k
grilling some on a very open fire. Another inferior mosaic on the north
side of the atrium, represents S. Christopher with his little Passenger.
It is a pity that Titian's delightful version in the Doges' Palace could
not have been followed.

The atrium is remarkable not only for its illustrations to Genesis. Its
mosaic patterns are very lovely, and its carved capitals. The staircase
to the left of the centre door of the church proper leads to the
interior galleries and to the exterior gallery, where the golden horses
are. Of the interior galleries I speak later. Let me say here that these
noble steeds were originally designed and cast for a triumphal arch, to
be driven by Victory, in honour of Nero. Filched from Rome by
Constantine, they were carried to his own city as an ornament to the
imperial hippodrome. In 1204 the great Doge Enrico Dandolo, having
humiliated Constantinople, brought the horses to Venice as a trophy, and
they were transferred to the service of the church. Here, above the
central portal of the cathedral, they stood for nearly six centuries,
and then in 1797 a more modern Constantine, one Napoleon, carried them
to Paris, to beautify his city. In 1815, however, when there was a
redistribution of Napoleonic spoils, back they came to Venice, to their
ancient platform, and there they now are, unchanged, except that their
golden skins are covered with the autographs of tourists.

One odd thing about them is that they and Colleoni's steed are the only
horses which many younger and poorer Venetians have ever seen. As to the
horselessness of Venice, the last word, as well as one of the first, in
English, was written by our old friend Coryat in the following passage:
"For you must consider that neither the Venetian Gentlemen nor any
others can ride horses in the streets of Venice as in other Cities and
Townes, because their streets being both very narrow and slippery, in
regard they are all paved with smooth bricke, and joyning to the water,
the horse would quickly fall into the river, and so drowne both himselfe
and his rider. Therefore the Venetians do use Gondolaes in their streets
insteede of horses, I meane their liquid streets: that is, their
pleasant channels. So that I now finde by mine owne experience that the
speeches of a certaine English Gentleman (with whom I once discoursed
before my travels), a man that much vaunted of his observations in
Italy, are utterly false. For when I asked him what p