conspicuous examples in the Venetian Academy, yet not of the first
interest or importance. About 1540 were done the forcible but rather
uninspired paintings for S. Spirito, Venice, now in the church of
the Salute—“Cain Killing Abel,” the “Sacrifice of Abraham”
and “David and Goliath”; in 1543 the “Ecce Homo” of the Vienna
Gallery, where Aretino figures as Pilate. The “Venus and Cupid”
of Florence, the “Venus” of Madrid and the “Supper of Emmaus”
in the Louvre were still in hand, or just completed, when Titian
was summoned to Augsburg in 1547. In 1554 he sent to Philip II.
in England a second “Danae” and a “Venus and Adonis.” About
the same time he sent to Charles V. a “Trinity” (or, as Titian
himself termed it, “Last Judgment”), which represented the
emperor, with his family and others, all in shrouds, praying to the
Godhead; Moses and various other personages are also portrayed.
This was the object upon which Charles continued to keep his eyes
fixed until the film of death closed on them. Later pictures, from
1558 onwards, are the “Martyrdom of St Lawrence,” “Christ
Crowned with Thorns” (Louvre), “Diana and Actaeon,” “Diana
and Callisto,” “Jupiter and Antiope,” the “Magdalene,” “Christ
in the Garden,” and “Europa”—the last six for Philip II.; of the
two Diana subjects there are duplicates in London and in Vienna.
Philip, it will be observed, was equally au fait with nudities and with
sanctitics. The “Jupiter and Antiope,” now much restored, is
commonly called “La Venus del Pardo," having at first been in
the Pardo Palace. The “Magdalene” here spoken of (1561) seems
to be the picture now in the Uffizi of Florence; Titian, in one of his
letters, said that it was the most popular picture he had ever painted.
In 1563 Vecelli offered to Philip II. his “Last Supper,” which had
been in hand for six years; it was cut down in the Escorial to suit
a particular space, and offers now little noticeable beyond the fine
grouping. The “St Jerome” of the Brera Gallery in Milan, a
work of wonderful energy, spirit and force, especially for a more than
octogenarian hand, was probably rather earlier than this; there is
a replica of it in the Escorial. One of the master’s latest pictures
(1574–1575) is in Madrid, and commemorates the “Battle of
Lepanto "; it is a work of failing power—but still the power of a
Titian. Two of the mosaics in St Mark’s church, Venice—the Mark
in pontifical and the sword-sheathing angel on the right of the high
altar—are after Vecelli’s designs; but they are contrary to the true
spirit of mosaic work, and the Mark in especial is a decided eyesore.
We now turn to the portraits—works so great in style, so stately, and in the best sense so simple in perception and feeling that, after allowing everything which can be said on behalf of some other masters of the craft, such as Raphael, Velazquez, Rubens and Rembrandt, one is still compelled to say that Titian stands on the whole supreme. Among the highest examples are—Alphonso, duke of Ferrara (Madrid), the same duke and his second wife Laura Dianti (Louvre), commonly called “Titian and his Mistress”; Francis I. (Louvre), painted towards 1536, but not from direct sittings, for Titian never saw the French king; various likenesses of himself, one of about 1542, and another of 1562; Paul III., also the same pope with his grandsons Cardinal Alessandro and duke Ottavio (Naples)—the former, done in about four weeks, was presented to the pontiff in May 1543 and cost two gold ducats; Pietro Aretino (Pitti); Titian’s daughter Lavinia (with a fan in the Dresden Gallery, with a jewelled casket in Lord Cowper’s collection); the Cornaro Family (Alnwick Castle); “L'Homme au Gant” (Louvre), an unknown personage, youthful and handsome, the ne plus ultra of portraiture; Sansovino Eleonora duchess of Urbino, Francesco duke of Urbino, Caterina Cornaro queen of Cyprus (these four are in the Uffizi); Charles V. on horseback (Madrid); Cardinal Bembo (Naples), discovered in an uncared-for condition in 1878, very unlike the portrait in the Barberini Gallery. The female portraits done by Titian are few, and are almost invariably of women of exalted rank. Of Ariosto, with whom Titian was intimate in Ferrara, though there may probably have been nothing approaching to a romantic friendship between them, the painter is said to have done three portraits. Much uncertainty, however, besets this matter. One of the three appears as a woodcut in an edition of the Orlando furioso. A second, formerly at Cobham Hall, corresponds with the woodcut likeness, and is signed “Titianus F.”—a work of admirable beauty; it is now in the National Gallery of London. It is difficult, however, to reconcile the features here with those which appear in some other portraits of Ariosto. There is also in the gallery another and singularly beautiful portrait which used to be called “Ariosto” by Titian, then was assumed to be an “Unknown Poet” by Palma Vecchio; it is now again attributed to Titian, but not as representing Ariosto.
Authorities.—For English readers, the Life and Times of Titian by Crowe and Cavalcaselle (1877) superseded all previous works, such as those of Sir Abraham Hume (1829) and Northcote (1830). There is now also the translation (1904) of the monumental German work (1900) by George Gronau, which may be regarded as taking the first place of all. Claude Phillips has brought out two valuable books (1897 and 1898) on the earlier and the later work of Titian, which should be consulted on controversial details. Josiah Gilbert’s book, Cadore, or Titian’s Country (1869), supplies many interesting side-lights on the subject. R. F. Heath’s monograph (1885) is founded mainly on Crowe and Cavalcaselle and on Gilbert, and forms a very convenient compendium. (W. M. R.)
TITLE (O. Fr. title, mod. titre, from Lat. tilulus), an inscription
prefixed to a book or other writing, designating the name by
which it is to be known, and in many cases indicating the scope
of the book or some idea of the nature of its contents. Further,
the term is extended to the descriptive heading or caption to a
document, such as a deed or other instrument, or to a bill or act
of parliament. Another general meaning is that of an appellation
of rank (see Titles of Honour, and the articles Emperor, King, Prince, Majesty, Highness, Duke, &c.). In law
“title” is equivalent to right of ownership. The instruments
in writing forming the evidences of the title to land are the
title-deeds (see Conveyancing; Land Registration). In
ecclesiastical usage, the word “title” (tilulus) are used of certain
churches in Rome to which districts were attached, their
history being of importance in the evolution of the Roman
cardinal ate (see Cardinal). It was also used, as now, for a
condition precedent to ordination, in the early Roman Church
an appointment to officiate in a particular church; this was
extended gradually from the idea of locality to that of evidence
of means of support. In the Church of England the candidate
must have “some certain place where he can exercise his
function”; for deacon’s orders he must have a nomination
to a curacy, and for priest’s orders either that or a presentation
to a. living. A fellowship or chaplaincy at the university of
Oxford or Cambridge is also a sufficient “title.”,
TITLE GUARANTEE COMPANIES, the name given to companies
which apply the principle of corporate indemnity to the
protection of those interested in real estate titles, either as
owners or lenders. They are of the class of indemnity companies
in which technical skill and experience in investigation of risks
are relied upon to protect the guarantor from loss. They are
peculiar to countries where the title to real estate is a matter of
public record, and where the complexity of the record and the
variety of possible liens and encumbrances have made it difficult
and expensive to determine whether the title is good. The
only country where they have reached large proportions or
achieved success as independent business enterprises is the
United States. In Australia no investigation of a title to real
estate is necessary, because before the land passed into individual
ownership the government adopted a system of state registration
and guarantee of title, so that its certificate of registered title
was universally accepted. In certain other countries there is
neither registration of title nor recording of deeds; the title-deeds
are preserved and passed from owner to owner, and are accepted
on the authority of the records and opinions of family solicitors.
In the United States, however, there have been from the beginning
acts providing that all deeds and mortgages be recorded,
and the records, when properly made, constitute legal notice
to all the world of their contents and claims. At the same time,
there are other records of wills, suits, judgments, taxes and
mechanics' claims which may encumber the title. In the great
cities these various records became in course of time so voluminous
that the proper investigation of them, and the determination
of the validity of the title in view of them, required the
best skill of an experienced lawyer and involved very heavy
expenses. On a re-sale of the property the new buyer did not
rely upon the lawyer who had made the examination for the
seller, but felt called upon to employ and pay his own lawyer,
who had to go over the same work again, and more, for with
each new transaction the history was getting longer. The delay
and expense involved were great, and yet the owner had little
or no protection, for a lawyer is not held to guarantee the
correctness of his opinion.
