. Antonio Allegri da Correggio, his life, his friends, and his time. neck, leans against theVirgins Laying his right hand on that of St. Joseph to takethe dates—an action which produces a fine effect of contrast in theflesh-tones—he leans back to his mother to ask for water, pointing atthe cup she holds out to a flower-crowned boy, the genius of themiraculous spring. She lays her left hand on the yellow veil abouther shoulders to prevent it from slipping off, and draws its transparentfolds, through which her crimson robe is visible, more closely abouther. This instinctive by-play by
. Antonio Allegri da Correggio, his life, his friends, and his time. neck, leans against theVirgins Laying his right hand on that of St. Joseph to takethe dates—an action which produces a fine effect of contrast in theflesh-tones—he leans back to his mother to ask for water, pointing atthe cup she holds out to a flower-crowned boy, the genius of themiraculous spring. She lays her left hand on the yellow veil abouther shoulders to prevent it from slipping off, and draws its transparentfolds, through which her crimson robe is visible, more closely abouther. This instinctive by-play by no means diverts her attention fromthe Child, at whom she gazes with a gentle inclination of the head anda smile of such infinite sweetness as to awaken the deepest sympathiesof the spectator. In the background, behind St. Joseph, an angel, whose figure isilluminated by the sunshine, ties the ass to the stump of a tree. 1 There is an old copy of the head of the Child in the Municipal Gallery at Verona,where it is described as an original picture by - B P P LA NOTTE 289 Not only the group of angels above, but the part of the Virgins facewhich is in shadow, the back of the Child, and the legs of St. Joseph,bear the traces of over-cleaning. It is perfectly untrue, however, thatthe picture was ruined by a Spanish apprentice, who, having obtainedleave to copy it, washed it in so barbarous a fashion that he leftscarcely any paint on the Mengs partially cleaned it, butwith the utmost On the whole, indeed, taking into account the vicissitudes under-gone by most of Correggios works, the condition of the picture isunusually satisfactory. The perfect harmony of the tones has beendisturbed to a certain extent; but the enamelled colour has still anenchanting splendour and transparence. The magic effect of thesunshine in the mysterious forest glade, says Burckhardt, the love-liness of the heads, the magnificent colour, and the indescribable splen-dour of the w
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