At this period Barthelemy was particularly patron ised by M. de Stainville, afterwards better known un der the title of the Duc de Choiseul. This gentle man, as well as his lady, who was young and beauti ful, were great admirers of the fine arts, and found in Barthelemy a man of letters, in whose conversation and manners they enjoyed a constant gratification. In 1754, M. de Stainville having proceeded with his fa mily to Rome, in the capacity of ambassador, was followed by Barthelemy, who was distinguished by the particular notice of Benedict XIV., who then wore the tiara, and was himself an accomplished scho lar. From Rome the AbbC proceeded to Naples, then rendered peculiarly interesting to antiquarians by the recent discovery of the subterranean treasures of Pompeii. In the museum of Portici, amidst numer ous interesting remains of antiquity, the attention of Barthelemy was peculiarly attracted by the manu scripts rescued from the ruins of Herculaneum ; of which four or five hundred had been recovered ; but all of them remained in their original forlorn state, except two or three that had been unrolled, and com mented upon by the learned Mazocchi. Barthelemy used his most strenuous efforts to engage the Neapo litan court to expedite the examination of the remain ing manuscripts ; and succeeded in persuading the Marquis Caraccioli to enter into his views ; but this desirable object was frustrated by the death of that minister a few years afterwards.
Barthelemy was also extremely desirous of present ing the learned men in France with a specimen of the ancient writing employed in the Greek manuscripts. He was informed, however, by the guardians of the treasures at Portici, that they were expressly enjoined to communicate nothing. On this Barthelemy solicited permission to look, for a few minutes only, on a page of a manuscript which had been cut from top to bottom since its discovery. It contained 28 lines, t?llich our antiquariadread over six different times with extreme attention. He then retired to a corner, and transcri bed the precious fra'gment from memory ; after which lie again examined the manuscript in order to render his copy more correct. Having by this stratagem rendered himself master of a facsimile of the MS. which related to the persecution of the Greek philo sophers, during the time of Pericles, he immediately transmitted his literary plunder to the academy of belles lettres, with an injunction of secresy, in order that the keepers of the museum might escape from blame. On his return to Rome he acquired great applause for a new inid ingenious explanation of th.e famous Mosaic at Prxneste, or Patestrina, which, ac cording to him, related not to Sylla but to Adrian.
In 1757 we find Barthelemy escorting the lady of M. de Stainville to Vienna, at which court that gen tleman had been appointed ambassador. Here he
had the self-denial to refuse all offer of his friend and patron to procure him permission to visit Greece and the ports of the Mediterranean, at the king's expense; because he conceived it inconsistent with the calls of his duty at Paris, as custodiary of the royal medals. When in 1758 M. de Stainville was nominated minis ter for foreign affairs, and became Duc de Choiseul, he immediately exerted himself to provide for Barthele my, for whom he procured pensions to a considerable amount, and among others an annuity of .5000 livres on the Mercury. The Abbe himself had the modesty. to name 6000 livres a year, as the sum that would make him easy for life. But before M. de Choiseul was obliged to retire from power in 1771, his income amounted to x1200 sterling per annum, of which, however, he distributed more than a fourth part among indigent men of letters. He also educated and established three nephews, one of whom after wards made a considerable figure on the stage of re volutionary politics as a member of the directory and appears to have inherited many of the virtues and talents of his ancestor. He at the same time support ed his relations in Provence, and selected a noble li brary, which he was obliged to dispose of some time before his death.
When the Due de Choiseul was disgraced and ba nished to his seat at Chanteloupc, in order to make way for his enemy the Duc d'Aiguillon, Barthelemy became the companion of his exile, and offered the resignation of his secretaryship of the Swiss guards, because his patron's commission as colonel-general was demanded from him. An arrangement, however, was made, by which the Abbe's•revenue received no ma terial diminution ; and thus for twerity years of his life he enjoyed a state of literary affluence. In ad vanced age, however, he found himself reduced, by the suppression of places and pensions, to mere ne cessaries ; but he stipported this reverse of fortune with the greatest equanimity and good humour ; and was never heard to complain, nor did he even seem to perceive the change.
In 1788 appeared his celebrated work, entitled, Voyage du jeune Anacharsis en Greee,dans le milieu du 9uatrione siecle arant Pere Christienne, which had occupied his leisure hours during an uninterrupt ed succession of 30 years ; and in 1789 he became a candidate for a chair in the French academy, to which, in consequence of his high reputation, he was elected by general acclamation. In the following year he declined an offer of the place of librarian to the king, apprehensive that it might interfere with his literary occupations, and his labours in the cabinet of medals, in which he had now got an useful associate in his nephew Barthelemy Courcy, who was conjoined with him in the office in 1768.