648 



SCIENCE. 



rVoi,. II., No. 41. 



•of the troubles brought by the Persian occupation of 

 the land, the city declined; and when, under Lysi- 

 xaachos, its walls were rebuilt, the entire enclosure 

 north of the acropolis was relinquished. The walls 

 partially overthrown by sieges were not considered of 

 sufficient value to be worth repairing, and a connect- 

 ing-wall was built to the acropolis. This noble mass 

 of masonry of the fourth century B.C. (fig. 1), rising 

 in many places to some sixty feet in height, was 

 joined so accurately that the blade of a pen-knife 

 cannot be introduced between the stones. It was 

 this portion of the wall that gave Col. Leake his 

 well-known opinion 'that Assos was the finest repre- 

 sentative of a Greek city in existence. Under tlie 

 favorable dominion of the Romans, the commercial 

 city greatly increased, and finally re-occupied the space 

 north of the acropolis; new escarps (III,, fig. 2) being 

 built in front of the old walls, and enclosing them 

 •entirely. But to enter in any degree into details 

 would lead vis too far afield, ranging, as the fortifica- 

 tions do, through a tliousand years, down to the time 

 of Constantine; for the masonry in some parts, es- 



of note, that most of the inscriptions were found in 

 the slides of earth beneath this part of the agora, 

 evidently having been thrown down during the 

 troubles ot the city. The building is exactly parallel 

 in character to the only other bouleuterion known, 

 — that in the Altis at Olympia; or, rather, it is like 

 the inner portion of that structure, there being at 

 Olympia halls on either side ot a central structure like 

 the bouleuterion of A?sos. 



The building which borders the agora on the south 

 is absolutely unique. It is the only instance of a 

 Greek bath known, and the only four-story ancient 

 building ever recovered. Fortunately, we have been 

 able perfectly to restore it. Its arrangement is ex- 

 tremely curious and interesting. It consisted of an 

 enormous hall going through two stories, with twenty- 

 six chambers upon its side. Above this entire struc- 

 ture was a colonnade, the floor of which was upon the 

 level of the agora. In front of the stoa was an enor- 

 mous basin for the reception of water, covered by 

 stone lintels, and payed, so that it was not visible to 

 the persons on the market-place. From it ran a sub- 



of oldest polygonal city -wall (I.), with extension in irregular masonry antedating the i^ei 

 reveted, after the age of Lysimachos, with an escarp of squared blocks (III.). 



(11.); ■both 



pecially towards the eastern side of the city, closely 

 resembles the ramparts of Constantinople. 



The buildings of the agora, or market-place, of 

 Assos, are so interesting and well connected that 

 they are superior to those of all other Greek cities; 

 and, notwithstanding the elaborate works of the many 

 writers who have investigated and described the 

 market-place of Pompeii, we may unhesitatingly as- 

 sert the agora of Assos to be not only more interesting, 

 but more completely known, than the forum ot that 

 city. The enormous stoa, or colonnade, a hundred 

 and ten metres in length, was built, it may be with 

 reason assumed, by the architect of that surrounding 

 the temjile of Athena Polias at Pergamon, which has 

 so recently been excavated. It is constructed of the 

 stone of the acropolis, an andesite much resem- 

 bling granite ; and a comparison between the forms 

 given to this material and to the marble mouldings 

 of Pergamon is most instructive. Being ceiled with 

 wood, it needed only one support behind every second 

 column of the front. Next to it, and apparently of 

 the same date, is the bouleuterion, or building in 

 which the archives of the city were kept. It is worthy 



terranean conduit to the lower story of the bath-room, 

 and there wefe arrangements for the water to flow 

 into the thirteen lower cells. The refuse-water was 

 then led into a larger basin beneath the bath-building. 

 There was another reservoir to receive the water from 

 its roof. This connected with the street, and so 

 formed an enormous fountain, giving pure water 

 for the consumption of the people ; while the water 

 of the refuse-basin adjoining it was used for the cool- 

 ing of the theatre. 



Next to the bath was built, in later times, a small 

 hereon, in wliicli the bodies of the benefactors of the 

 city were deposited, their names being inscribed on 

 the entablature. We opened three sarcophagi, which 

 contained only strigils, small vases, and the bones of 

 the dead. 



The changes of plan observable in the agora are 

 peculiarly interesting. In early times there was an 

 Inclined plane ascending from a lower street to its 

 level; but, when the hereon was intruded, the passage 

 became so narrow that it had to be turned, and trans- 

 formed into a stairway. Two fine mosaics of com- 

 paratively early date were found just below the 



