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Rubens, whose manner of designing was quite origi-nal, made use of a large flowing line as a principle,which runs through all his works, and gives a noblespirit to them; but he did not seem to be acquaintedwith what we call the precise line ; which hereafter weshall be very particular upon, and which gives the deli-cacy we see in the best Italian masters; but he rathercharged his contours in general with too bold and S-likeswellings.

Raphael, from a straight And stiff manner, on a hiddenchanged his taste of lines at sight of Michael Angelo’sworks, and the antique statues; and so fond was he ofthe serpentine line, that he carried it into a ridiculousexcess, particularly in his draperies: though his greatobservance of nature suffer’d him not long to continuein this mistake.

Peter de Cortone form’d a fine manner in his drape-ries of this line.

We fee this principle no where better understood thanin some pictures of Corregio, particularly his Juno andIxion: yet the proportions of his figures are sometimessuch as might be corrected by a common sign painter.

Whilst Albert Durer, who drew mathematically,never so much as deviated into grace, which he mustsometimes have done in copying the life, if he had notbeen fetter’d with his own impracticable rules of pro-portion.

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