"Juli jugera pauca Martialis, Hortis Hesperidum beatiora, Longo Janiculi jugo recumbunt.

Lati collibus imminent recessus; Et planus modico tumore vertex Clo perfruitur sereniore: Et, curvas nebula tegente valles, Solus luce nitet peculiari: Puris leniter admoventur astris Celsae culmina delicata villae.

Hinc septem dominos videre montes, Et totam licet sestimare Romam."

The Villa Madama is situated on one of the slopes of _Monte Mario_, which is ascended by a winding carriage-road from near the Porta Angelica. This hill, in ancient times called Clivus Cinnae, was in the middle ages Monte Malo, and is thus spoken of by Dante (Paradiso, xv.

109). Its name changed to Mario, through Mario Mellini, its possessor in the time of Sixtus V. Passing the two churches of Sta. Maria del Rosario and Sta. Croce di Monte Mario,[375] we reach a gate with an old pine-tree. This is the _Villa Mellini_ (for which an order is supposed to be necessary, though a franc will usually cause the gates to fly open), which possesses a magnificent view over Rome, from its terraces, lined with ilexes and cypresses.

"The Monte Mario, like Cooper's Hill, is the highest, boldest, and most prominent part of the line; it is about the height and steepness too of Cooper's Hill, and has the Tiber at the foot of it, like the Thames at Anchorwick. To keep up the resemblance, there is a sort of terrace at the top of the Monte Mario, planted with cypresses, and a villa, though dilapidated, crowns the summit, as well as at our old friend above Egham. Here we stood, on a most delicious evening, the ilex and the gum-cistus in great profusion about us, the slope below full of vines and olives, the cypresses above our heads, and before our eyes all that one has read of in Roman History--the course of the Tiber between the hills that bound it, coming down from Fidenae and receiving the Allia and the Anio; beyond, the Apennines, the distant and higher summits still quite white with snow; in front, the Alban Hills; on the right, the Campagna to the sea; and just beneath us the whole length of Rome, ancient and modern--St. Peter's and the Coliseum, rising as the representatives of each--the Pantheon, the Aventine, the Quirinal, all the well-known objects distinctly laid before us. One may safely say that the world cannot contain many views of such mingled beauty and interest as this."--_Dr. Arnold._

"Les maisons de campagne des grands seigneurs donnent l'idee de cette solitude, de cette indifference des possesseurs au milieu des plus admirables sejours du monde. On se promene dans ces immenses jardins, sans se douter qu'ils aient un maitre. L'herbe croit au milieu des allees; et, dans ces memes allees abandonnees, les arbres sont tailles artistement, selon l'ancien gout qui regnait en France; singuliere bizarrerie que cette negligence du necessaire, et cette affectation de l'inutile!"--_Mad. de Stael._

(Behind the Monte Mario, about four miles from Rome, is the church of _S. Onofrio in Campagna_, with a curious ossuary.)

Just outside the Porta Angelica was the vineyard in which Alexander VI.

died.

"This is the manner in which Pope Alexander VI. came to his death.

"The cardinal datary, Arian de Corneto, having received a gracious intimation that the pontiff, together with the Duke Valentinos, designed to come and sup with him at his vineyard, and that his Holiness would bring the supper with him, the cardinal suspected that this determination had been taken for the purpose of destroying his life by poison, to the end that the duke might have his riches and appointments, the rather as he knew that the pope had resolved to put him to death by some means, with a view to seizing his property as I have said,--which was very great.

Considering of the means by which he might save himself, he could see but one hope of safety--he sent in good time to the pope's carver, with whom he had a certain intimacy, desiring that he would come to speak with him; who, when he had come to the said cardinal, was taken by him into a secret place, where, they two being retired, the cardinal showed the carver a sum, prepared beforehand, of 10,000 ducats, in gold, which the said cardinal persuaded the carver to accept as a gift and to keep for love of him, and after many words, they were at length accepted, the cardinal offering, moreover, all the rest of his wealth at his command--for he was a very rich cardinal, for he said that he could not keep the said riches by any other means than through the said carver's aid, and declared to him, 'You know of a certainty what the nature of the pope is, and I know that he has resolved, with the Duke Valentinos, to procure my life by poison, through your hand,'--wherefore he besought the carver to take pity on him, and to give him his life.

And having said this, the carver declared to him the manner in which it was ordered that the poison should be given to him at the supper, but being moved to compassion he promised to preserve his life. Now the orders were that the carver should present three boxes of sweetmeats, in tablets or lozenges, after the supper, one to the pope, one to the said cardinal, and another to the duke, and in that for the cardinal there was poison: and thus being told, the said cardinal gave directions to the aforesaid carver in what manner he should serve them, so as to cause that the box of poisoned confect which was to be for the cardinal, should be placed before the pope, so that he might eat thereof, and so poison himself, and die. And the pope being come accordingly with the duke to supper on the day appointed, the cardinal threw himself at his feet, kissing them and embracing them closely; then he entreated his Holiness with most affectionate words, saying, he would never rise from those feet until his Holiness had granted him a favour.

Being questioned by the pontiff what this favour was, and requested to rise up, he would first have the grace he demanded, and the promise of his Holiness to grant it. Now after much persuasion, the pope remained sufficiently astonished, seeing the perseverance of the cardinal, and that he would not rise, and promised to grant the favour. Then the cardinal rose up and said, 'Holy Father, it is not fitting that when the master comes to the house of his servant, the servant should eat with his master like an equal (confrezer parimente),' and therefore the grace he demanded was the just and honest one, that he, the servant, should wait at the table of his master; and this favour the pope granted him. Then having come to supper, and the time for serving the confectionery having arrived, the carver put the poisoned sweetmeats into the box, according to the first order given to him by the pope, and the cardinal being well informed as to which box had no poison, tasted of that one, and put the poisoned confect before the pope. Then his Holiness, trusting to his carver, and seeing the cardinal tasting, judged that no poison was there, and ate of it heartily; while of the other, which the pope thought was poisoned, but which was not, the cardinal ate. Now at the hour accustomed, according to the quality of that poison, his Holiness began to feel its effect, and so died thereof; but the cardinal, who was yet much afraid, having physicked himself and vomited, took no harm and escaped, though not without difficulty."--_Sanuto_, iv., _Translation in Ranke's Hist.

of the Popes_.

The wine of the Vatican hill has had a bad reputation even from classical times. "If you like vinegar," wrote Martial, "drink the wine of the Vatican!"[376] and again, "To drink the wine of the Vatican is to drink poison."[377]

(Here, also, is the entrance of the _Val d' Inferno_, a pleasant winter walk, where, near the beginning of the Cork Woods, are some picturesque remains of an ancient nymphaeum.)

The _Porta Angelica_, built by Pius IV. (1559--1566), leads into the Borgo, beneath the walls of the Vatican.

Those who return from hence to the English quarter in the evening, will realize the vividness of Miss Thackeray's description:--

"They passed groups standing round their doorways; a blacksmith hammering with great straight blows at a copper pot, shouting to a friend, a young baker, naked almost, except for a great sheet flung over his shoulders, and leaning against the door of his shop. The horses tramp on. Listen to the flow of fountains gleaming white against the dark marbles,--to the murmur of voices. An old lady, who has apparently hung all her wardrobe out of window, in petticoats and silk hankerchiefs, is looking out from beneath these banners at the passers in the streets. Little babies, tied up tight in swaddling-clothes, are being poised against their mother's hips; a child is trying to raise the great knocker of some feudal-looking arch, hidden in the corner of the street. Then they cross the bridge, and see the last sun's rays flaming from the angel's sacred sword. Driving on through the tranquil streets, populous and thronged with citizens, they see brown-faced, bronze-headed Torsos in balconies and window-frames; citizens sitting tranquilly, resting on the kerb-*stones, with their feet in the gutters; grand-looking women resting against their doorways. Sibyls out of the Sistine were sitting on the steps of the churches. In one stone archway sat the Fates spinning their web. There was a holy family by a lemonade-shop, and a whole heaven of little Coreggio angels perching dark-eyed along the road. Then comes a fountain falling into a marble basin, at either end of which two little girls are clinging and climbing. Here is a little lighted May-altar to the Virgin, which the children have put up under the shrine by the street-corner. They don't beg clamorously, but stand leaning against the wall, waiting for a chance miraculous baioch?"--_Bluebeard's Keys._

CHAPTER XX.

THE JANICULAN.

Gate of Sto. Spirito--Church, Convent, and Garden of S.

Onofrio--The Lungara--Palazzo Salviati and the Botanic-Garden--S.

Giovanni alla Lungara--Palazzo Corsini--The Farnesina--Porta Settimiana--S. Pietro in Montorio--Fontana Paolina--Villa Lante--Porta and Church of S. Pancrazio--Villa Doria-Pamfili--Chapel of St. Andrew's Head.

The Janiculan is a steep crest of hill which rises abruptly on the west bank of the Tiber, and breaks imperceptibly away on the other side into the Campagna towards Civita Vecchia. Its lower formation is a marine clay abounding in fossils, but its upper surface is formed of the yellow sand which gave it the ancient name of Mons Aureus,--still commemorated in Montorio--S. Pietro in Montorio.

A tradition universally received in ancient times, and adopted by Virgil, derives the name of Janiculum from Janus, who was the sun-god, as Jana, or Diana, was the moon-goddess. On this hill Janus is believed to have founded a city, which is mentioned by Pliny under the name of Antinopolis. Ovid makes Janus speak for himself as to his property:

"Arx mea collis erat, quem cultrix nomine nostro Nuncupat haec aetas, Janiculumque vocat."[378]

Fons, the supposed son of Janus, is known to have had an altar here in very early times.[379] Janus Quirinus was a war-god, "the sun armed with a lance." Thus, in time of peace, the gates of this temple were closed, both because his worship was then unnecessary, and from an idea of preventing war from going forth. It was probably in this character that he was honoured on a site which the Romans looked upon as "the key of Etruria," while other nations naturally regarded it as "the key of Rome."

Janus was represented as having a key in his hand.

"Ille tenens dextra baculum, clavemque sinistra."

"Par un hasard singulier, Janus, qu'on representait une clef a la main, etait le dieu du Janicule, voisin du Vatican, ou est le tombeau de Saint Pierre, que l'on represente aussi tenant une clef.

Janus, comme Saint Pierre, son futur voisin, etait le portier celeste."--_Ampere, Hist. Rom._ i. 229,

When the first Sabine king of Rome, Numa Pompilius, "like the darlings of the gods in the golden age, fell asleep, full of days,"[380] he was buried upon the sacred hill of his own people, and the books of his sacred laws and ordinances were buried near him in a separate tomb.[381]

In the sixth century of the republic, a monument was discovered on the Janiculan, which was believed to be that of Numa, and certain books were dug up near it which were destroyed by the senate in the fear that they might give a too free-*thinking explanation of the Roman mythology.[382]

Ancus Martius, the fourth king of Rome, connected the Janiculan with the rest of the city by building the Pons Sublicius, the first bridge over the Tiber; and erected a citadel on the crest of the hill as a bulwark against Etruria, with which he was constantly at war.[383] Some escarpments, supposed to belong to the fortifications of Ancus, have lately been found behind the Fontana Paolina. It was from this same ridge that his Etruscan successor, Tarquinius Priscus, coming from Tarquinii (Corneto), had his first view of the city over which he came to reign, and here the eagle, henceforth to be the emblem of Roman power, replaced upon his head the cap which it had snatched away as he was riding in his chariot. Hence, also, Lars Porsena, king of Etruria, looked upon Rome, when he came to the assistance of Tarquinius Superbus, and retired in fear of his life after he had seen specimens of Roman endurance, in Horatius Cocles, who kept the falling bridge; in Mutius, who burnt his hand in the charcoal; and in the hostage, Cllia, who swam home across the Tiber,--all anecdotes connected with the Janiculan.

After the time of the kings this hill appears less frequently in history. But it was here that the consul Octavius, the friend of Sylla, was murdered by the partisans of Marius, while seated in his curule chair,--near the foot of the hill Julius Caesar had his famous gardens, and on its summit the Emperor Galba was buried. The Christian associations of the hill will be noticed at the different points to which they belong.

From the Borgo (Chap. XV.) the unfinished gate called _Porta Sto.

Spirito_, built by Antonio da San Gallo, leads into the Via Lungara, a street three-quarters of a mile long, formed by Sixtus V., and occupying the whole length of the valley between the Tiber and the Janiculan.

Immediately on the right, the steep "Salita di S. Onofrio" leads up the hillside to the _Church of S. Onofrio_, built in 1439 by Nicolo da Forca Palena, in honour of the Egyptian hermit, Honophrius.

"St. Onofrius was a monk of Thebes, who retired to the desert, far from the sight of men, and dwelt there in a cave for sixty years, and during all that time never beheld one human being, or uttered one word of his mother-tongue except in prayer. He was unclothed, except by some leaves twisted round his body, and his beard and hair had become like the face of a wild beast. In this state he was discovered by a holy man whose name was Paphnutius, who, seeing him crawling on the ground, knew not at first what live thing it might be."--_Jameson's Sacred Art._

From the little platform in front of the convent is one of the loveliest views over the city. The church is approached by a portico, decorated with glazed frescoes by _Domenichino_. Those on either side of the door represent the saints of the Hieronomyte Order (the adjoining convent belongs to Hieronomytes), viz.: S. Jerome, Sta. Paula, St. Eustochium, S. Pietro Gambacorta of Pisa, St Augustine the hermit, S. Nicolo di Forca Palena, S. Onofrio and the Blessed Benedict of Sicily, Philip of St. Agatha, Paul of Venice, Bartholomew of Cesarea, Mark of Manuta, Philip of Fulgaria, and John of Catalonia. Over the door is a Madonna and Child. In the side arcade are three scenes in the life of St.

Jerome. 1. Represents his baptism as a young man at Rome. 2. Refers to his vision of the Judgment (described in his letter to Eustochium), in which he heard the Judge of the World ask what he was, and he answered, "I am a Christian." But the Judge replied, "No, you lie, for you are a Ciceronian," and he was condemned to be scourged, but continued to protest that he was a Christian between every lash. 3. Is a scene alluded to in another letter to Eustochium, in which Jerome says, "O how often when alone in the desert with the wild beasts and scorpions, half dead with fasting and penance, have I fancied myself a spectator of the sins of Rome, and of the dances of its young women."

The church has a solemn and picturesque interior. It ends in a tribune richly adorned with frescoes, those of the upper part (the Coronation of the Virgin, and eight groups of saints and angels) being by _Pinturicchio_, those of the lower (the Virgin and Saints, Nativity, and Flight into Egypt) by _Baldassare Peruzzi_.

On the left of the entrance is the original monument of Tasso (with a portrait), erected after his death by Cardinal Bevilacqua. Greatly inferior in interest is a monument recently placed to his memory in the adjoining chapel, by subscription, the work of _De Fabris_. Near this is the grave of the poet, Alessandro Guidi, ob. 1712. In the third chapel on the left is the grave of the learned Cardinal Mezzofanti, born at Bologna, 1774, died at Rome, 1849.

The first chapel on the right, which is low and vaulted, with stumpy pillars, is covered with frescoes relating to S. Onofrio.

The second chapel on the right, which is very richly decorated, contains a Madonna crowned by Angels, by _Annibale Caracci_. Beyond this is the fine tomb of Archbishop Sacchi, ob. 1502. The beautiful lunette, of the Madonna teaching the Holy Child to read, is by _Pinturicchio_. The tomb is inscribed:

"Labor et gloria vita fuit, Mors requies."

Ladies are never admitted to visit the convent, except on April 25th, the anniversary of the death of Tasso. It is approached by a cloister, decorated with frescoes from the life of S. Onofrio.

"S. Onofrio is represented as a meagre old man, with long hair and beard, grey and matted, a leafy branch twisted round his loins, a stick in his hand. The artist generally tries to make him look as haggard and inhuman as possible."--_Mrs. Jameson._

In a passage on the first floor is a beautiful fresco of the Virgin and Child with the donor, by _Leonardo da Vinci_.

"To 1513 belongs a Madonna, painted on the wall of the upper corridor of the convent of S. Onofrio. It is on a gold ground: the action of the Madonna is beautiful, displaying the noblest form, and the expression of the countenance is peculiarly sweet; but the Child, notwithstanding his graceful action, is somewhat hard and heavy, so as almost to warrant the conclusion that this picture belongs to an earlier period, which would suppose a previous visit to Rome."--_Kugler._

Torquato Tasso came to Rome in 1594, on the invitation of Clement VIII., that he might be crowned on the Capitol, but as he arrived in the month of November, and the weather was then very bad, it was decided to postpone the ceremony till late in the following spring. This delay was a source of trouble to Tasso, who was in feeble health, and had a presentiment that his death was near. Before the time for his crowning arrived he had removed to S. Onofrio, saying to the monks who received him at the entrance, "My fathers, I have come to die amongst you!" and he wrote to one of his friends, "I am come to begin my conversation in heaven in this elevated place, and in the society of these holy fathers." During the fourteen days of his illness, he became perfectly absorbed in the contemplation of divine subjects, and upon the last day of his life, when he received the papal absolution, exclaimed, "I believe that the crown which I looked for upon the Capitol is to be changed for a better crown in heaven." Throughout the last night a monk prayed by his side till the morning, when Tasso was heard to murmur, "In manus tuas, Domine," and then he died. The room in which he expired, April 25, 1595, contains his bust, crucifix, inkstand, autograph, a mask taken from his face after death, and other relics. The archives of S.

Onofrio have this entry:

"Torquato Tasso, illustrious from his genius, died thus in our monastery of S. Onofrio. In April, 1595, he caused himself to be brought here that he might prepare for death with greater devotion and security, as he felt his end approaching. He was received courteously by our fathers, and conducted to chambers in the loggia, where everything was ready for him. Soon afterwards he became dangerously ill, and desired to confess and receive the most Holy Sacrament from the prior. Being asked to write his will, he said that he wished to be buried at S. Onofrio, and he left to the convent his crucifix and fifty scudi for alms, that so many masses might be said for his soul, in the manner that is read in the book of legacies in our archives. Pope Clement VIII. was requested for his benediction, which he gave amply for the remission of sins. In his last days he received extreme unction, and then, with the crucifix in his hand, contemplating and kissing the sacred image, with Christian contrition and devotion, being surrounded by our fathers, he gave up his spirit to the Creator, on April 25, 1595, between the eleventh and twelfth hours (_i.e._, between 7 and 8 A.M.), in the fiftieth year of his age. In the evening his body was interred with universal concourse in our church, near the steps of the high altar, the Cardinal Giulio Aldobrandini, under whose protection he had lived during the last years, being minded to erect to him, as soon as possible, a sumptuous sepulchre; which, however, was never carried into effect; but after the death of the latter, the Signor Cardinal Bevilacqua raised to his memory the monument which is seen on entering the church on the left side."