We have little sympathy with those Englishmen who seem to
think they have a right to dictate to the people of Italy how they should manage their affairs and lay out their cities because Italy showered on the world in the past the magnificent treasures of her art. When, however, Italians are themselves protesting against some act of vandalism, Englishmen will do no harm in joining the right side and expressing their sym- pathy with those who desire to save the relics of the old world from destruction. The proposal to complete the overthrow of that splendid monument of antiquity, the Wall of Aurelian, one of the most beautiful as well as one of the most interesting remains in Rome, is a case in point. Already the Roman Municipality has made four unnecessary breaches in the proud line of defence behind which Belisarius defended the Imperial city, and they now propose to add three more breaches, which will destroy the continuity of the wall and leave mere sections standing up like forlorn icebergs. The next step will, of course, be to demand the demolition of these jagged and ugly pieces of masonry, and then the Wall of Aurelian will only be a memory. One of the most striking things about the wall is the grandeur of its proportions and the excellence of its workmanship. The masonry has nothing feeble or decadent about it, and serves to remind us how slowly the Empire died, and what strength and civilisation it showed even in an age which we are too apt to think of as hopelessly effete and impotent. The Wall of Aurelian is a standing protest against the sweeping generalisations of hasty historians.
Previous page
