GOETHE'S
THEORY OF COLOURS;
TRANSLATED FROM THE GERMAN:
WITH NOTES BY
CHARLES LOCK EASTLAKE, R.A., F.R.S.
"Cicero varietatem propriè in coloribus nasci, hinc inalienum migrare existimavit. Certè non alibi naturacopiosius aut majore lasciviâ opes suas commendavit.Metalla, gemmas, marmora, flores, astra, omnia denique quæprogenuit suis etiam coloribus distinxit; ut venia debeatursi quis in tam numerosâ rerum sylvâ caligaverit."
CELIO CALCAGNINI.
LONDON:
JOHN MURRAY, ALBEMARLE STREET.
1840
TO
JEREMIAH HARMAN, Esq.
Dear Sir,
I dedicate to you the following translation as a testimonyof my sincere gratitude and respect; in doing so, I butfollow the example of Portius, an Italian writer, whoinscribed his translation of Aristotle's Treatise on Coloursto one of the Medici.
I have the honour to be,
Dear Sir,
Your most obliged and obedient Servant,
C. L. EASTLAKE.
THE TRANSLATOR'S PREFACE.
English writers who have spoken of Goethe's "Doctrine of Colours,"[1]have generally confined their remarks to those parts of the work inwhich he has undertaken to account for the colours of the prismaticspectrum, and of refraction altogether, on principles differentfrom the received theory of Newton. The less questionable meritsof the treatise consisting of a well-arranged mass of observationsand experiments, many of which are important and interesting, havethus been in a great measure overlooked. The translator, aware ofthe opposition which the theoretical views alluded to have met with,intended at first to make a selection of such of the experiments asseem more directly applicable to the theory and practice of painting.Finding, however, that the alterations this would have involved wouldhave been incompatible with a clear and connected view of the author'sstatements, he preferred giving the theory itself entire, reflecting,at the same time, that some scientific readers may be curious to hearthe author speak for himself even on the points at issue.
In reviewing the history and progress of his opinions and researches,Goethe tells us that he first submitted his views to the publicin two short essays entitled "Contributions to Optics." Among thecircumstances which he supposes were unfavourable to him on thatoccasion, he mentions the choice of his title, observing that by areference to optics he must have appeared to make pretensions to aknowledge of mathematics, a science with which he admits he was veryimperfectly acquainted. Another cause to which he attributes the severetreatment he experienced, was his having ventured so openly to questionthe truth of the established theory: but this last provocation couldnot be owing to mere inadvertence on his part; indeed the larger work,in which he alludes to these circumstances,[Pg ix] is still more remarkablefor the violence of his objections to the Newtonian doctrine.
There can be no doubt, however, that much of the opposition Goethe metwith was to be attributed to the manner as well as to the substanceof