Page:History of Art in Phrygia, Lydia, Caria and Lycia.djvu/64

 48 HISTORY OF ART IN ANTIQUITY. circular wall, whence started other sixteen, which extended to the external wall, 3 m. 70 c. thick. The depth of this wall was not constant ; thus the upper part was built of large stones and 2 m. 36 c. thick, whilst the lower was but i m. 50 c. To bring it to about the same strength, therefore, an internal and external casing was added. Outwardly, it was quite plain, the only attempt at decoration being a stylobate which rests on a rude plinth, the substructure of the tumulus, and a cornice of feeble salience. It would be hard to conceive a better-devised construction, so as to enable it to withstand the action of the weather for many centuries. The intervening spaces between the partition walls are filled in with pebbles, closely packed and admirably put together, though without cement. Thanks to its solidity, the structure must have been preserved in good condition down to the last days of antiquity, protected as it was by the memories and traditions which attached to it. It was a striking object in the landscape the first to greet the mariner on his return, the last to remind him of the home he left behind ; bequeathed, too, said tradition, by revered ancestors, and one " that could not be buried out of sight" OVK d^a^r;?, as Pausanias has it. Every- thing seems to indicate that the tumulus under notice is the Tantaleis tomb. When Tdxier began his labours part of the roof was standing ; given the diameter and the direction of the slope, the whole height, which he computes at 27 or 28 m., could be easily ascertained. The only data which present some un- certainty are the dimensions of the finial. This ornament has not been found, though it is not difficult to divine its nature. Around many other tumuli in the necropolis, whose decorative scheme and arrangement proclaim them coeval with the Tantaleis tomb, quite a large number of phalli of red trachyte have been discovered half embedded in the ground. In size they average from 40 c. to i m. 40 c. Primitive symbols of life and immortality, such phallic emblems, when introduced as finials, had exactly the same value as the rosette in Greek buildings. It is self-evident that the bases of all these phalli were intended to fit some cavity where they would not be seen, for they were left rough. Curiously 1 It is curious that Tdxier, who dug his way into the tumulus, should not have stated in what condition he found ttoe grave-chamber. Did he pick up antique fragments ? If so, he has kept the secret to himself.