Page:History of Art in Sardinia, Judæa, Syria and Asia Minor Vol 2.djvu/236

 2i8 A History of Art in Sardinia and Jud^a. a dark brown by age and exposure ; they are of different size, but well dressed and admirably fitted together. One point to be noticed is the huge top monolith, on which is carved a globe, with outstretched wings, slightly bent at the extremities, as though the better to cover the figures sculptured underneath. The stone though gigantic (22 ft. 5 in. long), was not sufficiently large to receive the whole disc, so that it was carried on to a smaller stone now disappeared. A double-winged globe, necessarily smaller, was repeated under the topmost, but the wings, instead of being curled downwards, were slightly raised at the ends. The two sets of winged discs formed a kind of rude entablature, sup- ported by a square pillar on either side. The space between the pillars was occupied by two other stones, and eight more com- pleted the facade. Each block is occupied by a figure in considerable relief, averaging even now from 25 c. to 50 c. The widest divergence of opinion exists in respect to the relative attitude of the pictures under discussion. For example, on the pillars, our drawing shows two full-length pictures with raised arms, whilst in Mr. Ramsay's they are seated. The sole detail to be made out in the photo- graphs are the low, rounded cap and pointed tiara of these two figures, which recall the headdress of the Eyuk sphinxes, e.g. the characteristic head-gear of Hathor.^ On the central stone, third from the right next to the water, our cut has a much defaced figure, and Mr. Ramsay sees in it an altar with base and cornice. The two upper corner blocks are the least injured, hence sepia drawings and photographs are for once agreed in their portraiture, and the costume they have given us corresponds in every particular with that of Boghaz-Keui (Plate VIII. D and E), and vividly brings to the memory Assyrian bas-reliefs. It is the same flowing mantle, which covers one leg and leaves the other bare from the middle of the thigh, allowing the short tunic to be seen. The heads are very indistinct, so that it is hard to say whether they were originally provided with caps or not, and the wildest sup- position is possible. The detail on the top of the head (Fig. 358), for instance, may be taken for a round cap or modius, as specified by Mr. Ramsay, or, as we incline to think, for the hair of the per- sonage, whose attitude, notably the uplifted arms and position at ^ The detail seems to be pretty distinct, since M. Sokolowski describes it as a "rounded cap."