HIP

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HIP

draw lines from tlie centres and ends of the beams, perpen-dicular to the ridge-line, and lay out the two sides of the roof2 and 3, by making e d at 3 equal to m in 1, the length ofthe longest common rafter, and ca in 3 equal to u fy at a, andso on with all the other rafters.

To find the winding of this roof. —Take y Sf, half the baseof the shortest rafter, and apply this to the base of the longestrafter from z to 1; then the distance from 1 to 2 shows thequantity of winding.

To lay the sides in winding. —Lay a straight beam alongthe top ends of the rafters at e, that is, from c to e, and layanother beam along the line A B, parallel to it, to take theends of the hip-rafters at m and l, and the beams to be madeout of winding at first. Raise the beam that lies from a to b,at the point b, to the distance 1 2 above the level; whichbeam, being thus raised, will elevate all the ends of therafters gradually, the same as they would be when in theirplaces.

The same is to be understood of the other side d ; the endsare laid down in the same manner as in making a triangle ofany three dimensions.

In this example, the purlins are supposed to be framed intothe sides of the rafters flush, so that the lop of the purlinsmay be flush with the back of the rafters. The manner offraming the dragon beams and diagonal ties, is shown at theangles.

Plate IY. —Figure 7, shows the manner of framing a roofwhen the sides are square. The purlins are prepared tobridge over the rafters, which are notched out of the sidesnext to the back, in order to receive them.

HIPPIUM, in antiquity, that part of the hippodromewhich was beaten by the horses’ feet.

HIPPODROME, (from the Latin , hippodromus, composedof <7nroc, horse, and Bpogog, course, of the verb Speym, curro, Irun,) in antiquity, a list, or course, wherein chariot andhorse-races were performed, and horses exercised.

The Olympian hippodrome, or horse-course, was a spaceof ground 600 paces long, surrounded witli a wall, near thecity Elis, and on the banks of the river Alpheus. It wasuneven, and in some degree irregular, on account of the situ-ation ; in one part was a hill of moderate height, and thecircuit was adorned with temples, altars, and other embellish-ments. Pausanias has given us the following account of thishippodrome, or horse-course :—“ As you pass out of thestadium, by the seat of the Hellanodics, into the placeappointed for the horse-races, you come to the barrier (aipteig)where the horses and chariots rendezvous before they enterinto the course. This barrier, in its figure, resembles theprow of a ship, with the rostrum or beak turned towards thecourse. The other end, which joins on to the portico ofAgaptus, (so called from him who built it) is very broad. Atthe extremity of the rostrum or beak, over a bar that runsacross the entrance (ewi Kavovog,) is placed a figure of adolphin in brass. (This dolphin is a symbol of Neptune, sur-named Hippian or Equestrian , for his having produced a horseby striking the earth with his trident, according to the fable ;without the recollection of this circumstance, the readermight be surprised to meet with the figure of a dolphin in ahorse-course.) On the two sides of the barrier, each of whichis above 400 feet in length, are built stands or lodges, as wellfor the riding-horses as the chariots, which are distributedby lot among the competitors in those races ; and before allthese lodges is stretched a cable, from one end to the other,to serve the purpose of a barrier. About the middle of theprow is erected an altar, built of unburnt brick, which, everyOlympiad, is plastered over with fresh mortar; and upon thealtar stands a brazen eagle, which spreads out its wings to a

great length. This eagle, by means of a machine, which isput in motion by the president of the horse-races, is madeto mount up at once to such a height in the air, as to becomevisible to all the spectators; and, at the same time, thebrazen dolphin before mentioned sinks to the ground. Uponthat signal, the cables stretched before the lodges, on eitherside of the portico of Agaptus, are first let loose, and thehorses there stationed move out and advance, till they comeover against the lodges of those who drew the second lot,which are then likewise opened. The same order is observedby all the rest, and in this manner they proceed through thebeak or rostrum ; before which they are drawn up in oneline, or front, ready to begin the race, and make trial of theskill of the charioteers and fleetness of the horses. On thatside of the course, which is formed by a terrace raised withearth, and which is the largest of the two sides, near to thepassage that leads out of the course across the terrace, standsan altar, of a round figure, dedicated to Taraxippus, the terrorof the horses, as his name imports. The other side of thecourse is formed, not by a terrace of earth, but a hill ofmoderate height, at the end of which is erected a temple,consecrated to Ceres Chamyne, whose priestess has the privi-lege of seeing the Olympic games.”

There is a very famous hippodrome at Constantinople ,which was began by Alexander Severus , and finished byConstantine . This circus, called by the Turks Atmeidan, is400 paces long, and above 100 paces wide, i. e. geometricalpaces of five feet each. "Wheeler says, it was in length about550 ordinary paces, and in breadth about 120; or, allowingeach pace to be five feet, 2,750 feet long and 600 broad. Atthe entrance of the hippodrome there is a pyramidal obeliskof granite, in one piece, about 50 feet high, terminating in apoint, and charged with hieroglyphics, erected on a pedestalof eight or ten feet above the ground. The Greek and Latin inscriptions on its base show that it was erected by Theodo-sius ; the machines that were employed to raise it wererepresented upon it in basso-relievo.

The beauty of the hippodrome at Constantinople has beenlong since defaced by the rude hands of the Turkish conque-rors ; but, under the similar appellation of Atmeidan, it stillserves as a place of exercise for their horses. Whether theOlympic hypodrome was so long or so tvide as this of Con-stantinople , it is not now easy to determine ; but it mustevidently have been considerably longer than an ordinarystadium, in order to allow for the turnings of the chariotsand horses round the pillars which served as metas or goals,without running against them, or against one another. Thelength of the course, or the distance between the two metasor goals, is not easily ascertained. It is probable, however,that the two pillars, viz., that from which the horses started,and that round which they turned, which divided the courseinto two equal lengths, were two stadia distant from eachother ; consequently, the whole length of the race, for achariot drawn by full-aged horses, consisting of 12 rounds,amounted to 48 stadia, or six Grecian miles ; and that of thechariot drawn by colts consisted of eight rounds, or 32 stadia,or four Grecian miles—a Grecian mile, according to Arbuth-not’s computation, being somewhat more than 800 paces,whereas an English mile is equal to 1,056. Pausaniasinforms us, that in the Olympic hippodrome, near that pillarcalled Nysse, probably that which was erected at the lowerend of the course, stood a brazen statue of Hippodamia,holding in her hand a sacred fillet or diadem, prepared tobind the head of Pelops for his victory over CEnomaus ; andit is probable that the whole space between the pillars wasfilled with statues or altars, as that in the hippodrome atConstantinople seems to have been. Here, however, stood