In conclusion I wish to express my obligations to Professor Gardner for his assistance in various questions connected with archaeology, and to Mr. Evelyn Abbott for many valuable suggestions and criticisms. I have to thank the Council of the Hellenic Society for their permission to reproduce the illustration of a chorus of birds from the _Hellenic Journal_. I desire at the same time to acknowledge the great courtesy with which Dr. Dörpfeld, of the German Archaeological Institute, has supplied me with the latest information concerning his excavations in the theatre of Dionysus, and his views on Greek theatres in general. OXFORD, _June, 1889_. PREFACE TO THE SECOND EDITION Since the first edition of this book was published many important additions have been made to our knowledge of the Greek stage. Various theatres have been excavated for the first time; fresh inscriptions have been discovered; and the evidence of the ancient authorities has been examined and sifted with the minutest care. The effect has been to throw a new light on many points which were previously obscure. In order to incorporate these results in the present edition, it was found necessary to make considerable alterations in the book. The third and fourth chapters—those dealing with the Theatre and the Scenery—have been entirely re-written. The first chapter, on the Dramatic Contests at Athens, has been re-written in parts. The other chapters have been carefully revised throughout, and numerous corrections and additions have been inserted, especially on such subjects as the choregia, the theoric fund, the theatre-tickets, and the costume of the actors and the chorus. Eleven new illustrations have been added. The old ones have been mostly retained, with the exception of the ground-plan and the two views of the theatre at Athens, which have been replaced by more accurate representations.