DOR

299

DOR

,,s C0V|

v as

^ese

e itr,

®. red within the area, it is conjectured that the building

not

a temple, but an open portico, perhaps an agora ;e miti UmQS are 011 ^ fl uted at their upper and lower

find thg V ' n fi> -Attica, we shall now pass into Sicily , where we?fi lj or j rema ins of one of the most astonishing specimensa n?e hi?i, arc ^’ tuc ture, surpassing in magnitude all that we<, Upit ep noticed. This is the celebrated temple of

?fi*ch yl y™P ius at Agrigentum, now called Girgenti , and^ \y ag .' r S’fi styled, from a neighbouring river, Agragas.jft 0r din 6 Wea fithiest and most powerful city of Sicily , and,*00,000® t0 fifi*°g en 6s Laertius , contained within its territoryar >d P e rsons. ‘ The temples of Agrigentum , numerous^nte ^ as they are, appear to have arisen during little

jtce a a single century. The prosperity and independ-

^f°rg q, . cit y commenced with Theron, about 450 yearsda flSt ’ a ^ ter tbe battle of Himera, (fought on theUr ned ? s that of Salamis), his thoughts were entirelylts decorations, and the Carthaginian prisoners? Perp et 6 fi° as sist by their labour in the erection of trophies

. a te thft fflfirv nf flipir />nnnnpTV,r'a r I' 1111 A rrv i I r P n _

c °ntit,

the glory of their conquerors. The Agrigen-i ^8 S (hj 1 “ Ued * n this employment until a second and moreft Coia pl t ' lnvas * on °fi" the Carthaginians found them occupied! ^ ’®larid lfl ® tbe temple of Jupiter Olympius, the greatest in; ti^ and one °f the most stupendous monuments of

^°ssal 6 tem P,fi e of Jupiter was, in its proportions, trulyt 0t *d o fit ranked among ancient Greek temples asi ift fion» n ^ to that of Diana at Ephesus , (which was 4251 (/ ^ead'th ^ feet in breadth ); it was 369 feet in length,i 0r >s fi82 feet, and its height 120 feet, in which dimen-at j,hj°ckerell is of opinion that it exceeded the build-t^Ple th pllesus - Unlike other Doric structures, in thispf es e c °lumns are not detached from the walls, thus( J'avgf etl t only the appearance of half-columns ; these,fieeri feet in diameter, so that if the columns

'i^than a ^ en g a ged, their circumference would have been5. 'figypt' ^ eet> a dimension exceeding the largest columnsI5 ted ^ latl ar cliitecture. (The Roman - Doric column,’J’|. f eet fi f C. Wren, called the Monument, is onlytv? e<fti n diameter, though of a proportion much loftier ).

t(i(' , .'' r efigj l | n S 211 tons; the triglyphs are in single stones,ill fi2i tons ; few of the stones employed in the

* ft** 6 °f t)' Ve '®fi 1 fi eas tban 8 tons ; and a man could stand^ll^trt vft, flutings of the columns. As compared withW? 8 t^Q adding, we may observe, that the width of thee ic(. j . more than the nave of St. Paul’s, and theV ^ cqIu fifi b y I® feet. The front portico, in which!Si r ep r rnns > tad the battle between the Gods and the1 )ik ? 0 ty, asente d in the pediment; and in that of the otherU v i a ‘

°f the capitals is formed of two large stones,

V y

;'N

ip sculptured a representation of the siege of

of ,. fich each hero was distinguished by the pecu-

douKi dress an d arms. (Diodorus ). In the interior

ft^l • tu r °' v of pilasters ranging like the pillars of a

%> figi ae a ttic story above the pilasters was supported

C>r, re3 of the rebellious and defeated giants, most

-t Ptaced there to contribute to the glory of,, f !W ‘ .1—-

' l f c,

, ft lo^^re

"> X nc fi'

A>th,

whose power they dared to oppose. Thethe Titans are as vast as the other parts

being 25 feet in height; with heads alonees > and chests 3 feet across.

j -— wnvivvu V AV'V'V UU1VOOI

Xm * temples of Agrigentum were very numerous ;

(Ijpp 1 ^00, by Sir Richard Colt Hoare , 11 could be"fi f 5 °fi stages of dilapidation. The next in size

lo^'tcr was one dedicated to Hercules, which wasv - _ a nd 55 feet broad, having 6 Doric fluted

columns in each front, and 14 on each flank ; the columnswere 7 feet in diameter at bottom, and only 4 feet 10 inchesbelow the capitals, showing a very great diminution.

“ At Selinus , or Selinuntium, (so called from the greatquantity of parsley, creXivov), on the southern coast of Sicily ,were six magnificent Doric temples, probably the largestever erected in this style, and which appear to have beenoverthrown by an earthquake. One of these is believedto have been 331 feet long, and 161 feet broad, withcolumns 60 feet high ; a stone, which is supposed to haveformed part of an architrave, is 40 feet long, 7 feet deep,and 3 feet thick, and some of the columns were found to be12 feet in diameter, and others 10 feet 10 inches, and48 feet high. Near these ruins were the remains of ahexastyle - peripteral temple, computed to have been 186feet long, and 76 feet broad on its upper step, and to havehad 36 columns in all, 6 feet 8 inches in diameter. Anothertemple, not far from these, was 232 feet by 83 feet on itsupper step, with fluted columns, 6 in each front, and 16on the flanks. The other three temples are supposed to havebeen unfinished when they were thrown down. One ofthese had porticos of 7 columns in front, with 17 on eachflank ; another had 6 columns in the porticos, and 16 oneach flank. In the quarry near Campo Bello, whence itis presumed the materials were derived, are yet some shaftsof columns, 10 feet in diameter, and one of 12 feet, stilljoined to their natural bed of stone. Mr. Woods measuredone block of an architrave, 26 feet 2 inches long, 4 feet9 inches wide, and 6 feet 10 inches high. The city was,409 b.c., nearly destroyed by the Carthaginians.

“ At Segeste , the ancient .TEgesta, is a famous Grecian-Doric temple, almost entire, standing in a splendid situationon the brow of a precipice. There are 6 columns in eachfront, and 14 at each side, making 36 in all; these areabout 30 feet high ; the length of the building is 190 feet,its width 78 feet ; the stones composing the architrave areof great size, and one extends over two columns ; the date ofits erection, as well as the nature of its dedication, areunknown. The columns, which are fluted, are 6 feet 7inches in diameter at the base, and 4 feet 11 inches belowthe capital.

“ In a notice of Grecian-Doric architecture, we must notomit to speak of some ancient temples in Italy , namely,at Paestum , the ancient Posidonium, so denominated fromits tutelary god, Neptune, who, by the Greeks, was calledn oa-etSo/y. From its unhealthiness, the place had, in veryearly times, fallen into decay, and Augustus visited thetemples as venerable antiquities in his day; but they werecompletely forgotten, until in 1755 discovered by an artistof Naples. Among the ruins, which are very extensive,are three buildings of imposing character ; two of them aretemples. The temple of Neptune, raised on 3 steps, was194 feet long, and 78 feet broad, having 6 fluted columnsin each front, and 14, (including the angular ones), at eachside. The entablature and capitals were equal to half theheight of the columns, of which the shafts only were 27 feet,the lower diameters 6 feet 10 inches, the upper diameter4 feet 8 inches, and with 24 flutings ; the intercolumns are7 feet 7 inches wide. The cell is 90 feet by 43 feet, having14 columns in 2 rows, with shafts 16 feet 11 inches high,4 feet 9 inches in diameter, and with 20 flutings. Thesecolumns support a deep architrave, on which rises anotheiset of columns, about 11 feet high. The largest stone inthis building is 13 feet 8 inches by 4 feet 8 inches by 2 feet3 inches. Professor Wilkins, in this temple, detects a closeresemblance to the temple of Solomon, ( Prolusiones ). Thetemple of Ceres is in a lighter style than the former building.

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