Therefore in these ten years 55,763 pilgrims have been admitted into the different convents in Palestine, who were supported during 229,346 days, and their offerings cannot have been enough to entertain them for a third part of their stay, so that the Friars cannot be said to derive any advantage from them.

The Latin Patriarchate, though its revenues are small in comparison with the expenses it has to support, practises largely the virtue of hospitality, and knows well how to succour the poor and destitute.

The Protestant Mission relieves the poor, but does not offer to travellers or pilgrims of its own faith the same advantage as the heads of the Latin community, who bestow their benefits upon members of other religious sects with as much care as upon their own.

The Jewish community relieves its pilgrims from the moment of their arrival, admitting them into houses appointed for that purpose; but if the strangers are without means of their own, they have no great cause to praise the welcome and hospitality they receive.

The great mass of pilgrims to the Holy City comes, every year, from the East, consisting of Russians, Greeks, Armenians, Syrians, Copts, Abyssinians, Maronites, and Mohammedans themselves. The greater part of these arrive at Jaffa in steam-boats or trading vessels, in which they are stowed like merchandise, or like negroes in a slave-ship. Not only men, but also entire families, women, girls, and boys, the aged, the sick, and the maimed, make the long pilgrimage. These all expose themselves to bad weather by sea and land, to great privations, and to all kinds of exactions. They assemble in large companies, carrying their provisions along with them, besides merchandize for driving bargains, together with mats for bedding, and cooking vessels, which they load upon camels, mules, and asses. They, however, in many cases walk, often bare-foot, making short stages, sleeping in the open air, or crowded together in a convent; enduring all these fatigues in order to worship in the places which Christ has consecrated by His sufferings. When they arrive at Jerusalem they betake themselves severally to the convents belonging to their own community, and there, after certain formalities, are distributed into lodgings; where, if Greeks, they are crowded together in heaps; if Armenians, they are more comfortable; and if Russians, they have every comfort. I will not weary the reader by relating what the arrangements of the different communities are with regard to their pilgrims; but will only describe those of the Greeks, as they receive the greatest number of all.

The Greek pilgrims of high rank are conducted into apartments assigned to them, where they are well lodged and nourished, according to their importance and dignity. They are not asked for money, but are given to understand the wants of the community, and the needs of the Church; so that they pay liberally for the hospitality they have received, and for the churches and Sanctuaries they have visited. The common pilgrims, after reposing two days in the great convent of S. Constantine, are presented to the Patriarch, who receives an offering from each, under the name of a contribution to the wants of the churches and convents of his diocese. They are then conducted into the Church of the Resurrection, where they pass a night in prayer, and make other offerings to the Guardian of the Sepulchre for the maintenance of the Sanctuaries. On being brought back into the convent, a plentiful repast is provided for them, and their names are enrolled for the pilgrimages to the Jordan and Nazareth, for which they pay a tax. They are then conducted to their lodgings, or rather dens, in one of the numerous convents in Jerusalem. On taking possession of these, they pay a sum proportionate to the expense of their pilgrimage, amounting only to eight or ten shillings. They must, however, make a present in addition, to the church of the place, to those who have brought them, to the Superior who receives them, and to the laics who assist to instal them in their new quarters. When they are settled, they are taken to visit the Tomb of the Virgin and all the churches of the convents, where they pay. They make pilgrimages to Bethlehem, and all the other remarkable places. They buy relics, ask for prayers and blessings, but always pay; so that after being entertained at their own expense for four or five months, and after having expended their resources, many are obliged to sell their baggage to return to their native lands, taking back with them the articles they have acquired with so much toil, all of which however have received a blessing. That they are crowded together, and may be said to occupy dens rather than lodgings, appears from the fact, that sometimes eight persons are quartered in a room 16 or 18 feet square, who have not unfrequently met for the first time, and are from different countries; so that the reader may easily conceive the inconveniences they suffer, and the maladies that are caused by the straitened accommodation, especially when the winter happens to be more rainy than usual. Notwithstanding all the observations that have been made on this barbarous manner of lodging, they are always tenacious of their ancient customs; but as Russia now provides well for her own pilgrims, it is to be hoped that the Greeks, having more space, will find some better manner of accommodating theirs.

With the Armenians the pilgrims are better cared for in every respect; but they have to pay for everything, as with the Greeks.

The pilgrims of the different communities are on no better terms one with another than the convents themselves; consequently quarrels break out every year, in which, though life is not lost, bruises and blows of sticks are plentifully bestowed. These contests are most frequent between the Greeks and the Armenians; and the monks, instead of attempting to allay the strife, rather excite it.

I conclude by giving a list of the schools, hospitals, hospices, and other establishments, belonging to the different communities in Jerusalem.

The Jews possess:—

8 Schools (now perhaps more).
1 Hospital, bearing Rothschild's name.
2 Houses used as Hospices (now perhaps more).
1 Large building for lodging the poor, called after Sir M. Montefiore.

The Mohammedans:—

1 Military Hospital.
1 Hospice, called after Saladin.
1 Hospice of the Kusbeck Dervishes.
1 Tekhiyeh el-Khasseki-Sultane, where the poor are supported.
A number of unimportant Schools.
Several ruined buildings in the Haram es-Sherîf, in which the poor are lodged.
The Lepers' Quarter.

The Orthodox Greeks:—

1 Seminary, called after the Holy Cross.
2 Boys' Schools.
1 Girls' School.
1 Free Dispensary.
18 Convents for accommodating Pilgrims.
A number of houses used for the same purpose, and many others for the poor of the community. 1 Printing Press.

The Latins:—

1 Patriarchal Seminary at Beit-jala.
1 Boys' School, kept by the Friars Minor.
2 Girls' Schools, one kept by the Sisters of S. Joseph; the other by the Daughters of Sion.
1 Hospital of S. Louis.
1 Hospice of the Casa Nuova.
1 Hospice, called after the Flagellation.
1 Hospice (the Austrian).
1 Printing Press.
1 Carpenter's shop.
1 Forge.
Several houses for the poor of the community.

The Armenians:—

1 Seminary.
1 Printing Press.
1 Boys' School.
1 Girls' School.
Magnificent Lodgings for Pilgrims.
Houses for the poor.

Protestant Missions:—

1 Boys' School.
1 Girls' School.
1 Girls' School, managed by the Prussian Deaconesses.
1 Hospital under the same care.
1 Hospice (Prussian).
1 Hospital (English).
1 Carpenters' School.
1 Reading Room.
Some houses belonging to the Prussians.

Russians:—

1 Hospital.
Magnificent Lodgings for Pilgrims.

Copts:—

1 Hospice.
Houses for members of their community.

The other communities have only their convents.

In a population of only 20,453 inhabitants, where there are so many schools and so many establishments, it is a great misfortune that no progress is seen, and that there does not appear to be even the hope of obtaining it for a long time to come.

NOTES.

NOTES ON CHAPTER I.

Note I. See Eusebius, Hist. Eccles. IV. 2 sqq.; and his book on the Martyrs of Palestine, chap. 11; Dio's resumé of the history of the reign of Hadrian; S. Jerome, Letter to Paulinus.

Note II. Neby Samwîl (Prophet Samuel) is a village on the N.W. of Jerusalem, at a distance of about three hours from the city. From its summit the Mediterranean and the Dead Sea are visible, and it commands a magnificent view of Palestine to the East and West. This is not the place to say anything of this site in its connexion with ancient topography; I will merely state in passing that I dissent from the opinion of Dr Robinson, who would identify the place with Mizpeh, the frequent meeting-place of the Jews (Judges xx.; 1 Sam. vii. 6, 12, x. 17, 24); I believe it to be Ramah. For here is found the sepulchre of the prophet Samuel, which I have myself seen, and from the earliest times to this day the Israelites have constantly undertaken pilgrimages in order to touch even the outer walls which enclose the tomb. Accordingly I identify the Ramah mentioned in 1 Sam. xxv. 1 and xxviii. 3, and the Ramah of Josephus (Ant. VI. 13, § 5), with the Arab village of Neby Samwîl. In my book on the tombs of Machpelah, Ephratah, and Ramah, this point will be discussed at length.

Note III. "He removed thence (from Gabaoth Saul), and came to a place called Scopus; from whence the city began already to be seen, and a plain view might be taken of the great temple." (Josephus, Wars, V. 2, § 3.) Titus himself, with 600 horsemen, had made a reconnoitring expedition before he encamped at Scopus, during which he was intercepted by a body of the Jews, and had a very narrow escape with his life. Scopus was, however, the first place from which the main army obtained a view of the city.

Note IV. Above each of the gates of Jerusalem is inserted a stone bearing the following inscription, which was translated for me from the Arabic (Plate VII.): "The Sultan our sovereign, the most potent king, and illustrious monarch, the lord of the nations, the king of the Greeks, Arabs, and Persians, the Sultan Solyman (whose reign may God render happy and immortal!) caused the building of these holy walls, in the year 941;" of the Hejra, that is, corresponding to 1534 of the common era.

Note V. I subjoin the following note for the information of travellers, that they may not have to pass the night outside the Jaffa gate, or on Fridays lose valuable time.

Every Friday at the hour of prayer (i.e. from noon to 1 P.M.) all the gates of the city are closed, and it is difficult to obtain permission to have them opened. This is done to allow time to the guards in charge for their devotions.

Note VI. The following are the names of the principal streets of Jerusalem:

Note I. The drainage system of the city is divided into the Southern, Northern, and Eastern sections, the division of the two former being marked by the street called the Street of David. The keeping in repair of the Southern section is the business of the local governor, and in consideration thereof he receives a fixed annual sum from the Armenians and the Jews, as inhabitants of that quarter. The Northern section as far as the central valley is kept in repair by the Latin and Greek convents, this district containing the quarters of their respective nations. All the drainage on the Eastern side is under the sole charge of the governor. The Arabs very seldom take the trouble to look after their own sewers, but are zealous enough in enforcing the execution of repairs which belong to the Christian communities; and since the latter have them executed with an ill-will, and employ men of no experience for the direction of the works, the drains are choked and flooded almost every year, and are constantly being opened for repairs; a cause of no slight annoyance in the city. It was during these works that, for eight successive years, I had the opportunity of examining their formation, their respective inclines, and directions, from which I found that they all run into the central valley (the Tyropœon Valley of my map), and thence drain away to the S.E. outside the city, as far as the large pool, now filled up, below the fountain of Siloam.

Note II.On the subject of "cubits" and stadia, I transcribe the remarks of M. Munk, in his book entitled "La Palestine," subjoining an account of my own special observations on the subject.

"The measures of length, called Middoth, are generally referred to the hand and arm; the following are mentioned: (1) Eçba (Jer. lii. 21), the finger, i.e. the breadth of the finger or thumb; (2) Tephach (1 Kings vii. 26), or tophach (Exodus xxv. 25), the hand-breadth, i.e. the breadth of four fingers; (3) Zereth (Exodus xxviii. 16), the distance between the tips of the thumb and little finger, or the span; (4) Ammah, the whole length of the fore-arm, or cubit. The relative value of these measures is not indicated in any part of the Bible; to fix it, we must consult Josephus and the Rabbinic traditions. In Exodus xxv. 10, the dimensions of the ark are stated as follows; length 2-1/2 cubits, breadth 1-1/2 cubits, height 1-1/2 cubits. Josephus, in the Antiquities (III. 6, § 5), represents the 2-1/2 cubits by 5 spans, and for 1-1/2 cubits puts 3 spans: hence the span was the half of the cubit. The Rabbins agree with Josephus; according to them the zereth is half a cubit, referring to the mean cubit[A] which contained six hand-breadths, each hand-breadth being equivalent to four fingers. These data may be adhered to as exact, because the same proportions recur in other ancient systems. Thus for example the Greeks had their cubits of 1-1/2 feet, which made six hand-breadths or 24 fingers; Herodotus (II. 149) speaks of a cubit of six hands in use amongst the Egyptians. We have then for the relative values of the Hebrew measures the following table:

"The knowledge of the absolute value of any one of these would therefore be sufficient to enable us to deduce those of the rest; but since on this point we have no positive datum, in the writings either of Josephus or of the Rabbins, we must be contented with an approximate estimate by the aid of the Egyptian measures, which modern discoveries enable us to fix with a certain precision. It is probable, besides, that the system of the Hebrews was borrowed from that of the Egyptians. The Rabbins determine their measures of length by the breadth of grains of barley placed side by side—a custom which also prevails amongst the Arabs and other Eastern tribes. It is easily seen that there is an uncertainty in this method of measurement, owing to the unequal sizes of the barley-grains. Maimonides, who has made minute calculations on the subject, has found that the Eçba of the Bible is equal to the breadth of seven average-sized grains of barley[B], which gives for the Ammah 168. It is found by calculations sufficiently exact that the Arab cubit, which is estimated at 144 grains of barley (that is, twenty-four fingers of six grains each), when reduced to (Paris) lines and decimal parts of lines, gives 213.050[C], which would give for the Hebrew Ammah of 168 barley-grains 248.564 (about 560 millimetres, or 22 inches). This result is not thoroughly exact, but it will be seen that it does not differ much from the probable value of the Egyptian measures;—at any rate it may serve to establish the connexion which existed between the measures of the Hebrews and those of the Egyptians.

"But another question presents itself. The learned have attributed to the Hebrews more than one kind of cubit[D], and while we reject mere conjectures that have no solid basis, we must at any rate admit two kinds; the one ancient or Mosaic, used for the measurement of sacred things, the other modern, for common use. In the second book of Chronicles (iii. 3), a 'cubit of the first measure,' or ancient cubit, is spoken of as employed for the measurements of the Temple of Solomon,—which implies the existence of a modern or common cubit. The prophet Ezekiel (xl. 5, xliii. 13) in a vision in which he sees the dimensions of the future temple, speaks evidently of a cubit containing a hand-breadth more than the ordinary cubit, from which we may conclude that between the two cubits there was a difference of a hand-breadth. This difference the Talmud interprets in the sense, that the less contained only five of the six hand-breadths of the greater[E]; but it would be more consistent to give them the same ratio as the two different Egyptian cubits had, i.e. that of 7 : 6, approximately. Further, it is probable that each of the two was divided into six hand-breadths; the Talmud speaks expressly of longer and shorter hand-breadths[F]. The old Mosaic cubit was, without doubt, the royal cubit of the Egyptians, and the different scales of this still extant, together with the measurements of several Egyptian monuments, give for its mean value about 525 millimetres[G] (or 20.67 inches). This result appears less doubtful since it differs by only 35 millimetres from that which was found by the very uncertain calculation of the breadth of the barley-grains. Admitting this, we obtain for the value of the ordinary cubit 450 millimetres or 433.5 (i.e. 17.71 or 17.07 inches), according as we take the Egyptian ratio 7 : 6 or that of the Talmud 6 : 5. Each of these two cubits was divided in the same proportion into two spans, six hand-breadths, and twenty-four fingers.

"With measures of length may be classed those of distance, or road-measures; but the old Hebrews measured their roads in a very vague and uncertain manner; and as we shall not need to refer to their measurements in this book, I leave the discussion of them to turn to those which are necessary.

"In the Græco-Roman period the Jews reckoned by stadia and miles; which measures are found in the Old Testament and in the Talmud, as is also the Sabbath-day's journey (Acts i. 12), which was about 2000 cubits."

Josephus also often quotes his measurements in stadia, so I will speak of these. Three principal kinds of stadia are known; the Olympic, equivalent to 184.95 metres (or 606.8 feet); the Pythian, equal to 147.6 metres (or 484.3 feet), and lastly the Philæterian, of 213 metres (or 698.8 feet). Through the whole of this work I have adopted the Olympic, because in the measurements taken in Jerusalem itself, and its environs, I have found that it alone corresponds with all the distances which are cited in stadia by Josephus. That author, speaking of the Mount of Olives, puts it at five stadia from the city, Mount Scopus at seven, the monument of Absalom at two, Herodium at sixty, and lastly, Anathoth at twenty stadia. All these distances I have verified, comparing them with the Olympic stadium, and have always found them exact. Hence it is that I employ this to measure the thirty-three stadia of the city's circumference, and the thirty-nine of the lines drawn round it by Titus, &c. For the sacred cubit of the first measure I have adopted the Egyptian of 20.67 inches, and for the common cubit that of 17.71 inches, as a result of the extended observation and study of measurements that I have made on the old stones which are found in the Eastern wall of the Temple, or of the Haram es-Sherîf; with considerable difficulty I have managed to measure many such which have suffered no mutilation, and have found them to correspond with the ordinary cubits and their aliquot parts of spans, hand-breadths, and digits.

In case the reader should desire to examine more minutely the question of Jewish measures, I refer him to the following works, to which the numerals in the text above relate.

Note III. The Armenians, in the various new edifices that they have built on Mount Sion, have found remains of walls, stones, reservoirs and cisterns of the most remote antiquity, generally at a depth of eighteen or even twenty feet below the surface, sometimes more. Before my arrival in Jerusalem, whilst digging for foundations they found a large quantity of small blocks of limestone of five and seven inches cube, dressed on every side, and so many in number that they employed them to build high and long unmortared walls, which to this day surround their property on the south inside the city. These stones were found collected together in one place, and were not scattered about: it is not impossible that they had been prepared to line the walls of a large pool. I say this because stones of this shape are now found in the pool of Bethesda, but in this reservoir they are wrought with more accuracy and uniformity. In my own time, in 1859, they discovered a pool, cut in the solid rock, which shewed however that the work had not been completed; it was 18 feet long, 10 broad, and 10 deep. In its neighbourhood were seen traces of conduits that they had begun to cut out in the rock.

Another wall, six feet broad, was composed of large irregular blocks of stone of from four to eight cubic feet. In it could be distinguished four rows placed one above the other, whose stones were fastened by clamps of iron or of stone, and in each was discernible more or less some trace of rude rustic work: in the interstices of the interior were inserted small stones well packed together without cement, so that the internal building of the wall formed a solid mass. To their discredit the Armenians do not trouble themselves about antiquities, and consequently take no pains to preserve such ancient remains as they meet with, but destroy or hide them, or avail themselves of the materials for the building of new walls.

Note IV. In the environs of the city, with the exception of the north and north-west, are frequently found walls, conduits, and scattered stones of large size, rusticated or not, and with or without marks of clamps; but they have been constantly broken up because of the want of will, and also of mechanical means, to make the most of them, or to remove them. Owing to this vandalism, the most precious remains of antiquity are daily disappearing from the soil of Jerusalem. Not seldom trunks of columns, capitals, pedestals, have been found, but some rude clown has broken them up, to be able the more easily to transport the fragments into the city. Sometimes old walls have been broken up by blasting, without any one's taking the trouble to preserve them, or even to delay their destruction, so as to allow of some examination of them. These cases are repeated daily on Mount Sion, on the east of the Mount of Olives, and on the western side of the valley of Kidron; but never in any part where it is not known from human memory, or received tradition, that there have been found remains of Jewish buildings, or large stones scattered over the soil.

Note V. To facilitate the reader's understanding of the allusions in the course of the work, it is necessary that I should indicate the titles by which I characterise the different walls and stones which are found at Jerusalem.

Jebusite Walls. This name and age I assign to those that are built of unsquared stones of different sizes, some of which are fastened together by tenon and mortise; the interstices being filled with small stones. (See Note III.)

Walls of David. By this name I indicate those walls whose stones are of considerable size and rudely squared, and which present some trace of irregular rustic-work, and are always fastened by tenons of stone or clamps of iron.

Walls of Solomon. (See Plate X.) Walls of Solomon I call those that are composed of large blocks of stone, that have not all the same breadth and height, and whose rude rustic-work, about two inches in relief, is surrounded by a flat band of from two inches to two inches and a half. They are fastened together by tenons and mortises in the stone itself, or by cubical pieces inlaid, of a different stone from the block itself, and contain no cement. The various layers of stone one above the other are in one vertical plane, and diminish in thickness the higher they rise; but the vertical joinings of the stones of any layer do not correspond with any regularity with those of a higher or lower layer (Fig. 1): this kind is especially found in the basement of the east wall of the Haram.

By the wall of Nehemiah I mean that which presents many blocks of the same character with those of the walls of Solomon; but these are joined together in an irregular manner, that is to say, the several layers are not formed of stones of equal heights, some stones appear to be turned upside down, in some the rustic-work is mutilated in places, many are placed aslant, and lastly, not a few shew the holes where the clamps have been (that is, the side is put in front); and besides, there are mixed with these small stones which appear with a portion of rustication, which shews that the large stones of the old wall have been broken in order to place them more carefully in their position. I assign them to Nehemiah, because the Bible informs us (Neh. iv. 17, 18, vi. 15), that he conducted the work in the midst of alarms, the workmen being all armed, so as to render the walls fit to sustain the assaults with which their enemies were threatening them every moment. Accordingly to this they owe the irregularity with which they were formed (Fig. 2). What I have described may be observed in the east wall of the Haram towards the southern end.

Herodian walls I judge to be those which present large squared blocks, polished with accurate exactness, and joined together without cement, but with the most delicate care: they have a rustication, much wrought, standing two or three lines in relief, and surrounded by a band of about an inch and a half wide. In these walls the sizes of the stones diminish regularly as they rise higher from the ground, and the vertical joinings of alternate layers correspond exactly throughout, and are at the middle points of the stones which separate the two layers; lastly, every layer is an inch and a half in rear of the preceding. Walls of this kind are found at the S.E. corner of the Haram, and in its western enclosure towards the south (Fig. 3).

The Roman walls are formed of fine squared stones, well wrought, joined by means of cement. They may be seen on the south and at the south-west corner of the Haram (Fig. 4).

The walls built by the Crusaders, or by the old Arabs (Saracenic work), reveal themselves at once by the economical proportion of the stones, by the excellent way in which they are joined, and sometimes by their being formed of rows of different colours, red, white, and black (Fig. 5).

The Arab walls of the present day are distinguished by their miserable appearance.

Note VI. At the first entry of Omar into the city he was conducted by the Patriarch Sophronius to visit the Holy Sepulchre. Whilst he was lingering there, mid-day struck, whereupon the Khalif went out to perform his devotions, and retired to the place where afterwards the little mosque was built;—a remarkable instance of moderation on the part of the Khalif, seeing that, if he had prayed in the Christian church, it would by Mohammedan law have been converted into a mosque. It is owing to this that the sons of Islam have left it to the Christian worship. The adjoining minaret was built by the Mohammedans at the expense of the Christians in the 13th century.

Note VII. M. Munk, in his book on Palestine writes, "We enumerate here the gates of Jerusalem in their actual order, as ascertained, if not with certainty, at any rate with probable accuracy, starting from the North-west and passing thence to the West, South and East, so as to make the circuit of the walls.

Note VIII. The present castle is called by some the Castle of the Pisans; and Adrichomius says that it was built by them when the Latins were the masters of Jerusalem. His words are, "The castle of the Pisans, surrounded by broad fosses, and by towers, was built on the West side of the city by the Christians of Pisa in Italy, at the time when they occupied the Holy Land. Where the Pisans formerly were, the Saracens, and at the present time the Turks, levy a sacrilegious tribute on the pilgrims to the Holy Land."

Note IX. Traditions in the East are very unwavering, a fact recognised by all. For instance, we are told that the Judgment Hall was near to the Temple, on the west side; to this day the Mohammedan tribunal is there, and the Arabs say that their judges sit in the very Judgment Hall not only of the Crusaders but of Solomon. I grant that the walls of the building do not indicate that it is of the age of Solomon, but I shall discuss this building more in detail hereafter.

Note X. Description of Jerusalem by Tacitus (H. V. 10-12).

Note XI.The Pilgrim of Bordeaux's description of Jerusalem.

"There are in Jerusalem two large pools by the side of the Temple; to wit, one on the right, and another on the left, which Solomon made. Inside the city there be two pools with five porticoes, which are called Bethsaida: there men with diseases of many years' standing were healed. The water of these pools is somewhat turbid and of a reddish hue. There likewise is a crypt, where Solomon was wont to torture the unclean spirits. There is the corner of a very high tower, whither the Lord went up, and he that tempted said unto Him, (Cast thyself down from hence); and the Lord said unto him, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God, but Him only shalt thou serve. There is also the great corner-stone of which it was said, The stone which the builders rejected. Also at the head of the corner and under the battlements of the tower itself are several chambers on the spot where Solomon had his palace. There too standeth the chamber in the which he sat, and described Wisdom, which chamber is roofed by one single stone. There are two large reservoirs for the subterraneous water, and pools built with great labour. And in the building itself where the Temple was, which Solomon built, you would say that the blood of Zacharias on the marble before the altar had been shed this very day; and the marks of the nails of the soldiers who slew him are so plainly seen, that you would think they had been planted on wax over the whole area. Also there be there two statues of Hadrian, and not far from the statues is a stone much worn, to which the Jews come every year, and anoint it, and bemoan themselves with sighs and rend their garments, and so depart. There is also the house of Hezekiah, king of Judah. Also as you go out into Jerusalem to go up mount Sion, below you on the left in the valley hard by the wall is a pool which is called Siloam. It has four porches, and another large pool without. Its spring runs for six days and nights, but on the seventh is an entire Sabbath, and it runs not by night nor by day. Continuing along the same road up mount Sion, you may see the place where was the house of Caiaphas the priest, and to this time the column still remains where they scourged Jesus. Within the walls of Sion is seen the place where David had his palace, and of seven synagogues which were there one only remains; the rest are ploughed and sown over, as the prophet Esaias foretold. Then to proceed outside the wall, as you go from Sion to the Neapolitan gate, on the right in the valley below are the walls where was once the palace of Pontius Pilate; there our Lord had hearing before He suffered. On the left is the hill of Golgotha, where the Lord was crucified. About a stone's throw thence is the crypt where His body was laid, and on the third day He rose again: on this spot Constantine the Emperor has erected lately a basilica, or church, of wondrous beauty, having at the side reservoirs from which water is drawn, and behind it a bath where children are baptized.

"Also at Jerusalem, as you go to the Eastern gate, to climb the slope of the Mount of Olives, on the left is the valley, called the Valley of Jehoshaphat, where are the vines, and the stone where Judas Iscariot betrayed Christ; while on the right is the palm-tree from which the children plucked the boughs, as Christ entered the city, and strewed them in the way before Him. Not far thence, about a stone's throw, are two monumental columns of wondrous beauty: on one was placed the statue of the prophet Isaiah, a true monolith, and on the other Hezekiah, the king of the Jews. Thence you ascend the Mount of Olives, where the Lord taught His Apostles before His Passion. There a basilica was built by order of Constantine. Not far thence is the mountain whither the Lord went out to pray, when He took with Him Peter and John, and there appeared unto them Moses and Elias. Eastward thence at 1500 paces is a village called Bethany, in which is a crypt where Lazarus was laid, whom the Lord raised to life."

Note XII. Description of Jerusalem during the occupation of the Franks, extracted from the Universal Geography of Edrisi, who wrote at the middle of the 12th century.

"Beït el-Mocaddas (Jerusalem) is an illustrious and ancient city, full of ancient monuments. It bears the name of Ilia (Ælia Capitolina). Situated on a mountain easy of access on every side," (Edrisi was mistaken, or has been mistranslated), "it extends from West to East. On the West is the gate called El-Mihrab; beneath is the cupola of David (to whom God be merciful): on the East the gate called the Gate of Mercy, which is generally shut, being opened only on the Feast of Palms; to the South the gate of Seihun (Sion); on the North the gate called the Gate of 'Amud el-Ghorab. Starting from the western gate, or gate of El-Mihrab, you go in an easterly direction by a broad street, till you come to the great Church of the Resurrection, called by Mohammedans Comamé. This church is the object of the pilgrimage of Christians from all countries of the East and the West. Entering by the western door you find yourself under a cupola which covers the whole enclosure, and which is one of the most remarkable sights in the world. The church itself is beneath this door, and it is not possible to go down into the lower part of the building on this side; the descent is made on the north side by a door which opens at the top of a long staircase of thirty steps, which door is called Bâb Sitti Mariam. At the entrance of the church the spectator finds the Holy Sepulchre, a building of considerable size, with two doors, and surmounted by a cupola of very solid construction, built with admirable skill; of these two doors one, on the north side, faces the door of S. Mary, the other faces the South, and is called Bâb es-Salubié (door of the Crucifixion): on this side is the peristyle of the church, in front of which, towards the east, is another church of considerable size and note, where the Christians celebrate their holy offices and make their prayers and oblations.

"On the east of this church, by a gentle descent, you come to the prison where the Lord Messiah was confined, and to the place where he was crucified. The large dome has a circular opening to the sky, and all round it and in the interior are seen pictures representing the Prophets, the Lord Messiah, S. Mary his mother, and S. John Baptist. Among the lamps which are hung above the Holy Sepulchre are distinguished three which are of gold and are placed in a particular spot. If you leave the principal church, and turn your steps eastward, you will come to the sacred dwelling, which was built by Solomon the son of David, and was a resort of pilgrims in the time of the greatness of the Jews. This temple was subsequently taken from them, and they were driven out of it upon the arrival of the Mohammedans. Under the Moslem supremacy it was enlarged, and is (at this day) the large mosque known to Mohammedans under the name of Mesjid el-Aksa. There is none in the world which equals it in size, if you except the great mosque of Cordova in Andalusia: for, as I am told, the roof of that mosque is larger than that of Mesjid el-Aksa. To proceed, the area of this latter forms a parallelogram whose length is two hundred fathoms (ba'a) and its breadth a hundred and eighty. The half of this space, which is near to the Mihrab, is covered by a roof (or rather by a dome) of stone supported by several rows of columns, the rest being open to the sky. In the centre of the building is a large dome, known as the Dome of the Rock: it has been ornamented with arabesques in gold, and with other beautiful works, by the care of different Moslem Khalifs. Beneath this is the falling stone. This stone is of a quadrangular form like a shield, one of its extremities rising above the ground to the height of about half a fathom, the other being close to the ground; it is nearly cubical, and its breadth nearly equal to its length, that is to say, about ten cubits (Zira'a). Beneath is a cavern, or a dark recess, ten cubits long by five wide, whose height is about six feet. It is entered only by torch-light. The building contains four doors; opposite the western is seen the altar on which the children of Israel offered their sacrifices; near the eastern door is the church called the Holy of Holies, an elegant building; on the south is a chapel which was used by the Mohammedans, but the Christians made themselves masters of it by main force, and it has remained in their power up to the time of the present work (1154 A.D.). They have converted this chapel into a convent, where reside certain members of the order of the Templars, i.e. of the Servants of the House of God. Lastly, the northern door faces a garden well planted with different kinds of trees, and surrounded by columns of marble carved with much skill. At the end of the garden is a refectory for the priests, and for those who are preparing to enter the religious orders.

"Leaving this place of worship, and turning eastward, you will come to the Gate of Mercy, shut, as we have just said, but near it is another gate by which you can go in or out, and which is called Bâb el-Asbat (or of the tribes of Israel). Within bow-shot from the latter is a very large and very beautiful church under the patronage of S. Mary, known by the name of Djesmanié; here is the tomb (of the Virgin) in sight of the Mount of Olives, about a mile distant from Bâb el-Asbat. On the road by which this mountain is ascended is seen another church, large and solidly built, which is called the church of the Pater Noster; and on the top is a large church where men and women live a cloister life, awaiting thus the reward of heaven. On the south-east of the mountain is the tomb of Lazarus, who was raised to life by the Lord Messiah; and two miles from Mount Olivet, the village from which was brought the ass on which the Lord rode on his entry into Jerusalem; this village is now deserted and in ruins.

"It is on leaving the tomb of Lazarus that the road begins which leads to the Jordan, which river is distant a day's journey from the Holy City. Before arriving at its banks you will pass the city of Erikha (Jericho), three miles distant from the river. Near the Jordan is a large church under the patronage of S. John Baptist, served by Greek monks. The Jordan flows out of the lake of Tiberias, and empties its waters into the lake of Sodom and Gomorrah, cities which the Most High drowned as a punishment for the wickedness of their inhabitants. To the south of this river is an immense desert.

"As regards the southern side of Jerusalem: leaving the city by the gate of Sion, you find, at the distance of a stone's throw, the Church of Sion, a beautiful church, and fortified, where is seen the chamber in which the Lord Messiah did eat with His disciples, and also the table, which exists to this day, and is to be seen on Thursdays. From the gate of Sion you descend into a ravine well known under the name of the Valley of Gehenna (Hinnom), near which is the Church of S. Peter. In this ravine is the fountain of Selwan (Siloam), where the Lord Messiah gave sight to a blind man, who had not before known the light of day. To the south of this spring is the field which was bought by the Messiah for the burial of strangers. Not far from it are numerous dwellings cut out in the rock, and occupied by pious hermits."

Note XIII. I may mention here that one day I caused a trumpet to be played on Gihon, near the present Pool of Mamillah, and the site of the Russian buildings, and I heard it distinctly, while standing myself by the Fountain of Rogel, that is by the well situated at the S.E. extremity of the Valley of Siloam, the Bir Eyub (Well of Joab) of the Arabs; while, on changing the position of the player, by sending him more to the N.W., I heard nothing. Accordingly I can confirm in every respect the Bible account (1 Kings i. 41), that Adonijah heard the festive cries of the people and the sound of the trumpets which welcomed the coronation of Solomon.

Note I. The Haram es-Sherîf cannot be visited without the permission of the Pasha, the Governor of the city, which, though almost always granted, may be delayed for some days. The Pasha himself never gives permission to enter the sacred enclosure without having first submitted the question to the Council of the Effendis, who always give their consent, not of their own free will, but through fear of displeasing him who makes the request. When all this is arranged, it rests with the keeper of the Haram to appoint the time for the visit: the time fixed is always in the morning, because the place is then almost deserted, and visitors can converse without fear of disturbing the devotion of the worshippers. Travellers must apply for the permission in question, through their respective consulates, and every visitor has to pay a fee to the keeper and to the escort of police who accompany him, to protect him from any insult, which at times would be sure to arise on the part of some bigoted Mohammedan. The payment is fixed by custom at twenty francs. When the visitors do not pay it themselves, the matter is arranged by their respective consuls. The Europeans who are admitted to see the Haram must provide themselves with broad Turkish slippers, or with two pieces of canvas, to cover their ordinary boots; without this precaution, they would meet with every opposition to their being admitted to the places of greater sanctity: they should be careful to carry no cigars with them, and to conduct themselves reverently, because else some complaint might be lodged against them, in which case those who came after them might, through their fault, be refused admission to the ancient summit of Moriah. I speak from experience.

Note II. I said that by patience, perseverance, and no slight personal sacrifice, I managed to obtain a knowledge of the Haram, because, though I had the required permission, the strong protection of the Pasha, the support of the Effendi, and Mohammedan sympathy, I was nevertheless obliged to be continually satisfying the greed of my escort, and still more of the keeper of the Haram, and, I may add, of his children, with both money and presents. I was obliged also to see them constantly in my apartments, enduring their company apparently unmoved, although they threatened every moment to plunder my goods and eat me up with the little that I possessed. Besides this, it was no rare thing for me to arrange with the superintendent of the Haram to begin a work, and then have to wait several months before I could finish it, simply owing to the whim of a Mohammedan. Appeal to the Pasha was out of the question, because any violent measure that he might in such case have taken would have resulted in a thousand new difficulties thrown in my way, and I should never have succeeded in my design.

Note III. There is an unvarying tradition amongst the Arabs that the Holy Rock, Sakharah, covered by the dome of the mosque, is the same stone on which slept Israil-Ullah, that is, the patriarch Jacob, and on which he had the vision of the ladder. Omar himself, when he made his triumphant entry into Jerusalem, caused a search to be made for it, inquiring where the stone was that had served for Jacob's pillow. They agree, moreover, in recognizing in it the ancient foundation of the Temple of Solomon.

Note IV. The Arabs maintain the belief, that under the Sakharah is a large well (which they call Bir-el-Arruah, i.e. well of souls) which communicates with the nether world; and there are a thousand Eastern legends relating to it. It may be gathered from all these legends that there is a well of considerable depth, divided into two parts. In the lower part exists the universal fountain, which furnishes water to the whole world, and near it stand the mothers of Jesus and Mohammed working garments for the souls of the righteous. With respect to the two cisterns on the north of the mosque they relate, that in ancient times they served as a receptacle for the drainage, but that subsequently they were cleansed, and that yet, notwithstanding, the waters are not good, nor fit to drink. I shall shew further on for what purposes these ancient cisterns of Araunah's threshing-floor were used in the service of the different Jewish temples.

Note V. Those who desire more detailed accounts may consult in particular the following works: Jacob Jehuda Leone, de Templo Hierosolymitano (in Hebrew), Amsterdam, 1650, in 4to; translated into Latin by Saubert, Helmstad, 1665; the same work in Dutch (Afbeeldinge van den Tempel Salomonis), by the Author, Amsterdam, 1679. This author has confused together in the same description the Temple of Solomon and that of Herod. Also Bernard Lami, de Tabernaculo Fœderis, de Sancta Civitate Jerusalem, et de Templo ejus, Paris, 1720, in folio; A. Hirt, der Tempel Salomons, Berlin, 1809, in 4to; Meyer, der Tempel Salomons, Berlin, 1830, in 8vo; Winer, Realwörterbuch, Tom. II. pp. 661-670.

Note VI. The bath, according to Josephus, is equivalent to an Attic metretes, or 72 xestæ (sextarii), or about 8 gallons, 5 pints; (see Josephus, Antiqq. viii. 2, § 9).

Note VII. "According to the prophet Jeremiah (xxv. 11)," writes M. Munk (Palestine, p. 461), "the Babylonish captivity was to last 70 years. To obtain this number they make the time fixed by the prophet to date from the year 606, which, according to Jewish writers, is the first of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar; and indeed it was in this same year that Jeremiah spoke for the first time of the 70 years during which the Babylonish government was to last (xxv. 12), a statement which he repeats in the year 599, on the occasion of the banishment of Jehoiachin (xxix. 10). But in the first year of Nebuchadnezzar there was no idea of a Babylonish captivity."

Note VIII. See Josephus, Antiqq. XV. 11, § 1. According to the printed text, the Temple of Zerubbabel wanted 60 cubits of the height of the Temple of Solomon, which is unintelligible. The corrected reading of several Manuscripts, which have "seven cubits," is to be preferred. (Cf. Havercamp's edition, Vol. I. p. 778, Note 7.)

Note IX. The two descriptions of Josephus leave much to be desired, and the numbers appear in many instances to have been corrupted by the copyists. They may be supplemented by a third, and more detailed description, furnished by the Mishna, part 5, tract. Middoth (published separately, with a Latin translation and notes, by L'empereur, Leyden, 1630, in 4to.). Amongst modern writers the following may be consulted: Lightfoot, Descriptio Templi Hierosolymitani, in his works, Vol I. pp. 549 and following (chiefly after the Mishna); Hirt, in the Historical and Philological Memoirs of the Berlin Academy for the Years 1816 and 1817 (published in 1819). Hirt has exclusively followed Josephus—his plan has several essential defects; M. Munk has followed that of Wette (Archäologie, § 238), which is much more exact, and has combined the accounts of Josephus and the Mishna.

Note X. According to tradition the folding-doors of the Nicanor gate, which were of Corinthian bronze, had been brought from Alexandria by one Nicanor, and miraculously saved from a shipwreck. This gate alone was of bronze; the others were of wood, and plated with gold and silver. See Mishna, part 2, tract. Yoma, chap. 3, § 10, and the Comments of Maimonides; Babylonish Talmud, the same treatise, fol. 38. Compare Josephus' Wars, V. 5, § 3.

Note XI. In the tower Baris were kept the pontifical robes, which were worn by the High Priest on solemn days: a practice established by the Asmonean princes, who united in their own persons the chief civil and religious authority.

Note XII. See Jeremiah lii. 12. According to Rabbinical tradition the burning of the Temple of Solomon began on the ninth of the month Ab in the evening; and it was moreover on the ninth of Ab that the Romans burnt the third temple; accordingly, on this day the Jews, with the exception of the Karaites, keep the anniversary of the destruction of Jerusalem. Josephus, however (Wars, VI. 4, § 5), agreeing therein with the book of Jeremiah, expressly mentions the tenth day of the month Loüs or Ab. Possibly the date given by the Rabbins, as concerns the third temple, may have been the result of a different calculation of new moons from that of Josephus.

Note XIII. From the time of Hadrian, the Jews obtained, for a money payment, permission to visit Jerusalem once in the year, there to bewail their humiliation. See Euseb. Hist. Eccles. IV. 6. This state of things lasted till the time of S. Jerome: the following words are from his Commentary on Zephaniah, chap. i. "Even to the present day they are forbidden to enter Jerusalem, and buy the permission to weep over the ruins of their city."

Note XIV. See Gibbon, chap. 23. The silence which is observed on this event by S. Jerome, who arrived in Palestine some years afterwards, is, according to Gibbon, a proof that the pretended miracle had made far less sensation on the spot than at a distance.

Note XV. Some maintain that the building of this basilica is to be attributed to S. Helena; but this opinion is not admissible, for Eusebius who wrote the life of Constantine, makes no mention of it. There are stronger reasons for attributing it to Justinian, according to the account transmitted to us by Procopius, his panegyrist, who gives minute details of its building. See Procopius, de Ædif. Justin. lib. IV. cap. 6.

Note XVI. Omar found the old site of the threshing-floor of Araunah full of impurities, and was the first to set the example of cleansing it; the followers of Islam followed his example, and it was then that the Khalif determined upon building a sumptuous mosque over the holy rock.

Note XVII. William of Tyre, Book I. Chap. 2. "There are, moreover, in the same temple-building, within and without, very old monuments in mosaic work, and in the Arabic character, which are believed to be of that date, in which the author of the work, and the expense of it, and the times at which the work was begun and finished, are evidently set forth:" he adds that the mosque was the work of Omar, "which, after a short time, being completed successfully to his mind, as it exists at this day in Jerusalem, he (Omar) endowed with many and countless possessions." This author repeats that in the interior, and outside the building, was written the name of Omar its founder. "Moreover, in the beginning of this volume, we have named the author of this building, the son of Catab, who, third from the seducer Mohammed, was his successor in his apostasy and his kingdom: and that this is so the ancient inscriptions inside the said building and outside it plainly declare." (Book VIII. chap. 3.)

Note XVIII. An Arab chronicler relates, that "Abd-el-Malek, khalif of the dynasty of the Ommiades, gave orders for the construction of the great dome which was then wanting, and sent letters everywhere to inform the Emirs of his intention. Every one commended his design, and the people invoked upon him the blessings of heaven. He set aside for this work the tribute that he collected from Egypt for seven years, and deposited it under the cupola of the so-called throne of David, which he turned for the time into a treasury. The charge of this treasury he entrusted to one Regiah-ben-Havuk, appointing besides, for the superintendence of the works, Jazib-ben-Salem; and a part of the mosque to the east having fallen, while the treasury was short of money, he ordered that the plates of gold with which the dome was ornamented should be converted into coin. This happened in the year 65 of the Hejra, or 684 A.D. The mosque was opened to the public at that time twice a week; on Monday and Thursday. From beneath the Sakharah, the Mohammedans say, rises the spring of the four rivers of the earthly paradise, whose waters have the virtue of washing away the sins of those who drink of them. They believe, moreover, that an angel is appointed to be guardian of the mosque." (Arab MS. in the library of the Kadi at Jaffa.)

Note XIX. Khondemir, a celebrated Persian historian, who wrote in the fifteenth century, attributes the enlargement of the building to Valid. He is an author worthy of credit. He drew the materials of his history from the famous library of the Emir Aly-Schyr, a virtuoso, and a great protector of letters. The latter, in the year 904 (1498 A.D.), conferred upon him the post of librarian. He it is who tells the story of the cupola at Baalbec.

Note XX. The invasion of the Carmathians having stopped for a time the pilgrimages to Mecca, the Mosque of Omar took the place of the Kaaba, and for more than twenty years the crowds of pilgrims turned their steps towards Jerusalem. This interruption of the pilgrimages began in the year 317 of the Hejra (A.D. 929) under the Khalifate of Al-Moktadar, and lasted till 339 (950). (See D'Herbelot, s. v. Cods.)