From Chambers's Journal.

THE MAUSOLEUM MARBLES. ENGLAND seems destined to become the depository of the relics of the grandeur of the departed empires of the world. Already exceedingly rich in the possession of the artistic glories of Egypt, Assyria, Greece, Rome, Xanthus, and Carthage, our national museum could boast a finer collection of antiquities than the rest of Europe combined. The labors of Elgin, Fellowes, Davis, and Layard have now been crowned by Mr. Newton, who has succeeded in bringing safe to London the invaluable remains of that famous wonder of the world which lived but in a name, that celebrated embodiment of a wife's love and a queen's pride, the Mausoleum of Halicarnassus, which, after an existence of centuries, had succumbed to some unknown power, and apparently "left not a

rack behind."

Before entering upon a rehearsal of the results of the successful excavations at Budrum, by which these treasures of ancient art have been acquired, a brief history of the circumstances in which the Mausoleum originated may not prove uninteresting.

defences, and rendered the harbor safe and commodious. The latter was in the shape of a horseshoe; from the water's edge, the town rose in terraces, presenting the appearance of a vast amphitheatre flanked by volcanic hills, from which the walls descended to the sea. Upon a rocky eminence stood the magnificent palace of the king, commanding a view of the forum, haven, and the entire circuit of fortifications.

In this palace, in the year 353, after a prosperous reign of twenty-four years, Mausolus died, and Artemesia, his sister-wife, reigned in his stead. Her first care was to celebrate the obsequies of her husband with great ceremonies and solemnities. Poetical and rhetorical contests took place, in which Theodectes obtained the crown for his tragedy of Mausolus, and Theopompus carried off the oratorical prize from his great master Isocrates. Having buried Mausolus, Artemesia resolved to honor his memory by the erection of a monument such as the world had never seen.

Pythius probably the architect of the Temple of Minerva at Priene-seems to have been the artist selected to carry out the queen's design, assisted by Scopas-the reputed sculptor of the Venus of Milo-Bryaxis, Timotheus, and Leochares, whose colossal statue of Mars stood in the Hallicarnassian temple of that deity. Artemisia did not see the completion of her husband's monument, for she survived him but two years. Her successor, apparently, did not care to proceed with it, as we are assured that the artists finished their stupendous work out of love, looking upon its completion as necessary for their own fame and the honor of their art.

Caria, a Dorian colony on the south coast of Asia Minor, after succumbing to Croesus the Lydian, became, on his defeat by Cyrus the Great, a dependency of the Persian empire, although still governed by its own laws, and ruled by its native princes. When Mausolus, the eldest son of Hecatomus, ascended the throne, Sparta, Athens, and Thebes were contending for predominance in Greece, and preparing the way for Macedonian supremacy; Persia was struggling with revolted Egypt, and youthful Rome resisting the assaults of Volscians, Etruscans, and Gauls. Comparatively free from the disturbing influences of war, the kingdoms and republics of Asia Minor grew in wealth and importance. The new monarch of Caria was am-411 feet; its breadth from north to south, 63 bitious of founding a powerful maritime state. In person, tall and handsome, Mausolus was as daring in battle as he was astute in his policy, and unscrupulous in carrying it out. He forced the Lydians to pay him tribute, conquered a portion of Ionia, and compelled Rhodes to acknowledge his superior power. He took part in the conspiracy of the satraps against Artaxerxes, and assisted the enemies of Athens in the Social War with equal impunity.

Mylasa, an inland city, was the capital of the kingdom; but struck with the natural advantages possessed by the birthplace of Herodotus, Mausolus transferred the seat of government to Halicarnassus, and concentrated all his energies upon making it wor1thy its destiny. He rebuilt the half-ruined city, crowned the surrounding heights with

Nearly four hundred years afterwards, Pliny saw it in all its glory. According to him, the circumference of the building was

feet; its height, 25 cubits. It was ornamented with six-and-thirty columns. Above the pteron (colonnade) stood a pyramid equal in height to the lower building, and formed of twenty-four steps, gradually tapering towards the summit, which was crowned by a chariot and four horses, executed by Pythius, making the total height of the work no less than 140 feet. This gigantic monumental tomb was so solidly constructed, as to defy for centuries the destroying hand of time. Vitruvius speaks of it as one of the marvels of the world; Martial alludes to its peculiar construction; Lucian extols the beauty of the marble, and the life with which the sculptors had endued it. In the second century, Pausanias declares how greatly the Romans admired it; in the fourth, it is mentioned by Gregory, bishop of Nazianzus; in

the tenth, Constantinus Porphyrogennetus ered leading through an ante-chamber into speaks of it as still exciting wonder and laud- a noble apartment, in which stood a saration; and in the twelfth century, Eusta- cophagus with its white marble vase. thius declares emphatically, "It was and is want of time they did not stay to uncover it, a marvel." The precise period at which the but returned for that purpose next morning, Mausoleum fell into ruin is uncertain. The when they found the place strewed with probability is, that some time in the two pieces of golden cloth and fragments of orhundred years after Eustathius, it was over-naments. Some of the corsairs ever hoverthrown by one of those violent earthquakes ing round the place had been before them, prevalent in Asia Minor, although the Hali- and carried off every thing of value. Thus carnassian peninsula had for two thousand the shrine immortalized by the love and years enjoyed an immunity from the dread- pride of Artemisia was desecrated by the ful visitations which made such havoc among petty robbers of the isles, and the regal its neighbors. relics of the Carian dynasty scattered to the winds, after remaining undisturbed for eighteen centuries.

the decisions both of Ross and Spratt, and the western side was found a staircase of in a paper in the Classical Museum for 1848, twelve steps, cut out of the rock, leading fixed upon a spot the surroundings of which from the Theatre hill to the Mausoleum. had been so filled up by alluvial deposits | Between these stairs and the side of the that no traces of a terrace or platform were quadrangle, among terra-cotta fragments and discernible. So the matter rested until 1856, the bones of sacrificial oxen, lay several large when Mr. Newton was appointed vice-con- and beautiful alabaster ointment jars, the sul at Mitylene, and authorized to carry out finest bearing two inscriptions, one in the excavations on a large scale at Budrum, cuneiform character, the other in hieroglyphthree of her majesty's ships being placed at ics, rendered by Sir H. Rawlinson into his service, and every facility afforded him "Xerxes the Great King" a memorial, may for bringing his labors to a successful issue. be, of Artemisia's having saved that monThe first results of Mr. Newton's opera- arch's children after the disaster of Salamis. tions were interesting, although not bearing In front of the spot on which this vase lay, upon their grand object; they consisted of the tomb was closed by a large stone weighan immense number of terracota figures and ing at least ten tons, grooved at the sides, red unglazed Roman lamps, apparently as- and fixed into its place by bronze bolts insorted as for sale, a block of stone with a serted in sockets of the same metal, let into dedicatory inscription to Demeter and Per-marble slabs. It must have been into this sephone, a nearly perfect mosaic pavement apartment that the knights penetrated in of Roman and Grecian tiles, and the torso 1522. of a life-size statue of a dancing girl in rapid motion, more remarkable for boldness than grace, resembling the figures on the Harpagian monument among the Xanthian marbles. Prevented by the covetousness of the Turkish proprietors from proceeding with the excavation of Ross' platform, Mr. Newton turned his attention to another quarter, and after two days' digging discovered, on the very spot pointed out by him ten years before, portions of a frieze, a number of architectural ornaments, the forepart of a horse, and part of a colossal lion, exactly like those taken from the castle walls. There could be little doubt that the long lost site was found, and proceeding with the work, he came upon pieces of Ionic columns, and the body of a colossal sitting figure. Close to this lay the remains of an equestrian statue, a noble specimen of Greek colossal sculpture. The horse is rearing. Its treatment exhibits great anatomical knowledge; the lower portion only of the rider's body is preserved; he is clad in Persian trousers; the hand with which he pulls back the animal is coarse, distinct, and bony, with every vein marked. The body of a dog in high relief, and various fragments of lions, were the next acquisitions; some of the latter have, after a severance of four hundred years, been reunited to the bodies which had done duty in the citadel.

The foundations of the building were soon reached, and the area discovered to be a parallelogram measuring one hundred by one hundred and twenty-six feet, cut out of the natural rock; the interstices occasioned by the deficiencies in the rock being filled with oblong blocks of stone fixed with iron clamps, and the whole quadrangle paved with greenstone. Under an accumulation of soil on

On the eastern side were dug up the torso of a seated female, a portion of another colossal female, and four slabs of a frieze delineating Greeks and Amazons in conflict, but much superior in style and execution to those previously discovered, which, combined with the situation in which they lay, supplies reason for attributing them to Scopas. The figures have not the slimness noticeable in the better known slabs, while the action is less theatrical, and the subjects treated with great boldness and originality. There is one splendid group. A Greek is attacking an Amazon, who bends backward, preparatory to dealing a tremendous blow with her battle-axe; her tunic has slipped, and leaves bosom, neck, and thighs uncovered. Indeed, the clever management of the drapery is a characteristic of all the Mausoleum sculptures.

These treasures, valuable as they are, sink into insignificance by the side of the wonders brought to light in excavating to the north of the Mausoleum. Beyond the apparent boundary of the building, a wall of white marble ran parallel to it; beyond this wall, under a mass of broken marble. was discovered a colossal horse in two pieces, (since, however, ascertained to be portions of two separate animals,) exceeding in size any Greek sculpture known. The bronze bit is still between the teeth. These are two of the four horses belonging to the chariot, the work of Pythius, and worthy of the best period of Grecian art, the treatment being broad, natural, and masterly. Beside the horses lay a colossal lion, with the tongue chiselled to represent the prickly surface. Mr. Newton was now on rich ground: within a space of fifty feet by twenty, lay piled upon one another, as they had fallen centuries ago,

the lesser flanges, so placed that one joint never fell above another: the stones were fastened together with strong copper clamps. We have enumerated all the more important results of these interesting researches. Of the thirty-six Ionic columns mentioned by Pliny, the capitals of three only have been recovered in a perfect state; but fragments of every member of the order of the Mausoleum have come to light, by which their di

of the ancient writers, as usual, vindicated. As bearing on the much debated question respecting coloring statues, we may mention that all the architectural and sculptural decorations of the Mausoleum were painted; but the action of the atmosphere soon removed the evidences of the Greek practice of marble coloring. Beyond certain initials on some of the lions, not a solitary inscription was found on any remains belonging to the monument.

the finest sculptures of this wonder of the world. The two most important among them were mere fragments of marble; but every splinter was carefully collected, and by the skill of Mr. Westmacott and his assistants, they have been reconstructed-the statue of Mausolus himself from no less than seventy-two pieces! This now only wants the back of the head, the arms, and one foot. The whole conception is simple, yet grand. The Carian king stands in a dignified atti-mensions have been fixed, and the veracity tude; he wears a tunic and cloak, the former falling in continuous folds to the right hip; the heavy cloak descending from the left shoulder, down the back, to the right hip, crosses the chest, and is gathered under the left arm, forming a study in drapery from which the greatest living artists may learn something. The face is handsome and intelligent; the hair rises from the middle of the low forehead, falling in long curls over the ears; the moustache is full, and the beard short. This, the oldest Greek portraitstatue extant, exhibits a skilful combination of the real and ideal, and is a most noble work. Its female companion is worthy of it; unfortunately, the head is missing. She is represented standing completely draped, with the exception of the arms and right foot; her right arm bends down towards her thigh, the raised left supporting her cloak, which covers the greater portion of the figure, the under-dress being visible over the bosom and round the ankles. More than 150 feet distant from the chariot-horse, Mr. Newton discovered half the nave, a piece of a spoke, and part of the outer circle of one of the chariot-wheels, from which the force with which the quadriga was thrown from its proud pre-eminence may be judged. Among the treasures found near the statute of Mausolus were a colossal leopard, evidently originally joined to some other figure, a beautiful colossal female head, a male head, and some more lions. Here also lay the squared marble blocks forming the steps of the pyramid on which the chariot stood. They are of a uniform depth of 11 3-4 inches, 2 and 3 feet in breadth, and of various lengths, but averaging 4 feet. One part of the upper side is polished, that which would be covered by the step above, only rough cut; the upper side of each block has one flange about six inches broad at the back, running the whole length of the stone, and two smaller ones at right angles to it along the ends; each of the latter has one side cut flush with the end of the stone, presenting a section similar to half of a Gothic arch, forming a sort of roof to protect the joints from rain. The large flange fitted into a longitudinal groove on the under side of the step above, a smaller transverse groove receiving

Lieutenant Smith, who accompanied Mr. Newton, has made elaborate calculations, from which the dimensions of the various parts of the building may be pretty accurately deduced. The statue of Mausolus is 9 feet 9 inches in height; from the tread of the chariot-allowing for the marble block on which the chariot stood-to the summit of the supporting pyramid was 4 1-2 feet; the total height of colossal group being, therefore, 14 1-4 feet; while the platform on which it stood could not have measured less than 24 feet by 18. The length of the pyramid would be 108, its width, 86, and its height, 23 1-2 feet-making just 3 inches in excess of the elevation given by Pliny for the quadriga and pyramid united. He states that the pteron or colonnade was of the same height; the remains of its columns corroborate him, so that but 65 feet of his total of 140 remain unappropriated. There can be little question, from the example of the Mylasa monument, that the pteron stood upon a high and solid marble basement, that of the Mausoleum being decorated with one, and in all likelihood two rows of bas-reliefs. spaces between the thirty-six columns would supply appropriate positions for the various colossal figures; but by what means the enormous dead-weight of the novel pyramid was safely upheld on the pteron must ever remain a mystery-an unsolvable riddle for sculptors and architects, who have rejected Lieutenant Smith's idea of a pointed supporting vault as untenable.

The

The effect of this splendid monumental mass, with its solid basement, its superb friezes, its graceful columns, its wondrous statues, with its white marble pyramid crowned with the majestic charioteer, rising from the rock-built terrace, and towering

over the beautiful city, with the blue sky cribbed, cabined, and confined. The Natuoverhead, and the volcanic hills for a back-ral History collection is too crowded to be ground, must have been something approach- examined with any profit; the prints are, to ing the sublime: even now we cannot but all practical intents and purposes, buried; regret that she, to whose affection it owed mineralogical specimens hidden away in its birth, was denied the sight of its completed beauty.