Pictures of Old Rome 1000065188

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PICTURES OF OLD ROME.

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Pictures of Old Rome.

By FRANCES ELLIOT,Author of The Diary of an Idle Woman in Italy.

NEW EDITION.

LONDON :CHAPMAN AND HALL, 193, PICCADILLY.

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LONDON :

BRADBURY, EVANS. AND CO., PRINTBRR, WHITEFRIARS.


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NOTE.

^HESE Pictures were written and published inRome, where they were received with favour.

They are now reprinted,with some modifications,additions, and {itmay be hoped) improvements,forEnglish readers,

FRANCES ELLIOT.Deanery, Bristol.

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CONTENTS.

PAGB

PIAZZA DEL POPOLO I

ROMAN INTERIORS. . .

'

. . . .21

THE PALATINE, THE REPUBLIC, AND AUGUSTUS . 59

THE PALATINE AND THE EMPIRE 87

PERSONAL APPEARANCE OF THE CiESARS. . . . I3I

THE CAMPUS MARTIUS I47

CAMPUS MARTIUS UNDER JULIUS CiESAR. . . . 172

THE VIA TRIUMPHALIS I95

THE MAUSOLEUM OF AUGUSTUS 217

THE CiELIAN HILL 237

SAN GREGORIO 255

THE CATACOMBS 275

ST. PETER'S 296

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PICTURES OF OLD ROME.

PIAZZA DEL POPOLO.

THE Piazza del Popolo realizes all our poetic visionsof Rome. It opens out with such magnificence, a

mysterious Obelisk browned by unnumbered centuriesin the centre, flashing fountains and dark groves around,while above, towers the Pincian the hill of Gardens.How majestically that hill rises aloft shaded by cypressand ilex woods, and broken by sumptuous porticos,descending terraces, rich balustrades, graceful statues,stately trophies ; a scene such as the imagination of apoet might call forth in a delicious day dream BeautifulPincian crowned with leafy groves, and wreathed withflowers, I love thee well, for on thy classic outline myeye first rested on entering Rome

Those twin cSurches, too, that salute the traveller ashe traverses the Piazza, with such a gracious and appro-

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2 PICTURES OF OLD ROME.

priatewelcome, I greet ye, as ye firstgreetedme. Andthose splendidpalacesborderingthe fairspace j and thattriplevista,he Babuino, the CarsOythe Ripdta^ whichseem to cleave the cityin long drawn lines,leadingaway the mind to the solemn ruins of far-off times,andbeckoningthe stranger onwards with such fascination ;oh take from me a greeting,or ye became to me asecond and a spiritualome.

What mighty shadows rise before me as I invoke theshadows of the past, standing beside the fountainsWhat endless recollections Through that gate cameConstantine,fresh from the fightof the Pons MUvius^which fixed the destinies of Christianity,is helmetwreathed with laurel,the sacred Labarum bearingthemysteriousS)anbol,arried before him. As that S3rmbolpassed the Roman gate, the pagan altarstrembled, thevast templesshook to their foundations,or the demonsknew that their fall was at hand, and that Christianityhad conquered

And in the far-offtime,when the savage Gauls temptedby the luscious grapes, and the blue skies of Italy,amerushing down from the north like swarms of locustsfrom the Etruscan mountains,over the broad Campagna, 'it was here they passed on to the Forum, where thesenators, clothed in their purpletogas,sittingmmovable

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PIAZZA DEL POFOLO. 3

before the statelyemplesin their cunde chairs,eemedto them as gods

The Emperor Galba, too, entered Rome this waycoming from the Milvian bridge,here a massacre hadalready drowned his lam-els in blood. Galba passedtriumphantlylong,attended by his Spanishand GaulishLegions,littledreaming,the indolent old man, of thefearful death awaitinghim ere a few days were past inthe Forum, beside the tnilltarium aureum near the lakeof Curtius,where t'hepraetorianguards,corruptedbyOtho, cruellymassacred this unarmed and feebleEmperor.

Vitelliusalso,coming out of Gaul advanced from theMilvian bridgethrough the Flaminian Gate, mountedon a white charger,while the senate and the peoplepressedon before to make way for the new Caesar. Hewas followed by his troops, a statelyrocessionf manynations,hose glitteringrms, and rich apparel,alledforth the admiration of the multitude. Beside the eagleswalked the prefectsof the camp, the tribunes and cen-urions

arrayed in white,presentinga spectacle,aysTacitus,worthy of a better emperor. But that brillianttriumph was fated after a few months, to end in amiserable death. Vespasian was approachingrapidlyfrom the East, and battle after battle was lost by the

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4 PICTURES OF OLD ROME,

Vitellians. At length when Vespasian had encampedunder the walls of Rome, beside the Milvian bridge,Vitellius,tterlyforsaken,took refuge in an obscurechamber of the imperialpalace,on the Palatine,butquicklydiscovered,he was dragged along amidst thescoffs and insults of the rabble towards the very stonein the Forum where a few months before Galba hadperished. There he was told to look around to beholdhis fallen statues,and to remember Galba. And yet,repliedthe miserable old man, F have been yoursovereign No matter, he was hurried on to theGemoniae, the chamel of tne malefactors,and theredispatched. It would seem as if some evil geniushad attended every Emperor that entered Rome thisway.

The space of open ground now occupied by thePiazza was formerlycomprisedwithin the vast expanseof the Campus Martius; the grassy plainsundulatingtowards the river,hose yellowwaters bathed its verdantbanks. Part of the Piazza,or at least the ground imme-iately

adjoininghat surrounded the Augustan mauso-eum,was laid out in funereal gardens,planted with

sombre groves, intersected by broad walks and magni-ficent terraces,over which cypress and ilex woods flungdown deep shadows. These woods were sown with

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PIAZZA DEL POPOLO. 5

white monuments peepingthrough the dark branches.Here stood the sepulchreof the great Sylla,nd herewere also situated the tombs of the freedmen and clientsof the Emperors, even in death assembled and watching,as it were, around the statelytomb where rested theimperialdust Fair and beautiful has been, in all ages,this vestibule to the eternal city

That obelisk,too, standingin the centre of the Piazza,and surmountingthe fountains,ow. rich in memories It stands nearly 100 feet high,and is formed of redgranite,nd althoughbroken in three places,the hiero-gl)rphicsn its sides are stilllegible.Erected by one oftwo brothers Maudouci ancl Susirei,who reigned inEgypt before Rhamses the Second, to adorn the templeof the Sun at Heliopolisthe On of scripture,ugustustransportedit to Rome after the batde of Actium,which,followed as it was by the death of Antony and Cleo-atra,

ensured the entire conquest of Egypt Thisgracefulonument of a despoiledland was firsterectedin the Circus Maximus^ but as earlyas the reign ofValentinian,it had fallen from its pedestal,and layburied in the earth. Sixtus V., that patrioticope, who,having onct found the keys of St Peter, which he is saidfigurativelyver to have sought,with his eyes fixed onthe ground,held them so vigorouslywhen once his own,

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removed it in the sixteenth century to its present site,consecratinghe Pagan emblem to tjie cross. Theobelisk tells its own tale. On one side, in worn andancient letters,s engraven, The Emperor Csesar,sonof the divine Caesar Augustus, sovereignPontiff,welvetimes Emperor, eleven times Consul, fourteen timesTribune, having conquered Egypt, consecrated this giftto the Sun. On the other side is inscribed,Sixtus 'V.,sovereignPontiff,excavated, transported and restoredthis obelisk,sacrilegiouslyonsecrated by Augustus tothe Sun in the great Circus,where it layin ruins,anddedicated it to the cross triumphantin the fourth yearof his pontificate.Then, in allusion to the churchdedicated to the Madonna of the People, standingbeside the Flaminian gate, follow these words, Sancti-ied

and gloriousI rise before the sanctuary of Her,whose virginbosom bore the Sun of righteousness,soljustitise)nder the reignof Augustus.

That church dedicated to Mary of the People,built as it were into the very walls of Rome, whichrise frowninglyehind it overshadowed by the Pincianwoods, with its fagade lookingout so smilinglyn thePiazza,must not be forgotten.

On the spot where stands that church,once a lonelyshrubberylyingbetween the luxuriant groves embosom-

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PIAZZA DEL FOFOLO. 7

ing the Augustan monument, and the Coliis Hortulorum^(belongingto the Domitian family,)ose the ruins ofNero's tomb.

When the execration of the people,and the danger ofinstant death,had aroused Nero to a consciousness ofthe desperatestate of his affairs,e looked around, saysTacitus,for assistance,ut he looked in vain. He putaway his lute,and wandered' through the desolate hallsof his palace, but all was solitaryalready had hiscourtiers forsaken him to welcome Galba. Consciencebegan to exercise her rights,nd Nero, the murderer ofhis brother,his mother, and his wife,ow contemplatedhis crimes with horror; the avenging Furies alreadyclaimed him as their own, horrible dreams disordered hisbroken slumbers, and that ominous verse of CEdipus,which he had so often repeated when actingon thepublicstage, haunted him like a curse. My wife,myfather,and my mother, doom me dead. Portents andpresages were not wanting. The Lares fell from theirpedestals,he gates of the Augustan Mausoleum openedof themselves,and a voice was heard from within callingon his name. It was in vain that he tore up the letterswhich were presentedto him, containinghe details ofthe Gallic insurrection,hat he proposed singingto thelute in the Forum his own misfortunes,n order to excite

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S PICTURES OF OLD ROME,

the sympathy of the Senate,by the sound of his divinevoice. A deadly and terrible war was inevitable,theeffeminate Nero must fight,r he must die,yet he isincapableof arming himself courageouslyagainsteitherevent. With characteristic frivolitye employs hisleisure over an hydraulicorgan which he has invented,he promises the Oods magnificentgames if he lives, the organ shall be then played for the first time, hehimself will perform to ttieirhonour on the flute,andafterwards will dance in the Ballet of Tumus. Whenhe must leave Rome to encounter the enemy, andarrives in the revolted provinces,he will,'*e says,** show himself unarmed to the rebels : without speakinga word he will sitdown and weep ; their hearts will betouched,the Legions will sing hymns in his honour, andall will be forgotten** The whole world had become amelodrama to this infatuated comedian.

But Galba advances, provinceafter province declarein his favour ; he is approachingthe imperialcity,e isat hand. When Nero hears this, he starts from thecouch where he is reposing,flingsto the ground twofavourite crystalcups, summons Locusta with herpoisons,and gives himself over to cowardly despair.A thousand different projects rush through his brain.He will flyto the East, and carryingwith him his Lyre,

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lo PICTURES OF OLD ROME,4

fastened over his face. As he and his attendants passalong, they are assailed with questions.What dothey say of Nero at Rome ? '* says one. Look, criesanother, those men seek Nero. The Emperor'shorse,startingt a dead body lyingin the road, caused the

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handkerchief to fallfrom his face,when a veteran soldier,who was passing,recognises,and salutes him. Thismisadventure increases Nero's fears ; he hurries forward,and when arrived near the villa dismounts from hishorse, and enters the grounds by a side-path,overedwith briars and thorns. His unsandled feet are tornas he passes. Phaon advises him to conceal himself ina sand-pit,ntil he could open a subterraneous passageinto the house ; but Nero, perhaps dreadmg treachery,refuses. For, says he, ** that would be buryingmy-elf

alive. Then he scooped up some dirtywater inhis hand,exclaiming,n a doleful voice, Is this then theonly drink for Nero ?

An openingbeing made in the wall,he creeps into awretched chamb#, and the master of the Golden House,the man who had squandered countless millions,wasfain to throw himself upon an old mattress, on amiserable bed, covered with a dirtycounterpane. Heasked for food, but turns with disgustfrom the blackbread and foul water presented to hiin. His friends.

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PIAZZA DEL POPOLO. ii

disgustedat his pusillanimity,rge him by one boldblow to end the struggle he assents, but stilllingers under various pretences. A trench wasto be dug for his grave, wood was to be collected,fragments of marble were to be laid,water was tobe broughtfor performingthe last duties to his remains,each minutia was recollected to eke out his last moments.FinaUy, when all had been prepared accordingto hiswish,he draws forth two daggers,examines their points,and then returns them to the scabbard. The fatalmoment has not yet come, said he ; sing the melan-holy

dirge and celebrate my last obsequies. Helooks around, and, with his usual brutal selfishnessand disregardof human life,the rulingpassion strongin death, )exclaims,Why, why will not some onekill himself,nd teach me how to die ? Then startingup, in a tone of wild despairhe added, Nero this isinfamy, you Hnger in disgrace; this is no time forcowardice ; the moment calls for manly fortitude.

These words .were no sooner uttered,than the soundof approachinghorses was heard; the officer chargedby the Senate with the order for his execution ap-roaches.

Nero seizes his dagger, and deals afeeble blow. Epaphroditus,his secretary,came to hisassistance,nd inflicted a mortal wound. When the

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centurion entered the room, Nero faintlyexclaims,You come too late. As he spoke he expired,hisferocious soul stillimaged in his countenance causinghim to look more horrible than ever. Icelus,the freed-man of Galba, who came to verifyis death, suffered hisattendants to bum the body where it lay in the grave hehimself had measured out. But he was not interred here, for says Suetonius, havingwrapped his remains in arich white stuff,embroidered with gold, his nursesEclaga and Alexandra, with Acte his concubine,deposited them in the Domitian monument, which isseen from the Campus Martius, under the hill ofGardens. The tomb was of porphyry,havingan altar ofLuna marble surrounded by a balustrade of Thaosmarble.

On the spot where rested the ashes of the imperialmatricide,rew, in afler times, a giganticwalnut tree,whose thick and shady branches became the haunt ofinnumerable crows, which laid waste all that part ofRome. The assistance of the Virginbeing invoked,ac-ording

to the legend,she appeared to Pope Pascal II.,and tellinghim that the crows were demons thatkept watch over the ashes of Nero, ordered him to cutdown the ominous tree,{alteraainato,as itis called)tobum it,and scatter the ashes in the air;then to erect on

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PIAZZA DEL FOFOLO. 13

that spot a church in her honour. The command wasliterallyccomplished,and the heavenly mother is nowinvoked on the spot where once rested all that wasmortal of the infamous Nero.

The church was raised by publiccollection,hence itsname. Over the door is a miraculous image of theVirgin,bearingthe inscription,Tu honorificentia populinostri, lacedhere by Gregory IX. The image is saidto have been successfullynvoked by Gregory XIII. onoccasion of a terrible plague at Rome, in the year1578.

There is much solemn beauty in the interior of thischurch,and the utmost reverence is observable in thecrowds of the poorer classes who at all hours of the daycome here to offer up their prayers. Pinturicchio'spaintingsand frescoes,the gracefulsculptureson thetombs, the beautiful statue of Jonah, designed and exe-uted

by Raphael, the fine painted glasswindows, thevarious monuments, and rich chapels,make italtogetherone of the most artisticallynterestinghurches in Rome.Bernini's hand has been too busy here,as elsewhere,butmuch remains that is venerable and ancient.

Attached to the church is a convent of Augustan Friars.This was pillagednd destroyedhen Rome was sacked,duringthe pontificatef Clement VII., by the army of

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14 PICTURES, OF OLD ROME.

Charles V. The Duke of Alva saved the church withdifficulty.efore the convent was destroyedLutherinhabited it duringhis stay in Rome, and here heoffered up the host for the last time. When ChristinaQueen of Sweden, the eccentric daughter of GustavusAdolphus,made her public entry into Rome, it waswithin these walls the cardinals and magnates assembledto receive her.

To those unlearned in classical annals,it may add afresh interestto the Piazza del Popolo,to know that hereSyllawas interred. Plutarch tells us that his tomb wasin the Campus Martins of which this Piazza formed aportion,nd immemorial traditionpointsout the churchof Santa Maria dei Miracoli as the spot. ' Some remainsof his mausoleum were visible as late as the pontificateof Paul III.,and were known by the name of Theta,They were destroyedto assist in the erection of twotowers flankingthe Flaminian Way, now incorporatedinto the modem gate of the Porta del Popolo.Passingfrom the Piazza del Popolo,and itsmany and

varied associations,owards the neighbouringiazza diSpagna, it seemed strange to me that among the thou-ands

who annuallytraverse that Saxon settlement,sofew should remember that here was situated the cele-rated

Naumachia of Domitiap, a Lake, accordingto

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Suetonius,which he caused to be excavated surroundedby rows of seats,where naval battles were exhibited byentire fleets, diversion in which he so much delighted,that even the most violent rain did not drive him awaybefore the conclusion of the combat

The steps,leadingfrom the Piazza to the church of theTrinitk,crowded with artisticallyrouped beggars,is aswell known to all stranger-visitorss our own homes ; butfew, perhaps,among the many that mount those stepsunder the genialsun of a Roman winter day,know, orremember that itwas on the summit of the Pincian hillthat the voluptuousgardensof Lucullus were situated.

Lucullus,havingbravelyfoughtthe battles of the re-ublicin Asia returned to Rome, where, after celebrating

his triumph,he passed his time in voluptuouspleasures. Indeed, says garrulousold Plutarch, his life lookslike an ancient comedy,where firstwe see great actions,both politicalnd military,nd afterwards feasts,de-auches,

races by torchlight,nd every kind of frivolousamusement For among frivolousamusements, I cannotbut reckon his sumptuous villas,alks, and baths,andstillmore so, the paintings,tatues,and other works ofart, which he collected at an immense expense, idlysquanderingway upon them the vast fortune which hehad amassed in the wars.

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i6 PICTURES OF OLD ROME.

AVe are also told, by Plutarch, of his epicureanbanquets. One day he met, in the Forum, Cicero andPompey, who, seeinghim disengaged,proposed diningwith him ; Lucullus assented,and pressedthem to come. We will wait on you, said Cicero, providedyou giveus nothingbut what is prepared for yourself. Lucullusmade some difficultybout this part of the arrangement ;but the others,knowing his extravagant habits,insisted.They even declared jocosely,hat he should not be per-itted

to speak to his servants, save in their presence.After some laughingaltercation,e was allowed to tellone of his attendants, That he should sup in the hall ofthe Apollo that evening. Delightedat their manoeuvre,they all arrived togethert his house, when what couldexceed their astonishment,at findingthe most gorgeousof his halls dressed as for a festival,nd a banquet pre-ared

so rich and costly,hat 50,000 drachms would notsuffice to pay for it The mystery was explainedin thisway ; each of his halls had itsparticularllowance forprovisions,late,nd furniture,o that the slaves,hear-ng

which apartment he had selected,new the expenselie meant to incur,what side-boards and carpets theywere to lay out, and what kind of entertainment heintended.

In the course of time, these gardens of Lucullus

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i8 PICTURES OF OLD ROME,

Asiaticus,however, knowing he must die,spoke boldlyout He was indignant, e said,at fallingy theintriguesf an artful and abandoned woman/' Messa-lina was very indifferent as to his sentiments on herconduct,but when she heard that he had opened hisveins,and was dead, she was delighted.

Having thus compassed her purpose, she took posses-ionof the gardens. Tempted by their exquisiteeauty,

the profligatempress abandoned herself to thosemonstrous excesses that have made her name symbolicalof all that is most repugnant in woman. Here the divine Messalina, whose very shoes were kissed,andhonoiu-ed by base sycophants,passed her hours infestivities. The season being autumn, she celebratedthe bacchanalian festivitiesof the Brumalia, wine pressesgroaned,juicepressedfrom the gmpe flowed in copiousstreams, while around the vats, groups of Bacchantes,dressed in tiger-skinsnd wreathed with grapes, trod infrolicmeasures. In the midst of the revellers,essalina,her hair flowingover her shoulders in artful negligence,and a thyrsuswaving in her hand, led the dance.Some one, in the midst of these orgies,limbed up intoa tree,and exclaimed,in mockery, that he saw a dread-ul

storm gatheringt Ostia.Claudius was at Ostia. Little suspectinghis dis-

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honour, he spent his time in reformingthe generallicentiousness of Roman manners, addingfresh letters tothe alphabet,and eatingand drinkingo excess. Hewas so engrossedby his enthusiasm for the moralityofthe masses, he had no time to look at home. Happyfool Yet fool as he was, the truth was at lengthforcedupon him. He returned to Rome. Messalina,nowdisgracedand forsaken by all her court save three at-endants,

declares she must see him, traverses the cityon foot,and, findingno better conveyance than a cartused to carry away rubbish from the gardens,mounts onit,and sets forth to meet him. '' Hear your unhappywife, cries she hear the mother of your children.*'Her entreaties are drowned by his reproaches. Nar-issus,

his freedman,her particularnemy, who is in thechariot alongwith Claudius,takes care that he shall notrelent As they enter Rome, their children approach tointercede for their unhappy mother. Narcissus ordersthem away. Vibidia,the eldest of the vestal viigins,presents herself before the Emperor, to entreat that hewill not condemn the Empress unheard; but she is told, It would be more suitable for her to mind the sacri-ices

and to retire.'' Messalina's fate was fixed,sheherself saw she had oversteppedthe possibilityf pardon,and that all was lost. She passed the whole nightpre-

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20 PICTURES OF OLD ROM^.

ceding her death on the summit of the Pincian,withinthose ill-fatedgardens. Stretched on the ground,withher mother seated beside her, she awaited the fatalsentence. Lepida,with the courage of a Roman matron,urged her daughterto fallby her own hand ; but Messa-lina,steepedin luxury,as devoid of all moral courage.Like Nero, she asked for a poniard,yet she clung tolifej she looked around at the fair scene, and lamentedher fate ; then, aiming a feeble blow at her throat,sheshrunk back affrighted.t length a tribune appeared,and dispatchedher with a singlestroke, so her ownblood ran out over the soil purchased by the blood ofAsiaticus

And it is on this spot that pure and lovelygirlssingin the solemn church of the Trinity Every visitorto Rome admires their fresh young voices,when theAve Maria is intoned. Strange and mysteriousparallel,the abandoned Empress, whose name stands as a watch-ord

for vice,and that holy sisterhood and those inno-entvirgins Such thrillingontrasts are not to be

found out of Rome, where literallyhe who runs mayread '' the most wondrous lessons.

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ROMAN INTERIORS.

T N this chapter I propose giving some account of the-^ social laws and domestic habits prevailing among

the inhabitants of old Rome, that world-Capital withinwhose ample walls the riches, honours, and learning ofthe whole eartli were accumulated. To see, saysAristides, the rhetorician, the fleets that fill her ports,one would imagine that she was the universal emporiumof the globe, where the riches of Arabia, and of Babylon,are heaped up in such abundance, that those countriesmust be left bare. Not only her ports, but the oceanitself will not suffice to contain her navies, commerce,navigation, and agriculture, meet here as the commoncentre of the world. What is not found within her walls,is unknown.

It has been observed by a modern historian that, Inancient times the entire power of a nation being centeredin the capital,the state was the city, the country but the^rf sr or field, the one the master, the other the slave.

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Within the walls of Rome, he goes on to remark, thecivilized universe collected,and the more the Republicextended her foreignconquests the more heterogeneousbecame the mixture of people,customs, manners, andreligion.The rich man came from the far-offprovincesto live,he profligateo seek the favour and protectionof still greater profligates,he Egyptian philosopherto displayhis curious learning,he priestsof differentnations to teach the worship of their Gods, all pressedto Rome, all embracing everlastingome, the mother ofthe universe.

To be called a Roman citizen was a title which kingswere proud to bear, for the citizens considered them-elves

the equalsof kings. From the very earliest timesthe plebs or citizens are representeds a proud, riotous,unrulyrabble,eternallyombating for the passingof theagrarianlaw, and proclaiming loudlyabout what theycalled liberty^ libertyhich was stigmatizeds licensebytheir opponents. There were innumerable advantagesattendingthis much-prizedRoman citizenshipit was byno means a mere name. The plebsurbana were fed withcom, and enjoyed the publicdistribution of money fromeach time-servingnd ambitious consul,praetor,general,dictator,nd Emperor; they were entertained with mag-ificent

games, they bathed in marble palaces; the

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ROMAN INTERIORS, 23

Campus Martius suppliedthem with a noble field forexercise and diversion,nsweringto our modem parks,the Circus and the Theatre amused their idle hours. Ina word, theywere part and parcelof the great Metropolisof the world,and the goods,riches,onours,and triumphsheaped upon her theyshared.

The poor wretches,the plebs rtisticayad a very dif-erentlife;whilst their brethren in the cityrioted in

luxury,theycould scarcelykeep body and soul togetherby the severest toil;they hungered,whilst the othersfeasted gratis. They had no vote in the Forum, no armto defend them, no voice to plead their wrongs; theywere the earliest and most signalvictims of nationalstrife,he firstholocaust offered up by an invadingarmy.Gracchus tried to better their condition,and lost hislife in the attempt, a fate not likelyo induce any otherpatrioto espouse their cause. So theydug,and delved,while their brothers wallowed in luxury. This imequaldistribution of the law is strikinglypparent, and origi-ated

firom the earlyprivilegesranted to the Quiritesas citizens of Rome, and subjects of Romulus parexcellence^hilst the inhabitants of the ager^ and thoseof the neighbouringtowns borderingthe shore and onthe adjacentmountains,were but Latins,and allies,m-easurabl

inferior in generalestimation to the genuine

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Roman, who, like the founder of his city,spiredto beconsidered somethingGod-like,nd heaven-descended.

It is natural that,before consideringome of the anti-uitiesof Rome, curiosityhould be excited as to

how these proud citizenslived in their homes, what lawsrestrained them, what manners distinguishedhem, whatdailynd hourlyhabits and customs prevailed.Amid themighty ruins of the Baths, Circuses, Temples, andForums which stillremain,the questionnaturallyrises,how did the men and women, who went in and out ofthese marble portalsday by day,pass their time ? Howwere they educated? How were they amused? Howdid they live in their domestic circles? A few remarkson ancient domestic life may not be inappropriate,runacceptable,o those who have trod the same soilwiththese former masters of the universe.

In the earlyda)rsof republicanliberty,he power of aRoman father was absolute. He could, if he were sominded,expose his new-bom infants on the sombre shoreof the Velabrum Lake, or upon the island on the Tiber,where the shrine of iEsculapiusstood. The law indeedenjoined parent to make away with deformed children.At their birth each infant was placed at the father'sfeet If he raised the little creature in his arms, itstraightwayecame part of the family ifhe turned away,

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their tastes, the political,r pecuniary,or personalinterest of the pater famiiiasbeing the onlyconsidera-ion

that regulatedthese connections. In all the annalsof Rom^n historye do not meet with one singlein-tance

of une bellepassion The facilityf divorce pre-ailingat all times in Rome was the onlyhope of these

ill-used members, of the commonwealth. Joined to adisgustingr odious spouse to-day,the followingmonthmight see her celebratinghe hymeneal festivitieswitha favoured lover. On the other hand, the wife whochanced to be attached to her husband might be remorse-essly

torn from his arms, to suit some futilewhim, family-interest,f state policy. Instances of this kind becameinnumerable as the sternness of republicananners gaveplace to the luxurious license of the Empire, .Tiberiuswas severed from his beloved Agrippinato wed theprofligateulia,hom he abhorred, in order to cement afamilycompact, and strengthen,y matrimonial ties,isadoption by Augustus) and his mother Livia,shortlybefore his birth,was violentlyorn from her husband,Tiberius Nero, to pleasethe fancyof Augustus. Fromthis system of forced marriagesand facile divorces arosethe monstrous domestic crimes of the later Romans those incredible bed and board vices of which we readwith incredulous astonishment. Love in its pure and

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ROMAN INTERIORS. 27

holy sense, as a union formed by mutual attachment andconsecrated by religion,as almost unknown j domestichappiness was an untaughtmystery ; and moralityandconjugal fidelityere regarded as contemptibleweak-esses.

The husband knew that at any moment, if itsuited her schemes, the hand of his wife might mix thepoison destined to destroyhim ; and the wife was fullyaware that,to gain the most insignificanttep on thegolden ladder of power, the husband of her youth,andthe father of her children,would without ceremony casther adrift,to obtain a richer,fairer,r nobler bride.It was impossiblefor women, under such a system, notto become utterlydepraved.

The Pagan religion,oo, with its obscene mysteriesand abominable rites,early initiated women into theknowledge of every kind of horror,excited their passions,and destroyedeach budding virtue of innocent maiden-ood.

Laws, habits,manners, religion,musements, allcombined to degradeand to debase the Roman matron,especiallyunder the Empire. Everythingaround herbreathed the same pollutedatitiospherethe very wallsof the houses even the pottery,and the vases used fordomestic purposes were ornamented with frescoes andfiguresutterlyrepugnant to a virtuous mind. Vice hadbecome a habit and a fashion. The theatres encoiuraged

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28 PICTURES OF OLD ROJjdE.

every grosser feeling,nd fed the generalaste for savageexcitement,he favourite spectaclesonsistingf subjectsof all others most suited to corrupt,deprave,and hardenthe heart In the circus and the amphitheatresbloodflowed like water, and yet the greedy multitude calledaloud for more, and sat there day and nightas if nailedto the benches by the hideous fascination of the scene.Women, matrons, and maidens, seated on the upperbenches,loudlyapplauded these sanguinaryexhibitions ;and the vestal virgins,nthroned on the podium besidethe Emperor, rarelyexercised their attribute of mercy insaving the combatants. If a cry of compassion arosefrom the multitude at the sightof the accumulatedcorpses, it was for the animals,not for the gladiators.Historyrecords nothingmore shockingthan the heart-ess

crueltydisplayedin the lives of these pompousRomans, both male and female, who, in their pride,deemed all other nations barbarians.

Few, very few of the women in the long annals oiRoman historyhad the courage to rise superioro theevil example around them. We read but of one Cornelia,and one Lucretia,hereas Agrippinas,Messalinas,andPoppaeascrowd the page.,Now let us see how the men were educated, those

lords of the creation,ho ever givethe tone to general

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ROMAN INTERIORS. 29

manners. You may be sure that the pater famUias pro-ideda stem education for those sons he had conde-cended

to accept, in order to train them up in his ownfootsteps. Morality,ccordingto the ancient readingofthe word, was patriotism and courage was virtue. Thelove of country was a religion, worship. Rome inits immaterial essence as the common centre of theEmpire, the common home and hearth of the citizens,as well as in its actual development, with its walls,towers, buildings,treets, and fomms was a deitytowhich everythingust be sacrificed. The worship ofJupiter Capitolinuswould have been but a shadowyphantom, if the Romans had not associated with it thespot where the Temple stood,as the actual residence ofJupiter.

To the citizens were offered four different means ofadvancement ^war, religion,aw, and eloquence; andall those professionsere generallynited in the educa-ion

of every Roman. Almost every distinguisheditizenwas at some periodof his lifecalled on to command thelegions. Few escaped a legal accusation from oneamongst the innumerable informers that invested theForum, and must be able suitablyo defend himself,r,on his part to lay a charge againstan enemy. Everygeneralwas called on to fulfilreligiousuties,nd the

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so PICTURES OF OLD ROME.

office of pontiflfas one of the many rewards offered todistinguishederit or patriotism.Every citizen .wasexpectedto understand the laws of the land,and to beable to give, competent answer on any knotty pointof legislation.hus every distinguishedoman waseducated so as to become a general, lawyer,an orator,or a pontiff,s circumstances might arise : Cicero ledarmies,JuliusCaesar was an eloquentpleader,and Catowas both a statesman and a philosopher.

The cultivation of eloquence formed an importantbranch of education ; every Roman seemed bom with anatural talent for oratory, which was cultivated andimproved to the utmost by instruction. The citizenspoke in the assemblyof the peopleand in the Forum ;a generalharanguedhis troops, and occasionallyavouredambassadors from the enemy with a thunderingoration.Not to be able to speak with the studied elocution of anorator, was scarcelyo be a Roman. Nero learnt eloquence from Seneca; and it is recorded as somethingdespicablef Augustus,that he was obliged to preparehis speeches. The out-door lifeof the people,fond ofenjoying a delicious climate,as passed in the baths,the porticoes,the temples, the tribunes,the forums.The Romans had no home : they lived in public,spublicmen, and their education prepared them for this

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ROMAN INTERIORS. 31

career. Philosophy,poetry, rhetoric,nd politics,ereall listened to, and discussed in the open air.

The Forum was naturallyhe grand arena of the greatand the ambitious; there the conscriptfathers couldharangue to their heart's content; even Tiberius,n-ociable

as he was, liked to come down, and listen tothe discussions as a kind of sombre pastime. Whenno publicmatter of importancewas under consideration,they talked,or a son was adopted,a will was made, or awife divorced The Forum was the ancient newspaper,the Roman Times^ only instead of reading,he senatorsspoke,and the multitude listened. This constant habitof publiclife,his rage for haranguinglent a kind ofsolemn gravityo the deportment of the Romans, anofficial and majesticbearingas of men actinga dignifiedpart in the great drama of life. They wore theirampletogas, too, with a sort of sublimityhich was veryimposing. No wonder the Gauls were terrifiedat theaspect of these awful lookingmen, seated on their curulechairs,rapt in their purpletogas, outside the porticoesof their palaces. It was quitenatural in the barbariansto take them for Gods.

Speeches were made in all places,and at all times ;the paterfamiliasharangued his familyif the dinner didnot pleasehim. Germanicus harangued his attendants

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before his death,Seneca was eloquentwhile seated inthe fatal bath,and Thrasea spoke so much, one wondersthat the patienceof his friends was not exhausted.

Quintiliandetails amusinglythe excess to which thisrage for talkingwas carried,and givesrules for theproper deportmentof an orator. He was neither to usehis handkerchief,or to spit,or to cough ; even a glassof sugaredwater is condenmed as unbecoming. He isalso advised not to use his arms too much, or to dilatehis nostrils,r to raise his shoulders ; he must not bitehis lips,r leave the form where he stands. In readingthese remarks, one involuntarilyecalls Hamlet's adviceto the players,nd wonders if Shakspeare had studiedQuintilian.

The women too, on any subjectof specialinterest,also came down to the Forum to listen. Every readerof Livy remembers the indignationith which PorciusCato inveighedagainsttheir appearance there when hemade his famous attack on female privilegesnd luxury^on occasion of the proposed repealof the Oppian law, when the matrons could not be kept at home either byadvice or shame, but beset every street and pass in thecity,beseeching the men as they went down into theForum to repeal the law. Cato plainlyells them thatif each husband maintained his prerogative,heywould

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always assisted at the imperialorgies,actuallymarried,and divorced the same woman, twenty differenttimes.

Virtue was utterlyimpossiblein a state where themarriagetie hung so looselyon the contractingarties.Indeed, says Suetonius,disgustedat the profligacyaround him in the days of the Empire, vice does noteven hide itself,or does corruptionblush. Nor indeedcan it be otherwise,when those indulgingin the mostmonstrous excesses, are not obscure adventurers, ormean and abjectplebeians,ut the greatest men of thestate, consuls, legislators,hilosophers,nd emperors.Aristippuspubliclytaught in his philosophicschoolthat sensual enjoyment was the only true good, adoctrine at which even the luxurious Greeks would haveblushed, for Epicurus himself advocated the highestintellectual culture,and the profoundestlearning,s themeans of enjoying that perfectpleasurein which heimagined man was bom to indulge. When such habitsprevailedamong the men, and such principlesweretaughtamong philosophers,hat could the Romans knowof virtue ?

The mischief learnt at the theatres, the amphi-theatfes,and the circus, I have alreadyglanced atIt is too ample a field to discuss here appropriately.Within those statelybuildings where vice reigned

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ROMAN INTERIORS. 35

supreme, excitement grew in the course of time to sucha pitch,hat consuls,senators, and emperors, descendedinto the arena and exhibited before the people.Caligulafirst set this disgracefulfashion,which wasfollowed by Nero and Caracalla;at last Heliogabalusdanced before the assembled Senate. There werefavourite gladiators and charioteers,and favoiuitecolours;actors intriguedith empresses, and athleteswere often' the most welcome guests in the imperialpalace. Augustus, when delightingn the company ofpoets and philosophers,little foresaw the excess towhich this imperialfacilityf access would be carried.

Three days and three nightsat one time,the Romansare said to have sat in the Amphitheatre. The excite-ent

of these spectacleswas something incompre-ensible,.

and the money lavished on them, age afterage, utterlyincredible. Bread and the circus'* wasthe cry, and from the lowest slave to imperialCaesar,the same insatiable desire for constant novelty andamusement prevailed. Pompey once displayedsixhundred lions in the arena; and on one occasion,Augustus gratifiedhe citizens by making five hundredGetulians fightagainsttwenty elephants.

Another fertile school for vice and luxury were thepublic baths, of which establishments Rome reckoned

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eighthundred and fifty-sixithin her walls. Here,from the earliestdawn of day until midnight,he peoplecame in never-aidingstreams, either to prepare for thefatiguef the coming da}^,o invigoratehemselves afterthe warlike exercises in the Campus Martius, forthe slumber of the siesta,r the excitement of thetheatre and the circus. It is wonderful to read howthey were scrubbed; modem skins would have beenruined by such treatment, yet they all liked it,andcame in such multitudes,that the baths were soonreckoned among the proudest palaces in Rome. Theenormous ruins that still remain of those of Titus,Caracalla,and Diocletian,attest the size and magni-icence

of these establishments. With such ruins beforeour eyes, we can easilybelieve the account historiansgive of the giganticvestibules peopled with Grecianstatues, and ornamented with forests of pillarsformedof the rarest marbles, supportingroofs radiant withgold and painting,he spaciousarcades for exercise,the refreshinggroves where splashingfountains cooledthe heated air,the halls furnished and ornamented withoriental luxury, the temples, the Odeons for music,the Exedrae,where the poets declaimed and philosophersdisputed,every wall brightwith frescoes and marble.The Baths of Diocletian contained thousands of private

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Campagna, and of the sea? A .letterof Seneca'shas left a livelyictureof the bathing life of his daywhile livingt Baia,where he lodged over the baths.

Yet this magnificence was not carried out in theinterior arrangements of the Roman houses. Spaciousand grandly decorated as were many of the senatorialpalaces,we modems should have considered themdestituteof the commonest comforts. How the Romandames, who were so vain, managed to dress withoutmirrors,eems a miracle. What would Poppaea havegiven to have surveyed herself from head to foot in amodem looVing-glass How Agrippina would haverejoicedin the dignifiedpose, seated on the marblechair,in which she had come down to us, could shehave seen herself reflected Miserable substitutes therewere, constracted of metal, but even our nineteenth-century waiting-women would have despised them.Such a convenient luxury as a watch was unknown^quadrantsand sun-dials being the only means by whichthe Romans ascertained the course of time ; these ofcourse beingutterlyseless at night.

The commoner houses of the poorer citizens hadlow roofs,and the walls were generallybuilt withoutwindows; if there were any, they never opened uponthe street The principallightproceeded from the

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ROMAIC INTERIORS. 39

door, for such windows as there might be, beingcoveredwith transparent marble, talc, cotton, or skins,gavebut the feeblest and most opaque light Specimensof the materials used by the ancients for windows, havebeen found at Pompeii, and sufficiendyrove howmiserablythey were off. Such stairs too as they had,so steep and narrow, would have given us the cramp ;and then the want of chimneys,and consequent smokefrom the kitchens and braziers,dded to the smell ofthe dinner preparingon the charcoal without anyapertures to carry it off,would have smothered usoutright. Neither should we have admired the fiercedogs, chained in the celUz on either side of the door,nor have fancied the constant screechingof the geesekept in the houses, nor the long serpents creepingabout among the embroidered cushions of the couches.

The styleof dress too was as inconvenient as canwell be conceived. The heavy toga of rough woolworn next the skin must have been extremelyirritating,and partiyaccounts for the inevitable necessityof thebaths. The Romans, Suetonius tells us, wore neitherstockingsnor drawers,but in place of these invaluablearticles of dress,stripsof linen called femoralia werebound round the thighs,nd other stripscalled tibialiawere twisted round the legs. Truly a most lame and

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impotentconclusion to the magnificenceof these kingsof the earth The use of pockets was unknown, thecincture that bound the toga being the only conveniencetheypossessedfor keeping their money or handkerchief,as we learn from the satires of Juvenal and Aulus Gellius,Caps or hats were littleused, they either went with thehead bare, or covered only with a fold of the toga.No matter how it might rain when they went abroad,such a thing as an umbrella was unknown ; they musttrust to the thickness of those eternal togas to protectthem, and if they caught a cold in consequence, andinjuredtheir sight,r if blindness ensued, there were nospectaclesnvented in those days,and a blind man musthire a littleslave to lead him, as Homer did, in stillmore primitiveimes.

I am indebted to a livinghistorian for the followinggraphicsketch of a Roman day. In the morning,whilethe paterfamiliasindolentlyingersn bed, a crowd offriends,reedmen,and parasites,ssemble without in thevestibule. When he has risen,perfumed his hair,andarranged the folds of his toga, he appears, converses afew moments with thoss whom he desires to see, orwho have business with him, and then descends into theForum, either on foot surrounded by his clients,r bornein a litteron the shoulders of his slaves. Here a variety

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or the ball,or bathe in the waters of the Tiber, whilethe older citizens sit by observingtheir prowess, andthe women walk under the neighbouringcolonnades.Towards four o'clock the baths are open, and thitherevery one hastens,the poor and the middling classes tothe public Thermae, the rich man to the voluptuousrecesses of his splendidabode ^but all must bathe, it isan absolute necessity.Within the publicbaths are thevast Piscina for swimming, the tepid and the vapourbath, as well as perfumes,frictions,nd ointments,allrefined and sumptuous luxuries open to every class for a

triflinga)rment. The floors are of mosaic, the PiscincBof alabaster,he ceilingspainted in fresco,the wallsinlaid with gold and ivory; there are gardens andgroves ; temples for the priests,orticoesor the philo-ophers,

a, gymnasium for running,libraries,n Odeonfor music,and Exedrae where poets declaim. After thebath the rich man retiuns home to enjoy the great mealof the day,the supper.

Magnificentas were the Forums, the Thermae, theCampus Martius,and other open spaces in the ancientcity,the streets where people lived are described asbeing excessivelyarrow, filthy,nd inconvenient Atnight darkness,black as pitch,nshrouded everythingand no Roman, who had any regardeither for his skin.

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ROMAN INTERIORS, 43

pr his purse, ventured forth,for robbers abounded inevery quarter, going about, as Horace says, invokingthe assistance of the Goddess Lavema, the protectressof midnightdeeds of wrong and violence. The streetsof Rome have in all ages borne an extremelybad repu-ation,

and it seems to me that this same wicked goddesshas still many ardent worshippers in the great city.That the roads and streets were disgustinglyllkept,we may infer from various incidental circumstancesmentioned by historians ; the dead body of a slave ora cliild lying about, was nothing at all wonderfulWhen Tullia drove her coach through the Via Sceleratashe was not surprisedto find a corpse in her way, hercharioteer only drew her attention to it as being thebody of her father; and Nero, flyingfrom Rome toconceal himself in the villa of his freedman Phaon,

expressedno horror at seeinga dead body lyingbesidethe road without the Nomentana Gate.Mentioningthe roads reminds me of the coaches and

chariots sad,heavy,tumble-down affairsindeed,even inthe most luxurious days of the Empire. To possess oneof these abominable vehicles at all,as considered aspecialprivilege,hich was accorded only to emperors,dictators,nd patricians,r to such great ladies as Liviaand -A^ppina. Not all the solid gold and silver wasted

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on them, an extravagance foibidden indeed, or at Jeastmoderated,by the Oppian law, about which Cato wasso eloquent,could make them commodious or agreeable.How would a heavy machine drawn by oxen or mulessuit our modem fancies ? As to horses,they were outof the question,t would have been sacrilegeo drivethem, they being only used on state occasions,for con-eying

the consuls to sacrifice,or triumphs,and fordrawing the puiplecouches containingthe images of thegods, in great processions.With all its splendour,amodem fine lady would have found little to envy inthe mode of lifeof the proudestempress that ever trodthe Palatine.

I have picturedhe Romans in the Foram, the baths,and at home; I must now spare a few lines descriptiveof some of the festivals,hich filledup so huge a portionof everydaylife. Herodian tells us that the festival ofthe Bona Dea was celebrated in the spring,when asolemn processionpassed through the city. It was atime of general amusement ; every one was allowedto appear in masks, the principaldiversion being torepresent the magistratesnd highestdignitaries,o thatit was impossibleo distinguishhe maskers from thereal senators. Every reader of Plutarch will recall theaccount he givesof the festival of the Bona Dea cele-

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ROMAN INTERIORS, 45

brated by the women, who, during the orgies,nboundtheir hair,crowned themselves with vine leaves,and ranscreaming through the house like maniacs, every man,even the husband himself,having been previouslysentout of the way. The new year was opened by thefestival of Janus, believed by the Romans to be the sonof their first king Saturn,who ruled in the golden age.It was their custom to salute each other on this occasion most lovingly,*'o interchangealuable presents,andfor the senators and magistrateso appear in theirrichest robes. A remnant of the saturnalia has comedown to us in the modern carnival. Then, as now,libertyand equalityere the order of the day. Mastersdined with,or waited on, their slaves in the good oldtime,and a general freedom prevailedthat too oftendegenerated into the grossest license. In the Luper-calian games young men

of noble families,nd indeedmany of the magistrates,an naked about the streets,and, by way of diversion,struck everyone theymet, withleathern thongs. On one occasion, Plutarch tells us,Caesar,wearing a triumphalrobe, seated himself in agolden chair upon the rostrum to see the diver-ion.

Antony, who was consul, so far forgot hissenatorial dignity,as to comply with the generalrule, or rather misrule,and appear naked along with

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the rest,and in this guisetendered the imperialrownto Caesar.

A most importantportionof the domestic economy ofthe Roman interiors were the slaves,whose miserablefate especiallyeserves our attention as openinga freshvista in these domestic details by which I wouldendeavour to bring the actual life and everydayhabitsof the Romans before the stranger. While such arbitrarylaws,unsightlyand disgustinganners, and utter dis-egard

of human life and human suffering,revailedamong the senatorial and imperialfamilies,what wasto become of the poor slaves,that second grade ofcreated beings,who, bought and paid for by theirmasters, became his absolute property, roba^ as un-alienablyhis as his wife, but, unlike her, hsivingnohope of exchange,no law to protect their morals, oreven their lives? That black aud horrible stain onRoman manners, slavery,unfolds a shocking and heart-ending

picturef sufferingnd despair;it was, perhaps,the foulestplaguespot of the whole foul system.

Cicero openly advocates the degradationof femaleslaves. Who, cries he, in his oration Pro Ccjelio,hasever blamed the practice? Who has ever foibid it?What every century has permittedour own must alsoacquiescen. The cnieltywith which both sexes were

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ROMAN INIERIORS, 47

treated is distressingo contemplate. If their masterwere assassinated by one of their number, the law pro-ided

that every individual male or female slave underhis roof should suffer death, for an act of which,perchance, they were profoundly ignorant PedaniusSecundus, prefectof the city,ays Tacitus,fell by thesword of his slave. Every slave in the house, fourItundred in number, was therefore subjectto capitalpunishment ; but the populace,touched by compassionat the fate of so many innocent persons, opposed theirexecution with violence. The affair was debated inthe senate. Who, it was said, can hope to live insecurity,hen so largea number as four hundred couldnot protect Pedanius? Still,piteof the opinion ofthe fathers,reat publicdisapprobationas expressed;the number, the age, the sex, the undoubted innocenceof the greater part, moved even the obdurate Romansto compassion. The popular cry was for mercy, butNero negativedthe appeal,he sent his guards to linethe streets,and the miserable slaves allperished.

r

Slaves were tortured to pleasetheir master's caprice,their sufferingsivinga crowning jestto his midnightorgies.Sometimes they were crucifiedo gratifywhim.Suetonius gravelyqelebrateshe clemencyof JuliusCaesar,who ''^only punishedwith death a slave accused of

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attemptingo poison him. Who were the accusers ?Do you then imaginethat a slave is a man ? It is likelyenough he has done nothingto deserve death,but whatmatters ? his master orders it,he commands it,and hiswill is law.

That slaves humanely treated were capablief real anddevoted attachment to a good master, is proved by ananecdote related by Plutarch concerning Comutu^.When Marius and Cinna returned fr Jm their banishmentto Rome, a horrible slaughtertook place of thosecitizens disaffected to their cause. Every road, everyneighbouringown was filled with hired assassins ; noobligationf friendship,o rightsof hospitality,eredeemed sacred. In this season of extreme periltheslaves of Comutus, aware that their master's lifewas indanger,concealed him in his own house and takingadead body out of th'e street from among the slain,hung

*

it up by a rope, and put his own goldring on the finger.In this condition theydisplayedhe corpse to the execu-ioners

despatchedby Marius, who, supposing Comutusdead, allowed them to bury itwith the same forms, as ifit had been their master. The deceptionwas quite suc-essful,

no suspicionsrose, and Cornutus, after remain-ngsome time concealed, was conveyed by his slaves into

Galatia.

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Jo PICTURES OF OLD ROME.

fragmentsare said to remain within the temple of Castorand Pollux,now the church of SS. Cosmo e Damiano. Atemple, a slave martet,and a church, what strangemetamorphoses the old walls of Rome witness I Here,those speculatorsho had bought human flesh wholesalefrom the republic,retailed it to private individuals.The day after a triumph,the enclosure was sure to becrowded to excess. Along the facadeof the temple,andaround the neighbouringcoloimades, scaffolds wereerected,filled with nien, women, boys,girls,nd chil-ren,

most of them naked, and with a litde ticketfastened round their necks. An auctioneer promenadedup and down before each scaffold,nd in the sightof theassembled peopleexpatiatedn the live stock a fellow,this auctioneer,oluble,vulgar,nd brutal in his mannersand language. Horace himself has painted the scenefrom the life. Good people, ries the man merchan-ising

in humanity,/'I am not rich,but,for all that,Iam in no hurryto sell I have no debts. Observe theselots I offer them to you at a priceso moderate, that Idefy you to find slaves elsewhere as cheap. Indeed Iwould not, I could not, make such a sacrifice for anyother but you illustriousRomans, masters of the world.

Look now at this young boy, he continues,pointingto a youth. Look how splendidlye is shaped from

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ROMAN INTERIORS, 51

head to foot. I will guarantee his frugality,is probity,and docility.He flies to obey the slightestign,he isas clayin the hands of his master. He also understandsa littleGreek, and will singto you at table if you haveno music. Then approaching the boy, he raps himsmartlyon the cheeks. Do you, says he, turningto-ards

the bystanders, do you hear how that sounds ?how itrings? Never was such fine firm flesh,llness willnever touch him. Citizens,omans, I offer this youthto you a real bargain. He is yours for eighthundredsesterces, it is nothing a bagattella '

The man of readywords then passes on to another,achild. Come be alive,e alert,my littlefellow, crieshe, show your agilityo these gentlemen, the mastersof the world, the equalsof kings. Upon hearingwhichexordium the poor child starts up, jumps, and springs,and gambols about,castingall the while fascinatingeersat the crowd, like a ballet-dancer poisedon the tipsofhis toes. The crowd press round and stare. See, ex-laims

the auctioneer, how nimble he is how lighthow merry how sweet A little angel truly. Butcitizens,* says he, turningemphaticallytowards the as-embly,

this is all very well,non c'htnakyI have shownyou here some tolerable specimens,fair samples of thecommodity, but if you will come with me to my em-

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porium,you will see goods of another kind of stuffthere,I promiseyou quiteanother style. These slaves hereon the scaffoldingre not all my stock in trade ; all thatI possess most rare, delicate,nd beautiful,re kept inthe inner boxes. Come within,good citizens. Followme ; come in,I pray you/'

This scene was only the prelude,the firstact in thedrama of the future woes- of these miserable slaves. Letus follow the poor wretches to their purchaser'souse,the better to appreciateheir condition. On crossinghethreshold we enter the vestibule ; rightand left are twoniches,in one lies a mastiff chained to the wall,in theother a slave,also chained,the janitoror porter. If thehouse be sold,he will be sold with it; if itbe burnt hewill perishwith it Further on are the sweepers, orscopariiyhe domestic slaves. Some are sweeping themosaic floors of the Atrium with a purple rag, or asponge; some with a lightbrush dust the statues ofbronze, or marble, placed between the colonnades;others are rubbing the glisteningarble of the pillarsand the walls,until theyshine like glass even Domitianwould have been satisfied,nd could have walked therewithout fear,for so great is their brilliancyhat he mighthave perceivedany assassin approachingfrom behind tostrike him.

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ROMAN INTERIORS, 53

Some slaves look after the sideboards and the house-oldpresses, while others have charge of the family

registersnd the images of their master^s ancestors.The kitchen swarms with slaves; the coquus preparesthe dishes,labouringby his skill to awake his master'sjaded appetite. He has achieved such wonders, thatslave, by his patientingenuity,hat he can cook a pigboiled on one side,and roasted on the other;the pastry-ook,

pistordulciariuscunninglymixes all the spicesandperfumes of Arabia and of India in his sweet wares, andfor fear that,in his zeal,a drop of moisture should fallfrom his skin upon the

rich paste,he wears a veil. Thereis a separate slave to look after the milk,the apples,andthe fruit,nd to mix the delicious drinks,of which theancient,as well as the modem, Romans are so fond.Another slave drives away the fliesfrom the dishes,andthere is also the taster,obsonator and woe, seven timeswoe, on his unlucky pate, if he mistakes his master'staste or palate; the loss of life may be the least penaltyinflicted on him.

When the repast,which has given employment to somany hands, is at last prepared,the inviiatores whoseduty it is to announce the company, loudlyproclainithenames of the guests who are that day to repos.e on theirmaster's couches, while the inferioresaiters,bringthe

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dishes into the Sala,and the strudores range them withtaste and symmetry on the board. The master and hisguests have appeared in the meantime, and stretchingthemselves on the gold or ivorycouches, strewed withrose leaves and down, and covered with splendidAlexandrian tapestry, prepare to partake of all theluxuries displayedbefore them. Between the courses,the pocUlatorespresent Falemian or Chio wine,sparklinghigh in jewelledcups and goldengoblets,hile at theirheels follow other slaves bearingfresh and tepidwater,in preciousvessels of sculptiu-edold or silver. Nearthe couches on which the company lie luxuriously-stretched,re ranged a row of young slaves,remarkablefor their beauty and the elegance of their attire; theirlegs and arms are bare, and they wear turbans. Eachhas his office ; one holds a branch of floweringmyrtle,to chase away the flies; some sprinkleperfumes,or fanthe air ; others carefullyatch those who are intoxicated,and assistthem, as well as other guests who desire to eatagain,by conducting them into an adjacentroom, thevomitorium. For these minute traits of Roman mannerswe are indebted to the pen of the satiricalMartial,andthe stoical Philippicsf Seneca.

When nightspreadsround her inky mantle,the slavesare in high activity;litteringandelabra,and thousands

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ROMAN INTERIORS. 55

of torches blaze throughthe perfumedhalls,orne by thehands of the inferiores;elicious symphoniesof exquisitemusic entrance the senses, alreadylapped in luxuriousrepose, by the plenteousrepast and the potent wine.Troops of young slaves enter and perform dances,borrowed rather from the rites of Venus than those ofDiana; they singhymns of praiseextollinghe powerand goodness of their masters, the poor slaves Tothose voluptuous dances succeeds a more cruel andexcitingexhibition;the gladiatorsre introduced,theyprepare their limbs,they draw their daggers,and amidsthalf emptied glasses,itheringarlands,xpiringorches,and broken dishes,beside the soft couches on which theinebriated company recline,words are crossed,blowsare exchanged, blood flows in plenteous streams, thegroans of the dying,and the laughterand applause ofthe livingunitingto form a hideous chorus.

From the triclinium to the bath ,from the baths tothe gardens,the villa,he farm, the fields,roops ofslaves start from every comer. There is nothing toomean, too low, too humiliatingor them to perform.If you can invent any new degradation,heir masterswill thank you. In all ages slaveryis the same :be it in the early annals of Rome, or in the nine-eenth

century, the same crushingpride and cruel

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S6 PICTURES OF OLD ROME,

despotbm in the oppressor, the same servile spiritinthe oppressed.

A curious tomb was discovered at Rome bearing thisinscription The bones of Aurelia,the slave of Livia,she wlio took care of her littledog/* Another tomb,bearingan inscription,urports to be commemorative ofsome female slaves belongingto the same Livia,consortof Augustus, who had charge of the imperiallocks, atrulynoble occupation,esteemed equally honourableand as worthy of monumental record as that of Aurelia.If Augustus was a plain,simplecitizen,ivia assuredlywas a genuineempress.

The superbmatron of Rome would not condescend toexchange words with such canagliaas her slaves ; a signof the liand,the pointingof her finger,as sufficientcommands which, if mistaken or misunderstood by theunhappy slave,an iron lash quicklyadvertised him ofthe unlucky mistake.

Cato the Censor, otherwise a just and moral man,boasts of the blows he caused to be inflictedon a tardyslave. Be economical, says he: sell both yourhorse and slave when they are old and useless, Plu-arch

inveighsagainstis meanness and crueltyin usinghis slaves like beasts of burden. A good man, in hisopinion,ought ever to take care of his infirm dogs and

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S8 PICTURES OF OLD ROME,

It is a sad and weaiy task to unfold these horrors ^towithdraw the glitteringeil hanging before these superbpalaces,and displaythe foulness,the misery,the degra-ation

within. It is an ungraciouslabour ; but if,whenthe reader next gazes on the ruined pileof the Palatine,on the liroken fragments of Rome's once glorioustemples,or on the massive arches and cyclopeanblocksof Caracalla's Baths, he shall feel that he is better ac-uainted

with the inner life,the dailypassing detailsof those incredible day by day incidents of the ancientRomans, I am satisfied,nd this chapter will not havebeen written in vain.

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THE PALATINE,

THE REPUBLIC, AND AUGUSTUS.

T HAVE again and again visited the mysterious home-^ of Rome's imperial splendour, the Palatine. I havespun many day dreams under the shadow of those almostunintelligible ruins. Within the deep cavernous re-esses

that yawn hideously at every step, I have read,I have thought, I have pondered. At length a fancypossessed me to build up the ruined walls, and, passingover almost two thousand years, picture the Palatine as itthen appeared, diademed with palaces and temples.

The ancient seat of Evander's Arcadian city, thePallanteum, where he received Hercules, was the firstinhabited of the seven somewhat fabulous hills of Rome.Here also -^neas was entertained when, coming fromLatium, he visited the good old king, who did not denyhis only son, Pallas, to his prayers for assistance againstTumus and his Rutulian bands.

Evander, in conversation with his guest, gives thefollowing account of the origin of the Palatine. These

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6o PICTURES OF OLD ROME.

groves,*'aid he, the native fauns and nymphs pos-essed,and a race of men sprung from the roots of trees

and stubborn oaks,who had neither laws nor refinement,knew neither to yoke the steer nor to gatherwealth,norto use their acquisitionsith moderation; but thebranches and hunting a rough sort of sustenance supplied them with food. From the ethereal skySaturn first came. He formed into society race, un-isciplined

and dispersedamong the high mountains,and introduced laws. Under his reign was the goldenage which they celebrated.

Next came Romulus, the god-descended founder ofRome, who, with his brother,washed to the foot of thePalatine by the current of the Tiber, raised the firststones of the infant cityon its summit, surroundingitwith a wall of defence. Then was the first crime com-itted

that stained the virginsoil with blood, whenRomulus, standingon the brow of the Palatine,quar-elled

with Remus about the dispositionf the wall,andslew him there with his own hand. On the acclivityfthe mount Romulus erected his littlecabin of reeds andwood; its front,accordingto Vitruvius and Dionysius,turned towards the Aventine,overlookinghe spot wherethe Circus Maximus was afterwards constructed. Besidethe hut, the grotto of the Lupercalopened in the hill's

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PALATINE, REPUBLIC, 6f* AUGUSTUS. 6i

rocky side a sanctuary of extraordinaryntiquity,herePan and Faunus, and the sylvandeities of the primevalwoods that clothed the seven hills,ere worshipped.Further down the hill,in due time was erected atemple to JupiterStator (he that arrests in fight),nmemory of Romulus' vow, duringhis famous battle withTatius and the Sabine hosts,so nearlyfatal to the infantState.

The five firstkingsof Rome fixed their habitation onthe Palatine;TuUus Hostilius is speciallyecorded asinhabitingis house called Velia,n the crest of the hilLFrom hence he went forth to fightagainsthe Sabines.But after a while,whether it were that Tullus hadneglectedthe worshipof the gods whilst he was busy inthe wars or no, certain itis that the signsof divine wrathbecame manifest,for a dreadfiil plague broke out, andwhen Tullus inquiredof Jupiter, supremelygood andgreat, o stay it by his favour,the god was angry, andsent for answer his forked lightning,o that Tullus andhis house Veiia were burnt to ashes. (Suchis the fabu-ous

account.)Ancus Martius,grandsonto Numa, the peacefulKing

of Rome, lived three-and-twentyears in his house facingthe Via Sacra,where afterwards stood the sanctuaryofthe Lares.

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The abode of the firstTarquin,the Etruscan Lucumo,was on the other side of the hill,ear the hut of Romu-us.

Here he dwelt with his Medea-wife Tanaquil,ingreat power and prosperity,ntil the sons of AncusMartius hired certain assassins to kill him, when Tana-uil,

who was great and heroic in mind, seeingwhat hadbefallen,ent out and harangued the people assembledbelow, in the Forum which her husband had built,tellingthem he was not dead,but onlystunned by the blow, andthat he had appointedServius TuUius to rule in his name,until he should be well. So Servius went down in royalstate from the Palatine into the Forum, and after a whilethe peopleknew the truth,and acceptedhim as theirruler.

But at the decline of the republic,he lowlyroofs whichhad contented the earlykings and their successors, thefirstdictators,nd Consuls Camillus,and Titus Manlius,sufficed not to gratifyhe luxurious wants of men, nursedin Asiatic luxury.So these humble abodes fellbefore thestatelymansions of the Gracchi,of Cicero,Claudius,Catiline,arc Antony, and Augustus,who each owneda house on the summit of the Palatine,hose gloomybrow, ominouslyoverhangingthe seat of national libertythe Comitium, and the Forum, symbolizedsignificantlythe dark shadow theirgrowingambition cast on the liber-ies

of the Quirites.

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senator, seeingthe noble patriotbearded, gave him afurther dastardlykick,saying that the other citizensputout their lightshen theyreturned home at unseasonablehours, but that Tiberius paraded his people carryingtorches. These were serious accusations truly,andmade the friends of Tiberius quake for his safety butthe affair assumed a most grave and appallingaspect,when the sacred chickens,although soundly shaken,refused to eat, and when one actuallyaised its leftwingand stretched out its leg. Tiberius then gave himselfover for lost,and trembled and quaked in good earnest,speciallys two ravens fought over his head as he wasgoingdown to the Forum.

It was written that Tiberius should die like Caesar,surrounded by the Sen^e, in spiteof these warnings.The conspiratorspluckedhim by the robe, as they didCaesar,others crowded round, and each gave him a stab.Poor Tiberius he was worthyof a better fate,ut Romewas unworthy of him, so he died

Then came his brother Caius,vehement and impas-ioned,runningfrom one end of the rostrum to the other

when he addressed the people,and throwingoff his gownto gesticulatehe more freely.So violent indeed wasCaius,and so givento an unmusical scream when speak-ng,

that to guard againsthese vocal excesses, he ordered

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by enemies,he made a vow ifhe escaped,to raise a shrineto the deitywho ruled the hour in that moment ofextreme peril.

Cicero,the shuffling,hrewd,hawk-eyed lawyer, thegentleman of the long robe, par excellencein Romanannals,by turns a coward and a bully,any faced,andvarious,s suited in his own interest,r the complexionof the times,lived in vast splendouron the Palatine,nthe very spot once occupiedby the abode of LuciusCrassus. AlthoughCicero's patrimonialstate was small,by his marriage with the haughty shrew Terentia hebecame the master of largerevenues, so givingup thehouse in the city he formerlyoccupied,e betook him-elf

to the aristocraticPalatine,n order,as he declared,** that those clientswho soughthim mightnot have so farto go. A speciousreason, and one that to this daywould authorise a distinguishedtatesman in selectingan extravagantlyexpensive situation,ecause // isin the way^

A magnificentouse did the great orator inhabit withthe rich widow, his Xantippe-wife,dorned,among othernovelties,ith the firstlargemarble columns ever seen inRome. He held a levee every moming,being soughtnoless for his eloquence, than Crassus for his wealth,orPompey for his power. Cicero was courted,too, because

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PALATINE, REPUBLIC, d^' AUGUSTUS, 67

he was useful,as the time served,to all,being littletroubled by pangs of conscience,occasioned by politicalinconsistency.Thus went the world in earlytimes,andPompey came to pay his court to the i la mode oratordwelling on the Palatine,and to look also at the newcolumns, and wonder at the magnificencein which Cicerolived.

Catiline was Cicero's near neighbour,for he, rich,powerful,and ambitious,not to be behind the fashion,had his Palatine house, too, at the West end'' of thetown, a vicinityhat was like,by-the-by,o have provedfatal to Cicero,for,when Catiline found that he had dis-overed

his conspiracy,nd meant to arraignhim beforethe Senate, he desired his accomplices,Martius andCethegus,to step across and assassinate his noisyneigh-our,

under the pretext of saluting' him,alongwith theother worshipperscollected every morning in his Vesti-biihim. But Cicero (who at heart was a great coward,spiteof all his eloquentblusterings)melt the plot,andrefused them admittance. So frightened,ndeed, was heat the thoughtof the danger to which he was stillexposed,that he would not even go down into the Forum, butconvoked the Senate (who were graduallybecomingservile and obedient,in preparationfor the advent of theCaesars),o deliberate on the means of destroyingthe

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conspiracy,ithin the Temple of JupiterStator,whichstood on the Palatine.

I have not done yet with my ancient ^^red book'' ofnames and addresses. None of the mighty patriciansmust be forgotten,ut especiallyot Marcus EmiliusScaurus,who owned, too, says Pliny, perhapsthe grand-st

house of all. When he was ^dile he spent such vastsums of money in exhibitingames to the people,thatamong other trifleshe erected a temporary theatre,rna-ented

with paintings,nd with three thousand marblestatues, besides hundreds of pillars,ll of which wereafterwards set up in his house on the Palatine,to hisgreat glorification.e must have been a cunningman,that Scaurus, to pleasethe peopleand gratifyimself atthe same time. Milo and Publius Clodius,the lover ofCaesar's wife Pompeia, lived here,too, for many years,quitenear neighbours,without having,in fact,any un-leasant

bickerings.But politics,t last,et them sorelyby the ears, and meeting,one unluckyday,on the AppianWay, not far from Bovillae (near-the Osteria going toAlbano, called Frattocchie),heir attendants came toblows, and then the masters joining in, Milo dealtClodius a blow, and Clodius fell. So much for nearneighbours on the Palatine,Cicero and Catiline,ndMilo and Clodius.

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PALATINE, REPUBLIC, S^ AUGUSTUS, 69

Now the Roman houses themselves,s well as theirowners, were quite a studyin those days,by reason oftheir size,splendour,nd decoration,and deserve a fewwords of description,speciallys referringto thePalatine,whose rocky sides groaned under the loadplaced on it by the competitionof Rome's republicancitizens. Between the street and the fagadewas a largeopen space called Vestibulum, similar to the cortilepreceding many ancient Roman churches,built on thesite of palatialhouses, such as Santa Cecilia,SanGregorio,nd San Alessio on the Aventine,a styleofbuilding,acitus tellsus,'that was afterwards generallyintroduced by Nero. In Cicero's house it was a necessaryappendage,in order to prevent those troublesome clients(who came every morning to offer him their salutations)from actuallystandingin the street In the midst ofthe Vestibulum usuallystood a statue of bronze, repre-enting

the master of the mansion. The entrance-door,of double panels,covered with brass and heavy giltnails,such as may stillbe* seen in modem palacesat Romeand Florence,led into the Prothyrum,a passage conduct-ng

from the outer to the inner entrance, on either sideof which were the CellcByr lodgesof the porter and ofthe dog,often an importantmember of the establishment,as in the case of Ulysses. The porter,a miserable slave.

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tied like the dog by a chain,was a biped that mighibebribed or deceived,the quadruped never. He knew thelover from the husband, whether in the case of Terentiaor of Penelope; the one he hated and barked at, on theother he fawned.

The oppositeend of the Prothyrum communicated bya door with an interior area, surmounted by a stately-portico,supported by marble columns. This was theAtrium. The colonnaded porticowas called theCavcedium,and the open space in the centre the Implu-vium. A marble basin in the midst was the Com-pluvium,so called because it received the rain washeddown from the roofs of the surroundingarcades,all veryclassicallylegant doubtless, but painfullyamp andcold. Very delightfult must have been in summerto walk under the deep shade of the marble porticoesand listen to the gurglingof the fountains that splashedin the Compluvium, to contemplatethe brilliant frescoespaintedn the walls,and the Grecian statues of bronzeand marble,brought to Rome, perhaps,at the time of theconquest of Syracuseor Macedonia, the works perchanceof Praxiteles or Phidias,nd to have one's heart rejoicedby the gold,the stucco, the mosaic,and the alabasteraround ; all very charming in summer, I say, when apurple cloth covered the Impluvium, warding off the

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sun's rays; pouringdown in the same fervid streamswhich even now make the cabbagesand the beans swelllargerin the Palatine gardensthan elsewhere. But cold,cold and very dreary,must those spaciousalls have been,when the winter wind howled throughthe pillaredaisles.Cold, indeed,as the sacred cave of Jove TrophoniusatLabadia, whither those votaries who sought the oracledescended,conducted by -^olus and Boreas,unchainingall the winds of heaven in their path.

Three spacioushalls opened from the Atrium. In thecentre was the Tablinum, containinghe archives of thefamily. The two others,rightand left,ere dedicatedto the AlcSyor sculpturedimagesof their ancestors, eachportraitnd statue standingin a separate niche,with thenames, titles,onours,and great or littleactions,s thecase may be, of the individual engraven on the base. .

Around the remainingportionsf the Atrium,werethe Tricliniae,r festive halls,where, under pillarsgarlandedwith laurel,the guests lay on soft couches,strewed with rose leaves, their brows wreathed withfresh flowers,quaffingsparklingFalemian in jewelledcups. These Tricliniae were disposedso as to suit thevarious seasons : the summer halls faced the north,thoseoccupiedin the springand autumn the east,while for thewinter the west was preferred.For the mezza stagione

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of the buUding,used as a privatepromenade for exerciseor contemplation.

Such were the abodes ^magnificentut cold andcomfortless ^inwhich the

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