The Artist's Repository, Or, Encyclopedia of the Fine Arts (Band 1): The Human Figure (London, 1808)

A

SKETCH

Of THE

HISTORY of A R T.

INTRODUCTORY LECTURE,

The intention of the present discourse, Ladies
and Gentlemen, is, to give a very brief view
of the progress of those arts which are here-
after to become the subjects of our particular atten-
tion. It is true, uncultivated nations, and barbarous
ages, have withheld the applause due to their utility ;
but, in proportion to the advances of civilized so-
ciety, and polished manners, they have been encou-
raged, protected, and honoured.

When we consider the state of mankind, as pre-
sented by the first settlers in every country, sur-
rounded by difficulties and dangers, perhaps involved
in distress, we shall not wonder at the slow progress
of mental refinement ; while the daily employment
of man is to chase the wild animals of the wood, to
ensnare the inhabitants of the water, or to lop the
towering trees of the forest, and to fence with their

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