rmed, or at least encrusted, with large blocks of
white marble; a door in the base opens into a gallery terminating in a
small room, ornamented with paintings on the stucco, in regular
compartments. In this chamber of the dead, once stood a sarcophagus
that contained the remains of Cestius. "At the base of the pyramid
stand two marble columns, which were found beneath the ground, and
re-erected by some of the popes. One foot, which is all that remains
of the colossal statue in bronze of Caius Cestius, that formerly stood
before his tomb, is now in the Museum of the Capitol."[19]

[19] Rome, &c., vol. ii.--From the monument we learn that he
was the contemporary of Caesar and Augustus, but his name
does not appear in the annals, or the literature of that
eventful and enlightened period; of his wealth, and of
his pride, this magnificent tomb is a sufficient record:
but of his merits or his virtues, no trace remains. The
inscription only tells us he was one of the seven
Epulones, whose office was to furnish and to eat the
sacred banquets offered to Jupiter and the Gods.

The situation of this tomb is one of melancholy picturesqueness. The
meadows in which it stands are planted with mulberry-trees. They were,
as implied by their name, formerly a resort of the Roman people in
hours of gladness: they are no longer devoted to the enjoyment of the
living, but to the repose of the dead; "bright and beautiful in the
first days of the year was the verdure that covered the meadows of the
Roman people."[20] They are now the burial-place of Protestants, and
consequently, of foreigners only: by far the greatest part of the
strangers interred here are English.

[20] Rome, &c., vol. ii.

[Illustration: (_Tomb of Caius Cestius_.)]

Time has changed the colour and defaced the polish of the marble
pyramid. The grey lichen has crept over it, and wild evergreens hang
from its crevices. But, what it has lost in splendour it has gained in
picturesque beauty; and there are few remains of antiquity within the
bounds of the Eternal City, that the eye rests upon with such
unwearying admiration as this grey pyramid.

Lastly is the reputed _Tomb of the Horatii and Curatii_.

Its identity has been much controverted, and the Cut shows it to be a
ruinous pile capped with luxuriant foliage. It will, nevertheless,
serve to illustrate the stupendous character of the anc