The amphitheatre at Dorchester is situate on a plain in the open fields about a quarter of a mile (being just 300 of my paces) or 1500 foot south-west from the walls of the town, delicately ascending all the way, close by the Roman road running from thence to Weymouth. The vulgar call it Maumbury, but have no notion of its purpose, though it is a common walk for the inhabitants, and the terrace at top is a noted place of rendezvous, as affording a pleasant circular walk, and a prospect of the town and wide plain of corn fields all around, much boasted of by the inhabitants for most excellent grain. Westward of the town we see the Roman camp called Poundbury, and southward the most famous one Maiden castle, both before described. More southerly all the hill-tops, as far as the eye reaches, are covered with an incredible number of Celtic barrows. It stands upon the very edge of that part of the fields which declines gently northward, or toward the town, upon a chalk, and which without doubt at first was perfect down, like that of Salisbury plain, or the neighbouring downs in the way to Bridport. One may in fancy imagine the beauty of its prospect, and the pleasantness of the walk hither upon that fine carpet, when all was in its first perfection; but at present it is ploughed up to the very skirt of the amphitheatre, both within and without: so foolishly greedy are the country people of an inch of ground, that they have levelled several barrows lately in the neighbourhood, which cost more than the spot they covered will pay in fifty years. This work of ours is raised of solid chalk upon the level, without any ditch about it. I have endeavoured to delineate, as exactly as I could by mensuration, the true and original ground-plot thereof, or architectonic design upon which it is formed, from what is left by the injuries of age, of the plough, of men and beasts; and that in its first and genuine scale the Roman foot, which is about an eleventh part less than ours. The plate Nᵒ 50, represents the amphitheatre as covered with the _subsellia_, and as in its primitive perfection; for we may well suppose age has diminished it on all dimensions: and in truth it requires a great deal of thought and judgement to attempt to measure it. It is obvious thence to observe, in the general, its conformity with other works of this sort abroad, as far as its different materials will allow; and the great judgement of the architect in varying his scheme thereto, so as fully to answer the proposed end. It is to be noted that half this work is above, and half below the surface of the ground, as visible in a section; so that great part of the matter was dug out of the _cavea_ in the middle; for it is a solid bed of chalk, and the rest fetched from elsewhere. I believe the method of building it, was to join solid chalk cut square like stones, and that mortar made of burnt chalk was run into the joints; and probably all the outside was neatly laid with