The Queer, the Quaint and the Quizzical Part 16

This was the name of a beautiful cinerary urn, of transparent dark blue gla.s.s, found about the middle of the sixteenth century in a marble sarcophagus near Rome. It was at first deposited in the Barberini Palace at Rome, and hence is often called the Barberini Vase. Next it became (in 1770) the property, by purchase, of Sir William Hamilton, from whose possession it pa.s.sed into that of the d.u.c.h.ess of Portland. In 1810 the Duke of Portland, one of the trustees of the British Museum, allowed it to be placed in that inst.i.tution, retaining his right over it as his own property. In 1845 a miscreant named William Lloyd, apparently from an insane love of mischief, or a diseased ambition for notoriety, dashed the valuable relic to pieces with a stone. Owing to the defective state of the law, only a slight punishment could be inflicted; but an act was immediately pa.s.sed making such an offence punishable with imprisonment for two years. The pieces of the fractured vase were afterwards united in a very complete manner; and, thus repaired, it still exists in the Museum, but is not exhibited to the public.

_Martin Luther's Tankard._

This interesting relic of the great reformer is of ivory, very richly carved, and mounted in silver-gilt. There are six medallions on its surface, which consist, however, of a repet.i.tion of two subjects. The upper one represents the agony in the garden and the Saviour praying that the cup might pa.s.s from Him; the base represents the Lord's Supper, the centre dish being the incarnation of the bread. This tankard, now in the possession of Lord Londesborough, was formerly in the collection of Elkington, of Birmingham, who had some copies made of it. On the lid, in old characters, is the following: "C. M. L., MDXXIIII."

_Bra.s.s Medal of the Saviour._

In 1702 Rev. H. Rowlands, author of _Mona Antiqua_, while superintending the removal of some stones near Aberfraw, Wales, for the purpose of making an antiquarian research, found a beautiful bra.s.s medal of the Saviour in a fine state of preservation, which he forwarded to his friend and country-man, the Rev. E. Lloyd, author of the _Archeologiae Britannica_, and at that time, keeper of the Ashmolean Library at Oxford.

This medal has on one side the figure of a head exactly answering the description given by Publius Lentulus of our Saviour, in a letter sent by him to the Emperor Tiberius and the Senate of Rome. On the reverse side it has the following legend or inscription in Hebrew characters; "This is Jesus Christ, the Mediator or Reconciler;" or, "Jesus the Great Messias, or Man Mediator." Being found among the ruins of the chief Druid's residence in Anglesea, it is not improbable that the curious relic belonged to some Christian connected with Bran the Blessed, who was one of Caractacus's hostages at Rome from A. D. 52 to 59, at which time the Apostle Paul was preaching the gospel at Rome. In two years afterwards, A. D. 61, the Roman General Suetonius extirpated all the Druids in the island. The following is a translation of the letter alluded to, a very antique copy of which is in the possession of the family of Lord Kellie, now represented by the Earl of Mar, a very ancient Scotch family, taken from the original at Rome:-

"There hath appeared in these our days a man of great virtue, named Jesus Christ, who is yet living among us, and of the Gentiles is accepted as a prophet, but his disciples call him The Son of G.o.d. He raiseth the dead, and cures all manner of diseases; a man of stature somewhat tall and comely, with very reverend countenance, such as the beholders both love and fear; his hair the color of chestnut, full ripe, plain to his ears, whence downward it is more orient, curling, and waving about his shoulders.

"In the midst of his head is a seam or a part.i.tion of his hair after the manner of the Nazarites; his forehead plain and very delicate; his face without a spot or wrinkle, beautified with the most lovely red; his mouth and nose so formed that nothing can be reprehended; his beard thickish, in color like his hair, not very long but forked; his look, innocent and mature; his eyes gray, clear and quick. In reproving, he is terrible; in admonishing, courteous and fair spoken; pleasant in conversation, mixed with gravity. It cannot be remarked that any one saw him laugh, but many have seen him weep. In proportion of body most excellent; his hands and arms most delicate to behold. In speaking, very temperate, modest and wise. A man, for his singular beauty, surpa.s.sing the children of men."

The representation of this sacred person which is in the Bodleian Library, somewhat resembles that of the print of this medal, when compared together.

_Friar Bacon's Brazen Head._

The most famous of all the brazen heads was that of Roger Bacon, a monk of the thirteenth century. According to the legend, he spent seven years in constructing the head, and he expected to be told by it how he could make a wall of bra.s.s around the island of Great Britain. The head was warranted to speak within a month after it was finished, but no particular time was named for its doing so. Bacon's man was therefore set to watch, with orders to call his master if the head should speak.

At the end of half an hour after the man was left alone with the head, he heard it say, "Time is," at the expiration of another half hour, "Time was," and at the end of a third half hour, "Time's past," when it fell down with a loud crash, and was shivered to pieces; but the stupid servant neglected to awaken his master, thinking that he would be very angry to be disturbed for such trifles: and so the wall of bra.s.s has never been built.

_Crucifix of Columbus._

Mrs. General Hefferman, of Animas City, is the possessor of a very interesting and valuable relic, it being no less than the veritable crucifix which Columbus held in his hand when he landed in America, of which she has ample doc.u.mentary evidence, if one accept the witness, viz: the Catholic Church. It has been in the possession of the missions and churches of Mexico and California since a very early date; and even if originally a fraud, it would nevertheless be almost as interesting, from its great age and as a work of art, as though what is claimed for it were actually true. Mrs. Hefferman holds it in trust for a religious order to which her mother belonged, and sacredly believes it a genuine relic, as claimed. The crucifix itself is of carved wood, of what kind no one is able to determine. The image of Christ upon it is of carved ivory. The expression of agony depicted on the countenance and in the drawn muscles and sunken flesh, as well as the delineation of the anatomical structure, are triumphs of artistic skill which could not be surpa.s.sed, if equalled, by the best artists of the present day.-_Durango (Col.) Record._

_Scipio's Shield._

In 1656 a fisherman on the banks of the Rhone, in the neighborhood of Avignon, drew to sh.o.r.e in his net a round substance in the shape of a large plate, thickly encrusted with a coat of hardened mud. A silversmith who happened to be present bought it for a trifling sum. He took it home, and upon cleaning and polishing it, found it to consist of pure silver, perfectly round, more than two feet in diameter, and weighing upwards of twenty pounds. Fearing that such a ma.s.sive and valuable piece of plate might awaken suspicion, if offered for sale entire, he divided it into four equal parts, each of which he disposed of at different times and places.

One of the pieces was sold at Lyons to Mr. Mey, a wealthy and well-educated merchant, who at once saw its value and who, after great effort, procured the other three sections. He had them nicely rejoined, and the treasure was finally placed in the cabinet of the King of France. This relic of antiquity, no less remarkable for the beauty of its workmanship than for having been buried at the bottom of the Rhone more than two thousand years, was a votive shield, presented to Scipio as a token of grat.i.tude and affection by the inhabitants of Carthago Nova, now the city of Carthagena, for his generosity and self-denial in delivering one of his captives, a beautiful virgin, to her original lover. This act, so honorable to the Roman general, who was then in the prime vigor of manhood, is represented on the shield.

_Horn of Oldenburg._

The story of the Horn of Oldenburg is a type of the legends which connect valuable plate, &c., belonging to old churches with underground fairies. The pictures of the horn represent it as a beautiful drinking vessel in the shape of a horn, exquisitely decorated with the finest fanciful silver-work, in the style contemporary with the richest Gothic architecture. The legend is, that one day, Otto of Oldenburg, being exhausted with hunting, and very thirsty, exclaimed: "O G.o.d, would that I had a cool drink!" Thereupon appeared before him, as if coming out of the rock, a lovely maiden, who offered him a drink in the fairy horn. He made off with it, and saved himself from evil consequences by bestowing it on the church.

_Nebuchadnezzar's Golden Mask._

This interesting relic of remote antiquity is at present preserved in the Museum of the East India Company. It was found by Colonel Rawlinson while engaged in prosecuting the discoveries commenced by Layard and Botta, at Nineveh and Babylon, and is supposed to have belonged to King Nebuchadnezzar. The body was discovered in a perfect state of preservation, and the face covered by the golden mask is described as handsome, the forehead high and commanding, the features marked and regular. The mask is of thin gold, and, independent of its having once belonged to the great monarch, has immense value as a relic of an ancient and celebrated people.

_Iron Crown of Lombardy._

When the Emperor Napoleon I. was crowned King of Italy, 1805, he placed the iron crown of the kings of Lombardy upon his head with his own hands, exclaiming, "G.o.d has given it to me-beware who touches," which was the haughty motto attached to it by its ancient owners. The crown takes its name from the narrow iron band within it, which is about three-eighths of an inch broad and one-tenth of an inch in thickness. It is traditionally said to have been made out of one of the nails used at the crucifixion, and given to Constantine by his mother, the Empress Helena, the discoverer of the Cross, to protect him in battle. The crown is kept in the Cathedral of Monza. The outer circlet is composed of six equal pieces of beaten gold, joined together by hinges, and set with large rubies, emeralds and sapphires, on a ground of blue-gold enamel.

Within the circlet is the iron crown, without a speck of rust, although it is more than fifteen hundred years old.

_The Sacro Catino._

The celebrated Sacred Catino, part of the spoil taken by the Genoese at the storming of Cesarea, which was believed to be cut from a single emerald, and had, according to tradition, been presented by the Queen of Sheba to Solomon, was for ages the pride and glory of Genoa, and an object of the greatest devotional reverence at the yearly exhibitions, which were attended with great pomp and ceremony. Such was the opinion of its intrinsic value, that on many occasions the republic borrowed half a million of ducats upon security of this precious relic. When the French armies, during the first revolution, plundered Italy of its treasures, it was sent, with other spoils, to Paris. Upon examination, it was, instead of emerald, proved to be composed of gla.s.s, similar to that found in Egyptian tombs, of which country it was, no doubt, the manufacture. At the Restoration the Sacro Catino was returned in a broken state, and now lies shorn of all its honors, a mere broken gla.s.s vessel, in the sacristy of the Church of San Lorenzo.

_Curious Lantern._

In 1602 it is related that Sir John Harrington, of Bath, sent to James VI., of Scotland, as a new year's gift, a dark lantern. The top was a crown of pure gold, serving also to cover a perfume pan. Within it was a shield of silver, embossed, to reflect the light; on one side of the shield were the sun, moon and planets, and on the other side the story of the birth and pa.s.sion of Christ, as it was engraved by David II., King of Scotland, who was a prisoner at Nottingham. The following words were inscribed in Latin on the present: "Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom."

_Carrara's Toilet Box._

Francis Carrara, the last Lord of Padua, was famous for his cruelties.

At Venice is exhibited a little box for the toilet, in which are six little guns, which were adjusted with springs in such a manner, that upon opening the box the guns were discharged, and killed the lady to whom Carrara had sent it for a present.

_Executioner's Sword._

This weapon forms one of the curiosities in the superb collection of ancient armor which belonged to Sir Samuel R. Meyrick, at Herefordshire.

It bears the date of 1674. The blade is thin and exceedingly sharp at both edges. Engraved on it is a man impaled, above which are some words in German, of which the following is a translation:-

Look every one that has eyes, Look here, and see that To erect power on wickedness Cannot last long.

A man holding a crucifix, his eyes bandaged, is on his knees; the executioner, with his right hand on the hilt and his left on the pommel, is about to strike the blow; above is engraved-

He who ambitiously exalts himself, And thinks only of evil, Has his neck already encompa.s.sed By punishment.

On the other side is a man broken on a wheel, over which is-

I live, I know not how long; I die, but I know not when.

Also a man suspended by the ribs from a gibbet, with the inscription-

I move, without knowing whither; I wonder I am so tranquil.

_Luck of Eden-hall._

Hutchinson, in his "History of c.u.mberland," speaking of Eden-hall, says: "In this house are some old-fashioned apartments. An old painted drinking-gla.s.s, called the 'Luck of Eden-hall,' is preserved with great care. In the garden, near to the house, is a well of excellent spring water, called St. Cuthbert's well. The gla.s.s is supposed to have been a sacred chalice, but the legendary tale is, that the butler, going to draw water, surprised a company of fairies who were amusing themselves upon the green near the well. He seized the gla.s.s which was standing upon its margin; they tried to get it from him, but, after an ineffectual struggle, flew away, singing-

'If that gla.s.s either break or fall, Farewell the luck of Eden-hall.'"

_Bernini's Bust of Charles I._