Page:A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities (1842, dictionaryofgree00smit 5).djvu/13

Rh offered so many facilities for the purpose as that which has been adopted; in addition to which, the form of a Dictionary has the additional advantage of enabling the writer to give a complete account of a subject under one head, which cannot so well be done in a systematic work. An example will illustrate what is meant. A history of the patrician and plebeian orders at Rome can only be gained from a systematic work by putting together the statements contained in many different parts of the work, while in a Dictionary, a connected view of their history is given from the earliest to the latest times under the respective words. The same remark will apply to numerous other subjects.

The initials of each Writer's name are given at the end of the articles he has written, and a list of the names of the Contributors is prefixed to the work. It may be proper to state, that the Editor is not answerable for every opinion or statement contained in the work: he has endeavoured to obtain the best assistance that he could; but he has not thought it proper or necessary to exercise more than a general superintendence, as each writer has attached his name to the articles he has written, and is therefore responsible for them. It may also not be unnecessary to remark, in order to guard against any misconception, that each writer is only responsible for his own articles, and for no other parts of the work.

Some subjects have been included in the present which have not usually been treated of in works on Greek and Roman Antiquities. These subjects have been inserted on account of the important influence which they exercised upon the public and private life of the ancients. Thus, considerable space has been given to the articles on Painting and Statutory, and also to those on the different departments of the Drama. There may seem to be some inconsistency and apparent capriciousness in the admission and rejection of subjects, but it is very difficult to determine at what point to stop in a work of this kind. A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities, if understood in its most extensive signification, would comprehend an account of every thing relating to antiquity. In its narrower sense however the term is confirmed to an account of the public and private life of the Greeks and Romans, and it is convenient to adhere to this signification of the word, however arbitrary it may be. For this reason several articles have been inserted in the work which some persons may regard as out of place, and others have been omitted which have sometimes been improperly included in writings on Greek and Roman Antiquities. Neither the names of persons and divinities, nor those of places, have been inserted in the present work, as the former will be treated of in the "Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology," and the latter in the "Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography."

The subjects of the woodcuts have been chosen by the writers of the articles which they illustrate, and the drawings have been made under their superintendence. b