(_Mr. Forbes's carriage excursion-lecture at frequent intervals._)
_Turn off to the right beyond_ LA STORTA, _at the tenth mile_, FOR
CARRIAGES; _pedestrians turn off at the fifth mile, near the_ TOMB OF
VIBIUS MARIANUS, VIA VEIENTINA. The site of Veii is surrounded by two
streams, the Cremera and the Fosso de'due Fossi, and is about twelve
miles from Rome. The place was captured after a ten years' siege by
the Romans under Camillus, B.C. 393.
_Descend from the village of_ ISOLA, by the side of the brook, to the
mill; here the torrent forms a picturesque cascade, 80 feet high,
crossed by the ancient Ponte dell' Isola, with a single arch spanning
22 feet. Here was one of the ancient gates, called Porta de' Sette
Pagi. _Opposite_ Isola, down the stream, is the Porta dell' Arce.
Under the rock of Isola are some mineral springs, and another gate,
Porta Campana. In the ravine _beyond_ was the Porta Fidenate. _The
gates on the other side of the city_ may be traced by _ascending_ the
valley of the Cremera, Porta di Pietra Pertusa; _beyond which_, on the
ancient road outside, is a large tumulus, La Vaccareccia. Porta
Spezzeria is higher up, with the remains of a tufa bridge; near by are
the remains of an Etruscan columbaria.[20] Beyond is Porta Capenate,
under which is Ponte Sodo, a tunnel, 240 feet long, 15 feet broad, and
20 feet high, cut in tufa for the brook to pass through. Further on is
Porta del Colombario, near a ruined columbaria. _Beyond_ is the Ponte
di Formello, a Roman bridge upon Etruscan piers; _close by_ is the
last gate, Porta Sutrina.
The so-called Piazza d'Armi, the ancient citadel, stands at the
junction of the two streams.
Under Julius Cæsar, within the walls of the ancient city, an IMPERIAL
MUNICIPIUM was founded. Part of a road, some traces of tombs, and a
columbaria mark the site. It seems to have been founded to occupy the
commanding situation, as Florus the historian, A.D. 116, asks, "Who
now knows the site of Veii?" In the middle ages, for the same reason,
the isolated rock was surmounted by a castle. Cæsar Borgia besieged it
for twelve days, and destroyed it. Isola is considered to have been
the necropolis of Veii, from the sepulchral caves and niches hollowed
in the rock.
A pleasant ramble may be had by _following the Cremera down to the
Tiber, between the sixth and seventh mile on the Via Flaminia, thence
to Rome_.
_Returning beyond_ LA STORTA, _the_ VIA TRIUMPHALIS _leads over_ MONTE
MARIO. On the height overlooking Rome is