[Illustration: UMBRIAN SCHOOL.--GLORIFICATION OF THE
VIRGIN.]

The first has come down to us from the hand of some unknown Umbrian
painter. In the National Gallery, London, where it now hangs, it was
once attributed to Lo Spagna, but is now entered in the catalogue as
nameless. It matters little whether or not we know the name of the
master; he could ask no higher tribute to his talent than the
universal admiration which his picture commands.

In the foreground of a quiet Umbrian landscape is a marble balcony, on
the railing of which sit two captivating little boy choristers. One
roguish fellow pipes on a trumpet, while the other, his face
tip-tilted to the heavenly vision, makes music on a small guitar.
Above, on a cloud, sits the Virgin, with the sweet, mystic smile on
her face, so characteristic of Umbrian art. She supports her babe with
her right arm, and in her left hand carries a lily stalk. The child,
standing on his mother's knee and clinging to her neck, turns his face
out with sweet earnestness. In clouds at the side, tiny cherubs bear
tapers, while others, floating above, hold a large crown just over her
head.

Although we cannot limit this style of picture to any special
locality, it appears to have found much favor in the art of Northern
Italy. In the Brescian school, Moretto was unusually fond of the
subject. His treatment of the theme is somewhat heavy; there is little
of the ethereal in his celestial vision, either in the type of
womanhood or in the style of arrangement. In defiance of the law of
gravitation, he poses his upper figures so as to form a solid pyramid,
wide at the base, and tapering abruptly to the apex.