The Amphitheatre of Pola

GReat things, and in diuers formes, were made by the famous Romanes; but by the •uines thereof men can not iudge whereunto they serued, & principally this Building which was named Lesette Zone di Seuero: of which Building you sée a corner of the House yet standing, which is of 3. roofes, all Corinthia worke. But it may be séene, that from the roofe it was made of another manner of Buildings, because some Pillars were hollowed and crefted, and some smooth; besides, the Capitals and other formes are not all of one worke. I haue not measured the height of this Building, but onely the ground and thicknesse of things: and for as much as I can conceaue, the roofes aboue lessen one more then another, the fourth part, as Vitruuius writes in his description of Theaters. This Figure hereunder, sheweth the ground of the Building, & also the skie or roofe of the Lacunary aboue the Columnes: it was measured with the foote that measured the Theater of Pola. •rst, the thickenesse of the Wall, is 3. foot and an halfe: betwéene the one Wall & the other, it to 4. foot and an halfe: betwéene the Wall and the Columnes, is 5. foot and 3. quarters: and so is the space betwéene the Columnes: the thicknesse of a Columne is 2. foot and 4. quarters. In this Building you sée no Chambers at all, nor any shew or signes of Stayres, or goings vp into the lodgings: but men may conceaue, that it was much greater, and that in other places both Stayres and Chambers might haue stood; and to speake trueth, this Building, when it was whole, was a notable piece of worke, in regard of the great number of Columnes and Pillars that were in it, together with the costly worke thereof.

AT Pola, a town in Dalmatia, this Amphitheater is in the middle of the Town, & yet very whole: which building hath nothing but yᵉ first wings without, with the 4. counterforts, ache made of 3. Pilasters, which, I beléeue, were made for yᵉ strengthning thereof, because this wall stood thus alone: so that nothing at all was made of the Building within, but the outtermost wall, with the Arches marked A. But by the shew of some holes which are within the wall, men may iudge, that there they made yᵉ stayres and seats of wood, when they made their sports, and held their feasts: neuerthelesse, for a beautifying of the Figures, I haue set down the part within, as in my opinion, it should bee made. This Amphitheater was measured with a moderne foote, which is shewed here vnder the ground: the widenes of the Arches is 9. foot, & 2. ounces, but he 4. principal Arches are 15. foot wide, yᵉ forefront of the Pilasters is 4. foote & 2. ounces: the flat Pillar, is 2. foote and 2. ounces broad: so the Pilasters on each side, are one foote broad: the Pilasters in the sides, are 5. foote and 3. ounces: betwéene the Pilasters of the counterforts, and the other Pilasters, it is 3. foote and 4. ounces.

TOuching the Orthographie, or the ground of the Amphitheater of Pola, I haue sufficiently spoken: but now I must shew the Orthographie of the part standing vp, beginning at the n•ther part: as touching the Basement, it hath no terminations of measures, (the cause why, is,) for that the Hill is not euen: for in the Hill the Pedestall is not onely lost, but also the whole first order of the Arches, with all their Cornices vpon them, and the Hill is the height of the plaine of the second Story; therefore I will set downe no height of the measure of the Basements: but will brain from thence vpwards. The height of the Pedestall vnder the Pillar, is 2. foot and an halfe: the height of the Pillar, of flat Columne with the Capitall, is about 16. foot: the height of the Arch, is 17. foot and an halfe: the Architraue is a foot and 9. ounces high: the height of the Freese, is 9. ounces: the height the Cornice, is one foot & 10. ounces: the height of the borst-wering or place brest-high (if there bee any other) aboue the Cornice, is ae high as yᵉ Cornice: the height of the Pillar is 21. foot & 9. ounces, with the Capitall: the height of the Arch, is 18. foot and one ounce: the thicknesse of the Arch, is 1. foot and 9. ounces: the Architraue, Freese and Cornice, are of the same height that the vndermost is: the Basement marked X. is 4. foot and 4 ounces. From the Basement to vnder the Cornice, is 19 foot: the height of the Cornice is one foot and an halfe. And this is touching the Orthographie of the Amphitheater, the which Orthographie is on the next side, marked P. and for that (as in the Treaty of yᵉ Ichnographia I haue sayd) the Amphitheater hath some Pilasters on foure sides, which were made for strengthening & counterforting of the walls: the which wall stood within, without any thing else; and therefore I meane to shew how it stood: the Figure marked Q. sheweth the sides of this counterfort: & that part marked H. representeth a Pilaster: that part marked I. sheweth the Profill of yᵉ wall of the Amphitheater: betwéene the Pilaster H. and the wall or Pilaster marked I. is a going through of three foot and an halfe wide: so that two men may goe through together. These counterforts haue their ground in euery order or story, whereon the people might stand; but there are no stayres nor signes of stayres, but were made of wood, as may be seene by some holes before the windowes. And that the Cornices of this present Building may be the better vnderstood, therefore I haue set them there besides in greater forme, that a man may know their members, by their Caracters or Letters which they are marked withal. The manner of this Cornicement is much different frō the Romish, as men may sée: and I, for my part, would not make such Cornices in my worke; but with the Theater of this Towne, I would serue my turne, because they are of a better manner of worke. I am of opinion, that this was an other workeman, different from the other, and it may be that this workeman was a high Almaine, because the Cornices are made much after the Dutch manner.