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Article ON FREEMASONRY. ← Page 9 of 10 →
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On Freemasonry.
which the whole rested was adorned with mythological compositions . The exact dimensions of the figure are lost , but it is believed to have been near sixty feet in height . Those who beheld this statue are said to have been so
struck with it , as to have asked whether Jupiter had descended from Heaven to show himself to Phidias , or whether Phidias had been carried thither to contemplate the god . Quintilian tells us that the majesty of the work equalled that of the god himself , and that it added somewhat to the religion of those who saw it . " What an illustration do these complicated sculptures afford of the wonderful resources of the human mind ? Its
primitive efforts , in quest of ornament , produced a series of complex designs , in which human figures , hieroglyphics , and symbolical characters are combined in inexhaustible profusion ; and , to produce all that was just and noble in science and art , experience had the difficult task assigned to it of correcting the exuberance of primitive conception ,
rather than to rack the invention for novel designs , —to simplify rather than to augment . This was the work of taste ; and taste could onl y be matured in the Lodges of Freemasonry . Speaking of the Grecian sculpture , Madame de Stael thus expresses her admiration : — " In the images of gods
and heroes , the most perfect beauty seems to enjoy itself in an eternal repose . In contemplating these exquisite features and forms , it reveals I know not what design of Divinity upon man , expressed by the noble figure with
which it has endowed him . This contemplation elevates the soul to most enthusiastic and virtuous hopes ; for beauty is contained in the universe , and under whatever form it presents itself , it always excites a religious emotion in the mind of man . What poetry surpasses those countenances , where the most sublime expression is for ever
fixed , and where the greatest thoughts are clothed with so apt an expression ?" Should we indulge our imagination so far as to take a retrospective view of the period when the eminent architects and sculptors of Greece flourished , and those sacred fanes were invested with the freshness of newlconstructed
y edifices , we might behold them shining in all the brilliant hues imparted by the sun ' s rays to the highly polished marble , —the statues and bas-reliefs instinct with the ardour and energy of life : whether of a single figure in repose , or VOL . VI . ' % I
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
On Freemasonry.
which the whole rested was adorned with mythological compositions . The exact dimensions of the figure are lost , but it is believed to have been near sixty feet in height . Those who beheld this statue are said to have been so
struck with it , as to have asked whether Jupiter had descended from Heaven to show himself to Phidias , or whether Phidias had been carried thither to contemplate the god . Quintilian tells us that the majesty of the work equalled that of the god himself , and that it added somewhat to the religion of those who saw it . " What an illustration do these complicated sculptures afford of the wonderful resources of the human mind ? Its
primitive efforts , in quest of ornament , produced a series of complex designs , in which human figures , hieroglyphics , and symbolical characters are combined in inexhaustible profusion ; and , to produce all that was just and noble in science and art , experience had the difficult task assigned to it of correcting the exuberance of primitive conception ,
rather than to rack the invention for novel designs , —to simplify rather than to augment . This was the work of taste ; and taste could onl y be matured in the Lodges of Freemasonry . Speaking of the Grecian sculpture , Madame de Stael thus expresses her admiration : — " In the images of gods
and heroes , the most perfect beauty seems to enjoy itself in an eternal repose . In contemplating these exquisite features and forms , it reveals I know not what design of Divinity upon man , expressed by the noble figure with
which it has endowed him . This contemplation elevates the soul to most enthusiastic and virtuous hopes ; for beauty is contained in the universe , and under whatever form it presents itself , it always excites a religious emotion in the mind of man . What poetry surpasses those countenances , where the most sublime expression is for ever
fixed , and where the greatest thoughts are clothed with so apt an expression ?" Should we indulge our imagination so far as to take a retrospective view of the period when the eminent architects and sculptors of Greece flourished , and those sacred fanes were invested with the freshness of newlconstructed
y edifices , we might behold them shining in all the brilliant hues imparted by the sun ' s rays to the highly polished marble , —the statues and bas-reliefs instinct with the ardour and energy of life : whether of a single figure in repose , or VOL . VI . ' % I