Massachusetts spy and Worcester advertiser. [volume] ([Worcester, Mass.]) 1823-1825, 1823-09-17
HERCULANEUM.

Herculaneum was city on the Italian
coast of Campania, between Pompeii
and Naples, and is often mentioned in
the classical writers.-The name is
sometimes written Herculanum, by
which it is now generally known on the
European Continent, andsometmes Her
culaneum, as it is called in England and
America. 1t suffered considerably by an
earthquake, under the reign of the en-
peror Nero; and under the reign of the
emperor Titus, and in the time of Pliny
the elder, was buried beneath the
streams of lava from Mount Vesuyius
The celebrated writer just mentioned,
lost his life in his unguarded attempt to
crafty his curiosity, upon this great phe-
nomenon of nature. The city of Pom
pei and some smaller places were buri-
ed at the same time.-Herculaneum was
not, as Winckleman says, covered in the
first instance by the lava, but by clouds
of glowing cinders and hot ashes, ce-
Inented shortly after they had fallen by
torrents of rain. Upon this first cover
Ing, the burning streams of lava poured
and filled the city with mass, which as
ii cooled passed into stone. That the
inhabitants had time to save themselves.
and their most valuable possessions ap-
pears from the circumstance that few
skeletons, jewels, or precious articles Of
any kind, have been found. At Strabe,
three female figures were discovered.
OF which one was apparently servant,
and was carrying a wooden casket, the
two other figures had golden bracelets
and earrings, which are now preserved
in the museum at Naples and at Pom
pei, according to Eustace, sixty skele-
tons have been found. That attempts
had, at some former period, been made
to explore these ruins, is rendered pro-
bable. by the subterraneous passages in
to them, evidently the work of much
iabour, which were discovered at the
commencement of the modern excava-
tIons.-An inscription also was found.
|sah'ch ia supposed to alluIe 10 the same
attempt. The modern discovery was
made by occasion Of the digging of
well on the spot, on the grounds of the
Prlnce OF Mineuf, near his residence.
This was house built on the sea shore.
on rock of lava, near a Franciscan
ciolster. In sinking the well, the labor
ers struck against flight of stone stairs,
but piercing through them, continued
their work till they came to firm soil,
consisting of the ashes of Vesuvius.
Three female statues were here found.
which of all the discoveries of Hercu-
Ianeum, are, as yet the most celebrated,
perhaps the most valuable aud which
are 10 the gallery of antiquities at Dres-
den, under the name of the VestaIs.
;CADIz.-The city of Cadiz is older
than Rome, London, Paris OF Vienna,
older than Madrid and Naples, Stock
holm and St Petersburg, and CONSTANT
nople; She is as old as Jerusalem. She
is, after Tyre and Sidon. the oldest mer-
camille city in the world. When the
pyramids in Egypt were built, Cadiz
too was built. When Troy was destroy
ed, this Neptune city was raised out of
the ocean.-Gades, the now Cadiz, was
an old colony of the Phenecians, who
used this favourable situation to build
the town, on account of the trade of the
west coast of Europe and Africa, which
was done about 700 years before Christ.