The unmixed Greeks are above the middle stature, of fine proportions and
graceful mien. The forehead is high, expanded, and hut little arched, so that it
forms with the straight and pointed nose, a nearly rectilinear outline. This
conformation sometimes imparts an appearance of disproportion to the upper part
of the face, which, however, is in a great measure counteracted by the largeness
of the eye. The Greek face is a fine oval, and small in comparison to the
voluminous head. The statues of the Olympian Jupiter, and the Apollo Belvidere,
convey an exact idea of the perfect Grecian countenance.*
“ The women of Cyprus are handsomer than those of any other Grecian
island. They have a taller and more stately figure; and the features, particularly
those of the women of Nicosia, are regular and dignified, exhibiting that elevated
cast of countenance so universally admired in the works of Grecian artists. At
present this kind of beauty seems peculiar to the women of Cyprus: the sort of
expression exhibited by one set of features, may he traced with different gradations
in them all. Hence were possibly derived those celebrated models of female
beauty, conspicuous in the statues, vases, medals and gems of Greece.”!
Perhaps of all the population of modern Greece, that of Roumelia in moral
traits most resembles the ancient. They are hardy, warlike, and brave, and have
never been completely subjected by the Turks. The inhabitants of the Morea—
called Moreotes, on the contrary, have been long the acknowledged vassals of the
Porte. The coasts and maritime towns are inhabited by a motley people of
various races, who are called by the general name of Greeks, but who have little
claim to Grecian lineage or character.
The degeneration of the modern Greeks, however, is rather moral than
physical; for their athletic limbs, their broad shoulders and their strong lineaments,
are not inferior to those of their ancestors.!
The Trojans, like the Etruscans, were cognate with the Greeks; and iEneas,
flying from the flames of Troy, founded in Italy the kingdom of Alba. The
striking difference, however, between the Roman and Greek physiognomy, is
familiar to all observers, but is readily accounted for by the free intercourse of
the primitive Romans with the surrounding nations, of which the Rape of the
* Bory de St. Vincent, L ’Homme, I, p. 40. t Clarke, Trav. II, p. 338.
i “ It appears from numerous instances, especially from the case of the Greeks, that moral causes,
infinitely more than physical circumstances, influence national character, since arts, sciences and letters,
now flourish on the cold and foggy shores of the Baltic sea and the German ocean, while, during a
period of several centuries,'not a single poet or philosopher has arisen in the country of Homer and
Plato.”—Bigland, Effects o f Phys. and M oral Causes on the Charac. o f Nations, p. 144.
Sabines is one of many examples. The Roman head differs from the Greek in
having the forehead lower and more arched, and the nose strongly aquiline,
together with a marked depression of the nasal bones between the eyes.
“ Look,” says Dr. Wiseman, “ at the sarcophagi on which the busts are carved
in relief, or raised from their reclining statues on the lid, or even examine the
series of imperial busts in the capitol, and ’ you cannot fail to discover a striking
type, essentially the same, from the wreathed image of Scipio’s tomb, to Trajan or
Vespasian, consisting in a large and flat head, a low and wide forehead, a face, in
childhood, heavy and round—later, broad and square, a short and thick neck, and
a stout and broad figure. Nor need we go far to find their descendants; they are
to be found every day in the streets, principally among the burgesses, or middle
class, the most invariable portion of every population!5’*
During the period of Roman greatness, the colonies of Greece and Rome
extended themselves widely into Spain, where they blended with the primitive
Celtiberians or Basques, and the Phenicians. The later invasions of the Vandals
and the Saracens, have added their diversities to the physical and moral character
of the Spaniard, which, with some redeeming qualities, has the selfishness of the
Arab, the pride and cruelty of the Roman and the superstition of the Greek.
2. TH E GERMANIC FAMILY.
This great family has occupied, both in ancient and modern time, a large
proportion of Europe, which it gradually overspread from east to west, thus
encroaching on the Celts, with whom they are often inseparably blended.
The Germans are familiar to us by their middling stature* their robust form
inclining to obesity, their fair, florid complexion, and their light hair. The head
is large and spheroidal, the forehead broad and arched, the face round, the eyes
blue and the neck rather short.
The moral character of the Germans is marked by decided personal courage,
great endurance of fatigue, firmness and perseverance, and a strong attachment to
their families and their native land. Intellectually they are conspicuous for
industry and success in the acquisition of knowledge: with a singular blending
of taciturnity and enthusiasm, they rival all modern nations in music, poetry and
the drama; nor are they less conspicuous for their critical attainments in language,
and the exact sciences.
* Wiseman, Lectures on the Connection between Science and Revealed Religion, p. 152. »dm. ed.
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