Page:Greek Buildings Represented by Fragments in the British Museum (1908).djvu/119

 THE PARTHENON AND ITS SCULPTURES. 103 bewildering* The crossing of the legs at different angles con- fuses the eyes, so that an illusion is given which recalls the very effect of the march of cavalry. The troop of horse seems to go by with a clatter. The Metopes. The metopes were 92 panels, approximately 4 feet square, set above the stone beam of the outer order, 14 at each end, and 32 at each side. These sculptures are in the highest relief, some of the figures, indeed, are almost detached. There are fifteen originals from the south side, and two casts from the north-west corner, in the Museum. Many of those once at the middle of the north flank are entirely lost, and about as many on the south side are only known through Carrey's draw- ings. Those which still remain on the building are much decayed, and, indeed, there was considerable loss from exposure during the last cen- tury. The Western Metopes are now always described as a battle of Greeks and Amazons, but BeuM long ago suggested that the subject was a battle of Greeks and Persians, and Leake described them cautiously in a way that would admit of this inter- pretation. He says : " The long dress of the vanquished in 14 and the shield in 10 are barbaric, and apparently Oriental. It Figs. 94 and 95. — Metopes, 9 and from Pars. W. II : man on the north side he says: "We see how possible it is to get into difficulty ; the man's leg ought to have been visible across the belly of his horse." But on the marble the rider's leg is plainly to be traced, as may be seen in Plate XXL, " Museum Marbles." He also complains that some tails are omitted, but this is only so where the tails of neighbouring horses are held so high that they, too, would be hidden in the same position. I
 * Dr Murray has found some faults in regard to this. Of the last horse-