rocks seem to have been blasted and shivered i by the great com
vulsion which rent the foundation strata, and at once created this
stupendous valley, enlarged and, deepened by the action of torrents
which have battered it for ages, The bare cold surfaces of these
rocks, rising and projecting in turrets and pinnacles, is finely-contrasted
by the warm tints of the tufa, and the various greens of
the patches of vegetation which occasionally diversify them ; whilst
the rocky buttresses to the right are profusely covered with
laurel and chestnut-trees, and the torrent at the bottom rolls
through vineyards and gardens.;; The peak of ltuivo (the most
distant object) is distinguished; by the verdure, which reaches to
its summit ; the crags to the right of it, called by the natives the
Torrinhas, or Turrets, vary the picturesque outline,of the heights;
the inclined summit of the Pico Ariero, which is distinguished,
even at the greatest distance, by the band of red tufa which colours
its northern base, whilst the glimpse of the sea adds to the impression
of distance, vastness, and sublimity, so powerfully excited by
the whole landscape. The church of Libramente, and the cottages
beneath it look like specks in the abyss, and the stillness of the
scene is only interrupted by the rude bells of the goats, as they
bound along the precipices. Plate -5-.
The singular beauty of the Coural would make every one anxious
to draw i t ; and many I believe have attempted it, but although
able artists, their attempts have fallen so short of the reality, that
the results have never been given to the world. Travellers who
have no reputation as artists to sustain, and who have never produced
drawings which would be depreciated by any subsequent
failure, may venture to offer the best sketches they are able to
make, when thoroughly convinced, that their descriptions will not
convey so good an idea of a scene, as even an imperfect drawing.
The obstacles which attend such a task, however, seem to defy
drawing and water colours; and, in my opinion, the only chance of
doing this landscape justice, would be to place an easel on the spot
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