he great master. The
Anonimo tells us this "Birth of Paris" was one of Giorgione's early
works, a statement worthy of credence from the still Bellinesque stamp
and general likeness of one of the Shepherds to the "Adrastus" in the
Giovanelli picture. In pose, type, arrangement of hair, and in landscape
this fragment is thoroughly Giorgionesque, and we have, moreover, those
most characteristic traits, the pointing forefinger, and the unbroken
curve of outline. The execution is, however, raw and crude, and entirely
wanting in the magic quality of the master's own touch.[59]

[Illustration: _Dixon photo. Hampton Court Palace Gallery_

THE SHEPHERD BOY.]

Finally, on Morelli's list figures the "Shepherd" at Hampton Court, for
the genuineness of which the critic would not absolutely vouch, as he
had only seen it in a bad light. Perhaps no picture has been so strongly
championed by an enthusiastic writer as has been this "Shepherd" by Mr.
Berenson, who strenuously advocates its title to genuineness.[60]
Nevertheless, several modern authorities remain unconvinced in presence
of the work itself. The conception is unquestionably Giorgione's own,
as we may see from a picture now in the Vienna Gallery, where this head
is repeated in a representation of the young David holding the head of
Goliath. The Vienna picture is, however, but a copy of a lost original
by Giorgione, the existence of which is independently attested by
Vasari.[61] Now, the question naturally arises, What relation does the
Hampton Court "Shepherd" bear to this "David," Giorgione's lost
original? It is possible, of course, that the master repeated himself,
merely transforming the David into a Shepherd, or _vice versa_, and it
is equally possible that some other and later artist adapted Giorgione's
"David" to his own end, utilising the conception that is, and carrying
it out in his own way. Arguing purely _a priori_, the latter possibility
is the more likely, inasmuch as we know Giorgione hardly ever repeats a
figure or a composition, whereas Titian, Cariani, and other later
Venetian artists freely adopted Giorgione's ideas, his types, and his
compositions for their own purposes. Internal evidence appears to me,
moreover, to confirm this view, for the general style of painting seems
to indicate a later period than 1510, the year of Giorgione's death. The
flimsy folds, in particular, are not readily recognisable as the
master's own. A comparison with a portrait in