The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1877-03-23

statues led Charles III. to have excavations
made. Afterwards other excavations were
made, irregularly, and we may say harm
, fully, more with q view to finding valua
. bles than of exposing the city, the debris
OF fresh excavations covering up those las
made. So on until the establishment o
the present government, which has appro
priated 10000 francs yearly to the prosecu
ton of the work, and committed it to mos
able and conscientious hands. These sys
tematic excavations have so far been emf
nently successful, and besides clearing
more than fourth of the city and laying
1T open to inspection, have produced suct
collection of ancient painting, statuary
and implements of various kinds, as could
never otherwise have been obtained. The
houses, walls and temples are left standing
as found, and the perishable and movable
articles deposited in the National Museum
in Naples. And it is astonishing to see
in what perfect preservation many of these
things are found. Many of the mural paint.
ings are very distinct in color and outline
the finest lines of sculpture are preserved
and many inscriptions are perfectly legi,
BILE. Accompanied by a very intelligent
guide, we began to wander through these
interesting ruins, and it must be &C.
knowledged that strange and weird feel
ing crept over us as we began to tread
those pavements which until few years
ago had for so many centuries been buried
out of sight.
We found the streets very narrow, the
wide ones about twenty five feet, the lanes
and alleys not more than fourteen. The
fagstones with which they are paved are
| 70 ha Ii IL
stepping stones at the crossings are worn
by the tread Of feet. Those houses used
for dwellings open on the street by mar
row alley-way, while those which were
used for shops have open fronts. The
walls OF the lower stories only of the houses
are left, but that thera were other stories is
proven by many well'preserved staircases,
which are left. Our guide first took us to
the forum, a large open square, where all
public assemblies took place. 1t is the
point of conveyance of six streets, paved
with large slabs, surrounded by colon
made and containing in its area many bases
for the statues of great men, This was
probably the most important part of the
town, as facing it are several temples, those
of Jupiter, Venus, Mercury and Augustus,
and the Chalcidicum or exchange, and
not far off the Therm@ or public baths.
| l can not give you Il better idea of the
domestic life in Pompeii than by attempt
ing to describe a private house. 1t con-
sisted, as have already suggested of two
or more stories, but the family occupied
the lower floor, the rest being appropriated
| to the slaves. This first floor consisted of
an open court, usually arranged as q gar
den, upon which opened the various apart
ments. This court, the Atrium, was en-
tered from the narrow street door, through
the vestibule or hall, and contained in lite
centre small reservoir for rain water.
The plan will be readily understood when
it is remembered that they had no glass
in Pompeii, and the apartments were light
ed from the atrium. These apartments
were painted in gay colors and with beau
tiful designs, the soft and lascivious char
acter of which, in many cases, pointed out
the peaceful and pleasnre-loving character
of the inhabitants. In one of the houses
called the House of the Tragic Poet, the
paintings are of an historical and poetic
character, representing scenes in the Had,
Theseus abandoning Ariadne, &c. On the
Threshold there is dog in mosaic, with
the motto care canem. These beautiful
relics are preserved in the National Muse
UNI.
Wandering on, we visited the Amphi-
theatre, an eliptical structure, with arena
in the centre, and tiers of stone seats rising
one above another to the outer wall Here
the Pompeians witnessed the various
games, gladiatorial combats, and perhaps
the rare sport, for those days, of Christians
being thrown to wild beasts. Passing
l., L, tI,,D
ed the tombs along each side of the Strada
del Sepulcro, beautiful illustration of the
Roman custom of burying by the way side.
Many of these tombs contain inscriptions
which are perfectly legible.
Further out we found the villa of Do
med. This villa differs considerably from
the dwellings within the town. being much
larger, and having garden of considera-
BILE size in the centre with terraced Sides
Everything about it shows it to have been
the luxurious country seat of some wealthy
Roman. 1t has a long vaulted cellar, in
which seventeen bodies of women and
children were found. They had provided
themselves with food, and probably sought
this as place of safety. Ashes, however,
sifted in through the openings in the cellar.
Too late they attempted to escape. They
were suffocated as is attested by the fact
that they were found with their heads
wrapped up and buried in ashes. Near
door of the cellar was found the skeleton of
a man, possibly the owner of the house,
with key in his hand, and near him an
other with jewels and money.
Returning again toward the city, we
passed the tomb formerly called the sentry
box, in which the sentry stood of whom
the very improbable story is told that he
stood at his post so very faithfully. In
another cellar saw skeleton lying crouch.
ed together, as he had been found, Just
as he crouched in wonder and fear sixteen
hundred years ago, when the great cafas-
trophe overlook the city. Many skeletons
were found in the streets, some with valu-
ables about them, which they had proba-
bly, returned to the city to secure, and
which proved their destruction. Skele-
tons of domestic animals were also found,
and are preserved in a little museum which
has been established near the gate OF en-
trance. In some cases, also, exact repre-
sensations of the position in which body
lay were procured by pouring plaster into
the cavities where they were found. Sew
eral interesting casts Of this kind are in
the museum on tue Srouhu, anu some nave
been removed to Naples.
Thus we wandered through the old
ruined city, peerlng into its mysteries,
which had been buried out of sight so
long, admiring its works of art so we'll
preserved, gazing at the bare skulls of those
o. its inhabitants who had been overtaken
by the storm, peopling again, in magma
tion, the streets and houses with noble
Romans, and going in and out among them,
until the declining sun warned us that it
was time to say farewell. Old Vesuvius,
| smok inc eway nuietly aboye no aeemed