The street of Chard runs directly east and west, where formerly was kept a large market on Sundays. Beyond this to Honiton is a very bad road of stones and sand, over brooks, spring-heads, and barren downs. From the hill-tops about Stockland I first had sight of the southern ocean; a most solemn view, a boundless extent of water thrown into a mighty horizontal curve. Beyond Honiton the scene of travelling mended apace, and the fine Devonshire prospects entertained the eye in a manner new and beautiful; for here the hills are very long and broad, the valleys between proportional, so that the vastly-extended concavity presented an immense landscape of pastures and hedge-rows distinct, like a map of an actual survey, and not beyond ken: these are full of springs, brooks, and villages, copses and gentlemen’s seats; and when you have passed over one hill, you see the like repeated before you, with Nature’s usual diversity. They told me of a great kairn, or heap of stones, on Black down, called Lapper-stones; probably a sepulchral monument.
Exeter is the famous Isca Dumnoniorum of the Romans, the last station this way in Antoninus his Itinerary; pen cair of the Britons, the capital: it is a large and populous city, built upon a pleasant eminence on the eastern bank of the river Ex, or Isca when latinised. I suppose the original word signifies no more than waters, like the French eaux, a collection of them, or several rivers, or branches of rivers, running parallel; and that whether it be wrote Ax, Ex, Ix, Ox, or Ux; of which many instances all over England. This river is navigable up to the city, but the tide comes not quite so high. The walls take in a very great compass, being a parallelogram of 3000 Roman feet long, 2000 broad; having a gate on every side: it lies oblique to the cardinal points of the compass, and objects its main declivity to the south-west. What adds to its wholesomeness and cleanliness, is that the ground is higher in a ridge along the middle of its length, declining on both sides: further, on the south-west and north-west sides it is precipicious: so that, with the river, the walls, the declivity of ground and ditch without side, it was a place of very great strength, and well chose for a frontier against the ancient Corinavii: it was built with a good omen, and has been ever in a flourishing condition. The walls are in pretty good repair, having many lunettes and towers, and make a walk round the city, with the advantage and pleasure of seeing the fine country on the opposite hills, full of wood, rich ground, orchards, villages and gentlemen’s houses. The beauty of the place consists mainly of one long street, running the length of the parallelogram, called High-street, broad and strait: the houses are of a very old, but good model, spacious, commodious, and not inelegant: this street is full of shops well furnished, and all sorts of trades look brisk. The people are industrious and courteous: the fair sex are truly so, as well as numerous; their complexions, and generally their hair likewise, fair: they are genteel, disengaged, of easy carriage and good mien. At Mr. Cole’s the goldsmith I saw an old ground-plot of this city in queen Elizabeth’s time: there has been since a vast increase of buildings within and without the city: the situation renders it of necessity clean, dry and airy. The soil hither from Honiton was rather sandy than stony, whence it must needs be very healthful; and it is of a convenient distance from the sea. They drive a great trade here for woollen manufacture in cloths, serges, stuffs, &c. all along the water-side innumerable tenters or racks for stretching them. Here is a good face of learning too; many booksellers’ shops: I saw a printed catalogue of an auction of books to be sold there. I saw the coloss head of the empress Julia Domna dug up near Bath, in Dr. Musgrave’s garden, which his father calls Andromache: the head-dress is like that of her times, and her bust at Wilton; nor is the manner and carving despisable: the graver has not done it justice. It is the noblest relique of British antiquity of this sort that we know: it is twenty-one inches from the top of the attire to the chin, and belonged to a statue of twelve foot proportion, set upon some temple or palace originally. In the same place is the inscription of Camillus published by him: I saw his library, a very good collection of books, coins and other antiquarian supellex; likewise a treatise, ready for publication, of the original gout, which he wrote thirty years ago, before his other two. The doctor had made this distemper his particular view through his long practice; and this country remarkably abounds with patients of that sort, which he attributes in a great measure to the custom of marling the lands with lime, and the great use of poor, sweet cyder, especially among the meaner people.
In the northern angle of the city, and highest ground, is Rugemont castle, once the royal residence of the West-Saxon kings, then of the earls of Cornwall: it is of a squarish figure, not very large, environed with a high wall and deep ditch: there is a rampire of earth within, equal in height to the top of the wall at present, and makes a terrace-walk overlooking the city and country. In the morning, the air being perfectly serene, and the sun shining, I observed from this place all the country southward, between the sea and Exeter, covered with a very thick fog; the west side of the city and country beyond it very clear. In this place is the assize-house and a chapel. In the wall of this castle is a narrow cavity quite round, perhaps for conveyance of a sound from turret to turret. Dr. Holland supposes this to have been a Roman work originally; and it is not unlikely that it was their prætorium, or garrison. Beyond the ditch is a pleasant walk of trees, and a little intrenched hill, called Danes castle.
The cathedral is a good pile of building: two old towers stand on the north and south transept of the most ancient part: the organ is remarkably large; the diapason pipes fifteen inches diameter, and set against the pillars of the church: the west front of the church is full of old statues. Many religious foundations in the city are converted into streets and houses, full of numerous families and thriving inhabitants, instead of lazy monks and nuns. King Edward I. in the Saxon times founded the monastery of Exeter, anno 868: Athelstan enlarged it for the Benedictines in 932: Edward Confessor translated those monks to Westminster, and made this an episcopal see; not Edward III. as Mr. Camden says. Leofricus a Briton was the first bishop, and founder of the cathedral: he was chaplain to king Edward the Confessor, anno 1046: he gave his lands at Bampton in Oxfordshire to this church: he has a monument in the southern transept. Warewast, the third bishop, began to build the choir, 13 Henry I. Bishop Brewer created the dean and prebends in the time of Henry III. Bishop Quivel built the body of the church to the west end, 13 Edward I. he instituted the sub-dean and singing-men. Bishop Grandison lengthened the cathedral by two arches, and is buried in a little chapel in the west end: bishop Lacy began the chapter-house; bishop Nevil finished it: bishop Courtney built the north tower, or rather repaired it, and gave that large bell called Peter: the dean and chapter built the cloysters. St. Mary’s chapel, at the end of the choir, is now turned into a library: this, I suppose, is what bishop Leofric built. The bishop’s throne in the choir is a lofty Gothic work. Here are many monuments of bishops in the cathedral.
The present deanery, they say, was a nunnery. The monastery of St. Andrew at Cowic was founded by Thomas Courtney earl of Devon; a cell to Bec abbey in Normandy: it was dissolved in the time of Edward III. Roger Holland, I suppose duke of Exeter, lived in it in the time of Edward VI. St. Nicholas’ priory was a cell to Battle abbey: St. John’s was of Augustine friers: Polesloe, a mile off, dedicate to St. Catharine, a nunnery of the Benedictine order: Marsh was a cell to Plympton: Cleve was a monastery of Black canons; St. James’ priory, of Cluniac monks: Grey friers, without South-gate, were Franciscans; Gold-hays, without West-gate, Black friers: the Bear inn was the abbot of Tavistock’s house; the Blacklion too was a religious house; Lathbier another, near the new river below Radford mount. Thus had these holy locusts well nigh devoured the land.
In Corry lane, over-against St. Paul’s church, is a little old house called King Athelstan’s, said to have been his palace, built of large square stones, and circular arches over the doors: it seems indeed to have been originally a Roman building, though other later works have been added to the doors and windows: over the door in the street is a very small niche crouded into the wall, as if it had been converted into a religious house: in the yard a winding stone stair-case is added. One arch of South-gate seems to be Roman. No doubt the walls of the city are upon the Roman foundation for the most part, and great numbers of antiquities have been found here. In digging behind the guild-hall in Pancras-lane, they found a great Roman pavement of little white square stones eight foot deep. A pot of Roman coin of two pecks was dug up, two years ago, near St. Martin’s church: I saw some of them in Dr. Musgrave’s possession, of Gordian, Balbinus, Philippus, Julia Mæsa, Geta, Gallienus, and the like. Mr. Loudham, surgeon in this city, has many of them among his curious collection of antiquities, manuscripts, &c. Mr. Reynolds the schoolmaster is a great collector and preserver of such learned remains. St. Mary Arches church, and St. Stephen’s Bow, by their names seem to have been built out of Roman temples.
The bridge over the Isca is of great length, and has houses on both sides and both ends; a considerable void space in the middle: there is a church upon it with a tower-steeple. In the Guild-hall are the pictures of general Monk, and the princess Henrietta Maria, born at Bedford-house, a palace in this city, during the civil wars. The composition of the stone of this country is intirely made of little black pebbles, incrusted in a sandy matter of a red colour and mouldering nature.
Leaving Exeter, my farthest western longitude at present, I steered my course back again along the sea-side, inwrapped in contemplation with the poet,
Nor could I think myself alone, when so much new entertainment was presented to me every minute. Much rock-samphire grows upon these cliffs. The Roman road seems to have crossed the Otter at Hertford. At Woodbury is a camp. I passed by Sidmouth, and came to Seaton, a little village upon the mouth of the river Ax. This Mr. Camden conjectures to have been the Roman Moridunum, and with reason: it has been a great haven and excellent port, of which they still keep up the memory: the river runs in a large valley, having high ground on each side: the shore is rocky, high and steep, consisting of the ends of hills which here run north and south: the ground at bottom under the rocks is marly; the waves wash it down perpetually, undermining the strata of stone, which from time to time fall down in great parcels. At present this haven mouth, which is a good half-mile over, is filled up with beach, as they call it; that is, coggles, gravel, sand, shells, and such matter as is thrown up by the roll of the ocean: so that the river water has but a very narrow passage on the east side under the cliff. The beach was covered over with papaver luteum corniculatum, now in blossom: the people in the isle of Portland call it squat maw, i. e. bruise herb, and use it in that case, no doubt with good success, where both intentions are answered, of dissolving the coagulated blood, and easing pain. On the west side, near Seaton, upon a little eminence is a modern ruined square Pharos built of brick; they remember it sixteen foot high; and two guns lie there. They say there were formerly many great foundations of houses visible nearer the sea than the present town, but now swallowed up; and in all likelihood there stood the Roman city. More inward toward the land, beyond the great bank of beach, is a marsh which the sea has made, landing itself up when its free flux was hindered: this is full of salt-pans, into which they take the sea-water at high tides. When they dig these places they find innumerable keels and pieces of vessels, with nails, pitch, anchors, &c. six or eight foot deep, because it was formerly part of the haven: anchors have been found as high as Axminster, and beyond it, though now there is no navigation at all: so great a change has Time produced in the face of Nature, upon these confines of the two great elements always opposing each other.
Half a mile off, upon higher ground,Honey-Ditches. a Camp. on the western side is a castle in a pasture, but formerly tilled, called Honey Ditches: it is moted about, and perhaps walled; for they dig up much square stone there. The place is an oblong square, containing about three acres: I guess it to have been the garrison of the port. Just by the present haven-mouth is a great and long pier or wall, jutting out into the sea, made of great rocks piled together to the breadth of six yards. They told me it was built many years ago by one Courd, once a poor sailor, who, being somewhere in the Mediterranean, was told by a certain Greek, that much treasure was hid upon Hogsdon hill near here, and that this memorial was transmitted to him by his ancestors: Courd, upon his return digging there, luckily found the golden mine, which enriched him prodigiously; so that at his own expence he built this wall, with an intent to restore the harbour. The people hereabouts firmly believe the story, and many have dug in the place with like hopes; and as an argument of its truth, they say some of his family are still remaining, that live upon their estate got by him.
A mile higher on the same western side of the river is Cullyford, where was the ancient road from London to Exeter passing over at Axbridge, which is now a stony ford, with two bridges that trathe valley and the river, once a haven. Here have been many inns and houses, and a considerable town. They talk of great stone vaults being found; so that it probably arose from the destruction of Moridunum, as Culliton adjacent, from it. Further, it was a corporation, and they now keep up their claim by an annual choice of a mayor, who has a mace too, but I suppose not of great elegance.
Lyme lies upon the sea-side, in the cavity between two mountains, the Londinis of Ravennas according to Mr. Baxter. Here is a bold stony shore, the ridges of the hills jutting out into the sea; but broken off continually, and wasted away, by the waves as before: the ground too is clay and stone. Their method of opposing its violence is to throw out a wall of huge dry stones, which by time gathers the beech, and consolidates to a greater breadth. Besides, here is a great artificial pier, called the Cobb, extended to the length of 1000 foot with a bow into the ocean, where ships lie secure from the impetuous surges. Here are two little forts, one with five, another with three guns. A large sort of sea horse-tail grows plentifully upon these clayey cliffs; and many little springs issue thereout in the face of the briny deep, which loosen the earth, and hasten its continual downfall. I took notice that the declivity of the hills, with the veins of stone and different strata of earth in these cliffs, is ever north-west, just as is the appearance of the Isle of Portland hence, and with the same angle. The town of Lyme has a pretty good appearance. A small river runs in a rocky alveus through the middle of it into the sea. Most of their buildings are of a rag-stone, blue, not very durable. The duke of Monmouth landed at this place just by the pier with only twelve men: many of his party were executed on the spot afterwards, their limbs hung up in the town. Before that time the duke of Tuscany came here on shore in his visit to Britain. This is called Lime-Regis.
Here entering Dorsetshire, I journeyed along the coast, in view of the ocean, and Portland isle growing more and more distinct, till I came to Bridport, a large town upon a little river. Ascending a high hill, I found myself upon the great downs of chalk like those at Salisbury, and, much to my surprize, infinitely fuller of Celtic barrows than your lordship’s celebrated plains. What matters of that sort I discovered shall be referred to another discourse. A little north of Bridport I found the great Icening-street.Icening-street of the Romans going to Dorchester, which I accompanied with no small pleasure. I imagine it goes a little farther up the country than I had travelled, and hereabouts may properly be said to begin, probably meeting the Foss at Moridunum. The road from Moridunum westward through Exeter I think ought not to be denominated either from the one or the other, because of a different direction, which with reasonable allowance I esteem essential: but this road we are upon, which is the parallel and sister to the Foss, from Seaton to Yarmouth in Norfolk, extends to the like quantity of 250 Roman miles. In this place it is called the Ridge-way, both as it rises in an artificial ridge, and as it takes a high ridge all the way between here and Dorchester, having many valleys on both sides. The composition of the road is wholly of flints gathered off the lands, or taken from near the surface: these were laid in a fine bank, and so covered with turf. As I road along I found it frequently makes great curves to avoid passing over valleys, and industriously keeps on the highest ground, and commands the prospect of the country every where: it goes to Aggerdon.Eggardon hill, as they tell me, north of Bridport; and here I suppose is a camp, whence the whole hundred is denominated: whether from this camp, or from this road, it is plain the old Latin word is retained, agger; therefore aggerdon, as it ought to be wrote, is the hill intrenched, or the down where the high road runs.
The Icening-street derives its name not from beginning, but ending, at the Iceni, via ad Icenos. They say hereabouts it was cast up in a night’s time by the devil, referring to a supernatural agent the effect of Roman wisdom and industry. It enters the city of Dorchester by the north of Winterburn at West-gate. In divers places they have mended it where wore out, by a small slip of chalk and flints, with a shameful and degenerate carelessness; so that we may well pronounce the Romans worked with shovels, the moderns with tea-spoons: besides, it is mostly inclosed and obstructed with perpetual gates across it, to the great hindrance of travellers, to whom public ways ought to be laid open and free; and the authors of such nusances may well be declared sacrilegious. An endless fund of Celtic as well as Roman inquiries hereabouts, and no where less regarded.
Dorchester, the Roman Durnovaria, meaning the passage over the river, is a good regular town, standing conformable to the four cardinal points, with the river on its north side: TAB. LXXVII.it had four gates in the middle of each side, was encompassed with a strong wall and ditch, if not two; for so it seems, though now levelled into arable, to which the inhabitants hereabout are extremely prone. On the west side great part of the old Roman wall is standing, twelve foot thick, made of rag-stone, laid side by side and obliquely, then covered over with very strong mortar: the next course generally leans the contrary way: now and then three horizontal ones for binding, for much flint is used withal. I saw the foundation of it in a saw-pit laid upon the solid chalk: it is yet twelve foot high, broke through and battered every where, as if the sight of it was obnoxious: this is a strong manner of building, and very expeditious. Much more of this wall remained within memory. It would surprise one to think why the very ruins of it should be pulled down, which must be done with great labour, and frequently a mud wall erected in its place. The foundations appear quite round the town; but eastward a street is built upon it, and the ditch filled up: it is still called The Walls; for that way the town is swelled out into a considerable village, with a church and handsome tower, called Fordington, corruptly Farington. Here are three churches in the town beside it. TAB. LXXVIII.On the south and west side, without the walls, a handsome walk of trees is planted, looking pleasantly into the fields; but the sort of them being common sycamores, are incommodious by harbouring flies. The winding of the river on the north spoils the square of the town that way; and there is an area of a castle, out of the ruins of which the grey friers built their convent: but now all the works are wholly obliterated, religious and military. The banks of the river here are steep, for the town stands on high ground. Beyond the river are meadows and warm sandy lands; on this side, the fine chalky downs, pleasant for riding, and profitable in excellent grain. The air must needs be wholesome and pure, the climate warm, and a sufficient distance from the sea; so that we need not wonder if the Romans were fond of this place. The level of the old city was much lower than the present; for antiquities, which are found in great number, always lie deep. Some farmers were levelling another great barrow; but the people of Fordington rose in arms and prevented them with a laudable animosity. All this land is of the prince’s fee. I took notice of a particularity in the stone they use here: it is fetched from a quarry southward in the way to Weymouth; a flag-stone, rising in large dimensions, but not very thick: the superfice of it is curiously and regularly indented or waved, like a mat made of cables, and that very regularly: it much resembles the face of the sands upon the sea shore, just after the tide is gone off: it is very convenient for paving, and those natural undulations prevent slipperiness, being nevertheless level enough: they make fences for their grounds with it in many places, setting them up edgewise in a pretty method. The Roman money dug up here are called dorn-pennies, or king Dor’s money: the reverend Mr. Place, living here, showed me a great collection of them. Much opus tessellatum has been found. As this town, so Wareham below from its ford derives its name. In Lincolnshire we call them still warths.
From Dorchester many Roman roads disperse themselves, beside the Icening-street, passing directly over the meadows to Walton: one goes by the amphitheatre southward to Weymouth; another by Poundbury, Stretton, to Yeovil and Ischalis; another probably to Wareham.
Poundbury, I am intirely persuaded, was a camp of Vespasian’s, when he was busy hereabouts in the conquest of the Belgæ, therefore ancienter than the adjacent Roman city: the situation, the bulk, and the manner of it, so much resembling that by Ambsbury, engages me into that sentiment: it stands half a mile west of Dorchester, upon the brink of the river, which is very steep, in form square: the rampart high, but the ditch inconsiderable, except at the angle by the river; the reason is, because standing on high ground, they dug the earth clear away before it, and threw it intirely into a vallum; so that its height and steepness, wherein its strength consists, is the same as if a regular ditch was made in level ground. The chief entrance was on the south side: there seems likewise to have been an entrance next the river, but made with great art; for a narrow path is drawn all along between the edge of the precipice and the vallum, so that it was absolutely impossible to force an entry that way: beside, I observe, beyond the camp, for a long way, a small trench is cut upon the said edge, which seems designed to prevent the ascent of cavalry, if they should pass the river: the ground of the camp rises in the middle, as was usual among the Romans in their choice. There is a tumulus too, which I imagine is Celtic, and extant before the camp was made: this levelled a little might serve for the prætorium. A very good prospect from hence all around. The name is taken from its inclosure as a pound; for here they call a circle of stones round a tumulus, a pound.
The other camp, called Maiden Castle, was undoubtedly the Æsiiva of the Durnovarian garrison:[134] it is of a vast extent, and prodigiously strong, apparently of much later date than the foregoing, its manner savouring of inferior times of the empire: it has every where a double ditch of extraordinary depth, and a double rampire, in some places treble or more: it takes in the whole summit of a great hill: within it seems as if two camps, a ditch and vallum running across, with each its entry of very perplexed work; several ditches with cross entries lapping over one another, as we may well express it; especially westward, where their number may be affirmed half a score. Certainly, for healthful air and prospect, a most delightful place;
and, for sight of barrows, I believe not to be equalled in the world; for they reach ten miles. What further remains to be said of Dorchester, is the noble amphitheatre, of which your lordship first gave me the hint; therefore most justly are you intitled to the following description of it.
THERE was no kind of civil edifice, or public work, more frequent among the Romans, in Italy or the conquered provinces, than such as related to sports and games; for that brave and wise people both judged and found that method well calculated to bring over the nations to their own language and customs, being agreeable contrivances that seemed rather pleasure and delight than compulsion. Such were theatres, circs, amphitheatres, stadia, and the like. There were three amphitheatres in the city of Rome; that of Vespasian, the Castrense, and of Statilius Taurus: and, though we find them not so particularly taken notice of elsewhere in historians, yet we behold the things themselves, whose immense bulk and weighty materials have generally so long out-faced time and weather. We may affirm, there was scarce any colony or free city, of considerable note, in their extensive empire, that wanted these places of public pastime; and scarce any province now, where their footsteps at least are not visible, and many almost intire, particularly what we are now treating upon, amphitheatres: yet I believe it will appear a novelty to most people, when we shall talk of such curious antiquities in Britain. TAB. LXI. XCVII.But since this time twelve-months, I have seen three, one at Silchester, another at Richborough castle in Kent, and this at Dorchester in Dorsetshire. I have been told of one with six tire of seats, three mile off Redruth in Cornwall. Sir Christopher Wren is the first person that I know of who gave this hint of inquiry, in discovering this, many years ago, in his journeys to the isle of Portland, when he began to build St. Paul’s cathedral. Great pity it is that he did not take an exact description of it at that time, when in greater perfection, before the gallows were removed hither by an unlucky humour of the sheriff; since when the parapet at top is on that side much beaten down, by the trampling of men and horses at executions; but especially because his great skill might have done it exact justice, and by means of his pen it might have shared in the duration of his works. In defect of such illustration, I hope the reader will accept of my mean endeavours to preserve so valuable a piece of architecture, which, notwithstanding the damage above mentioned, and that the area of it has been ploughed up these many years, will still give a spectator a fine notion in the structures of this sort abroad, deservedly the admiration of travellers; and will present a person of understanding, the pleasure of observing the noble and great genius of the Romans in every production of their hands. Nor does the meanness of its materials debase, but rather inhance, its value and its art; for, though less costly and lasting than stone and marble, of which others are generally built, yet for the same reason less liable to rapine, and the covetous humour of such as plunder them for other uses: therefore I believe, in the main, it is as perfect as most abroad, if not so alluring to the eye; whence we may suppose it has so long escaped common observation, though close by a great town and road.
An amphitheatre is properly a double theatre, or two theatres joined together. A theatre is a semicircle wherein are the seats of the spectators; the apparatus of the actors, or scenes, filling up the diameter before it. But if we would be more exact, we shall observe, it is half as long again as the radius; for they cut off the fourth part of a circle, then the rest became the form of their theatres. Now two such as these joined together, throwing away the scenic part, constituted an amphitheatre; taking its name from circular vision, and because the seats were continued quite round, the faces of the people being all directed to the centre of its excentricity: so its use required, different from that of the theatre, where the company look all one way toward the stage. But then, as Lipsius takes notice in discoursing upon this topic, the lines, at the ends where they are conjoined, must be drawn outward a little, approaching more to strait lines, than it becomes a true oval, well expressed by Cassiodorus; “for, (says he) the area includes the figure of an egg, which affords due space for combatants, and more advantage to spectators to see every thing by its long curvity or relaxed circle.” These were not put in practice at Rome till the end of the commonwealth, and appropriated to the hunting and fighting of wild-beasts, to gladiators and the like; and at last to sea engagements, represented in gallies floating upon the water, which they introduced for that purpose. First of all, they made them pro tempore of timber, being two theatres, each fixed upon a wonderful axis, and so contrived, that when they pleased they could turn both together, with all the people on their seats, and make an amphitheatre; of which Pliny, xxxv. 15. speaks with a note of astonishment, as it really was. This was done by C. Curio, one of Cæsar’s party. It is worth while to read the great naturalist’s descant upon it. This I suppose gave occasion to the building of regular amphitheatres, of which Cæsar made the first in the Campus Martius, but of wood, when he was dictator. The first of stone was erected in Augustus his time, by Statilius Taurus, in the place of the former, which was the only one till Vespasian, whose work was the monstrous Colissæum, but finished by his son Titus. This has afforded materials for many public buildings in Rome, and still boasts its immense ruins, as one of the greatest prodigies of the imperial city.
Vitruvius mentions nothing of amphitheatres; therefore he probably published his book before that of Taurus was built: as for Cæsar’s, it belonged not to masonry, being carpenter’s work; in which he was a very great master, as in every thing else: so that we must form our notions of these things from the works themselves, and the ruins that time has spared. The parts of an amphitheatre are these: the arena or space within, the scene of action; the euripus, or river that generally encompassed the verge of it; the podium, or parapet at bottom; the itinera, or viæ, which were the walks between certain series of seats; the ascensus, steps or stairs; the pulpita or tribunalia, a sort of covered chair of state, where the emperor, his legate, the prætor or chief magistrate of a city, sat; the cathedræ, where the senators, foreign ambassadors, and great personages, sat; the gradus, or common seats; the præcinctiones, which I suppose balustrades; the aditus or vomitoria, being the passages from the stairs withinside to the seats, a metaphorical name, from the people pouring themselves through them with violence; the cunei, which were the space of seats comprehended between two of those passages, so called from their wedge-like shape; the porticus, or galleries within, partly for magnificence, and partly for convenience: all these particulars are easily apprehended from inspection of schemes and sections of these works in many authors. Some of them could not, others need not to be in our work; therefore I shall occasionally enlarge upon those pertinent to this subject, as they fall in our way in the description.
TAB. LXXVII.The amphitheatre at Dorchester is situate on a plain in the open fields about a quarter of a mile (being just 300 of my paces) or 1500 foot south-west from the walls of the town, delicately ascending all the way, close by the Roman road running from thence to Weymouth. The vulgar call it Maumbury, but have no notion of its purpose, though it is a common walk for the inhabitants, and the terrace at top is a noted place of rendezvous, as affording a pleasant circular walk, and a prospect of the town and wide plain of corn fields all around, much boasted of by the inhabitants for most excellent grain. Westward of the town we see the Roman camp called Poundbury, and southward the most famous one Maiden castle, both before described. More southerly all the hill-tops, as far as the eye reaches, are covered with an incredible number of Celtic barrows. It stands upon the very edge of that part of the fields which declines gently northward, or toward the town, upon a chalk, and which without doubt at first was perfect down, like that of Salisbury plain, or the neighbouring downs in the way to Bridport. One may in fancy imagine the beauty of its prospect, and the pleasantness of the walk hither upon that fine carpet, when all was in its first perfection; but at present it is ploughed up to the very skirt of the amphitheatre, both within and without: TAB. LXXVIII.so foolishly greedy are the country people of an inch of ground, that they have levelled several barrows lately in the neighbourhood, which cost more than the spot they covered will pay in fifty years. This work of ours is raised of solid chalk upon the level, without any ditch about it. I have endeavoured to delineate, as exactly as I could by mensuration, the true and original ground-plot thereof, or architectonic design upon which it is formed, from what is left by the injuries of age, of the plough, of men and beasts; and that in its first and genuine scale the Roman foot, which is about an eleventh part less than ours. The TAB. L.plate No 50, represents the amphitheatre as covered with the subsellia, and as in its primitive perfection; for we may well suppose age has diminished it on all dimensions: and in truth it requires a great deal of thought and judgement to attempt to measure it. It is obvious thence to observe, in the general, its conformity with other works of this sort abroad, as far as its different materials will allow; and the great judgement of the architect in varying his scheme thereto, so as fully to answer the proposed end. It is to be noted that half this work is above, and half below the surface of the ground, asTAB. LIII. visible in a section; so that great part of the matter was dug out of the cavea in the middle; for it is a solid bed of chalk, and the rest fetched from elsewhere. I believe the method of building it, was to join solid chalk cut square like stones, and that mortar made of burnt chalk was run into the joints; and probably all the outside was neatly laid with scantlings of the same, but with the natural turf on: so that it is not much inferior in strength to those of stone, though infinitely less expensive; but for use and convenience there is very little difference; and as to beauty, as far as relates to the seats, and what was visible on the inside, our work no doubt was very handsome, and even now is a very pleasant sight. It is observed of most amphitheatres abroad, that they are placed without the cities for wholesomness, and upon elevated ground for benefit of the air, and perflation; a thing much recomended for theatres in Vitruvius; as that of Bourdeaux, 400 paces without the city. Besides, this is very artfully set upon the top of a plain, declining to the north-east; whereby the rays of the sun, falling upon the ground hereabouts, are thrown off to a distance by reflection, and the upper end of the amphitheatre, for the major part of the day, has the sun behind the spectators.
When you stand in the centre of the entrance, it opens itself with all the grandeur that can be imagined: the jambs are wore away somewhat, and the plough encroaches on its verge every year, especially the cheeks below: never did I see corn growing, which of itself is an agreeable sight, with so much indignation as in this noble concavity, where once the gens togata, and majesty of imperial Rome, used to show itself. The conjugate, or shortest diameter externally, is to the longest as 4 to 5; that of the area within, as 2 to 3: this is the same proportion as of the amphitheatre at Lucca, which is 195 brachia in length, 130 broad: a brachium is about 23½ of our inches: it is 25 high. In ours therefore the two centres upon the transdiameter, or longest that form it, are 100 feet distant: the ends of the oval are struck with a radius of 60 feet set upon each of those centres. The centres that describe the side-lines are formed by setting off 85 feet on each side the diameter, from the centre of excentricity. Thus from these four centres only the whole is delineated, and that most easily and naturally; whence I suspect Desgodetz, in laying down his plot of the Coliseum, has without necessity employed no less than eight centres, which is an operation of great perplexity: but still we except the circle in the middle, which so remarkably distinguishes this from all other works, and which gives so great a beauty to the scheme: this is that artful contrivance supplying the place of portico’s, stair-cases, vomitoria, and all the costly work in the grander amphitheatres, for ready conveyance of the spectators in and out to their proper places: it is described from the common centre of the whole, and in the ground-plot is a true circle; but upon the place becomes a walk of eight foot broad, gradually ascending, from the ends upon the long diameter, to its highest elevation in the middle upon the short diameter, where it reaches half-way up the whole series of seats of the spectators, who marching hence distribute themselves therein from all sides without hurry and tumult. On the top is a terrace twelve feet broad at least, beside the parapet outwardly five feet broad, four high. There are three ways leading up to this; at the upper end of the work, over the cave, one; and one on each side upon the shortest diameter, going from the elevated part of the circular walk: horses very conveniently, several a-breast, may go upon this, and frequently do, ascending by the ruin of the cave, but not on the outward steep. The parapet is now three or four foot high, but much ruined on that side next the gallows since last year, at an execution: not only so, but I saw a mixen heap laid under it on that side; and some vile fellow had been digging down part of the amphitheatre to lay among it for compost. There is some enormity, if one examines this work in mathematical strictness without proper judgement: because it stands on a declivity, some parts of the out-side are higher than others, not only as to the same side, but as to the same part on different sides: the plain on which it stands, declines to the north-east: hence the outer side of the work is higher there than in other places; therefore in my sections and ground-plot I endeavour to reduce it to a medium, and the measure which seems to have been the primary intent of the architect.