Chap. III. 
Greatefi ’Part 6/ I T A L Y. 
the whole Dialogue betwixt the Image and the Saint : 
Another at St. Mary^s the Emprefs^ and one more in 
St. Gregory's, on Mount Celio^ have now and then given 
feme Proofs of their Faculty of fpeaking, as divers 
others fif you will believe them) have not been fparing 
with their Tears 5 as at St. Mary's of Peace,, St. Mary's 
in Valicella, and another St. Mary^s call’d del Pimto, 
and that in the Church of the Holy Ghoji, has ihed 
whole Floods of Tears, as thefe credulous People be- 
lieve. The Image of Chrift at St. Sylvejier's in the 
Campo Martio^ done by himfelf, as they fay, and fent 
by him to King Ahagarus^ is the rarefb Pi< 5 lure in Rome. 
Eufehius mentions the Letter pafs’d between Chrift and 
Abagarus^ but fays nothing of th^ Image, the Story be- 
ing of much later Date. 
This City abounds alfo in Variety of Relicks ; as’, 
the Ark of the Covenant, Mofes and Aaron's Rods, and 
the Fountain of Chrift preferved at St. John Lateran ; 
a Piece of the fame Money Judas received, his Lanthorn 
is alfo fhewn at ^t.Hennis in France, and the Crofs of the 
Good-’Thief are fhewn at the Church of the Holy Crofs 
of Jerufalem, with the Tail of Balaam's Afs and St. 
Paul's Thorn ; St. Roch's Bowels are kept at St. Mar- 
€ell's. The Beams of the Star that conducted the Wife- 
men have been evaporated of late Years, as well as the 
Sound of the Jerufalem Bells j but Mofes's Horns, it 
feems, are ftill preferved at Genoa. The Navel of 
Chrift is preferved at St. Maria del Popolo, concerning 
ihe Foundation of which they tell you the following 
Story : In the very fame Place flood a large Walnut- 
tree, on the Branches of which ufed to perch a certain 
Troop of Devils, who guarded the Afhes of Nero in 
an Urn near it : This being very injurious to the 
Neighbourhood, they prevailed with Pope Pafchal II. 
to rid them of this hellifh Company : After fome Time 
jfpent in Failing and Prayer, it was revealed to him, 
that he fhould pull up the Tree by the Root, and build 
a Church ; and this being done accordingly, he gave 
it the Name of St. Mary of the People. 
In the Church of St. Giacomo Scoffa-CavalU, or St. 
James Shake-horfes, they fhew the Stone, on the Altar 
of the Prefentation, on which Chrift was circumcifed, 
with the Impreffion made by one of his Heels upon 
the Marble ; as alfo another Marble Table on St. Anne's 
Altar, on which Abraham intended to facrifice his Son : 
Thefe Relicks, they fay, were fent by the Emprefs He-, 
lena, to be kept in St. Peter's Church ; but the Wag- 
gon was no fooner come near St. James's Church, but 
the Horfes Hop’d ; fo that the Drivers not being able 
to make them go one Step farther, fome Myftery was 
fuppofed to be hidden in this unaccountable Accident ; 
and it being confider’d at laft, that St. Paul call’d St. 
James, as well as St. Peter, the Pillar of the Church, 
they refoived to leave them at St. James's, and to pre- 
ferve the Memory of the Miracle, gave that Saint the 
Name of Scofa-Cavalli, or Shake-horfes. 
You may eafily imagine, that my Curiofity might 
lead me to hear fome of their Preachers, who, general- 
ly fpeaking, expfefs themfelves more in fantaftical Gef- 
tures, wry Mouths, and odd-compofed Faces, than in 
their Arguments, or a fine Difpofition of Words, fer- 
ving more for Diverfion than Inftrudion. I muft far- 
ther tell you, that each Order has its peculiar Way of 
preaching 5 the Jefuits declaim very well, without thofe 
Geftures and Motions the reft are guilty of, but their 
Stile is extravagant. T*he Capuchins thunder out no- 
thing but Hell and Deftruftion, and make a hideous 
Noife ; whence it is that a certain Italian Author fays 
pleafantly. That when a Capuchin preaches, the Doos 
run out of the Church. In fhort, their Difeourfe has 
neither Strength nor Gravity, a confufed Noife and 
Heat, without Senfe or Rcafon. I remember I heard 
once a Carmelite preaching before the Penitent Whores 
of the Holy Crofs, concerning Mary Magdalen, who 
fpent at leaft a Quarter of an Hour in reprefenting all 
her Features to the greateft Nicety, not like a Preacher, 
but like a Painter. 
The Queftion you put to me, Whether there are 
more Lourtefans ^t Rome qx Venice, I am not able to 
anfwer ; for though I fee not fo many hers as at Venice, 
Voi,. II. Numb. GVIII. 
I have it from Credible Petfons, that their Nunibef is 
almoft infinite. Sii/ctus V. endeavour’d to root out this 
Evil ; but after he had done all he could with Banifli- 
ments and otherwife, was forced to recal them again^ 
2cS Sixtus IV. did before, to prevent, as they fs,y, greater 
Diforders. Upon this Occafion I cannot but remember 
an ancient Picture of a Wedding at the Aidohrandin Pa- 
lace. This is a Piece of Frize, brought hither with 
the fame Part of the Wall on which it is painted, be- 
ing highly valuable both for its Antiquity and Work- 
manfhip. I need not tell you, that the Marriage Ce- 
remonies were very different among the Romans, the 
Bride being feated fometimes upon a Sheep’s Fleecey 
fometimes on a Figure of th^ Godi Priapus, fometimeS 
in another Pofture. In this Piaure fhe is feared oii the 
Bed-fide, her Head hanging down with an Air of Coy- 
nefs, whilft a Matron fitting by her 'puts her in Mind, 
with a frniling Countenance, of her Duty. The Bride- 
groom, in an odd Diels, with an Ivy Garland on his 
H!ead, is feated nea^ the Bed, waiting, with an eager 
Impatience exprefs |d in his IBooks, for the Compliance- 
of his whining Spo^fe, whilft divers Maids are bu fy iri 
preparing Baths and fweet-feented Ointments, and a 
fhe-Mufician plays upon the Harp, whilft another fee, ms 
to ling iomt Hymenia! OHymencee, iotntEpithahmium, ot 
lafeivious Song, to difpel the Charms. This Piaiure’on 
the Prize, and another on the Pyramid of Cefiius, are 
the only Rernnants of the true ancient Painting in Rome. 
This Pyramid is fquare, ending in a fharp Point ; it is 
of Brick, but cover’d with white Marble ; it was re- 
pair’d 1675, and reftored to its former Beauty by 
Alexander VII. and, as appears by the infeription, was 
erefted to the Memory of C. Cefiius, one of the Se- 
ven Magiftrates appointed to take Care of Relio-ious 
Feafts. ° 
You enter the Mqufolaum through a narrow Opening 
in the Middle of the Thick Wall, and thence i^nto a 
vaulted Room nineteen Foot long, thirteen broad, and 
fourteen Foot high, plalfter’d over with a certain white 
polilh’d Mortar, on which are feen feveral Pidures of 
Women, Veffels, and other Ornaments. 
To enter into a particular Defeription of fo diffiult a 
Subjedl being beyond my Scope, I will content myfelf 
to tell you, that I found the Antiquaries here of diffe- 
rent Opinions in reference to thefe Figures, fome pre- 
tending that they reprefent the Preparatives for a Fune- 
ral Show, others a Banquet, as a Memorial of the Office 
of the Deceafed. One of the Figures holds a Veffef, 
into which fome others pour luftral Water, and others 
Wine. Another Figure you fee with large Pipes, de- 
figned, as fome fay, for Mirth, and according to fome, 
for Mourning, both Parties pretending to back their* 
Opinions by this Diftich in O^iid's Fafii. 
Cantahat Fanis, cantabat Fibia Ludis 
Cantabat mcefiis, Fibia funeribus. 
There is one Thing, viz. the different Colours of the Fi- 
gures, which feem to intimate, that thefe Habits were not 
intended for Funeral Ceremonies ; and as, according to 
the Infeription of a Pedeftal dug up near this Pyramid^ 
this Cefiius died in the Beginning of Augufius's Reign, fo • 
it is beyond Difpute, that the Women were cloath’d in 
White _ at the Funerals in his Reign, the Fafhion of 
Mourning in Black being abolifh’d in the Beginning 
of Ccefar's Didlatorfhip. Perhaps thefe Pictures were 
deligned only for an Ornament to the Tomb, without 
the leaft Refpedl either to Feafts or Funerals, as the Se- 
pulchre of the Nafo's has many fuch hiftorical Orna- 
ments, the bare Produdl of the Painter’s Fancy. The 
like is to be feen in feveral other Tombs, and efpccially 
Urns. The greateft Curiofity in thefe Pidures is the ' 
Durablenefs, efpecially of their Colours, which were 
only mix d with V/^ater, and do not even penetrate the 
Plaifter ; befides that. Painting m Oil is an Invention 
of the latter Ages, hy John deBruge, about 1450. 
This Pyramid is about two hundred Paces diftanC 
from the Hill call’d Foliolo or Monte Fefiaceo, i. e. the 
Hill of Potjheards, which fome would have derive its 
Name from the broken Pieces thrown there by the Pot- 
7 E ters 
