Millingen's Collection of Greek Vases. 225 



catures, for which this kind of painting was perfectly adapted ; 

 and was probably affected to be retained for these subjects, from 

 a spirit of religion. The Athenian coins afford a similar in- 

 stance of affectation of archaism. 



Since I have spoken of the festivals of Bacchus, I must speak 

 also of the mysteries and initiations; because there has been es- 

 tablished, since the time of Passeri and Montfaucon, an opinion, 

 which ascribes all the painted vases to the initiated, whom they 

 accompanied in the tombs. Mr. Millingen has successfully re- 

 futed this opinion. First, it is not founded on the authority of 

 any ancient author. When we discover a collection of tombs, 

 all containing vases more or less precious, will it be asserted that 

 all the dead, whose remains are contained in these tombs, were 

 initiated in the mysteries of Bacchus ? What shall we say of 

 those of children, who could not have been admitted to initiation, 

 and which also contain vases ? 



For what reason were vases placed in, or near the tombs ? The 

 Greeks burned or interred the dead indifferently: as is proved 

 by the vases containing bones and ashes, placed in some tombs, 

 which are surrounded by other tombs, in which the dead are laid 

 upon leaves. The first tombs contain fragments of vases, which 

 were broken when they were thrown upon the funeral pile; those 

 fragments were gathered up with the ashes, and bear evident 

 marks of the action of fire. The vases improperly called La- 

 ckrymulories, which are found in the tombs, and the urns of the 

 Romans, have the same origin. Their arms were interred with 

 warriors, the appendages of the toilet with women ; with both, 

 the vases which had been valued ; which had contained the wine, 

 the oil, the milk, the perfumes used on the bodies, the central 

 water which served for the purifications, the portion of the funeral 

 repast which was consecrated to the dead, &c. Some placed 

 these vases carefully in the tombs, others threw them in and broke 

 them : hence the many fragments of vases, which the restorers 

 artfully collect, filling up tlie vacancies with other pieces which 

 they dexterously paint. (This fraud may be detected by ap- 

 plying acids to the newly painted parts.) 



It is not my design to retrace the history of the discovery of 

 the painted Greek vases, either at Corinth in the time of Julius 

 Caesar, or in Etruria and Campania, on the revival of learning, 

 because these details are to be found in numerous works; nor to 

 repent the explanations of the paintings and of the inscriptions 

 which Lanzi has judiciously restored for the most part to the Greek 

 fables. I cannot, however, ])ass over in silence the explanation 

 given by M. Akcrblad, of the frequently repeated inscription 

 II()lIAr2i KAA():i:, which Mazzochi, Millin, behave read the 



Vol.5-f.No. 257. SV/)MS19. P leaulijul 



