Days near Rome . you descend into these, openings in the rocks CERVARA AND RUSTIC A. 163 beneath lead into vast chambers opening one upon another,their roof supported by huge pillars of natural rock, whilethe floor is deep in sand, and long tresses of ivy, andbranches of flowering laurestinus, wave in upon the gloom,whenever the light streams in through a rift overhead. Onepoint is especially charming, where the Anio and thehills beyond it are seen through a great arch of natural May these solitudes are enlivened by the revels of theFesta degli Artisti, which is well worth seeing. Some
Days near Rome . you descend into these, openings in the rocks CERVARA AND RUSTIC A. 163 beneath lead into vast chambers opening one upon another,their roof supported by huge pillars of natural rock, whilethe floor is deep in sand, and long tresses of ivy, andbranches of flowering laurestinus, wave in upon the gloom,whenever the light streams in through a rift overhead. Onepoint is especially charming, where the Anio and thehills beyond it are seen through a great arch of natural May these solitudes are enlivened by the revels of theFesta degli Artisti, which is well worth seeing. Some his-torical scene, such as the triumph of Vitellius (as in 1870), istaken as the groundwork of a costumed procession,—tourna-ments are held in the meadow near the Anio, wonderfulcavalcades of Arabs in rich dresses ride waving their longspears through the Petra-like ravines, and a bellowingDragon vomiting forth fire and smoke emerges from thecaves, and is slain by an imaginary S. George in the rock-girt Cervara. About two miles beyond Cervara, the tall tower of Rusticarises above the swellings of the Campagna. It stands onthe very edge of the Anio in a beautiful situation, and iswell worth visiting. It was once the property of of the Emperor Lucius Verus, who was adopted byHadrian as his successor. Rustica is most easily seen from 164 DA YS NEAR ROME. the opposite side of the river, reached by the road to Tivoli,turning off to the right beyond Ponte Mammolo. Return-ing to the Via Collatina, a tolerable road leads us over anuninhabited part of the Campagna for about five milesfurther. Then it descends into the valley of the Anio,which is here bordered with willows. The great castle orrather fortified farm of Lunghezza is seen on the oppositeslope, backed by the purple peaks of the Sabina. This wasan ancient possession of the Strozzi family, but has latelybeen sold to the Duke of Grazioli, one of the richest of themodern Roman nobles. Cest le boil plaisir
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1870, booksubjectromeita, bookyear1875
