On Animals depicted on Antique Monuments. 61 



presented *. Others again, and Montfaucon is one, not being 

 able to recognise either the journey of Alexander or the vicissi- 

 tudes of fortune, have supposed that Sylla was satisfied with 

 there presenting the shores of Egypt and Ethiopia, and espe- 

 cially the course of the Nile -|-. 



On the other hand, many of the learned have advanced very 

 different opinions. Thus, in the eyes of the Abbe Dubos, the 

 mosaic of Palestrina is nothing more than a kind of geographic 

 chart of Egypt, or of the country watered by the Nile;. 

 Whilst, according to the Abbe Barthelemy, it was destined 

 solely to commemorate the voyage which the Emperor Adrian 

 made into Egypt. Winckelman discovered in it the meeting of 

 Helen and Menelaus, a meeting which took place in Egypt 

 after the tragedy of Euripidus ; Chaupy, that it was intended 

 to represent the exportation of grain from Egypt to Rome § ; 

 whilst, according to Nibby, its object was to represent the festi- 

 vities which they were in the habit of celebrating in Egypt 

 during the inundations of the Nile ||. 



Amidst all these contradictory opinions, there is evidently 

 agreement as to one fact, viz. that the scene represented upon 

 the mosaic of Palestrina was enacted in Egypt and in Ethiopia. 

 If there were any doubt on this point, that doubt would be ef- 

 fectually dissipated by a study of the animals and vegetables 

 that are found represented upon it. This examination, there- 

 fore, will be found useful, not only as connected with the in- 

 quiry which now engages us, but also as it is an antique, which 

 antiquarians with reason have regarded as one of the most cu- 

 rious which have been preserved, and one which Poussin has in 

 part copied in many of his pictures. 



Another particular which seems to be unanimously established 

 is, that the under part of the pavement of this mosaic, that 

 whicli lies to the north, has reference especially to Egypt. This 

 is easily determined, not only because we see the Nile repre- 



" Veter Latium, torn. ix. p. 51. 



f L'Antiquite expliquee. Supplem. torn. iv. p. 148. 



X Reflexions Critique sur la Poc^sie, torn. i. p. 347- 



§ Maison de Compagne de Horace, torn. ii. p. 'iOI. 



II II, Teinpio dcUa Fortiina, Pra-nestiana Roma, 1«25, p. 12. 



