THEATRE AT TAORMINA.

7

with intense gratification. The name of the tower recalls to the mind the romantic legend connected with its early history, to which it owes the title that has been since assigned to it. In the middle of the sixteenth century, when the ravages of war still desolated the face of Europe, three lovely sisters, watching from the castle-walls the result of a conflict between their husbands and an invading force, beheld their lords successively perish in their defence; and, well knowing the lawless character of their foes, and preferring death to the prospect of dishonour, they threw themselves from the battlements, and preserved their purity by the sacrifice of their lives. In memory of this act of heroism, the tower—which was built as early as 1321 by the people of Bouvigne, as a defence against the attacks of the Dinanters-is called Crève-Cœur, or Heartbreak, to the present day.

RUINS OF THE THEATRE AT TAORMINA.

SICILY.

"But the glory of Taormina is beyond! the celebrated view of Ætna, from the ruins of the Greek theatre! certainly one of the finest views in the world, and one of which words, and even the pencil, can impart but a faint idea."-KNIGHT's Normans in Sicily.

THE Laterizio, or remains of the ancient theatre at Taormina, has always excited the highest admiration of the traveller, historian, antiquary, and artist: it is one of the noblest vestiges of antiquity, possessed of the most exact and beautiful proportions, and its situation exceeds, in sublimity, that of every similar erection in the world. The exquisite taste of the authors suggested to them the appropriateness of this glorious site, for a building that was to be dedicated to rational pleasures; and the natural circumstances of the spot presented additional inducements. On the ridge of a projecting height, that fronts great Etna, and commands a prospect of the bright blue sea, two broken crags enclosed a space just large enough for the formation of a theatre between. Here the artist employed his happy genius in so fashioning the seats from "the living stone," that nothing further was required than to lay the polished marble over the rows of benches, that had been hewn regularly for their support: the natural recess afforded by the mountain-form, being thus furnished with seats, was found sufficient for the accommodation of sixty thousand spectators. An exterior and inner gallery were added, built of fine bricks and small stones, and it is believed that numerous pillars, formed from a species of marble found in an adjacent quarry, have been removed from the interior of the theatre, to aid in the construction of some humble dwelling at Taormina. Notwithstanding the vast dimensions of the building-six

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THEATRE AT TAORMINA.

hundred and twenty-four feet in circumference, so scientifically was it originally constructed, that the softest tones, the feeblest articulated sounds, the smallest noise, such as "the tearing of a piece of paper" on the proscenium, can even now be distinctly heard in every part of the periphery. In fact, the cicerone never neglects to perform this experiment, to the uniform delight and astonishment of every visitor. In the upper part of the exterior wall, which immediately encloses the seats, niches may be observed, placed at equal intervals, and probably meant for the reception of appropriate statues; but antiquaries have asserted that there stood the copper vessels, "echeia," the object of which was to give additional distinctness and audibility to the voices of the performers. Both the site and design of this building correspond with the desiderata in dramatic architecture enumerated by Vitruvius, which probably were never so happily combined in any other instance, this being both "elevated and sonorous," the latter quality, "ut in eo vox quam clarissimè vagari posset," is attributable solely to the genius of the artist, who has unfortunately carried the mystic knowledge of the theory of sounds away from earth along with him. Whether the Greek or Roman architects are entitled to the fame of being the authors of this inimitable work of art, is a fact that has occasioned much anxiety to the learned, and, contrary to very many plausible arguments in favour of the older nation, many have assigned its origin to the Romans, merely because its mathematical proportions correspond, with tolerable accuracy, to those laid down by Vitruvius; a mode of reasoning exposed to fallacy, for this building might have been amongst the originals whence Vitruvius derived his measurements.

To those who indulge not deeply in antiquarian lore, a richer feast is reserved in the magnificent scenery of Taormina, in which the ruin forms a part, and one that never fails to inspire the beholder with the highest degree of enthusiasm. The accomplished author of "The Normans in Sicily," whose exclamation of delight is quoted at the commencement of this description, thus speaks of the picturesque and wondrous prospect from the site of this interesting remain :-"The ruins of a Greek theatre, with a sea of amethyst seen through its broken arches, might suffice of itself: but then comes Ætna beyond, displaying the whole of its magnificent flank, and sweeping down to the ocean. Bits of the town, an old fortress above, a sugar-loaf village beyond, with various heights and peaks more or less distant, fill up a scene, which is rendered doubly enchanting by the atmosphere and the sun, that reveal it so distinctly and so brilliantly. Turn round, as you stand upon the upper row of seats, and you have the mountains and the coast all the way to Messina, ancient tombs, headlands, and promontories— a combination sufficient of itself to make the reputation of any other place. Nothing can surpass Taormina."

Nor is this impassioned description overcharged: the prospects from the upper seats of the theatre are varied, numerous, and sublime: on one side, the old town of Taurominium appears crouching at the feet of towering mountains: more distant, the luxuriant lands that extend to the very base of Etna, above which is seen a dense girdle of woods encircling his waist, and confined within definite boundaries by the eternal

THEATRE AT TAORMINA.

9

snows, that check all higher vegetation, and admit of no association, except with the vapours that sometimes enwrap his majestic summit. To the southward appear the Cyclopean isle, the lava-strewn shores of Catania, and Syracuse itself, though dimmed by distance. The shores of Calabria, the Faro of Messina, besides many of the most beautiful and prominent features in this romantic, picturesque, and sunny clime, enter into the composition of what may be termed the eastern prospect. So comprehensive, indeed, is the panoramic coup d'œil from the ruined theatre of Taormina, that the most animated description can but awake curiosity to the enjoyment of pleasures which it is unequal to describe: the most graceful pencil can but delineate a partial specimen of varied and boundless beauty.

Near to the ruins of the ancient theatre stands, on an elevated and remarkable summit, the town of Taormina, on the steep once occupied by the Taurominium of antiquity. Although now the abode of wretchedness and squalid poverty, ample records remain to evidence its original extent and grandeur. Some attempt has already been made to convey an idea of the beauty of the situation, and the wide-extended view which the vicinity commands over mountain, and rock, and sea. Taormina is a place of disputed origin, but was, at an early period, of acknowledged value as a military position: to become its master, Dionysius nearly forfeited his life, in the four hundred and third year before the birth of Christ; and its mural defences, coeval with the middle ages, establish the continued importance which a warlike people attributed to this interesting and ancient place. Here it is supposed the town of Naxos stood, which Dionysius the elder levelled with the ground, having reduced the Sicels to subjection: but Andromachus, a man of wealth, power, and genius, assembled his scattered countrymen, seized on the government, and founded, on Mount Tauron, the city which thence derived its name. When Sicilian tyrannies were obliterated by Timoleon, this of Taurominium alone found favour in his eyes, and was permitted to retain its laws unmolested. Timæus the historian, the son of Andromachus, was born here; and although his compositions have all sunk in the stream of time, yet the constant reference to them by subsequent writers, implies that the stigma with which his enemies endeavoured to brand his fame, could never have been deserved.

So perfect are the remains of the theatre, that fancy quickly wanders back to the remotest periods of civilized history, and peoples its numerous benches with crowds of admiring spectators, in the costume of other days: the same sensations, however, are not experienced by an examination of the town of Taormina itself. Encompassed by matchless, by surpassing scenery, it presents a painful contrast, by its filth, poverty, and meanness of appearance-effects rather heightened than relieved by the immoderate number of churches, convents, and spacious public buildings, all constructed of marble, or some other durable material, built after the most pure and graceful classical designs, and many boasting of rich and gorgeous shrines. The Grecian masters of this place have left to posterity another remarkable evidence of their genius and taste-a magnificent naumachia, one side of which, three hundred and fifty feet in length, is yet entire: the capacious reservoirs that supplied it with water, still survive at a little distance;