Item 06: Letters sent by Robert Christian Wilson to his family, 1918-April 1919 - Page 252
Primary tabs
Transcription
[Page 252]
been carved into the rock of the hill, and it contained two separate seats with a big shell cup in the rock over each and I suppose from these seats it was that the governor and his wife used to watch the gruesome sports below.
The house used for the clearing station was a stone building right on the left of the arena; it seemed such an incongruity for it to have been built there; a modern humpy in amongst such grand old ruins - but anyhow it suited me in a way, for as soon as we had had dinner, and been inspected by the Dr, I sneaked off with my camera to have a good look at things. Generally I cant enthuse over ancient ruins, and sacred places - they are all so dead and dusty, and it seems such sacrilege to see the people fighting over their holy places but all joining together to rob you, and take you down, when you come to look at them. I would much rather poke about in the bush for an afternoon, than go out to look at the grimy old sphinx and pyramids; but this Roman theatre seemed to thrill me wonderfully - it seemed so complete in its old grandeur and yet it fitted so splendidly into the green valley and hills which surrounded it.
I climbed up the stone seats, towards the old throne, and found that the seats ran in tiers of about a douzen rows in each, and then there was a