COLONNA, FRA. FRANCESCO, a learned Dominican and archi tectural writer of the 15th century, was author of a very singular, strangely rhapsodical, mystical, and fantastical work, with the equally fantastical title of 'llypuerounnechia l'oliphili,' first printed by Aldus in 1499. This extraordinary production, which is a sort of romance, or rather vision, interwoven with description. of imaginary edifices, has drawn forth the moat opposite opinion., being treated as con temptuously by some as it has been extravagantly extolled by other'.
While Alilizia, Nagler, and many more, speak of it as a mere tissue of absurdities, others, who ought to be competent judges of it in that respect, praise it as a work highly deserving to be studied by archi tects. As such, Mr. Cockerel', professor of architecture at tbe Royal Academy, earnestly recommended it in one of his lectures (1845), representing it to be equally calculated to inspire with a passion for architecture, as 'Robinson Crime' with a yearning after adveutures on the sea. From this it would naturally be inferred that the work must be at all events attractive and °urging, and abouud with highly graphie and picturesque deacriptioos ; whereas it is premsely the rovorse—co obscure in many parts as to be scarcely intelligible at all, and written in a confused jargon of Italian, Latiu, and other languasos and dialects. He must be exceedingly clever, observes Tiraboschi, who can, I will nut say understand the book, but even tell in what lauguago it ie composed.
Another edition of the Islypnerotomachia ' was published at Venice by the younger of the Aldi in 1545. It has been twice translated into French : first by Beroalde de Verville (folio, Paris, 1600); and again by the architect Legrand, under the title of 'Souge de Polyphile,' in 2 vole. 12mo, printed by Didot, 1804, and reprinted by Bodoni in a
splendid quarto, 1811. Legrand intended to illustrate it by a separate atlas of engravings to it, which had they appeared would doubtless have been of very different character from the wood-cut figures of the original and the copies from it Those in Beroalde do Verville's trans lation are said to have been designed by no lees an artist than the celebrated sculptor Jean Goujou ; but as far as they are at all archi tectural in their subjects, which is the case with but few of them, they do not materially differ from the earlier ones, and like them are exceedingly rude both as to drawing and design. Temanza [Teuessze, ToMMAS0j, who is among the warm admirers of the 'Hypnerotomachia; speaks of it at considerable length in his 'Life of Colonna.' After this bibliographical notice of the singular work which has obtained for him so much repute of contradictory kinds, the history of the writer himself may be briefly told. He was born at Venice, about the year 1433, and in his youth fell in love with Ippolita, the niece of Teodoro Lelio, bishop of Trevlgi, in the Venetian territory ; and she is the lady whom he has celebrated under the abridged name Polia, in his allegorical romance, and who is supposed to have died shortly after her uncle, in 1460. Colonna then took the Dominican habit, and entered the monastery of Santi Giovanni e Paolo at Venice, where be died in July 1527, at the age of ninety-four.