The long walls are entirely demolished ; but their foundations may still be traced under the shrubs which cover the plain. The Pirmus, another Athens, retains scarcely a memorial of its ancient greatness. Only a few scattered fragments of columns are found in it, as well as in the two neighbouring harbours of Munychia and Phalerum. A few small craft now frequent this famed port, for the accommodation ,of which there is a• paltry, custom-house.
Athens contains now from eight to ten thousand inhabitants, one-fourth of whom are Turks, and the rest Greeks. The latter enjoy a .milder lot, than in most other places subject to Turkish dominion. They have had recourse to an expedient not very ho nourable, that of chusing for their protector the Kis lar Aga, or chief of the black eunuchs, to whom they pay a tribute of thirty thousand crowns. They have been known also to nse and inflict bloody vengeance on their oppressors. They are distinguished both by address, and by a spirit of liberty, rarely now ob servable among their countrymen. Even some forms of their ancient constitution arc still preserved. Chan dlcr, on entering Athens, was met by an archon. The Turks. have here abated somewhat of their usual lord liness and austerity, and mixed more intimately with the subject people.
The Greeks have au archbishop, who enjoys a tolerable revenue ; and no less than two hundred • places of worship.
By far the most recent and accurate survey of Athens, is that made by Lord Elgin, during his em bassy at Constantinople. The detailed result will, we trust, in some form or other, be given to the pub lic ; in the meantime, the following notice may be interesting : Even before leaving England, Lord Elgin had un derstood, that the most acceptable service which he could render to the arts, would be to procure casts of the most interesting remains of sculpture and ar chitecture, which still existed in Athens. But the expense of engaging artists from this country was too great for an individual to undertake, and an ap plication for assistance from government proved in effectual. In Sicily, however, where he touched on his passage Ito Constantinople, he was more fortunate : To the most eminent artist of that island, the trou bled state of Italy enabled him to add others, of very uncommon abilities, from Rome. In this manner he engaged six artists'; one general painter, one figure painter, twoformatori for the making of the casts, and two architects. With these Lord Elgin, after
much difficulty, obtained from the Turkish govern ment permission to proceed to Athens. They spent three years there, mutually assisting and controuling the operations of each other, and taking measurements and representations of every object which seemed de -serving of attention.
The measurements have been made in the utmost detail, and with extreme care and minuteness. From the rough drafts, plans, elevations, and finished draw ings of the most remarkable objects have been exe cuted. In these, all the sculpture has been restored, with uncommon taste and ability. The bas reliefs, besides, on the different temples, have been drawn, with perfect accuracy, in their' present state of muti lation and decay. Most of these bas reliefs, and all the characteristic architectural features in the diffe rent monuments now remaining at Athens, have been moulded ; and the casts and moulds being conveyed to London, are now in his lordship's possession. Picturesque views of Athens, as well as various parts of Greece, have been taken by one of the most emi nent painters of Europe.
Besides these models and representations, Lord Elgin collected also numerous pieces of Athenian sculpture in statues, reliefs, capitals, cornices, friezes, &c. , The advantages which he possessed enabled him to accumulate a greater collection of these than exists elsewhere in Europe. In making this collec tion, he was strongly animated by seeing the destruc tion into which these remains were sinking, through the influence of 'Turkish barbarism. Some statues in the posticum of the Parthenon had been pounded down for mortar, on account of their affording the whitest marble within reach ; and this mortar was era ployed in the construction of miserable huts. Even without any such object, the Turks were in the ha bit of climbing up the walls, and amusing themselves with defacing the precious remains of sculpture with which they were adorned. We have already seen the disaster which befel the Parthenon, in conse quence of its being converted into a powder maga zine ; yet this had not prevented the Turks from turning the Erectheum to the same use. One temple, which Stuart found in tolerable preservation, had, since his time, hen destroyed so completely, that his Lordship could with difficulty distingtish where it had stood.
A T H