TEMPLES AND OTHER ANTIQUITIES. 25 hospitable of the Agrigentine citizens, turned into his funeral pile at the conquest of the city by the Carthaginians: the barbarians being about to violate the sanctity of his asylum, he set fire to the edifice, and was consumed together with his treasures and his friends: the platform of a temple is certainly visible on this spot. At a short distance in the descent below, is one of those large quarries which supplied materials for the buildings we have been describing; the stone is a concretion of sand and small shells, of a yellowish tint, and would not, I think, be very durable, except in such a climate as this, where the effects of damp and frost are rarely felt: but there is good reason to believe, that all the public edifices were coated with a fine cement. From the summit of the Rupe Atenea the eye ranges over one of the finest prospects imaginable, comprehending the modern city and the ancient ruins, the surrounding hills, every one of which is noted for some Grecian, Roman, or Carthaginian encampment, the more distant mountains, and the grand expanse of the Medi terranean sea. Proceeding to the south-west angle of the platform, we find a very antique Grecian temple, transformed into a modern church, and dedicated to St. Blaze; for this conversion the simplicity of its style peculiarly adapted it, being of that species which is called "in Antis" or “iv wagasaow,” not containing an interior cella, nor surrounded by a peristyle; its only external ornament being a pediment supported by two Doric columns between the Antæ, or pilasters, at the angles *: its dwelt under the same roof, were styled Θέοι σύνναοι, ὁμόνοι, or συνέσιοι· and Deos Contubernales by the Latins. Καὶ γὰρ 'Αθηναία παρὰ δι χθόνιον Βασιλήα Herod. Att. Rhet. v. 30. Jupiter enim sine contubernio conjugis filiæque coli non potest. Lactant. de fals. relig. c. xi. § 39. Cicero calls Cæsar Quirini contubernalem,' because his statue was placed in the temple_of_Quirinus. Ad Att. lib. xiii. ep. 28. Somewhat similar is the Christian dedication of churches to St. Peter and St. Paul, St. Michael and All Saints, &c. * Parietes qui cellam circumcludunt, habent in (utrâque) fronte antas, et inter antas in medio columnas duas. 26 MODERN CITY OF GIRGENTI. extreme length is ninety-one feet, and its breadth forty. Some suppose this to have been the temple of Proserpine, to which Pindar may allude, when he calls Agrigentum the seat of Proserpine *; (Pepepévas (Φερσεφόνας dus) others consider it as a joint temple of Proserpine and Ceres, though it is generally ascribed to the latter deity alone; this, however, is a matter of little consequence. A grand flight of broad steps cut in the rock on the south side, led from hence towards the city, the interior of which is now divided into farms and vineyards, though the direction of its principal streets may still be traced by the deep-worn furrows of the chariot-wheels: but solitude has succeeded to the tumultuous throng which once circulated there; corn waves over the regal mansion of Phalaris †, and the reign of silence is disturbed only by the shepherd's pipe or reaper's song. The modern city of Girgenti occupies the summit of Mount Camicus, the seat of Cocalus §, that most ancient and powerful king of the Sicanians; it was fortified by the Cretan Dedalus, who fled hither to avoid the rage of Minos, and in succeeding times it served probably as a citadel to Agrigentum... It would be difficult to trace the progress of its decay, for want of authentic records under Roger the Norman its consequence revived a little, when it was erected into a bishop's see by Pope Urban II. The cathedral is a fine building modernized, and contains some valuable remains of antiquity; the most curious is a fine sarcophagus, said to have been restored to the Agrigentines, with many other treasures, by Scipio Africanus: its animated sculpture is supposed to represent the : * Pyth. Od. xii. 3. + A farm-house belonging to the Bishop of Girgenti, once the convent of St. Nicolo, is supposed to occupy a part of its site: some travellers talk of the remains of a theatre in this vicinity, but I could discover none. I believe that no historian makes mention of such an edifice at Agrigentum, except Julius Frontinus, in his third Book of Stratagems, but his text is evidently corrupted, and for Agrigentum we ought to read Catania. It is so named by Herodotus, Aristotle and Strabo; but Pausanias, if his text be not corrupt, calls it Inycus (in Achaic. c. iv. 5.). § Siciliæ primo Trinacria nomen fuit; postea Sicania cognominata est. Hæc à principio patria Cyclopum fuit; quibus extinctis, Cocalus regnum insulæ occupavit; post quem singulæ civitates in tyrannorum imperium concesserunt, quorum nulla terra feracior fuit. Justin. lib. iv. c. 2. death of Phintias, a tyrant who was expelled from Agrigentum, and killed in a wild-boar chase at Carthage*; though others pronounce it the death of Adonis, or the adventures of Hippolytus t. The shrine of San Gherlando, first bishop of Girgenti, is composed of massive silver finely wrought. The bones of this venerable impostor were discovered by his own spectre to an affrighted sexton, who neglecting to make known so important an acquisition, was nightly visited, and at length scourged terribly by the enraged ghost: the bones were then dug up, canonized, enshrined, and the poor sexton slept peaceably in his bed. In the church of Sta. Maria dei Greci, near the cathedral, are some remains of the very ancient temple of Jupiter Polyænus, in constructing which, the tyrant Phalaris took an opportunity of usurping the sovereignty; there is also an excellent public library, bequeathed to his native city by Don Andrea Lucchese, of the family of Campo Franco. It contains about 20,000 volumes, and is rich in the best editions of the classics, topography, antiquities, and a cabinet of medals; though this latter has been considerably reduced by the visits of antiquarians. Let the traveller seize the earliest opportunity of inspecting the library and consulting its treasures, for it is shut on all festivals, and he may find it difficult to make his way through that army of Saints and Martyrs, which the Romish calendar has stationed to block up the avenues of knowledge. Girgenti is a meanly built town, containing little worthy of notice, except its extreme poverty, that usual concomitant of a weak and oppressive government: it reckons about 15,000 inhabitants, eleven convents of monks, six of nuns, five parish churches, including the cathedral, and a large col * A representation of the coins of this tyrant with the legend ΒΑΣΙΛΕΣ ΦΙΝΤΙA is given by Mionnet, vol. i. p. 339. The obverse is marked by a beautiful head of Diana with her quiver, and the reverse by the figure of a wild-boar; some have the laureated head of Apollo, and a horse in full gallop. + The reader has now the power of exercising his own judgment upon this subject, since very fine casts of the monument are preserved in the British Museum. I understand that the same cause acts almost as a prohibition of access to the library of the Vatican for any useful purpose of learning. It is shut not only on saint's days, but also on their vigils and octaves. 28 FESTIVAL AT THE DOMINICAN CONVENT. lege, in which Divinity, Ethics, and the Belles Lettres are supposed to be taught by able professors. The streets are narrow, miserably paved, and for the most part inaccessible to carriages, or even mules, on account of their steep and craggy acclivities: they swarm with ragged children, whose numbers attest the noted fecundity of the women*: the place does not contain an inn fit for the accommodation of an Hottentot; the filth of that into which we were at first introduced was perfectly revolting, common decency will not allow of its description. In the absence therefore of a Gellias, we accepted the hospitality of the venerable Padre Scrivani, sub-prior of the Dominican convent, who put us in full possession of his neat and comfortable apartments. Nothwithstanding all that may have been said against them, we found the monks of Sicily in these days, with a few exceptions, neither rich nor luxurious. The Benedictines of Catania, indeed, inhabit a most superb palace; their revenues are princely, and their fraternity all of noble birth. The annual stipend of our host did not exceed forty-five dollars; the daily fare in the refectory was of Pythagorean simplicity; a little shell-fish, eggs, salad, and bread, formed the principal diet, wine being very moderately used, and meat rarely seen the robust and ruddy appearance, therefore, of the religious orders, might be ascribed by their advocates to the effects of temperance rather than of luxury: out of their scanty revenues they make a daily distribution of bread or soup to the poor, and afford lodging to those who would otherwise depend upon casual benevolence. Bating therefore the injury done to religious truth, by their spiritual occupations, which consist chiefly in the propagation of legendary impostures, and the infusion of saintly virtue into wax candles, I can scarcely agree with those who would drive them out of society like drones from the hive. Whilst we resided in this convent, we had an opportunity of witness * Fazzello mentions the case of an Agrigentine woman, in his own time, who brought forth seventythree children at thirty births; the credibility of which, he endeavours to confirm by examples ancient and modern. (De reb. Sic. Dec. Pr. lib. vi.) EXCAVATIONS AMONG THE TOMBS. 29 ing the festival of its patron saint. Night and day were both made hideous by the constant sound of drums, trumpets, and pateraroes, with processions of mummeries, in which every convent of the city endeavoured to distinguish itself by the most pompous display, and each sturdy monk endeavoured to carry a crucifix more ponderous than his fellow. Our worthy host was field-marshal on this occasion, and no general ever shewed greater activity in the disposal of his forces; he was up at least ten times during the night to fire off his trains of pateraroes, and at each exhibition of fire-works, he discharged rockets, and exploded mines with the precision of an engineer. After these laborious 'duties, he sat with all the dignity of a conqueror, beneath a splendid canopy, surrounded by different orders of monks and friars, to hear a Te Deum chaunted in the chapel, which was brilliantly illuminated: between each pause a band of drummers, on their knees, beat their detestable instruments with a violence bordering upon phrensy, till they deafened the very ears of the audience, and two of the performers were carried out of the chapel in a state of complete exhaustion: these rallies were accompanied by cries and groans, and vehement exclamations from the people, who pressed forward with a tumultuous zeal, to kiss the crucifixes which the monks held out, and to touch them with their tapers. The pageant concluded with a sermon, by a very celebrated orator, whose chief excellence consisted in the tremendous tones of his voice, and an action so furious as to approach the gestures of a maniac. The discourse was delivered, according to custom, extempore, and lasted more than an hour; the pronunciation was so rapid, that I could with difficulty catch its meaning, except that it treated generally upon mysteries; at times the preacher apostrophized a large crucifix, which another monk held behind him in the pulpit, and then the audience seemed affected by a violent sobbing, groaning, and vehement exclamation. It was near eleven o'clock when the assembly dispersed: I expected to have found our venerable host exhausted by fatigue; but he entered our room in |