the capital of the republic of Costa Rica, in Central America, on the river Cartago, 248 miles W. by N. of Panama; N. Lat. 9° 46', W. Long. 84°. It is quite a modern town, and though the seat of the government, legislature, and law courts, and containing a cathedral and episcopal palace, has few remarkable buildings. There is here a large tobacco factory; and an active trade is carried on. Pop. 30,000.
SAN JUAN DE LA FRONTERA. See PLATA, LA.
SAN LUCAR, a town of Spain in the province and 17 miles N. of Cadiz, in a bare, sandy, undulating country, on the left bank of the Guadalquivir, not far from its mouth. It stands partly on the flat bank of the river, and partly on the rising ground behind; its white glittering houses rising one above the other, up to an old Moorish castle on the summit. There are here 3 churches, 4 hospitals, one of them founded by Henry VIII. for English sailors, and the deserted buildings of several suppressed convents. The place is, however, dull and lifeless; having fallen off very much from its ancient commercial importance. It is now chiefly dependent on the wine trade, and is the mart of the inferior vintages sent to England as sherry. Many of the people are also employed in agriculture and fishing. The climate is hot, but not unhealthy. It was from San Lucar, in 1519, that the first voyage round the globe was begun by Magellan, who never returned, having been slain by the savages of the Philippines. Pop. 16,861.
SAN LUIS. See PLATA, LA.
SAN LUIS POTOSI. See MEXICO.
SAN LUSSURGULI, a town of the Island of Sardinia, in the division of Sassari, in a valley inclosed by mountains, 8 miles W.S.W. of Cagliari. Its narrow winding streets are lined with good houses; and there are several churches, a convent, and a school. Woollen and linen cloth are manufactured; and there is some trade in cattle, wool, &c. Pop. 4460.
SAN MARINO. See MARINO, SAN.
SAN MICHELI, Michele, an Italian architect of considerable celebrity, was born at Verona in 1484. He acquired his art under the eye of his father Giovanni and his uncle Bartolomeo, who were both architects of distinction. The ancient amphitheatre of his native town was a constant object of interest for the young architect, and his future designs are much indebted for their massive rusticated work to this period of youthful study. He went to Rome about 1500, where he was fortunate enough to gain the intimacy of all the famous artists of the day, Bramante, Michael Angelo, and the Sangalli. While in the ecclesiastical states, he constructed many buildings of celebrity, among others the cathedral of Montefiascone. On his return to the Venetian Republic, in 1525, he was engaged in erecting the new fortifications of Verona. Here he introduced, for the first time, the use of triangular and heptangular bastions, since so much employed by military engineers. He was subsequently engaged in fortifying many places in Cyprus, Candia, Istria, and Dalmatia, some of which were confided to his nephew, Gian-Girolamo. Both uncle and nephew had pressing offers from Francis I. and the Emperor Charles V., to enter their service, but to all such flattering proposals they gave an emphatic refusal. The palazzi or mansion-houses of San Micheli are many of them not to be imitated, abounding, as they do, in irregularities of design, and in a curious mixture of highly ornamented work, with decidedly bald construction. San Micheli enjoyed an honourable old age, and died in 1559 in his seventy-fifth year.
SAN MIGUEL, a town of Central America, in the republic and 45 miles E.S.E. of San Salvador, on the navigable river Lempa, 20 miles above its mouth in the Pacific. It contains a church and convents; and the people are mostly employed in agriculture. Pop. 6000.