Translation of Text of Alberti, DESCRIZZIONE D''ITALIA

Leandro Alberti, Descrittione di tutta Italia. Bologna: Giaccarelli, 1550.

p. 153

Returning then to Misenus, I say that there was already another tower on the top of this mountain, named Pharo, on top of which was maintained a light at night to give a sign to sailors who sailed at that time in order that they could direct their barks to a secure place.

pp. 155-56

[Immediately before this excerpt begins, the author explains that in May, 1526 he was making a survey of the shore from Cape Misenus to Pozzuoli. He was traveling with a group of companions and a guide in a small boat. When they arrived at Baiae, they came upon the structural element of an ancient buidling jutting out of the water like a rock (scoglio). They alit here and had a delightful pranzo. After lunch they go ashore to sightsee.]

After pranzo with all its delights was finished, we disembarked on the shore, and after walking for a little while near the above mentioned banks, where the above mentioned magnificent buildings were located, we found the baths called the Baths of Baiae, but named Silvan by the doctors from the goddess Silva. One sees that to a certain extent these are hollowed out in the said banks. Passing forward and following the above mentioned banks, near the shore of the sea there appears a great chamber hollowed out in the rocky banks, where are the Baths of Tritoli, so called by the doctors, but called by the people the Baths of Cicero and also the Meadow Baths from their being in the meadows, on the Via di Tripergola to Aversa, after you pass the Hospital on the leftr side of said Via, where there is a grotto, descending a little into which, there is seen the source of the water. As for these being the Baths of Cicero, in addition to the popular opinion, Boccaccio also affirms it in the Book of the Fountains, writing that the baths took their name from being in the villa of Cicero called the Accademia. It is true that they were not made in the time of Cicero, but after his death by Antistius who succeeded him at the said villa. Laurina the freedman of Cicero adorned the baths with verses, leaving his memorial here, as Pliny [Nat. 31.6-7] says. And this succeeded in showing the love where he bore Cicero. And this is a very beautiful place, hollowed out with great skill in the rocky cliff, where the figures of men were incised pointing with their hands to the body part for which this water was useful. Now for the most part these baths are dysfunctional. They were sumptuously painted in the finest colors as even today is evident in some places. Here the waters gush forth only once a day and similarly at night, depending on the start and end of the moon. They come out hot with much steam and they enter a vast basin which is also cut in the stone. When it is full, some of the water descends from the chamber via a small channel which drains into the sea , and some of the water goes back to the place where it comes forth. Climbing several steps above this Bath, there is found a grotto artificially carved out of the rock, six feet high and five wide, twisting and turning, with a pleasant odor. When one enters this grotto on foot, one begins to sweat almost immediately, but if one gets low down near the floor, one becomes refreshed. Going in a little to what will be on the right and going down a little, one will see a spring of beautiful and clear water that is so hot that with difficulty will one be able to touch it. Many people think that it is this water which goes below into the Bath of Cicero through hidden channels. If someone wants to bathe, he has, after advancing two steps, to take the path on the right. Walking forward, he will come to a stone which is called the Horse. Beyond this, passing above the hot spray, one wil find the end of this grotto where the carver stopped further excavation. Returning to the place by which one enters on this side, one sees a very high, deep, and wide channel with another grotto nearby which runs south. If one enters, even if it is not excessively hot or cold of if there is no wind or movement of the air, one will cause the flame (which continuously rises on high) to melt the wax of the torches which one carries here to see, and the light will be exstinguished. And anyone who wants to go farther will drop dead from dizziness and weakness of the head. This is a sweat bath, salubrious for different illnesses. It purges the humors, comforts the head and the stomach, heals catarrhs, clears up phlegm, makes the head feel good and gives great help to people who suffer from gout and dropsy. On the right side are seen some openings through which issue forth thick vapors with so much heat that they seem like steam from a caldera with boiliong water. These sweat baths were greatly valued by the ancients because they caused sweating without other effect, and according to some, they were called in antiquity the Baths of Fritolae because people rubbed down here to cause greater sweating. The fact is that now, as I stated, they are called the Baths of Tritoli. Similarly there are other baths in this area, called the Baths of Baiae, which for now I leave. Strabo makes mention of these baths when he says that there are near Baiae hot waters not only for the health of mortals, but also for their delight and pleasure. Of these Faccio says in the first canto of the third book,

See Nosubio who gives anothers light,

And see the ancient baths, good and healthful,

Where Baia drowned and his guests.

Returning to the shore near Baiae, there is seen the deep Port of Baiae. Although no building is seen around the port, it has, nevertheless, almost preserved the excellence that it had in antiquity. After you pass this, the Lucrine Bay begins, called Lake Lucrinus by Cornelius Tacitus in the fourteenth book and in the same way by Silius in the twelfth book. It was enclosed by a nice embankment eight stades or a mile long and wide enough for two wagons to pass at the same time, as Strabo says. And it is said that this embankment was built by Hercules to be able to lead the cattle of Geryon because one could hardly go around this gulf, even climbing up above the cliffs which are all around there, because of the disturbances of the stormy and dangerous waves of the sea. It is quite true that a better arrangement was subsequently made by Agrippa, given that he adapted it in such a way (according to Strabo) that boats could ener and stay here secuely tied. Certainly those are in error who say that the Bay of Lucrinus was the Acherusian Lake since below I will show where it was. From Lucrinus abundant oysters and gilthead are taken. Martial [Book 13.82] says of this,

Not every gilthead wins praise and a high price,

But only the one who gets oysters from Lucrinus for its food.

And elsewhere [Book 13.90],

Drunk on the waters of Baian Lucrinus here I am, an oyster;

As luscious as I am, I need a noble garum for a drink.

The above mentioned gilthead along with the oysters of the Bay of Baiae, as of Lucrinus, are also much praised by Pliny in the fifty-fourth chapter of the ninth book. Vergil speaks of the above mentioned Lucrinus in the second book of the Georgics [G. 2.161-164] .

Or should I mention the portus and the barriers added to Lucrinus

And the sea raging with its roaring waves?

Where the Julian water resounds far and wide, with the sea poured back

And the Tyrrhenian surge is let into the waters of Avernus?

Writing about these verses, Servius says that there are two lakes in the Gulf of Baiae in Campania, opposite Pozzuoli, namely, Avernus and Lucrinus, from the fish of which great profit was taken through their contracts, and that one time it happened that this profit was not forthcoming because the waters of the sea entered these places with great fury and then retreated with the same force carrying the fish with them, and thus the profit was lost. Hence a request was made to the Roman senate which made provision for the problem. C. Julius Caesar was sent to see to this matter. Upon making an estimate of the whole situation, he had two embanked moles made barricading the sea in such a manner that it could not enter to cause any damage. It is quite true that he left a little passage so that the fish could pass through it into Avenus without any harm. This having been accomplished, this thing was called the Julian Project at the behest of Julius, as Suetonius also says in the life of the said Caesar in the following way, " Caesar made the Portus Iulius near Baiae, letting the sea into Lucrinus and Avernus." According to some, Lucrinus got its name from lucrum [lat., = gain, profit], that is, from the profit that was taken from the fish caught there. From this Bay of Lucrinus one passes into the Lake of Avernus. It is called Avernus by Strabo, Livy, Pliny, Pomponius Mela, Vergil, Vibius Sequester, and Silius in the twelfth and thirteenth books. And it was named Avernus, according to Nonius Marcellus, from the deadly odor of its waters which was deadly for the birds because they fell dead when struck by it, as Lucretius demonstrates at the beginning of the sixth book [6.741-742; Lucretiuss subject is Avernian places and lakes],

First of all, they are called Avernian; this name was given from the fact that

they are harmful to all birds.

And Servius, when he explicates these words of Vergil, "the divine lakes," says that there were two lakes, Lucrinus and Avernus, and that Avernus was surrounded by such great forests that the brids flying above them fell dead because of the great stench of the sulphurous waters; the reeking stench emanated thickly from these forests. And for this reason it was called Avernus, and Philostratus in the second book of the life of Apollonius of Tyana says the same thing, that a place close to Nisa was called Avernus because it draws birds to itself. Understanding this matter, Augustus had all the forests cut down. As a result the places turned out to be pleasant and delightful. Vergil confirms the above mentioned matters in the sixth book, saying [A. 6.201-202]

Then when they came to the jaws of foul smelling Avernus,

They rose up swiftly.

And further on [A. 6.239-242],

Above which not any flying creatures could make their way on wings

Without harm; such an exhalation poured up from the black jaws and

Carried up to the vaults of the sky.

Hence the Greeks named the place Avernus.

In several other places Vergil mentions Avernus. Strabo describes it like this in the fifth book: and Avernus is a gulf very good in so far as entry is concerned as well as for the great depth which it shows for being a natural port. It is quite true that it is not used because Lucrinus stands in front of it. And it is all surrounded by high hills except at its entrance. Around it there are pleasant and delightful places although at other times they were full of thick, dark woods, totally unkempt without any path through. There were in those woods, and especially around the lake, very high trees, because of the shade of which the lake was always dark and scary, and above all because of a certain superstitious belief, given that there was a common story that it was so scary that the birds flying above fell dead into the lake because of the reeking odor that rose into the air which was penned in by the above mentioned very high trees, as if they were to be carried off to Pluto, to whom (according to the popular account) it was consecrated. It adds that here the Cimerians entered, after sacrificing to the patron gods of souls.

pp. 157-

In this Bay of Baiae the emperor Alexander had a magnificent palace built with a little lake so that Mammaea his mother could take her pleasure there (as Spartianus notes). Right up to the present the place is called Mammaea. Not content with this palace, he had others built with beautiful ponds (which discharged into the sea) for the pleasure and entertainment of others of his relatives and friends. Leaving this spot on the Bay of Baiae and returning to the channel through which we said the fish passed from the Bay of Lucrinus to Lake Avernus (which is today completely blocked up because of the collapse caused by the fire of 1538 (as will be demonstrated later) and having passed that channel, there will be found ahead of the above mentioned ruins the Baths of Tripergola. Before the description of some baths that were in this area, I want to mention by name other baths that were around Lake Avernus. First there was found on the left of the lake the Bath of the Arch, named for the shape of the structure where it was found. Then there was the bath of Ranerius, named from it founder. Turning to the other side of the lake to go to Pozzuoli, there were the above mentined Baths of Tripergola, which were already called "old." They were called the Baths of Tripergola before the collapse of 1538 from the house which was tripartite or divided into three parts, where the clothing and things belonging to those who came there to bathe were kept. The great district filled with habitations that was found here before said disaster took its name from these baths, although it was abandoned on account of the earthquakes and the incursions of pirates. Indeed it was a beautiful district full of respectable buildings, but because they were not inhabitated, they gradually fell into ruin. But everything was buried when the horrible event of the fire took place (as I will demonstrate), and here a mountain three miles high was created. But before I describe this tremendous event, I want to mention by name some baths and to describe some buildings that were here and in nearby locales. Above this part of Avernus where Tripergola and the above mentioned baths are to be seen, there is Christs Mountain, named such (according to the common people) because (they say) Christ our savior passed with the squads of holy fathers from hell. Then there is seen the Bath of St. Nicholas. This name was given to this bath reminding the poor how St. Nicholas acted. Then is seen the Bath of Scrofa. The Bath of St. Lucy is found nearby. This name was given because it is very helpful for the eyes. Then there appears the Bath of the Little Arch which took its name from the form of the building. Also there is named the Bath of St. Mary. There follows the Bath of the Cross. This name was given because it is helpful to ills of the feet, the hands and the chest, in the places where were the signs of the passion of Christ our redeemer, and for this reason it was called the Bath of the Cross. Then on the shore of the sea there is seen the Bath of Cantarellus [little calyx], named thus from the form of the building. On one side of this bath is seen the Bath of the Fountain; it acquired its name from its waters rising up like a fountain. Before advancing to the other baths nearby, I want to give an account of the great disaster that took place in the district of Tripergola described above and in the neighboring areas in the year 1538 on the day of St. Michael in September. For several days before several earthquakes had been felt with very great and fear-inspiring thunder and rumbling. Then the earth opened here at Tripergola, so that it seemed that the whole contrivance of the world was in ruin while the sky was serene. Then while all the peoples living round in the area stood stupefied and as if they were beside themselves, there began to issue forth from this opening flames of fire bringing with them ashes accompanied by [affochati] stones with thick smoke and mist. These rocks were carried into the air with such force that it was a marvelous thing to see and a frightful thing to contemplate. There was also an exhalation of wind of great fury on every side. The above mentioned ashes were carried up on every side, and especially toward Pozzuoli and Naples, where they were brought with such force by the wind that they reached San Severino (twenty-four miles away from Naples) destroying and ruining everything and especially the animals and the trees. With the earth split open, then, and flames of fire coming out along with stones and ashes around this opening, the said ashes together with the .. [spongose] banks so that as a result there sprung up another broad mountain , with an opening in the middle of the width (as far as could be determined) of fifty paces, and encompassing four miles at its base. Because of this opening of the earth and the formation of the mountain, many baths of Tripergola were buried with a large part of Avernus, of Lucrinus, and also to a certain extent the waters of the sea seem to have withdrawn a considerable distance. When the great fury of the flames of fire which had come forth ceased, this high mountain remained with the above mentioned round mouth at its peak, narrowing more and more toward the bottom with the appearance of a theater made by human art. It is of such a type that at the base of it there is only a little level area where there is seen clear water from which without interruption there emanates smoke with the odor of sulphur. For this reason many baths that were very useful for mortals were lost. Continuing our account, close to the church of St. Maria there is the Bath of Olio Petrolio, so named because there is seen to issue along with the water a certain liquid that seems like oil both in its color and in its smell. There appears at the base of the mountain which is above the said church the Bath of Culma, so named from the said mountain. Then along the shore is found the Bath of the Sun and of the Moon. And for this reason it is called this, because, just as the sun and the moon are superior to the stars in their splendor, so in the same way this water surpasses all the other waters in its virtues. And one cannot get to this bath except over the ruins of several ancient buildings. And here is seen this building which is all [derochato] and submerged in the sea. It is true that digging the sand a little, the water, which is thick and of different colors, springs up. This bath was already named the Bath of the Emperors. Then there is found the Bath of Gimboroso. It took this name from the shape of the building which is erected in the form of a hump [gibbo]. One descends to this water by a few steps. Then there is seen the bath called the Spring of the Bishop since it was restored by a bishop (as some say) or (as others maintain) because this water was much used by great prelates, who, because they indulge in an abundance of delights, are accustomed to suffer from gout because this water is useful for gout. Going up a few steps, there are seen the Baths of the Fates [= Fatis], springs perhaps so called from fate [= Fatto], as a result of which they were found (as some say), but (as others maintain) from the vault by which they are covered, that is, made [= fatti]. Then there appears the Bath of Bracula, by chance so called because the place is low and round. Here in this area the Bath of the Cave, so called from the cave where it is located, comforts the brain. And, as Galen says, drinking five drams of this warm water every day, one will be healed of the infirmities that are above as well as below the diaphragm. There are also in this area, beginning from Falernian territory up to Mt. Misenus, many other sources of waters both hod and cold, the virtues of which are not known because their structures are in ruins as well as because of the negligence and ignorance of the inhabitants of the country. Hence one can easily judge that the majority of the springs of these countries are medicinal waters. Returning to the area behind the entrance or rather the channel through which the water passed from Lucrinus to Avernus (of which we said that it was now covered with Tripergula and many baths named above on the mountain recently created) and walking toward Pozzuoli near the sea along the shore and in like manner inland, there appear so many ruins of sumptuous buidlings, and, above on the hills as well, that it is a thing to make anyone marvel who considers them.. Hence it will appear to the curious mind that today it would be a very difficult thing for all the lords of the world to build such great buildings. Around this Gulf of Pozzuoli on every side there are silicate roads made of flint both in the sea and out, along with many aqueducts through which were conducted the sweet waters for these buildings which were built both around said shore and on the hills that are nearyby. The ruins of these buildings show that they were not smaller than those which were built from Cumae to Misenus; rather they appear to be larger. And among other buidlings one notices, in the place where the above mentioned Church of St. Mary is located (where we said the Bath of Petrolium Oil was), great ruins of buildings which give each person to understand that they were of no less grandeur than the others described above. They were called Belgermanum by the inhabitants. These buildings were dedicated by Tiberius Caesar when he returned in triumph from the German War, for which he was given the name Germanicus. In memory of so great a victory he had this project built, as one sees clearly on a marble stone. The name also demonstrates this in part, being called Belgermanum as if from the German War [ = bellum]. Nexy following the cliffs that are around the shore of the sea, one finds the Via Atellana by which one passed to the Via Appia if one wanted to go to Rome. This is that road which on every side is almost full of ancient tombs. They are for the most part intact and appear to be beautiful chambers. Hence one could easily inhabit these buildings if there were the wooden doors. They are commonly eight feet in size on every side although there are also some of five and of other sizes, made of very thin and [sagramati] bricks, with the walls so well constructed with the cornices that it seems a very beautiful thing to see from the outside and not less so within. One enters by a little door which faces the road, and they are all decorated with cornices and friezes and painted on the inside in very fine colors and touched with gold. There is seen in the middle of the wall opposite the door a window usually two feet high which is set in the middle of the wall, all decorated with a cornice, ending at its top in an angle or in a half circle, in which were placed the urns full of ashes of the father of the family. And on the right and the left in like manner there were others made in pyramidal shape, but smaller than the first and always lacking in grandeur, just as the fingers of the hand are lacking in it, in which were placed the small urns where the ashes of the mother of the family and of the children according to their status were contained. This is in fact a very curious thing to consider. It is quite true that for the most part today these buildings are so covered with thorns, brush and nettles to that there is great difficulty in entering them and even considering them in their entirety. Descending to the shore and walking toward Pozzuoli, there appear in the sea water remains of great and sumptuous buildings, of which it appears that they were made at great expense, in reticulate work. And for this reason one can easily recognize that beginnng at the mouth of the Mare Morto and following along to Baiae and then along Lucrinus to Avernus and then bending round and coming toward Pozzuoli, it was inhabited all around this sea in such a way that it seemed one continuous district adorned with the most magnificent buildings. Of these none is seen standing, rather they are all in ruins, and they are submerged in the water of the sea, which is cerrtainly a matter that provokes much thought, to think of the fragility of human things how they pass. Then not very far from the bank of the sea, where we said the Via Atellana was, almost opposite it, in the waters of the sea there gushes forth, or rather with great force there leaps up over the sea a spring of sweet water, so clearly can one see it issue from the bottom. This is a very marvelous thing. I believe that this sweet water comes down here from terra firma through some hidden channels and that it is the water of a certain little stream which flows not far from the end of the Via Atellana and, when it is near here, it seems to be swallowed up by the earth and so one cannot see where it goes, so that perhaps finding a subterrranean passage it ends up here. And descending from such a height, it comes out here with such fury and jumps up as high as it descended cleaving the water of the sea, as one can see. It could also be that in the times when these places were inhabited, these channels were made by the inhabitants to bring the sweet water to their dwellings in such a way that it seemed to be a fountain and that then, when all the said buildings were submerged in the sea (as can be seen) the said water remained, which descends from the said place, or rather from another high place and so it jumps up with such fury. Be that as it may, next going up to the banks beyond the shore and walking toward Pozzuoli, one comes upon an amphitheater of rectangular stone almost entirely intact, but longer than wide, that is, in an oval form given that the arena is one hundred seventy-two feet long and eighty-eight feet wide. This building was built for holding games in honor of Vulcan (as Suetonius says), at which Augustus was present. Now it is under cultivation, and I have seen it planted with grain. Nearby there is seen another large building, built completely underground, with a great number of little chambers; one passes from one to the other via some little doors. It is called Labyrinth by the people because of the large number of chambers and the little doors and because there is no light to be seen there and when someone enters without light and without a ball of string or without some thing to mark the path by which one enters, there would be danger of never being able to get out because of the great number of doors. I really believe that so great a building was build as a reservoir for sweet water. Many other antiquities are to be seen on every side in these places, which would be long and difficult to describe.

p. 160

[At the point at which this excerpt begins, Alberti is discussing the port of Pozzuoli. He notes that thirteen pylons, which advance from the shore into the sea, correspond to pylons in the sea at Baiae, and he offers the opinion that these structures were built to support a bridge that was to span a distance of three and six-tenth miles across the Golf of Pozzuoli from Pozzuoli.]

From the said pylons to Baiae the emperor Caligula built a bridge with two rows of ships kept at anchor; it was covered with boards and banked up with earth, on each side like the Via Appia, in such a way that it seemed to be the continuation of this road to Baiae. And on this artificial road he passed back and forth very easily for two days. The first day he rode on a mighty horse adorned with precious battle decorations, with a crown of verdant oak on his head, and the precious shield at his breast, holding in his right hand the gleaming sword, with the rest of his body covered with a mantle of gold brocade, open on the right side. The second day he passed over the bridge on a two wheel chariot, dressed like a quadrigarius or rather a charioteer (as we say) steering the noble horses which drew him, as Suetonius shows in his biography as follows, "He devised a new and unheard of type of show. He joined by a bridge the distance between Baiae and the piers at Pozzuoli, a length of approximately three and six-tenth miles, by gathering cargo ships from everywhere and arranging them at anchor in a double line and by piling up an earthen mound in a straight line like the Via Appia. Over this bridge he went back and forth for two days in a row. On the first day on a horse decorated with metal discs, conspicuous also with an oak crown, etc., and a sword and a golden cloak. On the next day in the costume of a charioteer, on a two horse chariot of famous horses, conveying in front of himself a boy by the name of Darius who was one of the Parthian hostages, with a troop of praetorian guards and a cohort of friends in a carriage." Then following the shore there from Pozzuoli, many springs of medicinal waters are to be seen on the shore near the banks, among which there is found the Bath of St. Anastasius, named this for the church of St. Anastasius to which it is close. Whoever wants to find the said water must dig out the sand. There is also seen in this area near the said banks a cavern from which there issue forth some waters which are then swallowed by the sand. Through several hidden channels they enter the sea water. And that happens because the passages through which the waters came out are blocked up because of the negligence of the inhabitants of the country. For this reason those who want to find these waters must dig out the sand opposite the said cavern. This bath was already called the Help of Man or in Latin Subsidium Hominis since it very marvelously cured people coming to it in their infirmity. Along this bank at the place where Mt. Calatura descends, there is a spring of water named the Bath of Calatura from the said the mountain. Then under the cliffs of the mountain there appears the Bath of the Stone, named this because it breaks the stone. Going farther ahead along the shore, one finds the Bath of the Little Bath, named this from its small shape. Farther ahead there is the Bath of Iuncara, named from the reeds which are found there in great abundance. Then near the sea is seen the Bath of the Grotto. Having described the springs of medicinal waters which are found around the shore of the sea from Pozzuoli to Mt. Pausilippus (about which more will be written later), I want to return to Pozzuoli to describe the inland locales. Well now, near Pozzuoli, in the garden of the bishop, on the south side, there is seen a door from which one descends via a number of stairs to a very hot place such that when one enters, when the South Wind is blowing, one could easily suffocate, since the excessive heat which is found here cannot evaoprate. This Ortodonicus Bath got its name because it comes out in the garden [= orto] of the bishop. Leaving Pozzuoli and walking along the road that leads to Naples, there are extensive ruins of buildings to be seen on all sides for a mile, almost until Solfatara. Hence from what is to be seen here today, as I have demonstrated, some people were moved to say that the city of Pozzuoli was located here, and not there, but I say that it was located where it is seen today and that it was much bigger than what it is at the present and that these buildings were a part of it or were suburbs of it. At the end of these ruins, one comes upon Solfatara, as it is called by the populace, but Forum Vulcani by Strabo, which is a level area enclosed by high cliffs, which are ablaze continuously like furnaces, sending great exhalations with much uproar and reverberation. And this whole area is full of sulphur. But according to Pliny the Elder, this place was called the Phlegraean Fields by the ancients, as Silius also demonstrates in the eighth book [8.538],

There the troops which the Phlegraean bays rich in sulphur chose.

And the place is so formed by marvelous nature that first one sees an open area in the form of a oval, that is, longer that it is wide given that it is 1500 feet long and 300 wide, all surrounded by high hills except on the side toward Pozzuoli where one enters. And these hills form a continuity in such a way that they seem to have been arranged like this by art. This whole open area is covered with naturally produced sulphur. When you walk on it (since it is hollow), it rumbles on every side, just as empty things rumble when they are struck. At the end of this open area one sees a large ditch rather round than any other shape, full of thick black water, which boils continually, sending forth great vapors with great force. About this there is a widely disseminated storyand it is also something that has been put to the testthat when something is plunged in there to be cooked, immediately, when it is taken out, it is obviously cooked, but with a part of it missing, just as was reported to me by Geronimo Lino, our Bolognese friend, who plunged in four eggs and took only three cooked. The said ditch is not always to be seen in one same place, nor is it always of such size, just as I can give true testimony. Being there on a return visit after ten years, I found nearly a third of what had been there obstructed by the aggregation that the thick material around the extremties of it produces. Around said ditch there are to be seen many openings in the ground from which there issue very thin jets of sulphurous smoke with very intense heat. In this open area there are many workshops for distillling white sulphur. And there is great danger in riding on horseback up to the opening described above since it is entirely hollow. Hence the inhabitants of the country told the story that a short time before then a gentleman had sunk to the depths with his horse; he had presumptuously (contrary to the warnings given to him) wanted to ride on horseback there and was not seen again. Of this sulphur Pliny speaks in the fourteenth chapter of the thirty-fifth book [Nat. 35.174] as follows, "In Italy in the territory of Naples and Campania sulphur is found in the hills which are called Leucogabi; it is dug out of mines and is processed with fire." One sees these hills burning up on every side and sending up great jets of smoke into the air with a reeking odor of sulphur which one smells everywhere, and not only here, but all the way to Naples, depending on the way it is carried by the wind. But this reeking odor is helpful to those who suffer from catarrh and head colds. It is also said that the water of this opening calms the nerves, makes the eyes clear, stops tears, with vomit, cures pain of the stomach, helps sterile women conceive, dispels cold fevers, cleanses mange. Passing the hill which surrounds this Solfatara, on the east there appears a valley where the alum is made from the stones taken from this hill which encloses Solfatara. This is the process. They cook these stones in the furnace and when they take them out, they pile them up and for several days pour water over them from some wells which are there. Hence by this infusion of water they are so steeped that they dissolve into ashes. Then they extract the lye of these ashes, and they store it in wooden jars containers. Little by little it solidifies at the edges of the said containers, and there remains such a conjoined mass of the thickness of about an inch that it seems to be a natural ice or crystal so that you need a knife to separate it. This is a very beautiful thing to see. And great profit is made from it. Bending toward the north, after a little, appears the very high Mt. Astruno. In the middle of it there is a broad opening which little by little narrows. At the top it has an ambit of three miles and at the bottom it is of very small circuit, and it appears to be made in the form of an artificial theater. It may be about a stade in depth. In the open area at the bottom one sees a small stream of clear water running, near which there is a beautiful little wood. On one side, one sees the entrance which is not very broad. I think that this mountain with the said opening was made by some violent conflagration just as in these past years the mountain at Tripergola was made, about which I have written above, and I think that that little stream remained there, near which there are several salutary baths, as I will show. And in like manner I believe that the manner of making man-made theaters and amphitheaters was taken from this and from other similar places that were arranged in such a way for putting on shows in the deep open area and having the mass of the people stand there to watch. Here Alfonso I of Aragon, king of Naples, and his son Ferando gave pleasure to the lords and the people by having savage animals brought in through the open side by hunters and having them fight with dogs, with the king and lords sitting near the above mention little forest and the people on the top of the hill by which the open area is surrounded. Not very far from this natural theater is to be seen a little pool of water on the left of which is the Bath of Astruno which is two fountains of equal force. Returning to the road which goes from Pozzuoli to Naples one sees the place where the villa of Cicero was located, named in like manner today as well, where the emperor Hadrian was buried, who died in Baiae (as Spartianus writes), where the temple was consecrated by Antoninus his successor in lieu of a tomb. Following on the said road, one sees the very grand ruins of the villa of L. Lucullus which he had near Naples (according to Plutarch). Hence he had the rocky mountain excavated so that he could bring the waters of the sea into Lake Agnano which was enclosed among those mountains. On every side of the opening there appear lofty cliffs near which are the remains of grandiose buildings in ruins. And therefore one sees that before Lucullus had this cut made, it was very difficult to enter said lake although now (since there is no one to take care of it) it is filled with earth. Entering at any rate on this road to the lake, one finds the Baths of the Lake called Agnano. These baths consist of several small chambers with vaults in which there emanate from the ground hot vapors in such a way that a person without clothing entering there immediately feels himself break into a sweat. For this reason they are called "Sweat bath" (sudatorii). They reduce a mans harsh humors, lighten bodies, restore the sick, heal the innards, dry up the fistulae and sores in the body, and they refresh those suffering from gout. Equally effective is the water of another locale which is brought here and heated in the steam of these sweat baths. Here St. Germano the bishop found the soul of Pascasio Cardinale, as St. Gregory recalls in the fourth book of the Dialogues. Further along, on the right, at the base of the high cliff (by which the lake is surrounded), very close to the said bath, there is to be seen an opening that is not much hollowed out from the rock nor very wide nor high, where there is a clear sign by which those who go there are warned that they should not go any farther because, if they disobey, they suddenly drop dead, just as has been proven by experiment several times with certain animals who have been thrown, even as I too have seen. And yet after having fallen on the ground and being removed immediately and bathed with the water of the lake, the animal revives, but, if it remains for any time, the said water does nothing nor does anything else to make it come to its senses. The story was told to me by the inhabitants of the country that Charles VIII, king of France, after driving out Alfonso, king of Naples, had a live ass thrown into the said opening; it died almost immediately. I think that this phenomenon results from the reeking, poisonous vapors which continually emanate from the subterranean places where there are mines either of sulphur or of alum or some other substance, which are so much more harmful, the more they are forced to issue all together at the same time from said narrow opening. Hence so much more do they block the vital sensations and breath of the animals who are suffocated since they are unable to breathe, but suddenly are resuscitated when they are bathed in the lake. This can happen perhaps because when their breathing is blocked by the poisonous vapor, they are lulled to sleep, as it were, when bathed, the animals immediately wake up and return to their original vigor. But if it stays there for any time, it then will be so overwhelmed that its life totally abandons it and the animal is bereft of it and for this reason the water does not help it. Thus I would say. Pliny mentions this opening in the ninetieth chapter of the second book [Nat. 2.208] when he says, "Some people call the pits that exhale deadly vapors vents, others call them Charons openings." I am quite amazed at Biondo and Razzano, literary men with a sense of curiosity, who have made no mention of this opening in their Italies, and especially Razzano who lived in Naples a long time. Then one sees the lake which is surrounded by high cliffs such that it appears to be an amphitheater, in which no bottom is to be found, so deep is it (as Bocaccio writes as well), and it produces nothing except frogs. One notes on the north side of this the high cliff covered with . [ Felici], from which at the beginning of spring there descend so many tangles of snakes so entangled and knotted together that it is a marvelous and frightful thng to see. Rolling over and over, they descend with such great fury that they rush into the lake, and never more is there a trace of them to be seen although countless tangles of them are seen rushing in, as the inhabitants of those locales affirm. Exiting this amphitheater (as we may say) via the road on which we entered (which is full of earth and of fragments of buildings and which could easily be restored, so as to pass to the sea water, as Lucullus did) and returning after a bit to the road to Pozzuoli (because there remained behind a bath back there to describe which is on the left side of this road), there is a very arid hill from which on other occasions there emanated (as one can clearly surmise) fire and smoke, above which (according to the account of the inhabitants of the place) there never stops a bird nor do animals even rest there. At its base there are several caverns in which the waters boil very rapidly. And for this reason it is called the Bath of the Bulla. One barely sees said water exit from these places, and for this reason it is necessary for anyone who wants some must industriously and skillfully direct it and collect it into a number of places so as to be able to use it. This place is very scary to those who go there alone because it is wild and abandoned and because of the smoke which continually rises from said water and also because of the great rumbling of the noise of the boiling of the water. Turning back to the road that leads to Naples from Pozzuoli and walking, one arrives at Mt. Pausilippus which seems like a promontory which goes into the sea. In the sixth chapter of the third book Pliny mentions this Mt. Pausilippus where Caesar had a fish pond in which lived a sixty year old fish (as Columella writes). He also makes mention of this Mt. Pausillippus in the fifty-third chapter of the ninth book where he writes about the said fish. This mountain cuts off the road from Pozzuoli to Naples and likewise from Torre della Patria. If the grotto, or road through the middle of the innards of the above mentioned mountain, had not been excavated there, it would be necessary for anyone who wanted to pass to Naples therefore to undertake a long trip around this mountain or laboriously to climb it so as to be very quick about it. The truth is that one passes with great ease along this road, named Grotto and Cave by Strabo, which was excavated with great skill and expense in the rock. But before I speak about this Grotto, I will describe said Mt. Pausilippus. This mountain is completely under cultivation, and it is full of inhabitants and villas, and it is well tended and adorned with fruit bearing trees, and it is a delightful thing to see. Before one climbs said mountain, one sees a beautiful plain, all fertile and richly producing grain, where there are tall trees paired with vines from which good wines are produced. There are also many gardens here full of fruit bearing trees, and especially oranges and other similar fruits. Then one sees the entrance of the above mentioned Grotto which is entirely excavated artificially in the rock, which continues the road through the innards of the above mentioned mountain out to the other side. Of this Strabo says as follows, "There is found between Dicearchia and Naples a Cave excavated in the mountain, made in the form of that other cave at Cumae; it is many stades long and so wide that two wagons can easily pass there at the same time."