than in the great undertaking he left unfinished--the large "Judgment of
Solomon," next to be discussed. Moreover, eccentricities of drawing are
not uncommon in his work, as a reference to the "Adrastus and
Hypsipyle," and later works, like the "Fête Champêtre" (of the Louvre),
will show.

I have no hesitation, therefore, in recognising this "Adoration of the
Shepherds" as a genuine work of Giorgione, and, moreover, it appears to
be the masterpiece of that early period when Bellini's influence was
still strong upon him.

The Vienna replica, I believe, was also executed by Giorgione himself.
Until recent times, when an all too rigorous criticism condemned it to
be merely a piece of the "Venezianische Schule um 1500" (which is
correct as far as it goes),[28] it bore Giorgione's name, and is so
recorded in an inventory of the year 1659. It differs from the Beaumont
version chiefly in its colouring, which is silvery and of delicate
tones. It lacks the rich glow, and has little of that mysterious glamour
which is so subtly attractive in the former. The landscape is also
different. We must be on our guard, therefore, against the view that it
is merely a copy; differences of detail, especially in the landscape,
show that it is a parallel work, or a replica. Now I believe that these
two versions of the "Nativity" are the two pictures of "La Notte," by
Giorgione, to which we have allusion in a contemporary document.[29] The
description, "Una Notte," obviously means what we term "A Nativity"
(Correggio's "Heilige Nacht" at Dresden is a familiar instance of the
same usage), and the difference in quality between the two versions is
significantly mentioned. It seems that Isabella d'Este, the celebrated
Marchioness of Mantua, had commissioned one of her agents in Venice to
procure for her gallery a picture by Giorgione. The agent writes to his