YALE UNIVERSITY
LIBRARY

From the Libraty of
WILLIAM M. ODOM

A
DESCRIPTION
or THE
ANTIQUITIES AND OTHER CURIOSITIES
OF
ROME:
FROM PERSONAL OBSERVATION
DUBING
A VISIT TO ITALY IN THE YEARS 1818-19.
WITH
ILLUSTRATIONS FROM .\NCIENT AND MODERN WRITERS.
BT THE
REV. EDWARD BURTON, M.A.
LATE STUDENT OF CHRIST CHURCH.

Vieni a veder la tua Roma che piagne,
Vedova, sola, e di e notte chiama.
Dante, Purg. vi. 112.

SECOND EDITION, WITH ADDITIONS,
IN TWO VOL UMES.
VOL. I.

LONDON:
PRINTED FOR C. & J. RIVINGTON,
ST. Paul's church-yard,
AND WATERLOO-PLACE, PALL MALL.
1828.

PREFACE
TO THE FIRST EDITION.

The visit to Rome, which gave rise to the publi
cation of the following pages, was made in the
end of the year 1818 and the beginning of 1819,
The writer passed on the whole four months in
Rome, a period, which will be found quite suffi
cient for seeing all the curiosities of the place, if
a person is inclined to be active. The time,
which has elapsed since returning to England,
has been partly employed in reading the accounts
of modern traveUers, and the more laborious com
positions of Italian antiquaries.
Some objection may be anticipated to the de
sign of this work, as not sufficiently following any
particular system, but being desultory and irre
gular. In the first place, I must disclaim ever
having entertained the idea of publishing a book
of travels; not but what many, which have ap
peared lately, are extremely entertaining, and

Vl PREFACE TO
have affijrded me much information: but it was
precisely because they were already so numerous,
that I did not wish or presume to add one more
to the number.
Still however some work was wanting, which,
beside barely describing the objects seen, might
throw some light upon their history. The anti
quities, the churches, the works of art, the reh
gious customs, and many other points connected
with Rome, will bear to be treated of much more
at length, than by merely conveying to the reader
the impressions which passed at the time in the
mind of the traveller who viewed them.
It was with this design that I have directed my
attention to publications of an older date than
the amusing descriptions of modern travellers.
It was my wish to compose a work, which might
be of some use to my countrymen who visit Rome,
while it was not without entertainment to those
who are satisfied with reading accounts of it at
home. Whether this object has been in any way
attained, others must decide.
Many things are omitted, which a journal of a
residence in Rome might be expected to notice ;
but they are purposely left out, from the desire of
describing nothing which I had not myself seen.
It has been my aim in every instance to point

THE FIRST EDITION. VU
out the sources, to which I have been indebted
for any information or remark. But those who
have been accustomed to note down many refer
ences, and to transcribe their papers after they
have received various corrections and additions,
wiU make allowances for the occasional omission
of such acknowledgments.
In the quotations from ancient authors, a
translation wiU generally be found: where the
original words were important, they have been
transcribed at length. If it should be said, that
this has in some instances been done from my not
exactly imderstanding the passage, the remark
may perhaps not be whoUy unfounded. But I
expect this charge not to be brought against me
in any specific instance, without the objector
obhging my readers and myself with a translation
ef the passage in question.
In giving the dimensions of buildings, no uni
form scale has been adopted: but reference has
been made indifferently to the English, French,
or ItaUan measures. Where the design is to
give the relative proportion of two objects, this
plan vnU of course cause no inconvenience : and
in copying from any traveller, I have thought it
best to give the measure which he used, (always
marking the country in which it prevailed,) with-

vm PREFACE.
out reducmg them all to the English or any other
standard. Much of what is in the text would by many
modern writers be thrown into the notes: but the
other plan has been preferred, both for the sake
of diversifying what might otherwise be a dry and
uninteresting detail, and because many readers
consider it perfectly lawful to pass over the small
letters which are crowded in at the bottom of the
page.

The present edition contains many additions
and corrections. It is hoped that the additions
will be found interesting and entertaining, having
been the result of a mor« extended reading upon
the subject, and particularly ofa perusal of seve
ral works, which have appeared since the publi
cation of the first edition. I ought perhaps to
specify Nibby's two most valuable works upon
the Foro Romano, and the Contorni di Roma.

A
DESCRIPTION
OF TBE
ANTIQUITIES AND OTHER CURIOSITIES

ROME.

Et qua: tanta fuit Romam tibi causa videndi 1
Viro. Bucol.I. 27.
What cause so urgent tum'd your steps to Rome 1

The motto prefixed to this work contains a ques
tion, which every person visiting Rome perhaps
has not put to himself. That there is something
in the past and present state of Rome, which
excites a pecuhar interest, we might perhaps say
a pecuhar enthusiam, in those who read any
account of it, seems unquestionably true. Even
those who have not read at all, know perhaps more
of the Romans than of any other nation which has
figured in the world. If we prefer modern history
to ancient, we still find Rome in every page ; and
if we look with composure upon an event so anti
quated as the fall of the Roman empire, we can
not, as Enghshmen or as Protestants, contemplate
VOL. I. B

2 INTRODUCTION.
with indifference the second empire, which Rome
erected over the minds and consciences of men.
Without making any invidious allusion, we may
say, that this second empire has nearly passed
away. So that in both points of view we have
former recollections to excite our curiosity: and
the desire is surely a laudable one to compare the
character, the manners, the religion, the ddmestic
habits, of the ancient inhabitants of Rome, with
those of their present descendants.
Such being the general enthusiasm which is
professed by all who visit the Eternal City, much
censure may be anticipated for some of the sen
timents which are expressed in the following
pages. The writer of them will be accused of a
coldness I and insensibility to those venerable ob
jects of antiquity, which ought on every occasion
to have warmed his fancy and animated his de
scriptions. While he is thus preparing an excuse
for himself, he does not wish to quarrel with
those who, on every topic connected with Roman
remains, suffer their enthusiasm to outrun their
judgment. Far from questioning their sincerity,
when they make their descriptions a series of
encomiastic exclamations, he only begs leave to
hazard an opinion in opposition to them: and if
any account here given may fall short of what
imagination had depicted, it will proceed from the
writer having expressed not the feeUngs of the
moment, such as the first impression would raise,
but the result of repeated visits to the same ob
ject. It is, undoubtedly, amusing to read the

INTRODUCTION, 3
travels of a writer, who is buoyed up by such
constant animation, as Mr. Eustace ; but the feel
ings of the individual are not always interesting to
general readers : at least I have not presumed to
think mine worth the communication ; and having
found my own opinions so frequently change, and
the deUght, which the first impression caused,
subside into a more temperate and a more quah
fied admiration, I thought it safer to expose
myself to the charge of coldness and indifference,
thfm to that of an overheated imagination, and an
viniversal style of admiration. If this book should
ever be read by any person visiting Rome, he will
probably not find fault with it in this respect.
Before he arrives there, he may be angry at an
attempt to lower the enthusiasm with which his
classical reading and the accounts of travellers had
inspired him. But (if it is not arrogance to anti
cipate agreement with my own sentiments) he may
be inclined to withdraw his censure, after he has
seen the objects themselves : and his disappoint
ment, if he fael any, will be lessened, by having
been taught beforehand to reduce the scale of his
expectations. It is a very trite remark, that different persons
view the same thing with different eyes. This
coiild not be illustrated more pointedly, than by
the various impressions produced by the first view
of Rome. Mr. Eustace and others have professed
themselves transported and overcome by the first
sight. They undoubtedly were so. But it surely
does not argue a want of feeling and an absence
b2

^ APPROACH
of classical recollections, if others have entered
Rome, suffering more from disappointment than
from rapture. This is a case in which writers in
giving their descriptions must communicate the
first impression. In saying that I was disappointed
in entering Rome by the Florence road, so far
fi-om acknowledging a want of enthusiasm or an
indifference to ancient times, it was because I had
allowed my mind to anticipate so much, that I was
mortified at not finding those anticipations realised.
Those who are not struck with admiration at the
first view, generally suffer not from the want of
feeling in themselves, but from the exuberance of
it in others. So it is with respect to the descrip
tions of Rome, and the impression actually raised
by it.
Most people picture to themselves a certain
spot, from whence the towers and domes of the
Eternal City burst upon their view. St. Peter's,
with its cupola, the immense ruins of the Colos
seum, the Pillar of Trajan, and such well-known
objects, are all crowded into the ideal scene ; and
the imagination is raised to the utmost pitch in
expectation of every moment unfolding this glori
ous prospect. The traveller, after feasting upon
this hope, and using it to console himself for the
barrenness of the Campagna and the uninteresting
uniformity of the view, approaches nearer and
nearer without reaching the expected spot. His
tour-book teUs him, that near the Post of Baccano,
fourteen miles from Rome, the dome of St. Peter's
is first visible. This will be the commencement

TO ROME. 5
of his delight. But he still disregards this speck
in the horizon, anxiously looking for the happier
moment, when the whole city is discovered. This
moment unfortunately never arrives. Where that
place is to be found in the approach from Florence,
which affords such a feast to the eye and to the
imagination, I never could discover. The view of
Rome from the Monte Mario," a hiU near this
ro^d, is perhaps one of the noblest and the most
affecting which the world could produce ; and it
may be suspected that some writers, full of the
gratification wiiich this prospect afforded, have-
transferred it in description to their first entrance.
But the road itself discloses the city by degrees.
Scarcely any of it is seen till within a small dis
tance, and then, with the exception of^St. Peter's,
there are few buildings of interest. The antiqui
ties Ue mostly on the other side, and are not seen
at all. The suburbs themselves are not pictu
resque ; and the traveUer finds himself actually in
Rome, before he had given up the hopes of enjoy
ing the distant prospect of it.
Had he entered the city from Naples, his feel
ings might have been very different. This is the
direction from which Rome ought to be entered,
if we wish our classical enthusiasm to be raised by
the first view. The Campagna is here even more
desolate, and to a greater extent, than it is on the
'¦ It was anciently called Clivus Cinna, and by Dante
Montemalo: Par. xv. 109. The modern name is said to have
come from Mario Millini, who had property upon this hill in
the time of Sextus IV.

6 APPROACH
side of Florence. For several miles the ground is
strewed with ruins ; some presenting considerable
fragments, others only discernible by the inequality
of the surface. It seems as if the cultivators of
the soil had not dared to profane the reUcs of their
ancestors: and from the sea on the left to the
Apennines on the right the eye meets with no
thing but desolation and decay of grandeur.'' The
Aquaducts rise above the other fragments, and
seem purposely placed here to carry us back to the
time of the Repubhc. The long Unes -sof these
structures stretch out in various directions; the
arches are sometimes broken down, but the effect
is heightened by these interruptions. In short, in
traveUing the last twelve miles on this road, the
mind may indulge in every reflection upon Roman
greatness, and find the surrounding scenery per
fectly in unison. From this road, too, the whole
city is actually surveyed. The domes and cupolas
are more numerous than from any other quarter,
beside which some of the ancient edifices them
selves are added to the picture. After entering
the waUs, we pass the Colosseum, catch a view of
the forum, the Capitol, and other antiquities,
which were familiar to us from ancient authors.
Such is the entrance to Rome from the side of
Naples ; the subUmity of which exceeds any thing
that Italy can produce, and of which no descrip
tion can be exaggerated. The entrance from
^ The Saracens in the ninth century appear to have laid
waste all the country in the neighbourhood of Rome. Vide
Johannis VIII. Epist. 30. Script, Franc, p. 473.

TO ROME. 7
Florence is in every way inferior. There are a
few tombs by the road side, but only association
can make them interesting; whereas the Aqua-
ducts on the other road are in themselves noble
objects. Aft:er crossing the Tiber by the Ponte
MoUe, the subm'bs of Rome may be said to com
mence: and the road not being very broad, the
houses themselves intercept a prospect of the city.
The traveUer, if he came to Rome by Perugia,
wiU have seen the Tiber before, having crossed it
not far from the latter town, and again between
OtricoU and Borghetto over a bridge built by
Augustus. The Ponte Molle, anciently Pons
.^miUus and Mulvius, or Milvius, is a handsome
bridge of four arches, with a modern archway
upon it, under which carriages pass. This spot
is rendered celebrated by the battle between Con
stantine and Maxentius, A.D. 312, not far fi-om
the bridge.
The waUs of Rome have a venerable and im
posing appearance, fit to form the introduction to
such a city. On either side of the Porta del
Popolo they have been repaired at various times,
and particularly in the sixth century by BeUsarius :
but probably much of his work does not remain.
The Porta del Popolo is altogether a modern
structure, having been erected by Pius IV. about
1560. The ancient entrance to Rome on this
side was by the Via Flaminia and under the Porta
Flaminia, which was built by AureUan, and stood
a little to the east of the present gate. This leads
into an irregular open space, which, from being

8 DESTRUCTION
the first part of Rome actually seen, attracts more
attention than it would otherwise obtain. Three
streets branch off from it ; the middle one of which
is the Corso, the principal street in Rome. It
runs in the same du-ection as. the ancient Via
Lata, but is too narrow to produce any effect.
The two Churches" at the commencement of it
were built in 1662; about which time the whole
of this Piazza was cleared of many incumbrances,
in honour of the entrance of Christina, Queen of
Sweden. The traveller wiU soon be called off
from the pleasing reveries, in which he has been
indulging upon finding himself really in Rome, by
a demand for his passport, and by an order to
proceed to the custom-house. The latter incon
venience may be dispensed with by procuring a
permission to pass unexamined by a Lascia pas
sare, which it is not difficult to obtain. The road
to the custom-house leads by the column of M.
Aurelius ; and the custom-house itself presents a
noble remnant of antiquity, having been the tem
ple of Antoninus Pius.
Having thus landed the traveUer in Rome, I
shall pause for a while to give him some notion of
what he is to expect. The Curiosities of Rome
may be divided into the Antiquities, the Churches,
and the Palaces; an order of classification which
will partly be observed in the foUowing descrip
tions. The Antiquities, as forming the more pe
culiar attraction in this city, deserve the first place.
= S. Maria di Mont^ Santo, and S. M. dei Miracoli.

OF ROME. 9
If a person expects to find here such magnificent
remains as he has read of at Athens, he will bc
grievously disappointed. It is highly necessary
to know, that whatever exists here, as a monument
of ancient times, has suffered from various calami
ties. There is much truth in the remark of Pope,
Some felt the silent stroke of mould'ring age.
Some hostile fury, some religious rage :
Barbarian blindness. Christian zeal conspire,
And Papal piety, and Gothic fire.
Epistle to Addison.
Nor were physical causes whoUy unemployed in
completing the destruction. Gregory,'' after men
tioning TotUa's threat of utterly destroying Rome,
adds, " To whom the man of the Lord repUed,
" Rome shaU not be exterminated by barbarians,
" but shaU consume away internaUy, exhausted
" by tempests, Ughtning, whirlwinds, and earth-
" quakes. The mysteries of which prophecy are
" now revealed to us clearer than light; for we
" see the waUs dissolved, houses overthrown,
" churches destroyed by whirlwinds, and the
" buildings sinking from age."
Muratori" endeavours to free the Goths from
the charge of destroying aU the monuments of
Roman greatness; and certainly Theodoric does
not appear to have had any such view; but on
the contrary several buildings in Rome were re
paired by him, as we learn from the work of his
^_ Dialog, lib. ii. c. 15.
' Diss, sopra le Antichita Ital. tom. i. diss. 2a, 24.

10 THEODORIC.
minister Cassiodorus.^ With respect to the pil
lage, which the different invaders committed, per
haps some exaggerated notions are entertained,
A dissertation has been written expressly by Bar-
gseus, which is inserted in the fourth volume of
the Thesaurus of Graevius, to prove, that the
Goths and Vandals contributed little or nothing
towards the demolition of Rome. This perhaps
is going somewhat too far on the other side. We
must recollect, that the principal object of the
barbarians, as they were then styled by the dege
nerate Romans, was to collect money. They bore
no professed hostility to the works of art, and a
bronze statue was destroyed by them, not from
want of taste, but because it could be melted into
a more usefiil form. In the confusion of a mid
night attack, and with the exasperation, which
naturaUy follows tesistance, some parts of the city
would probably be consumed by fire. The ac
counts of the historians, who were contemporary,
or wrote shortly after, are very -contradictory ; and
it is difficult to elicit from them a true notion of
the mischief that was reaUy committed. The re
mark, however, made above wiU be of use, whUe
we are consulting these authors, that moveable
plunder, not a wanton destruction of buildings,
was the object, which actuated the victorious
enemy. A brief review of the events, which accompa
nied each successive pillage under the Goths and
' Lib. i. Var. Epist. 25, 28. lib. ii. ep. 7, 34. lib. iii. ep.
29, 31.

ALARIC. 11
Vandals, wUl perhaps be necessary to enable us
to judge of the injury inflicted. Since the burn
ing of Rome by the Gauls in U. C. 365, or A. C.
388, no enemy had ever set foot within the sacred
city. Alaric broke the charm, when he entered
it with his army of Goths in 410. This was the
third time that he had laid siege to it. In 409 he
had been bribed to remove, and upon the promise
of receiving five thousand pounds of gold and
thirty thousand pounds of silver, beside other
valuables, he engaged to raise the siege. Great
difficulty was found in coUecting the stipulated
sum; and it is stated that some treasures, which
had been taken in former wars and turned to sa
cred purposes, were employed to pacify the in
vader.^ The second siege was also in 409, but
nothing of importance resulted from it."" In 410
he entered Rome, as was stated, by the Porta
Salara. His troops remained in it six days. Cas
siodorus asserts, that they committed great havoc
there, and that many of the wonders of the city
were burnt;' and in another place he speaks of
the great booty which was coUected.'' Against
this we have the statement of Jornandes,' that
B For the events of the first siege, vid. Zosimus, lib. v. p.
350 — 4. Sozomen. lib. ix. c. 6. Olympiod. apud Phot. p.
180. Philostorg. lib. xii. c. 3.
i Vid. Zosimus, lib. v, p. 368.
' Hist. Eccles. lib. xi. c. 9.
'' Lib. xii. Var. Epist. 20. Sgcrates agrees in both these
statements, lib. vii. c, 10.
' C. 30.

12 GENSERIC,
they only plundered, but did not set fire to any
building, or suffer any sacred property to be in
jured. Cassiodorus himself confirms the latter
part of this account, so that we may fairly con
clude, that the invaders felt some religious scru
ples in their pillage. We can, however, scarcely
doubt that much injury was committed by fire.
That Alaric entered by the Porta Salara, is weU
known ; and the account of his burning the
houses in the neighbourhood, is confirmed by the
assertion of Procopius, that the house of SaUust
remained a heap of ruins in his days.""
The next siege was in 455, when Genseric
entered the city at the head of the Vandal army.
Here, again, w6 have conflicting statements. It
seems clear, from all hands, that several ships
were loaded with spoil, and sent to Africa. Pro
copius'' mentions statues and medals ; and adds,
that nothing which was beautiful in the city
escaped him. The bronze tiles, which covered
the Capitol, and the Jewish spoils, which had been
brought to Rome by Titus, are expressly men
tioned. It would seem that the former could
only have been taken for their intrinsic value;
"> Vid. Procop. de Bello Vand. lib. i. c. 2. Orosius, lib. vii.
0.39. Sozomen. lib. ix. c. 9. Philostorg. lib. xii. c. 3. The
expression of this latter iviiter, who lived at the time, is very
strong : " All this mightiness of glory, and this celebrity of
" power, was portioned out between the fire of strangers, the
" sword of enemies, and captivity among barbarians : and
" while the city was lying in ruins, Alaric," &c.
" De Bello Vand. lib. i. c. 4, 5. lib. ii. c. 9.

GENSERIC. 13
and we might fancy the same of the Jewish ves
sels, if we did not know that they were in exist
ence several yeai-s after: so that the conqueror
appears to have had some affection for the works
of art, and would probably not have encouraged
their wanton destruction upon the spot. One
writer," beside mentioning the general pillage,
adds, that the most remarkable buildings were
burnt. While another p says, generaUy, that the
city was burnt. On the other hand, we are told*"
that Genseric withheld both fire and sword, at
the intercession of St. Leo. That, the Pope
gained some favourable terms, seems probable ;
and the ti-uth perhaps is, that though Genseric
did not authorize any general conflagration, yet
his lawless soldiers occasionaUy violated his orders,
either from carelessness or revenge. The piUage
certainly lasted fourteen days.
Between the sieges by Genseric and Totila,
Rome probably suffered as much from its own
inhabitants, as from any of its invaders; though
the damage is, in this instance, partly to be
ascribed to the tokens that the latter/ had left be
hind them of their visit. We have a decree of
the Emperor Majorian,' issued shortly after the
retreat of Genseric, by which he puts a check to
the system, then very generally practised, of de^
° Nicephorvis, lib. xv. c. 11.
P Evagrius, lib. ii. c. 7.
* Paulus Diaconus, lib. xv.
' Novell. Maj. Tit. vi. p. 35.

14* DESTRUCTION
molishing the ancient edifices. It is probable,
that the citizens, as soon as the Vandal army had
retired, found that they had much to do in repair
ing the damages which they had inflicted; and
for this purpose the ancient buildings, some of
which were already in decay, were very unspar
ingly devoted to patch up the private houses.
In 546, another Gothic army entered Rome,
under Totila: a third part of the walls was thrown
down, and there seems little doubt as to what were
the conqueror's intentions, when he threatened to
level the city with the ground and turn it into
pasture; fortunately, however^ the remonstrance
of BeUsarius made an impression upon his mind;
and even a Gothic general thought it more glo
rious for posterity to allow him the power, to have
destroyed Rome, than to execrate him for having
actually done so. He appears to have confined
his devastation to the destruction, already men
tioned of the waUs. Perhaps he afterwards re
pented of his clemency, and his attention to post
humous fame. For as soon as he quitted the
city, BeUsarius entered it; and in 549 he was
again induced to besiege itj and again became
master of it. But it seems certain, that at this
time he inflicted no injury upon the inhabitants
or the buildings. The Goths began to see that
they were as likely to keep possession of Rome as
their degenerate enemies ; and though their domi
nion ceased very shortly after the death of Totila,
yet he could not foresee such a catastrophe, when

OF ROME. 16
he last occupied Rome ; and, in sparing the city,
he conceived that he was doing a service, not to
the inhabitants, but to his own people.
Though the superabundant zeal of the Popes
has been charged with the destruction of Pagan
monuments, they have also had then- defenders ;
and Tiraboschi labours, apparently with much
reason, to rescue Gregory the Great from this
imputation.^ The Greeks of Constantinople must
also partake in the guilt of this spoUation. Ac
cording to Paulus Diaconus,' and Anastasius,"
the Emperor Constans carried off from Rome, in
the year 663, all the bronze statues a,nd ornaments
which he could find. This was by no means un
common with the Greek Emperors : and we can
scarcely help reflecting upon the singular vicissi
tudes of the works of art, as' ' connecited with
Roman history. Greece, when she submitted to
Rome, yielded up to the conqueror all her trea^
sures of art; and the Romans really fancied that
they had some taste, because their galleries were
ornamented with works of Grecian sculpture."
After the Empire was divided, and both branches
of it were in decay, the Eastern, which was longer
in falling, exercised its power in despoUing Rome ;
and probably many statues traveUed to Constan-
¦ Storia Letteraria d'ltalia, tom. iii. part i. p. 121, &c.
• Hist. Lang. lib. v. c. 11.
" In Vita S. Vitaliani. See also Platina.
" Burton, in his Anatomy of Melancholy, says quaintly,
" Those old Romans rob'd all the cities of the world, to set
" out their bad-sited Rome."

16 ANTIQUITIES.
tinople, which had crossed the sea some centuries
before in their voyage to Italy. Even those
which Genseric had carried off to Africa, found
their way to Constantinople, when the Vandals
were in turn conquered by BeUsarius. We know
that many of the most beautiful statues, and other
curiosities, were destroyed by a fire, which con
sumed the Lausian palace at Constantinople,
about the year 475." Some of them again re
traced their steps, when Constantinople was sacked
by the Venetians, in 1204.
From these several causes, to which Rome has
been more exposed than any other city, nothing
here is perfect. If we except the Pantheon, (and
that has suffered dreadful spoliation on the out
side,) the ancient remains have been so mutUated
and destroyed, that even the name is in many
cases doubtful. No small portion of classical re
coUection is necessary to supply the deficiency;
and he who visits Rome destitute of this, wiU
probably form a low estimate of the interest ex
cited by the antiquities. As a place of residence,
Rome is certainly not gay or cheerful; the pa
laces, though splendid in their exterior, are dirty
and neglected; the works of the fine arts are the
only objects which it is impossible not to admire
and be satisfied with : so that, if any one leaves
Rome with an impression of disappointment, it
may be inferred that his readmg had not suppUed
him vith a sufficient store of classical knowledge
" Zonar. Annal. lib. xiv. p. 52.

ANTIQUITIES. 17
to enable hun to fill up the ravages which time
had made. Rome, compared with Athens, is like
the collection of the Elgin Marbles compared
with the sculptm-es in the Vatican, In the lat
ter collection, beside the usual prepossession in
favour of every thing ancient, we have positive
beauty and symmetry in the objects themselves ;
in the British Museum, we have rather a record
how far time may go in ruining the works of art,
and yet not destroy the admiration which they
excite. But stiU, some taste for antiquities, and
some classical reminiscences, are necessary, before
we can enjoy such mutUated fragments. And so
it is with Rome. No other ' city is so calculated
to raise and keep up the finer feelings of the
mind ; no other can present to us, so forcibly and
so tangibly, the histories which we have read with
so much deUght, or make us sympathise so strongly
with the catastrophes of patriots and heroes.
Much, however, of aU this enthusiasm is to be
brought into Rome, in addition to what is in
spired on the spot. Perhaps the best way to
view the city, if we wish to preserve our admira
tion, is to take a hasty survey of aU the Antiqui
ties, and then to pass on. A long residence there
is certainly calculated to diminish the interest
which they excited : recollection may supply many
deficiencies at the first view, and may, perhaps,
increase our. enjoyment by conti-asting the ancient
with the present state. But recoUection is not a
source from which we should draw too often.
To enable us constantly to admire, something
VOL. I. c

18 WORKS OF THE
intrinsicaUy excellent is required ; and in advising
a short residence at Rome, it is not that I under
value the Antiquities myself, but I am anxious
that others should not undervalue them.
One complaint is made by many traveUers, and
deserves to be noticed : it is, that there are few
or no monuments of the time of the Republic.
The remark is one which is likely to be made;
and the interest which we take in the Antiquities
would certainly be heightened, if there were less
foundation for such a complaint. It must not,
however, be asserted, that there are no monu
ments of the time of the Republic. If any per
son came expecting to find perfect remains of
beautiful buildings, which were prior to the age
of Augustus, he would undoubtedly be disap
pointed; but I question whether, in expressing
this disappointment, he does not also betray his
own ignorance of history. The works of the
Romans, in the early ages of their nation, were
wonderful for their solidity and strength, but
there seems no reason to suppose that much taste
or elegance was displayed.
When the Gauls burnt Rome, U.C, 365, it
may be concluded that few edifices escaped ; so
that, in looking for any works of the Republic,
we must confine our research between the years
365 and 723, when the Republic terminated. We
might mention four successive periods, in each
of which the city must have assumed a different
appearance from what it did in the age succeed
ing; L From the foundation to the burning of

REPUBLIC. 19
Rome by the Gauls, U. C. 365 ; 2. From 365 to
723, when the reign of Augustus commenced ;
3. From 723 to 817, (or A.D. 64,) when the city
was burnt in the time of Nero ; when, out of the
fourteen regions into which it was divided, only
four remained untouched, three were entirely con
sumed, and seven survived in pai-t;^ 4. From
A.D. 64. to 546, (U.C. 1300,) when Totila en
tered it, as Alaric and Genseric had done before
hun. That a great alteration took place in the
appearance of Rome, during these periods, caur
not be denied ; but, on the other hand, we must
not conclude that no buUdings survived each suc
cessive shock, or that nothing stUl remains to
present us a monument even of the first period.
Livy tells us,^ that when the city was rebuilt
after the expulsion of the Gauls, it was laid out
in a very irregular manner. " The city was be^
" gun to be buUt without any order. The pubUc
" furnished tiles  the great haste made
" them careless of forming the streets in straight
" Unes, while without deciding what belonged to
" themselves or their neighbours, they buUt on
" the empty spaces. This is the reason that the
y Another great fire happened in the reign of Titus, which
lasted three days and nights. Sueton. Tit. c. 8. J. Capito
linus mentions another, in the reign of Maximinus; and if
we are to take his expressions literally, the destruction caused
by it must have been very extensive. He says of it, Magna
pars urbis incensa est; and again, Urbis pars maxima incen-
deretur. ^ Lib. V. c. ult.
c2

20 WORKS OF THE
" old sewers {cloacce), which at first were carried
" through the pubUc way, now pass under private
" houses in every direction; and the plan of the
" city more resembles one which had been sud-
" denly seized, than one which had been regu-
" larly parcelled out." He says, in another place,^
that the new city was built in a year. Tacitus,"*
also, talks of the houses being built in no order
.and at random, and of the streets being exces
sively winding and irregular. Suetonius'^ com
plains of the " deformity of the buildings, and
" the narrowness and windings of the streets."
In confirmation of which remark, other authorities
might be quoted. "^ This, however, might only
apply to the streets and houses ; the temples and
public buildings may, at the same time, have been
magnificent, but there is not the least evidence
that they were so. In the second year after the
.destruction, " the Capitol was underbuilt with
•" square stones," as we learn from Livy ;^ and he
adds, that it was a remarkable work, even in the
magnificence of his own day. But this was rather
a work of defence than of ornament. As to pri
vate buUdings, the house of Lepidus is said by
Pliny f to have been the handsomest in Rome, in
the year 676 U. C. ; and, in another place,e he
tells us that the ornaments consisted of Numidian
» Lib. vi. c. 4. >> Annal. lib. xv. c. 43.
t^ Vita Neronis, c. 38.
^ Vide Cic. Or. 2 de Lege Agr. c. 35.
" Lib. vi. c. 4. f Lib. xxxvi. c. 24.
E Lib. xxxvi. c. 8.

REPUBLIC. 21
marble, which was used in large blocks, but not
for columns. But the orator Crassus had a mag
nificent house a few years before this, U. C. 662,
as we learn from the same Pliny,'' and Valerius
Maximus :' " He had erected four columns of
" Hymettian (Athenian) marble in his haU, when
" as yet there were no marble piUars in any public
" buUding." As earlj^, however, as U. C. 607,
Q. C. MeteUus had buUt a temple of marble, as
we learn from VeUeius,'' though perhaps there
were no piUars of mai-ble in it. The same Metel
lus built a portico, which was afterwards the por
tico of Octavia, and must have given a new impulse
to taste and luxury, by the vast coUection of sta
tues which he brought from Greece. Scipio
Nasica buUt a portico in the Capitol, about U. C.
594, and Cn. Octavius did the same in the Circus ;
after which, as VeUeius' says, "private luxury
" soon followed pubUc magnificence." The first
instance of a gUded roof was in the Capitol, when
Mummius was censor, U.C. 612, after the destruc
tion of Carthage:™ in short, the age of Roman
luxury seems to have commenced with the fall of
the last-mentioned city, and of Corinth.
The Romans, certainly, were not naturally a
people of taste. They never exceUed in the fine
arts; indeed, scarcely the name of any Roman
sculptor or painter of celebrity has been handed
^ Lib. xvii. c. 1 .
» Lib. ix. c. 1. i' Lib. i.e. 11.
' Lib. ii. c. 1. ™ Plin. lib. xxxiii. c. 18.

22 WORKS OF THE REPUBLIC.
down to us. Their own writers invariably aUow,
that they were indebted to Greece for every thing
which was elegant in the arts." In architecture,
the only order which has any pretensions to claim
a Roman origin, is the Composite, which is certainly
less pleasing than the others ; and of this, the ear
liest specimen in Rome is on the arch of Titusi.
We know that Greek marble was not used in their
buildings till the close of the Repubhc ; and since
the connection with Greece began as early as the
second Punic war, and the triumphs of Flamininus
and Mummius, in 559 and 608, made the Romans
acquainted with the productions of Grecian taste,
it is natural that they should also have imported
their marble from thence, if they had been en
gaged in buildings of any particular magnificence.
Pliny says," that the custom of sawing marble was
not introduced into Italy before the time of Augus
tus. Though we can scarcely credit this state
ment, — and we have certainly some proofs to the
contrary, — we are bound to beUeve that it had
not been long practised in Rome. The same
author teUs us,p that the quarries at Luna, (now
Carara,) vrhich he decides to produce a finer
marble than that of Paros, were not opened long
before his time. We must, however, give a Uttle

" Cicero's poor opinion of his countrymen's taste is clearly
marked; when speaking of the works of art, he says, " It is
" astonishing how the Greeks are delighted with those things,
" which we despise." In Ver. Act. 2. 1. 4. c. 60.
° Lib. xxxvi. c. 8. p Lib. xxxvi. c. 4.

CLOACA MAXIMA. 23
latitude to this expression : for he himself tells us,i
that in the time of J. Caesar, Mamurra had orna
mented his house with marble from Luna: and
Strabo, who lived in the reign of Tiberius, men
tions the quarries as being worked to a great ex
tent in his day."^ The boast of Augustus, that he
had found Rome of brick, and left it of marble,^
is of course to be taken in some respects as an
imperial hyperbole : but the alteration, which took
place in his reign, must have been very percepti
ble, or he would not have hazarded a comparison
with the times of repubUcan liberty, when he had
so many safer grounds for boasting.
The monuments, which remain to us of an age
prior to the Augustan, are, as was observed, of
great soUdity and strength. The Cloaca Maxima
is one of the most wonderful works, which any
people ever constructed. It seems indeed almost
incredible, that in the time of Tarquinius Priscus,
only 150 years from the foundation of the city,
such a work could have been performed. If we
foUow the opinion of some chronologists, who
shorten the reigns of the kings, the city had not
existed nearly so many years, when this Cloaca
was begim. But there is great mystery and con
fusion in the early history of Rome, particularly
in that of the kings. I have sometimes been in
cUned to think, that there was a city here before
the time of Romulus, and that his subjects did
not actuaUy begin from nothing. Virgil might
9 Lib. xxxvi. c. 7. ^ Lib. v.
= Sueton. Aug. c. 29.

24 CLOACA MAXIMAi
perhaps be quoted as countenancing this opinion:
when Evander is showing his city to ^Eneas, he
sayS, Hsec duo prseterea disjectis oppida muris
Eeliquias veterumque vides monumenta virorum :
Hanc Janus pater, hanc Saturnus condidit Urbem,
Janiculum huic, illi fuerat Saturnia nomen. .^n. viii. 355.
And yet Ovid says, in more than one place, that
when Evander landed in Italy, there were only a
few cottages on the spot, where afterwards Rome
was built.' So vague and contradictory was tra^
dition. The Romans and the Tuscans do not claim a
common origin, and yet there is a great resem
blance in the strength and solidity of their works.
Veil, which was a Tuscan town, was only a short
day's march from Rome :" and it is not likely, that
« Vide Fast. lib,, v. 93.
" The situation of Veii has caused' great disputes among
the Antiquaries: but it seems now to be very satisfactorily
placed at L' Isola Farnese, about twelve miles from Rome,
not far from La Storta, the first post on the road to Perugia.
In the tinae of Propertius the town had ceased to exist :
Nunc intra muros pastoris buccina lenti
Cantat, et in vestris ossibus arva metunt.
Lib. iv. el. 10. 29.
And Florus says of the city, " Who now recollects that it ex-
" isted? What remains or vestige of it is there? It requires
" the utmost stretch of our faith in history, to believe that
" Veii existed."— Lib. i. c. 12. Eutropius calls it eighteen
miles froni Rome: (lib. i. c. 4. and 19.) but Pliny (lib. xv. c.
ult.) and Suetonius (Galba, i.) if compared together, make it

TUSCAN^. 25
this warlike and highly civilized people (for we
must allow them to have been so,) would have
taken no advantage of the seven hUls, which were
so near to their territory, if not in it. Great dis
sension is to be found amongst the Roman writers
themselves, as to the date of the foundation of
Rome: none, however, ascribe it to the Tuscans j
unless we take the Aborigines to be Tuscansj
which is not improbable. We must bear in mind,
that history mentions two migrations of Greek
colonies into Italy, the first of which took place
about 600 years before the second. By the first
I mean that of the Pelasgi, who came from Arca
dia and from Attica," and the Pelasgi are called
Tyrrhenians, that is, Tuscans, by several writers."
The second migration was that mentioned by
Herodotus,y as taking place in the days of Lycur
gus and Thales ; so that we have good reason to
carry back the civihzation of the Tuscans to a
remote period. We shoidd also recoUect, that
while Greece was convulsed with constant wars,
the Tuscans seem to have enjoyed long continued
periods of peace. Of their progress in the arts
we have not so many specimens, as is sometimes
supposed; for the vases,^ which are so generaUy
only half that distance: and Dionysius (Antiq. lib. ii.) ex
pressly places it at the distance of 100 stadia, or twelve miles.
The Peutingerian Table does the same.
" Vide Dion. Hal. lib. i. c. 11, 13, 16, &c.
" Thucyd. lib. iv. u. 109. Plutarch de Virt. Mul. Dion.
Hal. Antiq. lib. i. et xiii.
y Lib. i. c. 94.
= It is singular that as far back as the time of Julius Caesar,

26 CLOACA MAXIMA.
called Etruscan, are undoubtedly Grecian, and
come almost aU from the kingdom of Naples. If
the conjecture of Father Paoh be true, that the
temples at Paestum are the work of Tuscans at a
period long antecedent to the edifices of Greece,
we have indeed a noble monument of their magr
nificence, though perhaps not of the elegance of
their taste. The waUs of Cortona also present a
specimen of solidity, which seems to defy the
lapse of ages. ^
Many make j^neas himself to have founded a
city on the Palatine hill; and chronologists lay
down four hundred and thirty-two years between
JEneas and Romulus.'' We must not, however,
indulge in unfounded conjecture; and when His
tory unequivocally represents the Cloaca Maxima
as the work of Tarquinius Prisons, we may per
haps be .satisfied with recollecting, that this. King
was born in Tuscany of Grecian parents. "= PUny''
speaks of its prodigious strength, and of the
wonder of its having lasted seven hundred years.
How much more ought we to be surprised, when
the tombs in Campania were opened in search of ancient
vases. Sueton. J. Caes. c. 81. The same was done at Corinth.
Strabo, lib. viii.
^ A friend informs me, that he found the walls of Volterra
to be composed of hewn masses from three to six tons weight,
piled one upon another without cement.
>> These opinions may be seen in the third volume of the
Thesaurus of Graevius.
<= " Quippe qui oriundus Corintho Graecum ingenium Ita-
" licis artibus miscuisset." — Florus, lib. i, c. 5.
^ Lib. xxxvi. c. 24.

CLOACA MAXIMA. 27
we can add nearly eighteen hundred years more
to its duration ! The stones employed in the arch
are of an enormous size, and placed together with
out any cement. There are three concentric rows,
one above the other. The height is said to have
been sufficient for a boat loaded with hay to pass
under it: it is reckoned now at eighteen Roman
palms,' and the width is the same. Marlianus
says that he measured it, and found the width
sixteen feet. According to Livy,^ the original
object of the Cloaca Maxima was to carry off the
overflowings of the Tiber and other smaUer
streams : " As the places near the Forum and
" other valleys between the hills did not easUy
" carry off the water from the level ground, he
" drained them by carrying sewers from a higher
" level into the Tiber." Dionysius of Hallcar
nassus says the same thing; and to give an idea
of the immensity of the work, he adds, that the
Cloacae having . been neglected for some time, it
required one thousand talents to clear them.
After the burning of Rome by the Gauls, the
streets were rebuUt without regard to the direction
of the Cloacae; so that many of the houses were
over them, as Livy teUs us in the passage already
quoted, p. 20. Theodoric undertook the repair
of the Cloacae, and the description of them in
the barbarous Latin of Cassiodorus is worth re
cording, s " Quae tantum visentihus conferunt
' A palm equals 8-779 English inches. I have generally
reckoned it at 8|.
f Lib. i. c. 38. s Lib. iii. Var. Epist. 30.

28 , CLOACA MAXIMA.
« stuporem, ut aliarum civitatum possint miracula
" superare. Videas iUic fluvios quasi montibus
" concavis clausos per ingentia ligna"^ decurrere.
" Videas structis navibus per aquas rapidas non
" minima solUcitudine navigari, ne praecipitato tor-
" renti marina possint naufragia sustinere. Hinc,
" Roma, singularis quanta in te sit potest colligi
" magnitudo ! Quae enim urbium audeat tuis cul-
" minibus contendere, quando nee ima tua possunt
" simUitudinem reperire ?" It is now upwards of
two thousand years since this work was constructed;
in which interval Rome has been rebuilt several
times, and a vast accumulation of soil formed : it
still however exists, and is to all appearance as
firm as on the first day of its foundation. A view
may be obtained of it at its mouth, where it flows
into the Tiber, a little below the Ponte Rotto;
and a portion of it may be seen near the Arch of
Janus. Another instance of the durability of Roman
works may be seen in the Mamertine Prisons, on
the descent of the Capitol towards the Forum.
These are of great antiquity, and built like the
Cloacae of large uncemented stones. The founder
was Ancus Martius, as we learn from Livy,' who
speaking of that king says, " he made a prison in
" the middle ofthe city, overlooking the Forum."
Servius TuUius increased them, whence they were
sometimes caUed TulUan. Varro says,'' that the
•> This word is evidently corrupt. A French author reads
slagna, » Lib. i. c. 33. k De Ling. Lat. lib. iv.

M.\MERTINE PRISONS. 29
part added by this latter king was under ground :
and from two passages in Livy we may perhaps
coUect the same tiling. Speaking of Pleminius,
who was accused of high crimes, both civU and
reUgious, he tells us,' that he and his companions
were thrown into prison; and at the same time
he adduces the authority of Clodius Licinius, as
stating that he was subsequently put into the Tul
lianum. This was U. C. 549. Livy seems after
wards to have forgotten, that he had thus antici
pated the history of Pleminius upon the authority
of Licinius; for he repeats the same story over
again," where he informs us that Pleminius, being
farther accused of a conspiracy to set fire to the
city, was put into the lotver prison, and kiUed.
This was U. C. 559. These two passages clearly
identify the lower prisdh with the TuUianum. It
was also caUed Robur :^ and if Livy had this
place in view, when he speaks of Career Lautu-
miarum," or the prison of the Stone-quarries, we
may perhaps conclude that the excavation was
first made for the purpose of getting stone, and
afterwards turned into a prison. It may be re
membered that the quarries at Syracuse were used
for the same purpose. Near the entrance were
the Scalae Gemoniae, by which the culprits wei'e
dragged to the prison, or out of it to execution,
A more horrible place for the confinement of a
human being can scarcely be imagined. There
' Lib. xxix. c. 22. ¦" Lib. xxxiv. c. 44.
" Lucret. iii. 1030. Liv. lib. xxxviii. c. 36.
° Lib. xxxii. c. 26. See also lib. xxvi. c. 27.

30 MAMERTINE PRISONS.
are two apartments, one above the other, to which
there was no entrance, except by a smaU aperture
in the upper roof; and a simUar hole in the upper
floor led to the cell below. There was no stair
case to either. The upper prison is twenty-seven
feet long, by twenty wide ; the lower, which is
eUiptical, is twenty by ten. The height of the
former is fourteen feet, of the latter seven. These
served as the state prisons ; and only persons of
distinction had the privilege of occupying them,
Jugurtha was among the number, SallustP de
scribes the place thus : "In the prison, caUed
" TuUian, when you have descended a Uttle, there
" is a place on the left, sunk about twenty feet :
" it is surrounded by walls on all sides ; and above
" is a room vaulted with stone, but from uncleanli-
" ness, darkness, and a foul smeU, the appearance
" ofit is disgusting and terrific,"
Some, however, and particularly Baronius,''
have raised a doubt, whether the place now shown
at the foot of the Capitol is reaUy the prison which,
was constructed by Ancus Martius, and caUed
TuUian, The strongest evidence which they ad
duce is a passage from PUny,"" where he says, " that
" the Temple of Piety was built in that part of
" the prison fin ea carceris sede) where is now
" the Theatre of Marcellus." The whole force
of these words Ues in the assumption, that there
was only one prison in Rome, and that Pliny
P De Bello Cat. c. 55.
¦! Vid. Martyrolog. ad 14 Mart. p. 103, &c.
¦¦ Lib. vii. c. 36.

MAMERTINE PRISONS, 31
must therefore be speaking of the TulUan prison.
Juvenal certainly says, in the stjle of a patriotic
antiquary, Felices proavorum atavos, felicia dicas
Saecula, qui quondam sub regibus atque Tribunis
Viderunt uno cententam carcere Romam. Sat. iii. 312.
But how long one prison was found sufficient for
the number of criminals does not appear ; and it
may weU be doubted, whether in the year of
Rome 604, (of which Pliny is speaking,) there
were not many more persons deserving of impri
sonment, out of a population of more than four
hundred thousand souls,' than what one* jail would
contain. It has been aheady stated, that the
TulUan prison was only used for state criminals :
but the person, whose story PUny is teUing, was
an humble and obscure plebeian woman (humilis
in plebe ideoque ignotaj : and from the way in
which she was treated, her offence seems to have
been a common one. I conclude, therefore, that
he was speaking of another prison, which was
afterwards destroyed, Appius Claudius the de
cemvir had a prison constructed on purpose for
plebeian offenders; but the restriction was vio
lated in his own person, as he was confined in it
himself.' Tradition makes the Church of S. Ni
cola in Carcere to stand upon the site of this
prison; and as this is not far from the Theatre of
= The census of 683 returned 450,000.
' Liv. lib. iii. c. 57.

32 MAMERTINE PRISONS.
MarceUus, it is not improbable that this is the one
of which PUny speaks. Some ancient columns
may still be seen in this church, and ai;itiquaries
make out that there were three temples within or
close to it. We have another proof that Pliny
was speaking of the -prison of Claudius, and not
of the TuUian, since Publius Victor, in describing
the ninth region of the city, mentions the Theatre
of MarceUus and the Prison of Claudius close to
gether. At all events the passage in Livy is much
more decisive, where he says, that the prison of
Ancus was " in the middle of the city, overlooking
" the, Forum." And if we cannot say that the
building now shown is near the Theatre of Mar
ceUus, still more difficult would it be to prove
that a prison near that theatre would overlook
the- Forum. Another argument adduced by the
opposite party is an inscription upon the- front of
what is shown as the Mamertine Prison: we there
read, c, vibivs. c. f. rvfinvs. m. cocceiv . . .
cos. EX. s. c. These persons were consuls, U. C.
775, in the time of Tiberius. But surely this in
scription cannot prove, that Vibius and-Cocceius
(Nerva) were the original contrivers of this build
ing : the shghtest inspection of it wiU convince us
that it was much older than their time, and that
the consuls mentioned only made some alteration
or addition to it.
The origin of the name Mamertine is not cer
tain: nor can I find any ancient author who uses
it. In the acts of the early martyrs the prison is
frequently mentioned under this title, as maybe

MAMERTINE PRISONS. 33
seen in Baronius. PanchoUi deduces it from the
famUy Mamertia, which, according to Plutarch,
ti-aced itself up to Numa. That king was said to
have had four sons, from whom four iUustrious
famUies were descended, Pomponia, Pinacia, Cal-
purnia, and Mamercia. In process of time the
name of Mamercus was changed to Mamertinus ;
and under the emperors we find several persons
of this name high in office, such as consuls, prae
tors, &c. It is possible that one of these persons
may have repau-ed the prison, and given it his
name; as P. Victor and Sextus Rufus mention a
Schola Mamertina and baths of the same name.
The adjoining street was caUed Vicus Mamertinus.
Had the appeUation occurred in ancient authors,
I should rather have derived it from thei'founder
Ancus Martius, whose name may anciently have
been written Mamertius, as we are told that in
the Oscan language Mars was caUed Mamers."^
Tradition says, that St. Peter was confined
here; which, considering the accusation against
him, is not very likely. The piUar is shown to
which he was fastened, and also a well of water,
which appeared miraculously for .the baptism of
his gaolers, Processus and Martinianus, and forty-
seven companions. The prison itself, with a small
chapel in front, is now consecrated to him; and
over it is the Church of S. Giuseppe de' Faleg
nami, built in 1539.''
" Vid. Diod. Sic. lib. xxi. c. 13. and Festus, voce Mamers.
* The Abate Cancellieri published a work upon these pri
sons in 1788.
VOL. I. D

34 TABULARIUM.
Not far from these prisons, on the other side of
the steps leading to the Forum, some portion of
the ancient Tabularium, or Record-office, may be
seen. This now serves as a foundation to the
Palazzo Senatorio; and in an enumeration of the
more ancient remains, such an inconsiderable
fragment would seem hardly worthy of notice. I
mention it only as another example of that massy
style of architectiu-e which the Romans adopted,
and because every thing connected with the an- -
cient Capitol is interesting. It is, however, of
great antiquity, this part having been buUt U. C.
367, as foundations for the Capitol. Livy men
tions it," and says, that it was a remarkable work,
even in the magnificence of his day. The waU is
about ITjO palms in length, and fourteen in height.
Some of the stones are ten or twelve palms long.
In the interior there is a chamber vavilted with
several arches and a Doric frieze. An inscription
was found near here, but is no longer to be seen,
which commemorated the founder of the whole
building :
Q. LVTATIVS. Q. F. CATVLVS. COS. SVBSTRVCTIONEM
ET. TABVLARIVM. S. S. FACIENDVM
COEBAVIT.
These three works, the Cloaca Maxima, the
Prison, and the Tabularium, are all built of that
stone which the Romans call Peperino, probably
fi-om the town of Piperno, (Privernum,) where it
is found in great abundance, or from the black
* Lib. vi. c. 4.

RO.MAN STONE. 35
Spots on it resembling pepper. The ancients
caUed it Alban stone,^ because they got it from
the neighbourhood of Alba ; and it seems, that all
then- early buildings were made of it. Afterwards
two other kinds of stone came to be used. Traver
tine and Tufo. The former has its name from
the Teverone or Anio, near wiiich it is formed.
I use this expression, because the calcareous de
posit from the water is constantly indurating, and
forms incrustations round any object which is left
in it.^ An instance of this may be seen at Tivoli,
where there is the evident trace of a wheel, the
wood of which is decayed, but a hard mass of
stone is formed round it. The ancients called
this stone Tiburtine. The outside of the Colos
seum is buUt of it. The thu-d kind of stone is
Tufo. Vitruvius mentions it," and calls it tophus,
of which he describes red, black, and white varie
ties. This is the softest of aU stones used for
buUding, and seems evidently to be of volcanic
origin, of which aU the country round Albano, and
Rome itself, bears evident trace. Some showers
of stones, which Livy mentions as falUng near
Albano, seem to aUude to phaenomena connected
with volcanos.'' He mentions also,"^ that a great
gulph or chasm opened near Albano.'' Vitruvius
y Vid. Vitruvius, lib. ii. c. 7. Plin. lib. xxxvi. c. 48.
^ Vide Seneca, Nat. Quaest. lib. iii. c. 20.
> Lib. ii. c. 7.
^ Lib. i. c. 31. Lib. xxv. c. 7. &c. = Lib. xl.
¦* Pliny mentions a shower in Lucania of matter resembling
sponges. Lib. ii. c. 57.
d2

36 WALLS AND BRIDGES.
says, that tophus was used for the interior of buUd
ings, which was not exposed to the air. We find
the inside of the Colosseum composed of it.
The walls of Rome, as they now stand, can in
no part claim a greater antiquity than the time of
Aurelian; so that we look in vain here for any
work of the Republic. There is reason, however,
to believe, that a fragment of a wall in the ViUa
Mattei, on the Caelian hill, is part of the ancient
.circuit; and if so, we may find in it a monument
of the age of Servius TulUus. The appearance
of the masonry is. certainly not hostile to such a
supposition. In the gardens of Sallust, now those
of the Villa Barberini, there is another portion of
waU, which is also said to have belonged to the
ancient circuit.
Of the Bridges, the only one, which can claim
a date prior to the age of Augustus, is the Ponte
Rotto. But this has been so often repaired after
inundations, that we cannot easily decide how
much of it is ancient. It was begun by M. Ful
vius, and finished by Scipio Africanus and L.
Mummius. The next to this in antiquity is the
Ponte di 4 Capi, anciently Pons Fabricius, which
leads into the island. This, however, was bmlt
under the reign of Augustus ; though it may be
doubted, whether it was not rather repaired, than
reconstructed at that time. Donatus states it to
have been built in 612. The Pons Sublicius was
the most ancient in Rome : but if it be true, that
the island was formed at the time of the expulsion
of the Tarquins, it is probable, that a bridge was

AQUADUCTS. 37
built very early, to form a communication with it.
Unfortunately for our classical curiosity, the Sub-
Ucian bridge itself, on which Horatius Codes
stood, as the bulwai-k of infant Rome, has been
entirely washed away.
Both within £md without the waUs we may see
some works of great antiquity in the Aquaducts.
Several fragments of these astonishing efforts of
human industry stretch across the Campagna in
various directions. It is difficult to ascertain the
precise date of some of them : they evidently have
been repaired at different times, but many parts
of them bespeak the soUd and massy architecture
of the early ages of Rome. We have a detaUed
account of the state of the Aquaducts during the
reign of Nerva, written by Frontinus, who was
engineer under that emperor. He says that nine
different waters came into Rome ; but as some of
these were united, the Aquaducts that entered the
city were not so numerous. Sextus Rufus, who
wrote in the time of Diocletian, makes the number
nineteen; and Procopius, who lived in the sixth
century, says that there were fourteen. A minute
account of these several works would not be very
interesting. To trace aU of them, or indeed any
of them, through the whole of their course, would
perhaps be impossible. Procopius teUs us, that
Vitiges broke them down to deprive the city of
water; and as in many of them the arches did not
begin at a great distance from the waUs, we may
despair of ascertaining their course under ground.
The work of Frontinus wiU supply the names of

38 AQUADUCTS.
the places where each Aquaduct began, and the
length of its course. I shaU content myself with
enumerating a few of them, and endeavourmg to
point out here and there some remains of the
ancient arches.
TiU the year of Rome 441, the city was sup
plied with water from the Tiber only. In that
year, Appius Claudius, the censor, brought a
stream from a distance of seven miles, which was
called from him Aqua Appia. It began to the
left of the Via Praenestina ; and Frontinus says,
that its whole course, except sixty paces near the
Porta CoUina, was under ground. If these few
arches existed, they would be considerably within
the modern circuit of the walls; but I know no
trace of them, and only mention the Aquaduct,
because a long line of arches may be seen to the
right and left of the Via Prenestina, extending,
with occasional interruptions, for a length of some
miles. It is said to be a remnant of the Aqua
duct, which Lampridius mentions as being built
by Alexander Severus.
Near the Porta S. Lorenzo we may see an
Aquaduct with three water-courses in it, one
above the other. These conveyed the Aquae
Martia, Tepula, and JuUa, which were brought
to Rome successively, in the years 608, 627, 719.
We must conclude, that the union was not effected
till the last period ; and if the arches conveying
all the three waters were only constructed then,^
" This is not a necessary consequence, beeavtse the Aqua

AQUADUCTS. 39
the work now remaining can scai-cely be classed
amongst those of the Repubhc.
The Aqua ^'irgo was introduced a few years
after the last ; and parts of the Aquaduct may be
traced, crossing the three roads, which lead re
spectively fi-om the gates of S. Lorenzo, Pia, and
Salara. This is, probably, the one which Proco
pius mentions as being near the Porta Pinciana,
by which Vitiges attempted to enter Rome. It
commenced about eight mUes off, on the Via Col-
latina. The Claudian Aquaduct was truly an imperial
work, and therefore ought not, perhaps, to be
mentioned here. It was begun by Caligula, and
fixiished by Claudius. Two streams were united,
both of which came from near the Via Subla-
censis, a road which foUows the vaUey of the
Anio above TivoU. One came forty miles off,
and was carried upon arches, immediately after
quitting its source, for a distance of three miles.
The other, the Anio novus, also began on arches,
which continued for twelves mUes, 800 paces.
After this, both went under ground; and at a dis
tance of six miles, 491 paces from the city, they
joined, and were carried upon arches aU the rest
of the way. This is the most perfect of aU the
ancient Aquaducts ; and it has been repaired, so
as to convey the Acqua FeUce, which is one ofthe
Julia ran in the highest of the three channels, and the Tepula
was higher than the Martia. These three waters will be men
tioned more in detail hereafter.

40 AQUADUCTS.
three streams ^ that now supply Rome. Parallel
to it there may be observed, for a considerable
distance, the ruins of another Aquaduct, which
must necessarily have been older than that of
Claudius, and presents an appearance of great
antiquity. It is built of large stones, whereas the
later ones are of brick. The Claudian Aquaduct
entered the city by the Porta Maggiore, where
we may still see a great portion of it, and observe
the two channels, one above the other, for the
different streams. The Anio novus was the. high
est. The arches may be traced from hence to
St. John Lateran, over parts of the Caelian hill,
and so to Mount Aventine.
These works, so frequent in aU Roman colo
nies, have been cited as a proof that the Romans
were ignorant of that principle in hydrostatics,
that water wiU always rise to the level of its
source ; and their patient industry has been ridi
culed, in taking so much trouble to convey upon
arches of brick or stone, what might have been
brought in pipes under ground. How far, or how
long, the Romans were really ignorant of this
principle, I cannot pretend to say ; perhaps, when
they first erected arches for this purpose, they
were not aware that the labour might have been
' These three are the Acqua Vergine, restored by Nicolas V.
which comes to the fountain of Trevi; L' Acqua Felice, brought
by Sextus V. to the fountain of Termini, and so called from
the name which he bore before his election; and L' Acqua
Sabatina, which supplies the Janiculum, and was brought to
the Fountain Paolina by Paul V.

AQUADUCTS. 41
saved; but it is difficult to deny, that many Roman
Aquaducts were constructed in this manner after
the principle was known. The INIeta Sudans,* a
fragment of which still exists near the Colosseum,
is said to have been a fountain ; and it is evident
that the water which suppUed it was not raised by
mere mechanical means. Pliny'' mentions one
hundred and five fountains (saUentes) in Rome;
and, from the Latin term for a fountain, it appears
certain that they resembled those of modern times,
and that the water was thrown up merely by its
own pressure. But another passage of PUny is
more decisive, and ought to set the question at
rest as to the science of his days; he says,' " The
" water, which is wanted to rise to any height,
" should come out of lead. It rises to the height
" of its source." In another place he observes,
" The ancients carried their streams in a lower
" course, either because they were not yet ac-
" quainted with the exact principle of keeping a
" level, or because they purposely sunk them un-
" der ground, that they might not easily be inter-
s We find mention of it in Seneca's Epistles to Lucilius:
" Essedas transcurrentes porro et fabrum inquilinum et ferra-
" rium vicinum, aut hunc, qui ad Metam Sudantem tubas
" experitur et tibias, neque cantat, sed exclamat." There is
a coin of Titus, on the reverse of which is a figure of the
Meta Sudans, which was probably repaired by him ; though
the Chronicle of Ceissiodorus ascribes it to Domitian.
'¦ Lib. xxxvi. c. 24. Agrippa . . . lacus septingentos fecit,
praeterea salientes centum quinque, castella centum triginta.
' Lib. xxxi. c. 31.

42 AQUADUCTS.
" rupted by the enemy." We may add a passage
from Frontinus:'' " There are five different levels
" to the streams, two of which are raised to every
" part of the city; but of the rest, some are forced
" by greater, some by less pressure."
In the colonies, which were planted in Spain or
Gaul, these works were probably constructe4Tfor
political reasons. A number of people were em
ployed by these means, and the cities were orna
mented and supplied with the conveniences of
life, to induce the hardy natives to reside in them.
As soon as the Gauls or Spaniards enclosed them
selves within walls, and adopted Roman manners,
the protection of Rome was necessary to them;
so that there were good reasons for constructing
these enormous works, although, if the only object
had been to supply the city with water, it might
have been done on much cheaper terms. The
needless labour bestowed upon these Aquaducts
may be seen very remarkably at Lyons, where
some fragments of arches still exist.' The water
was conveyed in this manner for two leagues, and
yet the hiU at which it terminated, and on which
the ancient Lugdunum stood, contains several
springs of excellent water. Even the magnificent
work still existing under the name of Pont du
^ Lib. i.
' The part which remains is about seventy yards long, and
contains the ruins of nine arches. The building is narrow,
but as the ground is here on a decline, part of it is raised to
a great height, and if it crossed the adjoining valley, it must
have been several times higher.

TOMBS. 43
Gard,"" and which suppUed Nisnies (Nemausus)
with water, might have been spared, as there is
in that city a most copious spring, which is quite
a natural curiosity. It is evident, therefore, that
here even ignorance of the hydrostatical principle
would not have urged them to such a laborious
undertaking, and some other motive must have
caused the work. We must recollect, too, that
the expense of labour was scarcely any thing, as
the conquered inhabitants might have been had
in thousands.
In quoting the tombs, as remains antecedent to
the Augustan age, the tomb of the Scipio family,
which is the most ancient, perhaps hardly comes
under our inquiry; the tomb itself being nothing
but a subterraneous vault, on which no labour of
architecture was bestowed. I was unwilUng, how
ever, to pass it over, as we have here specimens of
the art of sculpture at Rome as far back as U. C.
456. The pyramid, in memory of C. Cestius,
near the Porta S. Paolo, is somewhat- prior to the
time of Augustus, though not much so ; and as to
the tomb of Bibulus, nothing is known as to its
date ; but we may probably fix it a little earUer
than that of Cestius. The tomb of CaecUia Me
teUa is also of the time of the RepubUc, but evi-
" This stupendous Aquaduct, which far exceeds any thing
of the kind in Italy, consists of three rows of arches, one
above the other. The first tier contains six arches, the second
eleven, the third thirty-five. The whole height is 182 feet:
the channel, in which the water ran, is three feet high. It
lies between Avignon and Nismes.

44 TEMPLES.
dently not long before the close of it. We may
judge of this from the marble used in it; but cer
tainly PUny's remark, quoted at page 22, is borne
out by this specimen; for the blocks have not
been sawed, and the same may be said of the
pyramid of C. Cestius."
Of the temples, but a poor catalogue can be
made out, as exhibiting any monuments of the
RepubUc. It will be attempted to be shown, in
another place, that the Church of St, Theodore,
near the Forum, was not the temple of Romulus.
The temple of Vesta, too, though said by some
to be older than the age of Augustus, has not
much evidence to support its pretensions. It
stands between the arch of Janus and the river.
It is circular, with a portico aU round it, of twenty
Corinthian pillars, fluted ; one of which is want
ing. The cornice, also, and the ancient roof,
have disappeared. In Ovid's time it was covered
with a dome of brass." In other respects it is
tolerably perfect, and forms a very interesting and
elegant object. The walls within the portico are
all of white marble, much of which stiU remains,
and the pieces of it were put together, so as to
have the appearance of one uninterrupted mass.
The piUars are thirty-five feet high; the whole
circumference ofthe building is 170 feet, and the
diameter of the temple, within the portico, is 28.
The question still remains unanswered, what is
" All these tombs will be described afterwards, in detail.
" Fast. lib. vi. 261, 281, 296.

TEMPLE OF VESTA. 45
the date of this building ? We know that Numa
dedicated a temple to ^'esta, and that it was
round. P Horace also mentions one ; and it might
be thought vain to search for Nmna's building
after the catastrophe which he describes. But
his words do not absolutely imply that it was
thrown down ; it may only have been endangered :
Vidimus flavum Tiberim, retortis
Littere Etrusco violenter undis.
Ire dejectum monumenta Regis
Templaque Vestae. Od. lib. i. 2, 15.
The present edifice is, however, far too elegant
for the age of Numa ; and Ovid expressly teUs
us, that the former temple was burnt about the
year of Rome 512, or 256 years before the time
of his writing.' In another place, he describes
the buUding as it was in his own days ; and the
P Festus " rotunda cedes." Ovid. 1. c; There is a beautiful
round temple at Tivoli, which is also supposed to have been
dedicated to '\^esta, though it has always been called the
Temple of the Sibyl. That this last title is wrong, seems to
be agreed by all the antiquaries of the present day. Andrea
Fulvio, who wrote in the sixteenth century, calls it the temple
of the Goddess Albunea, without mentioning any other opi
nion. Albunea was the fountain from which the river Albula
flowed. It is mentioned by Virgil, iEn. vii. 83. Hor. Od. i.
7, 12. Mr. Kelsall, in his Excursion from Rome to Arpino,
quotes an ancient inscription found near the spot, which
leads him to think that it was erected in honour of Drusilla,
the sister of Caligula.
1 Compare Fast. lib. vi. 437, 461.

46 TEMPLE OF VESTA.
same passage also gives us some idea of Numa's
temple :
Quse nunc sere vides, stipula tunc tecta videres ;
Et paries lento vimine textus erat.
Hie locus exiguus, qui sustinet atria Vestse,
Tunc erat intonsi regia magna Numse.
Forma tamen templi, qua nunc manet, ante fuisse
Dicitur, et formse causa probanda subest.
Fast. lib. vi. 261.
It was burnt in Nero's fire,"^ and repaired by
Vespasian or Domitian. It was burnt again in
191, under Commodus; and Julia Pia, wife of
Septimius Severus, restored it. This is probably
the building still in existence ; and the proportion
of the columns seems to show, that it must have
been erected in an age when architecture was on
the decline ; for though the height of Corinthian
columns ought to equal nine diameters, these con
tain eleven. It was consecrated, as a Christian
Church, to St. Stephen, and is known by the name
of S. Stefano delle Carrozze, and La Madonna
del Sole. An inscription says, " Sextus IIII
" Pont. Max, JEdem hanc Beati Stephani Pro-
" tomartyris diu incultam et incognitam instau-
" ravit Anno Jubilaei" [1475]. The spaces be
tween the pillars were all blocked up with brick
work tiU very lately, when every thing was cleared
away, and the building restored to its original
appearance. '¦ Tacitus, An. lib. xv. c. 41 .

TEMPLE OF FORTUNA VIRILIS. 47
The temple of Fortuna Vu-ilis, near the Ponte
Rotto, (now the chm-ch of Santa JMaria Egiziaca,)
is said by some to have been built by Servius Tul
Uus; but this cannot claim such antiquity, as
Dionysius tells us ° that Servius' temple was burnt,
on which occasion his statue, which was of wood
gUt, was the only thing saved. The present
buUding may perhaps stand upon the same site.
Ovid mentions a spring of warm water as being
near the temple :
Discite nunc, quare Fortunae thura Virili
Detis eo, calida qui locus humet aqua.
Fast. lib. iv. 145.
Some have wished to call it the BasiUca of C.
Lucius; but PaUadio is positive that it was a
temple. Very erroneous accounts are given of
its original plan, and of the remains stUl existing ;
but Desgodetz has published a very aecurate
survey and engraving of it. The front consisted
of foxn- piUars, which stiU remain; there were
seven on each side, reckoning the angular ones,
but the five last were only half piUars. Those at
the other end, corresponding to the front, were
also half pUlars. Ofthe lateral ones, I could only
make out six on one side ; the other is blocked
up by buUdings. The piUars are Ionic, and the
cornice is handsomely ornamented with festoons,
buUs' heads, chUdren, and candelabra. The soU
has accumulated up to the base of the columns ;
» Antiq. lib. iv. c, 33. Ovid. Fast. lib. vi. 625. Val. Max.
lib. i. c. 8.

48 OTHER WORKS.
and there were anciently several steps leading up
to the front. Andrea Fulvio mentions, that there
was formerly an inscription, which was become
perfectly illegible in his time. This temple, and
that of Vesta, appear to be represented in the
plans of ancient Rome preserved in the Capitol.
The Church of SS. Cosmo and Damiano in the
Forum, beside being itself a building of the 6th
century, has an ancient Temple of Remus for its
vestibule. There is not much to lead us to any
particular conclusion as to its date ; but it is pro
bably prior to the Augustan age, and I should
think considerably so. There wiU be occasion to
mention it more hereafter.
The Arch of Janus is considered to be older
than the time of Augustus, though it could not be
much so, on account of the Greek marble of
which it is built; which, as already stated, was
not used at Rome till towards the decUne of the
RepubUc. What is the date of the BasUica of Paulus
iEmUius, which now forms part of the Church of
S. Adriano in Foro, and of the Baths of P. j^mi-
Uus near the Column of Trajan, I have not been
able to discover.
Such are the buUdings which claim attention
in Rome, on the grounds of the greatest antiquity.
The Ust wiU be considered a scanty one ; and of
those which have been enumerated, some are
doubtful, and may have only the claim of a few
years to be caUed the works of the Republic.
The Cloaca Maxima, the Mamertine Prisons, the

ARCHITECTURE OF ROME. 49
Aquaducts, and perhaps the Bridges, are all vvhich
can really carry us back to the venerable and
sacred times of Roman liberty.' Poggio, who
wrote in the beginning of the fifteenth century,
says, in his work on the INIutability of Fortune,
that he could discern nothing of the age of the
Republic, except a bridge, (meaning the Pons
Fabricius,) an arch, a sepulchre, the pyramid of
C. Cestius, and a double row of vaults in the salt-
office of the Capitol. But this catalogue is cer
tainly too smaU; and the philosopher has cast
too melancholy a view upon the ages that were
past. It seems, however, that we can scarcely
faU coming to this conclusion, that architecture
was at a very low ebb in Rome, when it was at
its height in Greece, and the Grecian colonies.
The remains at Athens, such as the Parthenon,
the Temple of Theseus, and the Propylaea, carry
us back to the time of Pericles, which answers to
the year of Rome 302. In SicUy, the Temples of
Egesta and Girgenti remind us of the ravages
which the Carthaginians had inflicted upon the
island, before the Romans had a navy in their
ports to contend with them. If we come still
nearer to them, in Magna Graecia, we have the
' In these days, tbe word liberty/ may be objected to, as
used here, because the Cloaca and the Prisons were formed
by two of the Kings. But the state of Rome under the Kings
and under the Emperors was as different, as the government
of England compared with that of Turkey. This is not the
country in which the union of Liberty with Monarchy is to
be objected to.
VOL. I. E

50 ARCHITECTURE OF ROME.
temples at Paestum, over whose history a veU of
mystery is spread, through which we endeavour
to look into those times which are prior to exist
ing records. But at Rome there seems to have
been no national genius which could strike out
such magnificent works, and for many years no
national taste, which would care to imitate them.
A patriot, in the days of Augustus, if taunted
upon this defect, would probably have made the
rudeness and inelegance of his ancestors a topic
of admiration ; but in comparing the Romans
with the Athenians, we cannot deny that the
latter were the most pohshed nation of the two :
and as a Dictator taken from the plough, or a
Capitol built of brick, does not excite in us any
patriotic feeling, we may perhaps be allowed to
sympathise more with the fate of Athens than of
Rome. But in the latter city, if we wish to con
fine ourselves to the Republic, there is surely no
need of monuments of brick and stone to awaken
our recollection of such a period. If we must
have visible objects, on which to fix our atten
tion, we have the ground itself, on which the
Romans trod ; we have the seven hiUs, we have
the Campus Martius, the Forum, all places fami
liar to us from history, and in which we can assign
the precise spot where some memorable action
was performed. Those who feel a gratification
in placing their footsteps where Cicero or Caesar
did before them, in the consciousness of standing
uppn the same lull which Manlius defended, and
in all those associations which bring the actors

PALATINE HILL. 51
themselves upon the scene, may have aU their
enthusiasm satisfied, and need not complain that
there are no monuments of the time of the Re
public. Rome is indeed a melancholy wreck of
what it once was ; but the circuit of the walls be
ing the same at this moment, as in the time of the
Emperor Aurelian, we have so fkr a point of con
nection between former times and our own ; and
what is wanting in many ancient cities, we can
positively identify the limits which it occupied.
But in Rome we can do more : from the records
of history we can trace the gradual increase of the
city, from the time when Romulus had his cottage
on the Capitol, to the final extension of the walls
by AureUan.
The traveUer would do weU to study this his*
tory, and observe upon the spot the successive
limits which the rising city occupied. He would
first place himself upon the Palatine hill, and
would fancy aU the subjects of Romulus settled
on it. The other hiUs were then probably uncul
tivated, and overgrovra wdth trees, while the plain
at the foot of them was marshy from the inunda
tions of the Tiber. It was on this hiU that Nero
buUt his Golden House, which covered nearly the
whole qf it. CaUgula united it with the Capitol
by a bridge across the Forum. These enormous
buUdings necessarily swaUowed up every other,
and it is therefore vain to expect any antiquity on
the Palatine, prior to the time of Nero. The
thatched cottage of Romulus was not on this hiU,
e2

52 PALATINE HILL,
as some have asserted, but on the Capitol," unless
we suppose that one was shown on each hiU."
The palace of Nero has followed the fate of this
cottage: nothing now remains of the splendid
and extensive superstructure : but among the gar
dens, which occupy the ground, some fragments
of masonry may here and there be seen, and some
subterraneous apartments may be entered, where
a few paintings are still visible.
Romulus seems to have surrounded his city
with a wall, though, if the story of Remus be true,
it was not a very formidable one. Perhaps it was
not made of stone.^ Livy is express in saying,
that Romulus first surrounded the Palatine hiU;''
but his words do not contradict what is said hy
other authors, that the CapitoUne and the Forum
were taken in during his reign. Tacitus says,^
that the Capitol was beUeved to have been added
to the city by Tatius ; and we may coUect, that
Romulus had fortifications on the Capitoline, Cae
lian, EsquiUne, Aventine, and Quirinal hiUs, but
" Seneca, Controv. lib. ii. 9.
-" Dion. Hal. ii.
y It may be left to the antiquaries to dispute, whether the
form of the city was round or square. The latter is generally
asserted; but the notion rests in part upon a mistaken pas
sage in Plutarch, where he says, that Romulus founded Rows
Quadrata, which does not mean the whole city, but a place
on the Palatine hill, which served as a centre, from which the
walls were drawn. Plutarch, in another place, expressly calls
it round, and such seems most probably to be the truth.
¦•¦ Lib. i. c. 6. " An. lib. xii. c. 24.

ANCIENT AND MODERN ROME. 53
they were not included within the walls.'' Tullus
HostiUus, after destroying Alba, and doubling the
population of his subjects by removing the Alban
citizens, added the C^lian hiU." Ancus Martius
gave Mount Aventine to the people, but it was
not included within the pomoerium , though it
seems to have been surrounded with a wall of its
own.'' He afterwards joined the Janiculum to
the city by the Sublician bridge. Servius TuUius
took in also the Viminal, Quirinal, and EsquiUne,
and inclosed the whole six with a waU and ditch.
Dm-ing these periods, the population must won
derfuUy have increased. We must not however
suppose, that aU this ground was built upon : pro
bably great part was cultivated, as is the case with
the modern city; and in those times, when a war
was an annual event, and the hostUe nations lived
within a few mUes of the gates, it was necessary,
that a great portion of the food, requisite for the
inhabitants, should be grown within the waUs.
^^Tioever wishes to take a survey of the seven
hills at one view, must ascend to the top of the
Palazzo Senatorio on the Capitol. He will here
command a prospect, which surpasses in interest
any thing that the world can furnish. The na
tural features of the country are themselves beau
tiful; and if nothing was known of the history of
i •¦ A. Gellius makes this distinction: "the most ancient
" pomoerium, which was instituted by Romulus, was bounded
" by the roots ofthe Palatine hill." Lib. xiii. c. 14.
<^ Liv. lib. i. c. 30.
¦^ Dion. Hal. A. Gell. lib. xiii. c. 14.

54 CAMPUS MARTIUS.
Rome, the ruins would stiU rivet his attention.
The seven hiUs are distinctly discernible ; hut
their boundaries are not so marked now, as they
were formerly, from the accumulation of soU,
which has taken place in the valleys. From this
spot it will be observed, that modern Rome does
not occupy exactly the same ground which it did
formerly. It has in fact travelled northward, and
the Campus Martius, which in the time of Augus
tus was an open space, forms now the principal
part of the city. Of the seven hUls, the Capi
toline, the Caelian, the Viminal, and Quirinal, are
still in part built upon: the Palatine, EsquUine,
and Aventine are mostly covered with gardens,
and contain but few houses.
The riiost populous part of modern Rome
stands, as was said, in the Campus Martius, which
from the time of Servius TulUus to that of Aure
lian was without the waUs, The whole plain may
be said to have been bounded by the Tiber on
the west, on the south by the Capitoline and
Quirinal hiUs, and towards the north it probably
extended as far as the Ponte MoUe,' It was
divided into the greater and the less, of which we
find notice, in CatuUus,
Te campo qusesivimus minore,
Te in Circo, te in omnibus libellis. — Iv. 3.
The greater was a sort of suburb to Rome, and
contained several houses and buUdings, of which
the Mausoleum of Augustus may be considered
' Chiudian. de VI, Cons. Honor. .543.

MONTE PINCIO .\ND CITOKIO. 55
the northern limit: the other division was not
built upon, and was devoted to martial exercises,
Strabo,^ after having mentioned the latter, says,
" Next to tliis, and joining on to it, is another
" plain, with innumerable porticos all about,
'¦ wooded gardens, three theatres, an amphithea-
" tre, and very magnificent temples contiguous to
" each other,"
Beside the seven hUls, the wall, as subsequently
increased, inclosed the Mons Pincius, or CoUis
Hortulorum, which still retains the name of Monte
Pincio. CoUis Hortorum is the term used by
Suetonius,^ probably from the neighbouring gar
dens of SaUust : and this author informs us, that
the tomb of the Domitian family, in which Nero
was buried, was on the summit of this hUl. Mons
Pincius was a name given to it subsequently from
the Pincian famUy, which was of eminence in the
time of Constantine. This is a considerable emi
nence, but as it was not within the walls of S.
TulUus, it has not acquired so much celebrity as
the seven others. The candidates for public
offices used to show themselves first upon this
hiU, and thence descend into the Campus Martius.
A pubUc walk is now constructed upon it, and
it commands an admirable view of Rome and the
sun-ounding country.
Another hiU may be observed behind the
Piazza Colonna, which is caUed the Monte Cito
rio. There is reason to think, that there was no
liiU here formerly, but that the inequality was
formed by the rubbish removed from the old
' Lib, v. B Ntro, c. 50.

56 MONTE GIORDANO AND TESTACCIO.
buildings, and perhaps more particularly from the
amphitheatre of Statilius Taurus. Such is partly
the opinion of L. Fauno, though he substitutes
the amphitheatre of Claudius for that of Taurus.
He gives it as the opinion of some persons, that the
hiU was formed from the soU, which was dug out,
when the pillar of M. Aurelius was erected : ahd
Nardini mentions an absurd tradition that the soU
had been used to fill the interior of the Pantheon,
when the Cupola was being built. Venuti thinks,
that the name is derived from this being the place
in the Campus Martius, where the people were
cited to give their votes. Fauno writes the name
Aciiorio, but agrees with him in his etymology.
The Monte Giordano is another eminence of
the same kind, but still smaUer, and has evidently
been formed by the accumulation of ruins from
ancient buildings.
The Monte Testaccio seems hardly worth men
tioning, except as being an eminence within the
walls : it is however remarkable, if the story of its
origin be true, as having been entirely raised by
art. It stands at the south-west corner of Rome,
near the Tiber, and measures 160 feet in height,
and a third of a mile in circumference.'' It is said
to be entirely composed of fragments of pottery,
which were deposited here. An examination of
the hill itself fully confirms this notion; and it
should be remembered, that the principal potteries
were established in this part of the town by Tar-
'¦ This is from Venuti. In Spence's Anecdotes, p. 243, it
is stated, that the whole rise from the Villa of the Cavalier
Corradini to the cross on the top is upwards of 800 feet.

MONTE TESTACCIO. 57
quinius Priscus, when he was building the Circus
Maximus.' This is the case at the present day,
and the Church of S. Francesco « ripa on the
opposite side of the river has been erected upon
the same fi-agments. When we consider the
abundant use of earthenware which prevailed in
Rome, that aU the oil and wine was preserved in
vessels of this kind, when we find them in the
sepulchres and the walls of buildings, not to men
tion the tUes which covered the houses, the pro
digious number of lamps and ornamental vases,
&c. &c. we perhaps need not be sm-prised that
this hUl was formed. So early as the reign of
Numa, a coUege of potters was instituted; and if
we beUeve MarUanus, there was an order of the
Senate in later times, which prohibited the throw
ing any fragments of pottery into the river, lest it
should dam up the water, and overflow the city.
The author of the Nouveau Voyage.d' Italie says,
that he could only observe fragments of urns in
this hiU. P. Victor mentions a hUl, caUed Dolio-
lum, which is thought to be the same as the Monte
Testaccio, but it is not mentioned by any older
author.'' This was also without the waUs of S.

' This too is on the authority of Venuti, who does not tell
us where he found this circumstance related. Sir Frederick
Henniker informs us, that he " laboured over some acres of
" crockery" near Alexandria.
'' Jeremy Taylor, in his Ductor Duhitantium, (vol. xiii. p.
379, Works.) cites an anecdote, in which a hill near Rome is
called Doliolum : but he does not give his' authority. In the
lease of a vineyard, A.D. 1256, published by Nerini, (De

58 POMOERIUM.
TuUius. Gibbon informs us,' that there was an
annual practice of hurling from the top to the
bottom of this hiU some waggon loads of live hogs
for the diversion of the populace : and concludes
rather hastily, that it was constructed for this pur
pose. A very cold wind is observed to proceed
from the lower part of this hill in summer, and
ceUars have accordingly been constructed in it for
sake of keeping the wine cool.
To enlarge the circuit of the walls was called
Pomoerium proferre. Pomoerium, which Livy
tells US'" signifies post mcerium, behind the walls,
was a space within and vrithout the waUs, which
was consecrated at the first foundation, and was
not allowed to be built upon. Those only were
permitted to extend the pomoerium, who had
taken some land from the enemy. And yet every
extension of the walls was not necessarily an ex
tension of the pomoerium; for Vopiscus, speaking
of Aurelian, says, " that he extended the walls of
" the city, and yet did not add to the pomoerium
" then, but afterwards." Some religious cere
mony seems to have been necessary for the exten
sion of the pomoerium, distinct from the mere
removal of the stones. Thus Mount Aventine
was inclosed with a wall, and probably joined to
Templo S. Alexii, p. 438,) the Monte Testaccio is called
M.ons de Palio.
' Decline and Fall, c. 71. He refers us to Statuta Urbis
Romae, p. 186, and Muratori, Scriptores Rerum Ital. tom.
xxiv. p. 1124.
¦» Lib. i. c. 44.

LIMITS OF ROME. 59
the city waU, from the time of Ancus INIartius, but
was not included within the pomoerium till the
tune of Claudius.
For 430 years the Umits of Rome continued the
same. Servius TuUius inclosed a space so much
larger than was necessary for the population of
his day, that nobody thought of enlarging the cir
cuit of the walls tiU the time of SyUa. Tacitus
remarks," that no RoniEui generals, although
powerful nations were subdued, exercised the
right of extending the waUs, except L. Sulla and
Augustus. A. GeUius also" and SenecaP speak
of the enlargement of the waUs by Sylla. This
was U.C. 674. It is thought, that he took in
that part which lies towards the gardens of Sal
lust, and probably altered the position of the
Portffi CoUina and ViminaUs. Dio Cassius'' and
A. GeUius' assert also, that J. Caesar made a
farther extension. Cicero hints the same thing.*
This was about U. C. 720. The above quotation
from Tacitus also shows Augustus to have imitated
them, which was about the year 746, upon occa
sion of the conquests made in Germany by Drusus.
These two last extensions probably were in that
part which Ues between the Portae CoUina and
Capena. Tacitus says expressly' that Claudius
extended the waUs, and A. Gellius tells us " that
° Ann. lib. xii. c. 23. " Lib. xiii. c. 14.
P De Brev. Vita;, 14. i Lib, xliii.
' Lib. xiii. c. 14.
• Epist. ad Att. lib. xiii, ep. 20, 33, 35.
' Lib. xii, c. 24. " Lib. xiii. c, 14.

60 POPULATION
he took in Mount Aventine, which had been be
fore walled in, but not included in the circuit
of the city. Nero and Trajan made additions
according to Vopiscus,"" but what precise space
was added cannot be ascertained. The last and
greatest increase was made by Aurelian, since
which time the circuit has remained the same to
our days, with the exception of a few alterations
caused by repairs after different sieges. The
annexed plan wiU afford some idea of the original
waU as drawn by S. TulUus, and of the more ex
tended one raised by AureUan, the dotted lines
marking the former. It has been supposed, from
the appearance of the waUs, that he ran them up
in a great hurry. We cannot come to this con
clusion from the materials of which they are
composed, because so much of them has been
rebuilt : but he seems in some instances to have
taken advantage of buildings ah-eady in existence,
and to have made them continue on his new line.
The wall buUt by S. TuUius was of stone, but
that of Aurelian was probably aU or mostly of
brick, as it is now.
Few questions connected with Roman history
are so perplexing as the population of the city
during these intervals. Livy tells us,y that in the
time of Servius TuUius, who first instituted the
census, the numbers amounted to 80,000. Eutro
pius says, that there were 83,000 citizens, reckon
ing those in the country.^ But the difficulty in
' Vita Aureliani, c. 21. J Lib. i. c. 44. ^ Lib. i. c. 7.

roi. I. r. 60.

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OF ROME. 61
this and all the succeeding enumerations, is to
know what description of persons the census com
prehended. Livy himself considers this as a point
not decided: he quotes Fabius Pictor, as saying,
that this first census only included those who were
capable of bearing arms. But a passage in Dio
nysius seems to show, that this was not always the
meaning of the census. Speaking of that which
was the fifth from the first institution, he says,
that the whole number was 150,700, and that after
the return was given, a separation was made of
those who were of the age for mihtary service from
those who were older. If we foUow the usual cal-
cidation, that those who are fit for mUitary service
form a fourth or fifth part of the whole popula
tion," the inhabitants of Rome in the reign of
Servius TuUius would amount to between 300,000
and 400,000, a number much too great for so
early a period. AU the inhabitants of Rome were
evidently not numbered: it must also be supposed,
that slaves were not; and, if we judge from the
object for which the custom was estabUshed,
women and children would also have been ex
cluded. Livy,*" stating the census in 289 at
124,214, expressly says, that widows and widowers
were excepted, from which it might be argued,
that all women were not excluded : and we have
the evidence of Cicero, that a foreigner, though a
female, might be made a citizen of Rome.'' Dio-
» Adam Smith, b. v. c. 1. '' Lib. iii. c. 3.
¦¦ Pro B^lbo, 24.

62 POPULATION
nysius remarks,'' that the people not reckoned in
the census, such as women, children, slaves, trades*
men, mechanics, &c. were three times as numerous
as those who were included. This author always
uses the expression, " those who were of age,"'
which seems clearly to prove, that children were
not reckoned. A passage in PUny is perhaps im
portant upon this question : speaking of the inha
bitants of Rome in the year 365, when it was
burnt by the Gauls, he says, that the census gave
a return of 152,573 freemen. The expression
quoted above from Eutropius agrees with this:
and it appears from other parts of his history, that
citizens only were enumerated.
In the fourth year of the second Punic war,
Livy states the numbers to have been 270,213.
In the tenth year of the same war they were
137,108. The diminution may naturaUy be ac
counted for by the long and destructive war
which was then raging. In the year 549 U. C.
which was four years afterwards, the return was
214,000; but then, as we learn from Livy,' the
censors went to the armies, which were in the
various provinces, and beside the natural born
citizens, many of the Latin alUes were included
in the census. It appears, that these wei-e men,
who had been made citizens, and had conse
quently settled in Rome : for shortly after we find
the aUies complaining of this migration, and ac
cordingly 12,000 naturaUzed aUies were sent away
¦> Lib. ix. ' nit iv !iS». ' Lib. xxix. c, 37.

OF ROME. 63
from Rome : and a decree was afterwards made,
that the names of such persons should not be
taken in the Roman census, but in their respec
tive cities. From the close of the Punic war to
the year 667, they went on progressively increas
ing, at least with few and smjdl exceptions. In
the year 667, according to the Chronicle of Euse
bius, they were 464,000, or according to some
copies 483,000. Soon after this succeeded the
civU wars of Marius and Sylla, which greatly
diminished the number of citizens. In 683, the
numbers were 450,000, as we learn from the
Epitome of Livy, lib. xcviii. At the end of the
civU war, U, C. 707, Plutarch says,s that the re
turn was only 150,000, instead of 320,000, which
was the number at the beginning of the war,
making a diminution of 170,000, But Brotier''
says, that Plutarch has made a mistake, and other
authors after him, as Caesar's object was only to
ascertain the number of people, who were to have
an aUowance of corn from the pubhc; and this
number, not that of the whole population, was
150,000. The Epitome of Livy' agrees with
Plutarch; which, if Brotier's opinion be correct,
is an additional argument, that these Epitomes
are by another hand, for Livy himself could hardly
have made such a mistake.
If we pass from hence to the time of Claudius,
we find an increase, which exceeds all calcula-
s In Vita Caesaris.
•¦ In his Annotation upon Tacitus, An. lib. xi. c, 25.
' Lib, cxv.

64 POPULATION
tion, and which it is impossible to reconcile with
the limits of Rome. Tacitus'' states, that in the
reign of Claudius the inhabitants amounted to
5,984,072. In this enumeration, the suburbs, and
in fact great part of the Campagna, must have
been taken into the account ; for it is demon
strable, that Rome within the walls could never
have contained six millions. Nor will the num
bers contained at former periods allow us to con
ceive such a prodigious increase to have taken
place, even if the walls would have contained
them. We must, therefore, either suppose the
passage in Tacitus to be corrupt, or that he took
into his calculation not only the citizens > residing
in Rome, but all that were caUed out of Italy by
business, or any other cause ; and that such were
occasionaUy included in the census, is shown by
Sigonius,' out of Livy and Dionysius. Another
explanation is given by some writers,"" who say,
that during the Republic the census was only held
within the walls of Rome, whereas Augustus ex
tended it to the provinces ; and certainly the
increase, in the time of Augustus, is greater than
could have been produced by the mere progress
of population within the walls. We have an
account of three census held by him. According
to an inscription found at Ancyra," the numbers,

¦* An. lib. xi, c. 25.
' De Jure Civ. Rom, lib. i, c, 14.
'" Vide J. Vossius de Magnit. Romae,
» Vide Chishull Antiq. Asiat. p, 173.

CENSUS. 65
in 725, were 4,063,000. In 745° they were
4,203,000; and in 766, they were 4,137,000. It
should be mentioned, that Eusebius makes the
numbers, upon the last occasion, 9,300,000; and
in the time of Claudius, 6,944,000, instead of
5,984,072, as given by Tacitus. But though this
seems an incredible number for the inhabitants
of Rome ; on the other hand, it is far too small if
all the provinces were taken into the account;
and Suidas must evidently be wrong, when he
says that Augustus, wishing to ascertain the num
ber of citizens throughout the empire, found it to
be 4,101,017, — a number far too small. His enu
meration, however, is probably correct, as it agrees
so nearly with the inscription at Ancyra, and there
is nothing improbable in supposing that he in
cluded aU Italy in his survey,P and that aU the
citizens were numbered. We might at least sup
pose the suburbs to be included ; and even in that
case the numbers would hardly be extravagant;
for we may safely extend them, in some directions,
to a distance of forty mUes.
After stating these facts wdth respect to the
census, it may be expected that some inference
would be drawn from them, as to the real method
of making that enumeration ; and perhaps an easy
explanation may be found, which wiU account for
" This was the census mentioned in Luke, ii. 1. which was
begun eight, or, more properly, three years before the birth of
Christ. " That all Italy was included in the census in the time of
Cicero, appears fi-om his first Oration against Verres, c. 18,
VOL. I. F

66 CENSUS,
aU the circumstances above stated. In the first
place, we wiU coUect from these data what descrip
tions of people were not included, and that may
enable us to come to some understanding of who
were. Minors, slaves, and mechanics, although re
siding in Rome, were not reckoned, i The citi
zens who were absent on military service were not
always reckoned, or else Livy would not have
mentioned it, as an extraordinary circumstance,
that they were so in 549 :"¦ and Cicero seems to
say, expressly, that they were not.' As to the
aUies, the senate and people had the power of
admitting them into the census, or excluding
them from it, although they possessed the free
dom of the city. From these data we are autho
rised in collecting, that citizenship and residence
in Rome were two of the qualifications for the
census, as ordinarily held. If, then, the question
be asked, what description of people did the
census enumerate ? we answer generaUy, Roman
citizens. The above data are sufficient to show,
that none but Roman citizens were included ; but
it is equaUy true, that all those, who were citizens,
were not regularly enroUed. This does not really
present any difficulty, but might naturally he
expected, from considering the object of Servius
TuUius. The census was instituted for two pur
poses ; pne was, to ascertain what portion of the
1 Dion. Hal. lib. ix. '¦ Vide lib. xxix. c. 37.
* Pro Archia, 5.

CENSUS. 67
free population was capable of bearing ai-ms ; the
other was, to know the property possessed by
each citizen, and, consequently, how much he
could contribute to support the state. The cen
sus was not intended, according as we now use
the term, to ascertain the numbers of the whole
population; and the Latin term is accordingly
used to signify the revenue, or yearly income, of
any person. We shaU, therefore, be at no loss
to see why, on some occasions, all the Roman
citizens were not included in it ; and this will lead
us to an explanation of aU the circumstances men
tioned above. Widows and widowers were exempt
from paying any thing to the pubUc treasury;'
consequently there was no necessity to enumerate
them ; and, according to Livy, they were not enu
merated in 289. But we may fairly infer, that
heiresses possessing any property " would be rated
according to the value of it ; and that the daugh
ters of citizens married to strangers would likewise
be rated. Hence, also, the soldiers on foreign ser
vice were not enumerated ; because one object of
the census, the ascertaining how many were capa
ble of bearing arms, was already obtained, as far as
' Servius TuUius laid a tax of 2000 pounds of brass upon
the widows, to maintain the horses of the knights. (Liv.
lib. i. c. 43.) But this very fact proves them to have been
exempt from other taxes.
" There was a law passed, Lex Voconia, in 384 U.C. by
which no female was able to inherit property. (Cic. in Ver.
i. 42.) But the law was eluded, and became obsolete. (A.
Gell. lib. XX, c. 1.)
f2

68 CENSUS,
they were concerned ; and since they did not pay
any thing to the state whUe on duty, there was no
reason to take their names at all. But in U. C
549, when the senate was anxious to make the
return as large as possible, we find that the cen
sors sent to the different provinces, where the
armies were, and took a census of the soldiers.
The reason of this measure is very evident. At
this time, which was during the second Punic war,
great numbers of the aUies had been admitted
into, the army; but these were not all citizens,
and, consequently, not aU to be depended upon ;
and as the object of the senate was to ascertain
what was the military strength in the citizens who
could be compeUed to serve, they naturally ex
tended their investigation beyond the limits of
Rome. We may conclude, therefore, that a dimi
nution or increase in the numbers of the census
does not necessarily prove, as is generally sup
posed, that the whole population was increased or
diminished since the former return ; but the cen
sors were more or less strict in their office, accord
ing to the exigence of the times. Cicero mentions
one year, U. C. 664, in which none of the lower
orders of people were noticed at aU by the cen
sors," To be a citizen of Rome, that is, to have a vote
in the Comitia, three things were necessary ; that
the person should be domiciled, that he should
belong to one of the thirty-five tribes, and that
" Pro Archia, 5.

CENSUS. 69
he should be capable of fiUing the public offices.
The Jus Latii and the Jus Italiae, which were
privileges granted to the allies, were short of
actual citizenship, and did not make a person a
fuU citizen, or cause his name to be taken in the
Roman census. The very act of being enroUed
upon the censor's Ust, conferred all the rights of
citizenship,^ and might be produced as evidence
of the person having been considered a citizen at
the time of the census ;" and slaves, with the con
sent of their masters, sometimes entered their
names, and thus became free citizens. But no
persons could vote in the Comitia, nor could they
be taxed for the reUef of the state, unless they
resided in Rome; so that it was optional with
the censors to take the provinces into their sur
vey, or not. After the extraordinary census in
549, we have seen that 12,000 of the allies were
ordered to quit Rome, although their names had
been admitted with the rest; for the cities to
which they belonged complained of their absence,
and the only way by which the Romans could
exclude them from the census, was by making
them cease to reside in Rome. Another decree
foUowed, that their names should in future be
tEiken in their respective cities ; and these num
bers were sometimes transmitted to the Roman

y Vide Cicero pro Caecina, 34, pro Balbo, 2.
' Ib. pro Archia, 5.

70 CENSUS.
censors, though not taken into the general ac
count." As the citizens of Rome came to be dispersed
in various provinces, the numbers returned by the
census naturaUy fluctuated, because there was no
fixed rule as to what constituted residence. In
U. C. 658, the Lex Licinia Mucia was passed,
which ordered aU the inhabitants of Italy, who
were Roman citizens, to be enrolled in their re
spective cities;'' but no mention is made of the
provinces out of Italy. In 662, by the Lex Julia,
all the inhabitants of Italy were made to belong
to some tribe, and became fuU citizens. This
will account for the vast increase which we find
in the reign of Augustus, compared with former
returns. A census was held in the different
towns, and transmitted to Rome: some authors
have added these to the Roman census, and some
have not, which may account for the different
enumerations of the same return; and we are
therefore authorised in concluding, from the whole,
that, at first, the census only included the citizens
resident in Rome, but was extended, if required,
to citizens in foreign service. In later times, aU
the free inhabitants of Italy were numbered in
their respective cities, and the census was trans
mitted to Rome.
" Vide Liv. lib, xxix. c. 37. In Cicero's time, the Prffitor
of the province took the census in Sicily (in Ver. Act. 2.
lib. ii. c. 26) ; or rather, the Provincial Censors (Ib. c. 53).
'' Vide Cicero pro Balbo, 21, 24,

CIRCUMFERENCE OF ROME. 71
It would be interesting to trace the population
of the city from ancient times to the present;
but I am not aware of any authorities being in
existence which would enable us to do it. We
can form some estimate as to the numbers in
the time of Theodosius, as P. Victor states the
houses to have been altogether 48,382." From
this statement. Gibbon'' estimates the population
at 1,200,000. Brotier says, 1,128,162. In the
fourteenth century it was 33,000 ; under Leo X.
85,000;* and in the middle of the seventeenth cen-
tuiy, I find it reckoned at 90,000.' In 1709, the
inhabitants were 138,568, without reckoning the
Jews.s In 1740, they had increased to 146,080.
In 1765, Gibbon states them at 161,899. In
1821, they were estimated at 146,000, without
including the Jews. In 1826, the official state
ment made them 139,847.
The circumference of Rome is another ques
tion, which contains some difficulties; but they
are difficulties, which must arise either from cor
ruptions in the text of the ancient authors, or
from gross inaccuracies in the writers themselves.
What is the real measurement of the walls we
¦= In the year 1769, the number of houses was said to be
35,894; of which 28,000 belonged to the Church.
•¦ Decline and Fall, c. 31 .
' Lancisi, de Romani coeli qualitatibus. Jovius, VitaLeo-
nis X. lib. iv. p. 83; but in his own time, i.e. after the pillage
by the Spanish army, they were reduced to 32,000.
' Burton's Anatomy of Melancholy.
E Labat. Voyage, torn, iii, p. 217.

72 CIRCUMFERENCE
may know for certain, because they stiU exist :
we know, also, that any writers who have noticed
the size of Rome since the time of AureUan, ought
to give the same dimensions, which we find now
to be true ; and those who spoke of them before
that period, ought to make them much less. But
this is not the case. Dionysius,'' speaking of the
city in the year 291 from its foundation, says, that
in that time the walls were not more extensive
than those of Athens. The circuit of the latter
is estimated at a day's journey by Aristides, in
his Panathenaica. Strabo allows 250 or 300
stadia for a day's journey; Procopius only 210;
¦Dicaearchus and others lessen it stiU farther, to
200 stadia, about twenty-five miles. Dio Chry
sostom, also, makes the circuit of Athens 200
stadia.' Nibby quotes Thucydides'' as saying,
that the city of Athens, properly so called,' was
only 60 stadia (seven or eight miles) in circum
ference ; which would certainly come much nearer
to the truth. But Thucydides does not say so :
his Scholiast asserts it, and apparently frpm mis
understanding his author's words. So that we
have no sufficient authority for reducing the cir
cuit of Athens to so small a measure ; but we may
remark, that when Dio estimates it at 200 stadia,
he takes in the walls, which enclosed the Piraeus,
and perhaps the other writers did the same. Pliny
states the circumference of Rome at thirteen

¦' Lib. viii. i Orat. de Tyrannide.
'' Lib. ii, c. 13, ' to oo-tu.

OF ROME. 73
Roman miles and 200 paces ;"' which, as he wrote
nearly 200 years before the time of Aurelian,
seems an exaggerated statement. Gibbon says,
in his concise way, " PUny's old measure of thir-
" teen must be reduced to eight miles. It is
" easier to alter a text, than to remove hills or
" buildings." Certainly vm may easily have been
corrupted into xiii. There is also another diffi
culty attending these accounts ; for if it was in
tended that there was a length of wall for twenty-
five or thu-teen nules, the circumference of the
whole city was much greater, since on the side of
the Tiber there were no walls. Vopiscus, who
wrote under Constantine Chlorus, says, that Aure
lian increased the waUs of the city, so that their
circuit measured nearly fifty nules ; an expression
which is utterly irreconcilable with their pre
sent dimensions. Olympiodorus ° says, that the
wall was measured by Ammon, a geometrician, at
the time of the first invasion by the Goths, and
was twenty-one miles in circuit. Procopius, how
ever, who was present at the thu-d Gothic war,
gives a description, which agrees very closely with
the present appearance.
In these statements, if the authors' words have
not been altered by transcribers, it was not in-
¦" Some copies have it thirty miles. Andrea Fulvio quotes
Pliny, as if he said twenty miles, and in another place thir
teen. The passage is in lib. iii, c. 5. " Moenia ejus collegere
" ambitu Imperatoribus Censoribusque Vespasianis anno
" conditae dcccxxvi pass, xiii. mcc."
" Ap. Phot, p. 197.

74 CIRCUMFERENCE
tended, in giving the dimensions of the city, to
take the mere circuit of the walls, but to include
some of the suburbs also ; and it is evident that
ancient Rome, like modern London, extended a
great way into the country, or Aurelian would not
have thought it necessary to enlarge the waUs.
Some writers, among whom is Isaac Vossius, sup
pose that the walls were much more extensive in
the time of the RepubUc, than afterwards ; they
accordingly Carry them a great way out into the
country, beyond the Anio, and nearly as far as
Gabii, Tusculum, and Ostia, making a circuit of
seventy miles and upwards. Their opinion, how
ever, wiU probably not convince many.
We may form some idea of the. extent of the
suburbs, when it is stated, that from Ocriculum
(OtricoU) to Rome, a distance of nearly forty
miles, the road was covered with buildings ; and
the same is said of the road from Rome to Ostia.
Dionysius says," " Whoever wishes to ascertain
" the size of Rome, will be led into error, and
" have no certain mark to decide how far the city
" reaches, or where it begins not to be city; the
" country is so connected with the town, and
" gives those who see it an idea of a city infinitely
" extended. But if one wished to measure it by
" the wall, which is scarcely to be traced on ac-
" count of the structures surrounding it on all
" sides, but which in many places preserves traces
" of the ancient building, the circuit is not much
° Lib. iv.

OF ROME. li)
" greater than that of xithens." If this remark
was true in the time of Augustus, it must havc
been much more so in the days of Aurelian.
Pliny also says,P " the houses by spreading them-
" selves have added many cities ;" meaning, pro
bably, that with little or no intermission there
were houses connecting Rome ¦^rith Gabii, Tibui-,
Ostia, Aricia, &c. &c. Florus literaUy caUs Tibur
(Tivoli) a suburb of Rome.'' Aristides, deceived
probably by this circumstance, thought that Rome
was without waUs. He lived in the time of
Hadrian."' Present accounts state the circum
ference to be sixteen Roman miles. Mr. Hob-
house walked round them in three hours, thirty-
three minutes and a quarter. I did it myself in
tliree hours and ten minutes,^ which would lead
me to conclude, that it was not more than thirteen
EngUsh mUes. MarUanus, one of the earliest
Roman antiquaries, says scarcely thirteen. G.
Fabricius, who wrote in 1550, says also thirteen.
Panvinius, writing in 1558, scarcely fourteen miles.
In this statement, the city on each side of the
Tiber is included. Poggio makes it ten miles,
and reckons 379 turrets. If a straight line be
p Lib. iii. c. 5. "• Lib. i. c, 11.
"¦ In the first edition of this work, I wrote Adrian; but I
have added the aspirate, because every coin and inscription,
which I have seen relating to this Emperor, prefixes it.
' In order to complete this work, it is necessary to cross
the river in a boat : this causes considerable delay ; but I have
reckoned only the time which it would take to cross it by a
bridge on foot.

76 GATES.
drawn through the city, from the Porta S. Lo
renzo on the east, to the Porta S. Pancrazio on
the west, we shall find the width of the city to
be about 14,500 feet.
At present there are sixteen gates, but only
twelve are open; the Pinciana and Latina on the
east, and the Fabrica and Castello on the West
of the Tiber, being shut up. In the wall of
Romulus, Pliny says,' that there were three
gates, or according to some, four. Antiquaries
are divided as to the position of these gates, and
the names of them. For as we find notice of
more than four in ancient authors, we must con
clude that some of the gates had more than one
name. We read of the Porta Carmpntalis, or
Scelerata; Pandana, or Saturnia; Romana, or
Romanula ; Mugionis, or Mugonia ; Trigonia,
and Janualis.
In the wall of Servius TuUius there were seven
gates, and in the part which Aurelian added on
the other side of the river there were three. To
ascertain the precise number of gates before and
after the time of Aurelian is difficult, if not im
possible. Great confusion arises from different
names being given to the same gate. The names
of more than forty have been collected by some
writers. Pliny says, that there were twenty-four,
or according to some copies thirty-seven, in his
time, i.e, in the reign of Vespasian: but these
were probably not all in the outer wall, and some
' Lib. iii. c. 5.

WALLS. 77
of them may have been in interior walls, which
surroimded some of the seven hills. P. Victor,
who wrote in the reign of Valentinian, mentions
thirty-seven gates. Procopius" says, that in his
time there were fourteen, and some other smaller
ones ; which latter expression makes his testimony
of little use.
An inscription states, that Benedict XIV. ve^
paired the whole circuit of the walls in 1749,
Several other inscriptions recount what former
popes had done ; and these repairs have been so
frequent, and at such different times, that it is
difficidt to say how much of the original building
now exists. At the time of Alaric's first invasion,
about the year 400, they were put into complete
repair, having before been in a ruinous state.
Claudian poeticaUy caUs them new walls ; and the
whole passage is interesting:
Addebant pulchrum nova mcenia vultum,
Audito perfecta recens rumore Getarum.
Profecitque opifex decori timor; et vice mira
Quam pax intulerat bello discussa senectus.
Erexit subitas turres, cinctosque coegit
Septem continuo montes juvenescere muro.
De vi. Cons. Honor. 531.
An inscription may be seen in the Collection of
Gruter, from which we learn the same fact. It
mentions the restoration (instauratosj ofthe waUs,
gates, and towers, and the removal of a vast quan
tity of ruins under the direction of StUicho. We
° Lib. iii.

78 WALLS.
learn from Cassiodorus," that Theodoric aUowed
the inhabitants to make use of the stones of an
amphitheatre, to repair the walls, which had suf
fered by the invasion of the Visigoths, and partly
by age.y But Rome suffered most from the inva
sions of Vitiges and Totila. Procopius^ teUs us,
that when BeUsarius entered Rome upon the de
parture of Vitiges, he found that the walls had in
many places fallen down. He repaired them, and
erected towers higher than the former ones.
Procopius also mentions ditches round the walls.
This was in the year 537. Speaking of the third
Gothic war, he tells us, that Totila at first deter
mined to level Rome with the ground, to set fire
to the finest and most magnificent buildings, and
to turn the whole city into pasture. Fortunately
he did not execute his purpose ; and during the
residence of his army in Rome, about a third part
of the wall was thrown down in different places.
Shortly after, he adds, " BeUsarius marched to
" Rome, the walls of which had been thrown
" down by the Goths. As he could not possibly
" build up in a short time that part of the walls
" which Totila had thrown down, he pUed the
" stones up which were lying near, and put them
" together without any order ; nor had he mortar
" or any other kind of cement to mix with them;
" but his only object was to give it on the outside
« Var. Epist, lib. i. 25.
y This was probably the reraainder of the amphitheatre of
Statilius Taurus, which had been burnt in the reign of Nero,
' Lib, iii.

CASTRUM PR.ETORIUM. 79
" the appearance of a building. On the inside,
" to support this mass of stones, he fixed a great
" number of poles in the ground. Beside this,
" he attended to the ditches round the waUs, and
" dug them deeper. In short, by the incredible
" activity of the whole army working together, all
" that Totila had destroyed was repaired in fifteen
" days." This hasty work was strong enough to
resist another siege, which was immediately com
menced by TotUa. Again, " AVhich walls, when
" Narses put an end to the Gothic war, were sub-
" sequently arranged and strengthened, Narses
" himself supplying mortar and lime to the parts
" which BeUsarius had run up." I have given
these passages at length, because they may ac
count in some measure for the motley appearance
of the present walls. We must suppose, however,
that some of the original building stiU exists.
Between the Porta Pia and S. Lorenzo there
will be found a quadrangular projection, which
is even older than the time of Aurelian. It was
buUt by Tiberius for the Praetorian guards, and
caUed the Castrum PrcBtorium. It was then cut
of the walls, but near to them, as we learn from
Pliny," Herodian,*" and J. Capitolinus.'^ In stating
this to be the work of Tiberius, I do not mean
that every part of it is actuaUy of that age. We
know that it continued a square inclosure with
barracks for the soldiers till the time of Constan-
» Lib. iii, c. 5, '' Lib. vii.
'" VitK Maximi et Balbini.

80 CASTRUM PR^ETORIUM.
tine, who, according to Zosimus,'' dismissed the
Praetorian guards, and pulled down their camp,
when he took Rome upon the defeat and death
of Maxentius. This projection was formerly sup
posed to have been the Vivarium, which Procopius
tells us was near this place, and which seems to
have formed part of the city walls. But the anti
quaries are now agreed, that the space in question
belonged to the Praetorian camp. Suetonius
places it near to the Via Nomentana,* and the
Scholiast of Juvenal says, that it was near the
Agger of Servius TulUus, and behind the Baths
of Diocletian.^ The greatest part is well built of
brick; but some has been rebuUt in a very rough
manner, apparently of the old materials, and some
large stones. This latter part may have been the
¦^ork of BeUsarius, and some oddly-shaped towers
are ascribed to him : but we can hardly suppose
that the Goths threw down the whole of it, be
cause the repair would then naturally have been
carried on in a straight line, and the quadrangular
form no longer preserved. Consequently much
of the brick work is likely to be as old as the time
of Tiberius. Nibby thinks that the upper half
of the walls may be perceived to have been a sub
sequent addition. An ancient weU is stiU pre
served within the precincts of the camp.
Between the Porta del Popolo and Pinciana
there is likewise a part which is very old. It is.
that which is under the Pincian hill, and seems
•• Hist. lib. ii. ^ Nero, c. 48. < Sat. x. 95,

MURO TORTO. 81
to have been intended to keep up the bank. It
is built in arches with deep recesses, and some
times there are two rows of arches, one above
the other. It is mostly of the opus reticulatum,
which is a term used by Vitruvius^ to express a
particular kind of buUding, composed of smaU
stones, not set horizontaUy, but upon one of their
angles, so as to have the appearance of net work.
There is an idea now at Rome, that this is always
a sign of great antiquity: but Vitruvius, by calUng
it very fashionable in his day, seems to indicate,
that it had not been long introduced: and what
is stronger, he expressly opposes it to the ancient
method. We have no certain specimen of it later
than the age of the Antonines. Vitruvius con
siders it as a perishable mode of building, and
says, that several waUs, where it was used, had
tumbled down. But we have many instances
where it stUl exists, and apparently in great
strength: and this very portion of the Roman
walls might be cited as one, unless indeed we
attribute the inclination of the Muro Torto to
this cause. That which bears this name is
a great mass of waU, about fifty palms in length,
considerably out of the perpendicular, and is
supposed to have been so in the time of Aure
Uan. Procopius, who wrote in the sixth century,
gives an exact description of it.*" " Near the
" Pincian gate there is a part of the wall which is

« Lib. ii. c. 6. Pliny also mentions it, lib. xxxvi. c. 22.
¦• Lib. iii.
VOL. I. G

82 MURO TORTO.
" rent, the stones having been separated for a
"long time: and this rent does not only begm
"from the middle, but goes from the bottom to
" the top, and makes the wall incline so much,
" yet without falling, that it seems both to lean
" out and to be recessed back, owing to the rent
" and breach in it, BeUsarius wished at this
" time to puir down the part which inclined, and
" rebuUd it ; but the Romans hindered him, say-
" ing that they knew for certain that St. Peter
" had promised to guard that place. This turned
" out as they had declared, for neither on that
" day, when the Goths attacked nearly the whole
" circuit of the waUs, nor during the whole time
" of the siege, did the enemy ever come to this
" spot, nor was there any alarm there. I am
" certainly very much surprised,^ that during so
" long a siege neither the enemy nor the Romans
" regarded this place; and the affair having since
" been deemed a miracle, no one has ventured to
" repair this breach or build it anew: but this
" rent may be seen to the present day."
Another portion, which is undoubtedly as old
as the time of AureUan, if not older, is to be seen
near the Porta Maggiore. It served for an aqua
duct, with open arches at the top ; and from the
abrupt angles which the wall makes, where the
aqUaduct begins arid terminates, it would rather
seem that Aurelian took advantage of a bmlding
already existing, than that it was applied to the
purpose of conveying water after it was built.
This would give it a date considerably older than

WALLS. 83
the time of Aurelian, and probably assign it to
the reign of Claudius, who formed this aquaduct.
Nardini thinks that the Vivarium, or place where
the wild beasts were kept, was joined on to the
wall which is to the east of the Porta Maggiore.
The Amphitheatrum Castrense, between the
Porta Maggiore and S. Giovanni, is another un
doubted reUct of the ancient walls: and Uke the
Castrum Praetorium, it probably existed before,
and was taken into the line. The date of this
carmot be accurately known. It is all of brick,
even the Corinthian piUars, and seems to have
been but a rude structure, sufficient for the
amusement of the soldiers, for whom it was
buUt, Between this and the Porta S, Giovanni the
waU again serves for an aquaduct, and the
foundations are the natural rock. Many other
portions of the waU may probably be as old as
AureUan, but those which I have mentioned un
questionably are so, if not older; and it would
seem from what has been said of them, that the
emperor was in a considerable hurry when he
enlarged the circuit, and took advantage of any
thing which was already standing and could
serve his purpose. Or we may perhaps suppose,
that it was in the time of BeUsarius that these
buUdings were taken in, and the walls assumed
their present motly appearance.
On the other side of the river there does not
seem to have been much inclosure before the
g2

84 JANICULUM.
time of AureUan, though the hiU of the Janicu
lum must always have been in some measure
fortified. We learn indeed from Procopius, that
a wall had been raised round " the little hiU of
" the Janiculum" to protect the mills which were
constructed in that quarter: and he adds, that
after the bridge was built, which connected this
hill with the city, several houses were erected
there, so that the Tiber might thenceforward be
said to pass through the middle of Rome. This
bridge must have been the Ponte Sisto, which
was called the Pons JaniculeUsis. We must re
member, however, that the Vatican was not in
cluded in that part of the Jariiculum which was
fortified so early. The Janiculum itself extended
much farther ; and the name seems to have been
applied to all that rising ground which reaches
as far as the Ponte Molle. Livy tells us,' that
Ancus Martius first joined the Janiculum to the
city, not because he wanted room for his sub
jects, but that an invading enemy might not be
able to annoy the city from so commanding a
position. The Pons Sublicius was also buUt in
his time. Aurelian inclosed the portion which
is now at the south-west angle of the city. The
southern extremity of this wall met the river
opposite to the wall on the other side, but a little
higher up. The northern end of it was nearly
opposite to the northern end of the wall of S.
' Lib. i. c, 33.

VATICAN. 85
TulUus. In this there were three gates; the
Porta Portuensis, close to the river, called also
Porta NavEiUs; the Porta Pancratiana, leading
into the country; and Porta Septimiana, also neai*
the river. This is thought to have its name from
the Emperor Septimius Severus, from a passage
in .iEhus Spartianus, who says, that Septimius
built Jani in the Janiculum, at the gate called
after his name. Some think it to have been also
caUed FontinciUs, mentioned by Livy'' and Sextus
Pompeius. TiU the time of Leo. IV the Vatican was not
inclosed with a wall. Before the days of Con
stantine there were probably few houses -in this
neighbourhood. Tacitus' and Lampridius speak
of the air being extremely unwholesome, and of
it being fiiUer of tombs than houses. But after
Constantine built the BasUica of St. Peter, a new
town arose; and the space between the tomb pf
Hadrian and the BasiUca was appropriated to the
numerous strangers who flocked from all parts
to visit this holy place. Anastasius, in his Life
of Pascal I. who reigned A. D. 817-24, says,
that during his pontificate, " owing to the neglect
" pf some EngUsh, (Angli,) aU the space inha-
" bited by them, which in their language is called
" Burgus, was burnt to the ground, so that not
" even a trace of the former buildings could be
" found." The fire extended so far, that nearly
the whole of the Portico, which led to the Basi-
^ Lib. xxxv. c.lO. ' Hist. lib. ii. c. 93.

86 LEONINE CITY.
Uca, was consumed."' In another place Anasta-
tius calls this suburb Saxonum Vicus; and the
name, which he says was given to it by these
foreigners, is still preserved in the term Borgo.
During this time the Basilica of St. Peter was
out of the city; and the church itself, as weU as
the neighbouring houses, was exposed to the
frequent depredations of the Saracens. Leo IV.
in the year 849 began to inclose the whole space
with a wall: in which work he was assisted with
money by the Emperor Lothaire, grandson of
Charlemagne; and in four years it was finished.
From hence this suburb acquired the name of
the Leonine City. The wall which inclosed it
was not connected with the more southern wall;
so that on the west side of the Tiber theire were
two distinct fortifications.
In Leo's wall there were six gates. Porta S.
Spu-ito, Turionis, Fabbrica, Pertusa, Pellegrini,
and S. Pietro. The latter seems to have existed
more anciently, and to have been called Porta
Cornelia and Aurelia: for though it has been
stated, that this wall was not raised till the time
of Leo IV. yet there was a fortification round
the tomb of Hadrian much earlier, as we learn
from Procopius, and Leo may have taken ad
vantage of one of the gates in it. The Via
Aurelia went out of it, which passed by Pisa
and Genoa to Arelates (Aries). Urban VIII. in
"> The fire, which happened in this suburb in the time of St,
Leo, is the subject of one of Raffael's paintings in the Vatican.

LEONINE CITY. 87
1643 connected the two fortifications, and in
fact rebuUt the walls for the whole way; so that
two of the gates, Septimiana and S. Spirito, be
came useless. They are stUl existing as gate
ways. Urban also rebuilt the Porta Portuensis,
but not quite in the same place : it is now called
Porta Portese. The ancient and modern names
were taken from the port on the Tiber, which
was not far off. The next gate was perhaps
anciently called Janiculensis, but as far back as
Procopius' time, Pancratiana. Some have thought
it to be the same with the Porta Aurelia; but
Procopius talks of the tomb of Hadrian as being
just without the Porta Aurelia, and says ex
pressly that the Porta Aurelia was caUed also
S. Petri, from its vicinity to the Basilica. The
Via ViteUia went out of this gate. The old wall
of the Leonine City may still be seen in great
part within the waU bmlt by Urban VIII. It
was of stone, and had large round towers. There
are now only two open gates in this part, the
Porta CavaUeggieri, formerly Turionis, and P.
AngeUca, formerly PeUegrini." The wall of the
Leonine City has been repaired by several popes.
In that part of the old or inner wall, which is
between St. Peter's and the Castle of St. Angelo,
there are eight gates, all opened by Pius IV. in
1564, Beside these, some antiquaries have
" Over this gate may be seen the head of a noted robber.
Its present name is said to be derived frora Pius IV., who
caused it to be opened ; and Who, before his Pontificate, was
called Giovanni Angelo.

88 PORTA DEL POPOLO,
placed in this quarter the Porta Triumphalis,
which is supposed to have been near the bridge
of the same name.
On the left bank of the Tiber,, the first gate on
the north is the Porta del Popolo, of which some
mention has already been made, where it was
stated, that this gate serves instead of the Porta
Flaminia, built by Aurelian, which stood a little
more to the east. The modern name is said to
be derived either from some poplar trees, which
grew round the Mausoleum of Augustus, or more
probably from the great crowd of people who
enter by it. In the wall of S. TulUus there was
also a Porta Flaminia, upon the same road. This
stood a good deal to the south-west, and near to
the river, probably opposite to the north waU of
the Janiculum, and not far from the Farnese
palace. It was also called Flumentana," and so
Andrea Fulvio styles it, who wrote early in the
sixteenth century. The present gate was erected
by Pius IV. and partly with the materials of the
former one. The exterior was after the designs
of Michel Angelo ; and some of the marble was
furnished by the foundation of a pyramid found
not far off. The inner front was finished by
Alexander VII. upon the entrance of Christina,
Queen of Sweden, in 1655. The Via Flaminia
began from this gate, which was paved in the
censorship of C. Flaminius, and L. Paulus,
U. C. 533. It went by Ocriculum (OtricoU), In-
" Cicero ad Att, lib. vii. ep, 3.

PINCIANA, SALARA. 89
teranma (Terni), Fanum Fortunae (Fano), to Ari-
minum (Rimini). Here the Via ./EmUia began,
which was constructed U. C. 567, when M. .^Emi-
Uus Lepidus was consul. It passed by Bononia
(Bologna), Parma, Placentia, Mediolanum (Milan),
Brixia (Brescia), Verona, Patavium (Padua), to
Aquileia. This also was sometimes called the
Via Flaminia. Other roads fell into it at different
places, such as the Cassia, Aurelia, Annia, Clau
dia, Augusta, Cimina, Amerina, Sempronia, and
Postumia. The next gate is the Porta Pinciana, now shut
up. The name of Pinciana is as old as the time
of Procopius. The gateway is of stone, and
ancient ; probably such as it was in the time of
Honorius ; but two round towers of brick seem
much more modern.
The Porta Salara was so called from the cir
cumstance of the Sabines coming for salt, which
gave name to the road also.P It was called
QuirinaUs, AgonaUs, or Agenensis, and CoUina.
It was repaired by BeUsarius, and has two round
towers. Alaric entered by it ; and the destruc
tion of aU the buildings in the gardens of Sallust
was probably effected then. At the distance of
three miles from Rome, on the Via Salaria, is
the bridge where Manhus killed the Gaul ;' but
the present structure was the work of Narses.
P Vide Plin. lib. xxxi. c. 41. i Liv. lib. vii. c. 6.

90 PORTA PIA.
There was a wooden bridge here as early as in
the reign of Tarquinius Priscus.'
The Porta Pia was anciently caUed Nomen
tana, from the Sabine town of Nomentum, This
also gave name to the Via Nomentana, which
began originally from the Porta Viminalis, and
afterwards from this gate. It joined the Via
Salaria at Heretum, a town upon the Tiber,
This road was also called Ficulnensis,^ from'
Ficulneji, another town of the Sabines, the situa
tion of which has lately been discovered, at the
distance of seven or eight miles from the Porta
Pia, The gate had its present name from
Pius IV, who rebuilt it in 1559, with the designs
of Buonarotti; but it was never finished. It
had also the name of Agnese, It is a double
gate. Before the walls were enlarged, the Porta
CoUina held the place of the three last gates;
and it was through this that the Gauls entered
Rome, They marched along the Via Salaria;
and the battle of the AUia was fought near the
fourteenth mile from Rome, according to Vibius,
or the eleventh according to Livy and Eutropius.
Annibal also came near to the Porta CoUina,' to
take a view of the city, when his army was en
camped within three miles of it upon the Anio.

¦¦ Liv. lib. i. c. 37. ^ = Liv. lib. iii. c. 52.
' Val. Maximus says,Miat it was the Porta Capena; but
the other account is more probable ; and so says Claudian,
de Bello Gildon. 86.

ANIO. 91
He rode with two thousand horse as far as the
Temple of Hercules." Pliny tells us," that he
threw a spear within the waUs.
Most people will make an excursion from this
gate to the Mons Sacer, of which a short descrip
tion may be given in this place. The hill is
immediately on the other side of the Anio, where
it is crossed by the Ponte Lamentano, or della
Mentana, anciently Pons Nomentanus. It took
me forty minutes to walk from the gate to the
bridge ; which wiU- agree very well with the dis
tance of three mUes, mentioned by Livy" and
Cicero,^ if we consider that the distance was
measured from the Forum, or at least fi-om the
ancient Porta CoUina. The bridge, as it now
stands, was buUt by Narses, and repaired by
Martin V. The Anio is a narrow stream, and
as muddy as the Tiber. It will be remarked,
also, that the current is rather slow than other
wise; which has surprised some of the Commen
tators, who found Horace ^ apply the epithet of
rapid {prceceps) to the river; and who read
several passages in Ovid to the same purpose.
Among others, we may notice —
Hanc amnis rapidis animosus vidit ab undis.
Amor. iii. el. vi. 51.
Atque ita se in rapidas perdita misit aquas. — Ib, 80.
It is evident, however, that all these passages
• ° Liv.lib. xxvi. c. 10, Plin. lib. xv. c. 20.
" Lib. xxxiv. c. 15. * Liv. lib. iii, 52.
y Brut, 14. ^ Od. i. vii. 14.

92 MONS SACER.
relate to the Falls of the Anio at Tivoli ;" and a
true description of the current, as it passes
through the Campagna, may be seen in SiUus
ItaUcus :
Sulfureis gelidus qua serpit leniter undis
Ad Genitorem Anio, labens sine murmure Tibrim. xii. 538.
In which passage, the epithet sulfureis eridently
aUudes to the course of the river below the faUs,
after it has received the water of the Albula.
Virgil remarks the coldness of the water.''
The Mons Sacer is celebrated in Roman his
tory for two secessions ofthe people: first, when
they retired from the oppressions of the Patri
cians, U.C. 260; and again from the Decemviri,
U. C. 305. Speaking of the first secession, Livy
teUs us,'^ " that they retired to the Mons Sacer,
" on the other side ofthe Anio, three mUes from
" the city, and fortified a camp with a rampart
" and ditch." In the second passage,'' he says,
" that the people followed the army, — no person,
" whose age permitted, refusing to go : their
" wives and children came after them .... not
" a soul was to be seen in the Forum, except a
" few old men ; and the unusual soUtude made
" Rome look like a desert." The road passes
between two hills, both of which are very insig-
" The reader may turn also to Ovid. Amor. iii. el. vi, 46.
and to Statins, Sylv. i. iii. 20.
•" S.tijYih. vii, 68.9. ¦= Lib. ii. c. 32.
¦> Lib, iii. c. 52.

PORTA S. LORENZO. 93
nificant as eminences; that on the right would
be most secure, from its being a kind of isthmus,
formed and protected by the winding of the
Anio. An eager antiquary might perhaps dis
cover some traces of the ditch mentioned by
Livy, in a work which begins at the river, and is
there very deep, and foUows the base of the hill
tiU it comes to the road. This hill, however, is
scarcely large enough to contain the great mul
titude described by Livy : the eminence on the
other side of the road extends much farther, and
both were probably occupied.
We next come to the Porta S. Lorenzo, having
first passed by six gateways, which are blocked
up. One of these is perhaps the Porta Quer-
quetulana, which Pliny,^ Varro, P. Victor, and
Sex. Rufus, seem to place on the Viminal hill.
Sex. Pompeius caUs it Querquetularia. The
ancient name ofthe Porta S. Lorenzo was Tibur
tina, from its leading to Tibur or Tivoli ; and it
answered to the Porta Viminalis in the wall of
S. TuUius. Some suppose it to be the same
with the Porta Gabina, or Gabiusa, The Via
Tiburtina^ certainly began from the Porta Tibur
tina; and as P. Victor says, that the Viae Tibur
tina and Gabina were the same, it is probable
that the gate also bore both names. The ground
is raised about the gate ahnost to the very spring
= Lib. xvi. c. 10.
' It has been proved by excavations, that this road has
been three tiraes paved, the pavements having been discovered
one above the other.

94 PORTA MAGGIORE, S. GIOVANNI,
of the arch; so that we may infer it to be the
original gate, or at least very ancient; the two
angular towers seem to be modern. Some have
given this gate the name of Inter Aggeres; others
think it the same as what Pliny calls Querquetu-
lana. The Porta Maggiore is a very large work: it
was originally a kind of triumphal arch, built as
an ornament to the Claudian Aquaduct, and
stood between the Viae Praenestina and Labi
cana. Aurelian or BeUsarius took it into the
new line, and placed the Porta Praenestina on
one side of it, and the P. Labicana on the other.
The latter was afterwards stopped up, and the
P. Praenestina has taken the name of Porta Mag
giore. There are three ancient inscriptions on
it; one stating it to be the work of Tiberius
Claudius ; another mentioning the repair of it by
Vespasian, and another by Titus. Before the
new waU was built, the Viae Praenestina and
Labicana passed out of the P. Esquilina, or
Maecia ; the former on the left, the Labicana on
the right. Both fell into the Via Latina. We
might partly ascertain the position of the ancient
Porta Esquilina, because Frontinus says,^ that
the water called Anio novus entered the city by
that gate.
We next come to the Porta S. Giovanni. This
gate is modern, having been buUt by Gregory
XII. on which occasion the ancient Porta Asi
naria close to it was shut up. This was called
s Lib. i.

LATINA. 95
Caelimontana, and juxta Lateranos. But there
was a P. Caelimontana before Aurelian's time, as
Livy mentions it being struck with lightning,
U. C. 559.'' It has two round towers. Totila
entered by it. the first time.
After passing a gate, which is blocked up, and
known by the name of Porta di Metrodio, we
come to the Porta Latina, which is also shut up,
and is probably the same with that which Plu
tarch caUs Ferentina. Two round towers are
attached to it, and a groove may be observed, as
if for a port-cuUis. Whether the ancients used
any defence of this kind may be doubted. I am
not aware of any mention of it, but there seems
to have been something in this gate of a similar
nature, and Sir W. GeU observed the same at
one ofthe gates of Pompeu.' According to Mu
ratori,'' this as weU as the Barbican (or ante-
rampart to impede the approach of engines) was
borrowed from the Saracens. It was near this
spot that tradition makes St. John to have been
put into the vessel of boUing oU, by order of
Domitian, in the fourteenth year of his reign,
A. D. 96; and a Uttle chapel, now quite neg
lected, commemorates the event. It is not ne
cessary to give an opinion as to the authenticity
of this story; but there is at least respectable
evidence for it, as it is mentioned by TertuUian,'

•¦ Lib. xxxv. c. 9. Cicero also raentions it in Pison, 23.
' Porapeiana, p. 128. '' Antiq. Ital. Diss. 26.
' De Prsscr. c. 36. He lived A. D. 200.

96 PORTA S. SEBASTIANO.
and S. Jerom."" Neither of these writers men
tion the Porta Latina, which indeed did not exist
in the time of St. John: and as his sufferings are
always mentioned in connection with this gate, it
may perhaps be thought, that the whole story is
of later invention: otherwise we must suppose,
that tradition preserved the precise spot where
the event happened, and the gate was subse
quently placed near it. Origen mentions the
banishment of St. John, but says nothing of the
boiling oil."
We next come to the Porta S. Sebastiano,
called formerly Capena and Appia. The base
of the gateway and of the tower is formed of
large blocks of marble, and is probably as old as
any part of the walls. Before the time of Aure
lian, one gate, the Porta Capena, answered the
purpose of the two last mentioned, the Latina,
and S. Sebastiano. Two roads then branched
off from it: the Via Appia going to the right,
the Via Latina to the left. But when the waUs
were enlarged, two new gates were formed, and
the roads commenced respectively from them.
Perhaps we shall nearly ascertain the position of
the ancient Porta Capena, by placing it between
™ In Jovin. lib. i. u. 14. et Comm. in Matt. c. 20.; he Uved
A.D. 392.
" Com. in Matt. tom. xvi. § 6. Hippolytus also agrees
with Origen, if the tract upon the twelve Apostles be his
work. See Mosheim de rebus ante Const. Cent. i. § 36. and
his other work there referred to. Dissert, vol. i. p. 497—
546.

VI, v \ppi\. !)7
the churches of Nereo, and Cesareo, where at
present two roads branch off. Ovid mentions,
that thei-e was a spring of water near it sacred
to Mercury." As the Via Appia was the most
celebrated of all the Roman roads, this opportu
nity may be taken of describing its course more
at length, and the nature of these works gene
rally.? It was made by Appius Claudius Caecus,
who was censor, U. C. 441. In his time it went
as far as Capua, but was afterwards carried on to
Brundusium. It passed by Aricia (La Riccia),
Tarracina, Fundi (Fondi), Formiae (Mola), Min-
turnffi (Garigliano), Capua, Beneventum, Brundu-
simn. The whole length was reckoned at 350
mUes. Trajan did a good deal to tepair it,
(whence part of it was sometimes called Via
Trajana,) as did Antoninus Pius. One great
cause of its being out of order arose from the
Pontine marshes.** The land occupied by them
was inundated by the sea U. C. 440, according
to Pliny, and he quotes Mucianus,"' as saying,
that thirty-three cities formerly stood there :
previous to which time we may suppose that the
land was particularly fertile, as we read of Rome
looking to a supply of corn from thence, and in
° Fast. lib. V. 673. .
p A full description of the Appian way has been written by
Pratilli, Naples, 1755.
¦! Perhaps the word should be written Pomtine. In the
Greek of Dion. Hal. it is Pomentina; and Suessa Pometia, a
city of the Volsci, seems to have given the name.
¦• Lib. iii. c. 9.
VOL. I. H

98 PONTINE MARSHES.
372 it was divided among the people.^ One
hundred and fifty-two years after the work of
Appius, Corn. Cethegus Cos. again drained
them, U. C. 593. In the time of J. Caesar they
were again marshy, and he was prevented from
draining them by death.' Augustus also did not
succeed, though he undertook the work; so that
the words of Horace were not quite true, or at
least premature, sterilisve diu palus aptaque remis
Vicinas urbes alit, et grave sentit aratrum. Ars Poet. 65.
That there was no carriage road through tbe
marshes, we learn from Horace himself, who in
his journey to Brundusium passed them in a
boat:" and Lucan mentions a canal,
Et qua Pontinas via dividit uda paludes, — Lib, iii.
Trajan carried the road through the marshes
for a distance of nineteen miles, Theodosius
and his two sons, Arcadius and Honorius, also
repaired the road. In spite of all these succes
sive labours, the marshes still remain, Pius VI.
has perhaps effected as much as any of his pre
decessors, and a noble road has been constructed,
in a perfectly straight line, for upwards of twenty
miles. This road still remains good: but the
pope's sanguine hopes of turning the marshes
into fields, and inducing people to settle there,
" Liv. lib. vi. c. 21. ' Sueton, c. 44, " Sat, lib, i, 5.

APPIAN WAY. 99
have totally failed. In order to provide his new
settlers with reUgious comforts, he built a convent
for some Capucins, and a church : but the former
is now turned into a miserable inn, and the latter
into a stable. The care of a public road was
formerly an office of great honour. Pliny, in one
of his Letters," says, " I was uncommonly de-
" Ughted to hear that Cornutus had accepted the
" sui-veyorship of the .^mUian way: for though
" ambition ought to be removed from his heart,
" (as indeed it is,) yet it must be gratifying to him
" to receive so great an honour without seeking
" it." Criminals were employed to work upon
the roads as a punishment.^
Procopius gives an exceUent description of the
Appian road.^ " An active man might travel the
" whole length of the Appian way in five days.
" It goes from Rome to Capua; and is of suffi-
" cient breadth to aUow two carriages to pass
" with ease." This road is more worthy of obser-
" vation than any other: for Appius had stones
" cut from a different district, at some distance
" off; such as are used for mills, and are exces-
" sively hard. These, when they had been levelled
" and made smooth, and squared by cutting, he
" put down alternately, without any metal or
" any thing else to fasten them: and though
¦ Plin. lib. V. ep. 15. ? Ib. lib. x. ep. 41. ^ Lib. iii.
" In some of the streets of Pompeii, the marks of the car
riage-wheels remain. The space between them raeasures four
feet three inches.
h2

100 APPIAN WAY.
" they have been travelled for such a length of
" time by so many carriages and animals, yet we
" do not perceive that they have become dis-
" united, or broken, or that they have lost any
" thing of their polish."'' It should- be remem
bered, that this road had then existed nine cen
turies: and in some places it may be still found
entire, after a lapse of more than two thousand
years. The width seems to have been twelve
feet, and the stones were about a foot and a
half square. Soon after leaving the gate of S.
Sebastian, the road branches into two; that on
the right is the Via Ardeatina, the Via Appia
continues to the left. Several other roads joined
the Via Appia, such as Setiana, Domitiana, &c.
Horace tells us,'= that another road led to Brun
dusium, called Via Numicia, or Minucia. The
modern road to Naples is different from the
Appian for a little way, leaving it to the right.
It goes out at the Porta S. Giovanni, and joins
the Via Appia at Bovillae, not far from Albano.
The Via Latina went to Beneventum, through
Anagnia (Anagni), Ferentinum (Ferentino), Aqui-
num (Aquino), and Casinum (Monte Cassino). It
'' It is said by Isidorus, (Origen, lib. xv. c. 16,), that the
paving of highways was an invention of the Carthaginians :
and perhaps the most ancient paved roads in existence are
two leading to the ancient town of Solus, in Sicily, which was
inhabited by Phoenicians in very remote ages. Vide Thucyd.
1,6. <= Epist. lib. i. 18. 20.

PORTA S. PAOLO, GATES. 101
was paved in the time of Augustus, under the
direction of Messala; and was considered a most
astonishing work.''
It was by the Porta Capena that Totila en
tered the second time. Close to it is another
gate, blocked up; and before we come to the
Porta S. Paolo, we may observe another door
way also closed.
The Porta S. Paolo was anciently called Osti
ensis, and the one, which we see at present, was
rebuilt by BeUsarius. It is a double gate, and
succeeded to the Porta Trigemina of the ancient
circuit. The Porta Naevia was also between the
Porta Capena and the river.
This detaU wiU explain the names of the gates
now existing, and some of the ancient ones,
which are best known. But as many other
names are to be found in ancient authors, I will
subjoin an alphabetical Ust of all which I have
been able to discover, and, as far as I am able,
mark their situation.
Agonalis, or Agonensis : the Modern P. Salara.
S. Angelo : in the Leonine city.
Appia : the same as Capena.
Ardeatina : either Latina or S. Sebastiano.
Aurelia : in the Leonine city,
Capena : vide above.
Carmentalis ; one of the four gates of Romulus, on
the north side.*
^ Vide TibuU. lib. i. el. vii, 59. Mart. lib. viii. ep. iii. 5.
^ Ovid. Fast. lib. ii. 201. P. Victor also says it was to
wards the Circus Flaminius,

102 GATES,
Catularia : same as P. Pia.
Caelimontana: same as P. S.Giovanni.
CoUatina : same as Pinciana.
CoUina : vide above.
Esquilina : same as P, Maggiore,
Fenestralis, Ferentina : same as P. Latina.
Ficulnensis : same as Viminalis.
Flaminia : same as P. del Popolo,
Flumentana : same as Flaminia,
Fontinalis : same as P. Septimiana.
Gabina, or Gabiusa : same as S, Lorenzo.
Janiculensis : same as S. Pancrazio.
Janualis : one of the four gates of Romulus, on the
south side,
.Tulia : in the Leonine city.
Labicana : close to P. Maggiore.
Lavernalis: same as Viminalis.
Libitinensis : same as S. Lorenzo.
Mugonia : on the Palatine hill.
Munutia, or Minutia.
Mutionis, or Mugiona.
Naevia : vide above.
Navalis : same as P. Portese.
Nomentana : same as P. Pia.
Ostiensis: same as P. S, Paolo.
Palatii : in the Leonine city.
Pandana : one of the four gates of Romulus,
Peregrini : in the Leonine city.
Pertusa : ditto.
S. Petri : ditto.
Piacularis : same as Latina.
Portuensis: same as P. Portese.
Posterula: same as Turionis.
Praenestina: same as P. Maggiore,

GATES, 103
Querquetulana : near the P. Viminalis.
Quirinalis: same as P. Salara,
Ratumana : the first P. Flaminia.
Rauduscula : same as P. Esquilina.
Romana: 7 ., , ,. „^
T, , > one of the four sates of Romulus.
Komanulati °
Saginalis, or Sanqualis.
Salaria: vide above.
Salutaris: same as P. CoUina.
Saturnia: sarae as Pandana.
Scelerata: same as Carmentalis.
S. Spirito: vide above.
Stercoraria: ancient gate on the Clivus Capitolinus.'
Tarpeia: same as Janualis.'
Tibertina : same as S. Lorenzo.
Trigemina : vide above.
Trigonia: vide Mutionis.
Triumphalis : near the Pons Triumphalis.
Turionis : in the Leonine city.
Valeria: same as P. Latina.
Veientana.Viminalis : vide above.
Vinaria: same as Portuensis.
Viridaria: in the Leonine city.
This account of the gates, though tedious, will
perhaps interest those who are fond of ancient
topography. We may, however, proceed to a
point, which is Ukely to be the first in engaging
the attention of those who visit Rome. The
seven hUls vrill be among the earUest objects
which they seek out. If we foUowed the gradual
' Festus in v. Stercus. s Ovid, Fast. lib. i. 265.

104 PALATINE HILL.
progress which Rome made in arriving at its
present extent, we should begin with the Pala
tine hill, where Evander resided when ^Eneas
first landed, and where Romulus afterwards
established his infant settlement. Of this, how
ever, little remains to be said, beside what has
been mentioned already. A belief that it was
the first spot occupied by their ancestors, was
sufficient to endear it to the Romans ; and tradi
tion increased this feeling by making it the place
where Romulus and Remus were deposited by
the Tiber. The Ficus Ruminalis, under which
the wolf was found suckling them, was preserved
and shown for ages after. Tacitus describes it''
as having died down and revived again in his
time. Pliny also mentions it as still existing."
It was here that fable represented the cave of
Cacus to have been. It has been observed
already, that few or no remains exist now on this
hill, except those of the Palace of Nero; and
what Virgil says of the Capitoline hill may be ap
plied to the modern state of the Palatine, though
unfortunately we must reverse the expression:
Aurea nunc, olim sylvestribus horrida dumis.
.(En. viii. 348.
Of the remains of Nero's Golden House I shaU
not attempt a description, as they consist only of
irregular fragments of building dispersed over a
very large space, and of some subterraneous
'' Annal. xiii. .58.
' Plin, lib, XV. c. 1 8, Rumen signifies the same as Mamma.

PALACE OF THE C.ESARS. 105
chambers ornamented with pauituigs. They kre
very interesting to see, but a short time will
suffice for exploring them. The most consider
able remains are those whicli look down upon
the Circus Maximus.
Augustus lived in a house which formerly be
longed to the orator Hortensius, and which was
by no means conspicuous for splendour. Sue
tonius tells US'" that " he lived near the Roman
" Forum, in a house which had belonged to the
" orator Calvus; afterwards on the Palatine hill,
" but stUl in the moderately-sized house of Hor-
" tensius, which was remarkable neither for ex-
" tent nor ornament: it had narrow porticos of
" Alban columns, and rooms without any marble
" or remarkable pavement. He occupied the
" same chamber in winter and summer for more
" than fortj' years." It was burnt during the
reign of Augustus, and he rebuilt it. Dionysius
teUs us,' that when the palace was accidentally
destroyed by fire, Augustus ordered the whole
of the house, as soon as it was finished, to be
opened to the pubUc; either because the people
had contributed money towards the building of
it, or that being Pontifex Maximus he might live
in a building which was at once public and pri
vate. Tiberius made some additions; and Cali
gula extended it even to the Forum, by means of
a kind of bridge : the Temple of Castor and Pollux
was transformed into a vestibule to the palace,"
'' Cap. 72, ' Lib. Iv. "" Sueton. c. 22.

106 CAPITOL.
and porticos of great extent were attached to it.
Claudius restored the temple to its former office,"
so that he probably destroyed the bridge above
mentioned. But all these additions and aU this
splendour sunk into nothing, when compared
with the Golden House which Nero built when
the former palace was burnt down. Some idea
of its splendour and extent may be formed from
the account of Tacitus," who tells us, that beside
the usual costly decorations of a palace, there
were within the precincts of it fields and woods
and pools of water. It reached from the Palatine
to the EsquUine hill, covering all the intermediate
space, where the Colosseum now stands. When
it was finished, the emperor is said to have
exclaimed, that now he could Uve hke a man !?
Domitian still farther increased the size and
splendour of the building.'' It was burnt a third
time, in the reign of Commodus, and rebuUt by
that emperor. In the time of Theodoric it was
in a state of decay, and he undertook the repair
ing of it."' Part of it seems to have been standing
in the beginning of the eighth century.^
CAPITOL.
To most persons the Capitoline hiU wiU be
even more interesting than the Palatine. The
earliest history of Rome makes us acquainted
" Dion. Hal. lib. Ix. " Annal. lib. xv. c, 42,
p Suet, c. 31. 1 Suet. Domit. c. 15.
¦¦ Cassiodor. Var. Epist. lib. vii. u. 5.
" Anastasius, Vita Constant. Papae.

CAPITOL. 107
with the latter, but the Capitol is conspicuous
through every stage of its grandeur. When it
first became part of the city is not so well ascer
tained, but it is generally supposed that it was
taken in when Tatius was admitted to a partner
ship in the throne with Romulus. The origin of
its name, fi-om the head of Tolus ' being found
here in digging for the foundations, and the ora
cle which predicted universal empire to those
who occupied it, are well known." From whence
the story arose it is impossible to discover; but
the invention of the prophecy was at least politic :
and it is singular how early the Romans seem to
have talked of the extended empire which their
descendants were one day to hold. It may, how
ever, be objected, that several expressions, which
Livy puts into the mouths of his speakers, were
purposely used by him without reference to the
feelings of those times. The thatched cottage
of Romulus stood on this hiU, and was preserved
tUl a late period, never having been repaired in
a more costly form. It is mentioned by Lactan-
tius, who wrote about A. D. 320, and by Macro
bius, who Uved at the end of the same century.
The Capitoline hUl seems more anciently to
have been caUed Saturnius and Tarpeius. The
name is now corrupted into Campidoglio. This,
Uke the pther hUls, was much more marked
formerly, as a steep and precipitous eminence.

' Or Olus, according to Arnobius, lib. vi. p. 194.
" Vid, Liv. lib. i. c. 55.

108 TEMPLE OF
than it is at present. The top has been levelled,
and the ground at the bottom has been raised,
but still the ascent is extremely steep. The cir
cuit of the hill may be reckoned about half a mUe
at the base; but it is probably less extensive
now than formerly, as much of the soft rock has
been cut away, and some has fallen of itself.
The ascent from the side of the Campus Martius
is by an inclined plain: and from the same point
at the bottom commences another ascent of one
hundred and twenty-four marble steps, leading
to the Church of Ara Celi. The two summits of
this hill are still very perceptible ; they were dis
tinguished formerly by the terms Arx and Capi-
tolium.'" The former was on the southern side^
and the highest of the two, facing the river, the
Theatre of Marcellus, and Mount Aventine.
The Temple of Jupiter Capitolinus stood upon
it ; and it is now known by the name of Monte
Caprino. That which was more peculiarly styled
Capitolium, and faced the north, contained a
more ample space than the other. The princi
pal temple upon it was that of Jupiter Feretrius,
nearly on the site of which is the Church of Ara
CeU. The Temple of Jupiter Capitolinus was the
most splendid in Rome, having been first begun
by Tarquinius Priscus, who only lived to finish
-^ Seneca, de Constant. Sap. 6. Cic. iv. in Cat. 9. Liv.
lib. iii, c, 15; lib. v. c. 39, 41 . Val, Max. lib. iii, c, 2, et 7,
. . . cum se in Capitolium et in Arcem conferrent, inque his
collibus morari, &c.

JUPITER CAPITOLINUS. 109
the foundations, or rather to make preparations
for them, by levelling the summit of the hill. For
we learn from Livy ,5" that Tarquinius Superbus,
who resumed and completed the work, spent a
large sum upon the foundations only. Fabius
Pictor stated it at forty talents, which had been
the estimate for finishing the whole edifice. Dio
nysius says 400 talents; and Calpurnius Piso,
with whom Plutarch agrees,^ names 40,000
pounds weight of silver. The Temple was dedi
cated by M. Horatius PulviUus, who was consul
the first year after the expulsion of the kings :
his name was inscribed upon it." Dionysius,
speaking of it,*" says, " The temple stands upon
" a lofty foundation, with a circumference of
" eight plqthra, (about eight hundred feet,) and
" nearly two hundred feet on each side; there
" being scarcely a difference of fifteen feet be-
" tween the length and the breadth. The front
" looks towards the south. It has a portico with
" a triple row of piUars : on the sides there is a
" double row. Three equal chapels (o-ijxoi) are
" included within the waUs, having common
" sides: that of Jupiter is in the middle; on one
" side that of Juno, on the other that of Minerva,
" all under the same roof." I have quoted his
words in this place, although Dionysius was de
scribing the temple as it was in his days, i. e, in
the time of Augustus; but the dimensions of it

y Lib. i. c. 55. ' In Poplicola.
» Dion. Hal. lib. v. '• Lib. iii.

110 TEMPLE OF
always continued the same, and there were from
the first three chapels to Jupiter, Juno, and Mi-
nerva. The thresholds of the original buUdmg
were of brass,'^ but not made so till U. C. 458.
The pillars, which supported the roof, were of
brick white-washed: at least we might be led to
suppose that they were not of stone, as Livy
mentions'' that M. i^milius Lepidus had them
made smooth and plastered, (poliendas albo lo-
cavisse.) Montfaucon says, that there were
twelve columns in front. Shields and other mili
tary trophies were affixed to these piUars, all
which were removed by the same Lepidus. As-
drubal's shield, which was of silver, and weighed
138 pounds, together with a statue of him, was
suspended over the doors, and remained there
till the first fire.'' The roof of the interior was
made of timber, and gilt after the destruction of
Carthage, U.C. 612. '^ At the same time the
pavement in the interior was laid down in Mosaic.
On the top of it was a car drawn by four horses,
and the god Summanus in it, all made of baked
clay.s Summanus is supposed to be Pluto; yet
Ovid seems doubtful what deity bore that title ;""

¦^ Liv. lib. X. c. 23,
1 Lib, xl. c. 51.
" Liv. lib. xxv. c. 39. Plin. lib. xxxv. c. 4.
' Plin. lib. xxxiii. c. 18.
« Plin. lib. xxix. c. 35. Plutarch. Poplic. Cicero de
Divin. lib, i,
'' Fast, lib, vi, 731. Vide Arnobius adv. Gentes, lib, v. p,
183, et lib. vi, p, 191,

JUPITER CAPITOLINUS. Ill
and Livy ' mentions a car of Jupiter being placed
on the top in 456, but this was of bronze. There
was a portico placed in front of this temple, U. C.
578,'' and another in 594 by Scipio Nasica.'
The Temple was burnt U. C. 670, in the wars
of Marius and Sylla, and restored by the latter
upon the same foimdations, with pillars of a va
riegated marble from the Temple of Jupiter
Olympius at Athens." The passage quoted
above fi-om Dionysius gives some description of
its external appearance. The man who had im- '
brued his hands so deeply in his country's blood,
was not permitted to consecrate the national
sanctuary. SyUa died before the dedication,
and that ceremony was performed by Q. Catulus,
whose name was inscribed upon it:" and it has
been already stated, that the following inscription
once existed in the Tabularium,
Q. LVTATIVS. Q. F. CATVLVS. COS. SVBSTRVCTIONEM
ET. TABVLARIVM. S. S. FACIENDVM
COERAVIT.
He appears subsequently to have taken the addi
tional name of Capitolinus." He had also the
bronze tiles upon the roof gilt, which some of his
contemporaries censured in him, as an act of ex-
travagance.P It was the Temple thus restored
¦ Lib. X. c. 23, *" Liv. lib. xli. c. 27.
' VeUeius, lib. ii. c. 1.
™ Plin. lib. xxxv. c. 6. and lib. xxxvi. c. 6.
" Plin. lib. xix. c. 1. Cic. in Ver. Act. 2. lib. iv. c. 31.
" Suet. Galba, c. 2. p Plin. lib, xxxiii. c, 18.

112 TEMPLE OF
by SyUa, which was struck with Ughtning m the
year of Rome 689, when the bronze wolf was in
jured, as Cicero mentions. We learn also,*! that
part of the roof was thrown down together with
the statue of Jupiter : the latter was replaced on
a higlier elevation, and turned towards the east.
Lactantius '' says that the temple was often struck
with lightning and burnt: but history has re
corded no such event except that which took
place in 689.
It was again burnt in the time of ViteUius,
A. D. 69, and rebuilt on a loftier scale, but not
of greater extent, by Vespasian,^ who laboured
with his own hands to make a commencement of
the work.' Again under Titus, and was restored
by Domitian. The former Athenian pillars being
destroyed, he brought others of Pentelic marble
from Athens; but, according to Plutarch," by
smoothing and polishing them too much, he made
them too slender, and hurt their proportions.
In the bas-reliefs on the pillar of Trajan a temple
is represented, where that emperor is sacrificing
after his first Dacian war. This ought to be the
Temple of Jupiter Capitolinus, as rebuUt by Do
mitian: but we cannot depend much upon the
accuracy of the delineation, and the building is
extremely inelegant." Domitian gUded the out-
1 Arnobius, lib. vii. p, 245. Cicero de Divin. lib. i. c. 2.
¦^ Instit. lib. iii. c. 17. p. 233. ' Tacit. Hist. lib. iv. c. 53.
' Suetonius, Vesp. c, 8. " Poplic.
" In the engravings which have been published of Trajan's
Column by Ciacono, this is the seventy-sixth plate

JUPITER CVriTOLlNUS. 113
side of the roof, as Catulus had done to the
second temple; and Plutarch tells us,> that more
than 12,000 talents were expended upon the
work. Claudian^ mentions thei carved doors,
some Giants and winged figures, probably Vic
tories, on the top of the temple. It seems to
have suffered partiaUy from fire in the reign of
Commodus." AVe have no information at all from ancient
authors as to what order of architecture was
adopted in any of these successive buildings.
We might rather conjecture it to have been
Doric; and the piUars brought from Athens, first
by SyUa and afterwards by Domitian, probably
were so. The statue of Jupiter in the first tem
ple was of baked clay, and according to some
readings, painted red."" A work even so rude as
this was more than the Romans themselves could
effect in those days ; and an artist was hired from
Tuscany to produce even an earthen statue for
the Capitol. Juvenal says,
Hanc rebus Latiis curam praestare solebat
Fictilis, et nullo violatus Jupiter auro.
Sat. xi. 116.
Ovid also,
Jupiter exigua vix notus stabat in JEde,
Inque Jovis dextra fictile fulmen erat.
Fasti, lib. i. 201,
Plutarch says expressly," that the statue of Ju-
y Poplic. ^ De vi. Cons. Honorii, 45.
" Paul Oros, Euseb. Chron. '' Plin. lib, xxxv. c. 12,
•^ De Iside et Osiride.
VOL. I. I

114 TEMPLE OF
piter Capitolinus was ¦ destroyed by the fire in
Sylla's time. But whether this was the original
one of clay, or another of more valuable materials
had succeeded to it, is not certain. The latter
might be thought most probable, since a golden
thunderbolt, weighing fifty pounds, was placed in
his hand, U. C. 535:'' but we learn from an anec
dote mentioned by Seneca,^ that the earthen sta
tue was preserved to a period later than this.
That which was placed in the Temple after the
fire, was removed to make way for one of larger
dimensions in the Consulship of Cicero, U. C.
690,'' It is the opinion of Ryck,^ that there was
a statue of ivory,'' The beard was certainly of
gold, as we learn from Suetonius,' Pliny how
ever tells us,'' that the whole statue had been
made of gold, but that it did not exist in his time,
haring been destroyed by the fire: and it ap
pears' that he spoke of the fire which took place
in the time of Vitellius : indeed the third fire, in
the time of Titus, did not take place tiU after the
¦¦ Liv. lib. xxii. c. 1.
^ Epist. xcviii. Tubero would use none but earthen ves
sels at his table, because he said that raen ought to be con
tented with what was used for the gods in the Capitol. Tubero
married the daughter of .Srailius Paulus, and Paulus was
born U. C. 525.
' In Cat. iii. 8.
e He wrote a Latin Treatise, in 12mo. upon the Capitol and
its ornaments.
!' Cf. Plin, lib. xii. c. 1. Arnobius, lib. vi,
' Calig. c. 52. i' Lib. vii. c. 39. Lib. xxxiii. c. 55.
' Lib. xxxiv, c, 17.

JUPITER CAPITOLINU.'^. 115
publication of his history. It is said to have been
ten feet in height, and was the work of Mentor,
who acquired great celebrity by working in gold.
An expression in Lactantius inight lead us to
think that it was a sitting figure."' Trajan was
the first who caused the three statues of Jupiter,
Juno, and Minerva to be made of gold: at least
we have this epigram in Martial,
Scriptus es aeterno nunc primum, Jupiter, auro
Et soror, et summi filia tota patris. XI. 5. 3.
Ryck would read sculptus for scriptus, because
he tliinks that the statues were of sohd gold.
But scriptus auro can only mean gilt: and as
Martinus Polonus," in his description of Rome,
says, that there was a golden statue of Jupiter
upon a golden throne, it is probable that so large
a mass was made of some less precious metal,
and gilded. If the tradition be true, that St.
Leo, who was pope from 440 to 461, had the
statue of St. Peter made out of the bronze of
Jupiter Capitolinus, the question is decided.
Towards the end ofthe fourth century, StUicho
took away the plates of gold from the great
doors." Procopius says,P that Genseric plun
dered it in 455, and carried off half of the tiles,
which were of bronze gilt. Platina also tells us,
that Pope Honorius removed the bronze tiles
" Non hunc cujus efiigiera veneraris in Capitolio sedentem,
sed, &c. Instit. lib. iii, c. 14. p. 223.
" He was Archbishop of Cosenza in the thirteenth century,
" Zosimus, lib. v, Rutil, Numat, Itin, p Lib.i,
l2

116 TEMPLE OF
from the Capitol, and roofed the 3asUica of St.
Peter's with them. But as Anastasius says, that
he took them from the Temple of Venus and
Rome, the fact must be considered uncertain.
Totila appears to have burnt part of it, and The
odoric undertook to repair it. Insensibly how
ever, as Christianity gained ground, the Pagan
temples, and this among the rest, lost their vota
ries. Prudentius, who wrote about A. D. 400,
says, Jamque ruit, paucis Tarpeia in rupe relictis.
Ad sincera virum penetralia Nazareorum,
Atque ad Apostolicos Evandria Curia fontes.
Contra Sym. lib. i. 549.
The words of Jerom, who wrote about the same
time, may also be quoted: " Auratum squalet
" Capitolium, fuUgine et aranearum telis omnia
" Romae templa cooperta sunt. Movetur Urbs
" sedibus suis, et inundans populus ante delubra
" semiruta currit ad Martyrum tumulos.'"! S.
Ambrose, Augustin, and Arnobius, might be
cited to the same purpose. Platina"' mentions
that the Capitol and the adjoining temple, (by
which he probably means that of Jupiter CapitoU-
nus,) were injured by lightning in the reign of
Commodus: but there is reason to suppose that
great part of the temple was standing in the ninth
century.^ The Intermontium, or space between the two
1 Lib. ii. contra Jovin. ¦¦ Vita Eleutherii, i.
« Mabillon, Vet. Anal, tom. iv. p. 506.

JUPITER CAPITOLINUS. 117
summits, was the spot where Romulus opened the
Asylum. It is now occupied by tlie Piazza del
CampidogUo, a large open space, the buildings
of which were raised upon the designs of Michel
Angelo; but the effect of them is not pleasing.
These buildings form three sides of a square : in
front is tiie Palazzo Senatorio, built upon the
ruins of the ancient Tabularium, or Record-
office ; and in descending to the Forum a con
siderable part of the old foundations may be seen.
The present buUding was erected by Boniface
IX. and has its name from courts of justice being
held there, at which the senator presides. It
seems ridiculous to taUc of the senator in the sin
gular number: but such is the case; the name of
that venerable body being now preserved only in
the office of one man, who is appointed by the
pope. We stiU find the initials s. p, q. r, affixed
over pubUc buUdings, and carried in processions :
the Romans say also, that the senator represents
the people. But considering the mode of his
appointment, the high rank from which he is
always chosen, and the necessity of his being a
foreigner, we cannot conclude that the democra-
tical part of the Roman govemment is very power
ful. He has controul over the city-guard; and
throughout the whole office we find an evident
resemblance to that of Podesta, which prevailed
in nearly aU the ItaUan cities in the twelfth and
thirteenth centuries.
In the buildings, which form the two other
sides of this square, the Museum CapitoUnum is

118 CASTOR AND POLLUX.
contained. The ascent from the plain, and the
square above, are fuU of remains of antiquity. On
the balustrade at the bottom are two Egyptian
lionesses, spouting out water. They came from
the Church of S. Stefano del Cacco, near the
Collegio Romano: and this church is thought to
have been built over a temple of Isis, which might
account for these Egyptian antiquities being found
there. Pliny mentions the material of which these
animals are made, and caUs it Basaltes.^ Ac
cording to him the Egyptians brought it from
Ethiopia, and in their language the name ex
pressed its ferruginous colour and hardness.
On the top are two colossal statues of marble,
said to be Castor and PoUux, standing by their
horses. Some have wished to identify them with
two similar figures mentioned by Pliny," as the
work of Hegesias, and which stood in front of the
temple of Jupiter Tonans. Winkelmann rather
leans to this opinion ; * and adds, that they were
found under the hill of the Capitol. But the fact
is undoubtedly otherwise. They were found in
the Jews' quarter :y and Pliny says explicitly, that
the figures made by Hegesias were in bronze.
Winkelmann considers one of the heads to be
modern. By the side of them are two large trophies in
marble, generally called the trophies of Marius.
' Lib. xxxvi. c. 11. " Lib. xxxiv. c. 19.
" Lib. vi, c. 1. § 25.
y Vide Montfaucon Diarium Ital. p, 267. who quotes Fla
minius Vacca, 52,

TROPHIES OF MARIUS. 119
They came from the Castello dell' Acqua GiuUa;
but were originaUy dug up near the church of
S. Eusebio; and as the pai-t near this church has
always been caUed / Cimbri, it has been thought,
that some memorial of Marius's victory over the
Cimbri existed here. It is certain, that Marius
erected some trophies for his victories over Ju
gurtha, the Cimbri, and Teutones, which were
thrown down by SyUa and restored by J. Caesar,
as we learn from Suetonius : " and Valerius Maxi
mus expressly mentions two trophies." He also
speaks of a place in Rome caUed the Monuments
qf Marius.^ Some have thought them to relate
to Domitian, among whom is Winkelmann ; and he
says, that there was an inscription under them to
that effect, before they were removed:" but since
nothing more was legible than the following frag
ment, IMP. DOM. AUG.
GERM PER
CKE LIB
his supposition rests on very sUght grounds.
Others ascribe them to Trajan.
Near to them are two statues of Constantine
Caesar and Constantine Augustus, found in the
baths upon the Quirinal hill. The names are
inscribed upon them; but both are considered to
belong to the Emperor Constantine. Eusebius
mentions, that after that emperor's victory over
^ J. Caes. c. 11. Plutarch. Caes. c, 6.
- Lib. vi. c. 9. § 14.
" Ib. lib. ii. c. 5. § 6, and lib. iv. c, 4, § 8.
" Lib, vi, c. 6. § 60.

120 MILE STONE.
Maxentius, a statue was erected to him with a
long spear in his right hand, shaped like a cross.''
At the back of that which has constantinvs
avg. on it, there is a fragment resembling the
handle of a spear, which has been thought to
have been part of this cross.
Lastly, there is erected in the same row the
first milestone upon the Appian way. The in
scription is wonderfully perfect, and the wretched
distich, which is now placed under it, is worth
copymg: Quae peregrina diu steteram Mensura viarum.
Nunc Capitolini Culminis Incola Sum.
It was found in the Vigna Naro, a little on the
right, out ofthe Porta S. Sebastiano, and marked
the first nule from Rome. The antiquaries are
not agreed as to the point from which this mea
surement commenced. We know that Augustus
erected a pillar in the Forum, which was caUed
Milliarium Aureum;° and a passage in Plutarch'
has been interpreted to mean, that aU the roads
of Italy terminated at that point. But the words
may signify, that the distances of these roads
were marked upon the Milliarium Aureum ; and
some antiquaries, amongst whom is Nardini, con
tend that the mUes were measured, not from the
Forum, but from the gates. If we adopt this
opinion, we must remember that all the ancient
writers, prior to the time of Aurelian, must allude
¦> Hist, Eccl, lib. ix, c. 9, Vita Const, lib, i, c. 40.
s Dio, lib, liv. f Galba, c. 24.

STATUE OF M. AURELIUS. Igl
to the original and more contracted circuit of the
walls. The place where tliis milestone was found
is about one Roman mile from the site of the
ancient Porta Capena. At the other end of the
balustrade is a stone similar to this, made in imi
tation of it. The ball on the top is said to have
contained the ashes of Trajan.
In the middle of the square is an equestrian
statue of M. AureUus, of bronze. It stood ori
ginally at the Church of St. John Lateran;
and m 1538, Paul III. placed it here. The
pedestal was made by M. Angelo out of the
frieze and architrave of the Arch of Trajan. A
bunch of flowers is presented every year to the
chapter of St. John Lateran, as an acknowledg
ment that the statue belongs to them; and till
lately there was an officer, called Custode del
CavaUo, who received ten crowns per month for
taking care of this horse. It is the only bronze
equestrian statue remaining of ancient Rome;
though P. Victor says, that there were twenty-
two such in the city; or, according to some
copies, eighty-four. It was formerly called the
statue of Constantine, L. Verus, or Sept. Seve
rus. Addison says, that there is a representation
of it on a medal of Lucius Verus; but he does
not seem quite certain as to the identity of the
two figures. Some persons have fancied that
they observed an owl in the mane, and have con
cluded from thence, that the artist, who made
the statue, was an Athenian.^ It is certain, that
s \'ide Montfaucon Diar. Ital. c. 22.

122 STATUE OF M. AURELIUS.
this statue was originally gUt; of which some
traces stiU remain. Hence, as Winkelmann ob
serves,'' we may conclude, that the gold was laid
on by the ancients in very thick leaves. That
this was the method of gilding metal, we leam
from Pliny,' who explains the whole process.
He tells us, however,'' that it had not been long
practised, and doubts whether Rome had the
merit of first introducing it. Statues in bronze
were frequently gilt, as we may see in a Hercules
in the Capitol, where much of the gold remains,
in the horses at Venice, and in the fragments of
four horses and a chariot found at Herculaneum.
This, perhaps, is the reason why copper was
sometimes used instead of bronze, as the latter
was too valuable to cover with gilding. The
Venetian horses are of copper; but the statue of
M. AureUus is of bronze. Montfaucon' erro
neously says, that it was made by the hammer;
but it certainly was cast. In the Life of Cola di
Rienzo," (that extraordinary character, who in
1347 revived the office of Tribune at Rome, but
was unable to maintain it,) we read, that during
the rejoicings upon that occasion, wine was made
to run out of one nostril of the horse, and water
out of the other.
Where this statue now stands, were formerly

•> Lib. iv. c. 7, § 41. ' Lib. xxxiii. c. 20.
¦' Lib. xxxiv. c. 9. ' Diar. Ital. p. 169,
"¦ Written in Italian, by Fortiflocca, and in French, by
Cerceau.

T.\RPEI.\N ROCK. 123
two colossal figures ; one of Apollo, thirty cubits
high; the other of Jupiter Capitolinus, which
was so lofty, that it could be seen from the Mons
Latialis, near Albano, a distance of twenty miles.
It was made by Sp. CarviUus, out of the armour
taken from the Sammtes, when they were van
quished, U. C. 455."
On the southern sunmiit of this hiU, which is
more pecuUarly styled the Capitol, there is no
remnant of any ancient building. The Tarpeian
Rock may still be discovered, though it is sur
rounded by buUdings. The part, which is shown
in a garden, is in fact more a wall than a rock ;
though, as the stones and bricks are of course
only a facing to it, it cannot be proved that this is
not the place from which criminals were thrown
down ; and a classical experimentalist might,
perhaps, even now satisfy himself of the fact, by
submitting to a faU. This seems to be the highest
part, and the perpendicular depth' may be fifty
feet; but as the soU has accumulated exceedingly
at the bottom, it may have been nearly double
that height. Ficoroni" says, that he measured it,
and found it sisty feet, exclusive of the building
that had been added upon it. It may be interest
ing to read a description of the Rock, as given by
an ancient author. Seneca, or rather Ai-ell. Fus-
cius, as recorded by him, says of it,P "A lofty
" and precipitous inass rises up, rugged with many
" Plin. lib, xxxiv. c. 18.
» Vide Spence's Anecdotes, p. 93.
P Controv, lib, i, 3,

124 TARPEIAN ROCK.
" rocksj which either bruise the body to death, pr
" hurry it down stiU more violently. The points
" projecting from the sides, and the gloomy pro-
" spect of its vast height, are truly horrid. This
" place is chosen in particular, that the criminals
" may not require to be thrown down more than
" once." In another place he says, " It would be
" terrific even to those who look down it in safety."
Walking under the Capitol, on this same side, I
observed another part of the bare rock, which is
quite perpendicular, and almost high enough to
kiU a person who feU from it. The quotation
given above shows that the height was not so
great, but that a person might possibly surriye the
first fall. The chapter, from which it is taken,
mentions such a case. It also seems to be implied,
that the bottom of the rock was not far from the
Temple of Vesta. ^
Between the Palazzo Senatorio and the Mur
seum, on its right, is the principal modern descent
to the Forum, nearly in the direction of the an
cient Clivus Asyli, which was one of the three
ascents to the Capitol from the Forum, and by
which the commanders passed in triumph. In
1817 the original pavement of this road was dis
covered, when the Arch of Septimius Severus was
cleared out, under which the road passed; and
it would appear from the work of Barthol. Mai-r
lianus, (who lived in the time of Sextus IV.) that
the same pavement had been discerned shortly
before his time. He says it was seven feet wide.
The same is related by L. Fauno, who wrote in

ASCENTS OF THE CAPITOL. 125
the reign of Julius III. : and they both probably
speak of the time when the Temple of Concord
was destroyed to make lime. This road was
paved by order of the censors, U. C. 579.i The
three ascents were, 1. That of the Tarpeian Rock,
which went by a flight of one hundred steps, from
the western extremity of the Forum."' 2. The
CUvus Capitolinus, which had two branches; one
passed under the Arch of Tiberius, towards the
Hospital deUa Consolazione; the other near the
Arch of Sept. Severus, and between the Temples
of Fortune and Jupiter Tonans. These two
branches united behind the temple of Fortune;
and from thence the CUvus Capitolinus led straight
to the Intermontium. 3. The CUvus Asyli passed
under the Arch of S. Severus, and, going a little
to the left of the present ascent, conducted also
to the Intermontium. These three ascents, from
the Forum to the Capitol, are given according to
the opinion of Nardini. The subject is very weU
discussed by Wilson, in his " Journal of two suc
cessive Tours upon the Continent." He denies
the existence of these three roads, and conjec
tures that there was one oblique ascent from the
Forum, which, toward the lower part, was raised
upon arches, to make it more gradual.
The triumphal processions passed, as has been

1 Liv. lib. xli, c. 27.
'' Diversos Capitolii aditus invadunt, juxta lucum Asyli,
et qua Tarpeia rupes centum gradibus aditur. (Tacit. Hist.
lib. iii. c. 71.)

126 TRIUMPHAL PROCESSIONS,
observed, by the Clivus AsyU. The line of their
march was different, according to the side of the
Tiber from which the victorious army returned.
If the battle had been fought on the north or
west of Rome, the general waited on the right
side of the river, till the senate had granted him
permission to celebrate his triumph. When this
was obtained, he passed over the Pons Trium
phalis, and went along the Via Recta, now Strada
Giulia, to the Circus Maximus, where he received
the applause ofthe assembled people. It appears
also from the account of Vespasian's Triumph,
given by Josephus, that he sometimes passed
through the Theatres for the same pru-pose. He
then wound round the Palatine hill, passed by
the spot where the Arch of Constantine now
stands, and so reached the Forum by the Via
Sacra. The procession then ascended the Capi
tol, having gone under the Arch of S. Severus.
Some of the buildings here mentioned were of
late date: but the processions seem always to
have taken the same course, before the several
Arches were erected. If the victory was achieved
on the other side of Rome, the general waited on
the outside of the Porta Flaminia, or the Porta
Capena:^ and as soon as the senate had granted
him leave, he commenced his triumphal proces-
" This custom was observed so strictly, that C. Pontinius,
who defeated the AUobroges, U. C. 695, but met with opposi
tion in his dferaand for a Triumph, actually resided in the
suburbs for five years, when at length he obtained permission
and entered the City in Triumph.

MUSEUM CAPITOLINUM. 1.'37
sion. Having passed through the Circus Flami
nius, which before the time of AureUan was
without the waUs, and there received applause,
he went under the Porta Triumphalis, which
seems to have been only open on these solemni
ties. He then went by the Theatre of Marcellus,
through the Velabrum, and Forum Boarium, into
the Circus Maximus. From thence his course
was, as in the preceding case.
MUSEUM CAPITOLINUM.
Before we quit the Capitol, some account will
be expected of the antiquities contained in the
Museum. It is not, however, the object of these
pages to give a catalogue of the works of art.
To mention them in detaU would require a sepa
rate volume or volumes ; and a mere enumeration
of them would not satisfy.' I shall therefore
select a few of the most striking objects, and
occasionaUy add any iUustration of them, which
I may chance to have found.
The Museum is contained in the two buUdings
which stand on each side of the Palazzo Senato
rio. That which is on the right hand is ahnost
exclusively fiUed with antiquities. In the court
is the celebrated statue of Marforio, which is
thought by some to have represented the Ocean,
by others the Rhine. The left hand was restored
' A work was published in 1 750, by Bottari, in two volumes
folio, called Museum CapitoUnum, in which are engravings of
most of the busts and statues. There is also the Museo Capi
toline, by P< Giorgi,

128 PASQUINO.
by Michel Angelo. It probably derives its
present name from the Forum of Mars, near
which it was found. Marforio owes his celebrity
to having been fixed upon as the answerer of all
those satirical sayings which were affixed upon
Pasquino. This latter figure stands at the corner
of the Via di S. Pantaleo, towards the Piazza
Navona. It was found in the sixteenth century,
and placed over against the shop of one Pas
quino, a taUor, where all persons used to meet
who wished to abuse their neighbour. It has
been thought to represent Menelaus supporting
the body of Patroclus; but it is sadly mutUated.
Maffei, in his CoUection of Statues, No. 42, calls
it Ajax supported by his brother. It nearly re
sembles that which stood formerly by the Ponte
Vecchio, at Florence. Bernini seems to have
considered this mutilated statue as one of the
finest remains of Antiquity." The same pope
who placed Marforio in the Capitol, wished to
confine Pasquino there also : but the Marquis, to
whom he belonged, prevented it. His descend
ant is stUl obUged to pay a fine, if any scandal is
found affixed to it.'" Pope Adrian VI. meditated
a stiU more severe attack upon the statue. He
was so offended at its Ubels, that he ordered it to
be burnt, and the ashes to be thrown into the
" Bandinucci, Vita di Bernini, p. 72. Bernini, V. di
Caval. Bernini, p. 13. A Dissertation was written upon the
two statues of Pasquino and Marforio, by Cancellieri, Roma,
1798. » Vide Spence's Anecdotes, p. 113.

EGYPTIAN SCULPTURE. 129
Tiber: but Ludovico SuesSano, a witty companion
of the Pope, had the merit of saving poor Pasquin,
by teUing his hohness that the ashes would turn
to frogs in the bottom of the river, and croak
worse and louder than before. ^ The statue seems
to have been caUed Pasquillo as well as Pasquino.
The first room, which claims attention here, is
appropriately called Canopus, being devoted to
Egyptian sculpture. Many of the figures, how
ever are not the production of Egypt, having beeri
purposely executed in imitation of the Egyptian
style for Hadrian's ViUa, at Tivoli.^ This may
be thought bad taste in the Emperor; but modern
times afford many examples of similar partiality
for the grotesque : and if these specimens were
correctly copied, they furnished an interesting
Ulustration of Egyptian manners and worship.
Hadrian had a temple buUt in his Villa at Tivoli,
which he caUed Canopus, and ornamented with
figures carved in the Egjrptian style. In some
the ancient models were strictly copied ; in others
an attempt was made to unite the Egyptian and
Grecian styles together. The Antinous preserved
in the Capitol is a specimen of the latter taste.
Winkelmann also has a remark upon this statue,"
y Jovius in vita Adriani.
¦ We raay find some account of the construction of this
Villa in Spartian. It contained within its precincts several
temples, two theatres, copies of the most magnificent build
ings in Greece, &c. &c. and the ruins of it embrace a circuit
of nearly ten Italian miles.
=> Lib. ii. c. 2, § 2.
VOL. I. K

130 EGYPTIAN SCULPTURE.
which illustrates a curious fact in the history of
Egyptian sculpture. Diodorus Siculus teUs us,**
that after the stone was hewn into the proper
proportions, it was cut into two, and each part
was given to a different sculptor to finish. Win
kelmann adds, that the Antinous of the Capitol,
though only an imitation, bears marks of having
been thus divided and rejoined.
Sculpture never attained any exceUence in
Egypt. Plato remarks," that the statues executed
there in his time did not differ in form or in any
other respect from thbse which had been made
10,000 years before. This seems to be the true
character of the Egyptian sculptors. They made
no progressive improvement from their first rude
attempts. The deficiency was in design: and
the human form in particular seems never to have
been sufficiently studied, with a view to repre
senting it in sculpture.** This may perhaps lead
us to infer, that the great exceUence of the art in
Greece was partly owing to the deification of their
heroes. If a god was to be executed in marble,
he was to bear the human form: he was in every
respect to be a man. But in Egypt, where beasts
and monsters were selected as divinities, there was
I" Lib. i. ad fin. •= De Leg. ii. p. 522.
^ It is remarked by Ficoroni, that the two best Egyptian
statues in Rome were the Hercules with a lion's skin over his
head, in the Capitol; and the richer Zingara at the Villi
Borghese [now in the LouvreJ. He adds, that they might be
known to be Egyptian by that fulness about their mouths.
Vide Spence's Anecdotes, p. 85.

EGYPTIAN SCULPTURE. 131
not the same chance of the human form being well
modeUed: the imagination there was not elevated
and refined by contemplating the creation of a
god: and even die same wish of perpetuating the
Ukenessof a mortal did not exist, when the bodies
themselves were preserved for centuries in the
form of mummies. The great exceUence of the
ItaUan painters at the time of the revival of the
arts may in the same manner be attributed to the
great demand for reUgious subjects. The Virgin
Mary may at least be caUed the patron of painters :
and Roman CathoUcs might say, that she had re
venged herself upon the Protestants by not assist
ing them in this art. We may add to these causes
the fact, which seems undoubtedly true, that the
Egyptians were not so finely formed as the Greeks;
and that artists were held in no estimation amongst
them; as to the notion, that anatomy, a knowledge
of which is so essential to a sculptor, was strictly
prohibited in Egypt, it is perhaps maintained on
rather uncertain grounds; since Pliny expressly
mentions, that the Kings of Egypt ordered dead
bodies to be dissected, for the better understand
ing of diseases.'
One of their deities is, however, represented
under the form of a man. This is Serapis, of
whom there is a statue in this Museum. Some
obscurity hangs over the history of this deity.
= Lib. xix. c. 26. Manetho, as quoted by Africanus, men
tions some books upon Anatomy which were written by Atho-
this, one of the early Kings of Egypt, who was a physician,
Reliq. Sacr. vol. ii, p. 133.
K 2

132 SERAPIS, SISTRUM.
He is said to answer to the Jupiter, Dis, and
Pluto, of Greek and Roman worship ; but it is
not certain at what time he found a place in the
Egyptian Calendar. Augustin teUs us,^ that Apis,
King of Argos, came to Egypt, and upon his
death became Serapis. Eusebius says, that Apis
was their third king; and the invention of the
plough, and of vineyards, is attributed to him.s
An ornament will be observed on his head, the
meaning of which is differently interpreted. It
was called in Latin, Modius or Calathus. Iso-
dorus'' describes it as a Ught utensil, made of
reeds or rushes, in which the daily work was put,
or flowers were gathered. It also denotes fertility
and abundance : and those who consider Serapis
to have been a deification of Joseph, understand
this ornament to be emblematical of the corn
which he persuaded Pharaoh to lay up against
the seven years of famine.' It may be observed,
that j9<isculapius is also drawn with the Modius of
fecundity on his head; and by some he is con
sidered to be the same with Osiris.
Isis is represented with a plume of feathers on
her head;'' and another figure of the same deity
has cavities for eyes of some other material.
Some figures will be found in this room, hold
ing a sistrum in their hands. This, which was an
instrument of music, or rather of noise, derived

f Civ. Dei, lib. xviii. u. 5. s Vide Tibul. lib. i. c, 7,
•> Orig. lib. xix. c. 29. ' TertuUian. ad Nat. ii. 8,
I* Vide Bottari, tom, iii, pi, 76.

SISTRUM. 133
its name from a Greek word signifying to shake.
Apuleius' describes it as a brazen rattle, which
was carved so as to resemble the form of a noose,
through which a few rods were passed, and when
it was shaken in the hand three times it .gave a
shriU sound. This description wiU be found to
answer to the instrument sculptured in this room.
The rods are three or four in number. We must
remember, however, a remark made by Winkel
mann,™ that the Sistrum is not found in the hand
of any ancient Egyptian statue in Rome. It is in
each case a modern addition; and the same author
observes, that he knows of no representation of it
on any ancient monument, except it be on the
Isiac Table, at Turin. There is also a coin of
Trajan which represents it:" and Montfaucon
gives an engraving of a monument, at Metz, on
wiiich it is represented. He adds, that it is fre
quently carved on sepulchral stones.
Of the animals represented in this room, there
are Sphinxes, both male and female.
In the next apartment, which is called Stanza
Lapidaria, the exact measure of a Roman foot
may be observed on three of the tombs. It is
more than eleven inches English, but not equal
to twelve.
On the walls of the staircase leading to the
upper rooms, some very curious fragments of the

' Metam. lib. ii. ¦» Lib. ii. c. 1. § 22.
" A treatise has been written upon the Sistrum, by Bac-
chini.

134 ICHNOGRAPHY OF ROME.
plan of ancient Rome may be seen. They are in
twenty-six compartments, and have been edited
with engravings, and a Commentary, by BeUori,"
who supposes them to have been made in the
reign of Septimius Severus, and to have served
as a floor to some temple. They were found be
hind the Church of SS. Cosmo and Damiano,
anciently a Temple of Romulus and Remus, and
were first placed in the Farnese Palace.? Unfor
tunately, they have been so broken, and the frag
ments are so small, that little or no information
has been gained from them. Nibby has made an
ingenious use of some of them, in his late work
upon the Roman Forum. Many places had the
names written over them, but these have Uke
wise been much defaced, and do not help us.
Part of the Theatre of Marcellus, and of the
Portico of Octavia, may be identified, and will
be mentioned hereafter.
Up stairs, the Stanza del Vaso contains many
curiosities, particularly a brazen vase, given by
Mithridates, King of Pontus, to the CoUege of
Gymnasiarchs. There is an inscription on it to
° Twenty of them were illustrated by Bellori, the other six
By Amaduzzi. This Comraentary is also published in the
Collection of Graevius. What would an antiquary give to
recover one of those " faire silver tables," on which Charl-
magne had engravings of Constantinople, Rome, and the
World? The one which contained the plan of Rome was
given by him to the Church of Ravenna. Platina, Vita
Leonis III.
p Flam. Vacca, i.

DIANA. 135
that effect. A figure of Diana Triformis deserves
attention. She appears under the three cha
racters of Luna, Diana, and Hecate.'' This was
not an uncommon way of representing her ; and
she is generally made to carry a torch, some sort
of weapon, and a key. The torch represents her
in heaven, as Luna ; the weapon aUudes to her
chai-acter on earth, as Diana; and the key de
notes her power in heU, as Hecate. She is also
attended by a serpent; and at her feet are ropes,
to denote the punishments of the infernal regions.
The Ephesian Diana Multimammia wiU also
be found here. She was worshipped in this form,
because she was considered the Nurse of all Uving
things. There was, however, considerable mystery
in the adoration paid to her, and the different at
tributes of Ceres, Isis, and Cybele, were in some
way united in her. Hence she has on her head
the turreted Crown of Cybele; and Macrobius
seems to identify her with Isis, when he says,'
" Isis is worshipped in every rehgion, being either
" the earth, or universal nature, under the in-
" fluence of the sun. For this reason, the whole
" body of the goddess is covered with breasts,
" because the universe is nourished by the earth
" or nature." Such, also, is the interpretation
given by S. Jerom.^ This figure is not uncom
mon, but occasional varieties may be seen. Be-

5 Vide Ovid. Fast. lib. i. 141, 387.
' Saturn, lib. i. c. 20.
• Comm. in Epist. ad Eph. Prasfat.

136 ILIAD.
side the Crown of Cybele, she generally wears
the veU of Isis ; a Crab represents the Moon
(which is one of Diana's characters) ; the Victo
ries and Breasts denote the Ephesian Diana;
Stags and Bees, the Sicilian Diana ; the Lions of
Magna Mater also accompany her, the Oxen and
Dragons of Eleusinian Ceres, the Sphinx of
Minerva, and the Acorns and Fruits of the
Earth.' A Bas-reUef, in white plaster, representing
scenes out of the lUad, with explanations in
Greek, may be considered curious. Fabretti'has
pubUshed an engraving of it, with a Dissertation,
at the end of his work upon Trajan's Column.
He thinks, that it was made subsequent to the
time of Virgil, and probably in the reign of Nero.
There is here an ancient Mosaic, in the greatest
preservation, representing four doves drinking,
with a beautiful border round it. This Mosaic
has excited considerable controversy. PUny, in
lib. ixxxv. c. 25, where he is mentioning the per
fection to which the art of Mosaic had been
carried, describes a specimen ofit, as being pecu-'
liarly excellent, which bears some resemblance to
this. Many, however, do not aUow it to be the
same ; and certainly the resemblance is not suffi
cient to convince. His words are these: " Mira?
" bills ibi (Pergamis) columba bibens, et aquani
" umbra capitis infuscans. Apricantur aliae sca-
< A Dissertation was published upon the Ephesian Diana,
by Menetreius, Romae 1657, in which are several engravirigs.

MOSAIC. 137
" bentes sese in canthari labro." " There is at
" Pergamos a wonder of the art, a dove drinking,
" the head of which casts a dark shade upon the
" water. Others are sunning and pluming them-
" selves on the rim of the vessel." If this were
reaUy the one mentioned by Pliny, we might at
least leai-n one fact, — that the moderns excel the
ancients in the art of Mosaic. I shall have occa
sion to recm- to this subject, when treating of the
Mosaic pictures in St. Peter's. This was found,
in 1737, in the ruins of Hadrian's VUla at Tivoli,
and is known by the name of Le Colombe di
Furietti, from the first possessor, who pubUshed
upon the subject. It was purchased for the
Capitol by Clement XIII.
Some ancient stone weights are preserved here,
which, from their appearance, cannot have lost
much of their orginal weight.
At the end of the long gaUery is the Stanza
degU Imperadori, so caUed from a .collection of
busts of the Roman Emperors and their families,
to the number of seventy-six, from J. Caesar to
JuUan. In the middle of the room is Agrippina,
Nero's mother, seated ; a most exceUent piece of
sculpture; but the head does not belong to the
statue. Outside of the window is an ancient sun-dial,
placed in its proper position. The surface on
which the Unes are drawn to mark the hours, is
concave. Prerious to the year of Rome 460, or
thereabouts, there was no such thing as a sun
dial in Rome, or any definite manner of marking

138 SUN-DIAL.
the hours. Plmy himself teUs us," that no far
ther observation of time was noticed in the
twelve tables, than the rising and setting of the
sun. A contrivance was subsequently adopted
for one of the consul's officers to make procla
mation when the middle of the day was arrived,
which he ascertained by watching, when he could
see the sun from the senate-house between the
Rostra and the Grcecostasis."^ By a simUar ob
servation he proclaimed the end of the day. L.
Papirius Cursor erected the first dial in Rome,
U. C. 460, on the Temple of Quirinus. Pliny
relates this on the authority of Fabius VestaUs;
but he tells us at the same time, that, according
to Varro, M. Valerius Messala was the first in
troducer of sun-dials ; he haring brought one to
Rome from Catania, and placed it on a column
in the Forum near the Rostra, U. C. 491. The
Romans were not sufficient astronomers at that
day to be aware, that a dial set for the meridian
of Catania would not mark the hours accurately
at Rome.^ For ninety-nine years no correction
or alteration was made; but in 590, Q. Marcius
Philippus, who was then censor, had a proper
<• Lib. vii. c. 60.
^ This was a building near the Curia, where foreign ambas
sadors were lodged.
y We cannot accuse Lord Elgin of similar ignorance in
moving the sun-dial from Athens, which is now to be seen in
the British Museum. But surely great part of the interest and
all the value of Ais piece of antiquity is lost, by its being
taken frora its proper situation.

CICERO. 139
one constructed, and placed near the other. The
ancient sun-dial may be seen very perfectly on the
tower of Cyri-hestes at Athens, and in the engrav
ings of it by Stewart." Water-clocks were not
introduced till 595, by Scipio Nasica.
The Stanza de' Filosofi, contains seventy-nine
busts of ancient phUosophers, beside a great many
which are unknown. One of the busts is said to
be that of Cicero, and there is another very Uke it
in the GaUery at Florence. There are however
great disputes as to the true features of the great
orator: and it is utterly impossible, that aU the
busts which go by his name, can represent his true
porti-ait. Cicero himself mentions somewhere his
long and slender necic, an expression which cer
tainly does not confirm the authenticity of these
two busts. There is another in the Florentine
GaUery, which might seem to have better preten
sions ; and this is generaUy considered to be the true
likeness. The only ancient bust with the orator's
name inscribed, was in the Mattei Collection at
Rome, and is now, I beUeve, in the possession of
the Duke of Wellington. A Magnesian medal,
which was once preserved in a monastery at Ra
venna, exhibits his profile and name in Greek.
Mr. KelsaU, to whom I am indebted for these de
taUs, has engraved" the profile of a statue found
at Tusculum, which he is incUned to think was
* An engraving of an ancient sun-dial may be seen in Dod-
well's Tour through Greece, vol. i. p. 231.
» Classical Excursion from Rome to Arpino.

140 HARPOCRATES, ROSSO ANTICO.
intended for Cicero. A fine statue of him may be
seen in the Pomfret CoUection at Oxford.
In the next roPm is a collection of statues,
many of which have great merit. Among them
wiU be observed a figure of Harpocrates, the
god of silence, with his finger on his mouth. It
was found in Hadrian's villa, in 1744. These sta
tues were very common in the ancient temples,
as we learn from Augustin,'' where he says,
" Since in almost every temple where Isis and
f Serapis were worshipped, there was also an
" image which seemed to command silence by
" the finger being pressed upon the lips, Varro
" conceived this to signify, that the fact of their
" having been men should be kept silent." We
learn from other writers the connection between
Harpocrates and the Egyptian rites. Plutarcli
in his treatise de Iside et Osiride, expressly say^,
that he was son of Isis and Osiris. Ovid aUudes
to the attitude in which Harpocrates is drawn,
Quique premit vocem digitoque silentia suadet.
Met. ix. 691.
Sometimes he was represented with a pear on his
head, which was considered a type of silence and
truth, from the resemblance which the core of it
bears to a heart, and the leaf to the tongue.
In the next room is the statue of a Faun in
Rosso Antico. This is among the marbles, which
are only known from the ancient specimens, and
'' De Civ. Dei, lib. xviii, c. 5,

DYING GLADIATOR. 141
of which there is no quarry now worked. It
seems to be the same with what Pliny caUs Por-
phy rites ;^ for he is here treating of marbles, and
as he mentions a variety of it, which from con
taining a few white spots was caUed Leptopse-
phos, he cannot mean Porphyry, which is invari
ably spotted, and not always red, as Pliny says of
this. He tells us, that the quarries of it were in
Egj^t, and afforded blocks of almost any size:
and in the Treasury at Mycenae, which has many
marks of an Egyptian origin,'' there are some
blocks of Rosso Antico. If we are right in sup
posing the Rosso Antico to be the Porphjnites of
Pliny, we may learn from a passage in Eusebius,"
that the quarries w«re in the Thebaid. Statues
were made of it and brought to Rome in the time
of Claudius, but not much approved of, nor was
the example followed. So that we probably learn
from this passage, the date of the Faun now men
tioned. It was found in Hadrian's rilla at Tivoli.
In the last room is the celebrated statue of
the Dying Gladiator, as it is generaUy caUed, but
probably incorrectly. The person, whoever he
is, seems on the very point of death. He is
naked, with a cord clasped round his neck: he
Ues on a shield, upon which there is also some
thing Uke a horn, with a -string to suspend it:
the horn is represented as broken: his sword is
on the ground, and the sheath and belt by it.

'^ Lib. xxxvi. c. 11. '' Dodwell, vol. ii. p. 231.
e De Mart. Palaest, u, 8.

142 DYING GLADIATOR.
The whole appearance of the statue is con
trary to the notion of its being a gladiator: nor
were the Greeks sufficiently addicted to spec
tacles of that kind, to suggest a dying gladiator
as a subject for a sculptor. There is a passage
in Pliny '^ where some such statue as this is de
scribed. He teUs us, that CtesUas (who was
contemporary with Phidias) made the statue of
a person who was wounded and is just sinking,
in which you could see exactly how much Ufe
was remaining in him. Some persons have been
caught by these words, and concluded that we
have in the Capitol a work of Ctesilas. But
Pliny is speaking of a bronze statue, so that this
cannot be the work described by him, or at least
it could be only a copy. The question then re
mains, what did the sculptor intend to represent?
The cord and the horn are the only peculiarities
to guide us in our conjectures. Winkelmann?
thinks that it was intended for a herald: and he
certainly brings a remarkable testimony in favour
of his opinion, in the inscription over the statue
of a man who had been victorious at the Olympic
games, and was himself a herald. The words
are, ow^" iiTTO (raXTrlyyuv, ovt avaSeiyiiaT k'j^wv.'"
The meaning of which is, that he fulfiUed his of
fice without either horn or cord. Hesychius gives

f Lib. xxxiv. u. 19. s Lib. vi. c. 2. § 24, &c.
"' Vid, Poll. Onom. lib. iv. § 92.

DYING GLADIATOR, 143
this explanation of avaSs/yftaTa, by calling it ^vi'«f
»egl Tgap^^Xouf, fl bridle or cord about the neck:
and it appears that heralds were accustomed to
fasten a cord round their throats, that they might
not injure themselves in speaking or blowing the
horn.' This inscription therefore would imply,
that the herald in question had made himself
audible at the games by his voice alone, without
either cord or horn. The conjecture is inge
nious, and no other hypothesis accounts for the
horn and cord being added : but unfortunately the
critics are agreed that rixma-s should be substi
tuted for iivia; in the explanation of Hesychius;
and a passage given below'' will perhaps confirm
this emendation. Taivi'aj would signify filets, or
in modern language, a cravat: so that the pas
sage quoted by Winkelmann ceases to give any
iUustration of the cord, which is on the neck of
the statue. We may certainly add, that had it
not been for this inscription, no one would have
thought of guessing the figure to be an herald.
I once conceived that it might be intended for a
person who had kUled himself: and in seeking
for a name, I should recommend an investigation
of those characters of antiquity who have distin
guished themselves by suicide. The statue was
found at Antium, by Cardinal Albani, about 1770,
and belonged for some time to the Ludovisi family. ,

' Vid. Martial, lib. iv, ep. 41.
tSv xjiiTiv yEvstfSai. Xen. Sympos. c. 4. § 48.

144 VENUS.
The right hand is modern, and so is part of the
base. Some say that they were added by Michel
Angelo. The Venus of the Capitol, as it is generally
styled, is also in this room. She is supposed to
be coming out of the bath, and bears some re
semblance to the Venus de' Medici. The attitude
of this latter statue was a favourite one with the
sculptors. Several like it are to be seen in the
gaUery at Florence, and Ovid mentions it in the
foUowing verse:
Ipsa Venus pubem, quoties velamina ponit,
Protegitur laeva semireducta manu.
Art. Am. lib. ii. CIS.
Much controversy has arisen, whether the Venus
de' Medici is the famous Venus of Cnidos, the
chef-d'oeuvre of Praxiteles. This was at Cnidos
in the time of Arcadius and Honorius, and was
exhibited in a sinall temple, open on all sides.
Pliny says,' that Cnidos owed to this statue its
celebrity and concourse of strangers. From
thence it was removed to Constantinople; and
Cedrenus tells us, that it stood in the Palace of
the Lausi. The same author describes the atti
tude ofthe statue, Kvi8/a 'AipgoS/ri) Ix Ai'flou Aeux%,
TOU KviS/oo Tlgx^iTsKou;. From these words, the
Venus de' Medici might be the same with that at
Cnidos: but we have no history of its removal
' Lib, xxxvi, c. 5.

OF THE CAPITOL. 145
from Constantinople to Rome, and there seem
good reasons for thinking that the posture of the
left arm is different in the statue at Florence from
that of Praxiteles. For we may reasonably sup
pose, that the coins struck at Cnidos represent
the real statue which made the city so famous;
and these agree with the Medicean, except that
one arm is extended, and holds some drapery
over a vase."* It must be remembered, however,
that the two arms of the Venus de' Medici are
modem. From Lucian" it might be argued, that
the Venus of Praxiteles was quite naked, without
any drapery. If Cedrenus be correct in saying
that the statue stood in the Palace of the Lausi,
it was probably destroyed in the great fire, which
consumed three quarters of Constantinople, in 462,
and among other buUdings, the Palace of the
LausL" If the identity of the Venus de' Medici
with that of Cnidos be given up, this statue in the
Capitol may perhaps claim it, as it nearly agrees
with the representation on the coin. It was found
on the Pincian hiU. There is also a Venus in the
Vatican, which is thought by Visconti to be a
copy of that by Praxiteles. The Venus de' ^Me-
dici was found near the Portico of Octaria ; and
it is singular that Pliny, where he enumerates
™ Tlie figure may be seen on a coin of Caracalla and ano
ther of Plautilla.
¦' Amor. xiii.
" Vid. Cedrenus Hist. Comp. 348. Zonar. Ann. xiv. p. 50.
Evagr. Hist. Eccles, lib, ii. c. 13.
VOL. I, L

146 CAPITOL,
several statues as being near this spot, mentions
one of Venus washing herself.?
On the base of one of the statues in this room
is the following inscription, which may be thought
worth copying, from the beauty of some of the
sentiments, though it has often been printed before.
On one side we read,
ATIMETUS.
Si pensare animas sinerent crudelia fata,
Et posset redimi morte aliena salus,
Quantulacunque mese debentur tempora vitae,
Pensassem pro te, cara Homonoea, libens.
At nunc, quod possum, fugiam lucemque Deosque,
Ut te matura per Styga morte sequar.
HOMONOEA.
Parce tuam, conjux, fletu quassare juventam,
Fataque mcerendo soUicitare mea.
Nil prosunt lacrymae, nee possunt fata moveri:
Viximus — hie omnes exitus unus habet,
Parce ita — non unquam similem experiare dolorem
Et faveant votis numina cuncta tuis.
Quodque mihi eripuit mors immatura juventse.
Id tibi victuro proroget ulterius.
On the other side is,
HOMONCEA.
Tu, qui secura procedis mente, parumper
Siste gradum, quaeso, verbaque pauca lege.
Ilia ego, quae claris fueram praelata pueUis,
Hoc Homonoea brevi condita sum tumulo,
P Lib. xxxvi. c, 5,

MUSEUM. 1 1-7
Cui formam Paphie, Charites tribuere decoveni,
Quam PaUas cunctis artibus erudiit.
Nondum bis denos aetas mea viderat annos,
Injecere manus invida fata mihi.
Nee pro me queror hoc, morte est mihi tristior ipsa
Moeror Atimeti conjugis ille mei.
VI.\TOR.
Sit tibi terra levis, mulier dignissima vita,
Quaeque tuis olim perfruerere bonis.''
The continuation of the Museum is in the
buUding opposite, caUed Palazzo de' Conserva
tori. In the court are several fragments of
colossal statues ; among them a head of Cpmmo-
dus, in bronze, which is said to be the same which
that emperor placed upon a colossal statue of
Nero.'' Winkelmann, however, seems to doubt
it being the head of Commodus:^ and Nardini
had already observed that the statue of Nero was
in marble. He thinks that it rather belonged to
the statue of ApoUo, which stood in the Palatine
Library, and was sixty-two palms high. The
height of the head is scarcely eight pahns, which
would agree better with this statue than with that
of Nero, which was 133 palms high. According
to Vitiuvius' the head should be the eighth part
of the whole height. There is also a head of
° The original inscription does not affix the names of Ati-
metus and Homonoea.
' Vid. Dio Cass, Lampridius, ' Lib. iv. c. 7. § 48.
' Lib, iii. c. 1. l2

148 DUILIAN COLUMN.
Domitian in marble. A colossal foot belonged to
a statue in the Temple of Peace.
The DuiUan Column is here, at least that whieh
is called so, though there is little probability that
it is the same with that which was erected by C.
DuUius after his first naval victory over the Car
thaginians, U. C. 493. It is a plain column of
marble in bas-relief, with three prows of ships on
each side, and part of an inscription. It was dug
up several years ago in the Forum, not far from
the Arch of S. Severus, and has been iUustiated
with a commentary by P. Ciacconius." PUny
mentions such a column;'" " a more ancient memo-
" rial is by erecting pillars, as that to C. Maenius,
" who conquered the old Latins ; also to C. DuUius,
" [some MSS. read ViUus,J who was the first that
" celebrated a naval triumph over the Carthagi-
" nians, which stUl stands in the Forum." Servius
also, in his commentary upon VirgU, Georg. in. 29,
et navah surgentes tere columnse, says, " ViUus
" [some MSS. falsely read Julius Caesar,] erected
" naval columns for his victory over the Cartha-
" ginians by sea; one of which we see at the
" Rostra, another in front of the Circus." Quin-
tilian also remarks,^ " that the early Latins added
" the letter d to the ends of words, as we may
" observe in the naval column erected to DuiUus
" Published in the Collection of Graevius, vol. iv. p, 1811,
It has also been illustrated by De Gozze, Roma, 1635, who
supplies the deficiencies of the inscription in a manner differ
ent from Ciacconius,
" Lib, xxxiv. c. 11. » Lib, i, c. 7,

C, BttlOS. M.F. COS. ADTORSOM. CARTACrSTIENSEIS , EIN. SICELIAD
HEM. CEREIS^S. ECESi;^Sx)\g^COCNATOS. POPLI, HOMANI. ARTISVMAD
0BSEDji0TJT:^/6\_ I^SEmET. LiEcioStelS, CARTACINIENSEIS, OMNEIS
MfilMOSgVE, MACISTRATOS. L^CAES, BOTEBOS. RELICTEIS
irosTE"M. CASTREIS. EXFOCIOSTT. MACELlAM.. MOENITAM, VHBEM
PJVCNANDOD. CEPET, ENQ^VE, EODEM, MAJapSTRATOD, PROSPERE
HEM, ISTAVEBOS, MAuId, COIfSOL. PRIMOS. ^ESET, EESMECOSgVE
CLASESgVE. ISTAVALES. PRIMOS. ORSTAVET. T^MZJTg'VE. DIEBOS. LX
CVMQTE, EIS. IfAVEBVS. CLASEIS. P0El!JICASr~0MtaS. PARATASgVE
si^TMAS. COPIAS. CARTACINTEISSis, PRAESE15rT^. MAXVMOD
jctatoeed^_o|£oSq^. iisr. ALTOD. MARID. PV^NANDOD. TICET
rVE^^AlVEIS. CEPlSjr. CVM. SOCIELS. SEPTPj^KESMOMgVE. DTCIS
gTINRESJ^JSgVET^ TRIRESMOSgVE. N'AVEIS.^ 3!iX. DEPRE-SET
AVRO^ CAPTOM. IJVMlil. (DCDO) DCC

ARCEIirlTOM. CAPTOM. PliAEDA, ITYMEI CCCl333 C

CRAraJcAP J-OM AES CCcIxXJCCcI^jJ CcJjDDCCCJjJD^cLmcCClPDJ
cccIddd cccIjjj cccIddd cccIddd gccIjjd cccIjjd CCcl333 CCCIODO,
£ccId30 cccIddd cccIddd cccId3D cccl333 cccIdodcccIddd/pondod
TRIOMPlOpVE. ISTAVALED. PRAEDAD. P OPLOld; . JkOMAWOM . X) OlIJAVE T
CAP TIVO s7\CAP2|A£INjiENSEIs(riNT'^^ , CVEOM
PRlMO.SgVE, COTSrsoI.. DE . .SIClS^lB . clasJ!9vEx£aS^cinietsseom
TR10MPAVET.EAE.OTVI.IlEILOM.ESCO. S.P. Q.E.. EI. HANCE . CGIVMITAM:, P

Toll. F: 143.

DUlLI.VN COLUMN'. 149
" in the Forum." These passages certainly make
the original pillar to have stood in the Forum ;
and as much of the inscription as remains agrees
with QuintUians observation about the addition
of the letter d. Ciacconius, however, in liis dis
sertation, thinks that it certainly is not that which
was erected in the time of DuUius, as the carving
of the letters is too good for those rude times,
and the orthography of some of the words is too
modern. He has suppUed what is wanting in the
inscription, which I shaU copy, as a specimen of
early Latin. That which is within the line is
what remains; the rest is suppUed by conjecture.
[See the Plate.]
The inscription, in more modern oi-thography,
would be this :
c. I>\^LIVS. M. 1.. COS. ADVEBSVS. CARTHAGINIENSES. IN. SIC11,IA
RE3I. GERENS. EGESTAHOS. COGNATOS. POrVLI. ROMANt. ARCTISSIMA
OBSIDIONE. EXEMIT. LEGIONES. CARTHAGINIENSES. OMNES
MAXIMOSQVE. MAGISTRATVS. ELEPHANTIS. RELICTIS
NOVEM. C-ISTRIS. EFFVGERVNT. MACELLAM. MVNITAM. VRBEM
PVGNANDO. CEPIT. INQVE. EODEM. MAGISTRATV. PROSPERE
REM. NAVIBVS. MARI. CONSVL. PRIMVS. GESSIT. REMIGESQVE
CLASSESQVE. NAVALES. PRIMVS. ORNAVIT. PARAVITQVE. DIEBVS. LX
CVMQVE. IIS. NAVIBVS. CLASSES. PVNICAS. OMNES. PARATASQVE
SVMMAS. COPIAS. CARTHAGINIENSES. PRAESENTE. M.iXIMO
DICTATOBE. ILLORVM. IN, ALTO. MARI. PVGNANDO. VICIT
XXXQVE. NAVES. CEPIT. CVM. SOCIIS. SEPTIREMEMQVE, DVCIS
QVINQVEREMEMQVE. TEIREMESQVE. NAVES, XX. DEPRE8SIT
AVHVM. CAPTVM. NVMMI. III. M. DCC
ARGENTVM. CAPTVM. PRAEDA. NVMMI. C.-M. C
GRAVE. CAPTVM. AES. XXI. CM. PONDO
TRIVMPHOQVE. NAVALI. PRAEDA. POPVLVM. ROMANVM. DONAVIT
CAPTIVOS. CARTH.AGINIENSES. INGENVOS. DVXIT. ANTE. CVRRVM
PRIMVSQVE. CONSVL. DE. SICVLIS. CLASSEQVE. CABTHAGINIENSIVM
TRIVMPHA VIT. EARVM. RERVM. ERGO. 5, P,Q.R.EI. HANCE..COLVMN AM , f
With respect to the numbers expressed in this

150 RPMAN NUMERALS.
inscription, it may be observed, that CD stood for
one thousand; which explains why D, which is
half of that figure, should stand for five hundred.
And we may observe the repetition of this figure
three times to express three thousand. Perhaps
some more figures are lost in this line ; but the
numbers, as they stand at present, amount to
3700. In the next line, also, some figures are
evidently lost at the end, as we may perceive
from the c stiU remaining, ccclooa stood for an
hundred thousand, as we learn from Priscian;
and Fulvius Ursinus has engraved a Roman
abacus, in which the numbers from one to a
million are expressed thus: Ixi. ccclooa. ccIod.
a>. c. x. I. But when this piUar was erected,
there was no notation for any number beyond an
hundred thousand. PUny himself teUs us this :^
" The ancients had no number beyond an hundred
" thousand; so that, even in the present day, we
" merely multiply this, and say, ten hundred
" thousand, (decies centena miUia,) and so on."
Consequently, in this inscription we find ccclooo
repeated twenty-one times, which was the only
method then known of expressing 2,100,000.
Even in the writings of Cicero, we may find
abundant instances of this awkward method of
notation." With respect to the money mentioned in this

' Lib. xxxii. c. 47.
" Vide Or. pro Q. Rose, c. 8. in Ver. Act. ii. lib. iii. c. 33,
34, 39^

ROMAN MONEY. 151
inscription, we may observe, that at this time
there was no gold coin at Rome. The compu
tation was made by so many pounds weight of
brass, which was caUed JEs grace. Pliny tells
us,'' that brass money was first coined in the reign
of Serrius TuUius ; before which time the metal
was used in its rude state. He teUs us afterwards,
that some wiiters made Numa to have coined
money.' The As at first weighed exactly a pound,
and was divided into twelve ounces. The other
coins were, Semissis, or six ounces; Triens, four
ounces; Quadrans, or Teruncius, three ounces;
and Sextans, two ounces ; aU in copper. As long
as the value and weight continued the same, aU
sums were reckoned in pounds, or fractions of
pounds, of i^s grace. The terms Expensum,
Impendia, &c. prove the original custom of cal
culating by weight. So, also, the expressions
JErarium, Tribuni Airarii, Obcerati, and AEira
Militum, show, that at first no money was used
but brass ;'' and, as Adam Smith observes, a per
son who was in debt was said to have so much of
another man's copper {ces alienum). In the year
of Rome 485, five years before the first Punic
war, silver was coined. The largest piece was
the Denarius, equal to ten asses, or ten lbs. of
brass ; Quinarius, five lbs. ; Sestertium, i. e. semis
^ Lib. xxxiii. c, 13.
" Lib. xxxiv. c. 1. Nummus, from Numa, said the learned
etymologists of Rome.
' Vide Plin. lib. xxxiv. c. 1.

152 WOLF.
tertium, two lbs. and a half. StiU the computa
tion by ASs grave continued, because the pound
weight of brass was the common standard. But
in the course of the first Punic war a great alter
ation was made; the As was diminished five-
sixths, the pound being divided into six Asses,
each of which only equaUed two ounces. In the
second Punic war, the As was farther reduced to
one ounce; and afterwards, by the Lex Papiria,
to only half an ounce. Gold coin was not stiuck
tiU the year 547, which was the thirteenth of the
second Punic war.
On the walls of the staircase is an old bas-reUef
of Curtius leaping into the gulf.' An inscription,
in verse, also states, that the Caroceio, taken by
Frederic II. from the Milanese, is preserved here;
but I could not hear any thing of it. The Caroc
eio was a kind of waggon, painted red, and carried
along with the armies in those, times, the national
standard being displayed upon it. That of Milan
required four pairs of oxen to draw it.''
The Picture Gallery is in this coUection, and
almost equals that of the Vatican in exceUence.
In number it greatly exceeds it.
In an adjoining room is the celebrated bronze
wolf, with two children sucking. The chUdren
are allowed to be modern, but great controver
sies have arisen as to the identity of the wolf with
" Vide Flam, Vacca, 2.
' Vide Muratori Antiq. Ital. Diss, xxvi.

WOLF. 153
that which CicerP mentions to have been struck
with lightning. He says,* " Romulus, the founder
" of this city, was also sti-uck, which you recoUect
" was a small figure in the Capitol, gilt, sucking
" the teats of a wolf." Dio Cassius also mentions
the circmnstance,'' and makes it to have happened
in the year of Rome 689. The fi-actures in the
hind legs of this have been brought to prove the
identity ; and Venuti asserts, that it was presei-ved
in the Chm-ch of St. Theodore tUl the sixteenth
century. The authority for this assertion is rather
doubtfid. Fulrio says, that it stood anciently
near the Ficus RuminaUs ; and Flaminius Vacca
only mentions its having been brought from the
Forum. PanciroUi, who wrote in 1625, says, that
the wolf had been removed to the Capitol from
this church not many years before his time. This
caUs to mind the words of Dionysius,' who, speak
ing of the Lupercal, says, " It is pointed out near
" the street leading to the Circus, and a Temple
" of Romulus near to it, in which is a wolf suckling
" two children, an ancient work in brass." Livy
also'' mentions that such a figure was placed near
the Ficus ruminalis, U.C. 458; and PUny says
the same thing.' As tradition makes the Church
of St. Theodore to have been the Temple of
Romulus, some Uttle support is given to the anti
quity of this figure, by the fact of its haring been
^ 3 in Cat, c. 8. He mentions it, also, de Divin. lib. i.
c, 12, and lib, ii, c, 20,
'' Lib, xxxvii. ' Antiq. lib. i. c. 79.
'' Lib. x, c. 23, ' Lib. xv. c, 18,

154 FASTI CONSULARES.
preserved there so late as the sixteenth century.
Winkelmann is inclined to support its identity
with that mentioned by Cicero ; and as Dionysius
calls it an ancient work, he _ attributes it to the
Tuscans." Nardini" and Ficoroni" also lean to
the same side. It should be remembered, how
ever, that the passages quoted do not exactly
agree. Dionysius says, that the figure stood in a
Temple of Romulus, at the foot of the Palatine
Hill. Cicero and Dio Cassius place it in the
Capitol. To which may be added, that Cicero
certainly speaks of it as if it was no longer in
existence; "fuisse meministis," and (de Divin.)
" Hie • sylvestris erat Romani nominis altrix."
Nor do the fractures in the hind legs sufiiciently
answer to Cicero's description.
Quae tum cum pueris flammato fulminis ictu
Concidit, atque avulsa pedum vestigia liquit.
Which words seem to imply, that the feet were
broken oiF. I conceive Winkelmann to be cer
tainly wrong in one point; that he makes the wolf
mentioned by Dionysius and Livy to be the same
with that which was struck with lightning in
Cicero's time. There seem to have been two
such figures.
Among the greatest curiosities preserved here
are the Capitoline Marbles, or Fasti Consulares,
containing a list of the consuls and all pubUc
officers, from Romulus to U.C. 724. After the
¦" Lib. iii, c, 2. § 34. » Lib. v. c. 4.
• Lib. i. c, 10,

ESQUILINE AND VIMINAL HILLS. 155
year 610, the account is not kept so accurate as
before: only one tribune of the people is named
out of the ten, and several other magistrates are
omitted. They were found in 1545, in the Forum,
not far from the Church of S. JNIaria Libera-
trice.P They are in several fragments, and sadly
mutUated; but the inscriptions are very legible.
Another portion was fi)und m 1819, which sup
plies some names which were not before known.
In the fire, which consumed the Capitol in the
time of ViteUius, aU the records preserved there
were bm-nt. Vespasian, who rebuUt the temple,
had the loss repau-ed by copies from the most
authentic documents; and it is not improbable
that these fragments are of that date.")
ESQUILINE AND VIMINAL HILLS.
The EsquiUne and Viminal hUls contain
scarcely any ruins, except the Baths of Titus on
the former, and the Baths of Diocletian on the
latter. They wUl both be mentioned when we
come to the subject of the Baths. The Viminal
hUl is smaU, and mostly occupied by gardens:
it is indeed rather difficult to ascertain its limits ;
the Baths of Diocletian stand partly upon the
^ p They have been published by Sigonius and by Panvi
nius. 1 A complete list of all the Magistrates, from the founda
tion of Rome to the death of the Emperor Verus, was pub
lished by Chryserus, who was a freedman of that Emperor.
Theophil, ad Autol. ~3, 27.

156 QUIRINAL HILL, HORSES.
Quirinal hiU, as the two eminences come tp a
junction in this place. In walking from the Tri
nity de' Monti to S. Maria Maggiore, and thence
to S. John Lateran, the ascent of aU the four
hills, the Quirinal, the Viminal, the EsquiUne,
and the Caelian, is evident.

QUIRINAL HILL.
The Quirinal Hill is now known by the name
of Monte Cavallo, from the two horses on the top
of it. These were found in the Baths of Con
stantine, and stand in the middle of a large open
space, on either side of an Egyptian obelisk.
They were placed here by Sextus V., who also
began the Palace on this hiU. With each horse
is the colossal figure of a man in marble, and
one group is said to be the work of Phidias, the
other of Praxiteles. But this is very uncertain,
as is the subject which they were intended to
represent. Some call them Castor and Pollux;
others Alexander taming Bucephalus. This lat
ter conjecture cannot be true: at least, if it is so,
we must give up the idea of their being the work
of Phidias and Praxiteles: for Phidias, accord
ing to Pliny, "^ flourished in the eighty-third
Olympiad: but Alexander was born in the one
hundred and sixth, ninety-two years after. Ac
cording to the same author, Praxiteles flourished
in the one hundred and fourth Olympiad, eight
¦¦ Lib, xxxiv, c, 8,

HORSKS. 157
years before the birth of Alexander: so that we
can scarcely suppose that he lived to execute a
statue of him. The former conjectiu-e, that the
two figures were intended for Castor and PoUux,
seems more probable, fi-om a coin of Maxentius,
on the reverse of which are two figures with
horses, exactly in this attitude, with the legend
AETERNiTAS. But it is not at all likely, that they
are reaUy the works of those great ai-tists: for
they Uved at the distance of about one hundred
years fi-om each other, whereas the two figures
seem evidently to have been executed together.
At aU events, the words opvs phidi^, and opvs
PRAXiTELis, which are written in Latin, must
have been of later date. Some antiquaries say,
that these names were affixed by the people of
Alexandria, from whence the horses were brought
to Rome:^ Evelyn says, but without giving his
authority, that they were sent to Nero by Tiri-
dates. King of Armenia. There are two statues
on the Capitol very Uke them.
The Abbe Dubos found fault with the horses
on the Quirinal HUl, as being defective in execu
tion. But Winkelmann defends them,' and con
tends, that whatever is ancient in them is good.
The four horses lately mentioned, and two at
Naples, with figures of Nonius Balbus and his
son upon them, which were found at Hercula
neum, are nearly the only ancient specimens that
we have of this kind in stone. In metal there is
' Vide Spence's Anecdotes, p. 94. ' Lib. iv. c. 4. § 56.

158 HORSES.
the statue of M. Aurelius on the Capitol, and the
four horses at Venice. The Abb^ Dubos and
other writers have ventured to accuse the Greeks
of not being successful in their representation of
the horse. Winkelmann on the other hand
thinks, that they have shown themselves perfectly
masters of their subject, and that the specimens,
which remain to us, are the finest that could be
desired. As far as the execution is concerned, I
should not presume to question such an authority
as Winkelmann: but if the Venetian horses are to
be the test, he must at least allow us to conclude,
that the breed of horses in Greece was far inferior
to what the moderns admire ; and that the beau-
ideal of the Greeks with respect to that animal
was any thing but elegant. DodweU says, that
the Grecian horses, particularly those of Thessaly,
are remarkable for having thick necks :^ and this
is recorded to have been the case with Alexander's
celebrated charger, Bucephalus."
Another difference of opinion has existed, as
to whether the ancients understood the manner
in which a horse lifts his feet in walking. It is
generaUy said, that they were ignorant of the
true gait, and always made the two legs of the
same side quit the ground at once. This is not a
correct statement. The four horses at Venice,
those of Castor and Pollux on the Capitol, and
of Nonius Balbus at Naples, certainly have their
legs raised in that way. But the horse of M.
" Vol. i. p. 339, >: Strabo, lib. 15, p, 698.

TORRE DELLE MILIZIE. 159
AureUus lifts them diagonally, and so do four
horses represented in a bas-reUef, as attached to
a chariot of the same Emperor, also in the Capi
tol. This seems to be the natural and real mo
tion. But if the ancients were divided upon this
point, the moderns are so likewise: at least we
have a treatise by Boul,^ where he asserts, that
horses lift up the two feet of the same side at
once; and Baldinucci, in his Lives ofthe Painters,''
says the same thing. The other side of the ques
tion is maintained by Magalotti.*
The men attached to these horses are 18f feet
high, and considered fine specimens of sculpture.
Upon descending the hUl towards Trajan's Fo
rum, we see a lofty square tower of brick, very
perfect, which is sometimes said to have been built
by Augustus or Trajan for the soldiers, and there
fore caUed Torre deUe MiUzie. But it is supposed
not to be older than the time of Innocent III.
When Trajan's Column was erected, a great
change was made in the appearance of the Quiri
nal HUl. The inscription on the pUlar is muti
lated at the bottom, and it is difficult to make out
exactly what is meant to be expressed: but we
must certainly understand from it, that the height
of the Column equals the height of the ground,
which was cut away to make the Forum level.
This seems almost incredible, if we suppose it to
mean, that the Quirinal Hill extended thus far,

y De Motu Animal, p. i, c. 20.
' Tom, ii. p. 59, " Lettere Famil. p, 666.

160 C^LIAN HILL, ST. STEPHEN.
and that the whole side of it was cut away: nor
can we well suppose a separate hUl to have existed
here, which was removed to make room for the
Column.
C^LIAN HILL.
The Cffilian Hill contains little, except some
fragments of Aquaducts, and vestiges of ancient
buUding near the Church of St. John and St.
Paul. These two saints were brothers, and
eunuchs in the Court of Constantia, daughter of
Constantine. They were put to death by order
of Julian the Apostate, and a Church was buUt
upon the spot by Pammachus, a fiiend of St.
Jerom, who died A. D. 410. Venuti considers
the ruins, which join on to this church, to have
been Vivaria, or places for the wild beasts in^-
tended for the amphitheatres. But by many
they are supposed to be remains of the Curia
Hostilia, which Livy places upon this hill.'' It
may be remarked, that there is a very fine palm-
tree in the garden of this Convent, the only one,
I believe, certainly the largest, in Rome.
The Church of St. Stephen is also on this hill,
which is curious for its round form, and for having
been built A.D. 483, or thereabouts, by Pope
SimpUcius,'^ if it is not much older. Some anti
quaries say, that it was anciently a Temple of
Bacchus : others, a Temple of Claudius. It was
repaired and considerably altered by Nicholas V.
'' Lib. i. c. 30, ' Platina.

S. STEPHEN. 161
It is round, with two concentric rows of Ionic pU
lars. In the inner row there are twenty, beside
two Corinthian pilasters, and in the area, which
they inclose, ai-e t\vp other Corinthian piUars,
higher than the rest, and supporting arches.
The exterior row consists of thirty-four pillars,
beside eight square piles, disposed at regular in
tervals, appai'entiy for greater sti-ength ; eight of
these piUars are Corinthian, and higher than the
rest. Most of the pUlars are of granite: some
arc of marble, as are the bases and capitals of all.
The walls are of brick. L. Fauno is inclined to
consider it the Temple of Vesta, which was built
by Numa, or to stand upon the same site. It is
engraved by Desgodetz, who caUs it a Temple of
Faunus, and adds, without expressing any doubt,
that it was buUt by the Emperor Claudius. Ac
cording to him, Pope SimpUcius only consecrated
it to Christian purposes, and Nicholas V. repaired
it. What is his eridence for making Claudius
the buUder of it, does not appear. There is more
reason on the side of those persons, who say, that
Claudius was the deity, to whom it was dedicated;
for Suetonius teUs us,** that a temple was erected
to Claudius in the reign of Vespasian on the
CaeUan hiU: and it is mentioned both by S. Rufus
and P. Victor. I shall have occasion to allude
to this temple again; and if we could be certain
that it was buUt in the reign of Claudius, it might
afiford some important eridence in the history of
"• In Vespas. c. 9,
VOL. I. M

162 AVENTINE HILL.
architecture. It is now difficult to get access to
this Church, as service is never performed in it,
except on the festival of the saint. The whole
hill is indeed almost deserted, and, excepting
near the Church of St. John Lateran, there are
very few houses upon it. The Caeliolus \yas pro
bably the level ground between the Colosseum,
the church of St. Clement, and the EsquiUne hiU.

AVENTINE HILL.
The CseUan and Aventine hills seem more to
belong to a country, which has been deserted by
its inhabitants, than to be inclosed within the
walls of a populous city. There is reason to be
lieve, that Mount Aventine was never much built
upon: it was given to the Latins U.C. 119, and
probably was always turned to use by cultivation.
Pliny speaks of it in the plural,' Nemo sacros
Aventinosque montes et iratae plebis secessus cir-
cumspexerit, &c. but this is probably owing to its
being intersected by a road, which may be called
a valley dividing it into two hills. It is now occu
pied by gardens, with here .and there a soUtary
church built out of the fragments of ancient edi
fices. Of these, S. Sabina and S. Maria are
worthy of observation. The baths of Caracalla,
which will be described hereafter, can hardly be
said to be upon the Aventine hiU. The tomh of
the Scipios is also interesting; of which some
' Lib, xix, c, 4.

ANCIENT AND MODERN CITV. 163
notice will be given under that division of the
present work.
From this hasty sketch of the seven hills, it
may be seen, that modern Rome can scarcely be
said to rest upon that base, which the poets of
old were so fond of celebrating. By far the
greater part of it is in the Campus Martius; and
it perhaps would not be a rash assertion to say,
that two-thirds of the space within the walls are
not built upon. Beside this difference of posi
tion between the habitable part of ancient and
modern Rome, another remarkable change has
taken place in the level of the ground. From
the frequent demoUtions of buUdings, either by
riolence or in the natural progress of time, the
soil has accumulated in some places to an incre
dible height. This, as might be expected, is
most apparent in the vaUeys between the hills.
The pUIar of Trajan was buried even above the
pedestal, and this measures fifteen feet. The
arches of S. Severus and of Constantine had suf
fered in the same way ; and in some parts of the
Forum the fact is stiU more remarkable. There
is reason to beUeve, that if a town were to be
overthrown and entirely deserted, the natural
process of vegetation and decay would in the
course of ages cover up many of the fragments.
In the Campagna of Rome, which is so thickly
covered with ruins, this has undoubtedly been
the case; as by excavating, we arrive at the
foundation of buUdings, over which no later edi
fice has been raised, but which are merely covered
m2

164 ANCIENT AND MODERN CITY.
with a vegetable mould. In the remains of Ro
man settlements and villas in our own country,
the process has been the same. But Rome,
though frequently overthrown, has never been
deserted. It stands as a link in the chain, which
connects ancient and modern history; and in
this part the continuity has never been broken.
Even if contemporary accounts were silent, we
might learn from recent excavations how over
whelming were the calamities which befel this
unhappy city. Near the pillar of Trajan, we find
whole rows of columns stiU standing on their
bases, but broken off" some feet from the bottom.
If the research were to be continued, it would
probably be found, that all this part of modern
Rome is raised a great height above the ancient
level ; and that the buildings which were thrown
down, instead of being restored, or employed in
the works which succeeded them, were permitted
to lie prostrate, and formed into one mass to re
ceive the new structures. As the city suffered
so frequently from invaders, we need not be sur
prised at the greatness of this accumulation. I
do not mean to deny, that in some parts, particu
larly in the Forum, much has been done by the
mere progress of time; but that the raising ofthe
level has mostly been caused by the demohtion of
buUdings, seems evident from a comparison of the
pillar of Trajan with that of M. Aurelius. Venuti
remarks the singular fact of so much of the former
being buried, while the latter is uncovered to the
very bottom of the pedestal. He does not, how-

ANCIENT AND MODERN CITY. 1()J
ever, give a reason for this difference, whicli seems
very obrious. The pillar of M. AureUus stood in
the Campus INIai-tius, where there were scarcely
any houses; whereas that of Trajan was erected
in a part wiiich had always been built upon. Con
sequently when the work of pillage was completed,
the whole area round the piUar of Trajan was a
mass of ruins, whUe that of M. AureUus still stood
in the open plain, and having itself escaped the
destroyers, was not buried in any succeeding
buUdings. It is easy to understand, why, after
the universal destruction of a city, the inhabitants
should rather buUd upon the ruins as they lay,
than commence the laborious process of clearing
them away. But in the Campus Martius there
were few houses to throw down; and the public
buUdings which remain are not nearly so much
buried, as those in the neighbourhood of the Fo
rum. The Portico of the Pantheon was formerly
ascended by seven steps; two only now remain
above the surface : but the difference of five steps
is nothing, when compared with the accumulation
of soU at the Temple of Antoninus and Faustina,
in the Forum. At the Temple of Antoninus
Pius, (the modern custom-house,) we have the
bases of the piUars still above the ground: and
though in the Mausoleum of Augustus the area is
considerably raised, this is evidently effected by
the upper part of the buUding having fallen in.

166 PANTHEON.

PANTHEON.

We are now led to consider the buildings
in the Campus Martius, '^ and we cannot do bet
ter than begin with that which is the most per
fect of all the remains of ancient 'Rome, the
Pantheon of Agrippa. It is indeed the only
one of the Pagan temples, which preserves any
thing of its original appearance; and we may
rather be surprised that this has escaped so well,
than that more have not come down to us; for
after Christianity was estabUshed in the Roman
empire by Constantine, the zeal of the Christians
was so excessive, that they commenced a general
destruction of all buildings which had been con
secrated to heathen rites.s According to S. Jerom,
there were in his time two hundred and eight
temples in Rome, all of which seem to have suf
fered spoliation; and in 399, Honorius issued a
'special decree to protect the ancient edifices from
the furious zeal of the new religion.
The Pantheon is now known by the name of
S. Maria ad Martyres, and more commonly La
Rotonda, haring been dedicated to the Virgin
by Pope Boniface IV., who received it from the
Emperor Phocas, A.D. 607: and as he removed
' This name is still preserved in the Piazza di Campo Marzo,
and in one of the fourteen Rioni, into which modern Rorae is
divided. e Vide Euseb. Vita Const, lib. iii. c. 56, &c.: lib. iv. c. 39,
Sozomen. lib. ii. c. 5.

PANTHEON. 167
to this place the remains of saints and martyrs
from the different cemeteries, enough to fill
twenty-eight waggons, it received the additional
title of ad Martyres. Gregory IV., in 830,
dedicated it to aU the saints, and it was upon this
occasion that the Festival of AU Saints was insti
tuted in the CathoUc Church. The Pantheon
was erected by Agrippa, twenty-six years before
Christ, in memory of Augustus's victory over An
tony, and dedicated to Jupiter Ultor, and aU the
gods. It would seem however from Dip,'' that
the origin of the term Pantheon was not quite
ascertained. He says, " It is perhaps caUed so,
" because in the statues of Mars and Venus, it
" received the images of several deities. But as
" it appears to me, it has its name from the con-
" vex form of its roof, giving a representation of
" the heavens." It suffered from fire in the time
of Titus, and was repaired by Domitian. It was
also injured by lightning in the twelfth year of
Trajan, and was repaired by Hadrian;' and again
by S. Severus and M. Aur. Antoninus, about the
year 203, as the inscription on the architrave in
forms us.''
The first riew of this buUding wiU disappoint
•¦ Lib. Iiii. ' Spartian. Hadrian. 19.
' Spartian says, that though Severus repaired many build
ings, he scarcely ever put his name upon them. It is singu
lar that we have two instances still remaining of his laying
aside this modesty, at the Pantheon and the Portico of Oc
tavia.

168 PORTICO.
most persons. The round part may be pro
nounced decidedly ugly; and a Corinthian por
tico is certainly not so strikmg, when centuries
have passed over it and disfigured it, as one of
the Doric order. The two turrets or belfries,
which are a modern addition by Bernini, must
offend every eye. The situation of the building is
also very had, it being in a dirty part of the city,
and closely surrounded with houses. The body
ofthe church, or round part, is of brick: but this
was not its original appearance, as it was at first
covered entirely with marble. AU this has been
carried away, and the exterior surface, as it now
stands, is, as was observed, extremely ugly. The
arches which appear in the second and third
stories, are the cpntinuation of the vaulting of the
roofs, which cover the chapels and the cavities,
which, as will be mentioned shortly, are cut out of
the thickness of the wall.
The Portico however is a majestic structure.
The most inexperienced eye would observe a
want of agreement between this and the body of
the building. The cornice of the one does not
accord with that of the other: and a singular
effect is produced by there being a pediment on
the temple, which rises above that ofthe portico;
so that in fact there are two pediments. This has
caused some controversy among the antiquaries.
But it is now generally supposed that Agrippa
built the whole, though perhaps at different times,
and the portico may have been an afterthought.

PORTICO. 169
The inscription, which ascribes the buUding to
Agrippa, stands over the portico.
M. AGRIPPA. L. F. COS. TERTIVM.' FECIT.
And as we can neither suppose that the portico
was buUt first, or that this inscription was placed
before the dedication, or that any other person
who added such an ornament would have suf
fered Agrippa's name to supplant his own, we
must conclude, that the whole was the work of
Agrippa. We must infer the same from the
words of Dio Cassius,"" who teUs us, that Agrippa
placed statues of Augustus and himself in the
Pronaos: for as the temple is circular, nothing
can be intended by the term Pronaos, but the
present or a preceding portico. To these argu-
' Between the third consulship of Pompey and the third of
Agrippa, the grammarians of Rome had probably made up
their minds as to the propriety of writing tertium and not ter
tio. For when Pompey was going to dedicate his theatre, and
a temple to Venus Victrix, he asked the leamed of Rome,
whether he should express his third Consulship by cos. tek-
TivM or TERTIO : they were much divided in their answers,
and Cicero was applied to : with that caution peculiar to his
character, he would not cominit himself by opposing any
other opinion, and advised the first part tert being only
written, which was done. When the building was repaired
some time after, the difiSculty was avoided by writing cos. in.
Aulus Gellius, who gives us this anecdote, (x. 1.) adds, that
Varro made this distinction between the two forms. " Aliud
" est quaiHo prsetorem fieri et quartum: quod quarto locum
" adsignificat ac tres ante factos : quartum tempus adsignifi-
" cat et ter ante factum." Varro would have written tertium.
" Lib. 1. iii.

170 PANTHEON
ments may be added a passage from Suetonius,"
which seems to demonstrate, that the Portico, as
it now stands, with its inscription, was erected in
the reign of Augustus. This writer tells us, that
" as the Emperor was holding the lustrum in the
" Campus Martius, an eagle flew to the neigh-
" bouring temple, and settled upon the first letter
" of Agrippa's name." We can hardly suppose
this to be any other temple than the Pantheon.
The evidence of coins is sometimes of importance,
when applied to Roman buildings: but in the
present case Uttle assistance is afforded, and that
little is not free from suspicion. In a work pub
lished by Du Choul, " Discours sur la Religion
" des anciens Romains,"" an engraving is given,
at p. 7, of a brass coin, having on one side the
head of Agrippa, with m. agrippa. l. f. cos. iii.
and on the reverse a round building resembling
the Pantheon, with a portico of six columns. The
number of columns certainly does not agree ; but
if the coin were genuine, we must attribute this to
accident, because both the inscriptions agree as
to the date, ascribing it to the third consulship of
Agrippa. There are also some windows repre
sented on the coin as over the portico, which do
not exist at present. The evidence, imperfect as
it is, is also suspicious, as the leamed have de
cided that the coin is spuripuS. In aupther work,
" Aug. c. 97.
" The work is also in Latin, " Veterum Romanorum Keli-
" gio, &c. :" the coin is engraved fit p. 3.

PORTICO. 1 7 1
published by Oiselius, (Thesaurus Numismatum,)
there is an engraving, at p. 158, ofa coin, which
the editor considers as representing the Pantheon.
He only gives one side of it, on which is lovi.
VLTORi. p. m. tr. III. and a portico of six columns,
with a great space between the middle ones, in
which is a figure of Jupiter. The whole is backed
by a buUding Uke a pyramid, with steps leading
up to the portico. P Scaliger certainly hints the
probabUity of there having been more than one
buUding called Pantheon, but he does not bring
any eridence to that effect.i
The portico is 110 feet long by 44 deep, sup
ported by sixteen columns of the Corinthian order.
Each is of one piece of oriental granite, 42 feet
high, without the bases and capitals, which are of
white marble : they are about 15 EngUsh feet in
circumference. The opening between the two
middle pUlars is larger than the openings between
the others; which is the case, also, with those of
the Temples of Concord, and of Antoninus and
Faustina ; but the difference is scarcely to be per
ceived without measuring them. Viteurius leads
us to expect this in the best built temples ; for he
tells us,"^ that the intercolumniations in a portico
should equal two diameters and one fourth; but
that the middle intercolumniation should equal
three diameters. A temple so constructed he
caUs Eustylos. He adds, that they had no
P It is also engraved in the work of Du Choul, p. 35.
¦i In Euseb. Chron. an. 2126. ¦¦ Lib. iii. c. 2.

172 PORTICO.
example of that kind in Rome ; which, as the
Pantheon was built A. C. 26, and Vitruvius pub
Ushed his work late in the reign of Augustus,
might be brought as a proof that the portico was
a subsequent addition. I have not seen this
passage adduced in argument, nor perhaps is
there much weight in it ; for Vitiuvius is speaking
of temples surrounded on all sides by a colonnade ;
in both fronts of which this excess of the middle
intercolumniation ought to prevaU. So that it
may be said, that he took no notice of the Pan
theon, because there was only a single portico to
it. According to the plan of Desgodetz, neither
the diameters of the columns nor the interco
lumniations are uniform. L. Fauno, who wrote
in 1548, says, " The roof was formerly supported
" by sixteen immense piUars, but now by thirteen,
" for one is wanting, and two have been destroyed
" by fire. The same portico is supported by
" brazen beams, gilt." There seems some confusion
as to the time when the three pillars were restored.
Desgodetz says, that Urban VIII. in 1627, had
two of the piUars brought back, which had been
removed to another place, and restored the capitals
which were wanting. Urban reigned from 1623
to 1644; and as Evelyn, who visited Rome in
1645, says, that there were then only thirteen
pillars in the portico, it would seem that Desgo
detz must be mistaken. I conceive, however, that
both of them are wrong. Urban VIII. undoubt
edly replaced one of the pillars ; and Nibby as
serts it to be that on the right hand, towards the

PANTHEON. 173
Church of S. Ignatius. The Bee, the armorial
bearing of the Barberini family, to which Urban
belonged, is introduced into the capital; which is
a convincing proof tiiat it was replaced by this
Pope, who had the vanity thus to mark his work.
We must therefore conclude, that Evelyn, by
mistake, put down thu-teen in his Diary instead
of fom-teen. Nibby teUs us, that the two other
piUars were replaced by Alexander VII. in 1662;
who made use of two which were found in the
Piazza di S. Luigi. He also imitated his prede
cessor, in inteoducing the Star, which is the bear
ing of the Chigi family, into the capitals. These
two piUars are immediately behind the one re
stored by Urban VIII. Desgodetz remarks, that
the two angular pUlars were thicker than the rest,
according to the rule given by Vitruvius : and the
architect who restored them not being aware of
this difference in their diameters, has placed the
thickest behind the other. Eugenius IV. con
tributed very much to the improvement of this
portico, by clearing away some shops which were
placed within it ; and early in the sixteenth cen
tury, the space in front was freed from many
incumbrances and intrusions.
Pomponius Laetus says, that the roof was
covered with plates of silver; which, he adds,
were carried away by Constans, grandson of
HeracUus, when he came to Rome in 663.
Paulus Diaconus" and Anastasius* relate the
' Hist. Long. lib. v. c. 11. ' Vita S. Vitaliani.

174 PANTHEON.
same circumstance; but they make the tiles to
have been of bronze, which seems more probable.
They add, that he sent these and other treasures,
which he had coUected at Rome, to Syracuse,
where he established his court ; and that after his
death they came into the hands of the Saracens.
Winkelmann thinks, that some of these works of
art may still be seen in Sicily." Pope Gregory III.
covered the roof a second time with plates of
brass, which were taken away by Urban VIII. to
form the four pillars round the grand altar in St,
Peter's ; upon which occasion the satirical Pasquin
was made to say, " Quod non fecerunt Barbari
" Romae, fecit Barberini," This story is so con
fidently related, and the detaU is so minute, that
there seems no reason to doubt it ; yet Fea, in his
description ofthe Vatican, denies it, and says,
that the brass employed by Urban VIII. came
from Venice, and was regularly paid for. I am
afraid that he exculpates the papal theft at the
expense of truth. Indeed, if what Donatus says
be true, it is impossible to deny it. He says, that
several cannons and mUitary engines were also
made out of the metal, and carried to the Castle
of S. Angelo. One ofthe latter, formed out of the
nails which kept the plates together, bore, accord
ing to Donatus, this inscription : " Ex clavis tra-
" balibus Porticus Agrippae." He says, also, that
the foUowing inscription was placed over the door
of the temple : " Lib. vi. c, 8. $ 23.

ROOF. 175
VRBANVS, VIII. PONT. MAX
VETVSTAS. AHENEI. LACVNARIS
RELIQVIAS
IN. VATICANAS. COLVMNAS. ET
BELLICA. TORMENTA. CONFLAVIT
VT. DECORA. INVTILIA
ET. IPSI. PRPPE. FAMAE. IGNOTA
FIERENT
IN. VATICANO. TEMPLO
APOSTOLICI. SEPVLCHRI. PRNAMENTA
IN. HADRIANA. ARCE
INSTRVMENTA. PVBLIC.iE. SECVRITATIS
ANNP. DOMINI. MDCXXXII. PONTIF. IX
I did not see this inscription ; but it seems ridi
culous to question the account of Donatus, who
dedicated his work to this very Pope.^ The
whole mass of metal weighed 450,250 pounds;
the naUs alone weighed 9374 pounds.
" A writer in the Foreign Quarterly Review, (No. III.
p. 293,) observes, that " Mr. Burton says very gravely, that
" it is asserted that an inscription, stating the fact, is erected
" at the Pantheon, but that he does not believe this. If, on
" going under the portico, he had cast his eyes to the left,
" about three or four feet from the great door, -this very in-
" scription would have stared him in the face." The Reviewer
has mistaken and misrepresented my meaning, which was
not, that I had looked for the inscription and could not find
it, but I wished to state, that I copied it from the work of
Donatus, and not from personal inspection. The reader will
perceive, that so far from professing to disbelieve Donatus, I
expressly assert my belief in his story, and have assigned a
reason why I believe it.

176 PANTHEON.
There is supposed to have been a bas-relief in
the pediment, and, from the appearance of nails
to fasten it, it was probably of bronze. Some
fragments of a horse and car, which have been
discovered near the portico, confirm this idea.
The ascent to the portico was formerly by seven
steps, but now only by two. These are of stone ;
but they are said formerly to have been of brass.
L, Fauno, who wrote in 1548, says, that in his
time the entrance was by a descent of many steps;
which was owing to the accumulation of soil from
the ruin of neighbouring buildings. It was
Alexander VII. who cleared this away, and made
the entrance as it is at present.
The bronze doors, which lead into the church,
are of considerable antiquity. It is asserted by
Ficoroni,^ that the original doors were among
the spoil carried off" by Genseric, and ship
wrecked in the Mediterranean. He is followed
in this story by other writers ; but no autho
rity has been produced, and Procopius, who
mentions the pillage committed by Genseric, does
not say a word about the doors of the Pantheon.
At the upper part of the present doors we may
observe a kind of grating, which was probably
intended to let in light. L, Fauno partly con
firms the assertion of Ficoroni, by remarking,
that the doors evidently did not belong originally
to this temple, but came from some other building.
He says, that they do not fit the aperture, and
y Lib. i, c. 20.

INTERIOR, 177
that in order to remedy this defect some pther
ancient ornaments have been annexed. The
floor is so much raised, as to hide aU the pedes
tals of the columns in the inside.
Of the original decorations of the interior, we
learn something from Pliny. He tells us,^ " There
" are some Syracusan capitals of columns in the
" Pantheon, placed there by M. Agrippa." And
again,* " Diogenes of Athens ornamented the
" Pantheon of Agrippa. The Caryatides pass
" for some of the finest works known, as do the
•' statues at the top; but these from their height
" are less celebrated." When the buUding was
repaired aft«r the fire, great changes took place
in the interior. The bronze capitals were per
haps destioyed. The Caryatides also seem tp
have been removed, which stood in the present
attic. The cornice over the lower pillars is
scarcely wide enough to have supported them,
but this may have been another of the changes
made, when the Caryatides were removed. Pi
lasters were then placed in the attic, and these
have very strangely been taken away not many
years ago. Ficoroni states, but I do not know
upon what authority, that these Caryatides were
figures emblematical of the provinces conquered
by the Romans. Winkelmann thinks, that one of
them may stiU be seen at Naples, haring been
removed thither from the Farnese Palace at
Rome. It is the upper half of the. figure of a
' Lib. xxxiv, c. 3. " Xib. xxxvi. c. 5.
VOL, I. N

178 PANTHEON.
man, apparently a Persian, naked and without
arms, upon whose head is a kind of basket, which
seems to be surrounded with the leaves of the
Acanthus. It was from accidentally seeing a
basket encircled in this manner, that Callimachus
first took his idea of the Corinthian capital.'' This
mutilated figure with the basket is ten palms and
a half high, and the height of the attic is nineteen \
so that the proportions will agree very well. As
the figure £^t Naples is that ofa man, we should
properly call it a Telamo or Atlas; for such Vitru
vius informs us,*^ were the terms used to imply
male figures placed as columns. Female figures
of the same kind were called Caryatides : and the
same writer gives us the following etymology of
the term."* At the time of the Persian invasion,
Carya, a city of Peloponnesus, took the part of
the enemy. When the Greeks were victorious,
they turned their arms against the traitorous Ca
rya, and levelled it with the ground, and put all
the males to the sword. The women, though
condemned to slavery, were forced to retain their
robes and ornaments of matrons, as a perpetual
memorial of their infamy. The architects from
this cause tpok to represent female figures in the
attitude of supporting a great burthen; so that
the name and the position might hand down the
stPry of Carya to the latest posterity.
Atlas was the Greek term for the male figures,
taken, as Vitruvius says, from the fable of Atlas
supporting the world. He confesses himself -
^ Vitruv. lib. iv. c, 1. '^ Lib. vi. c, 10, <• Lib. i. c. 1.

CARYATIDES. 179
ignorant of the etj-mology of the Latin term
Telamo. But if Winkelmann is right in caUing
this a Persian figure, we have in it a confirmation
of another remark of Vitruvius ; for he proceeds
to teU us, that after the defeat of the Persians at
Plataea?, the Greeks began to support the roofs
of their houses with figures of prisoners dressed
in the Persian costume, and hence came the cus
tom of maldng statues of Persians support the
epistyles and their ornaments.
The height of the whole buUding is one hun
dred and forty-four feet, and the diameter the
same. From the floor to the base of the attic is
forty feet two inches (French). Desgodetz says,
that the second stpry is npt properly an attic.
There are fourteen windows in it; but they do
not open to the outward air, and only give Ught
from the interior of the buUding to the chapels
below, over which they are placed. The pro
jecting part is broad enough for a person to walk
round the cupola, and an uiscription may be seen
in it, which seems to relate to that L. Albinius,
who took the Vestal Virgins in his carriage, when
the Gauls entered Rome, and conveyed them to
Caere. It is much mutUated, but if ancient is
certainly curious. ADERENT. CAPITOLIV
TALES. CAERE. DEDVXIT
QVAE. RITVS. SOLEMNES. NE
RENTVR. CVRAI. SIBI. HABVIT
ERATA. SACRA. ET. VIRGINES
XIT. N 2

180 PANTHEON.
The church is lighted by a circular aperture in
the roof, nor is there any other window. The-
opening is twenty-eight feet wide.. The rain
of course comes into the interior; and when
Urban VIII. was making a large drain intp the
Tiber, a circular reservoir was found, fifteen
palms below the pavement of the church, tp carry
pff the water. This was necessary not only for
the rain, but on account of the floods, which not
unfrequently rise so high as to come into the
church. A beautiful effect is produced by visiting
the building on these occasions at night, when
the moon is reflected upon the water through the,
aperture ofthe dome.
In the circuit of the wall there are seven cha
pels recessed back and cut out of the thickness
of it. Six of them have two piUars in front of
each, but the seventh, which is opposite to the
entrance, is open. Some have thought, that this
one is not so old as the rest, but has been formed
since the building was consecrated to Christian
worship. The ornaments, however, are equally
well executed, and agree with the rest, except
that there is a difference in the fluting of the
lateral pillars, and in the entablature over them.
But this may have been an intentional variety in
the chapel, which faced the entrance, Between
each of these chapels two piUars project from the
wall, and behind them is a hollow space taken
out of the thickness of it, to which there is no
entrance but from without. There are three
rows of these cavities, one above the other, eight

TEMPLE OF ANTONINUS PIUS. 181
in each row, and the only use of them seems to
have been to lighten the buUding.
The remains of several men of genius have
been interred in the Pantheon, and among the
rest, those of Raffael. His skuU is preserved in
the Academy of Painting attached to the Church
of S. Martino in the Forum.

TEMPLE OF ANTONINUS PIUS.
Next to the Pantheon, the most considerable
ruin in the Campus Martius is the Temple of
Antoninus Pius, now the Custom-house. The
name of the place where this stands is the Piazza
di Pietra, which seems to indicate, that nume
rous fragments of marble have been found here."
The part which is now standing belonged to
one of the sides of the portico which surrounded
the temple, and consists of eleven columns. It
would seem to have been more perfect in the
time of L. Fauno, as he makes out that there
were formerly forty-two piUars round the tem
ple, and eighteen in the interior supporting the
cella. PaUadio also gives a plan of the whole,
and conceives that there were originally fifteen
pillars on the side: others say thirteen. They
have suffered very much from time, and fire
is supposed to have contributed to their deface
ment. The bases and capitals are almost en
tirely worn away. They are of Greek marble,
¦ Vide Flam. Vacca, 21,

182 BASILICA OF A. PIUS.
-thirty-nine feet high, and four in diameter. The
spaces between them are filled up with brick
work, so that the whole presents a sad union of
magnificence and decay. The brick-work is per
haps necessary to prep up the building. Part pf
the vast cprnice, which they supported, is still
tplerably perfect on the outside. When viewed
from the court within, it looks more like part of
a great stone quarry than a buUding, from the
enormous masses of stone, which are now broken
arid uneven. A good deal of it was pf brick.
Np part pf the temple itself remains. Spme caU
it a Temple cf Mars, built by AntPninus Pius ;
while others think it a Basilica. Spartian men
tions a Temple of Antoninus Pius; '^ and P. Victor
places a BasUica of Antoninus near to his column.
MarUanus says, that part of an inscription to this
Emperor existed in his time.
PORTICO OF OCTAVIA.
In our own language we have very much con
tracted the signification of the Latin term Porti
cus, applying it to the part which projects from
the front of a building, and is supported by
pillars. A Porch conveys a stUl meaner idea,
and seems to imply a simple projection without
piUars, as the porch of a church. Yet both these
terms are used as equivalent to the Ijatin Porticus,
and necessarily mislead a reader who is not aware
f CaracaUa, 4.

PORTICO OF OCTAVIA. 183
of the distinctipn. Solomon's Porch was evidently
a spacious colonnade or cloister, wiiich would hold
a great concourse of people:* and the Porch, as
we are accustoraed to call it, at Athens, which
gave name to the school of the Stoics, must have
been of the same kind. Our language seems
singularly unfortunate in its expressions for this
sort of buUding; for we have not only whoUy
changed the Latin term Porticus, but the word
which in conmion use comes nearest to the idea of
it, is Piazza; and this, as any person acquainted
with the ItaUan language knows, means some
thing quite different, — an open space or square in
the middle of a town. Yet Johnson, without
makuig any remark, defines Piazza to be a walk
under a rpof supported by piUars; which is an
exact description of what Porticus was with the
ancients. Perhaps Porch originaUy sigmfied in
our language the same as Porticus, since Shak
speare talks of " Pompey's Porch,"'' as a place of
pubUc resort; and our translators ofthe Bible, as
mentioned above, have written Solomon's Porch.
Few remains of ancient Rome can be identi
fied with more certainty than the fragments of
the Portico of Octaria, near S. Angelo in Pesche
ria. Another church near it is called S. Maria
in Porticu. Unfortunately it is a, mere fragment,
and that only of the portico, without any portion
of the two temples, which it inclosed. We know.

I 1 Kings, vi. 3. Acts, iii. 11.
¦¦ J.Caesar, act 1. sc, 2.

184 PORTICO
that Augustus, after he had erected the Theatre
of MarceUus, inclosed the two temples of Jupiter
and Juno, which were very near, with a covered
portico or colonnade, dedicating it to his sister
Octavia. This served at once as an ornament to
the temples, and as a place for the people to walk
under and find shelter in going to or returning
from the theatre.' The porticos were also used
for more serious purposes in Rome. A library
was attached to this of Octavia:'' and sometimes
the senate was held in them, causes were tried,
ambassadors received, marriage-contracts settled,
&c. &c. Many articles also were exposed in
them for sale. Accordingly we find notices of
several porticos, such as that of Nasica, Pompey,
Livia; the Portico of Concord, of Quu-inus, of
Hercules, &c. &c. There is a passage in Ovid,
where allusion is made to this portico, and to that
near the Theatre of Pompey.
Tu modo Porapeia tectus spatiare sub umbra.
Cum Sol Herculei terga Leonis adit:
Aut ubi muneribus nati sua munera mater
Addidit, externo marmore dives bpus.
Artis Amator. i. 67.
The row of pillars was double all the way round,
and consisted of two hundred and seventy in all.
Of these nothing remains but two pillars and two
pilasters in one row supporting a pediment; and
' There is a portico of this kind, close to the two contigu
ous theatres at Pompeii.
'' Dio, lib. Ixvi, Sueton, de lUust. Gramm. c. 21.

OF OCTAVIA. 185
paraUel to them two other piUai-s and one j)ilas-
ter, of which the ground-plan would be this :
noo
noo n
More of them probably exist, but blocked up
with buUdings, as is partly the case with these.
They are Corinthian, of white marble, fluted, and
seem to have formed the principal entrance to the
temples. On the capital of the pilaster is an
eagle with thunder. Vitrurius recommends, that
a portico, such as this, with a double row of pil
lars, should have the outer ones Doric, and the
inner Ionic or Corinthian. In the present case
both are Corinthian.
From a passage in VeUeius Paterculus' it
appears, that these temples were surrounded
with a portico before the one which Augustus
buUt. He is speaking of MeteUus, and says,
" This was MeteUus Macedonicus, who erected
" the porticos which surrounded the two temples
" without an inscription, which are now encom-
" passed by the Porticos of Octavia." Arrian
also teUs us,™ that MeteUus brought from the
town of Dius, and placed in his portico, the
twenty-one equestrian statues, which Lysippus
had cast in bronze to commemorate those guards
of Alexander, who had faUen at the battle
' Lib.i. "Lib. i.e. 17.

186 PORTICO
of the Granicus. Harduin, in his notes upon
Pliny," mentions a silver coin, on which this por
tico is represented with the inscription Q. metel-
LVS PIVS.
A curious iUustration of this antiquity is found
in those fragments of the ichnography of Rome,
which are now in the Museum of the Capitol.
The names are fortunately preserved, and the
whole is sufficiently entire to give us the relative
position of the temples with respect to the por
tico, and the construction of the temples them
selves. I made a rough, copy of this fragment
myself, and have since found it engraved in the
work published by Bellori. It is from his book
that the adjoined plate is copied, but with a few
trifling alterations, which certainly make it more
Uke the originaL The pillars, which still remain,
are probably some pf those' twelve, which are
made larger than the rest in the plan, and which
formed the entrance to the temples.
Pliny" alludes to the two temples within the
portico. His words are these, " In the Temple
" of Juno, within the Portico of Octavia, Poly-
" cles and Dionysius made the statue of the god-
" dess: that of Jupiter, which is in the adjoining
" temple, was made by the sons of Timarchides."
He also tells us, that the two temples were built
by Saurus and Batrachus, architects of Sparta,
who not being allowed to inscribe their names
" Lib. xxxiv. c. 14. " Lib. xxxvi. c. 5.

Vci.j j'lse.

CTS OCT AT I AE E T HE

AD IS I O A^ I S

R RR R R I

D

AE DIS I TX QIS 1 S

D

H 0
Q E
H Q
Q Q
a H
0 E

PF OCTAVIA. 187
upon the building,'' handed them down to poste
rity, by placing a lizard and a frog (the significa
tion of their names) in the folds of the pUlars, (in
columnarum spirts.) Winkelmann interprets this
to mean the volutes ''; and thinks, that he has
discovered one of the actual pillars in the Basi
Uca of S. Lorenzo, from which he infers, that
these temples were of the Ionic order.' Vitru
rius does not agree with Pliny in making Saurus
and Batrachus the buUders of both temples ; but
makes that of Jupiter to have been buUt by Her-
modorus, if his text is not corrupt. Perhaps the
two Spartans mentioned by Pliny were employed
upon the Temple of Juno. Vitruvius also tells
us, that the Temple of Jupiter Stator (for he
adds this epithet) was what is caUed Peripteros,
that is, it had an open colonnade all round it,
and the number of pUlars on the two fronts and
on the sides were in the proportion of six to
eleven. The plan of it preserved in the Capitol
does not represent it as such.
We learn from an inscription, which is still
extant upon the frieze, that the building suffered

i" This is probably the meaning of VeUeius in the passage
quoted above, when he says, that the temples were without an
inscription. ' Vol. ii. p. 590.
' In a French work. Voyage d'un Frangais en Italie (vol.
iii. p. 330.) it is asserted, that there is a column with a frog
and lizard upon it in the church of S. Eusebio, which stands
between S. Maria Maggiore and the Porta S. Lorenzo. But
I suspect a mistake.

188 PILLAR
by fire, and was restored by S. Severus and his
son Caracalla. This, probably, was the second
fire which had injured it, since Dio" mentions it
among the buildings which suffered from a great
fire in the reign of Titus ; and an ancient inscrip
tion was found not far off, importing that Hadrian
had repaired the temples which had suffered by
fire.
PILLAR OF TRAJAN.
This pillar was erected about the year of our
Lord 115, in commemoration of Trajan's two
Dacian campaigns. Dio Cassius says, that it
was erected by Trajan himself before he went to
the Parthian war ; but, according to the inscrip
tion, it was the work of the senate and people of
Rome, and when Trajan had the Tribunitian
power for the seventeenth time, which is equiva
lent to the seventeenth year of his reign ; and in
this year Trajan was absent in the Parthian and
Armenian wars. The words of Dio are, " that
" he built libraries, and placed a lofty column in
" his Forum, partly as a burial-place for himself,
" and partly to show to posterity the works which
" he had constructed round the Forum." We
may perhaps reconcile the seeming contradiction,
by supposing that Trajan had intended to erect
such a column, and made a beginning, but the
Senate finished it. There is a coin extant, on
one side of which is a head of Trajan, with this
' Lib, Ixvi,

OF TRAJAN. 189
inscription: imp. caes. nervae. traiano. avg.
GERM. DAC. P. M. TR. P. COS. VI. P.P. On the
reverse is the pUlar, with a figure on the top of
it, and s. p. q. r. optimo. principi. s. c. In the
course of this expedition he died, at Seleucia, of
a dysenteric fever, in the nineteenth year of his
reign, so that he never saw the column which
was erected in honour of him. His ashes were
brought home, and placed in a golden ball at the
top of the piUar, which was a singular honour, on
account of the custom which prohibited any
burials within the waUs. Some accounts place
this golden baU in the hand of the statue which
was at the top of the piUar ; others say that it
was deposited at the bottom ;* but the coin, men
tioned above, confirms the first of these accounts.
The baU itself is said to be stUl preserved, and
to be that which is seen on the mUestone upon
the balustrade of the Capitol, and which is on
the left hand of a person ascending the steps.
A story is told by the Roman CathoUcs, that
Gregory the Great having read an anecdote of
this emperor's humanity, went to the column,
and from thence entered a neighbouring church,
where he prayed for Trajan's soul. An angel
appeared to him, and assured hun that the
emperor's soul was secure in the care of his
Creator ; but to satisfy the Divine justice, Gre
gory himself was to suffer penance for it, either
in this world or in the next. Gregory preferred
' Vide Cassiodor, Chron, Eutropius, lib, viii. c, 5.

190 PILLAR
the present life, and submitted to much penance
for the soul of the Pagan emperor. Dante
alludes to this in his Purg. x. 73,
Quivi era storiata I'alta Gloria
Del Roman Prince, lo cui gran valore
Mosse Gregorio all sua gran Vittoria.
The anecdote which urged Gregory to this pious
act is also told here; and more may be found of
the efficacy of his penance in Parad. xx. 45, &c.
It may be mentioned, that the story rests prin
cipally upon the authority of an Englishman,
John of Sahsbury, who wrote in the twelfth cen
tury. But we may learn from Tiraboschi," that
the reality of the vision is not an article of faith
with the Catholics, since he ridicules it extremely.
The pillar stopd in a magnificent Forum, which
was also called after the name of Trajan. Apol-
lodorus designed it; and within the circuit of it
there was a palace, gymnasium, Ubrary, triumphal
arch, porticos, &c. many of which were orna
mented on the top with equestrian statues and
military ensigns gilt." Gold coins are in exist
ence, on the reverse of which this Forum is re
presented. Alexander Severus ornamented it
with the statues of illustrious men;^ and the
same custom was continued in the time of Arca
dius and Honorius. These have all been de
stroyed, and nothing now remains but the pillar
" Tom. iii. par. 1. p. 113, &c".
» Vide A. Gell. lib. xiii. c. 24. Pausan. lib. v. c. 12.
y Lamprid.

OF TRAJAN. 191
itself. Till the time of Sextus V. towards the
end of the sixteenth century, the accumulation
of soil about it was so great, that it rose even
above the pedestal. An excavation was then
made, and at present there is an area of an oval
form round the piUar to a considerable extent.
This was sunk to the level of the ancient Forum,
and the whole seeras formerly to have been
flagged with marble. Several fragments of gra
nite columns have also been brought to light,
which ai-e now placed in four parallel rows ; but
some of them have evidently been reversed, and
the heights of them are very different. These
probably belonged to the Ulpian BasiUca, or
Library, which was of great celebrity. In the
middle of the square was an equestrian statue of
Trajan, in bronze gUt. Ammianus MarceUinus
teUs us,^ that when the Emperor Constans entered
Rome, A.D. 356, " and came to the Forum of
" Trajan, a structure which I conceive to be
" unique in the world, and deserring the admi-
" ration even of celestial beings, he was struck
" with astonishment, casting his thoughts over
" its gigantic edifices, which it is impossible to
" describe, or for any mortals to imitate. Giving
" up, therefore, aU hopes of attempting any thing
" simUar, he said, that the only thing which he
" would ot could imitate was the horse on which
" the emperor sat. Upon which Hormisdas, of
" the royal famUy of Persia, who was near him,
' Lib. xvi. c, 10,

192 PILLAR
" said, ' First order a stable to be built similar
" ' to this, if you have the means : may the horse,
" ' which you purpose forming, have as extensive
" ' success' as that which we are looking at!'"
The destruction of this beautifiil Forum certainly
did not take place under Alaric or Genseric; for
Cassiodorus, who wrote about the year 500, or a
little after, says of it," " The Forum of Trajan is
" a perfect miracle, if we inspect it even with the
" utmost minuteness :" and he is here speaking
of the most remarkable objects to be se^ in the
city. The same architect, ApoUodorus, also built
the column. Eutropius'' and Cassiodorus call it
one hundred and forty feet high ; in which state
ment they seem to have included the statue also.
P. Victor says one hundred and twenty-eight,
which agrees with the measurement in modern
Roman feet. This is about equal to one hundred
and twenty-four English feet, and does not in
clude the statue. P. Victor is, however, wrong
in the number of the steps and windows, making
one hundred and eighty-five of the former, and
forty-five of the latter; whereas there are one
hundred and eighty-four steps, and forty-three
windows or apertures for light. The base mea
sures twenty feet on each side ; it is covered with
trophies, and at each corner is an eagle, holding
in his talons a wreath of oak, which extends from
» Var. lib. vii. form. 6.
*• Lib. viii. c. 5, Sorae copies read cxliv.

OF TRAJAN. 193
one to the other. A laurel wreath surrounds
the bottom of the shaft, as a Torus. According
to Forsyth, this column presents a great mixture
of orders. He describes the base and capital as
Tuscan, the shaft as Doric, and the mouldings
of the pedestal as Corinthian.
The shaft itself is covered with bas-reliefs,
which go round the whole, from the bottora to
the top, in twenty-three spirals. They repre
sent the exploits of Trajan in both his Dacian
expeditions. There are about two thousand five
hundred figures in aU; and that of Trajan is
repeated more than fifty times. The figures are
about two feet high in the lower part of the
column, but towards the top they increase in size,
that they may appear the same from below. The
highest figures have nearly double the height of
the lower ones, as have the spirals themselves.
Only thirty-three separate pieces of marble are
used in the whole work, of which eight are in the
base, twenty-three in the shaft, one in the capital,
and one above it. There is a spiral staircase
within, which winds twelve times round, and
contains, as stated above, one hundred and
eighty-four steps ; and this staircase is not a
separate work, but is cut out of the same stones
of which the shaft itself is composed.
A statue of Trajan formerly surmounted the
whole, as may be proved from coins still extant.
The head was also found in the rubbish at the
bottom, and came into the possession of the Car-
VOL, I. o

194 PILLAR
dinal della VaUe." The feet were standing in
the time of Sextus V. It is conjectured, that the
height of the statue was twenty-one feet. BeUori
says eighteen. Sextus V. erected one in gilt
bronze to St. Petet in 1587, which is eleven feet
high. The inscription on the base is as follows :
SENATVS. POPVLVSQVE. ROMANVS
IMP. CAES. DIVI. NERVAE. F
TRAIANP. AVG. GERM. DACICO. PONT
MAXIMO. TRIE. POT. XVII. IMP. VI. COS. TI. PP.
AD. DECLARARANDVM. QVANTAE. ALTITVDINIS
MONS. ET. LOCVS. TANT>o\?IBVS. SIT. EGESTVS

In the last line some of the letters have been
defaced by buildings erected against the pillar in
the middle ages, tantis. operibvs is the gene
ral conjecture; some have proposed rvderibvs,
others ex. collibvs, others opibvs. Fabretti
argues, that we must read operibvs, as there is
only room to supply three letters. He is opposed
by Lipsius,'' Gruterus," and others, who propose
rvderibvs: but they probably never examined
the pillar, as Fabretti did, to see the actual space
which is defaced. This argument is perhaps
sufficiently decisive ; but Mabillon in his Analecta,
p. 360, pubUshes a manuscript of the ninth cen
tury, from the convent at Einsidlen, in which,
" Note of C. Fea to Winkelmann, lib. vi. c. 7.
^ De Magnifudine Romae, lib. iii. c. 7. ' P. 237.

OF TRA J VN. I9."»
among many other mscriptions on Roman build
ings, this is given, and operibvs is distinctly
read. Whatever the true reading may be, enough
remains to pro*-e the extraordinary fact, that as
much soil was cut away to form this Forum as
equaUed the height of the pUlar. We learn this
also from Dio Cassius, who says, that the empe
ror dug through as much of the hill as equals the
height of the column, and by that means made a
level for his Forum: It does not however follow
that the Quirinal hiU ever extended to the site of
the column: the work which Trajan undertook
may have been in a different part of the Forum.
The bas-rehefs have been engraved on a large
scale, and pubUshed vrith a short description by
F. Alfonso Ciacono, Rome 1616. This is a very
interesting work, and enables us to have a near
inspection of the whole series of figiires. The
editor entitles it. An History of both the Dacian
Wars; and by comparing the accounts given by
historians with the sculptures on the pillai^ he is
able to Ulustrate both. Another work was pub
lished by Fabretti at Rome, 1683, entitled. Syn
tagma de Columna Trajani, which is a sort of
criticism upon the work of Ciacono, and filled
with learned remarks upon a great variety of
subjects. He also pubhshed at the end of it the
historical iUustrations of his predecessor. We
may see drawings of the whole series by the hand
of Giulio Romano, now in the Ducal Palace at
Modena. Trajan undertook his first expedition into Da-
o2

196 PILLAR
cia in the third year of his reign, A.D. 101. It
lasted three years ; and in the following year he
celebrated his triumph, which is described in the
bas-reliefs. The effect of the campaign was to
make the enemy sue for peace. In the second
expedition Trajan gained many victories, and
Dacia was made a Roman province. King De
cebalus killed himself, which is represented in
the bas-reliefs, as is the bringing of his head and
hands to Trajan. The year of the second triumph
is not certain.
The Roman dress and manners may receive
considerable light from these bas-reliefs. We
find thCiSoldiers constantly carrying their swords
on the right side. On a march they are generaUy
bare-headed: some have no helmets at aU, others
wear them suspended to their right shoulder.
Some of them have lions' heads by way of a cap,
with the mane hanging down behind. Each of
them carry a stick over the left shoulder, which
seems to have been for the purpose of conveying
their provisions. We may observe a wallet, a
vessel for wine, a machine for dressing meat, &c.
We know, from other accounts, that they some
times carried sixty pounds, and food for seven
teen days : they never carried less than enough
for three days. Their shields are oblong, with
different devices upon them. The standards are
of various kinds ; such as a hand within a wreath
of laurel, which was considered a sign of con
cord. Pictures also were used, which were por
traits of gods, or heroes. The soldiers wear upon

OF TRAJAN. 197
their legs a kind of tight pantaloon, reaching a
little below the knee, and not buttoned. The
Dacians have loose pantaloons reaching to the
ancle, and shoes: they also carry curved swords.
The Sarmatian cavah-y, alhes of Decebalus, wear
plate-armour, covering the men and horses.
These were called Cataphracti, or Clibanarii:*^
and the words of Ammianus exactly answer the
representation on the column: " Their armour
" was a covering of thin circular plates, which
" were adapted to the movements of the body,
" and dravm over aU their limbs; so that in what-
" ever direction they wished to move, their clothing
" aUowed them free play by the close fitting of
" its joints." To which we may add the lines of
Claudian, Conjuncta per artem
FlexiUs inductis animatur lamina membris,
HorribUis visu. Credas simulacra moveri
Ferrea, cognatoque viros spirare metallo.
Par vestitus equis ; ferrata fronte minantur,
Ferratosque levant securi vulneris armos.
In Rufinum, ii. 357.
Some Roman soldiers have also plate-armour; but
they are archers. The horses have saddles, or
rather cloths, which are fastened by cords round
the breast and under the taU.' The Dacian horses
are without this covering; and the Germans, or
some other aUies, have neither saddles nor bridles
to their horses.
' Ammianus, lib. xvi, c. 10. Lamprid. Alex. Severus, 56.

198 PILLAR
We might observe several other particulars,
such as a bridge of boats over a river, and that
the boats every where are without a rudder, but
are guided by an oar fastened with a thong on
one side of the stern. The waU pf the camp has
battlements, and the heads of the Dacians are
stuck upon it. The Dacian women are repre
sented burning the Roman prisoners. We may
also see the Testudo, formed by soldiers putting
their shields together in a compact mass over
their backs: also the sacrifice, called Suovetau
rilia. Victory is represented as writing with a
pen upon a shield.

PILLAR OF M. AURELIUS.
This is generally called the Pillar of Antonine :
and if we followed the inscription upon the base,
we should believe it to have been erected in
honour of Antoninus Pius. But this inscription is
modem and erroneous, having been placed there
by Sextus V. who repaired the whole column,
and particularly the base. It is now universaUy
agreed, that the pillar was erected to M. Aurelius
by the senate. An ancient inscription found near
this place, beside proving this point, informs us
also that the pillar was called Centenaria. We
may add that the bas-reliefs are entirely devoted
to the exploits of M. Aurelius. These surround
the pillar in a spiral form, like that of Trajan.
It is eighty-eight feet and a half high, including
the base and capital ; but different writers vary as

OF M. AURELIUS. 199
to the number of the steps and \rindows. Many
make two hundred and six steps and fifty-six win
dows: but Jos. Castalio, who published a special
accoimt of it,s says, that he found one hundred
and ninety steps and forty-one windows. At the
beginning of the seventeenth century, the whole
column was in such a state of decay that the stair
case could not be ascended, which may account for
the variation; but CastaUo's enumeration is pro
bably the true one. The staircase is new inac
cessible. Sextus V. beside repau-ing the base,
placed on the top a statue of St. Paul, fourteen
palms (lOi feet) high. It is supposed that there
was a statue here formerly, and some make it
eighteen palms (13|^ feet) high: but the coin,
which is quoted in proof of there having been a
statue, represents another column, which was
erected by M. AureUus and L. Verus to Antoni
nus Pius, and is often confounded with this.''
Beside the injury inflicted upon the piUar by
time, it has suffered by Ughtning. This befel it
m the time of Innocent XI. but not for the first
time. The bas-reUefs upon this column have been
engraved by BartoU, and published by Dom. de
Rubeis. They are not so weU executed as those
on the PiUar of Trajan. The object most worthy
of observation in them is the figure of Jupiter
e Vid. Graevii Thes. vol. iv. p. 1940.
¦¦ Yet Du Choul, in his Veterum Romanorum Religio, p. 64.
gives the engraving of a coin, on which is a column sur
rounded by a spiral, with the inscription divo pio s c.

200 PILLAR OF M. AURELIUS.
Pluvius, in commemoration of the shower of rain,
which came suddenly to the relief of the Roman
army in then* war with the Quadi, A.D. 174-
The dispute which has arisen upon this story is
weU known. I shall therefore only mention in
the notes the names of those authors who ascribe
the miracle to the prayers of .the Christians, and
of those who simply mention the fact, without
aUuding to the Christians, in each case mentioning
the time in which they lived.' The figure of
Jupiter Pluvius may also be seen on a medal of
Antoninus Pius; but he is there represented as
pouring the rain out of one hand, and not from
both his arms, as on the piUar. There is also a
coin of M. Antoninus, on the reverse of which is
a figure of Mercury holding a cup in his right
hand ; and we learn from Dio, that the emperor
was used to attribute the shower of rain to Mer
cury. ' Letter of M. Aurelius at the end of Justin Mart. Ap. 1.:
but this is suspicious: a letter to this effect is quoted by Ter
tuUian, Eusebius, Orosius, and Dio. TertuUian, (A.D. 200.)
inApologetico, C.5.; andadScapulam, c.4.; and de Oratione,
c. 29. Cyprian. (248.) ad Demetr. Eusebius, (315.) Chron.
et Hist. Eccles. lib. v. c. 5. Greg. Nyss. (370.) de Quadr.
Mart. ii. Paulus Orosius, (400.) lib. vii. c. 9. These men
tion the prayers of the Christians. The following only detail
the simple fact : Dio, (A.D. 220.) lib. Ixxi. Jul. Capitol. (290.)
in M. Aur. c. 24. Ml. Lamprid. (296.) in Heliogab. c. 9.
Themist. (352.) Or. 15. Claudian (400.) de Sexto Cons.
Honorii, 340 ; but he seems to have heard of the other ac
count.

FORUM. 201
THE FORUM.
The Forum is perhaps the most melancholy
object which Rome contains within its waUs.
We may lament the ruin of a temple or a palace ;
but our interest in the remaining fragments is
frequently diminished, by our either not knowing
with certainty to what buUding they belonged,
or because history has not stamped them with
any pecuUar recoUections. But standing upon
the hUl of the Capitol, and looking down upon
the Roman Forum, we contemplate a scene with
which we fancy ourselves famiUar, and we seem
suddenly to have quitted the habitations of Uving
men. Not only is its former grandeur utterly
annihilated, but the ground has not been appUed
to any other purpose. When we descend into it,
we find that many of the ancient buildings are
buried under irregular heaps of soU; and a warm
imagination might fancy that some speU hung over
the spot, forbidding it to be profaned by the
ordinary occupations of inhabited cities.
What VirgU says of its appearance before the
Trojan settlers arrived, is singularly true at the
present moment, passim armenta videres
Romanoque foro et lautis mugire carinis.
JEn. viii. 360.
Where the Roman people saw temples erected to
perpetuate their exploits, and where the Roman
nobles ried with each other in the magnificence

202 FORUM.
of their dwellings, we now see a few insulated
pillars standing amidst some broken arches: or,
if the curiosity of foreigners has investigated
what the natives neither think nor care about, we
may perhaps see the remnant of a statue or a
column extracted from the rubbish. Where the
Comitia were held, where Cicero harangued, and
where the triumphal processions passed, we have
now no animated beings, except strangers at
tracted by curiosity, the convicts, who are em
ployed in excavating as a punishment, and those
more harmless animals already aUuded to, who
find a scanty pasture, and a shelter from the sun
under a grove of trees. The Roman Forum is
now called the Campo Vaccina.
If we look to the boundaries of this desolation,
the prospect is equally mournful. At one end
we have the hUl of the Capitol, on the summit of
which, instead of the Temple of Jupiter, the
wonder of the world, we -have the palace of the
soUtary senator. If we wish to ascend this emi
nence, we have on one side the most ancient
Structure in Rome, and that a prison: on the
other the ruins of a temple, which seems to have
been among the finest in the city, the name of
which is not known. If we turn from the Capi
tol, we have on our right the Palatine hiU, which
once contained the whole Roman people, which
was afterwards insufficient for the house of one
emperor, and is now occupied by a few gardens
and a convent. On the left there is a range of
churches, formed out of ancient temples; and in

FORUM. 203
front we discover, at a considerable distance,
through the branches of trees and the ruins of
buildings, the mouldering ai-ches of the Colos
seum. If ever we could wish to meditate and to mo
ralize upon the vicissitudes of human greatness,
it would be here. I could weU pardon the weak
ness of that mind, if it must be caUed weakness,
which feels sorrow at such a scene. But I could
neither envy the phUosophy, nor pardon the sel
fishness of him, who, because nature has denied
him a heart susceptible of such impressions,
would extend the prohibitipn to aU around him.
When MarceUus wept as Syracuse was about to
faU, and Marius surveyed the ruins of Carthage
with the eyes not of a hero, but of a man, we
surely do not think that human nature was de
graded: but the sorrow of the^ one must have
been increased by the thought, that so much
splendor must shortly faU a sacrifice to his
own glory: and when Marius saw his country's
ancient rival in the dust, he must have felt that
the same cause which sent him as an exile to the
shores of Africa, might shortly level his own city
to the fate of Carthage. Yet are we accustomed
to admire the feelings both of MarceUus and of
Marius. May we not then be aUowed to sym
pathize with the mighty names which once graced
the Roman Forum? May we not see in it a
memorial, that whatever is great may be over
thrown ? and, what is more mortifying to human
pride, that much which is overthrown may be

204 FPRUM.
forgotten? Posthumous fame has such charms
for some men, that they would consent to be
overwhelmed, if they were certain that they
would be talked of some thousand years after.
But ambition would find poor encouragement in
4;he ruins of the Forum, where so much greatness
lies doubly buried; and though some fragments
may occasionaUy be brought to light from the soil
which covers them, yet the revolution of ages has
consigned their history to obUvion, and they
serve only to excite the ingenuity or the jealousy
of antiquaries.
But we must turn from these meditations to a
detail of the melancholy scene. If a line be
drawn in one direction from the Arch of Septimius
Severus to the Church deUa Consolazione, and
from the same arch to the Temple of Antoninus
and Faustina, or from the Temple of Jupiter
Tonans to that of Jupiter Stator, we shaU have
some notion of the length and breadth of the
Forum. Vitruvius tells us,'' that the Roman plan
was different from that of the Greeks. With the
latter the Forum was in the form of a square ; '
with the Romans it was an oblong, the breadth
being about two-thirds of the length. If we take
the boundaries given above, the length of the
¦' Lib. v. c. 1.
' Contrary to this rule, we find the Forum at Pompeii,
which was a Greek town, oblong. If the antiquaries have
not been mistaken in applying the name, we must suppose,
that this Forum had been rebuilt after the Romans were in
possession. In fact, some alteration seems to have been going
on at the time of the destruction.

FORUM. J3()5
Roman Fprum was 705 feet, the width 470.
Within the waUs of Rome there were many open
spaces, which obtamed the name of Forum, such
as the Boarium, that of Ctesiu-, Nerva, Trajan,
&c., and P. Victor enumerates sixteen in aU. But
the Forum Romanum obtained the name in a
more particular manner, and when we speak sim
ply of the Forum, it is this which we would be
understood to mean.
If we wish to know what buUdings or other
objects the area of it contained, we must look to
history. The place itself wiU afiford us Uttle in
formation. Some Ught may perhaps be thrown
upon the subject, if the excavations are con
tinued ; but the surface is at present only made
more unsightly by the hiUocks of soU, which are
thrown up in aU directions, and suflfered to re
main.™ We must naturally suppose, that much
open space was left for pubhc meetings, and the
ordinary occupation of a market place; but there
were also buUdings of various descriptions, both
for use and ornament. Beside temples, columns,
and arches, we read of shops and porticos, which
seem to have surrounded the whole. The first
care of Romulus and Tatius was to make it level,
removing the trees which grew there, and drain
ing off the water, which flowed into it as a gene
ral receptacle from the surrounding eminences."
" I am informed that these hillocks have been removed.
° Dion. Hal. lib. ii.

206 FORUM.
Tarquinius Priscus parcelled out certain portions
of it, where private individuals might build ; and
during his reign shops and porticos were con
structed. We learn from Vitruvius, that by the
term portico we are not to understand a mere
open colonnade, for the purpose of walking
under, but places in which there were shops,
(he mentions particularly those of silversmiths or
bankers [argentarii],) and that there were apart
ments over them." Perhaps the Palais Royal at
Paris, or St. Mark's Place at Venice, may give
us a good notion how the walks and shops were
constructed on the sides. The middle of it was
by no means free from buildings, as we read of
streets passing through it, which would imply,
that part of it was covered with houses, leaving
a passage for the people to pass. The Via
Sacra entered the Forum near the Temple of
Antoninus and Faustina, passing, as is supposed,
under an arch, called that of Fabius.? The name,
however, does not seem to have been lost when
it reached the Forum; and perhaps the Via
Sacra was rather an expression for the whole line
of streets, through which the triumphal proces
sions passed from the Arch of Constantine to the
Capitol, than any one particular street which
bore that name. It certainly was not in a straight
¦> Lib. V. u. 1.
f Cic. pro Cn. Plancio, 7. Treb. PoUio, Salon. GaUie
nus, 1.

VIA SACRA. 207
Une ; but after it had passed under the Arch of
Titus, it went in a slanting direction towards the
Temple of Peace, and from thence to the Arch
of Fabius. Whatever was the state ofthe Forum,
whether there were more streets than this in it,
or whether the greater part of it was an open
space, we fijid, that sometimes the extraordinary
luxury was practised of covering it with awnings.
Caesar spread them over the whole of the Forum
and the whole of the Via Sacra, from his own
house to the Cli^¦us Capitolinus.'' This was
during his dictatorship, and when he wished to
amuse the people with games. MarceUus did so,
when no spectacles were being exhibited, and
merely with a riew to make it more wholesome
for those who were engaged in lawsuits."^ We
leam from Dio,' that the awning was sometimes
made of silk.
It is not my intention to extract from ancient
writers a description of buUdings which pnce
ornamented the Forum, but are now no longer
in existence. We read of Temples to Caesar, to
Augustus, to Castor and PoUux, to Vesta, and
other divinities ; but an inquiry into the situation
which they probably held, or into the number
and height of their columns, would be uninterest
ing, and never can lead to certainty. The position
of the Rostra, the Comitium, as well as of many
1 Plin. lib. xix. c. 6. ¦¦ Ibid.
¦ Lib. xliii.

208 TEMPLE OF JUPITER STATOR.
other objects, is equally uncertain; and though
much might be said as to the use which was
made of them, and the facts connected with their
history, yet in treating of the monuments still
existing in Rome, we must omit such subjects, as
not forming part of our plan.
We have very Uttle remaining within the actual
verge of the Forum. The three piUars, which
stand at the foot of the Palatine Hill, are com
monly ascribed to the Temple of Jupiter Stator;
others haye given them to the Temple of Vulcan,
and some persons, of late, have been inclined to
see in them a part of the Comitium. Ovid cer
tainly mentions the Temple of Jupiter Stator as
being in front of the Palatine HiU: ante Palatini
ora jiigi.* Though only three columns remain,
supporting a small portion of the 'frieze and cor
nice, yet there is nothing in Rome so much calcu
lated to inspire us with an idea of the magnificence
of ancient architecture. They are of white marblcj
of the Corinthian order, and are the largest fluted
columns in Rome. Desgodetz gives their height,
in the French measure, as forty-five feet three
inches, and seven lines. The flutings are one
Roman palm across, about 8y inches EngUsh."

' Fast. lib. vi. 794. Trist. lib. iii. 1, 32.
" The flutings of the Temple of Jupiter Olympius at Gir
genti (Agrigentum) are two palms (17| inches) across, which
confirms the remark of Diodorus Siculus, (lib. xiii.) that a
man could stand in the flutings.

TEMPLE OF ANTPNINUS. 209
It might be conjectured, that considerable force
had been used to destroy this temple; or an
earthquake may perhaps have produced the
effect ;" for it may be observed, that some of the
blocks, of which the shafts are composed, have
received a violent wrench, so as actually to force
them out of their places, and destroy the con
tinuity of the fluting. The same has been ob
served in the piUars of the Temple of Theseus,
the Parthenon and Propylaea at Athens. ^ It is
conjectured that there were eight piUars in the
front, and thirteen on each of the sides; and that
these three stopd on the south side. The steps
which led to the pprtico have been discovered,
facing the Temple of Antoninus and Faustina.
The Temple of Antoninus and Faustina is now
converted into the Church of S. Lorenzo in Mi
randa. This formed nearly the north-east angle
of the Forum. The inscription upon the frieze
stiU reniains: DIVO. ANTONINO. ET
DIVAE. FAUSTINAE. EX. S. C.
But it has been disputed whether we are to un
derstand by these persons, Antoninus Pius and
his wife Faustina, or M. Antoninus and his wife,
' Evagrius describes the great earthquake at Antioch, in
589, to have twisted the stones of some pinnacles exactly in
this way. Lib. vi. c. 8.
y Williams's Travels, vol. ii. p, 312.
VOL. I. P

210 TEMPLE OF ANTONINUS.
who was also called Faustina. Nibby decides in
favour of the two last, which perhaps agrees best
with the words of J. Capitolinus, who mentions
divine honours being paid to both these ladies.
A considerable portion of the ancient building
is preserved ; but the principal part is the portico
¦of ten columns, six in front and two on each side.
They are Corinthian, and of the marble which is
called CipoUino by the Itahans, from its laminar
composition resembling onions. It was anciently
termed Carystian, from Cape Carystos in Euboea.
The bases and capitals are of white marble.
Their whole height is sixty-three palms. The
form of the temple was oblong ; and it was not
peripteros, or surrounded with an open colon
nade, so that there probably never were more
¦ than these ten piUars, unless there were some at
the other end. AU the cornice of the front has
' disappeared, as have the . shafts of the pUasters
at the sides ; but some ornaments in the frieze,
consisting of griffins and candelabra, are still
tolerably perfect. The portico was buried to
more than half the height of the piUars ; but they
are now laid open to the bases, so that the whole
may be seen ; but they do not present any great
appearance of beauty, as the marble, of which
they are formed, is a very indifiTerent sort. There
was also a flight of twenty-one steps, which formed
the approach to the temple from the Via Sacra.
To speak correctly, these are all the ancient
remains which belonged to the Forum: but there

PILLAR OF PHOCAS. 211
are other buildings not far off, which may pro
perly be mentioned in this place. Before we quit
the verge of the Forum, we ought however to
say something of the pUlar of Phocas, which un
doubtedly stood within it. It is only within a
very few years, that any thing was known for
certain respecting this column. The whole of
the base and pai-t of the shaft was buried; and
the ingenuity of antiquaries was greatly exercised
to give it a name. L. Fauno conjectm-ed it to
have been that of DuiUus; and others had ascribed
it to the temple of Jupiter Custos ; others to the
Bridge of Caligula. The Duchess of Devonshire
has the merit of having had an excavation made
round it in 1813, at which time an inscription was
discovered upon the base, from which we learn,
that a gUt statue was placed on the top of it in
608, to the Emperor Phocas, by Smaragdus, Ex
arch of Italy. As the inscription cannot yet have
made its way into many books of teavels, I have
given it at length.^ It is singular, that the name
of PhocEis himself has been erased, probably by
his successor HeracUus, who deposed and mur
dered Phocas, A.D. 610. Other words also are
obUterated, which I have marked by a Une under
them. ' It is to be found in " Lettere sopra la Colonna dell' Im
peratore Foca, da Filippo Aurelio Visconti, Roma, 1813;''
Mr. Hobhouse's Illustrations to the Fourth Canto of Childe
Harold; and Nibby's Work upon the Roman Forum, as well
as in his notes to Nardini.
p2

212 PILLAR OF PHOCAS.
f OPTIMO CLEMENTIS. FELICISSIMOQVE
PRINCIPI DOMINO N. PHOCAE IMPERATORI
PERPETVO A DO CORONATO TRIVMPHATORI
SEMPER AVGVSTO
SMARAGDVS EX PRAEPOS SACRI PALATII
AC PATRICIVS ET EXARCHVS ITALIAE
DEVOTVS EIVS CLEMENTIAE
PRO INNVMERABILIBVS PIETATIS EIVS
BENEFICIIS ET PRO QVIETE
PROCVRATA ITAL. AC CPNSERVATA LIBERTATE
HANC STATVAM PIETATIS EIVS

AVRI SPLENDORE MICANTEM HVIC
SVBLIMI CPLVMNAE AD PERENNEM
IPSIVS GLORIAM IMPOSVIT AC DICAVIT
DIE PRIMA MENSIS AVGVST. INDICT. VND
PC PIETATIS EIVS ANNO QVINTP.^
We may be surprised to read so flattering a tri
bute to so execrable a tyrant. Gregory the
Great, who was then pope, has also made
honourable mention of him in his Epistles, which
gives Gibbon occasion to say,"" that " the joyful
" applause, with which he salutes the fortune of
" the assassin, has sullied with indelible disgrace
" the character of the saint." But we should
remember, (which Gibbon does not mention,) that
his enormities had been confined to the eastern
" I have given the inscription, as supplied by Visconti.
Nibby reads in the first line piissimoqve, in the eleventh
MAiESTATis, and in the twelfth fvlgentem.
^ Decline and FaU, c. 46,

TEMPLE OF JUPITER TONANS. 213
empire, whereas Italy seems to have been favoured
by him. He wrote to Gregory, proposing an
orthodox confession of faith, acknowledged the
supremacy of the Romish see, was very liberal to
the Roman churches, and aUowed the Pantheon
to be converted to Christian purposes. All which
must have been extremely gratifying to a pope in
the seventh century, and perhaps we in the nine
teenth ought to make some aUowance for his
feelings. MarUanus, who wrote in the sixteenth century,
says, that some letters were risible in his time on
one side of the pUnth, but were so worn by age,
that nothing could be made out. The pUlar is
Corinthian, of Greek marble, and fluted, sixty-
three palms (forty-six feet two inches) high. It
stands upon a pyramid of eleven steps, and is
probably much older than the time of Phocas.
A pillar was erected in the Forum in honour of
Claudius, who succeeded GaUienus, as Emperor.*^
The statue, which is stated to have been on the
summit, may possibly have given place after the
lapse of four centuries and a half to that of Pho
cas. The inscription only mentions the placing
of the statue.
On the dfecUrity of the Capitol, and not far
from this column, are three piUars, which are
said to have belonged to the Temple of Jupiter
Tonans. It is known from Suetonius,'' that Au
gustus erected such a temple at the foot of the
' Treb. PoUio, Claud. 3. ' Aug. c. 29.

214 TEMPLE OF JUPITER TONANS.
Capitol, upon occasion of one of the servants,
who was preceding his litter, being struck with
lightning ; but what is the evidence for identifying
it with these remains, I do not know. The buUd
ing of Augustus was restored by S. Severus and
CaracaUa; and as we still read estitver upon
the frieze, this certainly may be the same. The
Temple of Jupiter Tonans was standing in the
time of Honorius.^ The piUars were tiU latefy
bm-ied almost up to the capitals, but are now laid
open to the bottom. They are of great size, -be
ing six palms (four feet four inches) in diameter,
of white marble, Corinthian and fluted. Upon
the lateral frieze there are several ornaments con
nected with sacrifices, such as the Albogalerus,
or cap, which the Flamen Dialis wore ; the Seces-
pita, or iron knife, with an ivory handle, used by
the same priest; the Capedunculus , or dish; an
axe, a hammer, the aquiminarium, or jug; the
aspersorium, or instrument for sprinkUng the
lustral water: all of them used in the rites of
Jupiter,^ vrhich may be another argument, that
these remains are rightly named. There is a coin
of Augustus, on the reverse of which is a portico
with six pUlars. The two middle ones are wider
apart than the rest ; and between them is a figure
of Jupiter with the letters lov. ton. According
to Nibby there were six pillats in front, eight on
"= Claudian de VI. Cons. Honor. 44.
f There is a coin, which has on one side an elephant and
CAESAR ; on the reverse four of these sacred instruments.

TEMPLE OF CONCORD. 215
each of the sides, and foiu- more in the Pronaos,
in aU twenty-four: but he probably was not
awai-e, that Vitrurius says, that the Temple of
Jupiter Tonans had a portico of thirty columns.
Not far from these remains are eight other
piUars, which are commonly said to belong to the
Temple of Concord. Six of them are in front;
the other two behind. On the architrave we read,
SENATVS. POPVLVSQVE. ROMANVS
INCENDIO. CONSVMPTVM. RESTITVIT
Scarcely any thing remains above the architrave :
aU that exists is of brick; and there are arches in
it over the intercolumniations. We may regret
the destruction of this temple more particularly,
because at no very distant period it was nearly
perfect, and was wantonly destroyed. Poggio,
who wrote in the beginning of the fifteenth cen-
.tury, tells us, that the whole of the temple, with
part ofthe portico, was burnt to make lime; and
that the piUars were thrown down after he came
to Rome. Andrea Fulrio relates the same story;
-and this may perhaps fiirnish us with too true an
.insight into the cause of so many majestic edifices
,having entirely disappeared. When this temple
was restored, after the fire, it was probably done
,m haste, and materials were employed in it which
belonged to diflferent buUdings: for ithas been
observed, that neither the diameters ofthe pillars
nor the intercolumniations are equal. One of
them has eridently been made up of fragments of
two different piUars, so that the diameter is greater

216 TEMPLE OF FORTUNE.
near the summit than it is in the middle. The
two angular columns alone have plinths, and the
bases are composed of Doric and Ionic mixed.
They are of granite, and all of one, piece, fifty-
nine palms (forty-three feet three inches) high:
the bases and capitals are of white marble.
Now that it is so much the fashion with the
Roman antiquaries to call into dispute the names
which have been given to ancient buildings, the
Temple of Concord has been obliged to change
its title, and it is conjectured to have been a
Temple of Fortune. This goddess was certainly
worshipped near this spot, as appears from some
verses at Praeneste, in the Palazzo Baronale :
Tu quae Tarpeio coleris vicina Tonanti,
Votorum vindex semper Fortuna meorum.
We know also from Zosimus,® that the Temple
of Fortune was bumt in the time, of Maxentius ;
and any repair made afterwards would be likely
to be in bad taste, as this certainly was. So that
it is by no means improbable that we should be
justified in altering the appellation of these re
mains : though there certainly was a Temple of
Concord not far from this spot, erected first by
CamiUus, and restored or rebuUt by Tiberius:''
and an excavation, made in 1817, has clearly
proved it to have stood more to the north, very
near to the modern ascent to the Capitol. The
« Lib. ii. c. 13.
•¦ Ovid. Fast. lib. i. 637, &c. Sueton. Tib. e. 20.

TEMPLE OF REMUS. 217
Cella was discovered, and some inscriptions with
the word concordia.
Part pf the Church of SS. Cosmo and Da
miano' is ancient. It was perhaps not actuaUy
in the verge of the Forum, but near to it. The
round vestibule is generaUy said to have belonged
to a Temple of Remus, but others have called it
a Temple of Quirinus. Livy mentions one hav
ing been erected by Papirius in 460 U. C* and
this may have been the Temple of Quirinus, which
was bumt in 703, and restored by Augustus : but
it is stated to have had seventy-six columns at
tached to it, which presents a greater idea of
magnificence than seems to have belonged to
this smaU Vestibule. Nibby thinks that the
round part is not older than the time of Diocle
tian. It was converted to the purpose of a
Christian church by S. Felix IV. in 530; repaired
in 689 by Sergius I. ; and again in 780 by Adrian
I., who added the bronze doors. Its present ap
pearance however is very different from what it
was during those periods: for the church being
found extremely damp, on account of the great
accumulation of soU outside. Urban VIII. raised
the level ofit; so that the present floor is about
twenty feet higher than that of the ancient tem-
' These saints are said to have been placed upon a pUe to
be bumt, but the fire spared them and consumed the execu
tioners. There is an altar-piece in the Church of S. Giovanni
di Fiorentini representing this story, and it is the only altar-
piece in Rome painted by Sdlvator Rosa.
'' Lib. X. c. 46.

218 TEMPLE OF PEACE.
pie ; and its doors of bronze, with the two pillars
of porphyry, were formerly much lower down than
they are now. The original level may be seen by
descending some steps near the altar. There is a
curious echo in the vestibule.
Close to this church are some of the most
remarkable remains in Rome, which till 'lately
were always said to have belonged to the Temple
of Peace. Good reasons, however, are given for
making us believe that this name has been
wrongly applied. It is certain, from Suetonius
and from Josephus, that Vespasian erected a
magnificent temple near the Forum, and conse
crated it to Peace.' But we also learn from He
rodian, that the whole of it was consumed by fire
in the reign of Commodus. Procopius tells us,
that the ruins were lying on the ground in his
time; nor is it likely that it was rebuilt subse
quently: so that we can hardly imagine the pre
sent remains to belong to the building erected
by Vespasian. It is more difficult to decide
what we ought to call it. Nibby thinks that it
is the BasUica of Constantine; and the existing
remains certainly seem .to have belonged to a
Basilica rather than to a Temple. They are in
bad taste, and not unlike the other; edifices of
the age of Constantine. A small portion only
of the original building remains; but the parts
of it are on a prodigious scale. It consists of
' Du Choul, in his Veterum Romanorum Religio, p. 6, has
engraved two coins, which represent the Temple of Peace.

TEMPLE OF vises AND ROME. 219
three very large arches, each about seventy-
five feet across. We -hould consider these in
the present day as a side aisle, or as three lateral
chapels. The rest of the buUding has disap
peared; but the plan may be made out, and it
seems to have consisted of a nave, with an aisle
on each side: these were dirided from each other
by eight pillars of white marble, four of which
stood against the piers which diride these arches.
One of them may still be seen in Rome, it being
that very beautifiil pillar which stands in front of
St. Maria Ma^igiore. It was removed from its
original place by Paul V. and measures sixty-four
palms (forty-seven feet) in height. Nothing ^es
us a greater idea of the splendor of the structure,
than the vast and elegant proportions of this co
lumn: and if we are really to assign the buUding
to the days of Constantine, we must suppose, that
the eight pillars came from some edifice which had
been erected at an earlier period. The middle
arch of the three is recessed farther back; and
each of the others has two rows of windows, with
three in <ach row. The cieling of aU of them was
ornamented with stucco, much of which stiU re
mains. It is calculated that the whole length of
the temple was 326 feet, and the vridth 220.
Recent excavations have proved the entrance to
have been on the side facing Mount Aventine.
Beyond this are the ruins of the Temple of
Venus and Rome. We see here two chapels,
joining each other by the semicircular tribunes;
and this is aU that now remains, though when

220 TEMPLE OF VENUS AND ROME.
the building was entire it was extremely magni
ficent. This temple had the singular honour of
haring an emperor for its architect; as Hadrian
himself, who was fond of this study, drew out a
plan of it, and submitted it to ApoUodorus, who
had distinguished himself so much in the reign
of Trajan, by buUding the Forum of that em
peror, and the bridge over the Danube. Hadrian
was fond of all the fine arts, and fancied himself
a great proficient in them. We know that he
amused himself with painting and sculpture;
and Aurelius Victor is complaisant enough to
compare him to Polycletus and Euphranor.
ApoUodorus had reason to lament his haring an
emperor for a rival; for as he was not so good a
courtier as Aurelius Victor, he did not much
praise his master's taste in the plan of this tem
ple; and having offended him by a former ex
pression of his opinion, for which he was at this
time Uving in exile, he was punished with death.""
The temple was surrounded by a portico, and the
whole length was 730 palms, (535 feet,) the width
437 palms, (321 feet.) Prudentius also mentions
it: At sacram resonare viam mugitibus ante
Delubrum Romae, colitur nam sanguine et ipsa
More Deae, nomenque loci ceu numen habetur :
Atque Urbis Venerisque pari se culmine toUunt
Templa: simul geminis adolentur thura Deabus.
Contr. Sym. i. 218.
"" pio, lib. Ixix.

TEMPLE OF NERVA. 221
It may be seen on coins of Hadrian and Anto
ninus Pius. The people of Smyrna were the
first who erected a temple to Rome, U. C. 559.°
Some antiquaries have preferred calUng these
ruins the Temple of the Sun and Moon, or of
Isis and Serapis.
Between the Forum Romanum and that of
Trajan there were two others, those of Augustus
and of Nerva. The latter was begun by Domi
tian, and finished by Nerva; and from its commu
nicating vrith the two others was called Tran-
sitorium, or Perrium. Part of the waU which
bounded this stUl remains, of a great height,
and about 144 paces long. It is composed of
square masses of freestone, very large, without
any cement, and it is extiaordinary, that it is not
carried in a, straight line, but makes three or four
angles, as if some buUdings had interfered with
its direction. There is an arch in it caUed
L'Arco de' Pantani, and this also is irregularly
buUt, as the sides of it are not at right angles, but
obUque. It seems to be at least half buried by
the accumulation of soU.
Close to this arch are some remains of the
temple erected in honour of Nerva, by Trajan.
Others have caUed it the temple erected to Mars
Ultor by Augustus, in consequence of a vow,
which he made in the campaign against Brutus
and Cassius. Venuti says that there was for
merly this inscription on the architrave :
" Tac. An. lib, iv. c, 56,

TEMPLE OF MINERVA.
IMP. NEilVA. CAESAR. AVG. PONTIF
MAX, TRIB. POT. II. IMP. II. PROCOS
Pliny mentions a temple to Nerva in his Pa
negyric, and it is said to have been one of the
most magnificent in Rome. At present nothing
remains but three pillars and a pilaster of the
Portico, which looked toward the Forum Roma
num. These piUars are Corinthian, of Parian
marble, fifty-four feet and a half high. The ar
chitrave, which is supported by them, is hand
somely ornamented. The monastery of the Nun-
ziatina is built immediately behind these pillars,
and a high brick tower belonging to it rises over
them. Not far from this, and nearer to the Forum
Romanum, is a still more beautiful fragment, con
sisting of two columns supporting a magnificent
architrave, which are supposed to have belonged
to a Temple of Minerva. The piUars are Corin
thian, eleven feet in circumference, and calculated
to be thirty-one in height, but more than half of
them is buried. The frieze is very rich, con
tainmg bas-reUefs characteristic of Minerva, of
very good workmanship. Above this is an attic
story, which has suffered considerably, but a
figure of Minerva in the middle of it is tolerably
perfect. This may be the temple mentioned by
Pliny," " when the Forum was dedicated, which
"is caUed Pervium, in which a loftier and more
" magnificent temple is erected to Minerva."
» Lib. vii, u. 26.

ARCH OF JANUS.

TRIUMPHAL ARCHES.

223

Pliny caUs the Triumphal Arch a new invention ;
not that such ai-ches were unknown before the
time of Vespasian, but because they were of much
meaner materials and unornamented. Romulus
is said to have had one of brick ; and Blondus,
an antiquary of the fifteenth century, says, that
the remains of it fell down in his time. It is
known that an Arch of Fabius, who defeated the
AUobroges, stood at that angle of the Forum
where the Via Sacra entered it. AU those which
StiU remain, or of which the situations are known,
were placed in the way, along which the trium
phal processions passed to the Capitol, p It seems
probable, however," that sometimes temporary
arches were erected during the triumph, and the
more durable ones afterwards.**
ARCH OF JANUS.
This, which is the most ancient now remaining,
was probably not a Triumphal Arch. It is the
only one of the kind in Rome, and perhaps ought
to be called simply a Janus, for this was the name
F A writer in the Quarterly Review, (vol. xxviii. p. 324,)
gives as a reason for doubting this assertion, that triumphal
arches are to be found at Susa and Aoste. This is quite true ;
and I beg to assure the Reviewer, that I really did not con
ceive the triumphal processions in Rome to have passed by
Susa and Aoste,
' Vide Claudian, de VI Cons, Honor. 621.

224 ARCH OF
of all those arches which had passages through
them both ways; that is, where there were two
arches cutting each other at right angles. Thus,
Suetonius says of Domitian,"" " He erected a
" great many Jani, and arches with cars and
" triumphal insignia, in difiTerent quarters of the
" city." The Temple of Janus itself was proba
bly on this plan. The first was buUt by Numa.'
Plutarch calls it, vsmg SiSugog, a two-gated temple;
and Serrius has the foUowing passage, at JEn. vu.
607. " Numa PompiUus erected this sanctuary,
" (the Temple of Janus,) near the bottom of the
" Argiletus, by the Theatre of MarceUus : it con-
" sisted of two very small temples. There were
" two, on account of Janus haring two faces.
" Afterwards, when Falerii, a Tuscan city, was
" taken, an image of Janus with four fronts was
" found ; in consequence of which, that which
" Numa had finished was removed to the Forum
" Transitorium, and one temple was built with
" four gates." The words of Servius seem to
show, that the building erected by Numa was
not far from the present Arch of Janus. It is
ornamented with twelve niches on each side ; and
on the east and west they are all deep enough
to have contained statues. On the other sides,
only four are of that depth. Varro' says, that
Janus had twelve altars dedicated to him, one for
each month of the year. Some have imagined,
¦¦ C. 13. Vide Ovid. Fast. lib. i, 257-
• Liv. lib. i. c, 19. ' Lib. iv.

JANUS, 225
that the twelve niches on each side of this arch
relate to tliis custom ; and appeal to the etymo
logy of Janii^, which they say is synonymous with
Tempus. Not much is known as to the date or purpose
of this arch. There is reason to beUeve that it
was made use of by the bankers and money
changers ; and Horace aUudes to this, or a simUar
buUding, when he says,
postquam omnis res mea Janura
Ad medium fracta est. Sat. ii, 3, 18.
And, Virtus post nummos. Haec Janus summus ab irao
Perdocet. Epist. i. I, 54,
The Greek marble, of which it is buUt, brings
the date down to the end of the RepubUc, as this
material did not begin to be used tiU that time.
Each side is seventy-seven feet long. The lower
part has only been lately brought to hght from
the soU, which had accumulated round it. The
brickwork at the top is the work of the middle
ages, when it was fortified by the Frangipani
famUy. Much of the demoUtion of the ancient
buUdings in Rome is to be attributed to the dis
sensions of great famihes, on which occasions
these rehcs were seized upon, as places of de
fence. During the residence of the Popes at
Arignon, in the fourteenth century, the Colonna
and Orsini famihes contributed not a little to this
destruction. The spot on which the arch stands forcibly
VOL. I, Q

226 ARCH OP JANUS,
reminds us of former times ; no where in Rome
is there a greater appearance of desolation and
decay. The ground points out, by its irregular
surface, that many buildings are buried under it.
The Cloaca Maxima may be seen close by, pass
ing under the stupendous arch which covers it;
other water also flows into it, which occasionaUy
inundates the arch itself, and which probably
formed the Lake of Juturna. That there was
always water in this neighbourhood, we learn from
several passages in ancient authors. Tibullus,
lib, ii. el. 5.
At qua Velabri regio patet, ire solebat
Exiguus pulsa per vada linter aqua.
Ovid, Fast. ri. 405.
Qua Velabra solent in Circum ducere pompas.
Nil praeter salices crassaque canna fuit.
Even the ancient name of Velabrum is preserved
in the Church of S. Georgio in Velabro, which
is not far oflT.
I am not aware of any other church in Rome
being dedicated to this saint ; and since his name
is become so popular in England, a Uttle digres
sion may be aUowed as to his history. The sar
castic remark of Gibbon will be famUiar to most
readers, that " the infamous George, of Cappa-
" docia has been transformed into the renowned
" St, George of England, the patron of arms, of
" chivalry, and ofthe garter."" This transforma
tion, as Gibbon himself acknowledges in a note,
" C. 23.

S. GEORGE. 227
is not absolutely certain; but it suited his purpose
to asserf it in the text. The Roman Catholics
positively deny it; and apparently upon good
grounds. George of Cappadocia was an Arian,
and set up by the Arians as Patriarch of Alex
andria, in opposition to Athanasius; he was put
to death by the populace, in the reign of Julian,
A.D. 361; and the authentic accounts" which
we have of his life, make it as improbable that his
real history should be forgotten, as that the great
opponent of the CathoUcs should be converted
into a CathoUc Saint. It is therefore asserted,
that the person who obtained such distinguished
worship in the east, was whoUy different from the
George of Cappadocia. A church was erected
to him as early as in the reign of Justinian ; and
the church, which led to this digression, is said to
be as old as the fourth century, or more probably
the eighth. Clotilda, the wife of Cloris, dedicated
an altar to him, in France, at the end of the fifth
.century. He is said to have suffered martyrdom
in the reign of Carinus or Diocletian. His name
soon became as celebrated in the west as in the
east ; but I have not been able to discover what
gave him the rank of tutelary saint in England.
Gibbon says, that it is to be traced to the Cru
sades. As for the pictures, which represent him
combating a dragon in defence of a virgin, they
' Gibbon refers us to Ammianus, xxii. 11. Greg. Naz.
Orat, 21, Epiphanius, Hares. 76.
q2

228 ARCH OF DRUSUS.
are undoubtedly ancient f and Baronius teUs us,
that they contain an aUegorical description of his
rescuing provinces and cities, which were in dis
tress, and his subduing the arts of the devil. The
spurious Acts of St. George transform Alexandria
into a princess, and Athanasius into a magician.
But we must return from this digression.
ARCH OF DRUSUS.
If the arch, which stands a Uttle within the
Porta S. Sebastiano, is properly ascribed to Nero
Claudius Drusus, father of the Emperor Claudius,
this is the oldest triumphal arch in Rome; hut, at
the time of its erection, it was beyond the circuit
ofthe waUs. It is always caUed FArco di Druso;
and we learn from Suetonius,'' that an arch of
marble was erected to Drusus in the Appian way,
which agrees with the situation of the arch in
question. There are also coins of Claudius, on
which we find an arch similar to this ; and P.
Victor and S. Rufiis place an Arch of Drusus in
the region of the Porta Capena. Some antiqua
ries, on the other hand, have supposed that it was
buUt by Caracalla, for the purpose of conveying
the Aqua Martia to his baths ; and as there is a
channel for water on the top, and remains of other

y Eusebius mentions a picture of Constantine with a dragon,
transfixed, under his feet. Vita Const, lib. iii. c. 3.
' Claud, c. 1.

ARCH OF TITUS. 220
arches may be observed in a line with this, the
conjecture is not without good foundations. But
we shaU probably ai-rive at the truth by uniting
the two opinions. The arch may have been
erected in commemoration of the Triumph of
Drasus, and it may subsequently have been made
use of to carry on the line of an aquaduct. Its
architecture presents no particular beauty. It
consists of only one archway; and on the side
facing the gate there are two piUars of Afiican or
Chian marble of the Composite order. The coin,
mentioned above, represents four such piUars on
one side, and an equestrian statue, with two tro
phies, on the top.
ARCH OF TITUS.
This stands at the foot of the Palatine HUl,
on the road leading from the Colosseum to the
Forum. It is reckoned one of the most beautifid
models of architecture which remain, though it
has suffered more than some of the other arches ;*
nor was it so large, consisting only of one arch
way. The white marble, with which the whole is
cased, is become quite black with age. It is
generaUy quoted as being the most ancient build
ing in which the Comppsite prder is found; but

' Since the first edition of this work appeared, the Arch of
Titus has been taken down, and put up again. The parts
which were lost have been restored in Travertine stone.

230 COMPOSITE ORDER.
we have aheady Pbserved it uppn the Arch pf
Drusus; and Pocock, in his Travels,'' mentions a
temple at Melasso, (anciently Mylasa,) in Caria,
where the six pillars of the portico are Composite.
His engraving clearly represents them as such;
and since the temple was built in honour of
Augustus and Rome, as is proved by the inscrip
tion stUl remaining, we have here an earUer speci
men than the Arch of Titus, by upwards of half
a century. If the Composite is rightly called the
Roman order, it is singular that the earUest known
specimen of it should be in a Greek city ; and we
may remark, as a singular circumstance, its not
being found in the Colosseum, also built by Titus,
which consists of four stories, and where the three
first are successively Doric, Ionic, and Corinthian.
It might have been expected, that the fourth
would have been Composite, in order to continue
the variety, but this also is Corinthian, as weU as
the one below it. It should be mentioned, how
ever, that when we speak of the Composite order,
we are using a term not recognised by the ancients.
Vitruvius does not make a fifth order of it, and
only notices the variety in the capital, which he
says is composed of the Doric, Ionic, and Corin
thian. The shaft and other parts are not charac
terized by him as having any thing peculiar; and,
in the same way, he considers the Corinthian
capital as made up of the Doric and Ionic. Serlio
I' Vol. ii. p. 61.

ARCH OF TITUS. 231
is the first writer who treats of the Composite as
a fifth order; and he founds his remarks upon
this arch, the two of Septmiius Severus, the Baths
of Diocletian, Temple of Bacchus, &c.
This arch was erected by the senate and people
of Rome to commemorate the triumph which fol
lowed the taking of Jerusalem by Titus. The
inscription is briefly this,
SENATVS POPVLVSQVE RPMANVS
Divo TITP DIVI VESFASIANI F
VESPASIANO AVGVSTP
From the epithet of Divus, appUed to Titus, we
learn, that it was not erected tUl after his death:
which is also proved by the Apotheosis of the
emperor, represented on the roof of the arch,
under the figure of a man sitting upon an eagle.
This inscription is on the side facing the Colos
seum. On the opposite front, the attic and
cornice are completely defaced; and the base of
one of the piUars is the only ornament remaining
on that side : the following inscription is stated'
to have been found not far off", and may possibly
have stood upon this side. In that case we
should learn something more certahi as to the
time of the arch being erected.
"= By L. Fauno, lib. ii. c. 1 9 : but it is given raore correctly
by Gruter, p. ccxliv. n. 6. Gruter, however, did not know
where it was to be found.- Scaliger suspected it to be a for
gery of Onufrio Panvinio.

ARCH OF TITUS.
IMP. TITO. CAESARI. DIVI, VESPASIANI, F
VESPASIANO. AUG. PONTIFICI. MAXIMO
TRIB. PPT. X. IMP. XVII. CPS. VIII. P. P
PRINCIPI. SVO. S. P. Q. R
QVOD. PRAECEPTIS. PATRIS. CONSILIISQVE. ET
AVSPICIIS. GENTEM. IVDAEORVM. DPMVIT. ET
VRBEM. HIEROSOLYMAM. OMNIBVS. ANTE. SE
DVCIBVS. REGIBVS. GENTIBVSQVE. AVT. FRVSTRA
PETITAM. AVT. OMNINO. INTENTATAM. DELEVIT.
Some of the vessels, which belonged to the
Temple at Jerusalem, and which were carried
in the triumphal procession, appear in the bas-
reliefs on the interior sides of the arch. There
is also the emperor himself in a car, drawn by
four horses, attended by senators, crowned with
laurel. A Dissertation was written upon these bas-
reliefs by Reland, intitled, " De Spolus Templi
" Hierosolymitani in Arcu Titiano, Traj. ad
" Rhen. 1716," in which are given engravings of
the Arch, and the figures carved upon it. The
treatise is full of Rabbinical learning, and may
be interesting to the admirers of that study : but
I shall only select from it a few remarks, which
relate immediately to the sculptures upon the
Arch. Josephus '' says, that the golden table, golden
candlestick, the book ofthe law, and other spoUs,
were carried in the triumph. Those which can
^ De Bello Jud, lib, vii, c, 5,

JEAVISH SPOILS. 233
be recognised upon the Arch are the candle
stick, the table, the vessel of incense, and two
trumpets. Reland teUs us that he employed
Anthony Twyman, an Enghshman, to measure
the bas-reUefs for him, and that the candlestick,
including the base, was two feet nine inches
(EngUsh) in height. The breadth of the base
and of the branches at top is exactly, the same,
each being two feet. This however can of course
give us no measure of the height of the can
dlestick itself. We may observe, that aU the
branches rise to the same height, so as to form a
straight line at top; and the two exterior branches
are not simUar in their ornaments. With respect
to these omaments, and the form of the candle
stick itself, descriptions are to be found in Rab
binical writings: it is also represented in some
ancient gems and upon a lamp, engrarings of
which may be seen in Reland's work.
The account, with which we are most famUiar,
is that given in Exodus xxv. 31 — 36. We there
find mention of three diflTerent ornaments, bowls,
knops, and flowers. Josephus' describes them
thus, 7r£n'0i>]rizi hi aripaigioi xcci xgtva. ciiv polrrxoi; xal
xgat))giSiai;- kSioff^x-ovra Ze irivToi. In this pas
sage, the xgiW are what our translators haive
caUed flowers; and in the Septuagint- they are
also caUed xgiva. The xgantgiha are the cups,
or bowls, and the poia-xoi are the knops, caUed
by the Septuagint o-^aipcoriipef . Reland calls the
" Antiq. lib, iii, u. 6.

234 ARCH OF TITUS.
latter mala, apples; and supposes, that they
were intended for the mala punica, or pome
granates. From the Greek term used by Jose
phus and the Seventy we might be led to ima
gine, that the flowers were meant for lilies; but
Reland conjectures them to be the flowers of
the pomegranate. In the bas-reliefs the three
omaments always join each other, the apple in
the middle, and the cup and the flower sur
rounding the top and bottom of it; so that we
may naturally suppose the flower to have be
longed to the fruit, Malmonides informs us,
that the oups were like Alexandrian cups, nar
row at the bottom and broad at the mouth ; in
short, like modern saucers, and so they appear
upon the arch. The same author says, that the
knops were hke Cretan apples, in shape like an
egg, and broad frpm each extremity. The flowers
he compares to those in the capitals of pillars, or
to a dish, the lips of which are bent outwards.
The table represented on the arch does not
answer so well to the descriptions, which we
have of it. The account is to be found in
Exodus xxv. 23, &c. At verse 26, mention is
made of rings at the feet for the purpose of
carrying it: these are not in the figure. Jose
phus *^ says, that the legs were finished exactly,
{tsXsoi; a7r))gT((7(xe'voi,) for the lower half ; and that
the upper half of them was square. -This does
not appear from the bas-reliefs, but it is possible,
' Antiq, lib, iii, c. 6.

JEWISH SPOILS. 235
that the edges have been rounded oft' by time.
There are two vessels upon the table.
According to the Book of Numbers, x. 2,
there were to be two trumpets made of sUver, of
which a fiixther description may be seen in Jo
sephus.* Two trumpets appear upon the arch;
and this is all which is worthy of notice, as to the
form of the different vessels.
It may be disputed, whether the vessels of the
Temple, which were carried away by Titus, were
the same which had been taken to Babylon by
Nebuchadnezzar, upwards of 600 years before,
and brought back to Jerusalem at the restoration
of the Jews.'' Antiochus Epiphanes certainly
carried them away, A. C. 170,' and it appears
that new vessels were placed in the Temple in
their room.'' The fate of the spoUs which were
carried in tiiumph by Titus, is rather interesting.
We can trace their history down to a late period,
but what finally became of them can perhaps
never be ascertained. Josephus says,' that the
veU and books of the law were placed in the
Palace at Rome, and. the candlestick and other
spoils were kept in the Temple of Peace.*" Men-
s Antiq. lib. iii. c. 12.
'• See 2 Kings, 25.; 2 Chron. 36.; Jer. 53.; Ezra, 1. J
iMac. i. 21.
' 1 Mac. i. 21, 22.
¦^ 1 Mac. iv. 49.
' De Bello" Jud. lib. vii. c. 5,
'^ The Ark of the Covenant is said to be preserved in thc
Church of S. John Lateran: but it does not appear from Jose
phus, that it was ever carried to Rome.

236 ARCH OF TITUS.
tion is made of the golden fiUet being seen in the
time of Hadrian. When the Temple of Peace
was burnt, in the reign of Commodus, these trea
sures were not destroyed; for Anastasius, where
he relates that Genseric entered Rome on the
third day after the fiight of Maximus, and carried
off" a great deal of treasure to Africa, says, that
amongst the spoil were the Hebrew vessels which
Titus had brought from Jerusalem."" He states
farther, that BeUsarius, after conquering the
Vandals, returned tp Cpnstantinople with great
treasures, among which were the Jewish vessels
which Titus had brought to Rome, and Genseric
had carried to Africa. This was in the year 520.
Procopius confirms this account," and adds, that
a Jew, who saw them, told an acquaintance of the
emperor, that it would not be advisable to carry
them to the palace at Constantinople, as they could
not remain any where else but where Solomon
had placed them. This he said was the reason
why Genseric had taken the palace at Rome, and
the Roman army had in turn taken that of the
Vandals. When this was reported to the em
peror, he was alarmed, and sent the whole of
them immediately to the Christian churches at
Jerusalem. We have raention of some more of the Jewish

" I give this on the authority of Reland, but I have not my
self been able to find the passage in Anastasius. Nicephorus
mentions it, lib. xv. c. 11.
" Lib, ii. c. 9.

ARCH OF SEPTIMIUS SEVERUS. 237
spoils in another passage of Procopius, where he
says, that the Franks carried on the siege of Car-
cassio (Carcassonne) with great eagerness, because
they understood that the royal treasure was there
which Alaric had carried off' when he plundered
Rome ; among which were the treasures of King
Solomon, and the spoU taken by the Roraans from
Jerusalem. Beside these bas-reUefs, there are others in
the frieze, which represent the procession of a
sacrifice. Over the Arch there is a hoUow
chamber, which does not seem to have had any
particular use, except to hghten the buUding.
TUl the time of Sextus IV. the bas-rehefs were
not risible, so much had the soil accumulated,
and buried the Arch. That pope ordered it to
be excavated ; and there is now a clear passage
under the Arch at the level of the ancient pave
ment, if not upon the ancient pavement itself.
I have seen it stated, but cannot vouch for the
truth of the story, that the Jews wUl not pass
under this Arch ; but that if they want to go that
road, they walk by the side of it.P
ARCH OF SEPTIMIUS SEVERUS.
(In the Forum.)
This Arch stands at the foot of the Capitol,
and was at the north-west angle of the ancient

I" The only authority which I recollect at present is Mad.
de Stael, in her Novel of Corinne.

238 ARCH OF
Forum. It is of white marble, and consists of
one large arch, with a smaller one on each side,
with a lateral communication from one to the
Pther. Beside the bas-reliefs on each front, it
is ornamented with eight fluted Comppsite pillars ;
and it may be observed, that here, as in most
ancient buildings, the roses upon the interior pf
the arch are all diflferent. It appears that fprmerly
there was a chariot on the top : for coins exist, on
one side of which is a head of CaracaUa, with
ANTPNINVS PIVS AVG PPNT TR P. VII., and PU the
other is an arch, bearing the inscripticn, arcvs
AVGG sc, and surmcunted by a car, with two per
sons in it, drawn by six horses : on each side is a
figure on horseback, followed by one on foot.
On another coin we have a singular mixture of
Greek and Latin in the inscription, which is thus,
•ATT. K. M. AVP. CEVH. ANTQNEINPC. AVF, Ou the
reverse there is an arch, and arcvs avgg sc as
before. In one of the sides is a staircase of fifty
steps, leading to the top.
. The Arch was erected in honour of Septimius
Severus and his two sons, CaracaUa and Geta, to
commemorate two triumphs over the Parthians.
We know from history, that he made two expedi
tions into the East : the first in 195, when he
conquered King Vologeses ; the second in 199,
when he took Ctesiphon, and the treasures of
-King Artabanus. The circumstance of his being
twice styled parthicvs in the inscription, seems
to point out twp expeditions and two triumphs.
Spartian tells us distinctly, that he triumphed

SEPTIMIUS SEVERUS. 239
after the first expedition, but refused the honour
the second time, because he had the gout. His
son triumphed in his stead ; and it was upon this
occasion that the Arch was erected; or perhaps it
was deferred tiU the year 205, when the Ludi
Stsculares were celebrated. The same inscriptipn
is placed on each front.
It has been mentioned, that the Arch was erected
to the emperor's two spns, as weU as to himself:
but it wiU be observed, that the name of the eldest
alone occurs in the inscription. He is there styled
M. AureUus Antoninus ; the nickname of Cara
caUa or CaracaUus having been given hira as a
term of reproach, and scarcely used tiU after his
death.'' The name of Geta has eridently been
erased, which was dpne when he was put tP death
by prder ef his brother CaracaUa in the year 213.
The usual method of afllxing these inscriptions
was, first, to cut the letters in the stone, and then
to fasten in other letters, which were cast in
metal. The raetalUc letters have been carried off"
from this inscription, as from almost every other ;
but from this very circumstance we are able to
make out the fact, that in the seventh line there
were once diff'erent words from what now appear.
The inscription in this line is optimis. fortissi-
MisQ. PRiNCiPiBVS : but the marble is depressed
along the whole line, which shows, that some
thing had been cut away, and the holes, in which
Ihe first metalhc letters were fixed, still remain.
1 Vide Dio. lib. Ixxvii. Euseb, in Chron. ad an. 214,

240 ARCH OF
By tracing these holes, it is conjectured, that the
original inscription in this Une was p. septimio.
GETAE. NOBILISSIMO. CAESARI. OPT. and at the end
of the preceding line p.p has been substituted for
ET. The naval ornaments dehote the means
taken by Severus to transport his men down the
Euphrates, Tigris, and rivers of Adiabene.
Descriptions of this arch may be found in
Winkelmann, aiid Serlio -.^ but the fuUest account
js by Joseph Maria Suaresius, (Romae 1676,)
from whose work I have extracted a few observa
tions to Ulustrate the bas-reliefs.
I wiU suppose a person to approach the Arch
from the Colosseum; and that he first looks at the
bas-reliefs on his left hand. These relate to the
first expedition of Severus, A.D. 195 ; in the
course of whicb he routed King Vologeses, took
Carrha, and went against the Adiabeni or Osrhoeni.
In the upper part of the piece Severus harangues
his soldiers ; below hira the Romans are slaying
the Parthians, and at the bottom the city of Carrha
is taken. On the right the siege of Nisibis is
raised, and Vologeses flies on horseback.
The bas-reUefs on the right relate to the year
196, when Severus was still in the East. Above
are represented Severus, and the King of Armenia,
who is admitted to his friendship. In the middle,
Abgarus, King ofthe Adiabeni or Osrhoeni, offers
the assistance of troops ; and at the bottom the
Romans apply the battering ram to the capital of
the Atreni. ¦¦ Lib, iii, dd Architect.

SEPTIMUS SEVERUS. , 241
On the Pther side of the Arch (facing the
Capitol) the bas-rehefs on a person's right hand
relate to the emperor's second expedition m 199.
In the upper part he is haranguing his raen, and
sendmg out commanders. At the bottom he again
besieges Atra, and the inhabitants ai-e holding out
their hands to him. In the corner is a machine,
caUed Catarrhacta, for letting out water, which is
described by Caesar.'
The remaining compartment contains the aflTairs
of the year 201. In the upper row the Euphrates
is crossed, and Ctesiphon taken. In the second
two chiefs kneel down before the emperor, which
denotes the submission of Arabia. At the bottom,
the Tigris is crossed, Seleucia is taken, and
Artabanus flies.
The bas-reUefs, which are under these several
compartments, represent the treasures and cap
tives led in triumph. The whole series is in an
indiff'erent style of sculpture, and presents but a
poor idea of the state of the arts at that tirae.
This Arch was formerly buried for nearly half
its height. Leo X. ordered some excavations
under the direction of M. Angelo. They were
undertaken a second time in 1563, but soon fiUed
up again: Nardini witnessed the faUure of a
simUar attempt hi the Pontificate of Gregory XV. :
and the -present pope laid the arch open to the
bottom in 1804, at which time the pavement of the
ancient Clivus AsyU was discovered.
' De BeUo Civili, lib. ii.
VOL. I. R

242 ARCH OF
ARCH OF S. SEVERUS,
(in Foro Boario.)
This stands very near to the Arch of Janus,
and one side of it joins on to the ancient Church
of S. Georgio in Velabro; so that many of the
ornaments cannot now be seen, being buried in
the wall of the Church. It is small, and was
erected, as the inscription states, by the mer
chants and bankers of the Forum Boarium, to S.
Severus, his wife JuUa, and his son CaracaUa.
The existence of this Arch probably points out
where the triumphal processions passed, as we
know that they went through this Forum on their
way to the Circus Maximus;' and these Arches
were generally erected on the line of their march.
We may observe here, as in the larger Arch to
the sarae emperor, that the name of Geta has
been erased from the inscription. It occurred in
the fifth and eighth lines. In the fifth, where we
now read fortissimo, felicissimoqve. principi.
ET. p. p. PROCOs, we may conjecture, that there
was formerly et. p. septimio, getae, nobilissimo.
CAESARI: and in the eighth, instead of et. p. sep-
TiMii, getae. nobilissimi. CAESARIS, there has
been substituted parthici, maximi, brittanicl
MAXIMI, Independent of the marble bearing
marks of the alteration, we may demonstrate, that
the latter line must have been a subsequent addi
tion, as Caracalla did not assume the name of
' Sueton. J. Cffis. c. 37.

S. SEVERUS. 213
PARTHICVS tiU long after his father's death." From
the expression trib. pot. xii. this arch seems to
have been built in the year foUowing the otiier,
where we read trib. pot. xi.
Some bas-rehefs may be observed upon the
arch, and every part of it is loaded with orna
ments in a very rich style. The capitals of the
pUasters are Composite. In front is a sacrifice,
in which are the figm-es of Severus and CaracaUa:
that of Geta has been defaced. Under the arch
way the same thing may be observed. On the
side facing the Arch of Janus is a plough drawn
by a buU and a cow, which is known to indicate
the founding of a colony, and perhaps aUuded to
the tradition of Romulus having begun to trace
out his infant city frora this spot. It is engraved
in Grasrius, vol. iu. p. 609, and by Desgodetz.
" In Belzoni's Travels, p. 106, there is this inscription,
taken from a granite quarry in Egypt :
IMP. P. SEVERI. ET
ANTOXIXI. PIISSIMORVM, AVGG
ET. GET ISSI
where the letters with a line under them are dotted ; by which,
I presume, that we are to understand, that they have been
partly erased. The governor of Egypt in the days of Cara
calla was doubtless too good a coartier, not to follow the
example, which the emperor himself had set. Two statues of
Caracalla and Geta were found at Tivoli, and on that of Geta
was written Sit Geta Divus dum non sit vivus. There is an
inscription at Prseneste, from which the name of the Emperor
Commodus has been erased according to the decree mentioned
by Lampridius.

244 ARCH OF GALLIENUS.
ARCH OF GALLIENUS.
This is a small arch, and scarcely worth men
tioning. The remains of it are not far from S.
Maria Maggiore, a little to the right of the road
leading to S. Croce. It is of freestone and of
indifferent workmanship, without any sculpture
or other decoration to attract attention. We
learn from the inscription, that it was raised to
the Eraperor GaUienus and his wife Salonina by
M. Aurelius Victor, which would give it the date
of about A. D. 260. The flattery and falsehood
of the inscription have seldom been exceeded.
GALLIENO. CLEMENTIS'SIMO. PRINCIPI
CVIVS. INVICTA. VIRTVS
SOLA. PIETATE. SVPERATA. EST
ET. SALONINAE. SANCTISSIMAE. AVG.
M. AVRELIVS. VICTOR
DEDICATISSIMVS
NVMINI. MAIESTATIQVE
EORVM
From an ancient inscription at Ferentino we
learn that the praenomen of Salonina was Cornelia.
Here also she is styled sanctissima and her hus
band iNvicTvs. A chain stiU hangs from the
middle of this arch, to which were suspended the
keys of the Porta Salsicchia in Viterbo, which
city was taken by the Roraans, A.D. 1200.
ARCH OF CONSTANTINE.
This stands at the foot of the Palatine HiU,
very near the Colosseum, and was erected by the

ARCH OF CONSTANTINE. 21'0
senate in honour of Constantine's victory over
Maxentius. The battie was fought beyond the
Ponte MoUe; but as the triumphal procession,
after leaving the Circus Maxunus, wound round
the Palatine HiU, and so entered the Forum by
the Via Sacra, it passed by the spot where this
arch stands. The inscription alludes to the
defeat of the tp-ant: but tiie words instinctv
DiviNiTATis in the third Une are supposed to have
been added aftei-wards; since the marble is there
rather sunk in, and the holes for the bronze letters
are confiised. There can be little doubt, that
the expression referred to the miraculous appear
ance of a cross, which Constantine saw in the sky,
whUe he was marching against Maxentius. Many
persons have doubted the ti-uth of this rision: but
Eusebius teUs us, that he had heard the Emperor
himself mention it." Beside the inscription, we
read on one side of the arch votis x and votis
xx, on the other side sic x and sic xx. This was
meant to express the Vota decennalia and vicen-
nalia, or vows for ten and twenty years, which
were offered up for the preservation of the empe
ror and the empire. The origin of this custom
we leam from Dio;^ " Augustus, in order to re-
" move from the Romans any suspicion of his
" looking to the kingly power, took upon him the
" imperial office only for ten years. When this
" period had elapsed, another period of five
" years; and when that was finished, stiU another
" Vita Const, lib, i, c, 28, s Lib, Iiii.

246 ARCH OF
" of five ; after that a period of ten years, and stUl
" another after that were successively decreed to
" him; so that by a continuation of such decrees
" he held the imperial power for his whole life.
" For which reason the later emperors also, al-
" though the power is conferred upon them not
" for any limited time, but for their whole life,
" celebrate a festival for its renewal every ten
" years; and that is the case at present." (Dio
wrote in the raiddle of the third century.) We
frequently find on coins vot. x. xx. xxx. xxxx,
and on one of Constantine hiraself is vot. xx.
Eusebius also gives us a particular account of
Constantine celebrating the Decennalian festival,
when he had corapleted the first ten years of his
reign,^ and other festivals upon the completion of
the twentieth and thirtieth years.
The building consists of one large arch, with a
smaUer one on each side ; and is ornamented with
eight Corinthian piUars of Giallo antico, with a
statue over each. There is a staircase leading to
the top ; and the compartment, in which it is con
structed, is thicker than the corresponding one.
It raay be remarked also, that the two smaUer
arches are not exactly of the same width. The
chamber, to which the staircase leads, is fiUed
with fragments of marble, which have probably
lain there since the arch was first erected. A
great diflPerence will be perceived in the workman
ship of the bas-reliefs; which is to be explained
^ Vita Const, lib. i, c, 48,

CONSTANTINE.

247

by this chcurastance; that many of them came
from an Arch of Trajan, which stood in his Forum.
That we may be able to compare the state of the
arts at the two different periods, it wiU be well
first to distinguish accurately what parts belong
to each. The eight piUai-s already mentioned,
and the statues over them, carae frora the Arch of
Trajan; so did eighteen of the bas-reUefs; viz.
the ten, wiiich are in the attic story, and eight of
the round medaUions. AU the rest are of the age
of Constantine ; and by comparing one set with the
other, we may perceive how greatly the arts had
been deteriorated since the time of Trajan. In
deed no more convincing proof could be given of
the degeneracy of the arts in the time of Constan
tine, than his being obliged to adopt the produc
tions of a former period : unless we suppose, that
the hurry was so great to finish the structure in
time for the triumph, that they could not wait for
any work to be executed on purpose. The ac
count given by Eusebius certainly seems to imply,
that the triumphal entry foUowed very close upon
the victory:^ and yet there are grounds for sup
posing, that the arch was not erected tiU a later
period. One argument is taken from the epithet
of maximvs, which we find in the inscription, and
which Constantine is said not to have assumed till
the latter part of his reign.'' By thus transferring
the ornaments of one arch to the other, we find

" Vita Const, lib, i. c. 39.
'' Vide Panvinius Fasti Romani.

248 ARCH OF
the victories and actions of Trajan ascribed to
Constantine. But this is only a defect, when the
story is known; and we have gained this advan
tage by it, that whereas the Arch of Trajan, and
all the other ornaments of his Forum, except the
column, are destroyed, these bas-reUefs stiU exist
upon the arch, to which they were removed. It
may also be remarked, that Trajan's buildings
deserved to meet with this spoUation more than
those of any other emperor, since he was famous
for placing his own name upon all public edifices,
as if he had been the founder of them; which
raade the wits of Rome caU him Herba Parietina,
or a weed upon the wall."^
Of the bas-reUefs, the four which are in the
attic story on the front facing the Colosseum, re
present the triumphal entry of Trajan into Rome ;
the repair of the Appian Way : his measures to
supply Italy with prorisions ; and Partomasires
imploring hira to restore to- him the kingdom of
Armenia, which had been taken from his father.
On the opposite front, and hkewise in the attic
story, we find Trajan declaring Partenaspartes
king of Parthia; the discovery of a conspiracy
formed against him by Decebalus, king of Dacia ;
his harangue to the soldiers; and the sacrifice,
caUed Suovetaurilia, performed by hira. On the
two sides there are also two bas-rehefs, which
are considered the finest of the whole, and appear
originally to have formed only one compartment.
" Ammian. MarceUinus, lib. xxvii. c. 3.

CONSTANTINE. 2lf)
They represent the \ ictory gained by Trajan over
Decebalus. The eight round medidUons on the
two fi-onts relate to the sports of the cliasc, of
which we are informed, that Trajan was fond ;''
and to sacrifices offered by hun to Mars, ApoUo,
Diana, &c.
The sculptures contemporary with the arch are
very inferior to the forraer. Those at the bottom
relate to the taking of Verona, and the rictory
over Maxentius. The line of bas-reUefs, which
goes aU round the arch, contains mihtary proces
sions, and such-Uke shows, of wretched workman
ship. There are two more round medaUions, one
at each side, which contain chariots drawn by two
horses : these are meant for the sun and moon,
and are emblematical of the east and west. The
four figures of Fame over the Urch, and the ric-
tories on the pedestals of the column, will also
show the poor state of the arts in the time of
Constantine. Those on the interior sides of the
arch are of the same date, but better workman
ship. The two statues are not of Constantine but
of Trajan. It has been aheady stated, that the eight
columns of Giallo antico came frora the arch of
Trajan. To speak raore properly, only seven of
the present columns came frora thence ; for Cle
ment VIII. took one of them away, to form a
companion to another, which stands under the
organ in the Lateran Basilica, where it may still
¦¦ Plin. Panegyr. 81,

250 ARCH OF
be seen. The marble now called Giallo antico is
one of those varieties, which is only known from
the ancient specimens. It seems to resemble
that which is raentioned by Pliny, where he is
treating of a marble, caUed onyx, or alabastrites."
He says, that one variety in particular was admired,
which was the colour of honey, having wavy spots,
and not transparent. The faults in this sort were
a horny appearance, and too much white, and a
resemblance to glass. It was found in Egypt,
India, and other places. We know from several
ancient writers, that the Numidian marble was of
a yellow colour. Each of the piUars is 40 palms
(29-^ feet) high, and the other was found in the
Forum of Trajan. Clement replaced the column,
which he took from this arch, with one of white
raarble ; but they are all become so black from age,
that the difference is scarcely discernible.
The statues, which are above the columns, Uke
wise came frora Trajan's Arch, and are of the
marble called Pavonazzetto. At least seven of
them are so ; and the eighth, which is of white
marble, was placed there by Clement XIL, who
employed Pietro Bracci to put heads to all the
statues, the original ones having been carried off
by Lorenzino de' Medici, who assassinated the
Grand Duke Alexander. This spoUation is
denied by some writers, because fragments of the
statues have been found in Rome. But the con
temporary account of P. Jovius*^ is too circum-
= Lib, xxxvi, c. 12. ^ Hist, sui temporis, lib, xxxviii.

CONSTANTI?fE, 251
stantial to be doubted. He says, that Lorenzino
was forced to leave Rome in consequence ; and
expressly adds, that he left his plunder bmied in
Rome. The hands were also mutUated. A
fragment of the original statue is preserved m the
Capitol, with the words ad arcvm on the base of
it. The statues are meant to represent Dacian
prisoners. The soU, which had accumulated round this
arch, was removed by order of the present pope
in 1804 ; and part of the pavement of the Via
TriumphaUs was then brought to light.
OTHER ARCHES.
The Arch of M. AureUus existed in the Corso,
near the Church of S. Lorenzo in Lucina, tiU the
year 1665, when it was removed by Alexander
VII, to make more room in the street.^ Among
the ornaments were eight pUlars of Verde antique,
two of which may be seen in the Corsini Chapel,
in the Lateran BasiUca. Phny mentions four
kiods of marble,'" which seem to have reserabled
what we now caU Verde antique. Properly
spealdng they were not marble, but serpentine ;
and the ancients gave to one of thera the narae of
Ophites, from the veins in it resembling the spots
of a serpent. He teUs us that there was a Lace

s' An Engraving of it may be seen in the Supplement to
Montfaucon's Antiquities, edited by Humphreys, pi. 91,
'' Lib, xxxvi, c, 11,

252 VERDE ANTIQUE.
daemonian marble, of a very valuable sort : it was
green, and more lively {hilarius) than any other.
Other sorts were afterwards found in Egypt,
during the reigns of Augustus and Tiberius, and
were caUed after those emperors. They both
diff'ered from Ophites; for that reserabled the
spots of a serpent, and had its narae from that
circumstance ; but the others were spotted in a
diflferent raanner : Augustus had wavy curls
coming to a point ; Tiberius had distinct spots
of green and white not intermixed. {Augustum
undatim crispum in vertices, Tiberium sparsum
non convoluta canitie.) Beside which there were
no blocks of Ophites to make columns frora,
except very small ones. The specimens in Rome
raight therefore be thought to have come from
Egypt. It appears from the same chapter, that
the Ophites also came frora near Memphis in
Egypt ; at least one variety of it did, which, from
being of an ash colour, was caUed Tephrias. The
softest kind of Ophites had more white in it ; the
hard had more of black. Strabo says, that the
quarries of Mount Taygetus in Laconia were
worked by the Romans :' and Dodwell informs
us, that he observed at the foot of the raountain a
great quantity of marble, the principal colour of
which was dark green, with spots of red and
white. He did not explore the quarries.
There were four bas-reliefs upon the arch of
M. Aurelius, two of which are in the Capitol, one
' Lib. viii.

.\RCHES. 253
in the Orsini Palace ; and of the fourth, nothing
is known. It is asserted, in Spence's Anecdotes,''
that there are six compartments in the Capitol
which came from this arch: 1. M. Aurelius, par
doning the viuiquished, in his triumphal car ;
2. sacrificing ; 3. receiving a globe from the
Genius of Rome ; 4. L. Verus haranguing ; 5.
Faustina ascending to heaven ; 6.'
This arch obtained the name of Arco di Tri
poh, and di Portogallo. The latter appellation
came from Don Michele de Silva, ambassador
frora Portugal to Rome. Some have thought
that it was erected in honour of Domitian ; but as
Suetonius teUs us that every meraorial of this
emperor was destroyed by order of the Senate,
and as Dio"" expressly includes the triumphal
arches, it has been argued, that the name of
Domitian cannot be rightly appUed to this arch.
Accordingly, some have given it to Drusus, step
son of Augustus; others, to Antoninus and Faus
tina. But as drawings taken of it whUe it existed
represent the upper part, in which the inscription
was, as entirely gone, it is possible that tradition
had rightly preserved the name of Domitian, and
that the Senate, content with destroying the in
scription which recorded his name, suffered the
arch itself to remain.
We have notice, also, of other arches which
k P. 92,
' Spence only names five compartments; perhaps one of
the subjects was extended through two of them.
¦" Lib. Ixviii.

254 ARCHES.
existed forraerly. That of Trajan has been
already mentioned, which raust have been nearly,
if not entirely, destroyed in the tirae of Constan
tine ; and there are reasons for supposing that
there were more than one arch in his Forum.
The Arch of Fabius, who defeated the AUo
broges, stood in the Forum, opposite to that of
S. Severus; the Via Sacra passed under it."" At
the opposite angle to this stood the Arch of Tibe
rius; and another arch was erected to this latter
emperor near to the Theatre of Pompey." Be
side the Arch of M. Aurelius in the Corso, there
was another in the sarae street, which was taken
down by order of Innocent VIII. when he repaired
the Church of S. Maria in Via Lata. L. Fauno
tells us, that there was written upon this, as upon
the Arch of Constantine, votis x and xx. Some
have supposed it to have been erected to Clau
dius, others to Gordian. It stood in the Piazza
Sciarra ; and the stone was used in buUding the
Cancelleria. The Arch of Nero appears to have
stood on the top of the CapitoUne HiU ; and it has
been conjectured, but without any authority, that
the bronze horses now at Venice were upon it. It
appears from Poggio's book, on the Mutabihty of
Fortune, that several arches were existing in his
time, that is, in the fourteenth century, which
have subsequently disappeared. He mentions
one, which had the name of Augustus upon it,
between the Palatine HiU and the Tiber ; another
" Cic. pro Cn, Plancio, 7. " Sueton, Claud, u, 11.

OBEI.iSKS. '1,55
to Trajan, with an nisc ; iption, near the Comitia ;
and a third to Ct u iantme, in the Circus Rlaxi-
mus. Perhaps -riiat he says of the remains of
the Temple of Concord, and of the Colosseum,
may explain the disappearance of these arclics,
that the materials of them were taken away to
be burnt for lime. P. "N'ictor says, that there were
thirty-six arches of marble.
OBELISKS.p
Few monuraents, which the ingenuity or pride
of man has produced, have existed so long as
the Egyptian Obehsks in Rome. We are accus
tomed to regret, in exploring this city, that there
are so few remains of the Repubhc ; but these
obehsks carry us back to a period far more re
mote, to the age of Sesostris and Sothis, upwards
of a thousand years before the birth of Christ.
Wliether we consider the art which shaped and
raised such enormous blocks frora the quarry, or
the stUl more laborious exertions which trans
ported them to Rome, our astonishraent must
certainly be raised, and our curiosity excited to
learn their history. What is the evidence of this
history, we cannot now pretend to know very
accurately : we leam rauch frora the eridence of
Pliny, who must have taken his statements from
the best authorities, not long after the obelisks
P The most learned and elaborate work upon Obelisks is
by G, Zoega, De Origine et Usu Obeliscorum, Roma 1797,

256 OBELISKS.
themselves were removed, and when public curio
sity must have been raised concerning them. He
tells usji that the Kings of Egypt cut these im
mense blocks, each in emulation of his predeces
sor, out of a quarry at Syene in the Thebaid.
The stone was called, from the place. Syenite;
from its colour, Pyrrhopcecilon, or spotted red.
They were dedicated to the sun, as was expressed
in their Egyptian name. Mitres [or Mestres,
who, according to Kircher, is the same as Mis-
raim] was the first king who erected them; and
Sothis,' one of his successors, had four cut, which
were forty-eight cubits long. So far Pliny. An
expression in Ammianus might excite our astonish
raent still raore, where he says of the obelisks,^
that they were cut out of quarries which were
searched for in the very extremity of the earth.
But the accuracy of this writer is not sufficient
to persuade us that the Egyptian kings went far
ther than their own kingdom, when they had such
fine quarries as those of Syene ; or he may have
intended the southern inhabitants of Egypt itself,
or more properly of Ethiopia, who, with respect
to Rorae, were the inhabitants of the extreraity of
the earth.
We raay perhaps be allowed to be as credulous
upon the antiquity of Egyptian works, as upon
1 Lib. xxxvi. c, 14,
¦¦ Kircher raakes Ammenephtes, or Memphis, the father of
Sothis, or Sochis, to have lived 1366 A.C, two hundred years
after the passage of the Red Sea,
» Lib. xvii, c. 4,

OBELISKS. 251
any other. The date of the Pyramids may not
exactly be known, but few deny them to be coeval
witii the eai-ly Kings of Egypt. The same anti
quity is claimed for these Obelisks, and appa
rently with as good reason. Some, indeed, have
supposed the Obelisks to be much the oldest.'
Diodorus teUs us, that some antiquaries made
them to be more than three thousand four hun
dred years older than the time of Augustus ; but
he gives it as his own opinion, that they were
erected about one thousand years before his own
time, that is, two hundred and forty-six years
before the foundation of Rome, or one thousand
years before Christ. After the Persian conquest,
it would be difficult to assign any period when
that unfortunate country was likely to produce
such works. Indeed, we know for certain that
some of the Obelisks existed before the Persian
conquest; for when Cambyses took Thebes, and
set fire to it, he ordered the flames to be extin
guished as soon as they approached the founda
tion of an ObeUsk ; so much was he struck with
the magnificence ofthe work. Strabo " also raen
tions the existence of sorae Obelisks in Heliopolis,
which still bore marks of having suflTered from the
fire in the time of Cambyses.
If the hieroglyphics, which are stiU perfect upon
them, could be deciphered, we should perhaps
* Vide Bargffii Comment, de Obelisco; Graevii Thes. vol. iv,
p. 1911,
" Lib. xvii.
VOL. I. «

258 OBELISKS.
find more certain information. An attempt to
interpret the characters upon one of them was
raade by Father Kircher; and it has been ob
served of his Dissertation, that though there is
scarcely any thing certain in it, it is one of the
greatest eff'orts of human imagination." But at
the time of their removal to Rome, these charac
ters were legible ; for Pliny, speaking of those in
the Circus Maximus and Campus Mai-tius,^ says,
that both contain an explanation of natural history
according to the Egyptian philosophy; and of
one, which was erected by Mitres in Heliopolis,
he tells us,^ " that he put it up in consequence of
" a dream; and this was mentioned in the in-
" scription upon it ; for those sculptures and
" figures are the letters ofthe Egyptians." Dio
dorus also seems to have known the meaning of
the figures inscribed on the Obelisk of Sesostris.
If any of these inscriptions contained the history
of the erection of the Obelisks, Pliny may have
had good authority for the account which he gives
of them. It may be mentioned here, that accord
ing to Socrates'* the language of hieroglyphics
was understood in the fourth century.
Augustus was the first who conceived the idea
of transporting these immense blocks to Rome :
he was imitated by Caligula, Constantius, and
" Ramsay, in Spence's Anecdotes, p, 43. He spent twenty
years in studying Egyptian antiquities.
y Lib. xxxvi. c, 9. ^ Lib, xxxvi, c. 8,
» Hist. Eccles. lib. v. c. 17. So also Sozomen, lib. vii,
c, 15; and perhaps Theodorit, lib, vi, c, 18,

OBELISKS. 259
others ; and they were generally erected in some
Circus. They have all subsequently been re
raoved, and placed in conspicuous parts of the
city, by diflferent popes. Kircher reckons twelve
in aU.
The loftiest is that in front of St. John Lateran.
It is 148 palras (109 feet) high,'' without the base
and pedestal; and 14 palms (11 feet) broad at
the bottom. P. Victor caUs it 132 feet high.
It is of one solid piece of red granite, and covered
with hieroglypliics. Ramises, King of Egypt,
erected it in Thebes; and Pliny says" that he
Uved at the taking of Troy, which would give
it an antiquity of three thousand years. Kircher
makes Ramises to have flourished A. C. 1297.
Ammianus writes the narae Rhamestes; Tacitus,**
Rhamses; Diodorus,' Remphis ; Josephus, Ram-
pses ;" Herodotus,' Rharapsinitus ; Eusebius,
Ramises. After stating that Sothis had four
Obelisks made, each forty-eight cubits high,
PUny tells us, that Ramises Qiis son] raade four
others, which were forty cubits. These were
erected in On, or HeUopoUs. Afterwards Ra
mises placed another in Mnevis, which was
ninety-nine feet high and four cubits wide. In
cutting this last, 120,000 men were employed.
The ObeUsk in front of St. John Lateran may
have been one of these ; but it was not removed
in PUny's time. Augustus did not think it right
'' Kircher. ' Lib, xxxvi. c. 8, "¦ An, lib, ii. c,60,
' Lib. i. '" Contra Apion. lib. i. ' Lib. ii, c. 121.
s2

260 OBELISKS.
to remove it, because it was dedicated in a more
special manner than the rest to the Sun. In the
year 357, Constantius undertook what Augustus
had declined. The flatterers of the emperor
told him that Augustus had been deterred by the
difficulty of the undertaking. This was enough
to excite his vanity; and he got over the religious
scruples, by the idea, that though he removed the
ObeUsk from one temple, he should erect it in
Rome, which was the temple of the whole world.
He had it conveyed down the Nile from Thebes,
and at Alexandria it was placed on board a vessel
of three hundred oars. Considerable tirae was
spent in the preparation, and Constantius died
before the ObeUsk left Alexandria, A.D. 361.
It however completed the voyage in the reign of
Julian, and was rowed up the Tiber .within three
mUes of Rome ; from whence it was carried by
land to the Circus Maxunus. This account is
taken from Ammianus ;8 and his description of
the means used to raise it in the Circus Maximus
is curious. " AU that remained after this was to
" erect it, which was considered to be scarcely if
" at all practicable. Several beams were raised
" to a dangerous height, so that they looked like
" a forest of machinery. To these were fastened
" ropes of great length and thickness, so close
" together as to look like a number of threads
" wove across the sky. By puUing these ropes,
" this great mountain, which was covered with
' Lib. xvii. c. 4,

OBELISKS. 261
" %viitten characters, was graduaUy drawn up
" through the air; and after hanging a long time,
" whUe several thousand persons were winding it
" up as at a mill, it was placed in the middle of the
" Circus; and a brazen ball covered with plates
" of gold was fixed on the top: which being very
" soon struck w ith lightning and therefore re-
" moved, the representation ofa torch emitting a
" glowing flame, made of brass gilt, is placed
" tiiere." Cassiodorus tells us,'" that the hieroglyphics
upon it, which he calls Chaldaic signs, denoted
the reUgion of the ancients, " sacra priscorura
" Chaldaicis signis quasi Uteris indicari." Am
mianus gives us the interpretation of part of these
characters, as explained by Hermapion, in Greek.
He only, however, gives those which were on the
south, and part of those on the east side. Three
perpendicular rows of hieroglyphics may be ob
served on each side of the ObeUsk ; and the ex
planation given by Hermapion describes three
separate rows; from which we raay infer, that
they were read perpendicularly. Kircher en
deavours to prove that Hermapion knew nothing
about hieroglyphics, and that his interpretation
is entirely wrong. But the learned father has
himself comraitted a great error. He considers
Herraapion's explanation to refer to the Obelisk
removed by Augustus, whereas it is evident from
Ammianus, that we are to apply it to that which
was removed by Constantius. I" Lib, iii.

262 OBELISKS.
When Sextus V. had it transported to its pre
sent situation in 1588, it was broken into three
pieces, and lay twenty-four palras under ground.
Fontana was the engineer who raised it.
That which now stands in the Piazza di Monte
Citorio, was erected in Hehopolis by Sesostris,
who, according to sorae chronologists, flourished
1157 years A. C Augustus brought it to Rome,
and placed it in the Campus Martius, The ship
which conveyed it from Egypt was preserved at
Puteoh as an astonishing work, and was after-
Wards destroyed by fire. An account of the
ObeUsk is to be found in PUny.'' " Ei, qui est
" in carapo, D. Augustus addidit rairabilem usum
" ad deprehendendas solis umbras, dierumque ac
" noctium raagnitudines, strato lapide ad ObeUsci
" magnitudinem, cui par fieret umbra, brumae
" confectae die, sexta hora, paulatiraque per re-
" gulas, (quae sunt ex aere inclusae) singulis die-
" bus decresceret, ac rursus augesceret. ManUus
" raathematicus apici auratam pilam addidit,
" cujus vertice umbra colUgeretur in se ipsa."
Frora this passage it appears, that the Obelisk
was appUed to an astronomical purpose : but
some have supposed the words to mean, that it
served for a gnomon, or meridian line ; while

' Bryant (vol. ii. p. 382.) says of Sesostris, " What credit
" can be given to the history of a man, the time of whose life
" cannot be ascertained within 1535 years? For so great is
" the difference of the extremes in the numbers before given."
I* Lib. xxxv. c, 15,

OBELISKS. 263
Others have interpreted it to metui a solar clock,
or sun-dial. Angelo Maria Bandini published
upon this subject in 1750, asserting it to have
been a gnomon. Antongiuseppe della Torre
di Rezzonico, in his Dissertation upon PUny,
argues, that it was certainly a sun-dial.' The
former opinion seems to be most generaUy
adopted, and indeed Pliny expressly caUs it a
gnomon. Another dispute has arisen from dif
ferent copies of Pliny, whether the name of the
astronoraer employed by Augustus was Manlius,
ManiUus, or Facundinus. The ObeUsk was dis
covered lying mider the ground in a broken state
in the time of JuUus II. : and Sextus V. had
thoughts of eraploying Fontana to raise it. In the
reign of Alexander \ II. it was again brought to
Ught: but it was not tiU the year 1748 that it was
dug out under the direction of Niccolo ZabagUa :
and Pius VI. eraployed the architect, Antinori, to
erect it in its present situation, in 1792. The
base was stUl standing and raeasured nineteen
palms in height: but the Obelisk itself was broken
into five pieces, and had eridently suffered frora
fire. Another piUar of red granite, found near the
spot, (which was raised by M. Aurelius and L.
Verus to Antoninus Pius,) was employed to repair
the ObeUsk, so that a great part of it is now desti
tute of hieroglyphics.
A considerable quantity of brass was found not
far from hence, which is supposed to have been
' Vide Tiraboschi, part 3, lib, iii, p, 312,

264 OBELISKS.
connected with the above-mentioned meridian. A.
Fulvio mentions a dial being dug up near to S. Lo
renzo in Lucina, with seven lines upon it of bronze
gilt: the ground was paved with square stones,
and at the corners were the names of the winds.
The whole height of the Obelisk is, according to
Kircher, 100 palms (73 feet 4 inches). Pliny caUs
it"" 116 Roman feet. He also says"" that the cha
racters upon it contained an explanation of natural
history, according to the Egyptian phUosophy.
On the top is a globe of bronze.
Diodorus tells us, that Sesostris erected two,
each 120 cubits high, on which he described the
extent of his empire, his revenue, and the nations
which he had conquered. Thus there is a diflfer-
ence of 1 12 pahns between the accounts of Pliny
and Diodorus ; and as Kircher found this Obe
lisk to measure only 100 pahns, whereas PUny
states it at 116 feet, he conceives this last author
to have confounded the names of Sesostris and
Sothis ; and that the Obelisk placed in the Cam
pus Martius by Augustus, was raised originally
by Sothis.
Another stands in the middle of the area in
front of St. Peter's, and its situation perhaps gives
it an advantage over all the rest. It is not in
scribed with hieroglyphics. Its first position in
Rome was not far from its present one, it having
stood in the Circus of Caligula, (afterwards called
the Circus of Nero,) close to the Basilica. Its
¦" Lib. xxxvi. c, 9. " Lib. xxxvi. c. 8.

OBELISKS. 265
actual position was iu the passage now leading
from the sacristy to the choir, and is marked by
a square stone. Its having been found in this
Ch-cus identifies it with the ObeUsk which Pliny
speaks of;" from whence we learn, that it was
erected in Hehopolis, by Nuncoreus,P son of Se
sostris, being the only one of the Obehsks which
was broken. " Tertius ObeUscus Romae in Vati-
" cano CaU et Neronis Principum Circo, ex onini-
" nibus unus omnino fractus est in raoUtione;''
" quem fecerat Sesostridis fiUus Nuncoreus."
Another passage of Pliny proves this to be one
of the two Obelisks, which Herodotus raentions
to have been erected by Phero, son of Sesostris,
when he recovered frora his bhndness, which
were one hundred cubits high and eight wide. For
Pliny adds, " ejusdem remanet et aUus centum
" cubitorura, quera post caecitatem risu reddito ex
" oraculo SoU sacravit." Herodotus and Pliny
differ as to the name of the son of Sesostris, but
they eridently mean the same ObeUsk. Diodorus
tells the same story as Herodotus. It is true,
that Herodotus raakes both the Obelisks to have
been one hundred cubits high, whereas Phny
° Lib. xxxv.. c. 15.
p Kircher calls this king, Momphercur, and makes him to
have flourished A. C. 1102.
1 Some would read, /ac/w esti7i imitutione ejus; but Kircher
prefers the former, and thinks that there is evidence of this
having been broken; because the proportion of the height to
the diameter at the base is not the same as in the others, i. e.
of ten to one.

266 OBELISKS.
says that the first was only forty-eight ; but as the
latter author tells us that it was broken in being
erected, this may account for the diflference.
Eusebius and Diodorus make Phero to have
reigned 331 years after the taking of Troy. Ac
cording to Aristotle, he Uved long before. This
king, whether his narae were Nuncoreus or Phero,
when the Obelisk was being erected, fastened his
own son to the top of it, that the engineers might
be more careful in raising it.
Caligula transported it to Rome, and dedicated
it to Augustus and Tiberius. Pliny relates some
curious particulars of its being conveyed to Rome.'
' A fir tree of prodigious size was used in the
' vessel, which, by the command of Caligula,
' brought the Obelisk from Egypt which stands
' in the Vatican Circus, and four blocks of the
' same sort of stone to support it. Nothing cer-
' tainly ever appeared on the sea raore astonish-
' ing than this vessel : 120,000 bushels of lentiles
' served for its baUast ; the length of it nearly
' equalled all the left side of the Port of Ostia ;
' for it was sunk there by the eraperor Claudius.
' The thickness of the tree was as rauch as four
' men could embrace with their arms." Sueto
nius also tells us,^ that Claudius "built the harbour
' at Ostia, by throwing out an arra on the right
' and left, and by closing up the entrance with a
' pier at a great depth. In order to raake the
' foundations of this pier stronger, he first sank
¦¦ Lib. xvi, c, 76, ' In Claud, c, 20,

OBELISKS. ,'.>(i7
" the ship in which the great ObeUsk had been
" brought from Egypt : and after driving in pUes,
" he erected upon them a very lofty tower, in
" imitation of the Alexandrian Pharos, that ships
" might steer their course by fires to be burnt
" there at night."
Sextus V. had it removed to its present place
in 1586, under the du-ection of the celebrated
architect Fontana, at an expense of 40,000 scudi,
about o£9000. The operation has been described
by Fontana himself, in a work written upon the
occasion, with engravings of the machinery ; and
subsequently by his relation Carlo Fontana, who
added more plates, in a work pubUshed in 1694.
Prerious to this reraoval it was stiU standing up
right, and not thrown down, as the biographer
of Sextus V. (Platina) states it to have been by
TotUa. The soU had considerably accumulated
round the base, so that the inscription was covered,
which is now legible :
Divo CAES. DIVI IVLII F. AVGVSTO TI. CAES.
DIVI AVG. F. SACRVM
Fontana conjectured that the Obelisk weighed
993,537 pounds; which shows the absurdity of
the coramon notion, that modem engineers could
not raise such insignificant weights as one of the
pillars at Stonehenge. These have been calcu
lated to weigh about thirty tons ; so that fourteen
such stones would scarcely equal this Obelisk in
weight. , Forty-six cranes, 600 men, and 140
horses, were employed in removing it. Among

268 OBELISKS.
other rewards bestowed upon the architect for
his successful labours, Sextus gave him all the
timber, ropes, iron, &c. employed in the work,
which were valued at 20,000 crowns.
So great was the interest excited by this under
taking, and so much importance was attached by
the pope to the solemnity of its execution, that
during the elevation of the Obelisk it was ordered
that no person should speak, under pain of death.
One of the Bresca family, of the ancient Republic
of S, Remo, being present at the time, and seeing
the ropes on the point of breaking from the great
friction, violated the order for silence by calling
for water. The pope, instead of inflicting the
sentence upon him, asked him to name his reward.
He selected the offlce of supplying pahns for the
Papal Chapel on Palm-Sunday; a pririlege which
is stiU claimed by the Bresca family. A painting
of the operation of the removal is now in the
Vatican Library, in which the seizing of this man
by the guards is represented.'
It has been found, that this Obelisk does not
actuaUy stand where the architect intended it;
for if a Une be drawn frora the centre of the
Dorae of St. Peter's, through the raiddle door, it
will not . cut the ObeUsk, but wiU pass about
eleven feet to the south of it. The error is
ascribed by some to Eontana hiraself; by others,
to Maderno, the architect employed by Paul V.
' Vide Angiolo Rocca, de Biblioth. Vat. 250. Taja, De-
script, del, Palazzo Vat. 440.

OBELISKS. 209
who did not join on the new building in a right
line with that which had been erected before by
Michel Angelo. The Obelisk is of red granite.
Fontana makes the whole height 180 palms (132
feet), which includes thc pedestal and all the
ornaments at the top. AMthout these, it is 113
palms (84 feet). It now serves as the gnomon to
a meridian. There is a tradition, that the ashes
of J. Caesar were in a gilt baU at the top of it.
But Fontana says in his work, that this is cer
tainly a mistake. There was such a ball, but
nothing of any kind was found within it. Part of
the tiue cross was placed at the top ofit in 1740.
The ObeUsk in the Piazza del Popolo is 108
palms (80 feet) high with the pedestal: P. Victor
caUs the height 88^ feet. It was brought to this
spot frora the Circus Maximus in 1589, by Sex
tus V. who had already moved another from the
same Circus, and one fi-om the Circus of Nero.
This must be the one, which Pliny " tells us was
erected in the Circus Maximus by Augustus; for
the other was not brought to Rome till the time
of Constantius. From the words trib. pot. xiv
in the inscription we may collect, that it was
erected U. C. 753. But though the inscription
also says, AEGVPTO. IN. potestatem
popvLi. romani. redacta
we must not suppose that the erection of the Obe
Usk immediately foUowed the conquest of Egypt.
" Lib, xxxvi, c, 14.

270 OBELISKS.
For this event happened in the fourth Consulate
of Augustus, thirty years before, which was the
year of Rome, 723.
Pliny states, that it was cut by King Semne-
sertes, and was 125J feet high without the base.
This Semnesertes is supposed to be the same
with Psammis ; and Kircher thinks the name
should be written Psammirteus, whom he makes
to have flourished A. C. 807. It is singular, that
in one of the chambers lately opened by Belzoni,
which is supposed to have been connected with
the tomb of Psammis, there is a figure of that
king, with a square tablet suspended from his
breast, on which is an Obelisk. PUny also tells
us, that the characters on it related to natural
history, according to the Egyptian phUosophy.
It is of red granite like the rest, and a cross has
been erected on the top ofit."
In front of the Trinity de' Monti stands an
other, which was brought from the gardens of
SaUust. The removal of it must have been a
work of great labour, when we consider the
height of its present situation. It had been be
fore carried to the Lateran, by order of Cle
ment XII. and was placed where it now stands
by Pius VI. in 1789. It is 65 palms (48 feet)
high without the pedestal.
In the great fountain of Bernini in the Piazza
Navona, is one 74 palms (54 feet) high, which
" A Dissertation has been written upon the Dedication on
this Obelisk, by Joseph Castalio, and inserted in Graevius,
vol. iv, p. 1859, accompanied with an engraving.

OBELISKS. 271
stands upon a rock, itself 00 palms (40 feet.) It
was transported to this place from thc Circus of
Caracalla, about the year 1650. This is the
ObeUsk, upon which Ku-cher has written his long
and learned Dissertation, divided into five books,
and extending through 560 pages. It was pub
Ushed at Rome in 1650, and he gives to the Obe
lisk the title of Pamphylius, frora Innocent X.
who was of the PamfiU family, and who had it
transported to its present place. He conceives it
to be one of the four, which Pliny, as already
quoted, tells us, were erected by King Sothis in
HehopoUs, each of which was 48 cubits high.
He makes CaracaUa to have transported it from
Egypt in 249: but this must be mere conjecture;
as it is not known for certain whether CaracaUa
was the buUder of the Ch-cus in which the Obe
Usk stood. AMien Bernini reraoved it in 1649, at
the order of Innocent X. it was broken into five
parts, and hing on the ground.
In the square on the top of the Monte CavaUo
is one 66 pahns (48 feet) high, without the pedes
tal. Pius VI. placed it here, it having formerly
stood near to the Mausoleum of Augustus.
That which stands in front of S. Maria Mag
giore, came from the same place. They were
both made in the reign of Sraarres and Eraphius,^
Kuigs of Egypt, who lived A.C. 1028; and car
ried to Rorae in 57, by the Eraperor Claudius.
Sextus V. erected this in its present situation in
y This name is also written \'aphrius and Apries.

272 tombs,
1587. It is the same height as the last. They
are both mentioned by P. Victor, who says, that
there were two Obelisks on the' Mausoleum of
Augustus, which were each 42| feet high, Pliny
also mentions them,'' and calls them 48 cubits in
height. They are without hieroglyphics.
It is scarely necessary to mention the little
Obelisk in front of S. Maria sopra Minerva. It
stands upon the back of an elephant, but is only a
few feet in height. This, Uke the rest, is covered
with hieroglyphics. It was found in the garden
belonging to the convent, 15 palms under ground.
The elephant was made by Bernini.
This account may be concluded with the cata
logue of the Obelisks furnished by P. Victor.
" Obelisci magni sex. Duo in Circo Maximo:
" major pedum 132, minor pedum 88|. Unus in
" Vaticano, pedum 72. Unus in Campo Martio,
" pedum 72. Duo in Mausoleo Augusti pares,
" singuli pedum 42J; Obelisci parvi 42: in ple-
" risque sunt notse Egyptiorum."
TOMBS.
In all the ancient towns of Italy, the place ap
pointed for tombs was generally by the side of
roads; and though they were not allowed to be
constructed within the city, there was no restric
tion as to their approaching close to it. Accord
ingly we find, that most of the roads leading out
^ Lib. xxxv, c, 14,

tombs. 273
of ancient towns ai-e Uned with tombs, and if such
a spectacle can ever be said to form a pleasing
view, we have an instance of it at Pompeii, where
the street of the tombs is one of the most interest
ing objects in that extraordinary place. Near to
Pozzuoh (Puteoh) on the Via Campana we have
an instance of the frequency of tombs on the
roads near to cities. Going from Rorae also
through any of the gates at the east of the town,
we find ruins of simUar edifices. The rich went
to a considerable expense in ornamenting their
sepulchres : and raonuments were frequently to
be seen by the road-side, which displayed the
greatest taste and variety of sculpture.
The custom of raising a raonuraent over the
graves of the dead was raore generally practised
by the Romans than the Greeks. The forraer
also invariably added the name of the deceased,
which the Greeks did not always do in their more
simple method. In Greece, where the bodies
were generaUy burned, the ashes were put into an
urn, and Uttle trouble was requisite to coramit it
to the ground. Recesses were frequently cut in
a rock, (not unlike the catacombs beneath the
Church of S. Sebastian); and in some Grecian
towns, such as Syracuse and Agrigentum, we
find a succession of these recesses, one above the
other, to a considerable number. The urns were
deposited in them, and they were closed up. But
in Rome, the custom of buming was not of primi
tive institution. Dead bodies were generaUy laid
in the earth: though there is evidence, that the
VOL. I, T

274 TOMBS.
funeral pile was not unknown even in the reign
of Nuraa."" War, and the raultitude of deaths
caused by it, gradueiUy raade the systera of burn
ing more general. Still many families adhered to
the ancient mode; and in the Cornelian famUy,
the custom of burning was first introduced by
Sylla, who feared that his body might be iU-treated
after his death, and left directions that it should
be committed to the flaraes. After his time the
funeral pile was only partiaUy used, many still
adhering to the ancient manner of laying out the
dead body at fuU length in a hollow tomb.
In those sepulchres which have been opened
the skeleton is always found regularly disposed,
with the arms straight by the sides; a vase with
a narrow neck was placed upon the breast; an
other by each side of the head, one at the ex
tremity of each hand, and one between the legs,
making six in aU. That which was laid upon
the breast is generally found to have fallen off,
as the body decayed. There is also always a
dish containing eatables, such as eggs, bread,
birds, &c. and a coin is found in the mouth to
discharge the demand of Charon. AU these par
ticulars raight have been coUected frora ancient
authors; but in the Royal Museum at Naples,
the actual reliques may be seen ; and the diflferent
modes of interment, as pursued by the Greeks
and Romans, are well iUustrated by models.
Sorae skeletons have been found with a cuirass
on, and other arraour by their side.
" Vide Plin. lib. xiv. c. 14. Plutarch, in Numa.

TOMBS. 275
Both nations however agreed in prohibitino-
burial within the waUs.'' Cicero quotes a law of
the Twelve Tables to this eflfect, Hominem mor-
tuuin in Urbe ne sepel/to neve urito. As to the
exceptions to this law, he supposes that they
were made in favour of faraiUes, who had merited
it by sorae distinguished conduct. PubUcola
and Tubertus'' (he says) had this honour, and
their descendants stiU claimed it. Others, as
C. Fabricius, had special leave given them, after
the law was made, and his famUy had the pri
rilege of burying in the Forum. They however
only exercised it so far, as to show their right ;
and after carrying the body into the Forum, and
applying a torch to it, they carried it out of the
waUs. The latter fact we leam frora Plutarch,**
who states it as a general rule, that aU who had
triumphed might be buried within the city. The
emperors and vestals, as persons who were not
bound by the laws, raight be buried within the
city: and the vestals who had riolated their
chastity, were buried aUve in the Campus Scele-
* De Leg. lib, ii. c. 23. See Epist. iv. 12.
^ I cannot make out satisfactorily who this Tubertus was.
Emesti, in his Index to Cicero, says, thathe was P. Tubertus,
of the Postumian family, who was consul, first, with Vale
rius PubUcola, U. C. 249, and secondly with Menenius
Agrippa, U, C. 251. Livy does not add the surname of
Tuburtus; but he mentions A, Post. Tubertus, as being dic
tator U. C. 324, and calls him severissimi imperii virum, 1. iv.
c. 26. This is the only place in which the name of Tubertus
is mentioned by Livy.
^ Probl. Rom. Qusest. 79.
T 2

276 TOMB OF
ratus, which was also within the walls. A spot
is pointed out as the scene of this barbarous
punishment in the gardens of Sallust, but pro
bably with Uttle foundation.
The ashes of Trajan were deposited in some
part of his coluran, and Eutropius says, that he
was the only emperor buried within the walls.
A tomb also exists at the foot of the Capito
line hill, to the memory of C. Poblicius Bibulus.
The inscription states, that it was given by the
senate ; but for what particular merit of Bibulus
the ancient, law was violated in his favour, his
tory does not inform us. Piranesi indeed asserts,
that before Trajan extended the circuit of the
walls in this quarter, to take in his own Forum,
the tomb of Bibulus was not within the city : and
this is the opinion of Nardini, The inscription is
as follows :
C, POBLICIO. L, F, BIBVLP. AED. PL. HPNPRIS
virtvtisqve. cavssa. senatvs
cpnsvlto. popvliqve. ivssv. lpcvs
monvmento. qvo. ipse. POSTERIQVE
eivs. inferrentvr. pvblice, datvs, est
We have no means of ascertaining the time at
which he lived, except from his being called
Plebeian aedile on the inscription. But unfortu
nately in the Capitoline marbles the names of
those officers cease to be given ¦ from the year
611 U, C, to the end, with but few exceptions.
Up to that period, the two plebeian aediles. are
always named, and he is not found amongst

C. BIBULUS. 277
them; so that the monument cannot be older
than 611. AVe find L. Poblicius Bibulus, as
one of the tribunes of the people in 535, and
two years later he was mUitary tribune." In
539, C. Pobl. Bibulus was provincial quaestor: in
540 he was pro-quaestor : and in 544 he was
tribune of the people. This can hardly be the
man to whom the tomb was given, although the
prcenomen agrees, because in the first place his
other titles would have been mentioned in the
inscription: secondly, he would have been aedUe
before he was tribune of the people, and then
we should have found his name in the Fasti:
thirdly, as we know that he was not aedUe before
611, he must have been at least ninety, if he en
tered upon the office afterwards. It is probable,
however, that both these persons were of the
same famUy, as the nomen of each agrees with
those raentioned on the tomb. The latter was
most Ukely son of the former ; and as the sons,
generaUy took the praenomen of their grand
fathers, not of their fathers, the person buried in
this place was probably grandson of the C. Pobl.
Bibulus who was tribune in 544. This would fix
the date of the monument somewhere about 630;
or perhaps it should be earher, because, as no
other title is raentioned in the inscription, he pro
bably died soon after holdmg the office of aedUe,
to which he was eUgible at the age of thirty-six.
The aedUes had the supermtendance of pubhc
' Liv, xxii, 53.

278 tomb of c. bibulus.
buUdings, such as teraples, theatres, waUs: the
games, markets, tribunals of justice, matters of
religion, and works intended for publication, were
under their inspection.
The reraains of this building are very incon
siderable, and rauch must be concealed under
ground. A house is now buUt over it, and a
kind of well of some depth raay be seen within.
Suetonius informs us,^ that the Claudian fa
mily had a burial-place allowed them under the
Capitoline hill: and Piranesi gives a description
of sorae remains of it not far from this tomb of
Bibulus. Many ancient torabs raay now be ob
served within the walls: but they were con
structed before the extension of the liraits by
Aurelian ; and at the tirae of their being erected,
were out of the city. Of the;se the raost con
spicuous are the mausoleuras of Augustus and
Hadrian, the pyraraid of C. Cestius, and the torab
ofthe Scipio family.
The most ancient of aU these is the tomb of
the Scipios, which was not discovered till 1780:
previous to which time other tombs had had this
title bestowed upon thera. No doubt however
any longer remains, as a multitude of inscriptions
has been foimd to the Scipio family, and sorae
Sarcophagi, which carry us back as far as the
year of Rorae 456. The torab is in a garden,
not far from the gate of S. Sebastian, to the left
of the Appian road. Scarcely any thing is left
' Tiberius, c. 1.

tomb of the scipios. 279
in it at present, the inscriptions and monuments ,
having been carried to the Vatican, and copies
substituted in their room: consequently little
now remains to be seen but a series of damp
dark chambers by the help of a candle. There
are niches in the walls, where the tombs were
placed. The whole is cut out of Tufa, a soft
porous stone, which extends over great part of
this country. The most interesting monuraent is
the Sarcophagus of L. Scipio Barbatus, great
grandfather of Scipio Afiricanus, who was consul
U. C. 456.* The Sarcophagus is of coarse stone,
but handsomely carved in the Doric style, with
roses between the triglyphs. It has been ob
served, that this Doric frieze is surraounted by
Ionic dentils. The inscription is very perfect, but
before the commencement of it a line and a half
have been erased. It appears to be in the old
Saturman Iambic raetre.
CORNELIVS. LVCIVS. SCIPIO. BARBATVS. GNAI-
VOD. PATRE
PROGNATVS. FORTIS. VIR. SAPIENSQVE — QVOIVS.
FORMA. VIRTVTEI. PARISVMA
FVIT — CONSOL. CENSOR. AIDILIS. QVEI. FVIT. APVD.
VOS  TAVRASIA. CISAVNA
SAMNIO. CEPIT — SVBIGIT. OMNE. LOVCANA. OPSI-
DESQV. ABDOVCIT.
8 Liv. lib. X. c. 11. M. Dutens says, that the skeleton was
found entire, with a ring on one of the fingers, which Pius VI.
gave to M. Dutens, who transferred it to Lord Beveriey. —
Recherches sur I'usage des Voutes, p, 28.

280 TOMB OF THE
No monument has been found to Scipio Afri
canus himself, which confirms the idea always
entertained, that he ended his days at Liternum,
and was buried there. Livy'" speaks of it being
doubtful in his days in what precise year he died,
and whether he was buried at Liternum or Rome.
He retired to Liternum in 565 U. C. and lived
there, as Livy says, without any wish to return
to Rome. Some accounts said that he died
there, and ordered a monument to be erected on
the spot, lest his funeral should be celebrated in
his ungratefiil country." Valerius Maximus con
firms this,'' and gives the inscription upon his
tomb, Ingrata Patria, ne ossa quidem mea habes.
Monuments were shown both at Liternum' and
at Rorae, claiming to be his. Livy mentions
one, from which a statue was blown down in his
time."" Pliny also says,"" that there was a myrtle
of great size at Liternum, under which was a
cave ; and stories said that a dragon guarded the
reraains of Scipio Africanus. An interesting ac
count of the villa, which he occupied in the place
pf his exile, may be read in one of Seneca's Let
ters." It appears to have been preserved in its
origmal state, and near it there was an altar,
which Seneca conceived to be the tomb of Scipio.
The weight of evidence is certainly in favour of
^ Lib. xxxviii. c. 55. 56. ¦ Ibid. c. 53, " Lib. v. c. 3.
' The place where Liternum stood goes now by the narae
of Patria, from the fragment of an inscription found there . . .
TA PATRIA NEC.
"» Lib. xxxviii. c, 56. " Lib. xvi. u, 44. " Epist. 86.

SCIPIOS. 281
his being buried at Liternum : so that we cannot
pay much attention to the assertion of Acron, in
his coimnentary upon Horace,'' that in conse
quence of an oracle orderuig the torab of Scipio
to be so placed, that it might look towards Africa,
his remains were taken from the pyramid in the
Vatican, and buried in a place between the town
of Ostia and the port. The pyramid which ob
tained this title was not far fi-om the Mole of
Hadrian, and continued in existence till the tirae
of Alexander VI. who had it reraoved to improve
the approach to the castle.
Livy adds, that there were three statues within
the tomb, which were said to be those of P. and
L. Scipio, and the poet Ennius. A close friend
ship had existed between the great Scipio and
the poet Ennius : but neither this passage of
Livy, nor another of Cicero,'' warrant the asser
tion, which has been made by some, that his re
mains were deposited in the tomb of the Scipios.
Valerius Maximus' and Pliny^ repeat what Livy
has said, vrithout expressing any doubt of the
statue being that of Ennius. A bust, crowned
with laurel, has been thought to be that of the
poet; but Livy expressly says, that it was a
statue; with whom Cicero also agrees; and it is
most probable that the upper story, of which
scarcely any remains now exist, contained the
three statues in question.
P Epod. ix. 26. '' Pro Archia Poeta, ix.
' Lib. viii. c. 14, 1. » Lib. vii. c. 30.

282 TOMB OF THE SCIPIOS.
In the year 1615 a stone was dug up near the
same place, which relates to L. Scipio, son of Sc.
Barbatus. An explanation of it may be found in
the Collection of Graevius, vol. iv. p. 1835: and
as the epitaph of Sc. Barbatus has been given
above, this also may be inserted as a speciraen of
the Latin language in the age immediately fol
lowing. ' HONC. PINO. PLPIRVME. COSENTIPNT. R
DVONORO. PPTVMO. FVISE. VIRO
LVCIPM. SCIPIONE. FILIOS. BARBATI
CONSOL. CENSOR. AIDILIS. HIC. FVET. A
HEC. CEPIT, CORSICA."" ALERIAQVE.- VRBE
DEDET. TEMPESTATEBVS. AIDE. MERETO
Which, according to the Augustan orthography,
would be,
HVNC VNVM PLVRIMI CONSENTIVNT RPMAE
BONORVM OPTIMVM FVISSE VIRVM
LVCIVM SCIPIONEM, FILIVS BARBATI
CONSVL CENSOR jEDILIS HIC FVIT
HIC CEPIT CORSICAM ALERIAMQVE VRBEM
DEDIT TEMPESTATIBVS jEDEM MERITO
The taking of Corsica here raentioned happened
' Cicero tells us in two places, that there was written on
the tomb of Calatinus, Plurima consentiunt Gentes, Populi
Primarium fuisse virum. (De Senectute xvii. de Fin. 35.)
Calatinus signalized himself in Sicily the year after the taking
of Corsica by Scipio. It is rather singular, that Cicero calls
the praise bestowed upon Calatinus unicum elogium.
" In an inscription at Frascati we read m. fVlvivs. m. f.
.STOLIA. COEPlT, not AETOLIAM.

PYRAMID OF CAIUS CESTIUS. 283
U.C, 494, when this Scipio was consul. The
Fasti Capitolini call hhn son of Lucius Scipio;
and Livy gives to Barbatus the praenomen of
Pubhus : but the mscription must be believed in
preference to tlie Fasti, or the existing copies of
Livy. The mention of a temple built to the
winds Ulustrates a distich in Ovid :
Te quoque, Tempestas, meritam delubra fatemur.
Cum poene est Corsis obruta classis aquis.
Fast, lib, vi. 193.
The commentators upon Ovid, not being aware
of this epitaph, have referred the buUding of the
temple to Claudius Nero, who was consul U. C,
551, to MarceUus, and to MeteUus,
PYRAMID OF CAIUS CESTIUS,"
The torab of C. Cestius is the only speciraen
of a pyramid existing in Rorae. It stands close
to the Porta S. Paolo, partly within the walls and
partly without, AureUan haring drawn the new
line of his walls exactly across it, and left it stand
ing. The height is 121 feet; the breadth at the
base 96. It is built of brick cased vrith white
marble, which has become black with age. Upon
the walls within are some paintings, stUl in tole
rable preservation. They consist of five figures
of women; two sitting, two standing, and the one
in the raiddle is a Victory. The women probably
relate to the office which Cestius held; and one
* A Dissertation was written upon this tomb by Octavius
Falconierus, printed in Grsevius, vol. iv. The pyramid is
engraved, and the paintings within it, by Bartoli, Antichi
Sepolcri.

284 PYRAMID OF
of thera may be observed to hold two long pipes
in her hand. There are also vases and candela
bra. The room is 26 palms long, 18 broad, and
19 high. We learn from the inscription, that it
was finished in three hundred and thirty days.
There are two diflTerent inscriptions ; one which
is repeated on the east and west sides,
C. CESTIVS. L. F. POB. EPVLO. PR. TR. PL
VII VIR. EPVLONVM
The other is on the south side, in much sraaUer
letters :
OPVS. ABSOLVTVM, EX, TESTAMENTO, DIEBVS, CCCXXX
AEBITRATV
PONTI. P. F. CLA. MELAE. HEREDIS. ET. POTHI. L
An ancient inscription, relating to the same C.
Cestius, may be seen in the court of the building
containing the Museum CapitoUnum. It was
found near the pyraraid, and is as follows :
M. VALERIVS. MESSALA. CORVINVS
P. RVTILIVS. LVPVS. L. IVNIVS. SILANVg
L. PONTIVS, MELA. D. MARIVS
NIGER. HEREDES. C. CESTI. ET
L. CESTIVS. QVAE. EX. PARTE. AD
EVM. FRATRIS HEREDITAS
M. AGRIPPAE. MVNERE. PER
VENIT. EX. EA. PECVNIA. QVAM
PRO. SVIS. PARTIBVS. RECEPER
EX. VENDITIONE. ATTALICOR
QVAE. EIS. PER. EDICTVM
AEDILIS. IN. SEPVLCHRVM
C. CESTI. EX. TESTAMENTO
EIVS. INFERRE, NON, LICVIT

CAIUS CESTIUS, 285
Coupling this inscription with tliat upon the
tomb, we may learn that the H\ e persons men
tioned first in this last inscription were named
heirs by the will of C, Cestius: one of whom,
Pontius Claudius Mela, (or perhaps his son,) and
Pothus, a freedman of the deceased, superin
tended the erection of the monmnent. L. Ces
tius, brother of the deceased, was not made heir
by the wUl, but carae into a share of the property
by the UberaUty of ^I. Agrippa. Most probably
C. Cestius named Agrippa one of his heirs, be
cause he was a man of rank, and because he
knew, that he would give up the property to the
natural heir L. Cestius. This was custoraary in
Rome : and property left in this manner was
caUed Fidei commissutn. It also appears, that
C. Cestius ordered in his will, that some robes,
which were caUed Attalica (from King Attains,
who first invented them,^) should be burnt with
his body. But an edict of the aediles, intended
to check the expense incurred at funerals,^ hin
dered his heirs from doing this, and the robes
were sold.
AU that we know of this C. Cestius is from
these inscriptions: for he cannot be the same
with him who is mentioned by Tacitus," as Lip
sius thought, because he was consul, which would
certainly have been expressed upon the tomb. It
might be expected that we should be able to
y PUny, lib. xxxiii. c. 19. Propert. lib. iii. El. 20, 19.
' Vide Cic. Phil. 9, ad finem : et ad Att. lib. xii. ep. 35, 36.
» An. lib. vi. c. 31.

286 PYRAMID OF
ascertain the tirae at which he lived frora the
Fasti Consulares, where the naraes of the praetors
and tribunes of the people are given. But these
lists are very imperfect. The names of all the
tribunes ofthe people are given till the year 610
U. C. in which only one is named, and the other
nine are wanting. This is the case till the year
632, where the Fasti end. We therefore cannot
assign an earlier date to this tomb than 610, and
there are reasons for placing it later. The
marble of which it is built was not used in Rome
till towards the end of the RepubUc. Three
of the names raentioned in the last inscription,
are found in the Capitoline marbles : P. Rutilius
Lupus, as praetor in 704; M. Vips. Agrippa, as
praetor in 713, and consul in 716; and M. V.
M. Corvinus, as consul in 722. We raay reason
ably conclude, that these are the same persons
raentioned in the inscription ; and as they all
survived C. Cestius, it is probable that he held
office a little before them ; so that we might fix
his death somewhere about the year 716, when
Agrippa was consul. But we are able to ap
proach still nearer in our conjectures. The
Epulones were established in 556, when they
were three in number.'' J. Caesar increased
them in 710 to ten.'^ But we learn from other
documents, as well as from this inscription, that
the Epulones were before that time seven in
nuraber. At what period they were increased
'' Liv, lib. xxxiii, c. 42. ' Dio, lib, xliii, ad finem.

c. CESTIUS. 287
from three to seven, we are not informed. Onu-
phrius gives reasons for thinking that it was done
by Sylla, which would be about the year 671.
So that (supposing Onuphrius to be right) we are
Umited to the period between 671 and 710. Mr.
Hobhouse advances the claims of one C. Cestius,
a praetor and flatterer of Augustus, who was
pubUcly scourged by order of M. Cicero the Son,
for presuming to defame liis father in his pre-
sence."* But Cicero's son was born U. C. 688,
which would make him too young to have ordered
the punishment of a man, who died before 710;
and he appears to have been proconsul at the
time, which office he could not possibly have
held before the age of twenty-two. Seneca does
not give any prcenomen, and writes the name
Caestius. We raay perhaps discover the person
we are in search of in a C. Cestius mentioned by
Cicero in his speech for Flaccus.' This was de
Uvered about the year 694. He calls hira a
knight. It should be mentioned, however, that
the Epulones were stUl caUed Septemviri after
they were increased to ten.*^
The Cestian faraily is known to have been of
some distinction; and the bridge, which leads
out of the island, was caUed Pons Cestius, pro
bably frora one of the same famUy. The inscrip
tion states him to have been of the Pobhcian
tribe, praetor, tribune of the people, and one of
^ Seneca, Suasor. 7. "= c. 13.
' See an inscription in Nardini, lib. i. c. 10,

288 PYRAMID OF
the seven Epulones, The term Epulo, which oc
curs in the first line, is conjectured to have been
a sumarae, as the office would hardly have been
repeated twice. The business of the Epulones
was to prepare the banquets for the gods, upon
occasion of any public calamity or rejoicing.
This ceremony was called Lectisternium, and is
frequently mentioned by Livy.
The pyramidal form of building seems never
to have been fashionable with the Greeks or
Romans, The ancient Etruscans raade use of
it as we learn frora PUny, who tells us,^ that the
tomb of Porsena"" was of this form; or rather
square, with five pyramids rising from it. This
is an exact description of the ruin at Albano,
which is generaUy called the tomb of the Curiatii,
though supposed by antiquaries to be that of
Pompey. This latter appropriation may possibly
be correct; but it seems to be expressly over
thrown by a fragment of the poet Varro Ata-
cinus, Marmoreo tumulo Licinus jacet, at Cato parvo,
Pompeius nullo.
We know that his ashes were deposited near to

i Lib. xxxvi. c. 13.
i" We may write Porsena or Porsenna : at least we may
lengthen or shorten the middle syllable : Necnon Tarquinium
ejectum Porsena jubebat Accipere, Virg. iEn. viii. 646. Mina-
cis aut Etrusca Porsense manus, Hor. Epod. xvi. 4. : perhaps
in both cases Porsena is the best orthography. The Greeks
wrote nopfftvoff, noptrnv*?, nopff-ivAf „

c. CESTIUS. 289
his Alban riUa.' We have already seen from
Acron, the schoUast upon Horace, that a pyra
mid was raised to the meraory of Scipio: and
Fulvio says,"" that traces of it existed near the
mausoleum of Hadrian in the tirae of Alexander
VI. The raarble which covered it had been
taken by Domnus I. (who was pope 677-9,) to
pave the court of St. Peter's. Clavelli, the his
torian of Arpino, mentions a pyraraid in that town
of Cyclopian stones, which he calls the monuraent
of Saturn, and which was probably of very reraote
antiquity: but no such curiosity is now to be seen
in Arpino, at least not in a pyraraidal form. We
have no other pyramid now reraaining in Rorae
but this of C. Cestius. And it raay be observed,
that the circumstance of this being bmlt as a
tomb, in sorae raeasure confirms the idea of the
Egyptian pyramids being erected for that pur
pose. There is a colossal foot in bronze, in the
Stanza del Vaso in the Capitol, which was found
near the pyramid. It was standing upon a
marble base ; and it is calculated, that the statue
to which it belonged must have been fifteen pahns
(eleven feet) high. This and the inscription
given above were found when the pyraraid was
bemg restored by order of Alexander VII. in
1673. Part ofit was buried sixteen feet by the
accumulation of soil. It raay be raentioned, as a
singular instance of error in so leamed a raan.
' Plutarch, " Lib, iv, c. 31 ,
VOL. I. U

290 MAUSOLEUM PF
and such a lover of antiquities, that Petrarch con
sidered this pyramid to be the tomb of Remus.
The inscriptions were perhaps not so legible in
his days.
Close to this tomb is the burial-place for Pro
testants and heretics of all descriptions : the
monuments to the EngUsh are by far the most
numerous: and the ground was inclosed in 1824
at the expense of the government ; in doing which
part of the Via Appia was brought to light.
MAUSOLEUM OF AUGUSTUS.
Of this once magnificent fabric considerable
remains stiU exist, but they are completely sur
rounded by other buUdings, and what is to be
seen exhibits no beauty or grandeur of architec
ture. The body of MarceUus, the nephew of
Augustus, was the first deposited here : he died
A. C. 22: and VirgU, who has so patheticaUy
celebrated his death, raakes aUusion also to this
Mausoleum. Quantos ille virflm magnam Mavortis ad urbem
Campus aget gemitus, vel quse, Tiberine, videbis
Funera, cum tumulum prceterlahere recentem. Mn. vi. 873.
J. Caesar, Augustus, and Germanicus, were also
buried here : ' and we know from several ancient
inscriptions, that the freedmen ofthe Emperor's
' Vide Ovid, ad Liviam, 67, &c.

AUGUSTUS. 291
famUy were likewise admitted. It was of a cir
cular form, 400 feet in height, with a dome at the
top, surmounted by a statue of Augustus. The
diameter of the largest part was fifty paces.'"' The
whole was covered with mai-ble. Tacitus "" calls
it the torab of the Octavu: and Suetonius" says,
that Augustus buUt it in the year of his sixth con
sulate, and planted trees about it for pubhc walks.
The best account of the original appearance of
this buUding is given by Strabo : p " What they
" caU the Mausoleum is particularly worthy of
" mention. It is buUt upon immense founda-
" tions of white marble, and covered with ever-
" greens. On the top is a statue of Augustus in
" bronze ; underneath are the vaults for himself,
" his relations, and dependents. Behind is a
" grove with admirable walks." He then pro
ceeds to describe the place where the bodies
were bumt : " In the centre of the plain stands
" the Torab itself, finished in white marble, with
" iron paUsades round it, and poplar trees
" planted within. The iimer circular waU still
" exists with the opus reticulatum; but formerly,
" as it seems, there were three waUs at equal
" distances, the intervals between which were
" marked out into certain spaces, so as to prp-
" duce a greater number pf vaults, for the inter-
" ment of each person separately." Of all this
splendour Uttle now reraains but a circular mass

"» Spence's Anecdotes, p. 88. "" An. lib. iv. c. 44.
° Ih Augusto, c. 100. P Lib. v.
u2

292 MAUSOLEUM OF
of brickwork of iraraense thickness : the dorae is
entirely gone; and this, as weU as other parts,
having fallen in, has made such an accumulation
in the interior, that the present area is raised
a considerable height above the street. Platina
teUs us, without quoting his authority, that the
building was repaired by Theodoric in the fifth
century. "J It has been fitted up with rows of
seats after the manner of the ancient amphithea
tres, and bull-fights are occasionally perforraed
in it. Several of the sepulchral charabers may
still be seen in the wall, which surrounds the
whole."^

MAUSOLEUM OF HADRIAN.
This building is now called the Castle of S.
Angelo, from a bronze statue of the Archangel
Michael on the top of it. It seeras to have been
erected in iraitation and rivalry of the Mausoleum
of Augustus, which stood at no great distance
off' on the other side of the Tiber. Perhaps
Hadrian did not quite finish it, as Capitolinus
mentions spmething being done to it by Antoninus
Pius. Both structures were circular. This of
Hadrian consisted of three stories, one above the
other, besides a square baseraent. Frora coins
and the description of Procopius we raay col-

5 Vita Felicis iii.
'• Engravings are given of this Mausoleum by Bartholi, in
his work upon ancient sepulchres.

HADRIAN. 293
lect, that the two first stories were ornamented
with piUars and statues, and the third was sur
mounted with a cupola and a statue of Hadrian.
The passage in Procopius is this : ' " The tomb
* of the Emperor Hadrian stands without the
' Porta Aui-eha, at about a stone's tlu-ow fi-om the
' waUs, and is undoubtedly weU worth seeing.
' For it is buUt of Parian marble: the square
' stones [of which the basement is built] are
'joined alternately to each other, without the
' admixture of any cement, and it is divided
' into four sides of equal dimensions ; each is
' of such a length, that a stone thrown from one
' angle would but just reach the other.' In
' height it surpasses the walls ofthe city. There
' are also statues on it of men and horses,
' finished with wonderfiil skUl out of Parian
' marble. The inhabitants a long time ago ob-
' serving it stand Uke a tower overlooking the
' city, carried out two arms frora the waUs to
' the torab, and by buUding them into it so
' united it, that thenceforward it became part of
' the walls, for it has a very lofty appearance,
' like a tower, and overhangs the gate in that
' quarter." In the painting of the appearance of
the cross to Constantine, in the room, which is
caUed after that emperor, in the Vatican, the
Mausoleum of Hadrian is introduced, as weU as
that of Augustus, in what is supposed to have
• Lib. iii.
' On NoUi's great plan, the sides measure 260 English feet.

294 MAUSOLEUM
been their ancient state : they were probably de
signed by Raflfael.
Beside the baseraent, the first circular story
now alone remams, 576 feet in circumference;
stripped of all its ornaments, and with raodern
buildings on the top of it. The statues were
throvm down during the siege of Rome by the
Goths under Vitiges ; when the bmlding served
for a citadel, and the besieged threw down the
statues upon their assailants. In the scheme for
dragging the Tiber in search of antiquities, which
was tried in the suraraer of 1819, great hopes
were entertained that some of these statues
would be found. The sanguine supporters of
the scherae seem to have forgotten, that marble
statues (probably of colossal size) could not ea
sily be used as weapons of offence, unless they
were first broken in pieces. Procopius, who
mentions the fact of the statues being thrown
down, expressly says, that they were so broken.
His words are, " having broken the statues,
*' which were of raarble and of great size, they
" threw down large stones made out of their
" fragments upon the heads of the enemy." It is
however asserted by Winkelmann,"' that when
Urban VIII. repaired the ditch of this fortress,
two statues were found there: one of a sleeping
faun, the legs, thighs, and left arm of which were
wanting, and which is now in the Barberini gal
lery. The other was of Septimius Severus. He
" Tom. ii. p, 338,

OF HADRIAN. 295
adds, that Alexander VI. discovered others, and
m this he is confirmed by Andrea Fulvio and L.
Fauno, who say, that they had seen some heads
and other fragments dug up, when the ditches
were being made deeper. They perhaps were
dug up near this place, but whether they be
longed to the series of statues which ornamented
the Mausoleum, cannot be ascertained. The
Tiber has certainly given up no such treasures
hitherto, and the above-raentioned scherae totally
faUed. Some disputes have arisen as to a pine of me
tal, which is now in the garden of Belvedere, and
which is said to have been on the top of this
buUding. It is often represented so in drawings.
But this is a mistake. Some authors have men
tioned, that a statue of Hadrian stood on the top ;
and Johannes Antiochenus" says, that a car in
bronze formerly stood there. If this writer is to
be beUeved, the proportions of this car were so
immense, that a taU man could place himself in
the hoUow of the horse's eyes ! And yet the
height of this buUding was so prodigious, that the
car and the figure in it looked quite diminutive
from the ground. Dante seems to aUude to this
pine in the Inferno, xxxi. 58.
La faccia sua mi pare lunga e grossa.
Come la pina di San Pietro a Roma.
^ He wrote a Chronological History in eighteen books.
Some have placed him in the sixth century, others in the ninth.
See Cave.

296 MAUSOLEUM
The commentators perpetuate the mistake of
placing this pine on the top of the Mausoleum:
but as it stood for a long time in front of the old
Church of S. Peter, the words in the passage
quoted are very intelligible. It stood in the centre
of the Quadriporticus, or quadrangular cloister,
which was in front of the old Basilica; and was
covered by a canopy supported by eight columns,
on the top of which were two peacocks and four
dolphins, all gilt. The whole is said by some
antiquaries to have been on the top of the Mau
soleum. The pine is 15 palms high, and served
as a fountain. Flaminius Vacca ^ tells us, that it
was found in digging for the foundations of the
old church of Transpontina, which is at the foot
ofthe Mausoleum of Hadrian: and this probably
gave rise to the idea, that it formerly stood on
the top of that building.
It may also be found in some books, that the
beautiful Corinthian columns in the Church of
St. Paul came from hence; but the account is
not true. St. Paul's was built in 396, Whereas
Procopius mentions the Mausoleum and its sta
tues as being perfect in 536; beside which the
height of the pillars, which is 46 palms, is rauch
too great for them to have stood on this building,
At what time it was first used as a place of de
fence, is not easy to ascertain. Procopius speaks
of it as an event which took place considerably
before his time. Perhaps we raay assign it to
s' No, 61,

OF HADRIAN. 297
the first Gothic war, when Alaric invaded Rome.
In the second war, the statues were broken and
thrown down, as already stated. Totila after
wards gained possession of the building, and, ac
cording to Procopius,' a very strong fortress was
made of it by the garrison, which held it after
TotUa's death. They surrounded it with walls,
and connected their new work with the walls of
the city. In the twenty-sixth year of the reign
of Justinian, A. D. 553, the Goths were forced
to give it up, and after that it continued in the
possession of the Exarchs, who governed Rome
in the narae of the Greek eraperors. The name
of S. Angelo was given to it upon the occasion of
an angel appearing to Gregory the Great, when
he went in a grand procession of clergy and
people to S. Peter's after the terrible inundation
in November, 589. His third successor, Boni
face IV. dedicated a chapel to S. Michael at the
top of the Mausoleum. Luitprandus gives the
foUowing account of it durmg this period.'' "• In
" the entrance to the city of Rome there is a for-
" tification of astonishing workraanship and asto-
" nishing strength: in front ofthe gate is a bridge
" of great consequence over the Tiber, which is
" the first in going in or out of Rorae : nor is
" there any other way of passing except over this
" bridge. But this caimot be done, except by
" leave of those who guard the fortress. The
"fortress itself is of so great a height, that a
' Lib, iii, " Lib. iii, c. 12,

298 MAUSOLEUM OF HADRIAN.
" church, which is built at the top ofit in honour
" of the Archangel Michael, chief of the heavenly
" host, is called, the Church of S. Angelo in the
" heavens, (usque ad ccelos.)'" There is still a
figure of an angel upon the top: but Andrea
Fulrio, who wrote in the sixteenth century, speaks
of it as a thing which had existed, but did not in
his days.
Diflferent powerfiil families occupied it till the
time of John XII. who was the first pope that
possessed it, about 955. His successors were
soraetiraes masters of it, and sometimes driven
out of it. About the year 985, Crescenzio No-
raentano got possession of it, and added the forti
fications. From him it got the name of Castello
di Crescenzio;'' before which it was frequently
called the house of Theodoric. After this time,
a long period of troubles succeeded between the
pope and the citizens of Rome ; during which
time we soraetiraes find the pope overawing the
people by means of this fortress, and sometimes
besieged in it by the turbulent citizens. In the
eleventh and twelfth centuries the Orsini family
occupied this and the Theatre of Pompey. It
was disfigured and reduced to its present shape
less form by the fury of the Roman populace in
1378, at which tirae it had been occupied by a
garrison placed there by the French cardinals,
who opposed the election of Urban VI, and the
partisans of this Pope, when they took it, would
'' Vide Ciuicciardini, lib, i. p. 121,

TOMB OF CECILIA METELLA. 299
have destroyed it, if they had not found it too
strong. Boniface IX. repaired the walls ui 1392,
and since his time, the popes with little mterrup-
tion have kept possession of it.'= Alexander VI.
added some brickwork at the top, and strength
ened the fortifications in general. Paul III. and
Pius IV. also did much towards ornamenting and
fortifying it : and lastly Urban VIII. added more
than any of his predecessors. Since this time it
has always been used as the citadel of Rome, and
now serves also as a state prison. It has a secret
comraunication with the Vatican, constructed by
Alexander VI. In the interior are sorae paint
ings by Perino del Vaga, Giulio Romano, &c.
The chamber in which the reraains of Hadrian
were laid may stUl be seen: but Innocent II. re
moved the urn of Porphyry to the Lateran, to
serve for his own tomb."*
TOMB OF CiECILIA METELLA.
WhUe we are upon the subject of torabs, that
of CaeciUa MeteUa must not be omitted. It stands
on the Appian Way, and near to the Circus of
CaracaUa. Nothing more is known of this lady,
than from the inscription on the outside, which
alUes her to a noble family.
CAECILIAE
Q. CRETICI. F
METELLAE. CRASSI
' Vide Guicciardini, lib. iv. p. 222.
¦i Platina, in his life of Pope Sixtus I, states that Hadrian
was buried at Puteoli in Cicero'? Villa,

300 TOMB OF
Q. C. Metellus got the surname of Creticus for
his conquest of Crete, U.C. 687:^ and we may
fairly conclude, that this inscription relates to his
daughter, who married into the family of Crassus.
It has been conjectured, that her husband was
the Crassus who fell in the Parthian war, U. C.
700. He is known to have married TertuUa,
daughter of M. Lucullus, and the Lady in ques
tion may have been his second wife.*"
That the family of the Metelli had a burial-
place upon this road, we learn from Cicero ;?
" When you go out of the Porta Capena, and see
" the Tombs of Calatinus, the Scipios, the Servihi,
" the Metelli, &c. &c." Upon which passage we
may observe, that the tombs of all these famihes
have now been discovered except that of Calati
nus; since Canova ascertained the burial-place of
the Servihi in 1808. The monument before us
seems to be still more expressly raentioned by
Corn. Nepos, who tells us, that " Pomponius At-
*' ticus was buried five miles from Rome, near the
" Appian road, in the monument of his uncle Q.
" CaeciliusJ' The distance to this place from the
Forum would be about five miles.'" Atticus died
U.C. 721.
The upper part of this monument is circular,
resting upon a square basement. This basement
is made of small irregular stones, with large
" Vide VeUeius, lib, ii. c. 40.
' Vide Glandorpii Onoraasticon, where is a pedigree of the
Cacilian faraily,
s Tusc. Disp. lib, i. c, 7, '¦ Vide p, 120,

CECILIA METELLA. 301
square ones at certain intervals. The circular
pai-t is of freestone, and remarkable for the im
mense size of the stones, which are in fact larger
than they appear to be; for each block is divided
into two or three squares, and on account of the
arrangement of the squares, it is difficult to per
ceive the joinings. The original entrance is
buried under the soU; but an opening has been
made above, by which we see the interior. The
top of the roof is broken in, but enough remains
to prove it to have been of a conical shape ; that
is, the waUs converged internaUy, though on the
outside they reraained straight, so that they raust
have been much thicker at the top than they were
at the bottom. The sarcophagus, which contained
the remains of the person buried here, was taken
to the Palazzo Farnese, where it may stiU be seen
in the court. Poggio says, that part of the tomb
was bumt to make lime : and Urban VIII. took
some of the blocks of stone for the fountain of
Treri. The cornice is ornamented with festoons and
buUs' heads alternately, from whence the building
has acquired the name of Capo di Bove. This
omament of buUs' heads is frequently to be seen
in ancient buUdings and sculptures. Livy men
tions it being first invented ;' but the Greeks cer
tainly used it in connection with festoons, and
probably at a period prior to that mentioned by
¦ I quote this from memory, not being able to find the pas
sage.

302 BATHS.
Livy. In the British Museura some specimens
may be seen of it, upon ancient altars.'' The
tomb was used as a fortification in the middle
ages; and the works upon the top of it were
added by Boniface VIII. at the end of the thir
teenth century. The arras of the Gaetaiu family
are upon the adjoining buildings: and a friend
suggests to me that this circumstance, rather than
the ornaraent in the frieze, gave rise to the narae
of Capo di Bove ; the arms of that faraily being a
buU's head. If the building never bore this name
before it was occupied by the Gaetani, this etymo
logy is perhaps preferable to the other.
Another tomb, resembling this in form, but
smaUer, may be seen on the road to Tivoli, close
to the Ponte Lucano. It belonged to the Plau-
tian family.
BATHS.
- The luxury in which the Roman emperors in
dulged in the construction of their baths, is almost
incredible. The expression of Thermce, which
is now appUed to so raany ruins, is certainly not
wholly correct; but we have sufficient evidence
that immense buildings were raised merely for
this purpose, A. MarceUinus' complains of their
enormous size, " lavacra in modum provinciarum
" extructa." Sorae were intended for the sura
mer, others for the winter. First of all, the

'' See the room ofthe Elgin Marbles, Nos. 91, 106.
' Lib. xvi. c. 10.

BATHS OF TITUS. 303
emperors erected them for their own private use,
but subsequentiy public ones were constructed,
which were open to all. Sextus Rufus reckons
eight hundred. Maecenas is said to have been
the first who inti-oduced warm baths at Rome.""
BATHS OF TITUS.
This name by no means answers to the immen
sity of the buUding which once covered great
part of the EsquiUne HiU, and should more pro
perly be styled the Palace of Titus. This is, in
fact, the name which Pluiy gives to it."" The
ground is now occupied by gardens to a great
extent, and several fragments stiU exist in various
parts of them, which aU belonged to the same
edifice. The house of Maecenas stood here be
fore; and the Golden-house of Nero, on the
Palatine HiU, also extended as far as this place.
Titus made use of both these buUdings in con
structing his own palace ; and the ruins seem to
agree with this account, by certain irregularities,
and a want of uniformity. Suetonius teUs us,
that the buUding was finished in haste;" and
there are reasons for supposing that Trajan built
some additions. A considerable excavation was
made in 1777; but the chief merit is due to the
French, who carried on the work much farther,
and arrived at the lower floor. The buUding
¦" Dio. " Lib. xxxvi. c. 5 : In Titi Imperatoris domo.
° Titus, c. 7.

304 BATHS OF TITUS.
seems originally to have consisted of two stories ;
but of the upper one little remains to be seen.
It is a mistake to suppose that the ancients
built their houses with only a ground floor. At
Pompeii this certainly appears to have been the
case; nor am I aware, that in the excavations
made within the walls, there has as yet been
found any house of two stories. Outside the
walls there is a larger house, which has been
caUed that of M. Arrius Diomedes, which was
certainly of more thau one story. The Baths of
Titus, Caracalla, and Diocletian, were evidently
of this kind ; and we know that private houses
were sometimes raised to a great height. Men
tion ia made of a third story as early as at the
beginning of the second Punic war.? The upper
rooms were caUed Ccenacula; and Juvenal fre
quently alludes to the uses which were made of
them. He tells us plainly,' that Centronius had
viUas at Tibur, Praeneste, and Caieta, which were
very lofty. The fact seems to be, that till the
population of Rome became so enormous, the
houses were only of one story. Vitruvius says
as much;" and by the law, which did not allow
a wall to be raore than a certain thickness, the
waUs, which were built of brick, could not sup
port an upper story. They therefore took to
build them of stone and stronger materials, by
which means they were able to carry up their
" Liv, xxi, 62,
1 Sat, xiv. 88, Vid, Sat, iii, 195, &c, ¦¦ Lib, u, c. 8.

WINDOWS. 305
houses to a considerable height; and this, as
Vitruvius says, was raerely on account of the
overflowing population. Trajan published a de
cree, that no house should be higher than sixty
feet. The height of the rooms in the Baths of Titus
is prodigious, and they are coraparatively very
narrow. It is also reraarkable, that in many of
the rooras there is no trace of any window. This
deficiency may frequently be observed in ancient
Roman buUdings. Many houses in Pompeii have
no other aperture but the door, which leads into
the court ; and in the Baths of CaracaUa even the
most perfect remains of chambers have no traces
of windows. Some houses, however, certainly
had them; and the terra fenestra, though it often
impUed merely an open space in the waU, which
let in the air as well as the Ught, signified, also,
a kind of lattice-work, which was not uncommon
in dwelling-houses. VirgU seems to aUude to
something of this kind, where he says,
qua se
Plena per insertas fundebat Luna fenestras. Mn. iii. 151.
Where glass was so little used, and so imper
fectly formed, it must have been difficult, in time
of winter, to admit light and yet exclude the cold.
And the custom, which seems so barbarous to us,
of constructing rooms without windows, arose,
probably, from their ignorance of an art, which
now gives to every cottage in England an advan-
VOL. I. X

306 BATHS OF TITUS.
tage over the palaces of the Caesars, In Sicily,
and great part of the south of Italy, glass is still
rarely seen in the vrindows. The mildness ofthe
climate aUows the free admission of air in the
day time, and at night the aperture is closed
with wooden shutters. It would seem that this
luxury was of earlier introduction in the north
than in the south of Europe. ^Eneas Sylvius,
(afterwards Pope Pius II,) in his treatise De
Moribus Germanorum, written in the fifteenth
century, mentions that aU the houses in Vienna
had glass windows. " Instead of the rooms being
" fiimished as with us, they have places to warm
" themselves by, which they caU stoves {stubce);
" for this is their method of tempering the seve-
" rity of the winter. Transparent windows of
" glass are in every house." ^ The term vitrece,
as signifying glass windows, certainly occurs in
very early writers. St. Jerom, who lived in the
fourth century, mentions* glass being run into
thin plates for this purpose ; and the use of it in
churches seems considerably to have preceded
the general adraission of it into private houses.
In our own country, we are told by Stubbs," that
Wigfrid, Bishop of Worcester, was the first who
introduced windows of stone and glass into
England; and Bede" has the following passage
in one of his works : " He sent raessengers into
¦ Vide Epist. 165, lib, i, ' In Ezech. xl. 16,
" In Actis Pontificum Ebor. anno 726.
" De Wiremuthensi Monast. c, 5.

WINDOWS. 307
" Gaul, to bring over some glaziers, (artists who
" tiU then were unknowni in Britain,) to put panes
" into the windows of the Chm-ch, as weU as in
" the cloisters and cells. "^'
Beside then ignorance of the art of making
glass windows, I doubt whether the Romans
did not designedly construct their houses in this
manner to render them cool. During the sum
mer months, when the heat is so excessive in
Italy, it is impossible, as in England, to retire to
a cool side of the hpuse, and there avoid the in
fluence of the sun: the whole atmosphere seems
to be scorched: and in the shade, as weU as out
ofit, by night as weU as by day, no relaxation of
the heat is to be found. The ancient Romans
seera to have adopted a reraedy in excluding the
outward air, and constructing their rooms one
within the other, so that the inner apartments
had the coolness of a ceUar. I think we have
this custom clearly indicated in sorae letters of
Pliny. In describing one of his viUas in Tuscany
to his fiiend ApoUinaris,^ he says, " In this part is
" my bed-roora, frora which the Ught and aU noises
" are excluded." In the same epistle he describes
a suite of living rooms, and says, " At the end
" there is a charaber, which in sumraer is quite
" frosty from the cold shut up in it: it is con-
" tented with its own atmosphere, and neither
" desires nor admits the external air." I by no
means wish to say, that the ancients had always
y ^'ide Ducange, Vitrei, ^ Lib, v. Epist, 6.
X 2

308 BATHS OF TITUS,
very few windows, or very small ones. I am well
aware, that Vitruvius "" gives particular instruc
tions for admitting sufficient light. Pliny himself,
whose letter I have quoted above, undoubtedly
talks of many of his rooms having several win
dows: and it appears from a letter of Seneca,''
that even in the rooms where the baths were, very
large windows were then fashionable : and people
were not contented, unless they could enjoy a
prospect of the country while they were in the
water. All that I mean to say is, that where we
see apartments in ancient buildings, such as in
these baths, and very generally in Pompeii, where
there was no aperture to the air but by the door,
it was probably an intentional contrivance to have
some rooras in the house, which were impervious
to the heat of the sun. Vitruvius "^ frequently dis
tinguishes between summer and winter rooms ;
and the term hybernaculum, as expressing a se
parate apartment contrived for warmth in winter,
is very common in the letters of PUny.
It must not however be supposed, that the
ancients were unacquainted with the use of glass.
Pliny tells us of the invention of it as early as
1000 A. C. And if we may believe his testimony,
they were by no means rude in the manageraent
of it. For he tells us,"* that in the time of Tibe
rius a method was discovered of making glass
flexible. But he expresses some doubt as to the

° Lib. vi. c. 9. ^ Epist. 86. " Lib. vii.
" Lib. xxxvi, c, 26.

GLA.SS. 309
fact hiraself; and the story is evidentiy inadmis
sible, though it is repeated by Dio Cassius, Pe
tronius Arbiter, and Isidore of SeviUe, who pro
bably merely copied from Pliny. Aristotle asks
two questions with respect to glass ; What is it
that makes it transparent? and, A^'liy is it not
flexible? The Greeks undoubtedly raade use of
it, and called it hyalum, a term which seems first
to have sigmfied crystal, and perhaps rock-salt;
and which was afterwards transferred to glass,
from its resembUng those substances in trans
parency." Seneca very plainly describes a glass-
blower making vessels of any shape he pleased
merely by blowing :'^ and he mentions the use of
glass vessels fiUed with water for the purpose of
magnifying objects, and making rainute characters
legible.^ Buming glasses are minutely described
by Epiphanius, in the fourth century.'" , Pliny
teUs us, that in Nero's time vases and cups were
made of white transparent glass, so as to imitate
rock-crystal. They came from Alexandria, and
cost a great price. We know also, that they
formed cinerary urns of it, and even executed
bas-reUefs in glass: so that Winkelmann says,"
that the ancients in general made a greater use of
glass than the moderns.
Still, however, we have no direct evidence that
glass was generaUy used by them for those two

« Vid. Schol. in Aristoph. Nub. act. ii. sc. 1.
' Epist. 90. « Nat. Quaest. lib. i. c. 5.
^ Ancor. 47. vol. ii. p. 51. ' Lib. i. c. 2. § 20.

310 BATHS OF TITUS.
purposes, which are so essential to us at present,
namely, for mirrors and for windows. The
former were raetalUc; and some specimens may
be seen, now grown duU by age, in the gallery at
Florence, Pliny tells us,*" that the best were
made in his day of silver, which had been used
for that purpose since the time of Pompey. He
mentions, that there was a contrivance for affixing
gold to the back of the silver, which gave a better
reflection. More anciently iron had been used,
or a mixture of tin and copper: but in his days
silver ones were so common, that every maid
servant used them.' Glass mirrors were first
mentioned in a work attributed to Alexander
Aphrodisius, who lived at the end of the second
century :"" and the squares of glass with which
Firmus covered the walls of his roora, were raost
likely used as rairrors.""
There is some evidence, that glass was applied
to windows even by the indents ; and in the
Museum at Parma some panes are preserved,
brought from the ruins of Velleia, which are said
to have been found in their original situation.
They are certainly duU and obscure, but perhaps
not more so than the best glass would be, after
lying buried for so many centuries. Similar
panes have also been found at Pompeii. " One
" of the rooms had a large glazed bow-vrindow:
'' Lib. xxxiii. c. 45. ' Lib. xxxiv. c. 48.
"' Dodwell's Travels in Greece, vol. i. p. 433.
" Vopiscus in Vita, c. 3,

GLASS. 311
" tiie glass was very thick, and deeply tinged with
" green: it was set in lead, like a modern case-
" raent."" Horace raay be adduced as an evi
dence, that the transparency of glass was brought
to considerable perfection in his tirae, when he
says of the pure fountain of Blandusia, that it was
more pellucid than glass.? It is true, that he
gives the superiority to the fountain. It was
natural that he should do so, in extoUing its
clearness ; but if glass in those days was always
duU and opaque, the compUment was not very
great. St. Paul, when he uses the expression,
" Now we see through a glass darkly, i seems to
aUude to the use of glass for the admission of
Ught; and at the same time to prove, that when
applied to that purpose, it was not transparent
enough to transmit the objects clearly. In the
present day his metaphor would not be applicable,
as we can now see as perfectly through glass, as
when no such medium intervenes.
Before the Romans carae to use glass for their
windows, two raineral substances, phengites and
lapis specularis, (probably Mica and Talc,) served
for the transmission of light. Seneca marks the
time, when one of them was introduced,"^ " There
" are some arts which we know were not discovered
" tiU pur days ; such is the use of those glasses,
" Sir W. GeU's Pompeiana.
p Od. iii. 13. 1.
1 1 Cor. xiu. 12, There is a dissertation upon this passage
in the last volume of the Critici Sacri.
¦¦ Epist. xci.

312 BATHS OF TITUS.
" {specularid), made of transparent stones, {testes^
" which leave a fi-ee passage for the light." Sue
tonius raentions this substance being used for
rairrors ;" and PUny tells us,' that beehives were
made of it, in order to show the bees at work.
Some have thought that glass also was used for
windows at this time, from a passage in Philo,
where he is giving an account of the embassy to
Claudius. Speaking of the room of audience, he
says, " that the emperor walked about, and or-
*' dered the windows every where to be closed
" with transparent stones, which resembled white
" hyalum." It is difficult to give an exact inter
pretation to these words ; but they are not deci
sive as indicating the use of glass. We^ must
bear in mind, that the stone called phengites was
not the same with the lapis specularis. The
latter was known before the former. The pas
sage quoted from Seneca shows, that phengites
was not known till about Nero's time, or a little
before. Pliny points out the distinction still
more clearly; describing the lapis specularis,'^
he teUs us, that it was easily divided into thin
laminae, and was sometimes found incorporated
in rock, but was generally dug up by itself, and
only required cutting. It was found in Spain,
Cyprus, Cappadocia, Sicily, and Africa ; and the
laminae never exceeded five feet in length. This
description seems to answer to what we call Talc,
• Domit. c. xiv. ' Lib. xxi. c. 14.
" Lib. xxxvi. c. 45.

GLASS. 313
which is now found mostly in the Tyrol, Saxony,
and SUesia, coraiected with rocks of Serpentine.
Having described the lapis specularis, Pliny pro
ceeds to say, that in Nero's time a stone had been
discovered which was as hard as marble, white,
and transparent, even where there were yeUow
veins. " So that, when the doors are closed,
" there is stiU the hght of day within, but pro-
" duced in a diflferent manner frora what it is by
" specularia, the light being, as it were, shut up
" in the room, not transmitted from without.
" Juha also writes, that there is a stone in Arabia,
" transparent like glass, which they use for spe-
" cularia." StiU, however, we have no express
mention of panes of glass. I understand specu
laria to mean glasses made of the lapis specu
laris; as appears, also, from combining two pas
sages in Martial, which give us the additional
information, that the Romans had greenhouses,
or hothouses, constructed hke our own. We
read, Hibernis objecta Notis Specularia puros
Admittunt soles, et sine faece diem.
Lib. viii. ep. 14.
Condita perspicua vivit vindemia gemma,
Et tegitur felix, nee tamen uva latet.
Lib. viii. ep. 68.
The gemma, in the last epigram, is eridently the
same as specularia in the first; and the term
gemma would hardly have been used to denote
an artificial substance lUte glass; but was not

314 BATHS
unappropriate to a natural production found im
bedded in rocks. Another passage in Pliny" is
more to the point, because he is there expressly
treating of glass. After praising Sidon for its
manufacture of that article, he adds, " si quidem
" etiam specularia excogitaverat." If neither of
these two passages relate to windows of glass,
Lactantius is the earUest author who mentions
thera.y " It is manifest, that it is the mind which
" sees, by means of the eyes, those things which
" are opposite to it, as if through windows covered
" with glass, or lapis specularis^ Lactantius
wrote at the beginning of the fourth century;"
and Origen, about sixty years earUer, mentions
the rays of the sun being transmitted through
" windows and certain small receptacles of light,"
by which he may perhaps have meant glass. ^
In such rooms as these in the Baths of Titus,
laraps must always have been used; and it raay
be observed, that there is scarcely a passage in
an ancient author, where raention is raade of a
banquet, but " the golden laraps hanging from
" the roofs" are always added. According to the
hours which the ancients observed for their meals,
(the coena, or last meal, being at abput three
o'clock,) there would have been no need of lights
had there been windows to the rooms; which
aflfords another proof that they were frequently
'' Lib. xxxvi. c. 26. y De Opific. Dei, tom. ii. c. 8.
' A good description of the lapis specularis may be seen in
St. BasU (horail. 3).
» De Princip, lib, i. c. 1, § 6,

OF TITUS. 315
constructed without them. Indeed, Grecian archi-
tectm-e seems to derive a peculiar character from
the absence of such apertures. If any objection
is to be made to the chaste and simple models
which ancient Greece has left us, it is, that there
is a heaviness and a want of relief in the vast
masses of sohd masonry. The modern ItaUan
ai-chitects have gone into the contrary extreme ;
their aim seems to have been, to break every por
tion of the buUding into as many parts as pps-
sible; and in the pediments of their windows they
have been particularly profiise of ornament. The
difference is probably to be traced to the fact of
the ancients having had few windows in their
buUdings, and the moderns having many. In
such structures as the Palace of Titus, where
many omaments, both in painting and sculpture,
were assembled, it might be thought that much
of the eflfect would be lost by their being never
seen except by the Ught of lamps. With respect
to sculpture, however, it is weU known that there
is no greater test of the exceUence of the work,
than to riew it by torch-hght ; the rising of the
muscles, and aU those delicate touches of the
chisel, which are scarcely observed on the smooth
surface of the white marble, are thrown into a
much stronger Ught and shade in this manner.
It is not uncomraon for parties to visit the Vati
can at night, and riew the statues by torch-light.
The eflfect is certainly very good ; and sorae pre
tend to discover that the modem productions
appear greatly inferior to the ancient on such

316 BATHS
occasions. We know that there were formerly
some of the finest specimens of sculpture in the
Baths of Titus, and the paintings on the walls
still remain. The Laocoon was found here dur
ing the Pontificate of Julius II. which Pliny**
mentions as standing in this palace.
Notwithstanding the depth of soil which has
accumulated on the top of the buUding, and which
serves for gardens, there are paintings on the
ceiUng which may be called extremely perfect.
The damp seeras to have had little or no eflfect
upon them, which is probably owing to the excel
lence of the Roman brickwork. They consist
chiefly of arabesques, with all the figures very
small, forming little borders and patterns of birds,
beasts, &c. among which some green parrots may
be seen very distinctly. We know that this me
thod of ornamenting rooms was a late introduc
tion ; and it was considered as a sign that the art
of painting was on the decline, when instead of
representing historical subjects upon the walls,
they took to draw fanciful objects, such as land
scapes, ponds, sea pieces, and such like. Vitru
vius raakes a complaint of this kind; and it may
perhaps be curious to see a description of ara
besques in the original language of a writer of the
Augustan age. He says," " Pinguntur tectoriis
" monstra potius quam ex rebus finitis imagines
" certas. Pro columnis enim statuuntur calami,
" pro fastigiis harpaginetuli stria ti cum crispis fo-
'' Lib. xxxvi. c. 5. ¦" Lib. yii. c. 5.

OF TITUS. 317
" his et volutis. Item candelabra aedicularum
" sustinentia figuras supra fastigia earum surgen-
" tes ex radicibus, cum volutis coliculi teneri
" plures, habentes in se sine ratione sedentia si-
" gilla, alia humanis alia bestiariim capitibus simi-
" Ua. Haec autem nee sunt, nee fieri possunt,
" nee fuerunt. Ergo ita novi mores coegerunt,
" uti inertia mali judices conniveant artium vir-
" tutes." He seems to give the name of topia-
riuni opus to this style of painting."^ The term
arabesque is said to have been applied, because
the Arabs and other Mahometans use this kind
of ornaments; their reUgion forbidding them to
make any images or figures of men or other ani
mals. The ItaUans caU this style of painting
Grottesca, from the subterraneous places in which
the ancient specimens of it were discovered.'
There are also some larger paintings, but not in
such good preservation. Mars and Rhea Sylvia
have been said to form the subject of one, and
Coriolanus of the other : but Winkelmann is not
of this opinion.^ In his ExpUcation de Monu-
mens de I'Antiquite he has pubUshed four of
these paintings, with a long and leamed descrip
tion. The ground is generaUy a rich dark red.
At the end of one of the rooms is a large painting
of some building, in which the perspective is cor-
rectiy given.
¦¦ Vide this same chapter, and lib. v. c. 8.
' See the Life of B. CeUini, vol, i. p. 102. Roscoe's
Edition. ' Lib. iv. c. 8. § 9.

318 BATHS OF TITUS.
The charge, which has been brought against
the ancient painters, of not understanding the
rules of perspective, certainly cannot be main
tained. It may be true, that in some of their
paintings, which have been preserved to us, these
rules are violated: but in a great number they
are strictly foUowed. There is no evidence, that
the paintings in fresco at Portici, which came frora
Pompeii and Herculaneum, were executed by any
other than common house-painters. On the con
trary it is reasonable to suppose, that they are
the work of such artists. When it was as com
mon to paint the waUs of houses with arabesques
and figures, as it is now to cover -them with paper,
the ordinary house-painters were of course capa
ble of the work : it would therefore be alraost as
unfair to judge of the knowledge of the ancient
painters from these remains at Ponipeii, as to
estimate the state of the arts in England from the
sign-posts. It would be rather raore reasonable
to say, that if the raost ordinary workmen could
do so weU, the great masters must indeed have
been excellent. But without having recourse to
this argument, many specimens may be seen at
Portici, where architectural subjects are treated
with every attention to perspective. Unfortunately
none of the works of their great masters have
come down to us : nor would I build much upon
the argument, that as they carried sculpture to
such perfection, the sister art must also have
attained equal excellence. But thus far it is rea
sonable to conclude, that the people, who had

ANCIENT P.MNTING, 319
such models as the works of Grecian sculpture to
form their taste upon, would never have lavished
such praises upon the productions of their paint
ers, if they also had not been reaUy excellent. I
aUow, that all praise is relative to the age in
which it is bestowed. In the thirteenth century
the Itahans admired the works of Giotto and
Cimabue: nor was this unnatural, since nothing
better had ever been seen by them. The princi
ples of architecture were then rude and indefinite :
sculptm-e was as unsuccessful in its eflPorts as
painting. But as the arts advanced, each gene
ration leamt to despise what their predecessors
had admired ; and in the sixteenth century, when
so many ancient statues were discovered, we
find, that painters only of real exceUence were
esteemed. It would therefore not be reasonable
to suppose, that whUe the Greeks had carried
the art of sculpture to its highest perfection, they
would bestow the same terms of praise upon their
paintings, merely because they were the best that
they had seen. We must suppose them to have
been reaUy and not relatively exceUent. How
could a person, who had seen the alraost living
forms which a Praxiteles or an Agasias produced,
talk of the iUusion raised by the works of Zeuxis
or ApeUes, if these painters were ignorant of the
first principles ofthe art?
Yet they have been accused of not understand
ing perspective, nor the theory of light and shade.
The charge has been brought by Perrault, in his
parallel of the ancients and the modems, a book,

320 ANCIENT PAINTING.
in which great malice is shown against the an
cients, together with excessive ignorance on the
part of the author. With respect to perspective,
he has been answered by SaUier.s The passages,
which he produces to refute Perrault are few,
but convincing. I shall borrow two of them, and
add some others, which appear to me decisive.
With respect to light and shade, the first passage
which I shall produce is from Pliny, where he
says of painting,'" " The art at length became
" distinct, and invented light and shades; a dif-
" ference of colours alternately throwing out each
" other." In the same book' he tells us, " that
" Zeuxis, and Polygnotus, and Euphranor, un-
" derstood how to express shades, and to make
" their figures advance and retire." The younger
Pliny also says,'' " In a picture there is nothing
" which sets off' light more than shade."
With respect to perspective, the knowledge
which the ancients had of it is clearly indicated
in the following passage; where Pliny tells us,'
" that Apelles admired Asclepiodorus in his
" symmetries .... he yielded to Asclepiodorus
"in proportion, (mensuris,) Vnz.t is, in putting
" objects at their proper distance, (quanto quid a
" quo distare deberet.)" The passage produced
by Sallier is still more satisfactory, as it shows
how early the theory of perspective was known.
It is from that Dialogue of Plato, which is called
s Acad, des Inscript. vol, viii, p. 97.
I' Lib. xxxv. c. 5. ' C, 11.
'' Lib. iii. epist. 13. ' Lib. xxxv. c. 10.

ANCIENT PAINTING. 321
the Sophist, he says, " If painters and sculptors
" confined themselves to preserving the real pro-
" portions of objects, those which are situated at
" a certain point of elevation would appear to us
" too small; and those which are placed lower
" would seem too large; the one being viewed
" near, the other at a distance. Our artists there-
" fore at present abandon the truth, and give to
" their figures not the real proportion of their
" model, but that which would convey to the eye
" an idea of beauty in the figures." We raight
perhaps be satisfied with a single passage of Vi
truvius, without having recourse to any other.
It is in his preface to his seventh book; he is
there speaking of the decorations of theatres, and
says, " that Democritus and Anaxagoras had
" written to explain how by fixing a point in a
" certain place, we might make the Unes coming
" from it meet the field of the eye, and the
" extension of rays according to nature : so that
" though ignorant of the principle, we may have
" definite forms of buUdings represented to us on
" scenes ; and figures, which are drawn upon
" straight and smooth surfaces, may appear some
" to recede, and some to advance."
I must produce one more passage from Pliny,
which most clearly expresses the foreshortening
of figures."" " Pausias was the first inventor of
" a secret in painting, which many afterwards
" imitated, but none equaUed. Wishing to re-
" Lib. xxxv. c. 11.
VOL. I. Y

322 BATHS
" present the whole length of an ox, he painted
" it fronting the spectator, not sideways, and yet
" the size of the animal was raade perfectly in-
" teUigible. Again, painters in general make the
" parts, which they wish to stand out, rather
" light, and compose a colour out of a black
" ground ; but Pausias raade the whole ox of a
" black colour, and represented a body of shade
" rising out of shade ; showing, with excessive
" skiU, that parts could stand out where all
" seeraed even, and that every part was firra and
" distinct where all seemed confused.""
As to the arabesques in the Baths of Titus, it
is said that Raflfael took some hints frora thera
in his ornaraents of the Vatican; and he is ac
cused of having had the rooras filled up again,
that his thefts might not be discovered. They
were undoubtedly open in his time, as the Laocoon
was discovered in 1506, and Raffael painted the
Loggie in the Vatican in 1513-21. It is also
true, that they were subsequently filled up, and
the soil which occupied them was not an accumu
lation merely effected by time. Many of the
rooras were fuU up to the very top, a height,
perhaps, of thirty feet ; and the rubbish, which
has been dug out, consists of stones and other
ruins of buildings. The room in which the
Laocoon was found, and which must have been

" A curious passage, to prove the optical deceptions pro
duced by the ancient paintings, may be seen in Clem. Alex.
Strom, lib. vi. c. 7.

OF TITUS. 323
cleared at that time, is stated by the guides to
have been also choked up when the French began
to dig. But, we may ask, if the room was fidl of
soil from the days of Raftliel to the time of the
late excavations, how was the tradition preserved,
that this was the actual apartment where the
Laocoon was found? It is a singular circum
stance, that in almost aU the rooms a round hole
has been broken in the ceiling, as if purposely to
throw in rubbish. So that it is, perhaps, not an
improbable conjecture, that the owners of the
land, wishing to clear it for cultivation, got rid
of sundry fragraents, which projected above the
surface, by throwing them into this convenient
receptacle. At aU events, we raust not believe
the charge against Raffael without some satisfac
tory eridence. He is known to have been an
eager searcher after antiquities, and to have made
a proposal to Leo X. for instituting a general
examination. The Roraans in his tirae were per
haps as enthusiastic in this pursuit, as they have
been during any subsequent period ; and we may
imagine, that when such a discovery was made,
as that of the charabers in the Palace of Titus,
thousands would be led by curiosity to examine
them. Such, indeed, is the express testimony of
Gianbattista Arraeni, a writer of that day, who
says, that all Rorae ran in crowds to see the or
naments of stucco and painting, which presented
such singular varieties. AU these persons would
have seen the arabesques; they must have formed
the principal objects for the Ciceroni to point
y2

324 BATHS OF TITUS.
Piit; owing to their great height, Raffael could
not have copied them without scaffolding and
without lights ; so that it seems impossible that
he could have conceived the idea of transferring
these designs to the Vatican, and keeping the
originals unknown. Beside which, it is certain,
from the work of Giulio Mancini upon painting,
that the baths were open in the time of Urban
VIII. who reigned in 1623-44, as well as in the
time of Flaminius Vacca, who wrote in 1594.
Where the walls are bare, the brickwork has a
most singular appearance of freshness ; the stucco
also is very perfect in many parts ; but the marble,
of which there are evident traces on the walls and
floors, is gone.
These ruins extend, as I have mentioned, over
a great tract of ground; and in one of the adjoin
ing gardens is a building connected with the baths,
and caUed Sette Sale di Vespasiano. It got this
name when seven rooms only had been opened ;
but there are in all nine, of the same size, and
supposed to have served as a reservoir for water.
There are two stories, the lower of which is buried.
Each chamber opens into the next by means of
an arch. These arches are not placed opposite
to each other; but a person placing himself in
the first room may look through all of them, in a
slanting direction. To make myself understood,
I have given a ground plan of the building ; and
rauch ingenuity has been exercised, to explain
why the arches were constructed in this manner.
But if we exaraine this plan, perhaps we shall

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SETTE SALE. 325
conclude, that this was not the effect which the
architect had in view. The plan is, hi fact, ex
tremely simple, and the most natural of any for
such a building. To form a series of chambers,
communicating with each other by arches, each
partition was divided into so many oblong por
tions, from which the arches were to spring ; and
these were not set exactly one before the other,
but the space between each two corresponded
with the middle of the opposite pier ; hence re
sulted the eflfect of our being able to see through
so many arches at once, which is a natural conse
quence of the plan of the building, but was not
studied purposely by the architect. The longest
of these rooms is 137 feet ; the width of each is
17^. The walls of the upper chambers, beside a coat
.of very hard plaster, show three distinct deposits,
one above the other, formed by a sediment from
water. These are so extreraely hard, that it is
difficult to separate a small portion from the wall
to examine it. That water should leave a deposit
upon the wall, seems very natural ; but why there
should be here three distinct coatings, seems not
so easy to explain. Such a phenomenon could
scarcely have been produced, without some inter
vals of time having passed, when the water was
temporarily withdrawn. Perhaps we may be able
to assign a cause, which wiU account for the sin
gular appearance. Of the five great aquaducts,
which brought water into Rome, the Aqua Julia
supplied the EsquUine and Palatine Hills. Con-

326 SETTE SALE.
sequentiy, the Baths of Titus were fed frora this
stieara, and the Sette Sale may have formed the
reservoir. Now, it is known that the Aqua Julia
was an union of three strearas, the Aqua Martia,
brought to Rome, U. C. 608 or 640, by Q. Mar
tius Rex; the Aqua Tepula, which was brought
U. C. 627 ; 'and the Aqua Julia, properly so called,
which was introduced U. C. 721, by M. Agrippa.
Each stream originally entered the city by itself;
but as the others were brought, they were succes
sively turned into the same aquaduct, and came
on one course of arches into Rome. Now it
seems not improbable, that the Aqua Martia or
Tepula (whichever was the earUest) forraed the
first deposit. It would seera, also, by another
streara being brought in, that the first must have
proved deficient; or whUe the second work was
going on, the water raight have been withdrawn,
and thus we have the first deposit. Then, when
the two strearas were let in, another deposit began
to be formed, which would not incorporate with
the first, but lie over it. Lastly, when the Aqua
Julia was being introduced, (after an interval of
nearly a century,) the same temporary withdraw
ing of the water raight have taken place, and thus
the second deposit would have hardened. After
this, the third was formed by the three streams
united. To allow this, we must assume that the
Sette Sale were not built as a reservoir for the
Baths of Titus, but long antecedent, which is not
at all contrary to the appearance of the building.
It is, indeed,- natural to suppose, that when

SETTE SALE. 327
Agrippa brought the Aquaduct to the EsquUine
HiU, there was a reservou- constructed for it. It
seems to have been the custom with most of the
aquaducts. The remains of a reservoir for the
Claudian Aquaduct are still to be seen near the
Temple of Minerva Medica ; and what is caUed
the Castello dell' Acqua Giulia, is always allowed
to have been a reservoir, though it is disputed for
what water. The Piscina Mirabile near Baiae,
and the Labyrinth near Pozzuoli, are also in
stances of this custom prevailing.?
BATHS OF CARACALLA.
These, which forra the principal ruin on Mount
Aventine, were sraaUer than the baths of Diocle
tian, and larger than those of Titus: but rauch
more is remaining of thera, than of either of the
others. They look not unlike the ruins of sorae
of our old castles in England, and next to the
Colosseum present the greatest raass of ancient
buUding in Rome. The length of the whole is
said to be 1840 feet, the breadth 1476. The
outer waU raay be traced in nearly its whole cir
cuit, though it has lost soraething of its height.
The number of rooms in the interior, and the
dimensions of them, are most astonishing: one in
particular, supposed to be the Cella Solearis, is

P Tlie use for which these two buildings were constructed
has been disputed, Seneca exactly describes one of them,
and calls it Piscina. Nat. Quaest. lib. i. c. 3.

328 BATHS OF CARACALLA.
203 feet long by 146 wide: the flat roof, which
covered it, was considered very surprising by the
ancients. Spartianus describes the baths thus:
" At Rome he left some astonishing baths, which
" bear his name. There is a room in them called
"Cella Solearis, which architects say, could not
" possibly have been constructed in any other
" way. Cross bars of brass or copper are said
" to be placed over it, upon which the whole
" vaulting rests : and the space is so great, that
" skilful mechanics say that the same effect could
" not be produced by any other means.'"' Lam
pridius says, that they were begun by CaracaUa,
and that Heliogabalus annexed porticos, which
were finished by Alexander Severus. From the
former of these they were called Thermce Anto-
niniancB. Olympiodorus tells us, that 1600 seats
were made of polished marble for the use of the
persons bathing. The lower story, in which
the baths were constructed, is entirely buried;
and the rooms of the upper story, which are
what we now see, are in complete ruin. The
roofs, where any portion of them remain, consist
Jialf of pumice stone, for the sake of lightness in
such large arches. The niches are very per
fect in some squares of it, but in the most perfect
parts there is nothing to be seen of windows.""
By raeans of a broken staircase a person may
climb up to the top of the building, and ramble
in various directions through a kind of shrubbery,
1 CaracaUa, 9. ¦¦ Spence's Anecdotes, p. 94.

FARNESE HERCULES. 329
which has grown on the surarait of the waUs.
Perpendicular channels of tUes may be observed
on the outside, which seem to have carried the
water fi-ora the roof.
It is to be regretted, that excavations are not
carried on here at present on a more extensive
scale, as there is every reason to expect, that the
search would be repaid. Some of the finest
works, which the ancients have left us in sculp
ture, have been found here. In 1540, during the
reign of Paul III. the Farnese -Hercules was dis
covered. At first the legs were wanting ; but they
were found in 1560, and came into the possession
of Prince Borghese, who refused for some time
to give them up. They are now however re
joined to the body. In the mean time a fresh
pair of legs had been executed by Guglielmo
deUa Porta, under the direction of Michel An
gelo, and these may now be seen in the Farnese
palace at Rome. The name of the sculptor
Glycon is upon the statue; and it had struck
me that Horace might allude to the enormous
bulk of this statue, and not to a Gladiator as is
commonly supposed, when he says.
Nee quia desperes invicti membra Glyconis. Epist. i. 1. 30.
But Sandby has anticipated me in this remark:
and Fea, the annotator of Winkelmann,' says,
that he is wrong, but does not add his reasons.
• At lib, vi, c. 4. § 53.

330 BATHS OF CARACALLA.
The Abb^ Dubos' also thought, that this statue
was distinctly mentioned by Pliny: but in this he
is corrected by Winkelmann. The latter writer
places Glycon among the sculptors who flou
rished after the time of Alexander. A figure ex
actly reserabling this raay be seen on a coin of
Commodus, which from the inscription appears to
have been struck at Nicaea. Addison seems to
argue from this circumstance, that the statue itself
was not older than the time of Coraraodus: but
we know frora history," that statues were erected
to that eraperor under the forra of Hercules; and
his coins raay have been struck with this figure
upon them from the same reason.
Paul III. being a Farnese, the Hercules be
came the property of that faraily, and was pre
served in their palace at Rome. But by the
marriage of Philip V. King of Spain, with Eliza
beth Farnese, the crown of Spain gained a claim
to the possessions pf that family. By the Qua
druple Alliance in 1718, the Duchies of Parraa
and Placentia" were adjudged to the Infant Don
Carlos, son of Philip V. upon the extinction
of the Dukes of the Farnese family. Their line
terminated with Antonio Francesco, who died in
1731 without issue : upon which Don Carlos
succeeded. He gave them up to the emperor

' Reflexions sur la Poesie et la Peinture.
" JE\. Lamprid. 9.
^ Paul III, in 1545, gave Parraa and Placentia to his Son,
Peter Louis Farnese, as Duke,

FLPKA. TORO FARNESE. 331
by the treaty pf Vienna in 1738; but in 1748, by
the peace pf Aix la Chapelle, they were again
transferred tP Don Phihp, brother to Don Carlos,
PhiUp dying without issue in 1765, Don Carlos,
who was then King of Spain, took possession of
them, and left thfem to his son Ferdinand, who
became King of Naples in 1759. It was then
that aU the Farnese property became attached to
the crown of Naples; and all the remains of anti
quity, which were forraerly in their palace at
Rorae, were reraoved to Naples.
The Flora, which is also in the royal Neapo-
poUtan GaUery, was found here in the same year
with the Hercules, 1540. This seems certainly
to be improperly caUed a Flora, and the flowers
in the left hand, frora which the name is taken,
are a modern addition, together with the whole
arm. The right arm also, the head, the legs and
feet, have been restored by a modern hand. The
figure is colossal, being nearly ten feet high. It
is more difficult to decide what it ought to be
called. Winkehnann (who appears never to have
seen the statue) caUs it in one place'' a Terpsi
chore, in another ' one of the Hours.
The faraous Toro Farnese which is also at
Naples, in the Villa Reale, was a produce of the
same excavation about the year 1546. This
groupe represents Dirce fastened by her hair to
a bull by Zethus and Amphion; but when the
y Liv. iv. c. 2, § 85. ' Ibid. c,5, § 20,

332 BATHS OF CARACALLA.
bull is on the point of starting oflf, Antiope orders"
them to release her, and they are stopping the
fiiry ofthe animal." Pliny mentions this piece of
sculpture,'' ' and teUs us that the artists were
ApoUonius and Tauriscus. He adds also, that
it was forraed of one block of marble. Of the
truth of this statement we cannot now judge, as
it has been greatly broken and restored by mo
dern hands, Baptista Bianchi of Milan was the
person employed to replace the parts which were
wanting. These parts are the head, breast, and
two arms of Dirce; the head and arms of An
tiope ; both the figures of Amphion and Zethus,
except the two torsos and one leg." The legs of
the bull and the cord are also modern. Winkel
mann"' (from whom I have borrowed this detail)
condemns these restorations; and assigns to the
original groupe a date subsequent to the age of
Alexander. The Jesuits begged to have these baths for
their boys to play in, and have since sold a good
deal of the stone." On the east side of this im
mense fabric are considerable remains of the
portico, which was built by Heliogabalus and

" Vide Propert. lib. iii. el. 15.
^ Lib. xxxvi. c. 5. He says that it was in the collection of
PoUio. <= Evelyn, who traveUed in 1644, mentions the Torso of
Amphion represented in five figures.
<> Liv. vi. c. 4. § 17. " Spence's Anecdotes, p, 94.

BATHS OF DIOCLETIAN. 333
Alexander Severus. Within the precincts is an
octagon building, which has been called a Tera
ple of Hercules. There are four large niches in
it apparently for statues.

BATHS OF DIOCLETIAN.
Of these baths, which were the largest in Rorae,
little is to be said in description, although great
fragments of the ancient building remain. Maxi
mianus, when he returned from Africa, A.D. 298,
began them, and employed seven years in the
work. He had distinguished himself very much
in persecuting the Christians, and accordingly he
ordered as many as he could find to work in the
buUding. Some say that forty thousand Chris
tians worked here : according to Evelyn, an hun
dred and fifty thousand. " Hence," says one of
the antiquaries of Rome, " though aU the other
" baths are destroyed, these, which were built by
" the hands of saints, are still preserved." He
adds, that some of the bricks have been found
with a cross marked upon them. At the time
when he wrote, which is about two centuries ago,
the remains of them were much greater; and
when architecture was reviring in Italy, San Gallo,
Michel Angelo, and others, studied them raore
than any other ancient speciraens of building.
They undoubtedly have given rise to sorae in
stances of bad taste, particularly in the superfluity
of ornaraent, which we cannot be surprised at
finding in these baths, when we consider the age

334 BATHS OF PAULUS ^MILIUS.
in which they were built; and we may regret,
that the great rerivers of the art had recourse to
thera, rather than to sirapler and chaster models.
There are examples here of a series of colurans,
not supporting any horizontal entablature, (as in
the more ancient Roman buildings,) but connected
by arches springing from one to the other, as in
our Saxon or Norraan churches. The same may
be observed in the ruins of Diocletian's palace
at Spalatro.
The Church of S. Maria degU AngioU occupies
the principal part of these baths ; and we may
learn something of their extent, by considering
the Church of S. Bernardo as one of four round
towers which stood at each angle. These two
buildings are all that remain in any thing like a
perfect state. The former is said to have served
for a picture gallery. Very considerable frag
ments of brickwork raay be seen behind it: and
it is remarkable, that in an excavation made near
this spot, so much lead was found, that the cupola
of S. Bernardo was covered with it.
These ruins stand both upon the Viminal and
Quirinal hills, which come to a junction in this
place.
BATHS OF PAULUS ^MILIUS.
This name is given to some ruins which stand
south-east of Trajan's column: but they are in
such a mutilated state, and so blocked up by
houses, that little can be known about thera.
All that reraains of the building is of brick: it was

RIVER AND BRIDGES. 335
ofa seraicircular foi-m, with a covered arcade gping
round the interior of it. Winkelmann does not
seem to consider them as baths; and Desgodetz
supposes them to be the remains of a theatre.
RIVER AND BRIDGES.
The Tiber is a stieam of which classical recol
lections are apt to raise too favourable anticipa
tions.'^ When we think of the fleets of the capital
of the world saiUng up it, and pouring in the
treasures of tributary kingdoms, we are likely to
attach to it ideas of grandeur and raagnificence.
But if we corae to the Tiber with such expecta
tions, our disappointraent wiU be great. At the
bridge of S. Angelo it is about 315 feet wide, and
where it is dirided by the island, it raay be 450.
Dionysius says of it, " The breadth is nearly four
" plethra [about 400 feet]: it is navigable for
"large ships; and the stream is rapid, and full
" of eddies." So that though its width is respect
able, it is by no raeans to be reckoned araong the
large rivers. It was raore anciently called Albula,
as VirgU teUs us,
Tum Reges, asperque immani corpore Tibris,
A quo post Itali fluvium cognomine Tibrim
Diximus: amisit verum vetus Albula nomen.
Mn. viii. 330.^
It receives forty-two other stieams in its course.
f The Tiber has been described by two writers G. Bath.
Modio, Rome, 1556, and Andrea Bacci, Venice, 1576.
s So also Ovid, Fast. lib. ii. 389. and lib. iv, 47.

336 TIBER.
The epithet of flavus, (yellow,) which is so con
stantly attached to it by the ancients, is evidently
derived from the muddy Colour which it always
bears: and Virgil describes it accurately, when
he says, Vorticibus rapidis et multa flavus arena
In mare prorumpit. — Mn. vii. SI,*"
It is subject to very high floods, which happen
frequently; and the water sometimes comes as
high as the Piazza di Spagna. In the winter of
1819 the Pantheon was under water; which is not
uncommon, as it is near to the river; and the
drain, which carries off the rain faUing from the
aperture at top, also lets in the water of the river.
On the Porto di Ripetta are two pillars, which
mark the height of the diflferent floods for several
years past: the year and month is also recorded,
frora which it appears, that they have aU happened
between the raonths of Noveraber and February.
The highest of aU was in 1606. The following is
the list, though perhaps not coraplete.
1495 December, 1686 November.
1606  1687 
1637 February. 1702 December.
1660 November. 1750 
1665  1805 February.
This list omits the great inundations of 1530, 1557,
* I have only met with one author who has flattered the
Tiber vrith praising the purity of its stream. Dionysius Pe-
riegetes says of it,

TIBER. 337
1598, and of the floods which happened before
this account begins, wc may collect the following
yeai-s, 5, 15, 69, 589, 614, 685, 715, 717, 780,
791, 797, 858, and 1345.' Another account of
the height of these inundations is kept on the
front of S. Maria sopra Minerva: and the level
to which the water rose in 1530, is marked above
the statue of Pasquino.
The frequency of these floods gave rise to se
veral speculations among the ancients, as to the
possibihty of preventing them. Tacitus'' men
tions a project, which was debated in the senate,
A.D. 15, for diverting sorae ofthe streams which
run into the Tiber; but deputies from various
towns appeared, who partly from local interests
and partly from superstition, entreated them not
to put their scheme into execution. Aurelian
had the banks of the Tiber raised, and its channel
cleared, to prevent inundations.' The vast accu
mulation of soU, by which the surface of modern
Rome is raised so many feet above the ancient,
must undoubtedly make it less liable to suflfer
from floods now than forraerly.
The Tiber is now crossed by four bridges, that
of S. Angelo, Ponte Sisto, and the two which
lead in and out ofthe island, all of which are old.
Beside these there are vestiges of three others,
which existed in the time of the ancient Romans.
The one highest up the stream is the Ponte S.
*- An interesting account of the rising of the Tiber may be
seen in PUny's Letters, lib. viii. ep. 17.
'' An. lib. i. c. 79. ' Vopiscus, ,=Vuiel, 47,
VOL. I. Z

338 BRIDGES.
Angelo, of three arches aU of the same size, and
two smaUer ones. There were formerly two
other arches, still smaller, as is represented on a
medal of Hadrian. It was built by that emperor,
and from him called Pons .^Elius, or Hadriani.
It had its present name from the figure of the
angel on the top ofthe Mausoleum of Hadrian, or
Castle of S. Angelo. The appearance of this
bridge in the time of Leo X. raay be seen in a
painting in the Trinita de' Monti, where is a por
trait of Leo hiraself, in the character of Gregory,
with an angel appearing to hira. Having given
way in consequence of the great crowd asserabled
at the Jubilee of 1450,"° it was widened and im
proved by Nicolas V. and again repaired by Cle
ment IX. in 1668, who erected the balustrade,
and placed ten figures of angels in raarble upon
it, each of which carries the representation of
sorae of the instruraents of our Sariour's suffer
ings. These figures will not attract rauch adraira
tion, being heavy and ill executed. Clement VII,
added the figures of St. Peter and St. Paul.
Next to this was the Pons TriuraphaUs ; so
caUed, because the generals, who had conquered
on the north and west of Rome, passed over this
bridge in conducting the triumphs to the Capitol.
This seems to have been the one caUed by P.
Victor, - Pons Vaticanus. It is now entirely
destroyed, but the piers of it raay be distin
guished by the agitation of the water. It was
"¦ Raynald ad an. 1450.

BRIDGES. 339
the longest of all the bridges, and probably de
stroyed towards the end of the fourth century, as
Pradentius says, that hi his time (A. D. 404) the
only approach to the Vatican was by the Pons
yEUus. JuUus II. and Alexander VII. had
thoughts of repairing this bridge ; but they never
fulfilled theu- designs; and in 1812 many pieces
of stpne were taken from the remaining piers, to
improve the navigation of the river.
Next to this is the Ponte Sisto of four arches,
the date of which is not known. Sorae ascribe it
to Trajan, some to Antoninus Pius. Nardini
gives an inscription, which mentions the repair
of it by Hadrian. Its ancient narae was Pons
Janiculensis; and its modern one was derived
from Sextus IV. who repaired it in 1474. An
drea Fulvio teUs us, that it was also called Ponte
AureUo, and Ponte Rotto, because it had been
broken down in some disturbances. The latter
name is now appUed to the bridge below the
island, which had not suffered by inundations, so
as to deserve that title, when Fulvio wrote.
The bridge which leads into the island is now
caUed Ponte di quattro Capi, from four heads of
Janus which were forraerly upon it. Its ancient
name was Pons Fabricius, from L. Fabricius,
who buUt it in the year of Rome 692."" The
inscription, as given by Nardini, is as follows :
" Dio, lib. xxxvii. The Scholiast upon Horace (Sat. lib. ii.
3, 36) says, that the Fabricius who built the bridge was Con
sul; but there was no Consul of that name in 692, or about
that period.
z2

340 BRIDGES.
L, FABRICIVS, C, F. CVR. VIAR. FACIVNDVM
CPERAVIT, IDEMQ, PROBAVIT
Q, LEPIDVS. M. F. M. LOLLIVS. M. F. COS
S. C. PBOBAVERVNT.
Horace mentions this bridge : "
Atque a Fabricio non tristem ponte reverti.
It was also called Tarpeius; and, according to
the Scholiast of Horace, Lapideus. It consists
of two large arches, and a smaller one between
them, through which the water only runs when it
is very high.
The bridge which leads out of the island, to
wards the Janiculum, is called Ponte di S,
Bartolomeo, from the neighbouring church; and
anciently Pons Cestius, Who this Cestius was is
not known, A. Fulvio and L, Fauno mention an
inscription dug up near the Bridge of S, Angelo,
in which val, cestivs. cvrator. riparvm. et.
ALVEI. TIBERIS is named in the fourth year of
Vespasian. P The only inscription on the bridge
is, PERENNES. INCHOARI. PERFICI. DEDICARIQ
It has also been called Pons Ferratus. It was
repaired by the Emperors Valentinian, Valens,
and Gratian, as appears from two long inscrip
tions on each side. It consists of one large arch
and two smaller ones.
" Sat, ii. 3. 36.
P The younger Pliny also held this oflice.

BRIDGES. 341
Next to this is the Ponte Rotto, or as it is
sometmies called Ponte S. Maria (either from
the Church of S. Maria Egiziaca,i or fi-om an
image of the Virgin, which was on the bridge).
It was anciently called Pons Palatinus. M.
Fulrius began it U.C. 574, and it was finished
by Scipio Africanus and L. Mummius U.C. 611."^
Some antiquaries have also called it Pons Sena-
torius. It was the first stone bridge built in
Rome. Having suffered by a great inundation,
it was repaired in 1550-5 by Julius III. It was
again injured shortly after, and Gregory XIII.
restored it in 1575. But two arches being car
ried away by an extraordinary rise of the waters
in 1598, it has never been repaired since. Hence
it has its present name. There remain now three
arches, and two smaUer ones between them in
case of high floods. It is still passable on foot, a
continuation having been made of wood.
Lower down than this, there was formerly the
Pons Sublicius, so caUed frora the sublices, (said
to be a Volscian term,) or wooden piles, of which
it was made. This was the first bridge ever
constructed in Rome, unless we believe the story
preserved by Macrobius,' that Hercules on his
return from Spain constructed a temporary bridge
' This church was given by Pius V. to the Armenian
Christians, and had its name from an Egyptian saint, who,
.fi'om being a notorious sinner, was miraculously converted at
.Terusalem, and passed the rest of her days in a desert beyond
Jordan. (Martyr. Rom. 2 AprU.)
¦¦ Liv, xl. c, 51, ' Lib, i, c. 2,

.342 BRIDGES.
nearly on this spot. Plutarch indeed says,' that
there was a bridge here even before the time of
Hercules. The Pons Sublicius Was the work of
Ancus Martius, the fourth king. It was here
that Horatius Codes withstood the army of Por
sena, tUl the bridge was broken down behind
him. It was then repaired, but still in wood, and
without any naUs, so that , it raight be taken to
pieces when required." It was destroyed by
a great flood in the reign of Augustus :" and
since Plutarch " informs us that it was rebuilt in
stone by .^mUius, it is probable that this took
place in the year after the inundation, when
P. .^milius Lepidus was Censor.^ Hence the
bridge is sometimes caUed Pons iEmilius " or
Pons Lepidi. It was injured by a flood in the
reign of Tiberius, and that eraperor restored it.
Tacitus tells us,'' that in the time of Otho it was
destroyed by a sudden inundation, A. D. 69.
It seems to have remained in ruins a long tirae ;
at least we have no account of its being repaired
till the time of Antoninus Pius." It afterwards
went by the name of Ponte Marmorato."^ In 780
it was carried away by a flood, and has never
since been rebuilt. In 1484, what remained of
' Probl. " Plin. lib. xxxvi. c. 23.
" Dio, lib. 53. y Numa.
' Dio, lib. 54.
^ Juvenal, Sat. vi. 32. Though some take this for another
bridge : P. Victor.
^ Hist. lib. i. c. 86. ¦= J. Capitolinus, 8.
"* A, Fulvio.

BRIDGES. 31'3
the piers was taken away, as the navigation of the
river was impeded.
Higher up than aU tiiese, but two miles from
Rome, is the Ponte Molle, as it is now called ;
which seems to be a corruption from Pons Mil
vius or Mulrius, which was the ancient name.
The present bridge is sometimes stated to have
been buUt by iEmUius Scaurus, who was Censor,
U.C. 644.= But Livy raentions' a Pons Mul
vius in this place in the year 546. It was re
paired by Augustus: but the present bridge is
perhaps not older than the tirae of Nicolas V.
who rebuUt it in the fifteenth century. Some
tiaces of a more ancient bridge may be seen not
far off at low water.^
There must have been a bridge here in very
early times, if there was any truth in the tradition
of it being customary to throw a man from this
bridge into the water as an offering to Pluto,
and that the sacrifice was put an end to by
Hercules, when he returned from Spain. Lac
tantius names the Pons MUvius"" as the scene of
this barbarity; but Orid seems to allude to the
same story, and speaks of a wooden bridge,'
' Aur. Victor, de Vir. lUustr. c. 27.
' Lib. xxvii. c. 51. t Vide p. 7.
¦" Instit. lib. i. c. 21. ' Fast. lib. v. 621.

END OF VOL. I,

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