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



137 



monotheists, as I showed iii my paper " The Eeligioiis Ideas of the 

 Babylonians," read before this Institute ; and it seems not improb- 

 able, that the Babylonians were more advanced than the Romans in 

 that belief, which consisted in regarding all the deities of their 

 extensive pantheon as aspects of the heavenly king Merodach. 



But that which attracts us in Pompeii more, perhaps, than any- 

 thing else, is the art of the place. This consists mainly of wall- 

 paintings, which, though not masterpieces, show a considerable 

 amount of technical skill. Mr. Sewell has well described many of 

 them, and thrown reproductions of them on the screen. As you 

 know, the art in wdiich the Babylonians and Assyrians excelled was 

 sculpture, which, however, does not by any means show merit 

 equal to that of the Romans. No Babylonian paintings have as 

 yet been found, but the coloured enamelled work seems to have been 

 excellent, and was generally in relief. The Assyrians, on the other 

 hand, went in for wall-paintings generally, battle-scenes and (in all 

 probability) pictures of the chase. It is doubtful whether, like the 

 Pompeians, they ever had pictures illustrating the legends of the 

 gods, but this is not by any means impossible. 



Lieut.-Colonel Mackinlay : I have the greatest pleasure in 

 seconding the vote of thanks. Mr. Sewell has portrayed in graphic 

 style the life of a Roman town more than eighteen centuries ago, 

 and his paper has excited profound interest. From a photograph of 

 the excavated city I notice that the buildings are very close 

 together, and the streets narrow, though straight. I am told that 

 the ancient Babylonian towns were by no means good in sanitation. 

 Perhaps Mr. Sewell can tell us how Pompeii stood in this 

 respect. 



Author's Reply. 



As to the sanitary condition of the city, I have not come across 

 any particular evidence one way or the other. It w^as a favourite 

 place with Romans of the upper class, situate on the banks of a 

 river ; and care was exercised in regard to drainage. 



As to Christian influence in the city (a point that must occur to 

 some minds) there is difference of judgment on the part of 

 authorities. Some declare that there " is no trace whatever of 



