St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1875-05-21

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The last mentioned is the oldest OF them
all. having been built in 465 B. c. Its
career has been checkered one, for,
being very small. about l5A9 feet
it has been lost and found at least two
or three times.
The Erectheum. though not the most
magnificent, was the most revered of all
the ancient temples. Built in honor of
Erectheus. deitied king of Athens, it
contained some of the most sacred
shrines of the gods. Here was the
down from heaven, the salt spring
called up by Poseidon beside the mark
of his trident in the solid k,-and
the sacred olive tree which sprang out
of the rock ut the call of Athena i'm her
contest with Poseidon, to prove which
should he considered the greater bene-
porch. whose roof is supported by six
beautiful maidens, is still standing,
showing the place of the sacred olive
| tree.
The inferior workmanship and mate
rial of one of the caryatides show that
it is an interloper, and the five remain
ing seem to mourn the loss of their sis
ter, who was stolen by Lord Elgin to
grace the halls of the British museum.
Not only did the Roman conquerors
before the christian era, and Alaric the
Goth. and Attilla the Hun. in the fourth
and fifth centuries, spoil Athens of her
choicest treasures, but public officials
and private relic-hunters from that day
to this have seemed to consider what
ever was found in Athens as lawful
plumber. If the treasures of Athenian
art had not been well nigh exhaustless.
there would be little left to delight the
eye of the antiquarian, so many cabi-
nets and museums have been enriched
at her expense.
of the ParthenOn, enough is left to
give some idea of lis former grandeur.
The noble gothic pillars of the ends.
and the western pediment are nearly
entire. but the rest are defaccd and bro
ken. In l6S1 the Nenetians under Moro
SIM hesieged Athens then in the hands of
the Turks. The Turks had stored their
gunpowder in tho Paithenon when an
unfortunate shot from the Venetian
batteries struck upon it and the most
beautiful parts of the temple which had
remained uuiniurcd up to that time.
were destroyed 10y the consequent eNpln-
sion. Although the Turks were not alone
responsible tor this destruction. it is Il
good illustration of the general intin-
tnce they have had on civilization and
progress.
The Parthcnon has been the mistress
of various phases of religious Worship
Built rs Il pagan temple and dedicated
to the goddess Minerva. when Chris
tianity Suppanted the worship OF the
gods and goddess, it WAS r-edctlicaird
Us II '.chulch of the Holy Virgin" and
afterwards. under the dominion of the
Turks. us Il mosque it rcsoundcd to The
worship of Allah. and the praises of his
prophet.
The Acr"polis is completely strcwn
with ruins. pieces of marble. trag
mcnts of culptures. broken heads.
arms and bodies of statues. turhan-
crowned tomb stones, drums and cap
ital> of pillars. Each tells lis story. aud
we find there traces of the Romans the
Cloths. the Ncnrtian>. the Turks: and
Il vault full of human bones told us of
tn" men WHO struggled for Grccian In
dependence only fifty Years ago.
The Iheseum was built about twenty
/ five years before the Parthenum. having
been completed in l65 b. &. 1t was
built to receive the bones of Th,ecuS.
the national hero of Attca. 1t is small
Ell and better preserved than the Par
thenon. - the single row of pillars
around it and the friezes being entire.
| 1t Is now used ~ il sort of national art
museum, and is filled with ancient
sculptures.
One of the most interesting antiqui-
ties is the Theatre of BacchuS. 1t has
/ been eAcavated within the last ten Years
from the rubbish and debris of more
| than fifteen centuries. Here the whole
| populace of Athens were accustomed
to assemble on the testal DAYS of the
god of wind. to listen to the soul-stir-
ring tragedies of .Eschylus and sophie
cles. and the wit OF Alistophanes. The
theatre is built on the southern slope of
the Acrop0lis, open to the sky its seats
rising one above the other in the form
of Il semi-circle surrounding Il mosaic
pavement on which was stationed the
chorus. There is nothing left of the
stage where stood the actors, except the
foundations aud the sculptured slabs
that supported it, the central figure of
which is an immense relief of the iollv
wind god himself
Excavations are still going on in the
outskirts of the city which have reveal
ed many fine pieces of sculptuling, most
ly connected with the ancient Ger
ameieus. or public cemetery. Whole
streets of tomb stones and flnereal urns
have been exhumed, some of which are
most exquisitely carved. They all con-
tain figures i'll relief and in almost ev-
cry case represent a grelIp OF some sort