UNPUBLISHED PAPERS RELATING TO RUBENS.*

MR. SAINSBURY'S volume of papers from • the State Paper Office and other sources has rather a special than a general interest. It contains intimations of the manners and habits of Rubens as painter, courtier, and diplomatist, with a few particulars as to his life, and a good deal of information about his own works and his celebrated collection. The " papers " further throw light on the court and courtiers of Charles the First as patrons of art, as well as on the negotiations between Spain and England ; in which, every reader of his life knows that Rubens was engaged. There is also an account of a sort of struggle between the friends of Jor- daens and Rubens, (for the artists themselves knew nothing about the contest,) to obtain the commission for painting the decorations of Henrietta's cabinet in the palace at Greenwich ; but a greater potentate than Charles cut short the battle, Rubens dying before the affair was finally settled, though Jordaens had already carried off a large portion of the work by his lower price. The editor seems to think that fuller information is furnished by the corre- spondence on the well-known paintings in the Banqueting House, • Original Unpublished Papers illustrative of the life of Sir Peter Paul Rubens; as an Artist and a Diplomatist, preserved in H. H. State Paper Office. With an Appendix of Documents. Collected and Edited by W. Noel Sainsbury, of H. H. State Paper Office. Published by Bradbury and Evans.

Whitehall; but the most curious part relates to the payment. Gerbier, a foreigner by birth, the agent of Charles the First at Brussels, thus writes to the King.

" Brussels, August 1-11, 165-1.

" May it please yr Majtr—Being an infallible truth I may not, will, nor dare not willingly displease yr Majtr. Wtbout scrupule may I then relate what millions tongues or ignorant spirits utter seing the great worke Sr Peter Rubena lath made for yr Majts Banqueting house, lye here, as if for want of money. Spaniards, French, & other nations talke of it, the more it's said the matter to reach but to 3 or 4 thousand pounds. [30001. was the sum the painter received.] Having noe other interest in this then yr Malta hone, I remaine confident what noted wilbe taken as ye duty of " Yr Maid &c. B. GERBIER."

The first section of the book is perhaps that which refers most fully to the artist life and character of the great painter. It ex- tends from 1616 to 1623, and treats of what may be called pic- ture dealing, though in no vulgar sense. Different agents were employed to negotiate the purchase of pictures, or their exchange for jewels and articles of vertu, between Rubens and English collectors, of whom Sir Dudley Carleton, afterwards Lord Dor- chester, was the great purchaser, and the correspondence throws light upon the proceedings. The artist appears courteous but firm, neither rating his works below their value, nor a bad hand at a bargain ; but the collectors and their agents were quite a match for him. Several letters refer to two hunting pieces, one a reduced copy of an original which was too large for any "houses but those of great princes." The following extracts describe part of this negotiation, " Tobie Matthew," acting as Sir Dudley's agent.

Mr. Gage and I dealt wth Rubens, for the peece of huntinge accordinge to your Los Commission; savinge that between any receavinge of your LP. former letter, web was at Loraine, and my goinge to Antwerp, I had not the chaine of diamondes in my hand, for I left it here in Brussells, so as Ru- bens sawe it not. But that importeth not much, for the very lowest price, to Via wth much adoe Mr. Gage could drawe him, was foweracore poundes sterlinge ; web lie said not expressely he would take, but I thineke he will. Wee tell him of a chaine, and described it the best we could ; but those thiuges worke not upon him, and he will not meddle with it, but so farre forth as by the estimation of gouldsmithes and jewellers, it shall rise to his price. What it shall wante, he will expecte to be punctually made up in money ; and I must tell your L5 I meete wth noebodie of any condition, who will gave much above fifty poundes for the chaine." "I have scene, at last, the answeare of Rubena to Mr. Gage, weh is pre- cisely thus. He will not make the lesser huntinge peece for lease than yr Las chaine. Concerninge the causinge of anie part thereof to be made by Sny- der, that other famous Painter, yr Li' and I have been in an errour, for thought as pi doe, that his hand had been in that Peece but sincerely and certainly it is not soe. For in this Peece the beasts are all alive, and in act eyther of escape or resistance, in the expressing wherof Snyder doth infinit- lie come short of Rubens, and Rubens saith that he should take it in ill part, if I should compare Snyders wth him in that point. The talent of Snyders is to represent beasts but especiallie Birds alto- ether dead, and wholly wthout anie action ; and that web yr Lp' Mr. Gage, and I sawe of his hand, web we liked soe well was a Gruppo ofdead Birds, in a picture of Diana, and certaine other naked Nimphes, as Rubens pro- testeth, and Mr. Gage avoweth, and now myself doe well remember it. This was the ground of yr Los errour and mine."

It was probably the conduct of these bargains, which trained Rubens to diplomacy, and caused him to be employed in public negotiations. His biographers, however, have made the most of such transactions. He undoubtedly went to Madrid and London as an envoy, but the bulk of the business was done under the rose, as physicians and other clever persons, who have ready unsus- picious access to great personages, may be employed now. The Infanta Isabella, sister of Philip the Third, and " Governor " of the Netherlands was the originator of the business, and her ob- ject was a large one. She wished to compose the differences between Spain, the Empire, England, Denmark, and Holland, the last really independent but still nominally in revolt against Spain. Fromjealousies and other inherent difficulties, the larger plan dropped through altogether ; the negotiation between Eng- land and Spain lingered from 1625 to 1629, probably on account, as Mr. Sainsbury supposes, of the personal hatred of Olivine; the Spanish Minister to Buckingham. The negotiation began in " discourses " between Rubens, when at Paris, in 1625, and. Ger- biers, then in the Duke of Buckingham's service, a portrait Ru- bens was painting of the Duke, facilitating the introduction of the affair. The matter thus mooted went on for some four years, the painter and Gerbier carrying on the negotiations, but in obedience to direct instructions from higher powers. So far as regards the life of Rubens or the smaller history of the time, this is perhaps

the most important section of the book. • It must not be supposed that the subjects we have mentioned are the only topics to which the letters refer, though they form the leading features of the collection. There are many indica- tions of the period, especially of its thrift and shrewdness ; oc-

casional traits of artists and diplomatists ; many small facts re- lating to art ; and some samples of Rubens as a classical or general critic. This passage from a letter to the celebrated Ju- nius, acknowledging &presentation copy of the scholar's De Pie- turd. Veterum, indicate both. " I think that you have much honoured our art by this immense treasure of the whole of antiquity, recovered with so much diligence, and publicly arranged in the moat beautiful order. For this book, as I would tell your Honour, in one word, is a rich storehouse, most fruitful in all manner of

examples, opinions, and rules, which, relating to the dignity and illustra- tion of the pictorial art, scattered throughout the ancient writings, have been preserved to our time, and consecrated, as it were, to our great advan-

tage. Thus I perceive in the title and argument to the book, De PictuA veterurn; [On the Painting of the Ancients,] that the object is attained by

your honour to a nicety, and even the axioms and rules, opinions and ex- amples, which afford the greatest information to us are inserted here and there expressed with a certain admirable erudition, elegant style of ex- premien, and in correct order. The whole of this work being perfectly di- gested and polished with the greatest care, even to the cover. But since these examples of the ancient painters are only shadows, and for the appre- hending of which we may follow more or less closely, I could wish that some such treatise of the paintings of the Italian masters were executed with the same diligence. Their examples or prototypes are to this day publicly sold, and can be pointed out with the finger, and I should say there are such. " For those things which fall under the senses are the most deeply im- pressed upon the mind, remain the longest, require more careful examina- tion, and afford material more fruitful in instruction to students, than those things which only present themselves to us in imagination like dreams, and foreshadowed in words only, being grasped at in vain, (as the shadow of Eurydice evaded Orpheus,) often elude and frustrate each one in his hope. We speak from experience, for how few of us would attempt to subject to ocular demonstration any renowned work of Apelles or Thimantes, graphi- cally described by Pliny or other ancient writers, for fear of indignity."

Besides a number of notes on persons and things, illustrative but somewhat matter-of-fattish, the appendix contains much cu- rious matter. The letters of Rubens, translated for the text, are in the appendix printed in the original Latin, Italian, French, and Flemish. There is quite a storehouse of information re- garding the Arundelian and other collections, with curious and gossipy, if minute particulars, respecting some of the artists or lesser celebrities of the age. The most general part is the letters of Lady Carleton when travelling to her husbancl. On this occa- sion he had sent her from the Hague to Flushing to a sale of ar- ticles of vertu, taken in a ship belonging to the viceroy of Naples, by a [Dutch !.] freebooter, and she seems to have been as shrewd as any " agent."

" Flushing, November 9, [1624].

" My deere sweete hart—I receved thine of the 6th just at my coming to Flushing where I am come I thanke God very well, but with as many difi- coltes as ever any past, for I cam afoote from Midellbrough and yet after that I went to see as many of the geodes as ware to be Beene. Heere are very fine hangings of silks imbrodred with silver chamblot, which they call cloth of gold, and som with slight cloth of silver betweene and som of the same fassion with green° dammaske betweene, the borders are of greene vellett imbrodred with that chamblot. They are as good as new; there is a dellicatt needell worke carpitt very courious and rich. All these I wish I had at a reasonable rate and I would tune merchant. There are very good tapstery but is is somwhat olde, if it corn at a very low raite I will bye store for my selfe and my frendes. Heere is great store of exceeding good hous- hold stuff. Heere are store likewise of very faire pictures; but what I shall doe for the getting of them for my Lord of Buckingham, God knowes, for I doe not. Heere is no respect of parsons, nor no such thing to be heered of,

but who will give most shall have it. • • •

Mammaker is a proud scirue [scurvy ?] kockescome and his wife a fitt wife for him. I pray let Madam Vandernote know her letters have bin of very littell use to me no more then yours. The conselare Husson bath helped me to by sour picturs to day ; but heere is such keching for them that I know not what to doe, and som times on must bye good and bad to nether. I have bought nine to day, good and bad, but in truth none very bad, without it be one as bige as halfe my hand. They are sold exstreme deere, and yet there are infinit here. I have som very raire peeces, on of Tisianes, it cost me all most 301. I have another littell peece which cost me 401. and ode. My Lord Willibye is heere, and hee is 'a great byer. Yet if I had not these picture, the painters of Anwarp would have given the mony. I never saw pictures sold soe deere in my life, espetially trash. wish all owrs ware sold as well, it would pay our deates."