he front of
the house were some inscriptions for electioneering purposes.

The pilasters on either side of the main entrance are painted red to
about the height of a man, beyond which they are of white plaster. On
entering the prothyrum may be observed a large hole in the wall,
destined for the reception of the _repagulum_, or strong wooden bar
with which the door was secured. The door appears, from the places for
bolts on the threshold, to have been composed of two pieces (bifora).
The walls of the prothyrum are painted black, with a red podium,
divided into three compartments by green and yellow lines, in the
middle of which are an aquatic bird, perhaps an _ibis_, a swan with
spread wings, and an ornament that can not be made out. Towards the
top the walls are painted with fantastic pieces of architecture on a
white ground; amidst which, on one side, is a nymph descending
apparently from heaven. She has a golden-colored vest, on her
shoulders is a veil agitated by the breeze, and she bears in her hand
a large dish filled with fruits and herbs. On the other side was a
similar figure, playing on the lyre, with a sky-blue vest and
rose-colored veil that fluttered about her. The remaining
architectural paintings contained little winged Cupids, one holding a
cornucopia, another a drum, and two with baskets of fruits and
flowers. These were the good geniuses, which, by being depicted at the
entrance of a house, repelled all evil influences and rendered it a
joyful abode.

The pavement of the Tuscan atrium is variegated with small pieces of
white marble placed in rows. The impluvium in the middle appears to
have been under repair, as it is stripped of its marble lining. The
walls of the atrium are painted red, with vertical black zones like
pilasters, or _antae_, besides lines and ornaments of various colors.
On the wall to the left of the entrance is painted a recumbent
Silenus, crowned with ivy, and pressing in his arms the little
Bacchus, who in alarm is endeavoring to escape from his embraces. Near
it, on a yellow ground, is the bearded head of a man, with two claws
projecting from his temples like horns, and a beard floating as if it
was in the water. It may probably be a mask of Oceanus, who is
represented on coins of Agrigentum in a somewhat similar manner. Under
the head is the figure of a hippocampus.

Many objects were found in this atrium, some at the height of four or
five yards from the floor, which must con