In later times the upper seats led to open arcades; when the ground permitted it, the Romans often laid out walks and gardens on the elevation of the theatre, where the spectators might refresh themselves during intervals; below, near the orchestra, the auditorium was cut off by a wall, which must be so low that the spectators on the first seat could conveniently see the stage, which was raised a good bit above the orchestra. Sometimes the first gangway for the circulation of the public was placed behind this wall, which was bounded by a low breastwork; when this was the case, steps of the first-mentioned kind led up sideways to the orchestra (compare Fig. 153). The size of the auditorium varied greatly. If our measurements of ruined theatres are correct, the theatre at Ephesus was the largest of all; Falkener has calculated that it could contain 56,700 people. The largest theatre in Europe was that of Megalopolis, which was calculated to have 44,000 seats, and the theatre of Dionysus 30,000. These calculations are, however, very uncertain, since we do not know how many feet were allotted to each person, and a variation of half a foot would make a very considerable difference. The most important question connected with the orchestra deals with the _Thymele_, often alluded to by ancient writers. It was formerly assumed that this represented the ancient altar of Dionysus, round which the choruses originally danced, and that it was situated in the centre of the orchestra, while the chorus grouped around it, and that the leader of the chorus stood near the Thymele or on its steps, and the officials of the theatre also took their stand there. The view given by Strack in Fig. 153 is constructed according to this hypothesis; and a structure resembling an altar with steps is placed in the middle of the orchestra. But this interpretation of the Thymele has proved untenable, and though it is not possible to decide this question with any certainty, yet, among the various hypotheses, that of Wieseler seems the most probable--viz., that the Thymele was a wooden scaffolding constructed in the orchestra, on which the chorus performed its dances. The main object of this scaffolding, or podium, was not so much to place the chorus on higher ground as to facilitate their games and dancing, because it was easier to move and dance on the elastic floor of a wooden scaffolding than, as formerly, in the dusty orchestra, which, in fact, from this circumstance received the name “dust-place” (κονίστρα), or even on the stone pavement which seems to have been afterwards laid down in the orchestra. We do not know whether there were steps leading from the floor of the orchestra to this scaffolding, and, in fact, we cannot even determine its height. The size of the podium must have been considerable, since it must have supplied sufficient space for a large chorus. Besides its members, the number of which in cyclic choruses