Identifier: museumofclassical00falk (find matches)
Title: The museum of classical antiquities : being a series of essays on ancient art
Year: 1860 (1860s)
Authors: Falkener, Edward, 1814-1896 Wood, J. E Davies, Benjamin Rees
Subjects: Classical antiquities Archaeology
Publisher: London : Longman, Green, Longman, and Roberts
Contributing Library: Getty Research Institute
Digitizing Sponsor: Sloan Foundation

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hey represent, it will be necessary to refer slightlyto those events of Lycian history which may throw light on thesubjects represented in the sculptures of this monument, which,from its differing so essentially from every other object in this IONIC MONUMENT AT XANTHUS. 133 country in its style of art, naturally leads us to conceive that itowes its origin to some foreign influence. The fabulous history of Lycia records to us the myths ofBellerophon, and of the carrying away of the daughters of Pan-darus by the Harpies. The latter event is represented on, andhas given its name to, one of the stelae in the city of Xanthus.The accompanying representation of the story of Bellerophon istaken from a beautiful terra-cotta found in the island of Melos,and now in the British Museum. It is of early Greek art,anterior to the time of Phidias; and this corresponds with thefact, that the ancient poets make no reference to a wingedPegasus. It bears evidence of having once been decoratedwith colour.*
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<^i^- Bellerophon, a son of the king of Corinth, having murderedlhis brother, fled to the court of Proetus, king of Argos. Beingunjustly accused of intriguing with the kings wife, he was sentto lobates, king of Lycia, bearing instructions for his owndeath. For this purpose lobates furnishes him with troops, and * A very beautiful and superb Eoman mosaic pavement representing thissubject, discovered at Autun, in France, has lately been exhibited in this country. 134 ON THE SCULPTURES OF THE directs him to kill the Chimera, a horrible monster, described byHesiod as ha\dng the head of a lion, the body of a goat, and thetail of a dragon, which was possessed of great Telocity, whichbelched forth lire from its mouth, and which had for a long timelaid waste Lycia. * Now the poets have generally interpreted thisextravagant animal by the supposition, that it might have beena formidable volcano of this name in the Gulf of Telmessus, thesummit being inhabited by lions, the centre by goats, an

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