Urania, or A description of the painting of the top of the theater at Oxon as the artist lay'd his design. By Ro. Whitehall, fellow of Merton Colledge. Licensed and entred according to order. Whitehall, Robert, 1625-1685. 1669 Approx. 12 KB of XML-encoded text transcribed from 6 1-bit group-IV TIFF page images. Text Creation Partnership, Ann Arbor, MI ; Oxford (UK) : 2003-11 (EEBO-TCP Phase 1). A65827 Wing W1878 ESTC R218518 99830103 99830103 34553 This keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the Early English Books Online Text Creation Partnership. This Phase I text is available for reuse, according to the terms of Creative Commons 0 1.0 Universal . The text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. Early English books online. (EEBO-TCP ; phase 1, no. A65827) Transcribed from: (Early English Books Online ; image set 34553) Images scanned from microfilm: (Early English books, 1641-1700 ; 1942:5) Urania, or A description of the painting of the top of the theater at Oxon as the artist lay'd his design. By Ro. Whitehall, fellow of Merton Colledge. Licensed and entred according to order. Whitehall, Robert, 1625-1685. [2], 9, [1] p. printed by Thomas Ratcliffe and Thomas Daniel, and are to be sold by them at their house in Newstreet betwixt Shooe-lane and Fetter-lane, London : 1669. In verse. With a dedication to the Chancellor of Oxford, James, Duke of Ormond, on pp. 8-9. Reproduction of the original in the Bodleian Library, Oxford. Created by converting TCP files to TEI P5 using tcp2tei.xsl, TEI @ Oxford. Re-processed by University of Nebraska-Lincoln and Northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. 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Users should bear in mind that in all likelihood such instances will never have been looked at by a TCP editor. The texts were encoded and linked to page images in accordance with level 4 of the TEI in Libraries guidelines. Copies of the texts have been issued variously as SGML (TCP schema; ASCII text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable XML (TCP schema; characters represented either as UTF-8 Unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless XML (TEI P5, characters represented either as UTF-8 Unicode or TEI g elements). Keying and markup guidelines are available at the Text Creation Partnership web site . eng Streater, Robert, 1624-1680 -- Early works to 1800. Ormonde, James Butler, -- Duke of, 1610-1688 -- Poetry -- Early works to 1800. Sheldonian Theatre -- Poetry -- Early works to 1800. Painting, English -- Poetry -- Early works to 1800. 2003-07 TCP Assigned for keying and markup 2003-07 Aptara Keyed and coded from ProQuest page images 2003-08 Mona Logarbo Sampled and proofread 2003-08 Mona Logarbo Text and markup reviewed and edited 2003-10 pfs Batch review (QC) and XML conversion IHS URANIA , OR A DESCRIPTION OF THE PAINTING Of the TOP of the Theater at OXON , As the ARTIST lay'd his Design . By RO. WHITEHALL , Fellow of Merton Colledge . — Pictoribus atque poetis Quidlibet , &c. — Licensed and Entred according to Order . DIEV ET MON DROIT HONI SOIT QVI MAL Y PENSE royal blazon or coat of arms LONDON , Printed by Thomas Ratcliffe and Thomas Daniel , and are to be sold by them at their House in Newstreet betwixt Shooe-lane and Fetter-lane . 1669. URANIA , OR A DESCRIPTION of the PAINTING Of the TOP of the THEATER at OXON , As the ARTIST lay'd his Design . THe day 's our own ! though some might seem to doubt ▪ Whether Augustus Caesar's days are out ; Had not the Lion , Bull , and savage Beare Contended in his Amphitheater With Bore , Rhinoceros and Elephant , That did at once Spectators please , and daunt . Or Creatures cruell and more fierce than these , When Man to Man became a Sacrifice ; While acclamations with a grand applause Endanger'd all to crown the Victors brows : And the defeated Champion took his death , Not from the Foe , but their unkinder breath : Bleeding afresh , and groveling in his gore , More deeply wounded than he was before : And all this heat , and all this noyse , to tell The World , This Day did Pilades prize well . NO ROMAN Foyl here , nor Olympick Game , Nor Table hang'd up to Nemaean fame : The Graces and the Muses more befit A Patron both to Reason and to Wit : Whose benefaction , whose munificence Might upon Earth immortalize a Prince . Immense as th' Ocean , rich as th' Indian Fleet , Were Tagus and Pactolus sands in it ; Admir'd more than those Argonauts of Greece When they brought home their weighty golden fleece . None but a Noble and Heroick breast Bestow's Gifts out-live Baggs condemn'd to th' Chest. Death-bed Donations are but cold and faint , The Living onely give without constraint . Such Actions when they shall be scan'd and read Merit beyond th' Aegyptian Pyramid . DRaw back the curtain then , and let 's behold A sight more welcome than Ben's misers gold ▪ Where first th' ingenious Artist makes it known He treads in no mans tract , his path's his own . For though Antiquity be venerable , Yet whereas anciently they had a cable Or cordage from this pilaster to that To knit together and keep tight the sheet , For 't is presum'd their theater so large ( Though sooner built perhaps and at lesse charge ) That they knew not th' expence of tile or lead 'Gainst th' injuries of weather over head : So here a cord-mould gilded which doth reach In length and breadth cross to prevent a breach , Supports a red large drapery , suppos'd To cover all the roof where it is hous'd . But now 't is furld up by the Genii round About the roof , by th' walls , that those 'o th ground May deem 't is open aire above , a way For th' Arts and Sciences ' i th' clouds to stray . At whose sollicitation Truth descend's To their assembly , as unto her Friends : And at this Festival observe eftsoones How th' other Genii sport with their festoones Of bayes and lawrel , out of which they make Ever green Garlands for their Lovers sake . Which hieroglyphically seems to say Rewards and Honor too attend this day . TO make this Convents happiness compleat Their grand Disturbers must have a defeat : Envy with Rapine and Brutality By th' Genii opposing them are made to fly . Thrown headlong from the Clouds , and driven thence By Prudence , Fortitude , and Eloquence . This conquest to proclaim as Omen good The Trumpet sound 's and they disperse abroad . THe day still ours , 't will now be requisite ( As 't is with Muster-masters after fight ) To rally up our force , and as by th' pole , Distinctly in order to run o're the Role . Where , lest we should by th' Heathen be out-done And such as deifie the Sun and Moon Theologie in reason must begin As Spur to Vertue , and as Curb to Sinne. SEe then a Book with seven seals in her hand , While she implores Truth on her part to stand . On one side is the Law Moysaicall Veil'd , and the Tables we the Decalogue call , Which lest we should neglect as slighting God Truth poynts out to us with her iron Rod. NExt ( as inseparable ) doth appear The Gospel with a Crosse and Chalice , near Her , History is holding up her Pen , And dedicating it to truth , as men Old writings left , and fragments which respect Her Stories whence a Book she might collect . VIew Poesie divine at th' other end With Harp like Davids tun'd to what he pen'd . THen come the Mathematick Sciences , Grounded on Demonstration , not on guesse . Astronomy with her Coelestiall globe Adorn'd ( as are the rest ) with decent Robe . With her terrestriall Orbe Geography , With Square and Plum-line stands Geometry . Arithmetique and Architecture passe Neighbours , and Perspective with Optick glasse . ON th' other side Law seated like a Queen , With Scepter and Records that long have been , Patents and Evidences sure and strong , With whom goe's Rhetorique hand in hand along With an attending Genius to produce The scales of Iustice to prevent abuse : A palm branch as an Emblem of Reward For vertuous Actions , and as to regard Of power to punish vice , or to remit The Roman Fasces are the mark of it . PHysick by Aesculapiu's staffe is known , And Serpent twisted , ( 't is a subtle one ) By her an Herbarist doth Truth implore To teach her Plants for every grief and sore . A Chymist , with a bolt head , and before Is placed a Chyrurgion , with his store Of Instruments , all to dissect a brain , Layd open , ( O Minerva don't disdain ! ) SOme more there are ; see Logick taking hold On Argument ; and if she 's baffl'd , scould . MVsick , with a note-paper , and a Lute A little Boy playing upon a Flute . These two are Emblems ( known t' Apollo more ) Of the most antique Musick heretofore . PRinting is with a Box of letters , and A Form that 's ready set ' i th' other hand : Where lest the Printing-presse should vacant lie Are several damp sheets hanging up to dry . i Th' middle , as descending from above Truth in a cloud sits ; ( harmless as a Dove ) One hand a palm branch hold's for Victory : In th' other is the Sun in 's radiancy . So bright Truth seem's obscur'd to us below , But every figure yield's the brighter shew . And those three Prodigies we nam'd before Now weary of the place , are got to th' door . ENvy with snaky haire , hags breasts , squint eyes , Pale venomous colour , strong , but ugly thighs : ( Of which one disappear's , as if the beast Had fed upon her self , to make a Feast ) With rivell'd skin , confounded at the sight Of Pallas shield with Gorgon's head t' affright . To which she would oppose her angry snakes But by precipitation downward make's . THe same Fate Ignorance attend's Arts hater Best represented to us by a Satyr Scoffing at what she cannot understand , But quell'd by Hermes Caducean wand . WIth grinning teeth , sharp fangs , and fiery eyes , Besmear'd with blood of Friends and Enemies , Rapine appears : a flambeau and dagger are His weapons of delight , with arm stript bare . Wolf-like devouring , lying still in wait , Unseen 'till now , ( except in 48. ) He Magistracy hate's , abhor's the Gown , But an Herculean Genius strikes him down . THese to the life are drawn so curiously That the Beholder would become all Eye : Or at the least an Argus ; so sublime A phant'sie makes essayes to Heaven to climb . That future ages must confess they owe To STREETER more than Michael Angelo . To the Most Honourable JAMES Duke of ORMOND His Grace , our most Renowned Lord , and CHANCELLOR . ILLUSTRIOUS SIR , WHile Arms and Arts contend Which of them most stands poor Urania's friend , The Graces at a meeting all conclude They own , with thanks , this fair vicissitude ; That what the Crosier and the Miter deign'd May by the sword and helmet be maintain'd . So we successively have our Commander , An Aristotle , and an Alexander . OVr Theater though 't is beautifull , in you Alone it lies to make it vocall , now : And things inanimate so to inspire As Orhpeus did with his enchanting Lyre . Your various tongues may teach youth how to please More than Quintilian or Demosthenes . And when the Sophister is at a stand Your Genius brings fresh topicks to his hand . TIme was when that same Antichristian word Mecaenas sounded some outlandish Lord ; When half a dram of learning at one time Was Language of the Beast ( and no small crime ) Who then expected Exile and restraint Should right the Muses when they made complaint ? Indulgent Providence ! thou for their good Hast one at home preserv'd , and one abroad .