WHENCE THE ART OF ROME? 277 



He can not stop to scrutinize the features and study 

 the characters of the several gods, but bestows an 

 inquiring look upon the Column of Phocas, then 

 admires the ' k Ruin of the Three Columns," or rem- 

 nant of the Temple of Vespasian. Now he beholds 

 for the first time the grandeur of the Forum, Romanum. 

 A few years ago the complex ruin was buried in "cos- 

 mic dust" and the accumulated debris of centuries. 

 Once it was the richest in architectural beauty of any 

 place of the same size in the world. But after the 

 Gauls had sacked the city, and overturned what they 

 could not utterly destroy, the proud Forum became a 

 herding ground for cattle, and a breeding place for 

 bats and lizards. Sand drifted into the crevices and 

 open spaces, until a mass of rubbish alone could be 

 seen. The population of ancient Rome shrank from 

 two millions to a few thousands ; and each succeeding 

 year added to the obscurity of the city's pristine 

 splendor. Buried in forgetfulness was the Cloaca 

 Maxima, lost to view was the beautiful Temple of 

 Vesta, filled with river sediment was the Career Mam- 

 ertinus, undiscoverable were the Temples of Saturn, 

 of Castor and Pollux, and of Concord. The Arch of 

 Titus was not to be seen, the Temple of Caesar had 

 disappeared, also that of Faustina, The Colosseum 

 alone showed the top rows of the stupendous audi- 

 torium. Before the Christian Era, this amphitheater 

 was capable of seating and sheltering a hundred thou- 

 sand spectators. In the arena of this great play- 

 house were gladiatorial exhibitions, and fierce fights 

 between wild beasts. In a famous exhibition which 

 lasted a hundred days, it is said that five thousand 

 wild animals were killed or disabled, and hundreds of 

 gladiators bit the dust in contests with short swords. 



