The genius of Philip (first) Earle of Pembroke lay much to painting and building, and he had the best collection of paintings of the best masters of any peer of his time in England; and, besides those pictures before mentioned, collected by his ancestors, he adorned the roomes above staires with a great many pieces of Georgeon [Giorgione], and some of Titian, his scholar. His lordship was the great patron of Sir Anthony Van Dyck, and had the most of his paintings of any one in the world; some whereof, of his family, are fixt now in the great pannells of the wainscot in the great dining roome, or roome of state; which is a magnificent, stately roome; and his Majesty King Charles the Second was wont to say, ’twas the best proportioned roome that ever he saw.* In the cieling piece of this great roome is a great peece, the Marriage of Perseus, drawn by the hand of Mr. Emanuel De Cretz; and all about this roome, the pannells below the windows, is painted by him, the whole story of Sir Philip Sydney’s Arcadia,† Quaere, Dr. Caldicot and Mr. Uniades, what was the story or picture in the cieling when the house was burnt. At the upper end of this noble roome is a great piece of Philip (first) Earle of Pembroke and both his Countesses, and all his children, and the Earle of Carnarvon, as big as the life, with landskip beyond them; by the hand of that famous master in painting Sir Anthony Van Dyk, which is held one of his best pictures that ever he drew, and which was apprized at 1,000 li. by the creditors of Philip the third earle of Pembrok. Mr. Uniades told me that he heard Philip (first) Earle say, that he gave to Sir Anthony Van Dyk for it five hundred Jacobuses. ’Tis an heirloome, and the creditors had nothing to doe with it, but Mr. Davys the painter, that was brought from London to apprize the goods, did apprize it at a thousand pounds. Captain Wind tells me that there is a tagliedome of this great picture: enquire for it. [A critical account of this picture, which is 17 feet in length by l1 feet in height, and contains ten full-length portraits, will be found in the Beauties of Wiltshire, vol. i. p. 180-187. It was engraved by Bernard Baron in 1740.—J. B.] *[This refers to the “double-cube” room, as it is often called, from its proportions. The Great Hall at Kenilworth was also a double cube; and the same form was adopted in many other old buildings.—J. B.] †[In “A Description of the Antiquities and Curiosities in Wilton House,” 4to. these paintings are ascribed to Signer Tomaso and his brother.—J. B.] The anti-roome to the great roome of state is the first roome as you come up staires from the garden, and the great pannells of wainscot are painted with the huntings of Tempesta, by that excellent master in landskip Mr. Edmund Piers.‡ He did also paint all the grotesco—painting about the new buildings. ‡[Ascribed to Tempesta junior in the “Description” already mentioned.—J. B.]