PERSEPOLIS. 
and inftru&ed by that learned difquifition, in which the 
origin, fignification, and ufes, of the bull in oriental ar¬ 
chitecture, and its connexion with the religion of Egypt, 
Syria, and India, are briefly and intelligibly deduced. 
The remarks, however, concerning the lotos, are too ge- 
i nerally interefting to be omitted. “ Almoft every one in 
the proceffion holds in his hand a figure like the lotos. 
This flower was full of meaning to the ancients, and oc¬ 
curs all over the ealt. Egypt, Paleftine, Perfia, and India, 
' prefent it every where over their architecture, in the hands 
and on the heads of their fculptured figures, whether in 
ftatue or in bas-relief. We alfo find it in the facred veft- 
ments and architecture of the tabernacle, and temple of 
the Ifraelites ; and fee it mentioned by our Saviour, as 
an image of peculiar beauty and glory, when comparing 
the works of nature with the decorations of art. It is 
alfo reprefented in all pictures of the falutation of Gabriel 
to the Virgin Mary ; and, in faCt, has been held in myfte- 
rious veneration by people of all nations and times. The 
old heraldic work of The Theatre of Honour, publifhed 
in France about two hundred years ago, gives this curious 
account of the lotos or lily: ‘ It is the fymbol of divinity, 
of purity, of abundance, and of a love molt complete in 
perfection, charity, and benediction ; as in Holy Scrip¬ 
ture that mirror of chaftity, Sufanna, is defined Sufa, 
which fignifieth the lily-flower; the chief city of the 
Perflans bearing that name for excellency. Hence the 
lily’s three leaves in the arms of France meaneth Piety, 
Juftice, and Charity.’ So far the general impreflion of a 
peculiar regard to this beautiful and fragrant flower; 
but the early Perflans attached a' particular fanCtity to it. 
Water, according to their belief, was held in the next 
degree of reverence to fire; (fee Persees ;) and the white 
flower, which fprung from the bofom of the colder ele¬ 
ment, was confidered an emblem of its purity, fubmiflive- 
nefs, and, above all, of its fecundity, when meeting the 
rays of the great folar flame. Thefe fymbols, united in 
the lily their joint properties had produced, reprefented 
to the poetical conceptions of the Eaft, firft, the creative 
and regenerating attributes of the Supreme Being him- 
felf; and, fecondly, the imparted powers of the great 
elements of earth, air, water, and fire, to aft mutually 
on each other, fo that, at the return of certain feafons, 
moiflure fhould fpread over the land from the clouds or 
the rivers, the air fhould dry the ground, the fun’s beams 
fru&ify it, and the grateful earth, at the call of all uni¬ 
ted in the genial breath of fpring, put forth her increafe. 
Hence, as the fovereigns of the Eaft have always been 
revered, according to a tradition of their being the ex- 
prefs vicegerents of the Deity, it is not furprifing to fee 
the fame emblematic flower carried in a proceflion to their 
honour, which would be found £ breathing fweet incenfe’ 
amongft the fymbols of an entirely religious feftival.” 
We agree with Sir Robert Porter, that our homage is 
due to thefe memorials of ages on other grounds even 
than thofe of their beauty, magnificence, or antiquity, 
we mean their utility : !C Well might the ancients deno¬ 
minate fculpture an immortal art; for we find its monu¬ 
ments in Egypt, in Greece, in Rome, in Perfia, bringing 
forth works to which hardly a date can be afligned; fo 
deeply does their beginning lie in the obfcurity of anti¬ 
quity; while others prefent a clear commentary on the 
writings of the ancients, explaining fome paffages, con- 
nedling others, and often proving the doubted truth of 
certain recorded fa< 51 s ? by a happy difcovery of fome of 
thefe marble apparitions remaining ftationary on the 
very fpot where the fubftance and thea&ion, of which 
they are the copy once had a purpofe and abiding- 
place,” 
Previous to fir Robert’s vifit to Perfepolis, i.e. in De¬ 
cember 1816, a part of the bafl'o-relievo of this magnifi¬ 
cent building had arrived in England, having been tranf- 
mitted by James Morier, efq. (who had been fecretary of 
embafiy and minifter plenipotentiary to the court of Per¬ 
fia,) during his fecond voyage through Perfia. Mr. Mo- 
rier’s account of his obtaining thefe precious relics is as 
Vol. XIX. No. 1332. 
651 
follows. “ I went early in the morning to the ruins, 
which were fituated about a mile from my habitation, at¬ 
tended by the ftone-cutters. Confidering the quantity 
of fculptured remains that had fallen from their original 
pofitions, and which u’ere fpread about the ruins in great 
profufion, I did not hefitate to appropriate fuch parts of 
them as feemed the moll fitting to be fent to England. 
The moft interefting part of the ruins, in point of fculp¬ 
tured detail, is certainly the front of the ftaircafe, which 
leads to the great hall of columns; and here I found 
many fallen pieces, correfponding to thofe ftill ereft. I 
caufed ofie large ftoneto be turned, upon which was fculp¬ 
tured the bulls of two large figures. It was impoflible to 
carry away the whole block, as I had no other mode of 
conveyance than the backs of mules and affes; confe- 
quently, the two figures were obliged to be feparated ; 
but, unfortunately, a vein running acrofs the upper part 
of the ftone, the head-drefs of one of the figures was bro¬ 
ken off in the operation. The Perfians do not know the 
ufe of the faw in ftone-cutting; therefore my diffedtions 
were performed in a very rude manner. I was lucky to 
find the commencement of the arrow-headed infcription, 
the termination of which Le Bruyn has given in his 
drawings: fo, if this charadler fliould ever be deciphered, 
we Ihould be in poffeffion of the whole of the infcription. 
I perceived the angle of a block juft appearing on the 
furface of the ground, oppofite to that part of the in¬ 
fcription which is now remaining, and concluded it muft 
be the commencement of it. It may be imagined how 
happy I was to find, after the long toil of digging it up, 
that my conclufion was well founded. Both Le Bruyn 
and Chardin have only given one line of figures on the 
left of the ftaircafe; but, as it was evident that, in or¬ 
der to complete the fymmetry, there muft have been the 
fame number on the left as there are on the right, I hired 
fome labourers from the furrounding villages, and made 
them dig. To my great delight, a fecond row of figures, 
highly preferved, was difcovered ; the details of whofe 
faces, hair, dreffes, arms, and general charadler, feemed 
but as the work of yefterday. The faces of all the figures 
to the right of the ftaircafe are mutilated, which muft be 
attributed to the bigotry of the firft Mufi’ulmans who in¬ 
vaded Perfia; thofe of the newly-difcovered figures are 
quite perfect, which (hows that they muft have been co¬ 
vered before the Saracen invafion : the nicety of their 
prefervation would lead one to fuppofe that they had 
been fo protected for many ages before that invafion. 
On comparing Le Bruyn’s, Chardin’s, and Niehbuhr’s, 
drawings with the fculptures, I found them in general 
correct in outline, but imperfect in the details of drefs, 
arms, &c. Although the figures are in themfelves ill- 
proportioned, inelegant, and deficient in anatomical 
drawing, yet they are prodigioufly interefting in general 
character, and have not been done juftice to in the works 
of thofe travellers. They furnilh the beft models of what 
were the nations that invaded Greece with Xerxes, and 
that were fubdued by Alexander.” 
The annexed Plate is intended to give a general view 
of the ruins of Perfepolis. The accompanying figures 
are exadt copies of bas-reliefs on the inijdes of the jambs 
of the ruined portals. Fig. 1. is taken from under the 
portico towards the north; it reprefents a man conten¬ 
ding with a lion: he feems to be (tabbing him in the 
belly, having a fword in his left hand, and holding the 
forelock of the animal’s mane with the right: the lion is 
in an eredf pofture, his head turned back, and one of his 
feet refting on the bread of the man. Fig. 2. from the 
fouthern portico, is a regal figure feated on a chair, with 
two figures behind him, one with the parafol, the other 
with the choury, which is a fea-horfe’s tail let in a gold 
handle, fuch as is ufed at the prefent timedn Perfia, to 
drive away flies. Above is the Perfepolitan emblem, 
confiding of a winged bud with a ring. 
After all, we are inclined to agree in opinion with 
Colonel Johnfon, that thefe ruins are the remains of 
a temple, and not of a palace ; and indeed the weightier 
8 D authorities 
