128 



E. J. SEWELL, ESQ.^ ON POMPEII. 



The first temple 1 shall mention is that which is prohably the 

 oldest, the temple of Apollo, on the west side. This temple is 

 one about which our information is most complete and satis- 

 factory. The Oscan inscriptions in tlie temple, together with 

 much other evidence, show that, in very early times, the Oscans 

 of Pompeii received from the Greeks who settled on this coast 

 of Italy the cult of Apollo. The fine large temple dedicated to 

 that god is in alignment with the older streets of the town, but 

 out of alignment with the colonnades of the Forum ; and tlie 

 devices used to prevent this fact from offending the eye show 

 pretty clearly that the temple was built before these colonnades 

 were put up. 



Then, again, the building was in excellent order when it was 

 covered up by volcanic ash, and buried out of sight. The erup- 

 tion of Vesuvius in A.D. 79 was preceded in a.d. 63 by an earth- 

 quake which did great damage to the buildings in the town, 

 many of which were rebuilt between a.d. 63 and a.d. 79, while 

 others were in process of being rebuilt when they were covered 

 up by volcanic ash in A.D. 79. The statues which stood in the 

 court still exist, though they have been removed to the museum 

 at Kaples ; they form a very interesting series, while the 

 beautiful mosaic flooring has let into it an inscription in the 

 Oscan language, evidently, therefore, a remnant of the temple as 

 it w^as long before the earthquake. The colonnade about the 

 court was built of tufa and coated with white stucco. It pre- 

 sents an odd mixture of styles, a Doric entablature with triglyphs 

 placed upon Ionic columns, liaving the four-sided capital known 

 as Eoman Ionic. 



When, after the earthquake, the restoration of the temple 

 and its colonnade was undertaken, the feeling for the pure and 

 simple forms of Greek architecture was no longer present : the 

 prevailing taste demanded gay and fantastic designs, and the 

 Pompeians improved the opportunity afforded by the rebuilding 

 of the temple to make it and its colonnade conform to the taste 

 of the times. The shafts and capitals of the pillars were alike 

 covered with a thick layer of stucco, and were painted in red, 

 yellow, and blue. We may infer that the Greek element in the 

 city life, which had long before led to the selection for worship 

 of Apollo, the sun-god, the god of the lyre, the embodiment of 

 all that was most artistic in the Greek conception of a deity, had 

 become less influential, and had given place to religious ideas of 

 a grosser, less artistic, and less imaginative character. 



This is exemplified by the fact that the most prominent 

 object in the Forum represents another phase of Pompeian 



