The emperor's face is turned towards the Neva, his hand outstretched as if he would grasp land and water, at once ruling and blessing. This idea was fine, bold, and amply sufficient ; and it is therefore inconceivable why tlie artist did not rest contented with it, and why to the rock-chmbing he has superadded the subduing of a serpent, whicli the emperor encounters on the rock, and which is trodden under his horse's hoof. The great rule of art, the unity of idea and action, is sinned against ; and it is almost impossible to sympathize at the same moment with the emperor's joy at the wide prospect from the surmounted rock, and with his effort in overcoming the dragon. St. George, in his fight with the dragon, is wholly employed in his work, lias his eyes riveted to the devoming monster, and aims with his unerring lance at tlie head ; he has clearly no leisure to enjoy the prospect from the mountain. Peter's di'agon is not threatening, but crawls like a slow worm, as if accidentaUy, over the path, where, accidentally also, the horse sets his foot on him ; or does the artist mean us to understand that Peter, like a skilful horseman, causes him so to plant his hoof? Peter then does too much if he is blessing in the front and fighting in the rear : moreover, the issue of the fight is very uncertain. St. George's sharp, bright weapon threatens not in vain ; and if he pierce the creature's head, it is fixed to the ground for ever. But it is extremely improbable that the passing kick from the horse's hoof should put an end to the serpent at once. This incident disturbs the efi'ect, but oidy in some measure ; for the artist has felt that the two ideas were not very reconcileable, and has therefore voluntarily, or involuntarily, made the one predominant. The serpent is so small, and Peter, who, like Columbus, looking far beyond, with head and hand upraised, cries " Land ! land !" or rather, " Water ! water !" on beholding the Neva and the longed-for sea, seems to trouble himself so little about the animal, that it may be overlooked, or might be filed away to restore the unity. Perhaps the artist placed it here, only to obtain, by one of its contortions, a point of svipport for the horse. The animal springs forward quite freely in the air, and rests behind on three points, the two hind-legs and the tail, which apparently only just touches the serpent, but is in reality strongly fastened to it ; it is pillar, prop, and cramp-iron.
The bold air-borne position of the whole statue rendered necessary some particular precautions to preserve the centre of gravity. The thickness of the bronze in front is therefore very trifling, only a few lines, but behind it increases to several inches : 10,000 pounds weight of iron is likewise cast in the hind-quarters and tail of the horse — a tolerable aplomb ! The spring of the horse, the carriage of the rider, his well-chosen old Russian costume, are above all blame. But the treatment the rocky pedestal has undergone is terrible ; and here the artist's proceeding is quite incomprehensible. This wonderfully fine block, wliich may have been torn by the Deluge from the Swedish mountains, was foimd in the morass of St. Petersburg in one piece, 45 feet long, 30 high, and 25 in wddth. Seldom have the Titans been so obliging as to loosen so magnificent a mass from its primevTil rock, and deposit it in the neighbourhood of an impeiial city. The hint was only half understood. Vulcan himself had sent it away,
Neptune bore it liither on his crystal waves, and Jupiter wrought it with his lightning, — its marks were yet apparent on the surface. As it was, it offered the noblest pedestal for a statue of Peter the Great : they should even have hesitated to remove the stains and moss that Flora had planted on it. But, far from this observance, the chisel was set to work after the lightning. They censured and criticised, and turned and scraped, till the rock became so attenuated that the same thing occurred as befel the child with his scraped Hon, in GeUert's fable — it broke in two. The two pieces were patched together, and it now looks as unnatural as the imitation rocks we see upon the stage. Some work may have been necessary on the brow of the stone to make a footing for the horse ; but it is certain it was not done with due precaution, and the value of the block is injured threefold by depriving it of a third of its size. It is now only 14 feet high, 20 broad, and 35 feet long. "What is more remarkable is, that they did not begin to break it till after they had, with mispeakable labour, brought hither the whole mass, and built a ship and a road for the purpose !