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sions were multiplied upon them, till a moderate fortune was no longer equivalent to their support. Under these circumstances, M. Denon, who had always hitherto refused to make a profit of his talents, was compelled to offer his own engravings for sale. This means of subsistence, however honest and respectable, could not shelter him from the jealousy of a feeble, and yet inquisitorial, government.

Ordered by the state to quit the Venetian territories, and tear himself from a circle of beloved friends, he retired to Florence, where he met with numerous exiles from Rome. But soon after, he quitted that city also, with the intention of settling in Switzerland, there to wait, in retirement, the result of the troubles which distracted his native land. Scarcely, however, had he entered the country of the Grisons, when a decree of the Convention announced to him, that he must either forsake his present tranquillity, and enter upon the duties of active life, or expect the forfeiture of his property. As he had originally quitted his country without the intention of emigrating, he obeyed the decree, to avoid the suspicion of having formed such a design. Notwithstanding this, he found himself, on his return, in the most afflicting solitude; many of his friends had perished during the reign of terror, and the rest were wanderers in foreign lands, seeking a temporary refuge from the oppressors of their natal soil.

He re-commenced his career in the capital of the French republic, void of political ambition, and, as he belonged to no party, was respected by all. A decree ordering him, as a noble, to retire to his department, was annulled by another, which nominated him as the most eligible person to engrave the designs of the dresses which the National Convention proposed to assume. Upon this employment he entered with all the zeal and ardour of lively gratitude. During the reign of Jacobinical despotism, it was the good fortune of Denon, not only to escape proscription himself, but to preserve many persons from the revolutionary axe. But he did not merely seek to rescue his personal friends, virtue and innocence ever found him a ready protector; and he not only saved the lives of several worthy persons, but furnished them with money

to make their escape. The storm which seemed to threaten his repose having now passed over, he gradually resumed his former habits, and soon found himself once more in his natural element, amid all the charms of polished and agreeable society.

But the success of the armies of the republic, and his own passion for glory, shortly opened to him a more brilliant career. Chance had brought him acquainted with Madame de Beauharnois, and subsequently with the hero of his age. From their first interview, Denon was inspired with the highest admiration for the character of Napoleon, and an earnest desire of attaching himself to him and his fortunes. In this he so far succeeded as to acquire the esteem of the general, and to receive the firmest assurances of future friendship. From that time, he seldom passed a day without seeing this extraordinary being, and every interview heightened his admiration and strengthened his attachment.

When the expedition to Egypt was proposed, the heroic and romantic plan so perfectly coincided with the taste and pursuits of Denon, that he did not hesitate an instant in accepting the offer of the general to accompany him: To render the proposal more flattering, his nephew was attached to the staff of the commander-in-chief; and he was allowed to be with his uncle throughout the whole of that perilous enterprize. In that interesting region Denon met with all he wished, and the perusal of his travels will prove that every day offered him some new enjoyment, and inspired him with fresh vigour for the next day's exertion.

On his return, he published the result of his researches; and this elaborate work, sought by every one, and read with the greatest avidity all over Europe, by its profits, amply repaid the losses which the author had experienced during the revolution. Of this performance, which is so generally known, that a particular character of it is unnecessary, it may be proper to observe, that it contains an agreeable mixture of incident and description; and if the journal of a campaign interrupts, now and then, an account of the venerable monuments of Thebes or Tentyra; yet this very interruption becomes a stimulus to excite the curiosity of the reader, who, in the end, meets with full satisfaction. Denon,

not being a soldier by profession, and therefore not hardened to the atrocities of war, has, with all his national partialities and personal friendships, given a faithful narrative of this unprincipled expedition. In his work we see what a dreadful license of lust, rapine, and slaughter, the French troops were indulged in; and how whole villages were exterminated upon the slightest suspicion of meditating resistance to the ravishers of their women, the desolators of their fields, and the incendiaries of their dwellings. We see that so far from conciliating the esteem of the Egyptians, the French dominion was confined to the range of their cannon; that their stragglers were cut off like beasts of prey; and that, pressed by the Arabs on one side, and by the Mamelukes on the other, they were kept in a constant state of watchfulness and alarm.

The military transactions, however, are neither the most pleasing nor the most prominent part of the work. The author was, by profession, an artist, and a man of letters; hence, the remains of architecture, sculpture, and painting of the ancient Egyptians, were the principal objects of his attention: and these he has described, both in language and by his pencil, so as to render them highly interesting to all those who feel any curiosity about a nation, from whom Greece derived her sublimest philosophy; and whose history, moreover, is inseparably connected with the sacred oracles.

When Buonaparte, after his discomfiture at Acre, returned to Egypt, and formed the sudden resolution of embarking for Europe, he did not neglect his friend Denon; but sent him and his nephew from Cairo to Alexandria, where they embarked with the general, and landed at Frejus.

the hero to whose service he had devoted his life, and whose friendship he considered as his proudest boast. He had thought himself too old, at the commencement of the Revolution, to enter the army. That gaiety of character, which had been the first cause of his prosperity, accompanied him, however, through the deserts of Africa, as it had done through the north of Europe, and rendered him equally acceptable to the army as to their general. His unfailing hilarity, and eager curiosity, animated him to continual exertion, and gave fresh zeal to every new enjoyment.

The habit of accompanying Napoleon, and of receiving and executing his orders, was untired by fifteen years of warfare; and whilst the splendid tro. phies of success were erecting under his orders at Paris, he followed his hero through Austria, Prussia, Spain, and Poland, illustrating the exploits, and enumerating the victories, of the armies of France; thereby sketching, for posterity, the history of his own times. His delight in these occupations rendered him unmindful of the wrinkles of old age, and the gradual decay of his bodily vigour. Adversity at length withdrew the veil of deception from his eyes, and wisdom persuaded him to retire from an unstable world to the calm tranquillity of a retired life.

Connected with the splendid work on which the fame of Denon will permanently rest, two anecdotes have been told, worth preserving. Napoleon, whose mind had formed the loftiest expectations from the great expedition which he undertook to the east, said, one day, while contemplating the graphic illustrations of his friend the Baron, "Well, if I have lost Egypt, Denon has conquered it."

The

On the exaltation of Napoleon to When pope Pius VII. visited Paris the rank of first consul, Denon was to crown Napoleon, Denon was deappointed Director-general of the Mu-puted to shew his holiness the Mint, seum, and ordered to complete that magnificent collection, the fantastic grandeur of which only exists as a dream of the imagination, to those who have seen it and felt its merit. He was afterwards nominated to superintend the series of historical medals, the erection of the column de Vendome, and of numerous other public monuments. Thus he had at once the happiness of gratifying his own taste, and of proving his gratitude to

the Museum, and imperial printingoffices. In his presence, the Lord's Prayer, in one hundred and fifty languages and dialects, was struck off, and presented to the pontiff. pope expressed his admiration, and, turning to Denon, said, "But you have not given me your work!" "Please your holiness," replied the Baron, "I should never have presumed to offer it to you, since you must recollect having excommunicated me, for at

tempting to prove that the world is more than six thousand years old!" "Psha!" exclaimed the pope, "You did your duty, and I did mine. Give me the book at any rate."

On the fall of Napoleon, Denon was maintained in his place; but, on his return from Elba, he could not resist the ties of old affection and gratitude, for which, as a matter of course, he lost his place on the second restoration of the king.

His cabinet, open several days in the week, was the resort of strangers from all parts of the world; and his affability rendered him the most interesting object in the collection. A friend one day asked him how he had been able to form such a vast assemblage of curiosities of every kind, and of such extreme rarity. He replied with his wonted frankness, "At the period of the revolution, when the palaces and mansions of the great were pillaged, the objects of art, which the monsters did not destroy, were brought to the Hotel de Bouillon, the Parisian mart, to be sold publicly by auction. I took lodgings in the hotel, and examined the immense quantities daily brought in; and, as both the plunderers and auctioneers were equally ignorant of the value of the articles, I purchased numerous objects of all kinds at a cheap rate, and thus laid the foundation of my cabinet. Fortune has since favoured me in every way; and her favours have been consecrated to the acquisition of fresh objects for my collection. Sovereigns, nobles, the great, and the learned, have all honoured me with marks of their munificence and friendship, so that at length my cabinet has become what you see it."

For the last seven years he had employed the leisure moments, disengaged from the offices of friendship, in the composition of a work on the History of Art, with between three and four hundred plates from his own cabinet. The subscription was closed in a short time after his intention was made known; and he resolved not to print one copy more than what was subscribed for, the total number being limited to five hundred.

The death of Denon was remarkably sudden. He was attending, on the 26th of April last, at the sale of the valuable collection of paintings by the old masters, the property of M. Perrier.

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The concourse of amateurs which this sale had drawn together, was immense, and rendered the room so oppressively hot, that the Baron, unable to endure it any longer, retired for relief to the fresh air. The day was chilly, and the sudden change of temperature produced an almost instantaneous effect upon him: he was seized with a tremor, and getting into his carriage proceeded immediately home; medical assistance was procured without delay, but the symptoms of approaching dissolution came on so rapidly as to convince the faculty that their efforts were vain. In fifteen bours he was no more. The remains of Denon were interred in the cemetery of Pere la Chaise, attended by upwards of one hundred persons of the most distinguished literary eminence. His two nephews followed as chief mourners; and an immense crowd of the poorer orders bore testimony by their tears, to the loss they had sustained.

The Baron possessed a vast fund of knowledge, which he was ever ready to communicate; and his sentiments were always liberal and elevated. He was an accomplished nobleman of the old French school, and the protector of rising merit, which he assisted both by precept and example. Many of the first artists owe to his interest and influence their introduction to public notice. As he died unmarried, his property, which was very considerable, devolved to his two nephews; one of whom resided with him, and the other is a colonel in the army.

Many instances are related of Denon's humanity and feeling, while in Egypt. Those persons who have visited his cabinet at Paris, will recollect, with strong emotions, the terrific picture of the Arab dying in the desert of hunger and thirst. The sketch was taken by Denon, whose modesty would not suffer the painter to tell the whole of the story; but it is to be hoped, now he is no more, that the circumstance will be represented as it actually occurred, and that we shall see Denon, as the good Samaritan, raising the poor Arab's head, and pouring into his parched lips the last drop of water which he had for his own subsistence. The eyes alone of the dying man could speak his gratitude; a burning tear gushed from their orbs, and he expired in the arms of his noble and generous friend.

THE HISTORY OF THE BRITISH CUR-
RENCY, TO 1821.

THE most ancient English coin known,
Mr. Camden says, is that of Ethelbert,
king of Kent, the first Christian king
of this island. Since the Heptarchy
was united under one head, the silver
penny, or steatta, continued to be the
general coin of the kingdom; and ex-
tended, in a regular series, from
Egbert almost to the present reign,
except during the periods when Ed-
mund Ironside, Richard I. and John,
swayed the English sceptre. For
nearly two centuries after the Con-
quest, the only money of British ma-
nufacture was silver coin.

Halfpennies and farthings were first struck in silver, in the year 1280, by Edward I.; the former continued to the time of the Commonwealth, and the latter ceased with Edward VI. During the reign of the Norman kings, this part of the coinage was formed from the penny, which was so deeply impressed with a cross, that it might be easily parted, and broken into halves, which, when so broken, was called half-pence; if into four parts, four-things, or farthings. The groat, (from the French gros, a large piece,) as also the half groat, were published in the reign of Edward III. in 1354; these continue current to the present time, although not in circulation.

was by Henry III. in the year 1257. But these gold pieces, which were called gold pennies, were in so confined a circulation, that, until an accident brought the fact to light, in the year 1732, Edward III. had always been supposed the first of our kings who made gold money. Notwithstanding this misconception, however, as to the period when gold was first coined in this country, the series of gold coinage commences properly from Edward III. In 1344, this monarch first struck florins, in imitation of those in Italy, of six shillings value. The half and quarter florin were struck at the same time. The florin, however, being found inconvenient, gave place to the noble, of 6s. 8d. currency, and which had its name from the nobility of the metal, the gold of which it was coined being of the finest sort. This continued, with the half and quarter noble, to be the only gold coin till the angels of Edward IV. appeared in 1465. These latter had their name from bearing the impression of Michael and the Dragon. The angelets, of 3s. 4d. value, were substituted in their place.

In the year 1527, Henry VIII. added, to the gold coined, the crown and the half-crown at their present value; and the same year he gave sovereigns at 22s. 6d., and reals at 11s. 3d., angels at 7s. 6d., and nobles at their old value of 6s. 8d. In 1546 he caused sovereigns to be coined, of the value of 20s.; and half-sovereigns in proportion. His gold crown is about the size of our shilling, and the half-crown of sixpence, but thin. All his coins, however, gold as well as silver, are much debased; and it was not without much labour and trouble that Edward VI. brought it back to its former standard.

Shillings were first coined by Henry VII. in 1503. At first they were called testoons, from the teste, tête, or head of the king, upon them; the name of shilling being derived from the German Schelling, as was the word sterling from the Easterlings, inhabitants of the eastern parts of Germany, and who were employed in fabricating the money of this country. The crown was first coined in its present form On the union of the two crowns, James by Henry VIII. Formerly it had ap- gave the sovereign the name of Unite, peared only in gold, whence the phrase the value continuing of 20s. as before. crowns of gold." It had its name He coined also rose-reals, (called so from the crown stamped on one side, from both sides being impaled in an and was first coined by Charles VI. of undulating circle) of 30s. value, spurFrance, in 1384. The half-crown, six-reals of 15s., angels of 10s., and anpence, and threepence, were coined by Edward VI. In 1558, queen Elizabeth coined three-halfpenny, and in 1561, three-farthing pieces; but they were discontinued in 1582. From the year 1601, to the present time, the coinage of England has remained the

66

same.

The first gold coined in England

gelets of 5s. Under the Commonwealth, the sovereign got the name of 20s. or broad-piece, and continued current till the coinage of guineas, in 1663. These were so called from their being coined of Guinea gold, and were at first to go only for 20s.; though, by an universal, but tacit, consent, they always passed for 21s. Half-guineas,

double-guineas,and five-guinea pieces, | In 1685, halfpence of the same kind

were also coined during the same reign; which still continue, though the two latter are not in common circulation. Quarter-guineas were coined by George I., and likewise by his late majesty; but on account of their small size, their circulation was stopped within a year or two, when received at the Bank of England, and therefore they are not to be met with at present. In the latter reign, also, seven-shilling pieces were first coined: the first of this coinage is distinguished by the lion above the helmet; but of these none have been issued.

The first money coined of copper in Britain was the Styca of Northumberland, value about half a farthing. But the first copper coinage of which we have any knowledge, was during queen Elizabeth's reign, in the year 1594, when a small copper coin was struck about the size of a silver twopence, with the queen's monogram on one side, and a rose on the other, the running legend on both sides being "the pledge of a Halfpenny." Of these there are patterns as well in copper as silver, but both of them soon fell into disuse.

On the 19th of May, 1613, king James, by royal proclamation, issued farthing tokens, of the same size with the twopence, with two sceptres in saltier, surmounted with a crown on one side, and a harp on the other; with an intention, as it would seem, that if they were refused in England, they might pass in Ireland; for an aversion to copper coinage was always prevalent throughout the British nation,

In 1635, Charles the First issued copper coins, stamped with the rose instead of the harp; but their circulation was entirely stopped by the vast number of counterfeits which appeared, and by the king's death in 1648. After this, the private tokens, which gave birth to Elizabeth's copper coinage, were again introduced, till put a stop to by the coinage of farthings, in the year 1672, when the halfpence, of pure Swedish copper, which had been coined two years before, began to circulate.

In the year 1685, or 1686, tin farthings were coined, with a stud of copper in the centre; and inscribed round the edge, as the crown-pieces, with the words "Nummorum Famulus."

were coined; and the tin coinage continued till the year 1692, to the value of more than £65,000; but next year the tin coinage was all called in by government, and the copper coinage recommended. The farthings of queen Anne are all trial pieces, excepting those of 1714, the last year of her reign. "They are," says Mr. Pinkerton, "of exquisite workmanship, exceeding most copper coins, either ancient or modern; and will do honour to the engraver, Mr. Croker, to the end of time." The one whose reverse is Peace in a car, "Pax Missa per Orbem," is the most esteemed; and next to it the " Britannia," under a portal. The other halfpence and farthings, of her reign, are less valuable.

Having stated the rise and progress of the British currency, and the various mutations it has undergone, in value and denomination, we shall proceed to mention in whom the right of coinage, and of giving it its proper value and authenticity, subsists; and shall conclude with the different debasements it has experienced during the reigns of the respective monarchs who have swayed the English sceptre.

In ancient times, the right of coinage was sometimes usurped by the more powerful barons: and, indeed, the ancient Saxon princes communicated it to their subjects; insomuch, that towns of any note, and ecclesiastical establishments and palaces, had their respective mints; at London, there were eight; at Canterbury, four for the king, two for the archbishop, and one for the abbot of Winchester; six at Rochester; at Hastings, two; &c. But Henry the Second appears finally, to have suppressed this abuse; and since his time no subject has ever interfered with the coinage, except in so far as the crown has, at different periods, delegated the right of coinage to certain great corporations, who were always bound to exercise it according to the rules prescribed in the grant, and were never permitted to vary either the alloy, the denomination, or the device. This practice of devolving the coinage upon subjects, has, however, been entirely relinquished since the reign of Edward VI.

Various statutes have recognized the rights of the crown, both to fix the value of the coins, as they were issued from the mint, and to alter that value

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