The expedition of Cimon to the Isle of Scyros, to recover the bones of Theseus, and to punish the islanders for the death of that hero, was immediately followed by the erection of the venerable temple, still standing in honour of his remains. Its decorations were more beautiful than any that had hitherto been seen. Mycon, who was both a sculptor and a painter, had the direction of the structure. The sculptured metopes are said to be even finer than those of the Parthenon[93] in execution, though inferior in taste; and the same is said of the two friezes that adorn the front and back vestibules of the temple. As these pieces of sculpture bear marks even now of having been coloured, I must consider them as works fitted, in the opinion of one of the greatest painters of that age, to be considered as pictures. The friendship that subsisted between Theseus and his cousin Hercules, and the gratitude so strongly expressed by Theseus for the services and favours of his friend, rendered it natural that a temple to one of these heroes should be decorated with the acts of both; and as in life Theseus had always generously given the first place to Hercules, so in his monument the Athenians placed the pictures of his actions in the front of the temple, while those of Theseus occupied the back and sides. The flat pictures were what we should call frescoes; they were all painted upon the interior walls of the Theseum, and related solely to the actions of Theseus. It is impossible now to know how far Mycon had departed from the Egyptian style of painting which had prevailed in Athens and elsewhere before this period. Where paintings of mythological, or even historical subjects were required in public places, plain unbroken colours, without much regard to nature, were applied, so as to produce a dazzling effect at a distance, much like that of an Eastern bazaar, where separate pieces of various coloured brocades produce a gorgeous but not unpleasant show. By the age of Mycon some discrimination was used in the application of colour. The coloured foliage and meanders which decorated the Theseum, the Parthenon, and the Panhellenic Temple of Egina[94], were only internal decorations; and I think the descriptions left of the pictures contemporary with those of Mycon, justify us in concluding that the Egyptian practice was already falling into disuse.