The farmer and mechanic., 1911-04-11
DIGGING UP OLD GREECE,
BY Frank G. Carpenter


.id nv native guide, Constantine, as
-, walked through the wonderful col
,ections at Athens. GO down into the
nth anywhere and you may find
hoice marbles, graceful pottery and
.arved golden jewelry, which were
-1snd in the days Of Homer and Hesiod.
Every time a fountain is dug some
1nin. new is discovered, and many Of
ne great finds have originated by ac-
,ident. The whole country is a treas
IRE house whose vaults need only the
pick and spade to unlock them
was struck with this fact as
walked through the National Museum
today. At its entrance is a corridor
Nled with broken statues of beauty
eaten by salt water and half covered
with shells They were taken from
the sea near the Island Of Kythera.
only a short time ago. The Greeks
were diving for sponges when they
came upon the wreck of an ancient
vessel lying one hundred feet below
.he surface. It was filled with bronzes,
marble statues and other objects Of
art dating back to some years before
christ Where the marble was ex-
posed 10 the water It had been eaten
away and it's beauty largely destroyed.
Where covered with sand it was as
beautiful as when the ship was lost.
There is one head, for instance, which
j. perfect, while the body is a honey
comb Of mold and decay.
Among the bronzes taken from that
vessel is a statue of Paris, of more
than life size. which has been allotted
the place of honor in the bronze room
Of the museum. It represents the
nude figure Of youth who is stretch
ing out his right hand, and evidently
giving a Grimes Golden apple to the
goddess whom he has picked out as
most beautiful. The bronze is Of
rich old green, and it stands on a
pedestal. The statue came up broken,
but it has been. restored by artists from
Paris at a cost Of $4,000, and it is
now esteemed one of the greatest of
the new finds from the ancient world.
The Judgment OF Paris.
As we looked at this, Constantine,
who makes his living in explaining
archaeological subjects to tourists, ask
ed me to sit while he told the story.
did so. and he continued, as fol-
lows:
Homer lived. and when Greece had
just begun to be great, there We're
three goddesses Minerva, JUNO and
Venus, playing about in the woods near
this city. They were all proud and
all beautiful. Each thought she was
the prettiest. and they auarreled as
they looked over each other and COM
pared the points OF their beauty.
Juno showed her ankles, Venus her
legs and Minerva boasted of her
long time, but could come to no un-
derstanding. when Juno up and said:
j am willing to leave it to any judge
You other girls may pick out that
am the beautifulest' Ne, too, said
Venus. and Moi Aussi and Ich auch,
cried the goodness Minerva. After
some discussion they picked out this
young Paris, whose bronze we have
here, and left the decision to him.
Paris was the son of Priam, one Of the
/ ing ,ft hi Hn
apple, and he was to give this to the
prettiest Of the ladies. In the mean
time, each Of them, just like wo-
man. slipped Paris aside, and tried
TO bribe him to decide in her favor.
Minerva got him off in the bushes and
offered him wisdom. Juno walked
him up the side of a mountain and
promised him power, while Venus slyly
whispered. Decide for me and you
shall have the prettiest girl OF the
whole world for your wife. That fixed
Paris. He at once decided for Venus,
and she gave him Helen, the vile
oI Menelaus. He carried her home
ana the fuss that Menelaus made
brought about the great ITOJan war
Taken From Life.
The statues Of the Athens Museum
are wonderfully lifelike. They seem
|" he portraits, and We're evidently
poSed for by ,.se models OF the time
There is now q museum on the Aero
-
objects taken from the ruins OF the
l3rthenon and the buildings about
II has a half dozen statues of women
the faces Of which were undoubtedly
cut from women models. There
are husts Of men made the same way
50 mat the museum is really a por-
ua!t gallery Of the heroes Of more
lhan 1000 years ago.
One Of the most striking statues o.
Athens is the marathon runner, who
Drought q nf .
Asamemnon. He ran from the battlt
o! aranthon to Athens in the space
"i Mara thon to Athens in the space
ionr-horse team dragging chario
could not make the distance in les
Than four. AS the story goes, h
klE0nned dead he leliNcrol th