his pencil wherever he received commissions, at any price. Having acquired reputation, and being invited by different potentates, he passed into Germany, England, and Flanders, in which last country he perfected his style of colouring, which had been always very pleasing and spirited, even in his first attempts. From his acquaintance with such a variety of schools, he stored his mind with fine images, and by dint of copying many models, his hand became practised in different styles. In common with Giordano he possessed the art of imitating every manner; some of his pictures in the style of Bassano and of Paul, continuing yet to impose upon less skilful judges, as in the instance of one of his Madonnas at Dresden, for some time attributed to Coreggio. The chief advantage he derived from his travels was, that on having occasion to represent any subject, he was enabled to recollect the manner in which different masters might have treated it, availing himself of it without plagiarism accordingly. Thus the Adoration of the Apostles at the Last Supper, a piece adorning the church of Santa Giustina at Padua, betrays many points of resemblance to the painting on the cupola of San Giovanni at Parma, while his San Gregorio at San Alessandro in Bergamo recalls to mind one by Guercino, executed at Bologna. The same method he observed in his scriptural histories, produced for SS. Cosmo and Damiano, which are preferred to any others he