CIVIL ARCHITECTURE. 



621 



Fracticf." very beautiful guilochi. A small fillet and bead divides 

 " ^t""^ this guilochi from the dentils ; and they are only divided 

 from the modillions by an enriched ovolo. Over the 

 modillions projects the corona, having its face enriched 

 by a double fret ; and a small fillet and twisted ribbon 

 divides this from a large semi recta, fully enriched with 

 the acanthus leaf, Corinthian caulicola and masques. 

 This seems to have been as rich an entablature as could 

 be devised ; and, in order to obtain richness, elegance 

 has been sacrificed, by annihilating the deep Greek frieze, 

 and converting the whole entablature into a massy cor- 

 nice. There are no means of knowing, whether there 

 has been any attic placed upon this entablature. The 

 peristyle stood upon a basement of rough masonry, 

 which it is thought was intended to be covered by a sub- 

 basement of large square stones, like those which now 

 'erracc. form one row of a terrace, along the north and west 

 sides. The length of these stones are from 31 to 35 feet ; 

 their breadth, besides the projection of the mouldings, 

 is 10 feet 5 inches ; and their thickness is 13 feet. Our 

 travellers could not get to measure the height and 

 breadth of the stones which composed the second row ; 

 but they found the length of three stones to make above 

 190 feet, viz. 63 feet 8 inches + 64 + 63 feet. 



The next object is the smaller thoHgh more perfect 

 temple ; it stands upon lower ground tnan the former; 

 its length over the columns measures 222 feet, and 114 

 Smaller feet 7 inches in breadth, so that even this smaller temple 

 tmplc, is longer than that of Minerva Parthenon in the Acro- 

 polis at Athens. It consists of 8 columns in front, and 

 15 on the sides ; their diameter is 6 feet 5 inches, the in - 

 tercolumns 8 feet 6 inches, and 8 feet 10^ inches, and 9 

 feet ; that of the entrance is 1 1 feet 6 inches. Along 

 the front are two rows of columns, besides other two in 

 a line with the pilasters or antic of the porch ; along the 

 sides and the other end there is one row only ; these lat- 

 ter stand 9 feet 8^, and 9 feet 9 inches from the wall of 

 the cell. The height of the order, including a plinth 1 

 foot 9 inches, upon which each column stands, is 76 feet 



6 inches, being one and a half of the height of that of 

 the Parthenon ; therefore, in point of dimensions, even 

 this edifice commands admiration. The entablature so 

 exactly resembles that of the great temple, that it is un- 

 necessary to repeat the description. The pedestal, upon 

 which the order is elevated, measures 16 feet 4 inches 

 in height, and is ascended by a stair in front 97 feet in 

 length, to the level of the floor of the portico and temple. 

 The soffit, or lacunari, between the columns of the peri- 

 style and wall of the cell, all round the temple, is fully 

 enriched with sunk and moulded pannelling, they are 

 in hexagonal, rhomboidal, and triangular forms ; those 

 which are rhomboidal contain busts of gods and heroes ; 

 the hexagonal contains entire figures of Leda, Ganymede, 



Vtitibulf. &c. all cut in marble in alto relievo. In the vestibule, 

 the distance from the inner side of the second column in 

 front to the entrance of the cell is 50 feet ; the entrance 

 door is 41 feet high, and 21 feet 4 inches wide ; the side 

 architraves are each of one piece, and those, as well as 

 the frieze and flat cornice, are highly and delicately en- 

 riched ; the architrave is 4 feet in breadth. On each 

 side of this doorway there is a small staircase in the 

 middle of the wall ; and in the anterior angle of the cell, 

 at this place, there are two small portions of columns 

 clustered together. Along three fourths of the length 

 of each side there is a colonnade, but instead of being in- 

 sulated or attached to the wall, there is first square 

 projections of two feet, placed at the distance of 6 feet 



7 inches from each other, upon the face of which are at- 

 tached semi-calumns 4 feet 1 inch diameter, which, add- 



Interior of 

 the cell. 



ed to the former, makes a projection of 4 feet. This or- Prtctice^ 

 der stands upon a pedestal 1 1 feet high, the order itself *~~"V "* 

 measuring 49 feet, making the whole height from the 

 floor to the springing of the arched roof 60 feet ; the 

 columns are fluted, and'also the flat frieze ; the small beads 

 and upper members of the architrave are enriched, as is 

 the whole of the cornice. It was judged that this part of 

 the cell had been arched with ribs, corresponding to each 

 pillar below, springing from the top of the entablature, 

 and having their soffits enriched by guilochi, and the 

 spaces between the ribs by sunk moulded square pannel- 

 ling. Upon the face of the wall between the columns, 

 there are arched recesses with enriched imposts and ar- 

 chitraves ; and over these, upon a moulded bracket, 

 stands a regular entablature and pointed pediment. At 

 three fourths the length of the cell, there is an ascent by 

 steps to the height of 11 feet above the level of the floor 

 of the body of the cell. Upon this level two semi-co- 

 lumns, each united to a pilaster, divide off this remain- 

 ing space or thalamus, which is also ornamented by smaller Thalamui. 

 pilasters, some of them in two heights with arched re- 

 cesses or niches between them ; there is a vaulted space 

 under this raised floor, which also descends lower than 

 the other or general floor. 



The only other remaining edifice is the small circu- gmall cir- 

 lar temple 32 feet in diameter, filled with tabernacles, of cutar tem- 

 which the peculiarity is that the entablature of the low- p^. 

 cr range is continued uninterrupted round the apart- 

 ment, and that in the space between these in the upper 

 range there stand single insulated columns ; over the 

 whole there passes a full entablature, and some of the 

 stones, which composed the arched roof, still remain. The 

 external order stands upon a pedestal 12 feet high j the 

 order itself, including a plinth 1 foot 9 inches, is 39 feet 

 high ; the columns are 3 feet 1 inch diameter ; the floor 

 of the temple is upon a level with the level of the top of 

 the pedestal, and is arrived at by means of a stair 19 feet 

 in length ; here 4 columns stand in a straight line, and 

 a small segment is cut off the edge of Jthe circle where 

 the entrance doorway is placed ; this forms a portico aO 

 feet in length. The remainder of the external circumfe- 

 rence is encompassed by five reversed semicircle?, each 

 24 feet diameter, and upon each of the points where they 

 meet, which is 12 feet from the face of the wall, stands 

 a column, between which the entablature, passing in the 

 same circular manner as the basis, forms five semicircles. 

 Opposite to each of these columns there is a pilaster up- 

 on the wall of the cell, and between these are enriched 

 niches upon pedestals. Under the soffit of the general 

 entablature, the upper part of the wall of the cell, be- 

 tween the before mentioned pilasters, is ornamented by 

 festoons of flowers held up by boys. The whole edi- 

 fice has a very light and striking effect. 



We have entered more into detail respecting the ar- ~ 

 f.. r TI i IT, ii /-. General 



chitecture of Palmyra and Balbec, because it is of sin- olwcrva- 



gular magnificence at this extremity of the Roman em- tions. 

 pire ; and having been faithfully measured and delinea- 

 ted, the different edifices afford accurate and perfect 

 specimens of the style of the age in which they were 

 constructed. It appears nearly certain, that the temple 

 of the Sun at Balbec was built under the Roman em- 

 peror JEAiaa Antoninus Pius ; and not only the other 

 temple adjacent thereto, but the court and temple of the 

 Sun at Palmyra, having so strict a resemblance in their 

 general forms and sculptured ornaments, that we cannot 

 help attributing the whole to the same people and pe- 

 riod. 



Our limits not admitting of more specimens of the 

 Roman oblong temples, we must therefore proeecd to 

 4 



