Three statues of one of the Agrippina's.
A Roman matron, or empress, with remains of red painting on the extremities of her palla.
Three other matrons.
In the Third Room.
Bacchus. A muse. A fragment of a statue in the pallium. A fine statua togata with the head veiled, larger than the life.
Another very remarkable figure, whose face resembles in beauty that commonly attributed to Venus, tho' the dress and other insignia plainly indicate a Pallas: for her head is covered with an helmet, below which her hair falls down long and dishevelled. Her left arm is enveloped with her ægis, which is large and expanded, so as to form a kind of mantle. Her garments are thin, and fit close to her body in strait plaits. She is in a posture of running, or striding, with her feet at a considerable distance from each other, and her arms extended different ways; an attitude strongly marking the utmost eagerness and haste.
Next appears a Vertumnus. A fine figure of a philosopher. Volumnia and Veturius. A lady with a thin stola. A Venus. A boy of exquisite workmanship. A small statua togata.
In another part is a Faun of bronze, reclined, with his right hand lifted up, and his leg extended. This figure (as we were informed) was found accompanied with seven others of the same metal, which now stand in another chamber, viz. two young men in a running a posture; four females somewhat resembling vestals in their habit, excepting that all their heads were uncovered, and those of two of them were adorned with vittæ, or filets. Lastly, a young man of a small size, cloathed, with his arms somewhat extended.
There remains but one more figure to be taken notice of in this collection, viz. that of Serapis, with Cerberus at his right hand. Ancient writers[48] enable us to account for this appearance, by informing us, that Serapis (besides his other characters of Æsculapius, Sol, Osiris, and Jupiter) was accounted the same as Dis Pater, or Pluto. Upon this hypothesis none can doubt of the propriety of Cerberus's attending upon this deity in the figure before us, as well as in three others given us by Montfaucon[49].
If we desire to enter into the mystical reason of this representation, we may learn it from Porphyry, viz. that Serapis[50], being the same as Pluto, had dominion over the evil dæmons; and that those beings were figured by a dog with three heads; meaning the dæmon subsisting in the three elements of water, earth, and air.