From the minutes of the Royal Society it appears, that a drawing of this infcription had been fent it in 1680; and in a volume of the Tranfactions, 1714, the infcription is noted. A letter from the famous Cotton Mather of Bofton, defcribing it, was then inferted in the Memoirs of the Society. In May 1728 the late Bishop Berkeley, that great and good man, went over to Boston. From thence he made an excurfion, in order to examine these written mountains of America. He went to the rock. He examined the infcription. And, as we well remember to have been told by his ingenious and religious widow, the late Mrs. Berkeley, he returned fully convinced that this reputed fcrawl of the prefent Indians, this boafted infcription of Punick, of Phoenician, or of Tartar hands, was merely the cafual corrofion of the rock by the waves of the fea. With this opinion, unknown as it appears to have been to Dr. Lort, we cordially concur. All the circumstances unite to prove it.

At Taun

ton,' fays Cotton Mather, by the fide of a tiding river, part in, part out of the river, there is a large rock, on the perpen'dicular fide of which, next to the ftream, are seven or eight * lines.' I am informed,' adds Dr. Ifaac Greenwood, thatthe river, fince the memory of many now living, is fome< thing more diftant from the rock than formerly, though now but a few feet; and that there are the like figures for fome feet under the prefent furface of the beach *. This laft circumftance, concerning a part of the whole infcription being under what is now the beach, at the ebb, and what must formerly have been always water; is decifive, we think, for this opinion. No infcription could have been formerly written there. Nor can any objection be raised to this argument, from the feemingly human figures on the rock. These are no more human figures than the strokes near them are human characters. This is plain from an inspection of them, in Dr. Greenwood's copy of 1730; neither Dr. Danforth's of 1680, nor Cotton Mather's of 1712, having them at all. Nor could human figures, any more than human characters, be infcribed upon rocks that were under water. Yet Dr. Greenwood himfelf affures us, that there are the like figures for fome feet under the present furface of the beach. Cotton Mather alfo confirms this, by faying there are feven or eight lines,' though I have not yet 'been able to procure the whole, but have sent a copy of two of 'them.' Two only are equally given in all the copies. When I faw it laft, in 1774,' fays Mr. Winthrope, Hollifian profeffor of mathematics at Cambridge in New-England; and he went

* P. 293-294.
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to fee this rock above thirty years ago;' the tide covered all but the upper part of it. The rock indeed, as Dr. Greenwood fays, is certainly in its furface very uniform, compact, and durable; yet we find in fact it is fo foft, that time is fuppofed to have gradually impaired them, and one of advanced years in the town told me, he was fenfible of fome alteration fince his memory +.' According to the best of¿ my remembrance,' adds Mr. Winthrope, the characters do ⚫ not appear fo plain now, as they did about thirty years ago .' What has fenfibly faded within the compafs of thirty years only, could never be very antient; and what must have been always under the tide at no diftant period of time, could then have received no infcription at all upon it.

XXVII. Obfervations on the Barberini Vafe. By John Glen

'King, D. D.'

This beautiful urn, which Montfaucon defcribed as of one precious ftone,' when it is evidently glafs, or compofition, of a deep blue or violet colour;' has fome white' figures upon it, which Montfaucon confidered as reprefenting Leda with her fwan. But Dr. King thinks the vase to be the urn of the Emprefs Mammea;' as it was found in her and her fon's tomb at Rome; and the figures to represent her death, and the birth of her fon. For this idea Dr. King has produced fome plau fible reafons. And reafons plaufible, we apprehend, are all that can be produced upon the point.

I

XXVIII. An Effay on the elegant ornamental Cameos of the Barberini Vafe. By Charles Marfb, Efq. F. A. S.'

This, after an introductory letter in English, is written in Latin; but, for what reafon, we cannot conjecture. Mr. Marsh however agrees with Dr. King, without knowing his opinion, in interpreting the firft feries of figures to be Mammea, Alexander Severus, and Jupiter; but applies the other group to Heliogabalus, &c. Yet he confiders Heliogabalus as fatirized for. his lufts, by the naked representation of him; when even his Alexander Severus, and even his Jupiter, are equally represented fo. And he thinks the vase to be urna votiva, in honorem

Alexandri Severi ficta.'

* Page 296.

+ P. 295, 294.

+ P. 296.

XXIX. Some Account of an ancient Painting on Glass. By the Rev. Robert Mafters, B.D. F. S. A.' &c.

This is an antient piece of glass, on which is depicted a memorable piece of hiftory of the Stewart family; and was difcovered by me in Cambridgefhire, and obtained from a de'fcendant of that house, who faid it came from an ancient seat of the family at Stuntney in that county, which was pulled down about the beginning of the prefent century. The ftory alludes to an event, which poffibly took place in the Stewart family fome years ago, and which has before been treated on in the fourth volume of the Archæologia.'

• XXX. Explanation of the Infcriptions on a Roman Altar and • Tablet found at Tinmouth Caftle, in Northumberland, A.D. 1783. By the Rev. Mr. Brand, Secretary,"

The altar was found at the depth of fix feet in the earth, where it had been laid as a foundation-ftone, probably of the ' antient Chriftian church, which is faid to have been erected there foon after the introduction of that faith into Britain:' fo faid traditionally perhaps, but not historically. The tablet was found alfo in the fame place.' The infcription upon the lat ter, is fingularly ftriking; that Maximinus, agreeably to his vow, conftructed Gyrum,' an artificial harbour, lumbas' for lymbas,' boats to fhelter in it, and templum' a temple for the owners of the boats.

'XXXI. An Account of the obfolete Office of Purveyor to the King's Houfehold. By William Bray, Efq. F. S. A.'

This is a curious and pleasing history of the office, deduced to its abolition in the laft century. But our limits will not allow us to give either an abftract of it, or extracts from it.

* XXXII. An Account of the Remains of two Roman Villa, difcovered near Mansfield Woadhouse 1786. By Hayman Rooke, Efq. F.S. Á?

In this pleafing account, we are introduced into the infide of a Roman gentleman's houfe. It was discovered in confequence of fome small ftone cubes about an inch square, which the country people called fairy pavements,' being faid to be found in the fields.' This induced Mr. Rooke to examine the ground. In removing the earth, which was near a foot deep to the floor, it was perceptible [that] the walls of most of the

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' rooms,'

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· rooms,' which were feven in number, had been stuccoed and painted; many fragments being found in different places on the floors, which must have fallen from the upper parts of the walls: the remaining lower part had the painted flucco perfect in many places. The compofition was near two inches thick, made chiefly of lime and fand; on this was laid a very thin body of ftucco, painted in ftripes of purple, red, yellow, green, and various colours,' more gaudy than elegant furely! They found in the centre room, (20 feet 5 inches by 19),-part of a very elegant Mofaic pavement.' This appears truly elegant, in one of the five plates annexed. As there is no appearance of a fire-place or marks of fire, this is likely to have been the fummer apartment.' But, in a house of only seven rooms on a floor, there could have been no apartments appropriated to fummer. And the fire-place is probably below the floor. There being a greater space between the Mofaic pavement and the wall, on the weft fide than on the eaft; it is not improbable, but it was intended for the three beds or couches, and that this was the triclinium or dining-room,' and confequently an apartment for winter as well as fummer. In five of the other rooms, the walls were painted, but [the rooms] had not teffellated pavements; the floors were ftucco, which appeared to be made of lime, brick pounded, and clay. Ashes, and other appearances of there having been fires, were vifible towards the centre of these rooms.' The floors here, being calculated to bear fires upon them, had them; while there the fire was below the floor. 'The entrance of this villa seems to have been on the eaft front, into a narrow porticus-, about fifty-four feet in length and eight wide,with painted walls and a teffellated pavement. At one end-is a small room, fix< teen feet eight inches by twelve. At the other is a hypocauft,' to this porticus; whch fhews the centre apartment, as equally having a teffellated pavement, to have equally had an hypocauft. < Joining the hypocauft is a small room, eleven feet by nine, which might have been a cold bath; but no pipe, nor any paffage for conveying the water out, could be feen.' It was merely a room of communication, between the next room, which is evidently one thrown off from the houfe, and that porticus, which appears to have formed a gallery of communication to all the other rooms. From this' falfely fuppofed cold-bath, there is a door-way into a large room, twenty-four feet fquare.' The floor, which was ftucco, had the marks of fire in two or three places,' and from the top of a lamp, and a small piece of a cullender,' found there, we may fuppofe this to have been the kitchen.' The detached nature of the building, too, points it out for the kitchen. It is remarkable, that only two

• doorways

⚫ doorways appear from these rooms; therefore there must have been steps from one room to the other,' juft as in the older houses of our own country; the floors being one foot below the • present height of the walls.' Such was the house of a Roman or Roman-British gentleman! I must not omit a fmall

• building, about fourteen feet from the north-west end of this ⚫ villa, the walls irregular, one fide being twelve feet, the others eight and ten; in one end is a hollow, four feet deep, and feven in length; the floor adjoining was paved with flat ftones, ' nothing found under them: from whence it may be fuppofed to have been a neceffary convenience.' We agree entirely with Mr. Rooke in this. The hollow is for a long feat with perforation over it. And we are glad to find the owner of this houfe, whether Roman or Roman-British, to have been fo much more attentive to the delicacies of life, than even the Spaniards were within our own days. The Welih had this attention, fo early as the days of Howel Dha; and called the building Ty Bach, or the small room. They derived it, no doubt, from the Romans. But this of Mr. Rooke's, we believe, is the only Roman Little-House known to be in Europe.

Let us now enter what Mr. Rooke thinks the farm-house, belonging to this villa. It is only ten yards from the north-east 'end' of the other. Two fide-walls extend one hundred and forty-two feet; the inclofed fpace is divided into rooms at the east and west ends, with a court in the centre,' like all our old manfion-houses. The three rooms in the west front• have no painted walls, nor are there any teffellated pavements; the floors are all fuccoed,' an argument, that this was no farm-house. The largeft' room, being eighteen feet by fe< venteen, had painted walls, with a very smooth ftucco floor;" a decifive evidence, that the whole was another gentleman's house. The next room-on the fouth-fide, had likewise painted walls,' another decifive evidence! the reft in this front had none, though the walls feem to have been drawn. In the east end are two rooms, two hypocaufts with their fire< places,' another decifive proof! a bath, and cellars. The centre room had very elegant painted walls, the colours remarkably • bright;' a clofing proof!

Let us add to this account, that the former villa is upon the eftate of John Knight, Efq. of Langold, who has obligingly expreffed his intentions, of erecting a building over the teffellated pavements, for the inspection of the curious;' that the latter is alfo on the eftate of my worthy friend Mr. Mompeffon, who is equally defirous of preferving these curious remains of Roman antiquity;' and that the rooms with * teffellated pavements are now filled up with earth, the only means of preferving them till the buildings can be erected.'

• XXXIII.