6s9 
Spa', 
3)llls, one on each side of that just men¬ 
tioned, form with it two hollows, in 
which you perceive the ruins of the 
bridge Babyx, and the current of the 
Eurotas. Beyond the river, the view is 
bounded by a chain of reddish hills 
which compose Mount Meneiaion, Be¬ 
yond these hills, the high mountains 
which border the gulf of Argos, tower 
aloft in the distance. 
In this space, seen to the eastward, 
betw'een the citadel and the Eurotas, 
looking north and south by east, in a 
parallel direction to the course of the 
river, we must place the quarter of the 
Limnates, the temple of Lycurgus, the 
palace of the king Demaratus, the quar¬ 
ters of the Egides and the Messoates, 
one of the Leschi, the monument of Cad¬ 
mus, the temples of Hercules and Helen, 
and the Platanistae, In this extensive 
space, I counted seven ruins standing, 
and above ground, but absolutely shape¬ 
less and dilapidated. As I was at liberty 
to choose, I gave to one of these ruins 
the name of Helenas Temple, and 
another I called the Tomb of Aleman. 
In two others I fancied I beheld the 
heroic monuments of iEgeus and Cad¬ 
mus ; I thus determined in favor of 
fable, and assigned nothing to history 
but the temple of Lycurgus. I prefer, I 
must confess, to black broth and barley 
bread, the memory of the only poet that 
Lacedsernon has produced, and the gar¬ 
land of flowers gathered by the Spartan 
maidens for Helen in the isle of Plata- 
nistffl: 
O ubi campi 
Sperchiusque et virginibus bacchata Lacsenis 
Taygeta ! 
Now looking towards the north, as 
you still stand on the site of the citadel, 
you see a hill of considerable height, 
commanding even that on which the cita¬ 
del was erected, though this contradicts 
the text of Pausanias. The valley form¬ 
ed by these two hills must have been llm 
site of tlie public place and the strnc- 
tut es that adorn it, as the buildings ap¬ 
propriated to the meetings of the Ge- 
rontes and Ephori, the portico of the 
Fersice and other edifices. On this side 
tiiere are no ruins. To the north-west 
extended the quarter of the Cynosuri, by 
which I had entered Sparta, and where I 
observed the long wall and some other 
remains. 
Let us now tarn to the wpst, and we 
Si-bail perceive upon a level spot in the 
rear and at the foot of the theatre, three 
ruins, one of which is of cottsiderable 
height, and circular, like a tower. In 
this direction must have Iain the quar¬ 
ter of the Pitanates, the Theomelis, th^ 
tombs of Pausanias and Leonidas, the 
licsche of the Crotanes, and the temple 
of Diana Isora. 
Lastly, if you turn your eye to the 
south, you will see an uneven space, in¬ 
tersected here and there by the bases of 
walls that have been razed to the ground. 
The stones of whicli they were composed, 
must have been removed, for they are 
not to be discovered any where round 
about. In this part stood the residence 
of Menelaus; and beyond it, on the 
road towards Amyclte, rose the temple 
of the Dioscuri and tlie Graces. This 
description will be rendered more intelli- - 
gible, if the reader will turn to Pausa- 
ni.as, or merely to the Travels of Ana- 
charsis. 
The whole site of Lacedeemon is un¬ 
cultivated : the sun parches it in silence, 
and is incessantly consuming the marble 
of the tombs; When I beheld this desert, 
not a plant adorned the ruins, not a bird, 
not an insect, not a creature enlivened 
them, save millions of lizards, which crawl¬ 
ed without noise up and down the sides of 
the scorching walls. A dozen half-wild 
horses vvere feeding here and there upon 
the withered grass ; a shepherd w'as cul¬ 
tivating a few water-melons in a cornec 
of the theatre; and at Magoula, which 
gives its dismal name to Lacedajinon, I 
observed a small grove of cypresses. 
But this Magoula, formerly a conside¬ 
rable Turkish village, has also perished 
in this scene of desolation : its buildings 
are overthrown, and the index of ruins 
is itself but a ruin. 
I descended from the citadel, and, 
after walking about a quarter of an hour, 
I reached the Eurotas. Its appearance 
was nearly the same as two leagues 
liigher, where I had passed It without 
knowing what stream !t was. Its breadth 
before Sparta, is about the same as that 
of the Marne above Charen on, Tlie 
bed of the river, nearly dry in summer, 
is a sand intermixed wdth small pebbles, 
overgrown with reeds and rose-laurels, 
among which run a few rills of a cool and 
limpid water. I drank of it abundantly, 
for I was parched w'ith thirst. From the 
beauty of its reeds, the Eurotas certainly 
deserves the epithet of given 
it by Pluripides; but I know not vvhethcr 
it ought to retain that of olorifer,, for I 
perceived no swans upon its surface. I 
followed its current, hoping to me't with 
some of these birds, which, according to 
