down, and wanted not much of burying them in its Ruins. This narrow Escape made them more cautious, and was the Occafion of erecting a Theatre of Stone, for their better Security. And from this time the Athenians, whofe Example the reft of the Grecians followed not long after, erected fix'd and durable Theatres of Stone, commonly of Marble, which by Degrees were encreas'd to that Magnitude, that they exceeded almost all other Buildings in Greece. The Figure of Theatres was femicircular, tho' they were not exact Semicircles, but contain'd the bigger half of the Circle, and therefore Amphitheatres, which were made in the fame Figure, as if two Theatres fhould be joyn'd together, were not nicely orbicular, but oval. They confifted of two Parts, Exlum, Scena, and Koihov, Cavea. Scena was a Partition affign'd for the Actors, reaching quite cross the Theatre, which at the firft, agreeably to the ancient Simplicity, was dreft with Boughs and Leaves, but in more expentive Ages was adorn'd with rich and coftly Hangings, to hide the Management of Machines, and other Actions of the Players from the Spectators. It was either fo fram'd as that it might be turn'd round, and then it was call'd Verfatilis, or drawn up, and then it was Ductilis, and this Way is ufually practis'd in our Theatres, in changing the Profpect. It had three principal Gates, one upon the right Hand, another upon the left, by which were prefented meaner and finaller Edifices; and a third in the Middle, by which more magnificent Structures, as Temples of the Gods, or Palaces of Kings, were brought in View; and on each fide of the Gate was a leffer Entrance, thro' which the Perfons either of Gods, or Men, were introduc'd by various Machines and Inftruments, the Names whereof you may find explain'd in Julius Pollux . The whole Scene was divided into feveral Parts, the most remarkable whereof are thefe; Beovov, a Place underneath the Floor, wherein were kept brazen Vefels, full of Stones and other Materials, with which they imitated the Noife of Thunder. Ex, a Place upon the top of the Scene, in which all the Machines, whereby they prefented the various Figures and Prospects, were mov'd. Пaçaoxo, the Tiring-Room, a Place behind the Scenes wherein the Actors drefs'd and adorn'd themselves. Пgoro, the Stage, a Place before the Scenes in which the Players acted. And Ogxsga was that Part in which the Chorus us'd to dance and fing, in the middle of which was plac'd the Pulpit, in Greek Λογείον, οι Θυμέλη. Yox, a Partition under the Pulpit, appointed for the Musick. The Kooy, or Cavea, was appointed for the Spectators, and con fifted of three Parts plac'd in equal Degrees one above another; the lowest of which belong'd to Perfons of Quality, and Magiftrates; the middle to the Commonalty; the uppermost to the Women. And becaufe Theatres were open at the top, they erected Porticos behind the Cavea, whither they retir'd for Shelter in rainy Weather. * Suidas in Пgalves. * Onomaft. 1. IV. c. 19. Athens Athens had three Harbours for Ships. 1. Пegatos, Piraeus, which belong'd to the Tribe of Hippothoontis, and was thirty five or forty Stadia diftant from the City, before the Buildings of the long Walls, which have been already mention'd. From which time the Athenians, by the Direction of Themistocles, made this their chief Harbour. It contain'd three gos, or Docks; the first call'd Kages, from an Hero of that Name. The fecond AQgodirov, from Apodion, or Venus, who had there two Temples, one of which was confecrated by Themistocles, the other by Conon, The third Zia, from Bread Corn, which is call'd by the Grecians (ed. There were likewise in this Harbour five Porticos, which being joyn'd together, compos'd one very large Portico, which was on that Account commonly term'd Maxay God. The Piraeus had farther two Forums; one near the leng Portico, and the Sea: The other farther diftant from the Sea; and for that Reafon chiefly frequented by those who liv'd nearest the City. One of these feems to have been call'd Idea, from the Architect Hippodamus, who built the long Wall, whereby this Harbour was joyn'd to the City. Here was a moft celebrated Mart, to which Merchants reforted from almost every Part of Greece. Whence came the proverbialSaying, Τὸν Πειραιέα κεναγγίαν μὴ φέρειν, That Famine and Emptines do not come from Piraeus. This Harbour, tho' once very populous and well inhabited, was reduc'd to a very few Houses in the time of Strabo, who flourish'd under the Emperors Auguftus and Tiberius; having been burnt by Sylla in the Mithridatick War. 2. Menxía, Munychia, which was a Promontory not far distant from Piraeus, extended not unlike to a Peninfula and well fortify'd both by Nature, and afterwards, at the Inftance of Thrafybulus, by Art. The Name was deriv'd from one Munychus, who dedicated in this Place a Temple to Diana firnam'd Merxía, which yet others report to have been founded by Embarus. 3. Panegy, Phalerum, which belong'd to the Tribe Antiochis, and was diftant from the City thirty five Stadia, according to Thucydides; but in Paufanias's Account' only twenty. This was the most ancient of the three Harbours: And from hence Thefeus is reported to have fet Sail for Crete; and afterwards Menetheus for Troy. T CHA P. IX. Of the Citizens, Tribes, &c. of Athens. HE Inhabitants of Attica were of three Sorts, 1. Пotal, or Free-men. 2. Miraxos, or Sojourners. 3. A, or Servants. The Citizens furpafs'd the others in Dignity and Power, as having the Government in their Hands, but were far exceeded by the Slaves in Number, many Slaves being often fubject to one Citizen. The Number of Citizens in Cecrops's time, I have already faid was twenty Arcadicis. p. 471. Edit. Hanov. thousand; thousand; in Pericles's there were not fo many, as appears from Plu tarch; and when Demetrius the Phalerean was their Governor, they exceeded their first Number under Cecrops only by one thousand; at the fame time Foreigners were ten thousand, and the Slaves four hundred thoufand, as appears from a Poll instituted at the Command of Demetrius, and mention'd in Athenaus ". Whence it is evident, that the Encrease of the Athenians themselves was very inconfiderable, but thofe growing Numbers of Inhabitants, that fwell'd the City to that bigness, to which it was extended in afterAges, were either of Slaves, or Strangers, who for the Advantage of Study, or Trade, or for other Conveniencies, fettl'd themselves at 4thens; and of these two Sorts, in the time of Cecrops, it is probable there were few or none, because, through the Scarcity of Men in his new form'd Government, for the Encouragement of Foreigners to fettle there, he was forc'd to allow them the fame Privileges that were enjoy'd by the Natives. And there is a very ancient Law mention'd by the Scholiaft of Ariftophanes, whereby all Foreigners, who intended to live at Athens, were oblig'd after a short stay in that City, to be enroll'd amongst the free Citizens. And for feveral Ages after, it was no difficult Matter to obtain the Freedom of the City; but when the Athenian Power grew great, and their glorious Actions rendred them famous thro' all Greece, this Privilege was accounted a very great Favour, and granted to none but Men of the greatest Birth, or Reputation, or fuch as had perform'd fome notable piece of Service for the Common-wealth. Nor was it without much Difficulty to be obtain'd even by them; Menon the Pharfalian, who had fent the Athenians a Supply of two hundred Horfe, in the War against Eon near Amphipolis, defired it, and was rejected. And Perdiccas, King of Macedonia, after having affifted them against the Perfians, could obtain no more than a bare ring or Immunity from Tribute paid by thofe that fojourned amongst them, but no Right of Suffrage, or other Privileges common to the Free-men. And after Mardonius and the Perfians were defeated at Platea, it was decreed by an exprefs Law, that none but Men eminent for Merit fhould be admitted into the Number of Citizens P. But this peremptory Stiffness, which Succefs and Victory had put into them, did not always make them fo obftinate, nor hinder, but that many Worthies, tho' neither equal in Birth, or Fortune, to the former, were enroll'd amongst the Citizens; fuch were Hippocrates the Physician, Euryfaces the Son of Ajax, with many others, befide the whole City of the Plateans, to which they granted Freedom, for their fignal Services in the Perfian War. But by thefe Grants, though the Number of the Citizens may be faid to have been encreas'd, yet nothing was added to the Number of Inhabitants, which remain'd still the fame, because the Persons thus admitted, seldom made Ufe of their Privilege, and fued for it rather as a Title of Honour, than with a Defign to be any ways advantag'd by it. This Privilege could not be confer'd by any befides the popular Affembly, whence the Citizen's thus admitted were call'd Anwoonlo, in Oppofition to the freeborn. Neither was the firft Gift of the People to take effect, unless they thought fit to ratify it in a fecond AfJembly, wherein fix thousand Citizens were requir'd to be prefent. And for fear the Authority or Intereft of any Perion fhould fway them to comply with fuch Requests against their Inclinations, they gave their Votes privately, by cafting little Stones into Urns, plac'd on purpose in their Affemblies by the Prytanes, who were alfo oblig'd to provide a fufficient Number of Stones for the Suffragants; nay, farther, till all had done voting, the Strangers that petition'd for Freedom were not permitted to come into the Place of the Affembly. And after all this, if any one appear'd to be undeferving of the Honour they had confer'd upon him, an Appeal might be made to a certain Court which had Power to enquire into the Lives and Conditions of these Perfons, and deprive fuch as they found unworthy, by recalling the Freedom which had been granted thro' the Ignorance, and Inconfideration of the Multitude; and this Difgrace befel Pytholaus the Theffalian, and Apollonides the Olynthian . It was further provided by Solon, that none fhould live at Athens as free Citizens, except fuch as were banish'd from their own Country, or voluntarily came to relide at Athens with their whole Families. Whereby he, no doubt, intended to prevent all fuch from enjoying the Privileges of Athens, who had greater Alliances and Interefts in other Places'. The manner of Admiffion was by declaring that fuch an one was incorporated amongst the Denizons of Athens, and invefted with all the Honours, Privileges, and Immunities belonging to them; and had a Right to partake of, and affift at the Performance of all their Holy Rites and Myfteries, except fuch as were appropriated to certain noble Families, such as were the Eumolpide, Ceryces, Cynida, which had certain Priesthoods, and Holy Offices peculiar to themselves: Or, (as others are of Opinion) they were excluded from all the Offices of Priesthood of whatever Denomination: Which is the more probable, because the freeborn Athenians were themselves excluded from thofe Offices which were appropriated to the facred Families. Except alfo the Offices of the nine Archons, which none but freeborn Athenians were allow'd to execute; that neither the Religion, nor the Management of Publick Affairs might be entrusted in foreign Hands. Yet this extended not to the Children of Citizens thus adopted, who were allowed all the Privileges of Natives. Laftly, they were admitted into a certain Tribe, and Hundred, and fo the Ceremony ended'. Freeborn Athenians were those that had both, or one of their Parents an Athenian. Ariftotle tells us, that in feveral Common-wealths, at the first, those were accounted free, that were born of a Free-Wo'man; but when the Number of Inhabitants increas'd, fuch only were esteem'd free, as were descended from Parents that were both ́ free ". And so it came to pass in Athens; where it was decreed by Solon, that Demofth. Orat. in Neeram. Plutarchus, Solone. Demofthen. Orat. in Ne допе none begotten out of lawful Marriage, which could then be celebrated only between Free-Citizens, fhould have Right to inherit their Father's Eftate. This appears from the following Words of Ariftophanes. Ερῶ η δη καὶ τ Σολῶνός σοι νόμον But this Law was afterwards abrogated by the tacit Confent of the Common-wealth, till the time of Pericles, who when he flourish'd in the State, and had Sons lawfully begotten, propos'd a Law, that those only fhould be reputed true Citizens of Athens, who were born of Parents that were both Athenians; and having prevail'd with the People to give their Confent to it, little lefs than five thousand were depriv'd of their Freedom, and fold for Slaves; and those, who enduring the Teft, remain'd in the Government, and past Mufter for true-born Athenians were found in the Poll to be fourteen thousand and forty Perfons in Number. But Pericles himself afterwards, having loft all his legitimate Sons, fo far perfuaded the Athenians, that they cancell'd the Law, and granted that he fhould enroll his baftard-Sons in the Register of his own Ward, by his paternal Name; thinking that by thofe Loffes he had been fufficiently punish'd for his former Arrogance, and therefore being of Opinion, that he had been threwdly handled by the Divine Vengeance, of which he had run fo fevere a Gantlope, and that his Request was such as became a Man to ask and Men to grant. Thus Plutarch ". But this Law was again repealed by Aritophon the Orator, after the Expulfion of the thirty Tyrants, Euclides being Archon; at which time the antient Law was reviv'd, That all, whofe Mothers were not Citizens, fhould be nothi, illegitimate *. For legitimate Children are those who are born of lawful Wives, who must be Free-Citizens, others being only reputed Concubines. And thus Grammarians commonly explain Nothus. Νόθω ὁ όχι ξένης, η παλλα xide. Nothus, a Baflard, is one born of a Stranger, or an Harlot. motos a legitimate Son, is interpreted by the fame Persons, ò en yuraixòg asus xù rapilns, is in ropípar jápar. One born of a Citizen, and a Wife, or one born in lawful Matrimony Y. But And thofe that were only of the half Blood, when they were invefted with Freedom, were always reputed inferior, and lefs honourable than thofe that were of the whole; and feveral Marks and Cuftoms they had to diftinguifh them from the others, as particularly, that those who had but one Parent, an Athenian, were not allowed to exercise themselves in any of the Gymnafia, that were frequented by those who had both; but only at the Cynofarges, a Place without the City; and that this was esteemed a Mark of Difgrace, is evident from the Practice of Themistocles, who was but of the half Blood of Athens, and to take away, or at least, leffen this Diftinction, us'd to engage the noble Athenians to go and perform their Exercifes with him. In the fame Place there was a Court of Judicature, where Perfons fufpected of having fraudulently infinuated themselves into the Number u Avitus p. 602. edit. Amp elsa. -- * in Pericle. * Car feins-150g;xwv wopinεμάτων Lib. III. Y Homeri Scholiaftes in Iliad. V. Julius Pollux lib. III. I tarch. in Themistocle. 2 Plu and |
