Several carriages were waiting at Borghetto, and we travelled pleasantly into the delicious clover-scented uplands, stopping by the way to admire the grand old castle with its tall tower and ruined church, standing on a tufa rock just above the railway. Beyond, in the hollow, flows the stealthy Tiber, which here makes such immense bends amongst the lowlying pasture lands that one pities the passengers in the river steamers, which till a few years ago were the chief means of communication between Rome and Borghetto. As we were carried merrily on over the luxuriant hay-fields, between hedges of wild roses and cistus, we looked across the valley to Maglian Sabina gleaming white against the dark mountain steeps. Suddenly, without any previous sign, the pastures opened, and we found ourselves on the edge of a gulf in the tufa, a deep abyss of rock where the evergreen shrubs and honeysuckle fell in perfect cascades of luxuriance over the red and yellow tufa cliffs, stained here and there with dashes of black and brown, and perforated with Etruscan tombs of various sizes, reached by narrow pathways along the face of the precipice. In the misty depths the little river Treja wanders VOL. II. 3 amid huge stones, and under the tall arches of a magnificent bridge of 1712, which crosses the ravine at a height of 120 feet. The opposite bank is crested by the old houses and churches of Civita; and in the hollow are some rustic water-mills. One must make a very sharp bargain if one descends at the Hotel of La Posta, as the landlord takes advantage of his few travellers to extort as much as he possibly can. It is a curious kind of caravansary, as a great part of the large building is let off to poor families, and most of what remains is occupied by the officers of the garrison. Ablutions can here only be made like mosaics, a small portion at a time. From the terrace there is the most lovely view over the ravine to the mountains. The Cathedral of Civita is very fascinating, and very unlike anything else. The wide portico at the west end supported by a range of pillars is encrusted with lovely mosaic work of 1210, by Lorenzo Cosmati and his sons. "A fine flight of steps leads up to a porch of fair proportions, flanked by porticoes. The porch opens on to the chief portal by a broad arch resting on pilasters and crowned with an entablature and balcony. The portal is a series of pilasters and columns, above the architrave of which is a recess with a fan window. The arched border of this recess, as well as the pilasters, friezes, and wall, are worked in mosaic. In the key of the border is the lamb; on the pilasters, the symbols of the Evangelists. The following inscription on the architrave reveals the name of the author: Laurentius cum Jacobo, filio suo, magistri Two lateral doors flank the chief portal, and in the lunette of that to the right is a bust figure in mosaic of the Saviour, with a cruciform jewelled nimbus, holding a book and stretching out his right hand in the act of benediction. A natural movement and fair contours mark the figure, which has none of the usual grimness or vehemence. The oval head, inclosed by hair falling in a triple wave behind the shoulders, has at least an expression of repose. The chin, broad and bare, is fringed with a short beard, the nose is straight, the mouth small, and the eyes without stare. A red tunic with gold borders and jewelled blue cuffs, and a gold mantle, complete the dress, which is shadowless and flat, but fairly lined. The yellowish flesh tints tend to red on the cheeks, and are outlined with red in the lights and black in the shadows. On the architrave below this gay and not unpleasant mosaic are the words: Ma... Jaco † Rainerius Petri Rodulpho fieri fecit." bus m fecit Crowe and Cavalcaselle. Except the opus alexandrinum pavement and the crypt, the interior of the church has been modernized, but the arrangement is remarkable, as the nave ends in a broad semi-circular staircase leading to the tribune, like a picture of Paul Veronese. The transepts are occupied by the local saints Gracilianus and Felicissima: the latter is shown in a glass case and wreath of pink roses. Beyond the cathedral rises the citadel, built by Antonio San Gallo for Alexander VI. Gsell-fels calls its tower with the triangular outworks "the political Bastile of Rome." Some years ago we went thither to visit the famous robber chief tain Gasparoni, imprisoned for twenty years under the papacy. Many of his band were with him, and there was certainly an unpleasant sensation when the door of the large room they inhabited was closed, and from the numerous little beds where they were lying, gaunt and with matted hair, the many figures rose up of men who were so long the terror of the Campagna, and whose murders under circumstances of the most detailed barbarity still are told by Castelli grandmothers to terrify the village circles. When About went to visit Gasparoni in his prison, the old robber-chief offered him a printed list of the hundred murders he had committed, as a souvenir on taking leave, and was greatly surprised that he did not wish to accept it. Under the Sardinian government Gasparoni and all the survivors of his band are set at liberty! Civita Castellana occupies the site of the Falerium Vetus, * Who complain that brigandage is encouraged by the adherents of the Pope and Francis II. mentioned so often by Plutarch and Livy, and founded by the Pelasgi soon after the Trojan war. Ovid however, who married a Faliscan wife, ascribes its foundation to Halesus, son of Agamemnon. "Venerat Atridæ fatis agitatus Halesus; A quo se dictam terra Falisca putat." Fast. iv. 73. "Cum mihi pomiferis conjux foret orta Faliscis, Per celebres ludos, indigenamque bovem. Stat vetus et densa prænubilus arbore lucus: Amor. iii. Eleg. 13. "Camillus was the military tribune under whom Falerii was added to the territory of Rome. According to the legend, 'a schoolmaster, who had the care of the sons of the principal citizens, took an opportunity when walking with his boys without the walls, to lead them to the Roman camp, and throw them into the power of the enemy. But Camillus, indignant at this treason, bade the boys drive their master back into the town again, flogging him all the way thither, for the Romans, he said, made no war with children. Upon this the Faliscans, won by his magnanimity, surrendered to him at discretion, themselves, their city, and their country.""-Arnold's Hist. of Rome. The most remarkable remains of the ancient Falerii will be found near the Ponte Terrano about a mile beyond the castle of Sangallo. The bridge crosses the ravine of the Rio Maggiore by a double arch; one pier is of rock, the other of Etruscan masonry. |