The last change of which we have any trace or record was that effected by Phaedrus about two centuries later. The stage was then lowered several inches, and the front-wall erected in its present position. Half of it still remains, together with a flight of steps leading down from stage to orchestra. Such steps were common in Roman theatres, and had no doubt existed previously in the Neronian theatre. The bas-relief, which had formerly been a continuous one, was cut into sections, and arranged with recesses at intervals, the recesses being filled with stone figures. One of these—a kneeling Silenus—has been preserved. As to the purpose of this reconstruction by Phaedrus there is much uncertainty. But Dörpfeld conjectures that it may have been due, partly to the ruinous condition of the old Neronian stage, partly to a desire to make the orchestra water-tight for the purpose of holding mimic sea-fights in the manner already described.[390] § 7. _The Earlier Stage-buildings._ We have now described the various traces of stage-buildings in the Athenian theatre down to the time of Phaedrus. It remains to consider the subject from a more general point of view, and to supplement and illustrate the previous narrative by evidence derived from other sources. The first and most interesting question concerns the structure of the stage-buildings during the great period of the Attic drama from Aeschylus to Aristophanes. On this point the existing remains throw very little light. Still there are a few general conclusions which seem to be fairly well established. It is evident, in the first place, that the stage-buildings from the fifth down to the middle of the fourth century, if Dörpfeld’s dates are adopted—those of the greater part of the fifth century, according to Puchstein—must have been made of wood, and not of stone. If they had been made of stone, it is difficult to believe that they would have left no traces behind them. As regards their shape, they probably resembled in general outline the earliest stone structure, and consisted of an oblong building with projecting side-wings. These side-wings were called ‘paraskenia’, because they lay on each side of the ‘skene’ or stage, and are actually mentioned by Demosthenes in his speech against Meidias as forming a part of the theatre at that time.[391] But though the stage-buildings of the fifth century were constructed of wood only, they must have been firm and substantial erections, and at least two stories in height. The use of such contrivances as the ‘mechane’ and the ‘theologeion’, by which gods were exhibited high up in air, would require buildings of not less than two stories, and of considerable solidity. Hence we may also conclude that they were permanent structures, and that they were not put up and taken down at each festival. No doubt, in the course of a century and a half, they were often renewed, and often changed and modified in detail, as experience suggested. During the first