Burrow, Edward John: The Elgin marbles: with an abridged historical and topographical account of Athens (Band 1): Illustrated with forty plates (London, 1817)

128

and that one undertaking to do it, imme-
diately died the first he opened; and that the
plague soon after followed in the.town."

About eleven years after this account was
given, the Venetians besieged the citadel, and
threw a shell from the hill of the Museum,
which most unfortunately exploded near the
middle of the cella of the Parthenon, entirely
destroying the walls of that division of the
building, and overthrowing nineteen pillars.
The eastern pediment, with its sculptured
treasures, was nearly demolished by this acci-
dent, and the western has since suffered se-
verely from other causes. Of the ornamen-
tal parts of the Temple, which have been saved
from the worse than Gothic ignorance and
devastation of the Turks, we are most fortu-
nately enabled to speak with certainty; and if
the architectural details of the building, in its
most perfect state, were comparable in point
of merit with some of these, no greater enco-
mium can be paid it, than to say, that it was
worthy of receiving such exquisite decoration.
Erectiieum. " There is also in this place," says Pausa-\
nias, still speaking of the Acropolis, " the