or the traveller's greater convenience, I shall give a rude plan of
the arrangement, and list of the subjects, of each group of pictures
before examining them in detail.

First Group. On the walls of the room on the ground floor.

[Illustration:

1. Annunciation. 5. The Magdalen.
2. Adoration of Magi. 6. St. Mary of Egypt.
3. Flight into Egypt. 7. Circumcision.
4. Massacre of Innocents. 8. Assumption of Virgin.

At the turn of the stairs leading to the upper room:
9. Visitation.]

1. _The Annunciation._ This, which first strikes the eye, is a very
just representative of the whole group, the execution being carried to
the utmost limits of boldness consistent with completion. It is a
well-known picture, and need not therefore be specially described, but
one or two points in it require notice. The face of the Virgin is very
disagreeable to the spectator from below, giving the idea of a woman
about thirty, who had never been handsome. If the face is untouched,
it is the only instance I have ever seen of Tintoret's failing in an
intended effect, for, when seen near, the face is comely and youthful,
and expresses only surprise, instead of the pain and fear of which it
bears the aspect in the distance. I could not get near enough to see
whether it had been retouched. It looks like Tintoret's work, though
rather hard; but, as there are unquestionable marks in the retouching
of this picture, it is possible that some slight restoration of lines
supposed to be faded, entirely alter the distant expression of the
face. One of the evident pieces of repainting is the scarlet of the
Madonna's lap, which is heavy and lifeless. A far more injurious one
is the strip of sky seen through the doorway by which the angel
enters, which has originally been of the deep golden color of the
distance on the left, and which the blundering restorer has daubed
over with whitish blue, so that it looks like a bit of the wall;
luckily he has not touched the outlines of the angel's black wings, on
which the whole expression of the picture depends. This angel and the
group of small cherubs above form a great swinging chain, of which the
dove representing the Holy Spirit forms the bend. The angels in their
flight seem to be attached to this as the train of fire is to a
rocket; all of th