Part 12

At the present day there remains sufficient to indicate the construction of the building, though but a small portion of the immense outer shell, which originally both adorned and formed an impenetrable girdle round the whole, has been preserved. In the interior, a great deal of rebuilding has been necessary for its preservation.

Vast as the building is, its construction is easily understood; a simple segment of the whole serving to show how all the others succeed one another like the cells of a bee-hive.

[Illustration: THE COLOSSEUM.]

The upper part was originally of wood only, and was burned, having been set on fire by lightning. The three lower stories only are of the time of the Flavian emperors; the upper story was rebuilt and added in the third century, and only finished in the time of the Gordiani, as is shown by the coins representing it. The imperial entrance was from the Esquiline side, between the arches Nos. 38, 39, which is without number. Commodus constructed an underground passage from the arena to the Palatine, which has not yet been discovered, his so-called passage (_on the right in entering_) being that by which the dead bodies were carried from the arena. Dion Cassius says: "Upon the last day of the sports his helmet was taken off and fell through the door where the dead used to be carried out."

The area, basement, or ground-floor, was flooded for the naval fights. Surrounding this were the dens, in front of which was a channel for fresh water for supplying the animals with drink--a spring still supplies it; about ten feet above was the movable stage, sprinkled with sand for the combats, and hence called the arena. A few feet above the arena was the podium, or seat of the emperor, vestal virgins, &c., protected from the arena by iron bars. Behind the podium was a double portico, which ran round the whole building. Fragments of the marble chimeras, with long wings, that ornamented the seats of the podium have been found.

The three successive tiers were called _cavea_. Above these was a tier for the people; above this one for the "gods;" thus making six in all. The amphitheatre seated eighty-seven thousand people, and there was standing room for thirteen thousand more.

The walls standing upon the area, composed of tufa, travertine, and brick, old material re-used, were built at a period long after the building was dedicated, when the naval fights being abandoned there was no longer any occasion for a movable stage or arena as before. They contained the machinery for the stage above, and for the lifts or _pegmata_ to send men or beasts from the area to the arena. Probably these are the walls thus alluded to by Dion Cassius: "He [Commodus] divided the theatre into four parts by two partitions that cut through diametrically, and by right angles, to the end that from the galleries that were round about he might with greater ease single out the beasts he aimed at."

[Illustration: PLAN OF THE EXCAVATIONS BELOW THE ARENA OF THE COLOSSEUM.]

"The emperor having employed himself in shooting from above ... descended afterwards to the bottom of the theatre, and there slew some other private beasts, whereof some made toward him, others were brought to him, and others were shut up in dens. Returning after dinner, he used the exercises of a gladiator, with a shield in his right hand, and in his left a wooden sword. After him fought those whom he had chosen in the morning at the bottom of the theatre." Also, in his life of Septimius Severus, he says: "There was a kind of cloister made in the amphitheatre, in the form of a ship, to receive them [the wild beasts]. On a sudden there issued out bears, lions, ostriches, wild asses, and foreign bulls."

The walls before us are of very bad construction, evidently repairs of a late date: they are the work of either Lampridius, prefect of Rome under Valentinian III., 425-455, who repaired the steps and renewed the arena; or of Basilius, who restored the podium and arena after their destruction by an earthquake in 486--this we learn from two inscriptions standing at the entrance. Half way, on each side, two large passages have been discovered choked up with mud: they were the aqueducts to bring the water for the _naumachiæ_ from the reservoirs upon the Esquiline and Cælian Hills respectively; from the small openings in the blind arches the water also poured out over the top of the dens, thus forming cascades all round. At the end opposite the present entrance a long passage has been opened, above the level of the area floor; below this passage is the great drain, with the remains of the iron grating[6] to prevent large objects going down: this and the passage were closed by flood-gates on naval representations, which can be clearly seen in the construction. On the right and left of this passage, connected with it, but at a lower level, two dens have been cleared out, 27 yards long by 5 wide, containing six holes in the floor, in the centre of square blocks of stone, and these holes are faced with bronze, evidently the sockets into which metal posts were fixed to which the beasts were chained. On the fragments depicting scenes from the arena, the animals are shown with a long piece of rope or chain dangling from their necks, which seems to bear out our idea that they were attached to posts fixed in these sockets, and that as they were wanted the chain or rope was cut, and they were free to rush upon the arena.

The corbels round the front of the line of arches under the podium are in pairs, and between them the masts were inserted to support the awning on the inside, as the holes and corbels supported the masts on the outside; for we find on examination that those inside are exactly in a line with those outside at the top of the building. These corbels are 29 inches deep, and from them to the level of the area is 10 feet, and to the present surface 11 feet; between each pair of corbels are chases 19½ inches wide, ending on a block of travertine for the masts to rest on, the chases coming down 1½ yards below the corbels, which are 15 feet apart. They probably helped to support the arena, and show what the height of this wooden arena must have been, and that from its vast size it must have had a framework and supports: the numerous holes on the area, in travertine, were for the heels of the supports; one of these, a square one, has remains of the decayed timber in it.

In the central passage, resting on the area and extending as far as the excavations, is an ancient wooden framework in a decomposed state. Various suggestions have been made as to its use,--we suppose it to be the framework and joists of the flooring covering the central passage; others, a sort of tramway for running the cages along,--but till the whole space has been cleared out it is impossible to arrive at a correct estimate of its use.

Honorius, A.D. 404, having abolished the gladiatorial combats, probably the last display of wild beasts was that given by King Theodoric at the beginning of the sixth century.

The soil cleared out in the passage, dens, galleries, and area was found to be composed of mud deposited during a flood or floods by the Tiber, the composition of which may still be seen in parts of the long passage not yet cleared. The most remarkable of these floods, which lasted some days and did immense damage to the city, were those of A.D. 555, 590, 725, 778, 1476, 1530, 1557, and 1598.

We may presume, from the nature of the soil, that at some early date, probably A.D. 555, one of those terrible floods reached the Colosseum, and on the waters retiring a great deposit of mud was left, covering the old area floor and filling up the various passages and galleries, and that the authorities, instead of clearing out this deposit, added to it to make a solid floor, and used the arena above; for after that date we have no record of its being used, with the exception of the bull-fight.

_By applying to the custodian, the visitor can ascend to the top_, where a most magnificent view is enjoyed, the only way to get a good idea of its size and oval shape, and where the construction of the upper galleries can be studied. It will be seen that the arches forming the tiers of seats have at some date been filled in with brickwork, of the time of Alexander Severus and the Gordiani. The water-courses for keeping the building cool in hot weather can also be traced. The highest wall of all, the inside brick casing of which is partly gone, is built of fragments evidently not originally intended for the purpose for which they are used, corresponding to a great extent with the construction of the walls upon the area.

The Colosseum was for a long time used as a quarry, from which several of the palaces in Rome were built.

Should the visitor be fortunate enough to see the ruin under moonlight, or when it is illuminated with Bengal lights, he will see it in its grandeur, for "it will not bear the brightness of the day."

[Illustration: _SECTION OF SEATS AND ARCHES OF THE COLOSSEUM._]

FOOTNOTES:

[1] _Ab urbe condita_, From the foundation of the city (B.C. 753).

[2] From the Forum.

[3] Diodorus Siculus, lib. xxxi., calls it the jail Albinus.

[4] S. P. Q. R., Senatus Populusque Romanus.

[5] For a full detailed account of this important discovery see our photograph, a panoramic view of the Forum from ancient reliefs, with descriptive letterpress.

[6] Recently removed to clean out the drain.

RAMBLE II.

THE BRIDGE AND CASTLE OF S. ANGELO -- THE TOMB OF HADRIAN -- S. PETER'S -- THE SACRISTY -- THE CRYPT -- THE DOME -- THE VATICAN -- SCALA REGIA -- SISTINE AND PAULINE CHAPELS -- STANZE AND LOGGIE OF RAPHAEL -- THE PICTURE GALLERY -- THE MOSAIC MANUFACTORY -- THE MUSEUM OF SCULPTURE -- THE INQUISITION -- PORTA S. SPIRITO -- S. ONOFRIO AND TASSO'S TOMB -- MUSEUM TIBERINO -- THE CORSINI AND FARNESINA PALACES -- PORTA SETTIMIANA -- VIA GARIBALDI -- S. PIETRO IN MONTORIO -- PAULINE FOUNTAIN -- VILLA PAMPHILI DORIA -- S. CECILIA IN TRASTEVERE -- CHURCH OF S. CRISOGONO -- STAZIONE VII COHORTI DEI VIGILI -- CHURCH OF S. MARIA IN TRASTEVERE -- PONTE SISTO -- FARNESE AND CANCELLERIA PALACES -- STATUE OF PASQUINO -- CHIESA NUOVA -- CIRCO AGONALE -- OBELISK -- S. AGNESE -- S. MARIA DELLA PACE -- S. AGOSTINO.

IN TRASTEVERE.

(_Over the Tiber._)

THE ROUTE.

_From the Piazza del Popolo the Via Ripetta leads towards S. Peter's, turning off to the right, past the bridge, by the Via Monte Brianzo._

_From the Piazza di Spagna we take the Via Condotti to the Via Monte Brianzo and Tor di Nona._

At the right-hand end of the latter street is the Apollo Theatre, built on the site of the Tor di Nona prison, where Beatrice Cenci was confined. Passing into the Piazza Ponte S. Angelo, on our left, is the Italian Free Church of Gavazzi, and in the Palazzo Altoviti, in front, lived Visconti.

_We turn to the right over_

THE BRIDGE OF S. ANGELO,

(_Ponte S. Angelo_,)

which is decorated with ten angels standing on the parapet, bearing the instruments of our Lord's passion; and SS. Peter and Paul, an addition made in 1668 by Clement IX. It is the finest bridge in Rome, and was built by Hadrian.

TOMB OF HADRIAN, NOW THE CASTLE OF S. ANGELO.

(_Castel S. Angelo. Permissions required: see page 353._)

It was covered with white Paros marble, and decorated with statues of the gods and heroes, the works of Praxiteles and Lysippus, which were hurled upon the heads of the Goths. Erected by Hadrian, A.D. 130. The porphyry sarcophagus, which is supposed to have contained his remains, is now used as the font in the chapel on the left in S. Peter's.

Procopius thus describes it: "The tomb of the Emperor Hadrian is situated outside the Porta Aurelia. It is built of Parian marble, and the blocks fit close to one another without anything to bind them. It has four equal sides, about a stone-throw in length; its altitude rises above the city walls; on the top are statues of the same kind of marble, admirable figures of men and horses."

Lucius Verus, Antoninus Pius, Marcus Aurelius, Commodus, were all buried here. It was first turned into a fortress A.D. 423. Popes John XXIII. and Urban VIII. built the covered way connecting it with the Vatican. One of the barrack-rooms contains frescoes by Pierino del Vaga and Sicciolante, another by Giulio Romano. A circular room, surrounded with carved wood cases, once contained the archives of the Vatican. A large iron-bound chest contained the treasury. Some dark cells built in the thickness of the walls are shown as the prisons of Beatrice Cenci (?), Cellini, Cagliostro, and others. Tradition asserts that Gregory the Great saw S. Michael standing over the fortress sheathing his sword as a sign that a pestilence was stayed; to commemorate which the castle is now surmounted by a figure of the archangel in the act of sheathing his sword. This old castle served for a fortress during several ages, and its first cannon were cast out of part of the bronze taken from the roof of the Pantheon.

_The Borgo Nuovo leads to_ the Cathedral, passing, _on the right_, the Church of S. Maria, built on the site of a pyramid to Honorius, 423 A.D., which is represented on the doors of S. Peter's.

S. PETER'S.

(_S. Pietro._)

EXTERIOR.

Before the era of railways, the traveller in approaching Rome, across the Campagna, was generally electrified by the first glimpse of S. Peter's dome looming in the distance. Then he had full time, in advance of entering the gates of the city, to ponder over all the recollections which the magical word "Roma" might suggest to him. At present he is rapidly borne into the city, and sometimes before he is aware of having arrived even in its neighbourhood; yet the dome is plainly visible from afar by the railway approach of to-day. Now, as then, the first sight of Rome is always her unequalled cathedral; now, as then, the latter is the great object which the tourist eagerly hastens to visit. The present Church of S. Peter is relatively modern, having been first conceived by Pope Nicholas V. about the year 1450. It is built upon the site of the religious edifice erected in the time of Constantine, and consecrated as the "Basilica of S. Peter." The old basilica stood on part of the Circus of Nero, and occupies the spot consecrated by the blood of the martyrs slaughtered by order of that tyrant. Tradition supposes that the basilica held possession of the body of the apostle after his crucifixion,--a circumstance which reflected high credit upon it, and dignified its entrance with the appellation of the "limina apostolorum" (threshold of the apostles). After enjoying the veneration and tributes of all Christendom during eleven centuries, the walls of the old basilica began to give way, and its approaching ruin becoming visible about the year above stated, Nicholas V. conceived the project of taking down the old church, and erecting in its stead a new and more expensive structure. The project was begun, and resulted, after a long series of experiments made by various architects, in the splendid fabric which is now regarded by the world as the chief glory of modern Rome. The work made slight progress until the epoch of Julius II., who resumed the great task, and found in Bramante an architect capable of comprehending and executing his grandest conceptions. The walls of the ancient basilica were then wholly removed, and on the 18th of April 1508 the foundation stone of one of the vast pillars supporting the dome, as we now see it, was laid by Julius with great pomp and ceremony. From that period the work, though carried on with ardour and perseverance, continued during one hundred years to occupy the attention and absorb much of the incomes of eighteen pontiffs. The most celebrated architects of the times displayed their talents in its erection--namely, Bramante, Raphael, San Gallo, Michael Angelo, Vignola, Carlo Maderno, and last, though not least, Bernini, who gave it the finishing touches of ornamentation, and who built the enclosing colonnade. It is estimated that its cost, after completion, was no less than £12,000,000 sterling--a sum representing a far greater value than it does in our day. Colossal statues of Peter and Paul, erected by Pius IX., guard the approach at the foot of the steps on either side.

Eustace says: "Entering the piazza, the visitor views four rows of lofty pillars, 70 feet high, sweeping off to the right and left in a bold semicircle. ('A tabernacle for a shadow in the day-time from the heat, and for a place of refuge, and for a covert from storm and from rain,' Isa. iv. 6.) In the centre of the area formed by this immense colonnade, an Egyptian obelisk, of one solid piece of granite, ascends to the height of 130 feet; two perpetual fountains, one on each side, play in the air, and fall in sheets round the basins of porphyry that receive them. Raised on three successive flights of marble steps, extending 379 feet in length, and towering to the elevation of 148, you see the majestic front of the basilica itself. This front is supported by a single row of Corinthian pillars and pilasters, and adorned with an attic, a balustrade, and thirteen colossal statues. Far behind and above it rises the matchless dome. Two smaller cupolas, one on each side, add not a little to the majesty of the principal dome."

Five lofty portals open into the vestibule; it is 468 feet in length, 66 in height, and 50 in breadth, paved with variegated marble, covered with a gilt vault, adorned with pillars, pilasters, mosaic, and bas-reliefs, and terminated at both ends by equestrian statues, one of Constantine, the other of Charlemagne.

THE OBELISK

is the only one near its original site, the _Spina_ of Nero's Circus, which was near the Sacristy, on the left of S. Peter's. An inscription in the pavement marks the place. Pliny (xxxvi. 14), says: "The third obelisk at Rome is in the Vatican Circus, which was constructed by the emperors Caius [Caligula] and Nero; this being the only one of them all that has been broken in the carriage. Nuncorcus, the son of Sesoses, made it [_the original, this is probably a copy_], and there remains [in Egypt] another by him, 100 cubits in height, which, by order of an oracle, he consecrated to the sun, after having lost his sight and recovered it." Herodotus says: "It was dedicated by Phero, son of Sesostris, in gratitude for his recovery from blindness." It has no hieroglyphics, so if this was the original how could they know who erected it? but it bears this inscription of Caligula--

DIVO. CAES. DIVI. JULII. F. AUGUSTO.--TI. CAESARI. DIVI. AUG. F.--AUGUSTO. SACRUM.

[To the divine Augustus, son of the divine Julius, and to the divine Tiberius, son of the divine Augustus.]

[Illustration: S. PETER'S AND THE VATICAN.]

The Nuncorcus of Pliny is supposed to stand for Menophtheus, the king Meneph-Pthah.

Pliny (xvi. 76) gives the following particulars of how it was brought over:--

"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 certainly ever appeared on the sea more astonishing than this vessel; 120,000 bushels of lentils served for its ballast; the length of it nearly equalled all the left side of the port of Ostia--for it was sent there by the Emperor Claudius. The thickness of the tree was as much as four men could embrace with their arms."

Suetonius ("Claudius," xx.) says: "He sank the vessel in which the great obelisk had been brought from Egypt, to secure the foundation of the mole at Ostia."

Pliny (xvi. 76), says: "As to the one in which, by order of the Emperor Caius, the other obelisk had been transported to Rome, it was brought to Ostia, by order of the late Emperor Claudius, and sunk for the construction of his harbour."

Marcellinus says: "Subsequent ages to Augustus brought also other obelisks, one of which is in the Vatican."

VESTIBULE.

Over the entrance _outside_ is a relief of Christ giving the keys to Peter; _inside_ the vestibule is Giotto's (1298) celebrated mosaic, representing our Lord sustaining Peter when he was about to sink whilst walking on the sea. Opposite are the great bronze doors, opened only on special occasions, the work of Antonio Filareto and Simone Donatello in the fifteenth century. The upper panels represent in relief our Saviour and the Virgin, below whom are SS. Peter and Paul; Peter is giving the keys to Pope Eugenius IV. Beneath are the martyrdoms of Peter and Paul: in the former is represented the pyramidal tomb which stood in the Borgo Nuovo, and which was destroyed by Alexander VI. The smaller reliefs represent scenes from the life of the Emperor Sigismund--his coronation, the council of Florence, and his entry into Rome. The framework represents satyrs, nymphs, fauns, Leda and the Swan, Ganymede, the Fox and the Stork, with reliefs of fruit and flowers, and medallions of Roman emperors. The walled-up side door, on the right, is the Porta Santa, which was formerly opened on Christmas-eve of the years of jubilee--every twenty-fifth year.

_The first_ inscription relates the gift of olive-yards to provide oil for the lamps given by Gregory II.

_The second_, the Bull of Boniface VIII., of the indulgence granted at jubilee.

_The third_, Panegyric of Charlemagne on Pope Adrian I.

INTERIOR.

Five portals give access to the edifice, which faces east.

"Enter, its grandeur overwhelms thee not."--BYRON.

"The most extensive hall ever constructed by human art expands in magnificent perspective before you. Advancing up the nave, you admire the beauty of the variegated marble under your feet, and the splendour of the golden vault overhead, the lofty Corinthian pilasters with their bold entablature, the intermediate niches with their statues, the arcades with the graceful figures that recline on the curves of their arches. But how great your astonishment when you reach the foot of the altar, and, standing in the centre of the church, contemplate the four superb vistas that open around you; and then raise your eyes to the dome, at the prodigious elevation of 440 feet, extended like a firmament over your head, and presenting, in glowing mosaic, the companies of the just and the choirs of celestial spirits....