In the middle of the room are six
pieces of statuary, among which Canova's world-renowned group of the
Graces at once attracts the eye. There is also a kneeling Magdalen,
lovely in her wo, by the same sculptor, and a very touching work of
Schadow representing a shepherd-boy tenderly binding his sash around a
lamb which he has accidentaly wounded with his arrow.
We have since seen in the St. Michael's Church the monument to Eugene
Beauharnais from the chisel of Thorwaldsen. The noble, manly figure of
the son of Josephine is represented in the Roman mantle, with his helmet
and sword lying on the ground by him. On one side sits History writing
on a tablet; on the other stand the two brother-angels Death and
Immortality. They lean lovingly together, with arms around each other,
but the sweet countenance of Death has a cast of sorrow as he stands
with inverted torch and a wreath of poppies among his clustering locks.
Immortality, crowned with never-fading flowers, looks upward with a
smile of triumph, and holds in one hand his blazing torch. It is a
beautiful idea, and Thorwaldsen has made the marble eloquent with
feeling.
The inside of the square formed by the arcades and the New Residence is
filled with noble old trees which in summer make a leafy roof over the
pleasant walks.
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