A day in ancient Rome; being a revision of Lohr's "Aus dem alten Rom", with numerous illustrations, by Edgar SShumway .. . THE ARCH OF SEVERUS, WEST SIDE, AS TO-DAY. To be sure, if it were the ancient street into which we were going,a horrible sight might yet meet our eyes. For hard by the Careerwas the so-called stairway of groans {Scalae ge7nonianae), on whichthe bodies of executed criminals were exposed, so that the wholeRoman forum might see them, and the sight inspire great butwholesome horror ( inagno eiiin horrorey) It was here that themiserable Vitellius fell in his vain flight. In ord
A day in ancient Rome; being a revision of Lohr's "Aus dem alten Rom", with numerous illustrations, by Edgar SShumway .. . THE ARCH OF SEVERUS, WEST SIDE, AS TO-DAY. To be sure, if it were the ancient street into which we were going,a horrible sight might yet meet our eyes. For hard by the Careerwas the so-called stairway of groans {Scalae ge7nonianae), on whichthe bodies of executed criminals were exposed, so that the wholeRoman forum might see them, and the sight inspire great butwholesome horror ( inagno eiiin horrorey) It was here that themiserable Vitellius fell in his vain flight. In order to reach theforum from this side, we descend a temporary flight of woodenstairs. Turning to the right now, we look through the middle oneof the three triumphal portals of the arch {Aretis triuniphalis) ofSeptimius Severus. This somewhat clumsy edifice was erected inthe year 203 A. D., to commemorate the victories of this emperor 26 CARACALLA. over the Parthians. The large middle archway communicates witheach of the smaller ones by still smaller arches inside. It wasprobably built over a street. It stands so high above the originallevel of the forum that the side arches had to be reached byseven steps. When still adorned with all its decorations itmust, it is true, have been much finer. Above the mainpassage there was a long inscription, in metal letters, rehearsingthe achievements of the imperial family. (In the fourth line wenow read, OPTIMIS FORTISSIMISQUE originally, as we may conclude from the marks left of thefastenings of the letters, it must have read, * P. SEPTIMIO GETAENOBILISSIMO CAESARI OPT.) But when, after his fathers death, Caracalla had glutted hishatred of his brother Geta, by making away with him, he causedhis odious name to be removed from this monument of victory,on the pretense that it was too shocking to be continually TEMPLUM CONCORDIAE. ^^ reminded of his dead brother. Trop
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1880, booksubjectromeant, bookyear1885
