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THE J. PAUL GETTY MUSEUM LIBRARY
PALESTINE
EXPLORATION FUND.
Patron— THE QUEEN.
^arterly Statement
FOR 1873. .
LONDON :
PUBLISHED AT THE SOCIETY'S OFFICE, 9, PALL MALL EAST,
AND }!Y
RICHARD BENTLEY & SON, 8, NEW BURLINGTON STREET.
lOXDON :
E. K. BUET AND CO., PEINTEES,
T."INE OFFICE COUET, CITY.
THE J. PAUL GETTY CENTER
I IRPARY
JISrDEX.
PAGE
Abiicl 143
Abu Amir 12, 31
Ain el Siah 65
Aleppo, Inscriptions at 72
American Association, The ...111, 162
Aqueduct at SaliuriyeU 55
Aqueduct at Cccsarea 109
Arab Clans 105
Athlit 87, 101
Baalbek, State ot the Faiins of ... 158
Beni Keelayb, The 58
Bethulia 4
Biblical Query, by H. B 80
Burj Fara'a 49
Cffisarea 87, 105
Carmel — C'ru.sadii)g "Work on 85
,, Flora of 53
,, Scenerj' of 54
Cave of Magharet el Mat-humeli... 67
Cave of Yafa 57
Chaplin, Letters from Dr 155
Climate.., GO, 65
Costumes, Modern 27
Comparative Chronology of Pales-
tine, Assyria, and Egypt, Viy
Mr. F. 1!. Couder 31
Dayr Kalaah 145
Dayr Samaan 147
Dayi- Arrabeh 147
DayrAsruhr 139
Dayr Allah 140
Difficiilties with Natives 61
Dome of the Iiock 155
ElMidyeh 87
Ecbatana 87
ElFuleh 49
ElJireh, Kuiii of 23, 49
Ebal and Geriziui, Major AVilson on 67
Esdraelon, Plain of 3
,, ,, Battles on the 5
,, Geology of 7
„ Survey of 8
Flora of Carmel 53
PAGE
General Meeting 119
Geology 7, 20, 50, 85, 97
Geological Notes, by Mr. C. H.
Greeu 161
German Colony at Haifa 62
Gerizim (>7
Gezer, Discovery of Koyal
Canaanite City, by M. C'ler-
mont-Ganneau 73
Haifa 43, 51
,, German Colony at 62
,, El Atikah 64
Hamath, The Inscriptions of 35
,, Mr. Dunbar Heath on ... 62
Mr. Drake on 62
,, Mr. Wright on 74
Hand-print on the "SYall 16
Inscription at Belali 87
,, Umra el Zaynat ... 87
Iksal 23
Identifications Proposed : —
/e^/i/fl/i = Shilta 101
Hclkath Ha^zarim = '\Vad-y el
Askar 101
^.s7i(;j'=Asirah 101
Ancr = 'Amm 101
Bileam = Ibleara = Bel'ameh 1 01
Rahbith = Arrabeh, Amad-=
Umm el Amid 101
Joshua's Tomb 144
Jebel el Siah 55
Jacob's AYell 71
Joseph's Tomb 71
Jeba S3
Jenin 3
Jerusalem 15
,, KalaatJalud 17
,, Haram Area 17
,, Dome of the Pt0ck...l7, 155
,, Ruins Ea.st of the Holy
Sepulchre 18
,, Muristan 19
Scopus 20
,, Helena's Monument ... 21
,, Psephinus 21
?i=^^^G
IV
INDEX.
PAGE
Jci'uyulem Newly-discovered Eo-
iiiitii Tomb 22
,, Mr. Schick's Latest
AVorkin 36, 72
,, Dr. Chaplin on the
Climate of 39
,, Eock Levels 1.51
Khashm, The 110
Kubbet es Sakhrah 90
Kiibbetel Khidr 91
Khirbet Fakhakhir 141
liefr Lam 84
Khirbet Jafa 48
„ Shih 84
,, Umm el Slmkuf 84
ElShellaleh 84
Melhah 84
Semmakah 87, 96
,, Baydus 97
Khazueh 23
KefrMinda 2.5
Kasr el Zir, Traditions of 58
Kalensawyeh 87
Lejjmi 12
Ma£(haret el Mat-humeh, Cave of . . . 57
M'alul 49, 58
Matamir 57
Meteorology 150
Merj el Ghurruk 4
Miamas 87, 110
Mosf[iie el Aksa 90
Mukhalid 87
Nazareth 22
Natural History 9, 27, 29, 86
Neby Yahyah 148
Nomenclature 148
Notes : —
1. The Lord's Tomb 113
2. The Haniath Inscriptions 115
3. The Middle City 116
4. The Samaritan Stone 118
Passage from the Pools under the
Convent of the Sisters of Zion... 91
Rock Levels at Jerusalem 151
Beading of the Law, Scene of the 09
VAGE
Puins, General Character of 45
Samai'itan Stone at Gaza 157
Sand Dunes 65
Sanur 4
Saracenic Khan 88
Sarafend 84
Seffuriyeh 24
Seilun (Shiloh), Plan and Descrip-
tion of 37
Shaykh Abrayk 47
Shaykh Iskander 11
Shaykh Taim (Oak at Tibneh) ... 144
Shapira Collection, The 13, 79, 88
Survey, The Interrupted French... 113
Survey, General Progress of — See
Reports of Lieutenant Conder
3, 43, 83, 135
Tank No. 29 91
Tantura 84, 99
Tell Kaymun, Crusaders' Fort in
49, 60
,, ElSemak 64
,, Khaiber 4
„ El Subat 46
,, Mutasellim . . . 46
Tells 60
Tells on Esdraelon 46
Tibneh 143
Tradition on Tombs of the Kings 48
Tombs, Classes of 23, 46, 58, 84
Thul el Serjilini, Tradition of ... 65
Tukil el Jah'ash 46
Turkomans, The 105
Tyrwhitt Drake, Letters and lie-
ports of Mr. C. F 28, 55, 99
Umm cl Zaynat 87
Umm cl Fahm, Camp at 10, 28
Lrnnn el Faruj 65
Vineyard Towers 55
Wady Arah H, 29
Wely Iskander 30
AVater-courses and Channels 46
Water Supply 149
Yafa (Japhia), Cave at 57
Palestine ExploratLon. FuncL
>^_
LIEU'
. , , MAP
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CONDEh'S LtrrERS
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Quarterly Statement, January, 1873.]
THE
PALESTINE EXPLORATION FUND.
PREFACE.
In beginning a new volume of our Quarterly Statement, we are
anxious to ask our Subscribers to bear in mind, tliat we are still
far from being assured as to the stability of our position. We
have purposely asked for a very small sum annually, only £5,000
for the next five years or so. That amount will enable us
to carry out all our objects. We require £800 a year for home
expenses, of which about £400 is wanted for management, the other
half being spent in publishing, illustrating, and distributing our
Eeports. In other words, we can do all our work on eight per cent.
of the income we ask. But it must be remembered that we have
never received anything like this income.
We have two main lines of work, the survey of Palestine and the
examination of Jerusalem. The former has been conducted during
the last year with as much vigour as was possible. More than a
thousand square miles have been plotted, and when we can send out
two more men to help, it will go on with double the expedition. It
has been decided to open a special fund for Jerusalem purposes,
to which subscriptions are invited. A donation of £50 for this
purpose has been recently given by Mr. Tyssen Amhurst, and
another of the same amount for the Survey.
If any additional motive were wanted to urge on the work, it
would be found in the despatch of the American Expedition. The
two great branches of the English-speaking race are now working
side by side. The leader of the American Expedition is an officer
B
2 TREFACE.
of the United States Engineer Corps, Lieutenant Steever. He is
accompanied by Professor Paine, as archaeologist, and by Mr.
Vandyke, jun., of Beyrout. At Beyrout itself are the head-quarters
of the Executive Committee of the American Association, composed of
the United States Consul- General, theEev. Dr. Thompson, and the
Eev. Dr. Stewart Dodge. As has been stated before, their work
will be east of the Jordan over a district comparatively unex-
plored, and where, doubtless, there will be made discoveries of
the deepest interest. There may even be more Moabite stones.
"We do not expect, but we Jiope.
The letters and reports of Mr. Conder and Mr. Drake require no
explanation. They are, and will henceforth be, accompanied by a
map to show the progress made and the position of the Surveyors.
With regard to the tracings ah-eady sent home, they are in the
office of the Fund, and can be seen by any visitor. They cannot
be published until a complete " sheet " has been received. This
may not be for more than a year, as the work is spread over a
great many sheets, but does not yet cover one single one. "We
have been kindly promised another meteorological report from Mr.
Glaisher for our April Quarterly. This will also contain, besides
the usual reports, a paper on Mount Gerizim by Captain "Wilson.
Other papers of interest will appear in the course of the year.
AVe commend our recently published little book, " Our "Work in
Palestine," to our Subscribers. It is written with a view to ex-
plaining not only what the work has been, but the reasons for it
and its aims. We are happy to say that so far its success has been
undoubted. Within three weeks after its first appearance we were
enabled to order the fourth thousand to be printed, an edition
having been simidtaneously published by Messrs. Scribner, Wel-
ford, and Co., of New York. A very low price has been put upon
the book, in order to bring it within reach of all. Considerable
corrections have been made in the fourth thousand.
t a. I,
THE SURVEY OF PALESTINE.
LIEUT. CLAUDE E. CONDEE'S REPORTS.
VIL
The Plain of Esdraelon.
Jenin Camp, "list Sept., 1872.
A critical epocla in tlie Survey of Palestine has just terminated in a
most satisfactory manner, in the connection of the triangulation ex-
tended from the first base line at Jaffa with the second base line just
measured on the Plain of Esdraelon.
According to our calculation, which is not of course so minute as
that to be made in England, there is only a difference of about '03
per cent, of its length of four and a half miles between the base as
^■Mlculated from the triangulation, and the base as measitred on the Plain.
This may be considered as extraordinarily accurate when the difficul-
ties encountered are considered, for the triangulation has now been
carried through a strip of country averaging some ten to twelve miles
in width and for a distance of sixty-five English miles, in addition to
which it must be remembered that cairns have occasionally been
destroyed by the natives, the observations being thus rendered less
reliable, and that the flickering of the mirage during the day in summer
has made it difficult to see an object distinctly at a distance of eight or
nine miles in the hills and even of three or four on the plains. The
extremely difficult nature of part of the country has of course delayed
the progress, but not interfered with the accuracy, of the work.
The total extent of country at present completed is 750 square miles,
and iipwards of 130 square miles will be added in another week, as the
triangulation from the present camp is finished and only the detail
remains to be filled in. This is a more rapid progress than was
expected, and our arrival at Jenin was a fortnight earlier than had
been calculated.
The new base line lies within four degrees of north and south, and is
approximately four and a half miles in length over the flattest part of
the great plain. Its ends are marked, in a most durable fashion, by
cairns of stone set in a sort of mortar of fresh-slaked lime. The
southern end has a roughly circular platform of large blocks and of
some 3ft. in height and 9ft. diameter, filled in with smaller stones, and
the top levelled and covered with lime to form a firm basis for the
theodolite, between the legs of which a small conical cairn was placed.
4c V : 5 >'' 'ii:EWr.'.,t!ilX'Ti©t l^.. conder's reports.
At the riorlljern cnd.'i^ 'tEe middle of a ploughed field of loose heavy
volcanic soil; tt.'wais Bfi6i:6 iiii^cult to find materials close at hand. A
large mound, some Sft. high, was therefore made of earth ronnd a fixed
centre, and faced with stone well covered with lime. Before observinsr
from this point, which was the last to be used, the monnd was par-
tially levelled, and a platform so made ronnd the centre. The theodolite
was then placed over the centre, and the mound will be rebuilt as
before.
The base was measured from north to south and from south to
north, and was further checked by observations from its ends and from
a point near its centre. The triangulation will be extended from it
northwards, and a good line, some fifteen miles in length, is obtained
at once nearly at right angles to the centre of the base.
Such is the present satisfactory state of the Survey, which is now
only in want of the additional men asked for from England to reach
the required rate of progress.
The amount of archaeological discovery between this camp and
Nablus has been very small, the few ruins, such as the church and
columns at Samaria, being already known, and excavation would not
bring to light anything of value.
Near Sanur, however (the ancient Bethulia of the book of Judith, as
some suppose), a ruin of some interest was found, and a sketch is for-
warded. An isolated hill or tell called Tell Khaiber rises on the
south-east of the Merj el Ghurruk, or " drowned meadow," a large
marsh formed by the water from the suiTOunding ravines, and without
any outlet. In winter it has some 4ft. of water on the average, but is
dry in summer. Sanur is situate on the edge.
On this " tell " are the ruins of a small fort and of a considerable
to^vn, but the latter are quite indistinguishable, and only in parts indi-
cated by the colour of the soil.
The fort is roughly some 50ft. square, and two or three courses of
masonry, about four feet thick, consisting of ashlar of tolerable size,
and set in good mortar, remain. On some few stones there is the
appearance of a marginal draft, and over the enti-ance, which was on
the south side, was a fiat lintel. The proportions of the stones are not,
however, so unequal, in comparison of their length and height, as in
the megalithic work of the Haram.
There are further traces around the fort of an external wall with a
postern, and of several buildings of moderate size but almost undis-
tinguishable form. Two cisterns, lined with very hard cement, one of
■which is of considerable size, also appear farther down the hill, and the
grey soil, which indicates the foi-mer existence of buildings, appears on
every side of the " tell."
Local tradition makes this the palace of a Jewish king whose
daughter had hei- summer residence in the marsh. Perhaps a clever
theorist may connect tliis account with the history of Judith, Bethulia
being so close to Tell Khaiber.
LIEUT, CLAUDE R. CONDER S REPORTS. O
The great plain, on tlie edge of wliicli we are now encamped, is of
great interest from a historical and from a geological point of
view.
Historically it has been called the " battlefield of Palestine," and
here, be it remembered, the "battleof Megiddo" (it is supposed) will
close the list of contests in the Holy Land.
Whatever may be said of the future, the history of the past does not,
however, bear out this assertion. The great battles of Joshua were
fouffht far to the south. The victories of David were on or near to the
plains of Philistia. The invasions of the Syrians were directed against
the country round Samaria, and the battle of Ilattin, which decided
the fate of Christian supremity in Palestine, was fought out farther
north.
Only five contests are chronicled as occurring on the Plain of Esdrae-
lon : the defeat of Sisera, the victory of Gideon over the Midianites,
and the overthrow of Saul on Gilboa, and of Josiah at Megiddo in
Bible history ; lastly, in more modern times. Napoleon's so-called battle
of Mount Tabor.
A brief glance at these battles confirms, however, the opinion that
the plain is not, as its appearance on the map would lead one to suppose,
specially fitted for the deployment of large numbers of troops or for the
successful use of cavalry. The scene of each battle was near the same
site, and for this there must, of course, have been a reason. The
method and tactics employed by the .Jews resembled those of the old
medieeval wars of position, as is abundantly manifested in the accounts
in the Bible. Each army encamped over against the enemy on a hill
or on rising ground with a valley between, and thus the attacking force,
unless its leader had advanced views on the use of stratagem and the
secret of turning a flank, was inevitably at a disadvantage, and for the
same reason a broad plain not offering such advantages was never
chosen as the site of a battle.
In the first instance the camp of Barak was on Tabor, and Sisera
advanced against him from the Kishon and the Maritime Plain. The
counter attack against the heavy chariots labouring through the vol-
canic mudj which, at a time when the Kishon was full of water from
the storm, must have covered the plain, secured for the discomfited
Canaanites a defeat more disastrous than would have been expected in
an open country, such as that on the north-west of the Plain. In the
subsequent contest between Gideon and the Midianites, this open
country seems to have been avoided ; the camp of the former was on
the high ground near Jesreel, whilst the invading bands, like the
modern Bedou.ins, had crossed the Jordan, and advancing up the broad
valley (W. Jalud) to the foot of the hill Moreh (the modern Jebel ed
Dahy, or, as it is often called. Little Jlermon) had camped securely
in the low ground and spread for plunder of the harvest and of all the
possessions of the Isi-aelites "' as grasshoppers for multitude." The
attack from the high ground on this occasion, accompanied by a strata-
b ■ LIEUT. CLAUDE R. COXDER S REPORTS.
gem, was again successful, and the pursuit was towards the east and
across the Jordan.
The third battle was, however, by far the most important of the
three. The Philistines, under Achish, king of Gath, in Philistia, are
here found in the northern plains, and it is possible that the name
Wady Jalud, or the valley of Goliath, may stiU be a mark of their wide
dispersion in Palestine. Their camp was at Shunem (the modeni
Sulem), once more on the slope of the Hill of Moreh, and Saul, as did
Gideon, chose the neighbourhood of Jesreel for his head-qiiarters, and
his line of retreat along the high gi-ound of the chain of Mount
Gilboa, and to the hills south of the plain. Considering the relative
position of the enemy, we see that Saul's expedition to the cavern
at Endor, situate north of the Philistine camp, must have entailed
a circuitous and lengthy expedition in order to turn their flank on
the west and gain the opposite side of the hill, whilst the peril of
thus placing their whole army between himself and his camp was also
very great. The following day brought his entire defeat; and when
we observe that the Hight lay along the hills of Gilboa, it seems evident
that the main attack must have been not from the north, where the
valley is deepest, but on the west, the left flank of Saul's army, where
the plain rises into the eminence on which Jesreel (the modern Zerin)
stands.
The last battle is of more modeni times, for of the defeat of Josiah
in the valley of Megiddo there is no reason to speak here. Kleber,
with a corps of only 1,500 men, was brought to bay at Fuleh, a little
village on the west slope of Jebel ed Dahy, by the whole Syrian army
of 25,000. From sunrise to mid-day they held their position against
these overwhelming odds, but a single shot from Napoleon's relieving
force of 600 men caused a panic and a flight, in which many Syrians
were drowned in the Kishon, then inundating part of the plain.
In each of these accounts we recognise the same peculiarity. In the
three later the site chosen was almost the same, and the so-called
battle-field of Palestine seems even in those battles fought in its im-
mediate vicinity to have been avoided, the camps being posted on the
hill-sides to the east or north-east. The reason is evident; for laying
aside the fact that the Jews were never a cavalry nation, the plain
itself, covered with a crumbling soil, over which native horses advance
with difficulty in summer, and which in winter presents a series of im-
passable marshes, could never have been considered a good field for the
use of this arm.
The geological view of the subject is intimately connected with the
historical, and, indeed, in the study of a new country there is no
science so generally useful as geology. Not only does the character
of the district, its vegetation, its fauna, its scenery, its cultivation, and
even the style of towns and villages, differ with slight geological
changes, but its history, its civilisation, and more especially its military
history, depend to a very great extent on its geology. Thus when we
LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDER S REPORTS. 7
observe the camps at Shunem or at Jesreel, we find them to have been
placed on the firm ground and gentle slopes given where the limestone
is on the surftice, whilst the flight of the defeated Sisera is across
the volcanic mud which covers the plain.
The formation of this great plain, as well as of the smaller ones in
its vicinity, is due partly to volcanic action and partly to that of
denudation.
A thick bedded white limestone, containing large discs of flint, and
gradually merging into the marl of Nablus above, and into a compacter
and more thinly bedded soft limestone beneath, originally covered the
country from Samaria to Nazareth. Though hard externally, when
exposed to the air, this stone is internally as soft as the softest
"kakouli." But beneath lay the truly hard dolomitic limestone, such
as previously described at Neby Belan.
The present character was given to the country first by a number of
eruptions of basalt which occurred in at least three distinct outbursts.
One formed the cone of Jebel ed Dahy, the so-called Little Hermon ; a
second appears as a distinct upheaval of the strata, from beneath
which the basalt has flowed down the side of Jebel Abu Madawar
(part of the Gilboa range on the south-east of the plain). The third,
and by far the most extensive, is on the west, where on Jebel Sheikh
Iskander, one of the highest hills of the neighbourhood, eruptive basalt
and stratified volcanic mud are found near the summit on the east, and
two isolated cones of basalt on the west, in continuation of the ridge.
The Neocomiau and other strata are here found to be greatly contorted,
but the general dip is upwards from the south-west of the outburst,
showing the contortion to be due to this eruption.
The character of the basalt differs considerably. At Jebel ed Dahy
it is black, hard, and compact, with a large amount of iron. At Zerin
it is of similar character, but covered so thickly with white lichen as to
be hardly distinguishable at first from limestone. On Mount Gilboa,
where a regular dyke can be traced below the main outburst, it is of
looser consistency, in some specimens more resembling volcanic scorige,
with less iron and large crystals or distinct agglomerations of augite.
On Jebel Sheikh Iskander, again, it is soft and crumbling, in many parts
reduced to debris, and here volcanic niud is also found.
On observing the lowest strata naturally nearest to the basalt, they
are found similar to the hard dolomitic beds of Neby 13elan, which also
are visible at the bottom of the deepest wadys west of Jeba and north
of Mount Ebal. They are the most contorted, and have the greatest
dip of all the beds, from which it may be concluded that even before
this upheaval they were not conformable with the upper beds. They
are hard, compact, worn into caverns by water or gaseous action, and
extremely crystalline. From these characteristics, and from their
proximity to the basalt, it seems undoubted that they are metamorphic
in character (a fact not, as far as I am aware, before noticed), and hence
we may conclude that throughout Palestine, wherever they crop out,
8 LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDER S REPORTS.
the basalt, oi* some species of Trapioean rock, is not far from the surface.
The extent of volcanic action must therefore be greater than is gene-
rally supposed in Palestine, a theory maintained by Mr. Drake, whose
discovery of an outburst as far south as Jerusalem is most valuable in
its support.
The action of denudation was also concerned in the formation of the
great plain. The strata being thus broken and tilted in every direc-
tion, the harder formations were raised on each side, and the softer
being worn gradually away between them, were overlaid with a soil
consisting of the debris of the basalt. Hence we have at last the pre-
sent surface, a broad plain with rich soil, and surrounded with lime-
stone and basaltic hills, presenting sudden and precipitous cliffs, as
above Zerin and below Nazareth, while on the tops of the hills only
the original soft chalky limestone remains on the east and on the
west alike.
With such variety of geological formation some variety in scenery
might also be expected, and is found to exist. The soft white limestone
gives low hills, on which the olives flourish, and caper and other shrubs
abound. Near to the springs, which are not, however, numerous, gardens
with figs and pomegranates also are found. The villages are larger and
more wealthy than in the hill-country of Judaea, and perched on the hill-
side, or on isolated hillocks in the plains. Numerous gay butterflies of
European and African species, including the copper (four or five species,
some similar to the English), and one or two of the genus vanessa, but
more of smaller size, belong to this scenery ; the cicala and mole cricket
evidently alternate in the olives by day and by night ; the species of
lizards are large and powerful, and dark grey, as a rule, in colour, and the
chameleon is not seldom found. "Wild animals are few in these cultivated
districts, and the birds principally of the smaller genera, though
vultures, eagles, harriers, and hawks are commonly seen.
The scenery of the great plain itself is, however, of a difi"erent type.
The long flat expanse is divided into patches, which, viewed from
the summit of Jebel Dahy, seem with the roads to radiate from the
villages on the low knolls of limestone rising out of it. These consist
of fields of Indian corn, of simsim or sesame, of corn, and occasionally
of cotton. Fallow land in dark brown strips intervenes. Near Jenin
and Sileh (villages on the border) a few palms give a truly oriental
■character to the scenery, springing round the minaret of the mosque,
and hedges of prickly pear surround many of the villages. The animal
life also differs slightly in character. Huge locusts, and species of
truscalis (the bald locust of Scripture), are occasionally seen ; and of the
smaller species, with red, white, yellow, blue, and green wings, swarms
may be disturbed at every step, reminding one of the appropriateness
of the simile, " like grasshoppers for multitude." Several species of the
praying mantis, with the abdomen curled curiously upwards, are also
common. The lizards are of small species, and agree in colour with the
brown soil. The birds most common ai-e the swifts and swallows, with the
LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDER S REPORTS. ^
ever-present birds of prey. The bowling of jackals, tbe groups of
gazelles, and tbe wild boar coming to tbe water at sunset, are all more
ordinary sigbts and sounds tban in tbe bills.
Tbe bard crystalline rock of tbe lowest formation gives yet anotber
type of scenery, Ijarren and desolate as can be imagined ; tbe bills are
tame in outline, witb deep narrow ravines intersecting them. Nothing
but a few thorny shrubs and dry grass seems to grow on them, and tbe
attempts at cultivation, unlike tbe laboriously intricate terraces of tbe
softer soil, are few and meagre. Here on the tops of the bills tbe mag-
nificent genus Pairilio is found alone ; other insects are more rare ; and
wild animals, including tbe jackal and the gazelle, abound. Coveys of
partridges [Caccahis saxutiUs) are numerous, but very wild.
This scenery is again modified, where tbe basaltic di'bris forms a
soil, as at Sheikh Iskander. Here the hill- sides are densely covered
with shrubs and trees, which would be large were it not for the de-
structive habits of the natives, who for tbe sake of the fii-ewood burn
or cut out half of the trunk and three-quarters of the branches.
The p)rincipal species are tbe Quercus cocifera and another oak, the
arbutus in shrubs, and tbe carouba. In many parts tbe bushes are
almost impassable and of considerable height, presenting a refresh-
ing contrast to the dull xjarcbed grey of tbe olives, and of the lime-
stone in the more open country. It is in country like this that tbe
leopard, tbe cheetah, tbe wild boar, and other game are found on the
range of Carmel; and the ever-present birds of prey here find a
more numerous quarry.
A good deal that is new might yet be said witb regard to modern
Palestine, considered from a pictorial point of view. Were it possible
to bring a man of good artistic taste into tbe country, ignorant of
its past associations, and of all that has been written on the
subject, there can be little doubt that his descriptions would be new,
and very astonishing to many; probably quite as much so to tbe
class of writers who can see nothing to admire in Palestine, as to tbe
autbor who describes the " ice-clad peaks of Hermon."
Grandeur of form we may look for in vain, and except in such
scenes as that of tbe great plain as seen from above Nazareth, the
extensive views are rarely striking. Barren hills, dry gullies, tame
and commonplace outlines abound ; but the charm of a vivid oriental
colouring still remains to please an artist's eye. The rich hues at
sunset, tbe i^ecviliar tints of some of the limestone bills — such as
Mount Ebal — which reflect tbe blue of tbe sky, tbe occasional after-
noon effects with long-drawn shadows, and of brilliant contrasts of
light and dark on a cloudy day, would, if cavigbt and treasured, lead
any one inspecting a series of such sketches (from which tbe common-
jplace, as in other countries, bad been banished) to believe in Palestine
as a very picturesque country.
Nor must the appearance of tbe inhabitants — their dark skins,
10 LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDER's REPORTS.
bright eyes, white teeth, and wonderful taste in the combination of
the briglatest colours, be forgotten. Nothing more picturesque than a
road, the women in their red veils and long-pointed sleeves carry-
ing water ; the dark camel-drivers, in black head-dresses, and striped
brown- and- white abbas, riding on diminutive donkeys before the
train of clumsy, swinging, dull-coloured camels ; the rich sheikh, in
a purple jacket, scarlet boots, a thin white cloak, and a yellow head-
dress, his grey mare with a scarlet saddle, and long brown tassels at
its shoulders, alternating with the herds of black goats and diminu-
tive red oxen, could be desired.
In Jerusalem itself this colouring is not less marked. The costumes
are far more varied, and the colours gayer, whilst the effects in the
surrounding country are equally brilliant at times. The pink light on
the sides of the Kedron valley, the rich ochre colour of the Haram
walls, the dark grey of the city fortifications, are all points on which
an artist would look with pleasure. But above all, the interior of
parts of the Haram, its dusty soil covered in spring with flowers, and
its dark cypresses round its richly-coloured mosque, are especially
impressive. Nor is the gloom of the interior, through which the elabo-
rate mosaic arabesques, the gilded inscriptions, and capitals, and painted
woodwork, and glorious glass windows gradually come out as the eye
grows accustomed to the sudden change from the glare without, less
fine ; while the gaily-dressed processions, the sombre colouring of the
negro inhabitants of the shrine, the flights of pigeons, here finding a
sanctuary, lend the finishing touches to a picture which really recalls the
idealistic scenes of the "Arabian Nights Tales."
VIII.
Progress of the Survey.
R. E. Camp, Umm el Fahm, Od. 10th, 1872.
From the camp of Umm el Fahm, which will to-morrow be broken
up, the first thousand miles of survey have been completed in close
upon a year of uuintermittent work, including the satisfactory measure-
ment of two base lines, the completion of a long narrow strip of trian-
gulation, which, in spite of the awkwardness of its shape, necessitated
by other than strictly survey cousiderations. has been kept correctly in
place as regards its longitud(3, and finally the completion of the detail
and of a great part of the hill shading.
My first report on this subject was dated the iSth of July, when 560
square miles were completed. Thus in the last three months 440 square
miles, or '44 of the whole amount, were executed. Thus, though the
rate bad till July been gradually increased, it has been still more so
since that time, a fact due in great part to the increased facility
of travelling in the country last traversed, which has allowed of the use
of larger triangles, and of the moi'e rapid execution of the detail. Of
LIEUT. CLAUDE R. C'ONDER'.S REPORTS. 11
the correctness of the work my seventh report gave satisfactory proofs ;
and of its execution the Subscribers to the Fund will be able to judge by
the tracing sent home in July, which will, no doubt, be soon published
and circulated.
The country surrounding our present camp is unvisually pictu-
resque, and but little known to travellers, as it is out of the ordinary
direct route.
Immediately in front of us, on the south, is the volcanic summit of
Sheikh Iskander, a point conspicuous on all sides from a great
distance, forming the boundary of the view northward from the Jeba
range of hills, and rising above all the surrounding country, as viewed
from any part of the plain.
As before noticed, the hard dolomitic limestone is here tilted up in
evei-y direction towards the summit of the hill, and the upper strata
are worn away from over it by denudation. The slopes are covered
with the thick shrubs and underwood which extend southward to the
small plain east of that of Esdraelon, known as the Merj Arrabeh, and
the same kind of counti-y extends westward, where, however, oaks of
considerable size, with a species of hawthorn and an occasional tere-
binth, make the scenery still more varied in character.
The great Wady Arab, which runs westward, just north of Umm el
Fahm, makes a sudden division between this district and a second ex-
tending along the Avest side of the plain to Carmel, appa.reutly a dry
desert, though in reality it is all arable land, watered, as is the Sheikh
Iskander district, by numerous springs and deep wells. The geological
formation is the hard chalk containing flint bands, which has been
before noticed, and beneath, as visible on the sides of the deepest
wadies, is the soft white marl or chalk first noticed near Nablus. Thus
the succession of the strata, as observed here, is identical with that
noted at Jifna by Captain Wilson, and except in places where the last
named formation seems to thin out, these three successive kinds of
limestone are continually recurring.
The appearance of the couuti-y to the north of the camp is gradually
modified westward, where a white dusty soil is dotted over with clumps
of oak (ballut) spreading over the gently undulating slopes, and pre-
senting what would be park-like scenery, were it not for the absence of
grass, which in summer is replaced by corn, the whole ground being
arable. Two or three beds of winter streams are crowded with shrubs,
and beneath one of the volcanic "tells" or mounds of Sheikh Iskander
flows even at this, the driest season of the year, a stream, though but
of inconsiderable amount. Roiind its bed brambles and young willow
plants flourish, aud the course of a second and larger stream near
Lejjun is marked by the bushes of epilobium and large plants of a kind
of mint, as well as fennel brambles and smaller plants.
The volcanic "tells" require particular notice, as their discovery
shows tl e centre of irruption at Sheikh Iskander to have been even
lai-ger than at first supposed. Farther north, at Lejjun and in its.
12 LIEUT. CLAUDE K. CONDER's REPORTS.
vicinity, these outbreaks again occur, as well as near Endoi', on the
north side of Little Hermon, thus carrying out more completely the
theory of the formation of the great plain, as noted in Report No. 7.
Ou Sheikh Iskander there are two of importance, one near the main
outburst of basalt on the liill, in which a sort of volcanic mud has lifted
the top strata of the limestone and poured out at the side of the mound
so formed, and a second where a sharp cone of the same substance, in
layers of various colour, is capped with limestone. The chai-acter of
the mud in the first, when minutely examined, resembles a disintegrated
basalt ; in the second, which is to the west, near the Ain Sheryyeh,
blocks of hard, dark, compact, ferruginous basalt are embedded in some
parts, and fragments of limestone in others ; whilst beneath, separated
by a thin band, of limestone, the basalt appears as a rock in the sides
of a small precipitous gully, to a depth of twenty to thirty feet. Here,
as a native states, a Frenchman from Damascus pitched his tent, and
extracted copper from the mud. There is, however, no appearance of
either a lode or of nodules, as far as careful observation could show.
The •' tell " near Lejjun (the site of the famous Megiddo) is still more
curious. It consists of hard basalt, and though of considerable height,
it does not appear in any way to have affected the limestone strata,
which are nearly horizontal, the formation being the hard chalk, which
is not changed or metamorphosed in any degree.
Several of the views in this country are more picturesque than any
we have yet come across in Palestine. Thus, in early morning, from
the top of the hill the eye wanders over the broken outline of the hills
south of the great plain, backed by the long veil of transjordanic moun-
tains, and over the long extent of the plain itself : a scene which, with
the dim shadowy effect of sloijing light, must be allowed to be beauti-
ful by even the least prejudiced in favour of Palestine scenery.
Looking again northward, a similar scene, taking in the volcanic
peaks of the Hauran and the huge blunt-pointed Hermon in dim dis-
tance, with the Nazareth range, the shapeless outline of Tabor, and the
Little Hermon's conical summit, the great plain again stretching below,
all towards the foi'eground, presents a striking distant effect as viewed
in evening light and shadow.
The archaeological notes collected since I last wrote are not nume-
rous.
The supposed temple at Abu Amr has been noticed by Mr. Drake in
his last report. I send drawings of the details, a small plan, and a
sketch, showing the present strata of the ruin. The floor is a couple of
feet below the general level of the rubbish, so that possibly excavation
might bring some inscription connected with the edifice to light ; but
some time would be required to investigate the place properly.
The details are pretty well preserved, and are of a debased style of
art, resembling some of the first century work at Jerusalem.
Besides this, and the discovery of a ruined khan, and of a building
apparently of large extent, and probably, from a capital and other indi-
LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDER S REPORTS. 13
cations, origiually Roman, the plan being now entirely lost, nothing of
any importance has been noted.
In fact, nothing is more surprising, and especially in the part of the
country at present being surveyed, than what may be briefly described
as the " ruins of ruins " continually met Avith in every direction.
IX,
Explorations in Jerusalem.
E. E. Camp, Umm el Fahm, Oct lUh, 1872.
Another visit to Jerusalem became necessary for the arrangement of
survey stores, &c., and the following notes are the results of a sort of
reconnaissance carried on in my leisure time during a week spent
thei-e.
By far the most interesting objects of study is the gradually in-
creasing collection of Moabitic earthenware of Mr. Shapira. The pre-
judice at first felt in England— though not in Jerusalem — with regard
to these unique specimens of ancient symbolical art, has prevented my
sending any remarks on this subject to the Committee, though such
sketches as Mr. Drake and I had time to make, which fairly represent the
character of the collection, have been forwarded from time to time.
Now, however, the late visit of Pastor Weser and of M. Dinsberg (a
German resident at Jerusalem) has placed the authenticity of the pottery
beyond dispiite, and a short abstract of the results of this journey may
prove interesting. It is compiled from the notes taken from the various
accounts of Pastor Weser, Mr. Dinsberg, and Mr. Shapira himself.
. It appears that of this pottery smaller fragments had been previously
known, and camel-loads sent by the Arabs to Damascus, where it was
used for the manufacture of cement for cisterns. More perfect speci-
mens were found at Dhiban by Bedoiiins in purchase of saltpetre for
their gunpowder. The pottery is often so strongly impregnated with
this salt, that though washed again and again, a constant efflorescence
reappears in a few hours. It was then that Mr. Shapira commenced
collecting through an Arab emissary; but after some four months he
determined, with the other two gentlemen above mentioned, to endea-
vour personally to find specimens in situ.
The party proceeded first on a visit to Sheikh 'Ali Diab, the famous
Chief of the 'Adwan, who had before been Mr. Shapira's guest in Jeru-
salem, and through whom many specimens had been obtained. Great
difficulties were experienced in the supply of water ; horses often had
to be sent back four hours' distance to drink ; and later the excited
bearing of the Hamydeh brought the expedition to a rapid termi-
nation.
Leaving Diab's camp, the party proceeded to El 'Aab, the Elealeh of
Scripture (Numb, xxxii. 7, 37 ; Isaiah xv. 4), and here they found a
rock-cut repository some two feet deep, and long enough for two jars,
14 LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDER S REPORTS.
sucli as were sent from tliis spot by Sheikli 'Ali. Thence tliey pro-
ceeded to Hesban, wbicli is distant about balf an hour's ride, and
famous for its beautiful water; but here they found nothing except
some old coins, one Roman, another ancient Arabic, and one possibly
Hebrew, together with bi'oken pottery and four stones inscribed, but
utterly illegible. The next point was the Camp of Fendi el Faiz,
Sheikh of the Beni Sakhkhr, to whom the Hameydeh are subject,
situate near Bir el Sein (?), and from thence they proceeded to Madeba.
It was here that Pastor Weser and Mr. Dinsberg themselves found
the curious pieces, of which I send separate sketches. Under a heap of
more modern broken pottery two pieces were first found, on one of
which a Phoenician "mem," on the other two lines of crowded Phoe-
nician characters, were legible. Digging to some twenty-three feet, the
other specimens were discovered at various depths by the two above-
named explorers, Mr. Shapira himself entertaining the natives at the tent
with coffee. Here, also, and at other places, men, women, and children,
both boys and girls, brought numerous broken pieces ; for prudential
reasons they were not bought, but often thrown away in presence of
the natives to prevent their getting an exaggerated notion of the value
of the pottery. The ignorance of the inhabitants of the coxmtry was so
great, that they mistook rocks with natural marks for inscribed stones.
Pottery also was unknown, as water is kept in goat-skins only.
Diban was next visited, and the two travellers were shown by the
sheikh of a small tribe the niche in which the large figure of an
Astarte (?) had previously been found, and which appeared just fitted
to hold it. They were of opinion that the statue was interred here,
though possibly beneath a temple. Lying on the hiU above the cave
was a stone some two feet long, with a few Phoenician characters.
Broken stones were also found here, and pieces, said by the natives to
belong to the famous Moabite stone, were seen, as well as pieces of later
date ; one with a Cufic inscription, another two with engraved crosses
separated by a geometrical pattern. A stone had also been fovmd at
Madeba, a hard granite block, having in its centre a representation of
the sun, and on either side a moon, and beyond a star surrounded with
five moons. This was possibly in situ in a wall of large stones.
The last ruin was Umm el Rasas, visited simply to investigate the
so-called serpent stone, of which Mr. Shapira had a copy — a block of
about thirty inches side, with a bilingual inscription and the figures appa-
rently of a scorpion and a serpent. Unfortunately their intention was
known to the Hameydeh, and on arriving at the place pointed out no
stone was found ; but surrounding stones had been disturbed, and there
was evidence of a large body having been moved. Crossing accident-
ally the very line along which the stone had been taken, similar traces
were visible at intervals of fifty to a hundred yards, and, finally, a cistern
Avith indications, as though a heavy body had been thrown into it.
Descending, it was found filled with stones, but time and the temper
■of the people would not allow of a minute investigation of the spot.
LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDER's REPORTS. 15
From thirty to forty pieces, some of which I have sketched, were
brought by Sheikh Diab, as well as a fine pot, with an extremely bold
inscription in plain Phoenician characters, found at Khirbet Jemil (?),
near Umm el Rasas. Its translation will be interesting, as there seems
a possibility of its being a votive sentence regarding the ashes of the
dead. It was closed at the top, and has seven apertures, through
which the ashes may have been inserted.
The expedition now returned to Zamdt and Hesban, after a visit of
eleven days to the country. It is to be regretted that it became neces-
sary to undertake it, as the chance of obtaining any further specimens
on reasonable terms is materially damaged. The country of the
Hameydeh is now' impassable, and it is with great difficulty that a
further collection is being amassed. A figure even larger than the
Astarte, with characters on its back and chest, in an extremely fragile
condition, will, it is hoped, be got safely to Jerusalem ; and if the sug-
gestion of the use of water-glass, which we recommended to Mr.
Shapira, be adopted, some of the most perishable pieces may still be
preserved.
The character of the pieces found by Pastor Weser will be found to
agree with former specimens drawn and sent to England, especially the
Astarte with the horned head-dress, the points placed downwards,
like the present coiffure of the Arab women, which is often ornamented
with coins. In the later specimens one figure with horns, and curious
cup-shaped protuberances instead of breasts, is no doubt a representa-
tion of the same deity mentioned previously in my first report (Letter
II.) on this subject.
One great characteristic of this pottery is its fragile condition.
When taken from the soil (like other antiquities found in Italy) it is
fresh-looking and apparently new, but as soon as exposed to the air it
will in some instances fall to pieces at once, in others it gradually
becomes crusted with saltpetre as before described. Even the pieces
which appear most perfectly preserved are liable to break suddenly
without warning. The pottery, which at first seemed of two kinds, now
proves to differ in various specimens from a soft disintegrated grey
earthenware to a bright red, apparently of later date, several inter-
mediate kinds being observable.
With regard to the character of the objects themselves, setting aside
the question of inscriptions, which should not be discussed except by
competent authorities, the symbolism presents many interesting
features. Part is undoubtedly connected with the ancient idolatry,
so often referred to in Scripture, in " the abominations " of the
Moabites, in the mistranslated " grove " of the temple of Samaria,
and in many different superstitious rites, including the worship of
Baal Peor ; whose name is preserved at the modern Tel Pa'ur, where
many specimens were found belonging to this form of symbolism. The
mystic number seven is continually represented on the figures, and in
some cases fourteen or twenty-one round holes are arranged on one
16 ^ LIEUT. CLAUDE R. COKDER S REPORTS.
piece. A bead wliicli I have jvist sent has sis teeth and one opening
into the nose ; another has five dots, and one on each breast ; a third
has four vertically and three horizontally arranged; a fourth has
fourteen marks representing perhaps a beard, five teeth, and two
nostrils.
The triangle is also, but more rarely, found in one piece (a disc); it
occurs as a reverse to the seven circular dots. The representation of the
sun is also not unfrequent, one figure having sun and moon attached
to its sides instead of hands (perhaps a rude symbolism of the work
of Providence employing the influence of the heavenly bodies).
One most curious point is the apparent element of caricature in the
heads — grinning mouths (in one case the tongue protruded), enormous
noses, horrid heads, and deep-set eyes. Some resemble apes, others
are seemingly bird-headed. Horns and huge ears, distinct from the
crescent of the Astarte, with its horns depressed, are not uncommon.
One head I now send resembles a mediaeval gargoyle, other specimens
are seemingly Egyptian in character.
The whole collection now numbers more then seven hundred pieces,
of which we have drawn some two hundred of the most perfect and
characteristic, including the calf, the so-called Astarte, the bull's head,
and other fine specimens. The camel, the lizard, the serpent, the
tortoise, and, it is thought by some, the leopard (Mr. Drake suggests
the otter), are all roughly represented, and birds and bird-like figures of
various kinds. I may remark that on inspection of the sketches two
ways of representing the eye will be observed, with other characteristic
points of more or less critical interest.
Some notes from the Talmud, communicated to me by an educated
rabbi, may be of interest in connection with this pottery. A broken
piece of an idol, a stump, or head, was not to be regarded, says the
Mishna, as an idol in itself; thus it might be put to a useful purpose,
if of metal melted down, if of pottery broken up and used again. This
was not the case with a hand or a foot, which were in themselves
objects of worship, and if found were not to be touched, but to be
regarded as unclean. A curious relic of this hand-worship* is, I am
informed, still preserved in Jerusalem, a rough representation of a hand
being always marked on the wall of every house whilst in building by
* The liaiidprint on the wall is commonly used by the Jews to avert the evil
eye ; care is taken to put it in a conspii-uous place outside the house before a
marriage, birth, or other festival. At .Jerusalem a sign resembling a double
arrow-head is frequently used instead, which has been explained to me by a Jew
as .symbolising the five names of God, as do the five fingers, thus averting evil
from the place where it is imprinted. In the ruins of El ]3arid, near I'etra,
Professor Talmer and I found a cistern whose cornice was decorated with hand-
prints alternately black and red. At the present day both Moslems, Christians,
and Jews hang hands, rudely cut out of a thin plate, of silver or gold, round
the necks of their (■hildren to preserve them from the evil eye. The use of the
first and last finger of the hand, for the san^e purpose in Italy, is well known,
LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDER's REPORTS. 17
the native masons : several unbroken specimens of hands are found in
Mr. Shapira's collection. Again, with regard to the calf, which we
naturally connect in our minds with Aaron's golden calf, great doubt
has been felt Avhether the latter was an imitation of the Egyptian Apis,
or a representation of the Cherubim. Now in the Mishna the Sar Apis
is mentioned as an idol ; the Babylon Talmud in criticising this goes
into an elaborate explanation, connecting the word with the Patriarch
Joseph by some extraordinary perversion, in apjjarent ignorance of the
simpler explanation, "the Ox Apis," which is furnished by modern
Hebrew scholars.
The examination of Mr. Shapira's collection having been perfected
up to date, my attention was next turned to the existing archaeological
remains above the surface in Jerusalem. In a former letter (No. 6) I
described the investigation of Siloam, and of the southern side of the
city, with remarks on a rock-cut corner in tank No. 24, and a description
of the curious Kalaat Jalud already explored by Captain Wilson.
Accompanied by Dr. Chaplin I now endeavoured to examine thoi'oughly
the north of the city, and to carry out some investigations of im-
portance in the Haram. The results were interesting, and in one
instance new ; and the whole city being in these two visits pretty
thoroughly examined above ground, it becomes now possible to give a
definite plan of action as regards the continuation of Captain Wan-en's
explorations in Jerusalem.
First in interest comes the Haram, especially the Platform and the
Mosque itself. Much still remains to be done here, and new details
may continually be observed. Thus in the diagram I send you show-
ing the level of the rock at various places on or near the platform, some
points occur not shown on Captain Warren's jslan.
Within the mosque, my attention was first turned to the sacred rock
itself, and I have executed a compass sketch of it, on a large scale,
which contains several details which may or may not be of importance,
but which are not in the plans either of Captain Wilson or of
Count de Vogiie, such as the tioo drains leading to the shaft on the
north side. Had it been morning instead of afternoon we might have
ventured to get on to the rock, but as many fanatical pilgrims were
being shown round the sacred places by the sheikh's son, I judged
it safer to take measurements by offsets from the outside.
Next to the rock, the pillars of the mosque require special notice,
their character being almost unknown in England. I will send sketches
of all ; twelve in the inner circle, supporting the drum, and twelve in
the outer, surmounted by architrave blocks, between which runs the
well-known wooden architrave or beam. These should be of interest,
as the only coi-rect repiresentation of any of them is one by Count
de Vogiie ; but this is not, as has generally been supposed, the type of
but this verges on the use of the horn or horn-shaped avtiele, such as a horse-
shoe or a charm. Horns are still in common use .amongst ]\loliammedans, who
hang them np in fruit-trees to ensure a good crop. — C. F. T. D.
c
18 LIEUT. CLAUDE R. COXDEr's REPORTS.
the wliole number, wliich, it will be observed, differ greatly in outline,
size, proportion, and details. Of the inner circle only two are alike ;
the rest seem to have been brought from various older buildings, aud
possibly may not be of the same date, though this is a question for
architects to decide, if, as I hope, my sketches are siifficiently charac-
teristic to enable them to do so.
Of the outer row, one peculiarity is that none of the pillars have bases,,
but are smrounded by a sort of pedestal made of blocks of marble built
up against the shafts, Avhich are not all of equal height, so that to make-
up the level above the architrave blocks of two of the pillars are only
half the height of those of the remainder. Eight of these pillars
resemble that drawn by M. de Vogiie, the remainder differ, as shown
in the sketches. The bosses in the centre of the capital are of
various devices, some pillars have four different kinds on four sides.
All of these, except such as are entirely defaced, I have drawn, in-
cluding that on which a cross is considered to be represented, which
is by no means so clearly visible as one would be led to expect by the
former representation.
With regard to these capitals, which are generally described as
Romauesqvie in chai'acter, it may further be remarked that similar ones
are built up into the piers on the east entrance to the platform, and that
two, seemingly of the same date, appear in the arcade of the steps oppo-
site the •■■ Gate of the Chain" in company with a Byzantine basket-
woi-k capital of perhaps the tenth century work.
It would be most desirable to obtain a perfect collection of capitals
from the Kubbet es Sakrah, the platform, the Mosque el Aksa, and the
present church of the Holy Sepulchre, as a good deal of valuable archi-
tectural criticism might be based on such a comparison. Our informa-
tion at present is by no means so perfect as it may easily become
on this subject.
Of visits to the royal caverns, the tombs of the kings, the grotto of
Jeremiah, and other well known localities, there is no reason to speak
here, as only places not sufficiently noticed or newly discovered will
be of any great interest ; these include the wall and ruins east of the
Holy Sepulchre, the new explorations in the Muristan, the remains
north of the city, and a newly discovered tomb.
The ruins east of the Holy Sepulchre were first examined by
Count de Vogiu', who describes them in his book on the " Temple of
Jerusalem." They are two in number, and differ entirely in character.
The first is a Avail which is undoubtedly composed of masonry of a period
identical Avith that of the Jews' wailing place. The height of some of
these magnificent stones, in the i^art of the Avail running north and
south, is forty-two inches, and their other two measurements in some
cases the same , the ruin seems to haA'e formed originally the south-
west corner of some building, and afterwards to have been used in the
construction of the chui-ch Avhich stood at one time on this spot ; the
Avail Avas then faced on the Avest side AA'ith smaller stones, without any
LIEUT. CLAUDE R. COXDER S REPORTS. 1 *>
marginal draft. Captain Wilson here sunk three shafts, and found
beneath the pavement, east of the wall, large ashlar work, not drafted,
the lower course at a depth of 7' 4" being underpinned with smaller
stones. This is not by any means a proof that the stones were not
in situ, as there seems reason to conclude from various ancient relics in
Jerusalem, that this may have been an old method of forming a founda-
tion. The second ruin, that of an arch of Christian period, supported
on two capitals, one called Corinthian, the other Byzantine, is also
noticed by both M. de Vogiie and Captain Wilson. There can be no
doubt that this capital, as well as a second, apparently in sitn, in a wall
adjoining the arch which has been roughly built on to it, belong to an
older building. It has, however, been supposed that the two Corinthian
capitals are a pair, and I have, therefore, thought it worth while to
send sketches and dimensions, showing that though possibly belono-ino-
to the same building they differ in size and in detail.
I should also be glad to have an architect's opinion on their date, as
the introduction of the winged birds with heads (aj^parently) worked
into the central device, seems hardly an ordinary element of Roman
detail. Symbolical figures, the centaur, the gryphon, representing,
according to Dante, the church of Christ, and many other allegorical
devices, were commonly used by Christian architects, as in the capitals
discovered by the Rev. T. Neil, in El Aksa, and in the slab over the
south doorway of the Holy Sepulchre.
If 1 might be permitted to hazard a conjecture on such a subject, I
would suggest that possibly the capitals might belong to the palace
of Helena, Queen of Adiabene, which, we are told, stood in the centre
of the lower city in the time of Josephus.
Close to this spot, in the Muristan, the excavations are being rapidly
pushed, and will probably be complete in a year; several very lar"-e
cisterns, lined with hard cement, have just been found. They are
beneath the arcades shown on the plan just published in the last
Quarterly, and near the Street of David ; the rock here has been sought
in vain at a depth of forty feet. I hope, nevertheless, soon to be able
to send home a series of rock soundings from the Holy Sepulchre east-
ward, showing the slope of the valley. The method of raising water
seems to have been by means of a large wheel, a space about a foot
wide being left between two ribs of the vaulting to allow of its re-
volving.
There is no point as to Avliich we have so many important indications,
both in the archaeological literature of Jerusalem and in existino-
remains, as the extent and direction of the northern wall built by
Herod Agrippa, commonly called the third wall by Josephus. It is
fortunate that this is the case, because there is also no part of the city
in which there seems less probability of our recovering many more
remains. The ground has for eighteen centuries been ploughed and
reploughed, and in other parts the rock itself appears on the surface,
more especially on the north-west ; thus of foundations or even displaced
20 LIEUT. CLAUDE R. COXDEr's REPORTS.
blocks of the ancient masonry there is very little chance of onv now
finding any remains.
Still, it is to be observed that the most has not been made of the
information we possess.
The Vandalism of the fellahin is rapidly destroying the few remains
which yet exist. Close to the north road the great stones in the side
of a cistern where Captain Wilson's second excavation was carried out,
are still intact, but those marked " old foundations " to the west of these
on the ordnance survey, have entirely disappeared, having been cut up
for building stone by the natives. The production of the line from
these eastward, cuts those first mentioned, and thus gives approximately
the line of a quarter of the whole extent of the wall. The foundations
of two towers, and parts of a wall, first noticed by Robinson, are now
covered up under the Eussian buildings, but his bearings and measure-
ments enable us yet to lay down the course of the third wall on the
west. Thus it is only on the east where the description of Josephus
{Wars 5. 4) and the conformation of the ground alike point out clearly
its course, that any room exists for doubt with regard to the line taken
by this the latest of the gigantic fortifications of ancient Jerusalem.
One confirmation of the supposed line exists, which has not hitherto
been made of siifficient importance, namely, the true position of Scopus,
which, we learn from two passages in Josephus, was seven furlongs
from the city. In comparing the three principal passages where, the
word occurs {Ant. 11, 8, TTors 2, 19, Wars 5, 2), no reasonable doubt
can be left iu the mind as to the true position of the site. The place
called Sapha, or prospect, the elevation called Scopus, or watchtower,
and the plain from which the city, and especially the temple, were first
seen on advancing from the north, all alike point to one site. From
the ridge Alexander could see from far off the white robed priests, who,
with a great multitude in the plain behind, came out along the north
road to meet him as he advanced from that side. Here Cestius camped,
advancing by the same route from Galilee, and Scopus was then (the
wall of Agrippa being already built) seven furlongs from the city.
Finally, it was here that the lOth and loth legions, numbering at
least 30,000 fighting men, made their camps, which, when camp
followers, horses, mules, camels, and baggage are taken into considera-
tion, must have covered at least 30 to 40 acres. Behind them, three
fui-longs further north, the fifth legion made its camp also on some
suitable bit of ground situate near the course of the north road — an
indication which, like the rest, agrees only with one site north of the
city.
Now with these data in his head the traveller who, like myself, spurs
up the last ridge which separates him from Jerusalem, sees sloping
beneath him, east of the great north road, a plateau, which is separated
by a broad valley from the town. From this ridge the dark grey wall
first becomes visible, and of the Haram and of the great dome within it
"a plain view might be taken." Hence this place may, to use the
LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDEr's REPORTS. 21
words of Josepliiis once more, be "very properly called scopiis (or
prosjject), and is no more than seven furlongs from the city," that is,
from the remains in the cistern already noticed, as measured on the
ground by Dr. Chaplin. Still further, here, and here alone, on the
noi'th, we have the natural site for a camp, pi-otected in front by the
valley, and only approachable from the east, where its front was again
covered, if, as in the case of Titus, the attacking force held the northern
part of the Mount of Olives. Thus it may be said that Scopus and the
third wall mutually fix one another's positions; and the indications,
coupled with the existence of remains on the spot, form the most
satisfactory identification perhaps possible of any site near the city.
In close connection with this question comes that of the whereabouts
of Helena's monument. It has been identified with the so-called tombs
of the kings by Robinson, but although the position is a possible one,
and the passage in Jerome (ad Eustach. epitaj'Ii. Paulce) showing it to be
east of the great north road, with the mention of its rolling door in
Pausanias {Grecice Descript. lib. viii. c. 16) — a peculiarity not known in
any tomb other than the tombs of the kings at Jerusalem — alike con-
firm the opinion ; still the author dismisses the notice given by
Josephus of its distance from the city wall rather too hastily, by the
remark that, though it is four furlongs from the Damascus gate, still
the old wall extended about a furlong further north, thus giving the
three furlongs of his authority {Ant. xx. 4). The truth is that the
distance from the monument to the old foundations in the cistern is
about two furlongs, but Josephus' words are, that it was " no further
than three furlongs," a loose expression, which is not of itself sufficient
to upset the identification.' When to these indications we add that
given in Wars 5. 2, where we learn that the Jews, sallying from the
gate between the women's towers, by which the north road entered the
city, pursued Titus, whom they had nearly intercepted on his leaving
this road to reconnoitre westwards towards Psephinus, and continued to
harass him with darts as far as Helena's monument, it becomes clear
that the great sepulchre close to the north road, but east of it, with a
rolling stone to close its entrance, commonly called the Tombs of the
Kings, is in reality the mausoleum of the royal family of Adiabene. Its
stelae, or pyramids, have indeed disappeared, though objects of enthu-
siastic admiration to ancient writers, but the debased though rich
ornamentation of its facade, generally allowed to be first century work,
agrees well with the history of its erection by the sons of Queen
Helena.
Such are the main points observable in the question of the main wall.
Psephinus must have long ago disappeared, as a glance will show
beneath the road bounding the Russian property; the "tower of the
comer," the " monument of the fuller," alike give no indications above
ground ; and the sepulchral caverns of the kings, unless, as I think not
quite impossible, they were really one and the same with the tomb of
the I'oyal family of Adiabene (a solution which would at once answer
22 LIEUT. CLAUDE R. COXDER's REPORTS.
the ever-recurring question, What kings were they?), must, it seems,
remain a puzzle for ever.
The investigation of this quarter of the city brought to light a new
discovery, that of a tomb which is at least as old as the Roman period,
and probably older, situate close to the ancient remains in the cistern,
excavation No. 2 of Captain Wilson. The owner of the olive-yard on
this spot has commenced the excavation, and possibly found relics other
than tliose which were left as worthless at the time of our inspection,
although he has announced that he is willing to allow of our digging to
uncover the remainder. Referring to the plan, it will be seen that a
vock-cut scarp faces westward, along which a trench has been dug,
discovering two finished and one unfinished tomb cut in the soft rock.
These contain loculi parallel to the length of the excavation, and two
north and south ; at the eastern end above, a groove is cut in each side
of the tomb, into which the slabs of stone in the sketch were' fitted,
thus making a second tier for a loculus, sarcophagus, or funeral vase.
There appear to be other chambers on the nortli and south sides not
yet examined. Part of the structure on the north was originally, or
by later conversion, a cistern, and plaster is also found on the south,
but in neither case is it very hard. The section shows where a tesse-
lated pavement, with traces of a pattern, exists under the rubbish above
the tomb. Into the second of the tombs at present opened a shaft leads
from the ground above. Remains of the present pavement were visible
furthei' east, as shown on the plan.
The loculi woi-e full of bones and of powdered bone-dust. These
appear, according to Dr. Chaplin's opinion, to be very ancient, ha^^Jlg
lost all traces of animal matter ; and to hav* belonged to a race of small
men. Some fragments of thin, ancient glass, a green glass bead, of
form unknown at the present day, chips of pottery, not of modern manu-
facture, and a small coin, almost entirely effaced, but having a device,
seemingly of two figures, or possibly ears of wheat, were obtained in the
tomb and in the heap of bones excavated from it.
Tbat this was originally a place of sepulture is clear; but what the
tesselattd pavement above, and remains of what seems to have been a
wall, can be, it is difficult to decide. Curiously enough, we have no
reason to expect the existence of any important edifice in this quarter
of the city; it is without the ancient third wall, and yet there seems a
probability of its being a place of some interest and extent.
X.
Rock-cut Tombs.
Nazareth, Nov. 2ith.
Sin-iri/. — The Survey has during the last five weeks been carried on in
the neighbourhood of Nazareth, aiid on the north side of the great plain ;
this part we have been anxious to finish before the arrival of the rainy
season, which will effectually prevent out-of-door work during part of
December, January, and February.
LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDERS REPORTS. 23
The style of country is mucli more favourable to rapid and correct
survey, and the length of the Hues in the triangulation is on the average
double that obtained in the hills. The total extent of country finished
is now over 1,100 square miles, the first rains and various other causes
having delayed the work during the course of last month. The extreme
clearness of the air has been very favourable to the observation of long
lines, and those taken from the point at Nebi Dahy were particularly
successful, including one to Mount Ebal, a distance of twenty-five
miles.
The most important feature of the work is the exact determination of
the watershed of the plain, which has never before been quite perfectly
laid down, and which forms a very tortuous line along the high ground
from Zerain to Nebi Dahy, and to the Nazareth hills.
A day has been devoted to the tracing of the great aqueduct north
of Nazareth, and a plan and section of the reservoirs connected with it
have been made to the scale of 1 chain (6(3 ft.) to the inch.
These details are, I think, the only ones likely to be of interest to
subscribers generally, the purely technical points being reserved as not
necessary in a report of this kind.
Archceology. —The country just entered is far richer in objects of
archfeological interest than that south of the plain, and amongst these
the rock-cut tombs form a principal group.
The interest of such remains is very great, for two reasons : first,
because we can be tolerably certain that they belong to ancient times ;
secondly, because the existence of every such cemetery points to the pro-
bable existence of a town or village of the same date somewhere in the
immediate vicinity. Thus the antiquity of a site may be verified by the
discovery of tombs in the neighbourhood. That no such excavations
ave made at present is well known, and it is a curious feature of the
country that whilst at some former time the inhabitants must have been
almost a nation of troglodytes, whole hillsides being burrowed with caves
often still inhabited, cisterns, granaries, and tombs, yet none of the
present natives have any notion of mining or hewing in the rock.
Three principal classes of tombs are observed in the j)lain and in the
hill country about Nazareth, each class including several varieties. The
first consists of roughly excavated caves, the second of tombs sunk in
the surface of the rock and covered with a stone, the third of cham-
bers entered at one end with loculi in the sides.
The first class is exemplified at Jeba, at Ivhirbet Khazneh (in the
plain), at Iksal (near Nazareth), and at El Jireh, on the hill
above Iksal. It seems to have been used where the limestone is very
soft, and the more carefully worked sepulchres of the other classes are
generally cut in much harder rock. The Jeba tomb has a square ante-
chamber carefully plastered, with a structural arch over the door leading
to the cave within. This is far rougher, cut in a sort of cheese-like
marl, with a loculus scooped in each side. A second cave to the west of
Jeba is even rougher, and may probably be also a tomb, as it is regarded
24 LIEUT. CLAUDE R. C'ONDER'S REPORTS.
as a saci-ed place by the ^lohammedans. Khirbet Khazneli is a ruin ou
the east of the plain not far from Lejjun, where traces of a large build-
ing, a broken sarcophagus, a capital, a shaft, and a small Roman altar,
were found on the surface, whilst beneath, a cave with four loculi
roughly semicircular is excavated in soft limestone. There appear to
be at least two more connected with it, but their passages were filled
with rubbish, as were also the front entrances.
The cave at Iksal is the most interesting of this class, and differs
from any as jei found. A large chamber, the roof of which had fallen
in, was first found, with four loculi parallel to its sides, and raised above
the floor about 2ft. 6in. Two niches for lamps or tablets were cut in the
sides, and on the south side was a small opening through which I suc-
ceeded in scrambling into a cave with rough-cut loculi on two sides.
The rock here also was soft, and much chalky d'hris had fallen on the floor.
There were many bones strewed over the floor, which from their brittle-
ness and general appearance may probably be very old ; and in one
loculus I was fortunate enough to discover a skull almost perfect to the
orbits (the face having disappeared), and near it a jaw-bone, probably
belonging to the same skeleton. A very narrow passage led out of
this cave, but was too small to allow of my creeping far into it. It
appeared to come to an end, and maj' only have been a loculus, but
of this I cannot be certain.
Amongst the tombs at El Jireh are two which may rank in the
first class, being also caves cut in soft stone and entered by rough
and narrow passages.
The second class is extensively represented at Iksal, where close to
the cave is a cemetery of perhaps over two hundred tombs. Near
Seffuriyeh, and at El Jireh, other examples have also been measured.
The Iksal tombs include several varieties, single loculi sunk in the
stone, rock-cut sarcophagi, tombs with a single side loculus, and tombs
with two. Most of them had water-channels to conduct the rain, and
some raised edges. All appear to have been closed by heavy roughly
squared blocks of stone from Tft. to 8ft. in length. There was no ap-
pearance of any special direction chosen for the body to lie in, and here,
as in the other groups, the tombs faced in all directions. Seemingly
more attention had been paid to the direction the water would take in
running over the surface of the rock in which they were sunk, than to
any other consideration. Eor this reason they are never used at present,
as the native Mohammedans bury east and west, with the face turned
south towards Mecca.
In one of these tombs two skulls were found, one very large and
perfect, the other small and possibly female. The arrangement of
double loculi is supposed, I am told, to be Christian, and to be intended
for the reception of the bodies of a man and his wife. I do not, how-
ever, think these skeletons can have been those of the original occupants,
for they appear to be more modern, and rags of clothing were mingled
with the bones, the greater number in each skeleton still remaining in
LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDER's REPORTS. 25
something like relative position. The natives call these the "Frank
tombs ;" possibly they may be of crusading times.
Seffuriych, the Sephoris of Josephus, gives signs of having been a
flourishing town in Eoman times, and Avould. merit a more complete ex-
ploration than we can manage to give to it this year. A great number
of sarcophagi lie round the village, or are built into the old crusading
castle, and in all that I have observed the end where the head was
laid is rounded.
Near Seffuriyeh are three small sunken tombs or loculi, also with the
head rounded, and closed not with a square block, but with one cut into
the ordinary triangular cross section of a sarcophagus lid. Thus these
tombs, though belonging to the second great class, are probably earlier
than those at the Iksal cemetery.
Two tombs of the second class, sunk in the surface of the rock and
closed above by large stones, are found amongst those at El Jireh.
The first has four loculi on the four sides of the quadrangular sunken
chamber, but they are far rougher than those at Iksal, which have semi-
circular arches, and a partition separating the body from the chamber.
The second has three loculi, and at one of its ends a small passage into a
quadrangular chamber cut in soft rock without loculi, a curious combi-
nation of the arrangements of a sunken tomb witb one entered on th.e
level of the floor.
The last class of tombs is exemplified at El Jireh, at Nazareth, and
near Kefr Minda. It appears, however, to be far less common than the
other two, and these are the first examples we have found. The
chamber is entered at one end, and the loculi placed with their length
in each case perpendicular to the side of the chamber. The El Jireh tomb
is partly fallen m, but seems to have been roughly circular in plan, with
seven of these loculi radiating, and an entrance of some size. The tomb
at Nazareth is cut in rather soft rock, its roof, unlike most of the tombs
as yet found, is a kind of tunnel vault, and the loculi, of which there are
twelve (five on each side, and two at the end opposite the door), have a
similar tunnelled roof. A second close by, said to contain ten loculi,
with two more outside the door cut in the sides of the passage before the
chamber, was filled up and unapproachable.
Another tomb not as yet measured, but resembling those at Nazareth,
was found on the summit of the high hill above the village of Kefr
Minda, the most northern of our trigonometric stations, and situate
within that portion of the country which was reconnoitred by Captain
Anderson during the preliminary expedition under Captain Wilson.
This hill is visible from points near Tiberias, from Safed, Acca, Haifta,
Carmel, and Nazareth, and would be a most valuable point but for the
thick ring of oak-trees springing from the ruins of some ancient build-
ing beneath which the tomb was cut in the rock.
Large numbers of cisterns occur amongst the tombs found in the
cemeteries at Iksal, and in the hill close to Tell el Jireh.
Geology. — The observations systematically continued of the strata
.26 LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDER S REPORTS.
north of the plain fully coufirni the deductions which I made in Eeport
jNTo. VII. No less than twenty-nine distinct outbursts of Trappean rock,
on the east, west, and north of the plain, are now marked on my rough
map. Some of these have broken through the upper strata without dis-
turbing their dip, possibly emerging through some natural fissure ; others
have, as at Sheikh Iskander, uptilted the lowest beds and flowed from
beneath; and wherever the formation of the crystalline dolomitic lime-
stone appears on the surface, there seems reason to suspect the existence
of basalt immediately below. The reason for the dip of the Nazareth
range, which is upwards towards the south-south-east, is given by a
basaltic outbreak near the village of Tinjar, and another in the plain
itself, showing the origin of this great break in the mountain system to
be j)riocipally volcanic.
Of the Trappean rock there are now three varieties noticed: the
black basalt of greater or less hardness, and containing generally a large
amount of ii'on ; the soft mud, apparently of basaltic <h''bris, and often
containing pieces of limestone, such as that noticed at Sheikh Iskander ;
and finally, a grey stone, containing large crystals (of vitreous lustre,
presumably of augite), and resembling syenite. This is probably the
coarser kind of basalt known as dolerite, and was first observed on
Little Hermon (Nebi Dahy)..
"The succession of four systems of strata first observed by Captain Wil-
son at Jifna, I have found to hold good throughout that part now
mapped, but it is often very difficult to distinguish between the hard
chalk with flint bands and the soft white chalk beneath, as first seen
■ at Nablous. The upper beds are very thickly stratified, and seem to
become softer where farther from the surface or less exposed. Some-
times they seem to overlie immediately the hard dolomitic stone, but
in other places the interposition of the soft chalk is well marked,
though apparently corresponding in dip and strike. Hence it seems
probable, either that the two formations are of the same date, or that
the soft chalk "thins out," to use a technical terra, in some parts of
the country.
The valley of the Kishon and the great upheaval (to use the old
nomenclature) of Carmel, promise to be of some geological interest. I
hope here to be able to make a good geological section from the Medi-
terranean to the Jordan, which may perhaps be useful in determining the
question of the formation of the " ghor" valley. Above the dolomitic
limestone on Carmel, a formation resembling the Santa Croce marble
occurs, in which the first fossils (excepting nummulites at Nablous)
we have yet found appeared. They were shells of LameUi-bra7ichiata,
probably, as far as I can judge, of the genus Gryplicea. Shells were
here found, I believe, by Dr. Tristram, but of what genus I do not yet
know. Interstratified with these beds, a kind of rag or shelly limestone
of loose consistency and brown coloui- was found by the German
colonists at the foot of the mountain, and has been found useful and
ornamental in the construction of their neat and comfortable houses.
LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDER S REPORTS.
27
Natural History.— The time of year is not now very favourable for
entomology, the butterflies are disappearing, and the locusts and man-
tisses seem half numbed by rain and reduction of the temperature.
Large numbers of blackbeetles were, however, together with all species
of ants, very active after the first rains, and colonies of winged ants
were, till quite lately, setting out on their travels.
The collection of Lejndojitera now includes some hundred specimens
of six out of the seven great families of butterflies, nearly twenty-four
species in all. The Ar gin uhkt or FritiUaries are, however, conspicuous
by their absence. The English Red Admiral has only just appeared,
whether from the butterfly emerging later in the season from its chry-
salis, or because it does not exist farther south, it is impossible as yet to
say. Several other species of this family are common, but this particu-
lar one seems to be rare.
Of further notes we have made few. A large adder some three feet
long was found at the entrance of a tomb which we were about to enter
in the dark.
Amon^-st birds the pied wagtail, the yellow wagtail, and the robin,
closely resembling our English species, appeared after the first rains.
The atmospheric effects of this time of year add a wonderful colour
and shadow to the scenery. The great clearness of the air seems to
reduce distance by nearly one-half, and the sharp outlines and deep
blue shadows of the hills ; the orange sunsets, with really purple
colouring in the distant ranges; the fine banks of clouds of every
colour and form; the passing storms with bright sunlight beyond;
the Safed mountains with summits veiled in thick piles of cumulus;
the Sea of Galilee, reflecting the surrounding hills ; the Mediterranean,
bright blue, with the gloomy ridge of Carmel to the south of the bay ;
finally, the great brown plain with white smoke wreaths from the
burning weeds,— all these scenes, and many more, furnish subjects in
•which any artist would rejoice.
Not less charming are the various costumes, which seem peculiar to
Nazareth itself. The short abba and gorgeous " kafeyeh" of the men,
the white " Izar," the silk dresses, the broad scarves, and many-
coloured trousers (red, green, blue, and yellow) of the women, give a
crowd a peculiarly picturesque appearance, and differ materially from
the sordid dresses of the poorer southern villages.
Several meteorological phenomena of interest have been noted, including
broad bands of blue at sunset extending from the zenith to the horizon
east and west, a meteor seen by Dr. Varten illuminating the tops of the
hills and travelling slowly, a very bright halo round the moon, and
several very fine rainbows.
In conclusion, our thanks are due to Mr. Zeller for his kind interest
in our work, and his care to ensure our seeing and exploring all that
existed in the neighbourhood.
'26
MR. TYRWHITT DRAKE'S REPORTS.
Camp, Umm el Fahm, Oct., 1872.
On the 2Sth iilt. we moved camp from Jenin to tliis place. The
heat in the plain of Esdraelon had been very great. On the 27th the
thei-mometer stood at 107 degs. in the tent, and lOoo degs. in the
Observatory. Notwithstanding this, the result of the month's work
since leaving Jeb'a is most satisfactory. A base line of four and a half
miles in length was laid down, measured and checked ; several cairns
were, as usual, put up and observed from, and a total of 1-45 square
miles were sketched in. Though part of this lay on the plain, the
greatly increased rate of progress will be seen by a comparison with
the amount of country sketched in per month when we first began :
this seldom averaged more than sixty square miles. The non-com-
missioned officers were then, however, unused to the hard riding, and
new to the country and its ways. Now, notwithstanding the great
heat, the rate of work is more than twice as rapid as it was seven
months ago, and I feel sure, at the same time, that its accuracy is in
no wise interfered with. I am glad to be able to report also that no
member of the party, either European or native, has hitherto been
laid up with sickness. With the exception of a few trifling ailments
of two or three days' duration, our state of health has been all that
could be desired.
The village beside which we are now camped is a large one, and
divided into four quarters. El Jebarin, El Mahamin, El Majahineh,
and El Akbariyeh, each of which has its own sheikh. There are some
fifteen houses of Christians, which represent a total of about eighty
souls. These are mostly birds of passage, who " squat" wherever, and
as long as, they find it convenient, and then flit "to fresh fields and
pastures new." The natives are an unruly lot, who never paid taxes
till within the last few years, and who have not yet learnt the lesson
of subjection. Some days ago a man tried to seize my horse's bridle as
I was passing near a threshing-floor, and insolently told me to be off, at the
same time making as though he would strike me ; but, seeing then that
he had gone rather too far, took to his heels and fled. After a suspense
of three or four days, I consented, at the intercession of two of the
sheikhs, the kadi, and other village worthies, not to have the man im-
prisoned at Jenin, so he was brought and solemnly beaten before my
tent door by the sheikh of his quarter. As civility in this country is
induced by fear and a sense of inferiority, we shall probably be treated
with decent respect for some little time to come. One cause of the
villagers' unruliness is their wealth : they possess large herds of cattle
and flocks of goats, a very considerable number of horses, and more
MR. TYRWHITT DRAKe's REPORTS. 29
tlian tbe normal quantity of camels and donkeys. Their land comprises
a wide tract of thicket (called Umm el Khattaf, "Mother of the
Eavisher," from the dense growth which, as it were, seizes and holds
those who try to pass through it) to the south and east, arable hills to
the west, and virtually as much of the rich plain of Esdraelon (Merj ibn
'Amii') as they choose to cultivate. Besides all this, the village owns
some twenty or more springs, under whose immediate influence orange
and lemon trees flourish. Shaddocks grow to an enormous size ; I
have one now in the tent whose circumference lengthwise is 2ft. 6Hn.,
and its girth 2ft. S^in. ; weight, about eight or nine pounds ; and toma-
toes, cucumbers, and other thirsty vegetables flourish. The taxes paid
by the village amount to 23,000 piasters, or £185 sterling, in addition
to the poll-tax on sheep, goats, and cattle, which probably comes to
£20 more.
Under and immediately to the east of Umm el Fahm is the great
volcanic upheaval which I mentioned in my last report as existing
beneath the tomb of Sheikh Iskander. In addition to the basalt,
which is mostly friable, stratified volcanic clay and mud are found in
large quantities, of a yellow, red, or greenish colour, though the pre-
vailing tint is a dusky brown. This is usually overlaid by a stratum of
limestone more or less hard ; that at the sides of the upheaval is dis-
tinctly metamorphic, and lower down is hard and crystalline.
On crossing Wady 'Ar'a — which, rising above Lejjun, flows in a south-
westerly direction to the sea — a curious change is observable. All wild
vegetation ceases, except a few thistles and plants of fennel, while the
rock changes to chalky limestone at top, mixed with a few flints, and
hard clay beneath, which is here used for keeping the roofs watertight.
On the western side of this formation, which is closely furrowed with
wadies, where it begins to sink into the Maritime Plain, lies an open
woodland consisting entirely of balhit (Quercus ui'Egilops, locally called
Mallul), which here grows into trees some thirty to thirty-five feet
hiffh and six to ten feet in circumference. The thickets westward con-
sist chiefly of sindian {Q.fseudo coccifera), afs {Q. infectoria, locally a fas),
sarris {Pistachia lentiscus), hutm (P. terebinthus), burzeh (a shrub with
leaves very like the s'uuUaii, and bearing a purple berry the size of a
cuiTant) ; intermingled with these are a few plants of cistiis, arbidus
andrachne, and the usual growth of bil/an {Poterium spinosum), sweet-
leaved vines, &c., in the more open places.
The fauna is scanty : the mammals most common are wild boars,
jackals, and wolves. A few leopards are said to exist, but are more
frequently found on Carmel; ichneumons are very common, badgers
less so. A species of wild cat — captured near Nazareth — has been de-
scribed to me by Mr. Zeller as very like the booted cat (Fells cliaus), but
without the black feet. The lynx {F. caracal) also exists, but owing to
its very shy habits is rarely seen.
The scarcity of birds in these thickets has most surprised me ; the
dense growth of brushwood is just the shelter which many of the
30 MR. TYRWHITT DKAKE's REPORTS.
warblers most affect, but I lia%'e been able to detect very few taking-
advantage of it. I have noticed a few Montagues harriers, and a
peregrine falcon. Black-headed jays, the Athene owl, and kestrels are
as common as usual.
The season of gathering the olives has just commenced, and the
women, boys, and girls are all busy thrashing the trees with long poles
and gathering up the fruit, which is just beginning to turn black. The
other day a boy was killed by falling from a high branch. A litter was
hastily improvised with a cloak and a couple of poles, the coi'pse was
carried off, and, after the fashion of the country, buried instanter. The
yield of olives this year is exceedingly good, as is that of all the crops
except the cotton and millet. The simsi/a (sesame), which is exported
to Marseilles for the purpose of being converted into " superfine olive
oil." has been most abundant, and the tax collectors, local governors,
and even the fellahin, will benefit from this year of plenty.
The woodlands which I have mentioned are a most pleasing relief to
the eye after the bare grey rocks, varied only by patches of grey-
foliaged olives, and vaulted with a glaring grey sky, like molten lead,
to which we have been so long accustomed. Our first shower of rain
fell on the evening of the 3rd, and though it only amounted to "005 in.,
the air was somewhat cooled, and the oth was one of those wonderfully
clear days, so rare in northern latitudes, which lend a charm even to
the most monotonous stretch of round-topped hills. From ovir stations
near here, Jaffa, Carmel, Jebel Sunnin (in the Libanus), Mount
Hermon, the range of Jebel el Duruz, Hauran (with its prominent
volcanic cones), and block of Jebel Ajlun (Gilead), were all distinctly
seen.
The tomb of Weli Iskander, which stands near here, has proved a
most valuable trigonometrical station. This personage is, on the
authority of the Kadi, one of the kings of the Children of Israel, but I
cannot find any foundation for this legend in history, unless it be some
memory of Alexander, son of Herod, who was strangled at Sebaste, but
buried at Alexandrium (Jos. B. J. 1 xxvii. 6). Others say that it is a
mn.L-am in honour of Alexander the Great, of whom Moslem legends,
with their usual disregard for chronology, tell marvellous tales. He
was a negro, the son of El Dhab'aak, king of Himyar, and a Greek
princess, and is called Ishander z'ul Kaniayu, " Alexander with the two
horas," which grew like a ram's from his temples. To conceal them he
invented the turban ; he also invented the fashion of shaking hands.
He had an interview with Abraham inWady Seb'a (Beersheba) B.C. 300 ;
his conquests extended over the world, and amongst other notables he
blew Yajuj and Majuj (Gog and Magog), Avho were each 240 feet high ;
and to avoid the plague which would ensue from the putrefaction of
such a mass of llosh, he caused an army of birds of prey to tear ofi" their
fiesh and carry it to the sea. These giants wei-e omnivorous ; they ate
trees, crops, men, horses, and cattle, and were able to drink the Lake
of Tiberias d)-y in a single day. Some of their race, who were also
CHRONOLOGY OP PALESTINE, EGYPT, AXD ASSYPvIA. 31
cannibals, rode ants as large as camels instead of horses. Alexander
was a fit liero to cojDe with such monsters, as his nose was three spans
long and, of course, the rest of his body in proportion. Og, the king
ofBashan, to reach whose knee Moses, who was twenty cubits high,
took an axe twenty cubits long and leapt up twenty cubits from the
earth, must doubtless have been a connection of these giants.
In several places among the brushwood we have observed square
towers measuring twelve to fifteen feet on each side, and built of
rouo-hly-hewn stones two to four feet long. These, together with huge
built-up cairns, and the rock-hewn wine and oil presses, are doubtless
of remote antiquity.
In one ruin — Khirbet Abu 'Amir — near Kefr Kud. we found the ruins
of a building. It is probably a small temple, and there are appear-
ances as though it were in antis. The stones are too much scattered
and decayed for satisfactory examination. Lieutenant Conder and my-
self have made sketches of the ornamentation, which is much over-
crowded on the cornices. All around are ruins of houses and traces
of a road up to them, on which are strewn the voussoirs of a circular
areh with plain mouldings. The usual rock-hewn cisterns exist, but
lined with a very hard pinkish cement. This colour arises from the
finely coloured pottery mixed with the lime.
Near by is a pit hewn in the soft rock, in which I was told water
still collects and remains, even in the summer, after abundant rains.
Beside it are some fine balliit trees, and a solid platform 35ft. by 30ft. of
large roughly-hewn stones. The object of this erection is not evident ;
whether sacrificial or merely an oil-press is impossible to say. The
tomb of Sheikh Selameh now stands upon it.
THE COMPARATIVE CHRONOLOGY OF PALESTINE,
EGYPT, AND ASSYPvIA.
By Francis Roubiliac Condee, C.E.
Not a little disquiet has been awakened in the minds of many
estimable persons by the statement that the results of recent decipher-
ments of the hieroglyphical inscriptions of Egypt, of the cuneiform
records of Assyria and of Persia, and of the Phoenician tablets of
Palestine, are irreconcilable Avith a belief in the uncorrupted accuracy,
or even the original authenticity, of the historic books of the Hebrew
Scriptures.
It is of no little importance to ai'rive at the truth in this matter. On
the one hand, writers may be named who eagerly seize the occasion to
impugn much to which a high degree of unquestioned veneration has
long been accorded. On the other hand, the patient, unrewarded,
unappreciated labours of the students of long-forgotten tongues are
32 CHRONOLOGY OF PALESTINE, EGYPT, AND ASSYRIA.
discouraged and disparaged, from the fear of their questionable
tendency.
The first step which intelligent criticism should take in the matter,
is to draw a sharp line between the pi'ovince of science and ^at of
opinion. How much do we take from definite historic data ? How
much from authority ? Whose is that authority ? and on what is it
based ? The witnesses must be brought impartially into court before
any jury can decide whether their testimony is contradictory or the
reverse.
Accounts of the same events, emanating from opposite sources, may
be compared in two distinct respects. We have to regard their historic
form, and their chronological indications. In the former we must
expect contradiction ; opposing nations or parties invariably give
contradictory accounts of the same events. Even in the late Franco-
Prussian war it has often been almost impossible to believe that the
French and the Prussian dispatches described one and the same action.
Thus if we have an Egyptian, an Assyrian, or a Moabite account of
any event described by a Hebrew historian, it is certain, a priori, that
the colouring of the two records will be entirely reversed.
Witb regard to chronological indications, the case is altogether
difi'erent. Within certain limits accordance must here exist, or error,
in one account at least, is proved. These limits are not wide, but they
must not be neglected. One chief source of variance is the differing
date of the commencement of the year among different nations ; or
even in the same nation for different purposes, or at different periods
of their history. Thus the Jews had their sacred, and their civil, year ;
respectively commencing with the new moon of the vernal, and of the
autumnal, equinox. The Greeks commenced their years with the
summer solstice. The first of Thoth, the commencement of the Egyptian
year, receded by a day every four years, in consequence of the use of a
solar year without intercalation. Again in reckoning by regnal years
parts may be taken for units. A history of England, of which the
chronology was taken from the dates of Acts of Parliament, would
differ considerably from astronomical truth.
On the other hand, every great people of antiquity had certain cycles,
or secular reckonings, by the revolution of which the error of vai-ious
additions were checked. No attempt at defining a complete system
of chronology can be of permanent vahie that will not endure this
test. Thus the very vagueness of the Egyptian year, its periodic
shifting of place, gives a value to Egyptian dates peculiar to themselves.
Thus the Chinese have a cycle of sixty years, extending back to an
early historic dawn. The Assyrians had a corresponding cycle — the
Sossus. The Jews had one of forty-nine years, which, by its slow
gaining on the decennial notation, is of the utmost value to scientific
chronology.
All scholars hold that a chronological system is, at least implicitly,
included in the Hebrew Scriptures. But the difficulty of clearly
CHRONOLOGY OF PALESTINE, EGYPT, AND ASSYRIA. 33
defining tbat system has pi'oved very great. It has been increased by
the fact that the I'endering given by the natural custodians of the
sacred books, the doctors of the Jewish law, is palpably wrong, within
historic times ; the accession of Cyrus being post dated by 184 years.
The Rabbinical chronology is therefore regarded with well-founded
distrust.
Taking, as our APXH, in a purely chronological sense, that eom-
mencement of the sacred reckoning to which the unfortunate term Annus
Mundi has been generally applied, we find a difference of no less than
2,549 years to exist between the dates assigned by learned men for the
Christian era. The modern Jewish reckoning gives 3,761 years ;
Baronius, 3,951 ; the Greek Church, 5,606 ; Panvinius, 6,310. Amid all
these conflicting theories, that of Usher, which is by no means one of
the best supported, has been adopted in the dates printed (when any
are printed) in the English Bible. No accord exists between these
dates and any ancient cycle whatever.
The point at which the 488 years of the Jewish monarchy have hitherto
been connected with profane history is the accession of Nebuchad-
nezzar, This date is taken by almost all writers from an ancient list
of kings called the Regal Canon. It is ascribed to Ptolemy, but there
is no proof that it has the high authority of that great astronomer.
Many of the dates of the Canon are known to be accurate ; some being
determined by eclipses mentioned in the Almagest. But the length
of the reign of Nabopolassar, the father of Nebuchadnezzar, is made
eight years shorter than the time cited by Josephus in his reply to
Apion ; and that of Nebuchadnezzar himself is made two years shorter
than in other accounts.
The dates given by Josephus would, no doubt, be conclusive, but for
the palpable corruption of most of the passages to which reference is
usually made. As we now find them, his statements are self-contra-
dictory ; so that there can be no doubt that they have been altered by
copyists. "We know, from a sort of preface to an early copy of
Eusebius, that at one time it was thought to be the diity of a faithful
transcriber to correct any error in the original. Thus, in the most
conscientious manner, the present blunders may have originated.
But in passages where an obscure or little understood mark of date
is inserted, there is less temptation for the copyist to make any altera-
tion. Thus the period of 414 years from the close of the Regal Govern-
ment to Antiochus Eupator (Ant. xx. x. 7) is one that conveys no
information to any one who is not aware of the dates of the Seleucidse.
It remains, therefore, uncorrupt, and agrees with several other obscure
passages in Josephus in fixing 1 Nebuchadnezzar in B.C. 595.
In the second year of Darius, it is said in the first chapter of Zechariah,
the indignation against the cities of Judah had lasted for three score
and ten years. In the 25th chapter of Jeremiah, v. 11, it is predicted
that the nations shall serve the King of Babylon for seventy years.
That cliapter is dated in the fourth year of Jehoiakim, being the first
D
34 CHRONOLOGY OF PALESTINE, EGYPT, AND ASSYRIA.
year of Nebuchadnezzar, and accords witli tbe date, taken fi-om Egyptian
monuments, of the battle of Carchemish and the death of Neco. (The
death of Josiah, according to the ordinary chronology, preceded by
two years the date of Neco's accession.) Four years after that defeat,
according to Josephus {Ant. x. vi. 1) King Jehoiakim became tributary
to Nebuchadnezzar. The second year of Darius is exactly seventy
years from that date.
The rectification of the dates of the Jewish reigns, which is
thus demanded, both by the prophetical Hebrew books and by the
Egyptian stelae, brings them into accurate accordance with the Assyrian
dates, which are verified by a solar eclipse. We thus find the four-
teenth year of Hezekiah to synchronise with the third year of
Sennacherib, which it ought to do according to the cuneiform records.
Further, the fifteenth year of Hezekiah was, according to the cyclical
reckoning, a Sabbatic year. This is in accordance with verse 30 of the
37th chapter of Isaiah. In the fourteenth year of Hezekiah the land
was left untilled in consequence of the Assyrian invasion. In the
following year the prescribed Sabbatic rest, as to the observance of
which full details are given in the treatise Shebith (the fifth of the first
order of the Talmud), fell due. In the sixteenth year agriculture
was to resume its course. We have thus an exact concurrence of the
three distinct reckonings of the Egyptian hieroglyphics, the Assyrian
clay tablets, and the predictions and statements of the prophets, with
the course of the great undeviating cycle of the Sabbatic year.
Another great element of accuracy in determining Hebrew dates is to
be found in the twenty- six years' cycle in which the commencement of the
courses of the priests returned to the same jjoint. The Talmud informs
US (Taanith, iv. 2) that the entire nation was divided into " mishmaroth,"
or divisions of orders, corresponding to those of the priests. When it
came to the turn of each mishmara to go up to Jerusalem, the priests
and Levites belongiug to it did so, and the other Israelites of the
division assembled in the synagogues to read the first chapter of the
Pentateuch. Thus the whole nation had an intimate acquaintance
with this revolution of the calendar. We have hence an absolute
check of the date of the destruction of the temple by Nebuchadnezzar.
Scaliger has pi-eserved an ancient Hebrew verse, embodying the fact
that the course of Jehoarib was in function at the time when the
Chaldeans burst into the temple.
Die nona mensis, bora vespcrtini
Quuni eram in vigilia mea, vigilia, Joarih
Introivit liostis, et sacrilicia .sua
Obtulit : iiigre.ssus est in sanctuarium
Injustus Domini.
.Jehoarib was in course from 3 to 10 Ab. B.C. 577, in which year
those days fell on the Sabbath; thus affording a furthei*, and an astrono-
n)ical, synchronisui.
THE HAMATH INSCRIPTIONS. 35
If the Assyrian statements are read by the liglit of this determina-
tion of date, it will be seen that their accordance with the Hebrew
Scriptures is fair and credible. There may arise a question, at times,
as to the dynastic or personal name of a king ; but careful investiga-
tion has removed so many apparent difficulties, that no apprehension
need be entertained as to the final establishment of entire accuracy,
both of decipherment and of date.
THE HAMATH IN-SCRIPTIONS.
To the Secretary of the Palestine Exploration Fund.
Dear Sir, — During the three months that have elapsed since I had
the pleasure of presenting you with my proposed arrangement of a
portion of the Hamath Inscriptions, I have no event to report bearing
upon the discovery of fresh matter in this department, unless indeed I
be allowed to mention the large door-post, or lintel, from Moab. The
authenticity, however, of the latter has been denied in England, so I will
merely remark that it is impossible that the Hamath Inscriptions in
their proper form can have been known to the supposed forger of the
Moab door-post, but that nevertheless about five out of the nineteen
characters on that post are identical with the Hamath ones. A small
inscription from Aleppo, in your hands, has also been shown me. It
reproduces some of our Hamath forms, and throws light upon the proper
grouping of one or two compound forms, which I had supposed to be
single. No progress at all has been made towards decipherment.
In this second batch which I now forward you, the three first lines
are all on the same stone — the first on the north side, the next two on
the west side of the No. 4 stone, named by Captain Burton and Mr.
Drake. The fourth line I have reproduced from your last journal in
smaller size, for purposes of comparison with the new matter. It will be
observed that I have made the arrows now point upwards, having, in
fact, turned the whole inscription round bottom upwards, without,
however, altering the arrangement of the symbols among themselves.
My principal reason is, that I take one of the signs to be a palm-tree,
■syhose fruit and foliage I naturally prefer to place upwards. The sign of
the human foot is also thus seen to have the sole downwards.
Between the lines where I believe the kings' names to appear,- I have
written the word king. In the second line where 1 have written this the
symbols are purely Egyptian. In the third line they are only partly
Egyptian.
The writing, I presume, should be read from right to left. All the
inscriptions together produce about forty-five distinct characters, and,
prima facie, such a number would indicate a syllabic alphabet, as in the
Cypriote. The stage of syllabism is, of course, less advanced than that
36 JERUSALEM.
of the consonantal alphabet with independent vowels. If Cyprus took
the one and Greece the other from Phoeaicia, it is well for the world that
Greece should have been unready in the Thothmes age for the less
perfect gift.
The state of the stone Ko. 4 is such that many parts of what I now
send are far from trustworthy. I have bestowed a great amount of
labour on the comparison of different parts of your squeezes, but am fd,r
from satisfied in some parts of the result. I conclude with saying that
I see a railway survey is said to be in hand from the coast to the
Euphrates, and your journals will, I hope, be forwarded to the oificers
and men engaged on the work.
Youi-s very truly,
Dunbar Isidore Heath.
EsHEE, Surrey, Nov. 20, 1872.
JERUSA.LEM.
Mr. Conrad Schick, the Imperial German architect at Jerusalem, who
has recently been engaged in making measurements for the construction
of models of the Kubbet es Sakhra and Haram es Sherif. for the Turkish
Government, has kindly forwarded to the Palestine Exploration Fund
plans and sections of certain cisterns and buildings which have not been
previously described.
Anything which adds to our knowledge of the " sacred area" cannot
fail to be of value, and the following notice of Mr. Schick's discoveries
will be of interest to many of the subscribers to the Fund.
1st. At the north-east corner of the platform three rock-hewn cisterns,*
not previously visited, have been examined, and plans made of them.
Like the well-known " great sea" in the southern portion of the Haram,
they are hewn out of the soft " malaki " rock, and the overlying stratum
of " missae " has been left to form a roof. The only passages noticed as
entering the cisterns were the ducts for leading in the surface drainage.
The cisterns are from 28ft. to 45ft. deep, and the natural rock lies close
below the surface.
2nd. Mr. Schick has made a minute examination of the eastern side of
the platform, and found two closed openings into it, one near the north
end, which appears to have been a small door leading to a chamber
under the platform, the other south of the steps in front of the Dome of
Chain. This, which is almost covered by rubbish, also led to a chamber,
and on each side of it is a closed window, Gft. high and 2ft. 6in. wide.
From the stejs to the south-east corner, there were at one time but-
tresses, 1ft. 11 in. thick, at intervals of Oft. Tin. Traces of five still
remain, and the position of the others can be seen on a careful examina-
tion, though the broken faces of the stones which bunded them to the
* Two of these cisterns are numbered 2 and 34 on the Plan of the Haram, iu
" Recovery of Jerusalem ;" the other Mr. Schick has numbered 35.
JERUSALEM. 37
•
wall have been cliiselleJ over. There is also a small cistern, apparently
built with masonry, immediately below the south-east corner. The
northern opening alluded to by Mr. Schick is probably that of the Cell
of Bostam mentioned by Mejr ed Din, who says that the door was closed
in his day ; and the southern opening is doubtless that of the Cull of
Samed, mentioned by the same writer as adjoining the Staii'S of Burak.
The door of this was also closed.
3rd. At the north-west corner of the platform, Mr. Schick has suc-
ceeded in exj)loring a place which is thus described by Mejr ed Din : —
" Below the platform on the west there is a place called Bakh-Bakh
(wonderful and beautiful), which is the place of El Khydr : it is now
abandoned." This is a small mosque under the platform, 42ft. 6in. long
and 23ft. wide, with a mihrab at the southern end. The roof is a pointed
arch of rough stones, and on the west side are two openings, which
appear to have been windows. In front of the mosque are two pillars of
red granite, carrying an arch which supports the modern Kubbet el
Khydr. The floor of the little chapel, Kubbet el Arwah, is said to be
natural rock.
4th. In a small building near the Bab en Nazir, an earthenware pipe
was found, bringing water Irom the north into the building, whence it
was distributed to other parts of the Haram by three additional pipes.
5th. Mr. Schick forwards a detailed plan of the ancient remains at the
Damascus Gate, and draws attention to the great thickness of the
masonry on the left (east) side, in which he thinks there may be a stair-
case.
6th. Near the site for the new Protestant Church, without the city,
four loculi have been discovered sunk into the rock, and covered with
flat stone slabs. A steep flight of steps led down to them, and they are
covered by a vaulted chamber of masonry.
7 th. Some additional excavations were made at the tombs described
by Lieut. Conder,* but no results were obtained from them.
8th. Mr. Schick forwards a sketch of the ruins of Seilun (Shiloh), and
the plan of a small building known as Jamia ed Daim (Mosque of the
Eternal). The interest attaching to Shiloh, as the place in which the
ark rested from the latter days of Joshua to the time of Samuel, is so
great that a short description of the existing ruins may be acceptable.
" Go ye now unto my place which was in Shiloh, where I set my
name at the first, and see what I did to it for the wickedness of my
people Israel," are the words in which the prophet Jeremiah (Jer. vii. 12)
refers to it as a striking example of the Divine indignation.
The ruins of Seilun cover the surface of a " Tell " or mound on a spur
which lies between two valleys, that unite about a quarter of a mile above
Khan Lubban, and thence run to the sea. The existing remains are
those of a fellahin village, with a few earlier foundations, possibly of the
date of the Ciusades. The walls are built with old material, but none
* rage 22.
38 JERUSALEM.
of the fragments of columns mentioned by some travellers can now he
seen. On tlie summit are a few heavy foundations, perhaps those of a
keep, and on the southern side is a building with a heavy sloping but-
tress. The rock is exposed over ne;^rly the whole surface, so that little
can be expected from excavation. Northwards the " Tell'' slopes down to
a broad shoulder, across which a sort of level court, 77ft. wide and 412ft.
long, has been cut. The rock is in places scarped to a height of oft., and
along the sides are several excavations, and a few small cisterns. The
level jiortion of the rock is covered by a few inches of soil. It is not im-
probable that the place was thus prepared to receive the tabernacle,
which, according to Eabbinical traditions, was " a structure of low
stone walls, with the teat drawn over the top." At any rate, there is no
other level space on the ' ' Tell " suflB.ciently large to receive a tent of the
dimensions of the tabernacle.
At the southern foot of the " Tell " is a fine spreading tree, and near it
the Jamia ed Daim, a building of well-dressed stone, with two aisles. The
longest dimension is from east to west, and there is a mihrah in the
southern side. The building probably dates from a later period than the
Crusades. To the south-east is a small reservoir with steps, and beyond
this the Jamia el Arbain (Mosque of the Forty), a curious building,
which has been noticed by all travellers. It appears originally to have
been a mosque, and to have been afterwards converted into a small fort-
ress, heavy buttresses having been built against the walls, closing all the
doors except one.*
Between Seilun and Turmus Aya there are distinct traces of an old
ro^d, 10ft. wide, running towards Sinjil.
The spring of Seilun is in a small valley which joins the main one a
short distance north-east of the ruins. The supply, which is small, after
running a few yards through a subterranean channel, was formerly led
into a rock-hewn reservoir, but now runs to waste down the valley.
There are numerous rock-hewn tombs near Seilun, generally of the same
character, a small vestibule, from which a low square door leads into
the tomb-chamber. Near the fountain, however, there is a peculiar tomb
hewn in a huge fragment of rock. It consists of three loculi, two in the
face of the rock and one on the top.f
C. W. W.
* Photo. 99 gives a view of this mosque, and Photo. 100 a general view of the
ruins.
t See Photo. 101.
PLA^ or SHILOH (SEILtJN)
AND ITS NEIGHBOUPHOOO .
Jr*onv ouSkjeteh. b\ MTC. Schick/
Stan/brd^ 6fetM.SstaJ}^6Jk70uiru^Ovss.
39
THE CLIMATE OF JERUSALEM.
To the Editor of the " Quarterly Statement" of the Palestine Exploration
• Fund.
'' Sir, — Will you permit mc to correct, in your next issue, two mistakes
in the remarks upon the climate of Jei'usalem, which were reprinted in
your January number from the Journal of the Scottish Meteorological
Society ?
1. The rainfall for the season 1863-4 is given as 8'84 inches: it
should be 19'175 inches. The en-or arose from the earliest returns to
the Scottish Society having been from observations made with a plu-
viometer sent out by them, and which proved so ill-adapted for this
country that its use was soon discontinued.
2. It is stated that " the sirocco occurred twice," implying that it
occurred only twice. Some of us, whose lot it is to live in this country,
would be only too happy if the sirocco were experienced not more
than twice in three years and a half. The fact is, that at certain
periods of the year it is one of our most frequent winds, being especially
prevalent in the beginning of summer (May), and again in Sep-
tember, October, and November, just before the setting in of the rains.
The trying weather, described in Mr. Buchan's paper as having pre-
vailed during the epidemic of cholera in 1865, was due to sirocco.
A remarkable fact in connection with this wind, and one which goes
far to account for its peculiarly depressing elfect, is that it is utterly
destitute of ozone. For many years I have been in the habit of experi-
menting upon it, and have always failed to obtain the slightest
discoloration of the ozone paper when the sirocco was at all severe.
At one time it occurred to me that the excessive dryness of the atmo-
sphere might possibly prevent chemical action, but the result was the
same when the paper was kept moist by allowing one end to remain in
a cup of water. Your obedient servant,
Thos. Chaplin, M.D.
QUAETERLY STATEMENT, APRlL, 1873.]
THE
PALESTINE EXPLORATION FUND,
PREFACE.
Ik the letters and reports of Lieutenant C. E. Conder and Mr.
Tyrrwhitt Drake will be found the usual record of work done
during the last three months. In February portions of four more
sheets of the new map arrived in England, making a total up to the
present of 1,250 square miles, which represents tlie whole of last
year's work. The Committee have now made application for
another noncommissioned officer of Royal Engineers to strengthen
the party and accelerate the survey. If their application to the War
Office be granted, as on all previous occasions, the new man will be
sent out at once ; and if we could see our way to sending out
another in addition, the progress of the new map would be very
rapid. As to the work already done, it lies in the office of the
Fund, read}' to be inspected by any who may wish to see it. It
is in the highest and best kind of map-making, on a scale of one
inch to the mile, and will give, when completed, a perfect map of
Palestine as it is, with every village, every ruin, every tell, and
every existing name. As regards the publication, we shall pro-
bably have a plan agreed upon by the Committee before the issue
of the next Quarterly. At present we can only say that as the sheets
are completed they will be published, without any unnecessary delay,
in the best style possible, and by the best map-makers in the
country. The part of Palestine already surveyed appears in the
illustrative sketch-map of the frontispiece. The surve^'ors are now
on the coast, the last letters from Lieutenant Conder speaking of
the ruins at Athlit, of which he promises sketches and plans. We
have not yet received the sketches and plans of those ruins over
which they have already pas-sed. Lieutenant Conder has made careful
drawings and examinations of every one for the Committee, and
will probably send them home by the first safe means.
The Special Fund for Jerusalem is open, as will be seen
from our business sheet. Those subscribers who wisli to devote their
£
42 PEEFACK.
gifts to tlie furtlier exploration of the Holy City, have only to notify
their intention to the Secretary.
The American party have started on a preliminary expedition
east of Jordan. We hope to have accounts of their progress in the
course of the year.
It is gratifying to state that the sale of the new book issued hy
the Fund is going on more favourabty than was anticipated.
Nearly five thousand have now been sold, and the new edition,
which is in the press, is already largely ordered. The Committee,
it must be borne in mind, had in view, in the issue of this book,
two objects : first, to show what had been done ; and, secondly, to
show what yet remained to be done ; that the perfect exploration of
the Holy Land is no visionary scheme of a few theorists, but an
urgent and crj^dng necessity, by means of which controverted points
may be decided, the bounds of controversy narrowed, and the
history of the Bible brought out in fuller light.
A new arrangement has been made with regard to the photo-
graphs of the Fund. Many of these, taken for an archaeological
or architectural point of interest, have not proved interesting to the
general public. A few new ones have been added. A selection of
one hundred has now been made, and the following arrangement
has been decided on : thej' can be purchased by Subscribers, instead
of at the old rate of one shilling each, at one guinea for twenty-five,
two guineas for fifty, or four pounds for the whole set of one
hundred. Mr. Stanford, 6, Charing Cross, will still be the agent.
The new list, with two recommended lists of twenty-five each, will
be ready in a few days.
We propose to hold an exhibition in the summer, and have taken
the Dudley Gallery- for the purpose. We are very glad to announce
that, owing to the kindness of Mr. Harper, we shall be able to show
the whole of his beautiful sketches of scenery in the Holy Land ;
we shall also be able to exhibit some of Mr. Simpson's pictures of
Underground Jerusalem. M. Clermont-Ganneau has promised a
facsimile cast of the Moabite stone. This will be the first time this
invaluable stele has been exhibited. There will also be a cast of the
recently found stone from Herod's Temple ; casts of the Hamath
Inscriptions ; and, besides other things, the whole of the photo-
graphs, collections, models, &c., illustrating the survey of Sinai. It
is hoped to open the exhibition very early in June.
It will be seen that the spelling of the Arabic names in Mr.
Drake's reports differs from that previously adopted in printing his
reports. The spelling is now his own. In the next Quarterly he
will give his reasons for differing from Dr. Eobinson and others.
to illustrate Aci'&
LIEUT CCNDERS f.ETTErtS
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THE SURVEY OF PALESTINE.
LIEUT. CLAUDE E. CONDEE'S PtEPORTS.
XL
WiNTEE Work.
R. E. Station, Haifa, Jan. 20, 1873. '
Survey. — In sending home another instalment of our survey, I
find a good opportunity for a review of the work which we have done
since last July, when first I became personally concerned in the Expe-
dition.
The Ordnance Survey of Palestine now extends over rather more
than 1,250 square miles, the work of little more than a year, and repre-
senting about one-seventh of the total amount which it is proposed to
include. Yiewed in the light of work accomplished by a most insuflS-
cient party (as far as numbers are concerned), this will, I imagine, be
considered a result more satisfactory than could have been expected ;
but, on the other hand, the fact that at the present rate six more years
would be required to complete the undertaking, points to the extreme
desirability of increasing the number of men to be employed in the
work.
It is calculated that during the first period up to Nablus the monthly
rate of progress was about 110 square miles. From Nablus to Haifa
it has been slightly over 140 square miles. Thus, up to July, 1872,
when the first tracings were sent home, 560 square miles were com-
pleted with the exception of the hill-shading. The present tracings
contain, roiighly speaking, 700 square miles, and are complete, the
hill-shading being included.
The main reason for this increase of thirty-six per cent, in the
rate of work I take to be the increased size of the sides of triangles
in the triangulation, which is rendered possible by the less mountain-
ous character of the country. The detail has been almost as close in
the plains as in the hills ; the number of ruins visited and examined
has been greater, but as it is possible to ride faster, and therefore
farther, in the plains, the possible distance apart of trigonometrical
stations has been greatly increased. Thus in the Judtean hills the
average length of the side of a triangle was five miles ; in the Plain of
44 LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDER's REPORTS.
Esdraelon it may be taken as about ten ; and in the country between
Nazareth, Caesarea, and Akka, at fifteen. Nor has the accuracy of the
work in any way suffered, as is pi'oved by the calculations for latitude,
which agree within two or three seconds with those of the Admiralty
Chart for Akka and Ccesarea, and agree also as nearly as can be plotted
with the triangulation. Finally, as commanding points have always
been chosen, the detail also has, during the clear autumn weather, been
observed from the stations with as much exactness as was obtained
with smaller triangles.
I have already reported on the satisfactoiy manner in which the
second base was measured and checked. Haifa is for another purpose
as important a station as the Plain of Esdraelon was for checking the
plan or azimuth measurements of the triangulation. The heights of
the trigonometrical stations are fixed by a chain of vertical angles
starting from Jafi'a and running up the country to Nazareth, arid down
to the sea-coast at Haifa. The most direct line observed is carried from
one to another over eleven points, whilst other lines, which serve as
checks, include even a greater number of successive operations. The
eiTor, if there is any, will therefore have increased gradually ; and to
test this the actual height of the last point (the Convent on Carmel)
has been ascertained by another method to be 556.25 feet above sea
level. We are not able, as in the case of the base line, to report on
the result of this check, which must await calculations to be made in
England, but there is no reason to suppose that the result of these
observations will turn out to be at all less satisfactory than that of the
measurement of the second base.
There is only one other point in the technical part of the work which
is likely to be interesting to subscribers generally: this is the represen-
tation of the hills, which has not been previously added to the map.
One of our late visitors complained that in no map which he had ever
seen of Palestine was there any idea given of the character of the sui'-
face of the country, which is certainly a very peculiar one, as the almost
equal heights of most of the hills, and the frequent deep and stony
valleys which are often concealed until close at hand, and in many
cases extremely tortuous, are features very different from any in at
least English scenery.
The large scale of our map allows of these features being well
shown. The method employed is that commonly used in the Ordnance
Surveys of showing the slopes of the hills, not as though a light
fell upon them from a corner of the paper, but simply with regard to
the comparative steepness of the gradients. Thus the darker shades
represent the steeper slopes according to a definite scale, and although
on a larger map the accidents of the ground would be even more
minutely distinguished, still for its scale the one-inch survey of Pales-
tine would form a perfect military map, as the practicability of the
gradients for the passage of infantry, artillery, or cavalry, could be
at once obtained by use of the scale of shade. A commander would
LIEUT.- CLAUDE U. CONDER's REPORTS. 45
indeed be unprepared for tlie extreme stoniness of tlie country, whicli
would render military movements very tedious, and for the condition
of the roads, but these are not details -which it is possible to show on a
map.
Archceologij. — The return which accompanies the maps will, I hope,
give a distinct idea of the character and conditions of ruined sites in
Palestine, an idea which it is difficult to convey vividly in a short
report. A few words may therefore be added in explanation of the
return. The number of ruins is approximately 200, of which, however,
twenty-one per cent, are evidently modern and of no interest, being
merely inserted because they are marked as ruins on the map ; these
include the small towers of drystone walls with a roof of mud, which
are placed in conspicuous positions above the fig, olive, and vine plan-
tations, and from the top of which the watchman looks out to guard
the fruit from thieves. By reason of their hasty construction they
fall readily into ruins, but are easily distinguished from more ancient
and interesting remains.
No less a proportion than thirty-five per cent, of the ruins are, it will
be observed, marked " Indistinguishable" or " No indication of date."
The state of preservatiou of the ruins seems to preclude the possi-
bility of assigning a date. The "indistinguishable" ruins consist
of heaps of broken stones, worn by the heavy winter rains, until
all idea of their original form, finish, or purpose is lost; often the
only indication is the grey colour of the mound, to which the name of
Khirbeh is attached, or a few scattered stoues ; rarely indeed is a shaft,
base, or capital discovered lying without indication of its position in
the original building, and none yet found can date before the Hex'odian
period. In fact, the site of a true Jewish town may be expected gene-
rally to give no farther indication than the dusty mounds described,
except, indeed, such as is derived from the vicinity of rock-cut tombs
and reservoirs or channels which, as at Anin (identified by Mr. Drake
with a Jewish town), exist close to the accumulation of powdered
masoni-y of some two thousand years ago.
In some cases the old materials have been used in newer construc-
■ tions, and these again have fallen into ruins almost untraceable; still
more frequently pillars and stones have been rolled down hill or carried
away for use at a distance.
Thus, for instance, at Nablus the granite shafts, belonging pos-
sibly to the Samaritan temple on Gerizim, are to be found amidst
the ruins of a Roman villa in the i)lain, and again in another site of
same date at a little distance, whilst even to the present day the habit
is continued by the natives, and of the fine blocks once strewed round
Tell el Semak, near Haifa, no trace but the holes dug in excavating
them is left.
In an archaeological point of view, such ruins, though not more
effaced than would be expected, considering their great age and the
violent action of the weather upon them, are of course wholly without
46 LIEUT. CLAUDE R. COKDER's REPORTS.
interest ; but when their presence confirms the arguments to be
deduced from comparison of names, from incidental references in
ancient writers, or from similar sources of information, their true
value becomes apparent. Hence even the most unpromising are-
carefully noted, and already in many instances their discovery has-
proved of greater importance than could at first be expected.
Turning from these, which form the majority of the remains,
tabulated, to others in a mere perfect condition, the first in
interest are perhaps the tells, of which eighteen principal
examples are scattered over the great Plain of Esdraelon and that of
Akka. Their artificial nature is plainly shown by their position, though
the name is also given to natural hillocks, such as the Tulul el Jah'ash,
which are volcanic outbreaks. In the great plain they appear towards
the foot of the hills, on the west and north, generally at the mouth of
wadys. No doubt they were originally intended as military posts,
perhaps thus guarding the principal inlets by which incursions from
wild mountain tribes were to be feared. Their shape is roughly oval, or
circular, with sides sloping at between thirty and forty degrees ; in size
they vary from that of Tell Mutasellim, large enough to be the site of
a considerable town, to that of such small mounds as Tell el Subat,
which is merely a low mound ; in height they must in some instances-
be over thirty feet. They are covered with coarse grass, and with
thistles, which often attain a height of seven or eight feet, and during-
a part of the year present a formidable bai-rier. The ruins on these
tells are in many instances far more modern, as at Tell Kaymun,
mentioned later, but the original builders may have belonged to the
Canaanitish period. Unlike those mentioned by Captain Warren in.
the Jordan Valley, it would seem probable that they are formed of, or
cased with, stone such as that of the surrounding hills; but none of
them gave any indication of a favourable spot for excavation, as much
time and money might probably be expended with but small result.
Next in interest to the tells come the rock-cut tombs and water-
channels, of which we have found twenty-six groups. The water-
channels were found at Anin, Lejjun, Kireh, and near Safcuriyeh. la
the first three cases they are passages resembling the famous one at
Jerusalem, between the Virgin's Fountain and Siloam, just broad and
high enough for a man to walk in, and terminating suddenly. At
Lejjun and Kireh there was a stream of water ankle deep flowing:
through the passage, and a sound of trickling water at the end, which,
in the three cases, was at a distance of some twenty feet from the
entrance. The reservoirs near Safl'uriyeh are, however, on a far larger
scale. They were kindly shown tons by Mr. Zeller, who also, I believe,,
took Captain Wilson to the place, and a couple of days were spent in
planning them, and in tracing the aqueduct which brought water to-
them. Mr. Drake has already referred to them, so I Avill merely add
that the passage at the western end is choked, and is one of the places-
where excavation would be desirable, as the ultimate destination of the
LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDEr's REPORTS. 47
large quantity of water thus collected is not at present clear. In each
of these four cases a rock-cut cemetery exists in the immediate neigh-
bourhood of the water-channels, and no doubt an ancient town, of
which both tombs and aqueducts are the only remains, was also situate
near to them.
The groups of tombs may be divided into three classes in the table :
those with the well-known loculus running perpendicularly in from
the walls of the chamber ; those with loculi in arched recesses, or some
other ai-rangement, counting with them such as are blocked up or
broken away, so that it is impossible to say that they have had per-
pendicular loculi ; finally, tombs like those at Iksal, already described
in a former report, which appear to be of Christian origin. Of the last
class there are but two other examples ; of the fu'st, or indisputably
Jewish tombs, there are ten groups, and the remaining fourteen are
included in the second class. The most important of these groups is
that at Shaykh Abrayk, where I examined and measured fourteen
separate tombs besides the great system of chambers, of which I have
already sent home a plan, as well as two others called Magharet el
Jehannum and Magharet el Siah, the latter being on a gigantic scale,
the side recesses fifteen feet long, and the height of the farther portion
of the cavern about twenty feet.
A few remarks on the principal deductions to be made from, a com-
parison of these tombs, will not be out of place here.
It is generally supposed that the perpendicular loculus is distinctive
of Jewish tombs, and M. De Vogiiu lays much stress on the fact of its
non-appearance in other countries. At Shaykh Abrayk, however, as
well as at Haifa, the perpendicular loculus is found associated with two
other aiTangements of what may be called attached sarcophufji standing
in arched recesses at the sides of the chamber. In these cases the per-
pendicular loculus appears nevertheless to be the oldest ; it is always
found in the oviter, never in the inner or subsequently excavated
chambers. In one case three such loculi have been destroyed in subse-
quently enlarging the chamber ; in others they exist on the level of the
floor, and below loculi raised some three feet, and of diff"erent character.
It appears just possible that this peculiar arrangement may have been
for some special purpose or class of corpses, as distinguished from those
of the parallel loculi. In one tomb at Shaykh Abrayk, in which these
loculi occur, a single word is written in Greek letters with red paint
in the inner or newer portion of the tomb. At Haifa a rough repre-
sentation of the seven- branched candlestick appears outside a sepulchre
containing both kinds of loculi. Neither of these indications of date
are, however, conclusive. The Greek-writing nation may have enlarged
an ancient Jewish tomb, as indeed the destruction of three of the per-
pendicular loculi would seem to point ovit; whilst, on the other hand,
at Haifa the tomb is in the present Jewish cemetery, and may have
been re-used by the Jews, and the sculpture be thus later than the tomb.
On the whole, however, there seems to be nothing in these discoveries
48 LIEUT. CLAUDE R. C'ONDER's REPORTS.
to contradict the opinion that where we find tombs with the perpen-
dicular loculus we have a trustworthy indication of true Jewish handi-
work.
M. De Saulcy mentions a tradition in connection with his discovery
. at the so-called Tombs of the Kings at Jerusalem, that the roofs of
sepvilchral chambers intended for women were formed of two planes
meeting in the centre, which was the highest part, whilst those of the
chambers for men were either flat or arched. Of the former construc-
tion I have found one example at Shaykh Abrayk, in a tomb consisting
of one chamber, with places for eighteen bodies, and an unique
arrangement. In one of these loculi I found a perfect but very ancient
skuU.
In conclusion, it appears that not unfrequently two tiers of chambers
existed above one another, and often a hole broken in the recess behind
one of the loculi leads to another system of chambers^ which in some
cases seem to have no other entrance. Many loculi are so small that
they must have been intended for children.
So curious and interesting are these tombs that I might fill many
pages with descriptions and notes upon them, which, however, I must
reserve for a future report. It is to be hoped that a perfect, or almost
perfect, collection of plans from ever}' part of Palestine will in time
materially increase our information as to their date and history.
We can only point to three ruins besides the tombs and water-
channels with any certainty as being Jewish. These are, the terraces
and ruins of Kh. Jafa, the ancient wells and indications of ruins at TeU
Dothan, and the curious cairn at El Mintar. Of the indistinguishable
remains, however, a large proportion may most probably be previous
to the Herodian period.
Nest in order come the Roman ruins, of which we have found twenty-
three indisputable examples ; they are not, however, of any great im-
portance, with one or two exceptions. The reservoirs near Saflfuriyeh
just mentioned are, from the cement, Iloman in all probability, as well
as the aqueduct leading to them, which we traced for a consieerable
distance, and fjund that it was possible for it to come, as it is said to
have done, from the Aiu el Jinan. It is partly built in rustic masonry
and mortal-, but during the greater part of its length seems to have
been merely a small rock-cut channel, as described by Mr. Drake. The
temple (as we suppose it to be) at Kh. Abu 'Amir is also no doubt
Eomau. I have already mentioned it in a report, and sent home a
plan and drawings of the details, such as still remain. It is quite pos-
sible that a little excavation here might bring to light something of in-
terest, possibly an inscription. The floor is covered with some four feet
of rubbish, so that mining would be out of the question. We did not,
however, at the time think it advisible to stay for such a task, as the
discovery was made in September, when we were at Jenin, and most
anxious to move from a temperature of 108" Fah. in the plain to the
cooler atmosphere of the hills.
LIEUT. CLAUDE H. COXDER's REPORTS. 49
There can be little doubt that Shaykh Abrayk was a place of some
importance in Eoman times. Capitals, foundations of walls, and the
extensive cemeteries which seem to me to show two periods of sepul-
ture— the Jewish on the eastern, the Roman on the more western hills,
all point to this fact. The place has beeu curiously overlooked before,
and its identification wiU be one of interest. A small building, pos-
sibly a temple, exists near the town at a spring, and is known as El
Is-hakiyeh.
One other point remains where excavation would be desirable, as
well as at Abu Amir, and in the reservoirs at Saffuriyeh : this is the
ruin of El Jireh, near Nazareth. Eeport X. gives an account of the
tombs, which I thoroughly explored and measured ; but the ruin on the
tell we were unable to examine. I understand from Mr. Zeller that
vaults of megalithic masonry (drafted, I believe) support the mound in
pai't, and we employed a native for one day to excavate a passage from,
above, where the sinking of the surface indicated that the vaulting
had given way. His attempts were unsuccessful, and I found that
some half-dozen men would be required, and several days would no
doubt elapse before we could get thi-ough the surface rubbish. Should
the Committee consider it worth while, we could easily devote a little
time to this exploration when camped in the neighbourhood again, as
El Jii-eh is near the edge of our work. Cement-lined cisterns, scattered
stones, a piilar shaft, a bit of plain cornice, and a couple of caves, with
traces of the old road to the place, are the only remains to be found
on the exterior of the tell ; the spot is, however, very well known to
the natives, and may prove a site of some interest.
The fine structural tomb of M'alul, first visited by Captain Wilson,
the remains of a probable Roman villa at Nablus, which we excavated
partially, the Herodian colonnade at Samaria, the altar and sarcophagus
at Kh. Khasneh, the ruined building at Lejjun, have all been men-
tioned in previous reports, and I have taken such j)lans and sketches
as werie rendex'ed possible by the condition of the ruins.
To pass on to later times, the Byzantine and early Christian ruins
are next in chronological order. These include the two churches of
Justinian at Nablus already visited and explored by Captain Wilson,
the interesting but almost untraceable little church newly discovered
by Corporal Armstrong on Tell Kaymun, of which I have a plan, and
the two small convents at the 'Ain Umm el Faruj, mentioned by Mv.
Drake in his last I'eport.
Of Crusading, or early Saracenic ruins (for it is not always easy to
distinguish between the two), the list enumerates twelve, including the
tower of Satfuriyeh, the Burg-Fara'a in the wady of the same name,
the tower near Jenin, and the small forts or Khans (in both cases with
tower attached) at Rashmia, near Haifa, and on Tell Kaymun, the
tower at Iksal, the church of St. John at Samaria (already well known),
and the remains of the fosse rouad the once important town of El
Fuleh.
50 LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDEr's REPORTS.
Although the earlier Crusading buildings, when the rounded arch of
the Italian Gothic was still retained, are easy to distinguish, those
structures which were built after the first half of the twelfth century
are nearly connected with the early pointed Saracenic style. The use of
a draft also was common to both styles, the centre being left with a
rustic bow projecting on the average six inches; the draft being three
inches broad, and sunk about the same amount ; the stones, well pro-
portioned, but of no great size, being on the average five to six feet
in length. To this style the tower near Umm el Fahm, which has
been called a vineyard toiver by Mr. Drake, as well as two which I dis-
covered and sketched on the hills east of Jenin, belong. In one of
these I found the remains of a door and the shafts of two small pillars,
much worn. The object of these small towers, the largest of which is
only some thirty feet in length' and breadth, is not to me at all clear;
they occupy positions at some elevation. Near one (the Kasr at
E-'aba) no less than five rock-cut cisterns or wells, near the other no
water at all, is found ; they are not placed in specially commanding
situations, as in the case of the Eushmia fort or the building at
Tell Kaymun, and altogether they are puzzling both in style and in
locality.
Such is a brief account of the archajological explorations which have
been carried out during the last six months. More detailed notes,
plans, and sketches, await a time when our work shall leave leisure to
put them into a connected form, and are carefully stored in order in
my note-book.
To sum up, we find 35 per cent, of the ruins " indistinguishable.'"
Of Jewish remains, the rock-cut tombs and reservoirs, the tells, and a
few ancient wells and cisterns, are the principal; tombs, I'eservoirs,
temples, and traces of a town, are amongst the Roman remains.
Churches and towers repi-esent the works of Christian architects.
Adding together Jewish and Roman remains, we find some 35 per
cent, to be of interest in illustration of the Bible and Josephus. Wei-e
all the "indistinguishable" ruins Jewish, we should have 70 per
cent., the value of which future examination of the literature of the
subject would show, but this proportion cannot be reasonably expected.
It seems probable, however, that we have now collected in the country
between Nablus and Haifa alone, at least one hundred ruins, which
may some day serve to throw light on the Biblical topography oi
Palestine.
Geology. — The later portion of the geological map has proved more
intei'csting than that mentioned in former reports, and I now send
home a tracing of the part already complete. It extends from Nablus,
where I first commenced it, to Haifa, covering the same ground shown
in the traces (7t'0 square miles) and is on a scale of four miles to one
inch, sufficient to show all details of importance. The various surface
formations are shown by different colours, and a short explanation
only will be required.
LIEUT. CLAUDE E. CONDERS KEPORTS. 51
The blue represents the hard limestone, which includes the following
varieties, following apparently in the order given :
1. Hard darh-fjreii doJomitic limestone, the lowest formation of all,
generally thinly bedded and splitting into cubes, which give&
the appearance of an ancient pavement ; it is, however, often
in the lowest valleys found to be bedded in thick steps like the
" scala " limestone. It is ci-ystalline, and coloured with salts
of iron. It is full of natural caverns, the formation of which
is a matter for discussion. It contains no fossils, and gene-
rally exists where the basalt appears, whence it may be
thought to be metamorphic. It belongs to the Neocomian
period, that of our own greensand.
2. Hard, compact, fine-grained limestone, very crystalline, and break-
ing with an almost conchoidal fracture, a sort of yellowish grey
colour, and bedded more thickly than the former.
3. Similar to the last, but thinly bedded, very white in colour, and
containing numerous layers of large flints.
4. Greij, hard, crystaUine limestone, containing (jrypha:a Cajndoides,
Corhula Syriaca, and other species belonging to the period of
the English lower chalk formation.
Tbe next series of formations found at Nablus, immediately over-
lying the uptilted dolomite, is coloured with yellow ochre, and contains,
only two varieties — the soft, cheese-like marl, which can be cut with a
knife, and whicli does not seem to harden on exposure ; and a very
thinly bedded (laminated, one might almost say) but harder chalk,
Avhich contains a few flints, and which I observed on the summit of
Carmel, where it appears suited to the growth of the Pinas Aleppensis,
here found in abundance.
The distinction between this group and the upper beds is not well
marked, as I have already had occasion to notice, but the principal
distinction is the external appearance, for the more recent chalky lime-
stone does harden, externally at least, on exposure to the air, and is found
to be softer and softer the farther from the surface one goes, though
veiy often hard veins, almost crystalline, run through the soft.
The principal varieties of this series, which is coloured green, are as
follows :
1. White calcareous limestone, containing a few fossils, and soft
when quarried, but hard and dark-coloured on the exterior.
It contains no flints.
2. Hard, semi-crystalline limestone, ringing like a bell when
struck, very white. Interstratified with former.
3. Beds of flint conglomerate (as near Nablus), ten to fifteen feet
thick, very hard and compact.
4. Limestone in beds ten feet thick, soft internally and full of
very large flints.
The Nummulitic limestone, common in the south of Palestine, does
52 LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDER S REPORTS.
not appear in tlie part of tlie map now completed, in the Jebel Nablus
and Galilee.
The German colony at Haifa have carried extensive quarries into the
sides of Carmel, and here I had a better opportunity of studying
the last-mentioned formation, and obtained, partly through the kind-
ness of Mr, Shi'imaker, the American consul here, partly by our own
observations, the first fossils which we have been able to collect.
These beds are, I believe, generally supposed to be contemporary
-with the earliest Eocene period; but an inspection of the fossils seems,
as far as my limited experience goes, to point to their being earlier, or
of the chalk period. They include some specimens of Ammonites
resembling the A. liotomagensis found by Captain "Wilson at Jerusalem,
two kinds of Echinus, a fossil somewhat resembling the Perylla (one of
the Dibranchiata— a sub-division of Cephalopods), and some very small
shells, apparently of Acephalous moUusks, which must await examina-
tion and description by some one more competent to pronounce an
opinion.
The beds in which they occur are uptilted at various angles, often
almost perpendicular. They show the interstratification of the harder
layers, and the side of the hill which they form has a slope of thirty-five
to thirty-seven degrees, the dip being nearly coincident with the north-
east declivity of the mountain.
Turnino- to more recent geological features, the outbreaks of basalt
which, with one exception, are new discoveries, are first in importance.
They are in all thirty in number, occurring in the Plain of Esdraelon,
the largest being on the side of Mount Gilboa. My last report gives
the principal points of interest with regard to them.
The Plain of Esdraelon is coloured with a purplish tint to distinguish
it from the other small plains, because of the difference of its soil, con-
sisting of basaltic d^'hris of a rich dark colour, v/bich occurs to a certain
extent in the Merj Arrabeh, but differs from the more argillaceous
topsoil of the other smaller plains.
The only remaining formations to consider are those found at Haifa,
near the sea-shore, and which are quite local, and formed originally a
sea beach farther inland than the present line. There are six varieties,
found as follows, all being represented by a wash of light red on the
map.
JVo. 1. A fine shelly conglomerate, formed (as it is still forming m
places along the beach) by the consolidation of small
shells and water-worn fragments of shell and flint, cemented
with lime, and forming a building stone of brownish colom-
far harder than the white limestone. Quarried near
Carmel.
No. 2. Coarser conglomerate of broken shells found on the beach.
No. 3. Third quality, still coarser, on the beach.
N'o. 4. A plum-pudding stone of flints and rolled pebbles, so hard
as to be used for mill-stonea by the Germans ; there are
LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDEr's REPORTS. 53
two qualities, tlie softer being of reddisli colour from infil-
tration of iron in the cement. This is not found to stand
the wear and tear of the upper millstone quai-ries near
Carmel.
No. 5. A coarse breccia of limestone and flints of large size, forming-
a bed extending along the coast south of Tell el Semak,
evidently the old shore-line.
No. 6. A sandstone consolidated by pressure, but not very crystal-
line. In this the tombs west of Haifa are cut.
These littoral deposits are probably not of one date, the first-men-
tioned being the oldest. In some of the finer, shells which ai'e but
half fossilised, retaining their white colour from the lime in their com-
position, appear. In other cases the shells are completely changed, and
of the same colour with the stone.
The same process which now carries the light pebbles and debris into-
the bay, leaving the coarse and hard near the promontory, cau be
traced in this earlier formation.
The coarse conglomerate on the south-west side of Carmel denotes a
period when the waves came up nearly to the foot of the mountain, and
covered the sunken limestone rocks now far inland with debris of their
own kind, forming a conglomerate now found above the lower limestone
to a depth of some thirty feet ; but where the force of the wind was
broken by the hill, the gentle current brought in the small shelly <^(?6m
and sand, which gradually consolidated, makes now a hard building-
stone and a harder mill-stone, and which, in Jewish times, was pre-
ferred for the excavation of tombs to the broken and crystalline lime-
stone on the sea-shore. The sandstone is in places found immediately
upon a bed of limestone, Avhich has at some time been water-worn,
showing that a sandy beach was founded on hai-d rocks covered some
five to ten feet deep.
I cannot conclude this report better than by a few words on the
scenery round Haifa, the most picturesque part of the country which
we have yet traversed, and an account of which may interest those who
care little for the details of geology or triangulation.
We have for the last two months been living literally under the
shadow of Carmel, for the long shades creep down the sides of the great
flat ridg-e which extends for fourteen miles from the cliff on which the
convent stands to the land end, where it dips down with equal abrupt-
ness, and stretch themselves over the plain of Akka at its base, so that
Haifa is enveloped in shadow long before the sunset light appears on
the brown walls of Akka, and the deep red flush, suddenly followed by
a cold blue colour, spreads over the chain, which rises gradually into a
high ridge above Safed.
The rugged sides of the ridge of hard dark stone, always steep, often
precipitous, are covered thickly with a wilderness of shrubs of dark and
rich green. They stream like the torrents which in a heavy winter
follow the same course down the narrow wady beds ; in parts the bare
54 LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDER's REPORTS,
rock appears, only covered witli a thorny herbage ; in other places all
is one soft surface of thick vegetation, but hardly ever does any tree
even inconsiderable size break the even outline, with the exception of
the pines of small size which straggle along the watershed.
The shrubs are principally a kind of pistachio, with red berries, the
sponge laurel, the hawthorn, and the arbutus, whose berries are now
ripe. The barer i^arts are covered with the Poterium Spinosum (one of
the Rosacioe), with tha cisti, or rock roses, and with flowers, of which
the white-striped asphodel, the jonquil, cyclamen, red and purple ane-
mone, hawkweed, and daisy are now in bloom. Often, too, the horses'
feet press out a sweet smell of the thyme and mint which cover the
chalky soil. Eound Asfia and Dalyeh there are a few plantations of
olives, but with this exception the only signs of life are the herds of
goats climbing the sides, or a group of gazelles seen up a steep wady,
bounding through the shrubs. Such is " the forest of Carmel," the
*' fruitful field," and such perhaps it may have been in Bible times, for
there is no evidence of any great change in the conditions of climate,
which should account for the growth of a forest of trees which will
not now live on the slopes, though the rich soil still claims superiority
to that of the stony plain at the foot of the mountain.
Deep in shadow as the side of -the hill always is after midday, there
is no lack of picturesque points of view, including the neat white Ger-
man houses, and the ruinous walls and dirty tiimbledown buildings of
Haifa itself. A lover of colour and effect could not indeed wish for
anything brighter than the red flush on the hills, and the blue and
purple shadows towards sunset, whilst the ever- beautiful sea, the dim
hills and line of palms on the sand-dunes, give sunrise eff'ects most
Turneresque in their appearance.
I^ot less striking is the view of the Kishon, backed by Carmel,
which has never, I believe, appeared in any book of travels. I saw it
first on a day when huge piles of silvery cumulous cloud shaded plain
and mountain. The ridge of Carmel formed a dark background, the
grey and silver river flowed through a flat, marshy middle distance of
reeds and brown earth, and red and coppery shrubs. A single palm-
tree with an old boat formed an appropriate foreground, and on the
opposite side, scarce sixty yards distant, a row of solemn herons stood
in contemplation, a couple of white egrets were stepping daintily
about, and an osprey flew overhead with a fish in his talons.
There are several pools or streams banked up at the mouth by the
sand-dunes between Haifa and the Kishon, and on the opposite side.
Hither come the duck in stormy weather, and a few snipe and red-
shanks can be obtained. Eound one, the palms grow in profusion, and
make a truly Oriental sketch. On the shore the dotterel and gulls, in
the bay the cormorants, and on a stormy day even an occasional
Mother Cary's chicken, may be seen ; but animal life is lestricted to
these and to the ichneumons, which seem to exist in numbers in the
eand-hills and amongst the broken tombs.
MK. TYKWHITT DRAKE's REPORTS. 55
Tlius I may close tlie report of our winter's work in Haifa. Little
remains for us to finisli there, and in another week or fortnight we
shall be able to leave tlie comfortable little house in the German
colony, where we have been stationed during the rough weather (what
little there has been of it this year), and have met with every kindness
and hospitality from the worthy and energetic little society who have
here gained a footing in Palestine- We shall return to tent-life and out-
door work, and endeavour, if all goes well, during the spring to fill
in the country between our former districts and the sea-shore, and
attentively to examine the ruins of Caesarea, Antipatris, Tantura,
Castellum Peregrinorum, and other sites in this hitherto little visited
and almost unexplored part of the Holy Land-
Claitde R. Condee, Lt. RE.,
Commanding Survey Party, Palestine.
MR. C. F. TYEWHITT DRAKES REPORTS.
XI.
Shatkh Abrayk, Dec, 9, 1872.
Vincyard-toicers {ancient). — In reply to a question about the watch-
towers mentioned in my last report as existing in the thickets near
Umm el Fahm, I may say that they have all the appearance of vine-
yard-towers or garden-houses, but of more solid construction than
those now used in Palestine. The old buildings are usually about 20ft. —
25ft. square, and constructed of roughly- squared stones, measuring
from 3ft. to 4ft. in length, by 18in. — 20in. in depth and breadth. These are
occasionally drafted with rustic boss. The door is usually vci-y small ;
the roof of lower chamber, which in one instance remains, is made of
blocks laid over a riide arch, which forms their central support. In no
case was any trace of mortar or rubble visible. The walls were pro-
bably dry, and the crevices would allow a free circulation of air, a
great desideratum in buildings such as these, intended only for habi-
tation during the hottest part of summer. Not only amongst the
brushwood here, but also in the thickets of Mount Carmel, terraces are
frequently met with, showing that once cultivation extended over even
the highest parts of the hills, which are now the haunt of the panther
and wild boar, the fox, jackal, and wolf, which with the partridge and
woodcock are seldom disturbed even by a passing goatherd.
Aqueduct. — Lieut. C'onder made mention in his last report of an
aqueduct near SafFuriyeh, of which we made a survey. A few remarks
on this work may not prove uninteresting. In Jebel el Siah (collection
of water) are three shallow pits which give an unfailing supply, and are
OG MR. TYRWHITT DKAKE"s REPORTS.
called 'Ayyun el Jinnan (tlie springs of ilie genii). Close to these,,
owing to the alluvial nature of the soil, the aqueduct cannot be traced,
but on the hillside below El Mesh-hed it may be seen, a narrow and
shallow channel cut in the rock. This winds along the hillsides for a
distance of 2|- miles, and then crosses a small valley. Beyond this are
a series of caves now broken in, through which the channel doubtless
passed. A little farther on we come to traces of a constructed
aqueduct. This gradually becomes more distinct, and at last assumes
the form of a rubble wall 5ft. high. This wall is constructed of large
rough blocks packed with smaller stones, the interstices being filled
up with a hard mortar, into the composition of which potsherds and
ashes largely enter.
At the end of the wall all trace of the aqueduct is lost, till we find it
again a channel, 2ft. broad and Gin. — Sin. deep, "with an inner channel
1ft. broad and4in. deep, cut in the rock. A little farther and we come to
the entrance of a cave, which extends to a length of 580ft., with a height
of from 8ft. to 20ft., while its bi'cadth varies from 8ft. — 15ft. At the west
end of this tunnel the exit passage is blocked up with earth, but leads
in the direction of SaflPuriyeh, distant | mile, for the supply of which
the aqueduct was presumably constructed. Two large barrages occur
in the cavern, cut in the solid rock, and where necessary supplemented
with masonry. In the second or western there appears to have been
a lower and an upper sluice ; the former through a rock-hewn passage,
now stopped up with earth, and the latter through a channel of
masonry on the top of the harrar/e. Square holes are cut in the roof at
intervals, partly no doubt to facilitate quarrying, and partly for the
purpose of drawing water. In many places, especially towards the
west end, the roof has fallen in, and the original level of the floor
cannot be ascertained. "We found, however, a well-defined water-line,
and on drawing out the sectional plan this was found to correspond
with the level of the entrance and exit. The sides of the caves are
lined with several coats of cement ; the inner is frequently half-covered
with potsherds, stuck over it while wet. Above this comes a layer of
cement mixed with' ashes, and on the siirface a firm hard cement of a
pinkish hue, from the quantity of pounded red pottery used in its
composition. The roof is not plastered, and in many places natural
horizontal cracks in the rock have been somewhat enlarged, the better
to act as land-drains for the collection of surface water.
The whole length of the aqueduct from Jebel el Siah to the end of
the cave is 3f miles. The style of the work leads to the conclusion
that it is Roman. There is nothing, however, to show that it is not
late Jewish, constructed under the influence of contact with western
civilisation.
Caves and Tomhs. — In the rocky glen which loads down from the
ruins of El Tir6h to Iksal we found a cave sufficiently curious to deserve
mention. A cross cut on a large fallen lintel at the entrance shows it
to have been used by Christians, and the interior arrangement seems
MR. TYRWniTT DRAKE's REP0R,TS. 57
to point to a hermit as its occupant. The cave is mostly natural, and
is sitiiated in a spur of tbe hillside, in such a manner that by building
a wall of masonry on one side, and a gateway (now ruined) at the
end, a chamber was enclosed at the cave's mouth. The stones of the
masonry are about 2ft. or 3ft. long, and l|ft. to 2ft. deep and broad :
they are filled in with rubble, and the mortar is mixed with earth and
broken pottery.
A cupboard-like recess is left in the masonry, possibly to serve as a
seat. The cave itself is divided into two parts : the outer is some 15ft.
high at the mouth, but gradually slopes inwards like a funnel, till it
ends in a doorway, 5ft. x 3ft. This was formerly closed by a stone
door 14in. thick. Inside, the cave is an irregular oval in shape, and
about 12ft. — 14ft. high. At the far end is a small recess Oft. from the
ground, which can be reached by three rude steps. This would seem the
reverend hermit's larder. On the right hand are two more natural
recesses, and between them and the door a i^lace has been hewn out
which doubtless served as a bed. The floor is many inches thick with
the droppings of bats. Struck by this unusual circumstance — most
caves being used to shelter the flocks in the rainy season — I asked the
reason of it, and was told that the cave was inhabited by a Ghvleli
(ghoul), and that none of the shepherds dared enter. The native
name is Magharet el j\Iat-liumeh.
I may observe that the tombs which occur in such number at Iksal
(see Lieut. Conder's report), sunk in the rock with an arched loculus
on either side, are exactly similar to those I described as existing in the
neighbourhood of El Tireh and 'Amwas, on the edge of the Jaffa j^lain,
and in Jebel el Zawi, near Aleppo. The lids, however, differ from these
last, which are larger, and worked with a ridge roof and other orna-
ments, as is common in the case of sarcophagus lids.
From Nazareth we visited some caves at Yafa (ancient, Japlda),
which are very interesting. As far as I am aware, they are unique in
arrangement, for I have never seen anything at all like them in
Palestine or Syria. The entrance to this curious place is through a
small passage leading out of an ordinary cave of moderate dimensions..
This passage is only about 12ft. long, and leads into a small roughly
circular chamber, nearly 5ft. high, and some 12ft. diameter. In the-
iloor of this are two circular man-holes, "joggled" round the edge to-
admit of a slab being inserted ; these lead into two lower caves, which
again communicate with a still lower story. Besides these circular
man-holes there ai-e small doorways in the walls, so that every chamber
communicates with each of its neighbours above, below, or at the sides
by one or more openings. These ramifications are very intricate and
puzzling. My sketch-plan and section will show better than any
description the style of cave.
From this peculiar arrangement I cannot look upon them as tombs,
for which purpose the number of openings would be clearly objection-
able. I am inclined to think they were matamir, or chambers for
F
58 MK. TYRWHITT DRAKES REPORTS.
storage of grain, &c. In that case the upper opening would be used
to throw the corn in at, while one of the lower ones would be well
suited to draw it out at. The stone in which they are cut is very
soft, and can easily be ciit with a knife. The tool used in excnvation
was a pick 2§in. broad. These caves were first discovered by the
fellahin a few years ago, and no bones were found in them. There
are, however, rude niches in the walls for lamps : these may have been
used by tlie men who quarried them.
In the neighboiu'ing village of M'alul is a remarkable tomb CQn-
structed with fine masonry. The architectm-al details of this were
sent home by last mail. The natives call it Kasv el Zfr, and they
say that Zir was brother to Kulayb (the little dog), and Jerro (the
whelp), and that this latter was founder of the great tribe of the
Beni Helal (sons of the crescent moon). Of these Beni Helal many
tales are told : their original country was in Yemen and Himyar, and
the history of their wars is mixed up with accounts of Abu Zayd,
of mythical renown. Defeated by a Himyarite king, they took refuge
in the plain of Esdraelon ; and near Sammuneh some trees of Acacia
oiilotica (the only specimens I have met with in Palestine) are said
to have sprung from their tent-pegs. For some reason this countiy
did not suit them, and they emigrated to Egypt, many being slain
en route by the Emir of Ghazzeh. From Egypt they went to Tro-
bolus el Gharb (African Tripoli). This is the popular story, but
Shaykh 'Amiu, the chief Moslem at Nazareth, says that Jerro was
father, not of the Beni Helal, but of the Beni Wail.
The Beni Kulayb was formerly a most powerful tribe of Arabs.
I am not aware whether they still exist in Arabia, but have reason
to believe that they do not. A relic of the tribe, numbering some
eio-hty tents, may usually be found towards the south-east of the Sea
of Tiberias.
At this place we have examined and made plans of a large number
of cave-tombs. Some of them are of considerable extent. The only
trace of inscription consists of the single word n-ApSeNle scratched
over a loculus. and rudely marked with red paint. The most notice-
able peculiarity of the tombs here is that they have both pseudo-
sarcophagi and pigeon-hole loculi. By the former I would designate
those loculi which are sunk beneath an arch parallel to the walls of
the tomb, and have a thin partition of native rock on their outer
side ; they have much the appearance of a sarcophagus placed in a
niche in the wall, but having no space at either end. The pigeon-
hole loculus is of the type so well known near Jerusalem {e.g., in the
so-called tombs of the judges), which is driven at right angles to the
surface of the wall, and is usually about 7ft. long by 2ft. wide, and
3ft. high, the roof being slightly arched in most cases.
Several of these tombs have produced skulls, which add largely to
my collection. No other objects except two small wide-mouthed glass
bottles, with handles, and of very pretty shape, have been found in
MR. TYRWHITT DRAKE's REPORTS. 59
the tombs. A coin bearin^^ a helmeted head and the legend urb-s
iiOMA: reverse, a wolf suckling two children; above, two stars, and
below, SMHS, another coin of Constantine, together with the many
fragments of Roman tiles (red earthenware) and large hewn stones,
point to this place having been an important town during the Roman
occupation. Just in front of our tent is a limestone sarcophagus. At
one end is a bull's head in relief, surmounting a pendent garland ; on
one side is a tablet (without inscription) of the ordinary Roman type
with two triangular ears ; on either side of this are bulls' heads, and
below a garland ; on the opposite side are a bull's and two cows' heads,
with comical semi-human faces, also with garlands beneath. A coin
(of the Seleucidffi ?) was picked up in the valley below us : obverse,
three ears of wheat; reverse, an umbi-el!a, and legend baciaevc (?).
A small female head, of clas^cal type, was picked up a year or two
ago near the village, and is now in the possession of Mikhart Kawwai*,
native Protestant priest at Nazareth.
In one of the tombs, which was found a few years ago by women
digging for clay to mend their roofs with, but having been stopped up
by the washing down of the soil, had again to be opened, we found a
quantity of rude oniamentation in red paint, evidently smeared on
with the finger. The interior of the arch, over three of the pseudo-
sarcophagi, was daubed in a way similar to that in vogue amongst the
Kurds and Arabs of the present day. Lines and intermediate dots
form for them the acme of artistic decoration. In other places a palm
branch, a rude wreath, a daub representing pendent garlands, a circle
filled with cross lines and having two long curved lines terminatino- in
something like the conventional ivy-leaf so frequent in Roman art, pro-
ceeding from its lower part, the representation of a palm-tree (?)
partly cut in the rock, and a branch-like ornament with six lines on
each side recurved at top, form the total of these rude attempts at
decoration.
In this chamber we found the two above-mentioned glass bottles
buried in the soil which covered the steps of the original entrance, now
blocked up, and were just beside a closed loculus. This had escaped
notice, as the colour of the plaster which covered the two stones form-
ing its door was very similar to that of the walls. On openino- this
loculus we found it full of stones ; these were cleared away, and beyond,
a chamber was discovered also full of stones, which seem to have been
thrown in from a hole in the roof. Nothing but a few bones in loculi
sunk in the floor was found in this chamber. The corresponding
loculus on the other side of the entrance door had been opened, and
does not lead to any further excavation ; hence when we first found
this carefully-concealed passage we were in hopes of finding something
to repay our trouble. The pseudo-sarcophagi had been covered in with
slabs, over which mortar had been laid in the shape of a rido-e.
The real entrance to the tomb still has its door in situ. It is of stone,
and hung on two projecting knobs, which fit into sockets in the lintel
60 MR. TYRWHITT DRAKE's REPORTS.
and sill. The walls of this cave, which is cut in very soft white stone
similai- to that at Tafa, are very smoothly dressed. From this cave a.
way has been Ijroken into a series of ruder ones which contained
nothing of special interest. These farther caves, which evidently
belonged to a different tomb or tombs, were roughly dressed with a
pick one-third of an inch broad. In these, as well as in all the other
tombs we have found here, the pseudo-sarcophagi are more nximerous
than the pigeon-hole loculi ; the probable reason being that the former
were originally made, and subsequently, when more of the family wished
to be buried in the cave, it was found more convenient to excavate a
long loculus beneath the older ones than to cut a new chamber. In
the immediate neighbourhood of these tombs, Avhich occupy the hill to
the west of the present village, are the foundations of three buildings.
The stones are of considerable size (about 3ft. x Ig x If) which perhaps
were tombs of masonry either independeut of or constructed over the
caves.
Tells (mounds). Mounds (Ar. Tidul) form a marked feature, not only
of the Merj ibu 'Amr, but also of the Plain of Akka and the glior or
Jordan valley. In this report I shall, however, confine myself to a few
remarks about those in the former locality. They are artificial either
wholly or in part, and are, or have been, occupied by buildings. The
principal in the Plain of Esdraelon are — 1. Tell Ta'annik {Taanacli) ;
2. T. Mntasellim (near Lejjun ; Mpgiddo, the Roman Legio); 3. T,
Shaddud, near Ahhrayfis) ; 4. T. Sammuneh (partly volcanic, Siinonius). ;
5. Tell el Kasis, and 6. Tell Kaymun {Johncam). Besides these are
the smaller ones of Tell el Shemman, T. el Dhahab, and Tell Thora
(mentioned by the same name in old itineraries). In cases (as at
2, 4, G) where a projecting spur at the edge of the plain has been made
use of, the earth dug out of the deep trench which was cut to separate
the mound from the mainland, so to speak, was used to heighten that
side of the mound ; the steep sides, surmounted by a wall, being
doubtless sufficient protection on the plain side.
On Tell Kaymun, whicli is a very good example, we found the ruins
of a square crusading fort, measuring forty yards each way, and con-
taining five chambers on each side opening into a courtyard. A vault
still exists at the north-east corner with a pointed roof of rag-work. A
little below this is the foundation of the east end of a church with triple
apse. That in the centre is circular, while the side ones are rectan-
gular. Judging from a corbel found here, the building was used by the
Crusaders, but a Byzantine capital found among the Arab graves on
the plain below points to the probable date of the original building.
Autumn iveatJier. — The winter rains still hold off, though the quan-
tity that fell in October and November — the "former rain" — has
proved quite sufficient to enable the follahm to begin their ploughing.
These rains produced an immediate change in the appearance of the
country : grass began to sprout all over the hills, the wasted grain on
the threshing-floors soon produced a close crop some six inches high.
MK. TYRWHITT DRAKE's REPORTS. 61
Tiie cyclamen, white crocus, saffron crocus, and jonquil are- in full
flower on the mountains, the hallut [Qucrcus a-yilojijs) is fast putting out
its new leaves, and in sheltered nooks some of the hawthorn trees are
doing the same. The Zemzarut (species of Judas tree ?) is gorgeous at
the foot of Carmel with its clusters of lilac blossoms. These, to our
notions, are hardly signs of coming winter, but the advent of number-
less stai-lings and common plovers on the plains and woodcock in the
■woodlands point to rain not far distant. We hope, however, to gain
our winter quarters at Haifa befure really bad weather sets in. For
the next two months we shall be principally engaged in completing
the work done in the field since July. There are, amongst other things,
some 600 square miles of country to be put on the fair plan, making in
all just 1,200 square miles surveyed. These, we hope, will be ready
for sending to England not later than the middle of February.
1873. Difficulties with Natives. — "We have lately had some difficulties
with the natives, which have proved rather serious. This is entu'ely
the fault of the local Turkish Government, who are unwilling to finish
any case off-hand, and thus teach the insubordinate fellahin a lesson
which they would not forget, and which would secure us from further"
annoyance. On the contrary, each official tries to make the affair as
long as possible in order to gain the more bribes. Promises of assist-
ance have been sent us from Constantinople and Beyrout, and I hope
the affairs will be satisfactorily settled before we leave Haifa.
The last ebullition of feeling on the part of the fellahin took the form
of firing on one of our surveying parties, happily without effect.
Temperature, — There has lately been a great and welcome change in
the temperature, the average of the maximum thermometer being about
75 deg., and the minimum 4-5 deg. in the twenty-four hours.
Star-sJwwer. — On the evening of the 2Sth ult. I noticed a star-shower
which continued for some hours. The shooting stars seemed all to fall
from, the zenith. There were remarkably few to the south-east and
south-west, while to the north and north-west they were particularly
bright and numerous.
Of late, east winds have been very prevalent, which, though dry and
<;ool, are exceedingly trying to those who have been any length of time
in the country. To new-comers they appear fresh and agreeable. So
long as they continue, rain cannot fall, but as soon as the wind changes
to the south-west we may expect a downpour. During the east winds
the ozone papers are hardly affected, wiiile a south-west or west wind
turns them the deepest possible colour. These latter winds are a most
grateful tonic, and one whose effect is immediately felt after the heats
of summer.
Hamah Stones.
Haifa, Dec. 16.
Having lately seen my friend, the Rev. W. Wright, of Damascus, I
■urged on him the advisability of taking plaster casts of the Hamah
62 MR. TYRWniTT DRAKE's REPORTS,
inscriptions. I have just received a letter from bim saying that he
has made casts of the stones (? all) under the most favourable circum-
stances, as he was able to waah and turn them as it suited him, the
stones themselves Laving been bought by H.I.M. the Sultan. They
are probably on their way to Constantinople by this time. Mr. Wright
has most kindly offered to place these casts at the disposal of the
Palestine Exploration Fund, and I am writing to him on the subject,
and hope that they will reach England next month.
"We are now in winter quarters, and have begun our indoor work.
The house we have taken for the rainy season is one belonging to>'
the Prussian colony, of which I h(^pe shortly to send some account.
XII.
German Colony, Haifa, Jan. 27, 1873.
In a former report {Quarterly ior July, 1872) I gave a short account of
the Prussian colony at Jaffa. In face of the changes likely to come
about in Palestine, these first attempts of Teutonic colonisation cannot
fail to be of interest. I may preface the account of the colony with a
few additional woi-ds regarding the origin of the society, and the first
steps taken to obtain a footing in the Holy Land.
The elder Herr Huffman — father of the President of the Jaffa colony
— "was a well-known lawyer, and a friend and admirer of Dr. Bengel.
He had also great influence with Frederick, first king of Wiirtemburg,
who made him a grant of a large tract of somewhat barren land at
Kornthal. Hei*e a colony was formed of Pietists — a sect which numbers-
many adherents among the simple folk of the Black Forest. After a
time, however, the character of the settlement became more com-
munistic than religious.
Herr Hoffman the younger, who had never been a member of the
Kornthal community, then founded the Society of the Temple at Kirs-
chenharthofF. Any persons who joined this society had lands alloted to-
them, which were bought back at a valuation if the settlers chose to go
away.
After the establishment of Kirschenharthoff it was judged advisable
to begin the real colonisation of Palestine. In 1862 four men came out,
and after a short stay at Urtas — near the Pools of Solomon — they came
to Nazareth. After many difficulties and much privation endured, they
were obliged to leave the country. In 1866 twelve persons established
themselves at Akhnayfis, near Nazareth, on the edge of the plain of
Esdi'aelon. Here they lived in huts and hastily-improvised shelters,
the result being that several succumbed to the climate. The rest moved
on to the neighbouring village of Sammuneh, where they all fell victims
to fever. In the end of 1868 the colony at Haifa was founded, and
hitherto has proved much more healthy than that of Jaffa. In the
MR. TYRWHITT DEAKE's REPORTS. 63
former place but few deaths have occurred, while in the latter nearly
every member of the community has been attacked with fever, and no
less than eighteen deaths from this cause have occurred during the
summer.
The inhabitants of the colony are : men— single, 40, married, 47 : 87 ;
women— single, 32, married, 51 : 83 ; children, 84. Total, 254.^ These
persons occupy thirty- one dwelling-houses, to twenty of which out-
houses, such as cart-sheds, stables, granaries, &c., are attached. The
houses are built of a soft white, chalky stone, which is easily dressed,
but hardens on exposure. This is quarried from the side of Carmel,
half a mile distant. A few of the houses are built of a reddish rag-
stone, quarried on the spot, and much harder than the former. All the
constructions are neat and well fitted with European doors, windows,
&c., forming a striking contrast to the squalid, untidy dwellings of the
natives in the town and on its outskirts.
The trades and occupations are distributed as follows (the figures
denote the number of men employed in each) : 1 architect, 3 black-
smiths, 2 butchers, 18 carpenters (of these 4 are natives), 1 cooper, 1
dyer, 20 farmers, 1 master-mason and stone-cutter (employing 6
Germans and from 40—45 natives), 2 merchants, 3 millers, 2 mill-
wrights, 1 painter, 1 saddler, 3 shoemakers, 2 tailors, 1 turner, 10 vine-
dressers, 2 waggon- builders, 2 whitesmiths.
Of these the architect, carpenter, tailors, and general dealer or
merchant are frequently employed by the natives, their work being
much superior to any other procurable in the country.
The wages paid to Germans are —
Man 12 to 20 piasters per diem.
Woman ... 7 to 10 ,, ,, ,,
Child ... ... ... .3d ,, ,, ,5
To natives —
Man 5 to 15 pia.sters per diem.
Woman ... ... ... 5 ,, ,, ,,
Child ^ ,, „ „
The total extent of land hitherto purchased is 450 acres, of arable
land, which also contains 140 olive trees, and 17 acres of vineyards on
the lower slopes of Carmel, near the houses. Deceived in their hopes
of obtaining the grant of land promised to them by the Turkish autho-
rities, the colonists have determined to buy such land as they require
when opportunity offers. The vineyards are likely to prove successful ;
vines grown from a layer have produced grapes the fii-st year. In
colder climates they seldom produce before the third or fourth year.
Wine has been made with considerable success.
There are two schools established here, conducted by 3 German and
1 Arabic teachers. In the upper school there are 25 boys and 16 girls ;
in the lower, 25 boys and 2 girls. Total, 68. In the upper school the
subjects taught are, reading and writing in Arabic, English French,
64 MR. TYRWHITT DRAKE's REPORTS.
and German, arithmetic, drawing, geograpty, liistory, matliematics,
singing, and the study of music. In the lower school, reading and
writing in Ai-abic and German, arithmetic, and singing. Eeligious
instruction is given in both. The girls are taught kuitting, sewing,
and embroidery in the industrial school.
On the whole, the colonists have not experienced much difficulty in
dealing with the natives and Turkish authorities. One of the most
constant annoyances is the want of anything like a legal determination
of landmarks and boundaries. Frequently when a piece of land has
been bought, and the colonists commence to cultivate it, a part is
claimed by the neighbouring proprietor. Annoyances such as these are
somewhat difficult to surmount, especially when the "custom of the
country " (bribery) is utterly eschewed.
It is proposed to increase the colony as occasion serves. The main
difficulty consists in the choice of proper persons, who will propose to
themselves to further the spiritual rather than the worldly aims of the
society.
The site of the ancient Sycaminon has always, I believe, been placed
at Haifa el 'Atikah or old Haifa, which lies on the eastern side of the
spit of land projecting north from Carmel. Indications as to its site are
sufficiently vague, its position in the Antonine and Jerusalem itine-
raries being laid down at tv/enty and twenty-four, sixteen and fifteen
miles from Caesarea and Ptolemais ('Akka) respectively. Haifa el
'Atikah is about twenty and ten g.m. from the two places. There is a
neighbouring ruin, however, to which no history attaches, but the
claims of which may perhaps be stronger. This is now called Tell el
Semak (Fish-mound), and in this word the three initial consonants of
Sycaminon are found ; it is very possible that the Greek name having no
meaning to Arab ears, has, as is so often the case, been cornipted into
a common Semitic word. The traces of ruins at this place are very con-
siderable; a tell on a little promontory forms the nucleus, around
which are found innumerable fragments of marble slabs, glass, pottery,
and hewn stones. This place entirely commanded the coast road, as the
sides of Carmel here rise abruptly, and only leave a plain of some 200
yai'ds in width along the shore.
Haifa el 'Atikah is said by the inhabitants of the modern town— and
not perhaps without reason— to have been merely the old site of Hepha.
The ruins are now covered with gardens belonging, according to tradi-
tion, to the owners of the houses which formerly stood there. One of
the principal Christians told me that he was many years ago digging
there— according to the usual custom— for ready-dressed building stone,
when beneath the sill of a doorway the workmen found a small brass
jar, containing 1,000 gold pieces, as he added, of the date of Helena.
Helena's name, however, is used to imply remote antiquity, as Caesar's
and the Devil's (of Cajsar's camp, the Devil's highway, &c.) are in
England. The coins were probably early Byzantine, as I have lately
procured a fine gold coin of that period, found near the same spot.
MR. TYRWIEITT DRAKE'S REPORTS. 65
Among the gardens are found some rude tesselated pavement in situ,
and on the shore are traces of a small harbour and a mass of rubble
work, seemingly of Roman construction.
About a mile and a half south-east of Tell el Semak is a wady, the
mouth of which is laid out in gardens, producing vegetables, figs, olives,
locust trees, j)omegranates, vines, and apricots. These are watered by
a spring called 'Ain el Siah, which bursts out of the hard white lime-
stone rock, here plentifully sprinkled through with black flints in
finger-shaped nodules. Below the spring is a rock-hewn tank with
filtering appai-atus, from which the water is led by an aqueduct into
the gardens. A little higher up the wady are ruins of two massive
buildings, the ashlar of which has nearly disappeared, leaving only the
stout rubble, which has the appearance of Roman work, as has a
broken semicircular arch. These are called the diura, or monasteries,
and tradition says that the last abbot was one Thul el Serjihiui, which
seems a reminiscence of Paulus Sergilius. On the opposite side of the
narrow ravine is a double cave, inhabited by a fellah w^ho owns a small
garden here. This cave is called the monk's stable and Liwan. The
lower cave has square recesses cut out of the rock along two sides,
which are to all appearance mangers. The upper cave, which is open in
front, is reached by a staircase from the first. Facing this place is a
spring flowing from a small recess hewn in the face of the rock ; beside
it are two niches with angular tops much resembling in size and shape
two scdiJia, The name ('xiin Umm el Faruj) and appearance of this
spring denote its former connection with some phallic rites, now long
since forgotten.
Weather. — This winter there has been an unusually small amount of
rain in Palestine, and unless there is a pretty heavy fall before the end
of the month there will be a total want of crops in many places where
they have hitherto been unable even to plough. This is especially the
case in the district of Jeniu aud Nazareth. Further north, in Syria
and the Hawran, I hear that there has been a sufiicient rainfall. Up to
date the raingauge shows 2.25 inches less than had fallen at the same
time last year. The weather has generally been bright and clear,
colder than usual, with almost continual east winds. The Nahr el
Mukatta (Kishon) and Nahr Naaman (Zelus) have ordy lately been able
(by the help of easterly gales) to force open a channel to the sea through
the sandbank which closes their mouths during the dry season.
On the sand-dunes near the mouth of the former stream, I observed
a curious deposit of pumice-stone, the j)ieces varying in size from a
good-sized apple to a pea, and being mostly water- worn. This is in the
inner part of the bay, whither the current brings the finest and lightest
things, small sand, seaweed, and tender shells ; the heavier pebbles and
shingle are left farther west. The only place whence this pumice-
stone can have come, as far as I am aware, is from one of the Italian
volcanoes, wafted over, in all likelihood, by the west winds which
prevail in summer. Chas. F. Tyewhitt Drake.
Q6
EBAL AND GERIZIM, 1866.
On the 6th March Lieut. Anderson and I arrived at Nablus, -with the
view of carrying out some excavations on Mount Gerizira, and exam-
ining the points of interest in the neighbourhood. Before, however,
attempting to describe the result of our labours, it will be well to give
a general sketch of the locality. At Nablus the range of hills which
traverses Palestine from north to south, is pierced by a remarkable pass,
running nearly east and west ; on the north the pass is flanked by the
range of Mount Ebal, rising at its highest point to 3,029 feet above the sea,
or 1,200 feet above the level of the valley ; on the south by the range of
Mount Gerizim, rising to 2,898 feet. Between these two mountains the
valley rises gently towards the east, to the waterparting between the
waters of the Mediterranean and the Jordan, at which point there is a
remarkable topographical feature which is not often met with — a recess on
either side of the valley, forming a grand natural amphitheatre, the scene,
in all probability, of the ratification of the law. Prom this point the
ground falls gradually to the rich plain of El Mukhna, which runs
north and south, and is bounded westwards by the steep eastern declivities
of Ebal and Gerizim. Where the valley merges into the plain there are
two sites of great interest — Joseph's Tomb and Jacob's Well. The beauty
of the Vale of Nablus has been frequently described by travellers, and
by no one more happily than by Lieut. Yandevelde, who giows eloquent
on the charming character of the vegetation, the joyous notes of the
numerous birds of song, the soft colouring of the landscape, and the
bright sparkling streams. The latter, perhaps, more than anything else,
give the vale its peculiar charm. The grateful sound of running water
strikes the ear at every turn, and produces a quiet sensation of enjoy-
ment, which is fully appreciated by the traveller weary with the dry and
thirsty hills of Judsea.
Ami(!st this wealth of verdure, clinging as it were to the slopes of
Gerizim, the mount of blessings, lies Nablus,* the ancient Shechem ;
its situation, with easy access to the Mediterranean on the one hand,
and to the Joi dan Yalley and transjordanic district on the other, marking
it as a place of importance from the earliest period.
Mount Ebal. — The summit of Ebal is a comparatively level plateau of
some extent. There is no actual peak, but the ground rises towards
the wf st, and attains its greatest elevation near a small pile of stones.
The view from this point is a perfect panorama, and one of the finest
and most extensive in the country, embracing Safed, Jebel Jermuk, and
Hermon on the north ; Jaffa, Eamleh, and the maritime plain on the
west ; the heights above Beitin (Bethel) on the south ; and the Hauran
plateau on the east. The upper strata of the nummulitic limestone, of
which the mountain is composed, are so cracked and broken, apparently
by the action of weather, that the surface of the plateau, at first sights
* Photos. 9r>, 06.
EBAL AND GERIZIM.
67
looks as if it were covered by a rude pavement ; and it was some time
before wo realised tbat it was quite natural. Towards the east end of
tlie plateau is the remarkable ruin called by the Arabs "Khirbet
Kneeseh." * It consists of an enclosure 92ft. square, with walls 20ft.
thick, built of selected unhewn stones, withoxit mortar. In the thick-
ness of the wall are the remains of several chambers, each about 10ft.
square, and at two opposite ends there is a projection of 4ft., as if for
defensive purposes. There is a cistern within the building, and round
it are several heaps of stones and ruins. Excavations were made, but
without result. It is not easy to form an opinion on the object of this
building ; it is too small for a fortified camp, and though the chambers
are somewhat similar to those in the fortified churches, the interior
space, 50ft. square, is too restricted to have held a church. There was-
no trace of any plaster, and nothing that would enable us to connect it
with the altar said to have been erected by Joshua on Mount Ebal.
The contrast between the rich vegetation on Gerizim and the barren-
ness of Ebal has frequently been commented upon by travellers. This
arises from the structure of the rock, the strata dipping towards the
north across the valley, and thus preventing the existence of springs on
the southern slope of Ebal. The mountain, however, is by no means
so sterile as has been supposed ; for a considerable height it is clothed
with luxuriant cacti gardens, carefully cultivated in terraces, and above
these, to the very summit, rise a succession of terraces well supplied
with cisterns, that speak of a careful system of cultivation and irrigation
at a former period. Many of these terraces are well preserved, and
planted in springtime with corn, which is as fine and healthy -looking as
any on Gerizim. The northern slope of Ebal is rich in springs, and
almost as well supplied with water as the northern slope of Gerizim.
At the foot of Ebal there is a modern Moslem cemetery, and scattered
amongst the cacti gardens, and over the southern slope, are numerous-
rock-hewn tombs, which have been alluded to in a previous paper.f
Mount Gerizim. — Immediately above Nablus there are several stone
quarries, and in places the limestone strata stand out in bold cliffs, which
seem to overhang the town and form a peculiar feature in the view from
the opposite ridge, at the point where the road to Samaria crosses it.
From the top of one of these, whence escape to the mountain behind
would be easy, it is natural to picture Jotham delivering his striking
parable (Judges ix. 7 — 21).
On reaching the summit of the mountain, by the road from the fountain
of Eas el 'Ain, a long narrow shoulder is seen stretching eastward to the
Samaritan place of sacrifice.J On the north the ground descends abruptly
to the Yale of Nablus, and on the south there is a more gradual slope,
with no water and sparse cultivation. East of the place of sacrifice rises
the true peak of Gerizim, crowned with the well-known ruins, and form-
* See Photograph 92.
t See notes on "Toi^ibs," Quarterly Statement, No. 111., 1869.
X Photos. 125, 128.
68 EBAL AND GERIZIM.
ing the eastern extremity of the ridge. From this point a spur stretches
out northwards, and partly encloses the natural amphitheatre mentioned
above. The mountain is almost entirely composed of nummulitic lime-
stone. The summit of Gerizim is a small level plateau, having its
largest dimension nearly north and south. The northern end is occupied
by the ruins of a castle and church, the southern by smaller remains, prin-
cipally low and irregularly built walls. In the midst of the latter is a
sloping rock, which is regarded by the Samaritans with much veneration ;
it is said to be the site of the altar of their temple, and they remove
their shoes when approaching it. At the eastern edge of the plateau, a
small cavity in the rock is shown as the place on which Abraham offered
up Isaac. West of the castle, and a short distance down the hill, some
massive foundations are pointed out as the "twelve stones" which were
set up by Joshua after the reading of the law.
Considerable excavations were made under the superintendence of
Lieut. Anderson, and the accompanying plan made of the ruins. The
castle * is rectangular, with flanking towers at each of its angles; on the
■eastern side are the remains of several chambers, and over the door of
one of them is a Greek cross. The walls are built of well-dressed stones,
which have marginal drafts, and are set without mortar ; many of them
appear to have been taken from earlier buildings.
The church is octagonal. On the eastern side is an apse, on the
northern the main entrance ; on five sides there are small chapels, and on
the eighth side there was probably a sixth chapel, but this could not be
ascertained, as the foundations had been almost entirely removed. There
is an inner octagon which gives the plan some resemblance to that of the
" Dome of the Eock " at Jerusalem. The flooring is partly of marble,
partly of tUes, and below this a platform of rough masonry was found ;
in the intervening rubbish a very early Cufic coin was turned up, which
had apparently slipped down through the joints of the tiles. The only
capital uncovered was of a debased Corinthian order. The chiu'ch is
believed to have been built by Justinian, circa A.D. o33.
South of the castle there are no massive foundations, but numerous
small walls, and amongst these are several cisterns half-filled with
rubbish ; a pathway of late date runs along the crest of the hill from
south to north, passing in front of the " twelve stones," where for some
distance it rests on a mass of loose stones and rubbish, in which some
Cufic copper coins were found. The " holy place" of the Samaritans f
is a portion of the natural rock dipping to the north-west, and draining
into a cistern half full of stones ; an excavation in an adjoining enclosure
uncovered a mass of human bones lying on a thin layer of some dark
substance, which had stained the rock beneath to a dark burnt-umber
colour. The Amran said they were the bodies of priests, anointed with
consecrated oil, but they seemed rather to be hasty interments, such as
would be made in time of war.
There are several platforms of unhewn stone, somewhat similar to the
* I'hoty. DO. t riioto. 89.
EBAL AND GERIZIM. 69
praying-places in the Harain at Jerusalem ; and one of these near the
place at which Abraham is said to have offered up Isaac, is approached
by a curious flight of circular steps.*
The " twelve stones " form part of a solid platform of unhewn masonry ;
there are four courses of stones, and the upper, shown as the " twelve
stones," is set back eight inches ; two of the stones were turned over,
but no trace of an inscription was found on them. The stone when
exposed to the air is of a dark bluish-grey colour, but when newly
broken it has a cream-coloured appearance.
East of the castle are the remains of three platforms, and below them
on the slope of the hill are broken terraces ; the platforms have evidently
been built to support some building on the top of the hill, and add to
its appearance ; and they, as well as the " twelve stones," may not
improbably have formed part of the substructure of the Samaritan
Temple. Of the temple itself there is nothing left, but to judge from
the appearance and construction of the platforms, it probably stood on
the site now occupied by the ruins of the church and castle ; if it were
south of the castle every stone must have been removed, as the ground
was carefully examined and no trace of the foundations of any large
building was found.
North of the castle is a large pool, and below this and surrounding
the hill on all sides are the ruins of a considerable town, to which
no distinctive name could be obtained. These ruins are most marked on
the southern slope, f where a portion of the enclosing town wall, and
the walls and divisions of several of the houses, can be seen ; the walls
are of unhewn stone, set without mortar.
Near the Samaritan place of sacrifice, at the western foot of the peak,
are some inconsiderable ruins, to which every one we asked gave the
name which Mens. De Saulcy heard, Ivhirbet Louz;ah. This Dean
Stanley identifies with the second Luz, founded by the inhabitants of
Luz when expelled by the Ephraimites from Bethel.
At the extremity of the arm mentioned above as running northwards
from the castle J is a mound, partly artificial, and isolated from the ridge
by a deep ditch. There are traces of steps on the four sides leading to
the summit of the mound, which was occupied by a building fifty-three
feet square, having walls of great thickness. Some excavations were made,
but with the exception of a few Eoman coins nothing of interest was
found. Below the mound on the north are some excavations in the
rock, apparently for holding watnr.
Scene of the reading of the Law. — The natural amphitheatre § pre-
viously mentioned as existing at the waterparting near the eastern end
of the Yale of Nablus was, probably, the scene of the events described
in Joshua viii. 30 — 35. It may be remembered that, in accoi'dance with
the commands of Moses, the Israelites were, after their entrance in the
promised land, to "put" the curse on Mount Ebal and the blessing on
Mount Gerizim. " This was to be accomplished by a ceremonial in
* rhotos. 91, 127. t Photo. 88. t Kioto. 126. § Photo. 93.
70 EBAL AND GERIZIM.
wliicli half the tribes stood oq the one mount and half ou the other ;
those on Gerizim responding to and affirming blessings, those on Ebal
curses, as pronounced by the Levites, who remained with the ark in the
centre of the interval."* It is hardly too much to say of this natural
amphitheatre that there is no other place in Palestine so suitable for the
assembly of an immense body of men within the limits to which a
human voice could reach, and where at the same time each individual
would be able to see what was being done. The recesses in the two
mountain- . which foim the amphitheatre, are exactly opposite to each
other, and the limestone strata running up to the very summits in a
succession of ledges present the appearance of a series of regular benches.
A grander sight can scarcely be imagined than that which the reading
of the Law must have presented : the ark, borne by the Levites, on the
gentle elevation which separates the waters of the Mediterranean from
those of the Dead Sea, and " all Israel and their elders, and officers, and
their judges" on this side and on that, "half of them over against
Mount GerLzim, and half of them over against Mount Ebal,"
covering the bare hill-sides from head to foot. Two questions
have been raised in coanection with the -reading of the Law:
the possibility of hearing it read, and the possibility of assembling the
twelve tribes on the ground at the same time. Of the first there can be
no doubt ; the valley has no peculiar acoustic properties, but the air in
Palestine is so clear that the voice can be easily heard at distances which
would seem impossible in England ; and as a case in point it may be
mentioned that during the excavations on Mount Gerizim the Arab
workmen were on more than one occasion heard conversing with men
passing along the valley below. It is not, however, necessary to suppose
that every word of the Law was heard by the spectators ; the blessings
and cursings were in all probability as familiar to the Israelites as the
Litany or Ten Commandments are to us, and the responses would be
taken up as soon as the voice of the reader of the Law ceased. With
regard to the second point, Lieut. Anderson's plan f of Ebal and Gerizim
gives a good representation of the ground and the principal distances ;
hut without making a minute contoured plan of the mountain sides (a
work of great labour), it is not possible to form a correct estimate of the
number of persons who could be assembled within the amphitheatre.
There are, howevei', few localities which afford so large an amount of
standing ground on the same area, or give such facilities for the assem-
hly of a great multitude.
At the foot of the northern slope of Gerizim is one of the prettiest
cemeteries in the country, consisting of a courtyard, with a well, and
several masonry tombs, one of which was said to bo that of Sheikh
Jusuf (Joseph). We were not allowed to examine the tombs, but were
much struck with the care bestowed on the trees and garden within the
enclosure. The place is called El Amud (the column), and the Eev.
* Didionary of Bible, art. Gerizim.
t Published in "Kecovery of Jerusalem. "
EBAL AND GERIZIM. 71
Oeorge Williams has witli much probability identified it with '' the pillar
that was in Shechem," where Abimelech was made king (Judges ix. G) ;
and with the oak of Moreh, near which Abraham built his first altar to
the Lord after entering the promised land, and Joshua set up a great
stone (Joshua xxiv. 26).
Jacob's well, at the eastern entrance to the Vale of Nablus,* is covered
by a vaulted chamber, round which are the ruins of a church, dating
probably from the fourth century. On a second visit to Nablus in May,
Lieut. Anderson made a careful examination of the well, and has given
an interesting account of his descent, in the " Eecovery of Jerusalem."
He found the well to be 7ft. 6in. in diameter, and 7of t. deep ; there
•was no water at the bottom, and the well was lined throughout with
rough stones, being sunk in alluvial soil. According to Dr. Robinson,
the depth in 1838 was lOoft. Christians, Jews, Moslems, and Samari-
tans, agree in considering this to be the well made by Jacob, and as the
tradition goes back to the early part of the fourth century, there seems
little reason to doubt that it is the same well at which our Lord met the
Samaritan woman. Lieut. Anderson aptly remarks on this point that
" the existence of a well in a place where watersprings are abundant
is sufficiently remarkable to give this well a peculiar history." f
The small square building known as Joseph's Tomb lies a short distance
north of Jacob's Well ; within it we found two modern inscriptions, one
Hebrew, the other Samaritan, and two vases for burning offerings,
similar to those seen at Meirou. Within them were the ashes of some
articles of apparel, which had recently been burnt. The tradition with
regard to the Tomb is not so continuous as that of Jacob's Well. The
little cemetery described above was shown to Maundrell as Joseph's
Tomb, and the accounts of earlier travellers are not quite clear. Joseph,
as we know, was embalmed in Egypt, and placed in a coffin or sarco-
phagus, with a view of his being carried by the Israelites to Palestine,
and his body was probably conveyed in one of the waggons which accom-
panied the twelve tribes during their wanderings. The depth of alluvium
at this spot, as indicated by Jacob's Well, precludes the idea that his
body was placed in a rock-hewn chamber ; and if this be really the site of
his burial, the sarcophagus may still remain in the soil beneath the little
•chamber.
The town of Nablus contains many ancient remains, of which the
most interesting is the principal mosque, with its fine Gothic portal.J
A description of the town, however, with its many ruins and its numerous
springs, hardly comes within the scope of the present paper, nor is there
space to enter upon the history of the place, or the solution of the many
questions relating to the disputed sites on Gerizim and elsewhere, such
as that of the altar on which Abraham offered up Isaac, &c. These have
been fully examined by Eobinson, Williams, Stanley, De Saulcy, and
other travellers, and in the "Dictionary of the Bible," arts. Ebal, Gerizim,
and Shechem. C. W. W.
* Photos. 131, 132. t "Recovery of Jerasalem," page 465. i Photo. 94.
72
JERUSA.LEM.
In a letter dated 2Stli February, Mr. Schick informs us tliat he has
found portions of three aqueducts at different levels, outside the
Damascus Gate, and that he hopes to be able to trace out the source
from which they derived their supply of water.
The excavations in the Muristan are being continued, and a series of
large tanks connected with each other, and 40ft. deep, has recently been
discovered.
In the Haram Area Mr. Schick has confirmed the existence of the
ditch north of the north-west angle of the platform, which was fi
noticed by Captain Warren. He finds several walls of small stone
beneath the surface, and believes the old ditch to have been arched
over.
Mr. Schick has also found indications of the existence of a vaulted
passage near the Golden Gate, running apparently from the old postern
in the east wall towards the platform ; and after a close examination of
the ground near Solomon's Throne, he has come to the conclusion
that there was once a tower there similar to* that at the north-east
angle.
IDEOGPvAPHIC INSCRIPTION FOUND AT ALEPPO,
AKIN TO THOSE OF HAMATH.
The attention of savans has been for some time directed to the ideo-
graphic inscriptions found at Hamath, near Damascus, and made
known to the scientific world chiefly through the exertions of Captain
Burton and Mr. Tyrwhitt Drake. When these two gentlemen were at
Jerusalem in 1871, I told them of a similar kind of inscription existing
at Aleppo, of which, thanks to the kindness of my friend M. Colonna
Ceccaldi, I possessed a drawing made by M. Paucker, and which I gave
to them to copy. It consists of two lines, containing figures whose
analogy with those of the Hamath inscriptions is evident. The original
stone, of basalt like those of Hamath, is embedded partly in the wall
of a mosk, and partly in the hareem of an adjacent house. Only the
former portion is visible, and consequently either the beginning or the
end of the inscription is wanting in the above copy. Mr. Drake, on
visiting Aleppo a short time after, found the stone still in its place in the
mosque El Kakiin ; but the engraving given in " Unexplored Syria "
differs considerably from the one under consideration.
The authenticated existence at Aleppo of an inscription belonging to
the same system of writing as those of Hamath is a fact of considerable
importance, as tending to show that these latter, whatever their origin,
age, or meaning, are neither confined to one particular locality, nor to
INSCRIPTIOX FROM ALEPPO.
73
be considered as isolated and accidental specimens. They must be no
longer treated as a chance phenomenon, but as part of a regular system
of writing belonging to that part of the country {sijstnne regional); and it
is very probable that further researches in North Syria will bring to
light other inscriptions in the same character.
Eefraining from making any premature efforts to decipher these in-
scriptions, I will merely remark that the signs are very few, and repeat
themselves frequently in groups, which seems to show that they belong
to very simple phonetic elements, syllabic if not alphabetical. Apart
from any historical interest which they may possess, these inscriptions
have a special value in that they prove almost conclusively the existence
of an apparently figurative system ol writing specially belonging to
Syria, and dating from a very early epoch, and may consequently be the
means of bringing about some unexpected solutions of the problem as to
\
^^0 00 HO 0 0
p f>
I ' jjL.y H
1/ h "^^ ^.
4!J(.x>
the sources of the alphabet. Without wishing so far to dispute the
results at whicb science has already arrived as to assert that the Phoe-
nician alphabet was entirely derived from this ideographic writing,
which, so to say, died in giving the alphabet birth, one may still think
that the one exercised a certain influence over the formation of the
other. It is of course still a question whether this Syrian system of
ideography is original, or merely an offshoot from the systems of the
two great civilised centres, Egypt and Assyria, of which countries Syria
was always alternately the satellite. It is possible that the Syrian
ideographic system and the alphabet may have nothing to do with
one another, but may both have been borrowed successively and inde-
pendently from the same source at an interval of several centuries.
Cii. Clekmont-Gan>^eau.
G
74
THE HAMAH INSCRIPTIONS.
BY THE REV. W. WRIGHT, OF DAMASCUS.
The existence of the Hamali stones was made known by Burckliardt
in 1812, but not with sufficient emphasis to arouse to action English
archseologists.
For the last six or seven years I have occasionally heard of these
inscriptions, but seldom from any one qualified to give a correct
account of them. And after one has been taken a score of times to see
a wonderful inscription, which turns oiit to be only natural stone
cracks, or at best a piece of Nabathsean, he does not feel sufficiently
enthusiastic for a gallop of two or three days to verify the tale of some
io-norant Arab. From all accounts I inferred that the inscriptions
were only a conglomeration of wasm, or marks on stone, similar to
those burnt on the camels by the Arabs, I, however, resolved to make
a careful insj)ection of the inscriptions the first time my duty led me
to the neighbourhood of Hamah. Meantime, Mr. Johnson, in the first
Statement of the Palestine Exploration Society, and Captain Burton,
in "Unexplored Syria," have done much to bring these important
remains before the British and American public.
The copies of the iascriptions, as presented to the public, were
necessarily unsatisfactory, from the manner in which they were taken.
Mr. Johnson says, " We did not succeed in getting squeeze impressions,
for fanatical Moslems crowded upon us when we began to work upon
the stones, and we were obliged to be content with such copies of this
and other inscriptions found on stones over and 7iear the city gate, and
'ill the ancient bridge which spans the Orontes, as could be obtained by
the aid of a native painter."*
Mr. Johnson seems to have seen only one of the stones, that in the
corner of the shop, for he incorrectly speaks of the others as " over and
near the city gate, and in the ancient bridge," no doubt led into topo-
graphical errors by the vague reports of the people.
Captain Burton describes the location of the stones where I found
them, and where they must have been for a long time ; but the in-
scriptions which he brought away were also the work of " the native
painter." In " Unexplored Syria," f he says, "the ten sheets accom-
panying this article had been applied to the blackened or reddened
face of the four stones — one of which, it will be seen, has a double
inscription — and the outlines were afterwards drawn with a reed pen."
Captain Burton, not having full confidence in the native painter and
the subsequent corrections, pressed me to get squeezes for the Palestine
Exploration Fund, and Mr. Drake, the able representative of that society
* First Statement of American Palestine Exploration Society, page 31.
t Vol. I., 335. " Unexplored Syria " reached me without the Hamali inscrip-
tions, so I have not been able to compare them with the casts.
THE HAMAH INSCRIPTIONS. 75
in this land, knowing that my duty led me towards Hamah, urged me to
get, if possible, plaster casts of all the inscriptions. Mr. Green, H.B.M.'s
vice-consul at Damascus, had been also looking forward for an oppor-
tunity of becoming thoroughly acquainted with northern Syria, and to
secure if possible the Hamah stones, or at least facsimiles of them.
An invitation from the Governor-General of Syria, who was on a tour
of inspection throughout his province, gave the opportunity, and on the
10th November, 1872, we started from Damascus, I on a missionary tour,
and Mr. Green to join the Waly.
On the second day, when in Tabroud, in our school, I secured three
large ancient manuscripts of ecclesiastical legends, -written on thick
cotton paper. They are bulky volumes, bound in strong boards, and
written in Karshouni.*
On the 25th November we were the Waly's guests at Hamah, and the
next morning early we sallied out to find the inscriptions. We had
not been able to get " Unexplored Syria " before starting, and so we
had to commence operations without any advantage from the labours
of our predecessors.
We had first to find the stones, and that simple operation was not so
easy as might seem, for everybody denied any knowledge of them at
first. At last we resolved we would ask every one we met, and curiously
enough, after this resolve, the first inan we spoke to was Su.liman el
Kallas, in the wall of whose house was inscription No. I.f
The finding of the other three stones, for there are only four in-
scribed stones in all, not five, as in some accounts, occupied a consider-
able portion of the day. Meantime, while we were hunting up the
stones in an independent fashion, the governor was taken to see them,
and had telegraphed to the Sultan, asking him to accept them for the
Constantinople Museum. As Mr. Green and I anticipated, Subhi Pasha
was far too learned an ai-chseologist not to recognise at a glance the
value of the Hamah inscriptions, and far too patriotic to let them pass
into the hands of foreigners. He is probably the most learned man
among the Turks, and has one of the finest private numismatic and
general archaeological collections in the world. The Constantinople
Museum is his own creation, and he was glad to secure tor it
these treasures. He, however, consented at once to let us have
plaster casts of all the inscriptions, and promised also to bring the
stones to the serai, where we could work at them at our leisure. Under
other circumstances we should have experienced great difficulty in taking
casts of the stones, for a series of fruitless attempts by foreigners to
secure the stones had brought the Hamathites to consider the inscrip-
tions of extraordinary value, and we heard many expressions of
defiance, and threats of violence towards anybody that tried to
interfere with their sacred and valuable treasures. Later on, when
•
* See Eenaii's "Langues Sumitiques," page 266.
t I shall speak of the stones in the same order as Burton.
'^Q THE HAMAH INSCRIPTIOKS.
it became known that the governor would take the stones, we heard
men vowing that they would destroy the inscriptions.
Mr. Green and I became nervous as we saw a repetition of the
Moabite stone tragedy almost imminent. We assured the men, in
whose ground the stones were, that the Waly would not take them
without paying more than their value, and that now that the Sultan
had accepted the stones, anybody who injured them vvoald be severely
punished. We thus enlisted the cupidity and fear of the Hamathites in
favour of the stones. When we informed the Waly of the danger, he
put the inscriptions under the protection of Ibrahim Pasha for the
night, and we warned also the city guards that dire punishment
would be inflicted on them if any mishap befell the stones. They
were carefully guarded that night, and on the following day the
governor paid for the stones, prices varying from three to fifteen
napoleons each, and they were all lodged safely in the serai.
The stones once within our reach we worked incessantly at them
until we had duplicate plaster-of-paris casts of all the inscriptions.
We were much delayed by the difficulty in procuring gypsum, and getting
it burned and pounded, and we also had to remove from the inscrip-
tions the dirt and fog of ages, and some of them were almost filled with
lime mortar dashed into them. Several attempts also were made to
decoy us from our labours, but at length, after patient hard work for
nearly two days, we had the stones i^erfectly clean, and got perfect
facsimiles of the inscriptions.
Captain Burton says " the fancy of the copyist had been allowed to
run wild " in the copies which he procured ; and though he says " these
vagaries have been corrected," it is to be feai-ed that some of the
artistic fancies of " the native painter " may still be found in the
I)ublished inscription.
I am happy to say that our casts have none of the vagaries of the
native painter. They settle the first question for English archaeologists, ■
which is not, as Mr. Hyde Clarke supposes, " whether these drawings,
reproduced by Captain Burton, are to be considered insci'iptions or
not,"* hut -whether they are perfectly correct or not. As facsimiles they
answer in the affirmative hy the actual lengths of lines, and bars, and
letters, and blanks, perfect even to the faults of the stone.
The removal of the stones produced a greater commotion in Hamali
than will be readily supposed, and the fact of a British consul and
Protestant missionary being the guests of the Waly of Syria, seemed
strange and portentous in the eyes of the fanatical Moslems, but was
somewhat reassuring to the cringing native Christians. Celestial por-
tents, also, were not wanting, for on the night following the removal of
the stones to the serai a meteoric shower in all its eastern splendour
was seen by the Hamathites, who saw in every brilliant sparkling train
the wrath of Heaven predicted against Hamah in the event of the
stones ever being removed. Next morning an " influential deputation "
* " Unexplored Syria," Vol. I., 353.
THE HAMAH INSCRIPTIONS. 77
waited on the Waly to tell liim of tlie evil omens of tlie night, and to
urge a restoration of the stones; but the ATaly assured theui that inas-
much as no one was hurt the omens were good, and might be regarded
as the approbation of Heaven to their loyalty in sending these precious
stones to their beloved sovereign the Commander of the Faithful.
Of the stones I have little to add to Burton's description. There are
four stones and five inscriptions. The stones are close-grained basalt
(fully ripe, as the Arabs say) from the east of the city. Many such
stones are lying about, some of them with Greek inscriptions, and some
carved into the figures of animals, &c.
No. 1 is only a fragment. The lines seem to be broken across the
middle, and therefore the sense is not likely to be complete. Wlien
taken out of the wall it proved to be only a thin piece broken off a large
stone. The remainder of the inscription is yet to be found.
No. 2 proves, by the last line ending in the middle of the stone
leaving a blank at the left side, that the inscription reads from
right to left, beginning at the top.
No. 3 is the stone which was so efficacious in lumbago, that a man
had only to put his back against it to be made perfectly well. This
stone was very large.
No. 4 is on the end, and 5 on the side, of the same square stone,
that in the corner of the shop, proving that the lines are read hori-
zontally, and not from bottom to top and vice versa, as Mr. Hyde
Clarke asserts. The two faces were carefully dressed for the inscrip-
tions, but the part of the stone most remote from the inscriptions
was undressed. The stone was doubtless placed in the corner of a
square building.
No. o has parts of the upper and lower lines defaced and illegible.
This is the inscription the facsimile of which is printed in the first
Statement of the American Palestine Exploration Society, and
incorrectly described as "one of the inscriptions found upon the
bridge."*
All the inscriptions except the first are complete, barring the
defaced letters. The boundaries of the inscriptions and lines are
clearly defined by raised bars. The stones on which they were
inscribed were very large. It took four oxen and fifty men a day
to bring one of the stones a distance of half a mile. The others
were cut in two, and the fragments inscribed were carried to the serai
on the backs of camels. The stones were dressed narrow towards the
parts on which the inscriptions were found, and the bases were
undressed for several feet. Apparently they had been inserted in
masonry with the dressed and inscribed parts standing out of the wall.
They seem to have been intended to be publicly read, and were there-
fore doubtless in the vernacular of the people of Hamah.
NoTE.^ — The casts have not yet arrived, March 31, 1873. — Ed.
Quarterly Statement.
* First Statement of American Palestine Exploration Society, page 32. Burton
speaks of the American facsimile as No. 4, Vol. I., page 333, though he correctly
describes No. 4 as havhig only four lines.
78
DISCOVERY OF THE ROYAL CANAANITE CITY OF
GEZER BY M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU.
From the Journal of the Paris Geographical Society.
Gezer is one of the most ancient towns in Palestine, and was in exist-
ence prior to the arrival and settlement of the Israelites in that country.
In the book of Joshua it is classed amongst the royal cities of Canaan ;
its king, Horam, was defeated by Joshua whilst attempting to relieve
Lachish, which was besieged by the Israelites. Later, after the conquest,
Gezer was included in the territory of the tribe of Ephraim, and, in
fact, marked its extreme western limit. The Ephraimites allowed
the Canaanites they found there to remain. The city was assigned to
the Levitical family of Kohath.
It is mentioned several times during the wars between David and the
Philistines, on the confines of whose territory it was situated.
During Solomon's reign one of the Pharaohs, for motives of which we
are ignorant, made an expedition against Gezer, which resulted in the
capture and burning of the town. So great, however, was the strategical
importance of the point, that, even in ruins, Gezer was of suf&cient value
to form part of the dowry of Pharaoh's daughter when she became
Solomon's wife. Solomon immediately rebuilt Gezer and Lower
Beth-horon, which was near it.
The town of Gezer reappears, under the name of Gazara, in the history
of the wars of the Maccabees. Taken by assault in the first instance by
the Jews, it passed successively into the hands of the two contending
parties, who attached equal importance to its possession. John Hyrcanus,
the Jewish commander, made it his military residence.
In spite of the distinct indications contained in sacred and profane
works, in spite even of the positive statement in the " Onomasticon " of
Eusebius, that Gezer was four Eoman miles from Emmaus-Nicopolis,
a site well known at the present day, the town of Gezer, though sought
for, had not previously been found.
Whilst running through an old Arab chronicle, by a certain Mudjir-
ed-din, M. Clermont-Ganneau quite accidentally came upon the passage
which led to this important discovery. The Arab historian relates that
about the year 900 of the Hegira an engagement took place between
Jamboulat, Emir of Jerusalem, and a party of Bedawi raiders, between
the village of Khulda and that of Tell el Gezer. The latter name means
literally the hill of Gezer, and the Arab name is exactly the same as the
Hebrew one. As the village of lOiulJa is still in existence, and, accord-
ing to the details contained in the account of the Arab author. Tell el
Gezer was^so near it that the shouts of the combatants were heard at
both places, the latter locality should have been easy to fix. No village,
however, of this name was shown on the best maps of Palestine. After
havingjdetermined theoretically the exact position which the Arab and
Jewishjj^Gezer ought to occupy, M. Clermont-Ganneau decided upon
making an excursion to test the accuracy of his views on the ground.
This expedition, made under adverse circumstances, without escort or
NOTE ON THE DRAWINGS OF THE " SHAPIRA COLLECTION." 79
tent, and in a desert country wasted by famine, was crowned witli
success. At the point which, he had previously fixed upon, M. Clermont-
Ganneau found the Tell el Gezer of Mudjir-ed-din, and the ruins of a
large and ancient city, occupying an extensive plateau on the summit of
the Tell. On one side were considerable quarries, from which stone had
been taken at various periods for the buildings in the town, as well as
wells and the remains of an aqueduct; a little beyond this were a
number of tombs hewn out of the rock, the necroi^olis in which repose
the people who have successively inhabited the old Canaanite city. It is
scarcely necessary to add that this place is exactly four Roman miles from
Emmaus-Nicopolis, and that it comi^letely meets all the topographical
requirements of the Bible with regard to Gezer.
M. Clermont-Ganneau points out the importance of the discovery
with reference to the general topography of Palestine. Gezer being one
of the most definite points on the boundary of the territory of Ephraim,
the current views on the form and extent of that territory, as well as of
the neighbouring territories of Judah and Dan, must be very materially
modified. This result alone is of importance, and makes the discovery
of Gezer an event in Biblical researches.
The means by which M. Clermont-Ganneau was enabled to find the
town are also worthy of remark ; it was by availing himself of a source
which is too much neglected, the Muhammedan writings on the history
and geography of Syria. This work is certainly difiicult and thankless,
but the example we have before us shows that it is not unproductive, and
that it may lead to the most interesting and unexpected discoveries.
NOTE ON THE DEAWINGS AND COPIES OF INSCRIP-
TIONS FROM THE " SHAPIRA COLLECTION " SENT
HOME BY LIEUT. CONDER AND MR. DRAKE.
Though hastily coloured, the outline of each object has been very
carefully followed, and those who saw the drawings and the originals
in Jerusalem were of opinion that they were remarkably faithful
representations.
Lieut. Conder states that he was unwilling to copy the inscriptions, as
owing to the imperfect observation of many specimens errors might have
been made which would invalidate their value if executed by one
ignorant of the characters employed ; but Dr. Chaplin and Mr. Drake,
■who were more familiar with the characters, copied carefully from the
originals, or from good squeezes, those sent home.
The total number of drawings is upwards of 200. These represent all
the important specimens in the collection up to the time of Lieut
Conder's last visit to Jerusalem, in October, 1872, the number of pieces
then in Mr. Shapira's collection being about 700. Since then, however,
the number has been increased to 1,000, and several very important
specimens added, of which it is hoped to obtain drawings soon. A great
number of the specimens so closely resemble one another that one or
two examples are typical of each group. A large number are broken.
80 BIBLICAL QUERY. ERRATA.
The drawings sent home contain specimens of each group, 'perfect ones
being always taken in preference to f ragmentai-y ones.
Among these drawings are copies of all the inscriptions yet produced
by Mr. Shapira, except a fevv which have been sent to the office of the
Fund by Dr. Chaplin. The genuineness of the inscription is warmly
supported by Professor Schlottmann in the " Zeitschrift der Deutschen
Morgenlandischen Gesellschaft," but the opinions of English scholars
have as yet been unfavourable.
To the Editor of the Quarterlij Statement of the Palestine Exploration
Fund.
Sir, — Will you allow a few topographical queries ? In 2 Kings xx. 4,
we read, " afore Isaiah was gone out into the middle court." In the
Hebrew it is not court but dfy, "''.J^'^. "What is "the middle city" ?
The Sept. make it the middle court {avl-rj), bu.t the Hebrew is quite
explicit. Some critics (Keil, &c.) make it "the central portion of the
city, or Zion city," but this does not seem satisfactory. Can you give
any light ?
In the same book (ch. xxii. 11) we read, " she dwelt in Jerusalem in
the college." This is literally "the second" (part of the city). The
Sept. gives it eV rrj Maafva, and in Nehem. (xi. 9) we read "over the
second city,"' as it should be rendered ; also in Zeph. i. 10 we have " an
howling from the second city." See Keil and Delitzsch, who render it
" the lower city." "What is the exact meaning of these "seconds" ?
H. B.
EREATA, JANUAEY NUMBER.
r. 7, line 9, read Nablus hcloic.
line 10, ,, soft limestone a&ow.
P. 8, line 7, ,, from bottom, species oi trnxalis.
P. 9, line 18, ,, Quereus coeci/fra.
P. 12, line 14, ,, from bottom, stretching beloio all, to the foreground.
P. 13, line 17, ,, "Mv. Buisberg.
line 21, ,, Mr. Duisbcrg.
line 25, ,, in scan/t of saltpetre.
line 3, ,, from bottom, Y^'AaJ {1 not b).
P. 14, line P, ,, M^\: Duisbcrg.
P. 16, line 6, ,, found ; in one piece (a disc) it occurs.
line 13, ,, low foreheads.
P. 19, line 22, ,, Il(r. .J. Neil (for T. Neil).
P. 21, line 7, ,, from bottom, of tlie third wall.
P. 23, line 8, ,, from bottom, El Tireh.
P. 24, line 23, ,, El Tirch.
P. 25, line 15, ,, El Tireh.
line 23, ,, El Tireh.
line 27, ,, El Tireh.
line 7, ,, from bottom, //'({/"«. ,
line 2, ,, from bottom, El Tirch.
P. 26, line 11, ,, Jiiijnr.
Quarterly Statement, July, 1873.]
THE
PALESTINE EXPLORATION FUND.
PREFACE.
"Wk have, before all tilings, to call tlie attention of oiu- subscribers
and readers to the speeches made at the Annual Meeting, and
especially the statement made by the treasurer of our position and
prospects. The funds are in an unsatisfactory condition. We have
the summer, an unproductive season, before us ; we are pledged to
carry on the Survey, which is the most important and the greatest
work ever yet undertaken in Palestine ; and we want to send out
M. Clermont-Ganneau, for one year only, to clear up, if possible, some
of the points of dispute and mystery with which the topography of
Jerusalem is beset. We therefore most earnestly beg our readers to
assist us, first, in forwarding theii' own subscriptions, and secondly,
in bringing the Society before the notice of others.
As regards the expense of the Survey. It ought, with printing,
publishing, lithographing, &c., and including all expenses in
Palestine, except those of excavation, to be covered by about £3,000
a year. The first six months of the present year have not brought in
quite half that sum. We must add to this the expenses of
"management," i.e., advertising, rent, postage, salaries, &c., which
are kept as low as possible, but which, with every economy, camiot
be brought imder £-500.
Nothing could be more satisfactory than the progress of the woi'k,
and nothing more beautiful than the portions of the map already
sent home. In the reports of Lieutenant Conder and Mr. C. F.
Tyrwhitt Drake will be observed especially the accounts of Carmel ;
Athlit, remarkable especially as the site of the CasteUum Peregri-
norum, the landing-place for pilgrims ; Ctesarea ; the tombs of El
Midyeh, supposed by some to be the tombs of the Maccabees; and
82 PKEFACE.
Mr. Conder's account of recent -work done in Jerusalem. Among
other things, Lieutenant Conder has obtained from Mr. Schick a
hundred and fifty new rock levels. These, with the information
already acquired by Major Wilson and Captain Warren, will
enable us to produce a ground-plan of the city, which will form the
most important set of data possible for all topographical questions.
Mr. Shapira continues to accumulate fresh collections of inscribed
pottery, of which Lieutenant Conder sends us copies. The first
collection was bought by the German Govennnent, but the opinions
of the English srtUfMife are still unfavourable to the genuineness of the
inscriptions.
The tracings of Lieutenant Conder will be exhibited at the
Dudley Gallery during the months of July and August. We have
here to call the attention of our readei's to this exhibition, which
contains, besides Mr. H. A. Harper's most beavitiful collection of
water-colour sketches, illustrations of the whole work of the
Society,
All the particulars of the newly-found Samaritan stone will be
found in this number.
Mr. Drake, who is returning to England for a short time on sick
leave, was prevented from being present at the Annual Meeting
through the accident of a telegram being Avrongly delivered. The
Siu'vey party has been strengthened by the addition of Corporal
Brophy, Pv.E.
The American party are now on the east of Jordan engaged in
their preliminary expedition. Their party, too, has been strengthened
by the addition of two assistant engineers.
;MAP 10 ITi JS7RATE UETJT CO^DERS LETTERS.
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• THE SURVEY OF PALESTINE.
LIEUT. CLAUDE E. CONDEE'S EEPORTS.
EEPORT XIL
TnE South Side of Caemel,
P.E.F. Camp, Jeba, I2th March, 1873.
Survey. — The last day but one of February found us once more in the
field, and the work has, dvtring the present month, been continued with-
out interruption, in spite of two or three thunderstorms, which for-
tunately passed over us by night. The difficulty of choosing a good
site for a camp, a place at once central for the work, at convenient
distance from the old boundaries on the east, and from the sea on the
west, and at the same time possessing good water and provender for
our animals, is now far greater than in the country in which we worked
last year. The villages are few, most of them are very poor, and the
water brackish and unwholesome. Thus we were forced to content
oui'selves with our present camp, which is at the foot of the hills, rather
to the south of Athlit, and at some distance from the main ridge of
Carmel, which an inspection of our last tracings will show to have
been the former southern boundary of the work.
The task of triangulation also requires more judgment than formerly.
The ruined towers of Athlit and Tantura would, I had hoped, have
afforded standing places for the theodolite ; but the first proves merely
a wall and the second (also solid) has had the facing of ashlar removed
as high as it could be reached from the ground, and it thus stands on
a base about two-thirds the size of the upper overhanging part, where
the facing could not be reached. We coiild therefore only observe
to, and not from these points. On Carmel we obtained a very extensive
view, and succeeded in biinging our observations over its highest
ridge, and connecting with the points in the maritime plain. Towards
the south, however, the hills are low, with flat broad tops, and differing
in height very slightly. To obtain a commanding and conspicuous
point was therefore impossible, and whilst choosing the best, we had
some difficulty in recognising it again from a distance. Our calcula-
tions, however, show that we obtained it correctly, and the operations
are altogether satisfactory.
84 LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDEr's REPORTS.
The average size of the triangles is teu miles side, but many of the
lines are twelve to fifteen miles. The triangulation extended from the
new base now stretches across Palestine, from Tabor ou the east to
Acca, Haifa, and Cesarea on the west, and forms a good basis for ex-
tension to the hills of Safed, and to the Sea of Galilee. It will be
checked by its correspondence with the old work on the east, and with.
the Admiralty latitudes on the sea-coast, and will finally be brought
back (by June, it is hoped) to the old base at Ramleh.
The execution of the detail on Carmel is a work of more wearisome
and difficult nature than any we have had since leaving the Judsean
hills. Huge valleys, upwards of 1,000 feet deep, wind tortuously from
the main ridge to the sea. They have to be traced carefully, as one can
never predict where their next bend may carry them. Ruins appear
on bills opposite to you, seemingly wuthin easy reach, and hours have
to be spent in dragging your horses down over hard, sharp, slippery
rocks, througb a jungle of thorny shrubs, and up another ascent of
perhaps thirty-five degrees' slope before one can ai-rive at the site, and
commence its examination and survey. Often the remains ai-e quite
modern, and ill repay one's trouble, but the thoroughness required in
our work makes even these negative results valuable.
Two special surveys will also be required in accordance witb oui* in-
structions, and I hojDe soon to be able to send home copies ; they will
include the neighbourhood of Athlit (Castelluui Peregrinorum), and of
Cesarea, At Tantura, the ruins are not sufiiciently numerous to re-
quire separate survey.
Archceology . — Besides the three j)rincipal ruined sites at the above-
mentioned towns, concerning which you will hoar from Mr. Drake,
there are a great number of scattered remains throughout our present
neicrhbourhood. A curious low line of hills, of which I shall have occa-
sion to speak later, running along the sea-shore about half a mile
inland, but gradually approaching as it goes north to the narrow
beach, is quarried on both sides throughout its whole extent. At a
distance the appearance of the rocky scarps and steps resemble the
walls and flat roofs of a village, and only by the greyer colour is it
iwssible to distinguish between the two. The hills farther inland pre-
isent similar quarries, at Kh. Shih, and in two or three places on
Carmel.
All these quai-ries are full of rock-cut tombs; at Kh. Shih, at Kb.
Umm el Shukuf, and Kh. el Shellaleh, on Carmel, and on the sea-coast,
at Kh. Melliah, and near Sarafend, Kefr Lam, and Tantura, I have col-
lected plans of from fifty to sixty of these sepulchres, the greater part
being full either of tihn, or of bones and skulls, probably of poor pas-
sengers murdered by the natives of the villages. In these ghastly i"e-
ceptacles the turbau or dress of a victim may often be found more or
less complete.
The majority of the tombs have three loculi parallel to the three sides
of the chamber, with a door on the fourth. In each group, however.
LIEUT. CLAUDE R. COXDEr's REPORTS. 85
at least one -witli lociili running in perpendicular to the line of the sides
occurs. On one we found a cross very distinctly cut. Most of the
doors were originally closed by a cylindrical stone of about three feet
diameter, and some eighteen inches thick, rolling back into a recess on
one side. This method is well known, and its relation to the words of
Scripture, "Who shall roll away the stone for us.^" has often been
shown. Here, however, for the first time I saw some of the stones,
fallen flat in front of the doors.
In the midst of the wilderness of Carmel we came on the scanty in-
dications of Crusading work. It is a good instance of the very little
that remains of even comparatively modern bviildings. From a dis-
tance we could see the walls of a ruined village known as Khirbet el
Shellaleh, standing as a promontory surrovmded with valleys 600 to
700 feet deej), and with steep sides, unapproachable except by one
winding road. It commands the coimtry round, though higher hills
exist within the range of modern guns, and immediately suggested a
Crusading site, resembling such places as Rurhmieh, and Burj Bav-
dawil. Having at last reached it, we could at first find nothing but
quite modern i-uined hovels, and a quarry with two tombs. Closer in-
spection, however, showed some small stones with a broad shallow
marginal draft, and one well dressed seven feet long, also drafted. The
I'emains of a column built of several pieces one above the other, and of
a rocky scarp, the foundation apparently of a small tower to which a
flight of rock-cut steps led up, next confirmed my opinion, and, finally,
a Maltese cross cut on a broken stone, and well finished, was visible,
built into a modern mill aqueduct in the valley below. Putting toge-
ther these slight indications, there can, I imagine, bo no reason to doubt
that a small Crusading castle or fortress was here hidden amongst the
hills on an almost impregnable site. The head-quarters no doubt
would be in the large station of Athlit, which was visible through the
mouth of the wady below.
Geology. — The geology continues to possess some jDoints of interest,
and it is satisfactory to find the neAV facts agree with former deductions
on the subject. The sea-wall, or low ridge dividing the i^lain from the
shore, is a curious and interesting feature. To trace the dip of the
strata is almost impossible, as the quan-ying has so changed the
features of the hills as to render their original form almost un-
traceable. The rock is a compact sandy limestone, in which, however,
the sand generally predominates so much, that it might, j^erhaps, bo
called a cretaceous sandstone. The strata, or lamina?, are very thin, and
evidently formed at the bottom of the sea, near shore, where the sand
would be constantly changing its slope, so that, as at present observed,
no two laminae appear to be parallel.
The upheaval of Carmel is now traced on every side, and the dip
measured in two or three places. The underlying dolomite is tilted
upwards towai-ds the main ridge, and disappears on the south beneath
the softer thickly -bedded strata ; these are of varying consistency, some
8G LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDEr's REPORTS.
being Iiard and crystalline, but less compact than tlie dolomite. At
one point I observed a curious vein of bard brown crystalline stone,
running tlirougb tbe soft.
We have been fortunate in finding quite a nest of fossils on one hill
top (principally gasteropods). On the road to Carmel I picked np an
Ammonite ; and farther south, in some dark stone are a number of
bivalves. A fossil limpet, and some large kind of (?) peeten, with a
broken portion resembling Gomphoceras (one of the Ammonitidse), are
also added to our collection, and generally the rock appears near the
coast to be much fuller of animal remains than inland.
By far the most interesting geological feature is, however, the unex-
pected discovery of a basaltic outbreak, an irregulai- crater some five
hundred yards broad, in the neighbourhood of Ikzim. It is the largest
I have yet seen in the country, and close to the reported mines, which
we have not yet visited, but which may prove to be a lode of copper.
~The lai-gest cave I have yet seen, apparently natural, though, perhaps,
formed not by water, but by the action of pent-up gases, as suggested
in other instances by Dr. Tristram, exists just north of us. I followed
it to the end with a candle, and found it some twenty feet broad and
high, three hundred feet long, and full of huge bats, whose rushing
wings could be heard in the darkness. It contains a few stalagmites
of moderate size.
Natural History. — The present season shows Palestine to the greatest
advantage of any in the year. The plains are covered with bright
green, and the dark wilderness on the hills is lit up with flowers. Of
these the commonest are the red anemone, like an English poppy, and
the delicate pink phlox. The rock roses, white and yellow, with a few
pink ones, the cytiens in one or two places covering the hiU-side with
golden flowers, the pink convolvulus, marigold, wild geranium, and red
tulip, are also plentiful, and several species of orchis, the asphodel,
the wild garlic, mignionette, salvia, pimpernel, and white or pink
cyclamen, with may in full glory, may be added to the list.
Animal life is becoming active again; at Athlit we obtained gigantic
ants. The beautiful mahogany-coloured rhinoceros beetle, the vener-
able scaraba)i, and great numbers of flower beetles, of various species,
are very common. The butterflies are new, including the orange tip
{Anthocaris Carduminsis),i]ie Apollo, and two species of large sulphurs,
one of which I have not yet been able to obtain. The great swallow-
tails, newly born, are confined to the hill tops, and the red admiral
{Vanessa Urtiae) is less rare.
Amongst the birds the greater spotted cuckoo and a few quails are
the only new arrivals. The last storm at Haifa in February brought
great shoals of fish into the bay, and the gulls and a number of petrel
followed them. As soon as the sea was quiet once more the sands were
found covered with perfect specimens of sea shells, of which I obtained
a small collection, including a beautiful little crimson peeten, and some
specimens of Trochus ; none but broken specimens had been observable
before the storm.
LIEUT. CLAUDE n. CONDEr's REPORTS. 87
XIII.
Jeeitsalem and El Midyeh.
P.E.F. Camp, Mukiialid, 2nd Mai/, 1873.
Following the suggestion lately received from a member of the Com-
mittee, I shall in future divide the report of work done from the subjects
of general interest included in my letters, and place it first, to allow
those who have no time to spare to follow our proceedings without
behig obliged to read more than the first paragraph.
When last I wrote we had again started field work, and were advanc-
ing south ; we have, since leaving Jeba, camped at Kannir and Zayta,
■and shall in a few days break up our camp at Mukhalid, and retire into
the hills, having added upwards of oGO square miles, with a monthly
average of rather over 170. The triangulation is still large and well
shaped, and we have been very fortunate in finding a fine point in the
plain, on the top of a high tower in the town of Kakun, and a second
almost as good at Kalensawyeh, farther south. In addition to a
great number of notes, sketches, and sketch plans now added to my
book, the following large-scale plans and surveys have been executed.
Athlit : —
Survey of the enceinte of Athlit, scale 24in. to 1 mile.
Plans of three large vaults below the town.
Plan and proposed restoration of the church, sketches of detail.
Plan of a large tomb (possibly Phoenician) near Athlit.
Cesarea : —
Survey of the medieval town of Cesarea, scale oOin. to 1 mile.
Survey of the Eoman enceinte at Cesarea, scale 6in. to 1 mile.
Plan and section of the remains of the cathedral.
Sketch plan of the theatre south of the town.
Sections of the two aqueducts, as laid down on the map.
MlAMAS : —
Plan of the Roman theatre at Miamas.
Plan of a vaulted building on hill above Miamas.
• Kalensawyeh : —
Plan, sections, and sketches of Crusading Hall at Kalensawyeh.
Numerous sketches and notes were also taken at Tantura. The site of
-a rv,oman town, remains seemingly of a small temple, and a lintel with
rough bas-reliefs of lions, were found at Khirbet Semmakah, on the sido
cf Carmel, and it is supposed by Dr. Chaplin to be the site of Ecbatana,
atteiwards called Carmel by Pliny {Xat. Hist. v. 19), where, according to
Lightfoot, Vespasian erected the oracle of the God Carmel; it occupies
a very strong site, and a great number of oil presses are found near it.
Two inscriptions have also turned up. The first is old Hebrew, found
by Corporal Armstrong and myself at Umm el Zaynat on Carmel, over a
tomb now'choked with rubbish. The rock is too rough to admit of a
squeeze being taken, and the letters could hardly be traced, being cut
88 LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDER S REPORTS.
roughly and painted red, surrouuded -witli a red border. The second was
on a stone which had foimed part of a tomb near the village of Etlah,
and was in Greek, us Oeos f.'.ovos (to the one God) being distinctly visible
and a date which Mr. Drake puts at 332 a.d.
In the neighbourhood of Mukhalid we find a Saracenic khan, and a
group of fourteen rock-cut tombs, with loculi of various kinds; one is
well cemented, and remains of ornament in red paint, circles, leaves, and
lines are visible ; another has a circle intersected with a cross cut in front
of its entrance. There is also a very curious well, 40ft. to 50ft. deep,
and perhaps l5ft. diameter, sunk in the sandstone north of the camp.
In geology I may add that we have obtained fossils which will serve ta
fix the period at which the upheaval of the shore line, as now observable,
took place, and tliat we have traced the volcanic centre at Ikzim, which
proves much, larger than at first suspected.
In accordance with the wishes of the Committee I have visited El
Midyeh, and obtained a survey of the place and a plan of the principal
tomb.
Ilaviug arranged the triangulation from the Zayta Camp, I was able-
to spare a few days to go up to Jerusalem for the Greek Easter, and in
order to look after the interests of the Fund in the city itself, returning
by El Z\Iidyeh, and in time to direct the trigonometrical observations
from the present camp at Mukhalid.
The talk of Jerusalem, and of the travellers then crowding in and
around it, was the great Shapira collection. Since last I wrote on this
subject many important events have occurred. The collection has
stiu"-gled through the first stage of disrepute and incredulity, and the
German saruus have distinguished this valuable and unique series from
the clumsy forgeries so common in Palestine, ranking it with theMoabite
Stone and with the Ilamath Inscriptions. The expedition of Pastor
Weser lesulted in a great meetiog of the Oriental Society, who elected
him a member. The famous names of Hitzig and Rudiger are now
arrayed with that of Schlottman in defence of the genuineness of the
pottery. Mr. Shapira has received the official position of an agent for
the Prussian Government, and his first series of 911 pieces has just been
bought by the Emperor himself, at a price, I believe, of over £1,000.
These events had all taken place previous to my last visit, and I could
not fairly ask Mr. Shapira to allow me to copy such pieces as were
already German property without permission from tho owners. Fortu-
nately, however, he has since been able to lay tho foundation of a second
collection, containing already over 2oO_'pieces, of a character, if possible,
more curious than those formerly found, and daily almost growing in
numbers. Some of these he brought back from Moab himself during his.
recent visit in company with Dr. Chaplin, and as they are as yet unsold,,
and as he is free to sell them to any one he thinks best, he courteously
allowed mo to take the first sketches of the new objects, of which I
copied as many as time would allow, and iiow hasten to send them homo^
to the Fund.
LIEUT. CLAUDE R. COXDER's REPORTS. 89
Tlie most remarkable of these is a great " teraph " of black pottery,
42iu. long, with horns and a beard of a semi-Egyptian type, -with a fino
Phoenician inscription on the " stump" in front, and a second incised
behind. The former contains seven lines, the latter ten. The pottery,
which at first sight looks like painted wood, is of one colour throughout,
the figure being hollow ; it has a yery curious ochrc-coloured decay,
which I have tried to represent roughly. The figure was broken in many
places, and has been not over-correctlj^ mended with glue.
Most of the new pieces come from new fields of research, with the Arabic
names of which I will not trust myself. Those coming from one place
bear a sort of family resemblance, though of the 1,100 pieces now col-
lected scarcely one is a facsimile of another. The large goddess wiih a
double inscription (also a terminal figure), and with seven horns, is not
dissimilar to a smaller one with seven lines of inscription, and also with
horns nine in number. The following, out of the fifteen objects I send
home, are of most interest, next to these large figures : First, a teraph,
with the two letters Yod, Wou, which if they turn out to be a form of
the sacred name Jt-Jiovdh, will be of highest interest; in this, with tha
exception perhaps of the calf and calf-headed deities, we find the first
indication of the worship oiJeJwvah by surrounding nations, to whom, as
we see clearly from the Moabite Stone, he was but the " tribe god" of
the Jews, the husband of Asherah, and third in the triad with Baal and
Ashtoreth, a view already learnedly supported by Lcnormant in his
" Lettres Assyriologiques."
The second is a sort of " Phamix," or bird-bodied figure with human
horned head ; on the neck are seven successive marks, on the breast aie
five letters incised. The reading of this inscription will perhaps give a
clue to the symbolism of the numerous bird-forms in the collection, and
I may venture to suggest a connection with the attribute of efei-ntf//
which we find in such deities as Ilobal and Bel the ancient, the Phoenix
being itself an emblem of the same.
A third is a head similar to one already sent home, with a protruding
tongue, which, in accordance with the descriptions of Herodotus and of
St. Jerome, we may venture to consider as a representation of Baal
Peor, the Priapus of Midian.
Tho inscription round the base of a fourth, also a horned deity
marked with the seven stars, will, it is thought, throw light on the two
initials Aiii, Ahph, continually occurring at the beginning and at tho
end of the inscriptions.
A fifth seems to be tho first representation of a god of the character of
the classical Pan, with a tail and short goats' horns, the legs being, how-
ever, unfortunately broken and lost.
Finally, not least interesting is No. 200, a globular vessel pierced
with eight large holes, and with seven arranged in an angular form, of
which five are smaller. An inscription runs round this nondescript
production, and above are symbols including sword, spear, bow and
arrows, a shield and two stars, with another emblem very similar to a
pair of spectacles.
90 LIEUT. CLAUDE R. COXDER's REPORTS.
One fine jar I -was obliged to leave, and did so all tlie more ■willingly
since Mr. Drake will very probably find time to sketcb. it, and to make
an accurate copy of tlie inscription.
Of the old collection tbere are but few important specimens not
already sent to the Fund. The large figure of a goddess, with an
inscription translated by Schlottman, has not, however, been copied, and
is now German property, as well as one very curious figure conjectured
to be a representation of Charon. The head has an unusually long nose,
in each hand the demon holds a human mask, behind the trunk is what
one might take for a boat, and in front are two thin legs of dispropor-
tionate length resembling oars. The figure is small, and, in common
with the majority of the minor pieces, it has no inscription.
Such was the condition of the Shapira collection at the time of my
leaving Jerusalem. It is to be hoped that the American expedition,
now already in the neighbourhood of Heshban, will succeed in bringing
fresh treasures to light.
The time of year and the late fall of the winter rains prevented my
visiting, as I had hoped, the passages of the Haram, but other explora-
tions within its precincts were facilitated by the repairs now going on
within the Kubbet es Sakhrah itself. I was enabled in consequence of
scaffolding placed over the holy rock, to assist Mr. Schick in accurate
measurements of its surface, which will correct and supplement my
former sketch. I was also able to ascend into the interior of the drum,
and examine the pillars for correction of my former sketches. The
cornice, with an Arabic inscription, which runs immediately below the
great mosaics, I was most anxious to examine, since both Mr. Fergusson
and the Count de Vogue agree that the latter are of Christian origin. I
was, however, able to determine that the cornice was structural, and
bonded into the building, and not merely a subsequent addition.
In the south-east corner of the Haram my attention was further called
to the existence of a regular apse on the east side of the Mosque el
Aksah ; the centre has been broken away, but the commencement of the
wall on either side is distinctly visible, and is niaikcd on the Ordnance
Survey. The curve of the cornice above is even better marked, and on
reference to De Vogue's plan I see that the apse is dotted in. This
removes one of the great objections to the notion that El Aksah was
former]}^ a Christian church.
"We examined carefully what looked at first sight like foundations, on
the i)latform supported by the stables of Solomon ; they, however, proved
in every case to be merely flagstones some eight inches thick, and there
can be little doubt that these vaults arc far too weak ever to have sup-
ported a structure of any weight above. The piers are, as is well known,
composed of large stones drafted on one side, and evidently originally
belonging to the external wall; as regards the date of the arches they
support. Dr. Chaplin has lately made the valuable discoverj- that masons'
marks identical with some \ised in the Muristan are also to be found on
the haunch stones in the south-east corner of the Haram.
LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDER's REPORTS. 91
A foi'ther detail not marked on tlie Ordnance Survey is observable
opposite the supposed springing of an arcb outside tlie eastern wall. It
is a little chamber now almost built up in tbe thickness of the wall.* The
north side of this opening is made of largo and very well-dressed ashlar,
and rests immediately on the foundation of huge and undressed stones,
of which two courses are visible all along the eastern wall of the stable.
This recess or opeuiog is shown as a double window by De Vogiie,
but must subsequently have been walled uj), as it is now only visible
through a narrow opening. A very large stone with a semi-column
attached, measuring Gft. in length and 4iu. in breadth, the diameter of
the column being 3ft. 4in., now lies on the floor. This very probably
formed a central pier to the opening.
In Captain Wilson's account of Mr. Schick's late discoveries in the
Haram the examination of the Kubbet el Khidr is enumerated. Here,
however, I can claim priority, as in October last I was able to enter and
examine this mosque. The fact of the floor being of rock is extremely
doubtful, but immediately outside the door the rock unquestionably
does appear at a level 2438'<5 according to my last and most accurate
measurement. At or about this level it will be found to be marked
together with several other new rock levels in the plate which I sent
home to accompany my October report. This level being two or three
feet above that of the floor of the Kubbet el Khidr is more important
for antiquarian purposes than that of the floor itself, if it should indeed
prove on trial with a chisel to be the live rock also.
One of the most important points as yet not fully explored is the J^o.
29 Tank measured by Captain Warren, and supposed by Mr. Fergusson
to contain remains of the Basilica of Constantine. On this subject I
may be allowed one important remark after careful study of the appear-
ance of the ground. It is simply impossihk that the arch of this vault
can run at the same level more than a few feet beyond the point to
which Captain Warren traced it on the east, for the plain reason that
the crown is but 2ft. belov,' the level of the surface, and that on the
cast the ground falls upwards of 10ft. before reaching the north-east
corner of tho platform. Thus 8ft., or nearly the whole of the arch of the
vault, would be visible at this point, were the vault continued in the
eame line.
Another important point indicated to me by Mr. Schick was the pro-
bable connection between the cisterns Nos. 34, and 2 on the platform,
and that group on a lower level known as Nos. 12, 13, and 14. The
line between Xo. 34 and the north side of No. 14 shows indications of
two shafts now filled in, and of the top of an arch of small masonry no
doubt covering a vault.
Mr. Schick's kind exertions further enabled me to investigate the whole
length of the very extraordinary passage leading obliquely from the
south-west corner of the twin pools of the Convent of the Sisters of Zion.
It was first explored by Captain Warren, but after floating on liquid
• This chamber is described in Notes to (Jrdnance Suivey, pnge 33.
92 LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDEll S REPORTS.
manure for some considerable time be found tbe roof too low to allow of
bis proceeding to tbe end. It bas since been cleared by order of Joseph
EfEendi, Lord Mayor of Jerusalem. At the time of our visit it bad but
a few feet of water in it, and we were able to traverse its entire extent
on planks.
Tbe twin pools, now full of water to tbe crown of tbe arcb, are below
that level rock-cut on tbe east and west ; tbey are reacbed by a staircase
and by rock-cut steps from tbe street near tbe Ecco Homo arch. On the
south side a rocky scarp rises above the crown of the arcb, and over the
street to a height about 2,4oGft. above sea level ; tbe rock from this
point slopes gradually southward, and its height on the south side within
tbe naram is about the same on the north, but only 2,434ft. where it
last appears (at a window on tbe west wall) above the level of the surface
of the interior
Tbe abrupt eastern termination of this great block, standing upwards
of 30ft." over the Haram courts at the north-west corner, is distinctly
visible on the interior, but its extent on tbe west is not as yet known.
It is tbrough this tbat the narrow passage, of which a plan is given in
the QiKtrUrly for April, 1872, is cut. It runs nearly straight till opposite
the window already mentioned, which is at a distance of 100ft. from
the north-west corner, and on the west Haram wall. At the commence-
ment the passage, which averages some 4ft. in width, is 20ft. high, and
entirely cut in rock, through which the rain water from the surface
pel col lied. Tbe rcof is formed by huge flat slabs placed from rock to
rock, in tbe sides are passages or weepers to facilitate the collection of
the water, and in tbe bottom a small water channel, not occupying tho
whole width of the passage, is visible. At about a quarter of the whole
length from the entrance a dam Oft. high is placed, resembling exactly
the two dams in the reservoirs planned by mo at Seffuryeh ; it bas a
hole below, tbrough which the water could be let out as required. From
tbe farther end, where tbe total height of the passage is only some 7ft. or
8ft., it runs on at an angle and reaches tho west Haram wall at a level
22ft. below the interior surface ; this part is built in small masonry, and
only tbe lower part is of rock ; tbe flat slabs are still visible above, and
from tbe wall springs a nicely finished arcb of small stones ; tbe channel
is evidently (as at present built) later than tbe wall, and ends suddenly.
The true original direction of tbat part which is rock-cut it is impossible
to determine, as it stops abruptly before reaching the wall.
Tbe examination of the Haram wall at this point is of considerable
inteie-t, forjudging from the height of the rock in tho passage there can
be but few courses below those visible, and these have every appearance
of remaining in situ. Tbe stones are 4ft. Gin. high, well finished, and
tolerably well preserved, with a draft 3in. wide at the side, and Gin.
above and below : the reason of this difference being that each course,
as far as one can judge from only seeing two joints, was set back 3in. or
4in. from tbe one immediately below it. Tbe same feature was observed
by Captain Warren in his excavations near the north-east corner of tho
Haram at about a corresponding level.
LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDEIl's KEPORTS. 93
Just before reaching the turn in the passage, and opposite the window
in the Haram wail, a way has been broken through at right angles to the
passage, and the chamber in which the window is can be reached through
the floor.
This point is also one of great interest, as the wall is again visible. The
south side of the great scarp is here traceable from the Haram wall to the
passage, and forms the north side of the chamber. The Haram wall
here about the level of the interior is of masonry similar to that already
mentioned, and the courses are stepped back in the same way.
But at the level of the ground on the interior the wall is made thinner
by a bevelled set-back, leaving two buttresses 4ft. Gin. thick at intervals
of 8ft. 9in. This arrangement has been observed at Hebron, and in the
remains east of the Church of Holy Sepulchre, but has never before
been found in the Haram. The courses of the buttress are all flush. The
lintel of the window is one large block, resting on the south side
on the courses of the wall, and on the north side on the rock of the
ecarp.
I was also able before leaving Jerusalem to obtain from Herr Schick
the long-promised plate of rock levels throughout Jerusalem. It shows
the exact position and depth below the surface of the rock in upwards of
one hundred and fifty new places. Combining this with Captain Warren's
careful observations, I shall be able to produce a ground-plan of the
natural site of the citj% which will form jDcrhaps one of the most
important set of data for the study of the ancient topography whicli
we can hope to obtain. It must not be forgotten that to Mr. Schick
belongs the credit of this most useful and necessarj' basis for future
exploration.
Leaving Jerusalem once more, in the company of Dr. Chaplin, we
proceeded by Upper Bethhoron to El Midych, of which, in compliance
with the Committee's directions, I send a short accouat with a Gin. survey
of the site and a plan of the tomb.
In the January Quarterly for 1870 will bo found (p. 245) an account
of the place by Dr. Sandreczki, who first identified it with Modin, and
the curious building with the seven sepulchres erected by Simon Macca-
beus for himself, his parents, and his four brothers (1 Mace. xiii. 27 ;
Antiq. xiii, 6). The requisites of the two accounts are, a view to the
sea, seven tombs "one against another " with surmounting pyramids
and a cloister surrounding them. These, as he points out, are all
fulfilled at El Midyeh. My sketch will show how the sea, and the long
line of sandhills, with the olive groves of Ramleh, and the white minaret
of Lydd, are visible above the line of lower hills immediately west of
the spot.
A further account of explorations carried on in that year by M. Victor
Guerin will be found in the Juno number of the QuartcrJij for 1870.
After clearing the dchn's the tomb was opened, and, as we were informed
by the inhabitants, bones and other treasures, including peihaps the
tesselated pavement which formed the flooring of the chamber, were
carried away to Jerusalem.
94 LIEUT. CLAUDE K. CONDEr's REPORTS.
The condition in whicli tlie monument was left in consequence of these
excavations was not over favourable for subsequent examination.
El Midteh.
This is a large Ai-ab village, standing on a hill, and defended on
the north, south, and west by a deep valley. Immediately south of the
present town is a round eminence with steep and regularly sloping sides,
suggesting immediately an ancient site, but showing nothing in the
way of ruins except a few stone heaps amongst the olives which cover
its summit. The ground on the west side of the deep "wady, which has
the modern name Wady Mulaki, is, however, much higher, and closes
in the view of the sea. It is here, about half a mile west of the
village, that the Kabur el Yahud, or " Tombs of the Jews," were found,
close to a modern white tomb house, with a spreading tree beside it,
the resting-place of Shaykh Gharbawi Abu Subhha; My survey
and plans give the necessary details, and I will only add a few observa-
tions to explain them. The sepulchres, which are fast disappearing,
seem to have been seven in number, probably all of one size, lying
approximately east and west, and enclosed by one wall about five feet
thick. This is well preserved on the east and west, but has disappeared
— or was removed by M. Guerin— on the north and south. Of the walls
of partition, however, only one can be well traced, consisting of stones
well dressed, laid with continuous horizontal and irregularly broken
vertical joints, without any trace of drafting, and varying from 2ft. to
5ft. in length, their other dimensions being about 2ft.
The most northern is the only one of the chambers which is sufficiently
preserved for examination, and differs entirely from any sepulchral
or other monument 1 have as yet seen in the country. It consists of a
chamber open on the north, nearly 8ft. high, 6ft. from east to west, and
5ft. from north to south. Its only remarkable feature is a cornice the
profile of which is a quarter circle, which is evidently intended to sup-
port a greater overlying weight than that of the flat slabs some 6ft.
long which roof the chamber in. The floor was also of flags supported
by a narrow ledge on all sides ; these having been removed, the tomb
itself could be seen below, a square vault of equal size with the
chamber, and apparently 3ft. 6in. deep, though the debris which had
filled it on one side may have prevented my sinking down to the floor
itself.
The pyramid which once surmounted each of these chambers has
entirely disappeared ; its only traces were the supporting cornice on the
interior, and the sunk centre of the upper side of the roofing-slabs, which
were raised about Gin. round their edge for a breadth of 1ft. to 1ft. Gin.
The base of the pyramid must have been a square of 8ft. or f)ft. wide (it is
not possible to determine it exactly), and the height would therefore
probably have been 15ft., or at most 20ft. Of the mosaic pavement to
the tomb, and of the ornaments of its walls, I was not able to find a
single trace.
LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDER's REPORTS, 95
The surrounding cloister has also been destroyed, but on the north
and west a few courses of a well-built wall were visible in parts, parallel
to the sides of the tomb, about 20 paces from its outer wall. "Within
this enclosure was a choked-up cistern, and without, farther down the
hill, a rough cave 22 paces by 14, used as a cattle stable, and full of soft
mud.
Immediately north of the tomb are remains of later buildings of small •
rough masonry with pointed arches. They are ruined houses according
to the account of natives of the spot.
The name Xhirbet Midyeh will be found on the map as ajjplying to a
set of rock-cut tombs about a quarter of a mile south of the Sliaykh,
and these are described by Dr. Sandreczki at some length. They are
separated by a slight depression from the "Kabur el Yahud," and
between the two, as shown in my Gin. survey, there is a well and a
couple of ruined and broken cisterns. The Doctor enumerates about
twenty-four tombs; of these I observed twenty-one, and a large one with
two entrances, twenty-three in all. It is possible I may have missed or
forgotten to show one. The tombs resemble exactly those formerly
described in the large cemetery at Ikzal, but are smaller. They consist
of square chambers sunk about six feet in the flat surface of the rock,
with a loculus parallel to the length of the shaft on each side, cut back
imder a flat arch, as shown in the sketch. A large block of stone closes
the tomb above ; all had, however, been pushed slightly to one side, leaving
the interior, which in one case was occupied by the body of a poor native
woman but lately placed there, distinctly visible. At first I imagined
that they all pointed east and west, but one it will be noticed is at right
angles to this direction. Nine of them are placed in one roughly-straight
line, and four others parallel. They were all very small. The loculi
cannot be more than 5ft. Gin. long, and the stones above are not much
over 6ft. 6in.
As continually happens, a tomb of another class exists in the imme-
diate neighbourhood. South of the nine tombs the rock is scarped
perpendicularly to a height of oit. for over 30 paces, and on the west a
square chamber with rock scarps on three sides six paces in length is thus
formed. It was probably once roofed over, but no traces of masonry
remain ; it is filled with rubbish, and on the north and west the tops of
two small entrances to chambers are visible ; I could not, however, find
any corresponding door on the south. A chamber of this kind exists in
two or three places near Haifa, where the side entrances lead to tombs
with loculi perpendicular in direction to the walls. Similar loculi occur
at El Tireh, in connection with tombs svnJc like the majority of those at
El Midj'-eh. In fact the mixture of three or more classes of tombs in one
cemetery is common throughout the country, and the chambers in ques-
tion, if once the debris were removed (which would hardly repay the
trouble), would very probably prove to have the Jewish loculus.
The wine-press mentioned in the former Report I visited and
measured ; it is not equal to other specimens I have copied. East of the
96 LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDER S REPORTS.
cemetery the rook is mucli quarried, p.nd there are a few sunken sqiiare
places resembling unfinished cisterns, or the commencement of a sys-
tem of new tombs.
There is not, as far as I am aware, any other feature of interest to
mention at El Mid y eh.
Some account of the ruins at Khirbet Semmakah, the only place on
Carmel where remains of any importance exist, will no doubt prove inte-
resting, especially if, as already- discussed, it seem likely to be the site of
Ecbatana or Carmel.
The statement of Lightfoot is not, however, received by Dr. Thomson,
who quotes Tacitus (" History of Yespasian," p. 410) to show that the
God Carmel was worshipped without a temple, in the open air, on the
top of the mountain, and probably at El Mahrakah, the place of Elijah's
sacrifice.
That Khirbet Semmakah is the site of a town, and to all appearance
of a Eoman town, there can bo but little doubt. After wading through
the almost impassable brushwood which lies on the lower slopes of Car-
mel, we came ui^on a small plain or broad valley with a gently sloping
hill at its northern boundary, whilst on the east and west the sides were
steeper, and impenetrable for horse and man.
The ruins lie scattered over an extent of rather less than a quarter of a
mile, principally on the sides of the hill, and but few were found on the
top. On the northern side a veij' deep and precipitous ravine, in which
the vultures, crows, and hawks were wheeling slowly, closes in the site,
and renders it impregnable in that direction. The name is Wady
Nahel.
The principal remains are those of what would seem to be a small
temple, having a bearing of 87°. Only the lower courses of tlie eastern
wall, and two pillar bases 2ft. Sin. diameter, are left. The doorway,
which is slightly north of the northern pillar, was oft. 3in. wide, and
surmounted with a lintel with simple mouldings. This had fallen
within the building, and the upper part of the jambs with corresponding
mouldings had also disanpeaicd. The stones of the wall were orna-
luonted with drafts, one being jft. in length, and so cut as to appear
like two stones with the centres raised, and drafts Sin. broad and about
lin. deep. Other drafts were 7in. broad and Uin. deep. The faces
of the stones were in all cases dressed, but the deeper drafted ones were
rough.
Immediately east of the temple the town wall, or some similar struc-
ture, was traceable for about oO yards, and consisted of small well-cut
stones, about 1ft. long and 6iu. high; several other walls joined on to
this at right angles, and on one of these, close to the temple, was a stono
seeming to have been originally a lintel, but now placed in the wall. It
was 7ft. long, 3ft. high, and ornamented with a tablet on which in bas-
relief were two lions roughly executed facing one another, and with a
cup placed between their paws. A second smaller cup was cut above the
left-hand lion's back. Tae whole of the masonry, though small, was
LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDER S REPORTS. 9(
well dressed, and far superior to modern Arabic workmanship. Unless,
indeed, which is uidikely on account of the bas-relief, they should be
Jewish, there is no date but that of the Eoman occupation to which to
ascribe these ruins.
Continuing our search we found a well within the town wall, and a
cave without. At the south-west corner of the hill is a strong corner
foundation, which seems to belong also to the outer wall, and farther
north the ground is strewn with broken stones and fragments. A very
low valley here separates the ground and runs soiith, on the east of its
course, and directly north of the temple two caves appear, one possibly
a rough tomb. To the west also there are several remains. These in-
clude a fine beehive cistern, about 30ft. diameter, foundations of good-
sized and well-proportioned stones, and a large sarcophagus lying on the
flat rock, Sft. in length, and with a flat lid beside it.
Still farther west is a smooth platform of rock, in which a square
birket, lOft. side, and a well now partly choked, Sft. diameter, are found.
The most characteristic feature, however, remains to mention. In
every direction one finds foundations of little buildings about 20fr.
square, near which lie one or more (generally a pair) ot rollers, cut out
of soft limestone; they are 7ft. long and Sft. diameter, and have grooves
sometimes running the entire length, but generally arranged in four
lines parallel to the length of the pillar, with four or five grooves in a
line. Of these I counted upwards of a dozen. They are supposed by
Mr. Drake to be rollers, moved by handspikes, and placed end to end in
the buildings, which he takes to be oil mills.
It is needless to add that I made a rough special survey of the place,
and plans and measurements where required.
A doorway, similar in some respects to that of the temple, we found
afterwards at Khirbet Baydus, south of Kannir ; but in this case lintel,
jambs, and seemingly the groundsill, were all cut out of one piece of very
hard creamy limestone with fossils. No other ruins of the same date,
except a pillar stump, a rough cave, and some blocks of a wall, existed
near it. There were, however, ruins of more modern character.
In concluding this report I wish to say a few words as to the geology
of central Palestine, the thorough tracing of the centre of basaltic erup-
tion at Ikzim having explained a great deal which must formerlj' have
been puzzling.
In Eepoit VII. I spoke of the formation of the great Plain as duo to
volcanic action and subsequent denudation, and of the low synclinical
dipping upwards to the basaltic centres at Shaykh Iskander and on the
Gilboa range. The subsequent discoveries confirmed this statement, but
it was not till after leaving Jeba that I was able to grasp the whole geo-
logical formation of the country. The sudden upheaval of Carmel, with
its abrupt sea and land ends, must strike all observers as requirin"- ex-
planation, as well as the low, flit character of the range formin"- ihe
western boundary of the great Plain, between the peak of Elijah's sacri-
fice and the cone at Woly Iskander's tcmb.
98 LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDER's REPORTS.
The Ikzitn centre explains all this. The low ridge just mentioned, of
soft limestone with flints, with a yet softer marl below, dipping gently
down towards the Maritime Plain, and known by the modern name of
" Belad el Euhah," presents the natural surface of the country. On the
south this is broken by the outburst of basalt and other trappean erup-
tive rocks at Shaykh Iskander, which, in their attempt to escape, have
tilted the strata at an angle of upwards of 30 degrees, and have brought
to light the underlying dolomite, from, above which the softer formations
are now washed off by subaerial denudations. On the north-west the
Ikzim outbreak has entirely broken up and altered the surface of the
country, and finally the appearance of a trappean outbreak near Umm
el Zaynat, and of a large cavern, perhaps formed by pent-up gases, on
the slope of Carmel, together with its steep sides and the direction of the
dips, leads one inevitably to the conclusion that the great elevation of
the range is due to the violent internal action of igneous matter, unable
to find more than a very partial outlet for escape. The dolomitic rocks
and the fossiliferous limestones of Carmel are at a higher level, but of
an older formation than the soft marls of the " Belad el Euhah," and
thus it appears as though the effect produced on the part where no
escape was possible was far greater than where, as at Ikzim, the basalt
found an easy outlet.
On leaving this centre to the north the plain of Sharon suddenly
widens to a more than double breadth, and the gradual slope of the hills
contrasts markedly with the inland cliffs north of the Zerka. We now
approach again the Judtean range, which is said generally to present a
low anticlinal, an assertion which it requires nirmerous and careful ob-
servations to prove.
Another point of great geological interest is the date of the upheaval
of the shore line, and on this also we shall now be able to throw light, in
consequence of a valuable find of fossils at Khirbet Dustray, near Athllt,
on the curious sea-iuall or line of low inland cliffs of sandy limestone, in
which, as explained in my last report, the tombs and quarries are so
constantly found.
Advancing south of the Zerka we find this line to run gradually
farther inland with the widening plain, and after passing Cesarea a
second line of cliffs begins to rise close to the beach, attaining a height
of 200ft. near Mukhalid, and running on continuously to Jaffa. Thus it
seems as though two succeeding periods of upheaval might be expected,
giving shore lines some four or five miles apart. It appears also that
this upheaval has a very gi-adual dip upwards towards the south, but
further observations near Acca will be necessary before advancing any
theory on the subject.
From such a study of geology in a country so interesting as is Pales-
tine, one is h'd to the conclusion that volcinic action thro'ghout its whole
extent from Dan to Beershoba, must have been Vi-ry violent and con-
tinuiil, and I look forward with great eagerness to the thorough exiimi-
nation of the Ghor, which may perhaps prove to owe its formation
MR. TYRWIIITT DRAKE'S REPORTS. 99
neither to a fault nor to glacial or flavial action, but to a sudden vol-
canic convulsion not impossibly at a late geological date, which one
cannot but connect in one's own mind with the overthrow of Sodom and
Gomorrah.
Claude R. Conder, Lieut. R.E.,
Commanding Survey Party.
MR. C. F. TYRWHITT DRAKE'S REPORTS.
XIII.
Camp Jeba, March 12, 1873.
Our present camp is pitched at the foot of the western slopes of
Carmel, some three miles south-east of Athlit. The ruins of this place
seem wholly Crusading, and I shall forward an account of them as soon
as we have examined them. A remarkable natural feature is observable
near the coast ; commencing in sand dunes about three miles south-
west of Carmel convent a ridge runs parallel to the mountain of that
name, gradually increasing in regularity and in hardness of rock, till,
between Athlit and Tanturah, it assumes the form of a rocky ridge
40 to 50 feet high, and some 300 yards broad. The stone is a soft
crystalline limestone, almost resembling a sandstone. Between these
two last-named vUlages is a plain stretching westwards from this sea-
wall to the sea, and protected from inroads by the peculiar manner in
which the former has been quarried. For many miles the whole sur-
face of this ridge has been cut and quarried to a depth of from six to
ten feet. In many places a narrow ridge or crest has been left on the
summit, thus forming a wall of living stone. Passages have in several
places been cut through the ridge, and show traces of having been closed
by gates. Rock-cut tombs, as described by Lieut. Conder, ai-e nume-
rous in these quarries, and must, I imagine, be ascribed to the early
centuries of the Christian era. Our present state of knowledge, how-
ever, with regard to the rock-hewn tombs of Palestine, owing to the
almost total absence of inscriptions or any other guides, renders all
attempts at fixing the date of these excavations uncertain.
Besides the road passages above mentioned, one water-drain has been
also found cut through the rock. In several places, too, we have come
across old chariot roads with deep ruts in the rocky surface.
The present village of Tanturah is situated about half a mile to the
south of the ruins of old Dor or Dora. The remains of these ruins —
for as usual all the dressed stones have been dug up and carried off —
cover an oval mound comprising several acres and adjacent to the sea.
Tbe most prominent object is the I'emains of a tower of Crusading or
early Saracenic construction. The part still standing is the north-east
100 MR. TYRWHITT DRAKe's REPORTS.
buttress of a square fort on a spit of land running into the sea. A
pointed arcli gives the clue to its date ; part of a well staircase may
still be traced. The ashlar stones are about three feet by two feet and
one and a half feet thick ; mortar, full of cockle shells, layers of rubble,
and old Eoman bricks, form the interior of the walls. North of this,
and supporting the cliffs, are walls of Soman work, formed of stones
some four feet by two feet and two feet thick. Foundations as of a
kind of wharf still remain at the water's edge. This massive masonry
has been lined throughout with a coat of rubble and cement to a thick-
ness of about two feet, for what purpose I am unable to say. Above
these substructures, and immediately facing the sea, are the debris of a
large number of columns two feet ten inches in diameter. The capitals
are a kind of Ionic not unfreqvient in the Hawran, and of which I have
given an example found in the 'Alah in "Unexplored Syria." The
volutes are formed on each side by the junction of two cones attached
to the capital, an example of which measured four feet four inches by
three feet four inches at top. The building to which these columns
belonged must have been a conspicuous object from the sea. To the
east of the mound is a Roman tank for irrigation, differing from those I
formerly described near Jaffa as being built of rather large blocks of
stone. Near this are a few gray granite columns. The sea-coast hei'e
is fringed with low rocks and indented with little bays which, protected
by a few small moles, would still serve, as they doubtless did under the
Romans, as harbours for coasting craft.
Throughout all this neighbourhood the rock-tombs above mentioned
are much used by the fellahin to stow away the bodies of murdered
men who, not having died en regie, cannot be bui-ied in a Mohammedan
cemetery. In two caves near Sarafend I counted sixteen skulls, near
Athlit as many, and frequent solitary cases or groups of two or three
are found scattered about. A native of Athlit to whom I first applied
for information, said, " Those are the bones of men killed about here,"
and seemed to think it the most natural thing in the world that if men
went along the high road they should come to such an end.
Turning to the pleasanter subject of Mount Carmel we find its steep
sides and rugged wadies still covered with a growth of brushwood
which shelters the usual wild anima's. Many ruins arc scattered over
the hills, some ancient but many of recent date. Till the advent of
Ibrahim Pasha the Druzes were very powerful in Carmel, and owned
many villages. All of these, with the exception of 'Asfieh and Daliyeh
— the former half Christian — are now deserted. At a river called
Semmakah a large number of columns have been found and will be
described on a future occasion.
The weather is peculiarly unsettled and disagreeable, as well as far
from henlthy. The wind is continually changing, thougli blowing more
from the east than from any other quarter. iJuring the last few days
haze and mist have frequently occurred, and there is seemingly every
probability of an early and unusually hot summer. The cereals are
MR. TYBWHITT DRAKe's KEPOHTS. 101
well up and barley has been in ear, on the maritime plain, for more
than a week.
The following are a few of the identifications of ancient sites which I
had begun to work out in our winter quarters at Haifa when sickness
prevented their completion. As far as I can ascertain these proposed
identifications are new.
n'?nv Jethlah is mentioned (Josh. xix. 42) as a town of Dan, and
seemingly in the neighbourhood of Ajalon (the modern Yalo). There
is no Arabic name that I am aware of which exactly corresponds to the
Hebrew, but here the reading of the LXX. 'ZiXaOd may perhaps help us.
If that be correct the modern village of Shilta, which lies a little north-
west of the lower Beth Horon, may perhaps represent Jetlilah.
DITjTn np*?!!. Hellcath Hazzarim is mentioned 2 Sam. ii. 16, and is
translated in the marginal reading " the field of strong men," and we
are told that it was a place in Gibeon, the modern El Jib. Close to this
village is a broad smooth valley called Wady el Askar, meaning the
'• vale of the soldiery," which may not improbably be a reminiscence
or translation of the Hebrew name.
The town of ^467;er (Josh, xvii. 7) has been identified with Tasir,
but the modern Asirah seems a somewhat more probable indentifi-
cation.
In Josh. xxi. 25, and the other parallel passage, 1 Chron. vi. 70,
we find mention of Aner and Bileam in the one, opposed to Tanach
and Gath-rimmon in the other.
By some "^^V Aner (cf. Diet. Bible, s. v. Aner) is supposed to be a
misreading for Tanach, but may, I think, be recognised in the modern
village of 'Anim, in which rock-cuttings and other traces of an ancient
site are observable.
DI7'73. Bileam (1 Chr. vi. 70) is doubtless the same as Ibleam (2
Kings ix. 27), which being near the going up to Gur seems to have
been beside a well-known road, and in the direction of the " garden
house," which is usually taken to be Jenin. The principal road
through Palestine now runs up the wady behind Jenin, and hei'e
are the ruins of Bel'ameh, which is the same word as Bileam, and
the position of which seems also to answer the requirements of the
case.
The Rahhith of Issachar and Amad of Asher, may perhaps be identified
with the modern Arruheh and Um^n el, 'Amid respectively, but the
notices in the Bible seem too vague for any certain decision to be
arrived at.
XIV.
P.E.F. Camp, Kannir, March 23, 1873.
Examination of the rains of 'Athlit showed us the remains of a
Crusading fortress, which in its palmy days must have been equal, if
not superior, to anything else of the same period in Palestine proper.
102 MR. TYRWHITT DRAKE's REPORTS.
It is now a broken relic, shattered by earthquakes, systematically
spoiled and robbed of its stones by the Turkish Government to rebuild
Akka ; and disfigured by the mud hovels of the fellahin, built over it
like the mud nests of the wall bees over Egyptian temples. Abandoned
by the Crusaders in 1291, A.D., nearly six centuries of neglect and
dilapidation have been unable to destroy the massive walls ; whilst
the extensive vaults, protected by their situation, are perfectly pre-
served. To select this as the casteUum peregrinorum, or landing-place
for the pilgrims, was a stroke of policy on the part of the old knights.
They well knew the influence of first impressions, and knew the
advantage of bringing men — many of whom they hoped would remain
under their banners to fight on the sacred soil itself — to a prosperous
well-built fortress, situate in a pleasant fertile district, rather than to a
point whence the barren nakedness of the central and eastern hills
would too soon be brought in view, lighted up by the pitiless glare of
an eastern sun. The woodclad steeps of Carmel and her fertile
maritime plain would have a homelike look to one coming from mid
or southei-n Europe, and would do much to recommend the spot to
pilgrims after long and weary travel by land and sea.
The town of 'Athlit occupies a low rocky promontory, having a small
bay both to north and south, which would serve as harbours
according to the direction of the wind ; that on the north being
protected from the south and south-west, and that on the south from
the north and north-west. On the land side a wall is carried across
the neck of the promontory enclosing some twenty-four acres of land
between it and the town. This wall had three gates to the east and
one to the south : it was strengthened by a tower at each end at the
edge of the sea, and another on a small mound of rock at the south-
east angle. A fosse filled from the sea afi"orded further protection.
The town itself was only entered by one gate to the east, flanked on
either side by a large bastion. Before this lay the outer wall and
ditcb, and behind it the inner fosse, across which lay the main body
or keep of the fortress. On the three other sides the town was
protected by the sea and a double wall, including that of the keep.
The accompanying plan will show at a glance the importance of the
place.
The masonry throughovit is massive and well constructed ; so much
so, that parts of it have been mistaken by some travellers for Eoman
work. There is, however, not the slightest trace of any building
anterior to the Crusading period. The walls are generally of great
thickness, ranging from 8 to 21 feet : the centre is composed of exceed-
ingly hard rubble, which in many cases now stands alone, having
been despoiled of its ashlar. In the outer walls this ashlar or casing
is formed of stones 2 feet in depth, and varying from 2 to 5 feet in
length, and always drafted: the draft is 3 inches in breadth, the boss
rustic, and projecting usually about 4 inches, though in some cases it
extends as far as 12 to 14 inches. In one place of the outer wall the
MR. TYRWHITT DRAKe's REPORTS. 103
• natives have cut into the stones to obtain the leaden clamps, which
they told me were used to fasten the stones together. The inner
ashlar is smooth dressed.
We found a series of vaults just within the wall of the keep on the
east, south, and west sides. That on the south is 240 feet long, and
about 30 feet high ; that on the east is divided into several partitions,
and has a total length of 264 feet. On the west is a fine groined vault,
the bosses at the junction of the ribs being made of four trefoils,
growing from the centre. Besides this is a vault 60 by 28 feet : it is
cemented inside, and has no proper entrance other than by a man-hole
in the roof, thoug-h now an entrance has been broken at the west end.
Some of the fellahin told me that this was intended as an oil well, but
it was more probably intended for water, as its capacity, some 261,000
gallons, would seem to preclude the idea of the former. Beneath the
church there is, I was told, another vault, but the entrance to this has
for some time been closed.
The most conspicuous fragment now standing is part of the east wall
of a large tower, at the north-east of the town, known as El Karnifeh.
It is about 70 feet above ground, 16 feet thick, and presents a fine
example of the drafted masonry above referred to, on the outside.
The rubble is very hard, and bound together by irregular courses of
large smooth-dressed stones. The lower part of the inside shows the
spring of a. barrel-vault, and above this are three corbels, supporting
the ribs for a groined roof, made of human heads, one bearded, and of
a military aspect, the other with^ shaven face, and long locks curling
at the end. A tower of similar importance and size is said to have
stood at the south-west corner of the town, and was known as the
Kasr bint el MeJek, " the castle of the king's daughter." This, however,
with the church and other buildings, was first overthrown by the earth-
quake in 1837, which proved so destructive to Safadh, and thence
carried away by sea to Akka, for tbe repairs of that town, after the
departure of Ibrahim Pasha. Before the earthquake the roof was still
whole on the church ; now its very foundations can only be partially
traced. From the measurement and angles of some of the walls, taken
by Lieut. Conder, I have tried to restore the building, but it is
impossible to feel certain of its accuracy, as one cannot tell how much
has been displaced by the earthquake ; the force of which is attested
by huge masses of masonry rolled down to the sea, and by two windows
turned topsy-turvy, with parts of the surrounding walls. The houses
of the fellahin and their accompanying dunghiUs, clustered over the
spot, add to the difficulties in tracing the outline of the building. A
fragment of one capital survives in lair preservation, and of this I send
you a sketch. We found one pillar of gray granite 20 feet 2 inches
long, and 3 feet I inch in diameter ; a similar one is said to be buried
in the rubbish near by.' These may very likely have stood at the
west door.
The cornice mentioned by Dr. Porter (" Murray's Guide") has quite
104 MR. TYK.WHITT DRAKE's REPORTS.
disappeared, but was talked of by some of the village elders. A
tradition is extaut among these people that El Melek el Dhaber — -who,
as I have before mentioned, always does duty for any historic king —
though able to take CaBsarea by assault, was compelled to besiege
'Athlit for seven years before obtaining possession of it.
There are many traces of European work in the neighbourhood. To
the north-east is the detached work of Drestray, containing a tower
and stables, the former (now ruined) based on a square rock the sides
of which have been quarried away to the depth of several feet ; the
stables, too, are cut out of the rock, the roof having been formed of
masonry. Water was obtained during a siege from a cistern hewn in
the rocky base of the main tower and from a well at its edge. The
springs of Di-estray lie about 200 yards to the north-east. This fort
commanded a road cut through the " sea-wall" mentioned in my last
report. Either this cutting or the fort it.elf seem to have been called
" petra incisa" by the Crusading chroniclers (cf. Murray), and doubt-
less much information might be gathered from those sources about
'Athlit, though I have not been able to find any notice of it in the few
books we have here.
Euins in Wady Shellateh and at Rushmia on Mount Carmel seem to
have been held in connexion with 'Athlit, and a qviadrangular fort with
towers at the corners, still existing in the neighbouring village of Kefr
Lilm, may belong to the same date, but is much more probably Saracenic,
to judge from the irregular masonry and the small size of the stones.
Other symptoms of European occupation are visible in the ditches to
drain the marsh east of the town of 'Athlit, in a rock-cut passage for
the same purpose leading into the sea, and in a series of drain-pipes
laid in a stone casing, apparently leading from the sea to a marsh
called now El McUahuJi, "the salt marsh." The only object I can
imagine for these pipes is to bring sea water for evaporation^ as the
rocky bed of the present marsh being very near the surface, would,
with very little trouble, form an excellent salt farm.
I will conclude my remarks on 'Athlit by stating that a former
traveller, notwithstanding the pointed arches. Crusading sculptures,
and other unmistakable mediaeval remains, has described the ruins as
of '■'purest Phoenician style!" A more forcible instance of the necessity
of our woik could hardly be found than this utterlj' groundless asser-
tion, for at 'Athlit there is not the slightest trace of any masonry an-
terior to the Crusades.
Our present camp is situated on the edge of our former work, and
not far from Umm el Fahm. The paucity, or rather deticiency, of
villages on the maritime plain between Cajsarea and Jatfa, left us no
other choice. The plain, however, is good travelling at this time of
year, and a large tract can be worked with ease. All around us are
extensive woodlands of Qaercus acjilops, locally called inaUi'tl, which
extend from the edge of the Belad el Riihah to some distance in the
pl.iin. A similar forest must have existed within quite recent times a
ME. TYRWHITT DRAKe's REPORTS. 105
few miles north-east of Jaffa, as the roots and stumps of the trees are
found there still alive. These trees do not often exceed thirty feet in
height, as their boughs are frequently cut by the Arabs and fellahin
for fuel, and also for the j^urpose of feeding their goats on the leaves.
Beneath the oaks no brushwood is found, but thex'e are a few scattered
shrubs, such as the sweet flowered 'uhlidr {Stijrux officinalis), with its
white blossoms not unlike the orange in colour and smell. The ground
is now covered with herbage flecked with brilliant flowers, red, pink,
and yellow, the latter colour, however, preponderating.
The plain and lower slopes of the hills are overrun with the flocks
and herds of the Turcomans, who, living in the Merj Ibn 'Amir during
the summer and autumn, come hither for pasturage during the winter
and spring. Though living in tents, they cultivate the soil just like
the fellahin, and pay the usual 'ashr, or tithe, to the government.
They have entirely given up the Turkoman language, and now speak
nothing but Arabic ; several of the local names, however, on Carmel
have a decided Perso-Turkish sound, and may perhaps be traced to
these men's forefathers. Their mode of life differs in nothing from
that of the ordinary Bedawin, but their cast of countenance is fre-
quently Kurdish. They are divided into seven clans (called in Arabic
Ashireh, or Tyfeh) which are as follows : — 1. El Tawat-hah. 2. El
Binihah, or Beni Gorra. 3. El 'Awadfn. 4. El Shagayzat. 5 and 6.
Beni S'aidau and 'Alakineh, these tv.'o being under one Shaykh. 7.
El Naghnaghiyeh. Near Coosarea are the camj^ing grounds of the
Damalkhah and Mus'ali Bedawin, and south of them are the Nafa'at.
In the Wady Hawarith are a few tents belonging to the Emir el
Haritneh, whose ancestors once ruled from Tiberias to Cassarea, and
from Akka to Baysan, with a rule of iron. It is probably to a chief of
this family that Maundrell ("Early Tr. in Pal.," ed. Bohn. pp. 431, 476)
refers by the name of Chibley, who lived at Jenin, and who "eased
him in a very courteous manner of some of his coats, which now (the
heat both of the climate and season increasing upon them) began to
grow not only superfluous, but burdensome."
The tomb of a Moslem iveli, or saint, named Shibleh, which stands
west of Jenin, near Kefr Kvid, is very likely, as suggested to me by
Dr. Chaplin, the tomb of this emir, though the fellahin near the spot
could tell me nothing of his history.
I may here complete the list of Arab clans in this district by enu-
merating those in the Merj ibn 'Amir. They are — 1. El Kabiyeh. 2.
El S'aideh. 3. El Gharayfat. 4. El Zubaydat, and the Mohommay-
dat, who live on Mount Carmel. The Ghawarineh, " Men of the Ghor,"
or depression, live on the plain of Akka, and in the marshes of the
Zerka, north-east of Cajsarea. The occupation of these last is chiefly
pastoral ; and partly by admixture of negro blood, partly on account of
the great heat to which they are exposed, their skins are of a very dark
coffee colour, blacker and less transparent tlian those of Al)yssinians.
C'a;sarea. — The ancient ruins of this city occupy a large extent of
106 MR. TYRWHITT DRAKE'S REPORTS.
ground, but there is little of interest to be found ; I shall therefore first
notice the mediseval and Saracenic remains, and afterwai'ds revert to
those of earlier date. The Crusadintj city occupied a space 600 yai'ds
longf by 2o0 yards broad, on the coast almost midway between the
walls of the ancient city. The wall which forms the boundary of the
more modern town is fortified at intervals with towers, and fronted by
a ditch. The masonry differs essentially from that of the outer walls
of 'Athlit, though resembling the inner construction of that place,
being small and undrafted. Against this outer wall a Saracenic scarp
— sloping at an angle of 60 degrees — and a counter scarp on the other
side of the ditch, have been built. Immediately on seeing the place, I
felt sure that this was the case from the analogy of similar additions in
various parts of Syria and Palestine ; for example, at the so-called
David's Tower, Jerusalem ; at Kawkab el Hawa, the Crusader's Belvoir ;
and at the Castle of Horns. Proofs were soon found to show my sur-
mise correct. In one place the scarp half covered a window with
pointed arch and vertical joint in the crown similar to those at 'Athlit,
and in the Morostan, Jerusalem. There in several places we saw how
the scarp had been added on to the oi-i»inal perpendicular wall, after
the latter had been finished and carefully pointed with hard white
cement (that in the middle of the wall being softer, earthy, and of a
blackish hue). Then, to prove the inner part of undoubted Crusading
handiwork, we found ribs of groined arches, in one case supported by a
corbel formed of a human head; and if this were not suflBcient, the
remains of a triple apsed church left no room for doubt. Just within
the wall may be traced a covered way, 13 feet in width. Little remains
of the upper part of the walls, except one tower to the north, on which
we found just sufficient room to set the theodolite and observe, and
part of the wall, near the southern gate, which stands close to a well of
fine clear water, some 20 feet in depth. This well, which is within the
walls, seems to have been supplemented by several aqueducts, which
will be described further on. The only examples of drafted stones are
to be found in the lower walls of the Kala'ah or south-western tower,
which, built on a little promontory, extends for some distance into the
sea. Here, in the second and fifth courses from the bottom, large
columns of red and grey granite, and of black and grey marble, are biiilt
as bands alternately with the drafted stones. Beyond this is a reef with
ruined buildings on it, being part of the old mole. A little to the
north of this some sixty or seventy perfect and fragmentary columns,
varying in length from 20 to 5 feet, have been rolled together to form
a kind of rude pier in the shallow water on the reefs. Of the mediseval
city itself, nothing remains but the ruins of two small buildings, of
which the special use can in no way be designated, and of the church.
The whole area is covered with shallow pits, from which the well-pre-
served stones have been taken to Akka, Jaffa, and other places on tlie
coast. The church has suffered less, both on account of the smallness
of its stone and the hard crystalline cement used in its construction.
MR. TYRWHITT DRAKe's REPORTS. 107
Earthquakes have, however, done wliat the pilfering masons of Akka
could not do. Masses of the -wall lie within its area, and by the utter
confusion in which they are thrown attest the force of the shock which
laid them low. The apse is triple and semi-circular. An arched
recess on the north side of the central apse may have been the arch-
bishop's throne, while the rest of the officiating clergy sat in the
opposite sedilia. Traces of white plaster are still to be seen on the
inner walls of the body of the church. The pavement is visible in one
corner, and is of a white marble, set in cement, over a layer of black
earthy mortar. At the west end of the church are four buttresses, 18
feet deep by 6 feet in breadth, and some 50 feet high, with sloping tops.
The connection of these with the church is somewhat difficult to make
out. Beneath the church, and opening out on to these buttresses, are
two vaults, one filled up with debris and broken in by fallen masses of
wall, the other perfect and 70 feet long.
The Roman remains within the mediseval walls are to be seen on the
beach near the north-west corner, where there is a layer of coarse
tesselated pavement of white stones, buried beneath some 12 feet of
debris, chiefly composed of broken pottery mixed with fragments of
glass and of bones, most of which have been sawn in two. Farther
south a wall may be traced, whose lower courses are built of stone,
2| feet square. Farther on is a drain strongly cemented, and about
a yard wide ; the top is broken in. Near the church and north of it
are some courses of large stones. These may, 1 think, with great
probability be taken as the remains of the temple built by Herod to
CsBsar and Rome, of which Josephus gives us the following accounts
(Antiq. XV., ix. 6, and Wars 1., xxi. 7) : "Now there were edifices all
along the circular haven made of the most polished stone, with a
certain elevation whereon was erected a temple that was seen a great
way off by those that were sailing for that haven, and had in it two
statues, the one of Rome, the other of Csesar." And again — ^"Over
against the mouth of the haven, upon an elevation, there was a temple
for Csesar, which was excellent both for beauty and largeness." In
the previous sentence he mentions the " white stone " of which the
edifices were built.
These remains to which I have refeiTed are so placed as to front
the harbour, and are the only stones, with the exception of a portion
of wall near the water's edge and now covered with 15 feet of debris,
which Ave saw of white limestone. All the masoniy of the Crusaders
and Saracens, as well as the scattered stones in the outer area, ai*e of
cretaceous sandstone. I enclose a sketch to show the character of the
masonry : the niches, whose tops are visible, wex'e probably for the
reception of statues. A draft and boss appear on some of the stones,
which are, however, too much weathered to allow of measurement. 1
found traces of a similar wall running eastwards from this which is
therefore presumably part of the fa9ade. A series of narrow vaults
(now broken in) of uncertain date extend between this building and the
church, which lies to the south.
108 MR. TYRWHITT DRAKe's REPORTS.
The account given by Josephus of the construction of the harbour
has been called in question by many. He states that a mole was run
out to protect the ships from the sou.th.-westerly gales, and that its
foundations were sunk in twenty fathoms' water, and composed of
stones fifty feet long, by eighteen broad and nine deep. Here we must
recollect that Josephus could never have seen these huge blocks, and
his information must have been derived from hearsay. Still, the size is
not utterly improbable when we still find a quadrangular column of
red granite 34 feet long by 5 feet wide, and more than 4 feet 6 inches
deep, situated half a mile from the sea. The very numerous columns
of grauite and marble show that no expense can have been spared in
th<; construction and ornamentation of the city.
The mole is described as 200 feet wide, and composed half of the
procymaiia or breakwater, and half by the quay and vaults in which
the sailors lodged. The reef of rocks running westward from the
Kala'ah, though robbed of nearly all its hewn stones, still retains
traces of walls and answers well enough in size to this description.
Here, too, may be seen traces of tesselated pavement formed of rough
two-inch cubes, such as one would expect to be used out of doors,
and with these the quay was very likely paved. In one plince there
are two laj'ers of these cubes, as though one pavement had been broken
and another laid over it.
Of the theatre and amphitheatre, which Josephus tells us were
among the buildings of Herod, only the latter is to be seen; and this,
too, is in such a ruiued state, most of the stones being carried oiF, and
the remainder nearly concealed beneath drift sand, that, were it not
for the description, it would rather be taken for a theatre. In Antiq.
XV., ix. 6, we find it thus described : — " Herod built therein a theatre
of stone ; and on the south quarter behind the port an amphitheatre
also, capable of holding a vast number of men, and conveniently
situated for a prospect to the sea."
West of this place, on the sea-shore, Lieut. Conder found traces of a
jetty and walls of stones, similar to those mentioned in the north-west
corner of the town, also two drains partly cut in the rock, partly of
masonry, and measuring 9 feet 2 inches in width. Owing to accumu-
lated rubbish, and the tops of the stairs being broken in, their height
could not be ascertained. These seem likely to have been some of the
drains mentioned by Josephus as " flushed " by the rise of the tide.
As on this part of the Mediterranean coast this never exceeds two feet,
the drains must have been nearly level, Geological evidence proves
that the coast is gradually rising, and during the nineteen centuries
which have elapsed since these drains were cut, it is not improbable
that they have been raised to the height of some two or three feet above
the present sea level.
An oblong space, 350 by 90 yards, towards the east of the old city,
seems to have been a hippodrome. Here is to be seen the huge granite
column before mentioned, as well as three cones, measuring 5 feet 8
MR. TYRWHITT DRAKE's REPORTS. 109
inclies diameter at the base, 4 feet at top, and 7 feet 6 inches in height.
Near these,' and also of similar pink granite, is a square pedestal
measuring 7 feet a side, and projecting 1 foot 6 inches above the sur-
face of the ground. The southern end of this course is banked up, and
traces of the city wall appear outside it. The circuit of the ancient
town can pretty accurately be traced to the corn-fields, as the ground
outside them is much more sandy and unfit for cultivation. In most
places, too, there are actual traces of the wall, but it has generally been
destroyed for the sake of the stones it was composed of, and bits of the
worthless rubble are all that we now see.
Aqiipclucfs.— The aqueducts for the supply of the town next deserve
our attention. They are two in number, and come into the north of
the old city near the sea. The high-level, which has a double channel,
comes from Subbarin, having been made, according to native tradition,
by two daughters of a king, for a wager, to see who would first carry
water into Csesarea. The well at Sindiani, two miles south-west of
Subbarin, is said to owe its supply to this aqueduct having been acci-
dentally broken into by women digging for clay to roof their huts. The
same legend attaches to some springs south-east of Csesarea, called
'Ayyun el Benat, the "Maidens' Spi'ings." Here, however, no traces
have been discovered.
The low-level aqueduct comes from the Jisr el Zerka, and has a total
length of three miles. It is supplied by the Nahr el Zerka. which, at
the mills about a mile and a half from the sea, is stopped by a broad
dam, which raises the water some twenty feet. Its channel is at first
rock-cut, and open at top, but afterwards is a vault of masonry, 7 feet
high, and 6 feet 4 inches wide, built on the low hills bordering the sea.
The high-level can be traced for six miles, as far as a spring called 'Ain
Ism'ai'n, a little below Sindiani. At this latter village it is again found
in the well from which the natives still draw their supply, but higher
up it is quite lost. This branch, though originally supplied from Sub-
barin, received large contributions from Miamas— of which place more
anon — and was then carried nearly due west, to avoid the hills of drift
sand. Below the mill of Abu Nur its construction can be well examined.
It consists primarily of three red earthenware pipes, 6h inches diameter,
embedded in hard cement and carried either on a wall or over arches.
In one place, air holes to relieve the pressure, and consisting of two
similar pipes opening upwards from the conduits, are still visible. To
the south of this has been attached, presumably at a later date, a
similar aqueduct, also with three pipes. About 500 yards west of the
mill this southern section takes an eccentric circuit with four angles,
and rejoins the other shortly before passing throuf>h the " sea-well."
The object of this d'toirr is difficult to explain, unless it be on account
of the marshy nature of the ground over which it passes. This southern
branch is more perfect than the northern, and its arches in better pre-
servation. On reaching the " sea-well " the aqueduct is carried thi-ough
the rock, and is reached at intervals by man-holes 27 feet deep by 11
110 MR. TYRWHITT DRAKE's REPORTS.
feet wide at top, and decreasing to 3 feet 3 inches at bottom. Steps
lead down to the water, passing twice along each of the four sides of
the shaft. The water channel is too much choked up for any exact
measurement to be taken. After passing through the " sea-well," the
water was cari-ied on arches to the town of Csesarea. In some places
the aqueduct, judging from the masonry and method of "pointing"
the joints, seems to have been repaired by the Saracens or Crusaders.
At Miamas there are several large springs, and many traces of dams
and cisterns. At the base of the Khashm, as the bold headland form-
ing the south-west extremity of Carmel is called, is the Kala'at Mi'amas,
a Saracenic or Crusading tower tacked on to a Roman theatre. The
latter building is much ruined, all the seats being destroyed, and
the greater part of the outer as well as the inner line of vaults. The
measurement across the front of the theatre, which faces S.S.E., and
overlooks the plain and oak woods, is about 180 feet. The masonry is
curious : the stones are built together without much regaid for order,
some being put in lengthwise, others on end, others on their side, the
interstices being filled up with excellent mortar. The arches of the
vomitoria are irregularly built, usually without a keystone. The main
wall of the building between the outer and inner vaults is not built in
a curve, but in short straight pieces. Several fine granite columns may
be seen near the theatre and at the stream below ; these, no doubt, be-
longed originally to the proscenium. Around the building are traces of
rude dwellings, but as they seem to have been constructed with the
stones pillaged from it, they may be referred to the period of Saracenic
or Crusading occupation. As yet we have found no mention by any old
writer of this theatre in connection with Csesarea, from which it is dis-
tant about five miles. This is curious, as it must doubtless have been
frequently resorted to by the inhabitants of that place.
On the summit of the Khashm above is a curious ruin of E-oman
construction. It consists of a square, enclosing a double and a triple
vault with an irregular semicircular arch. The interiors of these vaults
are connected by a series of square holes on a level with the ground,
and measuring 2 feet by 2 feet. The object of these is difficult to
imagine. Near this ruin is a fine rock-hewn cistern of bee-hive shape
and well plastered. Directly to the west are the precipitous cliffs of the
Khashm, tenanted by numerous griffon and Egyptian vultures, as well
as by hawks and eagles of various kinds.
The view from this point is very extensive, reaching from Carmel
Convent to far below Csesarea. Immediately at one's feet dense
thickets of reeds and tamarisks cover the marsh of the Zerka, and
afford shelter to wild boars and crocodiles. (I have offered a reward
for one of these reptiles, and have great hopes of obtaining a specimen.)
Eastwards the heights of Shaykh Iskander, above Umm el Fahm, the
block of Shaykh Bayazid above Jeb'a, Mounts Ehal and Gerizim, and
the main points of the central range southwards, are still visible.
Jience the extent of the oak woodland, the ingens sylva of the Romans,
THE AMERICAN PALESTINE EXPLORATION SOCIETY. Ill
of the encroacLing tongue of sand stretching eastwards from
Csesarea, and other natural features of the district, may be studied with
advantage. Charles F. Tyuwhitt Drake, F.R.G.S.
THE AMERICAN PALESTINE EXPLORATION SOCIETY.
(From the Observer, New York.)
Our American Exploring party have made a brilliant beginning for
us. "We were expecting valuable discoveries, but not so soon. Our
allotted field is beyond the Jordan, and only preparatory labour was
looked for on this side the river. But while Lieutenant Steever has
been hard at work day and night in Beirut, organising the expedition,
testing his instruments, and getting everything ready for the final
march, our archaeologist. Professor Paine, has not been idle.
The Hamath Inscriptions.
The readers of the Observer have all heard of the famous Hamath
inscriptions. Our covmtrymen, J. Augustus Johnson, Esq., then
American Consul- General in Syria, and the Rev. Samuel Jessup, were
the first to discover and describe them, some three years ago. Copies
of them, first published by our own Society, are now exciting the
liveliest interest among scholars. We shall soon be able to put the
public in possession of more exact and authentic copies. The stones
were taken through Beirut a few weeks ago, on their way from Damas-
cus to Constantinople. Our Consul-General iu Syria, J. Baldwin Hay,
Esq., persuaded the Turkish Government to permit our party to take
impressions of them. The time was short, but Lieut. Steever and Pro-
fessor Paine gave themselves eagerly to the work, and the result is a
complete set both of squeezes and of plaster casts, which are now
on their way to America. Our pamphlet, which is soon to be put
to press, will tell the whole story ; but meanwhile it may not be amiss
to state that what have been called the fourth and fifth inscriptions turn
out to be but parts of a single inscription camied round the stone.
The Greek Inscriptions at Dog River.
But of still greater importance is Professor Paine's discovery of three
new Greek inscriptions, the existence of which appears not to have
been even suspected. We accept the discoveiy with gratitude as an
auspicious inauguration of our work in the Holy Land. Nahr el Kelb,
or the Dog river of modern Arabic geography, is the Lycus Flumen, or
Wolf river, of the Roman period. It rises in the heart of Lebanon,
plunges down a wild and romantic gorge, and empties into the Mediter-
ranean about two and a half hours, or seven miles, north-east of Beirut,
The southern mountain wall which overlooks this rapid stream termi-
nates at the sea in a bold promontory, around which, at the height of
loo feet above the water, winds an ancient road cut in the solid rock.
The present road was cut in the reign of Marcus Aurelius, about 173 or
176 A.D. It is some six feet in breadth, paved with large uneven
112 THE AMERICAN PALESTINE EXPLORATION SOCIETY.
stones. But above it, for a part of tbe distnnce, tbere are traces of a
still more ancient road. On the wall of rock that lines the roads (three
of them on the present Roman, six of them on the older road) there are
nine historic tablets, first discovered by Maimdrell in 1697, and often
described and copied since. Three of them are Egyptian, and six
Assyrian. According to Lepsins, the three Egyptian tablets bear the
cartouche of Rameses II., abont 1300 years B.C. Of the Assyrian
tablets, one at least is the work of Sennachei-ib, about 700 B.C.
It was on the upper and more ancient road that Professor Paine
made his fortunate discovery. He found there three Greek inscriptions,
one of eight lines, one of twelve, and another of ten. He took squeezes
of them all. The longest, of twelve lines, he has deciphered and ren-
dered into English. Some errors may have crept into the transcription,
but the legend is substantially as follows : —
TipoKXi -KeiTov Tana vov Apiaioio A
KOio yeveOAris idayevoio
Apxi-Ki^ iraTpwiojv f^a!pia^(jiv (pavXcfi
■Kpw6rj^r\s cpoivi^ H\iOfj.iro\ews 0eo
(pii/ apxoiv Aiipa MaXfK reKewv i^pa
offaa vow (ppovee (poiViKri aurrj
ocTov Kai TOAs epya^oTeSv voi^fxa
0) fiiya Qavfia Ta ainv(TaTa. twv
OKo-K^Xuiv tcTov edriKiixeaov
o(ppa AiriveKeccs ufxaKr,t> oAov ei
V voi'Tes (pf'iyccfiev x^AeTrets
w>J/os o5oiT\avi^t.
Proclus, friend of Tatian, son of Arisius, of A
CO as to his birthplace, of honourable descent,
leaving behind the royalties of his fathers for a
common rank,
A Phcenician in the bloom of youth, of Baal'bek by
the will
of the gods, the ruler. Fortlnvith to Malek perform-
ing sacred rites,
As many as he thought prudent for Phoenicia itself,
in proportion also to this very to be executed purpose.
Ah, great marvel ! the steepest parts of the
promontories he made level in the middle :
In order that, from beginning to end, the road being
even, iu
the rainingswe may escape difficidt approaches;
the height being circuitous as to tlie route.
These names are new to history. Proclus appears to have been a
Phcenician, of Aco (Acre), of royal blood, governor of Baalbeck. Of
his date, as related to tbe Egyptian, Assyrian, and Roman dates, this
is not the place to speak. Piofessor Paine's report will soon be pub-
lished, and our scholars will then have the problem fairly before them.
RoswELL D. Hitchcock,
President of the Palestine Exploration Societr^.
113
SUEVEYS IN PALESTINE BY CAPTAINS MIEULET AND
DEEEIEN, OF THE EEENCH ETAT MAJOE.
From the JuKrnal of (he Paris Geographical Bociety.
The field operations undertaken with a view of constructing a map
of Palestine were commenced in May, 1870. The first operation was
the measurement of a base on the Plain of Acre. The western end
was marked by a station 6ft. Sin. high, on a slight elevation, the eastei'n
by an isolated tree (Dom) on the plain.
Prom this base, 8,725ft. long, the distance between the station at
Tantourah and the Castle of Acre was found to be 22,760ft. By means
of the side Tantourah — Acre Castle, the distance between Carmel and
Acre Castle was calculated to be about 47,232ft. The side Carmel —
Acre Castle was determined by the English Admiralty Survey, and
its azimuth was known. This side served as a base for the tri-
angulation.
Twenty-one stations were fixed with a theodolite, and all remark-
able features of the ground were observed. The triangulation plotted
on a scale of 1-100,000 was used as a basis for the Sixrvey, and the detail
was filled in on the same scale with a compass.
The map shows towns, villages, isolated houses, tombs, ruins, springs,
wells, rivers, ravines, roads and paths, woods and cultivation ; and the
features of the ground by contours. All remarkable features of the
ground were levelled, and the altitudes of more than 500 points deter-
mined with reference to the level of the sea.
The names of all the inhabited places in the mountains, of the rivers,
springs, wells, ruins, itc, are carefully written on the map in French
and in the Arabic character.
More than 1,019 square miles were sui'veyed, comprising the greater
portion of the pachalik of Acre.
The work was interrupted in the first fortnight of August, 1870, and
Captain Derrien is now engaged in putting his notes together.
FURTHEE NOTES ON OUE LOED'S TOISIB.
In a former Quarterly (.June to September, 1870, pp. 370-81) I sub-
mitted some notes on our Lord's tomb, the object of which was to show
that it must have been multilocular, and situated to the east of the city,
probably on the Bethany road; and, therefore, that the pz'csent site
could not have witnessed our Lord's entombment,
I am now prepared with further reasons for believing that our Lord
was crucified (and, necessarily, buried) to the east of the city.
1. He was certainly ci'ucified on a high road side (Matt, xxvii. 39 ;
Mark XV. 29 ; Luke xxiii. 26), leadiug past gardens (John xix. 41).
K
114 OUR lord's tomb.
2. There appear to have been but two main approaches to the city, — -
«. That from Jericho, through Bethany, and round the Mount of
Olives, and entering the east of the city by the Fish Gate.
h. That from the Maritime Plain and Joj^pa, entering the north-
west of the city by the Gate of Ephraim.
A minor approach from Bethlehem entered the west of the city
through the Gate of Gennath.
We must exclude the Joppa i*oad as not complying with, requisitions
jn-esently to be advanced; and also the Bethlehem road as not leading
through gardens.
3. The gardens of David and Solomon were at the junction of the
Kedron and Hinnom valleys south-east of the city. The base of the
Mount of Olives was laid out in gardens, which also existed to the north
of Agrippa's wall. There is no record of gardens existing to the west
of the city. The Garden of Gethsemane was imdoubtedly to the east of
the city, as it was reached by crossing the Kedron (John xviii. 1).
4. In fixing the site of the crucifixion we must beai* in mind that it
was caj)able —
o. Of being witnessed from " afar off" (!Matt. xxvii. 5o ; Mark xv.
40 ; Luke xxiii. 49).
h. It must also be within clear view and hail of the priests (Matt,
xxvii. 41; Mark xv. 31), who can behold and revile {in our
Lord's licaring, be it remembered) without fear of the defile-
ment (John xviii. 28) attendant on an execution at the place of
- a skull.
The city side of the Kedron gorge (400 feet, not 150 yards, from the
Bethany road) would easily have allowed the women and centurion to
have viewed from "afar off," or "over against" (e| ivavrias, Mark xv.
39) the site; and the equally near roof of the eastern cloister of the
temple would easily have accommodated the priests and rulers.
Nowhere on the Joppa or Bethlehem roads could these conditions,
especially the second, have been complied with. We are therefore
driven to the Jericho and Bethany road, which alone of all the city
approaches would meet the necessary requisitions.
5. I think the strict conformity between type and antitype necessitates
tliat the eastern side of the city should have witnessed the crucifixion.
As the temple faced the east, we can understand the fitness of its veil
being rent in the presence of the fleshly Yeil rudely torn on the opposite
cross ; we can understand the consummation of the great Antitypical
Sacrifice in full view of the opposite typical altar.
But this analogy disappears if we remove the scene of the crucifixion
to the west of the city, i.e., to the back of the temple, whence only its
outline could be seen.
6. St. Paul, I think, fixes indisputably the site of the crucifixion.
Thus, in Heb. xiii, 11, 12, he writes : "Por the bodies of those beasts
(the sin offering) are burned without the camp. Wherefore Jesus also
. . . suffered loithout the fjate." .
THE IIAMATII INSCRirTIOXS. 11.5
What gate ? This is clearly not an abstract statement, implying
simply " beyond the city walls," but a distinct reference to the gate?
tt]s ■Ki)\y]s, by which the sin offering was carried forth to be burned
without the city.
Now we can hardly suppose that the sin offering would be carried
away all through the crowded and bustling streets, far away to the
west, when the eastern gates of the temple, leading directly into the
country, were close at hand. Through one of these gates, probably tho
great East Gate, the offering was taken out; and outside tliis gate, e'^w
Tfjy TtvK-ns, our blessed Lord was crucified.
7. Then if he was crucified to the east of the city, there he was
buried ; for " in the place where he was crucified there was a garden :
there laid they Jesus " (John xis. 41, 4-2).
N. F. Hutchinson, M.D.
IIOEAE, A^n-a 28tJi, 1873.
Note. — I think the following extract interesting, as indirectly indi-
cating the eastern site of our Lord's tomb : — " When the apostles sepa-
rated to evangelise the world, Mary continued to live with St. John's
parents in their house near the Mount of Olives, and every day she
went out to pray at the tomb of Christ, and at Golgotha." — Bishop
Ifelito's {of Sardis) Ilistorrj. See Smith's Dictionary, art. " Mary the
Tirgin," p. 264.
It is here clearly implied that St. John's hoiise, the tomb of Christ,
and Golgotha were alike "near the Mount of Olives." Mary had only
to go out to reach the hallowed spots. We cannot understand her as
passing through the city to the westward for that purpose.
HAMATH INSCEIPTIONS.
The observations of the Rev. W. Wright, of Damascus, demand no
comment from me. Time will show whether I was correct in the first
tentative investigations of these inscriptions.
It will be observed that M. Clermont- Ganneau in his remarks on the
kindred inscriptions of Alej^po, expresses the same opinions as myself
in favour of an independent syllabic character anterior to the Phoenician
alphabet. He likewise refers to the possibility of its connection with the
systems of Egypt and Assyria.
M. Clermont-Ganneau's proposition of the term of Syrian for these
characters is useful, because it serves to localise and define them.
Hyde Clakke.
116
"MIDDLE CITY"— "SECOND CITY."
To the Editor of the Quarterly Statement.
SiE, — The difficulty felt by your correspondent " H. B.," wlien he asks
what is the exact meaning of the expression, " the Middle City," ia
2 Kings XX. 4, and of "the Second City" in 2 Kings xxii. 14,
Neh. xi. 9, and Zepli. i. 10, seems to have been shared by our
translators when they rendered the former middle court and the
latter the roUeijc, The critics have been in similar perplexity when they
have explained the middle city to be Zion city, and the second city to
be the lower city. The confusion serves to show the need of thorough
topographical investigation, such as that carried on by the Committee
of the Palestine Exploration Fund, without which such references to
local features will never be understood.
Some topographical featui'es of the site of Jerusalem are indicated
in Psalm xlviii. 2, which should be rendered : —
"I3eautiful for height, the joy of the Avhoie earth, is Mount Zion — on
the thighs of the north is the city of the great king."
Jerusalem, says Josephus, was built upon two hills, which are
opposite to one another, and have a valley to divide them asunder
(Tr«rs V. iv. 1). On the north of Jerusalem is a mountain plateau,
and these two hills stretch down from it like two legs or thighs, with
the Tyropcean Yalley between them. The western thigh is the higher,
and would be the site of the Upper City ; on the eastern thigh would
be the Lower City and the Temple ; and when eventually the valley
between them became occupied with houses, this would constitute the
Middle City. The Hebrew word means " middle " in the sense of the
divided part. In the parallelism of Hebrew poetry the second line
does not simply repeat the idea of the first, but repeats it with
some expansion, addition, or variation. In the j^rescnt instance we
have the eastern hill in the first line, and the whole of Jerusalem in
the second. A parallel passage is Isaiah xiv. 13 : "I will sit also upon
the mount of the congregation, in the thighs of the north." The
mount of the congregation is the temple hill, the thighs of the north
include the whole city.
Assuming this to be so, let us look at the texts referred to by "II. B.,"
and see if any light is thrown upon them. In 2 Kings xx. 4, Isaiah
goes out from the presence of Ilezekiah, and " aforo he is gone into
the Middle City " the word of the Lord comes to him. The royal
l)alace, there is every reason to believe, was on the eastern hill — in
the Lower City — and assuming that Isaiah was making his way to
the Upper City he would have to pass through the Middle City to
reach it.
In 2 Kings xxii. 14, " Huldah dwelt in Jerusalem— in the second
(Jerusalem)." The Hebrew word (Mishneh) means second in order
second in dignity, and might well be applied to that division of the city
MIDDLE CITY — SECOND CITY. 117
■which was second in order, whether you began reckoning from the east
or the west. The Second City therefore would appear to be the same as
the Middle City.
In Neb. xi. 9, Judah the son of Senuah is ruler over this Second City.
Probably the two "thighs " were separately fortified at an early date,
■and the valley between them would be suburban to both. It would thus
probably be the same as Josephus's " suburbs " (Autiquities xv. xi. 5),
and perhaps the same as Parbar or the Subui'b mentioned in 1 Chron.
jcxvi. 18 and 2 Kings xxiii. II. The Second City itself would thus be
wii'tually separate, so as to justify separate rule, and would only need
.'short east- and- west walls at its northern and southern ends to shut it
in entirely.
In Zeph. i. 10 the prophet is desci-ibing an invasion. Jerusalem, as
was usual, is attacked on the north. There is first a noise from the
Fish Gate, which for several independent reasons I should identify
with the present Damascus Gate, at the head of the Tyropceau Yalley.
Of consequence there is next a howling from the Second Jerusalem,
for the forcing of the Fish Gate has brought the invaders into the
Middle City. Next, the alarm having spread, there is a crashing of
spectators from the hills which constitute the " thighs." Lastly, the
inhabitants of Macktesh are to howl. Macktesh means a mortar or
socket, and may be a name descriptive of the hollow at the junction
of the three valleys — Hinnom, Tyropoean, and Kidron — where, perhaps,
the wealthy people would live. Some place the King's Gardens near
here. The inhabitants are to howl because " all the merchant people
are cut down." Now, the sweep of the invaders has been down the
'Tyropoean Yalley, and " Tyropcean " is thought by some to mean
■" Valley of the Tyrian merchants.'' Another possibility is that
Macktesh may have been one of the transverse valleys, since filled up,
but rediscovered by Captain Warren.
For different views, see Lewin's " Sketch of Jerusalem," pp. j3, .54,
where " the second" is taken to mean Second Gate (from Fish Gate) ;
and Thrupp's "Ancient Jerusalem," i^p. 11(3, 117, where the words of
Zephaniah are supposed to indicate not the order of events, but the
■order in which they would be discovered by a person in the Upper
-City.
George St. Clair.
To the Editor of the " Qnarterly Statement" of the Palestine Exploration
Fund.
April 23rd, 1873.
Sir, — Allow me to attempt a reply to the two queries of " H. 13." pub-
lished in your last Qiiarter///. No doubt in the original of 2 Kings
XX. 4, the Hebrew is "^''i'i^, which means the city, and not court. But
•" H. B." seems to have overlooked that this is the Kcri (the reading in the
118 SAMARITAN STONE.
text), but that the Khetih (the marginal reading) is '^'J'^, which, means,
court. This reading was evidently before the Greek translators, their
rendering being, as observed by " H. B." av\r} (court), and not ttoMs (city)..
Why the two readings should so greatly differ, and why the one is to be
preferi-ed to the other, is a question the discussion of which I presume
does not come within the province of your columns. In reference to
the second query I beg to observe that the Hebrew word rendered in
the authorised version " college" is Hjii; :n, which the Sejotuagint evi-
dently considered as the name of a certain part of Jerusalem, and
therefore did not translate it. The word in question being derived
from the root ^JU/, to repeat, to do (a thing) over again, the rendering
" second city" is correct, and seems to mean as much as our iSfeio
Ton-n in contradistinction to the OhJ Toivn. Should it be the same
which Josephus (Bell. Jud. v. iv. 2) calls KaivonoMs ?
A. B.
NOTE ON THE NEWLY DISCOYEEED SAMAEITAN
STONE.
Mr. Peitchett writes as follows : —
" In Gaza there have been three Englishmen resident for eight years
in charge of the telegraph station. One of them, my friend Mr. N immo,,
received me as usual into his house, and very hospitably entertained
Mr. Hamilton also. Another, Mr. Pickard, produced the stone which
you mention, and Mr, Hamilton forwarded a squeeze of it to England.
The stone had been accidentally found by men who were digging old
foundations out of the sand for building materials, and Mr. Pickard
broiight it from thence. There can be little doubt of obtaining more
if proper measures are taken, — through Mr. Hamilton, for instance,
Avho now knows the place and the people. The stone is carefully pre-
served by Mr. Pickard."
This is at present the only information we have, except the squeeze
itself, of the stone. The squeeze has been very kindly given to the
Society by Mr. Dunbar Heath, to whom Mr. Hamilton sent it. The
inscription is a i^assage from Deuteronomy iv. 29 — 31. It has been
suggested that the stone belonged to a Samaritan synagogue at Gaza.
We shall probably be able to write more fully on this interesting stone
in the next number of the Qvartcrhj.
119
ANNUAL GENEEAL MEETING,
His Grace the Archbishop of York in the Chair.
The Chairman : I will now call upon Mr. Holland, one of the Hon.
Sees., to read the Eeport of the General Committee.
The Eev. F. "W. Holland read the Eeport : —
The work of the past year has been marked by continual and very-
satisfactory progress.
At the last Annual Meeting the Committee announced the resigna-
tion of Captain Stewart in consequence of ill health, and the appoint-
ment of Lieutenant Claude Conder, E.E., to take his place in charge of
the Survey Expedition. Mr. Conder started for Palestine last July, and
has since remained in command, having the valuable assistance of Mr.
Tyrwhitt Drake.
The Committee desire publicly to record their sense of the ability,
activity, and zeal which both Mr. Conder and Mr. Drake have dis-
played in the prosecution of the work.
After three years of hard work in Palestine and Syria, Mr. Drake is
now on his way to England for a well-earned holiday ; but will, it is
hoped , shortly return to resume his labour.
The two non-commissioned officers. Sergeant Black and Corporal
Armstrong, have continued to give the greatest satisfaction to the
Committee, as will appear from Mr. Conder's report, and the strength
of the party has recently been augmented by the addition of Corporal
Brophy, also of the Ptoyal Engineers.
During the year 1872 the Triangulatiou and Survey covered 1,200
square miles ; during the present year, up to the date of the last report
received, 400 more square miles have been surveyed.
The reports of the Survey and work in other directions have been
published from time to time in the Quarterly Statements, which, in addi-
tion to Messrs. Conder's and Drake's reports, have contained many
interesting and important papers, such as that on the Meteorology of
Palestine, by Mr. Glaisher and Mr. Buchan ; Captain Warren's list of
Arabic names ; Mr. George Smith's account of the history of Palestine as
given in the cuneiform inscriptions ; papers on the Hamath inscriptions,
on the Shapira pottery from Moab, on the chronology of Palestine, and
on varioiis discoveries at Jerusalem.
To the writers of these papers, which have all been in-esented to the
Society, the Committee have to express their warmest thanks.
A very important list of probable sites awaiting identification, and
suggestions for making further discoveries, has been laid before the
Committee by M. Clermont-Ganneau, whose name is so well known in
connection with the discovery of the famous Moabite Stone.
M. Ganneau is most anxious to follow up his researches in Palestine,
120 ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING.
v?hicTi liave liitterto been attended by sucb marked success ; and tlie
^reat importance of liis suggestions lias led the Committee to arrange
with him to go out again in October in their service, j)rovided that the
necessary funds are forthcoming, and that the consent of his government
is obtained, which they trust may be the case.
The income of the Society during the year 1872 amounted, from all
sources, to £3,317 Is. 2d. The expenditure included £2,837 9s. 8d. for
exploration expenses ; £481 6s. for rent, salai-ies, advertising, and
office expenses ; £92 Is. lOd. for postage (including the sending of the
Quarterly Statements to all subscribers), and £281 7s. Id. 'for printing and
lithographing, I.e., for publishing the'results of the work.
In the autumn of 1872 the Committee published a new book, entitled
" Our Work iu Palestine," which gives a clear and popular account of
the work of the Palestine Exploration Fund since its foundation.
Five thousand copies of this book have already been sold, and the sale of
it still continues to be brisk.
With regard to the present financial position of the Fund, the amount
received since the last annual meeting has been £2,985 16s. 4d.
The exi)enses of the Survey will amount to upwards of £2,400 during
"the year, and the Committee have now to appeal for funds not only to
comi^lete the Survey, but also to enable them to employ M. Ganneau
for a year, that he may carry out the explorations which he has sug-
gested, and which cannot fail to afford most valuable results.
A very intei'esting exhibition in connection with the Fund has just
been opened by the Committee at the Dudley Gallery, Egy^jtian Ilall,
with the object of increasing the interest of the public in their work
•■and promoting a better knowledge of the Holy Land and Jerusalem.
Their special thanks are due to Mr. H. A. Harper for the loan of his
■extremely beautiful and truthful water-colour sketches, which form an
important feature in the exhibition ; also to Sir Henry James for the
loan of models and photographs from the Ordnance Survey office ; and
to M. Clermont-Ganneau, for the loan of a valuable collection of inscrip-
tions, seals, &c. Amongst other things there are exhibited the newly-
obtained casts of the Hamath Stones, a cast of the Deluge Stone from
the British Museum, original Sinaitic inscriptions, models of ancient
and modern Jerusalem, Mr. Condor's sketches of the Shapira pottery,
and tracings of several sheets of the new map of Palestine, the making
of which forms at the present moment the principal work of the Fund.
These tracings, some of which are lying on the table before you, show
clearly how accui-ately and well the Survey is being carried out ; and
how far the new map, when completed, will not only surpass all
previous maps of the Holy Land, but also bo in itself a complete work,
leaving nothing further to be desired.
The Committee have to deplore the loss of the following distinguished
members of their body : Lord Ossington, who addressed the last annual
meeting, and at all times took the warmest interest in the work, Mr.
W. Tite, and the eminent Semitic scholar, I\Ir. Emanuel Deutsch.
ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING. 121
The following is a report, received from Lieutenant Conder, of the
progress of the Expedition under his command during the past year.
Lieut. Conder's REroRT.
When last the subscribers gathered to hear the history of the work
done daring tlie course of the year, the new expedition for the com-
pletion of the Survey of Palestine had just received a very serious
check — the Committee had been obh'ged to announce the resignation of
Captain Stewart, and but for the energy of my present colleague Mr.
Drake, who for six months worked on alone through some of the most
difficult country in Syria whilst expecting my arrival, the undertaking
must have come to an untimely termination.
So small a party was probably never before entrusted with so impor-
tant a work. It is but just to add that it is rarely that an officer
can hope to command two men so thoroughly able and competent as
Sergeant Black and Corporal Armstrong. The entire trustworthiness
and soundness of Sergeant Black's work is a subject of the greatest
satisfaction, and the zeal and pride in their work, and the quickness
which both men have displayed in acquainting themselves with subjects
entirely new to them, and in picking up the language, are points in the
highest degree connected with the satisfactory nature of the report
which I am able to lay before the Society. Palestine contains 6,600
English square miles between Dan and Beersheba, the Jordan and
the great sea. Of this we have, at the time I despatch this report,
completed 1,615 square miles, or neaiiy a quarter of the whole. When
I reached Palestine in the begijining of July, 1872, the part marked
on the map between Jaffa, Jerusalem, and Nablus was complete, with
the exception of the hill representation, giving an area of 560 square
miles, and a monthly rate of 110 square miles. Commencing again
about the middle of the month w^e worked without a break to the
middle of December, and included Samaria, the great plain, Nazareth,
and Carmel within our limits. The total was thus brought up to 1,250
square miles, or more than one-fifth of the whole of Palestine — the
work of four men in one year's time. The monthly rate during this
second period was increased to over 140 square miles, and during the
four weeks of September 150 square miles were finished, including the
measurement of the " Base of Verification," near Jenin.
The lateness of the rainy season made it impossible to begin in the
field before the last day of February, yet notwithstanding the fact that
the country near Athlit, Tantura, and Cesarea is far fuller of interesting
relics than any part we had previously visited, we had added before
moving to our twentieth camp at Mukhalid another 300 square miles,
giving a monthly rate of 170 square miles, far beyond any former rate,
and indeed not one to be expected in other parts of the country not
including, as does the plain of Cesarea, long tracts of blown sand
without habitations or ruins. But such a statement of the quantity
122 ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING.
completed ■would not be a satisfactory one, if I were unable to
report favourably as to the quality. That this should be superior
to that of any former map of Palestine is but a poor recommenda-
tion; our aim has been to make the production of a better, to the
same scale, impossible. In September I was able to send news of
the satisfactory nature of the great check on the work obtained by
comparing the calculated length of the base line near Jenin with its
actual measurement. In December I was farther able to explain how,
starting fi'om a fixed latitude and longitude at Jaffii, we had carried
oiu- triangulation over a length, of nearly 120 miles back to another
fixed point at Acca, and had done so without error. Further details,
and I feel sure not less satisfactory^ will be furnished when the calcu-
lations in England are worked out.
Of the actual execution of the work the tracings sent to England will
give an idea. The credit is mainly due to the workmanship of my two
men, as the representation of the hills is the only part which I can
claim as my own handiwork. The method employed in this has been
considered by competent authorities satisfactory for the purpose, but
is, of course, different from that which will be used when the map is
engraved. The original copies remain in our keeping, and the work
upon tbem is perhaps better finished than was possible on a thinner
paper.
Some account of the method piu'sued in the outdoor survey may
prove intei'esting to those who see merely the results in England. The
average duration of a camp is three weeks, and theu* general distance
apart twelve miles; but the amount of country which it is possible
to survey from one centre differs according to its character and the
situation of the camp, as regards the old work, from GO to 150 square
miles.
The first day is genei'ally devoted to preliminary arrangements, and
to the calculation from astronomical observations of the latitude of
the place, other observations being added for the correction of the
chronometei's.
Our first operations after this consist in the choice of good points,
from which the country for a radius of ten or fifteen miles may be seen ;
and in cases where such points are the highest to^DS of hills on which
no building is found, they have to be visited, and a solid diystone cairn
eight or nine feet high, whitewashed on such sides as point to other
stations, has to be erected. In sandy ground this is superseded by a
mound of sand and bushes piled to a sufficient height. In some cases
an artificial tree is found most suitable for long-distance observations.
In many places, however, the little square white tomb-house, with its
round dome and overshadowing sycamore or carouba shining in the
distance, indicates a good standing-ground for the theodolite. These
are about as numerous and as useful to the surveyor as are the towers
of our English parish churches.
The points chosen, the theodolite is conveyed on the back of a mule
ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING. 123
to tlie spot, and every prominent object is observed, and its position
Avith regard to the i)oiut of observation accurately determined. It is
on these occasions that my colleague, Mr. Drake, collects the majority of
the names, which are afterwards verified. This part of the work occupies
about a week, and has lately given an average of ten hours per diem,
of which six were consumed in riding to and from the point.
These operations finished, and the skeleton of the map thus con-
structed, the filling in of the detail next occupies our attention, and it
is then that the greatest difficulty arises. A road (though generally a
very bad one, yet better than none at all) leads to almost every im-
portant point ; but where every inch of ground has to be gone over, it
is, of course, impossible to follow one path. Cross-country work nov^
begiias, and tired horses have to be di-agged up and down places where
at first sight it would seem impossible for them to move. Rocks and
boulders, thistles 10ft. high, deep mud, treacherous marshes, thick
coppice, and burning plains, all add to the difficulties of the work, and
places which may afterwards prove important are so hidden away
that their position could not be imagined till one came quite close.
However, by degrees all is worked in roads, villages, ruins, rivers, and
all the details you see on the map are fixed, hill slopes measured, t!:e
geology examined, and collections increased. One day is then allowed
.to ink in and finish the whole, and the tents are then immediately
struck, and the round of labour begins again.
My professional department is of course the only one for which
I am responsible to the Society. Of the two important subjects of
nomenclature and identification, it is not my duty to speak ; all con-
cerning which I wish to assure- the Society is the thoroughness of that
part of the aichajological department of our undertaking which it is mj'
calling to superintend. Of the date or value of any particular ruin
my opinion would of course not be considered of great importance,
except in as far as any one must learn from a constant comparison of
various examples of a few styles. Mine is the more modest task of
preserving all necessary notes of the fast crumbling monuments of an-
tiquity. We are instructed to discover, measure, and sketch all that
remains of ruins, some over 2,000 years of age, which have been sub-
jected in turn to the fury of contending nations, the violent action of
sun, Avind, and rain, each more powerful than in more northern
climates, and finally to the vandalism of the fellahin. I will briefly
report on what we have done as regards these instructions.
With the TOO square miles sent home from Haifa, I sent a return,
briefly epitomised in the accompanying report. This return contained
a notice of every ruin marked on the map between Nablus and Haifa,
and it will perhaps be remembered that no less than 35 per cent, were
mere heaps of water-worn ashlar, or grey mounds, where once a ruin
had stood. In such cases it is of course impossible to do more than
mark the place on the map and plans, as sketches would convey no
valuable infoi-mation. Of the remaining relics, however, it is possible
124 ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING.
to collect more than can be placed on the sheets and accordingly a plan
of each, with sketches, sections, and drawings of details where neces-
sary, has been made, and the whole are kept in one book, into which
they are transcribed as soon as possible from the field note-books.
This volume forms, as it were, the memoir to the map. Among
its more important contents I may mention notes on the ruins of
Cesarea (where we found the wall of Herod's temple to Csesar and
Rome, and the famous drains at sea level mentioned by Josephus),
those of Tautura and of Athlifc. Thi-ee great Roman aqueducts,
a little temple near Jenin, Crusading forts at Tell Kaymun,
Seffuryeh, Rushmia, Kakun Dustray, Shellaleh, and Kalensawyeh, and
no less than 150 rock-cut tombs of every description. A similar return
has been constructed of the country passed over before my arrival, but
is not as yet complete, and several plans and sketches await the time
when I revisit that part of the country to execute the hill shading.
This portion of the work is further supplemented by special surveys on
a large scale of such places of importance as Cesarea and Athlit, and
finished scale plans of their remaining buildings.
The meteorological observations, on the correct keeping of which.
Mr. Glaisher, who first interested himself on the subject, will be able to
report, have been kept with all iiossible regularity in our camp, and
thanks to the exertions of Dr. Chaplin and of Dr. Varten, they have
also been forwarded from Nazareth, from Jerusalem, and from Jaffa.
At ]^eyrout they have been under Mr. Eldridge's care, and have
no doubt been equally satisfactory.
Oeoloijij. — The instructions with which I am furnished containing the
combined experience of preceding expeditions, further direct my atten-
tion to the geology and natural history of the country as collateral
branches of investigation. The Society has, indeed, refused to content
itself with other than professional work; but I hope that when the
time comes for sending out a distinguished geologist, the geological
map which I am constructing may prove of service in directing
him to points of interest, and that observations made honestly will be
verified by his researches.
Natural Histdnj. — In natural history our attention has been chiefly
confined to entomological collections and to the drying of plants.
I may mention that a valuable collection of Orthoj^tera and Coleoptera
is now being carried on at Jerusalem by Dr. Kersten, as the nucleus
of a Jerusalem Museum, and that he has very kindly given me every
possible assistance and much iiseful advice.
I cannot close this report without touching on a subject which to me,
as to all members of the Fund, is of the very highest interest. I mean
the "Exploration of Jerusalem." The attention of the Fund has
indeed been lately diverted from this centre, but I sincerely hope that
the labours of Captain Warren are yet to be followed out, and that I
may be allowed part in an investigation, the interest of which is to
me personally far beyond that of anything in the country, and to
ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING. 125
the understanding of which I have ah-eady devoted more than five
years of study.
No one can visit Jerusalem without being impressed with the courage,
endurance, and ability which must have been necessary to enable
Captain Warren to vanquish the difficulties he had to encounter and to
collect from such a depth of debris the valuable data we now possess.
In the Haram enclosure there is but very little of importance which he
has left to be done. To a few points specially indicated by him I have
turned my attention, and have been able to make a more minute
survey of the surface of the Sakhrah than seems to have been possible
before. One point of the greatest interest yet remains unsolved : the
Well of Spii-its below the rock is still a mystery, but great advances
have been made in facilitating such investigations, and we need not
yet despair of final success. Time will work wonders, and it must not
be forgotten that money will do even more.
There are yet two subjects of the most pai'amount importance to be
examined in Jerusalem, and the interest they excite is not, I believe, at all
diminished. The first is the claim which the venerable Church of the
Holy Sepulchre asserts to be considered the true site of the Saviour's
tomb; the second is the discovery of the royal sepulchres, in which
David, Solomon, and their successors lay embalmed. It must be pretty
generally understood by members of the Fund that the first question
hangs on the discovery of the site of the starting-point of that " second
wall " which at the time of the Crucifixion was the boundary of
Jerusalem. I have already submitted to the Committee a plan for its
determination, based on the apparently obvious method of finding the
first wall first, and have been given to understand that its acceptation
was only delayed by want of funds.
As regards the tombs of the kings, I know of but one indication on
which to work. Benjamin of Tudela, a traveller less credulous and
ignorant than most of his immediate successors, graphically describes
their accidental rediscovery in his own time by masons emploj'ed in
the time-honoured custom of destroying ancient monuments by the
demolition of the old Zion wall. Allowing for the natural exaggeration
for which terror, darkness, and the rush of innvTmerable bats may
account, there is but little reason to discredit the account. My proposal
for the refinding of the tombs was to follow the example of these
mediaeval workmen, starting from a fixed point at the modern Bishop's
School, and tracing the Zion wall noi'thwards and eastwards — towards
the city, and towards the ancient Ophel wall already discovered by
Captain Warren.
As regards the question of funds I have but little to say. The
expenses of the survey are reduced to a minimum, and it has again
and again been shown to subscribers that an increased yearly expen-
diture for a shorter time is far more economical than the continuation
of the present rate of work and of outlay for a period of five to six
years. The Committee have been able to add one more member to my
12G ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING.
party, but this is liardly sxxfficient to enable me to carry out tlie double
party whicli I bad boped soon to organise. It must be remembered
tliat this is simply a question of health. The climate becomes more
trying to a European every year he remains in the country, and should
the Society lose the services of either Sergeant Black or of Corporal
Armstrong, now trained to the work and thoroughly competent, and
lose them by failing to lighten and shorten their work, they will find
it very difficult to supply the place of either without damage to the
character of the wox'k.
Could funds be collected for work in Jerusalem I should advise a
partial break in the survey, for the reason that, situate as we are in
remote corners of the country at a time when travellers are thronging
into the city, the work of the Fund is but little known, and the large
amount of interest which might be excited by a few tangible dis-
coveries, which might be seen by every visitor, is entirely lost.
In conclusion I may be allowed to direct the attention of the meeting
to the valuable services rendered to the Fund by many residents in
Palestine.
The interest taken by Dr. Chaplin in our work, the care he has
shovv'n to keep it before the eyes of the world in this country, Avhen
we were imable to speak for ourselves, his long experience and great
knowledge of every antiquarian subject connected with Palestine,
without mentioning his unvarying courtesy and kindness, have been
of the greatest service to ourselves and the Fund generally.
In Herr Konrad Schick the Fund has also a most valuable repre-
sentative. His patient labour, and the advantages he enjoys from
his position in Jerusalem, have enabled him to do work which it
would be impossible for any others to do. The diagram of rock levels
throughout the city, which he has kindly prepared at my request,
is probably the most important basis on which to begin a study of
the ancient topography that has been obtained since Captain Wai'ren
left the country.
I have already spoken of Dr. Kersten, and must recognise the
kindness of Mr. Zeller in supplying us with a list of names in the
centre of Palestine, and in guiding u.s to the discovery of several
important antiquities, which we could not have found for ourselves.
From Mr. Elkavy, the Protestant missionary at Nablus, we also
obtained a similar list, and received kindness and hospitality which
v/ere most acceptable in our long journeys through the country.
The general courtesy and ready help which we have met with
fi'om Europeans in all quarters, and especially from Mr. Moore, in
the arrangement of our little local difficulties, is also worthy of the
gratitude of the Fund; and in conclusion my own personal thanks
are due to Captain Wilson and Captain Warren for their kindness in
supplementing my inexperience by their own professional knowledge
and advice.
The CiiAiEMAN : I can unfeignedly say that I occupy tho chair hero
ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING. 127
to-day witli something of shame and regret, because I wish that some one
of those who have taken an active part in this work which we have
carried on now for several years could, have replaced me on this occasion.
I fear the sound of my voice must bo a weariness to you; but my right
to stand here consists in this, — that I feel that I represent the general
public who meet once a year to encourage the active workers in the scheme,
and to hear from them what they have done. The Fund has now ex-
pended a sum approaching £20,000 ; and for the first time we are obliged
to say we feel a prospect of that alarming thing called a deficit.
£20,000 is a large sum ; but when I think how easily this nation gets
rid of £20,000 for objects which have no great meaning after all, I cannot
help ui'ging the claims of this Fund, because we think the country can
well afford it, and we think the object we have in view— that of making
the words of the Sacred Book better understood — is a noble object, and
one that is especially worthy of the peoj^le who have done more for the
circulation of the Bible than any other people in the world ever did —
the people of Great Britain. And when I say that we have expended
£20,000, large as that sum is, I do not think the work will stand still
because we have spent a great deal upon it. The object we are now
engaged in is more interesting to men of science and cultivation than to
the general public. History has something vague and unreal about it
until you know the geography of the country in which the events of
history have taken place, and not until you have a perfectly good map
upon which the actors may stand does history become a reality. Well,
it is the making of a perfect map of Palestine which has occupied us
in the last year — not a map in which conventional mountains are laid
down, nor yet a map constructed in that older fashion where monsters
were exhibited as occui^ying large districts which were left blank — but
a map which shall be a true picture of the country as it is now. One-
fifth of this work is accomplished, as you will see on reference^to the
map before you, and you have therefore to do the rest. We have to regret
that this Fund has lost during the past year two of its most excellent
friends and supporters. Last year, on a similar occasion to the present,
my much-esteemed and valued friend. Viscount Ossington, addressed
the meeting. No man in this country took a greater interest in the
cultivation of the people, and as you are aware, he gave us the benefit
of his support because he thought this Fund would do much to cul-
tivate a knowledge of the Scriptures. Again, one of the best scholars
we had among us at our former meetings was Mr. Emanuel Deutsch.
He also has been taken away. His Oriental learning was extremely
great : not a son of this nation, he was ours by adoption, and at all times
took a great interest in the affairs of this Fund. Well, we have completed
duriug^tho year one-fifth of the Survey of Palestine, and we have put
forth [a new book — "Our Work in Palestine" — which the public
evidently takes a great interest in — since it has purchased to the extent
of 5,000 copies in a few months. This is a matter of congratulation to
us, because the cii'culation of this book will do more to show what this
128 ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING.
Fund has undertaken than the speeches here or anything else, "because
it contains the travels and actual discoveries of the Fund's officers, and
because it also gives conclusive evidence that the field of research is
immense. Eegret has been expressed in the Report, and very naturally,
that we have left our work in Jerusalem for the present ; but we hope to
go on with it again. M. Clermont-Ganneau wishes to devote his time
and attention to the researches promoted by this Association. There are
difficulties in the way, but we trust that those who wish that Jerusalem
should have a large part of their attention will be able to have their wish
gratified. I will not trespass on you, or prevent other speakers
addressing you, but I will remind you that this Society is established
for the promotion of the study of God's holy Word; and it has done a
good deal in that direction— first through the volume which I hold in
my hand, and in the second place, as you will see by a glance at that
map, in the Survey of the country, and, as you have heard in the lleport,
by the prospect of its completion. There is a third point which should
not be forgotten. Every society of this kind, besides the direct work
which it does, promotes other work of the kind : it is like a beam of
light ; though the ray of light itself is straight, it diffuses.
Something should be said here of the researches of our excellent friend
Canon Tristram in the land of Moab. His work on that land will show
you what it is, and the kind of hopes that will rise up in the minds of
travellers in connection with this Society. He discovered some ruins,
for instance, where he found a temple of great magnificence and beauty,
though for the most part ruined. But it was more than a beautiful
temple : it belonged to no existing style of architecture, and was full of
rich decoration which could not be classified. Imagine how our friend
Mr. Fergusson would gloat over such a discovery. To connect this with
any form of architecture a link was wanting. This Canon Tristram
found. In a little church in Italy he discovered a triangular ornament,
and there, behold, he recognised this fragment which he found in the
Persian temple of Mashita. Now the question which it is my duty to
put to you is, Will you help us a little more on the ground of what
has been done ? Will you help us to prosecute these researches a little
further, to illustrate the Book which is foremost in our interest and
chiefest of our studies? There are plenty of results to be obtained,
and if you will give your time and your money to the cause a great
amount of success is certain to follow. (Cheers.) I ought to have called
upon Mr. Tyrwhitt Drake himself to read his report, but he is not here
to-day, and we are afraid he is unwell. I am, however, now going to
mention a name which deserves the highest honour in connection with
this subject. I will call upon my friend the Dean of Westminster to move
the first resolution. (Loud cheers.)
The Veky Reverend THE Dean of Westminster : My Lord Arch-
bishop, Ladies and Gentlemen, — The first resolution which I have the
honour to move is this, ' ' That this meeting, having heard with satisfac-
tion the Report presented by the Committee of the progress of the Survey
ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING. 129
of Palestine, and of the operations of the Pund in other directions,
pledges itself to use its iitmost endeavours to raise the necessary funds
to carry on the work to a successful conclusion." Like tlie Archbishop,
I have so often addressed you on these occasions, and so often used the
same arguments, that I have the same diffidence in referring to them
again ; but, nevertheless, one peculiarity of this Society is that it is per-
I)etually discovering something fresh, and so supplies both your Grace
and myself, and other speakers, witli fresh arguments on the objects it
has accomplished. No doubt it is true, as has been said in the Report,
and as your Grace has said, we have a little wandered from the original
field of our object, the exploration of the city of Jerusalem ; and I have
never wavered in my opinion that this is the part of Palestine wliich most
demands exploration and investigation, and which is most likely to yield
permanent and unexpected fruits ; but th.e very fact that we have this
chief object always in advance of us is like the Holy Grail pursued by
the Knights of the Eound Table, and may have the advantage of remind-
ing us that, whatever other investigation wo take up, and however long
we put off the exploration of Jerusalem, this ultimate goal is before us aa
a perpetual incentive. I now turn to what has been done in the last year
towards the completion of the map of Palestine ; and there are one or
two things which occur to me to say on looking at that map. "When
I look at that black line which indicates what we have accomplished,
it is interesting to think that our Society has done so much, for in one
sense that is the most interesting part of Palestine. But to me personally
it is the least interesting part, because I know it best. What I want to
see explored is not the western part of Palestine ; I am burning to see that
which I do not know, and what I do desire to see is the completion of
the Survey on the east of the Jordan ; the extension of that black line to
the end of that blue streak, which represents the chasm of the Jordan
Valley. We are in the habit at these meetings of using a little exagge-
ration in saying that very little or nothing has been done by previous
travellers, but I think that is an error. In a general sense we do know
a great deal about Western Palestine. No doubt even there we want
precise knowledge. Nevertheless our enemies, if there be such wicked
people in the world — our enemies might say that of the western side
of the Jordan we have a very fair knowledge. But when you pass that
black line, and cross the valley of the Jordan, we know— I am not sure
whether I ought to be sorry to say it — but wo know very little indeed.
I may just mention one single instance, if you will allov/ me, to sho-W
you the incompleteness of our knoAvledge of Eastern Palestine. One oi
the most interesting scenes in sacred history is the meeting of Jacob with
his brother Esau, as described in the book of Genesis ; and never having
been on the cast of Jordan, I wished to make out exactly what the
place of that event, and the nature of the scene, and in the first
instance the precise nature of the valley of the Jabbok. But on turn-
ing to the word "Jabbok" in Dr. Smith's Dictionary of the Bible I
found that all reference to the peculiarities of the stream, or indeed to
130 ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING.
the scene itself, was entirely passed over. I then went to the Speaker's
Commentary (and in mentioning that honoured name I would add the
echo of my humble testimony to what your Grace has said of the great
loss we all sustained), but here there was not one word of explanation
of any kind. I then looked to books of travel which have touched
upon it, but not even with the help of these could I form to myself any
fixed, certain notion of what the place was like. I mention this because
this was an incident that would certainly be brought out in a map, and
we should have the whole thing placed before us very difEerently to the
inadequate way in which it is put before us at present. So much for a
negative proof of what we want. Now let us give two positive proofs of
what may be gained by exploration on the east of the Jordan. I refer with
great pleasure, in his presence, to Canon Tristram's " Land of Moab."
I will not here repeat what your Grace has said of the Palace of Chosroes.
I will only say that the discovery of the palace of that great king of
Persia is most oi^portune at the moment that his successor is landing on
our shores. But there are two localities described in that book which
are connected with the Old and New Testament history. One is
Callirhoe, the hot or cold bath to which Herod the Great was brought
at the end of his life, which has only been described, and that but slightly,
by one previous traveller, and any spot more romantic, more beautiful,
than this wild glen, as represented by Canon Tristram, I cannot imagine.
The other is Machserus, the castle in which John the Baptist was beheaded;
most interesting on that account alone, but which never has been
described before by any one. I am therefore thoroughly satisfied that
the completion of this Survey is one of the most important things we
have to do. I will only, in conclusion, say that I am glad we have been
able to enlist another nation than ourselves in this great object, in
the person of M. Clermont-Ganneau, and although we shall always [have
the credit of having commenced this Fund and kept the fire burning,
yet we do not grudge other nations the credit of any assistance they
may give in carrying out what -we have begun. (Cheers.)
Mr. "Walter Morrison : My Lord Archbishop, Ladies and Gentle-
uien, — I have been called upon at a very short notice to second this reso-
lution, and to supply the place of Mr. George Grove, whose name is so
well known to Biblical scholars. Mr. Grove has been unavoidably kept
from coming here to-day, as we have received a message from him to
State, by that cause which is upsetting all the arrangements of English
society— namely, the Shah of Persia, who, as you are aware, is going
down to the Crystal Palace next week. We have also much to regret
the absence of Mr. Tyrwhitt Drake. We arranged this meeting at a time
when we fully expected him, but, as you know, the climate of the East is
one that tries and tells upon European constitutions. It has been neces-
sary for him to come over for his health's sake, and he arrived at Trieste
on Tuesday last. We have sent a telegram to him, but no answer has
come, and we are afraid that ho is laid up by some serious illness. Com-
ing now to the resolution which it is my duty to second, let mo refer to
ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING. 131
the remarks which have been made by the Dean of Westminster as to
the change which has taken place in our operations. This change has
been pressed upon us by many of our subscribers. When we estab-
lished this Society seven years ago we set before ourselves three objects
— one of which was the preparation of a map of the country, and we
thought those who would have joined us required something in return
for their money in the way in which thoy would liko to see it expended.
And another reason which influenced the Committee when it was pro-
posed to change our plan of operations was, that we have been in the
habit of receiving subscriptions from our cousins across the Atlantic.
They, however, suggested that they had better got up a society of their
own; we therefore offered to divide the Exploration of Palestine with
them, and offered them the East of Jordan. After we had done that came
the discovery of the Moabite Stone. Our American friends were
anxious to explore their part of the country, and we felt that we
had no right to trespass on their portion of the Survey. However,
we have gone on with our work, and out of 6,600 square miles
of country Lieutenant Conder has finished the survey of 1,650 square
miles, and I think that is not an unsatisfactory amount of work to have
finished during the comparatively short time we have been at work.
Roughly speaking, Palestine is about the size of the principality of Wales,
and if you will come and look at the work on this table you will find
that there is no shortcoming to be complained of at all. You must
recollect that our surveying work is not merely confined to the part
within that black ribbon, because it includes the part completed by
Major Wilson and Captain Anderson, and portions of the Jordan Valley
surveyed by Captain Warren, the Admiralty Survey, with Lynch's
Survey of the Dead Sea, so that even if we were to come to a termi-
nation of our Survey now we should have a much better map of
Palestine than could have been thought of ten years ago. I have the
honour to occupy the position of Treasurer to the Fund, and I would
ask the meeting to think especially of the concluding part of the reso-
lution which I have seconded — namely, that it "pledges itself to use
its utmost endeavours to raise the necessary funds to carry on the
work to a successful conclusion." In changing our observations from
Jerusalem to the Survey of the country we have gone aside from a
sensational work to one of a different nature, because it requires a
certain amount of thought and abstraction to realise the difficulty of
completing a survey of this kind. Palestine has been frequently visited
in recent years, particularly by tourists, who pass through the country
every year, but until we commenced our excavations travellers only
passed along the main streams and the beaten tracks. One of the inci-
dental advantages of our Survey is that we can prove a series of nega-
tives. Thus we have shown, which is in itself a most valuable piece of
knowledge for future explorers, that there are certain districts in which
nothing can be discovered. When we cover Palestine with triangles of
fifteen miles from point to point it is extremely improbable that anything
132 a:^nual general meeting.
of importance can escape tlie attention of the explorer, and wlien a given
district is thus thoroughly explored, it is a guide to future explorers not
to wait there, but to seek elsewhere. On the other hand, if ruins are
found which have never been visited before, it is likely that they will
give a clue to identify other sites as well. With regard to the proposed
arrangement with M. Ganncau, he is one of the most competent men to
make discoveries in the Holy Land ; he is a man of recognised ability,
and has long had an official residence in Palestine, and has since been
made dragoman to the Prench Embassy at Constantinople. He has first
of all the advantage of knowing intimately the current dialect of Pales-
tine, he has been accustomed to deal with the people, ho knows who to
put questions to, and how to get information without putting leading
questions ; and it would be of the utmost value that Mr. Tyrwhitt Drake
and Lieutenant Conder should have a gentleman like M. Ganneau to
support or criticise the conclusions to which they have arrived. This
matter, however, is still in nuhihus, and it depends on the French autho-
rities whether we shall have his services or not. I can say no more at
present, except that I hope those present will endeavour to persuade
their friends to come forward to help us with the work we have in hand.
It is true that our funds are not in a satisfactory state, but we are com-
mitted to the work, and must go on with it, and I hope the public will
come forward and prevent us from being disgraced. (Cheers.) The
resolution was unanimously carried.
The Eev. Cakon Tristram : The resolution which I have the honour
to move is this, — " That this meeting hails with pleasure the announce-
ment that a preliminary American Expedition has commenced its work
of exploration on the east of Jordan, and trusts that the two sister
Societies will always continue to work heartily together." I might
almost say that my friend the Secretary had had a little satirical humour
in his mind, in selecting me, who have just been pioneering east of
Jordan, to propose this resolution ; but I do it with a good feeling, and
with a cordial conviction that our American friends are likely to do a
good work in Palestine, and that they are the men to do it. Four-and-
twenty years ago, when I was in America, and when the rush was made
to Minnesota and Iowa, no attention was devoted to the east, but every
eflPort was made to get farther west ; but now we find the Americans
have reached their western limits, and, turned back by the waves of the
Pacific, have determined to be foremost in tho eastward march. I do
not know that they will get ahead of us in that way, for we have been
the real and true pioneers in Palestine exploration. Yet there are no
three men of modern times who have dono so much in their several
departments, and who have dono that work so well, as Dr. Eobinson,
liieut. Lynch, and Dr. Thompson, and they were Americans. Right glad,
therefore, are we to find that their mantle has descended on worthy suc-
cessors. Let not our Transatlantic cousins fancy that we have forestalled
them in Moab. Though I have just returned from an expedition
thither, I feel our party have only been as Uhlans prospecting the
ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING. 133
ground, and making a reconnaissance for the regular army of explorers
that is to follow. We have at least, I hope, drawn attention to the work
that remains to be done east of Jordan, and which I fancy rather exceeds
the expectations even of my friend Mr. Besant himself. Of the eleven cities
up to this time unknown, we have only succeeded in placing four, leaving
still seven for the investigation of the American expedition. Again,
south of the Arnon and eastward of the Moabite mountain range, the
ground is quite untouched, and the followers have a virgin field. I
have great pleasure in moving — " That this meeting hails with pleasure
the announcement that a preliminary American Expedition has com-
menced its exploration on the east of Jordan, and trusts that the two
sister Societies will always continue to work heartily together."
Dr. BiKcn : My Lord Archbishop, Ladies and Gentlemen, — It affords
me great pleasure to rise to second the resolution. At a former meeting
of this Fund I seconded a similar resolution ; and I am gratified to find
that the American branch, or sister Society, has undertaken the investi-
gation of the country east of Jordan, and that they are willing to deal
in a most liberal spirit with ourselves. With Palestine proper, as has
been well detailed by the Dean of Westminster, the world is well
acquainted. There were, however, some peculiarities about the ancient
Hebrew people. I believe they did not use inscriptions so extensively
as other nations of the world ; and few have been found in Palestine
itself ; but it is not so in Moab and east of Jordan. Only there is one
caution necessary to be observed. If there are any spurious monuments,
or monuments of doubtful antiquity, it will require not only considerable
leai-ning, but considerable archaeological experience, to avoid being
defrauded. Some of the things, sketches of which are now exhibited
in the Dudley Gallery, profess to come from Moab, and the question is
how far that is true. The country east of Jordan is, of course, a country
of extreme interest, and it is to be hoped that the Surveys of the two
Societies will be carried on in the same manner. That, I have no doubt,
the Society has arranged. It is also to be hoped that they will note
all the monuments they find, and collect such fragments as may be
discovered in order to fix dates. The difficulties of exploring Jerusalem
are very great, because you must go under the rock, and great obstruc-
tion must arise in carrying on operations under such conditions.
Jerusalem is a city which has been subject to an infinite number of
adversities. It seems to have been swept of ancient remains, and with
the exception of those of the Eoman period very few remain, particularly
of the times of the Kings. Some, however, have been found, and there
is no reason why other monuments may not be found in future explora-
tions. At the same time the portions hitherto explored have not been
very prolific. For these reasons I think we ought to haQ with the
greatest satisfaction the work carried on by the American Society, and
wish them God-speed upon their way. (Cheers.)
The proceedings ended by a vote of thanks to the Chairman, pro-
posed by Lord Alfred Churchill, and seconded by Mr. Mac-
GREGOR.
Quarterly Statement, October, 1873.]
THE
PALESTINE EXPLORATION FUND,
PREFACE.
The report of Lieut. Conder, dated June 21st, 1873, contains an
account of the filling up of the Survey -svest of the watershed to the
old boundary, leaving only a few weeks' work on the Plain of
Sharon. From the work Mr. Conder has selected twelve places
(plans and sketches of some of them have since been received at the
office) for special report : of these only two sites were previously
known, and the identification of the remaining ten remains to be
ascertained. The remains at Dayr Asruhr are exceedingly interest-
ing, especially if, as Lieut. Conder thinks, they prove to be of
Herodian date. It is illustrative of the need of such a Survey as
ours that this splendid ruin, standing on a hill only ten or twelve
miles from Nablus, should have wholly escaped observation. It con-
sists of a street with houses, cisterns, and towers, a public building
of some kind, and the remains of a wall. These ruins will probably
be visited again. At Dayr Allah our party found the ruins of
another Eoman town, but not in so good a state of preservation.
Tombs of three kinds (see Quarterly Statement, Jan., 1873, p. 23)
were found at Kh. Fakhakhir ; buildings of apparently Eoman date
were found at Karawa ibn Hassan. Sergeant Black discovered
also here a very remarkable tomb called the Dayr el Derb, while
Corporal Armstrong discovered another equally curious, though not
so largo, at Kh. Kurknsh, in the wildest part of the hills. The
tombs at Abud described in this report were visited by Major Wilson
in 1866, as was also Tibneh, where is the traditional tomb of
Joshua. Lieut. Conder's account of this wiU ,be read with the
greatest interest. "We must call attention especially to his tracing
of the old Eoman road. Those who have read the volume issued
m:
136 PREFACE.
last year by tlie Committee, " Our Work iu Palestine," will
remember tbe Eoman road in tlie old maj), there reproduced from
the Tabulae Peutingeriana?. It branches off at Goj)hna (there spelt
Cophna), and while one road continues straight through Neapolis
to Cffisarea, the other strikes west to Lydd (Luddis), and then
turns north to Ctesarea. It was by this latter road that Saint Paul
Avas taken by night to Antipatris (Kefr Saba). Captain Anderson
surveyed it as far as Abud, where Lieut. Conder has taken it np
and traced it in its two new branches, both of which are rudely
represented in the " Tabula?," till he lost them in the plains.
Our illustration this quarter gives the result of Mr. Schick's long-
continued examination of the rock levels of Jerusalem. It contains
the rock levels found by Major "Wilson, Captain Warren, Mr. Schick
himself, and the latest work in the city. From these observations,
about two hundred in number, Mr. Schick has constructed a model,
now in the office of the Fund, and Lieut. Conder has made the
contour map of the city which accompanies his memoirs on the
subject.
The notes on Lieut. Conder' s Baalbec report do not properly
belong to the work of the Fund, as Baalbec lies out of our district.
It may be remembered that more than a year and a half ago letters
appeared in the Times calling attention to the danger threatening
the columns, and it was then resolved, before the American Expedi-
tion went out, that the officer in charge of the Survey shoidd be
asked to report, whenever practicable, on the actual condition of the
ruins.
Mr. Tyrwhitt Drake, whose health required a visit to England,
has now returned to Palestine completely restored. M. Clermont-
Ganneau goes out immediately. lie will begin his work at Jeru-
salem itself.
THE SURVEY OF PALESTINE.
LIEUT. CLAUDE E. CONDER'S EEPORTS.
XIY.
J3ELAD EL Jemain Tani beni Sab — Unexploeed CoU]S"TEY.
Beykout, June 21st, 1873.
Beport of Progress. — Since reporting ontlie work done njp to our camp
at Mukhalid ovir time lias been so fully employed, the amount of work
so large, and the rate so rapid, that I have been altogether unable to
attend to anything beyond the management of the field work and of the
expedition generally.
The rate of work has been very satisfactory, and far beyond anything
I expected with my original party. The country gone over is almost
entirely unknown, and thus 1 hope the present report will be of greater
interest than any I have yet sent in.
Leaving on the 7th of May our camp at Mukhalid, we established
ourselves at Kefr Zebad Bidyeh and Rantis, breaking off work finally
on the 7th of June, and retiring to Lebanon to pass the hottest portion
of an exceptionally hot summer. In that time we succeeded in bringing
the work back to its old boundaiy, filling in all the hill country W. of the
watershed, and only leaving some three weeks' work in the plain of
Sharon, which Dr. Chaplin forbade us to undertake so late in the year.
The Ordnance Survey thus extends over 1,800 square miles, 3-llths
of the whole area of Palestine, whilst the monthly rate since leaving
Haifa has been close upon 180-89 miles, being treble that originally
obtained, and an increase of nearly 30 per cent, on the maximum which
I was able to reach last year. This result cannot fail to be encouraging
to all concerned. Were my party doubled by the addition of one more
N.C.O. before the recommencement of our work, I think I could almost
promise an average rate of 240 square miles per month, which would
represent the comi^letion of the map in two years, working ten months
in the year.
The following plans and sketches are obtained, and at Damascus I
hope we shall have time to work them out.
1. Dayr Asrulir. — Remains of a large town, probably of Herodiau
period. Plans of the two principal buildings. Sketches of
detail. Special survey of the whole site. Plans of rock-cut
tombs.
138 LIEUT. CLAI'DE R. CONDER's REPORTS.
2. Kh. Kurhush. — A cemetery of well-finislied tombs. Plans, sketclies,
measurements of details, &c.
3. Karawa ihn Hassan. — Plan and sketches and details of a very fine
tomb, well preserved. Plan of a cliurcli (?). Two crusading
buildings in the town.
4. Mol-at'a Abud. — A cemetery of well-finished tombs. Plans. Mea-
sured sketches of detail. Painted interior, -well executed in
cement. Greek church in village.
5. Tilneh. — Special sui'vey of the site of town. Plan of so-called
Joshua's tomb. Sketch of the exterior.
6. Dayr Kalu'ah. — A finely-preserved oth century monastery. Plan,
elevation, sketches of detail, ornamentation of chapel, &c.
7. Bayr Sam'an. — A similar building, less well preserved. Plan and
details.
8. Dayr Arraleh. — A similar building. Plan alone traceable.
9. El Duayr. — Similar building, but smaller plan traceable.
10. Kh. Fahhakhtr. — Tombs, and a building, possibly a synagogue.
11. Dayr Allah. — Remains of a town, with a small temple, close to the
Roman road to Jaffa.
12. Nebi Yahyah. — Plan, section, and measurements of all the details.
Of this list of places visited, surveyed, and measured during the
course of one month, only two sites were previously known, the rest
are, I think I may state with some certainty, quite new discoveries. I
am sorry I cannot add an inscription to the list.
In geology we have found two more basaltic outbi'eaks, and collected
some valuable fossils.
The reasons for the increased rate of work are various. The triangu-
lation has occupied much less time than it did at first, because the
triangles have been larger, the points therefore fewer ; because on the
east we had a mimber of old points which it was not necessary to visit
in order to be certain of their suitability, and because of a very strict
economy of time in the arrangements, the number of days consumed
by this part of the work being reduced to a minimum. Then, also,
the detail has been more rapidly pushed on, partly because of greater
practice, partly by reason of the large tracts of sandhills along the sea-
coast, which can be very rapidly surveyed. The addition of Corporal
Brophy to the party cannot be counted, as he has not as yet been able
to assist ; nor does the execution of a share in the sketching by myself
from the last two camps make any very large difference; the work as
it stands is that of the original party of last year. Against the facilities
of work must be balanced certain disadvantages : the unusual number
of plans and special surveys which it was necessary to make ; the greater
lieat on the low hills and in the plains, with mirage consequent to it ;
finally, the extremely wild and difficult nature of the country through
which we passed last.
A Bhort description of the principal sites mentioned in the above
list may prove of interest; they include towns, cemeteries, roads, and
convents.
LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDEr's REPORTS. 139
Dayr Asriihr. — Tliis interesting site, for wliicli I obtained foiir various
names, of which that chosen seems to me the most probably ancient, is
situate on a hill aboiit ten or twelve miles W. of Nabliis, in a fine and
•commanding position. It seems to have altogether escaped notice, and
perhaps from this reason is in a better state of preservation than any-
similar ruin in the country. Of the character of the details an archaeo-
logist alone can judge, but 1 think I may venture to assert that it dates
■as far back as Herodian times, an opinion strengthened by the discoveiy
of a much-defaced bronze coin of the time of the Roman emperors — the
reverse a Avreath with S C, the obverse a head.
The ruins occupy about a square mile, and seem to have been surrounded
with a wall. A large building facing north and south exists at the
north-west corner of the town, and a second, facing at 107 " on the
compass, is found ou the east. The north wall of the former is stand-
ing in parts to a height of 23ft., and a fine solid semicircular arch,
I4ft. span with 13 voussoirs, marks the position of an entrance. The
rubbish in this part, which is level with the springing of the arch,
must be of some considerable depth. The site, if identified, might be
worth special study and excavation. The wall consists of stones of
fair size, well cut and laid. The height of the courses is very irregular,
and many stones are of great length as compared with their height.
Of those measured at the corner the length varied from oft. 3in. to
1ft. 6in., and the height from 1ft. llin. to 3ft. 5in. They all appear to
have been drafted, a well-finished shallow draft, 2in. to 3iin. broad, the
central boss being well worked to a perfectly plane face. In many
cases the draft is hardly traceable from age, and this, in connection
with the finer finish, the imusual proportions, the semicircular arch,
and the flat lintels and classic mouldings of the doors to the rest of the
building, make me suppose the masonry far older than the coarser and
rustic work of the Crusaders who built Athlit and Cajsarea. The build-
ing seems to have been unsymmetricalin plan, with a large hall leading
through to the southern door, the jambs of which still remain, whilst
on the west three entrances led to smaller apartments. The east wall
is not traceable above ground.
Passing along what seems to have been a street, with well-built
houses, cisterns, and small towers, the foundations alone remaining, we
find on the cast the remains of what I siippose must have been a public
building, though it can hardly have been a temple, facing, as it does,
roughly Avestward, but not exactly to any cardinal point. It appears
to have stood in a court, surrounded by a terrace wall of fine masonry ;
the walls are still standing for two or three courses, and are nearly
7ft. thick. The building is 65ft. long and 44ft. broad, the most
ourioiis detail which one at first notices being two great blocks nearly
10ft. high, but only 2ft. square, which stand up in situ at the north-west
and south-west corners. Their bases are below the general level, and are
ornamented with a classic moulding.
I should imagine that the floor within this building was at a higher
140 LIEUT. CLAUDE H. CONDEr's RErORTS.
level, and that steps ox-if?inally led up in front, but the accumulation of
rubbish does not allow of this being well seen. A cross wall forms a
sort of porch or Pronaos, thus giving the impression that this was a
temple. A large block fallen within measures lift, in length. Various
shafts, about 2ft. diameter, lie without, hence one is led to suppose
that there were three walks about 10ft. wide, as thus only could the
width be spanned ; excavation might bring to light the bases of these
pillars. I noticed a curious indented joint or joggle in the exterior
Avail, of which I retained a sketch ; it disturbs tlie horizontal joint as
well as the vertical. We further found a stone, 5ft. long and about 2ft,
square, Avith a flat pilaster cut on either side, with a base and capital
of debased, or Jewish classic appearance, cut in low relief. From its
size this must have either belonged to a window or to a set of pillars in
a second order, or clerestory. Eemaius of a tesselated pavement also-
exist. This building stands above a deep broad valley, on the opposite
side of which are well-cut rock tombs, with loculi placed parallel ta
their walls — the cemetery of the town. Following the wall we find
cisterns, birkets, a, small tower of stones over 10ft. long, and a little
vault or tomb into which two columns have fallen. Vaults are said ta
exist below the town, but this is unlikely. On the south-Avest and Avest
the rock is scarped below the apparent remains of a wall, and a projec-
tion in one part seems to have supported a small turret.
These notes, I imagine, will lead to the conclusion that Ave have here
recovered an interesting and perhaps important site.
Dayr Allali. — This also seems to have been a Roman town, but
smaller, and with no signs of such fine buildings having existed in it.
The ruins extend over about 300yds. length and breadth, the principal
being walls of fair-sized stones undrafted, and a door with a plain lintel
7ft. long. Tnvo bases of pillars belonging to some building facing east
remain, they are 6ft. apart, and lO^in. diameter. Several shafts and
capitals of a very curious character lie near. This appears to have
been the temple.
This site is situate close to the Roman road, which we have now
traced to the plain, the famous road to Antipatris which Captain
Anderson surveyed as far as Tibneh. From this point it continues along
the ridge until it arrives near the village of 'Abud. Here it separates
into tAvo, the first passing along the ridge and leaving, just to the south,
the tombs of Avhich I shall shortly speak, descending a broad valley
and continuing its course till it reaches the plain near Mejdel, south of
Ras el 'Ain ; the second descending at once from 'Abud, and passing
Rantis and Dayr Allah, is lost in the plain. This branch evidently led
from Jaffa, and formed one of the lines to Jerusalem, a second more
direct existing i'arther south.
Nothing is more striking than the contrast between such a road and
the modern Arabic highways. Tlie llonians, as well for military as for
engineering reasons, followed the ridges, avoiding the highest points,.
and gradually descending the valleys where necessary. The masterly
LIEUT. CLAUDE K. CONDEr's REPORTS. 141
mannei" in wliicli they arc engineei'cd In a country so difficult as is the
mountain district of Judasa might give valuable indications for the con-
struction of future roads, which might be simjjly reconstructions on the
same line. An Arabic road meanders in a meaningless manner over
hill and valley, now plunged between heights too distant for the advanc-
ing party to occupy easily, then climbing straight over a summit
without any very apparent reason. The Roman roads were very care-
fully made, the rock being covered with a regular pavement of partly-
dressed stones still remaining in places. This, with the existence of
side walls in some cases, and of broken and effaced milestones, enables
us easily to distinguish them. Of all roads they are i^robably, how-
ever, the worst in the country to follow in their present state, as, the
pavement being gone, nothing but flat slabs of slippery rock is left, on
which the horses stumble fearfully. Another of these roads, leading
from Samaria to Kur, has also been recognised by its pavement and
engineering. It is doubtful whether they were intended in all cases for
chariots, though those in the plain show marks of wheel ruts in many
places.
Kh. FahTiahlur. — Tombs of three kinds exist here. The ordinary
Jewish tomb, with loculi running in fiom the sides of the chamber ; the
sunken tomb, with loculi on each side and a heavy block covering it
above; finally, a species of tomb uncommon in the country we have
gone through : they are cut in detached rocks, and consist of an arch
8ft. diameter and 6ft. deep, thus forming an alcove of a semicircular
section open in front. The tomb itself is sunk in the floor of the
alcove, and was covered with a slab ; a niche for a lamp is generally
found at the back. Fragments of sarcophagi, Avith lids and ornamented
sides, exist near, and amongst the ruins is a building about 50ft. square,
facing apj)roximately to the cardinal points, and divided into three
walks by pillars, the northern row consisting of four, the southern of
two, with a partition wall occupying the position of the others. The
pillars are 7ft. Gin. high, and 18in. diameter, with base and capital of
very simi^le mouldings in low relief. The plan is rendered irregular by
the addition of a small chamber at the south-east corner. In the walls,
the foundation of which only remains, a stone "was observed 2ft. Gin.
long, with a draft of the ordinary dimensions, and a w^ell-finished
face. The entrance to the building must have been on the west, but
there seems reason to conjecture that this may have been a small
synagogue.
Kardwa ihii Hassan. — This village was originally named according to
the Shaykh Sham el Tawil, and contains two large buildings, probably
of Roman origin, the one being a reconstruction, the other an original
edifice. The former is a fine tunnel vault, the door spanned by a lintel
covered with defaced ornament, whilst drafted and undrafted stones,
portions of a cornice, and on one stone an inscription which appears to
be Cufic, are built into the outer wall indiscriminately. The second
building, forming a modern residence, is a fine tower about 40ft. square,
l-i2 LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CGNDEr's REPORTS.
the walls standing to tlie height of from 20 to 30ft, and the interior
divided into six vaulted apai-tments, which are used as storehouses;
these are all roofed in tunnel vaults, with semicircular arches of mode-
rate masonry. The stones of the outer wall vary in length from 18in.
to 5ft., and in height the same ; all are surrounded by a boldly-cut
draft an inch deep and 4 inches broad ; the joints are well laid with a
thin bed of good mortar, and the faces are finished plane. There is,
however, no further indication of the date of the building, but no rubble
such as the Crusaders generally mixed with their ashlar is visible in
any part.
A third rain exists under and beside the mosque, which is a large one,
and there seems to me great probability of its having been a chm-ch,
though subsequently used as a birket. It is now sunk below the sur-
face, which no doubt has risen ; it faces east and west, and is built of
fine undrafted masonry with slightly projecting pilasters of classic profile ;
the height of the courses of masonry is very irregular, but the joints
are finely cut. A cross wall of later date shuts ofi" the east end at a
distauce of about -lOft., but a great vault, probably the apse, is reported
to exist under the mosque. Fragments of cement adhere to the walls
but form no part of the original design.
Within half a mile of this village, where Christian and Eoman re-
mains seem thus mingled together, Sergeant Black discovered a tomb,
perhaps the most perfect, as a type, in the country, which is known
locally as the Dayr el Derb (a meaningless name, probably not ancient).
A well-executed frieze of Doric style, the tryglyphs separating rosettes
all of different character, runs along the scarped face of the rock for
about 50ft. ; the porch is supported by two Ionic columns and two
Doric pilasters of that peculiar type which Mr. Ferguson refers to
Herodian times. The interior chamber contains thi'ee Jewish loculi
at its further end, whilst two side chambers, one unfinished, were made
in the second fashion, with sarcoj^hagi pai-allel to the sides. The work-
manship throughout is excellent, the chambers large and higher than
usual ; the walls of the porch are cut to represent drafted masonry, as
in the Tombs of the Judges. The frieze is not quite finished, and is
broken in the middle, whilst one of the side chambers is still impei'fect,
but with these exceptions a finer and more comi>lete monument I have
not yet seen in the country.
It is curious that where so much labour has been bestowed on the
work not a letter of inscription was cut to commemorate the dis-
tinguished family for whom it must have been prepared ; but this is
always the case it would seem in Palestine, as in the instances of nearly
all the tombs at Jerusalem already known.
Kit. Kurl-Hsli. — Hidden away in the wildest part of the hills, sur-
rounded with deep ravines, and at some distance from any spring or
niin, Corporal Armstrong came upon another group of tombs, one
being almost as perfect as, though smaller and less well executed, than
the Dayr el Derb. The principal t jmb has the same arrangement, but
LIEUT. CLAUDE R. COXDEr's REPORTS. 143
is peculiar in having two recesses cut in the sides of the porch ; the
shafts of the central column are gone, the Ionic capitals remain, the
side pilasters are seemingly unfinished, the door is ornamented with a
semi-classic entablature in low relief. One peculiarity which is very
puzzling is the appearance of a number of rough scrawls cut on pillars
and walls in every direction ; they represent camels, goats, cows, men
riding donkeys, Sec, all executed with the charming simplicity of out-
line generally observed in infantile productions ; one would indeed pass
them over as the work of wandering Arabs were it not for the fact that
on each pilaster the seven-branched candlestick is cut in precisely a
similar style. Nor do they bear any resemblance to the simple tribe
marks of the Bedouin which occasionally occur over the rock-cut
tombs.
'Ahud. — To the north of Tibneh, on the top of the lower Judsean
range, this little village stands beside the Roman road. It contains
400 Greek Catholics in a population of 500, and the cross is roughly
painted with other ornaments over almost every door. A church of
considerable size, which, though restored, was, as the Khuvi assured
me, very ancient, stands in the centre, and at a little distance on a
stony knoll above a fine tank full of rain water are the remains of a
little chapel. The spot is called Barbara, probably in honour
of St. Barbara, and is a shrine to which pilgrims come from all
quarters. I was not, however, able to obtain any tradition as to the
place.
Following the road north-west for about a mile, we pass the Mokata'
'Abud on the left, another system of very fine and perfect tombs. The
porches of the two principal resemble in style that of the Tomb of the
Kings at Jerusalem, but they are better preserved, and more profusely
ornamented. In one chamber, especially, a hard cement or enamel
lines the walls and roof, and is well painted in colours, which, though,
dimmed by age, are distinguishable still. The spaces between the
loculi are painted in panels of red and white ; black lozenges and red
squares on a white ground are placed above, and a tv/ist of white and
yellow on a black grou.nd runs above all.* On the side where there are
no loculi the wall is divided into alternate panels of white and red,
but one of these remains unfinished, with three brush marks, showing
that the painter had marked it for its proper colour, namely, a dark
reddish maroon. The details will be best understood by my drawings,
which will be finished, copied, and forwarded at the earliest opportunity.
Arab tribe marks were remarked on the walls of the porch, but no
designs like those previously noticed were to be found.
Tihuh. — A day was devoted to a visit to this interesting and
important site. It is unnecessary to remind your readers that it was
identified (though not correctly described) by Dr. Eli Smith with the
Timnath Serah chosen by Joshua as his inheritance upon division of
* A sketch of this painting was made by Major WUson in 18(J6, and is now
in the Office of the Fund.
144: LIEUT. CLAUDE lU COXDER'S EEP0RT3.
tlie land. " Yery marvelloiTS," saya St. Jerome, "is it tliat the dis-
tributor of tlie possessions should have chosen for himself so rugged
and moimtainous a spot " (Epit. Paulse, § 13), and his words apply to
Tibneh very aptly indeed. Of all sites I have yet seen, none is so
striking as that of Joshua's home, surrounded as it is with deep valleys
and wild rugged hills.
An oval tell with steep and regular sides forms the site of the town.
On the south a gentle broad valley separates it from another hill, in
whose northern face the necropolis]^is excavated ; a little plateau below
the town stands at the head of this valley, and separates it as a shed
from a second descending westwards. The Roman road passes between
the plateau and the tell, and not fur south of it stands, perhaps, the
oldest and finest tree in Palestine.*
This noble oak, which must be upwards of thirty feet in height, and
beautifully symmetrical, is all the more striking to the sight after a
residence in a country but sparsely scattered with olives and ballut of
no great size. It is covered with foliage, the leaves being very small,
and has received the name of Shaykh Taim from the natives. A
modern and an ancient "well exist close to it, but the supj)ly of water
for the town must have been drawn from the 'Ain Tibneh, a fine spring,
breaking out of a rocky channel, on the northern slope of the tell. If,
indeed, political or other reasons rendered it desirable for the iiiler of
Israel to choose this portion of the country for his residence, no better
spot than Tibneh could be found, for the country round is destitute of
spring water for a considerable distance.
Of the ancient town of Tibneh nothing but a wall of drafted stones,
three or four only visible above the surface, remains ; the Arab village,
which subsequently occupied the same position, being in its turn much
damaged by age. The necropolis is, however, still visible, though
almost every tomb has its porch so filled with rubbish that only the
top of the little door into the tomb is visible. It might perhaps be
interesting to excavate these tombs, but it is doubtful whether they
are not all choked within as without, though we cannot positively
affirm that some have not their doors still intact. Much time and
labour would, however, be required.
I am aware that the tomljs have been already examined, and that
photographs of the ornamentation exist. f I, however, thought best to
measure carefully the principal one, and to obtain dimensioned sketches
of the details of oniamentation.
JoslnuCs to/ith. — This is certainly the most striking monument in the
country, and strongly recommends itself to the mind as an authentic
site. That it is the sepulchre of a man of distinction is manifest from
the great number of lamp niches which cover the walls of the porch ;
they are over 200, arranged in vertical rows, giving the appearance of
an ornamental pattern, and all smoke-blacked. One can well imagine
* See Photograph, Old Series, No. 107.
t rhotogi-aphs, Old Series, Nos. 108, 109.
LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDEu's REPORTS. 145
the wild and picturesque appearance presented at any time when llio
votive lamps were all in place and the blaze of light shone out of the
wild hill-side, casting long shadows from the central columns. The
present appearance of the porch is also very picturesque, with the dark
shadows and bright light, and the trailing Ijoughs which droop from
above.
Entering the low door we find the interior chamber to be a square,
with five loculi, not very perfectly cut, on three sides. The whole is
quite uuornamented, except by four very rough brackets, supporting-
the flat roof. A broad step or divan (for want of a better word) runs
round the chamber, and the loculi are level with this ; the depth of the
centre we were not able to ascertain, in spite of excavation.
On becoming accustomed to the darkness one perceives that the
central loculus at the back forms a little passage about 7ft. Icng, 2ft.
Gm. high, and 3ft. 4in. broad, through which one creeps into a second
but smaller chamber, Oft. 3in. by 8ft. lin. and 5ft. Sin. high.* In this,
opposite to the entrance, a single loculus runs at right angles to the
wall, and a single niche is cut on the left for a lamp. Here then, if we
accept the site, is the resting-place of the great leader, the stout
soldier, the fierce invader, who first brought Israel into the promised
land. It is curious that when so large a number of travellers
come annually to Palestine so few visit a spot of such transcendent
interest.
The simple character of the capitals in the porch , more fitted for the
carpenter's work on the tabernacle than for work in a soft stone capable
of being ornamented profusely with little labour; the rough execution
of the interior, and the non-appearance of the later form of " attached
sarcophagi;" finally, the lamps, which adorned the fa(;ade, and the
absence of any ornamentation similar to that already mentioned ni
the other tombs, all seem to point to the probability that the monument
here described may be as certainly looked upon as Joshua's tomb as
may the Modin sepulchre, which I wrote on in a previous report, be
considered the resting-place of the Maccabean heroes.
Dmjr Kula'ah.— This important ruin is shown correctly on Vandc-
velde's map, although he does not appear to have visited it. I am not
aware that it has ever been noticed by other travellers. Standing on
the summit of a precipitous hill, it is protected on three sides by deep
and intensely rugged ravines, whilst on the east large quarries form a
species of moat behind the building. A narrow path leads up to it on
the west from a little plain, where no doirbt the lands of the monastery
lay, and passes under a projecting turret on brackets forming a species
of machicouli. The building being erected on the slope, the western
foundations are at a much lower level than those on the east, and a
square building, with its floor at a level some 12ft. above the main part
of the edifice, forms a projecting outwork on the less protected side.
The monastery faces, roughly speaking, east and west, but the wall
* A plan was made by JInjor Wilson.
146 LIEUT. CLAUDE R. COXDElVS REPORTS.
of the chapel has a beariug of 21*4 deg., vdiich is not less in error from
the east line than is the Cathedral of Cesarea. The plan of the building
shows a large central hall, about SOft. in length, having the chapel
(which was entered from it by a side door) on the north and a row of
buildings on the south. These latter appear to have been chambers
or dormitories of various sizes, the walls and even the roofs remaining
in some of them. The most eastern, which is divided into two cloisters
by a row of piers supporting round arches, I conjecture to have been
the refectory, the remainder the cells of the monks.
The tower, some SOft. square, is immediately east of the great hall,
and is divided into four chambers, the roof of one still remaining built
in rubble work, with a tunnel vaulting. Above these there was j)ro-
bably a second story.
North of the tower are three large reservoirs, ciit in rock dui-ing the
operation of quarrying for the convent itself, and subsequently com-
pleted by the building of massive walls of rubble, faced on both sides
with ashlar work, and by an arched roof, the sloping bed for the
haunch stones being still visible.- The longest of the three is 112ft. by
34ft. breadth. Thus the roof was a work of no little magnitude.
Adjoining the reservoirs on the west side, just north of the chapel,
there appears to have been another row of cells, and possibly vaults
beneath. These are, however, so much ruined as scarcely to be traceable
■without excavation.
The details of workmanship and ornamentation leave little doubt that
this fine monastery is to be ascribed to the same date as the Golden
Gateway at Jerusalem, or the Church of Kalb Louseh, desci-ibed by
M. De Vogiie as belonging to the 6th century. Thus it may perhaps
become of great importance to the archteologist, and more especially
so if any mention can be found of it either in Eusebius or in Procoj^ius.
Mr. Fergusson has traced the gradual history of this early Byzantine
style, and M. De Yogiic has shown how slow and gradual the de-
velopment was in the East as compared with the rapid growth of the
Romanesque in the West. The very remarkable architectural feature
of a cornice deflected to follow the semicircular arch of a wdudow or
door is insisted upon by Mr. Fergusson as evidence of the early date of
the Golden Gateway. Here, within a day's journey of Jerusalem, the
same feature occurs in the Chapel of Dayr Kala'ah, together with other
details of structure not less characteristic. The cornice remains almost
intact, though much worn by weather, on the inside of the east chapel
wall. Its details resemble those of the Gulden Gate, with one excep-
tion— the cross appears in every possible j)lace. A broken base lies
amongst the rubbish, and its profile I measured carefully for compari-
son with others of known date. The semicircular arches have already
been noticed, and form another important evidence of date. They are
all built with keystones. Tlie doors are, however, invariably sur-
mounted by flat lintels, on which the cross is cut in low relief; gene-
rally it is placed on a tablet after the classical manner, but in one case
LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDER's REPORTS. 147
the three liemisplieres, wbicli are the conventional method of repre-
senting Mount Calvary, form a foundation on which it stands. Above
each of these lintels is a very flat relieving arch, formed in some cases
of two stones hollowed slightly beneath, thus throwing the superincum-
bent weight on the jambs of the door. The same arrangement is found
on a larger scale at the Double Gateway of the Haram at Jerusalem,
where a cornice similar to that of the Golden Gate exists.
The ashlar work of the whole building is finely proportioned and the
joints are beautifully laid. The exterior walls have drafts on all the
stones, but none are found on the interior. The drafts are different in
character from any previously noticed, being about lOin. broad and 2
or 3 deep. The central raised face is often only roughly finished, and
the draft itself is not always regular in width or depth. The largest
comer stones are 6ft. long and 3ft. high, but the average will be about
half these dimensions. On the stones of the interior a number of large
rudely-cut marks wei'c visible, but different from the ordinary mason's
marks, being placed irregularly on the stone, often two or three
together.
Such ai'e the main points of interest concerning Dayr Kala'ah. A
thorough search in Procopius (" De Edificiis Justiniani") and in Euse-
bius (" Onomasticon ") is most desirable, as this building must have
been of sufficient importance to be mentioned among the works of
cither Constantino or Justinian, and its date once identified, the evi-
dence of its architectural details would be of the greatest value in the
settlement of certain disputes on this style in Palestine.
Dayr Sam'an. — North-east of the ruin just mentioned is a second,
evidently of similar character, but in a far less perfect condition. The
foundations alone are traceable, and show the edifice to have been less
extensive and less magnificent. It has, however, one peculiar feature
in a large rock-cut circular bath, 14ft. diameter and 2ft. 7in. deep,
three steps leading into it from the surrounding platform.
Dayr Arraheli. — Farther south, and not far distant from Rantis, a
third convent exists, the walls standing to the height of three or four
courses in many parts. A central chapel with a single apse, surround-
ing chambers, and underlying vaults with semicircular arches, are
here found again, but one difference is remarkable, none of the stones
are drafted. The doors are surmounted by flat lintels, having various
geometric patterns cut upon them, the cross being invariably found in-
the centre. A large birket exists on the west side, and two cisterns in
other parts. It is remarkable that in every one of these sites no other
supply than that obtained from rain water can have existed, although
tiiore are often springs a few miles off. The fathers seem to have
chosen the most deserted and unfrequented spots for their retirement,
pcRsibly from other than purely religious motives, as the villages of the
wild heathen must always, as now, have been placed in sites where
water was most easily attainable.
El Dumjr. — This ruin, situate near to Dnyr Kala'ah, is the smallest
148 LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDER's REPORTS.
and least important of tlie four, but is constructed on tlie same plan.
The entrance door to the chapel is very small, and surmounted by a
flat lintel. In the other three cases the east door is entirely destroyed
as in the two fii'st, or fallen in as at Dayr Arrabeh.
Nehi Yahyali. — This curious ruin, more j)erfect than perhaps any in
Palestine, has already been often visited and described. A photograph
was taken by Captain Warren, and it is mentioned in one of Mr.
Drake's reports. In visiting it for the purpose of making a plan, I
found the details to be better preserved than I at first supposed, and
took accurate measurements of them all. The whole is in a debased
classic style, and the work is no doubt Eoman.
The peculiar position makes the original use of the building doubtful,
as it neither faces south like a synag'^gue, nor east like a temple.
The bearing of the length of the j)orch is 253 ', so that it faces, roughly
speaking, north.
Nomenchtture. — Although the nomenclature of the Ordnance Survey
is not, properly speaking, my own department, yet, as it has dming
Mr. Di-ake's absence been entirely in my hands, I may perhaps be
allowed here to trench on his ground in a few remarks on the
subject.
The method which I hare employed is only possible with men to a
certain extent acquainted with the language, but appears under existing
circumstances to be satisfactory. A native guide or trustworthy
attendant is attached to each surveyor. Every name is collected and
written in English on the spot, the native in each case being instructed
to listen to it. On the close of every day, the names are iwonounced
in his hearing, in mine, and in that of our head servant, who is able
to read, write, and spell correctly. Anything wrong in accent or
pronunciation is thus immediately corrected, and all the names written
in Arabic, from which I afterwards transliterate them. The final
transliteration will, however, depend only on the Arabic letters.
I am convinced that this is, perhaps, the only possible method of
proceeding. It was suggested in England that the natives or shaykhs
should write the names, but this I found was simply impossible,
because not one in a hundred could write at all, and those who could
were not to be relied ui5on for correct spelling. We must remember
that even in England the names of the Ordnance Survey are collected
with difficulty, as often nearly a dozen different spellings of obscure
names will be obtained. When avc consider the far greater ignorance
of Arab as compared with English peasantry, and the various induce-
ments whictt fear and hatred of strangers present to lead them to a
false answer, it will be seen that to obtain a correct nomenclature is
by no means an easy task.
The main difficulties are four. First, that cither from a wish to
mislead strangers, or from a desire to conceal their own ignorance, or
from fear of consequences, or some similar motive, an entirely fictitious
name will often been given. Experience alone, and the testimony ot
LIEUT. CLAUDE B. CONDEr's REPORTS. 149
several witnesses, enables us to escape this danger. Secondly, a
number of names may be missed by not asking for tliem, names of
trees, plots of ground, small valleys, &c. The only precaution is to
instruct the guides to give every name they know in a vicinity, not
waiting to be asked. Thirdly, certain names, though undoubtedly
genuine, are known to but a few, generally old men. These may very
often be obtained accidentally, and are then at once hunted down ; but
it is diificult to feel certain that all are obtained. A very long residence
in one district alone would show. Some of them may be imj^ortant,
biTt the majority are very likely only to be classed with such English
names as " Giles's Meadow," " Oak-hili Bridge," &c., &c., which are of
no historic value.
The fourth difficulty is in local mispronunciation, which varies con-
siderably, as in England. Thus the Bedouin convert k into g, e.g.,
Gagun for Kakun ; in other places the letter kaf is pronounced chaf,
and Kefr becomes Ch uffcr, this word being in other districts Kafr or
Kufr. These are but instances of innumerable difficulties which have
to be overcome, and which require a considerable knowledge of Arabic
to understand.
That an immense number of names quite unknown before have been
obtained ; that in the last month's work Yandevelde's map shows 12
to our 120 ; that nearly all of these are undoubtedly genuine and
correctly placed, is a good deal to say, without committing ourselves to
the statement that every name has been recovered, although probably
the percentage not collected is extremely small. From experience we
are led to conclude that every very prominent object has a name — all
villages, rivers, springs, and principal wells ; very large trees here
and there, mountain tops, pieces of ground of peculiar character, and
plains. The princij)al wadies have, at least, one distinctive name, and
opposite to every village the name of the A'illage is applicable ;
smaller wadies rarely have names. Every ruined site has a well-known
name.
As an instance of the manner in which a well-known name may be
overlooked, I may instance Bayt Bezzin. This name entirely escaped
Mr. Drake, and I only heard it casually in conversation. On a special
expedition I obtained the name in various ways from nearly a dozen
people. Tet the spot to which it refers, no doubt an ancient site,
shows no other marks of ancient work than a large cistern and a few
rock-cut caves.
Water Supphj. — In the study of Palestine there is no question so im-
portant as that of the water suj)ply. Everything noAV depends and
always has depended on the amount of water to be found at any place.
The question of the ancient fertility of the country, which has often
been so easily settled without reference to existing facts, depends also
iipon this. The Ordnance Survey is a complete answer on the subject.
Many fine springs have been discovered in parts supposed to be desert,
and an immense number of ancient reservoirs has been marked upon
150 LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDER's REPORTS.
it. Had the water supply been naturally more abundant in those times
than it now is, such reservoirs for collection of rain water would not
have been made, and the investigation of the geological condition of
the country forbids us to suppose that springs can ever have existed in
certain districts. In the greater part of the country lately surveyed
the strata are entirely impermeable, and all the water is carried oflF on
the surface. At Mukhalid, however, two springs are found close to the
sea, the water being mixed witb the salt wave water when the sea is
rough. This is accounted for by supposing that tbe same impermeable
bed here underlies the soft tertiary sand deposits of the shore cliffs.
Thus the position of springs here, as in all cases, is of the greatest geo-
logical importance.
We come, therefore, gradually to the conclusion that the natural
resources of the country, though little known, are also little changed.
On the other hand there is constant evidence that the amount of
ancient cultivation was originally far greater than it now is. The ter-
raced bill sides, often only half ploughed, show laborious energy which
is no"W unknown. Amongst the wildest brushwood of Carmcl and the
stony hills of the Beni S'ab, we come again and again upon vineyard
towers of huge undressed stones, upon old vine terraces ruined and
broken down, upon wine-presses and oil-presses of unusual size. It
may therefore be concluded that it is rather to the negligence of man
than to any deterioration of soil or climate that the desolation of
Palestine is due, a fact strengthened by the ricb fertility of the country
near Beyrout in a soil poor by comparison with that of Oarmel or of the
southern plains.
MdeoroJogij. — The 23rd, 2-ith, and 25tli days of May in this yo-av
were the hottest experienced in Palestine for many years. At our
camp at Bidyeb the maximum in the shade of the observatory read
I06"8 degrees Fahrenheit, against 103 degrees, the greatest heat of last
year. A steady east wind blew gently all day, and dropping towards
the end of the 25th a dead calm ensued. In tbe afternoon I was waked
by a rushing sound, and perceived a whirlwind, the largest I ever wit-
nessed, quickly rolling towards us down the olive groves, licking up
dust and leaves and breaking the small boughs. It passed within a
short distance of the tents. A horse and a dog belonging to the expe-
dition d'ed simply from the effects of heat and of drinking too much
water. All the natives suffered dreadfully, especially as we moved
camp on the first day and had a long march. We Europeans did not
feel it excessively, principally from our caution as to not drinking
during the day. In the plains two or three men were killed by sun-
stroke or by thii-st. The same heat was felt from Egypt to Constanti-
noj>le. At Gaza the maximum in the observatory read 110 degrees
Fahrenheit. At Beyrout the silkworms were destroyed. All over the
country men and beasts suffered severely.
Several phenomena were noticeable this summer in the plains. When
the west wind blew, a bcavy mist rose in the morning from the plains,
^<\G*-
0^^*
^tO
-->
1_ _
10,000
2b50
JEREMlAri's GROTTOS ^,^
-J'*%
24 SO
OLDEN gate:
CD
X
t;
H
to
r
CO
CO
c
o
r
-*
>
z
_^
LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDEr's REPORTS. 151
leaving evei'ytliing clear at about ten a.m. At about noon, or rather
earlier, a sea mist began to come up, and often rendered tlie obser-
vation of objects on the shore line almost impossible.
The mirage was occasionally very trying, but seems to be less notice-
able on days when the wind is in the east. I am led to suppose that
absolute temperature alone does not affect it, but that a certain
amount of damp is required in the air as well. Thus on one day tlie
east wind in the morning gave less mirage than the cooler west wind
after noon.
XV.
Jerusalem Topography.
P.E.F. Camp, Bludan, Ist August, 1873.
I am at length able to send home the long-deferred plan of rock
evels of Jerusalem, which has been from time to time one of the
principal points to which my leisure moments have been devoted.
It was Capt. Warren who first pointed out the absolute necessity of
discovering in every case the depths below the surface of the rock, and
of referring them all to one fixed datum, the level of the sea. In the
study of the ancient topography the original appearance of the ground
is the first consideration, and although a certain amount of soil must
always have existed, and is mentioned as so existing by Josephus, still
the ancient surface must have conformed far more closely to that of the
rock than it does at present.
For these reasons, almost the first thing to be done in following out
Capt. Warren's discoveries Avas to ascertain the lie of the rock wherever
possible. This we are now able to show in about 200 places, thanks to
Mr. Schick, who, in his professional capacity of architect, had measured
the position when sinking foundations for houses in every quarter of
Jerusalem. Being so numerous and evenly distributed, I was able, with
the aid of the contours of the surface given in the Ordnance Survey,
and with those levels already fixed by Capt. Warren, to extend the
system of contours, which he has made for Ophel and the Haram
enclosure, over the whole extent of the present city.
By the help of this map we shall be able to calculate within a
few feet the maximum depth to which it will be necessary to go in order-
to reach the rock, and to see how labour may bo most easily economised..
The comparison of the rock and surface contours shows that the depth-'
will never approach that of the first mines, and may on an average be;
taken at 20 to 30ft. The Haram stands on a steeply sloping ridge, the
Ophel wall ha:pgs over a deep valley, and the great bridge spans
another. Thus Captain Warren's work lay in the parts of Jerusalem
•where work was most difficult and costly. Future excavations woul(.\
152 LIEUT. CLAUDE K. CONDER's REPORTS.
only have to be made ia siicli parts of the town as preserve at the
l^reseut day more approximately their former condition.
Thus, although excavation at Jerusalem has been for awhile
suspended, the year was not without valuable work. We have a basis
now on which to form a judgment of the best way to attack in future
the remaining points of interest which no doubt await discovery.
Several new and interesting points at once suggest themselves on an
inspection of the map, and to show these better I send a reduced shaded
sketch of the original rock site of the town. Reading the famous
passages of Josephus by the light of this new map one cannot but be
struck with the accuracy of his descriptions.
Jerusalem, he tells us, stood on two hills, the one opposite to the
other, divided by the Tyropoeon. That crest {\o(pos) which supported
the upper city was much higher and longer. The other, on which the
lower was built, was smaller, and rising to a peak {ufxcpi Kvpros), a
description mistranslated "horned like the moon." Besides the Temple
hill there was a fourth directly north of it, and divided by an artificial
ditch from it, and from Acra by a broad valley, "which was filled up by
the Asamoueans when they lowered the height of some part of the
latter hill which overlooked the Temple.
Referring to the plan we find this description fully carried out. The
modern Zion, a large flat-topped hill surrounded with deep valleys,
and having a level of about 2,550 to 2,500ft. above the sea. North of
this and separated by a broad and very dee]D valley running down to
Siloam, as Josephus describes the TyropoDOu , is a much smaller hill,
whose summit is not over 2,480, and which, w^hilst absolutely lower,
would appear much more so, because the whole site is, as it were, on
an inclined plane, and because the height from the summit of the
former to the bottom of its surrounding valleys is far greater than that
of the latter.
The Temple hill, already known, will be seen to be separated from a
fourth on the north, separated in its tarn from the Acra knoll by a
broad valley which runs out at the Damascus Gate. We can have
but little hesitation in identifying this with the hill Bezetha of
Josephus.
Not only is the general description caiTied out, but several of the
details also. The Temple hill was defended, we learn, by a valley and
a ditch on the north, cutting off Antonia from the hill Bezetha. This
valley Captain Warren traced runniug north-east and south-east,
and coming out just north of the Golden Gate. The rock contour,
2,420 near the north-west corner of the bai-racks, attests the existence
of a narrow trench separating the northern hill from the rocky scarp
on which the barracks stand. It is more than probable that the Birket
Israel in the middle of the valley, to which the expression of ditch has
hitherto been supposed to allude, formed no part of the original design,
and that the real ditch thu3 discovered was cut in that part where no
natural valley existed. The rocky scarp south of this, now fixed on the
LIEUT. CLAUDE 11. CONDERS REPOUTS. 153
north, soiith, and cast, v.'Ill be immediately accepted by many as that
scarped rock upon ^Ybicll Josepbus tells us tbe fortress of Antouia
stood.
One otber very important and curious point remains to be noticed.
It will be seen tbat a narrow ridge runs north and south, immediately
east of the Tower of David, and separates as a shed the broad head of
the Tyropojon from the western valley of the Birket el Sultan. The
former valley deepens very suddenly, and in the line of the church of
the Holy Sepulchre its lowest part is more than ICOft. below the crest
of the modern Zion.
This is a very important indication, Eobinson, Williams, and De
Vogiie, with, in fact, almost eveiy writer on Jerusalem topography, have
drawn the north line of Josephus's first wall from the Tower of David
to the vest Haram wall. The great question to be settled is at what
point between these limits the Gennath Gate and second wall were to
be found. Now no point could be so likely us that marked by the ridge
along which the wall would run on ground commanding all Avithout
it, and the sudden fall and unsus2:)ected breadth of the Tyropceon valley
make it more than doubtful that the line should be carried farther east
to cross the valley, when a ridge without the enceinte would of
necessity command the whole length of the fortification.
Small discoveries continue to be made at Jerusaleai. On the cliff
in the immediate neighbourhood of Jeremiah's Grotto are a number
of rock-cut channels running towards the aqueduct of the royal cavern.
These are of importance i'or two reasons : first, as showing that a part,
if not all the water in the great aqueduct, was sujiplied by the surface
drainage ; secondly, because this abrupt termination seems to show
that the present gap between the scarped rock at Jeremiah's Grotto
and the so-called north-east angle of the city wall above the royal
caverns is a subsequent alteration. Probably the quarries extended the
whole distance, and were cut through to allow a command for Iho
fortifications, which would otherwise have been impossible.
Immediately north of this point otiier remains of some interest have
been discovered by Mr. Schick. There is a rock scarp running east and
west, marked on the Ordnance Survey between the contours 2,419 and
2,409, close to a road north-west of Jeremiah's Grotto and near an old
cistern. In this scarp a chamber was found square cut in the rock,
without loculi, and with two crosses in red paint on its walls. It has
been subsequently used as a tomb, and the ground is full of bones and
skulls in its neighbourhood. Tracing the scarp, Mr. Schick found indi-
cations of piers supporting arches running transversely and parallel to
the rock. Near the cistern vaults are said to exist, and in an excava-
tion in the neiglibourhood some large stones about 2' G" x 2', and the
foundations of a pier of masonry, are laid bare. There can be no doubt,
it would seem, that a large Christian building here awaits examination
by the Fund. The only question is what it can be.
The site of the martyrdom of St. Stephen, though now without the
154 LIEUT. CLAUDE K. COXDER's REPORTS.
gate (Bab Sitti Miriam) whicli bears its name, was placed by a very
ancient tradition about a furlong without the Damascus Gate. In the
middle of the fifth century the Empress Eudoxia erected a chnrch here
in his honour, in which St. Saba was buried (Quaresmius ii. 295).
Antoninus, of Piacenza, in sixth century, St. Willibald in eighth, St.
Bernhard in the ninth, all agree in giving the same position to the site.
In the twelfth, the church destroyed by the Arabs was rebuilt by the
Crusaders on the same spot. The gate was then known as Porta S.
Stephani Septentrionalis. The church was on the west of the great
north road, all pilgrims passing immediately by its door ; it had a-
monastery attached, and opposite to it on the east of the road was the
Asnerie. "La solait jesir li asne et li sommier de la maison de
I'Hopital pour ce avait a nom I'asnerie" (La Citez de Jherusalem).
The church the Crusaders themselves destroyed in 1187, but the
Asnerie remained, and was used as a khan by the Saracens, when all
traces of the other buildings had disappeared under a dunghill.
From its position and distance from the walls this newly-discovered
building may possibly be the remains of the Crusading Asnerie. Ruins
of the church may still perhaps exist on the west side of the road
beneath the great depth of modern rubbish.
The repairs now going on in the Kubbet es Sakhrah have given two
interesting additions to our knowledge of the place : first, the Cufic
inscription on the beams, mentioned by Dr. Chaplin in a late number
of the " Athenseum," and sent by him to the Fund; secondly, the
uncovering of the base of two of the pillars of the octagon. I have
already pointed ont in a former report that the " stools " on Avhich the
pillars were supposed to stand, and upon the character of which an
architectural argument has been partly founded, were nothing more
or less than slabs of marble built round the shaft and hiding its base.
This is now finally proved by their removal, and a base is discovered
within, apparently not belonging to the shaft, as a couple of bands
of lead, giving a thickness of lAin., are introduced no doubt with a
view of equalising the height of columns of various sizes. From this
it would appear that all the pillars of tbis building are torn from some
older edifice, perhaps from more than one, dating probably about the
fourth century, and have been placed in their present position by those
who built the dome.
The only other work of interest now going on in Jerusalem is the
clearing out of the magnificent vaults of the Muristan. Huge piers
of stones with a rustic boss are traced down to their rock foundations
in the Tyropccon. There are a series of rock-cut steps in part, which
seem probably anterior in date to the buildings. Straight joints and
otlier indications point to two if not three distinct dates of building.
Mason's marks are found only on the finest and best finished stones.
The work, which is a costly and important one, will not be completed
for another year.
Claude B. Conder, Lieut. R.E.,
Commandinj Suri'C)/ I'ariij, rahstine.
LETTEKS FEOM DR. CHAPLIN.
Jerusalem, Auc/. Isf, 1873. '
Six or eight more rafters of tlie roof of the outer corridor of the Dome
of the Eock have been found to have Cufic writing upon them. Tho
•^vords appear to be the same on all, but some are partially obliterated.
I send you a copy. The writing appears to bo a direction to El Saidy,
by order of El Muktader Billah. Probably this timber was sent down
from the north, like that used in the first temple. El Sa'idy seems to
iiave been a Mohammedan Helena in a small way. There can hardly bo
a doubt that this roof was either made or repaired by order of Jafr, and
a discovery that I recently made renders it certain that either there was
110 roof there before, or that it was not on the same level as at present —
namely, that there is a very old carved Avooden cornice still running
lound the building in the space between the ceiling and roof of the outer
•corridor on the inner wall of the latter, just above the ceiling. Tho
accompanying diagram will explain its position. It cannot, of course,
ha supposed that an elaborate cornice would be constructed to be out of
sight.
Another point which I do not remember to have seen noted is that the
present cornice below tho ceiling rests against the mosaic and cuts the
.-toj^s of the htters, and must therefore be of later date than these.
The reasons which lead me to think it possible that the outer corridor
may have formed no part of the original building are these : — ■
1 . The stumpy appearance of the whole building, the base being (at
least to my unprofessional eye) too broad for the height.
2. The statement that the Kubbet el Silsileh was the model for the
greater Kubbet, which would be only partially true if the latter were
originally built of its present form.
3. Such glimpses as we have occasionally got of the masonry of tho
■outer wall seem to show that it is probably of later date, and
4. The certainty that now exists that the roof to which these inscribed
■rafters belong is of later date than the wall over the arches which form
the outer boundary of tho inner corridor, and the absence of evidence
(so far as I have been able to discover) of a roof having preceded it.
The Cufic inscription, of which I enclose a copy (No. 2), may throw
some light upon this question. It is from a stone on tho inner surface
of the outer wall, and forms part of the ornamental band which runs
round the whole building on a level with the tops of the doors. If the
■date of this inscription is later than 72 of the Mohammedan era, it would
afford a strong presumption tJiat tho wall is also later, there being no
indication of its having been subsequently put in.
I send you also a bit of Greek inscription from a slab from the coping
of the paraj et of the outer wall of the Dome of the liock.
More than twenty mortuaiy chests have been discovered in rock tombs
lately opened on the Mount of Oifence. I forward jduns of the tombs,
a,nd copies of the writing on the chtsts. The latter are neatly executed.
156 LETTERS FROM DR. CHAPLIN. ••
some being plain, otlieis ornamented, but none so elaborately cai'ved as
that figured on page 494 of '* The Eecovcry of Jerusalem." Some have
flat, others raised lids.
The absence of Christian emblems, and the presence of Hebrew
characters, is interesting. I have sometimes questioned whether some
of these chests, about whose history so little is knovrn, may not contain
the bones of Jews, transported from other lands by pious friends, but I
do not remember to have seen Hebrew characters on them until now.
On the other hand, the inscription No. 1 might "well enough pass for
1610 A c.
They all contain bones, which fall to pieces on being touched. Entire
skeletons in situ were also found in several of the loculi, but not a vestige
of clothing or (according to statements made to me) an ornament of any
kind.
Thomas Chai'lin.
Jerusalem, Aurj. 6th, 1873.
By the Austrian mail of last week I forwarded to you copies of
several inscriptions of some interest, and in the hurried note which
accompanied them omitted two things.
1. I forgot to mention that perhaps Mr. Palmer and Mr. Drake have
already taken a copy of the Cufic inscription from the outer wall of the
mosk, and that I sent a copj' to Mr. Drake two mails ago asking him
about it.
2. It quite escaped my memory (it is only with great effort that I can.
give any time to these things at this sickly period of the year) that the
bronze of the doors of the mosk (Dome of Rock) bear inscriptions with the
date 210. This of course precludes the possibility of Jafr having been
the first to make a roof over the outer corridor.
The top of the outer wall ought to bo examined, but it is not easy to
get at it. Possibly next week I may be able to see what can be made
of it.
I cannot find that anything is written in the Arabic histories about
Jafr having repaired the Dome of the Rock, but others, better acquainted
with the subject, and with more time at their disposal than myself, may-
be more successful in their search.
My Arab friends read the inscription from the beam differently from
•what I did. According to them the line would run, " To God El Saidy,
mother of El Muktader Billah."
Thomas Chaplix.
note on the above letter,
We are indebted to Prof. E. H. Palmer for an accurate translation
of the Cufic inscriptions lately found on one of the beams in the roof
of the outer corridor of the Dome of the Rock. The inscription was
copied by Dr. Chaplin, and also by !Mr. Schick, and runs as follows: —
" In the name of God. Grace from God to the servant of God. Jafcr
THE SAMAIilTAN feTOXE AT GAZA. 157
el Muktader Billah, Commancler of the Faithful — may God spare him
to us. According to the order of Essaijideh (may God aid her), and
it was performed by the hands of Lebid, a Freedman of Essaiyideh,
and that was in one and . . • ."
Unfortunately the inscription becomes illegible at the date ; but
Prof. Palmer states that he has found in an Arabic historian an
account of the restoration and repairing of all the Mosques and Masjids
in the Empire, by AH Ibn Isa, vizier to El Muktader, in the year of
the Hejira oOl (a.d. 913), to which this inscription probably refers.
"We hear from Dr. Chaplin also that the aqueduct from Solomon's
Pools is now restoi-ed, that the fountains in the court-house, Makhama,
the Kas in the Ilaram, the Birket el Naranj, and the Bab el Nazir, are
all running over with fresh water.
The repairs in the Haram are proceeding steadily, the Sultan having
sent £30,000 for expenses, under the direction of an Armenian builder
from Constantinople. In the outer wall of the Dome of the Pi,ock has
been found a portion of a Latin inscription, on marble, but in a frag-
mentary state.
Lieut. Steever, of the American Expedition, has informed Dr. Chaplin
that he could get no pottery in Moab like that in the Shapira collection.
THE SAMARITAN STONE AT GAZA.*
]\1y curiosity was first stimulated in seai'ching after inscriptions by
observing the extraordinary amount of energy exhibited by M.
Ganneau, who visited Gaza about three years ago. I accompanied
this gentleman to several interesting parts of the town, and assisted
him in procuiing a few Greek inscriptions. We also visited the same
spot where the stone was discovered, which is distant from the town
about a mile, and half a mile from the sea- shore. It has now been in
my jjossession about a year, and was found in one of the numerous
sandpits where excavating is carried on by the natives to obtain stone
for building purposes.
About a year ago, passing by the same spot, I questioned some of the
labourers then at work about stones bearing inscriptions, &c., and was
informed that a few days before three of this description had been
found. After making further inquiries I succeeded in finding out to
whom they had been sold, but having to act very cautiously, in order
not to excite suspicion, I regret that I was obliged to delay the matter
too long ; and upon opening the question about the stones the owner
coolly told nie that he had scraped the two largest ! and the other, I
suppose, not being large enough for the purpose required, was thrown
aside, to share the same fate at some future time. Ilov/ever, after some
difficulty I succeeded in getting it ; this is the whole history of the
stone.
* See Quarterly S/afcmcnt, July, 1S73, p. IIS.
158 STATE OF THE RUINS OF BAALBEK.
About two months ago three marble pillars were discovered in one
of the sandpits before mentioned ; they are all of the same size and
architecture. A drawing of these might likewise be interesting. Aboiit
a month ago I also found in the town a lamp similar to the one found
in the Pool of Bethesda, with this exception : at the broadest end in
bas relief is something not unlike a serpent's head.
Many curious seals are at times found here and about the district of
Gaza. I might send you sealing-wax impressions of some of these if
yoii think they would be of any interest. I shall always be very glad
tx) keep you duly informed of everything that may be found at Gaza,
and supply you with copies, &c.
J. G. PiCKAUD, Gaza.
STATE OF THE EUINS OF BAALBEK.*
Extract from a detailed report hy Lieutenant Conder, U.E.
It being necessary, during the extreme heat of summer, to suspend the
outdoor work of the Survey for some weeks, and to move the camp to
the cooler mountain region of the Lebanon, the Committee requested
Lieutenant Conder to devote some portion of the time spent in that
district to a careful examination of the ruins of the magnificent temples
of Baalbek, which are reported by travellers to be in a most precarious
condition, especially the group known as the " Six Great Columns."
Letters on the subject have appeared during the last two years in the
Times and other papers from Mrs. Burton, Mr. Julian Goldsmid, Mr.
Grace, and others. This " vacation task " Lieutenant Conder has under-
taken with energetic enthusiasm, and he has now sent home a report,
dated August 22, giving most careful technical details of the defects,
and consequent risks of each column of the "great" and "lesser"
temples, with such dimensions and other information as will make it a
valuable document to any who may desire to ascertain whether it bo pos-
sible to delay the impending destruction of these splendid monunjeuts.
The subject not being directly connected with the work of this Fund,
the Committee do not propose to print the whole report, which, however,
will be made available to those specially interested. They tliiuk, how-
ever, that the following extracts will jirove interesting to many sub-
scribers. Lieutenant Conder says : —
" My attention was directed to three principal objects — 1. The con-
dition of the key-stone of the great lintel of the Temple of Jupiter. 2.
The condition of the peristyle of tho same. 3. The condition of the
eix remaining columns of the Great Temple.
" 1. The eastern doorway of the (so-called) Temple of Jupiter is 21ft.
wide, and 42rt. high in tho clear. Tho jambs are huge inUisters, in threo
courses, containing interior staircases. Tho lintel consists of threo
* Tho report will be found at Icngtli, and fully illustratcJ, iu the Builder
of October 4.
STATE OF THE RUINS OF BAALBEK. 159
stones, the central key-stone being slightly tapered, as in an arch, and
apparently once held in place by metal clamps. The stone is a hard,
compact, non-fossiliferous, white limestone. I have taken its specific
gravity roughly at 2"5 in order to approximate the various weights, but
send home a specimen to allow of their being more exactly determined.
The key-stone measures 10ft. lOin. in height, 12ft. in thickness (front to
back), and has an average breadth of Gft. oin. It must, therefore, con-
tain approximately 858 cubic feet, which will give a weight of about GO
tons. ... It has slipped down rather more than half its depth from its
original position, and on the south side only about one quarter of its side
bears against the other block, which is broken away below. A wall of
roughly squared stones (of about a foot cube), in mortar, has been built
under the key-stone bj'' the Turks, and appears to bo a suitable and
sufficient support. The only objection to be made to it is that the soffit
of the stone is thus covered, and the eagle invisible. Should it be pro-
posed to raise the lintel to its former position, the superincumbent stones,
each weighing about 20 or 30 tons, must first be removed. I did not
observe any indication of present danger, except from the jar which the
fall of the smaller stones of the cornice might give. The other blocks of
the lintel appear to be safe. The fall of the key- stone is probably
attributable to the removal of the metal clamps, and to subsequent
shocks of earthquake.
" 2. The peristyle. On the north side nine columns remain, with roof-
ing ; on the west, three, with only the entablature ; on the south, four,
and two of the fluted inner row which ran from the autre and in front
ts are
of the temple on the east.
Judging from a fallen cc
)lumn the
heigh
as follows : —
First stone
Ft. In.
... 22 5
Ft.
111.
Second'
... 14 11
Third
... 11 3
Shaft
... 48
7
Capital
Base
... 5
... 3
11
4
57ft. 10 in.
The diameter at the base is oft. Tin., and at the capital oft. The iater-
columniation is 8ft. lOiu., and the width of the peristyle, in the clear,
the same."
Lieutenant Conder then gives the dimensions of the entablature, and
calculates the weight of that and the roofing as equivalent to " a crush-
ing weight, on each pillar, of 105^ tons, or 4 tons per square foot."
" The centre of gravity of this weight is easily calculated, and will bo
found to pass through the centre of the pillars." He then goes on to
describe, in detail, the condition of each pillar of the peristyle, by aid of
a figured plan. Almost every one of them has been much injured both
by man and earthquake, as well as by natural decay, and most of them
have been excavated at the base, by the Arabs, for the sake of the metal
pin, which has been abstracted from the centre.
IGO STATE OF THE ELTIKS OF BAaLCEK.
The general conclusion is arrived at that the two external columns on
the north side are in a dangerous condition, — "the next to them are
cracked and overloaded, and the remainder, though at present safe,
would suffer in the same manner, from unequal loading, on the fall of
the outer. The condition of the entablature is also unsafe." Lieut.
Conder also calls attention to the risk to the columns at the south-east
angle of the temple, caused by the Saracenic tower built over that
portion, and which causes a serious overweighting of the lower structure.
He suggests the removal of tbis later superstructure, but allows that it
would be a work of difficulty.
Perhaps that part of the report which treats of the condition of " the
six great columns " will be deemed most interesting, as their danger is
also more imminent. Lieut. Conder describes the causes of danger with
great care, and in detail he says : —
" The diameter of these columns is 7ft. Gin. at the base ; the height
(according to Murray, who gives the diameter and entablature correctly)
is Toft, including base and capital." The entablature is (in design)
exactly similar to that of the former temple, and its centre of gravity is
at a distance of 3ft. oiu. from its north side, thus bringing its greatest
weight on the south side of the columns. *' The columns are exposed
to the full force of the northern and westerly gales, and have suffered
far more on these sides. They are shattered from top to bottom, and
are flaking off rapidly. They appear to have been subjected to the
effects of frost as well as of rain and wind."
Lieut. Conder then enumerates the columns, commencing from the
west end of the group : — -
No. 1. — Has two pieces excavated just above the base; one to a depth
of 2ft. Sin. A piece flaked off lOft. high and 1ft. deep, and a
large piece containing about 70 cubic feet cracked off the base.
No. 2. — Has an excavation 2ft. Gin. high, 2ft. deep, and about 3ft.
wide ; all three stones of the shaft are shattered, and flaking on
the north side.
No. 3. — About oG cubic feet cracked off the base block. A piece about
2ft. thick cut out across the base of the shafts, and large frag-
ments peeled and flaked off.
No. 4. — This pillar is very infirm. Large flakes have fallen off, and
the cracks show that more will follow. At the bottom only
about half the diameter is left.
No. 5. — Has a large piece chipped off the base, and very serious
fractures in the highest and lowest blocks of the shaft.
No. G. — Is the most " shaky " of the group. Large pieces have been
cut out above and below; and " underneath the base a stone
has been abstracted measuring about 40 cubic feet." This
column is likely to full in the first groat storm, and to bring
down No. o with it.
Lieut. Conder gives many additional details and measurements, accom-
panied by explanatory diagrams. But bis report will be published with
NOTES FROM MR. f'L. II. GREEX. IGl
his illustrations in Tlie Builder, to whicli porioclical we may refer such
of our subscribers as may be more speciall}' inteiiested in the question of
the possibility of preserving these grand remains to another generation.
The subject is, strictly speaking, outside the objects of the Fund, but,
opportunity offering, the Committee directed the attention of their
surveying officer to the subject, and recj^uested his report, feeling that
the matter was urgent, and that, having so competent an officer on the
spot, they might, at small sacrifice, render an important service to
archaeology and art.
NOTES FROM MR. CL. H. GREEN ON THE GEOLOGICAL
SPECIMENS SENT HOME BY LIEUT. CONDER.
I HAVE at last found time to loo'^ over the geological specimens which
Lieut. Conder has sent home from Palestine. The parcels are numbered
up to 42, but there are none of the numbers 3, 9, 11, and 13.
Fourteen of the specimens contain fossils. Without help and books of
reference, which I cannot get here, I cannot determine these ; some
are certainly of Cretaceous, and some probably of Jurassic or Oolitic age.
When I am in Loudon, towards the end of the year, I dare say I shall be
able to give you a more detailed description, and the names of some of
these fossils ; others which are imperfect, or only in the state of casts,
will scarcely be determinable specifically.
Ten of the parcels, Nos. 1, 6, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 33, 35, and 42, are
specimens of volcanic lavas and ashes. With one exception. No. 42,
which is a trachyte, and not taken from a rock or place, all the lavas are
doloritic in mineral composition ; their structure also seems to indicate
that the outpourings were subajrial, or, if they flowed under water, that
it was of no great depth.
There are two specimens of sedimentary bels, from volcanic localities.
No 2, a red calcareous sandstone from Shayk Iskauder, and No. 32, con-
sisting of thin laminas of similar sandstone and green marl, with layers
of fibrous carbonate of lime, from Ikzim. These have the look of deposits
formed in a lake ; there is nothing to show whether they are interstra-
tified or not with the volcanic rocks. Possibly they indicate a similar
state of condition to those under which the rocks of Auvergne were
formed where there are alternations of lacustrine strata with volcanic ash
and lava. In the same parcels are many fragments of white calcareous
tufa, which look like portions of vein? that have been deposited by per-
colating water in the cracks of the lava. All the volcanic rocks are
saturated with carbonate of lime produced in this way. The date, or
dates, for the volcanic eruptions of Palestine took place at different times,
and must be determined by the geological structure of the country ; it is
probable that all are younger than the Lower Tertiary, or Nummulitic
beds, and I should not be surprised if many turn out to be of Middle
Tertiary, or Miocene age.
162 EXTRACT FROM A LETTER FROM THE AMERICAN ASSOCIATIOX.
There are also a number of specimens of rocks, on the beach formed of
shino-le and other fragmentary materials cemented by carbonate of limo.
These are associated with broken bits of pottery and glass, and are there-
fore of modern date, and perhaps still in the course of formation.
I have had another letter from Lieut. Conder, and have replied to it
at length, pointing out to him what I think are the meanings of the
observations he has so far made, and directing his attention to the points
•which it is of most importance to notice.
Sexd. 18, 1873. Cl. H. Green.
EXTRACT FROM A LETTER FROM THE AMERICAN
ASSOCIATION.
Late advices from Syria (in advance of official dispatches), by letter
of Lieutenant Steever, commanding expedition, dated July 1-lth, furnish
information of the highest interest. The expedition reached Moab on
the first of April, and fixed their camp at Ilesban. Fifteen miles from
here, a favourable location having been found, a base-line was satisfac-
torily measured and established. This done, nearly four hundred square
miles have since been triangvilated, and the detail of the same almost
completed, including the hill shading. The heights of all points within
the triano-ulation have been ascertained, and elevation above the levels
of the Dead and Mediterranean Seas well obtained.
Meteorological observations have been regularly taken. It is found
that the maps— Van de Yelde's, even— of this country are utterly worth-
less and unreliable. This is not strange, since this region of country
and portion of the Holy Land have been nearly inaccessible to travellers.
Nor would it be safe now, probably, except by a well-organised expe-
dition.
The archfcological and scientific departments of the expedition have
also been very successful.
Professor Paine has diligently and zealously pursued his researches
and studies. He has already prepared a voluminous report, which has
been forwarded through the official'channel of the Society at Beirut, ou
the identification of Nebo and Pisgah. To say nothing of his other dis-
coveries, this alone is a great achievement. Every day's work in the
field has revealed to them ruins heretofore unknown and unmentioned
by any traveller. The Bedawin tell of the ruins of cities a few days'
journey to the south and east, which it is impossible now to visit.
The whole country from Kerak to Ilauran is in a very disturbed state, in
consequence of hostilities between the different tribes. The expedition
would soon go into summer quarters. Lieutenant Steever advises
resumption of work in autumn rather than wait till the spring.
July 20, 18T3. Palestine Exploraiion Society,
26, Exchaiif/e Place, Keiv York.
PALESTINE
EXPLORATION FUND
Patron— THE QUEEN.
garter ly Statement
FOR 1874.
LONDON :
PUBLISHED AT THE SOCIETY'S OFFICE, 9, PALL MALL EAST,
AND BY
RICHARD BENTLEY & SON, 8, NEW BURLINGTON STREET.
LONDON :
R. K. BURT AND CO., PRINTERS,
• WINE OFFICE COURT.
INDEX.
Abu Gosh, 6
Abu Shusheh, 78
Adullam, Cave of, 19, 110
Adummim, 70
.Enon, 191
Ai, 62
Ain el Sultan, 38
Ain Fiji, 55
Ain ed Duk, 86
Ali and the Sun, 172
American Society, 196
Amwas, 149, 160, 162
Annual Meeting, Report of, 221
Antipatris, 184, 192
Aqueducts, 27, 42, 101
Architectural Notes, 136, 151
Ashkelon, bv Prof. Pusey, 30
Athlit, 13
Azal, 101
Barclay, The Rev. Joseph, on the
Edinburgh Review article — " The
Talmud,'" 30
Bas-relief, 140
Beisan, 181
Bezetha, Vase of, 264
Bishop, Tomb of a, 269
Bohan, Stone of, SO
Burkush, 53
Burj el Maleh, 179
Caesarea, 13
Carmel, II
Cities of the Plain, 29
City of Brass, The, 87
Clermont-Ganueau, Letters and Reports
from, 3, 80, 135, 261
Conder, Reports from Lieut. C. R., 11,
35, 178
Convents, 40, 72
Crusading Constructions, 165
David, Tower of, 64
Dead Sea, 188
Deir el Kelt, Inscriptions at, 89
Dor, 12
Drake, Letters from Mr. C. F. Tyi-
whitt, 24, 64, 1 87
Ed, Altar of, 241
Elashah, 150
El Kenise, 107
Er Riha, 74
Eshtaol, 17
Etam, 17, 27
Excavations, 93, 107, 134, 165
Fenich, Legend of, 148
Flint Implements, 158
Forgeries, 90
Geology, 45, 186
Gezer, 5, 56, 75, 78, 276
Ghor, The, 75
Gibeah, 61
Gideon, 182
Gilgal, 36, 71, 170
Gumran, 74, 83
Hadrian, Head of, 7, 207
Hajar el Asbah, 80, 190
Hareth, Forest of, 148
Haram Area, 91, 134
Hermon, 51
Herodiiim, 25
Imam Aly, Sanctuary of, 86
In Memoriam — C. F. Tyrwhitt Drake,
131
Inscriptions, 8, 9, 88, 89, 95, 102, 136,
141, 142, 147, 159, 160, 164, 167,
261, 275
Jaffa, 3, 4, 5, 103
Jebcl Kuruntil, 73
Jehoshaphat, Legend of, 108
Jericho, Fort of, 71, 85
,, Traditions of, 87
Job, Legend of, 110
.loshua, 174
Judah, Boundary Line of, 68
IV
INDEX.
Judeeo-Ohristian Inscriptions, 8, 9
Kabur Ben Israini, 78
Kaukab el Hawo, 179
Khirbet Ikbala, 77
Khirbet el Moufjir, 85
Kubbet es Sakhra, 65, 138, 151, 152,
164
Kurn Surtabeh, 173, 189
Low Hill Country, The, 15
Lydda, 57
Maarath, 76
MaUia, 160, 161
Manocbo, 162
Mar Saba, 28
Medieval Stone Dressing, 91
Medyeh, 45, 58, 78
Mered, Son of Judah, 110
Meteorology, 211
Miamas, 15
Mount of Olives, Sepulchral Cave near,
93
Moabite Stone, The, 2
Mogharet Umm el Tumaymiyeh, 19
Mogharet Kharaytdn, 25
Mosaics, 138, 262
Moses, Legend of, 103, 171
Mozah, 79
Mukhalid, 15
Natural History, 44
Neby Musa, 171
Neby Samwil, 60
Nehalin, 23
Nomenclature, 6 7
Oreb, The Kojik, 40
Ossuaries, 147, 149
Pusey, The Rev. Prof., on Ashkelon, 30
Questions, &c., suggested by the Royal
Institute of British Architects, 127
Ramleh, 56
,, Inscription at, 66
Report of M. Ganneau, Prof. Hayter
Lewis on the, 126
Rock-cut Chambers, 105, 142, 166
Roman Milestone, 90
Rukhleh, 48
Samson, Tomb of, 23
Sarcophagi, Judajo-Christian, 7
Second Wall, The, 145
Schick's Work at Jerusalem, 125
Scopus, Mount, 93, 111
Shafet, 107
Shapira CoUection, The, 114, 201
Sharon, Plain of, 13
Sorek, Valley of, 18
Suk Wady Barada, 46
Survey of Palestine, The, 248
Tekua, 27
Tell el Ithle, 88
Tells, 180
Tombs, 93, 95, 98, 105, 107, 108, 109,
146
Tumuli, 24, 161
Vase of Bezetha, 264
Venus, Head of, 104
Vessel in Basalt, 263
Wady Kana, 16
Wady Kelt, Legend of, 103
Wasps, Tradition of the, 151
Well of the Plague, 149, 160
Yasoul, 101
Yasur, 5
Yerzeh, 178
Zarthan, 174
Zeeb, Winepress of, 40
Zion, Cavern in Mount, 98
Zorah, 17
QUAETERLV STATEMENT, JaNUAHY, 1874.]
THE
PALESTINE EXPLORATION FUND.
PREFACE.
It is with great pleasure that we puLlish. the first Reports
received from M. Clermont-Ganneau. They are, as might have
been expected, of the greatest interest. His labours began from
the moment of his arrival at Jaffa, where he found the ancient
Jewish Cemetery ; and were followed up on his way to Jerusalem,
when he visited the site of Gezer, and was able to trace out in
part the plan of the old Canaanitish city. In Jerusalem he has
unade a careful study of the sarcophagi lately found on the Mount
of Offence. Besides the other points of interest raised in his
Heport, it is startling to find in a tomb close to Bethany, of date
certainly early Christian, and very likely of the 1st century, the
names, all together, oi^imoia., Martha, and Lazarus. Whoever were
the persons named, we have here certainly a tomb of Jewish
Christians of a very early period, and belonging to a priestly family.
Of no less interest are the Reports of Lieut. Conder and Mr.
C. F. Tyrwhitt Drake. The latest letters contain the gratifying
intelligence that the Survey is going on very much faster. We
have now done more than a third of the whole area of Western
Palestine.
Now that the work of the Fund is divided into two i^arts, the
Survey and the Researches at Jerusalem, it is needless to say
that the expenses are proportionately heavier. We have to face the
next year with a considerable debt, and with a promised annual
income of a great deal less than the expenses which will be
inciuTed. These expenses mean about £2,400 for the Survey,
and perhaps £1,000 for the Jerusalem work, besides the expenses
of printing and publishing, which cannot be avoided. We ask
B
2 PREFACE.
for increased support in annual incomes or for tlie raising of a
sum of money at once, to enable us to finish off tlie whole worlc.
We estimate that some £10,000, in addition to what is promised,
would cover all work at present contemplated. The Qimrterlj
Statement is sent to 3,000 persons. It is suggested to those 3,000
subscribers that if each were to obtain only additional subscriber's,
to the extent of £3, the anxieties and difiiculties of the Com-
mittee would be removed. Papers showing the aims and objects-
of the Fund, for distribution, can be had of the Secretai-y. Further,
as at the beginning of the year the claims on the Fund are
pressing, we beg to remind our friends that they give twice
who give C|uickly. "We ask the wealthiest country in the world
to help to an end a work which concerns the highest interests
of all mankind.
THE MOABITE STONE.
The two large fragments, together with tlie smaller pieces of the
Moabite Stone which M. Clermont-Ganneau succeeded in rescuing, are
now in the Loiivre at Pai'is. Until the small pieces have been fitted
into their places with as much certainty as a comparison with M. Gan-
neau's original squeeze will allow, the monument will not be open to
the general public, nor will any casts of it be issued.
The Committee have received a letter from the curator of the Deparie-
ment des Antiques, inviting the Palestine Exi^loration Fund to cede to
the Louvre the fragments which Captain Warren brought home -with
himi These, which contain in all fifty- sis letters, have been already
cast in fac-simile, and these casts have been presented to M. Clermont-
Ganneau. The presentation, therefore, of the fragments themselves
would not further advance the restoration of the inscription. On the
other hand, it would be satisfactory to the French to have in their
hands the whole existing remains of the monument. But to part with
the i)roperty of the Fund is beyond the j^ov/er of the Executive Com-
mittee, aud it is therefore proposed to call a meeting of the General
Committee eaidy next year, at which the matter may be fully discussed.
At this meeting, also, certain questions connected with the publication
of pai:)er3 on subjects of Biblical interest, not written by the Com-
mittee's exploring officers, will be also considered.
Subscribers are invited to forward to the secretary any opinions or
suggestions they may have to offer, which will receive full con-
sideration.
THE JERUSALEM RESEARCHES.
LETTEES FROM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU.
I.
Eamleh, Nov. G, 1873.
I write a few words in haste from. Eamleli, where I have just arrived
on my way to Jerusalem, The French mail packet will touch to-
morrow at Jaffa, and I snatch the opportunity of letting you know
that we arrived safely on Monday, the 3rd, after a tolerably good
voyage and three days' quarantine at Alexandria.
I took advantage of our short stay at Jaffa to make some esami- ^^^^!>-
nation of the city and its environs. I believe I have succeeded in
settling a point which has for a long time engaged my attention, and
is of great importance for the history of Jaffa and ulterior researches,
nameljs the situation of the ancient cemetery of Jaffa. I observed a
circle, which extends in the great gardens outside Jaffa, bounded by a
little hamlet called Abou K'bir* (Abu Kebir), and by the well of Aboa
I^abbout (Abu Nabbut). This circle, called Ardh (or Jebel) Dhabitha,
contains a quantity of tombs cut in the tufa, and exposed every day to
the light by the fellahin. I had the good fortune to purchase on the
very spot, of a peasant, a small slab of marble, with an inscription that
I think to be extremely curious. It is the epitaph, in Greek, of a Jewish
personage, with the representation of the seven-branched candlestick
and the funeral palm. It is the exact pendant of the inscription of
Thanouni, which comes also from Jaffa, a squeeze of which I sent you
for the Exhibition. By the next mail I will give you a reproduction
with a translation. I propose to return and explore the environs of
Jaffa, which promise valuable "finds." We must at least find two or
three more inscriptions of the same kind coming from the same neigh-
bourhood.
Jerus.ilem, Nov. 12, 1873.
The business of getting settled, procuring furniture, finding a house,
hiring servants, receiving and paying visits, have not left us very much
* In the reports and letters of M. Ganneau, the French spelling of Arabic
names will be preserved, but after each -will be given the spelling according
to Robinson's method. Mr. Drake spells the names in his reports according
to his own method. The Committee have in considoration the adoption for their
map of a uniform system.
4 LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU.
time for work. Notwitlistanding, we have neglected no opportunity, since
setting foot on the sand of Jaffa, of making observations or getting
information ; and the following is a succinct account of what I have
done up to the present moment.
Jaffa. I had already, during my first stay in Palestine, remarked at
Jaffa, in an Arab house belonging to M. Damiani, the French Consular
Agent of Ramleh, a fragment of bas-relief in marble fitted in the
pavement. The first thing I did was to go and examine this. M,
Lecomte made a very pretty drawing of it, which you will get by the
next mail, with other illustrations of these letters. The las-relief
from Ca3sarea represents a tragic mask a great deal mutilated and
broken below the nose : the head is in fairly good style, and may
belong to the best part of the Greco-Roman period. Judging by the
arrangement of the hair, the disposition of the fillet, and the en-
semble of the features, the mask must belong to a woman's head :
the eyes are deeply sunk ; and the mouth, in great part gone, must have
been open for the classical rictus. A fragment of ringlet on the
left, and a bit of wing on the right of the head, seem to indicate that it
formed part of a decoration, and other particulars tend to show that
the whole was to be looked at from beneath, and formed part, pei'haps,
of a frieze, rather than the decoration of a sarcophagus. May we
recognise here a piece of the Roman Theatre of Csesarea ?
The City I made the tour of the city walls, trying to pick out the por-
tions that are ancient, whether of construction or of matei'ial. I
observed, especially towards the north, and on the seaward side, a
considerable quantity of fine rusticated blocks. The people of the place
told me that they were brought here from Csesarea and St. Jean d'Acre.
Along the wall may be very plainly distinguished from place to place,
in front of the actual wall, old foundations at present partly underwater.
I rau along the south part of the wall which separates the city from
the sea in a boat. Starting from the advanced bastion, above which
rise the lighthouse and the traditional house of St. Peter, extends a
basin of water of very small depth, the boat touching the bottom every
moment. This sea basin is surrounded by a reef of rocks, and bears
the name of BirJcet el Oamar (the Basin of the Moon), All this place,
and that portion of the site which adjoins it, deserve to be minutely
explored. The coast here is covered with ruins apparently ancient.
Traditions. There is living at Jaffa a certain ISIussulmau named .'Ali Sida, master
mason. This man, now of advanced age, has directed all the construc-
tions ordered at the commencement of the century by the legendary
Abou Nabbodt (Abu Nabbiit), Governor of Jaffa. It would be inter-
esting to collect from him and on the spot every kind of information on
the considerable changes that Jaffa underwent at that time.
Auiiilioia. An extremely intelligent Arab, living at Jaffa, spoke to me of an
amphora handle found in the gardens of Jaffa, and bearing characters
of which he showed me a copy made by himself. As far as I could
judge byjthis reproduction, simple enough, but seriously meant, the
GEZER. 0
inscription is Greek, and gives the name of the potter. I will try to see
the original on my first journey to JaiFa.
On leaving Jaffa to go to Jerusalem, I wished to verify an important Ancient
point, which has engaged me a long time, and I think that I have '^"^^ ^^'
positively arrived at it — it is the site of the ancient cemetery of the
city. With this object, on leaving the gate of the city, in place of fol-
lowing the ordinary road, I directed our little caravan to the left — i.e.,
to the north, across the gardens which surround Jaffa on all sides. We
soon arrived at a small hamlet named Sakneh Ahou K'b?r {Sukneh Abie
Kehir), where I spoke to some of the fellahin. One of them led us
a few steps farther in the interior of certain gardens very little culti-
vated, when I ascertained the presence of numerous recent excavations
designed to get building stones. These excavations have brought to light
at several points sepulchral chambers cut in the limestone. Such tombs
are found, it appears, from the hamlet of Abou K'bir (Abu Kebir) as
far as the Jewish Agricultural Institute, on the other side of the road,
and to the present Catholic Cemetery. The peasants assured me that
they had found in these tombs lamps and vases in terra-cotta, and
stones with inscriptions. At my request one of them went to get such a
stone ; it is the same of which I spoke in my first note from Ramleh. I
bought it for the Society. I examined it at leisure at Jerusalem, and
find it to be positively an epitaph in Greek of a Jewish personage,
designated as 4'PONTICTHC AAEHANAPIAC. The mention of this function
occupied by him at Alexandria gives this inscription a great historic
value. I ijropose to send you by the first opportunity a facsimile and
an interpretation.
After this short but profitable diversion we made our way to the Yazour
picturesque fountains of Abou Nabbout, to get back to the ordinary ('^^s^'")-
road. We followed it without finding anything worthy of note, as far
as the little village of Yazour (Tasur). Here I left the road to cross
the village and examine a little nearer an old building, church or small
castle, flanked with centre forts. The only information I obtained
relates to the name of the place. A fellah, less savage than his com-
panions, was good enough to inform me that Yazour used to be called
formerly Adalia, and that after the place was taken by an ancient king,
by main force {hez-zur), it received the name of Yazour. Without at-
taching importance to an etymology based upon a mere play upon
words, I thought it well to note it. It may, besides, be remarked that
in this region, as far as the mountains, local tradition often assigns two
names to places, the one reported ancient and the other modern. This
particularity, which I have often observed in my previous researches,
must have its weight with any one who gives himself up specially
to onomastic topography.
At Eamleh, where we passed the night, I had no time to do any- cczer.
thing. We stai-ted early in the morning in order to pass by the site
of the ancient Gezer, which I discovered on the spot three years ago,
after determining it a priori by theoretical and historical considerations.
LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU.
Site of
Primitive
Dwelling; {
Dispositicn
of houses
by isolated
gi-oups.
AbaCcsh.
We rode straight to the place, crossing over fields split open by the
drought, across which it was difficult to urge the horses. Arrived at
the summit, we found a house in process of construction, and met
there Messrs. Bergheim fils, who are building it, and who told us they
had bought the whole hiU. Let us hope that this acquisition will
make research on the site of the old Canaanite city easier for the future.
The works of MM. Bergheim have caused the discovery of certain
cuttings in the rock, of which they showed me some which appeared to
me very curious. In passing I gave one look at the great birket, the
plan of which I drew on my first visit. It is now cleared out almost
to the bottom.
After taking leave of the new Seigneurs of Gezer, we traversed the
whole length of the tell and made the descent in the direction of A'in
Tardi and Goubab (El Kubab), On the road I made a fresh examina-
tion of the wine-presses, tombs, and foundations cut in the rocks,
which had so much struck me on my first visit. I believe I have
been enabled to determine in certain cuttings of the rock the position
of the ancient houses. Thus, in certain places may be seen four or
five steps abutting on a horizontal platform cut in the sloping rock.
These cuttings are a trace, a kind of impress, of great houses now
disappeared. In other places may be perfectly distinguished the place
where the back part of the house rested. It would be well to draw
exactly the most characteristic of these incisions and excisions of the
rock : they may possibly throw great light on the restoration of the
primitive buildings of Palestine. Such drawings and plans can alone
make us understand what a Canaanitish city was like. Perhaps we
shall be able, with the help of M. Lecomte, to visit the place again
and make them.
Another remark that I made during this second visit relates to the
manner in which the quartei's of Gezer were distributed. In the centre
and on the summit of the tell, the strategic importance of which must
have been considerable, certainly stood the stronghold of the city — the
city proper. Ai-ound it and along the sides were distributed a series of
small isolated centres of agglomeration, a kind of satellites of the city
itself, whose positions are determined by the cuttings in the rock, of
which I have spoken above. This disposition to scatter itself, of which
Gezer surely does not offer us the only specimen, explains in a striking
manner, it seems to me, the Biblical phrase, " the city and her
daughters." Apparently it was this series of isolated groups, form-
ing an integral part of the city, which was ingeniously called the
" daughtei's."
We halted a moment passing before Giliat el 'Eneh (Kuriet el Enab),
a village of Abou Ghoch, to visit the church, named after Saint Je-
rome, which has been recently conceded to the French Government.
Certain excavations undertaken since the concession have partly dis-
engaged the ciypt, which forms a complete subterranean church, and
contains a cave or cistern filled with water. We remarked signs cut on
SARCOPHAGI, 7
the blocks of tlie cliurcli above, which I had noted a long time. They
ieave no doubt as to the mediaeval Latin origin of the monument.
In the outside -walls may be seen many blocks of rusticated stone,
which remind me singularly of those utilised in the buildings of the
•church (also of the Crusading period) of Neby Shamouel and the ruined
■edifice of Colonia.*
Small Bas-relief from J.sca?oH.— A man brought me from Ascalon a ArcTifcoIogi-
little slab of marble with a sculpture representing two doves, bii'ds
symljoUcal of the town. (Sketclied by M. Lecomte.)
Fragment from the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. — We have also a
drawing of a fragment of sculpture in marble, found dm-ing the demo-
lition of the old cupola, the end of a bracket representing a lion devour-
ing a grotesque human head. Greek characters in relief, A. r.
Marble Head found at Jerusalem. — A Mussulman of Jerusalem, Rabah
EfFendi, has found in taking down a stone wall on his property, not far
from the flour el molouk, a very fine head in marble of a man bearded,
with curled hair, and a fillet adorned with a medallion representing an
«agle. The type of this head, in good Eoman execution, and the charac-
teristic and individual aspect of the features, seem to indicate that we
have here a portrait and not a common head. Probably it is one of some
historic personage who played his part at Jerusalem. And if we are
to take the details of his fillet as marks of royalty, perhaps we have
the portrait of one of the Herods. Up to the present I have only had
time to glance at this remarkable head. I will see it again and make
^ careful examination of it. Perhaps it is a broken piece of the statue
of an emperor.
Fragments of Insrrij)tions coming from the Haram" es Shereef. — The
Russian Archimandrite, a man of considerable learning and veiy
•obliging, has shown me three fragments of interesting inscriptions
"brought to light during the repair of the Mosque. Two are in Byzan-
tine Greek, one is in Latin.
II.
Jerusalem, Adorer?! &er 13 — 27,1873. "^ '
I have already told you of the discovery, in a sepulchral cave judfco-
.at the Mount of Offence, of a group of Jewish sarcophagi. I have now Cmistiau^^
the satisfaction of telling you that I was not wrong in attributing a with in- ° '
very great value, archaeological as well as epigraphic, to these monu- fo^d ou^'
meuts. A fuller and more frequent examination has only con- *'*'' Mount
'■ •'of Otfeuce.
* Abu Gosh is situated at the east end of the Wady Aly, on tlie road I'loni
-Jafia to Jerusalem. It is called in ilurray's map Kuriet el Enab, but it generally
TDears the name of Abil Gosh, from the brigand of that name, who, aftin- nearly
iifty years of crime, was at last seized in 1840. It was identified by Robinson
with Kirjath Jearini. (See .'Smith's B!bliccJ Lvjiicm-^i', sub voce.)
8 LETTERS FKOM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU.
firmed my first judgment. I wish I could have taken photogi-aphs,
but Tve cannot yet get at the apparatus. In their absence I tried to
take squeezes of the ornamented surfaces as well as of the inscriptions
themselves, the decorations being engraved lightly, so as to present
few difficulties to this method of reproduction.
The ornamentations are exactly like those of similar monuments
already known and published in the BuUetin da Musee Parent, the
Eecovery of Jerusalem, and in a memoir of my own which appeared in
the Revue Archeologique of this year. Their principal motif consists.
of two roses geometrically constructed with greater or less com-
plication.
The lids are of different forms (triangular, semicircular, rectangular,
in section) and fitted to the sarcophagi in different ways, either placed on
two or four internal rebates, or sliding into the sarcophagus just like
the lid of a box of dominoes. The latter are provided at the upper part
with a notch for the hand. The inscriptions, in Hebrew and Greek,,
are sometimes on the lids, but more often on one of the sides or ends-
of the sarcophagus itself. Some are painted or traced with kalam, or
even with carbon; the larger number are engraved with a pointed
instrument, but not deeply. Several, not only Greek, but also Hebrew,,
are accompanied by crosses, which leave no doubt of the religion
of the persons whose remains were preserved in theui ; others present
a sign of cuneiform appearance : others, again, have no symbol what-
ever, not even the palm or the seven-branched candlestick, which I
have so often found on funeral insci'iptions incontestably Jewish.
Here is a translation of the principal of these inscriptions. I send
you my notes without attempting a classification : —
I. Hebrew inscriptions : —
(1.) rnirr nuN Di*7iy. Salome, wife of Judah, engraved in very small
chai'acters. Below, in large characters, ^ ^ DT7w, Salome (orperhaps-
a formula, as " pax"), with the symbol, [ which appears like a leaf,,
or a bow with its arrow, but which ^ is, nevertheless, in my
opinion a cruciform sign.
nmn^ TiwK DTTC. Salome, wife of Judah, on a flat lid which very-
likely belongs to the preceding sarcophagus. On the other face of the
lid a Hebrew inscription indistinct, but with the same ci'uciform sign
as that given above.
(2.) rnin\ Judah, with the cross + . Perhaps the husband of Salome,
for the others of the same name whom we meet with afterwards do not-
appear to have been Christian?'.
(3.) i£Dn min\ Judah the Scribe. The quadrangular samech is a.
very interesting form. On another face of the sarcophagus, and rather
carelessly engraved, "^SlDn "lil'TS "^3 rrnn', Judah, son. of EUazar the Scribe^
The word safer is this time written in full, with the vau, and the tamech
is triangular as usual.
(4.) riC' 13 priC Simeon, the son of Jesus (Bar J esha'o). In charac-
ters neai-ly microscopic, but neatly engraved (conip. Elymas Bar-jesua
the magician).
SARCOPHAGI. 1)
(5.) nV3r\3NniO. Martha, daufjhter of Pasach. "with the tsade in
place of the samech is quite admissible in vulgar orthography. The
tsade is due to the attraction of the strong letter heth. Perhaps
the name is Jewish as well as Christian.
(6). \n3 -13 -IT1?'?S. Eleazar, son of Nathan. The form Nathai for Nathan
is not uncommon (cf. TannaT, &c.). j\Iay we recognise in this Eleazar
the father of Judah the Scribe in No. 5 ?
(7.) n"'JJm3 n"nn\ Judah, the son of Ilanaiu'alt. It has been traced in
Jcalam, appearing to be followed by the word V, Man o/(cf. Luke iii. 26,
for the name only).
(8.) In^n lU'tt^ r\2 JVir-V^?. Salamtsion, daugJder of Simeon the. Print.
The name of the woman, Salam Sion, is of the gruLitest interest. We fiiul
it under other forms in the Talmud (as the name of the wife of Alex-
ander Janna3us). It is the name Salampsion of Josejihus (daughter of
Herod). It appears to me formed exactly like D'TwP"', Jtrusahm, Jtru-
being replaced by Sion, and the order of the parts reversed.
(9.) ]V'^'Chv. Salampsion.
(10.) Dp~ip. Perhaps a transcript from Kopal-KopcKos.
There are several others that I have not been able to make out
except in part.
II. Greek inscriptions : —
Jesus. lECOTC, twice repeated, with the cross +. Nathaniel,
NATANHAOT; HAHA; KTP0AC ; MOCXAC; MAPIAAOC; HA, accompanied by
a cross apparently of a later date >i<.
These inscriptions raise a large number of questions of which I defer
the consideration for the memoir which will accompany the drawings.
Their value rests principally upon three points.
(1) Epigraphy. New documents throwing strong light on the his-
tory of the square Hebrew character, and enabling us to establish a
synchronism with other inscrij^tions known but not dated. It is now-
evident, for example, that the inscription engraved on the sarcophagus
taken by M. de Saulcy from the " Tombs of the Kings" {K'bour tl
Molouk) is contemporary with these, and can scarcely, therefore, be
far removed from the Christian era.
(2) History of the origin of Ciiristianity. Monuments belonging to
the beginnings of Christianity, before it had any official position,
coming from the very soil where it had its bnth. No monument of
this kind had hitherto been brought to light. The cave on the Mount
of Offence belonged apparently to one of the earliest families which
joined the new religion. In this group of sarcophagi, some of which
have the Christian symbol and some have not, we are, so to speak,
assisting at an actual unfolding of Christianity- The association of
the sign of the cross with names written in Hebrew constitutes alone
a valuable fact.
Perhaps, also, we ought to consider those which have no such symbol
at aU as Christians of the most ancient period. Perhaps " Judah the
Scribe," and even " Simeon the Pi-iest (Cohen) " belonged to the new
■JO LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU.
religion. In that case tliis Simeon might very well be the second
Bishop of Jerusalem. But then would arise (only to be solved) the
grave question of the marriage of Christian priests, since Simeon has a
daughter named Salamsion.
I must add that in one of the sarcophagi (unfortunately it is impos-
sible now to know which) were three or four small instruments in
copper or bronze, much oxidized, consisting of an actual small bell,
surmounted by a i-ing. The Arabs thought they were a kind of
castanets. Can we trace here the equivalent of the bells hung on
the robe of the high priest ?* And do these ornaments come from the
sarcophagus of our Simeon ? We took drawings of them just as we
did of the vases and vials of terra-cotta found in the other sarcophagi.
The explanation of the symbol also deserves serious attention.
3. The names. What gives additional value to these short inscrip-
tions is, that they furnish a v/hole series of names found in the Gospels,
in their poj>ular and local Syro-Chaldaic forms — the use of hat- for
ben (son), for instance. The presence of the names of Jesus, written
with its vulgar contraction, and Martha, of v/hich we only knew histori-
cally that it was the feminine form of the Aramaic KITD, would alone
be sufficient to make this collection important from an exegetic point
of view.
By a singular coincidence, which from the first struck me forcibly,
these inscriptions, found close to the Bethany road, and very near
the site of the village, contain nearly all the names of the personages
in the Gospel scenes which belonged to the place : Eleazar (Lazarus),
Simon, Martha ... a host of other coincidences occur at the sight of
all these most evangelical names, if it were not imprudent to indulge
in conjecture thus early in our researches.
• It is deplorable that this interesting family tomb should have been
opened by unintelligent and rude hands, which have carried away the
sarcophagi without taking any kind of precautions, mixing up the lids,
breaking the bones and the vases of terra-cotta. It is impossible now
to know in what order they were arranged. I am told that they were
placed over each other, giving some sort of chronological key, which it
is a great pity to have lost. I think T ought to note that I have not
seen among all these remains a single fragment of glass, and 1 have
not been informed of a single object of this material among all the
collection. C. Clermont-Ganneau.
* Sea Exod. xxxiv. 24—26 ; Joseph. Aniiq. III., vii., § 4 ;>nd Ecclus. xlv. 9.
THE SURVEY OF PALESTINE.
LIEUT. CLAUDE E. CONDER'S REPORTS.
XVI.
P.E.F. Camp, Bltjdan, August 27, 1873.
In my winter repoi-t I endeavoui-ed to give a detailed account of the
proportions of various kinds of arclia3ological relics, interesting to the
explorer and Biblical student, with which we had met during our pre-
ceding work. I will on this occasion endeavour to give a general idea
of the country we have passed thi'ough, and of its ruins and natural
features.
The Ordnance Survey now extends over 1,800 square miles. The |'"°sress of
upper part of the Plain of Sharon and the Carmel promontory are
complete, and thus two sheets are ready for pulolication along the
coast, namely, the Athlit and Cajsarea sheets. Before Christmas I
have great hope of completing the Jerusalem sheet, and in early spring
the Jaffa and Pv-amleh sheets will also be fit to engrave. Thus there
will soon be a possibility of presenting to the public the results of part
of our labours, which have extended over portions of no less than
eight sheets of the map.
Our summer and spring work was in the district between that of the
year 1872 on the east, and the sea on the west. By keeping the camps
as far apart as possible, and increasing the size of the triangles, we
were able to obtain a material increase in the rate of work, and left on
breaking off rather less than a fortnight's work in the Plain of Sharon
to fill up the whole of the blank space and to complete the coast line
from Haifa to Jaffa.
The south side of Carmel — a rugged and tangled country of hard
grey rock and pistachio wildernesses — is undivided by any great natural
feature from a block of hills of rather less elevation, but equally steep
and wild. The Plain of Esdraelon is to the east, and a nai-row strip of
flat fertile corn-land lies to the west, separated from the shore by a sort
of wall of sandstone, and edged by groves of olives at the very foot of
the hills.
This line of country runs southward for about twenty miles from the
Carmel promontory, and is bounded by the River Zerka, a torpid
stream flowing through fetid marshes, in which reeds, canes, and the
stunted papyrus grow, and where alone in Palestine the crocodile is
found. Beyond the river the plain suddenly widens to more than
double, and a new chai-acter of country succeeds.
In the midst of the wild range thus bounded the remains of an ancient
cultivation are still traceable. Little square watch-towers with dry-
12 LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDER S REPORTS.
stone walls, huge rock-cut -wine-pi-esses, ruins of terraces and stone
boundaries, occur liere and there. A Druse village, remarkable for its
fine race of hardy men and fair -women, bears the name of Dalyeh
(the trained vine), and the rich soil -which covers the iron rock, even
though now untilled, supports a luxuriant wild growth of bushes and
small trees: mastics, oaks, and hawthorn abound, and in spring a
carpet of gay-coloured flowers is spread, a marked contrast to the bare
mountains of Judsea and the brown corn-land of the Plain of Jezreel.
In the middle of this wild country, in a strong site, with a deep bare
ravine behind it, stand the ruins of Kh. Semmaka, a Roman to-wn, of
which the wall, the foundations of a little temple, and other relics,
remain. I have in a former report* given the reasons which seem to
point to its identification with the Ecbatana of Josephus.
Descending into the plain beneath, we find ourselves in a land of
tombs. Both faces of the sea-wall are excavated into innumerable
sepulchres, and the rocks at the foot of the chain are similarly mined
out. The probable date of these tombs is that of the Roman occu-
pation of Palestine, and all, without exception, have been opened and
their contents rifled.
Although at the present day this is one of the wildest and least
populous districts of the country, there is little doubt that then it must
have been covered with villages, and as fertile as any other part of
Palestine. Along the sea-coast runs the great high-road to Egypt, and
the ruts of the light chariot wheels are still visible in places on the
rock. Passages leading to the various towns were cut through the sea-
wall, and contained guard-houses on either side. The masonry of the
various sites has long since crumbled away, but cisterns, steps, and
foundations cut in rock attest in places the existence of considerable
buildings.
Dor. The site of the ancient Dor,t called later Tantura, appears to have
been the chief town at this period. A great mound alone remains, from
which the ashlar has been long ago abstracted, and on the shore of the
little harbour the bases and capitals of large columns belonging to the
temple of some maritime deity. A landing-place -with flat slabs and
traces of a building, no doubt for the accommodation of sailors and
traders, are found upon the shore. Behind the town a fine causeway
runs south, and passes by a number of granite shafts planted perpen-
dicularly in a line beside one another.
Here also are remains of another great building epoch, that of the
Christian occupation of Palestine, consisting of a tall solid tower of
rubble faced with ashlar, which is a conspicuous landmark for a great
distance on every side. It formed one corner of a fortress long since
fallen into dust, and stands boldly out on a little brown promontory
south of the Roman town.
* Quarterly Statement, 1873, p. 96.
+ Joshua ii.'2 ; xii. 23 ; and Judges i. 27.
ATIILIT AXD C.ESAREA. 13
The headquarters of the Crusaders were, however, farther north, at
the great seaport of 'Athlit, the C'astel Pelegrino of medieval writers, Athlit.
where first the new levies landed on the comfortless coast of the Holy
Land. «
Yery impressive must have been the general appearance of the town
to the pilgrim. The church, a decagon, with its three eastern apses,
the great hall of El Kaynifeh towering above all, the long vaults for
stabling and storage, the groined roofs and noble masonry, with the
strong surrounding walls, must have made 'Athlit perhaps the finest town
of the period in the country. The strong outworks of Dustrey (Petra
incisa) and other ruins made it unassailable on the land side; whilst
two shallow harbours, protected from various winds, rendered it acces-
sible at any period of the year.
The pUgrim travelling inwards was defended by a line of forts at easy
distance. Shellaleh (the cascade) and Rushmia carried him over
Carmel to the Plain of St. Jean d'Acre, and Seflfuriyeh brought him
close to Nazareth. Going south he passed fi-om Tantura to Caesarea,
and thence, by the high tower of Kakun, the beautiful hall at Kalen-
sawyeh, and the caravanserai at Jiljulia, down to the settlements near
Eamleh, and hence to Jerusalem.
On crossing the Zerka we enter another region. The precipitous
inland cliffs which mark the shore-line of a foi'mer geological period
recede suddenly, and form the north boundary of the great Plain of The Plain of
Sharon. Half of its width is of marl and alluvial soil, the other half of
old red semi-consolidated sand of sandstones and shelly breccias of
blown sand in huge encroaching patches. The hills beyond are of the
softest chalk, lying in gentle slopes, which are in parts covered by
woods of oak, the trees standing park-like at intervals, with a floor of
sand in some places, or of hard limestone in others.
It was here that Herod the Great chose the seat of his capital, and
built upon a barren coast, of white stones brought from a distance, the
Csesarea Palestinse which was to form the connecting seaport between Casarea.
Jaffa and the northern harbours. Hidden by rolling sand-hills, it
stands low on the sea-shore, and exhibits in April long expanses of
a yellow composite flower, with thin patches of weed- strangled corn,
fi'om which the brown ruins stand out contrasted. The period was
unfavourable for excavation, and we were content with survey alone.
The Roman town was of considerable extent, but little of it remains
except the mounds which indicate where masonry has been. The line
of the wall we were able to trace, and the site of some of the pi'incipal
buUdings enumerated by Josephus in his account of the foundation.
His estimate of the harbour as being equal to the Piraeus is exag-
gerated, as it only measures about 300 yards across. The mole on its
south side, equal nearly in length, still remains, and though its buildings
are Ci-usading, the original plan seems to have been reproduced, for
half was left as a breakwater {irpoKOfiaTia), the rest, covered with buildings,
I'eplacing the tower Drusus of Herod. Great blocks of granite lying at
14 LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDER S REPORTS.
its feet in the water are no doubt fragments of the huge stelse which
rose on the same sjDot, like towers. Of the temple to Csesar only a
foundation wall remains. It would, however, perhaps repay excavation.
Its white stones contrast with the brown sand-blocks of the later
builders, and attest Josephus's accuracy in describing the materials as
brought at great expense from a distance.
But perhaps the most interesting relics are those of the theatre and
amphitheatre. The Greek of Josephus's account, accurately rendered,
runs thiTS : " He made also a theatre of stone, and towards the south
of the port he placed an amphitheatre capable of containing a great
number of men, suitably situated for a view of the sea." -j-. We see at
once that by the amphitheatre is intended the great earthwork with its
surrounding ditch, its ramp, and principal entrance, which exists south of
the medieval town. This may well be described as capable of containing
a great crowd of men ; 30,000 could be gathered within it. The situation
of the theatre is not defined, but it is specified to have been of stone ; and
a semicii-cular stone building, sufficiently large to have been a theatre,
exists in the mound itself. It seems, therefore, within the bounds of
probability that the ajxtpiQUrpov was rather the building round the theatre
than a double theatre, according to the usual acceptation of the term.
Close to the wall of the Roman enceinte on the east is a longitudinal
sunk enclosure resembling a stadium, with fallen stelse of beautiful
granite. This building, however, is unnoticed by the historian.
The second building age of Csesarea has left ruins far more perfect,
though of less interest. The great cathedral rose almost on the founda-
tions of the Pagan temple. The fortress of the port stood on the site
of " Drusus '' above the tesselated pavements of the earlier age. In the
north quarter of the town another small church was built, whose
ruined walls overhang the low cliff. The enceinte, however, was reduced
to about a tenth of the area.
The watei'-supply of the town was a matter of some difficulty, from
the nature of its porous, sandy soil, and its level, which was very little
above that of the sea. One shallow well exists near the cathedral, and
numerous cisterns are scattered about, but in Roman times the popula-
tion must have depended principally on the great aqueducts.
The low-level aqueduct, with its single tunnel, 7 feet high , ran straight
to the Zerka. A dam here erected, 20 feet in height, collected the
waters in a pool, whence they were drawn. A fine masoni-y wall
stretched from the hills to the sea-wall, and prevented the drainage of
the northern marshes from finding any other channel of escape than
the Zerka river. But the high-level conduit was a far more ambitious
attempt. Starting at the clear chalk springs in the hills, near Sindiain,
it collected a further supply of good water banked up by weirs near
Miamas, and crossed the marshes on arches of fine masonry. The sea-
wall intervened between it and the shore, and was pierced by a tunnel,
to which great flights of steps led down a depth of 30 feet. This diffi-
culty overcome, the remainder of its course was less difficult to engineer,
THE LOW HILL COUNTRY. 15
and the long row of arches are visible covered with the blown sand
hillocks in part stretching along the shore of the sea. The channel
was double, but the existence of a cornice built into and hidden by the
substructions of the western conduit show that this second was added
later, when the supply proved insufficient.
North of Ctesarea, and at the foot of the hills, we find at Miamas AHamas.
another centre of Roman life. A theatre only remains, converted later
into a Saracenic fortress, but the strewn columns by the springs in its
neighbourhood point to the existence of other public buildings. Upon
the hill above are some curious vaults, which are undoubtedly of Eoman
origin, but for what piirpose, unless for the kenneling of the wild
animals, it is not easy to decide, and the distance from the theatre is
considerable.
But little else of interest was left to explore in the plain, as the
remains of Antipatris were without the limits of this year's work. At
Mukhalid and Burj el Atut are relics of the Mohammedan great build- MukhaUd.
ings— a tower and a khan. Tombs, with the interior painted and ^tu^**'
cemented, occur in parts along the sandstone cliffs, and here and there
an artificial mound or tell. The towers of Kakun and Kalensawyeh Kakun
represent Crusading times ; and a fine hall of Gothic architecture, roof- yeh.
less and half- obliterated, exists at the latter place.
The third district, which occupied us during May and part of June,
was the low hill country east of the plain, and at the foot of the central ]^?f, ^'"'
range. It consists of a hard limestone, with a few flints and fossils, country,
covered with more or less underwood, and with stragj^ling patches of
barley, destitute of springs, and becoming more and more difficult and
barren as we advance south. The miserable villages stand deserted
and half broken down, and the ruin of the broken-spirited inhabitants
by the exactions of greedy tax farmers gives a desolate appearance to
its whole extent, contrasting with the rich and fertile olive-groves and
corn-lands of Samaria and Galilee. The grass grows on the housetops
and the stones choke the corn. The district is unvisited by the ordi-
nary toui'ist, and the savage, inhospitable brutality of the peasants, with
bad water and scarcity of provisions, made us glad to find ourselves at
the end of our v/ork in the Belad el Jem'ain and Beni S'ab. The
first site of importance which we found was the Khirbet Dayr Asruhr, or
perhaps more properly Serur, although there is no vowel in
the Arabic to direct the spelling. I have described it fully in a former
paper.* Its other names are Khirbet el Musk'ufi, " Euin of Ceilings,"'
and Khirbet Nasirah, " the Christian Euin." I feel but little hesi-
tation in identifying it with Sozuza, the seat of a Christian bishop, first-
mentioned at the Council of Chalcedon (in the middle of the fifth
century), and placed on an ancient map to be found in the "Geographia
Sacra" of Carolus a Sancto Paulo (Amsterdam, 1704), between Csesarea
and Samaria, close to the actual position of the ruin in question. !No
earlier notice appears to exist, but the town must have dated before
* Quaritrhj Statement, 1873, p. 139.
16 LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDEr's REPORTS.
Christian times, or it would scarcely have been cliosen as an ecclesi-
astical centre. The ruins also seem of Roman character, and the great
public building, although with its door to the west like a church, has
no apse, and is founded on a moulded podium, like the temples of
Coele-Syria discovered by Captain Warren. I have already mentioned
that we obtained a Roman coin on which S C alone was legible, said
to have been found on the spot. Roman tombs also exist in a necropolis
east of the town.
The next camp was principally noticeable for the number of small
square towers which were found in every direction. Their time-
worn appearance and large stones point to their great antiquity. A
dozen sometimes are to be seen within a few hundred yards of one
another. They are no doubt the signs of an ancient cultivation long
since swallowed by the spreading wilderness of pistachios, and remind
one of the rich man who " planted a vineyai-d, and set an hedge (of
stone) about it, and digged a place for the wine-fat, and built a tower,
and let it out to husbandmen, and went into a far country " (Mark
sii. 1). The great wine-vats, hewn in rock on flat places, attest the
ancient fruitfulness of this deserted land.
fi Having with difficulty conducted our heavily-laden pack animals
WadyKana. over the terrible Wady Kana (the boundary Eiver Cana of the Book
of Joshua), we found ourselves in a part of the country where ruins
were numerous. The principal were convents, of which Dayr Kala'ah,
a fortress overhanging a deep precipitous valley, was the finest and best
presei-ved specimen. Their date is probably about the fourth or fifth
century of the Christian era.
Farther south yet we visited the wild and rugged site of Joshua's home,
where, amidst deep valleys and steep hill-sides, the simple tomb stands
blackened by the smoke of its hundred votive lamps, Hence to the
plain we traced the noble Roman road, with its firm pavement and
ably engineered slopes, along which St. Paul was hurried by night
to Antipatris ; fallen milestones, with lettering long since worn away
by rain, lie beside it, and at Dayr 'Allah we pass by a large
Roman town, with just the traces of its little temple visible in the
middle.
This rapid review of the country thus thoroughly explored, in con-
junction with the copies of our various surveys sent home, the full
list of which I attach, will show, I think, that our time has been
spent in a district little known, and amongst ruins which cannot
fail to be of high geographical and antiquarian interest. The work
to which we shall so soon return in the Bethlehem hills, and along
the lower part of the Jordan Valley, by Jericho, the Dea Sea, and
the wild Marsaba ravine, will, we hope, prove equally interesting,
if not altogether such unstudied ground.
BEIT 'ATAB camp. 17
XVII.
P.E.F. Camp, Beit 'Atab, 19th October, 1873.
Our pleasant stay in the Antilibanus came only too soon to an end,
and all our spring and summer results were only just fully worked out,
when we again started on a long journey to the south, in accordance
with, my plans already explained.
Our great caravan of eighteen pack animals and eight horses created
quite a sensation as we went down the steep, narrow streets of Bludan,
and winding away over the hills descended by a steep wady into the
great Buka'a plain, losing sight of our hospitable home for the last three
months. Next day we were in Beyrout, and on the 29th of September
I marched out again, accompanied by Corporal Armstrong, to perform
the journey to Jaffa by land, partly in order to see Tyre and Sidon,
partly to shoot sea-birds for stuffing along the coast, but chiefly because
I was unwilling to leave oar valuable animals to the care of Syrians
without supervision, especially after the miserable appearance they had
presented on arriving at Beyrout from the south. The journey was long
and tedious, especially lis hours the last day, but on the 3rd of October
we reached Jaffa at sunset, and found Sergeant Black safely landed with
all our heavy baggage. Saturday and Sunday were allowed for rest to
man and beast, and a violent storm of rain on the latter day was oppor-
tune, as we were not under canvas. Monday night found us at Jeru-
salem, where considerable operations of packing and refitting occupied
a few days. Friday we reached our present camp, chosen on a [spot
whence the west and south limits of the Jerusalem sheet can be reached ;
and so rapid has been our work under the new arrangements that I hope
to find eighty or ninety square miles complete at the end of the twelf tk
day.
The country we are at present surveying is perhaps the most interest-
ing we have as yet visited. A great number of Bible sites have already
been identified in it, and more remain to be fixed. A few suggestions-
of interest I will venture here, although identifications are not in my.,-
department of the work.
The wild and impassable wadies, the steep, hard, rocky hills, witBi-
their wildernesses of mastic, clear springs, and frequent caves and pre-
cipices, are the fastnesses in which Samson was born, and from which
. he descended into the plain to harry the Philistines. The possessions of
his father, Manoah, lay between Zorah and Eshtaol (Judges xiii. 2), T^orah anl
and in the same spot he was buried (Judges xvi. 31). The former has ■^®'^*''°^-
been identified with the present Sera, and Sergeant Black has suggested
that Eshu'a, a mile or so to the east, may be the representative of the
other name.
Another site to which we directed our attention was the rock Etam. The Rock
to which (Judges xv. S) Samson retired before his cowardly surrender ^'''°*-
c
18 LIEUT. CLAUDE R. COXDER S REPORTS.
by the elders of Judah. I am ignorant what may be the precise trans-
lation of the word rendered "rock" in the English translation, but the
place must have been one supplied with water, and also of considerable
extent, for in verse 11 we read that " 3,000 men of Judah went to the
top of the rock Etam." It was not far from the patrimony of Manoah,
from which Samson "went down " to it. The requisites of the case are
all met by Beit 'Atab, which Sergeant Black suggested might
be the place for which we were hunting. Standing somewhat lower
than Eshu'a towards the south, it yet, from the gradual slope of the
ranges, is a conspicuous point from more than one direction. It could
not be better described than as a rock — a steep, stony, bare knoll stand-
ing amidst the winding, narrow valleys, without a blade of corn upon its
sides, whilst long olive groves lie at its feet and round its three clear and
abundant springs. The site is a remarkable one, and one or two old
tombs are found in the northern valley, whilst a cave, narrow, but of
considerable length, exists in the hill, running from near the spring to
the middle of the village, the whole 250 ft. being artificially mined out.*
Timnath, the present Tibneh, where Samson chose his first wife,
is but a little distance west of this place, but its vineyards, in which he
slew the lion, are now only marked by the traces of ancient cultivation
and rock-cut wine-presses existing in the vicinity.
VaUey of I may add another identification, which almost fills up the list of the
Sorek. places noticed in this part of the Scripture. The valley of Sorek was
the home of Deiilah, and appears to have been a natural feature of some
importance on the borders of Philistia. There can, I should imagine, be
but little doubt that this is the present Wady Surar, which runs
as a broad, flat valley through the lower hills, and reaches the sea at
Yebneh. It must have been up the same valley that the little cart
with its lowing kine came jolting in the " straight way " unbroken by a
single hill from Ekron to Bethshemesh, now Ain el Shems, when the
peasants, lifting their heads from the reaping, saw the ark, as we can
picture to ourselves, coming up among the round white hillocks, dusky
in the sloping light of the afternoon sun, which casts long shadows
among the winding valleys, backed by the brown plain and yellow sand-
hills of Philistia which stretch far away to the gleaming horizon of the
sea.
The place, however, which may perhaps prove of the highest interest
* Beit Atab is situate .1 on a high hill, and is seen from all parts of the country
round ; but although it overlooks a great extent of the lower region towards the "
south and west, it does not afford so extensive a view of places as we had hoped
to find. The country is full of sites of niins and villages, some inhabited
and some deserted, at least for portions of the year. Beit Atab has several
high square tower-like houses of two stories ; the rest are small and low ; but all
are of stone, solidlj- built. In tlie centre is a ruined tower or castle, but so
dilapidated as to be nearly lost among the houses. — Robinson's Biblical Re-
searches, vol. ii., p. 339.
MOGHARET UMM EL TUMAYmIyEH.
19
is a cave called Mogliaret Umm el Tumayraiyeh. On the ITtli inst. I u^rf^''
visited it in company with, the Eev. Mr. Neil and Dr. Chaplin, and Tumay-
vre executed a careful plan, to which I have added several sketches. We '^
obtained the same guide who accompanied M. Ganneau, and I subjoin
a full description of a site which may prove of importance.
MOGHARET UMM EL TXTMAYmIyEH.
Flying from the face of Saul, David first sought refuge at Gath, and
thence he came to Adullam, where he remaiueJ, whilst sending news of
his position to his native town.
It is remarkable that the range of country over which his wanderings
extended was never large, and even when mo^t piessed and driven away
south, to Maon and Ziph, he was scarcely 30 miles from his home. This
20 LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDER's REPORTS.
may perhaps be accounted for by tbe very difl&cult nature of the countrr
he had to traverse, and the facilities for hiding from an enemy even
when close at hand. It would seem, therefore, natural to suppose tlie
Cave of Adullam to be at no great distance from either Gath or Betli-
lehem. The position of Gath is very distinctly stated by Jerome (Comm .
on Micah i.), as being five miles from Eleutheropolis (Beit Jibrin), on
the road to Gaza. Thus the site in question would be on the way from
Gath, and some ten miles from Bethlehem.
The present name is Mogharet Umm el Tumayraiyeh, " The Cave
of the Mother of Two Twins." We have not found the name of Adullam ,
unless it be recognised in TVady Dilbeh, which bounds the ridge in
which the cave is found, on the northern or opposite side.* The cave
took its name, Josephus tells us, from the city of Adullam, in its
neighbourhood ; a ruin called Kh. S'aireh or Kb. Dilbeh exists on the
south of the wady about a mile north of the cave, above a very fine
spring. It is not, however, of any great extent.
The place is one very striking to the imagination, and commends itself
as a likely site. Leaving the ordinary road, we descended into a very
narrow ravine between steep and rocky hills. No path led over its
loose shingle, alternating with smooth, slippery slides of rock, worn bj^
the winter torrents. The wild, dark pistachio bushes sprung in a dense
thicket, interspersed with thorny shrubs, with bushes of cistus and a
carpet of thyme and mint growing amongst the hard, dark ledges of the
limestone. Traces of ancient terraces we passed in places, but all is now
a silent, tangled wilderness. At length, before us we saw a cliff with a
small cave some few hundred feet up the slope, and I naturally supposed
this to be the place until my attention was called to an opening close at
hand in the shelving rock. So curiously is this formed that one might
easily pass by without seeing it, and a few bushes would effectually hide
it from observation.
Descending rapidly, we found ourselves in a great round vestibule,
partly choked by fallen debris from the roof, and measuring about IGO
feet in diameter. The height is greatest at the sides, where a passage
leads round to other compartments. On the extreme east is a small one,
sinking suddenly, and supported on stalagmitic columns, one of which,
supposed to resemble a man in a helmet, I have sketched. Several
curious low excavations, like rough tombs, run in from its sides. North-
east of this is a second basin, surrounded curiously by a natural raised
gallery, supported on stalagmitic columns : seen in the lurid light, half
of day and half of our candles, it seemed like one of the mystic halls
which Southey describes in Thalaba, a weird and indefinitely extensive
succession of caverns, pillars, and pendants, glistening like silver.
Farther north is a more important part of the excavation, showing
the handiwork of man. A little pool, which even at this time contained
over a foot of water, famous for its medicinal qualities, is cut in the floor
of a small cave on a higher level, and is no doubt supplied by the infil-
* See Quarterly Statement, 1872, p. 116.
JUGHAEET UMM EL 'iUMAYMlYEH (IKTEKIOK).
22 LIEUT. CLAUDE R, CONDEr's REPORTS.
tration through the strata. A channel leads down at a steep angle,
apparently to a second cistern, now much broken. The sides of the
rock are here cut with the pick, a work of some considerable labour.
The most striking feature, however, remains to describe. A narrow
winding gallery, with pillars of stalagmite, leads to a long tunnel,
ending in a natural well over 60 feet deep. This gloomy place possesses
an interest of its own. The Mohammedan peasantry are extremely strict
in certain moral points, and this well is the death-place of those who
offend. Only two years ago an unhappy woman and her lover wero
brought here. The man was thrown down the steep slide which leads to
the hole and shot at as he fell. The girl followed, but was not shot,.
and fell upon his body. She was rescued later by her relatives, but did not
escape her fate.
The slide is a place somewhat difficult to descend, as the floor is
covered with bats' manure, aud affords hardly any hold for foot or hand.
I was therefore made fast by two stout ropes, and crept cautiously to
the edge of the well, to the very bottom of which I was unable to see
even then. The diiSculties of descent were so great, that I did not go
any farther, and calculated the depth, by the fall of a pebble, to be
about 50 feet. The well is dry, I believe, and almost circular, about
15 feet across. To all appearance it is entirely natural. Any one who
"went heedlessly or in the dark to the edge of the slide must inevitably
meet with his death.
As I have said before, the cavern suggests itself as a likely site to the
imagination. The four hundred men in distress, in debt, or discontented,
who stole up that stony ravine to join the outlawed chief, we can well
fancy seated round their smoky fires ; poor, ragged, sunburnt fellows^
no doubt, stealing in and out of the gloomy, damp recesses of the cave,
and startling the thousand pigeons which may then as now have found
refuge in the clefts of its rocks. For defence also the place was admir-
ably suited, not, oiily from its inaccessible position and inconspicuous
entrance, but also by reason of the great mass of earth, fallen like a-
traverse, as the word is used in fortification, before the door, roucd
which, in a narrow passage, the invaders must advance. That this
debris is ancient is, I think, shown by the pillar which is formed by the-
junction of a stalactite from the roof with a stalagmite on the rock which.
has fallen.
On the other hand, however, there are objections to the site, the priu-
cipal of which is it entire unfitness for human habitation. Water there
is, indeed, but in too great a quantity; everywhere the stalactitic pen-
dants adorn the roof, the sound of dropping water is heard, and a dam])
and hot atmosphere, almost unbearable, exists throughout. Nor is thi.'j
a modern alteration, for the character of the rock permitting the infil-
tration which no do'ubt first formed the cave is unchanged. The great
columns require an action of au indefinite period for their formation ,
and bear witness to the same fact. For men to live in the cave or sleep
in it for even a night must inevitably result in a severe attack of tho
TOMC OF SAMSON.
23
same fever and ague with -wliicli Mr. Neil was slightly affected during a
very short visit.
Our next undertaking was to hunt for the tomb of Samson between l°^^^l^
the two villages already noticed. To say that we have found it may
perhaps be too bold, but we have found what may bo very probably
assumed to be the same. The book of Judges places it between Zorah
and Eshtilol, but Josephus says that Samson was buried " in Sarasat
(Zorah or Sera), his own country, with the rest of his family" {Ant.
V. 8.12). Now about a quarter of a mile north-east from Sera are the
remains of a rock- cut cemetery, the tombs being broken and filled with
rubbish, and amongst them is a large tomb, now only a cave, being
broken away from its original form. It is highly probable that here we
have the burial-place 'of the strong ruler and the patrimony of his
father, Manoah. Is it too much to imagine that the name Sh. Samat,
which is an unusual one, and has never occurred in our work pre-
viously, but which here is found in the village of Sera, may be con-
nected with some tradition of Samson.
The country is also full of ruins and names which belong to a time of
Christian colonisation ; among these are Bir el Sahb (Well of the Cross)
twice occurring, Khallet Musellabeh, 'Ain el Kassis, &c. Such titles
never occur except in parts where the early or Crusading Christians
had for a time a footing. Among the ruins are three small churches
with very thick though roughly built walls, occuri-ing at El Kubua, Kh.
Ain el Keniseh, and 'Allar el Sifleh. Beit Skavia also, a ruin on the
watershed line close to one of the fine Eoman roads which here traverse
the country in every direction, was a place of some importance in Chris-
tian times. In it I discovered two Byzantine columns with the usual
clumsy capitals of ninth or tenth century work ; at Kh. S'aideh are also
traces of some large building with a crabbed Greek inscription of which
I send a sketch. A Hebrew inscription we discovered on the door of a
tomb near Beit Natif.
There are a greater number of names in this part of the work ; we
have from this camp collected 240, 36 of which are on Yandevelde.
There are an immense number of springs here observable, due per-
haps to the very regular bedding of the hard uptilted limestone, which
causes a supply of water collected on the hill-tops to flow down through
one fissure between two beds undispersed till it reaches the lowest point,
or one where it can easily escape. In the course of three days' survey I
fixed twenty springs, of which only one is shown on Vandevelde's map.
Our list of names from this camp includes no less than forty-one, not
numbering those which have the name of the village they supply.
We have been successful in obtaining many fossils which will no doubt
be of value. They are principally bivalves belonging to the Jurassic
period, but there exists in one spot a regular bed of fossil oysters of some
extent.
At Nehalin, a village not far from us, is the tomb of a famous olieikh.
Haj 'Allan, whose story, related to me by our very intelligent guide, is
more worthy to be recalled than most Mohammedan legends.
24 MR. TYRWHITT DRAKE's REPORTS.
Travelling from his native town along the coast this poor old hermit
•went, according to custom, into the mosque to pray. His raggedness,
misery, and uncleanliness offended the fat and comfortable worshippers
from the rich seaport town, and the abba he spread was regarded as a
contamination to the sacred place. One by one they withdrew from near
him, and the mosque authorities finally turned him out. Driven to the
shore, in his anger he flung the abba, which he could not spread on earth,
into the sea, but obedient to God's command the waves at once became
smooth, and a firm standing-j^lace ■was found for the pilgrim on the
untrodden sea. The miracle once known, the sanctity of the sheikh
became generally acknowledged, and his name, long after he slept under
the great shadowing oaks which surround his white tomb-house, was
remembered from one end of the land to the other.
Claude R. Conder.
ME. TYRWHITT DRAKE'S REPORTS.
XV.
On October 25th I rejoined the Survey at Bethlehem, where the
rest of the party had arrived the previous evening from Bayt 'Atab.
The immediate neighbourhood of Bayt Lahm (Bethlehem) shows
well the extent of ground which can be brought under cultivation in
even the steepest wadies by means of terraces. Every available inch
of ground is j)lanted with olives, figs, and vines. At some of the neigh-
bouring villages, for instance El Welejeh and Bittir, the water-supply
is abundant, and the terraces are green with vegetables of many kinds,
for which a ready sale is found in the Jerusalem market. At the latter
village, indeed, many of the old olive-trees are being rooted out, and
vines planted in their stead, as being much more profitable.
Tumuli. North of 'Ain Talo we came across some very curious mounds,
unlike any that I have ever seen in this country, with the exception of
that near Amwas, which is called by the natives Eijm el Haik bint
Sultan" el Fenish, "the Spinning Mound of the Pha^nician King's
Daughter," as I mentioned in a former report. There are in all five
of these mounds, of which four are on the crests of ridges, while the
other is situated near the head of a shallow gully. The three largest
are named Rijiim el Atyyah, El Tarud, and El Barish. Small tentative
excavations — by Captain Warren, R.E., as I am told — have been made
in this last, but a thorough examination of one of them would, I think,
be likely to prove of groat interest.
The mounds vary from twelve to thirty feet in height, and from
fifteen to fifty feet in diameter at top. The construction of all seems
identical. Rough stones of no great size are closely packed with chips
and a certain proportion of mould, and thus form a very compact
HERODIUM.
25
mass, wliicli can only liave been erected witli the expenditure of muck
labour. Hence the prima-faric view is that tliey were piled up for
eome special and important purpose. The position of two of them, and
the close proximity of all, precludes the idea of their being beacon-
stations or landmarks. If, as seems not unlikely, they are tombs, we
may hope to find objects of interest in them. Tlie most practicable
way of examining them would probably be to drive a mine to tho
centre along the ground level, as by this means any central interment
or traces of incremation would be immediately discovered. These
mounds differ essentially from those on the neighbouring Plain of
Rephaim (so called), and known as Seb'a Eijum — the Seven Mounds.
These latter are merely heaps of hard limestone thrown cai-elessly to-
gether, and have all the appearance of being composed of the rocks and
stones collected during the process of clearing the adjacent lands for
the purposes of cultivation.
Jebel Ferdays (or Euraydis, as it is variously pronounced), the old Heroilium.
Herodium, has proved not without interest. The ruins are neither
extensive, however, nor well preserved. The castle on the summit was
circular in form, with semicircular towers to the north-west and
south, and a larger circular one to the E.N.E. The most interesting
point was a circular chamber with a domed roof below the northern
towei-. The masonry throyghout has all the appearance of the Roman
or Herodian work visible at Csesarea and Tantura on the coast.
The outer part of this castle is a slope of 35 degs., composed entirely
of cietns, and now indistinguishable from the surrounding soil. This
is to be accounted for by the fact that most of the stone used in the
building is very soft and friable, and rapidly disintegrates.
Below the mound to the north are the ruins of a large oblong build-
ing, with vaults on the north and east. Some on the latter side are
still in fair preservation. The roof is barrel, without a keystone ; an
inner arch, however, has one. Windows 1-emain in the wall of the
eastern vault, about 1ft. high by 2ft. wide outside, but cut away
inside so as to throw the greatest possible amount of light within.
The other remains consist of a few wells, a small clump of ruined
houses, and a tank called Birket el Hammam. This was formerly
supplied with water from ' Ain Urtiis, which rises about 60 ft. higher.
I shall presently notice this aqueduct and its construction.
Lieutenant Conder has made a plan of the ruins of Furaydis, and
also of the cave variously called Magharet el M'asa, or Magharet
Kharaytun, which has by many been accepted as the Cave of
Adullam.
The main objection urged against this being David's lair is its position, Magharet
which is said to be too far eastward, but in all other respects it is most ^^harajtun.
admirably suited for an outlaw's hiding-place. The cave El Tumaymiyeh,
lately visited by Lieutenant Conder, seems from all descriptions to be
most unsuited for human habitation. This cave, on the contrary, is
26 MR. TYRWHITT DRAKe's REPORTS.
dry and airy, and resembles a rabbit warren in the extent and intricacy
of its passages.*
A few words will show the strength of the position. On arriving at
Bir el 'Ainayziyeh, a tank of seemingly Roman masonry, we found
ourselves on the brink of Wady Kharaytun, a glen as rugged and
precipitous as the Kedron at our present camp. To the left were the
niins of the monastic buildings dedicated to St. Chariton, perched on
the brink of the precipice and clinging like swallows' nests to the
ledges and crevices. To the right a steep, rugged zigzag descends to
a broad ledge of rock leading to 'Ain el Natuf (the Dripping Spring),
where even at this dry season there was a sufficient supply to fill a
wine-bottle in three or four minutes. The water is collected in two
little rock-hewn basins.
Halfway down the rugged path just spoken of we turned off along
a ledge of rock some eight feet wide to the cavern. A huge fallen
block, about seven feet high, has to be surmounted ; between this and
the upper rock is a space of two and a half feet. Continuing along
the ledge we come to another fallen block, and mounting this we are
confronted by the door of the cave. Two other openings beside the
door fully command the path to 'Ain el Xatuf, which consequently
could not be used by an attacking party, whilst owing to the over-
hanging rocks a besieged party might draw their water with impunity,
as the wady is too broad for archers to be able to harass them to any
considerable extent.
The entrance to the cave seems the only part which has been
touched by the hand of man. Several short intersecting passages
would place any invader who had succeeded in penetrating so far
entirely at the mercy of the defenders.
A few feet from the entrance we came into a large chamber some
sixty feet long and perhaps thirty or forty feet high. A low burrow,
which has to be traversed on hands and knees, leads from this to
another chamber ; mounting a few feet a narrow cleft leads to another
large chamber, to reach which one has to descend a steep slide some
fourteen feet high. From this chamber a main passage with intricate
ramifications, which can only be understood by the plan, leads to the
* I have just been talking to M. Clcrmont-Ganneau, Avho arrived at Jeiiisalem
a few days ago, and find that the cave and ruin of 'Ayd el Jlid, which he dis-
covered and identified with Adullani, lie some five or six miles farther south than
the cave of El Tumaymiyeh described by Lieutenant Conder. This position
agrees fairly well with the situation ascribed to the city of Adullam by Eusebius,
namely, ten miles east of Eleutheropolis. In Joshua xv. 35 Adullam is said to
be in the "valley" {i.e., Shefelah), which could not apply to Magharet Kharay-
tun if the cave were in the immediate vicinity of the town, as is perhaps most
probable.
Till, however, I have seen both places I feel that I must withhold judgment,
only showing how admirably adapted this cave of Khaiaytun is for an outlaw's
"hold."
teku'a. 27
last cliamber, beyond wliicli notliing extends but. a narrow -winding
passage -whicli, in no place large, at last contracts to a mere crack.
The greatest length of the cavern is 550 feet.
The air of the cave was dry and pure, though earth washed down from
above shows that water penetrates it in the winter. The first chamber,
however, would probably always continue dry. The whole cave seems
formed by water action ; the sides and roof are smooth, with frequent
rounded hollows, and in more than one place passages run side by side,
with merely a thin slab of rock separating them. The rock is hard
and very white. We found bats in some of the chambers, but not in
great numbers. In one of the side passages I picked up fragments of
a brass or copper fibula much corroded ; this and a piece of very
ancient coarse pottery were the only relics we found.
Riding from here to Teku'a took me half an hour. The ruins at this Tekfi'a.
place are extensive but uninteresting. To the east are many excavated
caves and cisterns, but the town itself is simply a heap of ruins, the
stones of which are small and friable. A fine octagonal font, orna-
mented on four sides with crosses and the double square, stands over
a well-mouth. It is cut in the hard pink marbly stone known at Jeru-
salem as the Hajr el Musallabeh, from the fact of the finest quality
being found in the neighbourhood of the Convent of the Cross (Dayr
el Musallabeh).
Proceeding westward, my object was to find the aqueduct coming A<iuedact.
from Wady el Arab, which runs near Bayt Fejjar at a considerable
distance to the south, and proceeding to 'Ain 'Atau at Solomon's Pools,
and so by the low-level aqueduct to Bethlehem and Jerusalem. This
aqueduct was first traced, I believe, by Herr Shick, of Jerusalem. Its
construction differs from that of the other aqueducts, and will be
described farther on. After a slight difiiculty at first where the pas-
sage v/as subterraneous, I was enabled to trace the channel as far as
the hill south of Urtas, where it had been already observed.
The wadies in this part are steep and long, consequently the aqueduct
winds in and out to a wonderful extent, and probably extends to five or
six times the length of the direct distance.
It seems that Urtas is generally considered as the Etam of the Etam.
Bible, but I am not aware whether it is known that a spring exists a
few hundred yards south-east of El Burak (Solomon's Pools), called
'Ain 'Attiu, which corresponds exactly to the Hebrew dcj:.
Of these there are no less than six connected with Solomon's Pools Aqueducts.
and Urtas.
1. This is the longest, extending from Wady el 'Arub to Jerusalem, a
distance of ten miles as the crow flies. It receives a branch from Wady
el Biyar, and again from 'Ain 'Atiiu. As, however, the construction of its
continuation from El Burak to Bayt Lalim and Jerusalem is diff"erent,
this must be considered as a separate aqueduct. The jjart which I ex-
amined between Teku'a and Urtas was sometimes cut in the rock, but
mostly carried over a foundation of rubble masonry, the outer wall of
28 MR. TYRWHITT DRAKE's REPORTS.
whicli in some places is as much as 6ft. or 7ft. higli, and faced Tvith
aslilai-. Tlie cliannel varies from 18in. to 2ft. in width, and 1ft. to 2ift.
in depth ; it is lined throughout with good cement, and covered in
with loose blocks or slabs of stone.
2. Is the continuation of this, which still supplies Bethlehem, and oc-
casionally the Haram at Jerusalem, with water. Earthen pipes set in
masonry form the channel in this case, while air-holes at intervals
relieve the pressure.
3. The high-level aqueduct passing through stone pipes is carried by
the tomb of Rachel and the south of Mar Elias, on to the (so-called) Plain
of Rephaim, whence it (conjecturally) passed above the Jewish Alms-
houses, and rounding the Birket Mamilla entered the town from the
north.
4. Is a ruined aqueduct, discovered, I believe, by Major "Wilson, R.E.
It passed near the high road from Hebron to Jerusalem, east of El
Khadhr, but recent alterations have obliterated all trace of it.
5. This aqueduct leads from 'Ain Urtas along the northern side of the
valley to Birket el Hamman at Jebel Furaydis. The upper part is cnt
in the rock. Lower down the channel rests on a substructure of rubble
and large stones. Before reaching Jebel Furaydis all traces of it are
lost in the soft chalky formation, but the direction shows its destina-
tion, which is further confirmed by the difference of level between 'Ain
Ui'tas and Birket el Hamman.
6. Is an aqueduct traced by Lieutenant Conder from Urtas to a
ruined Birket called Kasr el Tahuneh, along the south side of Wady
Urtas. The natives assert that this also went to Jebel Furaydis, but
this is impossible.
The construction of all these aqueducts, the masonry of Solomon's
Pools, and the appearance of tbe cement used to line the channels,
seems to me to be Roman work. This, too, seems probable on re-
ferring to Josephus' Antiq. xviii. 3. 2, and Wars, ii. 9. 4, where we
are told that Pontius Pilate made an aqueduct with the Corban, or
the money from the' Temple ti-easury, bringing the water from a dis-
tance of 200 (in the latter passage it is 400) furlongs.
The n:ionastery, or properly Laura, of Mar Saba, clinging to the
precipitous side of "Wady el Nar, as the Kedron is called, surrounded
by the ruins of numberless hermitages built on rock-ledges or in hollows
and caves, is too well known to need description here. The suiTOunding
country is now a scene of utter desolation, a glaring wilderness of
steep chalky hills strewn with flints and loose stones. Yesterday we
had occasion to go to a point some seven miles distant in a direct
line, and this took us three and a quarter hours to ride. Descending
into Wady el Nar we crossed it and wound up a side valley till we
reached its head. For some time our path led us up and down the
heads of numberless valleys, but soon we found ourselves among
rocks and ravines, where the horses could scarce find a footing. Tired
of this, and finding that the guide knew but little of the country, I
5IAR SABA. 29
struck upwards to a watershed, along which we travelled with ease,
though the paths, originally made by, and intended for, goats, afforded
barely suflBcient footing for the horses, who by one false step would
have been precipitated, in some cases several hundred feet, down
slopes varying from 30 degs. to 40 degs. Descending at last an
almost precipitous rocky slope, we reached Wady Dabbar, one of the
most important drains of the country east of Jerusalem. Here we
found two caves hewn in the siile of the valley and filled with rain
water. The lower consisted of two tunnels 40ft. long, and separated
by a wall of rock, while in front a wall of rough masonry formed the
cave into a cistern. The upper cave was deep and full of water.
Passing onwards we ascended a rolling spur, and by a rugged Nagb,
or pass, mounted to the crest of the ridge, at the east point of which
was to be our point of observation. Here we found two cairns of large
heavy stones. The one was roughly circular, but the stones were
strewn without order. The other was smaller, but appeared to have
been in the form of a circle some 15ft. in diameter. They are known to
the Arabs as El Tabz Ektayf, and are the only monuments of the kind
I have yet observed in the country, though they are common in Sinai
and the Badiyet el Tih.
There are no villages in this wilderness, and but two or three
ruins. A few wells exist from which the Arabs procure their water,
but there is absolutely nothing of real interest in the whole region.
The Arabs are divided as follows :— To the south the Ta'amireh ;
near Mar Saba, El Abbaydiyeh ; north of these El Hetaymat, El Sa-
wahavet, El Wad, and El 'Arab Abu Nusayr, who extend as far as
Wady Kelt and Jericho.
jjOTE. — Having occasion to ride up to Jerusalem the other day I
found most interesting repairs going on in and outside of the Kubbet
el Sakhrah. All the Kijshdni (encaustic tiles) have been stripped off
one of the faces of the outer wall and the original masonry lies dis-
closed. The present pointed windows, sis in number, are built within
semicircular arches, and above these are thirteen arches also semi-
circular, which originally formed an open balustrade. I have taken
measurements and sketches of the arches, cornices, &c., and will send
them as soon as I can find time to finish drawing them otit.
As this discovery seems important, I have asked Lieut. Conder, who
has occasion just now to go up to Jerusalem, to have a photograph taken
before the tiles are restored to their former places.
THE EDINBURGH REYIE^yER OX THE TALMUD.
In the July number of the Edinburgh Bevieiu, the author of the paper
on the Talmud remarks on my version of the " Tract on the Mea-
surements of the Temple" (see Quarterhj Statement of the Palestine Ex-
ploration Fund for 1872, p. 12), that it is translated ■5\'ith "less than
absolute accuracy."
The instance given to prove this observation is that " the translator
has provided the guards of the Temple with cushions."
It is the author of the IMishna, and not the translator, who has done
so. If the reviewer be acquainted with the Hebrew language he must
know that the word (irOD^) means "his cushion" or "pillow." And
though Rabbi Judah Hakkodesh says afterwards that " his garments
(viJD) were burned" yet the explanation is obvious. The drowsy
Levite reclined in his clothes, which became his cushion, and when he
was found sleeping they were set on fire by the captain of the watch.
Joseph Baeclat.
ASHKELON.
The following letter, by the Regius Professor of Hebrew at Oxford,
will be read with interest. It has been despatched to the Society's
explorers in Palestine, in the hope that the questions raised by Pro-
fessor Pusey may receive a satisfactory solution : —
Dear Me. Grove, — Thank you very much for your reply. I had,
perhaps, better say what my ground is for thinking that the As-
calon of the Crusades cannot be the Philistine Ashkelon.
Tou have yourself, I see [Did. of BihJe, Jabneel), drawn attention to
theMaiumas of Gaza and Ascalon, and Jamnia. There were also two
Azotus', one by the sea (see Eeland, page 215). The three, then, Gaza,
Jabneel, Ashdod, were inland ; and were, I suppose, like Athens, pur-
posely so built for fear of pirates. Even Gaza, which was nearest, was
(it appears from Soz., v. 3) distinct in boundary from its Maiumas.
They had fields {&ypoi) belonging to each, having altars between them.
The probability, on the ground of its having a port, and from the
three other cases, is that Ascalon itself was inland. Ascalon and its
Maiumas must have been distinct cities, since the bishop of each signed
a synodical letter inserted in the Acts of the Council of Constantinople,
A.D. 536, as also the Bishop of Gaza and Maiumas Gazse. (It is in col.
I1G3, 1164 of the Cone. T. v. ed. Colet.) But it is so well-known a
rule that there cannot be two bishops of one town, that when Julian
had annexed the Maiumas Gazte to Gaza, the Bishop of Gaza on a sub-
sequentvacancyintheepiscopateof the Maiumas claimed that its clergy
should on this ground be subject to him, though it was locally distinct.
The provincial council refused it, because the civil privileges had been
ASHKELON. 31
taken away from Maiumas Gazse by a heathen prince, on account of
its Christianity. But, according to all descriptions, Ascalon has too
little depth from the sea to have ever contained two towns, and its
outside boundary is very marked, being built along a natural ridge, in
the shape of a bow ; the chord, as William of Tyre describes it, being
towards the sea.
2. Benjamin of Tudela, who must have been on the spot, says that
*' Ashkelona is new Ashkelon, which Ezra the pi'iest built on the sea-
shore, and at first they called it Benibra, and it is four parasangs dis-
tant from the former Ashkelon, which is desert." His account was
naturally the tradition of the Jews whom he found there. Benjamin
of Tudela's pronunciation of the modeim town is Ashkelonah (as in the
time of the Crusades it is Askelona), whereas, in his explanation, he
speaks of "new Ashkelon," "the old Ashkelon" keeping the Biblical
termination. His account is too concise for him to give an explanation,
but Benibra is doubtless a Greek corruption for Bethnimrah (as Bethna-
bris in Eusebius is for the Bethnimrah, or later, Bethnimrim, of Gad),
and the sweetness of its waters (the aquce jpotahiles within it) is noted by
successive writers, I suppose because, so near the sea, they might be
expected to be brackish. I think that the tradition in his time that
there was an Ashkelon which lay waste, is remarkable, though the
Jews, his informants, might be inaccurate as to its distance, as they
were not much concerned about the site of a desert place.
I myself think it most probable that the Askalon which Herod
beautified was the present Askalon; and that it, the Maiumas Ascalonis,
being the more considerable, obtained the name of Ascalon, as Windsor
and Sarum must, I suppose, have been originally New Windsor, New
Sarum, and yet in early times have been called absolutely Windsor,
Sarum; and what is now called Shoreham was, in my memory, still
New Shoreham. Tou will be familiar with other such instances, old and
new. There must have been great accumulations of sand, which may
have buried the old Ascalon, since the sands are only held back
by the walls, with which they seem to be almost level, from burying
the new Ascalon.
As you take such kind interest in my question, I thought I ought to
tell you my grounds.
With best thanks.
Tours very faithfully,
Nov. 28, 1873. E. B. Pusey.
P.S. — Looking at Porter's map, there is apparently a plain enclosed
in a sort of triangle between the roads from Burbareh to El Mijdel and
that which turns off to Askulan. The places which he mentions
(p. 268) are not marked in the map. " One mile from Burbareh is Jiyeh ;
half an hour beyond it is Beitimab," which must have been, I suppose,
where the two roads part. For Porter says, " our path turns to
the north-west, along the border of the sandhills. In twenty-five
32 ASHKELON.
minutes we come to Nalieh, a poor village on the east side of a low
narrow plain, wliicli appears to be sometimes flooded in tlie winter. A
ride of ten minutes across the plain, and twenty minutes more over
iht hroad ridge of sand, brings us to the gate of Ascalon."
1. But the Jews {JosepJms, B. J. 3. 2)jwere assaulting Ascalon. If,
then, that Ascalon were the present Ascalon (which I am inclined to
thinlc\ where is " the whole plain," which was "broad, and the whole of
it suited for the action of cavalry" (ttSv iinraa-i/xof), over which the flying
Jews were scattered and 10,000 killed.^
2. What is the depth of Ascalon ? Is it so built that there could be
two distinct cities within its present walls, so that one should be an
inland city, the other its port ? In a description which I have seen,
there is mention of a creek running up into the present city ;
though the harbour was purposely destroyed by Sultan Bibars, in
order to preclude any renewed landing of Crusaders there.
I I "
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o
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1-3
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s
03
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^
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Quarterly Statement, April, 1874.]
THE
PALESTINE EXPLORATION FUND,
PREFACE.
The voluminous reports with wliich we commence our account of
the year's work will be found to tell their own story without pre-
fatory explanation. From Lieut. Conder we have additions to oisf
knowledge of Gezer, where he observed the surest proofs of the
former existence of a town — in tombs, quarries, oil-presses, and
fragments of pottery ; of Eamleh, with its Church and its White
Mosque ; of El Medyeh, the probable site of the tombs of the
Maccabees ; of Gibeah, a site of extreme interest in connection
with the history of Saul ; and the site of Ai, on which Major
Wilson has already given the Eund a valuable paper ( Quarterly
Statement, Eirst Series, p. 123).
Lieut. Conder has sent also reports on the excursions and obser-
vations made during his last summer holidays about Bludan. Bu<^
the point of greatest interest in his reports will probably be the
passage in which he describes the site of Gilgal. It has been
known for many years that a name of Jiljul, or Jiljilia, existed in
the neighbourhood of Er Eiha ; but although a German traveller,.
Herr Zschokke, discovered the spot in 1866, and fixed it by compass
angle, it was found impossible by Lieut. Conder to identify the
place in his first attempt. He has now, however, succeeded in
finding it. Although, with the few data in our possession, it is
impossible to speak with certainty, it will be at least acknowledged
that the spot described by Lieut. Conder comes nearer than any
other to the requirements of the case. It is not the traditional site
assigned by the early pilgrims, Arculj)hus and Willibald, which is
at Kasr Hajlah, five miles from Jericho. Lieut. Conder has
carefully examined the tract from the Jordan mouth to Has
Eeshkah for traces of the Cities of the Plain, but finds none at
all. There is, however, a curious artificial mound, called Tell el
Eashidujeh, at the Jordan mouth ; and it seems probable, as he
34 PREFACE.
points out, tliat the gradual rise of the level of the plain, caused
by the constant washing down of the soft marls from the western
hills, would effectually cover over any such ruins, did they ever
exist, below the siu^face. Lieut. Condor's paper on the Identification
of Scopus may be read in conjunction with M. Clermont- Granneau's
remarks on the same subject. Mr. Tyrwhitt Drake's reports partly
cover the same ground as those of Lieut. Conder. His remarks on the
boundary line of Judah show that he does not agree with some of
the opinions of M. Ganneau. But all the three reports must be
taken together; each is independent of the other, and each
represents opinions sometimes different, but always based on the
same facts. The real importance of our explorers' reports will
always lie, first, in the facts themselves ; and secondly, in their
indication of the direction in which the facts seem to point.
We have received from Mr. Tyrwhitt Drake an extremely
valuable paper on " Modern Jerusalem : its Population, Religions,
Trades, &c.," which has not been introduced here, because it seems
to the Committee beyond the limits of their work to describe a
modern city. No doubt Mr. Drake will publish it elsewhere.
The simultaneous exposure of the so-called "Moabite pottery"
by M. Ganneau and Mr. Tyrwhitt Drake will be foimd on p. 113.
The letter of M. Shapira himself to the Editor of the AtlmiOium is
added, to show that the vendor of the pottery has not yet acce^^ted
the fact of their forgery.
The reports of M. Ganneau are those of a careful and minute
archa3ologist : the illustrations given with them are from the pen
of M. Lecomte. We have already received more than twenty sheets
of plans, sketches, and drawings, of which these are a specimen.
FINANCIAL POSITION OF THE FUND.
It has been decided to publish every quarter .a statement such
as the following, in order that Subscribers may know the actual
position of the Fund.
Eeceived from Jan. 1st to Mar. 2Gth, 1873 : —
By Subscriptions and Donations £858 19 4
Profit from Collections at Lectures ... ... 88 4 5
*SaIe of Publications 3G 9 7
*Sale of Photographs 21 3 6
Balance in hand March 26 469 7 10
* Including those sold at Lectures.
THE SURVEY OF PALESTINE.
LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDER'S REPORTS.
XYIII.
GiLGAL AXD THE PLAINS OF JeRICHO.
'AiN EL SuLTA^-, December, 1874.
I AVAIL myself of tlie first spare day since last I wrote to send a
xaontUy report.
The map shows our progress under the new arrangements which, ^^'^^y-
by a certain amount of extra work on my own part, I have been able to
make, doubling the detail parties by addition of myself and Lance-
Corporal Brophj', and also doubling the observation parties. Sergeant Black
and Corporal Brox)hy being accompanied by Mr. Drake, whilst Corporal
Armstrong and mj^self take simultaneous observations at another point.
We are thus enabled to reach, and even pass, tlie average which I had
formerly promised. Moving from Bayt Atab to Bethlehem, and thence
to Mar Saba and our present camp, we have laid in 280 square miles in
a month. Lately, however, the weather and other causes have delayed
xis considerably, but the camp being well and centrally placed we have
filled in 180 square miles of its neighbourhood, and the average is still
above 250 square miles per month.
The labour of surveying the Zor or lower bed of the Jordan, as well
as the land lying immediately north of the Dead Sea, was very great.
The mud was so deep that it was impassable for horses, and a great part
had to be done on foot. Sergeant Black and I have, however, succeeded
in getting it finished at last in a satisfactory manner.
The following plans and surveys must bo added to the list of forty-one
already sent home : —
1. Plan of Cave Umm el Turraymi'n, rr^-;.
2. General plan of buildings, Jebel Furaydis (Frank Mountain).
3. Plan of circular building on the Tell J. Furaydis, ^ijj.
4. Plan of lower building, J. Furaydis, ^^^i^.
5. Plan of cave at Kharaytiin (traditional AduUam).
6. Plan of chapels, Jebel Koruntil, ^|^.
7. Frescoes in central chapel.
8. Kasr el Yahud (Double Plan, -^jo).
9. Kasr el Hajlah (Double Plan, 1j^).
10. Dayr el Kelt (Double Plan, ^i-).
11. Bridge near the same. Plan and sections, 5^^).
12. Castle at Khan Hadhrura, -jls.
36 LIEUT. CLAUDE E. CONDER's REPORTS.
The fitting of the triangailation, large and well-sliaped, -^vitli the old
one, as tested at the important point of Kurn Sartabeh, is very satis-
factory.
The Mar Saba camp produced scarcely anything of interest beyond
the discovery of ruins belonging to Crusading vineyards in a desert now
■u-ithout a tree or a drop of watei". It was, however, important for its
geological indications. The present camp is surrounded with places of
the greatest interest, of which I propose to give some account.
The total amount of country surveyed is now over 2,200 square miles,
or one-third of Palestine.
Cilgal. rjijjg determination of this site has always appeared to me the most
important and interesting point in this part of the country.
Dr. Eobinson, in his earlier travels, says that he was able "to ascer-
tain definitely that no trace of its name or site remains." He would,
however, place it in the neighbourhood of the modern Er Eiha, in accord-
ance with Josephus's description, "on the east border of Jericho ten
stadia from that city and fifty from Jordan." He was, indeed, informed
that the name Jiljilia existed in the neighbour-hood, but failed to identify
its position.
I am indebted to M. Ganneau and to Major "Wilson for directing my
atteitltion to the subject.* A German traveller (Herr Zschokke) travelling
in 1865 speaks of the discovery of a Tell Jiljul, which he fixes by a com-
pass angle to Kasr Hajlah. Yet, although I went to the spot in M.
Ganneau's company, we failed to find the place, and it was not till after
his return to Jerusalem that, on revisiting the spot, I found the name
was still known to a few of the older inhabitants of Er Eiha, though not
to the Bedouins who now accompany us. I took every precaution in
making inquiries, which I put in various forms to three or four persons,
and came to the conclusion that the name, though almost lost, still
lingered in the memory of a few.
On the north side of the great "Wady Kelt (the traditional Brook
Cherith), about one and one-third English miles from the tower of the
modern Jericho (Eriha), towards the east, is a solitary tamarisk known
as the " Shejaret el Ithleh," to which a local tradition points as standing
on the site of the " City of Brass."
The tradition of its siege by a great Imam, of the fall of its walls when
he had ridden round them, of the destruction of the infidel inhabitants,
and of the miracle of the sun standing still over Koruntil at the
Sultan's command ; all these confused reminiscences of the great events
of the life of Joshua and of the siege of Jericho point to a connection
which may, indeed, date no further back than early Christian times ; or,
on the other hand, may be of really valuable antiq^uity, attaching the
eite to the history of the Jewish invasion.
^ There are not, however, any extensive ruins on or near the spot. A
■* Herr Zseliokke was chaplain to tlie Austrian Consulate at Jerusalem, and
published a pamphlet ou the ideutitication of Jiljul with Gilgal, which was printed
at Jerusalem in 1865.
LIEUT. CLAUDE R. OONDER's REPORTS. 37
pool, choked witli soil, scattered stones, hewn but of ordinary size, and a
large cemetery of tombs, seemingly Arab, though not strictly directed to
the Ka'abah, were all we at first observed. Ou revisiting the place I
found that the name Birket Jiljulieh undoubtedly applies to the pool in
question, situate about 150 yards south-east of the tree, built with walls,
some 2 feet 6 inches thick, of rolled pebbles, (5 to IS inches in diaireter,
well packed. No cement is visible. The dimensions of the Birket are
about forty paces by thirty.
The remains which will, however, prove perhaps of greatest interest
are situate south-east and east of this point, being a number of small
mounds, seemingly artificial, and known as the Tellayla't Jiljulieh.
There must be about a dozen of them within a square mile, eight or ten
feet diameter, and not more than three or four feet high. They, are
said to be very ancient, and remains of the City of Brass. The angle
shows that it was to one of these that Herr Zschokke obtained the name
Tell Jiljul. I hope again to visit the spot and open one of the mounds,
making a sketch and special plan of the site at the same time. It may
seem bold to propose that these mounds are traces of the permanent
Israelite camp on the spot, yet we know that nothing in Palestine is
more ancient than are such earthworks.
It might be objected that perhaps the name is only the lingering
remembrance of a Crusading or early Christian site for Gilgal, the
tradition of a tradition, but the Crusading site seems to have been
placed far south at Kasr Hajlah ; and not unnaturally so, for at 'Ain
Hajlah exists the only spring of freshwater in the plains of Jericho, and
the road from the ford of El Kenu to Er Eiha passes close by. Even in
earlier times Arculphus mentions the church of Galgalis (a.d. 700) as five
miles from Jericho, evidently referring to the same site. It is, however,
only fair to notice that Willibald (721 — 27) places it five miles from the
Jordan ; from it he went to Jericho, ^even miles from Jordan. This
would apply to the site of Jiljulieh at El Ithleh, but it would also,
though perhaps less easily, apply to Kasr Hajlah, which is indicated by
the earlier author, unless a corruption be thought to have crept into
his text.
The long time during which the camp at Gilgal was maintained
points clearly to its having been well supplied with water. There was
also perhaps a city on the same site, although it does not seem by anj
means certain that this spot was the Gilgal visited by Samuel in his
yeai-ly round, which should rather be sought in the mountains ; jierhaps
at the modern Jiljilia, situate south of Selfit and north of Attara. In
any case it becomes, as the early traditions fully recognised, a point of
great importance to find a water-supply sufficient for a large host.
On visiting Birket Jiljulieh to-day I found a rapid, though muddy,
stream flowing right through it. This is generally diverted into other
channels for the irrigation of the gardens of Jericho ; but the very
existence of a birket shows that the site was once well supplied with
water, the most natural source for which would be the 'Ain el Sultan.
Sultan.
38 LIEUT. CLAUDE R. COXDEr's REPORTS.
Jiljulieh. is on the direct road from the upper ford at Kasr el Yahud!
(St. John on Jordan), about four and a half miles from this point, and
one and one-third from Er Eiha. The latter distance is exactly that given
by Josephus from Jericho, and reading thirty for fifty (a very easy
clerical error in the Greek) we get the exact distance from Jordan also
correctly. The whole plain is only about fifty stadia broad, and thus
the present reading will hardly allow a position for Jericho in the plain.
The interest of the site is great, not only for its own associations, but
as showing the ford by which the Israelites would have prepared to cross
the Jordan. Like many other of the sites which date from so remote an
antiquity, in a country subject to continual inroads and devastation,
there must naturally be a certain amount of doubt or difficulty attached
to its identification, bub it seems certain that no site iDreviously fixed,
upon comes so near to the fulfilment of all requisites of the case.
•Ainel Difficult as it seems to be to fix the site of the later cities of
Jewish, Eoman, and Byzantine times, ther6 is happily but little
doubt as to the position of the Jericho destroyed by Joshua. The
"Sultans Spring," or Fountain of Elisha, is indeed the only natural
site for a citj^ in the whole country surrounding it. Three fine springs
are found within but a little distance of one another, while the rest of
the plain can show but one, and that far less considerable. Nothing,
indeed, but the curse on the site and the terror inspired by the sub-
sequent fulfilment of that curse could account for the displacement of
the city. The flight of the spies to the hills points to the same position.
From modern Jericho flight in any direction would be equally danger-
ous, but from 'Ain el Sultan, a deep ravine covered with bushes of the
Zakkum and Spina Christi, and filled with a jungle of cane, leads to 'Ain
Duk (the ancient Doch or Dagon), at the foot of the cliff of Koruntil,
amongst whose caves and rocky precipices the two Israelites, flying to
" the mountains," might lie hid in safety.
The ruin at the spring itself seems to be that of a small Roman temple,
such as is often found at springheads. Other foundations farther north,
contain capitals and shafts seemingly Byzantine. In the direction of
Er Eiha, foundations, low mounds, channels for water, and portions of
roads hidden in the thorny copse which here covers the plain, seem all
to point to the former existence of a great town.
Still farther south, near "Wady Kelt, two large mounds or tells com-
mand the road as it descends the narrow pass from Eayt Jabr. These
have been considered as remains of Eoman Jericho ; pieces of wall and,
perhaps, of an aqueduct, with the 02nis reticulatum of its masonry, seem
to confirm this theory. Close by is the fine reservoir, fed by aqueducts,
known as the Eirket Musa, measuring about 190 x IGO yards.
There is a very large number of tells in the neighbourhood, all of
the most important having been examined and excavated by Captain
Warren. Of these Toll el 'Ain cl Samarat, Abu Zelef, Abu el Hindi and
ol Arais, with the Tullul abu cl Alayj are true tells, artificial mounds
with a central building of unbui-nt brick. Tell Daj-r Ghana'm, el Jm-n,
LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDER's REPORTS. 30
el Mutlub, Derb el Habaysh, el Kus, el Mcfurij^eli and Moghyfir, ^v'itb
others still less important, are but heaps of debris formed by ruins of
various date.
Of our visits to the Hajar el Esbah, to Gumran, and 'Ain Eeshkah, I The Plain:
have nothing myself to relate. Nothing is more striking, however, than
the general aspect of the country we have thus passed over. The broad
plain, bouudedeast and west by the steep rocky ranges, at whose feet
lie the low marl hillocks of a former geological sea ; the green lawns of
grass leading to the lower valley, where, in the midst of a track of thick
white mud, the Jordan flows in a crooked milky stream, through jungles
of cane and tamarisk,- — are all equally unlike the general scenery of Pales-
tine. Eound Elijah's fountain a taugled wood of Zakkum, Spina Christi,
and near the water au occasional castor-oil plant, spreads out to Jericho.
The yellow berries of the deadly solanum appear everywhere. The
chorus of birds and the flow of water are sounds equally unusual and
charming in the stony wildernesses of the Holy Jjand.
The'palm groves of Jericho have disappeared since the eighth century,
A solitary survivor grows close to the tower of Er Eiha, and in the valley
north of Kasr el Hajlah I met with another clump. When the copses
of the fountain are left behind, and the first descent is made into the
flat mud valley below the half-consolidated marl cliffs at Kasr el Hajlah,
then we are at once reminded of Josephus's expression, that the Jordan
flowed ' ' through a wilderness." The views of the lake — with its shining,
oily sui'face, its salt and sulphurous springs, its brown precipices, with
the fallen blocks at their feet, its white drift logs, crusted with salt,
brought down by the freshets in the river, and now stranded along the
crisp, shingly beach — are perhaps even more striking ; whilst the soft
shadows and rosy suffused light in early morning, or at sunset, mako
the trans-Jordanic i-anges all au artist could desire to study.
Were it not that negative information is, next to positive, the The Cities
most interesting and useful, I should scarcely have touched on this *^ ^^'
subject, but having carefully examined in person the whole tract
from Jordan mouth to the Eas Feshkah, I do not hesitate to say
that, if the cities of the plain were within this area, all trace of
them has utterly disappeared. The ruins, which have been described in
language not sufHciently moderate for the cause of truth, at Gumi'an
and at Eijm el Bahr, I have visited. The former are probably late ;
the heaps of unhewn stone at the latter (which seems to have been at
one time the traditional site of the Pillar of Salt, judging from an ex-
pression of Maundrel) are, I think, unquestionably natural. A curious
artificial tell — Tell el Eashidujoh, situate near the Jordan mouth — is the
only evidence of man's work I could find on that side. It is strewn
■with ancient potterj% iron coloured and almost iron in hardness. It
seems to me certain that the gradual rise of the level of the plain, caused
by the constant washing down of the soft marls from the western hills,
would effectually cover over any such ruins did they ever exist below
the surface. The tract, liowever, presents literally nothing beyond a flat
expanse of semi-consolidated mud.
40
LIEUT. CLAUDE R, CONDEr's REPORTS.
'Ash el
Ghorab.
Convents.
I am tempted here to mention a curious possible identification of
this point, though perhaps it will not stand criticism. The hill in
question is a sharp conical peak, its name signifying, ' ' The Eaven's Nest."
Two miles north-west of this is a wady and mound, known as the
Tuwayl el Diab. Here, then, we have the two famous Midianite leaders'
names — Oreb, the Eaven; and Zeeb, the Wolf — in connection, reminding
us of the passage (Judges vii. 25) relating that the men of Ephraim
" slew Oreb on the rock Oreb, and Zeeb at the winepress of Zeeb."
There is nothing in the Bible or Josephus to show that these places
were east of Jordan, and it is quite possible that the kings, flying
southward to Midian, sought to cross by the fords near Jericho, which
had , however, been already seized by their enemies. The only diflQ.culty
is in the subsequent passage by Gideon at Succoth higher up. The
peak is most remai-kable, and would be weU fitted for a public
execution.
There is another point which might perhaps confirm this idea.
Elijah, living by Cherith, was supported, as some suppose, by a tribe of
Arabs living at an Oreb, or having that name as an appellation. The
proximity of the 'Ash el Ghorab to Wady Kelt, the traditional Cherith, is
interesting in connection with such a supposition, and it has been
thought that this Oreb might be identical with the rock Oreb in the
history of Gideon. I feel, however, that the suggestion is one not to
be put forward as more than a possible one.
The great events of which the Plain of Jericho had in early times
been the scene, together with its traditional connection with our Lord's
temptation, and actual interest with regard to his baptism, and other
events, attracted the Christians of a very early age to this j^art of
the country. Hence the precipices of Koruntil were burrowed with
hermit's caves and small chapels, already described by Dr. Tristram,
who seems amongst the earliest explorers. We were engaged for a
morning in visiting those of most interest, planning the chapels and
sketching the old and blackened frescoes on their walls. From Justinian's
time the plain began to be covered with monastic edifices ; the splendid
cistern at Kasr el Yahud (St. John on Jordan), mentioned by Procopius
as the work of this emperor, is still visible, in an almost perfect condi-
tion. The grand aqueduct from the 'Ain el Sultan to it is no doubt of the
same date. The cistern is thirty feet deep, and is supported on rows of
piers. The aqueduct is merely a long mound, showing hardly a trace of
the channel, but running straight as possible through the copse over
the flat plain between the mud mounds, until disappearing close to the
convent.
The convent itself was destroyed and rebuilt in the twelfth century,
to which date, in all probability, the ruins I have planned belong. The
most remarkable point about the building is the use of an apparently
artificial stone, containing flints and fragments of harder stone. The
chapel is subterranean ; the outer stones are drafted ; fragments of tcsse-
lated pavement remain, and some inscriptions, or graphitco, carved on
LIEUT. CLAUDE R. COXDEr's REPORTS. 41
the walls. This famous establisliment, with the small chapel on the
banks of Jordan belonging to it, are mentioned by almost every traveller
of mediaeval times, and the " fair church, of St. Jolin the Baptist " was
still standing wben visited by Sir John Maundeville in 1322, but ruined
before the year 1097.
In the fifth, century there was another convent of St. Panteleemon
in the plain, and in the twelfth the destruction of one of St. Gerasmius,
near the Jordan, is mentioned. At this period of revival the greater
number of these constructions were rebuilt, including the convents of
St. Calamon and St. Chrysostom.
It does not appear that either of these names applied to the Kasr
el Hajlah, which, however, no doubt dates from the same century.
The ruins of this fine old religious fortress are better preserved than
those of Kasr el Yahud, and the plan occupied neaiiy two days, hav-
ing never, I believe, been previously taken. Though much shaken by
earthquake, its vaults are entire. The aj^se of the large chapel remains,
and the whole of the smaller, including the octagonal drum support-
ing its dome. The surrounding walls are entire, except on the north.
The frescoes are much defaced, almost every inscription and all the
faces being purposely erased. A certain limit is given to the antiquity
of the building by the occurrence of the name of John Eleemon,
Patriarch of Jerusalem in 630, attached to a figui-e. Crusading graphitce
— the names " Piquet" and Petre de le Senchal — are scratched
deeply, as though with a dagger, on the haunch of an arch. Tesse-
iated pavement is found in fragments. The kitchen is entire, with its
row of little ovens. Other cells, with a subterranean chapel, are covered
with crosses and religious signs. The most curious frescoes are those
representing saints receiving the white resurrection robe from attendant
angels. They are fresher in colour and no doubt later than those of
Koruntil.
Tell Moghyfir, the Gilgal of some authors, is the site of another such
convent, now entirely destroyed. Scattered stones, with fragments of
frescoes and Greek letters, painted pieces of tesselated pavement, a
small cistern (well lined), and ruins of aqueduct channels leading to the
epot, are all that remains. It seems probable that we have here the
site of the convent of St. Eustochium, mentioned by "Willibald in 721
as in the middle of the plain, between Jericho and Jerusalem, a descrip-
tion applying perfectly if he travelled by the Mar Saba route to the
capital.
Kb. el Mifjar, north of 'Ain el Sultan, shows ruins excavated by Captain
"Warren, who found the apse of a chapel pointing south (perhaps the
transept of a great church), remains of houses, and a chamber with
frescoes ; these have now disappeared. The site covei's about 300 yards
square, and is evidently that of an important establishment.
Yet another convent is to be found in the hills overhanging the north
side of Wady Kelt, and a small rough chapel in Wady Dubbar marks
the site of D-^vyr el Mukelik. Thus we have five existing ruins, without
42 LIEUT. CLAUDE E. COXDEr's REPORTS.
counting tlie churcli mentioned by Sir John Maundeville, and still re-
maining on tlie summit of Koruntil, vrliilst historically -we know of the
previous existence of no less thau seven, of which, however, only three
are identified.
Dayr "VVady Kelt merits a more particular description. Like every other
monastery in the hills, it is hung on a precipice. It consists of a
series of cells, and a hall supported on vaults, through which lies the
entrance. The chapel, perched close to the rock, is not oriented, being
in aline of 49 degs. M., but the east window, beside the apse, is so turned
as to bear at an angle 90 degs. M. The evident reason of this is the
direction of the rock scarp. The rest of the building is not in the same
line as the chapel. There are at least three dates discoverable, as two
layers of frescoes cover the wall, whilst the inscriptions of the newest are
covered in part by the piers supporting the ribs of the roof. The chapel
is built of dressed stones, w^hilst the cells and vaults are of masonry
roughly squared. This part bears every sign of twelfth century work.
Perhaps the little side chapel, with rock-cut chamber, and the vault
containing ancient bones, to which a corridor covered with frescoes re-
presenting the Last Judgment leads, is the oldest part of the building.
Numerous caves, now inaccessible, are visible in the face of the cliff",
which for a distance of eighty feet is covered with frescoes, now almost
entirely defaced. One of these cells has at its entrance a heavy iron bar
2)laced vertically, no doubt originally to support a rope or ladder. Like
the upper chambers at Koruntil, this is probably a funeral vault.
A badly cut inscription in Arabic and barbarous Greek, over the more
modern part of the door, commemorates a restoration by a certain
Ibrahim and his brothers.
The examination of the very complicated system of aqueducts
which are connected with the old irrigation of the plain, formed one
of oui- principal investigations. I have had a separate plan made of
them, and will endeavour to explain their arrangement. There are in
all six springs from which the channels are fed, and twelve aqueducts.
The springs are 'Ain el A^vjeh, 'Ain Nuwaymeh, 'Ain Duk, 'Ain Kelt,
'Ain Farah, and 'Ain el Sultan. From the first of these, situate about
eight miles north of Er Pdha, a cemented channel follows the course of the
AVady el Awjeh on the south side. On gaining the plain it crosses the
valley, and runs away north, having no less than five branches running
about a mile from it at right angles, at intervals of a quarter to half a
mile apart. There is no doubt that this is simply intended for irriga-
tion. One branch leads to a mill. A second and far more important
branch leaves the first aqueduct at about one and a half miles from its
source. It winds away south in a very devious course for three and a
half miles, when it reaches the two springs of 'Ain Duk and 'Aiu
Nuwaymeh, situate only a few yards apart. It crosses the valley on a
curious bridge of many arches, all pointed, and apparently late or
modern in date. From this point the aqueduct inclines eastward and
follows a course equally undulating for upwards of four direct miles.
LIEUT. CLAUDE K. CONDEr's REPORTS. 43
passing through various cisterns by Kh. el Mifjar, and over another
bridge -with pointed arches, having a well cut cross on the" haunch of
one of the arches. A shorter aqueduct from 'Ain el Sultan, joins this at
Khirbet el Mifjar, and has pipes for the water channel instead of the
cemented channel of the other. This devious course terminates at length
at a birket called Heydar, a cemented cistern, the total length from
'Ain el Awjeh to this point being over eight miles.
We next turn to the aqueduct from 'Ain Duk, which is there joined
to the last. It feeds the Tawahiu el Sukkar, or Crusading Sugar Mills,
and crossing Wady Kelt by a bridge now broken, terminates in the
same ruins, including a birket not far east of Birket Musa. A fourth
aqueduct branches from No. 2 (the long one) just before the latter
reaches 'Ain Bixk, and runs east to the plain. I feel but little hesitation
in attributing these aqueducts, with their branches, to Crusading times,
with probable subsequent restoration by Moslem workmen.
We have next to consider no less than five aqueducts which follow the
course of Wady Kelt, three from 'Ain Kelt and two from 'Ain Farah.
A single channel runs from the former spring, crossing the tributary
wadies by small bridges, and showing a cemented channel. Within a
quarter of a mile east of Dayr el Kelt, it reaches a fine bridge placed at
right angles to its course. This structui-e, now broken, reaches a height
of over 60ft. above the bottom of the ravine. But the aqueduct is at a
level nearly 100ft. higher, and is boldly brought down a slide of about
half over the face of the rock, and enters the channel of the bridge on
a cui-ve. At the first, or north buttress, there seems to have been a
shaft, and part of the water descends to a still lower level, and follows
the north side of the wady, passing beneath the convent. The re-
mainder crosses by the bridge, which again turns sharply at right
angles, and another shaft allows part of the current to descend some
30ft., separating into two aqueducts at different levels. Thus from this
remarkable bridge we have no less than three channels to follow, with-
out counting the branch which passes above Dayr el Kelt at the original
level of the single channel, and thus supplies the convent with water.
The fact that the water has descended the great shoot, is shown by the
sedimentary deposits found upon it. The sharp turns were no doubt
intended to break the force of the fall, but must have severely strained
the bridge by the unequal pressure so produced. The good masonry,
round arches, and cement filled with wood ashes, which are remarkable
in its structure, seem to point to its having been an early Christian
work. I need scarcely say that we carefully measured and examined it
throughout.
To follow the northern aqueduct— it continues to the bottom of the
pass, and then turning north, terminates near the Sugar Mills. It has a
cemented channel in which pipes are laid.
The two southern courses fiow parallel to the mouth of the pass,
where the lower terminates in a birket, and the upper disappears. They
are structural throughout, and opposite Dayr el Kelt there is a fine wall
44 LIEUT. CLAUDE K. COXDER's REPORTS.
of well-cut masonry, on the top of which the upper aqixccluct runs,
whilst a channel for the lower exists in its thickness below, the wall
being built up against the cliff, which was too precipitous to afford a
channel.
The date of the next two aqueducts is possibly earlier. Side by side
they run from 'Ain Farah, following the south side of "Wady Kelt
considerably above the last pair. At one point they cross and recross,
and in many places they are tunnelled. One of the bridges, a solid and
massive structure, placed to carry the high level, at a point where the
low level, by a bend, is able to cross' without, is remarkable for its
rubble masonry pointed with dressed ashlar, for its rough but pointed
arches, and for a vault or cistern probably of Crusading date. A second
vault, known as Bayt Jubr el Fokani exists lower down, and here the
aqueducts disappear. They run seemingly in tunnels to Bayt Jubr el
Tahtcini, a small fort commanding the opening of the pass, and of
Crusading date. Here the upper channel descends by a rapid shoot, and
filling the birket immediately south of the fort, runs on to the great
Birket Musa, which no doubt it was mainly intended to supply. The
course of the lower channel, which is cemented without pipes, is not
so easily made out, and it seems more than probable that the two
unite at the tunnel and form one stream.
Only three more aqueducts remain to trace, which are fed by the 'Ain
cl Sultan. No. 10 crossing Wady Kelt by a bridge still perfect, with
pointed arches (evidently a restoration), is traceable into the neighbour-
hood of Tell Moghyfir, which it was doubtless intended to supply. Here
it is lost, and careful search makes me feel certain that it went no
farther south. No 11 is a fragment also in the neighbourhood of Tell
Moghyfir, seeming from its direction to have branched out of No. 12,
the great aqueduct from 'Ain el Sultan to Kasr el Yahud (a distance of
six miles).
I have not been able to find any traces of cultivation farther south
than Tell Moghyfir, or any aqueduct to Kasr el Hajlah, which must
have depended for its water-supply on the great rain-water cistern, and
on the neighbouring spring of 'Ain Hajlah.
Xatuial Our best thanks are due to Mr. W. K. Green, the British repre-
Uistoiy sentative at Damascus, for his kindness in the instruction of
Corporal Armstrong and of myself in the art of bird-stuffing. We
now find the full advantage of the acquisition on entering a region
interesting as is the Jordan Valley. In a little over two months the
collection has mounted up to nearly one hundred specimens. The
large majority have been shot and stuffed by Corporal Armstrong, who
is an enthusiastic collector. Occasionally I have been able to lend a
hand when the number of birds was too great, or other work less
pressing. Among the best specimens are the kingfishers, especially the
gorgeous Smyrnian species in blue, chocolate, and white. Tristram's
Gracklo and the Passer Moabiticus, we have also obtained, with eaglo
owls and the famous sunbirds of Jericho. Bulbuls, the hopping thrush,
doves, partridges, and many species of wader, desert, and Persian larks,
LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDEr's REPORTS. 45
with, a few sea birds obtained in our journey down the coast, may bo
added. The collection promises to be a good 'one, and will interest
equally the naturalist and the biblical student.
"We are now in the midst of that region in which the whole Geology,
interest of Syrian geology centres. Having studied carefully the
geology of the watershed and west plains, I am now endeavouring to
connect these obsei'vations with others which shall point out the timo
geologically of the depression of the Jordan Vallej'. To write decisively
would be i)remature ; but the consistency of the old and new observa-
tions is instructive and encouraging.
The following succession of strata is observable throughout Pales-
tine : —
Tertiaiy. <
Niunmulitic and Oolitic limestones of the Lower Eocene
period, as at Nablus.
I 2. Soft chalk with large tlints, as in Galilee.
Cretaceous. ■! 3. White marl with flint bands, as at Nablus.
( i. Hard white basebed with flints and fossils, as at Carmel.
. (5. Compact limestone, Avith a few flints and fossils, as at
( Jerusalem. Dolomitic beds.
An unconformity is distinctly traceable between the two last groups in
many sections. The Nubian grit underlies the dolomite, but does not
appear in Palestine.
The numerous observations of dip and strike, with the levels and
sections which I have collected, will, I feel sure, lead to a very definite
theory on the formation of the Dead Sea and Jordan Valley ; but it
would be hasty and unwise to publish these notes before they are com-
jilete. That a great lake or sea of still water existed in the neighbour-
hood of the Dead Sea, but at a much higher level, I hope to make out
clearly. At present at least three distinct levels are traceable :
1. The level of the Ghor, or mud valley, through which the Jordan
runs.
2. The level of the plain of Jericho, consisting of soft white semi-
consolidated waves, with salt and sulphur, evidently deposited in still
water, with the excei^tion of the later formations in the valley beds.
3. The level of the coloured marls of Nebi Musa, which are uncon-
formable with the more ancient white cretaceous marls. The basiu
between Koruntil and Konaytra, formed by the dip of the older strata,
is filled up with these deposits, and corresponds to a similar basin on
the east of Jordan. The lake at this period would therefore have
stretched to the feet of the main chain.
The Talmudical writers speak of a "long journey," and define it as ^^^''y^li-
being as far as from Jerusalem to Modiu, or beyond.
Maimonides explains this as meaning fifteen miles. This is just the
distance from El Mcdyeh to Jerusalem, and the Eoman mile, if that is
intended, only differs slightly from the English.
Barada.
4(3 LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDER S REPORTS.
XIX.
Excursions from Bludan.
Jerusalem, Jan. 7, 1874.
The exceptionally stormy year wliicli (now that Ave have recovered
from the severe attack of fever) still keeps us within doors at Jeru-
salem, leaves me time to fulfil the wishes of the Committee in for-
warding a short account of some excursions made during our stay at
Bluda-n.
Sflk AVady The first of these was a visit to Suk Wady Barada, a site of consider-
able interest, being, as it is with great reason supposed, that of the
capital of Abilene, mentioned by St. Luke (iii. 1) as the tetrarchate of
Lysanias, son of Ptolemy and grandson of Menna3as king of Chalcis,
about B.C. 60. The tablet, twice repeated beside the Roman road,
records its reconstruction by the Emperors Marcus Aurelius and
Lucius Yerus, at the expense of the inhabitants of Abilene. The
name Abila, applicable to the capital itself, is supposed to linger in the
Kabr Abil, or tomb of Abel, a huge sunken birket 30ft. in length on the
heights above.
Suk Wady Barada is one of the most picturesque sites in this part of
Syria. Travelling from Damascus along a desolate expanse of flat
stony soil known as El Sahrah, we came suddenly to the feet of the
precipitous chain of the Antilebanon, and entered a fine gorge over-
hung with craggy cliffs. Deep down in this the Barada (ancient
Arbana) has worn its bed hidden by the thick growth of tall poplars
and flowering shrubs, through which the refreshing sound of its
brawling water strikes the ear. The steep high banks are formed of a
sort of conglomerate, with a soft white matrix, in which the prints of
leaves, branches, and twigs brought down and embedded by the river
action, are most delicately preserved. The great depth of this forma-
tion, evidently marking the gradual deepening of the gorge by the
powerful action of the rapid stream, together with the indications of
date given by the species of the leaves, would enable a geologist to
measure approximately the rate at which the water bores downwards.
The modern village, watered also by streams which run from the hill-
sides, lies low down among the poplars. The extensive use of wood in
its construction, its flat mud roofs projecting over verandahs which
surround the houses, give an almost Sv/iss appearance to the hamlet,
contrasting forcibly with the bald, comfortless appearance of the
villages of Palestine set among the stony mountains, treeless and
unwatered.
On the north side of the river, below the precipices, lies the necropolis
of the ancient town. Higher up, the stream turns sharply round in
the very narrowest part of the gorge, and falling by a succession of
small cascades, each with a deep pool beneath, it passes under a
modern single arcli. Above this point the course is still between
LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDEll's REPORTS. 47
poplar beds, but the gorge opens until tbe long plain of Zebedany is
reached, where at the foot of a craggy ridge the Barada springs up full-
grown in a blue pool surrounded with rushes and extending to an
unknown de^Dth.
Suk Wady Barada is a well-known site, and the history of its cap-
ture by the Sai-acens in 634 a.d., during the annual fair, is supposed to
be the origin of the modern name, " The fair of Wady Barada."
I am not, however, aware that the ruins have ever been systemati-
cally studied, although several inscriptions have been obtained from
them. We executed a sketch survey of the site, and took plans of over
a dozen tombs, examining about twenty. They are of great interest as
forming a clue to the date of other tombs of similar construction, and
thus giving a basis in the comparison of the great number of specimens
we have already collected. The inscriptions which we obtained not
already known have been communicated by Mr. Wright to the Fund ;
they are all in Greek, and without exception tombstones. One found
in place consists of four tablets over a sunken tomb; three are inscribed,
biit much defaced. The name Archelaus as a patronymic occurs in
two : a column fallen into the stream beneath is inscribed at the top
and near the base, the latter giving o Aovxios vios ee-^Key. The remainder,
numbering six in all, some very well preserved, were lying loose in
various places near the town.
The Roman road with its tablets, the aqueduct beneath, part rock-
cut, part built with large slabs against the cliffs, the fa(;ades with pedi-
ments and figures much defaced, are too well known to require descrip-
tion. We noticed a great number of fine stones in the village itself,
and the remains apparently of a temple, now transformed into a school;
it seemed doubtful, however, how much of the material was in situ and
not taken from another site. North of the road, and east of the village,
a wall with fragments of cornice and pillars indicates the position of
another classical building.
Descending the stream still farther, and crossing by a most
picturesque bridge, we reach the place of another small temple, the
best preserved ruin in the neighbourhood. The eastern and southern
walls are easily traceable, and the spot might repay excavation. I took
measurements of the pillars and cornices which appear fallen in con-
fusion. They are bold and massive in character and formed of large
blocks. There are several mounds in the vicinity which no doubt
mark the sites of other buildings, giving the idea that in Roman
times the mouth of the gorge was occupied by a lai-ge and important
town.
Our second expedition was to Baalbek, where we remained a day,
returning on the third. The object of this was to enable me to send in
a report on the present precarious condition of the ruins, which has
already appeared in print. The discovery which we made, but which
requires further examination, of a pillar-shaft built into the founda-
tions exactly beneath the famous trilithon, cannot fail to be considered
of the very greatest importance.
48 LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDER S REPORTS.
Circumstances considerably delayed oui- projected visit to Hermon,
and it was not till after a shower or two bad fallen tbat tbe atmospbere
became sufficiently clear to allow of our attempting an expedition
intended for tbe observation of very long distances. At lengtb, bow-
over, we started ; Mr. Green, Her Britannic Majesty's representative at
Damascus, came with us, and Mr. Wrigbt, accompanied by Corporal
Armstrong, was to join us at Paibbleb. Tbe first day we slept at
Easbayab, an important town tbree hours north of tbe summit ; the
second we passed on the top itself; the third at Kala'at el Jindel ; and
on tbe nth September we returned by the eastern slopes and through
the croro-e of tbe Barada to Bludan, a march of nine hours for the horses
and fourteen for the mules, including tbe stoppages.
We passed, in the first instance, by tbe fine ruin of Dayr el Ash'ayir,
which has been visited and described by Captain Warren. The walls
are standing to the height of tbe capitals, which ai-e Ionic, with a Greek
fret beneath tbe volutes. There are vaults in tbe stylobate which are
at present inhabited. Anxious, however, to reach Rukhleh at the
appointed time, we did not even dismount at this place.
The road ascends a steep narrow wady winding between huge
boulders of rock. We here missed our proper path and entirely lost
Corporal Brophy, who subsequently met tbe natives sent to look for
him. Some charcoal-burners brought us back to a little plain fi'om
which a steep track leads to one of tbe ridges. Here we found
another great valley running eastwards, with tbe village on its southern
slopes, whilst beyond towered the steep sides of Hermon with the knife-
like ridge which culminates in tbe principal summit.
Eukbleh also has been visited by Captain Warren, and I only add
such notes as are supplemental to his. There are four principal build-
ings. The upper eastern temple, the upper western temple, the lower
northern temple, and a building called El Burg north of the last upon
a high point of rock. Of these bis notes are principally confined to
the second. (See Quarterly, January, 1870.)
There are several Greek inscriptions lying in tbe indistinguishable
ruins of tbe higher eastern temple. Of these we copied two, one on a
pillar, of which a copy has already appeared [Quarttrhj, March, 1870).
The transcription, however, resulting from the joint efforts of Mr.
Green, Mr. Wright, and myself, is more perfect, although it is ex-
tremely difficult to see tbe letters under tbe ordinary light. A sort of
cartouche surrounds the central portion of the inscription, which seems
nevertheless to read straight across. It is most interesting as re-
ferring to a cex-tain Epiarch of Abila, whose name might perhaps be
made out by a copy taken at night with a lamp; it refers to the
guardians of the temple, and a certain Bernicc, as having done some-
tbing (probably in restoration or adornment of tbe temple) at their
own expense ; it also contains a date.
The second inscription, on a large stone, was more rapidly copied,
and would repay the trouble of a squeeze. It commences, 6ias
LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDER's REPORTS. 40
Ae(u)reo0eaco, and the words avTois apyvpta avaXtocravt — xnrep Trjs Ovpas are
distinctly legible in one part. There are in all ciglit lines, the longest
containing twenty-two letters : the Upora^itai, or guardians of the temple,
are again mentioned in it, I am not aware that it has been previously
made public.
The second building is farther west, about the same height, but
hidden between houses which are on the level of the vaults in the
stylobate. The roof of a house covers up the eastern end, but there is
no doubt that this was a temple also. Its extreme width is 24ft. 3in.,
and the height of the stylobate, a fine piece of Avork, the profile of
which I have carefully measured, is 5ft. 7in. It consists of very large
blocks of stone. The building is divided by a cross wall at a distance
of 22ft. from its east end, and the door of this was surmounted by a
massive lintel of bold mouldings, which I also measured. The most
curious point in the structure is the existence of an apse at the western
end having a good hemispherical dome of small well-cut masonry.
There is no special sign of this being a late addition, as although the
ashlar is smaller (which is commonly the case in Eoman buildings in
Palestine), the stone seems to be of the same character.
This building is locally called Kala'at el Melek, or the King's Castle.
An inscription on a tablet upon a small pillar is here built vertically
into a wall, so that only half is visible. It was copied by Captain
"Warren, but we add a few letters to his. It is well preserved, and
should be taken out, when the whole would be legible.
The third building is the famous temple with the head of Baal in its
wall. This has been described many times, and especially by Captain
"WaiTcn. Its dimensions are 56ft. from north to south, and 82ft. to the
line of the apse, interior measurements. The bearing we made to be
120 degrees, but Captain Warren 127 degrees. It has been said that
the apse at the eastern end has been added at a later period, but I
should feel inclined to go even farther, and consider that hardly a
stone in the building is in situ,, and that from the present dimensions
we cannot judge without excavation of those of the temple. The
courses of the south wall, of which I took a careful sketch, are ex-
tremely irregiilar ; a portion of a cornice is built in at the east end, then
comes the slab 5ft. by 6ft., the height of two courses, on which is the
head of Baal, of fine classic outline, but much defaced. It is sur-
rounded with a border of honeysuckle pattern. Next to this two
courses — the upper 3ft. 2in. in height, the lower 1ft, lOin., the upper of
two blocks 5ft. lin. and 6ft. lin., the lower of six stones in the same
length. A stone 4ft. long follows in the itpper course, and then a suc-
cession of much smaller masonry in five courses, reaching to the fine
sculpture of an eagle, which resembles the Eoman eagle on the soffit
of the great lintel at Baalbek,
In the western wall the courses vary also considerably ; the jambs of
the door seem very probably to have been pieces of a cornice. In the
north-west corner a bit of cornice is built in horizontally, at the height
E
50 LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDER's REPORTS.
of the lintel of tlie door. The ground here, either from the natural
slope or from the accumulation of rubbish, reaches up to this frag-
ment.
The northern wall is almost entirely of small stones. The apse
courses differ considerably in height, and on the outside various niches
are built into the wall in a most irregular fashion. Thus no wall of
the building can be pointed out as probably remaining intact from the
earlier times. The church was divided into a nave and two aisles, the
latter being 16ft. wide. There were two rows of five columns each, the
two attached to the corners of the apse being probably a trifle larger ;
the average diameter is 3ft. and the height 22ft. 6in., including base
and capital. The latter are of Ionic order. Of all these details I have
carefully measured sketches. There appear also to have been two
rows of pilasters attached to the outer walls, also of Ionic character,
and having a fret similar to that at Dayr el Ash'ayer below the volute.
Above these, both inside and out, was a coi-nice, and a plain architrave
connected the columns. Of the roof, however, there are no indica-
tions. The door in the west wall was not central, but communicated
with the southern aisle. There was also a smaller door on the north,
but whether any on the south appears to be extremely problematical.
Between this ruin and the former there are many fragments of cor-
nices, pillars, and niches, a large bii'ket now dry, and a deep funnel-
shaped well with a flight of steps. Just opposite the modern Druse
village are ruins of houses which we did not examine. There are two
illegible inscriptions in Greek, one on the east wall, the other towards
the south-west corner, inside the church. South of the village is a
regular cemetery of rock-sunk tombs, and a cave with two compart-
ments containing loculi parallel to the sides.
There only remains one building to describe in Eukhleh, and this is
called El Burj — the tower. It is on a high knoll north of the church,
and presents a platform of rock about 10ft. high and 12 by 15 paces
area. A building on a low stylobate, with large well-cut stones, show-
ing no traces of mortar or of drafting, stood on the platform. On
the east is a lower building, six paces broad, which seems to have con-
tained rough columns supporting the roof.
There can be no doubt that this village was once an important town.
The occurrence of the name of Abila in two of its inscriptions is
curious. It would well repay further investigation and excavation
when visited by our American colleagues.
Leaving Eukhleh late in the afternoon, we pursued a path more
rocky, it seemed to me, than any I had as yet seen in Syria ; after
passing a narrow ridge we began descending a long, narrow valley, at
the end of which the Druse village of Kefr Kuk stood above broad
slopes of vineyards, brUliant apple-green in colour, and lighted by the
setting sun. Below, on our right, was the curious plain which in
winter becomes a lake. Some few days after heavy rain a roaring
noise is heard beneath the ground, and a stream issues from a cavern.
LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDER's REPORTS. 51
quickly submerging the wliole extent of flat ground lying between steep
mountain ridges.
After sunset we reached Ailia, where the remains of a temple are
visible, but as darkness came on we did not stop, but hurried on to tho
great town of Rashaya, placed on two low hills facing one another,
and filling the low ground between them. Here the kaimakam, on a
prancing steed, hurried out to welcome the English consul's party.
The infantry of the garrison, four soldiers and a sergeant, advanced in
Indian file, turned into line, and presented arms. The irregular
cavalry rode madly about over one another, and finally one of their
number fell over his horse's head. At last all our calvacade was jammed
in a narrow street, where the horses of the English party began to
kick out, and the kaimakam, having thus fulfilled his duty, speedily
retired.
Next morning a great deputation waited on Mr. Green. The kai-
makam, the Druse shaykh, the chief Greek priest, and the Protestant
schoolmaster, came amicably together, surrounded by their admirers
and followers. This audience having been brought to a close and re-
turn visits paid, we commenced the ascent of the mountain, a long,
steep slope of small loose shingle most fatiguing to the horses.
Our camp was pitched in a sheltered hollow, but we experienced a Ascent of
difficulty rarely felt, of the want of water. Not a vestige of snow was
to be found on any part of the mountain, and we were obliged to send
the animals down again to the 'Ain Jeruiyeh, a spring one and a-half
hours from the summit on the western slope. We were engaged till
after sunset in taking observations, and after dai'k we fired the
surrounding patches of a prickly shrub, which burns for a very con-
siderable time, thus announcing our safe arrival to the ladies atBludan,
whose return watchfire we, however, unfortunately missed seeing. The
night was extremely cold, in spite of our wraps. The non-commissioned
officers remained up all night, taking observations for latitude. In the
morning we rose before sunrise, and the day being fairly clear we
obtained some good observations, especially a line to Carmel, which has
thus been observed both ways. Safet, Tiberias, and many of the ruins
in the northern district of our Survey, kindly picked out for us by Mr.
Wright, were well seen. We took a few shots into Lieut. Steever's
country, and angles to all the vUlages visible on the slopes of the
mountain. There is a district on the south and south-east of the
summit which has, I believe, never been explored, and which cannot fail
to contain many ruins of interest.
!My next care was to obtain a careful survey of the summit of Hermon,
and a plan of the temple, intended to supplement that of Captain
Warren. The top of the mountain may be described as consisting of
three peaks, of which two are approximately noi'th and south, and of
almost equal height, being joined by a flat plateau depressed in the
middle. The third peak to the west is considerably lower, and divided
by a valley -head from the former.
52 LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDEr's REPORTS.
The name of this thii'd peak is El Miitabkliiyat, -wliicli means, I am-
informed, the " place of cooking." The plateau is called El Dar, the
northern peak Kawasr el Dar. The southern is that on which the
temple is built, for which our informant (an old goatherd, who bad lived
many years on the mountain) gave the name of Kasr el Shabib. The
name Kasr el Antar is incorrect, referring to another building. He
denied that the name Kasr !Nimrud, given: by Captain Burton, was-
correct; and I am inclined to believe it is applicable rather to the
building at Kalaat el Jindel, which I shall describe later. The building
itself is a small temple on the southern side of a block of rock which
is surrounded by an oval of well-dressed stones. On the top of the
block is a rectangular sunken trench or birket, and close to it a round
shaft, not deep, unless it is filled up, and supposed, as Mr. Wright
informed me, to have been the flue of an altar. The surrounding wall
seems to me never to have been more than a dwarf wall. A great
quantity of ashes is still observable on the west, without its boundary.
There does not appear to me ever to have been any outer enclosure.
There is, however, south of the temple, a retfiining wall of rough stones,
evidently intended to bank up the earth at the head of a small valley
■which starts on this side. The stones of the temple wall are drafted,
and one measured 4ft. 4in. by 2ft. by 2ft. 8in., with a face smooth-
dressed and a draft ^in. deep, tiin. wide one side of the stone, 3^in. on
the other. A fragment of a very simple cornice we also measured. A
Greek inscription is said to be still lying on the spot, but we searched
for it in vain.
The cave upon the plateau I also entered and measured ; it is rough
in shape, 15ft. Gin. by 24ft. 6in. in dimensions ; the roof is partly
supported by a rough rock-cut pillar. The height varies from 7ft. to 8ft.
It faces very nearly east. A rock-cut stair of three steps leads down
to it, and a small lintel was^thrown across this outer entrance. Above
the cave the rock is cut down, leaving a rectangular flat space 26ft. by
33ft. I have no doubt that there was a building over the cave at some
period.
These notes are all that we are able to give in addition to the full
account of Captain Warren, and supplementing the careful survey of
the summit and plan of the Kasr el Shabib which we executed.
The chief interest which Heimon possesses for the Biblical student
is as the traditional site of the Transfiguration of Christ. The narrative
relates (Mark ix.) that being;, then at Ca^sarea Philippi our Lord took
his three disciples '"into a high mountain apart." That reference is
thus made to some part of Hermon there can be no doubt. It is a
curious observation that on the summit of Hermon the) e is often a
sudden accumulation of cloud, as quickly again Idisjjersed, often visible
when the remainder of the atmosphere is perfectly clear. I have myself
noticed this on more than one occasion, and we had some fear that
during ovv stay on the summit our view would be thus suddenly cut
LIEUT. CLAUDE K. CONDER's REPORTS. 53
■off. We cannot fail to be reminded in tliis phenomenon of " the cloud
that overshadowed " the apostles.
A short day was necessitated both by the time taken in observations
and by the falrigued condition of the baggage animals. We therefore
fixed upon Kalaat el Jindel, a Druse village on the east of the summit,
iis our camping-ground.
This point was not visited by Captain Warren. The name is applied
to the village itself, and the castle is said to be the resting-place of one
of the sons of Nimrod, if not of the hunter himself; for which reason
no dew ever falls in Kalaat el Jindel. The two are separated by Van-
develde, who shows the Kalaat on the wrong side of the wady.
The building is a curious one, and its origin may be very ancient,
though I am inclined to look upon it as mediajval. It is a rectangular
fort commanding a narrow gorge, and almost entirely cut in the rock,
facing 190 degrees in the direction of its length. It is divided into
two compartments, the western of which contains a Mohammedan kibleh
niche, and another recess with jambs and lintels moulded, on the west
Avail ; whilst on the north is a loophole of mediaeval character, and a
broad rock-cut window exists on the south. The eastern chamber had
structural walls on all sides but the south, where a step oft. or 4ft. high
leads to an open window. Through this we gain a passage on the same
levqj, running parallel to the two chambers, and looking down a steep
scarp into the valley below. Both the chambers have been cemented
at some time or other; the masonry is of large proportions. A cave,
which is not easily accessible through a small window in the east face,
exists below the building, in the scarp. Close to it on the west is a
tomb resembling somewhat those at Suk Wady Barada. If this were
originally a temple, it is the only known instance on Hermon of a
temple facing west.
From Kalaat el Jindel I accompanied Mr. Wright on a visit to
Burkush, which was the last site we investigated. It was situate one
and a-half hours' ride north of our camp, to which we returned. The
following day we were too much occupied to allow of our stopping, nor
did we pass any very remarkable ruins.
The ruins at Burkush are the finest which we examined, but they have
been very fully described by Captain Warrea. I, however, took the plan
as carefully as time allowed.
On approaching the spot, one sees a strong, well-built platform wall Bm-kush,
from which a row of cantilevers for supporting arches project. On the
platform are foundations of a large Byzantine building, and small
hovels of the modern Druse village are built against the eastern wall.
At a distance north of this of 175 feet are the remains of another
huilding, with a tumbled mass of masonry belonging to the upper
courses.
The plan of the substructures I take to have included two great vaults
running the entire length and breadth (130 feet and 160 feet) of the
building, with a roofing of flat slabs upon arches at intervals of 3 feet
54 LIEUT. CLAUDE R. COXDER'S REPORTS.
6 inches. Tlie southern of these vaults is now broken down ; the western
I could see still exists, though it is not attainable, and much choked
with rubbish. On the north the ground attains the height of the plat-
form, and is in places cut away. On the east there are smaller vaults
and chambers. There is also another paii* of vaults with simple bai*rel
roofs on the west ; of all these I have obtained a perfect plan, with their
relative positions. From the great south vault, which is 19 feet broad,
we enter into some small chambers and a passage placed in the south-
west angle of the platform. There are two very small cells, one of
which I should take for an oratory, having a niche for holy water or
something of similar character in the northern wall. The other is a
chamber for washing, or latrine. Another flight of steps here leads to
further ranges of vaults beneath, but having no candle we could not
examine them in the time at our disposal.
Over the doors of several of these chambers and on the interior walls
the following signs are cut severally.
+ 10 A T L M
The second occurs frequently, the rest I was inclined to look on as num-
bers to the various cells. Several crosses are cut carefully on stones of
the outer wall, but probably late.
A very simple cornice runs along the south wall ; its moulding is the
Cyma recta.
The building above must have consisted of three walks, the central
one 36 feet broad. The rich and fantastic moulding of the capitals,
many of which I measured and copied, show it to have been a very
magnificent building. The magnetic bearing in the direction of its
breadth was 124 deg. Of this also I found time for a plan. The masoniy
is very large, twelve courses giving 40 feet height at the south-east
corner of the platform.
I was at the time inclined to consider the building as of one date, but
Captain Warren's discovery of an Ionic capital in the ruins militates
against this, and there is no doubt that the apse of the second structure
is built on. Of this structure I made a careful plan, and sketches of
the two small attached columns on stools flanking the doorway. The
masonry is very large and well-cut except in the apse, and no drafting
appears in any of the stones.
There are a great number of ruins round this central basilica, show-
ing the remains of a large town ; and a building halfway down the hill»
whose foundations only remain, seems to have been a church. At the
foot of the hill is a huge sarcophagus, with a bust in basso-relievo, and
on a stone close by is an illegible Greek inscription.
There are considerable traces of ancient cultivation on Ilermon. In
the deserted plain on the east, in the rocky fastnesses at Rukhleh and
its neighbourhood, old stone terraces and vineyard watch-towers
are scattered. At the present day the long slopes of vineyard, especi-
ally remarkable at Kefr Kiik, Rashayah, and Burkush, with the scanty
patches of baiiey, are all that remain.
LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDEli S REPORTS,
55
In conclusion to this report I will note that the fine temples at 'Ain " ^^^ ^'J'-
Fiji, near Suk Wady Barada, have just escaped a great danger. They
owe their preservation to Mr. Wright, who passed them when the
Wali of Syria was engaged in their destruction. The arch from which
the stream flows beneath the temple was stopped up, and the ingenuity
of Syrians could suggest no other method of clearing it out than
blowing up the building itself. The expostulations addressed by Mr.
Wright to the Wall stopped these proceedings for a time, and I at
once sent Corporal Armstrong to make a plan of the ruins. The
workmen were by that time withdrawn, and the buildings have, I hope,
escaped destruction.
XX.
Jerusalem, Jan. 30, 1874.
Gezer, MoDiN, Gibeah, anb Ai.
I am at length able to report that a full sheet of the map, probably Survey.
the most difficult and interesting of all, has been completely filled
in. The Jerusalem sheet contains over 1,400 names, and the number of
ruins planned and drawn is very large. We worked in the Ghor till the
commencement of the heavy rains, and have — round Jerusalem and from
a flying camp at Dayr Diwan — filled in on the few fine days such portions
as could not be reached from other stations. During excursions which I
have made when weather allowed, I have visited every important site
within twenty miles of the city, and have increased the number of special
surveys to sixty-three, including seven churches not to be found in M.
Du Vogue's " Churches of Palestine," and among the later additions the
survey of Tell Gezer, the plan of the tombs of the Maccabees, the gi-eat
church at Ramleh, &c.
Of late, however, the whole country has become unfit for outdoor
work, and we are engaged in getting our materials into order, a work
which will occupy us all our time until the Jordan valley shall have
become fit for camping, when I hope to return to it for survey.
The two principal excursions have been that to Eamleh, undertaken
by myself and Mr. Drake, and that to Dayr Diwan, where Sergeant
Black accompanied me. We camped for two days at this place, and filled
in about twenty-five square miles during very bad weather and a violent
hailstorm. I propose to give a short account of each of these journeys.
Leaving Jerusalem on 17th, about 8 a.m., we proceeded by Kolonia,
where I noticed the building with drafted stones. There are many vaults
and foundations round it, and I think it probably is the site of one of
the Crusading conventual edifices, in which the masonry of an older
date is constantly used up again.
At Khirbet Ikbala, near Abu Ghosh, we examined a very prominent
ruin. It proved to be a convent, probably, from its style, of the same
date as the neighbouring church. Numerous masons' marks are found
66 LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDER's REPORTS.
on the walls, but the chapel has Tbeen ruined, and was not traceable.
A strong stream, dropping over the rock ledges in little cataracts, runs
by it. Even in summer there is a good water-supply, and a grove of
siudian trees may be the remains of the old convent garden.
At Latrun are the confused and scattered ruins of another Christian
site. The rain, however, obliged us to keep straight on for Eamleh, leav-
ing this and Tell Gezer till later.
Starting on the following morning for the latter site, we crossed the
swampy plain, and reached Abu Shusheh at nine in the morning. There
is no doubt that in itself, apart from the strong argument in its favour,
the site is most striking and remarkable.
Situate on a swell of the low hills, its tombhouse is visible in every
direction from a distance, and forms a conspicuous object from the
Jerusalem road. We have on the Tell a fine site for a city. Though not
remarkable in a military point of view, it commands the pass to a certain
■extent. The fine spring of 'Ain Yerdi, on the east, would supply an
■unlimited amount of water, and the rich coruland in the vicinity stretches
•down to the sand dunes on the coast. The view is very fine. The plain
of Sharon lies spread out like a map, the fantastic minarets of Eamleh
and the white columns at Lydda set in its dark olive groves ; the
emerald plain lapping the feet of the dark Judean range, which were
then covered with heavy wreaths of cloud ; beyond all, the blue sea,
shining as it always does under the winter sun. The Tell is long and
irregular in shape, and on its sides are terraces, which prove supported
by long walls of great unhewn blocks. Near the eastern end is a square
raised i:)latform of earth, about 200 feet side, also containing similar
blocks. This is no doubt the foot of Gezer; I was not, however, able
to find the foundations mentioned by M. Ganneau, although there are
many ancient quarries, while rough tombs and oil-presses exist below
the Tell on the north and north-west. The ground is everywhere strewn
with small fragments of pottery and of glass. The curious idol found
by M. Bergheim, as well as a number of worked flints, have been
already mentioned. The house he is building, and the kubbet, with
its graveyard, are the most conspicuous objects on the sjiot.
Ramleh. The afternoon we devoted to the two principal buildiugs in Ramleh,
the church and the white mosque.
The church is supposed to be of the 12 th century. In the 10th two
churches existed, which were destroyed and rebuilt. The only other
notice I have been able to find is that by Sir John Maundevillo, who in
1322 speaks of " a fair Church of our Lady," '' besideEamla," "whereour
Lord appeared to our lady in the likeness that botokcneth tho Trinity."
M. du Vogiie in 1800 could not enter it, but the fanaticism of the
Moslems is less marked nowadays, and our survey cost only 5s. as
" backsheesh."
The building, which I have been, as I believe, the first to plan, consists
of a nave and two aisles, with the principal and side apses, and with
seven bays of clustered columns. Tho nave is built with a clerestory,
LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDEll's KEPORTS. 57
the greatest height being about 40ft., the length 150ft., and the breadth
*io£t. It is the finest and best preserved church I have seen in Palestine.
The spaces between the piers are irregular, varj'ing from 12ft. to 14ft.
This is not uncommon in Crusading work, and I believe the inaccuracy
of many plans arises from only taking a single measurement, supposing
the buildiug to be symmetrical. I am, however, careful to take every
measurement, as such variations are curious and interesting. The thick
coat of plaster which the Moslems have added, as the ordinary embellish-
ment of a mosque interior, has covered the delicate tracery of many
capitals, and makes the finding of masons' marks impossible.
The Jam'ia el Abiad, or White Mosque, at the opposite extremity of the
town, is as fine a specimen of Saracenic architecture. It has been known
under the erroneous titles of " Church of the Templars," and " Cistern
of St. Helena;" and its tower, as that of the "Forty Martyrs" (an
important point in our triangulation). Robinson has, however, pointed
out that there is no reason for supposing it other than a Moslem con-
struction, and the date, 1318, on the great tower, is not improbably of its
building. Christian masons' marks do, indeed, appear .on some of the stops
of its staircase and on a window,' but these stones no doubt belonged to
the 10th century churches, and the style of the building seems Saracenic
in its details. The massive walls, strong core, and well-finished pilasters
and windows, make it one of the most beautiful and best built of the
edifices of the country. Shaken often by earthquake, it still stands
almost uninjured, and affords a striking view from Xalkilia on the north,
down almost to the limits of Palestine on the south. The name Arb'ain
Maghazi (Forty Champions), is applied to one of the three extensive
vaulted colonnades beneath the mosque court, to which a pilgrimage is
made once a year, and which is filled with the little piles of stones
tised to mark all such sites throughout Palestine, notably at El Mesharif
and other points from which Jerusalem is first visible.
The double colonnade of the mosque itself, fast falling into confused
ruins, is on the plan of the Damascus and other ancient mosques. I
took a plan of the whole enclosure, as of architectural interest from the
date attached to it.
Starting on the following day to return to Jerusalem, we took the lyMa.
more northern route through Lydda, Beth-horon, and Nobi Samwil. At
Lydda I re-examined the famous Cathedral of St. George, an important
building mentioned by nearly every mediaeval writer as far back as St.
"VVillibald. The present ruins are about. the 12th century. There is no
question in this case as to the name of the patron, which since the 8th
century to the present day has been that of St. George, whose body is
supposed to lie in the crypt, under the high altar.
This church is an instance of the rapid demolition of many such edifices
in Palestine. When visited by Du Vogi'ic, the south apse was quite
perfect ; but now that it has been restored by the Greeks, and a modern
church made out of the first two bays of the nave and north aisle, the
southern one has been quite destroyed, and I did not remark any traces
of its apse.
(
58 LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDER's REPORTS.
M. du Yogiie does not, however, appear to have entered the mosque,
the courtyard of -which is bounded on the east by the west "wall of the
Greek church. In this I found a pier and pillar belonging to the south
aisle, not noticed in his plan. The number is thus brought up to five or
six bays, which would make a well-proportioned church, the total length
either 130ft. or 150ft., and the breadth about 80ft. The beautiful
moulding ;of the capital and other details has been well reproduced by
the French artist. Another visit may, perhaps, enable me to settle the
question of the total length, in a perfectly satisfactory manner. In the
meantime I may note that my measurements agree perfectly with both
those of Robinson and of M. du Yogue.
ElMedyeh. Leaving Lydda we ascended gradually to El Medyeh, passing
Kh. Zakariyeh and Kh. Kelkh, Christian sites of some little interest,
the details of which, including the curious Hermit's Cave of El
Habis, I measured. The plan of the tombs of the Maccabees — the
structural monument, north of Dr. Sandreczki's rock-cut sepulchres,
known as the Kabur el Yahud (probably a Frank name), I was now able
to complete. It is extremely interesting, and a point about it which I
had not previously noticed is, the apparent existence of a little coui't or
vestibule to each tomb. The general appearance presented is that of an
oblong building, with cron walls. These are not indeed always visible,
and without efficient excavation it cannot be said certainly that more
than two intermediate and two end walls exist; still the appearance of
the ground, sinking in seven wells of rubbish, plainly intimates that
formerly there were originally five intermediate. It was in the thickness
of these walls that the tombs were built, being about oft. 5in. broad,
and the wall having a thickness of over 4ft. 6in. The tomb was open on
the eastern side, and the grave itself sunk in the floor of the chamber
and covered by a slab. Thus the present sunken pits, about 6ft. 9in.
square, appear to form vestibules between the tombs. From the discovery
of a capital of most primitive appearance, roughly approaching the
Ionic order, each would seem to have been ornamented by a column,
probably supporting a level roof. There would probably be steps
leading dovra into these, thus explaining how the intermediate tombs,
to which there can have been no other means of communication, were
reached. It may be to these pillars that Josephus {Ant. xiii. 7. 6) and
1 Maccabees (xiii. 27) refer ; that they were monolithic is highly probable,
though they hardly deserve to be called " great pillars." The " cunning
device" round about which they were set, and spoken of as in the
pyramids, may be supposed to be the vestibules in question; and
it is noticeable that Josephus does not speak of the pillars as in the
cloisters.
By the latter expression I understand the enclosure, equal in extent
with the monument on its western side, surrounded by a fine wall, with
stones 8ft. long in parts, and measuring about 80ft. each way. It is
remarkable that the outside walls are o cubits thick (a cubit of 16in. as
generally accepted), the interior 3^ cubits, the vestibules o cubits square ;
60 LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDEU's REPORTS.
and the length of the graves also 5 cubits, an unusual length, and
greater than that prescribed by Talmudical rules.
The last question with regard to this monument is its height, ■which
is described in both accounts as being very great. The question of
the height of the pyramids is included in this. It has been said that
the sunk centres of .several stones show the resting-places of these
structures, but this is doubtful for several reasons. First, that only
one of these stones is ia situ. Secondly, that the sunk portions do not
occur in the middle of this slab which covers the east tomb. Third,
that in the case of another stone not in situ, the sunken portion is
not central. It is still not impossible that the theory is true, in which.
case about 3ft. would be the side of the base of the pyramid, which
would not allow a greater height than Oft. or 10ft. The height of the
rest of the building was 8ft., and thus the maximum was .under 20 or
about 15 cubits.
The graves beneath are rock-cut, and may have preceded the monu-
ment, as is rendered probable by the two accounts. Two small tovcers
o cubits square flanked the entrance to the vestibule of the eastern
tomb. Thus we have a monument capable of reconstruction in cubits
within a foot of my measurement of the total length.
Josephus speaks of the stone used as "polished," but it seems
to me not impossible to have been tuhitewasJied or plastered, in which
case from its position it could not fail to bo conspicuous from the whole
extent of the sea-shore, visible from about the latitude of Mukhalid far
down towards Gaza.
From El Medyeh we returned to Jerusalem, passing beneath Nebi
Samwil, which I had visited on a previous occasion, and a short account
of which may therefore find a proper place here.
Nebi Samwil was known to the Crusaders under a variety of names, to
which they added one of their own, calling it Mount Joy. The strong
rock-cut passage to the east of the church, with vaults of good masonry,
a Crusading fireplace, and other details of similar character, may very
probably belong to this period. No plan of the fine church has been as
yet, I believe, published, although of considerable interest. It was cruci-
form in plan, with a sort of side building added on the north of the nave,
although it is doubtful whether any corresponding structure was built
on the south. It is worthy of remark that the present cenotaph placed
in the ends of a modern building occupies the exact centre of the old
nave, and is thus probably of Crusading date, although the tomb of
Samuel is never mentioned by early writers. The south transept is
perfect, with a Mohammedan niche in its wall ; the north has been filled
up with irregular cells of Lloslem work. The choir probably terminated
in an apse, but this is quite destroyed, and a modern wall cuts short tho
edifice.
My second expedition was commenced on tho 22nd inst. Our way lay
first through Hezmeh, where I measured carefully the five curious
tombs called Kabur bcni Isr'aim, and planned their relative positions
LIEUT, CLAUDE R. CONDER's REPORTS. CI
and distances, taking carefully the bearing of each. Their construction
is interesting, and points to the antiquity of drystone monuments in the
country. In the disposition of a series of chambers included in one rec-
tangular wall they resemble the El Mcdyeh tombs, but are not sepa-
rated by intermediate vestibules. There seems no rulo as to their
orientations, and lengths and widths seem to have no connection.
"We next pushed on to Jeb'a, a point of extreme interest in connection Cibeah.
with the history of Saul and Jonathan. It is a small village, and con-
spicuously situate over the rocky slopes of one of the branches of Wady
Suwaynit. The road to Mukhmas (Michmash) descends the hill in an
easterly direction, and a patli equally rugged and precipitous leads up
to the latter place, situate at a considerably lower elevation. It is not,
however, at the village itself that we should look for the site of that
famous camp of the Philistines which was attacked by Jonathan and his
squire, prototypes of later chivalry. Josephus describes the site of that
encampment as being " on a precipice which had three tops that ended
in a small sharp but long extremity, whilst there was a rock that sur-
rounded them." Such a site exists on the east of Michmash, a high hill
bounded by the precipices of Wady Suwaynit on the south, rising in
three flat but narrow mounds, and communicating with the hill of
Mukhmas, which is much lower, by a long and narrow ridge, the
southern slope of which is immensely steep.
Whilst thus presenting an almost impregnable front towards Jeb'a, the
communication in rear is extremely easy; the valley here is shallow, with
sloping hills and a fine road, affording easy access to Mukhmas and tho
northern villages. The hill in question forms, therefore, the foot of
Michmash.
We have now to consider the position of Saul's camp, whence Jonathan
started. Both Geb'a and Michmash had been taken by the Philistines,
and Jonathan had only lately succeeded in forcing from them former
possessions. "The fortress of the Philistines" in Geb'a is generally
identified with the present Jeb'a, from which, therefore, they had fled
across the deep narrow valley. Saul then came down and remained
"in the uttermost part of Gibeah under a tree which is in Mizron,"
that is to say " among the precipices." From thence the contest and
the flight of the enemy were visible distinctly, and the sounds so loud
that the greatest hurry in arming was thought necessary. Coupling
these facts with the expression of Jonathan's crossing "to the other
side," as if already on tho bank of the great valley, there can be little
doubt that tho place in question was very near to Jeb'a, probably in
those " fields of Geba which must have lain east of tho village on tho
broad corn plateau overhanging Wady Suwaynit." That tho site should
bo found at Tell el Eul, from which Michmash is not visible, is of
course impossible, nor do other arguments in favour of the latter site
appear to me of any great weight. Without entering into the question
of the probable identity of Gibeah of Saul with Gibeah of Benjamin, I
would simply add that Goba often is found in the Hebrew where Gibeah
62 LIEUT. CLAUDE R. COXDER's REPORTS.
occurs in the English, and that on the •whole it seems most rational to
suppose that the name refers to a district of which Geba was the capital.
Josephus mentions the village of Gabaath Saule, near the Valley of Thorns
(the name of which is still preserved in that of Wady Suwajmit) at 30
stadia from Jerusalem. This does not i^ideed agree with Jeb'a, which is
40, but Tell el Ful, situate about 22 from the capital, is also inconsistent
with the historian's measure.
Intermediate between these two camps were the " teeth of the clifE "
or " sharp rocks," Sen eh and Bozer. So steep was the slope that it
"was considered impossible not only to ascend to the camp on that
quarter, but even to come near it."
h How it should have been possible for Dr. Eobinson to find two hills
in the valley to which such a description should be applicable, is inex-
plicable to me, for it is steep and narrow each side, formed of sharp
ledo-es and precipitous cliffs ; the passage of which still seems an
almost impossible feat, and indeed would have been so, had not the
outposts, who might have destroyed the climbers with a single rocky
fragment, been, as Josephus describes, withdrawn.
The name Bozer, if meaning shining, would well apply to these
smooth and polished rocks ; and Seneh Mr. Drake identifies with
Suwaynit,* and Josephus's Valley of Thorns.
Here, then, the heroic prince, climbing with'diflficulty down, and yet
more painfully up the opposite side, fell upon the strong post of the
Philistines, who in their panic emote one another down, till the
"spoiler quaked," and the watchmen saw "the multitude melted
away."
The passage of Wady Suwaynit by the road to jNIukhmas, though
at a point where no cliffs occur, still occupied nearly half an-hour. At
Mukhmas we found traces of an ancient town, lai-ge stones, a vaulted
cistern, and several rough rock tombs.
j^ Near to Dayr Diwan is the extremely interesting site of El Tell,
which has been identified by Major Wilson with Ai. My first in-
quiries, put in every variety of form to various inhabitants on and
around the spot, wore directed to determining whether the name was
simply El Tell, or whether some descriptive adjunct, such as Tell el
Hojar, was added. The replies of more than a dozen separate witnesses
fully corroborated Major Wilson's former conclusion that the name
is El Tell, "the heap," which is used in that passage of
the Bible (and in only three others) where Joshiia is said to have made
Ai " a heap for ever."
The present condition of the site is interesting ; conspicuous from a
distance, the long mound dipping in the same direction with the strata
towards the east, stands out in contrast of grey stone from the rich
brown soil of the fields. A few ancient olive trees stand on its summit
* The modern AViuly Suwaynit corresponds fully with the Hebrew HJD, a
thorn bush: Josephus calls the place full of thorns.— C. F. T. D.
LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDER's REPORTS. G3
surrounded by huge mounds of broken stone and shingle ten feet high.
On the east a steep slope of fifteen or twenty feet is covered with the
same debris in that part where the fort of the town would seem to exist.
The town must literally have been pounded small, and the fury of its
destruction is still evidenced by its completeness. The interest which
will, to my mind, attach to other sites, where the similar appearance
of broken masonry is observable, will be very great as possible marks of
Jewish invasion; these, though not numerous, are very remai'kable, and
they have been noted in each case on the Survey.
The north side of the town is protected by the deep valley (Wady el,
'Asas) which nins straight down to the Jordan valley. On the west
however, there is a curious conformation. A steep knoll of rocky
masses, called Burjmus, rises to a narrow summit, and is divided from
El Tell by the head of a valley down which the ancient road from Bethel
passes. The result is that on this side the view is entirely cut ofi".
Another feature noticeable is that the valleys here run nearly due south
for many miles, to meet Wady Suwaynit. The deduction from these
facts is evident. The pai'ty for the ambush following the ancient
causeway from Bethel to Jordan (which we have recovered throughout
its entire length) as far as Michmash, would then easily ascend the
great wady west of Ai, and arrive within about a quarter of a mile of
the city, without having ever come in sight of it. Here, hidden by the
knoll of Burjmus and the high ground near it, a force of almost any
magnitude might lie in wait unsuspected. The main body in the mean-
while, without diverging from the road, would ascend up the gently
sloping valley and appear before the town on the open battle-field which
stretches away to its east and south. From the knoll the figure of
Joshua would be plainly visible to either party, with his spear stretched
against the sky. It is interesting to remark that the name Wady el
Medineh, a name we have never met before, " valley of the city," is
applied to this great valley, forming the natural approach to Ai. There
are no other ruins of sufficient magnitude to which such a name could
be applied, and the natural conclusion is that El Tell was the city
so commemorated. In the wady, about half a mile from the town, are
ancient rock-cut tombs, seemingly as old as any I have yet seen, and
extensive quarries. Farther up, three great rock-cut reservoirs, 36, 15,
and 46 paces long respectively, and, I am informed, of great depth
(they were then full of water), are grouped together. They are known
as El Jahrdn. Numerous other cisterns exist near the ruins, and mill-
stones of unusual size.
The view from this point eastwards was extremely striking. The
rocky desert of the Judsean hills, grey furrowed ledges of Lard and
water-roughened limestone, with red patches of the rich but stone-
cumbered soil, stretched away to the white chalky peaks of the low
hills near Jericho. The plain beyond, green with grass, stretched to the
brown feet of the trans-Jordanic chain. Heavy cloud wreaths hung
over these, but their slopes gleamed yellow and pink in that wonderful
64 MR. TYRWHITT DRAKE S REPORTS.
beauty with wliicli they are ever clothed by the sinking sun. The calm
water of the salt sea, with a light mist brooding above, added to the
charm of the view. Well might Lot, who from nearly this very spot
looked down on this green valley, contrast it favourably with the
steep passes and stony hills which he relinquished to Abraham. Half
the breadth of sea and plain was visible ; the western half is hidden
by the hills. The cities of the plain, placed, as we conclude, at a
distance from the " mountain " to which Lot could not fly, and in
the vale of Siddim, "which is the salt sea" (Gen. xiv. 3), were
therefore in all ' probability visible in gleaming contrast with their
green palm groves, now, alas ! extinct, but still standing in the
times of Arculphus (a.d. 700), thus resembling Damascus in its oasis
of trees.
Having worked through a severe hailstorm on the following day,
I returned to Jerusalem on the 24th, passing the Basilica of El
Mukatir, which Major Wilson supposes built en the traditional site
of Abraham's altar. This, as well as the Church of Birch, I planned
carefully, as no plan has been as yet published. The curious church
of El Khadhr, near Tyyibeh, was measured and drawn by Sergeant
Black in the same expedition, and the total number of these valu-
able plates of unplanned monuments throughout Palestine is thus
brought at present to 63.
CiiATJDE E. CoNDEE, Lieut. E.E.,
Commanding Survey Party.
MR. TYRWHITT DRAKE'S REPORTS.
XVI.
Jerusalem, January 3, 1874.
El Kal'ah, SoME time ago I was induced by the patchwork appearance of this
the Towe" building to make a careful examination of it in company with Herr
of David. Schick. The general impression left on my mind after this examination
is that the stones (of the lower part) are in st7»— that is to say, that the
building has not been reconstructed with old materials. The upper part
need not be taken into consideration, as it is of undoubted mediaeval
construction. The basement of the tower is concealed by a glacis and
other constructions, which probably date from the period of the Crusades.
Eight courses of large stones are visible above this. On some of them
there is a double draft, which, being in an unfinished state, leads to the
conclusion that the draft was worked after the stones had been set in
their places. The width of the draft, as I measured it, in many places
was 3, 4, 6 or 7 inches, the greater breadth being always at the sides or
bottom, usually the latter. The height of the courses varies from 4ft.
lin. to 4ft. 2in. The' following aro the lengths of several stones which
MK. TYRWHITT DRAKE's REPORTS. 65
Imeasui-ed: Sft., 5ft. 2in., Oft. 2in., lr,ft. Tin., Oft. oin., 10ft. Oin.,
14ft., while the breadth at the north-east corner varied from 3ft. Tin.
to 3ft. Sin. At this point I was unable to detect any cement between
the courses. The bosses are irregular, and project from 4in. to Sin., the
former being the more usual.
The tower, especially on its eastern face, has been much cracked and
damaged by earthquakes and time. These gaps and cracks have been
stopped by the Turks with a liberal dose of small stones and mortar,
which gives the tower the appearance of being more ruined than it
really is .
One of my chief objects in examining the building was to see if there
were any practicable way of deciding the question as to whether it is
solid or not. There is a tradition that Ibrahim Pasha forced an entrance
but was driven back by a miraculous outburst of fire ; or, as we should
say, by fire-damp. Since that time no attempt has been made to solve
the difficulty. A careful examination of the exterior led me to believe
that the only place through which access can be gained to the interior
is by a small window — now closed with small stones and mortar — im-
mediately beneath the modern bevel which divides the media3val from
the other construction. I send a sketch of the stones at this point which
"will give an idea of the masonry.
In the north-west part of the fort are two wells, marked on the
Ordnance Survey. They are called Bir el Hadid (iron) and Bir el Hissar
(Turkish : castle). ' The latter is interesting from the fact that its supply
of water is said to be derived from and from beyond the Eussian
buildings. If this be the case, as there seems no reason to doubt, the
old aqueduct found by Dr. Chaplin when building his house outside the
town, is probably one of the system which supplied this part of the town
with water.
With this report I send you a sketch of one side of the Kubbet el Knit'/ietsi
Sakhrah as it now appears, with the casing of Kishani tiles stripped ofl\ '
during the so-called process of restoration.* It discloses a feature
which hitherto must have been quite unknown, as it was concealed ors.
one side by the encaustic tiles, and on the other by a thick coating of
plaster. This feature is the round, arched balustrade, which forms the
parapet of the outer wall.
Those who have stood on the leads of the lower building, below the
central dome, will have noticed that a parapet wall about 7ft. high sur-
rounded them. This, before the outer coating of tiles was affixed, was
an open row of semicircular arches with plain capitals. Of these arches
there are thirteen on each side. It has been, I believe, long known that
the present pointed windows are built into older semicircular arches, of
which there are six on each side. I hope that, as soon as the weather
permits, a photograph will be taken of this very interesting disclosure.
The whole of the Haram el Sherif is now being restored under the
* I purposely call it a sketch, as, owing to deficiency of scaffolding, I was
unable to take all the measurements necessary for a detailed plan of elevation.
F
GG
MR. TYRWHITT DRAKE S REPORTS.
Arabic In-
scription
from
Ramleh.
direction of an Armenian Christian architect, Serkis EfEendi. The
Masjid el Aksa is already finished, and reeks of whitewash aud tawdry-
painting. A fine glass chandelier, said to have cost twelve hundred
nounds (Turkish) in London, and presented by the Yalide Sultana
(queen-mother), is now being put up in it. The Kubbet el Sakhrah is
filled with scaffolding inside, so that one cannot see what progress is
being made. The capitals of the pillars beside the Mehrab el Hanafi in
the Kubbet el Sakhrah have been a little cleaned, and prove to be
Christian work having heads at the sides. They are not unlike those
found by Professor Palmer and myself on the north-western minaret of
the Haram. Most of the tiles on the outside are being taken down and
reset, the gaps, where necessary, being filled up with modern Constanti-
nople ware. All the mouths of the cisterns have been closed with iron
o-ratings, which are kept locked, and some little effort has been made to
render the low-level aqueduct from Bethlehem and Solomon's pools
serviceable.
The inscrii^tion, of which the following is a translation, is engraved
upon a long block of grey marble, and lies on the southern side of the
enclosure adjoining the "White Tower — frequently, though erroneously,
called by travellers the Tower of the Porty Martyrs — at Bamleh. To
the west of the town there is also a Cufic inscription in the plaster of a
cistern called El 'Anayziyeh. This may be of some interest, but hitherto
I have found that the want of light, and the constant dampness of the
plaster, have prevented my copying it accui-ately.
The final part of the inscrii)tion has been purposely defaced : —
" In the name of God the merciful, the compassionate. None restores
the mosques of God but he who believes in God and the last day . And
God, whose majesty be exalted, allowed the issuing of the mandate (?).
Eecause of the knowledge which he beforehand had permitted to his
servant the Poor one, who relies upon him and tiu-ns to him in all his
affairs, who is strenuous in his ways, Nasr el Dia, the Assister of the
EeLigion, and his Proj^het, and the .... of his Friend, the most
roajestic Sultan, the Intelligent, the Crescentator, the Conservative, the
Fortifier, the Defender of the Faith (mujahid) of this world and the next,
the Sultan of Islam and the Moslems, Bibars ibn 'Abdallah Easim,
Commander of the Faithful, aud may God spare him to us. And he
sallied forth with his victorious army on the 10th of Eejeb the Unique
from Egypt, with the object of going on a holy war and making a raid
upon the Men of Sin and Obstinacy, and he halted at the foot of Yafa in
the beginning of the day, and ho conquered it by the permission of God
at three o'clock of tho same day.* Then he ordered that this dome should
be begun over the lanthorn by the hand of Khalil ibn
Dhiir May God pardon his son and his parents . .
in tho year sixty and six and six hundred
and the Moslems."
Sultan Bibars in 1266 a.d. finally took Ramleh and Jaffa from the Christians.
MR. TYRWIIITT DRAKE's REPORTS. 67
''When speaking of the White Tower of Eamleh, Dr. Robinson (iii. 38)
makes a mistake in saying that the inscription over the door bears the
■date of 710 a.h. (1310 a.d.); it really is 718, as stated by Mejir el
Din (quoted 1. c.), and says that the work was completed in the middle
■of the month Shaban, and further gives the name of the builder as
"Abu'l Fatah, son of our Lord tho Saltan, the martyr, the King el
^ansiir."
The persistence of Dr. Eobinson in ■wishing to make out this "White
Mosque" to be a khan, in opposition to the statements of Arabic
writers, is equally curious with his wish to transform vaulted cisterns
into warehouses. Such stores are never found in khans, as goods would
be open to robbery, which is not the case when, as they invariably are,
they are stored in small chambers^ of which the owner keeps the key.
The shape of the biiilding is that always employed by Mohammedans
till after the usurpation of the Khalifote by the Tartar Dynasty, and
numerous examples are to be found in North Syria, Egypt, and North
Africa. The usual form is a courtyard, with a single arcade on three
sides, that on the south, or towards the Kibleh, consisting of two or
more rows of arches. In mosques of this early date the minaret is
frequently, though not invariably, placed in the centre of the north
side (as here), or in the north-west corner.
The makam of the Arb'ain Maghazi (forty champions ?) is in one of
the vaults, and though these saints, under the different titles of Arb'ain
Shahed (forty martyrs), frequently occur in Moslem Palestine, early
travellers seem to have imagined that a Christian church, dedicated to
the forty martyrs of Cappadocia, must have formerly stood here, and
hence the absurd belief that the minaret was the old belfry. This
tradition, too, seems not to have originated until two centuries and a
half after the building of the tower.
. This branch of the Survey would lately have presented many difficulties Notnen-
to one unacquainted with the various dialects of Palestine. The fellahin clature.
south of Jerusalem speak with a different pronunciation to those farther
north, while the semi-Bedawi tribes, such as the 'Abbaydiyeh and Ta'a-
mireh, differ both from them and from the genuine Bedawin farther
«ast. These latter again have a patois differing much from the Arabic of
the south.
This is not the place to discuss the differences of language found in
these various dialects, but I v/ill instance the pronunciation of a few
words to show how easily one ignorant of these differences might be
deceived. L and N are frequently interchanged, especially at the end of
a word. The kaf is by the fellahin and some Arabs pronounced di (as in
cheat), and this sometimes degenerates into sh. The kaf is pronounced
in four ways. 1. Ey not pronouncing the k, but supplying its place by
a sort of catch in the breath, or hamzeh. 2. Properly as a hard strong k.
3. As g, 4. Asj. The first method is common throughout Syria and
the large towns of Palestine. The second is rarely used, except by well-
educated persons in the towns, and some of the fellahin. The third is
68 MR. TYRWHITT DRAKE's REPORTS.
affected by the southern Bedawin, and the fourth by the Bedawin east
of Jerusalem. The other day I quite puzzled a native friend of mine, a
man of unusually good education, by asking him to explain some ordi-
nary words which I pronoimced to him c2 la Bedawi.
To instance what I mean, I may say that the Hajr Dabkan is called
by various men Dabchan, Dablich, Dabkil, and Dabchil. The transposi-
tion of letters in a case like this is of course not unusual in most lan-
guages. Again, the Arabs always called the great wady between Jericho
and Jerusalem Wady Jelt, while the fellahin say Gelt or Kelt. Yet the
same men who say Jelt invariably say Khirbet Gumran, never Jumran ;
always gamr (the moon), never jamr ; but yet they say jahjiir for kahkur
(a pUe of stones), and rafijna for rafikna (my friend). As yet I have not
been able to find any rule by which they are guided in this use of g and j
for k. The use of ch for k, though puzzling at first, is in reality a great
help to the transcription of names, as it distinguishes beyond a doubt
between the hard and the soft k.
The Hajr Dabkan, which I mentioned above, is an upheaved ledge of
rock of some oOft. long and 12ft. to 14ft. high. It is famous throughout the
countryside for the legend attached to it, which runs thus. It happened
that El Dawwari, the ancestor of the Arabs Abu Nusayr — a branch of
the Hetaymat, who live east of Jerusalem — was making a pilgrimage to
Jerusalem, accompanied by his slave Dar'aya, when suddenly his camel
fell down dead. Undaunted by this misfortune, he mounted a rock
(some say by the advice of the angel Gabriel) and called out, " Sir ya
mubaruk " (start ofT, blessed one). The stone thereupon arose and carried
him as far as this place. Like all holy spots, it is the repository for
ploughs, grain-pits, &c., and is decorated with the usual Ai-ab offerings
of rags, sticks, glass bracelets, &c. A short distance off is a burial-place
of the Abu Nusayr, called Makbaret el Dawwars. It is usual for Arabs
of another tribe before passing through these to cry out " Destiir (per-
mission) ya Dawwars," and, if he be sufficiently instructed, to mutter a
few words of the Fat-hah or opening chapter of the Koran.
(Tie bound- TJie boundary line of Judah, east of Jerusalem, is described in Josh.
irv 11116 of »/ '
Judah. XV. o, 6, 7, thus : " And the east border was the salt sea, even unto the
end of Jordan. And their border in the north quarter was from the bay
of the sea at the uttermost part of Jordan : And the border went up to
Beth-hogla,* and passed along by the north of Beth-arabah ; and the border
* Is it not possible that the En-eglaim of Ezekiel xlvii. 10 is the same
as this IJeth-liogla / In Arabic, the 'Ain is not very unfrei^ueiitly changed
into ha; but whether this ('haiige occurs ;dso in Hebrew 1 cannot at this
moment say for certain, though from the cognate nature of the language it
seems probable. In the vision of Ezekiel the names En-gedi and En-eglaim
seem to denote extreme points, and there is nothing, as far as I can see,
from the context, to favour the idea that it is near En-gedi ('Ain Jidy). In
describing Beth-hogla, the author of "Teboutli Hoarcz" ("Fruits of the Earth,"'
a Jewish treatise on Palestine), in ch. iii, p. 53, concludes by .saying that he is of
opmion that 'Aiu Hogla and and En-eglaim are one and the same.
MR. TYRWHITT DRAKE's REPORTS. 69
went up to the stono of Bohan the son of Ecuben. And the border went
up toward Debir from the valley of Achor, and so northward, looking
toAvard Gilgal, that is before the going up to Adummim, which is on
the south side of the river : and the border passed toward the waters
of En-shomesh, and the goings out thereof were at En-rogcl." In the
eighteenth chapter, w. 17, 18, 19, where the adjacent boundary of
Benjamin is given, this account is repeated, with the diiference that
Geliloth* is put for Gilgal, Debir is omitted, and Arabah is put for Beth-
arabah. The latter, however, by comparison with v. 22, is probably
correct. The valley of Achor, too, is omitted.
Let us now now take each point separately, and see how the line is
likely to have run. It is plain that the Dead Sea formed the eastern
boundary as far as the Jordan mouth, and that thence the line ran north-
eastwai'ds to Beth-hogla. There seems but little doubt that this name
is preserved in the Arabic 'Ain Hajla, and as natural features were
probably chosen as the boundary lines, the wady which debouches near
the Jordan mouth, called in its lower part Khawr el Kataf, and in its
upper Khawr el Tamnir, may perhaps have been the line it took. This
valley passes by Tell el Moghyfer, where there are ruins of early
Christian if not of older date. Being the only place in the neighbour-
hood where there are any ruins of importance, it is perhaps not unlikely
to have been the site of Beth-arabah.
Then comes the stone of Bohan, the son of Reuben. Unfortunately,
the clever identification of M. Clermont-Ganneau [Quarterly Statement,
New Series, No. II. p. lOj), will not hold good, and I believe that
M. Ganneau himself has come to much the same conclusion. On
visiting with him the boulder to which the Arabs apply the name
of Hajr el Asbah, we found that the name is not asb'a (of the
finger), but asbah (whitish) {faras sallia is a mare with a long
white mark on her forehead). Its position, too, precludes the pos-
sibility of its being the stone in question, as it lies six miles
south of Jericho. The line then goes up towards • Debir from
the valley of Achor. Of the city of Debir no traces seem to remain,
unless it be in the name Thoghret el Dabr — the Pass of Dabr —
which lies a little west of Khan Hathrurah, on the Jerusalem and
Jericho road. The valley of Achor is most probably Wady el Kelt,
* Geliloth. This -word, which is here substituted for the Gilgal of Josh. xv. 7,
while the same expression is used in Hebrew with regard to the position of each,
namely, "over against" (nJJ) the ascent of Adummim, is translated acZ tt«)U4^os.
I cannot help thinking that it is not a corrupt reading, as has generally been
supposed, but that the line of Benjamin's boundary is merely described in rather
difl'erent words to those used in laying down that of Judah. This being the
case, the tumuli referred to would be some of the many momula which form such
a very conspicuous feature "over against" the ascent to the mountains. Of the
many "tells" near Jericho, by far the most conspicuous and important are the
live or six nearest tlie mountains.
70 MR. TYRWHITT DRAKE's REPORTS.
fhere being no other valley than it and the before-naentioned Khawr ej
Tanirar anywhere near Eriha. Next we have " the going up to Adum--
mim, which is on the south side of the river." By the river, Wady Kelt
only can be meant ; it is the most prominent feature here, and contains,
besides three sets of springs.
Adumniim. Adummim in both the above-quoted passages is coupled with the
" going up to " or ascent to it. It seems most probable that this must
be placed at Tel'at el Damm, the media-val fortress, surrounded by a rock-
hewu moat, which stands above Khan Hathriirah, and commands tho
Jericho road. As will be seen, the name " Mount of Blood " applies not
only to the castle, but to the eminence on which it stands. The road
from the Ghor to this point is nearly all uphill, while between it and
Jerusalem there are many ups and downs : hence the term " going up to
Adummim " would be applied to that part of the road between Tel'at
el Damm and the Ghor, and this lies on the south side of the "Wady
Kelt.
"With regard to Adummim, M. de Saulcy has arrived at the samo
conclusion as myself, but curiously enough he was led to it by a wrong
name being given him. Khan Hathrurah was called to him Khan el
Ahmar (the Eed Inn), while the name Tel'at el Damm seems to hava
escaped him altogether. He very properly argues — if Tel'at el Damni
be substituted for Khan el Ahmar — that the peculiarly bright red
patches of rock at this place gave the reason for the various names :.
Adummim, the medieval Tour Eouge, and the modern Tel'at el Damm.
The Arabs say it is called the Mount of Blood because of a severe battle
once upon a time fought there, but the bright red limestone and marl
are much more likely to be the true cause.
Now remain En-shemesh and En-rogel. Of the former name na
trace remains, unless it be in jlagharet el Shems (Cave of the Sun) ; but
this lies north of "Wady Kelt, and on the other side of the watershed. I
should not have mentioned it but for a rather curious expression used
by an Arab with regard to it. I asked him, while talking of the cave,,
whether there was no 'Ain cl Shems (Spring of the Sun), to which he
replied, "This is 'Ain el Shems;" and on my making him explain
himself he said they sometimes called the cave the Eye of the Sun ('ain
being a spring or an eye), because the rising sun shone directly into it —
that it looked directly in the eye of the sun. En-shemesh is, however,
more probably 'Ain el Hawdh, east of El Azariyeh, beside the high,
road, or else the neighbouring well of Bir el 'Add, which contains a never-
failing spring. The much disputed En-rogel I am in favour of putting
at the so-called Virgin's Fount, and if this bo the case the boundary-
line from the edge of the Ghor would just correspond with the present
high road from Jerusalem to Eriha.
The above quoted author a little farther on (Voy. en Tcrre Sainte, vol. i.,
p. 196) falls into a double error by accepting the name Tell Abou-s-Salait,
for the mound near tho Jericho road, and by attempting to connect it with.
MR. TYRWHITT DRAKE'S REPORTS. 71
the Hebrew Gilgal (wliich lias a sense of rotundity or rolling), because
it is a round tumulus. The real name of the mound is given in a note,
but the word 'alayk does not mean clots of Hood, but in Bedouin dialect
signifies a HoseJa^r for ahorse or camel ; it might also moan a bramble,
biit the former is the explanation given mo by the natives. None of the
Arabs or fcllahin had ever heard of the name Tell abu Salayt anywhere
in their country. There is a place of that name east of the Jordan,
called after a tribe of Beda-^in of that name. Again, in tho Book of
Joshua we are expressly told (v. 9) that the place was called Gilgal,
because the reproach of Egypt was there rolled away from the Hebrews ;
not on account of any natural feature at the spot.
The Tulul Abii'l 'Alayk (vulg. 'alayj), one of which is north and the Fort of
Tpricliu
other south of Wady Kelt, are not improbably the two forts of Thrax kupros'
and Taurus, mentioned by Strabo (bk. xvi.) as standing at the entrance Dociis, &c.
to Jericho, and which were ultimately destroyed by Pompey. May not
the] Bayt Jabr too be the Arabic form of the Greek Konpos, especially
with the confusion that exists between j and k ? Josephus tells us (Ant.
xvi. 5. 2, and IVars ii. 18. C) that Herod built a fort of this name above
Jericho. At present there is only a small mediceval or Saracenic building,
but this is built on a scarped rock, and fully commands the* road which '
runs immediately beneath and beside it.
The name 'Ain Duk is doubtless, as first suggested by Dr. Eobinson,
the word oijK or doch mentioned in 1 Mace. xvi. 15 as a small fort in
which Simon Maccaboeus and his two sons were treachnrously murdered
by his son-in-law Ptolemy. Near the makam of Ali ibn Taleb M.
Ganneau found two rock-hewn tombs, with pigeon-hole loculi ;
immediately below (south-west of ) there are traces of somewhat
extensive ruins called Ivhirbet Abu Lahm. On retui-ning from the
tombs we visited the hill-top immediately above the makam, and found
that the land side had been protected by a rude wall and a ditch, while
there were traces of a tower and other buildings to the south. This
seemed to me a very likely position for the " little hold " of Docus, for
this would be, as Josephus tells us it was, "above Jericho," and it
would also command the "Wady Nuway'ameh, which here forms a large
recess into the mountains, and the vai-ious hill-paths which lead up to
Bethel, Eimmon, &c. :
With regard to the site Jiljidyeh, examined by Lieut. Conder, GUgal.
there is much to be said. JosejAus slates it to have been 10 stadia from
Jericho, and 50 from the Jordan. Now this is impossible, as the whole
plain at Jericho is only a little more than six miles, or about 50 to 52
stadia wide in this part. Instead, however, of laying, as it is but too
much the fashion to do, the fault on Josephus's shoulders, let us see how
a copyist's error may have affected the question. Fifty is represented
by N, and this is so easily changed to A. (thirty), that if the case
requires it we may do so without much hesitation.
If the Jericho of Josephus stood near the modern Eriha, these measure-
72 ilR. TYRAVHITT DRAKE's REPORTS.
ments of 30 by 10 stadia exactly suit vrith tlie position of Jiljulyeb.
On the other hand, after hearing the legend from the mouth of one of the
Abid, how the Imam, 'Ali ibn Taleb, mounted on his horse Maimun,
attacked the infidels inhabiting the Medinet el Nahas (City of Brass,
which stood near the Shejaret el Ithleh and Jiljulyeh), overthrew their
walls and slaughtered them, but finding the day too short called out to
the sun, "Euthani ya mubarakeh," and how the sun turned and stood
still over the ridge still called Dhahret el Thenij-eh ; after hearing this
adaptation of the history of Joshua I could not rid myself of the
suspicion that this legend was derived from Christian sources originally,
and consequently that the name Jiljulyeh must be accepted with
caution. Taking into consideration the fact that there were at least six
monasteries in the immediate neighbourhood of Jericho, without
reckoning Mar Saba, Dayr el Mukellik, and Payr Kharaytiin, it is not
only possible, but even probable, that Bible histories have by their means
been transmitted to the Arabs, who, as is usual in such cases, have
transferred the names of the principal Persons and Places from the
Unknown to the Known.
3ioi:as- Of the monasteries of which we find the ruins, four, namely, Easr
el Yahud, Kasr Hajla, Tell Moghyfer, and Xhirbet Mefjir (besides
W^ady Xuway'ameh) are in the plain, and three in the mountains,
namely, the caves of Kuruntil, Dayr WadyKelt, and Dayr el Mukellik.
In all of these, except Kasr el Yahdd and Khirbet Mefjir, frescoes more
or less defaced have been found. At the former place are several
graphitie seemingly in Georgian, one in Greek, of which I could only
make out a few letters and the following date {r) which would read
900 4- 20 + 90 + 9 = 1019. I may observe that this method of writing
a date with several letters when fewer would have sufficed, frequently
occurs in the inscriptions I found in the Alah (see " Unexidored Syria,"
vol. ii.) At this river there is pretty conclusive evidence that the coarse
tesselated pavement was used by the Crusaders in the fact that in the
upper story some of it still remains in situ over a vault with a pointed
arch.
At Dayr el Kelt, Arabic girq)Jiitce in ordinary character (not Cufic)
show that the first frescoes existed up to a comparatively late period.
These lower frescoes are much superior in composition to the later ones
by which they are covered, these latter being simply mural paintings on
coarse plaster. The figures of the various saints have, as usual, their
name and quality written above ; one is of some little interest as show-
ing that the monastery of St. Kalamon was not then as now quite sunk
into oblivion. The other names, such as o ayios adavacnos rov aOwvos, have
no interest. The rude bilingual inscription over the door refers to the
restoration of the monastery, but gives no date.
Dayr el Mukellik is situated in by far the wildest and most inac-
cessible spot of all the haunts of the holy men of old, who certainly,
as I told our Arab shaykh Jemil, to his great amusement, lived amongst
the rocks like the loabi' (coney or hyrax), which always choose the
MR. TYRWIIITT DRAKE's REPORTS. 73
wildest and ruggedest spots for their linhitnt. This monastery is situated
in even a wiUler spot than that in Wady Kelt. Our road to it from
'Ain el Sultan lay through El Hazim, as the downs around Nebi Musa
are called. Striking the Ilaj road from this place to Jerusalem, which
is kept in good repair on account of the great annual pilgrimage, wo
rode along almost as far as Rijm Ilalayseh. Turning to the left we
soon found traces of an ancient path constructed on the sides of a
rough wady. Leaving our horses, we scrambled down on foot to the
ruins which are situated at the foot of a precipice some 00ft. or 80ft.
above the wady bed. The buildings that remain are small and insig-
nificant; high up on the face of the cliff are two niches of masonry,
clinging like swallows' nests to the rock, containing frescoes, one of
the Blessed Virgin and the other of the Crucifixion. From the sub-
jects of the paintings I am led to believe that they are not of very
ancient date. Below the ruins is a large cistern, and around are
several caves which seem to have been used as lairs by the Eremites.
The scene as we sat on the ruins was one of the wildest I have
come across in Palestine. Above us towered the ledges and precipices
of rust-coloured limestone ; the sky above was wild and covered with
storm- scuds relieved by frequent gleams of sunlight. Beneath us a
ruddy torrent formed by the late rains washed and foamed ; griffon
virltures sailed majestically down the valley on full-spread wings, flocks
of rock- doves dashed by occasionally, and now and again the clear
full note of the orange-winged grakle rose startlingly shrill above the
murmur of the waters. But for these the silence was unbroken, and
not another living creature appeared in the solitude. What an
existence must have been that of those who devoted themselves to
death in life, to wasting the energies and vital power bestowed on them
in droning and sleeping av,'ay their time instead of courageously doing
their duty in the battle of life, may be seen by those who look deeper
than the surface in such convents as Mar Saba, Sta. Katarina in Sinai,
and others similar.
It was almost by chance that we discovered the fact that a monastery, Jebel Ko-
or at all events a church, had existed at Tell Moghyfer. Some stones
had lately been dug up by the natives, and on turning over one of
these I found a portion of fresco containing a few Greek letters
attached to it.
The existence of the apse of a small chapel on the summit of this
mountain is w^ell known, but I am not aware that the remains of the
strong crusading fortress beside it, with its steep glacis and rock-hewn
fosse on the land side, have ever been described. The main building —
of which only the outer walls are traceable — is about 250ft. long by 100ft.
Avide. On the north, east, and south it is protected by the precipitous
cliffs. Westwards a crescent-shaped ditch — now much filled with drhris
— has been cut in the rock. I could find no trace of any cistern or
reservoir, which must, however, have existed, as there is no water nearer
than that of 'Ain Duk, which flows some nine hundred feet below.
7-1
MR. TYRWHITT DRAKE S REPORTS.
Khirbet
Gumn'in.
Eriha and
climate.
A similar fortress, also cut off from tlie land side by a fosse, is to be
seen — but in even a more ruinous condition than tbat on Jebel Ivuruntil —
on the extreme edge of the hills on the north side of Wady Kelt. De
Saulcy called it Beit bint el Jebail, but this name is not known at all.
After much trouble I succeeded in finding the true name to be Kusayb
el 'Awayshireh.
Most of the Christian ruins near Jericho are built of a soft oolitic
limestone, which seems all to have been quarried at Khirbet el Sanirah,
an extensive ruin some four miles north of Eriha. Here the quarries
and quarry caves are extensive, and probably date from a very early
period. The oolite here is overlaid by beds of stratified mud and con-
glomerate containing flints and water-worn stones.
Khirbet Guinran lies two miles north of 'AinFeshkah, on a spur at the
base of the cliffs. The ruins are rude, and consist of a wall to the east ; the
steep slopes to the south and west seeming to have been considered sufficient
protection in themselves, while to the north the ground is occupied by
a collection of buildings now an 'indistinguishable mass of rude stones.
A small birket lies between this ruin and the wall, and like all the other
remains, is built of unhewn stones, which are packed with smaller ones
and roughly plastered. The most remarkable feature at this sj)ot is the
enormous number of graves which lie beside it. I computed them at from.
700 to 750, including some outliers on two adjoining hillocks. Those
south of the ruin lio 20 degrees east of north, the head being to the south.
They are arranged in regular rows, and close together, and are all
covered with a paving, or rather roofing, of uncut stones : a large upright
stone marks the head, and a somewhat smaller one the feet. On digging
into one of these in company with M. Ganneau, we found, at the depth
of 41 inches, sun-dried bricks, 15 by 11 inches and 9 inches thick, over-
Ij'ing the body. The bones were much decayed, and I could only obtain
some teeth, which were unusually large and iu good condition. No
objects of any kind were found in the grave. On digging into another
tomb we failed to find anything at a similar depth, and were prevented
from carrying on our researche.s further by the approach of night.
The curious regularity of the graves, their position — so unlike that
employed by either Christians or Moslems — and the use of sun-dried
brick, renders the identification of the place a jDuzzle which seems likely
to remain unsolved, as no inscription or even worked stone was to be
seen amongst the untrimmed materials used. The only thing besides
pottery that I fo-und was a small nearly defaced copper coin, presumably
Jewish.
The pleasant clear weather, with cool breeze and warm but not hot
sun, which succeeded the first rains, and the verdant appearance of the
country, rendered the first fortnight of our stay at 'Ain el Sultan very
enjoyable. This agreeable weather, however, is perhaps the most un-
healthy part of the year; and so it proved to us. Fourteen men out of
seventeen connected with the Survey suffered from more or less severe
attacks of fever. The change, however, to the high level of Jerusalem,
MR, TYRWHITT DRAKE's REPORTS. 75
and the great kindness and attention received there by tliose wlio were
ill, lias restored the whole party to their state of wonted health.
The climate of Jericho would semingly have changed since the days
of Josephus, or more probably the surplus irrigation was not then, as
now, suffered to become stagnant pools, causing malaria and fever. The
great Jewish historian in many passages vaunts the wonderful fertility
of the place, and calls it 0?iov x'^P""', f, region fit for the gods. At
present the luxuriance of vegetation is almost tropical, but the in-
habitants are lazy, dissolute, and incapable of continuous work. As the
governor of the village told me, " to rouse them you must take a stick,
to make them work a kurbaj " (cowhide). All kinds of vegetables, such
as tomatoes, vegetable-marrows, &c., are in season all the year round.
Grapes grow to a great size, the vines being trained over trellises sup-
ported on poles 4ft. high, as iu some parts of the Pyrenees, and occa-
sionally in North Italy. Indigo flourishes, but is seldom cultivated;
sugar, too, and cotton, would doubtless succeed. Sloth, however, and
indolence on the part of the government and peasants, now reign supreme,
where a little care in drainage and steady cultivation might annually
raise produce of equal value rath, the revenues of all the rest of Palestine.
The timber, too, beside the Jordan might with but little trouble be made
to supply a great deficiency in the Jerusalem market, where nothing
whatever but foreign timber can be procured, and that at a high rate ;
for in addition to the transport from Jaffa, which is longer than that
from the Jordan, the sea carriage must also be considered.
During our stay in the Ghor I found that the hedii (ibex) still exists
in Wady Kelt, never quitting the security of its deep, rugged solitude.
Jedu'a, brother of Shaykh Jemil of the Abu Nusayr, is the Nimrod of
these parts, and brought a buck into camp one day. Pie told me it was
the sixth buck he had shot in the valley, as he never kills the females ;
he estimated their number at present at not more than eight or ten in
all. I have preserved the skin and horns, which, as far as I can judge
without comparison, differ in nothing from the Sinaitic species ; the
Palmyrene, on the contrary, I believe to be a different variety, with
stouter horns. The ivahr, too (coney or hyrax), is also, though very
rarely, found in Wady Kelt. Hitherto, I fancy, the existence of either of
these animals so far north in Palestine has not been suspected.
Sleet commenced on Friday, December 26, and on the 27th a heavy Snow,
fall of snow took place, accompanied by thunder; by Monday, however,
nearly all traces of it had disappeared. Owing to the unusual quantity
of rain which has fallen (l2'o9in. by our observations, but that at
Jerusalem will probably be more), the wells and cisterns are already
nearly full. A few days ago the Bir Ayyub overflowed. This is always
a rather unusual occurrence, and seldom if ever has been known to take
place before the month of March.
Some interesting discoveries have been made at this ancient site by Antiiiuities
the Messrs. Bergheim, who have purchased laud and been building aiellJezar.'
house there. The clay image in basso-relievo, of which I send you a
76
MK. TYRWHITT DRAKE S REPORTS.
Maaratli.
ProfTess of
the Sui-vey.
sketch, was picked iip by Mr. P. Bergheim, from among tke earth
turned up in digging for liown stones for building purposes. This figure
is very interesting, and, I imagine, unique; the front seems to have been
moulded, to judge from the appearance of the edges and from the
rounded back. The headgear, too, is remarkable, and reminds one rather
of the castellated crown seen on Sidonian coins. For the account of a
statue of Venus at Gaza, which in many respects resembled this figure,
see the letter of St. Porphyrion (Bolland, Acta Bandorum, Feb., tome
iii. p. 648), quoted by F. Leuormant, Lettres Assyriologiqiies, &c., tome
ii. p. 165. I am indebted to the kindness of these gentlemen for some
flint flukes and an arrowhead also found there. The flint flukes are
similar to those I formerly purchased from tho Abbe Moretain, who
discovered them at Baht Sayur, near Bethlehem, and which now belong
to the Christy collection ; the arrowhead is unlike, anything I have
previously met with in the country.
Maarath is mentioned in Josh. xv. 59 as one of the cities in the
mountains of Judah. It seems very probable that this may be the
mons mardes where St. Enthymius found ruins {Ada Sandorum, ii. p.
o06), and which I now identify with Khirbet Mird near Mar Saba.
Gesenius derives the word from a root meaning openness or barrenness ;
either of these significations would applj^ equally well to Kbirbet Mird,
which is situated on a round, almost isolated hill on the west of the
Bukay'a or open plain which extends between Mar Saba and the ridge
of cliffs overhanging the Dead Sea. The view from the ruin embraces a
considerable extent of country, and though there are traces of vineyards
in the Bukay'a, still the general character of the surrounding hills is
that of extreme barrenness.
The progress of the Survey is most satisfactory, as will be seen by the
fact that last year the average amount filled in by each man was 2'35
square miles, and this year is about 2"75 square miles per man on each
day in camp. By days in camp I do not include Sundays ; but all other
days employed in moving camp, penning in, and rainy days, on which
ficldwork was impossible, are included, so that an actual day's work is of
course much larger than this, which is merely the average of days
spent under canvas.
stormy
weather.
XVII.
Jerusalem, Jan. 2, 18T4.
The exceptionally cold and tempestuous winter still keeps us prisoners
here, and were it not for the house kindly lent us by Dr. Chaplin we
should be in bad way. Our time, however, is fully employed indoors,
and also abroad whenever a few hoiU'S of sunshine enable us to go out.
The Maritime Plain is such a swamp that the fellahin are beginning to
despair of ever being able to get the spring crops in, and say that those
MR. TVKWIIITT DKAKe's REPORTS. 77
ali'eady sown run mucli danger of being spoiled. The hills are not only
impassable for cross-country work, but the winds are so keen and chill-
ing that neither man nor horse could camp out without great risk. The
Jordan valley is a simple quagmire, and the Z6r, or second bed of the
river, is in full flood.
Such^being the condition of the country we must perforce wait here till
not only the rains have somewhat ceased, but till a week's fine weather
has rendered the survey j^racticable. This enforced sojourn here has
enabled me to drag up a fuller account of modern Jerusalem than any
which, as far as I am aware, has ever yet been published.
The few fine days we have had have been employed by Lieutenant
Conder and myself on various small excursions in the neighbourhood.
On the 16th we rode down to Eamleh to make a plan of the church
there. When camped at Eamleh in 1872, I had not M. do Vogue's
" Churches of Palestine," but felt sure that he would not have neglected
such a conspicuous and well-preserved monument. It seems, however,
that he was j^reveuted from doing anything by the fanaticism of the
inhabitants. In 1872, however, I wandered about the whole building
unmolested and unnoticed.
Ell route Lieutenant Conder made a plan of the crusading ruin of Khiriiefi
Khirbet Ikbala, south-east of Kariyet el 'Anab, and about a quarter of a
mile south of the bridge on the high road. This is said by the natives to
have been Dayr el Benat, a nunnery, where dwelt the Bint Sultan el
Fenish — the daughter of the Phoenican king. Since the telegraph has
been laid along the highway they have made an addition to the story,
and say that she communicated with her father, whose summer quarters
were at Soba, by means of a long wire. Her father's winter quarters
are placed at llathin, as the natives almost invariably call Latrun ;
between this place is another relic of the daughter in a small tumulus,
which I hope to oiDcn some day, called Eijm el Haik bint Sultan el
Fenish. The aqueduct, which formerly led from near Tell Jezar (Gezer)
to the Birket el Jamus at Eamleh, seems also referable to her, as it is
named Kanat bint el Kafir — the water-channel of Infidel's daughter.
In Gen. ix. IG we read that Gezer was taken by Pharaoh, king of
Egypt, from the Caananites, and given to his daughter, wife to King
Solomon, and in the following verse this latter monarch, we are told,
rebuilt it. The connection between Pharaoh's daughter and the Bint el
Kafir seems very probable.
Beyond Kariyet el Anab I tried to identify the places mentioned by
Schwartz (p. GS, ed. 1852) as Khirbet Midian and Jebel Modiim, but not
one of the many fellahin whom I asked had over heard of such nameS;
nor had I any better luck with his Izpa or Mizpah, near Kastal. Though
sometimes ingenious, this author is generally incorrect in his accounts
and untrustworthy in his nomenclature.
The effects of the heavy rains haye been almost fatal to the carriage
road ; indeed, if it be not soon repaired it will soon become impassable
for wheeled vehicles. In places it is deeply scored by the torrents, ia
t b
MR. TYRWHITT DRAKE's REPORTS
Abu
Shusheli.
Modiu.
Heb.
Azmaveth,
Ar.Hezmeli.
Kabur £en'
Israini.
other parts heaps of solid stones give it the appearance of a wady-bed,
vrhile on the plain most of the bridges have been destroyed by the floods.
The water was then out to such an extent that between Eamleh and Jaffa
it was necessary for them to swim, their horses.
From Eamleh we visited Tell Jezar, to enable Lieutenant Conder to
make a plan of it. The name of the village at its southern end, Abu
Shusheh, is said to be derived from a dervish who once upon a time, in
season of excessive drought, prayed for rain, and was told by a rammed
(diviner by sand) that if water came, he — the dervish — must perish by
it; to this he did not object, and soon water gushed out of the earth and
formed a pool into which he stepped and was drowned, and nothing but
his top-knot of hair remained in view, and when the people saw this they
cried out "Ta, Abu Shusheh !" — (oh, father of a top-knot).
Returning by El Medyeh, v/o completed the plan of the curious tombs,
which I think without doubt are those of the Maccabees. Dr. Sandreczki,
to whom belongs the honour of identifying El Medyeh with Modin, never
saw the constructed tombs, but only those hewn in the rock about one-
third of a mile south of Shaykh el Gharbawi, beside which former are
situated. Erom this point a great expanse of sea-horizon is visible, and
the situation well suits the description of Josephus."
I enclose a sketch (see p. 59) of the most perfect chamber of the building,
which will show by the style of masonry that it is no ordinary sepulchre.
I also enclose a proposed restoration of the pyi-amids mentioned by
Josephus {Ant. xiii., vii. 6), which I have drawn on the model of the
rude funerary bas-reliefs found by Frofessor Ealmer and myself at Fetra.
This restoration gives a height of eleven feet above the building, which
itself must have been nearly as much. This height is sufficient for seven
white pyramids, such as are described (Josph. 1. c.) to have been visible
at a very great distance. The name Kabur el Yehud was given to Dr.
Sandreczki as applying to the rock-hewn tombs ; now the fellahla apply
it to both, but the original name of the built-up sepulchre seems to have
been El Ikbirreh.
A short distance north-east of Jerusalem is a small village named El
Hezmeh, which seems to answer very well to the Azmaveh (ri^D'y) of
Neh. vii. 28, and Ezra ii. 24, where its inhabitants are mentioned with
those of Anathoth, the modern 'Anata, which lies a short distance south
of Heymeh. The change of 'Ain into Ha is, as I have more than once
had occasion to remark, not infrequent.
On the side of the wady north of El Heymeh and opposite to it are
five constructions of peculiar form, consisting of a double wall forming a
parallelogram from 98 to 176 feet in length by 9} to 16 feet in breadth ;
the height varies from 3 to 6 feet. The interior is formed of a mass of
loose stones of various sizes. The walls are composed of rough stones,
sometimes of great size, packed with smaller ones to render them more
even. No mortar is used. In one of them a square chamber is to be seen,
and also a kind of cist. Doubtless such cavities exist in the others, and
I hope before leaving Jerusalem, if the weather allow of it, to mako some
MR TYRWHITT DRAKES REPORTS.
•9
excavations ^vitli tlie object of discovering tlieir cliaracter, wlietber
sepulchral or not.
Dr. Robinson's account of these curious monuments (Later Bib. Ees.
p. 287 ; ed. 1856) is very incorrect, and unworthy of liis usual shrewd-
ness. He says, after various wrong measurements and details, "they
are such as the Arabs may have thrown together in no very distant
times." To me the rude massive character of the constructions and their
disposition give them an air of great antiquity. Lengthwise they lie,
generally speaking, north-east and south-west, but the direction varies m
each. Among the people they are known as the Kabur Ben' Isralm.
When I first heard this curious form I had it repeated, and then it was
put in the more usual way, Kabar Beni Israil, but the former was given
me by three separate individuals. They are also known as Kabur el
Amalikeh.
Mozah, a town of Benjamin (Josh, xviii. 26), usually considered ^^ozah.
to be Kolonyeh, because in the Mishna a place named Motsa is men-
tioned as being below Jerusalem, and that willow branches were brought
there for the Feast of Tabernacles, and the Gemara adds that the place
w^as a Colonia (see further, Diet. Bil^le ii. 439). The name seems to
linger in the Khirbet Bayt Mizzeh, which lies on the hill above Xolonyeli
northward.
A lar£?e quantity of this substance has lately risen, and specimens lUtumen
T 1 j_ T J.1 A u rrn from the
have been brought into the Jerusalem market by the Arabs. me ^eadSea.
quantity is estimated at thirty kantars, or about seven and a half tons.
Being exceedingly hard and of very good quality, this bitumen used to
fetch as muchi as forty-five pounds the kantar in Austria, where it was
much used in making varnishes. At present it is not worth more than
four pounds the kantar, owing to the discovery of a mine in Europe which,
produces an equally fine quality.
Chaeles F. Tyrwiiixt Drake, F.E.G.S.
80
THE JERUSALEM RESEARCHES.
LETTERS EROM M. CLERMOIsTT-GANNEAU.
III.
Jerusalem, Ocioler 5 — 10, 1873.
to Jerkho. TiiE day before yesterday we returned from Jericho, Laving taken
advantage of Lieutenant Conder's presence tliei'e to visit the place, in
the liope of verifying certain points. We passed five days in the
Survey Camp, meeting with the most friendly reception from the officers
in charge, and came back here on the third.
The two points which were the motives of this journey wei-e ',1) the
examination of the site of the Hajar el Asbah, which 1 had for a long
time,* for various reasons, proposed to identify with the Stone of
Bohau;t and (2) the project to excavate a cemetery near Goumran
pointed out as curious by MM. Rey and De Saulcy. In view of the
latter I had brought with me two peasants of Silwan, formerly work-
men under Captain "Warren, and taken certain tools, such as picks,
shovels, and crowbars from the Society's storehouse. The Jericho
people are of no use for this kind of work, as they even employ the
fellahin of the mountains to cultivate their own lands.
Our journey was accomplished without incident, except that arriving
after nightfall, and badly guided by our two peasants, we wandered,
about for two hours in the darkness and the thorn thickets before
discovering the camp, masked as it was by the Tell el A'in, at the foot
of which it was placed,
iiajar el We started the next day, accompanied by Messrs. Conder and Drake,
the stone of f*^^' Hajar el Asbah J and the Khirbet Goumran. We arrived at the
Hohan. territory (ArdL) of the former after crossing in succession the Wady el
Kelt, the Wady Daber, and the little Wady el A'sala. It is a small
plain extending between the foot of the mountains and the sea, to a
bold and well-marked promontory which one of our guides called, I
believe, Edh-dh'neib e'yeir (?). In the northern portion of this region,
almost at the foot of the peak, lie four or five great blocks of rock,
probably fallen from the summit or flank of the mountain. The most
northerly of these, very nearly cubical in form, and measuring two
metres and a half in height, was pointed ovit to us as the Hajar el
* Quarterly Statement, 1871, p. 105 ; and Quarterly Statement, 1872, p. 116.
t Joshua XV. 6, and xviii. 17.
+ Hajar el Asbah is marked on tlie maps of Vandevelde and Murray as Hajar
Lesbah, on the north-west of the Dead Sea.
',>^^^- JlrokeuWall:
ife"-*"^
l/^;{0.^- '«iV;:),;;;^
Ci
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H
C
o
. ■" /^ '«f(TmTrrffiimwnm!iMmiiiniiiiiiinfiri/ihirii;nii);, ' : ; ,'. ?.
t < *> /irt • ' 1 '
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%,
'■£§M¥~m.,. t
G
82 ' • LETTERS FROM M. CLERMOXT-GANNEAU.
Asbali : it is cloven in the middle. The scantiness of its proportions
forms a striking contrast with the importance accorded to this simple
piece of rock, which, without any thrilling character, has nevertheless
given its name to a surrounding piece of country comparatively large.
The form of the stone hardly appeared to me to justify the signification
which in my memoir on the subject I had assigned to the Hebrew
Bohan, and to the Arabic word Asbah (for Asb'a), thumb ov fimjer. On
the other hand, I discovered close by, and standing on the side of the
hill, a remarkable isolated peak, which struck me at first sight as well
as my companions. This point of rock presents a striking resemblance
to a fist closed with the thumb raised, as \n\\ be easily seen by looking
at M. Lecomte's sketch. Nothing more natural than to apply to this
finger-shaped point of rock the characteristic denominations of thumb
or finrjcr, only unfortunately the guides assured us that the Hajar el
Asbah was really the fallen block we had just visited, and that thia
other rock was called Sahsoul H'metn or Goitrdet Sahsoul H'Tneid, which
it seems difficult to attach etymologically to Eben Bohan.
"What are we to understand from these facts ? It may very well be
that the Arabic translation of the Hebrew word at first applied to the
peak has been transferred to one of the blocks fallen from the moun-
tain close by. What would seem to justify this conjecture is that the
name of Asbah is extended over the whole of the plain, as we have seen.
There seems nothing impossible in supposing that after this extension
of meaning it should be again concentrated on a single block within
the space, and that towards the point by which the place was ordinarily-
reached, the north. The transference of name might possibly be dated
back to the falling of the stone itself from the mountain ; such an
accident may have struck the next visitors so much as to have
caused them to fix the denomination of the whole region to this single
stone.
I collected from the Bedawi who accompanied us a variation of the
name Hajar el Asbah, viz., Hajar cs Bubeh.
Not only the ]Deak itself in which I wished to find the Stone of
Bohan has a highly characteristic form, but the shadow which it threw
on the side of the hill, at the moment when we passed before it,
gave a curious profile suggesting also the signification of the name.
Lastly, I will add to these observations one which appears to me of
great value in this important question of Biblical topography. This
peak marks the exact point where the mountains which fringe the
western side of the Dead Sea change their direction, or at least to the
eye appear to change it. It is at the extremity of the Cape which,
looking from north to south, closes the landward horizon, appearing
from this side to plunge into the sea. It is a point which forms a natural
position, and there is therefore nothing astonishing in its being chosen as
one of the points in the border line between Benjamin and .Tudah. This
consideration appeared to me so important that on oiir return I begged
M. Lecomte to make, from the toj) of the Tell Ain es Sultan, a panoramic
LETTERS FROM 51. CLERMOXT-GANNEAU. 83
view of tlie plain of Jericho and its horizon of mountains from the
TaiuaMn es SouH-a?' to the sea.
We must remark that the peak only presents its profile clearly
indicated when one looks at it from the north ; seen from the south, as
we remarked on returning, it had lost its first aspect ; on the other
hand, it resembled now, in a very striking manner, a colossal statue,
seated in the Egy^stian manner.
After a brief halt at Hajar el Asbah, we continued our journey to Excavation
the south, to examine the site of the Khirbet Gomran, and especially TomUs of
the cemetery pointed out here by MM. Rey and De Saulcy. The Gomian.
ruins are quite insignificant in themselves: a few fallen walls of mean
construction; a little lirlrt, into which you descend by steps; and
numerous fragments of irregular pottery scattered over the soil. Our
attention was principally attracted by the numerous tombs (perhaps a
thousand) which cover the mound and adjacent jjlateaux. To judge
only by their exterior aspect they might be taken for ordinary Arab
tombs, composed of a small elliptical tumulus, suiToxxnded by a range
of rough stones, with two large stones placed upright at the two
extremities. All that distinguishes these sepulchres distinctly from
modern tombs is the orientation : they all have their major axis
north and south instead of east and west. This particularity had been
already noted by the Mussulman guides of M. Rey, and it called from
them the remark that they were the tombs of Kouffar (not Mussulmans).
I resolved to open one of the tombs. Our two men of Silwan set to work
under our eyes, while we followed — Mr. Drake, M. Lecomte, and myself
— the progress of the excavation. After digging about one metre in
depth, our workmen came upon a bed of rough clay brick measuring
0'40 X '20 X -12 metres, and resting on a kind of flange cut in the
earth itself. On removing these bricks, we found in the grave the bones,
partly destroyed, of the corpse which had been buried there ; and
managed to pick out a bit of a jawbone, with teeth adhering, which will
perhaps enable anthropological conclusions to be drawn. There was no
article of any kind in the tomb. The head was turned to the south, and
the feet to the north. You will gather from M. Lecomte's sketches some
idea of the dimensions and disposition of the tomb which we opened,
as well as of the general aspect of this enigmatical cemetery. The
principal plateau, which contains the greater number of these tombs,
is crossed from east to west by a kind of alley dividing the tombs into
two zones. It is difficult to form any opinion on these sepulchres, prin-
cipally on account of their abnormal orientation. Can they belong to
some ancient Arabic ti-ibe of the JaJiiJii/eh period.-^ If they were
Christian tombs they would offer some characteristic sign or religious
emblem, for the employment of bricks to cover the body, and the com-
parative depth of the graves, show that the tombs have been con-
structed with a certain amount of care.
I took advantage of Sunday to make a little excursion to Riha and its Rilia.
environs, accompanied by M. Lecomte. We paid a visit to the Mutesdlim
':.(
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LETTERS FROM M. CLER.MONT-GANKEAU. 85
of the place, wlio resides in tlie Arab horj, in the hope of getting some
information from him. We found a man of Eiha who pretended to
have discovered some days before three stones with inscriptions ;
perhaps they were only fragments of sculpture such as we had already
found at the Tmvalwi es Suuhlcar, mere pieces of capitals and friezes on
which the Arabs wanted us to see inscriptions. However that may be,
it was impossible for us to get a sight of these three inscribed stones,
and the owner ended by saying that he had given them to a man of
Sllwan. FraRmmts
We then entered an enclosure belonging, they told us, to the of scuiiitura
Russians, in which had been accumulated a great quantity of ancient xeiis of
cut stones taken from excavations made in the surrounding Tells, and J^inclio.
intended to serve for a new building projected by the Russians. We
examined with the greatest care this kind of Avorkyard, principally
furnished from the excavations at Tell el Matlab, and observed great
quantities of architectural fragments of mouldings, bases, capitals,
shafts, fragments of sculptured friezes, bits of sarcophagi with
garlands, &c., and stones bearing the cross. Farther on, in the garden,
almost entirely buried in the soil, was a great block of red granite.
It would be important to know exactly the origin of these remains,
which are certainly the debris of considerable buildings, as some
conclusion might be drawn from it as to the site of ancient Jericho.
Unfortunately, only a limited faith can be put in the assertions of
the Arabs, although the greater part were nnanimous in indicating
Tell el Matlab as the place which had furnished most of the stones.
And, indeed, we found, on the way back to camp, fresh traces of exca-
vations in that Tell, and some blocks recently dug out. This indication
agrees well enough with the tradition mentioned below, which places
the ancient Jericho at the Tell el Matlab. M. Lecomte went the next
day to copy the most interesting of these fragments.
In the afternoon I went alone on a little excursion north of Jericho,
taking for guide a fellah of El 'Azariye (Bethany), who often comes
down to Jericho for agricultural work, and knows its environs better
than the inhabitants of the place itself, from whom one can get no in-
formation whatever.
I went first to visit Klurhet el Muufjir, north of the Wudij Noue'jne, Kliirhctrf
not far from the aqueduct which crosses the valley and was i^ointed
out to me under the name of Jesr Ahou Ghahhouch. Its ruins are
composed of little mounds extending over a considerable space, some
of which have been excavated by Captain Warren. These excavations
brought to light, among other things, a fragment of an apsis whose
convexity pointed south, perhaps the extremity of the transept of a
church of regular orientation. The same name (Khirhet, or TawilhiH
el Moufjir) is applied to very considerable ruins about a quarter of an
hour to the west, at the end of an aqueduct supported by an arcade with
nearly semicircular arches. A little wady, a lateral affluent of the Wady
Noue'me, which I remarked not far otf, was pointed out to me as the
83 LETTERS FROM 51. CLER.AIOXT-GANIv^EAU.
"Wady Moufjir; later on tlie Bedouin of tlie locality assured me tliat
it was not the Wady Moufjlr, but tlie Wady Seurhan; others again
maintained that it was not a wady at all, but a simple place called "the
zagyoimis of Seurhan [Z^youmTit Beiirhan) since a certain Seiirhan had
been killed there by the Adouan.
.Saiictuarj- of "We then proceeded to Ain ed Doulc, crossing the territory of the
Aly. ' sanctuary of the Imam Aly {Ardh Muqam el Imam AJy), a sanctuary
which is the object, in this locality, of the greatest veneration, and is
often simply called the 3Ia(/am. We shall see immediately the curious
legend which belongs to this Moslem sanctuary. We passed on our
way to the maqam by the Tell el Abraike. The maqam has nothing
remarkable in itself. I found a Mussulman tomb protected by a low
wall of uncemented stones and surrounded by a number of implements
and tools deposited by their proprietors under the safeguard of the sanc-
tity of the spot. Farther on are two large shafts, which seem to mark
the exact site of the maqam. A small plateau in front is fitted with
pits dug in the ground, and also confided to the protection of the saint.
The maqam is at the foot of a considerable eminence called (avc shall see
directly why) Monedhhen Eh'Ial, that is to say, the jdace where EhJal uttered
the call to jjvayer. This hill commands all the environs and the Wady
Noue'me ; and its eminently strategic position may perhaps justify us
in regarding it as the site of the fortress of Doch or Dagon (.?).
Toml) with We continued to ascend the Wady Noue'me, which widens at this
amrscu^i^^^ place, following the foot of the mountains which bound it on the north,
tured bed. Arrived at the Well of Ain ed Diik, and of Ain Noue'me, I went to see
a tomb cut out in the side of a hill, the entrance to which is visible
from the bottom of the valley. It consists of a chamber with twenty-
one perpendicular loculi disposed in two stages. The number 21
(7x3) is essentially a funereal number. I remarked two sarcophagi, of
which one is longer and broader than the other ; on the ground, in the
midst of a pile of cut-up straw {fihtn), lay a fragment of a sarcophagus
lid sculptured and ornamented with triangular pediments, and other
fragments of lid and sarcophagus mixed up. The chamber had been
recently opened, I was told, by a Bedawi, who had managed to make a
granary of it. I saw, indeed, at the door of the tomb, the earth which
had been taken out of it ; it was all mixed up with bones, fragments of
pottery and glass, &c., and appeared to have been deposited very
recently. By the side of this Avas another tomb like it, almost
entirely filled with earth. I came back the next day and made an
excavation, which led to no result of importance. The second tomb,
Avhich appeared to me unfinished, had in any case been violated a long
time before. We found in the earth at one of the corners bones which
- seemed to beloug to a body inhumed here after the building of the
tomb, perhaps of some Arab. Mr. Drake and M. Lecomte went the
next day and took drawings of the plan of the tomb and the sarco-
phagus lid.
Legend. * It is probably the presence of these tombs which has given rise to
LETTERS FROJI M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU. 87
tlie legend wiiicli my guide told me Avlien he pointed them out from the
valley. " Deep down in the flat ground of Ahou Laliem (fi qn' 'Khaur
AbouLaJicm) is a stone with an inscription; beside it is a leaden
casket, which contains another of gold, and this contains the body of
a man."
The same guide told me that the old men of Eiha said that the site of
ancient Jericho was Tell el Matlab.
The whole of Monday was taken up with the useless excavation of i-iiating'to
the neighbouring toml>. In the evening, talking over it in the camp '^^fj^^j^^*
with one of the 'AhU employed by Lieut. Conder, I took down from of Jericho,
his mouth certain traditions, which seem to me sufficiently important
to be related in detail, J^ecause they attach themselves, in a confused
but undoubtful sort of way, to the name and stoi-y of Joshua. I attach
tlie more importance to these legends— an echo of the Biblical narra-
tive—because they were told me by a man extremely simple and almost
a savage, before an Arab audience, Avho could have pulled him np
short, and because the stories themselves have undergone changes too
strange and too local not to be original.
The Bedawi began by relating how, not far from the TcU-cl.ifJde, there l^r^^^lZkL
exist ruins with Dawaris {i.e., ruins of old things), and that there was by imam
the ancient Jericho, the City of Brass, medmet en nalias, surrounded by "
seven walls of brass. The city was in the power of the Kovffar (in-
fidels), on whom the Imam Aly, son of Abou Taleb (he of the maqam),
made war. Aly mounted his horse Meimoun, rode round the city, and
overthrew its walls by blowing on them {heu-nefes), the ramparts falling
of their own accord, stone by stone. This legend recalls the Biblical
account of the taking of Jericho, and there is another circumstance
which shows how, under the name of Aly, lies hid the personality of
Joshua. After his combat with the Kouffar of the City of Brass the
day drew to an end, and the infidels were about to profit by the darkness
to escape, when the Imam Aly cried out, addressing the sun, " Return,
O blessed! return, O blessed!" {Erdja'ij ya muharclx- ! Jntliimj ya
mouharclce !) Immediately, by the permission of God, the sun, which
was in the west, and on the point of disappearing behind the
mountain, placed itself once more in the east, in the place Avhence it
had started, and since that time the mountain above which the sun
was hanging at the moment of the miracle has been called Dahrat
■ eth-thiniye (the croup of the turning, from inthana,to turr,, return).
It is the low chain running at the foot of Mount Quarantania above
the Taiuahm es SouJd-ar, which one passes, in going from Ain cs Sultan
to the meiqam, on a point covered with little heaps of stones {chaiuahid)
raised by Mussulmans, who can see from this i^lace Neby Musa.
As soon as the Imam Aly saw the sun return to the east, he cried to
his servant Eblal (or Belal), who at this moment was on the mountain
now called Moucddlien EhkiJ, to make the call for the morning prayer
(Edhfm), whence the name given latterly to the mountain (Place of the
Call to Prayer by Eblal). Perhaps this name belongs to a group of the '
Ithl^.
88 LETTERS FROH M, CLERMOXT-GAXNEAU.
tribe of tlie 'Abid called Belalat. The miracle having assured victory to
Imam Aly, he exterminated all the infidels, and demolished the city
from the foundations, the fugitives being entirely destroyed by wasps.
We easily observe in this simple legend the leading features of the
story of the fall of Jericho and the victory of Joshua over the Amorites,
only in consequence of the absolute want of historical perspective
which belongs to popular stories, facts and personages the most widely
separate are mixed up together. We remark as well a very pro-
nounced tendency to localise details by attaching them in the most
rudimentary etymological manner to the names of places. It is not,
however, without interest to have collected on the very spot where the
events took place these popular accounts which have preserved their
memory.
Tell el On Tuesday morning, while M. Lecomte was occupied in making a
drawing of the plain of Jericho, taken from the Tell el Ain, we went
with Lieutenant Conder to Tell el Ithle, to which the story related above
had drawn our attention. We remarked nothing striking. Lieut.
Conder left us here to go and explore the Till el Moufjir. I wanted to
examine the environs of l\ll el Ithle, but, unfortunately, my guide
was a Riha man, extremely stupid, who could give no information
■whatever, and I was obliged to renounce the design. I regretted this
exceedingly, for on my return to Jerusalem I saw on reading the
guide of Liuvin, and the dissertation of Zschokke, that not far from
there was the probable site of Gilgal, now called Tell el Jcldjoul. I
could have wished to verify this on the spot, but I immediately pointed
out the fact to Lieut. Conder, who has just informed me by letter
of the correctness of the information with which I fui-nished him. I
am convinced that there would be interesting researches to be made
in this place, the identification of which would determine i^r contre-
coup the precise site of the difterent Jerichos.
Inscriptions From Tell el Ithle I went to Eiha, where my guide professed to have
at Riha. j^ jjjg i^ouse an inscribed stone found at Tell el Qos ; it was nothing
more than a simple piece of marble with certain scratches made by a
j)ick. I passed nearly an hour in examining stone by stone all the
tumble-down houses in Jericho. This minute in'spection resulted in
nothing. I only saw the place where, three years ago, a fine monu-
mental Latin inscription had been taken away. I took a squeeze of it
then. It contained, in all pi'obability, the name of the famous usurper
Pescennius Nicrer.
Ancient The afternoon was devoted to visiting, with Mr. Drake and M. Lecomte,
the Wady° ^^^ Convent of Deir el Kelt, situated in the wildest part of the wady of
Kelt. the same name, the plan of which had been taken a few days before by
Lieut. Conder. I went there principally to take the squeeze of a
Greek and Arabic inscription Avhich Lieut. Conder had found and
copied. In order to reach the place we followed on foot the aqueduct
which descends the wady on the north side. The road was as bad as
possible, and the heat considerable.
LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU. 89
There is nothing very remarkable about the convent ; the frescoes
which decorate the interior of the church and the ruined chapel appear
to belong to several periods. They are covered with' graffiti, painted or
engraved. The only detail which struck me was that the church
having no orientation, on account of the direction of the rock to which
it clings, the builders had to compensate for this infraction of the rules
of religious architecture by placing sideways the window of the apse, of
which the two sides (themselves oblique) form between them and with
the apse itself, such angles that the mean axis of the window is
directed exactly towards the east. Symmetry is thus unhesitatingly
sacrificed to the exigencies of custom.
The inscription spoken of is over the entrance. It is bilingual, and f^L^fptioii.
probably of a late period. The Greek is exceedingly incorrect in
orthography and in syntax. It is, besides, negligently carved, and
very difficult to decipher.
This is what I have read of it up to the present :—
-|- AN0EKEN . . . + was dcdiccated
.... AIAXIPOC . . by the hand
BPAXIMTOrCA . . . of Ibrahim and his
AEA>I>OTCATTOTC . . brothers.
xn
While the Arabic inscription reads as follows: — "This . . . has
been built by Ibrahim and his brothers . . Moussa from Jifne {?) . .
May God hold them in his mercy. And he said : Amen."
Perhaps the Arabic word which I cannot translate refers to the
building of the gate itself. I have, however, in my hands a squeeze
which will probably enable me to read more of it.
I forgot to add that I profited by the presence of our two workmen
to disengage a part of the little ruined building which surrounds the
fountain of Elisha. I distinguished very clearly an apse with a niche,
which probably belonged to a little 'pagan temple consecrated to the
goddess of the fountain. Unhappily the people of Riha made me
discontinue the work for fear of spoiling the water.
IV.
I had read the first word of the Greek part of the inscription at Deir The Graeo-
, ^- , , - , , . . . , . 11 • Arabic in-
el Kelt (see above), anqeken, admittmg an mcon-ectness m speUmg, scnption afc
of which the rest of the inscription offers several examples. An Deii- el Kelt-
attentive examination of the squeeze shows me that it should have
been read ANEKENICQH (for aueaamaeri), "has been repaired or rebuilt."
This new reading, of which there is no doubt, changes the whole
construction of the i^hrase, which otherwise appeared singularly con-
fused. Evidently AIA XIPOC, "by the hand" (of Ibrahim), belongs to
the verb, completing the predicate, while the group of letters between
00
LETTERS FROM Jr. CLERMONT-GANNEAU.
I'racr-
iiieiit of a
Roman
milestone.
Forged
instTiptinn
in Hebrew
J'lianiciaii.
the t\ro contain the noun wliicli is the subject of the passive vei-b.
This noun np to the present has resisted all my efforts to read, which
is the more to be regretted, because it certainly names the building, or
the part of the building, repaired. I think it was preceded by the
feminine article v '■ it begins with IIA, followed apparently by a sign of
abbreviation. It might have been raXaia (the ancient). In this case
the true name would begin with the second line, M'^, which I am
tempted to consider as an abbreviation for MONH (monastery), a form
much used, if I mistake not, in ecclesiastical inscriptions. "The old
convent has been repaired by the hand of Ibrahim," &c.
The carver had first written KAi TOT Aaea*OT ATOT con-ectly
enough, save for the omission of the T in auTov, but he afterwards
added two sigmas, so as to make it run rhvs aSeXcpuvs avrov, choosing,
apparently, to sacrifice grammar to truth, in order to pepetuate the
plurality of Ibrahim's co-operators. The Arabic text sj^eaks of several
brothers.
As to the last line, which contains a religious invocation of some
kind, I cannot yet make anything of it.
I found at Khan el Hathrour what seemed to me the fragment of a
Roman milestone, .brought, however, from some other place. Lieu-
tenant Conder has pointed out to me that the old Roman road from
Jericho diverged from the j^resent road before Khan el Hathrour,
and passed more to the south, and, besides, that the distances
between Khan el Hathrour and the Dabbiis el 'Abid is more than
a mile.
I send you a copy of an inscribed stone presented to me by a man at
Jerusalem on my arrival. It is a curious specimen of the nianufacture
of pretended inscriptions which has been carried on here for three
years, and to which I have called attention on several occasions in
Europe. The stone is a kind of Cornelian cut in the form of a cone :
the inscription consists of four lines in Pho3nician characters like those
of the Moabite Stone, the engraving of which is alone sufficient to prove
the forgery. The lapidarj-, for instance, makes his characters approach
the Greek and Latin types: — the /A' is written like E, the rati, like a
k, the caph like a C. This inscription has a certain advantage over
its brethren, being invented by a man with some pretensions to know-
ledge, for it can really be translated without difficulty into sense. This
fact proves that it comes from a different origin to the Shapira things.
It reads, in Hebrew, thus —
-I3S
-in
tS3
' The servant of Jehovah, David, King."
David's own seal, and for ten francs ! Certainly far from dear, and the
forger must be credited with great moderation.
LETTERS FROM M. CLERMOXT-GANNEAU. 91
On the IGth of December I went for the fii st time to tlie Haram, ^^^^^^ *'^^
in company with M. Lecomte and Lieutenant Conder. The visit was
a brief one, but was not without results. I found in one of the little
oratorios which surround the esplanade of the Sakhra a Cufic inscrip-
tion of the third century of the Hejira, Avhich I intend to copy. A little
farther on I remarked a beautiful old sarcophagus, ornamented with
roses, and then we examined closely the curious semicircular arches
in the upper part of the exterior wall of the Sakhra. They were
brought to light on one of the sides which had been stripped during
repairs of the covering-iu tiles which concealed them. The existence of
these arcades is a fact of great importa,nce, and one which may lead
to new conclusions as to the original form of the mosque ; we must
not, however, be in too great a hurry to deduce proofs as to this or
that date. The arcades must be studied with the most minute care
before we can determine their period with any precision. "We propose
to give our attention to it immediately, and to take a photograph,
as soon as the weather will allow, of the side now exposed.
I do not think it out of place to communicate an observation which I Distinctive
^ character
made some time ago, and which I have not seen any notice of else- of the stones
Wliere. ^ ^ crusaders.
It has, I think, a certain value, because it leads to no less than an
.,. -p,! iiji/~i -I Criterion by
almost aosolateli/ certain diagnosis ot the stones cut by the Crusaders. which to
This distinction concerns not only the mediaeval archaeology of Pales- them'on^
tine, but also, and almost to the same degree, the archaeology of earlier fiist iiispec-
^. ° °-' tioa.
times.
One knows already how little people agree respecting the age of Gothic,
several of the Palestine monuments ; it is not rare to see contradictory ;if,'nv"s.
theories on the subject of the same edifice, or the same part of an t*^™-
edifice, oscillate between the most diverse epochs, Hebrew, Jewish,
Eoman, Byzantine, Mediaival, Western, and even Arab.
The reason of this is, that people confine themselves usually to the
examination of forms and styles, and that nothing is more deceptive
than this kind of evidence when other means of identification are not
at one's disposal. I will cite but one example. One looks upon it as
an established truth that every pointed arch with ?io?-ma/ joints is Arab,
and that every pointed arch with vertical joints is lacstern.
This rule, elsewhere fixed, is frequently violated in Palestine, and
will assuredly mislead those who would take it for an infallible guide.
The peculiarity which I now point out enables one to decide, stone
by stone, what materials were worked into any edifice by the
Crusaders.
As is already known, a great number of the blocks fo\;nd in the
consti'uctions ei'ected in Palestine by the Crusaders show masons'
marks consisting of letters of the Latin alphabet, including various
symbols, some of which are very characteristic (the fleur-de-lis,
for example). I have collected some hundreds of examples in my
notes. No possible doubt would exist if each stone showed these
92 LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU.
incontestable signs, but unfortunately this is far from the case. But
my course of observations enables me to supply tbeir absence and to
arrive at tbe following conclusion : — Tbat I believe myself able, witb-
out too mucli boldness, to generalise as follows — " Tbe stones bearing
media3val (Latin) letters have their exterior faces dressed, or rather
scored, in a special manner, which of itself alone suffices to characterise
them."
This surface dressing consists (on stones with plane surfaces) of
oblique lines closely ranged, all in the same dii'ection, done with a
toothed instrument. The obliquity of the lines appears generally to be
at an angle of 40" to 45°. This uniform line is particularly visible
when the stones are illuminated by a side light. I have foiuid it on
a quantity of stones without masons' marks, but employed concur-
rently with signs on "stones in perfectly homogeneous buildings.
Its presence is so specific that it has often led me to note masons'
marks which would otherwise have escaped me, because it determines,
d 2^riori, the age of the stone, and warns me that, perhaps, a mason's
mark is to be found.
I have noted the existence of this surface dressing on stones of all
shapes and positions : blocks, in courses, in walls or pillars, voussoirs
of arches, and even in rebated blocks. It exists also on stones with
carved surfaces placed vertically, shafts of columns, concave or convex
blocks of apses, or circular walls.
But in this case the cuts are very slightly oblique, and approach
perceptibly to the vertical which is the normal of the cylinder ; when,
on the contrary, the cylinder is disposed horizontally (horizontal
mouldings) the lines of the cut are very nearly horizontal.
These facts are easily explained by the necessity of making the tool
follow a rectilinear direction ; if, for example, the same method had
been followed as for plane surfaces, the tool would only have touched
the curved surfaces perpendicularly to their normal, and would have
produced marks only instead of lines. I have remarked another group
of stones also dressed obliquely, but on which the cuts are replaced by
a series of dotted lines. I have not yet studied this peculiarity
sufficiently to say if these stones belong to the same epoch as the
others.
So far I have not met with a single fact in contradiction to the
broad rule which I think I am able to lay down as follows (restricting
it, be it well understood to those parts of Palestine with which I am
familiar) :
All stones showing what I propose to call "the medieval dress-
ing " (taiUc r)ie(UcBvah) were worked in by the Crusaders.
There is no need, I think, to insist further on the advantages which
may arise in a multitude of cases from an application of this rule,
reposing as it does on the result of minute observation, so to speak,
on what one may consider the " epidermis " of the blocks.
One knows also how much importance technical men attach to
LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU. 93
this detail. " The nature of the dressing is one of the most certain
means of recognising the date of the construction," says one of the
most learned architects of our time, M. VioUet le Due, in his
Didionnaire liaispnne de I' Architecture Francaise.
One of my first cares has been to commend these facts to the
attention of M. Lecomte, whose j)rofessional competence in the matter
is indispensable to me in order to determine with precision the instru-
ment and the method, by the aid of which was obtained this charac-
teristic dressing which appeared with the Crusaders, and which seems
to have disappeared with them.
I hope very shortly to send the Committee some photographs, draw-
ings, and squeezes, with which to supply to archaiologists comparative
graphic specimens of the different sorts of " dressing " employed at
different epochs in Palestine, and to place in their hands a convenient
and certain means of distinguishing at least one of these periods.
With the sanction of the Committee I would collect original speci-
mens of the stones themselves, to be submitted to men of the pro-
fession, and be judged definitely by them. This study may be peculiarly
fruitful in what relates to the blocks employed in the heterogeneous
enclosure of the Haram, and by analogous observation it may perhaps
establish a clear distinction, hitherto unknown, between the so-called
Herodian and Solomonic materials.
Besides the practical and local application which I have indicated,
this fact which I have pointed out concerning the " mediaeval dressing "
is capable of furnishing a new element in the history of the develop-
ment of Western architecture itself. It is known that the dressings
vai-y in the West according to the district and period. The period
being known, it would perhaps be easy to determine the original
European region of the method in question, and, in consequence, to
find out to what school the builders belonged who were employed by
the Crusaders.
It will not be forgotten that it was precisely in the twelfth centuiy
that (in France, at least) the different styles of dressing reached a great
degree of perfection. Some authors are even tempted to attribute this
result to the influence of Gra3co-Iloman art in Syria. I leave it to the
specialist to fijid out whether the point I raise is contrary to this expla-
nation or in its favour.
My researches with regard to the real site of Scopus have inciden- Excav.ition
tally led to a little "find" of some interest. In the course of my cinai cave
work I have had occasion to explore a sepulchral cave cut in the j^oimt'uf
mountain situated to the north of the Mount of Olives, near the place oiive?.
where the word Scopus is written on the Ordnance Survey map (scale
1-10,000). I should remark, by the way, that this mountain is called by
the feUahin of the locality, Ez ze 'lueyqa. The south-eastern brow
to the north of the road leading to 'Anata bears the name of El
Maittala, which means, literally, an elevated place whence one can see — an
obsei-vatory ; a word which is the exact equivalent of the Greek Scopos.
94: LETTERS FROM SI. CLERMONT-GANNEAU.
Sliould we place Scopus there, or at tlie other point, the northern
extremity, of this lon^ chain on the Roman road going to Nablous, at
the point marked on the Ordnance Survey map A 2686, 3. ? That point
has the very characteristic name, which I was the first to point out —
(see Burton and Drake's " Unexplored Syria," vol. ii.) — of Cherefe or
Medairif — observatory, '[)lacc ivlience one can see, which is the exact trans-
lation of Bcopos. Perhaps the true Scopus is neither the one nor the
other, but another part of this chain, extending from the Mount of
Olives to the Nablous road, whose summits bear different names, not
yet marked. As soon as the present bad weather is over I propose to
explore this chain very carefully from the onomastic point of view.
A j)Wori, the site Avhich would appear best to answer to the data of
the question, is the mamelon on which, in the Ordnance Survey maj), is
marked the word Mount (preceding the word Scopus). The fellahin
call it, if I remember rightly, KJull't el ^adjouz. This is the highest
point of the range ; it is, besides, at the precise distance mentioned by
Josephus. We shall see if any local tradition confirms this hypothesis
rather than any other.*
But to return to my sepulchre. It is composed of three rooms, com-
municating with each other by passages, pierced in the direction of the
axis of the doorway. I penetrated into the first by a kind of cistern-
mouth, opened in the roof to about three or four metres of eai'th. The
normal entrance is entirely masked from without by accumulations of
earth ; from within is seen the door, closed by a great slab, still in its
place. The first chamber contains nine loculi, perpendicular to the
walls, and distributed three by three on three sides ; the second con-
tains other loculi similar, less carefully cut ; as to the third, I have
only been able to penetrate into it with great difficulty, for it had been
almost entirely filled up with water by the rains. I remarked in the
first chamber, half filled with earth, the end of a bench cut in the
rock, which would run all round.
Many pieces of sarcophagi in soft limestone, exactly like those of
which I have often spoken before, both in material and form, were
scattered over the ground, with a quantity of bones and pieces of
pottery. Evidently the sepiilchre has been violated, but the violaters
did not take the trouble to carry away what they broke. I had all this
dehris carefully collected, and minutely examined the loculi in the first
chamber. My search produced results, and I had to send to the village
* Mr. Conder has just sliowii me a note on the position of Scopus, in wliiclilio
considi-rs the question from a practical and niilitnry point of view. These con-
siderations Avould tend to justify my first liypothesis, which consisted (see above)
in identifying Scopus, properly called, with cl Mccluirif. Two points may ha
remarked — (1) the existence of a great well at el IMccharif ; (2) that of a large
number of mechdhid, little heaps of .stones placed there by the Mussulmans
IjBcause, they say, it is the lyoint from which Jerusalem and the mosqzce of the Sakhra
are first ohservrd iii enmirwj from Nuhlons. Porliaps the word Scopus embraced tlio
whole of the chain stretching from the Mechfirif to the Mount of Olives (see p. 111).
LETTERS FROM JF. CLERMOXT-GANNEAU. 95
of Djebel efc Tour for an ass to carry away my ai'cboBological booty.
The most important pieces are : three fragments of Hebrew inscriptions
on pieces of sarcophagi ; a lachrymatory in glass, very well preserved,
and of an elegant form ; a little lamp in terra-cotta, unbroken (without
Christian symbols) ; a little instrument in bronze, forming a twig,
finely ornamented, having at one end a bud and at the other the
commencement of a narrow spatula ; two large nails ; a hundred nail-
heads, oxydised, seeming to indicate the presence of wooden coffins ; a
great many fragments of vases and lamps in terra-cotta ; and pieces of
sarcophagi' ornamented with roses. I have already found among the
latter fragments the materials for three complete sarcophagi. I
collected, besides bones, which may be of use to an anthropologist,
fragments of skulls, jawbones with teeth, &c. Lastly, which might be
the most important of all, I found in a loculus an antique coin in
bronze; unfortunately it is so much defaced that it is probably impos-
sible to identify it, and so to deduce a minimiim limit for the date
of the inhumations and the inscriptions. Other considerations,
already publiehed, make me place this about the first century of the
Christian era.
These unlooked-for results inspired a very strong desire to pusli
my researches farther. I could have wished to examine the third
chamber, which might have given me new texts or other objects — even
to have cleared away the entrance so as to study the mode of closing
the tomb. The proprietor of the ground, however, Avould not consent,
and I was obliged to put off my work till another day. I believe, how-
ever, that I shall eventually overcome his scruples without very great
expense.
Here are the three fragments of inscriptions : —
(1) A name beginning with . . . in% followed by jnD, son of, and
traces of letters belonging to the patronymic ; the letters which follow
. . . in"" are not very distinct; the last is certainly a ], the two
others appear to be a nun and a tau, — Jehonathan.
(2) There are four characters very clear, of which the two last, without
doubt, ai'e Jamcd and sliin ; as to the first or two first I do not know if
it is a hoph or a samecli, followed by another letter.
(3) Two characters, the first being certainly a pe, followed by a letter
mutilated by the fracture, but in which I see quite clearly the elements
oiahimed; but the Hebrew names beginning with these two letters
are too numerous for me to risk a restoration.
I have just observed a group of sepulchres cut in the rock, which, ?'°^J^f .*="*
so far as I know, have never been noticed. They are all in a large field in the
lying between the moat north-east of Jerusalem and the magnificent ami' lluuf '
pine standing close to a winepress worked by Mohammedans ; this yi^^fj;'
place is generally known imder the name of Ker7n ech-clieikli. These
sepulchres are interesting from a double point of view : (1) in regard
to their form, they belong to the horizontal system of rock sepulture ;
the entrance consists of a rectangular trench about Im'GO. by Om-45,
Jerusalem.
H
t-t
o
H
«
E-r
P=i
O
a
o
<
in
■<
I
a
H
O
C3
O
H
O
LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU. 97
and more than a metre in doptli ; at the end a rebate cut in the rock
appears to have been destined to receive and support a slab closing the
tomb properly so called, jjlaced in a sepulchral chamber situated below.
So far as I have been able to judge of the exterior, these chambers are
excavated in a vaulted form : they appear to have a considerable
extent, and the proprietor of the ground has assured me that many of
them communicate. I have not yet been able to examine further,
because they are partly inundated by the late rains. There have been
found in them, I am told by the proprietor, quantities of Irenes, broken
pottery, " boxes " in soft stone, and an ear-ring in gold, which he pro-
mised to show me.
(2) The position of the sepulchres may be of importance for the
question, adhuc suhjudice, of the third wall of Jerusalem. They extend
along a line of about 125 degrees, starting from the south-east angle of
the building, marked close to the great pine on the Ordnance Survey
map, and running to the road which passes along the moat of the city
at the north-east. "We counted a dozen openings of tombs, and the
last are hardly 40 metres from the moat of the city. If the examination
of these tombs, that we are about to make without delay, leads us to
assign them an ancient date, it is clear that the existence of a cemetery
of a certain date may furnish us proofs for or against the existence of
a third wall to the north of this point.
The proprietor of the ground told me that they had found another
great tomb cut in the rock under the wall north-east of the present
building (at the south side of the little court margined on the house
on the Ordnance Survey map). It appears, besides, that a tradition
assigns to the Kerm ech-cheikh a maqam of JEl Khadher (the prophet
Elijah). I think that there must exist about here many tombs of the
same kind. We know that it is very near this point that the parti-
sans of the identity of the tomb of Agrippa with the modern northern
wall place the Fuller's monu,ment spoken of by Josephus.
Note. — Accompanying this report were drawings and photo-
graphs, including: —
(1) The stripped side of the Kubbet es Sakhra, showing the newly
discovered balustrade, with round arches. (Photo.)
(2) The idol lately found at Gezer. (Photo.) A drawing of this
also arrived from Mr. Drake.
(3) An ancient sarcophagus, now placed in the Haram. (Photo.)
(4) Bilingual inscription from the Deir el Kelt. See p. 89.
(Photo.)
(5) Lamp, lachrymatory, SiC. (Photo.)
98
LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU.
Creat
eavem in
the side of
lUonnt Zion
"Ivmlv cut]
m the rock
north- east
*>i Jeru-
Jerusalem, Ja7i. 22, 1874.
A slight illness, whicli kept me in bed for eight days, and the bad
'\veather, which has rendered outdoor work impossible, have together
made the last fortnight one of small profit. I have, however, been able
to iitilise this forced inaction in studying by text certain questions which
should be the object of future research.
While exploring, some days before I fell ill, that part of Mount Zion
where, according to my calculations, the tombs of the kings of Judah
• should be, I remarked, about 280 English feet east of the great mulberry,
tree of Silwan, situated at the south-east angle of the " Old Pool " of the
O. S. map, a curious great cavern. The entrance is very narrow, but the
cave, which appears to be in part cut by the hand of man, enlarges
considerably, and plunges almost horizontally into the side of the hill.
At the end a pillar, rudely cut, supports the roof of the cavern, and I
think I saw openings to other galleries. Unfortunately, the interior
is in great part filled with earth, so that at certain points one is obliged
to creep in order to pass between the ground and the roof. I under-
took a small excavation in order to ascertain the extent and the direc-
tion of this cavern ; above all, its extent. I cut a narrow trench of no
great depth, with the intention of pushing it as fai* as the cave extends,
intending later on to cut deeper in order to reach the original bottom.
We were already fifteen metres from the entrance when my illness put
a stop to the works. The excavation has, up to the present, produced (1)
considerable quantities of bones, which appear to have been thrown in
pell-mell, as into a charnel-house ; (2) bits of broken pottery by the
thousand, some of which appear very ancient ; (3) a large number of
fragments of great stone vessels, worked all round in flutings and
mouldings ; (4) and lastly, one stone weight. I have brought away all
the things indiscriminately, and we have taken out and put aside for
photographing some as being worthy of attention. It is evident that
all this rubbish has been designedly accumulated in the cavern. I
believe that it would be desirable to pursue this reseai-ch, which may
be managed within the modest means at my disposal, as I only employ
two or three workmen at a time. I hope that, as we dig deeper down,
the fragments will become more ancient, and that we may find among
them some with characters — stamped jai'-handles and the like. Besides,
it seems to me very curious to know where this subterranean passage
leads. Without assuming that it may have a connection with the Tombs
of the Kings, we may suppose that it will teach us something on the
topogi'aphy of Zion.
As soon as I could walk, after my illness, I paid another visit to
the very curious tombs of which I spoke in my last report. We
have, with M. Lecomte, drawn up an exact plan of the ground where they
lie, so as to give their position relatively to the city. We have care-
fully noted the orientation, which differs with each. Within the plot of
w
O
-'«W»v^^/.,^„,.,^^^
,::..L^1_J^
i^t b
100 LETTERS FROM 31. CLERMONT-GANNEAU.
ground wliicli is bounded by a dry stonewall bordering tlie road we counted'
13 openings, some completely open, somepartiallyfilledAvitb earth, otbers
which seem to have been commenced and left unfinished. Opposite the
gate of the ground, on the road itself, we also remarked traces in the
scarp of the rock of three rectangular graves (belonging probably to the
same system) and of a great wall. On the counterscarp of the city
moat there exists one other grave, which might belong to the same
group.
We have not yet the time to study completely the interior of these
tombs. Up to the present we have only penetrated into those marked
I. and II. on the general plan. The plan and the detailed sections will
be found in a special drawing. We entered by the opening No. I.,
half destroyed by stonecutters, who here quarry the rock, and will very
soon destroy these remarkable monuments.
It is difficult to give, in a simple description, any idea of the arrange-
ment of these tombs, which (so far as we have seen) are composed
of a chamber oblong in plan, vaulted in the manner known technically
as " arc de doUre," or " coved vault,"' formed by the direct penetration.
of two cylinders ; whilst the vault known as " voute d' aretes," (the plain
(jrorned vault), is obtained by the intersection of two cylinders. Archi-
tects are well aware that the first-named system is older than the
second.
M. Lecomte has added to his plan a little sketch giving the geo-
metrical perspective of this vault. Below the springing of the vaults
are vertical walls ; at its summit is the opening of the grave, com-
municating with the exterior, and of this the bottom seems to have
been closed by a big block resting on a rebate cut in the rock.
The first chamber (0) which we entered, almost entirely filled with
earth, communicated by a small round opening (R) with a second
chamber (P). This is very small, and contains three loculi cut trough
fashion and parallel. A hole pierced by the Arabs in one of the angles
permits the visitor to penetrate to an adjoining chamber (Q), which
is only separated from its neighbour by a very thin wall of rock.
This third chamber is filled with earth nearly to the springing
of the vault, so that we could not discover the funereal arrangement.
At the top is the rectangular opening marked in the general plan
(under No. 2), by which this chamber opens directly to the exterior.
We visit a very curious tomb, in which, to the left on entering,
one sees an " arcosolinum " (?) covering in a troiagh, rounded at one
end, square at the other : the rounded end was evidently that in
which the head was, so that the feet were turned towards the
entrance. A second chamber, situated in the axis of the other, is
ended by a "hemicycle" (or semicircular apse). I have never untn
now met with this singular arrangement ; we shall see presently the
plan and section of this sepulchre, which is iinique in its way.
We shall return soon to the exploration of the other tombs, which
are at present filled with mud and water. I can at present give no
LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU. 101
•opinion whatever on the exact age of these tombs, and my
hesitation is increased by the importance of the question connected
with it, and which. I indicated in my last report, viz., the
-extension of ancient Jerusalem to the north of this point. I will
only observe for the moment that in building the Latin Patriarchate
there were found inside the present city, about 250 metres west of the
Church of the Holy Sepulchre, tombs with sarcophagi identical with
those ofwhich I have many times spoken, and a number of lachrymatory
glass vases, like those picked up by M. de Saulcy at the entrance of the
Gobour el Molouk, and to that found by myself in a sepulchral cave,
with fruijincnts of Ilehreio inscriptions.
I think it would be of some interest to attempt an excavation on this
spot to try to clear out one of the tombs not yet violated ; perhaps one
might come across something of an epigraphic character, or at least
some objects which might help us to determine the period to which
they belong.
One may compare the interior arrangement of the second chamber
with that of a tomb described by Lieut. Conder {Quarterly Statement,
1873, p. 22), which is close to the excavation marked Ko. 81 on the
Ordnance Survey map of Jei'usalem.* A little distance north of the
house of the Kerm ech Sheykh is an old Arab cemetery, which appears
to have been long abandoned.
Near the point where the curve ot the level (2479 of the Ordnance Aqueduct.
Survey map) meets the counterscarpf of the city moat (at the eastern
«nd of the curve) debouches an aqueduct, which appears to have come
from the north and to have been cut by the moat. It would perhaps
be worth while to ascertain its origin. I do not know whether it has
yet been pointed out.
Some metres east of this point the counterscarp cut in the rock turns Possible re-
abruptly at a right angle, then resumes its original direction for 25 .^i^^j^u^^
metres, and makes another rectangular bend. This redan does not Piscina cut
appear to me necessitated by any strategic reasons, for it corresponds
Avith no salient of the wall. May this not be, perhaps, an
ancient little "birket," of rectangular shape, Avhich may have been ciit
across, and almost entirely destroyed by the moat. In that case the
aqueduct and pool, if aqueduct and pool they were, would make
a part of the water-system of the north-east region, at present so
obscure. I confine myself for the present to the simple suggestion.
Descending the Wady en Nar, below the Bir Eyub, on arriving at ^'isoufCpei''
Ain el Loz, ten minutes' walk, a small wady is seen on the right, which Azal of
■comes from the west and drains into the Ain el Loz. This wady, which ^^*'''^" ^^^' ^^
is tolerably broad but very short, is marked, but without a name, on
some of the maps. The men of Siloam call it Wiidy asoiu, which we
must resolve into Wad + yasoul, not into Wady + asuul ; for other
* It is on the right-liand of the gi-eat north road, a short distance from the city.
t Close to the Damascus Giite.
102 LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU.
peasants liave pointed it out to me as Eheb yasoul and Ardh yasoul.
In any case, the word is certainly written with the sad and not the sin,
so that it con-esponds exactly, satisfying all the rules of etymology,
with the Hebrew b^S. which occurs in the difficult and famous passage
of Zechariah xiv. 5 : " And ye shall flee to the valley of the mountains
(Ge-harai) ; for the valley of the mountains shall reach unto Azal : yea,
ye shall flee, like as ye fled from before the earthquake in the days of
Uzziah king of Judah : and the Lord my God shall come, and all the
saints with thee." Schwarz in an ingenious note has proposed to see
in Geharai the Eruge of Josephus, mentioned by him d iiropos of the
earthquake in the reign of Uzziah.* As for Azal, the greater number
of commentators agree in considering it a place near Jerusalem ; t
some have even identified it with the Beth-ezel of Micah (i. 11) : " The
inhabitant of Zaanan came not forth in the mourning of Beth-
ezel." May it be YasAl ? Whatever it be, this little valley presents
points of great interest. In the south side have been excavated
several sepulchral caves. The bottom of the valley is full of
broken pottery, cubes of mosaic work, certain indications that the
place has been at some time inhabited. On the north side, half-way
up, I remarked in a plot of ground belonging to a Silwan man and
called Kerm Gamar (the enclosure of the moon) cisterns, niins, the
base and the capital of a column, a fragment of lintel with a cross,
and an extremely elegant lid of a sarcophagus in hard stone. You will
find enclosed a sketch of Lecomte's giving these interesting remains.
I have, besides, acquired of the proprietor of the ground two out of
twenty lamps found by him in a sepulchral cave cut in this Kerm : the
one is of elegant form with ornaments finely executed ; the other bears
a Greek inscription that I have not yet been able to decipher.
Objects I have just seen at the Latin Patriarchate a very interesting coUec-
se^chre^t tion of objects taken from a tomb opened in a plot of ground of Beit
Beit Djala. pgjala belongingto this religious establishment. Two very fine alahastra,
a gi-eat deal of terra-cotta with a star drawn in the centre, a quantity
of phials in glass of various forms and sizes (double, with blue enamel,
&c.) , many lamps in terra-cotta ornamented with crosses of different
shape— one with this inscription— thC geotokot (of the virgin). I
will photograph the entire group.
Fragments I have seen in the hands of a Mussulman, and I hope to get it myself
inscription for a trifle, a fragment of a Greek inscription found not far from the
fnunil at the
Damascus * " In the meantime a great earthquake shook the ground, and a rent was
made in the temple, and the bright rays of the .sun shone through it, and fell
upon the king's face, insomuch tliat the leprosy seized upon him immediately :
and before the city at a place called Eroge, half the mountain broke away from
the rest on the west, and rolled itself four furlongs, and stood still at the east
mountain till the roads, as well as the king's gardens, were spoiled by the
ohstraction."— Josephus, Antiq., ix. 10. 4.
t Schwarz places it El Azariyeh, the traditional Bethany.
gate,
LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU. 103
gate of Damascus (north of it), perhaps near the tombs pointed out by
Lieutenant Conder, of which I speak above. The characters are clear,
distinct, and deeply marked; they appear to be of the Byzantine period.
I give a transcript, though not an exact drawing : —
HIMn
NATT
EPOI
Could this fragment be connected in any way with the Church of St.
Stephen, which was near here ?
I have gathered from the mouth of a Mussulman of Jerusalem a Legend of
rather curious legend on the Wady Kelt and its aqueducts. Although the Wad/
his narrative is deficient in local accuracy, and I shall have to vei'ify it '^''^''•
on the spot, it will not be inopportune to note it here.
A Christian woman caused an aqueduct to be constracted in the
Wady Kelt, in order to irrigate the plain of Jericho. Then came Moses
(Sidna Mousa), who wanted to do the same. The Christian woman
having refused to help the labour of Moses in allowing him to run his
aqueduct over a certain place, a challenge followed on either side as to
who should first finish the work. Then Moses took his rod and traced
on the ground with the end of it a road which the water followed
immediately, running into the Birhet Musa, which is at the foot of Beit
Djaber. The remarkable point of the legend is that it gives us, in all
probability, the real origin of the name Wady Kelt ; it was, in fact, to
irrigate the plain {minchati yi<jaUit) that the rival constructors wished to
make their aqueducts. Now yigaUit is the second form of a verb galad,
which has not the sense of irrigating, filling a reservoir, at all: it
is the verb galat which has this meaning. The change of the final d
for a t would be the result of rapid pronunciation. And just as this
is yigaUit for yigcdlid, so then might be the Wady trc/i (kelt) for the
Wady Geld. On this theory the Wady Geld, Gelt, or Kelt, signifies
the valley of irrigation, a name which is explained by the presence
of the three aqueducts which we find there.
The same man told me that there was in the same valley a spring legend
whose name he did not know, bewitched ivith the black inan and the luhite enchanted
{marsoud 'ala 'l-'abed ou'l-horr).* The water of the spring at one f?'"Jy'^'V ™
moment wells up abundantly and at the next disappears, so that often Kelt.
you have not the time to drink. The reason of this intermittence is
that the white man and the negro are waging a pei-petual battle ; when
the negro has the better the water comes up, when the white is con-
queror the water disappears.
During the heavy winter rains there are formed, close to the gardens The Buas.
of Jaffa and to the west, real lakes of considerable extent. The
largest of these marshy ponds lies south of the road, and is called
by the name of Bassa, a word applied in other parts of Syria to similar
pools. As for the signification of the word in Arabic, nothing more
* "Horr" literally means /wc??ia?i; " 'abed" sfow.
104 LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU.
satisfactory can be found tlian that of firebrand, lighted wood. The
same word, on the other hand, is found in the Bible (Bissa, nX3)
used to signify a lahe or marsh. " Can," asks Bildad (Job viii. 11),
"the rush grow up without mire? can the flag grow tip without
water ? "( nunxbD). And further on (Job xl. 21) " (Behemoth) lieth under
the shady trees, in the covert of the reed and fens." And the word is
also found in Ezekiel xlvii. 11, "The miry places thereof and the
marshes thereof shall not be healed, they shall be given to salt."
Commentators and lexicographers (cf. Gesenius and Fiirst) derive this
Aramaic word from a hypothetical root "il>"3, to which, relying on the
Arabic hudhdha, they give the meaning of '' paidatim fluxit et emanavit
aqua.'"'' The supposition appears to me entirely gratuitous ; in fact, the
existence of the Bassa at Jaffa and other places proves that Bassa,
in the sense of pond, is allied with the Arabic hassa, to shine. The
origin of the word shows that the meaning "pond" is connected
with shining or glittering in the sun. It is exactly the same idea
which has given the similar word its meaning of firebrand. A similar
reasoning could be extended to the word ain, which in Hebrew and
Ai'abic has the double meaning of a7i eye and a fountain, surely far
enough removed from each other. The meaning in both cases has
been borrowed from one and the same primitive sense.
Head of I have just acquired of an Arab mason two curious objects found
statue and ,,. .. .. , r -< i-
figure of by him some years since m repairing a sewer and some loundation
Venus. work under the Mehkeme. The first is a head, rudely carved in lime-
stone, and of a very curious appearance. Ton might be tempted at
times to ascribe an Egyptian origin to it, but the execution is too rude
for me to assign any period to it.
The other object is a little figure in lead of about five centimetres in
height, representing a woman nude to the girdle, the lower part of the
body draped, the arms folded and raised above the head, an attitude
which reminds one of certain statues of Venus. The statuette has been
a good deal injured, but the outlines are still elegant, and the whole
figure is in conformity with the rules of ancient art. According to
ecclesiastical tradition there was, as we know, a temple in which the
Church of the Holy Sepulchre now stands, consecrated to Yenus, and the
mysteries of Adonis were celebrated in the Grotto of the Nativity at
Bethlehem. Are we to see in this statuette a specimen of the Yenus
of (Elia Capitolina ? You shall have drawings of these two things next
"week.
VI.
Jeeusaiem, February 8th, 1874.
The bad weather which prevails at present, Avith rain, snow, and hui-ri-
cane, has prevented the carrying out of my plans, and has confined our
operations to a few intermittent labours, interrupted at every moment,
LETTERS FROM M. CLEEJIONT-GANNEAU. 105
and resumed whenever the Veathcr permits. The effect of the inter-
ruptions will be clearly noticeable in the results which I forward you.
The Committee will probably romembor that among my i^roposed j.^'^.^^nf"
researches I pointed out certain rock-cut chambers immediately beside clKunbeis
■■^ . •' west ol tlio
the rock in the Ecce Homo Church. The presence, previously unsus- Ecue Uoma
pected, of these excavations in the interior of Jerusalem, and in a place ^''ii"''^''-
which is particularly interesting as regards the topography of the Holy
City, is a fact of great importance, and one of my first cares was to visit
the chambers with M. Lecomte, in order to get an exact j)lan of them.
The work, which it was desii'able should be accurate, was rendered difficult
by the complication of modern houses placed at different levels, and leaning
on the flank of Bezetha, so as to mask the general direction and particular ♦
aspect. We were therefore obliged to give several days to the work.
We met with an excellent reception froiu the residents of the houses —
Arabs of Greek religion — and every facility for accomplishing our task.
The work was nearly finished, and there only remained a last visit to be
made to take cei-tain measurements, when an unforeseen accident put an
end to our examiaations. The very day when we were to return, an
hour before our arrival, the house, an old tumbledown ruin, saturated
with the heavy rains, suddenly fell down. We found nothing but a
mountain of debris, completely barring the Via Dolorosa. We had had
a narrow escape. An hour later and we should have been in the cellars
of the house, and in all jjrobability there would have been an end of all
oui- archaeological labours. Fortunately the house was uninhabited.
The worthy people next door escaped with no worse injury than a
horrible fright. They had, however, to decamp immediately, theii- own
house appearing desii'ous of following its neighboiu-'s example, so that
it was judged expedient to anticipate its wish and pull it do^vn at once.
This mifortunate contretemps leaves us with an unfinished plan on our
hands, and I fear they will j)ile up the fallen stones in such a way as to
hinder access to the chambers. Anyhow, the essential part of the work
is done, and the plan, such as it is, very minute, so far as it goes, gives a
good idea of the place.
The followinr^ notes Avill serve to some extent to describe what we
found : — ■
You know the escariHuent of rock (O. S., No. 72) in the Ecce Homo
Church, forming, with a length of sever;il meti'cs, part of the northern
wall of the chm-ch. The escarpment suddenly stops, interrupted by the
houses which rise west of the church, and which line the Via Dolorosa
as far as the garden of the Austrian Hospice. It is behind these houses
(there arc three) that I found and marlced the rock forming a continua-
tion to this escarpment, about 25 metres in length. Proceeding from
east to west, in the first house is observed a piece of rock in nearly the
same line as the escarpment of the church. The wall makes almost
directly an obtuse-angled bend to the north-west, and gets buried among
buildings where it cannot be followed. The presence of the rock up to
this point is noted by Tobler (" Dritte Wanderung," p. 249). Passing
106 LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU.
into the next house, we find the rock with its general direction to the
west (slightly southing), with a length of about 12 metres. Arrived at
this point, the rock offers a peculiarity of double interest to the archse-
ologist and topographer. In the vertical wall is cut a corridor, -winding
at first, which plunges into the masonry and takes a north-west direction.
It divides in two my first chamber, irregularly cut in the living rock, with
flat ceiling, flanked right and left by two broad stone benches, measuring
nearly 2*20 by 2-40 metres. After this it immediately abuts on a second
chamber also cut in the rock about 3 by 3 metres, with irregular angles.
A space opening out in the wall north of this chamber loses itself in the
earth and masonry. In the last wall is indicated a doorway whose
framework has given way ; the upper part alone is pierced, and gives
access to a little alcove, which seems an unfinished chamber. In the
south wall two doors have been opened similarly with fallen in frame-
work, one of which communicates with the first chamber already de-
scribed, and the other debouches into a thii'd chamber cut in the rock,
with a complicated arrangement of benches. This is not all. On the
lower floor — the cellar, so to speak, of the house — the same wall of
rock is perceived descending below the actual level of the street. A
broad bay forming a vestibule is cut in it, and gives access to a
group of chambers also cut in the rock, extending in a north-west
direction under the chambers above, with which they communicate by
means of a hole.
Lastly, in the third house near this, the rock is found again, at the end
of the lower caves or chambers ; it has been cut in the same way, and
appears to have been cloven by an earthquake. Immediately beyond
is the partition wall separating this last house from the garden of the
Austrian Hospice.
The exploration of these lower regions was not by any means easy
or pleasant, on account of the mass of filth and rubbish piled up
nearly to the roof in the rock-cut chambers, over which we had to
clamber and creep ; one room in which we were obliged to remain several
hours was a mere receptacle of sewage, though fortunately disused for
some time. However, temporary uneasiness is forgotten in thinking
how nearly this wretched place was becoming our tomb.
Cisterns made at different points along this line of the rock have
been sounded by us, and have given depths which show that the rock
extends several metres below the level at which it ceases to be visible.
This line is at a mean distance of about nine metres at the back and
north of the Via Dolorosa. It is more than probable that it is directly
connected with the rock which was observed in the construction of
the Austrian Hospice, at the north-east angle of the actual building.
There also is found a rock-cut chamber which Tobler ( " Dritte Wan-
derung," pp. 244, 245) is tempted to consider as a stable of great an-
tiquity. It is difficult for one to pronounce on the destination of this
chamber, now transformed into a cistern and consequently inaccessible ;
but I am sure, and M. Lecomte entirely agrees Avith me, that the
LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU. 107
chambers visited and noted by us have not been cut for any such
pui-pose as a stable ; the only doubt is whether to call them chambers
for the living or for the dead. The latter destination appears much
more probable, and in this case it is unnecessary to point out that
sepulchres cut in a place situated more than 250 metres south of the
north wall of the present city, and at a few metres only from the town
of Antonia, must necessarily go back to a remote antiquity, and bring
us to the time of the Jebusites, or at least to a period which precedes
the reign of Herod Agi-ippa.
The people of the house reported to us that, according to an ancient Ancient
tradition, there was formerly in one of the higher cliambors into which johu^the j
there is an entrance by the passage described above, a chapel dedicated ^^v^*^ '
to St. John the Baptist {3far Hanna el m'a moudany). I do not know
what foundation this legend may have. It is not impossible that at
some time or other one of these chambers was converted into a little
chapel; if so, the little alcove spoken of above woizld certainly serve
as a small apse. It appears that some years ago ancient coins were
found in the square opening cut at the end of the second chamber.
I have ascertained the existence, at about 110 metres north-west of Ancient
the ancient tank. No. 81 of the O. Survey, and west of the great the^ash^^
northern road, of two tomb openings cut in the rock, apparently be- ^^^P*-
longing to the same system as the sepulchres which we found near the
Kerm-ech-cheikh (see Eeport No. V.).
The excavation on Mount Zion (see preceding Eeport) is goino- on. Ercavati<ni
We have reached the end of the gallery, and the men are now zion.'*
cutting down to the rock as they work back to the entrance. We
keep on finding an incredible quantity of fragments of stone vessels
in all shapes and sizes, together with certain other objects, among them
spur rowels in hard stone, and a truncated cone in stone worked all
round, which ought to be of very ancient date, judging by the calca-
reous deposit which adheres to one side. There is another stone object
also representing a truncated cone. Up to the present, no trace of in-
scriptions, if we except a plain cross -}- on a jar handle.
We profited by a little clearing up in the weather during the last few Cho'at
days to make an excursion to Chofat. We examined the village atten-
tively, and remarked hardly anything old in the buildings. The only
observations worth being noted are the following.
We penetrate into a Mussulman's house to examine Avhat the people El KenisS.
call El Kenise (the Church), and find in the midst of suflfocating smoke,
which nearly blinds us, a piece of wall Avith two windows in ogive of
fairly good workmanship, looking east ; no trace of an apse ; the
dressing of the stone does not appear of Crusading date. Above,
on a terrace, a chimney in stone reminding one of that which I pointed
out at Neby Chamouil. There is no spring in the village, nor in the
neighbourhood. The wely of the place is called Sultan Ibrahim. The
old name of Chofat was Alaikon. I was also told of Dcir el Malirowj,
the burned convent.
I
lOS LETTERS FROM M. CLERMOXT-GANNEAU,
The name of Alaikon is strange, and I do not see wliat its origin
could have been. It was given me by a woman, the accuracy of whose
information I have since i^roved. I have often remarked in Palestine that
the women are much more archaic, so to speak, than the men, in manners,
language, conversation, recollection, and costume. I have often been able
to get information from them that I should have vainly asked the men.
The inhabitants of Chofat are very savage and mistrustful. I had at
first aE the trouble in the world to get them to answer any questions.
The woman who gave me the name of Alaikon had hardly pronounced it
when her husband ordered her to be silent, and abused her in round
terms for revealing the name to a stranger. Some carried their ill-
temper so far as insolence. One, v>^hoso name I asked, informed me
with a grin that he was called Khobez (bread). I replied that I was
named Toiimm (mouth), and was quite ready to make a mouthful of him.
Bringing them thus to theii- senses, we so far succeeded in parting friends
that the fellah whose house we had visited actually refused to take any
lakhcJdch !
.egendof According to a legend of the country, evidently of Christian
>hat, King origin, there was formerly at Chofat a king named YilchdJTd, of whom
<f Chofat. Biention is made in the I'ora (Bible). It was he who gave his name to
the place. It is not necessary to explain that this second-han-d tradition
has not even the advantage of being based on any etymological analogy,
for the Hebrew name of Jehoshaphat does not contain the aiii which
exists in the word Gho'fat. Perhaps the proximity of the Valley of
Jehoshaphat has had something to do with this made-up tradition,
'omb with A boy of the village told me of a cavern into which he had entered
us. while running after a porcupine, and where he had found several saaa-
di(j (sarcophagi) of stone -rtith bones in them. AYe immediately went to
the place, which is about twenty metres from the village, in the direction
of the Eussian buildings. After examining it I decided upon setting
four or five men at work to dig and clear out the entrance of the tomb.
The next day I returned, and found that the men had cleared out for
several metres in length the tunnel made by the porcupine in order to
get at the tomb Avhich he had chosen for domicile. I crept into this
narrow passage, along which one had to cravd at full length. About the
middle I had to tm-n, keeping the same position, and at one time I
thought that I could neither advance nor recede. At last I succeeded in
dragging myself to the door of the chamber, and got in. Here I found
nine locuU, in the form of ovens, disposed thi-ee by three in each of the
three walls. At the left of the entrance, half buiied in the ground
which filled up the chamber and in places nearly touched the roof, I
found a sarcophagus in stone, of very small dimensions, ornamented
with roses, and at the smaU end with a palm branch. It contained
fragments of the bones of an adult. At the end of another locidus, and in
the direction of the axis, was placed a sarcophagus of larger dimensions
and finer work, covered with a lid. At the foot and in front is placed
upriglit a little phial in terra-cotta. Another loctdas on the side opposite
LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU. 10!)
to this was covered with a great slab rudely cut, wedged up by little
stones placed between its higher edge and the margin of the entrance
of the loculus. I had it taken away at once, but there was nothing
there except a few fragments of bones falling to j)owdcr, and the
skull of an adult. All the earth in the chamber was turned over and
dug up by the animal which had installed itself there and left plenty
of traces of his dwelling, such as quills (r29 metro long. He had
made himself a very comfortable place, the loculi serving for all sorts
of purposes.
I gave the men orders to clear out the real entrance to the tomb, and
to look in the earth for any other objects or bones.
Next day I went with them, and saw that the primitive opening of
the tomb, by which it was now easy to enter, was 10 metres at least
apart from that by which I had entered. At the end of the trench I
distinguished clearly the great block of stone which originally closed
the door. Its displacement shows, what was clear already from the
internal aspect of the tomb, that the sepulchre is not in its original
condition, and that it has evidently been used for a second time. I think
that the sarcophagi belong to the earlier period, for we afterwards
found many fragments in the earth. Other sarcoj)ha,gi imbroken have
since been- brought to Hght, notably one larger than any of the rest,
covered with a triangular lid.
I ought to have received yesterday everything that was found in the
tomb, but the snow, which has been falling for the last two days, has
prevented the fellahin from bringing the things. I hope to find inscrip-
tions on the sarcophagi, Avhich appear to be of the same material as
those previously described by me.
One of my men told me that Khirbet el 'Adese, north of Bir Nebala, Khirbet el
•^ . Adese.
is called also BeitLidje.
Some days ago we went A%dth a Silwan man and a Bedouin of g°??^®|J*
the Sawaheret el "Wad, to visit some tombs near Beit Sahour, in the el 'Ati'ga.
Kedron Yalley, a little below the Bir Eyub. The tombs that we saw
offer nothing new or remarkable. We visited the great tomb first
explored by Captain Warren, and found there a quantity of bones and
skulls, apparently of recent date.
Our guides gave to the little wady south of the great wady which Wady es
separates these tombs from the ruins of Beit Sahour the name of '
Wadf/ es Sulci, or Bjuft es Scda. On the road I gathered certain bits
of information from the guides, some of which seem to be of value.
The high hill rising to the west of Beit Sahour, separated from the Djebel el
Djebel Deir Abou Thor by the Wady Yasoul, is called DJeM el Muta- Mukabber.
chahber (el-mukabber). From the summit one can get a very fine
panoramic view of Jerusalem from the Tower of David to the south-east
angle of the Haram. High up grows an olive-tree called Zeitonnet en
oiehy (the prophet's olive-tree). The projihet (Mahomet, the legend xhc I'ro-
says) being come to besiege Jerusalem, occupied by Pagans, c?y«7ii7/?/r P'^'^'s olive
(neither Christians, Jews, nor Mussulmans), i^laced himself at this
110 LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANXEAU.
tree, and began shooting arrows at Jerusalem. One of them struck
the king of the Pagans, who was at a window of the Haram, and killed
him. But the Pagans came out in force against the prophet, and made
him beat a precipitate retreat. It was not till later that the Pagans
were vanqmshed and Jerusalem taken by Hassam, son of Paul (Boulos),
father of Martha, brother of Simon (Sim'an), sumamed ^Es SaHbi,
meaning Salib, a cross.
Care of One of the guides, speaking of the cave at Khureitun, the traditional
caUedel' cave of Adullani, said that it was called Mcgharet el Mi'sd.
3l"rd the ^^ ^^^*^ gave us a long story about the ruins of Merd, south of the
city of :sini- Neby Mousa. These, he said, were the city of King Nimrod (Medinet
Nimroud), who impiously caused himself to be adored by his subjects,
and who was killed by a wasp or a mosquito (heshes) sent by God to
chastise him, and which got in at his nose (a well-known legend). They
still show at this place the tomb of Nimroud. Here we have evidently
to do with the onomastic legends, to which I have already called
attention; in fact, the name of Nimrod comes, like that of Merd, from a
root (marad) used in Hebrew and Arabic.
,5 All attempts to find an ancient locality hidden under the name of
'1 Merd have hitherto failed. Some have proposed the Maroth of Micah i.
12 ("For the inhabitant of Maroth waited carefidly for good ; but evil
came down from the Lord unto the gate of Jerusalem"), confounded by
Schwarz with Me'arat.
Mered, son In the genealogy of Judah, as it is given in 1 Chron. iv.,are a crowd of
trf Judah. names of cities belonging to the territory of the tribe of Judah presented as
'< personages descending from the patriarch. Among these synonyms
'J are the group of the sons of Ezra. 1 Chron. iv. 17 : "And the sons of
Ezra were Jether, and Mered, and Epher, and Jalon." "Without
entering into the various questions arising out of this obsciu-e pass-
age, which exegesis has not yet solved, I confine myself to remarking
that the ethnical synonym Mered is the exact equivalent of the Arabic
'j/ierd, and that it is possible that the text refers to the locality designated
under the latter name.
KrEyoub. I heard my guide say Ber, not Bir, Eyoub. The pronunciation is
curious, because, under this form, the word ber (well) gives exactly the
vocalisation of the corresponding Hebrew form.
iegcDd of A 2^fopos of Bir Eyoub, a current tradition among the Silwan
niraculous people tells how Job (Neby Eyoub), lying ill, and eaten by worms,
we at Bir p^tired into a cavern situated to the west of Bir Eyoub (in the side of
Djchcl es Soneik), whither his Avife came every morning bringing him
food. (Here follows the legend that may be read in Khoudemir, and
which is found at length in Herbelot's Oriental Library). Every day
Job went to bathe in a hole filled with water where the well now stands,
untn, by the wUl of God, he recovered his health, and came out of
the bath young again, like a boy of fourteen years — ibn arba'atacher
senc — literally, " like a eon of fourteen years." The latter expression is
very striking, for it is the literal representation of the Hebrew form.
ON THE IDENTIFICATION OF SCOPUS.
Ill
that is seen, for example, in 2 Chron. xxvii. 1 : " Jotham was twenty
and five years old . . ." Literally, " Jotham was a son of twenty
and five years."
This hole, filled Avith water, became then a fountain, which is now
the well. The fcUahin distinguish very clearly between the water of
Bir Eyoub, which is sweet {helwe), and that of the Silwan fountain,
which is brackish {muVlia). This fact is the more curious because
Josephus expressly speaks of the sweet water of Siloam. I do not see
how to fit this characteristic detail, which would apply much more to
Bir Eyoub, with the theory which makes the fountain of Silwan the old
Siloam.
C. Cleemont-Ganneau.
ON THE IDENTIFICATION OF SCOPUS.^
In a previous report (see Quarterly Statement, Jan., 1873, p. 20) I
mentioned a site which appeared to me undoubtedly that of Scopus. As
my views have lately met with unexpected confirmation, I propose to
enlarge a little more on the subject.
The point which it appears to me has been most neglected is that
Scopus was not a mere high point of ground, but in the immediate
vicinity was a plain [xQap.a\os, depression) of some considerable extent.
Not only have we the positive assurance of this by Josephus ( Wars,
V. 2. 3), but the events which are recorded iu connection with this
locality also require such a supposition. Alexander, advancing on Jeru-
salem, from the north, was here met by the high priest and priests
(Joseph. Antiq. xi. 8. 5) accompanied by a great multitude. That some
spot should have been chosen where the spectators, spreading out on
a convenient extent of plain ground, might have witnessed the meet-
ing upon whose termination the fate of Jerusalem depended, it is only
natural to suppose. Such a site it is not easy to find in many places
on the north side of Jerusalem. When we read that in two distinct
advances upon the city by Cestius and by Titus a camp was formed, it at
once suggests that the site must have possessed military advantages of a
striking character, and a position favourable for the construction of a
camp.
Looking at the matter simply from a military point of view, it is also
evident that generals, experienced as were the Eomaus, would never
have committed the mistake of a flank march in the face of the enemy,
which would have left their main line of communication open to attack.
Now, knowing as we do that the 12th and loth legions were advancing
from Galilee, through Samaria and Gophna, and there is no reason
to suppose by any other than the main Eoman route through the country
* See Josephus, Ant. x. 8. 5 ; Wars, ii. 19. 4 ; v. 3. 11.
112 ox THE IDENTIFICATION OF SCOPUS.
passing by Nablus, it seems absurd to imagine tbat on aiTiving at the
rido-e north of Jerusalem they should have marched away eastwards to
the narrow summits which stretch towards the traditional Mount Scopus.
And again, when we reflect that these legions were afterwards
employed towards the west, and not on the eastern side of Jerusalem,
•where another force was subsequently encamped, it becomes impossible to
suppose that Titus should have marched and countermarched so im-
] portant a portion of his army eastwards and westwards always in face
* of the enemy.
1 Prom these considerations we obtain certain requisites for the position
i of Scopus. First, that a plain should be found capable of containing at
least two Eoman legions, encamped in custra cestiva, and not a mere
hasty construction intended simply for one night's occupation. Secondly,
that in the immediate vicinity of this plain should exist a ridge from
which Jerusalem should for the first time become clearly visible to those
advancing from the north. Thirdly, that the distance of the site should
be seven furlongs from the wall bounding Jerusalem on the north in the
time of Cestius, commonly known as the third, being that built by
Agrippa, measured probably from a gate or point of importance on that
line. Fourthly, that the site should be upon the very route by which
the Eoman army advanced. Fifthly, that it should present military
advantages as a camping ground. Sixth, and lastly, that at the dis-
tance of some three furlongs farther north, a second camping ground
■^ should be found for the 5th legion advancing by the same line to support
those in position at Scopus. If, in addition to these very definite data,
the name, or one of similar meaning, can be found in the immediate
neighbourhood, the question, it would seem to me, is virtually set at rest.
The site which more than a year ago I pointed out as f ulfilKng these
requii'ements is immediately east of the great north road from Jerusalem
to Nablus. It is one of the peculiarities in the site of the capital that it
is entirely concealed until the last ridge has been reached, from which
the road descends rapidly and passes along to the Damascus gate. From
this ridge the grey northern wall of the city is seen in its full extent —
the great domes of the Holy Sepulchre and Jewish Synagogue, the Tower
of David, and the crescent of the Mosque lying low down on the sloping
site which makes Jerusalem appear as if in constant danger of sliding
r, into the Kedron valley — all these burst suddenly on the view at a
" distance of about one and a half miles, and remind one forcibly of the
i; description by Josephus of that place "very properly called Scopus,"
from whence first ".a plain view might be taken" of the great Temple
and the flourishing city, now dwindled into a round chapel and a
moderate Oriental town.
Directly in front of this ridge is a small plateau averaging 300 yards
in breadth, and extending for about 800 yards eastwards to a point where
the ground sinks rapidly and forms a shallow valley, which, turning
Bouth, runs into the larger Wady ol Goz. On the west the ground becomes
rougher and higher, extending to the eminence above the tombs of the
ox THE IDENTIFICATION OF SCOPUS. 113
Judges. Southwards, and between the city and the plateau, another swell
in the ground divides the latter from Wady el Goz, into which there is a
rapid descent. Thus, any force upon the plateau is completely hidden
from observation in the city. Occupying thus a position of considerable
strength, and commanding the approaches on the south and south-east,
where the ground is lower, the site is only approachable on a level on
the west, but a very small force holding the ridge upon this site would
effectually prevent surprise from any quarter. The ridge behind the
camp communicating with the rear along the north road, runs also con-
tinuously round to the summit of the traditional Mount Scopus, and thus
for any force on the plateau there was a perfect communication along
ground which could not be commanded with that encamped on the
Mount of Olives. It is clear, therefore, that the plateau possesses the
military advantages of being directly upon the line of communication, of
being difficult to approach from the front, and having good communica-
tions with the flanks and in rear. Finally, it is capable of holding a
large body of men entirely concealed at no great distance from the enemy.
We have now to consider whether the site is large enough for the
numbers encamped, observing, however, that if it be not, nevertheless it
is the largest available on this side of the city, where it would be
exti'emely difficult to find a similarly suitable bit of ground.
The numbers of the Eoman legion differed essentially at different
periods of the history of the city ; we have, however, only to deal with the
ordinary numbers during the Imperial period. The legion was thett
divided into ten cohorts, of which the first, which belonged to the eagle,
consisted of 960 men, the remainder of 480 each, answering to a brigade
of 11 battalions in modern warfare. The total number of men was
therefore 5,280, and we must count on 15,000 men for the sum of the
two legions in question without reference to supplementa and camp
followers.
In the fourth century of the era of the city a hasty camp for two
legions with cavalry and socii, a force of 16,800 foot and 1,800
cavalry, measured 2,017 Roman feet (11'6 inches) square, and contained
therefore about 114 acres. In the seventh century three legions with
supplementa — a consular army, occupied a stationary camp [castra
(estiva) which measured 2,320 by 1,620 Roman feet, or an area of about 86
acres. It was of the latter rather than the former proportions that the
camp of Titus for two legions was constructed, and wo shall therefore
require a space of about 60 acres at least. The i^lain, as measured with-
out encroaching upon the slopes of the hills, occupies about 50 acres, but
the remaining 10 are obtainable either by crossing the road or by-
descending slightly the slope of the valley on the east. The space is
therefore sufficient for the site of the required camp.
There is no difficulty as to the position required for the second camp,
that of the 5th legion. At a distance of some three furlongs north, aal
beyond the ridge, there is a considerable piece of plain ground extending
towards Tell el Ful, close to the great north road.
I
114 THE SHAPIRA COLLECTIOX.
The military and other requirements are thus fulfilled by the site iu
question in a manner not possible under other circumstances.
Finally, "we obtained yesterday a confirmation for which I had hardly
hoped. The name El Mesharif had been already obtained as
applicable to certain points along the ridge, but the unhesitating verdict
of more than half a dozen witnesses separately interrogated during our
ride pointed to the ridge immediately over which the Nablus road passes
as being the exact poiut to which this title, meaning "the look-out," and
identical with the Greek <tkoitos, applied.
It seems to me, therefore, impossible to dispute the identification,
which is of value, because seven furlongs, measured from the centre of
the plateau, reaches exactly to the large masonry discovered by Captain
Wilson and supposed to be part of the third wall, thus militating against
the modern idea which would on the north confine ancient Jerusalem to
the narrow limits of the modern town.
Claude E. Coxder, Lieut. R.E.
Note. — I learn that JI. Ganneau had already obtained this name for the same
spot in 1S70.
THE SHAPIEA COLLECTION.
The following correspondence appeared in the AtJicnceum of Jan.
24 and March 7 of the present year. It is reproduced here, by kind
permission of the Editor, in order that our readers who have already
read the first announcements of these forgeries in earlier reports, may be
informed of the exposures that have been made.
"Jerusalem, Dec 29, 1873.
" Before detailing the results obtained on the spot in the elucidation
of this question, I raay be permitted to record the fact that my opinion
on the subject was formed at the outset, and has never varied. The
first papers printed in Germany on the subject of this inscribed pottery
produced upon mc the immediate impression that it was the work of a
forger, while the drawings sent to London, and shown to me, served to
confirm this first impression. Nevertheless, my judgment being based
on indirect, and, so to speak, personal proofs, I did not think myself
justified in pronouncing my opinion publicly, although several times
invited to do so. Before the verdict of scientific authority so consider-
able as that of Germany, I thought it -wise to reserve an opinion which
might have seemed rash, or even inspired by a sentiment of jealousy or
envy. I had, however, several opportunities of speaking confidentially
to members of the Palestine Fund Committee, who can bear witness to
my assertions. I had even gone so far as to point out « priori, and
without any information, the probable forger — the author of the mys-
tification. The event has proved me right. The name of the person
THE SnAPIRA COLLECTION. 11.5
very soon figured in the official Ilcports (whicli accompanied and
authenticated many of the specimens) as the princpal agent employed
by M. Shapira, whoso good faitli, I hasten to say at once, I have no
intention of suspecting, and who appears, so far as I have gone, to bo
the first dupe, and not the accomplice, of this colossal deception. The
forger in question, as I have always said, is Selim el Gari, a painter by
trade, to whom the habit of daubing bad Neobyzantine pictures for
Greek pilgrims has imparted a certain readiness and skill. I had to do
■with him at the commencement of the Moabite Stone business. He had
•copied a few lines from, the original seen by him at Diban, and I have
always carefully kept this copy, which was rough but faithful, and
which at least enabled me to detect from the very first, in the fantastic
inscriptions of the Shapira Collection, the characteristic and peculiar
manner in which our artist sees, understands, and designs the Moabite
letters ; among other things, there being a certain manner of drawing
the viini peculiar to him, which, covipled with other facts of the same
land, enabled me to recognise his workmanship with as much readiness
as one recog-nises a man's handwriting.
" In addition to this, the examination of the inscriptions was, accord-
ing to me, amply sufficient to show that they, v/ere apocrj^phal. How
to explain, for instance, that hundreds of texts found in Moab written
in characters sensibly similar (much too similar) to those of the stele of
Mesa should be completely unintelligible ? For it is impossible to receive
as serious translations certain unfortunate attempts made in Germany
and England to make sense of these inscriptions — attempts often con-
tradictory, which have served to show, not only the ingenuity and
erudition of their authors, but the impossibility of translating texts,
supposed, froni the alleged circumstances of the 'finds,' and their palseo-
graphic appearance, to be contemporaneous with the Moabite Stone.
"At the date, then, of my leaving France, my mind was perfectly
made up on the question, although I had as yet communicated my
opinion only to certain scholars of France and England who did me the
honour of asking it. I knew beforehand what I should find at Jerusa-
lem, when I proposed to bring to light the whole of this tangled
business, and to find material proofs of what, hitherto, I had only
advanced with great reserve.
"One of my earliest cares, therefore, on arriving here was to visit
the new collection of M. Shapira, at present ui course of formation, and
intended to join its elder sister in the Museum of Berlin. It was not
without trouble that I obtainedlthe "necessary authorisation ; and it was
only through the good offices of Mr. Drake that I was enabled to over-
come the scruples of the owner, who believed me, I do not laiow why,
animated by some hostile sentiment. I visited the famous collection in
company with Mr. Drake, and in presence of M. Shapira himself. It is
composed of statues and vases, covered with inscriptions, supposed to
be Moabite, lavished iu'''suspicious profusion. The figures arc rudely
formed, and yet betray the hand of a modern. It is quite sufficient to
IIG THE SHAPIRA COLLECTION.
compare them "wdth the statues, certainly rough, but authentic, of
Cyprus, to see immediately the clifFerence between a work simple and
rudimentary, but spontaneous and sincere, and that of a modem Arab
reproducing mechanically models more or less disfigured. I at once
recognised, in these models of badly baked earth, the manner and style
of oiu- artist, of whom I already possess certain di-awings, which I pro-
pose to publish ^vT-th his copy of the Moabite Stone, for the edification
of the learned.
"Not only the form of the objects, but the material itself of which
they are made, cry aloud, ' Apocrj'j^hal I ' The clay is absolutely iden-
tical with that used now by the Jerusalem potters ; it is hardly baked at
all, and yet you will obsei-ve under the faces of the little discs of properly-
baked clay with which some of the vases were full, and which are taken
for coins and tesserce, the mark of the threads of the linen on which the
soft plate had been laid in order to be cut into circles. I have also seen
on some of the specimens the famous deposits of saltpetre, which play
so great a part in the question, and which have been produced by the
partisans of authenticity as proofs of their extreme antiquity. These
saltpetre deposits are only superficial, and must have been obtained, as
I have always said, by plunging the things in a solution of nitre. If in
some of these siiecimens which I have not seen the saltpetre has pene-
trated through the whole mass, it is because the clay was still less baked
and the bath Avas longer prolonged.
"In short, I did not see, in the whole collection, one single object u'liicli
could he TC'jardcd as genuine, so that I remarked to Di'ake when we came
out, ' There is only one thing authentic in all that we have seen, the live
ostrich the Ai-abs have brought here with the pottery. And as to the
pottery itself, it only remains for us to find who is the potter that made
it.' My opinion is, and always has been, that the collections of M,
Shapira, all derived from the same source, are false from beginning to
end, — not only the inscribed pottery, but also that which has no letters
on it, and is like the other in form and material.
" The preceding may be regarded as furnishing no sufficient proof.
Accordingly, since my arrival here, I have been looking about for argu-
ments more positive and material, and for palpable proofs. Convinced
that the pottery was the work of Selim el Gari, and that it was made at
Jerusalem, I took measures to surprise him, la main dans le sac. It
was evident to me that Selim himself made the statues ; as to the vases,
he might either make them himself, or cause them to be made by a pro-
fessional potter, adding, for his 0"V\m part, the inscriptions intended to
make them valuable ; in either case he must have recourse to a potter,
in order to get his things baked in a proper oven. Starting with this
certainty, I looked about among the potters of Jerusalem, five or six in
all, and very soon found out the whole truth.
" The fii'st piece of information, which put mo in the right track, was
given me by a certain Abd el Bagi, sumamed Abu Mansura, a journey-
man now in the employ of the potter Hadj Khalil el Malhi, whose shop
THE SHAPIRA COLLECTION. 117
is between the Spaiiisli Consulate and the Damascus Gate. This man,
"whom I questioned with the greatest care, for fear of his discovering the
-object of my curiosity, told me that ho had once worked for a certain
Selim el Gari, vhomade statues and rases in earthemvare {terre cnite) ivith
tcrifiiujs, but that he had left oft" worldng for him for some time. In
order not to awaken suspicions, I did not press my questions any further,
but confined myself to asking him if he knew to what potter Selim now
sent his vessels to be baked. Abu Mansura indicated a potter by name
Bakir el Masry, to whom I then went. This information was not cor-
xect. Bakir, whose name and accent indicate his Egyptian origin, had
never worked for Selim, but ho had, and still has, in his service a young
apprentice, Hassan ibn el Bitar, who has for a long time worked
at the pottery of Ahmed 'Alawiye, at the present time employed
by|Selim, whose shop is between the Mawlawiyeh and the Damascus
Gate.
" What follows is the exact narrative which I took from the mouth of
Hassan, always being very careful to let him speak, without suggesting
anything by injudicious questioning : —
' ' ' Hassan entered into the service of Bakir about four months ago : he
Avas formerly ajsprenticed to Ahmed, with another boy named Khalil,
son of Said the barber, and Abu Mansura, journeyman.
' ' ' Selim el Gari got soft clay of Ahmed, made out of it, at his own
house, statues of men, dogs, and women, -with noses, hands, feet, and
breasts, the whole covered with writings : he also made little discs of
clay like saldout (pieces of money) : then he sent them to Ahmed's to be
baked. Ahmed also made vases for him in turn, and Selim wrote letters
on them.
" ' It was Hassan and his fellow-apprentice Khalil who were charged
Avitli carrying the things from Selim' s house to the shop, and vice versa.
The first time Selim himself took him to his house to make him
know it ; he was then staying in the street called Ilarat el DJonwalide,
near the Latin Patriarchate. He has since moved, and has gone to the
street Agahat el Battikh, near the Spanish Consulate.
' ' ' Hassan has only been once in the latter house. Selim at first ad-
dressed himself to the potter, Hadj Khalil el Malhi, but could not come
to terms with him.
" ' Selim, after having shown his house to Hassan, gave him two
iechliks : for every journey he made he gave him one hchlik, or a hcchlik
and a half, sometimes two. To the workman, Abu Mansui-a, he gave
■one or two mejelies, and to Ahmed, a sum much larger (a pound, if I
remember right).
" ' The jom-neys were made between the MagJireh and the Icha ; that is
to say, in the three or four hours which follow sunset : Hassan, for his
part, carried the things under an a&«?/e, hiding them as much as possible,
as he had been instructed. He even asserts that he left Ahmed in order
not to continue an occupation which made him fearful of being arrested
by the patrol.
lis THE SHAPIRA COLLECTION.
" ' Xot oiily were the objects minutely counted, but if any one got
broken, the very smallest fragments were carefully picked up. Selini
gave, one day, two piastres to a boy who picked up a sahtoutiu clay that
Hassan had dropped.
" ' Once they gave Hassan to carry a large statuette, still hot, which
burned his hands, his chest, and his arms.
" ' When he brought the things to Selim, he saw him on many occa-
sions dip them into a caldroTi JiUed u'ith irater; one night Hassan himself, at
the request of Selim, drew water from the cistern to fill the caldron.
Selim left them to soak for some time, and then took them out to dry :.
he said that it was to make them gi-ow old.'
"I insist particularly on the sj)o«;aHeo«s character of this narrative,
which I have pui-posely reproduced in its own simple and methodlcss
style ; it contains details Avhich cannot have been invented, and the
exactness and veracity of which I have been able to establish by other
means. I beKeve it conclusive : it is notably instructive as to the pro-
cess adopted by Selim in order to impregnate his things with that couclie
of saltpetre ■R^hich was to be their brevet of authenticity. I think that
we can henceforth, with these elements of information, consider the
matter as settled.
" C. CLEEIMOXT-GAJXA-EAr."
XoTE. — In printing the above extract from M. Ganneau's letter, it
mil perhaps be well to state the line of action taken up by the Com-
mittee of the Palestine Exploration Fund from the fii'st announcement
of the " find." It is to Mr. Tyrwhitt Drake that the Committee owed
their first sketches and copies of the jars, idols, and inscriptions. Other
copies Avere verj'- kindly sent by Dr. Chaplin. On Lieut. Conder's arrival
in Jerusalem, he made careful water-colour sketches of the more impor-
tant objects ; but the figures and vases failed to carry with them, to the
eyes of English archajologists, any evidence of theii- genuineness. Still,
as nothing but copies had been sent home, opinion Avas AAdthheld until
specimens could be seen and handled. "With the inscriptions it was
different. Mr. Vaux, himself a member of the Executive Committee, at
once declared, without hesitation, that these were, one and all, forgeiies.
Acting chiefly on his opinion, the soundness of which is now clearly
estabhshed, the Committee refused to have anything to do with the
collection. Meantime, fresh intelHgence arrived. Two German travel-
lers, -svith M. Shapii-a, had dug up similar fragments of vessels them-
selves in Moab. New specimens came m. freely. It was repoi-ted that
whole camel-loads of pottery were habitually transported to Damascus
to be broken up ; pamphlets Avere written on the inscriptions ; and then
the German Govei-nment, bujdng the whole of the first collection, gave
a stimulus to the production of a second, which has since been proceed-
ing rapidly. Against this evidence were to be placed the facts that
recent travellers had found nothing similar in Moab ; that the American
survey party in Moab had positive assurance from all quarters that
THE SHAPIRA COLLECTIOK. 119
nothing ever had been found ; that Mr. Wright, of Damascus, had
disproved the camel-load story ; and that the English archajologists
refused to be convinced.
" Jerusalem, Feb. 11, 1874,
" I had noticed, as I thought, a difference in style between the later
inscribed and the earlier uninscribed pottery, but my suspicions had
never taken a definite form till early in November. I then received
accounts from some Bedawin, who said that the ' written jars ' were
made at Jerusalem, and thence transported to Moab, buried there, and
shoAvn to Mr. Shapira as found among ruins or in caves. This informa-
tion I privately transmitted to the Palestine Exploration Fund, on the
1 1th of the same month. On the 24th of December my inquiries resulted
in a statement voluntarily made by a potter, one Haj 'Abd el Bald,*
with whom I had been in communication since the end of November,
of which the following is a translation : —
' ' ' Since more than a year, Selim and his father the chandler used to
come over to me and ask me to make for them large and small pots, and
to take from me clay, and make it into images, and Avrite upon them,
and bring them to me to bake for them, and they called them " Antika,"
and they used to make of it hundreds of different objects ; such as
birds, and heads, and images, and hands, and spoons, and such like :
and I baked them and retm-ned them to them, and they gave me a
bakshish, and asked me not to mention it to anybody; they never left
with me any piece, however small, but delivered them to me counting
them, and received them back in the same manner.
(Signed) " 'El Haj Abd el Baki.'
" ' At the request of Mr. C. F. Tyrwhitt Drake, I hereby certify that
the foregoing statement was read over to Haj 'Abd el Baki el fawakhiri
in my presence, who declared that it was his OAvn, and that he fully
confirmed it.
" 'British Consulate, Bee. 24, 1874.
(Signed) " 'Noel Temple Moore, Consul.''
" No one who has, as I have, seen almost every object in the collection,
Avill, I think, fail to admit the differences observable between the earliest
and the latest. Among the former, few were inscribed ; and among the
latter it is just the contrary ; the later pottery differs, too, in texture
from the earliest. The theory which seems to me most probable is, that
having sold a genuine lot of antique earthenware to M. Shapira, the
forger then proceeded to duj^e this energetic collector, of whose honesty
and good faith in the matter I have no doubt.
* JI. Ganneau spells this name Bagi, and that of Selim el Kari, Gari.
}20 THE SHAPIRA COLLECTION,
" I cannot see -wliy so mncli stress is laid on the fact, that some of the
iesserw have tlic impression of linen (or as it rather seemed to me of
rough-grained wood) at the bottom, for every one must be well aware
that marks as fine, or even finer, such as the lines in finger prints, are
found in pottery, whose antiquity is undisputed, if it has been preserved
under favourable circumstances. I think also, that if M. Ganneau had
seen the former collection, he would not have stated that, ' if in some
specimens which I have not seen, the saltpetre has penetrated through
the whole mass, it is because the clay was still less baked and the
bath was longer prolonged.' I distinctly remember one of the early
jars, made of good red pottery, being destroyed by the efEorescence of
salt, and consequent flaking off of the outer coats, in a manner similar to
that which may be seen in the case of some undoubtedly genuine terra-
cottas found in Palestine, and now in my possession. ... At
present, I fear the genuine and the forged are inextricably mixed up in
the Berlin Museum, unless some competent archaeologists are able to
separate them. I may add that immediately on receipt of the news
communicated in the cohmms of the Athencmm, Dr. Kersten, Acting
Consul-General for Prussia, proceeded with Pastor Weser, the Lutheran
Minister here, who accompanied Shapira to Moab, and searched Selim
el Kari's house throughout, but did not succeed in finding any evidence
to confirm the charge laid to his door.
" C. F. Tyiiwhitt Deake, F.E.G.S."
"JEEUS.VLEM, Feb. 19, IS'74.
" Since my letter of the 12th inst., an unofficial inquiry, to which I
was invited, has been held at the German Consulate, by Pastor Weser
and Mr. Dinsberg, to try and find out the truth of the statements made
by the potters to M. Ganneau, and mentioned in his letter of Dec. 29,
18T3, in the Athenaium of Jan. 24, 1874.
• " The result of this inquiry, which extended over four days, is most
unsatisfactory. The old man, 'Abd el Baki, declared for three days that
he knew nothing of the matter, and that he never made the declaration
(published in my former letter) in the English Consulate, though when
the document was sho^vn him he acknowledged the signature. The
boy, Hasan ibn el Bitar, at first declared the story ho told to M.
Ganneau to bo in all respects true ; he then, after two such declarations,
changed his tactics, and asserted that M. Ganneau had taught it him.
The other potters denied all knowledge of the matter. On the last day
M. Ganneau was present, and an arrangement seems to have been made
among the potters. 'Abd el Baki and Hasan both swore roundly that
they had been taught their story by M. Ganneau, and Selim el Kari
comijleted the attack by saying that he had been offered £100 by that
gentleman if he would confess that he and Mr. Shapira forged the
THE SHAPIRA COLLECTION. 121
pottery. After such contradictory statements and varying evidence it
■was both, useless and impossible to proceed furtlier witli the case.
" The conviction rests unchanged in my own mind, that the decla-
ration made to me on December 24 by 'Abd el Bald is the truth. It is
now, however, utterly impossible to estimate the extent of the forgeries.
The seeming combination and pre-arrangement of testimony among the
potters show that the forgers (for there are probably more than one)
have spared no pains to hide the truth, in which they have succeeded
but too Avell. The manner of their- attack on M. Ganneau seems to me
to point to their guilt, now imi)0ssible to prove, though it seems not
unlikely that a few months' patient inquiry would have served to settle
and define the extent of it.
" CnAS. F. Tyrwhitt Drake, F.E.G.S."
To the Editor of the " Athemcuin."
" Jerusalem, Feb. 19, 187-4.
"Allow me to inform those of jouv readers who have perused M.
Ganneau's letter concerning the above subject, that the evidence adduced
therein is just now being sifted on the spot by four gentlemen of the
highest character, one of whom is an Englishman ; and, although the
Minutes of the Proceedings are not yet in my hands, I am warranted
in telling you that all the witnesses on whom M. Ganneau relies have
been found utterly worthless.
"I, for myself, have not given any credence either to their former
testimony or to their present statements levelled against M. Ganneau ;
but the investigators have, by a severe cross-examination of several
days' duration, not only of the witnesses themselves, but also of many
other persons to whom attention was draAvn in the course of the inquii-y
as being connected with the pottery trade, not been able to produce the
slightest evidence against the genuineness of my collection, nor has the
sudden search of Selim, the suspected forger's house, brought anything
to light to warrant the accusation.
" Moreover, it has proved impossible, in spite of many attempts, to
obtain from any of the potteries here any woi'k resembling the Moabite
pottery ; whilst, on the other hand, during a visit to Moab, which I
paid some two months ago, together with the E,ev. H. Weser, seven
more vases with inscriptions were found by us which, from the place
and the circumstances under which they were dug out, must unquestion-
ably be genuine.
" I hope, with your permission, to give you, by-and-by, a detailed
and complete refutation of the charges brought against the genuineness
of my collection.
"M. W. Shapira."
122 THE SHAPIRA COLLECTION.
"Jerusalem, Feb. IT, 18T4.
" Thiit part of my report on tliis subject wliich appeared in the
Aihencewn of Jan. 24 has not been received here, as might have been
expected, without producing considerable disturbance. I did not
conceal from myself the probable consequences of doing what I con-
sidered, and still consider, my duty.
"M. Weser, a German clergyman, who takes a very peculiar interest in
the affair, instituted, immediately on the news of my letter reaching
Jerusalem, a personal inquiry into the facts that I had revealed. I was
not made acquainted with this inquiry at its commencement, and it was
only two days ago that he wrote inviting me to hear the new declara-
tions of certain persons named in my report — declarations presenting
' essential differences ' to those obtained by myself. I had no reason
for refusing this gentleman, whom I had not the j)leasure of knowing,
the means of carrying to its end an examination which he had under-
taken of his own accord, and which he told me, on the occasion of his
visit, was to preserve a strictly jirivate character. Perhaps it would have
been more correct if he had addressed himself to me from the commence-
ment. However, this"? Kttle irregularity could easily be overlooked,
after receiving his verbal explanations, and I proposed a meeting at the
temporary residence of my friends and neighbours, Lieut. Conder and
Mr. Tyrwhitt Drake. I went there with M. Lecomte. Pastor Weser
was accompanied by two of his fellow-countrymen, one of whom served
as Arabic interpreter.
' ' The ajjprenticc Ha ssan ibn el Bitar, whose declaration you have had
already, was brought forward, and declared, in my presence and on his
oath, that having been brought to my house, I had locked him tip, beaten
him, and threatened him tvith death, to force him to repeat the lesson
which I had taught him.
" After him, we heard another potter, Abd el Bagi, called Abu Man-
soura, of Avhom Mr. Drake had previously obtained a deposition, written
before the English Consul, certified by him, and containing simiLir
revelations to those of Hassan on the ceramic proceedings of Sclim.
The new witness swore by Allah and the triple divorce that I had
sought him out and told him that he must repeat, tvordfor word, all
that he said and signed later on before the Consul.
" Baker el Masry next affirmed, also on oath, that Hassan, on coming
away from me, had told him exactly what precedes.
" Another potter, Ahmed el 'Alamiye, deposed in the most enei'getic
manner, and on the most sacred oaths, that all the declarations related
above were the exact truth, that he absolutely did not know Selim, and
had never worked for any one of that name.
' ' To crown the whole, they brought the hero himself, Selim el Gari,
who, as I am informed, had been arrested and imprisoned up to that
moment at the German Consulate.
"Solim, after having protested his entire innocence, turned to me with
an oratorical gesture, which was not without tlignity, and began to
THE SHAPIRA COLLECTION.
12a
apostroi)liizc nie witli vcliemence. Thereupon, one of the German
gontlouien, who served us interpreter to Pastor Wcser, interrupted him
sharply, and told him to be quiet.
" Surprised at the eagerness ^Yith which his silence was commanded,
and not suspecting the intention, probably charitable, which animated
the interruption, I insisted on Selim being allowed to finish his discourse,
and ordered him myself to speak at full liberty.
" ' M. Ganneau,' he went on, ' meeting me two months ago in the
street of the Christians, under the Arch, near the Greek convent, told
vie that lie tvouJd (jive me a hundred iwunds if I woidd affirm that Hie
Bhapira jwitery teas false, and luas fabricated hy Shapira and myself.^
' ' In all these depositions there is a remarkable and striking uxianimity.
Summed up, they amount to this : — M. Oanneau, hy laying traps, hy
hloivs, tlireats of death, promises, hrihery, and other measures not to he con-
fessed, has ohtained, or tried to obtain, lying evidence to prove the falseness
of the Shapira antiquities.
" The matter, put thus clearly, adnnts of only one way of looking at
it : — (1) Either I have devised this black plot. (2) Or these men are
either hardened scoundrels, or else poor devils telKng their story from
fear or interest, and under pressui-e of the kind that they pretend me to
have exercised on them.
" I do not know which alternative Pastor Weser and his countrymen
have decided on adopting, not having wished to insult them by asking,
and supposing that this absurd accusation would refute itself by its very
enormity.
" Let us ]Dut aside personal feelings. In admitting the first hj^othesis
the matter would be settled ; and not only at the bar of public opinion,
but in the courts of justice, woiild my conduct be arraigned. But even
then one Avoiild have to consider: (1) the reasons which would have
urged the adojition of a line of conduct so dangerous, and, so to say, so
clumsy ; (2) the reasons why these worthy Arabs did not accuse me at
once, — why they commence, as Pastor Weser loyally informed me, the
one (Hassan) by repeating tivice purely and simply the confession taken
down by me ; the other (Abd el Bagi) by absolutely denying his wiitten
deposition placed in the hands of Mr. Drake ; and, lastly, the reasons
why they have suddenly turned round, like one man, and denied their
contradictory statements, in order to accuse me, luith common accord, of
the most unlilvcly conduct that could be imagined.
' ' If, on the contrary, their story be taken for what it is worth, we find
ourselves facing the second hypothesis, which may be considered under
two diiferent aspects : —
" (1) Either these people lie by an instinctive movement of self-defence
natural to Arabs when they think they are threatened ; or, which is
more probable, considering their suspicious unanimity, in obedience to
an order given by the oidy man among them really compromised ; and
they now deny entirely the truth they made no difficidty about confess-
ing six weeks before.
124 THE SHAPIRA COLLECTION.
" (2) Or else tliey lie to-day, as tliey lied six weeks ago ; and we have
no more right to believe whatthey said then, to Drake and to me, than
what they say now.
" In the former case the conclusion is clear : it is what I have exposed
in my report, and which I maintain still — the pottery that I have seen,
with all like it, is false.
"In the second case, I should have made myself the echo of a calumny
in setting down inconsiderately imputations invented at pleasure. But,
then, how to explain that these arbitrary imputations contain details
presenting the most strange coincidences with all that we know abeady
of the affair, the persons, and the things mixed up ?
"How, for example, could the young apprentice Hassan, who, I repeat,
related the facts perfectly simply, without being guided h/ amj leading
questions, know the name, the profession, and the successive residences
of Selim ? How could he, spontaneously, describe the Uttle tesserce of
clay (sahtout), the statues of men, dogs (sic), and women, the vessels
covered with writing, &c., if he had never seen them ? How, on the
other hand, could the workman interrogated by Mr. Drake have given
him separately information entirely agreeing with that of Hassan ?
The only reply is, that what these people said then was true, or that I
have, in fact, organised the fantastic conspiracy that they now bring to
light. Lastly, and not the least argument, if I had been the dupe of a
lie, Selim Avould be innocent : now if Selim is iimocent, his role is per-
fectly simple ; strong in his cause, he has only to deny. Why have
recourse to the expedient, desperate in its audacity, of accusing the very
man who hoped to unmask him of trying to corrupt him ? Either he
tells the truth, and the pottery is authentic, or he lies in accusing me,
and the pottery is as false as his allegations. He has bound himself to
one of these conclusions indissolubly, and with his own hand. To
myself, this clumsy calumny seems as good as a confession. Those who
do me the honour of supposing me incapable of the basest, the most
odious, and at the same time the most stupid machination, may say
"vvith me — hahemus confitentem reum.
"To sum up, we have returned to our point dc dejoart ; but our journey
has not been in vain. "We have, on the Avay, eliminated the possibility
of error; we have brought ourselves face to face with a dilemma.
Either I am myself an illustrious impostor,— or the pseudo-Moabite
pottery must be definitely banished from that scientific domain into
which it should never have been allowed to enter.
" Charles Clermoxt-Gaxneau."
125
NOTES.
(1) Mr. Schick's Work at Jerusalem.
Our esteemed contributor, Bauratii Schick, furnishes some interesting
information relative to excavations made by him in the vicinity of
Jeremiah's Grotto. The excavations were undertaken in the hope of
finding the continuation of the remarkable aqueduct leading to the
convent of the Sojurs de Sion (see Quarterly SUdement, 1S72, p. 47), and re-
sulted in the discovery of the remains of several rock-hewn channels, but
unfortunately at such a level as to preclude the possibility of their
being connected with the aqueduct, and "we have still no clue to the
source from which it derived its supply of water.
In fi'ont of the scarped rock at Jeremiah's Grotto, Mr. Schick
excavated to a depth of fifteen feet without reaching rock, and found
that at some period a number of buildings had been erected against
the rock. Excavations were also made at the foot of the scarped rock
in a garden a little to the north, and here a row of arched chambers
was found running along the face of the rock, and following the line
of the escarpment on the eastern side of the garden. In the middle of
the garden excavations were made in an old pool, uncovering a portion
of a well-built pier of masonry, on which were found some masons'
marks similar to those on the churches built in Palestine during the
Crusading period. In the face of the rock escarpment, at the north end
of the garden, the entrance to a rock-hewn chamber was discovered.
This chamber, 1,5 feet wide and 11 feet long, was at one time divided
into two rooms, and provided with a window to admit light, as well as a
door with iron hinge and bolt. It was found to be half full of bones
and earth, and apparently had been used as a general tomb — possibly
Christian, as two crosses were painted in red on the walls. A skeletoa
was also seen in the rubbish at the side of the excavation. Mi\ Schick
is of opinion that in those remains he has found the old convent and
church of St. Stephen, but they are more probably those of the Asnerie,
which was left standing for some time after the capture of the city
by Saladin. ,
(2) LiEUTEX-^'T Coxder's Eock Plax of Jerusalem.
Lieut. Conder writes that the contour plan of Jerusalem, published
in the October number (1873), was not, as stated in the preface, con-
structed entirely from previous work, and that it contained the results
of his own work, from which the Valley of the Sisters of Zion and the
lie of the rock in the Muristan were deduced.
(3) The Promised Specimeis' of the New Map.
It has been found necessary to postpone the Carmel map, taken,
from Lieutenant Condor's Survey, for another three months. The
12G NOTES.
proof, sent to Palestine for correction and annotation by that officer
lumself, has been returned, but too late for production in the present
number.
(4) The AMEEICA2J Society.
A second " Statement " has been issued by the American Society, in
which the work has been brought down to the commencement of
Lieutenant Steevers's expedition into Moab. Want of space obliges us
to postpone a notice of this interesting publication till the July
number.
(o) The FEAGiiEXTS or the Moabite Stone.
At a meeting of the General Committee, held in the Jerusalem Chamber,
Westminster Abbey, on Tuesday, Feb. 24th, 1874, it was resolved "that
the application of the French Ministry of Public Instruction, Worship,
and Fine Arts, for the fragments of the Moabite Stone, containing fifty-
six characters, to complete the much larger portion possessed by the
Museum of the Louvre, be acceded to, in the interests of science and
archaeological knowledge."
(G) Peofessor Hayter Lewis on the Eepoet of M. Cleemont-
GtANjVEAU.
The following is extracted from a letter by Professor Lewis : —
" M. Ganneau is quite right in thinking that the tool marks will be
of important service in identifying the buildings in which they are
found.
' ' The peculiar delicate looking tooling (always anglewise) distinguishes
nearly every specimen of Norman masonry with which I am acquainted.
You may see it close here, in St. Bartholomew's Church, Smithfield,
and wherever else time has left the surface tolerably perfect. The
Norman tooling goes across the flat stone, but follows the lines of the
mouldings. This also M. Ganneau has noticed. The dotted marks are,
I have no doubt, the well-known thirteenth century tooling, which was
done by a claw tool, leaving a number of notches or dots, and so was
quite distinguished from the diagonal Norman. I have no doubt what-
ever that if M. Ganneau finds the mosque of Hebron to be, as I believe
that Mr. Fergusson thinks it to be, English work of the thirteenth
•century, he will also find that the pillars have been tooled with such a
tool, and bear the marks which he describes as dotted.
" But in addition to the above, the size of the stones should be noted.
The Norman work is very peculiar. The stones are seldom above nine
inches square, or a size near this ; very regular and well jointed, closely
at the uprights, ]in. to ^in. at the bods. To a practised eye this masonry
can be detected at a glance. With the thirteenth century came more
machinery and larger stones ; still very regular masonry."
127
LIST OF QUESTIONS AND MEMORANDA SUGGESTED
BY THE CONSERVATION COMMITTEE OF THE ROYAL
INSTITUTE OF BRITISH ARCHITECTS.
N.B.— In all cases tlio most important objects required after jolioto-
gi-aplis of the work have been obtained are accurate plans and kcc-
tions, plotted to scale if possible on the spot, with the dimensions
clearly figured on all the dra^wings.
1. Name of spot in Arabic (if possible written by a native), and general
description.
2. What is the bearing of the structure in relation to the compass ?
B'lasonry. — 3. What is the geological nature of the stone — especially
of the wrought stone ? Can it be identified with any local stone ?
4. Are there any marks of fire on the same, or any evidence of its
having been under water ?
5. Describe the character and material of the mortar, and state the
thiclaiess of the joints.
G. Joints to be noted when superficial, and depth of joints figui-ed. Is
the jointing rectangular? and are the horizontal joints continuous or
broken ?
7. How is the ashlar work bonded ? and of what thickness ?
8. How is the rubble work laid ? Dry ? or with little mortar ?
(N.B. — It is desirable to procure photographs showing different speci-
mens of this work.)
9. What is the character of the masonry ? Show it in detail draw-
ings, carefully measured, and note especially "draft" or "bevelled
margins."
10. Describe the nature of all tool-marks, masons' marks, &c., and
procure rubbings of the same if possible.
11. Is there any mark of a Lewis or other means of raising ?
Arches. — 12. Note and accurately plot the direction of the joints in
arches. State whether the arch is crowned by a keystone, or v/hether it
has a vertical joint in the crown.
13. Is there any indication of skew-arches ?
14. In cases of a brick structure, describe the size of bricks, the thick-
ness of the joints, and the natiu-e of the mortar.
General Description of the Structure. — 15. Is the pavement level
throughout or raised in any part ? (N.B.— If pavement be destroyed,
its level may often be identified by marks left in the wall.)
16. Are there any traces of vaults or subterraneous chambers ?
17. Are there any traces of an apsidal plan, whether circular or
polygonal ?
18. Arc there any remains of windows? If so, give their height,
position, &c.
19. Give the same information respecting any door or doors.
20. Give the same information respecting any pillar or pillars.
21. Are there any remains of roofs? If so, describe whether they
are flat, barrel-vaulted, groined, or domical.
128 LIST OF QUESTIONS AND MEMORANDA.
22. In case of domical vaulting, describe pendentive and springing.
23. As extensive remains will probably be those of a temple, syna-
gogue, a cburch or mosque, particular search should bo made for any
remains of altars, inscriptions, monograms, &c.
Cromlechs. — 1. What is the nvimber of stones supporting the top
slab ? and in case of one or more sides being open, to which point of
the compass is the opening directed ?
2. Are there any holes pierced through either of the stones ?
3. Are there any signs of the stones having been squared, or other-
wise worked with a tool ?
4. Ai-e there any remains of stone circles, stone pillars, tumuli, or
other monuments near ? If so, show the general plan.
5. Are there any signs of burial in the tumuli or within the crom-
lechs ? If so, describe the exact position of body, and carefully pre-
serve any remains of skulls. If it be not 'possible to remove them, take
their exact contour.
Most of the above questions have been attended to by Captain Wilson
and Captain Warren, whose series of photographs are very admirable.
They are, however, generally of too small a size to give the information
required as to the details of the architecture, and in some of the most
interesting photographs of the masoni-y there does not appear to be any-
thing to give an idea of the scale. We would suggest that the plan used
by Monsieur Viollet-le-Duc be adopted, of having a measuring rod put
against the work to be drawn or photographed. It is, however, in
respect of the details that further information is more particiilarly
required. Unless the observer be thoroughly acquainted with the
various phases which the mouldings, ornaments, &c., have assumed at
different times and under different influences, a mere description of them
will be of little value. The column of a building, for example, described
as Ionic, might be of the date of the immediate descendants of Alexander,
or of the Eomans, or their descendants, the Italians, at any period for
several centuries, or of the Byzantines— or it might have been carved by
Greek architects imder Eoman influence. In order to obtain information
sufiicient to indicate the date, &c., of any work, the following would
be required in addition to what is above mentioned : — Sections of movdd-
ings full size (as the contour of these varied very much at different
periods and in different styles, they should, when jDossible, be drawn
by means of the cymograph) ; large photographs, or squeezes of portions-
of the ornaments, so as to show the precise way in which they were
carved — as both the method of carving, and the general design, varied
as much as the form of the moiddings. All traces of pointed architec-
tm-e should be particularly noted, and the mouldings and ornaments
should be copied with great care. The above memorandum will also
apply -with great force to any sarcophagi, or to the tombs, ornaments,
&c., whether rock-cut or other-wise. In all cases careful search should be
made for fragments of mouldings built into the walls, and for different
kinds of masonry, as these would indicate an earlier structure, and give
a clue to its date.
Quarterly Statement, July, 1874.]
THE
PALESTINE EXPLORATION FUND
P K E F A C E.
It is "with the deepest sorrow that vre record the death of Mr. C.
F. Tyrwhitt Drake, which took pLace at Jerusalem, on Tuesday the
23rd ult. An attack of fever was followed by complications of a
kind which, although the patient rallied at one time so as to give
hopes of recovery, proved fatal after three weeks of suffering. Mr.
Drake was only twenty-eight years of age. His loss is a grievous
one to the work of exploration, and our readers will greatly miss
the intelligent and pleasant letters which have for two years and a
half helped to keep tliem informed of the progress of the Survey.
In oiir pages farther on will be found a short memorial paper by
Lieutenant Conder.
Lieutenant Conder contributes to the present number a paper on
the identification of zEnon, the " place near Salim, where there was
much water" (St. John iii. 23). Three sites have been proposed;
Lieutenant Conder advocates that fu-st proposed by Dr. Robinson.
He offers an answer to the problem of the tells of Palestine ; they
are, he thinks, brickmaking accumulations. He traces the victory and
pursuit of Grideon (Judges vii.), identif^-ing, as he goes, the places
whither the host fled, " Beth-shittah in Zererath, and to the border
of Abel-meholah " (Judges vii. 22). If the chapter be read side by
side with Lieutenant Conder's comments, it will be found to have
received much additional light. If his proposed identification of
Zererath with Ain Zahrah be accepted, it is an entirely new
discovery. Lieutenant Conder's argument in favour of Eas el Ain
as the site of Herod's Antipatris maj^ be read with the paper by
Major "Wilson on the same subject.
Mr. Drake, in the last report we have from him, speaks of the
continued subsidence of the bottom of the Dead Sea. He also
speaks of the curious Kurn Sartabeh, of Akrabeb, and the ruins of
Herod's town of Phasaelas.
The voluminous reports of M. Ganneau continue to be of the
greatest importance and interest. They are full of inscriptions^
legends, traditions, and suggestions. To architects and those
K
130 PREFACE.
interested in the controversies -which, have grown up round the
Ivubbet es Sakhra, the most vahiable portions of the rejiorts "will
be the account of the columns and balustrade of the building.
The excavations in Jerusalem are, for want of funds, very limited,
consisting printipall}- of those in and about the rock-cut chambers
north of the Yia Dolorosa.
The identifications proposed by M. Ganneau in this number,
are, that of Malha with Manocho (see the Septuagint version, Joshua
xix. 9), the Forest of Hareth (1 Sam. xxii. 5) with Herche, and Kurn
Sartabeh with the place in which Joshua saw the captain of the
Host of the Lord (Joshua v. 13 — 15).
An account of the Second Statement of the American Exploration
Society will be found in the present number. It is necessarily
brief.
The most recent information on the Shapira Collection is also
published. We do not, however, undertake to give in future
further arguments on the basis of facts already known.
FINANCIAL POSITION OF THE FUND.
Received from Jlarcli 26111, to June 26tli, 1874 ... £788 11 5
Incliuling ])iocceLls of Lectures ... ... ... 31 19 4
Sale of Publications ) at Lectures ... 19 14 2
Sale of Photographs ^ and elsewhere ... 9 16 0
Balance in banks (June 26th) 306 14 0
PROPOSED ARRANGEMENTS OF THE FUND.
Lieutenant Conder will return to Palestine in the autumn, and resume the
work of the Survey. Tlie non-commissioned officers are in Jerusalem, under the
charge of Dr. ("haplain.
Lieutenant C'ondcr will read a paper on the Survey at the meeting of the
British Association in August, at Belfast.
j\I. Ganneau will continue his work at Jerusalem and elsewhere during the
summer.
TRANSLITERATION AND NOMENCLATURE.
It has been decided by the Publication Committee to adopt for the future
Robinson's system of transliteration in ail their rejwrts and papers.
THE PUBLICATION OF THE MAP.
It has been resolved that until the new map is completely finished no steps shall
be taken towards publishing any portion of it
THE ANNUAL MEETING.
This was held on Tuesday, June 23rd, at the Royal Institution. In the
unavoidable absence of the Archbi.shop of York, the chair was taken liy the Dean
of Westminster. Lieutenant Conder read a paper on the Survey, and resolutions
were i)ro]iosed by Sir iiartle Frere, Gen. Sir Frederick Goldsmid, Rev. George
Williams, Rev. Dr. Planning, Rev. Dr. Porter, and Mr. George Grove. A full
report will be published in the next Quarterly Statement.
PRICE OF THE QUARTERLY STATEMENT.
In future this will be half-a-crown to non-subscribers.
THE AMERICAN SOCIETY.
Intelligence has been received from the Secretary of New York tliat the sum
of 60,000 dols. has been collected, and that the money is still Howing in. A
second expedition to carry on the work of the first will be dispatched imme-
<liatelv.
Vift*r*dK.*T. ■ - • --.-:,- -.iiwxKofr,
CHAELES r. TYEWHITT DEAKJ5.
London, 26th June, 1874.
The sad news ■wliicli has just reached us from Palestine entails
on me the painful duty of writing a few last words on one who
for two years has been my constant and almost only companion.
The death of Charles E. Tyrwhitt Drake adds one more name
to the list of those who have fallen in harness in the exploration of
Palestine. The fatal Jordan valley climate, to the effects of which
I think our heavy loss is mainly attributable, took one member
from Lynch's party. Dr. Tristram's expedition did not escape a
similar .calamity. The exploration of Jerusalem cost the life of
one of Capt. Warren's men, and the health of another. In all of
these expeditions, however (as in the parallel case of African
travel), the actual head of the party invariably escaped. We had
trusted that, in the serious illness which obliged Capt. Stewart to
resign the command of the survey of Palestine, our debt to the
country was paid, and we invariably looked forward with hope
and in confidence that all other members of the original party
would be able to see the satisfactory termination of their work.
It has pleased God that this should be otherwise, and the only
consolation which can be found for the survivors is, that all that
could be done was done to preserve the valuable life ; that Mr.
Drake was in the hands of kind friends and trustworthy followers ;
that the medical advice of Dr. Chaplin was, both fi-om his
peculiar experience and his unusual ability, all that could be
desired, and that his treatment of the case was entirely confirmed
by the opinion of his brother practitioners.
I believe that from his childhood Mr. Drake suffered from an
asthma, which rendered life in his native country almost an impos-
sibility. He often told me that he felt it beyond hope that ho
should live to see his prime, and it was to the enthusiastic desire
to do something worth remembering in a short life that we must
attribute that disregard of fatigue and imprudent expenditm^e of
strength which hastened on the end.
It is but a poor comfort for those he has left behind to remem-
ber that bis ambition was to a great extent realised, and that,
though he was just on the point of undertaking new and im-
portant explorations, still he felt that already his name was
aj^M^b-^jB^t-JJWv^M.iaa^M^saay^^tMBjfe^
w^sixmi^^^^iiis^^il^ty^^fi^^^iii^^^ii^yisji
132
IK MEMORIAM.
made, and that as long as any interest is felt in tlie question of
Biblical investigation, it will be remembered with honour and
esteem.
His acquaintance with Bible lands dates from the commence-
ment of the Sinai Ordnance Survey. Of that expedition he was
to have been a voluntary member, but circumstances detained
him, and prevented his joining till the work was almost com-
pleted, and a severe attack of dysentery very nearly proved fatal
at the oiitset of his career. His subsequent work in the Desert
of the Wanderings in company with Professor Palmer, leading to
important and interesting discoveries, is well known ; as also his
explorations in the Antilibanus, and the eastern deserts and
Hauran, described in " Unexplored Syria." The value of these
labours were fully appreciated by the Eoyal Geographical Society
(of which he was a Fellow), and all other authorities capable of
forming an oj)inion. Had he been able to complete these latter
explorations, he would probably have known more of trans-
Jordanic Palestine than any one now living.
On joining as a volunteer the Survey Expedition, he found
himself suddenly called upon (in consequence of Captain Stewart's
illness) to assumeallthe responsibilities and duties of a commander.
Had he shrunk from the delicate and difficult position which a
civilian lias to occupy when in charge of trained soldiers, the
Great Survey would have been a failure, and the success of this
important work must always be attributable in great measure to
his courage and tact. For six months, and those passed in the
worst hill country in Palestine, at the very commencement of the
work, when Europeans and natives were alike unused to the
practical details, and unable to communicate together, Mr. Drake
had to act as commander, guide, interpreter, and archaeologist.
The progress was extraordinary, and his firm and just manage-
ment, tact, and acquaintance with the habits, prejudices, and
character of the Syrians were advantages of which I have felt
the benefit ever since the command devolved upon me.
Throughout the expedition he suffered much in health. A man
less enthusiastic would have quitted Palestine, and perhaps
escaped the sad fate which I cannot but attribute to want of due
care for health and over-work and exposure at a time when rest
and a good climate were indispensable. Bent as he was, however,
on continuing the work he had begun, it was worse^than useless
to endeavour to persuade him to give it up. Soon after my
arrival his liver was seriously affected by the trying work entailed
IX MEMORIAM.
133
on US all in measuring the check base line. He was obliged to
leave on a visit to Egypt, but it was not until he returned to
England last spring that any marked improvement in his health
took place. On his return in October, we all thought him look-
ing stronger and better. Then came the most serious check our
work ever sustained, of which little is known to others than
members of the party. In November the terrible Jericho fever
broke out in our camp at 'Ain el Sultan. In a few days no fewer
than ten members of the party, including Mr. Drake, were struck
down, and the anxiety of those who escaped was, as may be
imagined, very great. A full day's journey (and it was by special
Providence that we were not more) from a doctor, or from any
source of supply, in a malarious climate, a desert, and surrounded
by wild and hostile tribes, with most of the servants incapable,
and the rest only kept from deserting us by the certainty of beino-
shot down, the anxiety of the position was as trying as can well
be imagined. The unexampled kindness of Dr. Chaplin and Mr.
Neil, under the circumstances, is an honour to England. Thouo-h
suffei-ing himself, and quite unfit to be out of bed, the doctor
mounted his horse, and accompanied by Mr. Neil, set out to come
down to xis at Jericho, and met us bringing up Mr. Drake in the
litter. The hotel-keepei-, Mr. Hornstein, at the risk of losino-
every one of his guests, took him in, and spared no pains to make
him comfortable.
The English hospital was a refuge for our poor servants. The
care andskiU of Dr. Chaplin saved Mr. Drake's life, and probably
that of others. His recovery was rapid, and his state of health
seemed more satisfactory than it had been for a longtime, but he
was, I think, quite unaware of the extreme danger he had o-one
through. I found six months later that he had never known
how Dr. Chaplin, suffering himself most cruelly, had watched
with me a whole night of delirium, hardly expecting that he
would live till morning. We both felt at the time that he ought
on his recovery to leave the country, and I shall always re"-ret
that I did not represent this more strongly to the Committee, but
that recovery was so rapid, and apparently so satisfactory, that
it justified us in hoping he might be able to continue the work.
I have enlarged on these circumstances, thinking it mio-ht be
some consolation to his friends to know that all care was taken
of him in his first illness, whence they may judge that he was
equally well cai-ed for and attended during his last.
The survey of the Jordan valley was resumed. The exposure
IX MEMORIAM.
and liardsliip were greater than anything we had before endured.
For ten days we drank brackish water, and for nearly all the
time we wei'e subject to alternations of extreme heat and cold,
snow, rain, and unusual atmospheric pressure. The whole party
was much exhausted, although consisting of men beyond the
average in strength and power of endurance. It was true that
Mr. Drake was far more cautious and saving of his strength than
formerly, but he was unable to escape the effects of rain and
malaria.
On leaving the country I had felt some apprehensions of the
return of the fever in summer, and written to his friends at
Damascus, where I expected him to be, warning them not to
allow him to journey alone in June — a time when he usually
suffered from low fever. When the news arrived that he had
been, seized, I could not but feel thankful that he was still in
Jerusalem, knowing that the medical care he would get there
was far superior to any in other parts of Palestine. In the
face of such complications, however, as followed rapidly, no
medical skill could, however, be of use.
Of Mr. Drake's personal character, it will not become a
younger man to speak. I always felt the comfort of .his ex-
perience and his just and honourable dealing. His fitness for
the work was in some respects peculiar, and he may behest judged
by the fact, that whilst travelling in company with men of very
various disposition and ability, he never complicated the difficulties
of work by personal quarrels, and was well spokeu of by all. His
excellent colloquial knowledge of Arabic, no less than his fiue
figure and skill in all exercises, made him unusually respected by
the Arabs and native authorities. His justice,integrity, and firmness
were qualities invaluable in the East, and his good-nature and
gentlemanly feeling enabled us for two long years of trying work,
in a delicate relative position, to live together, almost unseparated^,
without so much as a single unkind word passing between us.
Claude R. Colder, Lieut. R.E.
RUM^^^J-^-i.^'^/IW^^i
THE JERUSALEM RESEARCHES.
LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU.
VII.
Jerusalem, March 5, 1874.
In one of my recent visits to tlie Haram, I remarked tliat in one or tvro Excavation
places they had taken away some of the slabs covering the ground within ga^hr" "^
the Sakhra : (1) before the gate of the cave ; (2) before the Eastern gate
called Bab en iiehy Daoud. Ascertaining that on Saturday last they were
going to dig at the second point, I went on that day to the Mosque, but
unfortunately too late ; the excavation, insignificant (0'30 metre) in
dicf:eusions, was already finished and the hole filled up. Vexed at losing
an opportunity which might never occur again, I succeeded in my
entreaties that the excavation should be begun over again before my
eyes. I chose a point different from the first, trying to get as near as-
possible to the rock. We attacked the soil again, OJO metre, S.S.E.
of the angle of the south pillar placed between the eastern gate and
the first circle of columns and pillars which surrounds the Sakhra
properly so called.
The excavation was pushed to a total depth of 0-90 metre, not count-
ing the thickness of the upper slab. After a layer (O'SO metre) com-
posed of greyish earth, mixed with stones and fragments of marble, a
bed of cement was reached extremely compact and about 0*07 metre in
thickness; the material was very hard, and the pick struck fire against
the fragments of stone which were mixed u^ with it. I gathered a.
specimen of this cement, which is grey in colour, and seems, like the
Arabic cements, to be mixed with cinders and charcoal.
Immediately beneath this layer appears the red earth, the same as is-
to be seen in Jerusalem and its environs, in those places where there
have been few inhabitants. We excavated in this earth for 0-33 metre
more, till it was impossible to go any lower without making a regular-
excavation and exciting susceptibilities. The conclusions to be drawn,
from this little sounding are these : (1) There is no rock 0'90 metre-
below the surface at the point of examination, which might have been
guessed beforehand, as, judging from the Sakhra iteelf, the rock must
have about here a general inclination of west to east. (2) The existence
of a layer of earth almost untouched. (3) Immediately above this earth
a bed of cement, forming the general substratum of the edifice, and
apparently of Arabic origin. (4.) A layer of earth between this and the-
surface slabs.
13G LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU.
fragments A number of Arabic texts, neslcM, flourisbes, are daily being dis-
t/o'ns^"'^ covered in the interior of the Sakbra during tbe course of the works ;
many of these inscriptions are on plaques of marble wbicb bave been
used in covering up tbe interior walls of tbe edifice, tbe bases of columns,
sides of pillars, &c. Many of these texts are interesting from an epi-
-rapbic point of view, or for tbe history of tbe Haram. They prove
in any case how many successive alterations the Mosque has undergone.
Not only are these ancient materials wbicb bave been used in tbe first
construction, there are also anterior Arabic materials used for subse-
<iuent modifications and alterations. Among these texts I remarked
very fair specimens of Kurmatic writing : one in nesJihi contains a part of
the Som-ati of the Goran called El Koursi ; and the mention of a work
executed by tbe orders of an Emir Zeyned-din, son of Aly, son of Abd-
allab, about the year 500 of tbe Hejira.
Uases of We bave been several times to the Mosque to study tbe bases of
colni>ii!r,Sc. -^^ piUars and columns uncovered, and the famous semicircular arca-
dino- of tbe external wall. M. Lecomte has made detailed drawings
(jf our observations, which will reach you with this report. An important
fact has been revealed by the fall of certain mosaics. It is tbe existence
of a strino' course in stone in tbe interior, and nearly in the middle of
the drum which supports the cupola. Tbe profile of this string course
appeared to M. Lecomte to resemble a mediieval profile of tbe 12tb
century. Here is a new element which appears now only to complicate
still more the already obscure problem of the origin of the actual
monument.
As for tbe semicircular arcade of tbe external wall, it is still very
difficult to pronounce upon it. Up to the present, however, two things
avQ quite certain : (1) The absence of the mediaeval dressing on tbe
blocks entering into tbe construction of tbe wall and the arches ; (2) tbe
existence on one of tbe blocks of a mason's mark of undetermined
i)eriod, having this form ^T It is on tbe second pier left of the west
door, and tbe third course above the leaden roofing.
Viojected ^ ^q^]^ ig about to be undertaken in tbe Haram, which I shall follow
wUhiiftTic ^ith the greatest attention. There has been found, it is said, in the
"'""'""■ wall of tbe Haram, an Arabic inscription, which states that by digging
at the place where it was written a great quantity of stones will be
found which will serve for repairs or reconstructions. Three years ago,
following this indication, they sunk a shaft of some depth, since covered
up, but which I bave seen open. This excavation led to no result. The
new director {viem(.ur) sent from Constantinople to superintend all tbe
Haram works is about to reopen this shaft. The work, in the Haram
itself, may be of tbe greatest importance, and I shall follow it with the
greatest care possible. The point chosen is a little south of bench mark
2387 -7 of the Ordnance Survey map.
The inscrip- The inscription spoken of above is on the exterior of the eastern wall
inner" ^^^ at the height of the loopholes (second course, counting the battle-
^tones. ments), about 133 metres north of the south-east angle. Observe that
LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU. 137
at this place is a very sensible break in tae continuity of the Arab wall,
seeming to indicate a later repair ; tbo line of junction is oblique,
descending from south to north at an angle of about 45". The inscription
is as follows : "In this place are stones buried for the use of the Ilaram
esh Sherif."
The writing is of the kind called sulus. The text presents in con-
struction and orthography certain faults which seem to indicate a
Turkish hand. It may be that this text was contemporary with the
works executed in the reign of the Sultan Selim, who repaired the
ramparts of the city. The first excavation undertaken under Ivondrot Bey
on these indications had been placed immediately behind the inscription.
The mtmour proposes to open it a little farther to the north, and, if
necessary, to push a trench parallel to the wall. According to Captain
Warren's map, we ought to light on the rock at a depth of about ten
metres. It remains to be seen whether the inscription is in its original
place.
On going back to the Harani we examined a very fine base placed near inscription
the entrance of the magazine close to El Aksa, at the east. The lower buudfn"- of
face is entirely covered by a beautiful Arabic inscription in relief, the '''^®p'^"^'?■
. • . west wall,
meanmg of which I made out at once, to the great astonishment of my
Mussulman companions. It relates the restoration or construction of a
suri'ounding wall {sour) of the city, or Haram, under the reign of the
Sultan El MeJih el Mansour seif ed dSii Gilaoun es salehy. This sultan,
seventh king of the Mameluke dynasty of the Baharites, reigned from
■678 to 698 of the Hejira (1279—1290 a.d.)
The Ai-abic historian of Jerusalem, Mejir ed Din, mentions among Rectifica-
the works executed by order of this sultan, A.n. 678, the reconstruction passage^lu
of the "roof" of the Mesjid el Aksa, on the south-west side, near the Mejired
Mosque of the Prophets. Such, in fact, states the Arabic text published
at Cairo. It is evident that the editors have made the mistake of writing
sagaf for sour, roof for ivall. This is clear (I) from the possible con-
fusion of these two words in Arabic writing ; (2) from the impossi-
bility of speaking of the roof oi the Me?jid el Aksa, the phrase mean-
ing the whole Ilaram ; (3) from the inscription which I have just
quoted.
Between the El Aksa and the Sakhra I observed, at the foot of the jxejjjcvai
south staircase which leads to the platform, on the left, a fragment of a mouldings,
moulding with the mediajval dressing strongly marked. This morceau,
which M. Lecomte will sketch on the first opportunity, is extremely
interesting, because it furnishes us with a moulding belonging with-
out possible doubt to the period of the Crusades, further specimens
of which we shall doubtless find in edifices of date hitherto undeter-
mined. In the Barrack wall I have found another, of which also we
shall take a drawing.
"We have at length been enabled to examine closely the base of the The blocks
arches hitherto hidden by a casing of marble, over the columns of the inter- ?^"J™oiint-
mediary peristyle of the Kubbet es Sakhra. One of the external faces columns of
was stripped, and we obtained leave to mount a ladder and examine cs Salira!'
138 LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU .
the capital closely. You will have a drawing of it ; meantime here are
a few words of description which will give an idea of the arrangement,
to the knowledge of which archteologists attach great importance.
The capital of the column is surmounted by a cubical abacus, over
which passes the beam which runs all round the edifice. This beam con-
sisted of two pieces of wood, clamped by a dovetailed coupling. The
point of junction is in the middle of the abacus. Upon the beam rest
the abutments of the arches. It is evident that this part of the beam,
now masked by the marble casing, was originally intended to be seen,
because we found the ornamentation of the beam continuing under the
marble. As for the abacus, it seems clear that it was always intended
to be covered with some kind of ornamentation, for its bare surface and
its rudeness would have made a disagreeable contrast with the richness
of the general decoration.
As for the presence of the beam passing over the capitals, one can
only rem.ember the classical fact not long since mentioned by M. de
Yogiie, in these terms: — "The presence of the wooden tiebeam is cha-
racteristic ... it appears to be of Arab invention, for it is found in the
greater number of early mosques, such as the Mosque of Amrou at
Cairo, and the Mosque el Aksa, and has never been found, so far as I
know, in any church of the fifth or sixth century." We have now to
see what is hidden by the marble casing which surmounts the column
of the interior perimeter. I hope to obtain equal facilities in this in-
vestigation.
It may be interesting to note here an observation that I have re-
cently made, and which I have never seen anywhere else. The scaffold-
ing now erected within the Kubbet es Sakhra has enabled me to
examine closely the mosaics ornamenting the walls. I have ascertained
that on many of the vertical walls in the interior of the Kubbet es
Sakhra, the coloured and gilded little cubes of glass which produce
together so marvellous an effect, are not sunk in the walls so that their
faces are vertical, but are placed obliquely, so that the faces make an
angle with the walls. This ingenious inclination is evidently intended
to present their many-coloured facets at the most efEective angle of
incidence to the eye below. Such is the simple secret which produces
the dazzling and magical effect of this decoration. Curiously, the same
method has been followed in the construction of the splendid windows of
the edifice. They consist of plaster cut into charming designs; in
the holes so formed are fixed small pieces of coloured glass, arranged
with exquisite taste. I have been able to examine a fragment of one
of the window frames, and I observed that all these bits of glass are
inserted obliquely, and not vertically, so as to overhang and meet the
eye of the visitor at right angles, whence this charming brightness of
colour. Perhaps this arrangement of the mosaics belongs to a certain
known epoch, perhaps to the time of the construction of the windows,
i.e., the sixteenth century.
CAPITAL IN Tin: KUEIiET ES SAKllKA.
140 LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU.
Bas-relief in A bas-relief, very remarkable, comes from an Arab house situated
presenti^ng near the Damascus Gate, and was found in the basement. One of the
the tri- g^^jgg gjio^g the medioeval dressinf' to which I have ah-eady called atten-
entry of our tion. This particularity furnishes us with our limit oi date, the tune
^°"'" of the Crusades, which is very likely, judging from the appearance
of the work, to be its real date. Is it the work of a Byzantine artist,
working perhaps for the Latin kings ? The fragment belongs to a bas-
relief representing the triumphal entry of Christ on the Day of Palms.
Christ, clothed in a long tunic, with broad sleeves, in folds of classic
form and execution, is sitting astride, not sideways, on the ass, which is
walking straight on, and seen in profile. The head, which would seem
to have been a three-quarters head, has unfortunately been destroyed,
apparently by the Mussulmans ; the foot is also broken. In the left
hand Jesus holds the reins, and with the right hand, now disappeared,
gives the benediction with the ordinary gesture, as is easily to be recog-
nised by the movement of the right arm, half raised. It is a pity that
this hand has been destroyed, as it would have been easy to see if the
sculptor was under Latin or Greek influence, the position of the fingers
in the Latin benediction being totally different to that in the Greek.
The ass, which is covered with a cloth ornamented with rich embroidery,
has also been decapitated by the same iconoclasts apparently. Neverthe-
less, it is impossible to hesitate on its identity, although the fine shape
of the body might cause it to be taken for that of a horse. All doubt,
however, is removed by the jiresence of the foal, which plays by the
side of the mother, the head down in a pretty and truthful attitude,
showing that the sculptor made a sincere study of nature.
Behind the group, on the right, are to be seen the remains of figures,
mostly destroyed by the hammer ; on the left are two other figures,
■clothed in flowing drapery, which have sufl'ered less. The hinder part
of the ass rests upon the framing.
The sculpture is in high relief, with attempts at shade effects, and a
general inclination of the figures, showing that it was intended to be
seen from below. Probably it was some door lintel, or decorative frieze,
such as that which surmounts the entrance to the Church of St. John.
It is interesting to compare this subject with the same scene repre-
sented in the mosaics of the church at Bethlehem. Essential difference
of style and composition exists between these two works. Por example,
at Bethlehem Christ is seated on the ass, but the foal is absent. These
variations are the more curious, because, as has been remarked already
(Do Vogiio, "Eglises de la Terre Sainte," p. 96), the composition at
Bethlehem is absolutely in conformity with the prescription of an ancient
Byzantine "Guide of Painting," which contained detailed rules on the
manner of treating different subjects.
The author of the mosaics of Bethlehem appear to have followed the
nearly parallel narrations of St. John, St. Mark, and St. Luke, who only
speak, the one of a young ass [oyapiov), the other two of a colt {irci\ov).
Our artist, on the other hand, seems inspired by St. Matthew-
LETTERS FROM il. CLERMONT-GANNEAU. 141
The mosaist of Betlileliein, and the Byzantine school to which he
belonged, took the words used by the Evangelists literally, representing
Jesus sitting, and not astride upon the ass. It is hardly necessary to
remark that this literal interpretation is hardly reasonable, for the Gospel
of St. Mark uses the same term in speaking of an ass " -whereon never
man sat," the word there being evidently used in the ordinary sense of
riding.
Besides, we may show by the Hebrew text of Zachariah ix. 9 — " Behold
thy King cometh unto thee . . . riding upon an ass, and a colt the
foal of an ass," to which the Evangelists all four refer— that the normal
method of riding is intended, for the word used is roJceh.
The interpretation adopted in our bas-relief, although it departs in
appearance from the tradition usually followed, is thus in reality more
exact and nearer the truth. The sculptor who thus set aside the Byzan-
tine traditions belonged, perhaps, to another country, perhaps to another
epoch.
The constant communications which I have with the Silwan people Ai-ab colony
have brought to my knowledge a curious fact. Among the inhabitants DMban '
of the village there are a hundred or so, domiciled for the most part in g*?!*!*^'^ ^*
the lower quarter, and forming a group apart from the rest, called
Dlddhiye, i.e., men of Dhiban. It appears that at some remote period a
colony from the capital of King Mesha crossed the Jordan, and fixed
itself at the gates of Jerusalem at Silwan. The memory of this migra-
tion is still preserved, and I am assured by the people themselves that
many of their number are installed in other villages round Jerusalem.
Passing the other day by the gate of St. Stephen (Bab Sitti Miriam), c^i'eek in-
I remarked outside the city, in the wall, some metres south of the gate, embedded
a fragment of Greek inscription which had escaped my attention up to J," *}^q ^^ l^
that moment. No one had ever remarked it, although it is one of the
most frequented spots in the place. It is on the sixth row of stones.
The letters appear well formed, but it is so badly placed, and in such an
unfavourable light, that I have only been able to make an imperfect
copy. I will make a squeeze of it. Meantime, this is what I have made
out : —
C. . . 0
T. . . .
OT . . . .
U. . OC
The stone is placed on its side, so that the lines descend verticallj'.
There is on the left the trace of a framework, which shows that we have
the commencement of the text, which apparently consisted of four lines.
Another inscription in Mediaeval Latin is unfortunately also incom- irediwval
plete, but Latin texts of Frank origin are so very rare at Jerusalem Latin in-
that I have thought it worth while to put it together as well as possible.
You shall have a drawing of it made after a squeeze.
The inscription appears to have been cut at its two extremities, in
order to obtaia a block of size convenient for the use for which it was
142 LETTERS FROM M. CLERxMONT-GANNEAU.
adapted. It is, in fact, a step in the staircase of an Arab's house, near
the Damascus Gate ; the same house as that in which the bas-relief
I have described above was found.
It is composed of seven lines, of which only the middle part remains,
the beginning and the end having been sacrificed by the mason who
utilised it. The letters are 0.19 metre high; they are of Gothic
form, and although roughly executed they appear to be contemporary
with those of the sepulchral slab of Pliilippus de Auhingni, placed near
the entrance of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. This view is sup-
ported by the identity of the formulae employed, which enables us to
reconstruct a great portion of the mutilated inscription.
ETIO
DELA
FRATEK
AROCH
SANIM
SC I
Comparing this with the inscription of Philippus de Aubingni, we
find that the ct of the first line is the end of the formula, " Hie jacet,"
probably preceded by the cross ( + ). Then comes the name of the
person interred, beginning with I and O, or Q. Wo have a choice of
names, such as locelinus, lordanus, loscevandus, Johannes, &c. Tho
second line began with part of the name, followed by de la, indicating
the origin of the person, probably French, if the characters LA are the
article, and not the commencement of the name of the place. We have
numerous examples of the use of the proper name in the Latin, and
the place in the vulgar tongue, as Ricardus de Belmont, locelinus de
Calmont, &c.
The third line begins with the name of the place, and shows by the
word /ra^er that the person spoken of belonged to some religious order.
The fourth line gives A EOCH . . ., but the E may be a P. Per-
haps it is the name of the order. In the fifth we have the word anim(a),
certainly preceded by (cuju)s. In the sixth line we have part of
(requie)scat i(n). The seventh line ought to have imce, followed by
amen, of which there are traces.
Rock-cut We can now forward you the plans and sections of the rock-cut
chambers chambers near the Ecce Homo Arch. The complicated arrangement of
Dolorosa, the chambers, and the accident which for some time kept us from getting
access to them, has retarded the preparation of the plans.
I have already sent you* a detailed description of the place. I have
now to add some remarks on certain new facts with relation to a point
almost i-^nored. I have considered, in connection with this subject, tho
rock which is visible at the Church of the Ecce Homo, already known,
because it has an intimate relation to the position of the well observed by us.
We have thus a full development of the rocks in aline nearly 42 metres in
* Quarterly Statement, K\m\ 1874, p. 105.
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144 LETTERS FROM M. CLERMOXT-GANNEAU.
length. If we consider tliis line generally on my plan, we observe that
it lies in a direction sensibly constant, only at about the middle of
its course it makes a sharp turn at an obtuse angle, after which it
resumes its original orientation.'^ This is important, because the line has
been cut nearly everywhere with the pickaxe, and is not a natural for-
mation. This cutting is most visible in the Ecce Homo Chmch, and
is found again in the rock of the house E, and in that of the adjacent
houses Q and E'. In the house Q, it seems now that the cutting has
suppressed one of the walls of the chamber cut in the rock S. This
result is a valuable indication for the date of this chamber, and the group
of those of which it forms a part, a date anterior to the period of the
cutting of the rock. (The vestibiile Y has undergone a similar ex-
cision.)
If, now, we turn to the general section, and particularly to
the small section, we may easily follow the slope of the rock
from east to west in the direction of the slope of the street. The pas-
sage, which now debouches into space, might originally have opened
ioS^T'
Floor of the Clmich
"■"t i
,»-^O^V.V«J>.>i«^VICN ?^^'J-'"V.'»Ji>?JJ'JiJ^' ^V"'i>.>
i^^^-;iia^^li^^;Mas&l||l^
upon a layer of rock which has now disappeared, owing to the same
cause which has destroj-ed a wall in one of the chambers.
Another general remark. The normal axes of the chambers and the
direction of the passage form acute and obtuse angles with the present
face of the rock, which could not originally exist, for it would be con-
trary to all known usage up to the present day iu that kind of
excavation.
In the passage on the left may be remarked a broad " notch," appa-
rently indicating that the workman wanted to rectify the sinuosity of
the passage. The square opening made at the end of the chamber P
seems to communicate with another chamber filled with earth, which I
should very much like to dig. It is a question whether this opening
is not the original entrance to the cave, and whether a passage has not
boon cut afterwards from the inside, to attach the chamber V directly
■with the exterior. I must add that the conjecture is rendered difficult
by the configuration of the ground, as one makes it out, the chamber
appearing to plunge into the depth of the hill. On this hypothesis, we
should have to admit that the chamber P communicates with another
LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANNBAU. 145
chamber by the square hole, and that the chamber filled with
earth had its entrance communicating with the exterior by the west
face. In that case, the real primitive outranco of the group of chambers
would have to be sought to the east of the Austrian hospice, near the
second A in the word Mahometan in the 0. S. map. We may, in fact,
admit, without too much temerity, that the side of the hill turns and
faces the west. All this, however, is purely conjectural.
If we pass to the examination of the lower chambers, we shall make
the following notes. The people of the house told us that the chamber
Q was provided with a bench cut in the rock ; it is impossible to ascer-
tain the fact now as the place is filled with ordure to the ceiling. The
wall of rock, which we saw in the third house, appears to be in the align-
ment of the extremity of the rock of the neighbouring house, Q ; there
is, between the two, a solution of continuity of only a few metres.
In this third house the rock had been also excavated to make a
chamber, partly destroyed. A piece of the ceiling of this chamber has
fallen (section K L) through some movement of the ground overloaded
with houses, or an earthquake. Most likely the latter was the cause, for
the wall of the chamber is cloven vertically.
If now we search for the origin of this rock-work and the period at The Second
which it was effected, we are reminded of what Josephus says about the ditc^.^"^ '*^
fortress Antonia, which 7vas separated from the Hill Bezetha, not only
naturally, but ly means of a deep ditch cut so that the foundations of
Antonia tvere not at the foot of the hill and, therefore, easy of access. The
same historian informs us, besides, that the second wall, starting from the
Gennath Gate, joined Antonia, only circumscribing the northern region.
The second wall, then, evidently starting from Antonia, must have
been directed to the west, and turned its face to the north. Now, dur-
ing the first part, it was exposed to the same inconveniences as Antonia
in being commanded by Bezetha. To the same evil the same remedy
was applied — the rock was cut, or the moat of Antonia extended. Can
we not see in the face of the rock cut by the pickaxe, which we found
behind the houses, the counter-scarp of the prolonged moat, cut to protect,
not Antonia, but the second wall ? It was not necessary to prolong the
moat beyond the point where is now the eastern wall of the garden of
the Austrian hospice, for at this point the base of Bezetha seems,
according to our observations, to turn to the north, forming one of the
sides of the great valley from the Damascus Gate, which the second wall
must necessarily have crossed. In the eastern flank of this valley were
excavated chambers, belonging, perhaps, to a cemetery, of which those
chambers found by us formed a portion. In that case these chambers,
cut across by the moat and consequently older than it, were probably
more ancient than the building of the second waU.
These facts are of extreme importance in helping us to find the second
wall ; it seems to me that it must have passed between the two streets
called ' Tarik as Serai al Kadim ' and ' Daraj as Serai ' in the Ordnance
Survey map. JS'ow all the west part of this place is occupied by a large
L
146 LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU.
space of ground belonging to the Catholic Armenians, where I believe I
could easily obtain permission to dig. Captain Warren has already
sunk a shaft on this side in the street Harit el Wad, without results, but
possibly he missed the wall by some few metres.
Tomb at I resume my interrupted enumeration of our researches explained in
ueitsahur. ^^^ drawings sent off by the last mail.
I have only a word to add to my description of the sepulchre with a
semicircle found at Wady Beit Sahur (No. 18). The form of the sarco-
phagus pointed out by me in the Haram (photograph D.) may be com-
pared with the form of the trough of the first chamber, the inside of the
sarcophagus being rounded at one end and square at the other. The
sarcophagi coming from Jerusalem are generally equare at their two
extremities with a receptacle formed in one of the angles to support the
head of the corpse,
cemeterj' at I have already spoken of this valley, the name and direction
Yatoul. of which are accurately given by Tobler (Jerusalem u. Seine Umge-
bungen II. 7). It lies at a few minutes' distance from the Holy City, and
contains a vast cemetery, with many hundreds of sepulchres cut in the
rock, which appears to have been a sort of succursale of the Jerusalem
cemetery. "We have visited a large number of the tombs, some of which
are extremely important. As an illustration of the singular arrange-
ment formed among them I may mention that sketched in plan No. 21,
brought to light by our excavations.
Plate 19 represents a sepulchre. There is an arcosolium covering a
bench in a lower chamber, which is connected with an upper chamber by
the end of a loculus like an oven. On this bench is indicated by a light
hollowing out the place where the head and shoulders of the corpse
would lie. It is only the second example of this kind that I have found
in the tombs round Jerusalem. Immediately below the bench and in
the vertical wall were cut two little alcoves to receive bones. When we
opened the tomb I found these alcoves and the four oven-like recesses
still closed by slabs wedged in with small stones ; they contained nothing
but fragments of bones.
Plate No. 16 shows another tomb also excavated by our men, in.
which we remarked the following points : three little recesses, like those
in the former, serving as depositories for bones, the third of them con-
sisting of a small grave cut at the end of a loculus, and closed by two
slabs of black stone with a layer of cement interposed ; within were
bones and the skull of an adult. In the wall at the end, above and a
little to the left of the entrance of the central loculus, a litth^ cross carved.
In the corner of No. 5, on the bench, fragments of sarcophagi of well-
known type ; in the opposite corner (H) fragments of lamps in terra
cotta : two of the recesses were furnished at the end and laterally with
two boxes at right angles with them, one of which, still closed with a
slab, contained fragments of bones. This tomb has certainly been used
again, perhaps at the period when the cross was engraved.
Plate 17 reproduces the details of another tomb of greater importance,
because it was partially inviolate.
LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU. 147
The first chamber has nothing remarkable except the great irregu-
larity of the loculi, and the strange deviation of one of them, which
pierces the wall of a loculus of a neighbouring chamber at the same level.
In the middle of this first chamber, furnished with a bench, is a rect-
angular grave, through the pierced wall of which is access to a little
lower chamber. The entrance was closed by a slab. It is very small,
and has an ornamentation quite different to that below which it extends.
The ceiling forms a low arch ; right and left stand two walls cut in the
rock, and forming two troughs, each of which is divided into two parts,
one by a diaphragm of rock, the other by a slab placed vertically. Be-
tween these two troughs is a kind of empty passage, almost entirely
filled with earth ; the lid of a little sarcoi^hagus in soft stone placed
transversely towards one of the two exti-emities, forms a small partition.
Three of these "boxes," Gr, H, P, contained the bones of at least three
skeletons.
To the right of the entrance had been cut in the vertical wall a very
small recess, where we found an ossuary of soft stone (F) without a
lid, filled with bones ; sides bare : made to be closed with a groove ;
with feet ; the lid forming the partition I fits it perfectly.
To the left of the entrance is hollowed out another recess, divided
into two parts by the rock forming its diaphragm. In the left division
stood an ordinary ossuary, placed parallel to the diaphragm ; no feet or
grooves ; bare sides ; the lid broken by the fall of a piece of rock ; bones
in it. At the side of this ossuary, and at right angles with it, another
ossuary, B ; bare sides ; no feet ; lid with grooves ; bones, among others
two skulls placed on the surface, at the two ends of the ossuary.
In the right division, ossuary C, parallel to the diaphragm, orna- Ossuary,
, . , , n J 7. P j_ 1- • 01-iiameiited
mented with roses and an elegant framework of traditional type ; witii
ornamented sides relieved with red ; feet ; flat lid ; no leafwork ; on the msc'iipTion
small face a Hebrew inscription in graffito ; bones. Behind this ossuary
and in the same direction, is the fifth ossuary, D ; a rose simply de-
signed ; feet ; leafwork for lid ; no lid ; bones. The lid has been used
to raise at the side an upright partition forming a new recess, serving
for an ossuary, and containing a number of bones. Without doubt this
unviolated chamber has been used a second time, at a very ancient
period ; the adaptation of two of the lids into partitions serves alone
to show it. We took great care in collecting together the bones of the
earlier occupants of the sepulchre. These sarcophagi are undoubtedly
more ancient than the second use of the tomb, which agrees perfectly
with the existence on one of them of a Hebrew inscription. In my next
report I will give you the inscrij^tion. The absence of any glass or
pottery is very remarkable.
yiii.
Jerusalem, March 19, 1874.
I have paid a second visit to the Greek inscription which I had previ- Greek fn-
ously observed in the wall of the city, quite close to the gate of Saint thJ w'lii'of"
the city.
148 LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU.
Steplien spoken of in my last report. I tried to take a squeeze, but there
was so high a wind that I failed to get anything good ; at the same
time, thanks to a ladder, I was able to examine the text closely and to
Uke an exact copy, after carefully cleaning it. The following is a
reproduction of the inscriptions made by the aid of the copy and the
squeeze : —
E KO I I
THAT
on M
4- nioc
The stone, cleaned of the mortar which plastered it up, showed a little
cross engraved at the beginning of, and a little above, the fourth line. The
inscription, then, is Christian. It appears, also, to be a funerary inscrip-
tion, judging from the first word, which we may restore as iKoi^i)et]
"here lies," a word often recurring in sepulchral formula3 of Christian
times, from which is, of course, derived the word Koiixy)Tl)piov cemetery.
The word which begins the second line, THAT, may mention a consul
or proconsul {vizaros), or it may be the name of the deceased person.
OTIM in the third line may be separated into ov, the genitive termi-
nation, and (/i the beginning of a name, or it may be the Greek way of
writing a Latin word beginning with vim. In the fourth line the second
letter is perhaps an E, and the fourth an S or an E. In the former case
we have the preposition ^poy.
■Greek ill- A fellah of Abu Gosh has just told me of an inscription between
tieiir Ahi Kubeibeh and Tell el Gezer, not far from Ain Yarde. He showed me
Yardo. some letters rudely copied by him, but it was easy to recognise the cha-
racters. I made out aaikion, perhaps A^ikiov (?) I propose to visit the
place and see it.
'rhe Lcsend J gathered from the same fellah farther information about the Fenich,
-Fenich. in whom I proposed, some years ago, in a note sent to the Institute, the
Philistines. The Fenich king, or the King of the Fenich, had his summer
residence at Souba, and his winter residence at Eathoun or Latroun.
He had several brothers, one of whom lived at Sara in summer and at
Beit Alub in Avinter ; another at Beit Our in summer and El Bourdj in
winter; another at Boit Jibrin, &c. I shall, perhaps, return to this
common popular legend of the Fenich, to which I have been the first to
call attention.
Jruiyet. This resident of Abu Gcsh told mo that his village, Kuryot el Enab,
was the Ivuryet jj«r excellence, called so without any other qualifying
name. He told me, besides, of a place not far from Yalo called Ilcrchc,
which means forests ; one cannot help being struck by the singular
resemblance of this word with the Hebrew Hareth, the name of the
forest which served as a refuge for David (1 Sam. xxii. o, "Then
'ilie Forest David departed and came into the forest of Hareth.") The shin and
the < are constantly interchanged in Hebrew and in Arabic; the other
letters are identical. If it is not the Biblical Hareth, there would be
LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU.
149
nothing impossible in its being tbat wbicli passed for it in the time of
Eusebius and St. Jerome, for the Onamasticon places an Arat, whicli it
identifies with. Arith, David's place of refuge, west of Jerusalem.
Perhaps we might connect with this place the name of Mount Heres of
Judges i. 3J— " The Amorites would dwell in Mount Heres in Aijalon,
and in Shaalbim "—shown as occupied by the Amorites, and whence it
seems that Aijalon and Shaalbim were also, according to the literal tenor
of the verso. I know that some think that "Mount Heres" is really
Irchtmes, City of the sun, but this supposition is quite gratuitous and may
easily be refuted. The question is too complicated for me to solve it en
passant. I hope to return to it.
The same peasant told me that there was at Amwas {Emmaus) a. well i!J>'=^J'^;J|j^''^'
now closed, whence formerly the plague issued to spread over all the ^^ Am'was.
world ; this well is called Sir et taoun, the ivell of the plague. It is easy
to find the origin of this tradition, which has a historical foundation.
The terrible epidemic which desolated the Mussulman army after tho
conquest of Syria by tho lieutenants of Omar, of which mention is so fre-
quently made in the chronicles of Arab historians, is called by them the
Plague of Emmaus, probably because the first cases broke out there. To
localise the birth of the scourge, and to make it spring from a well,
is but one step.
I had already ascertained the existence of a fountain named Ain Nini, Ain XiuiL
at Amwas. My fellah confirmed the fact. May we recognise in the name
a truncated echo of the old word Nicopolis ?
There has been, probably, some confusion in the publication of these
travelling notes, written apparently at different periods and in diffe-
rent places. It is desirable that the names belonging to each region
should be classified and grouped, in the interest of future explorers east
of Jordan.
Permit me to insert in my report certain observations which have observa-
been suggested to me by reading over again a list of names published in f-°"of"^ ^^'^
the Quarterly Statenicid of July, 1872. It is a list collected by Captain P^''^°«^ ^^^^^
Warren, and examined by MM. Sandreczki and Palmer. The places are Jordan,
given as east of Jordan. In fact, the first pages (123—164) appear to be- P'^blished in
lone to this redon. I will add as well Jebel Atarus, written Atrud'— the Quarterly
Ataroth of the Moabite Stone- and mentioned immediately before Zuka juiy^ 15,72,,
Main and Moudjib. But at page 144 we leave the trans-Jordar.-ic coun-
try, and get an enumeration of places belonging to the environs of
Jericho. Again, at page 167 we are transported to the west of Jerusalem,
to judge by the juxtaposition of such names as Deit Atah, Saide, Sola,
Neby Danyal, etc.*
Certain Arabs of the city, fired with archfcological ardour by my Newiy-
-, r. ;i-ji -ii-ii found
recommendations, have just extracted frour a tomb m the neighbourhood „ssuanes
of Jerusalem four ossuaries of ordinary type in soft limestone, three being "jfj ggi^^ev.-
ornamented with roses. One of them, without roses, bears on the edge inscrip-
tions.
* M. Ganncau's remark is coiTect. On republishing these lists they will be
proi^erly separated.
150 LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU.
of one of its faces the name ATirONA, -whicli is, probably, tbe equivalent
of WvTtySfT]. Is the omission of the N the fault of the engraver ? I
should be tempted to attribute it rather to a voluntary suppression, the
result of a common custom in Jewish orthography. The assimilation of
the letter n with that which follows it is a constant fact in Hebrew.
In virtue of this phonetic law, for instance, we write bat for bant, benet,
daughter. It would not be extraordinary if this, an organic law of the
language, were applied to proper names borrowed from the Greek. I
have already* pointed out a very remarkable instance, for the letter r, in
the Hebrew transcription of Bennigi for Berniki (Veronica). The word
before us may have undergone exactly the same transformation, only it
would have been in conformity with_the Hebrew usage to write ATTirONA ;
the n, which disappears, would bo replaced by a double t. The name
of Antigone was extensively used by the Hellenising Jews. The regular
form is ANTirONOC, but we find also ANTirONA, for example, in the
monument of Patron (Greek Inscriptions of the Louvre, No. 240), where
in a group of eight names figures an ANTiroNA immediately after a
MAAXi^H (The last name has an unmistakably Semitic appearance, and
these two persons were very probably of Turkish extraction). ANTirONA
is, perhaps, the feminine form of ANTiroxou, and in the monument of
Patron as well as on our own ossuary we have two women. The
Hellenising Jews, however, affected the genitives in alpha for many
masculine names, Avhich they brought to the termination as in the
nominative, as 'Apre^as, ©euSax, KXeoiras, for 'ApT6|Ui5copos, 06(^5aipos, KXeoirarpos.
It is true that this systematic alteration was in general preceded by a
contraction which we do not find in \vTi-yova.
The second ossuary bears on the upper part of its long side, which is
ornamented in characters legible but more cursive than those of the
preceding, the name EYTPAnEAcjT in the genitive. I do not know if
the Sif\]CGtiYQ thrpiiriXos [versatile, <jay, clever) has ever before been met
with in a proper name. As it is of two genders it is difficult to say
whether the iiame belongs to a man or a woman, most likely the former.
It is probably the translation of some Hebrew name having the same
signification, and it makes us think of the names 'Adna, 'Ailnah, 'Adin,
'Adiiio, etc.
;;il). The third ossuary has on the back face, opposite to the ornamented
side, a graf&to in square Hebrew characters, broadly traced by means
of a point which appears to have been notched. The letters, though
cursive, are written by a sure and practised hand : they read Elashah.
The name, which signifies literally " created by El," is borne by several
persons in the Bible, notably by a priest who in the time of Esdras
had married a Gentile Avoman (Ezra x. 22). Another of the same
name was sent by Zedekiah to Nebuchadnezzar at Babylon (Jer. xxix. 3).
The characters, as in writing, are uniformly inclined to the right.
The " lamed " is formed by a long haste without a hook. I have already
* " Nouveaux ossuaires Jiiifs." A mimoirc read before the Academy of
Inscriptions, and published in the Ilevuc Archeologique, 1873.
LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU. 151
found several instances of this form used in epigrapliic Hebrew. On
one of the small faces of the same ossuary is engraved another Hebrew
inscription much less easy to make out. The first letter is a long
vertical stroke like the lamed of the preceding : then comes a compli-
cated group which appears to bo formed by the combination of two
characters. There are the complete elements of an aleph ; but this
letter once pulled out, it is very diflacult to do anything with the re-
maining strokes;— a tsade ? ateth? If we admit, on the other hand,
that there is a stroke common to the two characters, this complexity
resolves itself into an aleph + chin. As to the last letter, it appears,
from its prolongation below the line, to be a nun rather than a lavwd.
None of these probabilities give us very happy results, and I do not
very well see, for the moment, how the word is to be read.
We have not been able to take squeezes of these texts, but have con-
tented ourselves with the sketches (PI. 33, B C D E) forwarded here-
with. The proprietors of the ossuaries have the most extravagant ideas
of their value.
The Bedouin legend of Joshua, given in a previous report (p. S7), ^/^^ ^Jf^^j^g
says that the pagans of Jericho were finished off by wasps sent from wasps,
heaven. This is entirely Biblical, and reminds us strikingly of a
passage in the "Wisdom of Solomon, xii. 8, in which the writer is speaking
of the Canaanites and their sanguinary rites. " Nevertheless, even those
thou sparedst as men, and didst send wasps, forerunners of thine hosts,
to destroy them little by little." And we may compare the passage
(Deut. i. 4-1), " The Amorites, which dwelt in that mountain, came out
against you, and chased you, as bees do, and destroyed you in Seir, even
unto Hormah." Not only the image, but the words also, are identical in
the Hebrew and the Bedouin story. To the same order of ideas belongs
the passage in Isaiah (vii. 18) — " It shall come to pass in that day, that
the Lord shall hiss for the fly that is in the uttermost part of the
rivers of Egypt, and for the bee that is in the land of Assyria" — and that
in Ps. cxviii. 12, " They compassed me about like bees." The Hebrew
word deher, derived from the same root, signifies extermination, and
T.-as used particularly for the plague, which attaches itself by preference
to armies. The Arabic word dabra applies especially to the flight of a
defeated army. It ia very possible that these different significations,
sprung from the same root, are connected with each other by the meta-
phorical bond which I have thought it best to explain.
At last we are able to send you the results of our examination of the K»i?^et es
balustrade of the Kubbet cs Sakhra, and of a certain number of the bases '
belonging to the columns of the edifice. This work has cost a great deal
of time, and has been necessarily delayed. We have at least the satis-
faction of forwarding precise and definite information on these important
parts of the mosque, only recently discovered and already beginning to
disappear. With the photograph you have already received, and the
five plates sent with this (Nos. 28 to 32), containing M. Lecomte's
drawings, you will bo able to attack with profit the interesting questions
152 LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU.
raised by these unlooked-for facts, facts whicli may throw precious
light upon the much dispiited origin of this monument.
Bases of the See Plate 31. During the course of the repairs several columns of the
interior. intermedia peristyle of the Kubbet es Sakhra have been laid bare by
the removal of the marble casing which covered up the base. One of
these columns has even had its abacus partially exposed, as I stated in.
my previous report. M. Lecomte will probably be able to send a
drawing of it by the next mail.
By reference to Plate 2 of the Ordnance Survey the positions of the-
columns examined can be easily ascertained : A, column S. of the S.E.
face; B, column N. of the same face; C, column S. of the E. face; E,
column N. of the same face; F, column N. of the N.E. face; I, column
of the S. face, represents a column and a base, having already undergone
a restoration which will very soon cover up all the preceding.
The other bases of the intermediary peristyle have not yet been
stripped of their old covering ; as to that of tbe interior perimeter none
has yet been touched. We wait impatiently for the moment when they
will undergo this operation.
A glance at the drawings will show the form of their bases better
than any description. It sufFices to show one positive fact: that thej'-
are heterogeneous. We cannot certainly deny that there is a great re-
semblance in the profiles A, E, C, if we only consider form ; but the-
proportions, sensibly different for each of these three bases, do not
permit us to refer them to a single type. Besides, they vary in every
case absolutely from the base E, as much in the dimensions as in the
disposition of the mouldings. Finally, the marble in which they are cut
is not of the same kind for each.
The aspect of the bases fully confirms (what the variety of modules
in the columns above them might teach us) the opinion of those who see
in the primitive building ancient materials fi'om various sources used
over again. This use, which seems very improbable in an ancient work,
even of late period, is on the contrary quite in accordance with Arab
customs. It is clear that if the bases and columns, whatever their abso-
lute age,* had been specially made for the Kubbet es Sakhra, thej' would
all be alike. The builders would have no interest in seeking for the
absence of symmetry, which shows itself not only in the variation of
profile in the bases, but also in differences of thickness and height in the
shafts. No caprice, no supposed intention, can account for the last and
grave irregularity which the sketches show. It was so striking that it
fully justifies the adaptation of these false bases, which arc at least
regular, formed of marble slabs ; it is very probable that from the very
beginning the deformities of the halting columns had been disguised by
* This absolute ago is difficult to deteruiine, for it is dangerous to apply to
Palestine, still so little known, rules exact, perhaps, for other plaees. M.
Lecomte thinks that the form of tliese bases might go Lack to the sixth century
in the East, and come down as far as the teuth iu certain parts of the West
(Lombardy, for examiilc).
LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU. 153
this dress of marble, and that this remedy is as old as the evil. The value
of this fact is proved ■when one reflects that these bases and these hetero-
clite columns support a wall ornamented with mosaics, dated from the
year 72 of the Hegira (a.d, 691), that is, the very year of the first con-
struction of the Arab edifice.
Plate 29. Bases of exterior columns. To complete this group of bases, exterior
M. Lecomte has made notes of three others, which are found outside the columns,
building, to the right of the east and north porches (the gate Neby
Daoud, and that of Paradise). We know that these porches have been
added to the building, and are not an integral part of it. Consequently,
we cannot draw any conclusions, in the sense of the preceding, from the
aspect of these bases. Nevertheless, they deserve, by their singularity,
to be brought to the attention of architects.
G is on the north side, and II on the south of the eastern gate (Ord-
nance Survey, Plate II).
D is on the west side of the north door.
They are in one block, and show a bastard profile, formed by mould-
ings, which are complicated and do not belong to any determined
category. They present one curious detail, on which M. Lecomte
rightly insists, because it may put us on the path of their origin. The
higher part of the base surmounting the pedestal has one of its faces
lightly curved, as the sketch of the base G shows, in which the to7-e
dehor de on the vertical face of the plinth. These bases, although different
in detail, appear to belong to one building, and the same part of the
building, perhaps circular.
Plates 28, 29, and 30, give the ensemble and the detaHs of the exterior ^heextlmal
wall of the Kubbet stripped of its tiles. wall of the
The elevation on the scale of 1 -100th shows two of the sides sakhra
of the octagon, the west and the south-west. At the right extremity of
the south-west side has been shown a portion of the tile covering, to
show the way in which this interesting and unsuspected arrangement was
masked. If we begin by studying this latter face, we shall remark that
the wall is pierced by seven high and nari'ow semicircular arches (a
fact already known), of which the upper half forms the bay of the windows
lighting the interior. The lower half is solid, and covered with a plating
of marble ; the bays of the two arches at the extremities are blind, and
not blinded, as the arrangement shows. Above the great arches runs
a projecting band, which gives passage to six leaden gargoyles, by which
the rain-water runs out above the six piers. This band is surmounted
by a high course, which supports a series of small semcircular arches,
resting on coloimettes grouped two and two.
These arches, of which there are thirteen on each of the two sides seen,
have been closed suhsequeiitl!/ to their construction. In fact, (1) the side
of the wall which fills them up is in the same plane as the general face of
the wall and the cutting of the capitals of the columns; (2) the columns
are in fact part covered up by the filling in ; (3) the filling in is effected by
stones quite difi'erent from the rest of the building ; (4) one of the arches
154
LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU,
in the west front tas been opened, and has given evidence that it was
originally destined to be always so.
Lastly, immediately above the little arcades, at a tangent to their
extrados, runs a terminal cornice, the profile of which is extremely diflS.-
cult to arrive at, so much has it suffered.
mi-mMm:Mmfm
liROLIHD Lr.
vyj-^y^ "j'j'i'i'' '
' I' •
A \.
■in
-- - f, ■,..,["1111
1
A^^.
GROD>;; ■
The western face shows the same arrangement. We remark only that
the last of the higher arches on the right extremity has been opened
duringlthe works, and that the great central arch which serves as the door
LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU.
155
is broader than the six other arches. This breadth has been secured by
the narrowing of the bays, the breadth of the piers remaining sensibly
the same. The proportions of the higher arches remaining unaltered,
there results a general difference between the west and the south-
west faces; in the latter the higher arches are calculated in such a
manner that their axis, two by two, corresponds with the axis of the
arches below, if we count 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, 13; with the axis of the piers
if we count 2, 4, (5, 8, 10, 12. In the west face, on the other hand, this
correspondence does not exist.
The drawing represents in stippling the projection of the porch, which
ELEVATION
PLAN
'^^>y7^f
'iimif,'',v ■
''\ '%.:■-:
i
p
SECTION
is supposed to have been taken away to show the original entrance. The
sui-face of the blocks of the whole construction has a good deal suffered.
It, is, besides covered with holes, serving to fix the casing which covered
it. As a result, the dressing (tool marks) has almost wholly disappeared ;
we have, however, been able to ascertain that the dressing is not that
which I have shown in a previous report (see p. 136) to be mediaeval.
The only lapidary sign which we have noticed is one spoken of in my
last report (p. 136) ; it is engraved on the third course of stones, below
the left abutment of the third great arch of the western face, starting
from the left. It is, as may be seen from the copy of it in Plate 28, too
156 LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GAI^'NEAU.
indeterminate in form to permit us to attach it to one epocli rather than
another.
Plate No. 29 represents the detail of the opened arch, and plate No.
30 gives the details of the colnmns, base, and capital, in full scale.
It is more than probable that the six other faces of the octagonal wall,
still concealed by the tiles, would show exactly the same respective
disposition as these two, if they were also stripped.
Starting from the band, the wall in which the higher arches are built
is much less thick than the great wall on which it rests ; this appears to
indicate that it has originally been treated as a lighter construction, not
having so much to support.
The existence of those arches running all round the monument reveals
to us a previous state very different to the present aspect, and raises
curious historical questions.
Above all, we should take account of two essential facts: (1) the
arches are semicircular ; (2) they were originally destined to remain open.
This fact established, if we try to determine the date of this building
exclusively by the aid of technical considerations, we shall be much em-
barrassed. We may nevertheless hold for certain that the whole wall,
from the higher arches to the Imlf of the lower arches — that is to say, in
the whole of its height which has been exposed — is, in spite of the differ-
ences of thickness, of homogeneous construction, and can have only one
date. As for the part below it is difficult to pronounce. The casing
of marble hides the true wall, except at the right feet of the gate of the
western face, where it seems to show that the wall is entirely the same
from the top to the bottom.
Besides the absolute age of the construction, it remains to fix the period
of the transformation which it subsequently underwent, and which led to
the stopping up of the upper arches. It is evident that the transforma-
tion is at least contemporaneous with the decoration of the monument
by means of the tiles placed upon the wall : the beautiful sourate of the
Coran (Yasin) in white letters on a blue ground, which runs all round
the eight faces of the octagon, passes away nearly in the middle of the
arches (Ten land. Although the employment of these tiles, called
Kechany, is of different dates, there is a general agreement in fixing the
first application of them in 'the sixteenth century. It is easy to under-
stand that the decorators, in trying to get as large a surface as possible
to cover with their enamelled tiles, thought of gaining this surface at the
expense of these closed arches, which had perhaps a long time before
lost their natural use, and which were treat(>d as a higher prolongation of
the wall.
Porches and What was this natural use ? To answer this question we must ga
the Tevi- back six centuries, to the time of the Latin kingdom of Jerusalem. We
nnn\he"" ^^"^^ several descriptions of the 'TemjtJu m r)o7ni7i i , made by contemporary
time of the authors. Among these descriptions there are none more exact and more
detailed than that of John of Wirzburg. Unfortunately, I have not
with me the original text, and I quote from the partial translations of
LETTERS FROM M. CLEEMONT-GAXNEAU, 157
Tohler and De Yogiie tlio following iiuportaut passage : " Between the
external wall (pierced by four doors and by windows) .... and
the interior columns (12 + 4) supporting the interior wall, loss broad,
higher, and pierced by twelve windows, there is a row of sixteen
colunins and eight pillars. This circle of columns supports a roof which
joins the interior to the exterior wall, and a ceiling ornamented with
beautiful caissons. The roof is surrounded h// a continuous <jaUery, witli
pipes of lead to carrij off the rain ivater.'" This description applies ad-
mirably to the monument in its present state, and proves how few were
the essential modifications which the Kubbet es Sakhra has undergone
since it ceased to be the Tempi um Domini.
As to the valuable detail which terminates the description of John of
Wirzburg, it appears to me to exactly correspond vath the description
brought to light by the repairs. Here is Tohler's translation, in his
own words: "Am unterm Dache war ein Eundgang zum Lustwandel
und bleierne Eohren schcnkten das Eegenw^asser aus." The lower
roof is that properly so called in opposition to the cupola; the Rund-
(jang zum Lustivandel is a gallery running round.
There is no possible doubt our arches are nothing else than a little
portico surrounding this gallery ; the inclined roof would, at its lower
end, approach the horizontal, or, at least, stop suddenly to permit a
passage, which would not need to be very broad. The breadth of the
lower wall (1 metre, plate 28, section A.D.) is of itself sufficient. A spout
and leaden pipes, corresponding with the present gargoyles, would sufiice
for the rain-water to pass away.
A man standing upright in the internal wall is just able to look with-
out by the bays of these arches, whose height, measured from the
summit of the arch to the base represented by the great wall, is at
least two metres.
It is not necessary to remark how this explanation accounts for the
existence, and justifies the utility of this little portico, which, later on,
closed and transformed into a wall, seemed to have no reason at all for
existence, and gavs to the right faces of the octagon the unpleasing ap-
pearance of eight panels cut out in cardboard. Unfortunately, the re-
pairs follow the same error, and this light colonnade, exposed for one
moment, will again be transformed into a massive wall, this time not
even having the excuse of bearing the elegant fayence of Soliman.
Henceforth we may hold for certain that such was the disposition of
the 2'tmpium Domini. I will add that we may see a vague but real
confirmation in the reproduction of this edifice which figures on the
seal of^he Templars ; there are clearly to be distinguished two rows of
bays superposed.
This gallery, adorned with porticos still in use at the time of the Cru- J^'f''"^'.'!""
saders, the traces of which are now wholly lost — did it exist before their time of the
time? I think that we may, without hesitation, reply that it did, for ^'"''-''^•^'^rs.
plenty of reasons : the absence of mediaeval dressing, the use of the semi-
circle, the historical certainty that the Crusaders have never interfered
158 LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GAT^NEAU.
■with the work, as a whole, of the Khubbet es Sakhra, the homogeneous
nature of the arcade and the -wall which supports it.
To these general reasons one more pi'ecise may be added. A Persian
author, NasiribnKhosrou, who visited the Khubbet es Sakhra in the year
438 of the Hegira, that is to say, some years before the first Crusade,
describing the exterior wall of the Khubbet, says that it was 20 "yards"
high and 33 long, on each side of the octagon. I have not the original
here, and forget what was the exact measure called by the English
translator, Major A. E. Fuller, a yard, consequently I do not know the
real dimensions expressed by the author. At any rate, the proportion of
height to breadth was as 20 : 33. Now these dimensions are actually 12
and 27 metres. In order that the ratio of Nasir's dimensions should
be as 1 : 2, there wants 7-66ths ; in order that the ratio of the actual
dimensions should be as 1:2 there wants 1-18. Now, the difference
between 1-18 and 7-66 is only 5-99, a difference so small that we may
neglect it, and conclude in consequence that the wall before the Crusades
was the same height as it is now. And we have seen above that it may
be considered as produced at a single effort.
As to the period which extends between this epoch and that of the
first construction, the field is still open to conjectui-es as to what concerns
this part of the monument.
If we wanted to find examples of analogous dispositions we might, as
M. Lecomte suggests, find the point de d'part in certain edifices of
central Syria, towards the fifth or sixth century. As to relations with
other places, we might multiply them, but without great advantage
to the chronological elucidation of the special question which occupies
us.
I have other and important observations which the repairs in the
Haram have enabled me to make. These bear upon the works executed
by the Crusaders in the sacred enclosure ; but time presses, and I must
defer them to the next mail.
IX.
Jerusaleji, April 19, 1874.
Lnyer of If, leaving the place called El Mesharif to the north of Jerusalem on
me'Its north ^^^ Nablus road, the name of which is the equivalent of Scopus (see my
of Jeiusa- preceding reports), you turn to the east, you find at about two hundred
^^^' metres' distance certain mounds or hills called by the fellahin liujm el
Blame, literally, "the heap of the animal." The thing that gives par-
ticular interest to these hills is, that they are entirely composed of a
prodigious quantity of flint chipping?.
"We have only as yet devoted one visit — that very rapid and necessarily
superficial ; but it results from this first examination that these mounds
of elongated form, and representing thousands of (actual metres, ought
to be thoroughly explored. How to explain this enoraious mass of flint
LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU. 159
broken up small ? A few steps farther on crops up the very rock from
■wbicli these fragments come. With what object did they cut up the
rock into these tiny pieces ? The collection in heaps may be explained :
it was perhaps done to clear the ground and to facilitate cultivation.
But bow to explain the formation of the fragments '■^ I thought at once,
and I am still tempted to think, that we have here a workshop of flint
implements. The existence of tools and arms in flint at different parts
of Palestine is a fact beyond all doubt. It is enough to recall the
authentic finds at Beit Sahur, near Bethlehem, and at Gezer. We may
note as well that the flints from both these localities, far apart from each
other, are, as regards form, identically the same ; a fact which would
lead us to suppose that the flint instruments came from certain centres
of fabrication, and were thence sent into the rest of Palestine, This
mode of production seems very probable when we observe that layers of
flint suitable for the purpose, and in abundance, are distributed over
certain regions, and that it is therefore probable that the work would
take place near the material.
Are we then to see in the Rujin el Blnme the waste cbippings of one
of these primitive manufactories which supplied the land of Canaan ?
One would hardly dare to affirm this, but I am not far from believing it.
We passed some time in searching on the surface of the mounds for
specimens of cut flints. We found quantities which seem to have been
roughly prepared ; others which seemed to have been commenced and
abandoned ; not a single specimen perfect, or so perfect as to be pro-
nounced with certainty a weapon or a tool. I intend to excavate these
mounds, and perhaps a few crucial incisions will throw some light upon
this interesting question.
Local tradition of the Lifta people calls the place the site of an ancient
city, or rather of an ancient inhabited place ; but it is silent as to the
flint, and contents itself with calling the cbippings souivaniit (flint). I
forgot to say that we found on the surface some fragments in terra cotta.
A fellah of Abu Gosh, the same spoken of in a previous report, has inscripti ms
brought me a rough copy, made by himself, of an inscription at El ^eibeh.
Kubeibeh :
CIIOIXI
AEV II
DifBcult to get anything out of this ; but it seems like a Latin in-
scription on account of the R. The X would then be a numerical sign.
Have we some inscription of the Tenth Legion, or is it a piece of a
Eoman milestone ? It is interesting on either hypothesis. As soon as
time permits I will examine this inscription, as well as that of Ain Yarde.
The same peasant spoke to me of a sarcophagus with three rosettes which
is at El Boueire. It is something else to visit.
I have seen and made a squeeze of a fragment coming from Beit Sahur Fragment
et Ati'ga. It contains nothing but three Greek letters of Byzantine tion'a't^Beit
appearance — Hno, with a large character underneath, like an A laid Sal""",
horizontally.
1(30 LETTERS FROM M. CLERMOSfT-GAKNEAU.
Greek in- J i-eceived a visit from a trans- Jordanic Bedouin, Jasem, son of Slieikli
from*the Goblan, wlio, besides giving me certain curious information, brought
Ammon ^^ ^^^ squeeze of a Greek inscription in the "Wady el Katar, west of
Khan es SMb (lat. 31 degs. 25 sees., long. 36 degs. 9 sees.).
•tlAO
HOYATPin
KOKKHIOYAK
KOKKTiiov would be the genitive of the Latin Cocceius. The Cocceian
dens was an important one ; the Emperor Nerva, and the historian,
Dion Cassius, both belonged to it. The squeeze is as good as a Bedouin
can make it ; that is to say, detestable, and the characters are hard to
decipher. Perhaps the word (pt\o is part of an official title, such as
<pi\oKdia-ap, (piAoorj/Aos, or (pikopufiaios. In this case it is a great pity
that this word is lost, because the inscription would then have a great
historical value. At times the second line looks like as if it contains the
name Agrippas.
Lastly, a peasant sold me, with a lot of terra cotta coming fi-om "Wady
Beit Sahur, a fragment of soft stone, with certain characters, which
seem to have been written with the point of a knife.
The Well of Apropos of the Btr et-Ta'oun at Amwas, of which I have spoken
\mwaf '^'^ already, here is a remark which occurred after I wrote my account
of it. I have already explained the origin of this legend of the Well of
the Pest, but very likely another tradition has been engrafted on the
former, relating to the closing of the well. The passage in Sozomen
has often been quoted which mentions at Emmaus Nicopolis, identified
with the Emmaus of the Gospels, a source situated at the intersection
of three roads, and endowed with miraculous healing powers, which it
owed to the touch of Christ.
This miraculous fountain was closed by order of the Emperor Julian,
in order to suppress the Christian belief which was attached to it. If
Amwas be really the Emmaus of Saint Luke, would it be rash to con-
sider the legend of Bir et-Ta'oun, closed as it is, a confused amalgam of
reminiscences relating to very different events — the suppression of the
beneficent source, and the appearance of the epidemic called the pest of
Emmaus ? Perhaps an inquiry made on the spot will furnish me with
more precise information on this point.
MaUia. J i^ave just made an excursion to the village of Malha, south-west of
Jerusalem, where I picked up a little information not without its
value. There is nothing very curious in the houses, except a ruined
burj near the mosque. I remarked in the angle of a house not far from
it a broken inscription, very faint, perhaps only a flourish. Inside
another house I was shown the entrance, now closed, of a cavern, the
door of which would have borne an inscription. The approaches to the
village, and the little hill which rises before it (same orientation) are
filled with tombs cut in the rock, one of them containing fragments
of ancient pottery. They showed mo a kind of long box in dried earth,
\Fith rounded angles, found probably in one of these tombs, full of bones.
T.KTTEKS FROM M. fLERMONT-GANXEAU. 161
It measures very nearly thirty-six inches in length, and looks like a small
bath. I propose to go and open one or two of these tombs.
According to a tradition of the Mawalch, or inhabitants of Malha,
they may bo divided into two categories of different origin : the one
coming from trans-Jordanic regions, the other from Egypt.
Their pronunciation is something quite peculiar. It is chiefly charac-
terised by the sound of the long o, which is very full, and closely resem-
bles the sound of o.
The water of the fountain, Ain Yalo, a little distance west-south-west
of Malha, enjoys a great reputation. The Mawaleh, when they wish to
praise it, say tJiat they weighed its water in the Mijau, and found it
lighter than gold; which does not prevent it from being heavy for
drinking.
The immediate environs of Malha contain many localities which appear
to be of importance : for example, Xhirbet el Fowagesi, on a hill, whose
terraces in stages can be seen, from Ain Yalo. A little more to the
east is a place called Q 7a es sounwan, the rocks of flint, to which is
attached a singular legend. It was formerly an inhabited place; but the
people having drawn on themselves the wrath of God, the whole region
was transformed into flint. The sin committed was that the women
did not use the bread for the nourishment of their children. I do not
see what larks beneath this story, unless it be some relation with the
use of flint by the Canaanites in primitive ages. I shall see when I visit
the place if it shows any traces of the working of stone.
The Mawaleh have pointed out to me, not far from Malha, three Tumuli,
great mounds, on the Jehd et-tau:agi, west of the village, Eujm Afanil,
Eujm Ataya, and Rujm et-Tazoiid. They are probably the three tumuli
indicated by Prokesh and Tobler (Topog. 7G1), on the left hand of the
road from Malha to Ain Karem. The Barud of Tobler must be my
Tarud. I see, too, that Mr. Drake [Quarterly Statement, Jan., 1874)
speaks of these tiunuli, which he names El Atyya, El Tarud, and El
Barish.
The position of Malha, and the numerous tombs which surround it, ^lalkliaya.
are enough to indicate that we must look for an ancient locality near it.
Up to the present no identification proposed appears cither happy or
important. The best known is that of Schwarz, which has been gene-
rally repeated. Malha would be mentioned in the Talmud under the
form Malkhaya, as the country of a certain Rabbi Jose. From a
phonetic point of view this identification is very well ; but it has no
historical value at all, this being the only place where Malkhaya is men-
tioned at all. Some authors have even doubted the exactness of this
otherwise insignificant connection. Thus Neubauer, in the " Geography
of the Talmud," remarks that the Talmudic Malkhaya must be looked for
in Upper Galilee, because this Rabbi Jose is named in the passage with
another rabbi coming from Sikhnin, a place undoubtedly Galilajan, and
he recalls the fact of the existence of a town called Malha in the neigh-
bourhood of Cccsarea.
162
LETTERS FKO.M .11. CLERMONT-GANNEAU.
Caphar
Gamala.
Caphar
Melich.
llanoclio.
Tobler, not without hesitation, in whicli he is right, compares Malhr^
with. Caphar Gamala, tlie place where the body of St. Stephen was
found by a cei-tain Lucian. (Top. 101.)
Its connection with, the Caphar Melich of the Cartulary of the Holy
Sepulchre (pp. 90, 93), would be more acceptable phonetically; but we
must not forget that Caphar Llelich is mentioned with Auquina (r)
I sball propose, in my turn, with some confidence, a new identifica-
tion of Malha, which, if it is admitted, will have the advantage of
solving one of the lesser problems of Biblical topography.
One knows the important group of eleven cities of Judah added in the
Septuagint version to Joshua xix, 9. All the critics are agreed in con-
sidering this passage, which does not exist in the Hebrew text, not as an
interpolation, but as the translation of an original verse omitted by a
copyist. Several of these cities are easily identified : e.//., Tekoa, Beth-
lehem, Faghom-, Karem, Bettir. Others are less easy to identify on
account of the variations of the different manuscripts. "With these
I have nothing to do for the moment. I shall only remark that all the
MSS. name, after Bettir, with very slight differences, a city called
Manocho — Mavoxw, Mavax. Critics have connected this place with Mana-
hat, whither were transported the men of Benjamin, originally from
Geba (1 Chron. viii. G); but it seems to result from Judges xx. 43 that
this Manahat is identical with Menonha, situated in the territory of
Benjamin. However that may be, 1 Chron. ii. 2 and 4 appear to
indicate very clearly that this was a Manahat or Menouhat in Judah.
It is to this Manahat or Menouhat that the Manocho of the Septuagint
corresponds. Both are, in my opinion, the actual village of Malha.
The change from n to / is a constant fact in Arabic, especially in vulgar
Arabic, in proper names ; so that when the fellahin say MaJha, it is ex-
actly as if they pronounced Munha. This little phonetic alteration
would have been facilitated by the natural attraction tending to bring
the Hebrew word to the Arab word Malha, salted.
Topographically, Malha perfectly agrees, for it is on the road to, and
a little distance from, Bettir, which stands immediately beside Manocho
in the Septuagint list. In any case it is in the country of Judah, to
which this Greek passage applies generally. *
Another interview with the fellah Il^rahim Almud gave me new tra-
l«gendsaLd ^itions On the ancient Nicopolis which are not without their value. It
is always the famous pestilence of which I have ali-eady spoken in my
* Soliwarz {Holy Land, 79) supposes that the ManOLlio of the .Sei)tuagiiit eor-
responds with a Hebrew form, Manuka. The Greek ch might possibly, according to
the custom of the Sejituagint, be the representation of a caj)h, but it holds quite
as often the place of a khet. Besides this supposed form Manuka once obtained,
Schwarz is obliged to have recourse to another conjecture, lie admits an inter-
vcraion in the word, and connects it with the Mekonah of Nehemiah xi. 28, one
of the cities reijeojilcd after the captivity by the men of Judah, and finally with
Jlechamim, or Machamim, mentioned in the Onomasti'.'oii Ix'twi'Mi J.TUsalem aiid
Amwap.
LETTEES FROM >I. CLERMONT-GANNEAi;. 163
previous reports wlaich fills the principal part in these vague souvenirs
of the past.
On the first appearance of the pestilence at Emmaus, the inhabitants,
who wore all Jews, mostlj' fled. Nearly all who remained died. The
scourge passed, the fugitives came back to the town. But the following
year the epidemic appeared again, and the people all perished without
having the time to escape by flight. At this moment arrived Neby
Ozeir (Esdras), who found all dead — men, women, and children. The
prophet having asked of God why he had so rudely chastised the
country, supplicated the Almighty to resiiscitate the victims. It was
done, and since that time the Jows have been named onlad el mite {the
children of the pidtimj to deatli).
It is to this epidemic that the city of Am was owes its name, according
to oui- fellahiu. They say, in fact, of the pestilence, amm-ou-asa {it tvas
extended generally, and was an affliction). (I have not been able to deter-
mine precisely the meaning of the second verb, which I omitted in my
notes.) Of course I put no faith in the truth of this etymology, which
is evidently artificial, like many of the same kind met with in the Bible
as well as in the mouths of the people, and on which I have many times
in these reports found occasion to insist.
It will be curious to give, side by side with this rustic etymology, a
philologic explanation of the same kind given us by St. Jerome pre-
cisely apropos of Emmaus. The leai-ned Fulton translates the word
Emmaus as popidus abjectiis, alias ahjicientes, which proves that he de-
composed Emmaus into Am, people, and Maiis, refuse. St. Jerome
appears to allude to various Biblical passages where this word is
applied by Chi-istian exegesis to the Jewish people, and to have had
notably present in his mind the verse of Lamentations iii., " Thou
hast made us as the oflfscouring and refuse in the midst of the
people."
It is clear from this etymology, more ingenious than probable, but
to which we ought to have paid a little attention, that in the time of
St. Jerome the Semitic name of Nicopolis was pronounced 'Emmaus,
'Ammaus, with the cdu, and that consequently the Arabic foi'm
is much nearer the original than the Talmudic Amaous with the
cdeph.
This interpretation of Saint Jerome is, besides, an additional proof
that, for him, the Emmaus of the Gospels was Nicopolis, and conse-
quently the Amwas of our time ; it also shows that the word Emmaus
was nothing at all to do with Hamath, which is written with a hhet,
Beit Jibrin, eight miles from the latter city. This series of su]ipositions is very
improbable, especially if we reflect with ilr. Grove {Bib'c Did. s. v.) that the
Mekonah of Nehemiah, joined with Ziklag, was probably much farther to the
south of Palestine. Schwarz adds at tlie end of his paragraph, odcr Malclia,
only, in his article on Malcha and Machaya, p. 89, he does not breathe a word
of this identification, which presented itself to his mind for a moment, but with-
out any plausible reasons.
1G4 LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU.
and whicli some authors want to identify witli it. Here are names
of diiferent places situated at Amwas. Khall't el Adlira, the well of
KhalVt el luuiimam ; Ersoum ; KlialVt et taga, where they show the
place where knelt the camel of Saleh, the prophet sent to the Themon-
dites. The fountain of Ain Nini dries up in summer. Formerly there
was an aqueduct cai-rying water to Amwas from Bir et Tine, on the road
near Bir Eyub.
insciiptions I have just seen at a mason's in Jerusalem a fragment of a strange
blenis!'" inscription, brought to light, it appears, in repairs made at the Meh-
keme. The block on which it is engraved has the mediaeval dressing,
which gives us as our limit the period of the Crusades. There
is only one line of characters rudely traced and difficult to make out :
U U S N - - 11
but what is interesting is that the line is surrounded by representa-
tions of tools and instruments : the first resembles a great cullender,
the second a stove, the third is certainly a cleaver ; then comes a kind
of pestle ; next a cutlass in scabbard. The whole resembles the appara-
tus of a cook. Perhaps we have the epitaph of some great chef. We
know that the representation on the tombstones of certain artisans of
the instruments of their trade was a common thing in the middle ages
as well as in antiquity. Perhaps we may see in the first letters of the
fragment uus, the end of the word coquus. You shall have a drawing of
this enigmatic stone.
Haram I have at length succeeded, after many researches in the various
^alfr'^'^of'^*^ libraries in Jerusalem to which I have access, in getting at the original
the Kubbet text of John of Wirzburg, and in studying the principal passage of this
^* ' ^ ^^' author quoted in my last report on the little arcade round the Sukhra.
Here is the passage : —
" Supra se etiam, juxta tectum, locum deambulatorium circum qua-
que exhibentibus et habentibus canales plumbeos qui aquam pluviatilem
evomunt."
The constrviction of the jJirase is sufficiently obscure, and the manner
in which Tobler and M. de Vogiie render it seems to me a paraphrase
rather than a translation. If we keep to the text, taking the architec-
ture itself as our commentary, it seems that stqjra se should mean, in
the incorrect language of the author, " above the exterior wall " of
which we have just been speaking, as well as of the interior wall, and
not " above the roof," since immediately afterwards we have/Mxto tectum,
" near the roof." It is the only explanation possible, if we admit the
punctuation adopted by the editor of the text and followed by these
two learned archaeologists. But I think that this punctuation, which
makes of the words supra se a phrase by themselves, is an error ;
and, in fact, by cutting up the text in this fashion, the words cxJnbent-
Has et hahentihus belong to nothing at all. Replace the colon by a
comma, and restore the passage as follows : — " cum pulcherrimis
laqueariis supra se etiam, juxta tectum," &c., and translate : " Between
the two walls there is an intermediary roof, with a beautiful panelled
LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU. 1G5
ceiling, over whicli (which has above it), running all round, is a gallery,
and which has leaden pipes for getting rid of rain water." From this
rigorous translation, it is clear that the gallery was above the ceiling,
and therefore had a large relative width, not being limited to the
breadth of the wall. Possibly the inclination of the roof stopped sud-
denly before reaching the external wall, surmounted by arcades, and
let the water fall upon the floor of the gallery : here they would be
caught by the leaden gutters and thrown out by gargoyles placed most
likely at the same points as we now see them. Tobler translates canales
by rohren, De Yogiie by iiajaux. It is better, I think, to use the French
word rlieneaux derived from it, and signifying, not a tabular conduit,
but au open canal.
The excavation undertaken by the Memour against the interior of the Excavation
east wall of the Haram, of which I have already spoken, has been sunk Haram**^*^
to more than 30 feet. The point chosen is nearly 160 metres (173 yards)
south of the Golden Gate. We have now reached, and even passed be-
low, the level of the soil outside. The excavation has led to no
archeeological or practical result ; nor any traces of the dressed stones
searched for. It has passed through made-up earth mixed with pottery,
cubes of mosaic, fragments of marble, &c. We descended the shaft,
which is not very cleverly made, and narrowly framed in. We were
able to examine the wall as far as the shaft goes, and can state that
the stones have no medijeval dressing. ... I am afraid that the shaft
will be shortly closed.
At the bottom of the shaft the wall presents two successive sets back,
the first 3 in. of projection and 15 in. of height ; the lower 7^ in. of
pi'ojection, with a height as yet undetermined, the shaft having stopped
at ... . At a point 6 ft. 6 in. above the first projection the wall
shows a v6ry sensible change in construction, seeming to indicate two
successivevisible epochs, visible also from the outside : the more ancient
below, the more modern above, naturally.
Now a few remarks on my visits to the Haram. The blocks of the Flints inlaid
inner side of the exterior wall of the Kubbet es Sukhra, visible in the |" *'}f
frame of the wooden stair leading to the roof, are pierced by numerous
openings, in which have been inlaid small pieces of flint, having their
visible faces cut and polished. I cannot explain the purpose of this
singular arrangement, which has perhaps a superstitious origin. The
dressing of the blocks is not mediaeval.
The application of the rule of media3val dressing has led us to estab- ciusadiu?
lish several important facts in the enceinte of the Mesjid. (1) Great ti°'ns''n\"i
bases of engaged columns on the platform and near the Mosque of the Haram.
Mogi'ebbin, certainly mediajval. (2) Various fi-agments of ai-chitec-
ture of the same origin built up here and thei'e. (3) Mediaeval stones
and gate in the wall north of the gallery, which joins the Aksa to the
Mosque of the Mngvebbin. (4) The whole south-ivest angle of the es-
planade of the Sahhra is entirely mediceval. (5) Several buttresses on the
west side of the platform are made iip of materials of the middle ages.
166
LETTERS FROM 31. CLERMONT-GaNNEAU.
Niche of
ancient
•Statue.
South face
and S.E.
angle of
Antonia.
AVall west
and north
Tlic ruck-
cut chani-
))ers be-
tween the
Ecce Homo
and the
Austrian
hospice.
.Shaft and
Raliery in
the Arme
niau
south
Austrian
hospice.
I observed on the pillars of the porcli north of the Haram a large
number of Latin masons' marks (pricked with the point of the tool) ;
they are engraved on great blocks, which have been stripped of their
mediceval dressing. I suppose them to be older blocks simply used
again by the Crusaders, who put signs on them to facilitate placing
them in proper positions.
On examining the large hollow stone which the Mussulmans consider
the cradle of Jesus, I believe I have discovered that it is the niche for
a statue of small dimensions.
The south face of the scarped rock north of the Haram requu-es to
be studied attentively ; at a certain point it makes an abrupt return at
right angles and due north. I have not seen this angle marked in
the map of the Ordnance Survey. Perhaps it is the east limit of
Antonia. A little more to the west an ancient cistern is cut in the side
of the rock ; here and there, and at a uniform height, are to be
seen in the rock quadrangular holes seemingly intended to receive
beams.
The thin wall of rustic-work to the west and the north, indicated in the
Statement of April, 1872, is again accessible and visible. We hope to
make an exact sketch of it, the published plan giving a very insufficient
idea of it, and not indicating the kinds of pilasters, recalling those of
the enceinte of the Mosque of Hebron and the debris of the Eussian
ground behind the Holy Sepulchre.
We have just undertaken two excavations.
The first, in the chambers cut in the rock between the Austrian
hospice and the church of the Ecce Homo. I at first tried to push
myself into the opening I, at the end of the chamber P, hoping to
arrive at another chamber, or at a primitive entrance. I had to force
my way in the midst of a mass of rolling stones, which shook at every
movement. After two days of stubborn as well as dangerous work, we
were obliged to give it up. We have, however, meanwhile, succeeded
in seeing and touching to right and left two vertical ivalls of rock, at
right angles, the angle being about one metre from the opening. These
two walls may belong to a chamber like that lettered P ; but they may
also be the walls of a vestibule, whose sides were cut in the rock, and
which was open to the sky. In favour of this hypothesis, the ground of
the passage i, Plate II., above the surface of the chamber P, is on a level
with that of the region X, still to explore, an arrangement which
applies better to the entrance of a tomb than to a simple communica-
tion between two chambers. Besides, the enormous mass of stones,
against which we have vainly endeavoured to struggle, implies the
existence of u hollow much higher than a single chamber. Either this
chamber has lately given way, or else it was always open to the sky.
The second excavation is in the Armenian ground (27 O. S.). Cap-
tain Warren has already made an excavation on this side in the
^Tf"the Street of the Valley (March, 18G9). The point that I have chosen is
sixty metres more to the east, at the lowest point of the ground. One
LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAIT, 167
shaft is already five metres deep. I propose to open a shaft to the
S.S.E., in order to cut the probable line of the second wall.
Jerusalem, ]\kiy .3, 1874.
Seven days ago, as I was preparing to make an excursion to Jericho, ^rfp^t?on at
an Arab of Jerusalem, who owns and cultivates a large piece of ground Bird
at Latrun, came to tell me of the discovery, or rather the apparition, of
a large inscription close to that village. After the information which
he gave me, I thought it best to adjoui-n the projected excursion and to
repair withouL delay to the spot, in order to examine the text, which
might be important, consisting, as he professed, of twelve lines, written
all round, and inside a well, called the Bir el Helou. We arrived at the
well, which is situated a few minutes south-east of Latrun, at the bottom
of a broad valley, whose waters it drains ; it is a veritable " well of
living water," and not a cistern, circular, and of careful construction,
covered with a vault, in which ai-e seen two openings showing the
ancient place of a heyyara or noria. The water drawn by this machine
was poured out into a small hirJcet, and from thence directed by an
aqueduct, half destroyed, upon the ground for irrigation. The diameter
of the well is 3'70 metres. I immediately proceeded with an pmpressement ,
easy to understand, to search for the famous inscription : and in fact
I saw running all round the interior wall of the well a considerable
number of very small characters, of which I counted in certain places
as many as twelve or thirteen lines. The first line, the lowest, was a
very little above the level of the water, which was low in the well. The
characters, traced at some distance fi'om the margin of the well, were
so small and so close together, that I could only distinguish them by
means of a glass. I say distinguish, because it was perfectly impossible
for me to read a single one, or to determine the language and the
character of this mysterious inscription, to the great disappointment
of the Arab who accompanied me. I estimated the number of letters
at ten thousand !
After the fruitless attempt I went back to the village of Latri;n,
where I had to pass the night, and took advantage of the opportunity
to revisit Aniwas. In both these villages I found the fellahin in a state
of great excitement on the subject of the inscription round the well.
They all gathered round me, eagerly inquiring if I had been able to
make out the characters. I had humbly to acknowledge my inability.
In turn I interrogated them as to how the inscription was first remarked,
and got the following information. Twelve days before the women of
Latrun went to the Bir el Helou to draw water, and came back in a
great fright, crying out that the well was miraculously filled with
writing. Nothing had been noticed the day before, though the well is
much frequented and supplies the whole village. The fellahin imme-
168 LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANIsEAr.
diately imagined that the inscription was a manifestation of the will of
Sidna el Khalil (Abraham). The rumour ran about the neighbouring
villages, and every day hundreds of them came on pilgrimage from the
places round to contemplate the characters traced by the very hand of
the patriarch.
This explanation of the enigmatic inscrijition which appeared in a
single night was the more natural becau^se there exists in the country
an analogous legend. Forty years ago a great discussion arose on the
boundaries of Deyr Byub and Latrun (the latter is lual'f of Hebron and
included in the lands of the Miri). No one knew which side to take,
when the patriarch himself intervened, and jjlaced in the night a mound
on the point where he meant the boundary to pass. Next morning the
newly-arrived hillock was seen, and everybody submitted, without
further question, to the decision given by this supreme judge. They
show the Eujm el Khalil on the left hand of the road leading from
Deyr Eyub to Latrun. This new intervention of Abraham in the
affair of the inscription was the more marked because the Eir el Helou
is also called the Bir el Khalil, the Well of Abraham, and because
Abraham rested here, according to the local tradition, between his
departure from Orfa and his arrival at Hebron. The fellahin are so
convinced of the miracle that they are coming every instant to see if
the writing does not increase, and if, by chance, the patriarch has
added a postscript to his long missive.
As for the explanation of the fact, they offer a very singular one.
Abraham manifested his will by writing to show that he would no
longer tolerate Christians in the country. All were agreed in deriving
this conclusion from the miracle. At Abu Gosh, which I passed both
going and returning, the people were of the same opinion, and there
■was only one voice in the environs. Nevertheless, they did not fail to
question me very carefully whether I had been able to translate the
inscription, and when I was obliged to say no, they gravely shook their
heads, and appeared to draw from my inability a new argument in
favour of its supernatural origin.
I passed a bad night at Latrun, partly on account of a hard bed,
and partly by reason of this strange affair, which perplexed me greatly.
The next day I rose before daybreak to go back to Jerusalem, but I
wanted first of all to see once more this phenomenon of inscriptions,
and to get it off my mind. I put in requisition the furniture of my
host, and went to the well with a little ladder, a table, and a rope. A
great number of the people of Latrun accompanied me, some of
them assisting mo with a good grace. I placed the ladder horizontally
in the water, holding it in its place by the rope, and placed the table
on it like a plank ; then I lowered myself down to this position of
unstable equilibrium, half raft half scaffold. I was now able to touch
the characters with my finger, and consequently to study them at
leisure. They appeared to me traced with the fjaluin, with ink of a
reddish black on an old coating (of plaster), which covered the Avail of
LETTERS FROM M. CLKRilONT-CANNKAl'. 169
the well. Where the coating had fallen off, the lines contiuued. The
two last lines appeared to have been smeared by a rise in the water at
the moment when the ink was not yet dry. The letters remained some
time undecipherable by me ; they appeared to consist of signs entirely
arbitrary, vaguely recalling the writing of certain talismans ; the
execution made me think of Arabic inscriptions written at the present
day on the wall with ink and the (jidam.
Looking more attentively, I discovered a fact which shows peremp-
torily that the text has been written only a few days. The water, which
two or three weeks ago was at a higher level, having dropped, several
bits of straw floating on the surface had stuck to the wall. !Now I
observed that the strokes of the (jalam passed over several of these bits ;
striking one away, I observed the interruption of the stroke.
I had seen enough. I climbed out and told the fellahin in plain
terms, thinking it best to make a breach in their fanaticism, that the
inscription had been made a few days before by some ill-advised joker.
But they would not give up. If the inscription appeared to be recently
executed it was one proof more that it came from the hand of Abraham ;
the characters must be Yalioudi, 'Ebrany, or Sjjrium ; that was the reason
why I did not understand them. At this moment there appeared at
the bottom of the valley a caravan of camels charged with grain coming
from Gaza, escorted by two Jews, whom I called in to convince these
obstinate peasants. The Jews declared that the inscription was not
Jewish. Trouble lost !
Decidedly the metier of archeeologist becomes more arduous in
Palestine. After the pseudo-Moabite pottery, we have a quasi-
patriarchal phantom ; after the fraud comes the miracle. If fanaticism
joins in, one will have to give up. The inscription of Bir el Helou is,
then, of recent date. But how to explain the object with which it was
drawn ? It must have taken very considerable time and pains to write
these thousands of signs, even though they are arbitrary, close to the
edge of the water, in lines perfectly horizontal. Evidently the work
was done during the night, since the evening before nothing was seen,
and the next morning the women ran to announce the miracle.
Two explanations suggest themselves ; I propose them under reserve.
Some Mussulman searcher after treasure may have inscribed these
magic signs, hoping to make the object of his search spring from the
Avell. Or perhaps the intention of the writer is revealed by the effect it
has produced — the aiuakening of fanaticism tending to the e.rpidsio/t of the
Christians. The thing that makes this last hypothesis probable is that
in fact for two or three years past many Ottoman and European
Christians have made great acquisitions of territory about this place
with the view to agricultural operations. This intrusion is jealously
regarded by the fellahin, with whom the new proprietors have generaUy
a bone to pick. Some mischievous villager may possibly have had re-
course to this ruse to provoke against these Christians a religious
reaction, shaking the sole cord which remains among the people of
170 LETTERS FROM jr. CLERMONT-GAITKEAU.
fanaticism. Without meaning that one may see here the elements of
a Mussulman Jacquerie, I must own that the emotion i^roduced in the
country by this miraculous incident has been very lively.
A few remarks made on the road : —
(1.) At Colonia, south of the road, in front of the ruined building,
in a field, two great roussoirs with the mediasval dressing.
(2.) The hill close to Abu Gosh and south of it is called Jjuten El
Kheyme. At a few minutes north-wesfc of the village is a well whose
water is endowed with healing properties. It is called Bir An Koudi.
(3.) Latrun was surrounded by a triple wall, according to the fellahin.
I have examined the ruins, Avhich appear to me important and v/orthy of
being noted.
(4.) At Emmaus I visited several houses and saw pieces of sculpture
coming probably from the church. The exact site of the Bir et Ta 'oun,
or Avell of Pest, is unknown. The Wely, placed on a height east of
the village, is called Sheikh Moal iben Jebel.
(5.) The Fenich were three brothers, all kings ; their tombs are north
of, and not far from, Suba ; you get to them by a well. There is, the
peasants tell me, a subterranean communication between Suba and
Latrun.
The day after my return from Latrun we left for Jericho, v/here I
went to ascertain certain points before heats set in. M. Pierre Decosse,
overseer of the works at the Church of Saint Anne, was good enough
to look after the excavation in the caverns of the Yia Dolorosa and in
the Armenian ground. We went to Jericho by the shortest and best
known road; our journey there offered nothing worthy of note. We
installed ourselves on a little hill at the entrance to Eiha, near the
cemeterj'', and not far from Burj.
<^iii?ai- j^ext day we went to the presumed site of Gilgal, which we had not
been able to visit on our first journey to Jericho, the existence and
the name of which I had spoken of to Lieut. Conder. This place,
situated not far from Tell el-Ithle (or Hithle), has been pointed out to
several travellers (Schokke and Frere Liewin) under the name of
Jiljulieh. The people of Riha told us that this was a name peculiar to
the Franks.* However that may be, we tried a few little excavations
in the mounds of El Ithle and Jiljulieh; these were not deep, and led
to no great results. In the first, a large quantity of pottery fragments,
cubes of mosaic, and lots of glass; in the second, sand. It is certain
that there was once an edifice here of considerable importance, to judge
by the mosaics. But that proves nothing for or against the identifica-
tion of Gilgal, Avhich appears to me still a doubtful point,
of Icuii'tu'-c Next day we examined the Tawahin es Soukker again, and especially
=***■*"= an aqueduct where I had remarked at our first visit materials of
I'aw.ililii es ^
.Soukker. * p^^ example which proves with what care one must put questions to
the fellahin and draw conclusions from their answers. Some time ago the
Archimandrite of the Russian Mission having asked, on my indication, to see
.liljulich, was taken to Tell el Mufjir, which they sliowed him h\ that name.
LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-C.ANNEAU.
171
ancient origin. We turned over all tlie blocks scattered about the
environs, and pulled down certain bits of tlie broken aqueduct, whicb
brought to light a few sculptured fragments, evidently belonging to
naonumeuts of importance. They were drawn by Lecomte.
In the afternoon we went to Tell el M'gheyfer, also called sometimes TeR el ^^^
Tell el Koursi (Tell of the Throne or the Chair), and considered by some ° "^^ "'
authors as the real Gilgal. The Eussians are at present digging
there for building materials, they have already a considerable quantity
of stones laid down with blocks brought from elsewhere in a place
near Burj. Many of these blocks are covered with fragments of fresco
painting in Greek style. I greatly desired to have a sketch of Kurn
Surtabeh from this point, and while Lecomte Avas taking it our two
workmen dug into the site, but without success.
The next day broke up camp in order to return to Jerusalem by way Xeby Mflsa.
of Neby Musa. This sanctuary, so deeply venerated by Mussulmans,
is in a state of complete dilapidation. We could not get into tlie
central chambers, which were locked. We could only examine the
exterior dependencies, and look through the window at the cenotaph
of Moses, covered over by a silken sheet with embroidered inscriptions.
Everything appears to be of Arab construction.* The only things
that deserve mention are : in the balustrade of the minaret a stone
with oblique mediaeval dressing ; in the interior of one of the windows
of the centra] building a fragment of a granite column; in the
southern face of the peristyle a base sculpture in red limestone
polished, consisting of a series of flutings, in which stands out in very
high relief a kind of rosette of foliage elegantly entwined.
All was nearly deserted ; a few Bedawin were halting there like our-
selves to breakfast ; there is fresh water, of a slightly bituminous taste,
in a well of no great depth.
Some minutes farther on stands a little wely, called the Kubbet er
ra'i, Avhere reposes, according to local tradition, the Shepherd of Moses,
called Sheikh Hassan.
The memory of Moses is certainly alive among the inhabitants of Traditions
of Aloses
this region. At every moment I heard the Arabs swearing, " By the
life of the son of Amran." I qviestioned some of them to find out if
possible the xwint de depart of the legend which places the tomb of Moses
on this side of the Jordan, and consequently in such flagrant contra-
diction with the Biblical tradition. They told us, in reply, that when
the angels announced to Moses that his last moment was come, he was
* See Mejir ed Diu for several details on the history of tliis ]\Iussiilniau
sanctuary. He commences by ineiitioniiig the doubts on the authenticity of the
tomb, adding that general opinion places it here. He assigns the construction of
the Kubbet to Melek ez Zaher Bibars, who built it after his return from pilgrimage
to Mecca and his visit to Jerusalem in 668 (A.H.). These additions were after-
wards made. The minaret was built in 880. He mentions the annual pilgrimage
hither, and speaks of apparitions and prodigies at the tomb, proving that it was
that of him "who spoke with God." — Kelim Allah.
172
LETTERS FROM 31. CLEUMONT-GANNEAU.
The rod of
Moses.
on tlie east of the Jordan, and that he fled, to escape the fatal moment,
to the place now called the Neby Musa. There it was that he found the
angels occupied in hollowing a tomb into which he descended, deceived
by the subterfuge that we know. Arrived at this desert place, he said
to God, " There is nothing here to drink, nor any wood to make a fire."
And God said to him : " Thy water shall come from the well, and thy
fire from the stones." And that is the origin of the wells dug near the
sanctuary, and of the combustible stones of schist which abound at
this place.
There is met with here and near Jerusalem an insect like a centipede,
called the rod of JMoses. This inoifensive creature resembles a long
blackish r/orm, and is provided with a large number of feet, by means
of which it advances, preserving its straightness of form ; in fact, you
would think it a little stick endowed with the power of motion. If you
touch it, it rolls together into a ball. This mode of locomotion and
this aspect have made the little animal popular among the Arabs, who
have connected it by its name with the miracle performed at the burn-
ing bush.
I got at Jericho new details on the life of Imam Aly, who is only, as
I have said before, a travesty of Joshua. The boundary of the
Ghor Seisaban and the Ghor of Beisan was traced by the sword of the
Imam Aly, who cut through with a single stroke of his sword an enemy,
the bridge or aqueduct on which he stood, and the ground beneath him.
It was impossible for me to find out exactly where is the place indicated
in this legend ; it is called Jisr. Aly, again, had a great war to wage
acainst the Emir Abu 'Obeide, before the time of Mohammed. Abu
Obeide is a historic personage, who came with Omar. His tomb exists
still east of the Jordan.
The Arab Avho gave me this information so curiously jumbled up,
pronounced the name 'Obweide ; the intercalation of the w with the h
and the i is familiar to the Bedouins ; thus they say hweino instead of
heino. Our two workmen, two worthy peasants from Beit Iksa, a little
village situated west of Jerusalem, who worked sometime at the repair-
ing of the locanda at Jericho, gave me the history of Aly and the sun
with a singular variation, which I will transcribe faithfully, but
I cannot state whether it is their own invention, or if obtained by
them from the inhabitants of Jericho.
Aly and the Imam Aly received guests at a time when there was a great famine
^""' over all the country. Having nothing for them to eat, he went to a
him a single imaum of wheat, offering him in ex-
a measure of gold. The Jew refused, saying that he would
only give him the wheat on condition of getting it back again before
sunset of the same day; failing which, Aly was to give him his son.
The sun was about to set, and Aly searched vainly for wheat to restore
the borrowed measure, when God said to the sun, " Return, O thou
blessed ! " He thus gave him the time necessary to get the wheat for
the Jew, and he was not obliged to give him his child.
Bedouin
pronuncia-
tion.
Jew and begged of
change
LETTERS PROM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU. 173
The men of Beit Iksa told me that their village bears also the name n^mc of
of Umm-el-ela : another of those double names that I 'have so often Kelt iksa.
pointed out. The present inhabitants belong to the Beni Zeid, and
come from the north ; they obtained permission of Umm-el-ela, and
gave it the new name of Beit Iksa. The ethnical name to which Iksa
belongs is Keswani, in the plural Kesawne — Beit Iksan or Ikswan. We
must, therefore, in Palestine topography, keep account of the mi(/ration
of names transported with the population from one place to another.
The route between Neby MAsa and Jerusalem offers nothing remark- Sculptured
able in archaeology. The only thing we have to notice is a fine fragment at Bethany.
of sculpture fitted into the wall of a house in Bethany ; at the angle of
the fragment is the head of an ox ; one of the facings shows the mediccval
dressing. This will be drawn.
Some minutes before arriving at El 'Azariyeh (Bethany), on the east La|^rus°^
of the village is a rocky pla^teau, covered with sepulchral and other exca-
vations, walls, Avine-presses, &c. ; one would say that there has once
been an inhabited place, It was impossible for me to find out if the
place had a name, and whether it was simply called a Khirbet : only at
the southern extremity of the plateau local tradition shows a piece of
rock half buried in the earth, and called the ass of Lazan;s, saying that
the animal was petrified after having been ridden by Jesus. Are we to
place on this side the pi-oblematic Bethphage ?
My principal and only aim in going to Jericho, was to study on Kum
the spot a point whose full importance I realised on my first visit, I '
mean Kurn Sartabeh, and a Biblical tradition which seems to me
narrowly connected with that well-known mountain.
If, in the vast plain of Jericho, you raise your eyes northwards you
will see the horizon partly closed in the distance by a long chain of blue
hills, above which rises a conical peak known as Kurn Sartabeh. This
peak, which is seen from a long way off, and which appears to command
all the low ground at its feet, attracts the eye by its bold fi'ont, and
retains it by its strongly marked form. Eobinson is right when he
says that this commanding summit appears from Jericho like a bastion
of the western chain.
The first part of the name (written by Robinson Kiiru, and by me
Q'reiii, diminutive of Kurn, a horn) is frequently applied by the Arabs
to remarkable peaks. It is this sense which has made Lynch commit
the singular error of assigning to the name the meaning, "horn of
the rhinoceros." The meaning of Sartabeh is completely unknown,
and we must probably look for some ancient name to correspond
with it.
It is, first of all, essential to establish its orthography. I have care-
fully noted the pronunciation of the Arabs of Jericho and its neigh-
bourhood, and have ascertained that the first letter is a soft S (sin), and
not the hard S (sad), as the transliteration of Robinson shows.
174
LETTERS FROM il. CLERMOST-tiAKNEAI'.
The Sarta-
beh of tlie
Talmud.
Zarthan.
Apparition
to Joshua.
Ur.der tliis form it is easy to recognise the name of the monutains
mentioned in the Talmud, and written n3C"iD and n2C"id. Here is
the ] assage, quoted often since the time of Eeland, which I think I
ought to give in full for the better understanding of what follows : —
" Signals of fire,' serving to announce the New Moon, were made from
the Mount of Olives to Sartabeh, from Sartabeh to Gerufna, from
Gerufna to Khoran, from Khoran to Beth Baltin."
M. Neubauer (Gcographie du Talmud, p. 42) says : " They announced
the New Moon to the country districts by means of fii'es lighted on the
mountains. Later on, the Samaritans, in a spirit of hatred, lighted
other fires, which caused errors. Therefore the fires were suppressed
and couriers substituted."
I have no occasion here to occupy myself with the historic side of the
question, and to examine if it was really possible to make a direct
signal from the Mount of Olives visible at Kurn Sartabeh. I confine
myself to the simple identification of one hill with the Talmudic Sar-
tabeh. Observe, further, that the Hebraic orthography of the word is
different to that of Robinson; that is, the word no more contains a
tsade than it does a sad.
This fact will permit us to pass immediately to a Biblical relation
advanced for Sartabeh. It is quite natural to suppose that the Bible
did not pass over in silence the name of a mountain so important.
Starting with this idea, some writers think themselves authorised to
recognise in Sartabeh the new Zarthan (Zaretan of Joshua iii. 16), and
placed by the Bible in the Jordanic region. Nothing is less admissible
than this identification, which rests wholly on an etymology entirely
recent. The external resemblances which seem to exist between the
two words completely vanish when we compare them letter by letter.
The nun final might correspond with the h, but both the a and the i
are radically difi'erent in the two words.
Must we then abandon altogether the hope of finding this peak men-
tioned in the Bible ? I think not, and I believe, on the contrary, I can
adduce a passage of the highest interest, though under a form mytho-
logical rather than geographical.
In Joshua v. 13 — 15, is related a strange episode which seems to
attach itself to the consecration of Gilgal as a sacred place. Here is
the litei-al translation^ — " And Joshua Vvas at Jericho, and he lifted up
his eyes and looked, and behold there stood a man before him with his
sword drawn in his hand ; and Joshua went towards him and said unto
him, ' Art thou for us or for our adversaries ? ' and he said, ' Nay, but
as captain of the host (SAESABA) of the Lord, and now I am coming
towards thee.' And Joshua fell on his face to the earth and did wor-
ship, and saith unto him, ' What saith my Lord unto his servant ? '
And the captain of the Lord's host said unto Joshua, ' Loose thy shoe
from ofi" thy foot, for the place whereon thou staudest is holy.' And
Joshua did so."
The Hebrew word Sarsaba signifies chief of the army, and is rendered
LKTTERS FKO.M M. CLEUMONT-GANNEAU. 17o
iu the Septuagint by apx^arpaTriyos. The different versions of tlie Bible
render it captain of the anni/ of Jehovah. We know that Jehovah him-
self is sometimes called Jehovah Sabaoth, when mentioned as the head
of the army of angels or stars, and that this expression appears in the
Gnostic formulary, Sulaoth.
I only wish for the moment to call attention to the striking resem-
blance which exists between Sar Saba and Sar Taba, when the Hebrew
tsade is replaced in the Talmudic and Arabic form by a tet and a ta.
This substitution of the t for an s is one of the most frequent re-
marked in the passage of the Hebrew to the Aramaic ; thus Tyre is now
Sor(-iV)- •
This etymological coincidence being- so complete cannot be fortuitous.
It leads us to ask whether it does not conceal a close relation between
the mountain and the apparition.
Let us remember how often mountains are found in relation with
visions analogous to that of Joshua. Mountains, it is well known,
occupy a considerable place in Semitic religions, and even the Hebrews
attached sanctity to them. We iinderstand how they served as a
natural theatre for the manifestations of the Deity. I could cite many
examples. Let us take only one or two.
First, the appearance of Jehovah to Moses in the burning bush on
Mount Horeb. Closes, perceiving the supernatural flame, advanced
towards it, as Joshua towards the man. Just as Sarsaba told Joshua,
who came towards him, to take off his shoes because the place was
holy, in exactly the same terms Moses is ordered to do the same
thing.
For the suddenness of the vision we may compare Zech. i. 8 ; ii.!||5.
It is the same prophet who says (viii. 3), "The mountain of Jehovah
Sabaoth is a sacred mountain," and also shows us (xiv. 3, 4) the Lord
going forth to fight with " his feet upon the Mount of Olives."
One of the apparitions which has the most literal resemblance with
that of the Sarsaba to Joshua is th-e appearance of the destroying
angel to David. This episode is told more simply in the Book of
Samuel (2 Sam. sxiv. 15), but with greater detail in 1 Chron. xxi. 14 —
17. The latter strongly recalls the passage in the Book of Joshua, and
especially if we compare the Hebrew text.
Jehovah having sent his angel to smite Jerusalem, had pity
on the unhappy town, and said to the Destroyincj Angel {Melelc ha-Mach-
Mt), "It is enough ; stay now thy hand." David lifted up his eyes and
saw the anyel stand between the heaven and the earth, having a, draw)/
sword in Iris hand. He threw himself iqion the ground. The angel, who
Avas at this moment above the threshing-floor of Oman the .Jebusite,
caused Gad to tell David to go up and''sef up an altar on the threshing
floor.
It results from this passage that the angel was above Mount Moriah.
It may not be useless to remark that the angel called Machhah seems
onomastically connected with the Mount of Olives, often designated by
176 LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU.
the Blucli -disputed name of liar ha-MachJut* "We know tbat the two
mountains of Moriah and Olivet were intimately connected from a reli-
gious point of view, and in ceremonies, and tliat on tlie latter (2 Sam.
XV. 34) was a place where David adored Elohim.
These analogies alone would be enough to make us seek in this episode
of Joshua's life the existence of a mountain. And is this mountain
anything except that Avhich now is called by the significant name of
Sartabeh, or Sar-Saba ?
The stoi-y of Joshua analysed, means two things : (1) the height of
the point where the apparition stood, for he lifted up his eyes ; (2) a
considerable distance between the vision and Joshua, for Joshua went
totvards him ; and the angel said, I come towards thee. Further, the use
of the word icj;, stars, means that the supernatui-al being was upright
on a base.
The dominant position and the characteristic aspect of Sartabeh, the
master of the plain, makes it an admirable place for the appearance of
the Captain of the Lord's host,
strategic It is not superfluous to remark that, besides its probable character
s"T'/T*''^' ^^ sanctity, the peak had great strategic importance. Schulz has
already proposed to place on it the Alexandrion of Alexander J annseus,
and the considerable ruins which Zschokke found on the summit have
induced him also to share this opinion. The fact of its military strength
would help to explain Joshua's question, " Art thou for us, or for the
enemy ? "
The appearance of the warrior-angel of Jehovah hovering over this
strong natural fortress with which he identified himself, perhaps, is
quite topical. Who knows even that the naked sword in his hand, as
that of the destroying angel (of the Mount of Olives and Moriah), is not
in some way connected with the flame which, according to the Talmud,
was lit on the determined moment on the summits of the sacred
mountain ?
What are we to understand exactly by Sar Saba ? The question is
extremely difficult, and belongs to the more obscure side of the Hebrew
religion. I cannot touch on it here. Let us only remark that God
himself is called (Dan. viii. 11) Sar Ha Saba, which agrees perfectly
with Jehovah Sabaoth. There is no doubt as to the general meaning :
it is (Oin'mander-in-cJiicf. Thus Omri was Sar Saba over all Israel. It
is the exact representative of the present Mussulman Serasker.f
common to Turks, Persians, and Arabs.
* >rost commentators derive Jlaclihit, the name of the Mount of Olives, from
Maehah, and translate it oil, while they make Machliit distinctive from Cbaliat.
I do not know the true etymology for each of these words, but what is without
any doubt is they singularly rescmlde each other, and that this resemblance,
added to the coincidence of the events, cannot be accidental.
+ As for the etymolojjy of Serasker it is, I believe, wrong to make a hybrid
composition of the Persian scr, head and the Arabic 'asker, soldier. Serasker is
liistorically an Arabic term ; it is thus, linguistically, a Semitic' word ; scr corre-
LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANKEAU. l77
We see in Daniel that many nations have their sar or guardian angel;
for example, Greece and Persia. The sar of Israel is Michael, who in
other places in Daniel is qualified as the chief of the power, Sar ha-
malkot, and the chief of the grand chief, Sar hag-gadol ; " Sar Michael
is your chief."
Michael generally personifies the divine power, particularly in his
manifestation of violence, or when he combats with Satan to help man.
One remembers (Jude) Michael and the devil disputing over the body
of Moses.
The later traditions do not hesitate to recognise Michael in the angel
which appeared to Joshua.
Phocas speaks of a Bounos (tell) which was situated in front of the churcli of
Moimt of Temptation, on which stood a temple indicating the place ^^' ^^^''^jj^'
where Joshua saw the Archangel Michael. the vision.
An anonymous description (AUat. 13) says, that below the monastery
of St. Euthymus there was a monastery of the Virgin, whence Joshua
saw the angel. Daniel also speaks of a church at Gilgal, where they
had added a convent dedicated to St. Michael, because it was on the
spot where Joshua had his vision.
It results from the testimony that tradition admitted the vision of
Joshua to have taken place during his sojourn at Gilgal. I have already
remarked that this conclusion appeared to be indicated by the tenor of
the episode and by the position that it occupies in the chapter, although
it begins with the words " at Jericho." We need not take the expres-
sion too strictly, and may very well understand by it the environs of
Jericho.
The disposition of the mountains which border the plain of Jericho
is such that the Sartabeh is invisible west of Riha, since it is completely
masqued by the chain of the first plain, and especially by the height of
Ichche Ghorab, which terminates it at the east. But starting from
Biha to the east it appears at all points of the plane. The drawing
that M. Lecomte has made is better from Tell M'gheyfer, one of the
sites proposed for Gilgal. We have also a sketch of Tell el-Ithle, taken
from Jiljulieh.
I must note an observation of some interest. Coming from the east,
as one approaches Jericho, Sartabeh retreats little by little to the eye,
between Ichche Ghorab, which ends by covering it up completely.
The pi'ofiles of these two mountains and the chain on which they stand
olFer the strongest analogies, taking account of perspective and pro-
portion.
It has been entirely impossible for me to collect the smallest legend
on this peak ; nor any indication except that of the iron ring and the
great cavern of which Zschokke was told. I thought at first that I
.sponcls with sar, Hebrew, chief, and 'asker is counucted with the Heluew root
achkar, to liiie troops ; the aiu, additional, in the last word is purel}^ prosthetic ;
we have already in Hebrew achkar with a prosthetic aleph, and the transforma-
tion of the aleph into the ain is frequent ; thus Achkelon becomes 'Askalon.
2(
178 LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDER S REPORTS.
could find some connection between tlie venerated magam of tlie Imam
Aly- Joshua and the sacred magam, where Joshua stood while he spoke
to the angel ; but the Mussulman sanctuary is too far to the west to
permit Sartabeh to be seen.
THE SURVEY OF PALESTINE.
LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDER'S EEPORTS.
XXL
28!!7i April, 1874.
Since last I wrote from "W. Far'ah the Survey, though, still impeded
slightly by wet weather, has been steadily advanced, and we are able by
two days' work in subsidiary camps to. fill in the whole piece required to
complete the Jenin sheet, bringing the total to about 2,800 square miles,
and giving the whole of the Jordan valley from the Dead Sea to within
a mile or so of the Sea of GalUee. Our intermediate camp between Wady
Far'ah and Beisan was placed at W. Maleh, and was by far the most
desolate site which Ave have as yet been forced to select. A few f ellahin
and Arabs Avere settled not far off, and supplied us with guides and
meat. The water in the neighbourhood is all more or less salt,
Avhence the name given to the pi-incii3al stream. We Avere therefore
glad to remove to the jjlentiful springs and open rolling country of the
neigbbourhood of Beisan.
The following are the chief points of interest which, we have noticed
during the last fortnight : —
ye:-2eh. Terzehi is a ruined site of very considerable extent, lying at the foot of
the fine isolated hill called Eas Kader. The ruins seem of a late Grseco-
JcAvish type, and the whole of the site is covered Avith a confused debris
of moderately-sized rough-hcAvn stones, beneath Avhicli foundations are
visible in parts. One or tAvo stones have a broad flat di'aft, and seem
rather to have been intended for tablets. ToAvards the north of the
toAvn are pillars and a fine lintel, probably remains of a temple. The
ornamentation of the lintel Avith rosettes and the conventional Adne is of
the ordinary debased classic style. There are a considerable number of
rock-cut tombs, internally very rough, and Avith loculi of both kinds ;
externally the circular arch above the door is very avcII cut, and in one
case structural. A Greek inscription, illegible all but a fcAV letters,
Avith a rough ornamentation, is to be found on the front of one of these
sepulchres. There are one or tAvo moderate cisterns cut in rock. An
ancient road leads by the spot at the foot of the hill.
LIEUT. CLAUDE K. COXDEr's REPORTS. 179
Tyasir, like most of the old sites in this part of the country, is lyasir.
almost undermined with caves and rock-cut tombs. On the south-west
of the village there exists, however, a very interesting little monument,
of which I have taken very careful measurements.
It seems probably to have been a tomb, and its door is placed towards
the east, the interior being square, mth four corner piers, which sup-
ported a groined roof, as far as can be judged by the shape of the
remaining haunch stones. The projection of the piers gives a recess
on each side of the chamber, three of wliich may have been occupied by
sarcophagi. A regular stylobate runs round the outside, and on it stand
attached pilasters ^vith a projection of only two inches; there are two
intermediate and two corner i^ilasters on each face of the building. The
projecting profile of the door is very curious, and resembles that at
Nebi Yahyah to a certain extent. We did not succeed in finding any
capitals, but fragments of cornice, mth classic details and very rich
foliated work, were lying near. The size of the stones, some over four feet
long, their excellent workmanship, and the beauty of the carved work
of the cornice, show that the monument* must have been, when com-
plete, a very fine one, and probably the property of a man of dis-
tinction.
The narrow gorge above the warm springs of El Maleh is commanded Burj el
on the north by a fortress set in an almost impregnable position. With
much trouble we reached the top, and executed a plan of the enceinte.
It is irregular in shape, fitted like a modern redoubt to its rocky site,
and surrounded, as usual in the Crusading buildings, with vaulted
chambers. The masonry generally used is neither large nor well cut,
but the comer stones .of the fortress, both externally and within the
princij)al gate on the north side, are all marked with a rough draft.
Kaukab el Hawa, situated on the cliffs south of the Sea of Galilee, and Kaukab el
visible from Beisan, seems to be also a Crusading fortress. Its enceinte wall,
of great thickness (eleven feet), is built of blocks of black basalt, which
are nearly all drafted. It is a point of considerable interest to determine
whether such blocks were cut by the Crusaders themselves, or only used
where found in older buildings. It has been argued that the Crusaders
would employ lighter material, in order to allow of greater rapidity of
construction ; but strength seems in their days to have been the most
important requisite, and in no fortress which I have as yet seen in Pales-
tine is small masonry used in the outer walls of the place. Kaukab
(Bel voir), standing on no Roman route, and with masonry which bears
every sign of being intended for its present use, argues strongly in
favour of the large drafted masonry having been actually quarried by
the Crusaders. The Saracenic buildings, such as the great Khans, are,
on the contrary, generally of smaller masonry, and in one instance
(Caesarea) a sloping revetment of small stones in very hard cement
covers the larger masonry of the Crusading wall.
* It was photographed and planned liy Major Wilson, E.E. See Photo. No,
97, old series.
180 LIEUT. CLAUDE E. COXDER's REPORTS.
The plan of tlie fortress of Kaukab is irregular. There appears to
have been a central building supported on vaults, and vaulted chambers
ran round the town immediately within the wall. The gate on the east
was closed by a portcullis, the place for which is still visible. A ditch
fifty feet Avide surrounds the fortress on three sides, but on the east u
steep slope leads dii-ectly down to the Jordan valley.
"^^^^^ Attention was first drawn to the great interest of these curious
mounds, which were first excavated at the same time by Captain
Warren, who supposes them to have been fortifications. In a subse-
quent number of the Quarterlij it was pointed out that similar mounds
are in process of formation at the present day both in Egypt and in
India, being made by the accuniidating refuse of sun-dried bricks which
are picked on these heaps, those which are Sjpoilt seiwing as a sort of
platform on wliich others are baked ; thus gradually a mound accumu-
lates, and woidd, when deserted and overgrown, present exactly the
appearance of a tell. The tells are found in the Plain of Esdraelon,
and in that of Acca, near the Kishon, but more especially in the
Jordan valley. I have already given a list of the true tells near
Jericho which Captain Warren found to consist of sun-dried bricks.
Near Beisan, and in the plain south of it, there are twenty true tells,
apparently of the same character ^vith those at Jericho, besides other
mounds formed of crumbled ruins to which the name tell is also
applied. In confirmation of the latter theory of their formation I would
call attention to one or two points. First, they occur invariably in the
immediate vicinity of water, generally at a spring or beside a running
stream. Second, they are always found in alluvial plains and in places
where clay may be expected to exist ; thus, for instance, at Beisan they
are found in the " clay lands " between Succoth (generally supposed to
be S'akut) and Zerthan, which was below Jezreel, where Solomon cast
the brass work for the temple service. Third, they are known, at least
at Jericho, to consist of sun-dried bricks. It has been remarked that
they occur at the mouths of passes which they were supposed^to defend,
but I may remark that this is hardly a rule, as many are placed in
positions which can have no military significance, whilst the wadies at
whose mouths they are placed always contain water. Neither can they
be held to defend the Jordan fords, for many important fords have no
tell near them. Where they do occur along Jordan it is in places where
springs or tributary streams flow down to the river. Their great an-
tiquity is shewn first by their being mentioned in the Bible at an early
period (Geliloth) ; secondly, by their ha%dng been subsequently built
upon in a few cases in Eoman times. None of the true tells have,
however, been identified with Biblical sites, unless, indeed, we except
those at 'Ain el Sultan.
The shape and appearance of the true tells woidd also point to the same
explanation of their origin. They are evidently accumulations. Often
two occur close together of different size, or two or more small tells spring
on a platform formed by a large one; sometimes a small subsidiary
LIEUT. CLAUDE R. CONDEIl's REPORTS. 181
luound, as though only lately commenced, will be found at the foot of a
veiy large one.
The interest and importance of such remains can hardly be over-
estimated. Tliey form a key to the understanding of all the more;
ancient ruins in Palestine. Nothing is more natural and probable than
that the Jews who in Egypt, as we know, were employed in the manu-
facture of bricks, and whose first possessions in the country were in the
plains, should have^resorted to this material for the rapid construction of
towns, necessitated by the total destruction of the Canaanite cities. The
method in Avhich this destruction was made, its completeness and
vapidity, seem to show that these cities themselves were of no great
strength, and it is even possible that the brick-making may be carried
back to Canaanite times. Of architectui'e as a fine art there seems good
reason to suppose the Jews were ignorant, nor is there anything in the
Bible or in the country to indicate that the towns of the early Biblical
period Avere better built or more important than the present Syi-ian
villages. In the time of Saul we find the people dwelling in caves, and
there is much evidence which points to the old inhabitants of Palestine
having been much addicted to such a practice. Even at the present day
the natural caves and larger tombs are used as dwelling-places and
stables.
In modern Damascus we have an instance of a city mainly built of
siui-di-ied brick, and the chopped straw in its clay calls to mind the
bondage of the Egyptian brickfields. Wood is used in combination with
this hardened mud, and may have been in the early Jewish towns at a
time when it was more plentiful than now. At the same time, it must
be recognised that stone-quarrying was very extensively undertaken at
some period of Jewish history, as is evidenced at the present day in
every part of Palestine, though the period it is almost impossible to
decide. In the hill country the use of stone must naturally have been
greater than that of brick. So now in Palestine the hill villages are of
stone, and those in the plains mere collections of mud huts.
The interest of the inquiry is very great in explaining how it occurs
that the more ancient ruins of the country are mere mounds in which
the presence of stone is scarcely discernible, and the grey colour of the
mass alone distinguishes the site. Were brick supposed to have been
extensively used, this peculiarity of the ruins of Palestine would be
easily accounted for.
The sui-vey of the extensive ruins of Beisan occupied some time, Beisan.
and the twelve-inch map of the whole was executed by the corporals,
whilst Sergeant Black accompanied me to the short camps at Kawkab
and Sulem, where, with an average temi^crature of about 92 degrees in the
shade, we completed the Avork to the northern line of the Jenin sheet.
The principal Eoman ruins are the Theatre, Hippodrome, and some
large tombs. The tell fortifications are possibly crusading, and a ruined
mosque, two fine viaducts, and a good-sized khan, no doubt Saracenic.
The theatre, situate in the basin which isolates the tell, and through
182 LIEUT. CLAUDE K. CONDEr'S REPORTS.
which two streams flow, joining at the lower bridge, is built of black
basalt, and in better preservation than most of the ruins of the country.
It is a semicircle and a third, being closed on the north by a massive
wall, the foiuidations alone remaining, including a block of marble
six feet nine inches by four feet, which forms the chord to an ai'C of 120
degrees. Nino vomitories remain more or less perfect. They are double,
and out of the western passage of each a narrow gallery leads diagonally
to a cage open towards the interior of the theatre. Each cage is a
holloAV quarter sphere eight feet in diameter, and was no doubt closed
by bars in front. There seems to have been twelve rows of benches
eighteen inches high, but they are scarcely traceable beneath the rank
gi'owth of spring herbs.
The stream from a mill flows close to the theatre, and may have been
turned into a basin of some kind for the naval entertainments.
The Hippodrome is almost entirely destroyed, and its plan recovered
with difficult}'. It appears to have been constructed by two cii'cles
seventy-six feet radius, with centres 128 feet apart. Its longest axis is
nearly east and west ; the entrance probably on the east. Stone seats
eighteen inches high surround it on all sides. The base of what was
probably one of the goals lies towards the western end of its greatest
diameter line.
Capitals, fragments of ornament, and other indications, prove the
great extent of the to^vn, which stretched south of the modern village,
and both north and south of the main stream of W. Jalud. The tombs,
cut in a soft sedimentary river deposit, in cliffs close to the stream, re-
semble in arrangement those at Sh. Abreik, with this peculiaritj-, that
they contain sarcophagi larger than the loculi placed in a row parallel
with the length of the chamber. "We planned them carefully, but found
no inscriptions. Xot far from them, on the north-west, is a fine cistern
or birket lined with hard cement, and once roofed over. A row of
pillars exists close to it, and a large building seems to have stood on' the
spot. The extent of the Eoman town we were able to make out, fully
tracing its walls, nine feet thick, of black basalt, including an area of
one-thu'd of a square mile.
Giileon's There is perhaps no corner of Palestine where the events of Bible
history crowd so thick upon one another as in that portion which we
have just completed. On the north, the Sea of Galilee, Avith its sacred
memories ; on the west. Tabor and the hill Moroh, the Valley of
Jesreel, and the chain of GUboa ; on the south, Succoth ; and on the
east the winding Jordan. But perhaps the history most fully illustrated
by our present survey is that of Gideon's victory over ZMidian, and sub-
sequent pursuit (Judges vii.). The nomadic hordes of the !llidianites
had, like the modern Beni Suggar and Ghazawiyeh Arabs, come up
the broad and fertile Valley of Jezreel, and then- encampment lay, as the
black Ax'ab tents do now in spring, at the foot of the hill Moreh (Nebi
Dahy), opposite to the high limestone Icnoll on which Jezreel (Zer'ain)
stands. As on the first night of our camping at Sulem (Shunem), when
victoi-y.
LIEUT. CLAUDE R. C'ONDEr's REPORTS. 183
six horsemen and fifteen foot of the Bedouin came down on the village
and retreated, -nftcr stealing a horse and a cow, followed by the fellahin
with shouts and a dropping fire, so in Gideon's time the settled
Jewish inhabitants assembled to drive back the marauders. The well
Harod, where occurred the trial which separated 300 men of endurance
from the worthless rabble, was no doubt the 'Ain Jalud, a fine sjjring
at the foot of Gilboa, issuing blue and clear from a cavern, and forming
a pool with rushy banks and a pebbly bottom more than 100 yards in
length. The water is sweet, and there is ample space for the gathering
of a great number of men. It has, however, like most of the neighbour-
ing springs, a slightly sulphurous taste, and a soft deep mud covers the
middle of the basin below the surface.
The graphic description of the midnight attack, when, no doubt con-
cealed by the folds of the rolling ground, the 300 crept down to the
Midianite camp " in the valley beneath," and bm'st on the sleeping host
with a sudden flicker of the concealed lamps, can be most readily
realised on the spot. The immediate flight of the nomadic horde is
most easily traced on the map. "The host fled to Beth-shittah in
Zererath, and to the border of Abel-meholah " (vii. 22), a course directly
down the main road to Jordan and to Beisan. Beth-shittah may perhaps
be identified with the modern village of Shatta, and Abelmea (as it was
called in Jerome's time) with Wady Maleh. Zererath would appear to be
a district name, and is generally connected with the Zerthan and Zeretan
of other passages of the Old Testament. It is known to have been
" below Jezreel," and near Beisan. I think, therefore, we can scarce
doubt that the name still exists in the Arabic, 'Ain Zahrah and Tullid
Zahrah, three miles west of Beisan. Thus the immediate pursuit drove
the enemy some ten or fifteen miles towards the Jordan banks. A
systematic advance immediately followed. Messengers went south two
days' journey to Moimt Ephraim, and the Jews descended to the lower
fords of Jordan at Bethbarah, which has been supposed identical with
the Bethabara of the New Testament, and which was in all probability
situate at the traditional site — the pilgrims' bathing-place near Kasr el
Yehud,. east of Jericho. Meantime Gideon, having cleared the Bethshan
valley of the Midianites, crossed by the fords near Succoth at its
southern extremity (the modern Makhathet Abu Sus), and continued the
pursuit along the east bank of the Jordan. The Midianites were thus
entu-ely cut off. They appear (or at least some part of the host) to have
followed the right bank southwards towards Midian, intending, no
doubt, to cross near Jericho. But they were here met by the men of
Ephraim, and their leaders, Oreb and Zeeb, executed on that side of
Jordan, their heads being subsequently carried to Gideon," on the other
side." This confirms positively the theory which I offered somewhat
cautiously in a former report, and makes the identification of the
" Eaven's Peak " and the " Wolf's Den" with the 'Ash el Ghor'ab and
Tuweil el Dhiab a natural and probable one. The sharp peak over-
looking the broad j)lain north of Jericho would indeed form a natural
184 LIEUT. CLAUDE R. COXDEH S REPORTS.
place for a public execution, wlich would be visible to tlie whole multi-
tude beneath.
Additional interest attaches to the identification of Zererath or
Zerthan, for it points to the locality where the Jordan was miraculously-
blocked during the passage of the Israelites. The Ghor or Lower Jordan
valley is not continuous here ; in parts the cliffs are closely approached,
and a blockage of the river at one of these narrow places would leave
its bed dry for a very considerable time, as a lake would gradually form
in the wider basins above, and a rise of more than fifty feet, with a
width of nearly a mile, coidd be obtained in place of a river some twenty
yards in breadth. Such a blockage might any day be occasioned by one
of those shocks of earthquake which from the earliest historical period
down to the present day have been constantly felt in the Jordan valley,
and which point to the volcanic natui-e of the agency which has caused
this extraordinary depression.
Our work in this part of Palestine, including what we hope will prove
the refinding of Gilgal, the settlement of the boundary of Judah, the
identification of the rock Oreb, and yet more certainly that of the
doubtful iEnon, with the explanation of the flight of Midian and the
discovery of Zererath, cannot fail to be considered of the highest interest,
and proves how much light the survey of Palestine must throw on the
simple, exact, and graphic descri^jtions which abound in the Bible, and
which are only apparently confused or contradictory because we in
times so remote have almost lost the key to their explanation.
Antipatiis. Having finished the Jenin sheet, and carried up the Jordan to within
a mile or two of the Sea of Galilee, we proceeded by easy marches to
the Maritime Plain, and arrived at Kefr Saba on the 23rd, the foiu'th
day from Sulem. Here about 120 square miles remain to be put in,
which will complete the Jaffa sheet of the map ; and to this work, after
having settled the triangulation, which is here a matter of no small
difficulty, I propose to leave the non-commissioned officers under Mr.
Drake's care, starting myself for Jerusalem, in preparation for my home
visit. When finished the party ^v^ll move to Jerusalem, where they
will await my return, emjiloyed in the execution of the plans.
The question of most interest in this part of the work is that of the
site of Antipatris, and it seems to me that a very slight investigation of
the ground is sufficient to decide the matter. The town built by Herod
bearing this name in honour of his father was on the site of the ancient
Kaphar Saba, the name of which stUl lingers at the village where our
camp is now pitched. The points in favour of its identity, further than
the i^rescrvation of the name, are, however, few. Antipatris was 150
stadia, or about sixteen miles, from Jaffix. Kefr Saba is rather more
than fourteen. Again it was, according to the Onomasticon, twenty-
six miles from Cassarea, lying between it and Lydda. Kefr Saba is
about twenty-five Roman miles from Caosarea. On the other hand, it
is said by Jerome to have been six mUes south of Galgula, but Kefr
Saba is about three miles north-west of Jiljulioh, which is possibly the
LIEUT. CLAUDE R. OONDER's REPORTS. 185
place ill question, and nearly due west of Kalkilia, whicli might perhaps
be identified with Galgula.
Antipatris was protected on the south by a ditch and wooden rampart,
with towers constructed by Alexander Balas as a defence against the
advance of Antiochus from the south. Th(! Eoman road from Jerusalem
to Cicsarea led through Antipatris, whicli was surrounded by a river
and by fertile wooded country, and situate close to a hilly ridge. All
these latter requisites are quite inconsistent with the Kefr Saba site.
No Eoman road leads to it from the hills ; no river is found, the water
being from a couple of wells ; no trees or ruins of a large town exist.
The indication of direction is also a very important point (although
slighted by Dr. Eobinson), as it is far less likely to have become cor-
rupted in copying than the numbers which indicate distances would be.
It would seem, therefore, that the name has wandered from some other
site in the neighbourhood, and become affixed to this modern village.
It remains, therefore, to find in the vicinity a site which shall fulfil
the requisites enumerated and form a natural position for one of those
noble towns which sj)rung up in Palestine during the prosperous times
of Herod the Great. Such a site has been already suggested at Eas el
'Ain, where the ruined shell of the fine old Castle of Mirabel stands
above the " wonderfully beautiful" springs of the Auj eh river. The
fine Eoman road which we have traced step by step from Jerusalem to
•Jifneli, and thence to Tibneh, descends the steep hills and runs down
straight to Eas el Ain. It was by this road, as is now generally allowed,
that St. Paul was hurried by night to Antipatris, whence he proceeded
to Cassarea. From Eas el 'Ain another Eoman road, marked in one
place by a milestone, leads along the foot of the hills to Jiljulieh and
Kalkilia, and thence to Kaisarieh. It is the main road from Eamleh
through Lydda, and Eas el 'Ain thus lies exactly between Lydda and
Caesarea, which cannot be .said of Kefr Saba ; still further, it is south of
the site of Galgula, being three and a half miles from Jiljulieh and about
six from Kalkilia. To Jaffa is eleven miles, to Caesarea thirty Eoman
miles. These numbers, though less exact than in the former case, are
yet approximately correct in comparison with the words of Josephus
and Jerome. But what is more important to observe is that Eas el 'Ain
is the natural site for a town in the neighbourhood. The streams
which burst out round the mound are the surrounding river of Josephus.
The hilly ridge rises just behind. The trees, indeed, are no more,
having shared the fate of the great oak forest, the stumps of whose trees
cover the sandhills from Mukhalid to Jaffa, but there can have been no
spot so likely to be fertile in the Plain of Sharon as the sources of the
Auj eh. It would be interesting to find the ditch whicli was dug by
Alexander Balas, and which was no doubt filled with water from the
Auj eh, and intended as a more direct line of defence than that of the
winding wady bed. Mr. Drake informs me that a ditch full of water
some fifteen feet wide exists near the bridge, but this is some five or six
miles from Eas el 'Ain and directed south-east. The trench reached the
Geology.
ISO LIEUT. CLAUDE R. COXDER's REPORTS,
" Sea of Joppa," according to Josephus, and has no doubt been filled in
by the light soil of the plain and left no more trace than its wooden
wall and towers. At Kefr Saba no signs of a trench are visible, nor is
there any suj)ply of water to fill it. Thus balancing the evidence as a
whole, we arrive at the pretty safe conclusion that the Antipatris of
Herod was, like his Jericho, built at the source of one of the finest springs
in the country. A visit to the site, with its mound occupied on the west
by the Kala'at, and presenting in other parts an appearance similar to
that of the ruins of Eoman Cgesarea — heaps of broken stone and occa-
sional large blocks overgrown with the yellow composite flowers which
invariably mark such spots — serves to strengthen this impression.
The whole district passed through since leaving Jerusalem is geologi-
cally of the highest interest. I have already noticed the discovery of
old sea levels and the very striking indications as to the date and mode
of formation of the Jordan valley, on which I propose to offer the Com-
mittee a separate paper when my notes have been completed and
digested. The great valley of Far'ah (not to be confounded -ndfch Wady
Far'ah, near Jerusalem) is no ordinary water-worn depression, but has
been formed by some considerable convulsion, no doubt at the same
date as the depression of the Ghor, upon which it will throw considerable
light. It marks a change in the character of the country. The dip of
the beds north of it is much less violent, and an upper plain called El
Bukeia forms an intermediate step betAveen the Ghor and the hills of
the Avatershed. Crossing this plateau Ave arrive again in another district
where there is much local disturbance. Trap rocks here first appear
on the east, and a veiy considerable outbreak is found in the iippcr part
of Wady Maleh. The springs in the neighbourhood are more or less
salt, as the name signifies. The stream in the valley has a temperature
of about 85 degrees, and the so-called Hammam is a spring of 100
degrees Fahrenheit. A red marl similar to the formations of the Nebi
Musa basin here appears in the loAver hills near the Ghor ; it overlies
beds of red and Avhite banded marls, and is in most places capped Avith
a sort of conglomerate Avhich seems to be of fresh-Avater origin, point-
ing to the probability that the present Plain of Succoth and Beisan
was at one time a lake, one in the great chain of lakes Avhich seem
most probably to have extended from the Dead Sea to the Huleh.
On arnAdng at Beisan Ave again change the scenery and obtain a
country purely A'olcanic. The hills of Gilboa haA-e a general dip
iipAvards toAvards the north-Avest, and from beneath them the hard
black basalt comes out as noticed first at Zer'ain. The AA'hole breadth
of the Wady Jalud has a basis of black basalt Avhich has tilted up the
limestones of Nebi Dahy (Little ITermon), and has formed various
cones and small craters in its neighbourhood. Kaukab el HaAva seems
to have been a centre of eruption, and a shelf on Avhich Beisan stands is
due to this disturbance. The basalt here ovci-lics the AA'hite marls — a
valuable indication of freological date. The hills north of Wady Bii-eh,
bordering the Sea of GaHlee, are principally basalt, the limestone where
MR. TYRWHITT DRAKe's REPORTS. 187
it does crop out having a clip upwards towards tlie north-east. It is a
remarkable instance of tlic ignorance of Palestine geology that this
great field of basalt, extending over perhaps 200 square miles, is not
shown on Lartet's map, though the smaller outlying fragments of it in
some cases are.
ME. TYRWHITT DRAKE'S REPORTS.
XYIII.
Camp iiv "W^ida'" el F.ui'aii, March 21, 1S74.
On the 24th ult. we left Jerusalem and descended to 'Ain el Sultan.
En route we visited El Marassas and Shunet Marassas, a Christian ruin
of considerable extent, containing the ruins of a church, of vfhich two
apses and a portion of mosaic pavement in red, yellow, black, and white
are still visible. There are also a number of unusually large rock-hewn
cisterns with well mouths ; on one of these crosses ^ are cut on each
of its eight sides. Tradition tells of a gentle recluse, named Kaddis
K'raytun (the priest Chariton), who lived in days of yore. Suffering
much annoyance from the thievish propensities and knavish tricks of
his neighbours, he determined to extirpate them, and accordingly sel•^•ed
roimd a draught of serpent's venom, which miraculously destroyed them
all, not^\dthstanding its being a blood and not a stomach poison. After
this the good monk lived long and happily.
Between Ivhirbet Dikki and Marassas we observed a ruined dolmen.
The two top slabs were of considerable size : belov,- this is a small semi-
circular platform built against the hillside with uiiheA\ai stones, and
lower down again is a small natural cave.
On the followdiig day we rode down to the Lead Sea to fix a couple
of piles for measuring the rise and fall of the v.^atcr. These piles were
made by Herr Shick at Jerusalem, and are marked every six inches. It
is to be hoped that all travellers will note the height at which the water
stands on each at the time of then- visit. They are placed opposite the
Eijm el Bahr, or island at the north end of the sea. "We drove in the
first at the water's edge without difiiculty, but the second, which had
to be driven in water five and a half feet deep, was no such easy job.
The joint exertions of Conder and myself, however, enabled us at last to.
cope Avith the excessive buoyancy of the water, which forced us to s^vim,
and the strong current setting eastwards, which several times carried us
away from our work. The use of a heavy mallet while swimming was
a novel experiment and somewhat trying ; it woidd have been impos-
sible anywhere else than in water as buoyant as that of the Dead Sea.
A ride to the Jordan mouth, a detour back Avestwards to Wady Dabr,
where we had a fruitless search after the basaltic greenstone mentioned
by Dr. Tristram, and a light meal of eggs and rice in the tent of Shaykh
Jemil abu Nusayr, completed cur day's woi'k.
1S8 MR. TYRWHITT DRAKES REPORTS.
ihe Dead ^ cuiious fact with regard to the Dead Sea is to be noticed as showing
^^^ that the bottom is still subsiding. At the southern end, the fords
between the Lisan and the western shore are now iniijassable owing to
the depth of the water, though I have been told by men who used them
that they were in no places more than three feet deep some fifteen or
twent}' years ago. Again, the causeway Avhich connects the Eijm el
Bahr with the mainland has, according to the Arabs, been submerged
for twelve or fifteen years, though before that time it was frequently
dry. The Arabs say that the level of the Avater varies much in different
years, and is not dependent on the rainfall, but on the sea itself, as they
express it. The currents of tins sea are curious and difficult to explain :
that along the northern shore sets constantly eastwards, as is shown by
the large pebbles at the north-west corner, and their gradual diminution
in size towards the east, till at the Jordan mouth there is little but
mud and sand. At 'Ain Feshkhah I formerly noticed a current running-
south wards.
On the northern shores there are no less than six distinct steps in the
sea-bank ; the two lower are thickly strewn with driftwood and canes.
These banks are composed of fine water-worn shingle, and may be
traced to a considerable distance up the Ghor, notably at Maydan el
'Abd, some three miles north of 'Ain el Sultan, where an enclosvire is
formed at the base of the hills about one mile long and half a mile
broad. Into this area, which at first glance seemed of artificial con-
struction, two or three small wadies drain, but, having no outlet, filter
through the soil. The various geological sections seen in the side of the
Ghor are very interesting, and explain the formation of the valley, which
will, I think, be fully settled when the Geological Maii undertaken by
Lieut. Conder is completed.
The Jordan valley is now in full beauty. Wady Kelt is a swift, braAvl-
ing stream, twenty yards wide and from one to three feet deep. The
plain is covered with herbage knee deep, and decked with many bright
flowers ; deep-red anemones, lavender-coloured stocks, yellow mustard
and marigolds, white clover and many coloured vetches, are the most
conspicuoiis.
I have been surprised, however, at the comparative absence of bulbs,
for besides a beautiful violet dwarf iris with white eye, I have only
formd two or three other species.
At this season there are enormous flights of wood pigeons {Ar. JozeJ),
and also of starlings and jackdaws. In the summer the Kata or sand-
grouse take their place. These latter birds drink'every morning and
evening, and consequently are always found nearer Avator during the
extreme heat than in the winter, when pools are of frequent occurrence
in the desert.
The first place we camped at north of 'Ain el Sultan was "VVady Fusail,
near the site of Khirbet Fusa'il, or ruins of Phasaelus, a town founded
by Herod. At the present day traces of aqueducts and the foundations
of ruined garden walls built of unhewn stone are all that remain of the
MR. TYRVVHITT DRAKe's REPORTS. 189
ancient city. This place is superstitioiisly avoided by the Arabs, who
believe that it is haunted by a ghuleh, or evil spirit, and consequently
never camp there. The Abu Nusayr men who accompanied us thus far
took their leave as speedily as possible, and the r(ilatives of the Emir
el Dr'ayi of the Mesa'ayd Arabs soon left us, under jilea of sickness,
with only a slave as representative of their tribe. This desertion was
due to no ill-mil, for here they are most friendly and serviceable, but
simplj' from dread of the (/hnJeJi, as I with some difficulty discovered,
for at first they attributed it to fear of raids from the south ; but as I
knew the Arabs in those parts to be friendly, I asked one of the Emir's
sons point-blank whether they were afraid of a jinn or (j/ml, and with
much hesitation and many blushes he avowed that such was the case.
This fear of gJiiiIs is not uncommon in the country, and I have seen
several places said to bo haunted by them which are carefully avoided
after dusk by the neighbouring peasantry.
We obtained our guides from the fellahin of the neighbouring hill
villages, who were pasturing their cattle in the luxuriant herbage of the
Ghor.
Between this camj) at "Wady Fusa'il and our present one is a very K:urQ;_Sarta-
remarkable conical hill called Kurn Sartabeh, or Horn of Sartabeh,
who, according to the Arabs, was an ancient king who bviilt the castle
there. He is by some called Sabartalah. This horn or peak is a very
prominent point, and visible from Hermon and from Moab, as well as
from many places on both the eastern and the western hills. It rises some
1,500 feet above sea level, and consequently is 2,500 feet higher than the
Jordan at tliis part of its course. An old path zigzags up a ridge from
the south, and by this we rode up. To the west of the peak a ruined
aqueduct, built of large roughly-hewn blocks, crosses a narrow watershed
and leads to a series of cemented cave cisterns ; this aqueduct, though
of some length, was simply for the purpose of collecting rain-water.
At the base of the cone is an artificial hollow on the west, while the
other sides are so steep as to be practically inaccessible to assailants. A
very steep ascent of 270 feet from this western ditch brought us to the
top, where are solid masses of masonry with drafted stones having irregu-
lar rustic bosses, and varying in length from two to three and a half feet
liy two feet in height. This central construction was probably a beacon,
and there are traces of a surrounding wall which has been violently
overthrown, probably by an earthquake, in part at least, and the debris
encumbers the eastern slope to a considerable depth. The stones employed
in the construction are hard marbly limestone, seemingly dolomite, and
very heavj'. The labour of bringing them up to such a position must
have been very great, as the nearest point from which they could have
been he^\'n is nearly a mile distant. El Mintar, a fine beacon station
near Mar Saba, is fully in view of this point, and is the probable line
of signal communication with Jerusalem, which is hidden by the inter-
vening hills from the north-west.
A few days ago I rode over to •visit this town, which must formerly Aki'abeh.
190 >IK. TYRWHITT drake's REPORTS.
have been tlie capital of the Topai'cliy of Ahrabatteno, so frequently
mentioned by Josephus and in the Books of Maccabees, though it is
always the district and not the town referred to by these ^vl•iters. The
modern village is of considerable size, and contains houses better than
those usually found in this coiuitry. The inhabitants boast that for-
merly they used to muster some 2,000 guns ; now, through the constant
drain on theii- resources by the government, they cannot collect one-
tenth of that number. In the north-east part of the village is a mosque
of some pretensions, built on part of the ruins of a Christian church.
The side port of the mosque door is formed of the broken lintel bearing
this portion of an inscription {tovt)0 En0IHC(a)N TnEPCIMBIOY KAI
TENHN in square characters. In the chamber beneath the dome is
another fragment . . . Y2 . . . ENTnATin. The ornamentation on both
these stones is of similar character to that observed on the Christian
ruins of the third to the fifth centuries in North Syria.
A fine tank of masonry stands conspicuously against the hillside in
the centre of the village. The stones are roughly squared and packed
with small chips ; the wall on the lower side is nearly eight feet thick.
The Husn or stronghold is a block of houses on the hill to the north-
west. Some of the lower courses consist of blocks 3 x 2\ii. -with rustic
bosses, and appear to be Roman or Herodian, Within the enclosure,
which can only be traced in part, is a fine rock-hewn cistei'n with well-
mouth. This, though reputed to be only filled by rain-water, is said
never to fail, and the water is much esteemed.
Several Roman roads have been traced in this part of the country,
and will doubtless help us to fix the sites of several places, of which
the names are noAv entirely lost, though mentioned in old itineraries.
Hajarel 'When adverting to M. Ganneau's theory that the Hajar el Asbah,
near the north-west part of the Dead Sea, is the stone of Eeuben men-
tioned as forming a boundary mark between Judah and Benjamin, I
advanced certain geographical reasons which seemed to me conclusive
proof that the boundary line could not by any means have passed by
the stone known by that name — marked in Van de Velde as Hajar
Lesbah. If additional proofs were needed they woidd, I think, be found
in the fact that the name is not uncommon amongst the Arabs. From
this camp we have found both a Hajar el Asbah and an 'Arak el Asbah.
The Mesa'ayd Arabs give the same meaning to the word as the Abu
Nusayr, Ta'amirah, and other Arabs do in the south, namely, streaked
with tvhite. The Hajar el Asbah near here is a fallen block of yellow
limestone with a white streak at one corner ; it lies beside the road in a
narrow gorge of Wady el Far'ah. The 'Arak or cliff is distant some
seven or eight miles to the north, and is called so for a similar reason.
191
ON THE IDENTIFICATION OF ^NON.
BY LIEUT. CONDEPv.
The true position of tlie springs of ^non, where John the Baptist
is recorded to have assembled crowds for baptism, has hitherto been a
matter open to dispute ; but it is probable that the light thrown on the
subject by the present Survey will be sufficient to set the question at
rest.
Three sites have been proposed for jEnon, and the great distance
between them shows how meagre the literary indications of its position
are. The first of these is the traditional site of St. Jerome, some eight
miles south of Scythopolis or Beisan, and not far from Succoth. The
existence of a Tell Salim has been pointed to in favour of this view, but
the name, as most carefully collected by us from several individuals, is
Tell Sarem and not Salim ; thus the only confirmation of the tradition
proves founded on a mistake.
The second site which has found favour with many authors, including
Mr. Hepworth Dixon and Dr. Barclay (City of the Great King), is at
the springs in Wady Far'ah, one of the heads of the great Wady Kelt
(the traditional brook Cherith), where there is generally a good supply
of water. The same name Salim has been sought in the neighbourhood,
and supposed either to refer to Jerusalem, or to a "Wady Salim, the
proper name of which, however, turns out to be Suleim.
Dr. Robinson, however, was the first to point out the most probable
site, and has been followed by Dean Stanley, although the full confirma-
tion of this view has not, I believe, been as yet put forward.
John the Baptist is said to have been baptizing " in ^non, near to
Salim, because there was much water there." There is nothing to
point to the place having been on the banks of, or even near to Jordan,
where this particular expression would have little or no meaning ; it
would rather seem to refer to a part of Palestine which was otherwise
not well supplied with water. The expression, " He that was with thee
beyond Jordan," would also seem to indicate that the place of baptism
in question was not east of the river. -lEnon might very well be thought
to be a district name from the preposition used in the Greek.
Now, due east of Nablus is found the village of Salim, a Salem men-
tioned more than once in the Old Testament, and even thought by some
to be the city of Melchisedec, and north of this, as Dr. Eobinson pointed
out, are copious springs in a broad open valley. Curiously enough this
also, like the Jerusalem site, bears the name of Far'ah, though spelt
rather differently in the Arabic. The most satisfactory confirmation
of the theory is found in the preseiwation of the name ^non in the
modern village of 'Aynun, which is marked on Vandervelde's map at a
distance north of the springs (three or four miles) about equal to that
of Salim on the south. Thus the requisites of two names- and an
]^92 ANTIPATRIS.
abundant supply of water are satisfied, altliougli the existence of
'Ayniin appears hitherto to have escaped notice.
The character of the ground is a point of great importance in con-
sidering the relative probability of the sites near Jerusalem and near
Nablus'T The former, Wady Far'ah is a precipitous ravine in the midst
of a stony country, and apart from any main line of communication.
It would be practically impossible to collect a large crowd in such a
spot.
The Nablus site, on the other hand, seems naturally to suggest itself
for such a purpose : an open valley, a plentiful supply of water, and a
situation on one of the main lines through the country from Jerusalem
to Nazareth. It has been suggested that our Lord's journey through
Samaria was with the object of visiting the Baptist, and were such the
case, he " needs must " pass by Shechem in order to arrive at the springs
of Wady Far'ah.
This important valley, which forms a great geological feature in the
country, rises near Salim, and separates Mount Ebal from the chain of
Nebi Belan. It becomes a deep and narrow ravine, with steep hill sides
burrowed with caverns, and runs north under the name of Wady Beidan
until it forms a junction with another branch near the small ruin
called Burj Far'ah. Here the first springs are found, and a stream,
which even late in the summer is copious, runs between bushes of
oleander eastward towards the Jordan. The whole course of the valley
presents here a succession of springs, and the flat slopes on either side
allow the approach of an unlimited crowd to the banks of the stream.
After passing through two narrow rocky gorges, the valley enlarges
into a broad plain, on the south side of which rises the block of the
Kurn Surtabeh. From this point the course of the bed is remarkable,
and has never been correctly shown on any map. For nearly seven
miles the Wady Far'ah runs parallel with the Jordan, and its final
junction is below the latitude of "Ain Fasiiil.
The position of ^nou, or rather of the springs frequented by the
Baptist, may therefore be with some degree of certainty referred to the
upper source of the Wady Far'ah stream lying, as has been shown,
between Salim and 'Ayniin. It is one of the most picturesque spots in
the country, and the mind easily pictures the Avild figure of the Fore-
runner, clad in .garments precisely similar to the modern Bedouin, and
assembling round him the turbaned denizens of the great cities and
the half-clad villagers in the wild glen, remote from the more civilised
life of the hill towns and hamlets.
ANTIPATEIS.
In 186G, when making an excursion to Caesarea and Athlit with
Captain Anderson, E.E.. and Dr. Sandreczky, I stayed for two days
at the large fountain of Has el Ain, and came to the conclusion that
ANTIPATRIS. 193
the artificial mound above it, wliicli is now crowned by tlie ruins of
the Crusaders' Castle of Mirabel, marks the site of the town of Anti-
patris, at which St. Paul rested on his journey from Jerusalem to
Cajsarea. Antipatris has generally been identified with the modern
village of Kefr Saba, some distance to the north of Ras el Ain, on the
Maritime Plain, but there are good grounds for doubting the correct-
ness of this identification. I had hoped before discussing this ques-
tion to have been able to consult Lieutenant Conder's survey of this
portion of the plain, but as my friend Dr. Sandreczky, who indepen-
dently came to the same conclusion as myself with regard to the
position of Antipatris, has recently published a paper on the s^^bject
in the " Ausland," it may interest the subscribers to the Fund to
know the grounds upon which our opinion has been formed, without
waiting for the arrival of the map, especially as Lieutenant Conder
has adopted the same identification after a careful survey of the
ground.
Our information relating to Antipatris is obtained from the Bible,
Josephus, the Talmud, and early itineraries. In the Bible we are told
(Acts xxiii. 31, 32), that "the soldiers, as it was commanded them,
took Paul, and brought him by night to Antipatris. On the morrow
they left the horsemen to go with him, and returned to the castle,"
whilst we gather from verse 23 that they were to start at the third
hour of the night.
Josephus, Antiq. XIII., xv. 1, states that Alexander Jann^eus, in
order to prevent the march of Antiochus from Syria southwards along
the Maritime Plain, "dug a deep ditch, beginning at Chabarzaba,
which is now called Antipatris, to the Sea of Joppa, on which part
only his army could be brought against him. He also raised a wall
and erected wooden towers, and intermediate redoubts for 150 furlongs
in length, and there expected the coming of Antiochus ; but he soon
burnt them all, and made his army pass by that way into Arabia."
The parallel passage in the Wars I. iv. 7, informs us that Alexander
" cut a deep trench between Antipatris, which was near the mountains,
and the shores of Joppa ; he also erected a high wall before the
trench, and built wooden towers, in order to hinder any sudden ap-
proaches. But still he was not able to exclude Antiochus, for he
burnt the towers, and filled up the trenches, and marched on with his
army." In Antiq. XVI., v. 2, we are told that Herod " erected another
city in the plain, called Capharsaba, where he chose out a fit jDlace,
both for plenty of water and goodness of soil, and proper for the pro-
duction of what was there planted; where a river encompassed the
city itself, and a grove of the best trees for magnitude was round
about it. This he named Antipatris, from his father Antipater ; "
and in the Wars I., xxi. 9, that Herod built a city " in the finest plain
that was in his kingdom, and which had rivers and trees in abund-
ance, and named it Antipatris."
In describing the march of Vespasian from Cicsarea, Josephus
o
194 ANTIPATRIS.
says (Wars TV., viii. 1) tliat lie led his army to Autipatris, and after
remaining there two days marched on, laying waste the places about
the toparchy of Thamnas, and proceeded to Lydda and Jamnia.
The Jerusalem Itinerary gives the following distances : — Lydda to
Antipatris, 10 miles ; Antipati'is to Betthar, 10 miles ; Betthar to
Cassarea, 16 miles ; and Eusebius and Jerome make Antipatris 6
miles south of Gilgal ; the Autonine Itinerary makes Betthar 18 miles
from Caesarea and 22 from Lydda, or 40 from Lydda to Cassarea in
one itinerary, and in another 31 from Ctesarea and 28 from Lydda,
or a total of 59 miles. Neubauer informs us, "La Geographic du
Talmud," p. 86-89, that the names Kefr Saba and Antipatris are
both found in the Talmud, and he infers from the manner in which
they are mentioned by the different writers that they were two separate
and distinct places. In one passage the coasts of Antipatris are
mentioned in connection with those of Yischoub, possibly Arsuf, and
from this it has sometimes been assumed that Antipatris was a coast
town, an opinion held by William of Tyre, and other writers of the
middle ages, who identified it with Arsuf. It is, however, impossible to
reconcile any position on the coast with the notices in the Bible and
Josephus, and we can only suggest that the expression arose either
from the establishment of a district of Antipatris, which reached to the
sea-shore, or from the use of the river Aujeh as a means of transport
by boats, which would make Antipatris in a certain manner a sea-port.
In the eighth century there was a large Chi*istian community at Anti-
patris, and Theophanes alludes to a massacre of them by the Arabs in
V44 A.D.
From the Bible we gather that Antipati'is was on the military road
connecting Jerusalem with Ca3sarea, and at a point whence it was con-
venient for the guard of horsemen to continue the journey without the
foot soldiers ; from Josephus, that the town was in the plain, yet near
the mountains, irapipiov, that it was abundantly supplied with water,
" rivers in abundance," that the soil was fertile, and that it was a point
in the line of defence taken up by Alexander Jannreus across the
Maritime Plain. Josephus, in one passage, tells us that the line of
fortification began at " Chabarzaba, which is now called Antipatris ; "
and in another that Antipatris was built " in the plain called Caphar-
saba," at a place where there was plenty of water. These two
passages are somewhat at variance, and the latter would almost lead
us to infer that Antipatris and Capharsaba were distinct places, a view
supported by Neubauer's reading of the Talmud.
Let us now see how the two sites Has el Ain and Kefr Saba respec-
tively meet the required conditions ; at Has el Ain there is a large
mound, apparently artificial, covered with old foundations, broken
columns, ttc, and evidently the site of a place of some importance.
On its summit is a large media3val castle built, at least in part, on the
foundations of a much older building ; and at its foot are the largest
springs, without exception, in all Palestine, far exceeding in volume
ANTIPATRIS. 195
those of the Jordan at Tell el Kady. A small river rises at once from
tlie groimd, and flows off noiselessly, through marshy ground, to the
sea. The springs are the only ones in the neighbourhood, and are pro-
bably the " Deaf Fountains " of the Crusaders, the castle being Mirabel,
a name which still lingers at the mills of El Mir lower down the stream.
Eas el Ain is sufficiently close to the mountains to be called trapSpiov ;
it is on a rich portion of the plain, and conveniently situated with
reference to the Roman road from Jerusalem, which strikes the plain
immediately to the east of it. Kefr Saba lies on a moimd partly com-
posed of rubbish ; there are fragments of columns and old foundations
in the village, and also on some small mounds to the east, where traces
may still be seen of the Roman road to Cresarea. There is no running
water, and no spring, the villagers deriving their supply of water
from two deep wells, and rain-water which collects in winter in two
hollows. The position of Kefr Saba .out in the open plain cannot be
said to be near the mountains, and as it is some seven or eieht miles
from the point at which the Roman road from Jerusalem to Ceesarea
left the mountains it can scarcely be considered a suitable place for
changing the guard from foot to horse soldiers. The name is certainly
identical with the Capharsaba of Josephus, but as we have previously
shown there are some grounds for believing that Kefr Saba and Anti-
patris were distinct places. We may now turn to the military aspect
of the question, and ask what would be the best line of defence for an
army to take up on the plain to prevent the march of a force south-
ward. To this there can be but one answer, the line of the Nahr Aujeh.
From the fountains at Ras el Ain to the sea the river is deep, unford-
able for several months in the year, and has in several places marshy
banks. It must thus have always presented a serious obstacle to the
advance of an army, and one which no soldier acting on the defensive
would neglect to make use of Between Eas el Ain and the foot of the
mountains there is but a comparatively narrow strip of level o-round,
forming a pass, through which any force advancing southwards must
inarch, and one that could be easily closed by towers and a ditch. That
the Crusaders were not ignorant of the military value of this feature is
apparent from the ruins of the castles of Mirabel and Mejdel Yaba,
guarding each flank of the pass ; and if Antipatris were at Ras el Ain,
Herod, in selecting the site, was no doubt influenced by military con-
siderations. Any line of defence from Kefr Saba to the sea would be
almost useless, and the features of the ground do not lend themselves
to a work of this kind. The distances in the itineraries differ consider-
ably, and iTntil Betthar, the intermediate station between Antipatris
and Csesarea, can be identified, it is difficult to draw any inference from
them. In the Jerusalem Itinerary ten miles have been lost apparently
between Betthar and Csesarea. Jerome, however, states that GiJo-al
was six miles north of Antipatris, and there can be scarcely a doubt
that the former place is represented either by the modern Jiljuliyeh,
which lies south of Kefr Saba, but some three and a half miles north of
196 AMERICAN PALESTIXE EXPLORATIOX SOCIETY.
Ras el Ain ; or by Kalkilia, wliich, is nearly due east of Kefr Saba,
and about six Eoman miles north of Ras el Ain. The distance from
Lydda to Eas el Ain is eleven and a half Roman miles, which agrees
faii-ly -with that given by the Jerusalem Itinerary between Lydda and
Antipatris, viz., ten miles.*
c. w. w.
THE SECOND STATEMENT OF THE AMEEICAN PALES-
TINE EXPLOEATION SOCIETY.
"Want of space prevented the notice of this number in our last issue.
It is dated September, 1873, and copies were received at the London
office in January of this year. It contains the following papers : —
(1.) The Greek Inscriptions at the Nahr el Kelb, by Professor J. A.
Paine.
■^ The Nahr el Kelb, the Lycus, or "Wolf Eiver of Strabo, descends from
the side of Sunnin, a prominent peak of Lebanon, and flows into the
Mediterranean five miles south of Beyrout, after a short course of twenty
miles. It forms a natural road to the heai-t of the Lebanon and over to
Ccele-Syria, and as such has been used from very early times. The river
finds its way to the sea between perpendicular ridges of rock, round and
over the southern of which the road is carried at an elevation of a hundred
feet above the water. Another more ancient road is carried over the
ridge at a higher point. On the lower road Professor Paine discovered
three Greek inscriptions, one on a stone in a Eoman wall and two cut in
the rock. The most important one has already appeared in the
Quarterly Statement.
The other two have not yet been read. Professor Paine appends an
extremely interesting essay on the meaning and value of the inscrip-
tion.
(2.) A Paper on the " Nosairees," by Mr. Augustus Johnson.
This singular people, called by the Eev. Mr. Lyde — who wrote a
volume, "The Asian Mystery," on them — the " Ansairiyeh," are con-
sidered by Mr. Johnson as descendants of those sons of Canaan who
were in possession of Arka, Arvad, Zimra, and Sin, on the sea-shore, and
of Hamath, when Abraham came from Ur of the Chaldees. They have
a tradition that their ancestors were driven by Joshua out of Palestine,
and they call their castles by Jewish names, such as Joshua, Solomon,
John.
Recent discoveries of MSS. show that the creed of this people is a
confused ??u'(o/i^e of idolatry, Judaism, Christianity, and Islamism. They
recognise the prophetic character of Jesus Christ frequently ; quote the
* Tliis notice was written before I had an oi)portuiuty of seeing Lieut. Gen-
der's report No. 22, which contains some additional details. AVhen the map
reaches England it may be possible to reconcile the discrepancies in the itinera-
ries rendered above.
AMERICAN PALESTINE EXPLORATION SOCIETY. 197
names of the apostles, and many passages from the Psalms and New
Testament ; they revere the name of Mary ; observe the feasts of
Christmas and New Year's Day according to the calendar of Julian ;
they celebrate Epiphany, Palm Sundaj^ Easter, and some of the
apostles' and saints' days, and in their Communion service they use
consecrated wine. From the Jews and Moslems they have borrowed
ablutions and circumcision, and have adopted Moslem names, except
those of Omar and Abu Bekr, whom they curse and abhor. They quote
much from the Koran, but obtain many features from the Sabians and
Magians, as appears from the respect they pay to light, fire, and the
heavenly bodies.
In their writings Mahomet and Christ are referred to as the same
person manifesting himself at different epochs.
(3.) The Hamath Inscriptions, by William Hays Ward, D.D.
This paper contains a proposed restoration of the inscriptions from
squeezes taken by Lieutenant Steever and Professor Paine. As, how-
ever, plaster- casts have since been received of the stones, these resto-
rations are now chiefly valuable as records of ingenuity and labour.
Mr. Hyde Clarke points out that, in the essay accompanying the plates,
his own work, published in the QuarterJij Statement for April, 1872, has
been adopted by Dr. Ward without acknowledgment.*
(4.) Husn Sulayman, by the Eev. Samuel Jessup.
This is a careful and interesting account of the ruins in North Syria
which bear the name of Husn Sulayman, or Solomon's Stronghold, a
name probably given by the Nosairees. It lies at two days' ride north
of Tripoli. The ruins are extensive, consisting of two principal en-
closures, of which the southern is the larger and more important. It is
a rectangle 4o0 ft. by 280 ft., and from 10 to 40 ft. high. There are four
great portals, each in the centre of a wall, with carved lintels and ceil-
ings. On the stones of the wall were found inscriptions in Latin and
Greek. Within the area stands an Ionic temple in ruins. A smaller
temple stands in the northern enclosure. The history and date of these
ruins remain yet to be discovered.
(5.) " Our Eirst Year in the Field."
This is an instalment of Lieutenant Steever's work, bringing the
reader down to the commencement of the Moab work. Lieutenant
Steever arrived in Beyrout on Jan. 6, 1873, Professor Paine having
reached that place a week or two befoi-e him. After many difficulties at
starting, the expedition set off from Beyrout in March. The following is
from Lieutenant Steever's report, which embodies Professor Paine's
notes : —
* In the last anniversary address of tlie Pliilological Society is a report liy the
Rev. A. H. Saycc referring to Hamath. The connection of the Hamath with the
Babylonian ifj there referred, under the date Oct. 1873, to M. I.enormaut, as well
as the indication that the claims of Phcenicia to precedence in the arts of civili-
sation must be disjiuted. This liad previously been pointed out in tliese pages
by Mr. Hyde Clarke, for whom we may fairlj- claim ]irecedcnce.
198 AMERICAN PALESTINE EXPLORATION SOCIETY.
" The expedition consisted of the following members :
Edgar Z. Steever, junr., A.M., Lieutenant U. S. Ai-my, chief engineer
and surveyor and commander.
Rev. John A. Paine, archajologist and naturalist.
Rev. Alanson A. Haines, first assistant engineer.
Wm. G. Ballantine, A.B., second assistant engineer.
George Subbot, native of Damascus, a student of the Protestant Syrian
College of Beyrout, interpreter.
Bishara Abou Shaf ateer, native of Beyrout, a graduate of the Protestant
Syrian College, a collector in the Department Natural History.
Melville B. Ward, first general assistant."
We extract the following from the report : —
" We had nine riding animals and twenty-seven pack ones, with the
usual number (eighteen) of muleteers, some of whom brought along
young mules and donkeys for their own use, to the number of eight.
This large number of mules was rendered necessary by the lack of all
facilities east of the Jordan. All our boxes for the collection of speci-
mens in mineralogy, zoology, and botany, for transporting squeeze
paper, books, and instruments, as well as a three months' supply of pro-
visions, had to bo prepared in Beyrout and conveyed to some safe depot,
convenient to our field of operations. Every preparation has been made
with care and thoroughness. The engineering and astronomical instru-
ment cases were covered with canvas, and carefully packed in boxes ;
the mercurial barometers slung over the back, and the chronometers,
transported by hand, under the superintendence of Mr. Ballantine.
Kha:i On the way a digression was made to inspect a number of sarcophagi
K.i.iLli. ^^ ^j^g hill-side, so very large as to be visible from the road. They
proved to be forerunners of Khan Khulda. For nearly half a mile the
mountain side is sprinkled with these sarcophagi, commonly of great
size, rivalling even those of the sacred bulls at Sakara, in Egypt, nearly
all more or less worn — as deeply water and weather worn — as deeply as
the unhewn natural rock beside them. Occasionally they were un-
broken, evidently untouched or unmoved from their original position.
In these the great weight of their massive covers has been their perfect
security. Here and there caverns occur, some of which are manifest
extensions of natural caves, while others are cut out of the rock. Both
have side chambers on either side for the reception of moderate-sized
sarcoi)hagi.
Almost directly east of the Khan, one-third the way up the hill-side,
foundations remain of buildings whose great stones at once suggest
Phoenician or Greek work, but no trace of a bevel could be detected
along their edges. A portion of these constructions do not appear
to be merely foundations, but resemble low walls and show a turreted
top.
Inscriptions are said by Mr. Porter {Ilandhuuk, p. 380) to be wholly
wanting ; but this is not the case. I soon found one, in a niche, of threo
short lines, beginning iotaianh, a mortuary record, standing at the
AMERICAN PALESTINE EXPLORATION SOCIETY. 199
head of one of the smallest sarcophagi there, not over four feet in
length on the inside. On the long outer edge of another sarcophagus
cover I discovered another inscription, too old and washed away to be
copied. A squeeze might bring out something legible. The first 1 find
De Saulcy saw and Waddiagton has taken it from him {Voyage en Syrie,
pi. 3, 18G4). The second is altogether likely to be new. A thorough
search, I feel assured, would reveal others of high interest. Indeed,
while copying the first one, a crowd of boys came panting up from the
Khan with the keeper of the establishment himself, who told me of a
very deep bir far up on the hill, near which there was writing, and the
name of another place where inscriptions exist.
All that is left of the ancient town of Porphyreon is a single granite Porphy-
column with a sarcophagus by the hamlet of el Jiyeh near the Khan
Neby Yunas- A Phoenician site has been replaced by a few old gnarled,
starved tamarisks, beside a Moslem well.
Crossing the Eas Jedrah, a few old foundations were observed near a Hataua.
little Khan, uncovered and dug over afresh for building stones. This
may have been the site of the fortress of Platana.
A little way south of Sidon, beside- the road, lies an almost perfect ^°}"'l"
/!-•• t n T • 3l.llGSt0116«
Roman milestone, bearing the names of Septimius Severus, and of his
son M. Aurelius Antoninus Augustus, more generally known as Cara-
calla, and dating from the year 198 a.d. It is a plain column of grey
granite nine or ten feet in length. A short walk along the sea-side or
over the cape southward reveals the fact that Eas Surafeud must have
been built upon throughout its extent in ancient times. Near at hand
are remains of an aqueduct, which most likely conveyed the water of
'Ain Kanterah round the point. Here are foundations, and there stone
presses, still entire. The whole bank facing the sea is full of pieces of
glass, potsherds, and fragments of tiles.
All the way across Eas Surafend — the site of ancient Zarephath, Sarepta.
Sarepta — we saw evidences of former inhabitation, in old foundations,
walls, &c., and pits, from which their materials had been removed.
About el-Khudr we noticed a short granite column still standing,
large pieces of marble capitals, and a fine sarcophagus in the very place
it was cut from the native rock.
Just after passing the ruins of 'Adlan, with its caverns hewn in the 'Aillan.
opposite cliffs, my attention was attracted by a number of stones stand-
ing upright at some distance from our route, nearer the sea-shore.
Riding up to them they struck me at once as rude stone monuments of
high antiquity. Before reaching them, two hundred feet or more, in
the open field lay a large, heavy stone, two feet high, three feet long by
two wide, having in its smoothed, flat surface an excavation eight inches
deep, abuut as wide and one-third longer. Before the day was over I
found several others of the same sort; and the only conclusion I
could arrive at respecting their character and use, was that they are
ancient altars. This cutting, sunk deep in the top, was intended and
employed for the fire of wood or coals, while the victim was laid across.
200 AMERICAN PALESTINE EXPLORATION SOCIETY.
above, from one side to the otlier of the excavation. There were now,
of course, no traces of fire remaining on the well- weathered stone ;
but the bottom of this opening in every case was rough, and in some
cases deeply cracked by gaping lines, with rounded edges. On the
very summit of Eas-el-Ivelb, north of Beyrout, two months or more ago,
I came across a similar artificial depression in a point of rock between
three and four feet high, which preserved every appearance of having
been designed and long resorted to as a place of sacrifice. This one,
however, had an outlet cut down one side of the excavation, leading
down the side of the rock for a distance of two feet. These rough
stone monuments occupied a position in the lines of low walls running
along the ground in the form of an exact rectangle, about two hundred
feet in length, lying in an east and west direction. The front, forty feet
wide, was placed thii-ty feet before the line of the upright stones. Mid-
Avay between the front Avail at the surface of the ground and these
pillars stood two low ones, respectively eighteen inches and three feet
high, and not more than three feet apart ; they seemed to guard the
entrance to the sanctuary. Coming to the upright stones themselves,
they were found to be ranged in a parallelogram directed north and
south, with sides about forty by twenty-five feet in length. Five out
of seven were standing on the east side of this parallelogram — only two
on the west side; the complete number, four, were standing on the
south end, and none were remaining in their upright position along the
north line. Of the fallen stones, some were still lying in their places,
particularly on the west side ; others had been carried a little way out
of place — two beyond the north-west corner, and one sixty feet away
to the west. Of the upright stones only one was leaning, and that
inward — the fourth one from the south corner of the front line. All
these pillars were rectangular blocks, two feet wide by twelve to fourteen
inches thick, standing five to seven feet out of the ground. To have
kept this position so long a time, there must be from two to four feet
more hidden in the earth. They bore no traces of workmanship, other
than what had been necessary to cut them from their quarry. Of all,
one side was rough rock, the other three were as smooth as hewing
from their native places would make them, and no more. In every
case the hewn, flat side was turned inward, and the rough, untouched
side outward from the interior of the sanctuary. The material was the
loose sandstone of the shore rock. Continuing on toward the west,
the rectangular outline along the ground was kept up for about one
hundred and fifty feet. Fifty feet from the western end, half way from
the north and south lines, lay a large stone heap. Outside on the
south was a stone mound, among whose debris a circular stone curb,
five and a half feet in diameter, was noticed. Outside on the north
Avas placed another Ijlock of stone nearly square, but with rounded
corners, having a square excavation from three to seven inches deep —
apparently another altar. Half way to the sea and a little to the north
a cavern well was located, with steps loading down to its clear and
THE SHAPIRA COLLECTION. 201
abundant water; around were scattered basins and trouglis of hewn
stones — some entire, others broken in the middle, or to such an extent
as to be entirely unfit for use — in many forms, round, square, and rec-
tangular. I cannot but believe that these upright stones are veritable
dolmens connected with early Phcenician worship."
The expedition remained in Moab till the end of August. A base
line, five miles long, from ten to fifteen miles from Hesban, was
measured, and nearly five hundred square miles of the country triangu-
lated. Long despatches have been received on the work and are
promised for the next Statement.
The above is a brief account of the contents of the American State-
ment. Lieutenant Steever returned to New York in the autumn of
last year, but we learn from the secretary that the sum of 60,000
dollars has been raised, and that a new expedition is about to start
thus provided with nearly three years' funds in advance. "We wish
the American Society every possible success.
THE SHAPIEA COLLECTION.
It was not to be expected that the evidences unearthed by M. Ganneau
and Mr. Drake as to the real character of a large part, if not all, of this
collection, should have passed unchallenged. We published in the
April Qmii'tcrly Statement, together with the confessions of the old man
Abd el Baki and the apprentice Hassan ibn el Bitar, a letter from Mr.
Shapira, stating that he, with Pastor Weser, had found seven vases with
inscriptions. These inscriptions have not been copied and sent to Eng-
land, like the preceding. Lieut. Conder wrote also on March 19th,
giving an account of an expedition which paid a visit to Moab, unaccom-
panied by Mr. Shapira. They found no vases with inscriptions, nor any
but Eoman pottery. On the other hand, the Arabs of Arak el Emir pro-
duced more than forty pieces of pottery resembling the Shapira Col-
lection.
On April 4th Pastor Weser wrote a letter to the AtJienceum giving his
arguments why the pottery should be considered genuine. In this he
states that he had made three journeys to Moab. In the first, not being
guided by Selim — he does not state the name of his guide — he found
twelve pieces of pottery, plaster with inscriptions, and broken iiieces of
figures. In the second, Selim el Kari guided him to a spot where he
found seven vases with inscriptions ; in the third, which was that men-
tioned by Lieut. Conder, he bought pieces not inscribed.
He further states that the potteries had all been searched, but
nothing suspicious was found.
Selim's house was also searched, but no proof of forgery found. This,
with the preceding, was after M. Ganneau's second letter to the
AtJienceum,
An article called " Chauvinism in Archaeology, " written by Professor
202 THE SHAPIRA COLLECTION.
ScMottmann, was published in the Nord Deutsche Alhjemeine Ztitung of
April 12th. As this took the form of a personal attack on M. Clermont-
Ganueau we do not reproduce any portion of it.
On March 30, 1874, the following letter from M. Grauneau appeared
in the Athenoium. The Committee of the Pund publish this, in justice
to their oflficers, and by the kind permission of the proprietors of the
Athenceum, but they can in future publish only new facts in the affair.
Jerusalem, March 30, 1874.
I think that I have amply shown, in my second letter on the pseudo-
Moabite pottery {Athenceum, March 7, 1874), that we may con-
sider the method of defence set up by the principal culprit as equivalent
to a confession, and that to the bundle of proofs already published I
might add the avowal, so to speak, of the accused. Selim, not calculat-
ing the force of the weapon he was wielding, has struck himself.
I only return to the subject to open the eyes of those persons who
are not yet shaken in their sanguine convictions. These persons admit
two things : —
1. That Selim, the princii^al agent, has imprudently lied in accusing
me of a stupid machination.
2. That, nevertheless, he did not fabricate the pottery picked up
on his own indications.
We may ask, first, how to explain Selim's lie, perfectly useless to him-
self. As he did not hesitate before this invention, we must hold him
morally capable of a material as well as a verbal imposture.
But, it may be argued, ' ' there is a great difference between moral
possibility and material execution. We grant that Selim has given the
measure of his sincerity by the absurd accusation which he raised
against you. He is, further, a fellow whom we have oui'selves always
mistrusted. Still, it is absolutely impossible to conceive that an Arab
should have invented these figures and vases covered with Moabito
inscriptions."*
I have heard this objection made and repeated by many persons here,
who attached great importance to it, and said that if Selim was really
the author of these objects he ought to be the first professor in the world,
and that the poor devil has neither the necessary talents nor the know-
ledge to devise and execute a whole collection of ceramic art and a corpus
of inscriptions.
First of all, I call attention to the rudeness of the things, from the
artistic point of view. One does not require to bo a great sculptor to
fashion these infantine figures, in which their most ardent partisans,
like Mr. Dunbar Heath, can only praise the " stylo and type of gro-
* My own opinion is, that Selim fashioned the objcL'ts ami made the inscrip-
tions, and that he only had recourse to the potters tor the preparation and
baking of the vases. I have never been tempted, for my own part, to address
the potters to see if I could obtain anything similar to those said to have' come
from Moab. If any attempt has been made in this direction, 1 am a stranger to
it, knowing beforehand that it would be useless.
THE SHAPIRA COLLECTION.
203
tesque uncoutliness all their own." Moreover, the inscriptions with
which they are covered, in "Moabitc characters," are untranslatable
save by some savants more courageous than fortunate, to whom we owe
versions, entir-ely contradictory, of a small number of these texts.
This premised, I go on to prove that Selim Mows lioio to draio ivell
enough, and that he has a sufficient Icnowhdye of the Muahite character to
he the author of the pottery. Ho is a painter by trade, and daubs canvas
with religious subjects for Greek pilgrims.
Here, for instance, is a fac-simile drawing, made by his own hand,
under my eyes, and in my house, five years ago, when he first entered
into negotiations with me about the Moabite Stone. It is a sketch
drawn from memory, and representing a statue of Lot's wife, which he
pretended to have seen three or four hours' distance from Dhiban, on
the shores of the Dead Sea. A woman bears a child on her shoulder
in Arab fashion ; in the right hand she holds a jar. On this scrap of
paper that I have exhumed from my portfolios are, besides, a study
of a camel, extremely simple, and the commencement of my own
portrait (I).
Certainly, I do not say that Selim's chef-d'oeuvre would have the same
success as my friend Holmau Hunt's "Shadow of Death," if exhibited
in Bond Street ; but it proves that he understands drawing well enough
to model those "Moabite" statues, which would not be out of their
place among th ; gu.goi I read figures at a fair.
So much lor the artistic ^Ae. Pass now to the inscriptions. In my
first pamphlet on the Moabite Stone (1870), I mentioned, among other
things which aided me in restoring the mutilated text, a copy of several
204 THE SHAPIRA COLLECTION.
lines of tlie inscription executed by an Arab of tbe city, wbo bad seen
the original before its destruction. Tbis Arab was Selim el Gari.
In fact, towards tbe end of 1869, I received from bim, tben in tbe
land of Moab, tbrougb M. Bergbeim, a copy containing tbree lines in
Moabite cbaracter, witb a sketch of tbe stone, its dimensions, and
certain words in Arabic, of wbicb the following is a translation : — •
"Tbis is only one line of tbe lines, of wbicb there are forty. It is
among tbe ruins of ... . (word effaced). It is five palms long, and
tbree broad."
Tbe name of Dbiban had been purposely obliterated ; I do not know
by whom, or why. But as my attention bad been some time before
called to tbis monument, it was not difiicult for me to guess tbe name
effaced.
Later on, Selim returned to Jerusalem, came to me, and gave me a
copy of a much larger part of the inscription (lines 13-20) of which,
before, he had only sent me a part.
This copy, made from left to right, and with no indications of lines,
was accurate enough to be of considerable use. I verified it by aid of
W61(^i^l6K1wto6o7VoX4oXHf)ir^°W
my squeezes and fragments, and it served to correct many of my read-
ings. It will be given among other materials iu tbe definitive treatise
which I propose to publish on the Moabite Stone when I have time and
the means.
Meanwhile, here is the photographic reproduction of the first copy
which M. Bergbeim handed to me open, tbe identity of which he can,
necessary, certify.
The characters which represent lines 13, 14, and 15, are copied with
exactness suSicient to permit one to recognise the Moabite letters.
Tbe practised and adroit band which traced them is perfectly capable
of drawing those which cover tbe trans- Jordanic pottery.
More tban tbis, the document shows us remarkable similarities in the
pseudo-Moabite pottery, similarities of a personal character, which reveal
tbe same individuality.
For instance, all tbe mims {in) in the monument of Mesha are invari-
ably drawn in the same style, five zigzag strokes, the fifth of which has
a long tail. Now Selim's copies, made from the original, show us the
THE SHAPIRA COLLECTION. 205
mim several times drawn in a variation of form essentially peculiai- to
Selim, and not existiug at all in the original.
Very well, tins arhitrurij form is found again in the inscriptions of the
Shapii-a Collection.
Unfortunately, I have not with me copies of the suspected inscrip-
tions to multiply these instructive resemblances ; but I am so con-
vinced that others might be made, that I shall not hesitate to extract
from SeUm's two copies all the characters interpreted by him after his
own fashion, and differing from the original. And I doubt not that we
shall thus discover the origin of the characteristic variants, so extremely
improbable, of the incriminated texts.
To sum up : neglecting all the proofs which I have collected in any
preceding reports, setting aside the decisive conclusions drawn from the
critical character of the inscriptions, we may henceforth consider it
established about the man, —
1. That he has no scruples of conscience.
2. That he is artistically capable of executing such rude pottery as
that of the Shapira Collection.
3. That he is familiar with the Moabite letters, having had occasion
to copy a great number of them (2o0) from an original monument.
4. That on the pseudo- Moabite inscriptions is found one, and perhaps
more than one, letter, in a curious form which does not exist on the
monument of Mesha, but which does exist in Selim's own copies of this
monument.
The idea of fabricating imitations of antiquity, and especially of
important monuments, the discovery of which has produced a sensation
in Europe, is an idea which naturally arises in the fertile brain of an
Arab, always in search of some new method of turning to advantage
Western curiosity.
The monument of Mesha has called forth a whole generation of
Moabite pottery, which increases and multiplies in astonishing propor-
tions. In the same way, a "find " that I had the good fortune to make,
ihe stone from the Temple of Jerusalem, has suggested an analogous
combination to persons engaged in this special industry. I join to this
report the photograph of a false " Stone from the Temple," engraved oa
stone with a care and patience worthy of a better fate. I have the
happiness of possessing this precious specimen of Jerusalem cunning.
There is no necessity for me to point out the curious faults with which it
is crowded. These are evident to every practised eye.
Here is a piece of work a good deal harder than the kneading of a
little clay. It is a tour de force which, although it failed, seems at
first more improbable than the exploits of Selim. It was, like Selim's
work, executed by the same man whom I had employed about the
original. This genius tried to sell the false stone to several amateurs
in the city, and would perhaps have succeeded, if I had not, being
warned by a squeeze sent to me at Constantinople, given the alarm at
Jerusalem. It was a pity ; for the potter, Selim, would have had in the
206 THE SHAPIRA COLLECTION'.
stone-cutters, Messrs. **** & Co., a redoubtable rival ; and tbe mason's
chisel ■w'ould, perhaps, in the end, have triumphed over the potter's tool
in a contest where European credulity was the stake.
The failure of this attempt depended on the forger's desire to make
an inscription capable of translation, a point where all archaeological
forgeries fail. That is the reason why the Moabite pots, offspring of a
prudent sire, are mute. They are entrenched in their character as
incapable of translation for fear of crying their imposture aloud in open-
ing their mouths.
OENAAAOraiHBElTO^
•EVEZOAHNTOZTOVLIE
.NTOJEFO n Vo iCTOli^Xl
KDOAoy0 2:LAMAH
cboHEAT'l JAO£E:r
TAIA) aAOAO
OEIH0AhJAT6N3
. r
The forger of the " Stone from the Temple " understood that, but too
late. It is, perhaps, due to this change of sentiment that a great block,
reputed to be from Siloam, has appeared. It is covered with Greek
characters like that of the pretended " stone," but having no significa-
tion at all. The ruse succeeded, and the enigmatic inscription, having
piqued the curiosity of a worthy and learned man, was bought by him.
I could quote many examples of this kind, which throw a new light on
the manufacture of "antiques," &c., for exportation which goes on at
Jerusalem. Many a time since my first arrival here have I been ofi'ered
copies of inscriptions notoriously false. Sometimes simplicity went so
far as to ask specimens of the character which I should expect to find :
a little more and I should be able to command my inscriptions.
Sufi&ce it only to mention that I have only recently been ofi'ered, for
ten francs, the very seal of " David, servant of Jehovah,'''' engraved in
hard stone in Hebrew -Phoenician leticis, a little fantastic but quite
legible. And some time ago I was offered a stone covered with cha-
racters newly cut, something between Hebrew and Himyaritic ! I
expect soon to have the tables of the Law and the yellow Phoenician
book containing the correspondence of Hiram and Solomon.
C. ClekmojS't-Ganneau.
The following figures on the collection will be interesting. They have
been furnished by the Eev. J. Niel : —
The first collection contains 911 pieces, of which 465 bear inscriptions.
The second collection contains 493 pieces, of which GO only are
inscribed.
THE HEAD OF HADRIAN. 207
The third collection contains 410 pieces, of -which 68 are inscribed.
The proportion, therefore, of inscribed to uninscribed pieces drops
suddenly from oO per cent, to 12 per cent.
THE STATUE OF HADEIAN PLACED IN THE TEMPLE
OP JEEUSALEM.
{Reprinted from the " Atliencetim^^ b?/ hind permission of the proprietors.)
Jerusalem:, Fel. 28, 1874.
A DONKEY-DRIVER of Jerusalem, who carries stones into the city
for budding purposes, picked up, some months ago, among the fallen
blocks of a dry-stone wall, a marble head of natural size, Avhich is
probably an historical relic of great interest. I made him point out
to me the exact position of his discovery. It is on the edge of the
old Nablous road, thirty metres nortK of the Tombs of the Kings —
that is, some minutes' walk from the Damascus Gate. The head,
which now belongs to an effendi of the town, is that of a man. The
beard is short and curly ; the hair is abundant, Avith thick locks which
cover a portion of the forehead. He bears a crown of laurels, the two
branches of which, are attached to a medallion, on which is engraved
very distinctly in cameo an eagle, symbol of sovereign power.
The expression of the face from some points of view has a certain
harshness ; the eyes, the pupils of which are indicated by the sculptor,
are looking upwards ; the end of the nose is broken ; and some por-
tions of the face, especially the right eyebrow, have suffered. The
whole back part of the head has been long since broken.
The style is entirely Roman ; the workmanship is far from being
faultless ; but the effect of the whole is striking and imposing.
We have in this head clearly a portrait, and not a vulgar type.
The mutilation of the nose, although slight, makes the identity of the
personage at first difficult to distinguish. As I have not here the neces-
sary works of reference to determine the question, I hesitated for some
time between several hypotheses which presented themselves. I have
now, after mature consideration, come back to my first impression, and
I believe that we have in this head no other than that of the Emperor
Hadrian. This is also the opinion of a man of great learning, the Archi-
mandrite of the Eussian Mission at Jerusalem. I think that this view
will be admitted in Europe by savants competent to judge, and by all
those who are in a position to submit it to a verification impossible
here.
The finding of a head of Hadrian at Jerusalem is undeniably interest-
ing ; but were it not for certain peculiar circumstances which give it an
historical value, it might be nothing but a mere curiosity.
Every one knows the last and terrible insurrection of the Jews, under
the command of Barcochebas, " Son of the Star," which Hadrian had so
208
THE HEAD OF ADRIAN.
mucli trouble in subduing. After a victory dearly bougbt, which, erased
from the political world the name of Jew, Hadi'ian rebuilt Jerusalem
and transforuLed it into a Eoman colony, under the name of JElia Capi-
tolina. Among the numerous monuments with which he adorned the
new city, Dion Cassius mentions a Temple of Jupiter Capitolinus,
Reproduced hy kind perinisuon of the Proprietors of the " lUustrated
London News."
erected on the site of the ancient Jc%A-ish sanctuary. Some authors
think that it was the projected erection of the pagan naos which was
the determining cause, and not the consequence, of this last j)rotestation
of Jewish nationality so pitilessly suppressed.
In any case, there is no doubt that Hadrian placed his oiun statue in
the Temijle of Jupiter Capitolinus. In fact, the Bordeaux pilgrim
observed, on the site of the Temple, ttvo statues of Hadrian. St. Jerome,
TJflE HEAD OF HADRIAX. 209
who luicw the place dc visu, says expressly iii his C'oiunieiitary on
Isaiah, " Where were formerly the Temple and the worship of God, are
now placed the statue of Hadrian and the idol of Jupiter (Hadrian
statua et Jo%'is idolum collocatum est)." It would also appear that the
statue of the founder of .151ia Capitolina was an equestrian one, for the
same writer, in his Commentary on 8t, Matthew, speaks of "the eques-
trian statue of Hadrian, which to this day stands upon the site of the
Holy of Holies.*'
One may very well suppose that the pious but illiterate pilgrim of
Bordeaux, in sj)eaking of two statues of Hadrian, mistook for a second
statue of the Emperor that which Jerome calls " the idol of Jupiter" —
that is, the statue of the god to Avhom the Temple Avas dedicated. But
two passages in Pausanias may be compared with the pilgrim's state-
luent. He sjoeaks in one place of a statue of Jupiter and that of
Hadrian as forming a kind of grouj) Ijy themselves (I. iii. 5) ; and in
another (I. xviii. 6), of two statues of Hadrian standing before the
Temple of Jupiter Olympus. There luay thus have been two statues at
Jerusalem, one of them equestrian.
According to others, the two statues were those of Hadrian and his
adopted son and successor Antoidnus Pius. And if this theory be
correct, we might have in the Latin inscription found in the Double
Gate of the south wall the very dedication — "Imp: dvti ; Tito JElio
Hadriano Antonino Aug: p. p. pontitici anguri decreto decurionum " — ■
engraved upon the pedestal of the latter statue.
In any case, there is no doubt that on the site of the Temple stood at
least one statue of Hadrian, probably on horseback. The militarj*
nature of the events immediately preceding the foundation of the new
lloman colony explain the use of an equestrian statue representing the
Emperor as a victorious warrior.
DoAvii to the end of the fourth century, the statue was intact ; but
it is evident, admitting even that the iircdiijc of the imijcrial name
was able to protect it from the hands of the Christians, that it could
not escape the Vandalism of the Persians, and the vengeance of
the Jews, their allies. And, at all events, it disajijieared inevitably on
the arrival of Omar with his Arabs ; its fragments, which defiled the
sacred rock, were probably cari-ied away from the purified sanctuary
and thrown out of the city with tluj liltli and rubbish Avliich Omar
cleared away.
Strange irony of fate I Thrown face downwards on the old highway,
this ti'iumphant head of the conqueror of Barcochebas, the re-builder of
Jerusalem, the Divine Hadrian, with the laurel leaf and the eagle of
empire, has been trodden under foot for twelve centuries by everybody,
ua-eat and small, who has entered the Holy City. And after this long
ignominy, for a last outrage, the mutilated head, still with the same
pride in his look, lias been picked up by a poor jjcasant and thrown
among his common building stones. If Jehovah had still His projjhets,
some new Isaiah Avould not fail to show in this sad fate an expiation
-lO METEOROLOGICAL ^OTES.
due, the eliastiscmeiit of a jealous God aveiigiug the profanation of His
House.
C. Clermont-Gakxeau.
The above was in the hands of the Committee of the Palestine Explor-
ation Fund for some time, but Avas A\ithheld from publication in the
ho2ies that M. Ganneau would acquire the head. In this he has been
disappointed, the Archimandrite having bought it for a larger sum than
M. Ganneau Avas authorised to offer. DraAAongs and photogi'aphs by
]VI. Lecomte Avere sent to England AA-ith the memoir, and are noAv in the
ofKce of the Fund. Mi-. Yaux A\'ritcs on the subject: — '"I liaA'c great
pleasure in confirming M. Gamieau's judgment so far as I can, from the
only available document before me, at present — his photograph. The
characteristics of Hadrian's physiognomy are the crisp beard, the straight
nose, the curved eyelids, and the curved if not curled, nioustachios, &c.
All these are here. The AvOrk appears to be rough, and the material
coarse, but I have no doubt that the head is that of Hadrian, in spite of
some doubtful points."
ON THE METEOROLOGY OF VARIOUS PLACES IX
PALESTINE,
At which Observations were takex by the Roval Engineers.
By James CIlalsher, Esq., F.R.S., etc.
The observations on which this paper is based Avere recorded by the
survey party under the command of Lieutenant Claude E. Conder, E.E.,
and were taken at various places spread over the area comprised between
latitudes ol deg. oC) min. and 02 dcg. 49 min. north, and longitude
;34 deg. 00 min. and oo deg. lu min. east. The periods of time at
the ditferent stations during which observations were registered were
A'cry varying in length, and therefore the results given below can only be
regarded as approximate; thus, at Caitfa the approximate mean tem-
p(n-ature is deduced from 7i> days' observations, but at Shayk Abrayk
from 13 days' only. The local times of observation were 7 or T.oO a.m.,
0 a.m., and 3 p.m.
In the accompany iug table the name of the station, with its
lititxido and longitude, and height aboA^e sea-level, is given with the
length of the period of observation. These are followed by columns
giving respectiA'ely the highest and lowest barometer readings and the
mean value for the period, all reduced to 32 dcg. Fahrenheit, but not to
sea-level. Then follows the absolute maximum and minimum tempera-
tures of tho air, Avith the range in the period; the means of the maxima
and minima and tho mean daily range. Next in succession are tlie mean
MKrj:<)Urji.(»(;i('.u. .\orKs. '2\i
values of dry aud wot bulb thoriuomctor.s and the Lygroinctrical deduc-
tions therefrom.
The appruxiiiiate mean temperature is doduced from the means of all
the maxima and minima temperatures uncorrected. The mean readings
of a solar radiation thermometer are given for some of the stations, but
at Jenin Lieutenant Conder remarks: " Tho maximum thermometer in
rays of sun 'was broken on 13th September, the bulb being then open to
the air. It was mended with sealing-wax covered with lime, the ther-
mometer being immersed for some time (reversed) in boiling water to
obtain the nearest possible approach to a vacuum. It has, however, read
considerably lower since the ISth when mended, though not so low as
whilst remaining broken." Eeadings after the l.'Jth September are there-
fore of little value. Tho minimum radiation values are also wantinjr
from 1872, June (i, to 1S7'5, Feb. 10, tho thermometer having been broken.
The remaining columns are occupied by the average strength of the
wind, the number of days in which it blew from different points and on
which the air was calm, the mean amount of cloud, the number of days
on which rain fell, and the amount collected.
I hope in future (>(/''?-fe//// journals to give papers on the results of
longer-continued series of observations at Nazareth, Jaff"a, and Gaza.
Yazur, 1872, April 4 to 23. — During the whole period the weather was
fine, though occasionally somewhat cloudy. Showers of rain fell on the
lOfch, 15th, and 10th. The air was generally calm. The readings of the
barometer decreased from about 30'0 in. on the 5th to 29*7 in. on the 14th,
increased to 300 in. again by the 19th, and was 29-7 in. at the end of the
period. The highest reading of a thermometer in the sun's rays was
148'7 deg. on the 8th, and the lowest on the grass at night, 36'1 deg. on
the 11th.
Khirletha ihn Harith, April 25 to May 10. — Eain fell heavily between
7 and 9 a.m. on May 3rd, and again on the 4th, but with these exceptions
the period was rainless. Light clouds were generally present except on
the above-mentioned days, when they were much denser and larger in
amount. A fall in the barometric column was registered previous to the
rainy days, reaching its minimum, about 28'5 in., on the 2nd, but by the
6th hadincreased to 28'8in. The Avind blew briskly from the soutli-west on
the 3rd and 4th, the directions on the remaining days being variable.
The maximum radiation thermometer registered 157"7 deg. on the 1st
Maj'-, and the minimum 4G'0 deg. on the 29th April.
Aiu Si/iia, May 11 to 30. — The weather throughout was generally
fine, and with the exception of a slight shower on the 22nd no
rain fell. Thunder was heard, but lightning was not seen, on the 22nd
and 24th. Southerly winds were prevalent from tho 11th to the ISth,
but with light pressures ; during the same time the sky was generally
cloudy. On the 29th, observations were taken at 3 p.m., local time,
the results being: — Barometer, 27*7 in. ; and dry and wet bulb thermo-
meters, 92'9 deg. and G7'l deg. respectively. The maximum reading in tho
sun's rays was 158*7 deg. on tho 22nd, and the lowest on the grass, 42'5
deg. on the 10th.
212
METEOROLOGICAL NOTES.
Kuzali May 31 to June 17.— At this station tlie barometric changes
were very small, the absolute range of reading amounting to but 0.2. in.
In the early morning the air was usually calm, but fresh breezes
sprung up in the afternoon. The weather was very fine and rainless
throughout. Highest reading in sun's rays, 108-0 deg.
NaUas, June 18 to August 16.-The camp at Nablus was not very
weU situated for ascertaining the direction of the wind accurately, the
results therefore are only approximate. The sky was very free from
cloud, but fog was prevalent on the morning of the 22nd of July.
Very small barometric changes were recorded. The pressure of the
wind was light but very continuous. The highest reading in the sun's
rays was lS(Va deg. on the 12th July.
Jeha, August 17 to 30.— Several oscillations of the barometer were
recordc'd, the principal being an increase to 28-7 in. on the 19th, a de-
crease to 28-5 in. on the 21st, an increase to 28-8 in. by the next morning,
followed by a decrease to 2S-.3 in. by the afternoon of the 23rd, and an
increase to 2S.8 in. again in the early morning of the 24th ; this again
being followed by a decrease to 2S-.> in. by the afternoon of the 25th.
Tolerably brisk westerly winds wore prevalent, and light clouds gene-
rally present in the early portion of each day. The highest reading
in the sun's rays was 173-.') deg. on the 17th. Xo rain fell.
Jenin, August 31 to September 2.S.— In the whole period the range
in barometric readings amounted to but 02 in. The weather was some-
what variable at times, the sky being very cloudy, but no rain fell.
Strong breezes were occasionally experienced, but the direction of the
wind was changeable.
Umm el Fahra, September 29 to October 19.— Barometric changes
inconsiderable. The air throughout was generally calm. A shower
of rain fell on the evening of the 3rd October. Lightning, not ac-
companied by thunder, seen on the same and following evenings, and
thunder (without lightning) was heard on tho 7th, also accompanied
bv a slight shower. The amount of rain measured was only 0 002 in.
~ Miijaijdtl, October 20 to November S.— The weather very variable
throughout. Thunderstorms were experienced on the 21st, 22nd, 23rd,
and 24th, with at times hea^'j' rain, and on the 20th hail in a very
small quantity. The Sirocco blew on the 2Gth October ; and 2nd
November.
Nazaretit, November 9 to 26. — From the 9th to the 13th showery
weather with thunderstorms was prevalent, followed by a fine period
till the 2Gth. An increase in the barometric readings was recorded
till the 21st, when 29-0 in. was reached; a decrease till the end of the
period then occurred. Easterly and north-easterly winds were prevalent
from the 19th onwards, with light pressures.
Shai/J.h Alintiih, November 27 to l)eoember 11. — A shower of meteors
was observed throughout the night of the 27th. Tho skj' was gene-
rally cloudless till tho 9th December; on tho 10th it was showery all
day. A thunderstorm occurred during tlie night of the 9th. The air
Avas calm throughout.
MKTROROI.OOICAI. .NOTKS.
213
Caijf'a, December 12, 1871.', to February 26, 1874. — The principal baro-
metric changes were ; — •
In. In.
An increase to 30.1 on the 17th Dec. A decrease to 29.9 on the loth Dec.
30.1
30.3
30.2
30.3
30.1
30.0
30.2
30.2
29.9
30.3
27th „
2nd Jan.
loth „
16th ,,
22nd ,,
1st Feb.
uth ,,
t'th „
13th ,,
23rd „
29. J
29.9
29.9
30.1
29.9
29.7
29.8
29.9
29.8
29.8
20th
29th ,,
7th Jan.
12th ,,
19th ,,
30th „
3rd Feb.
7th ,,
12th „
17th „
From the 12th to the 14th December the weather Avas very fine ; from
the loth to the 28th showers of rain fell, accompanied by a thunder-
Btorm on the night of the 24th. Another period of fine rainless weather
occurred from the 29th to the 11th January, followed by a few unsettled
daj'^s, and then again very fine till the end of January. A thunderstorm
prevailed during the night of the 12th. During February it was very
variable ; rain fell fre([uently, accompanied at times by thunder and
lightning, and by hailshowers on the 17th and 19th. The afternoon, of
the 14th was foggy, but on the following day the sii-occo was ex-
perienced. During the latter part of the period it was very squally.
Jeha, near Athltt, February 27 to March 21. — The barometer readings
decreased from 29 '9 in. on the 9th to 29*4 in, on the 13th, then increased
again to 29'9 in. by the 20th. The period was generally fine, though
rain fell occasionally. Thunderstorms were prevalent on the 16th and
18th.
Kannir, March 22 to April 8. — Several o.scillations of the barometer
were experienced during the latter portion of March, accompanied by
gales and heavy showers. A thunderstorm occurred on the 25th. The
remainder of the period was fine, broken, however, by one stormy after-
noon, viz., that of the oth April.
Zai/tu, April 9 to 25. — A somewhat unsettled period prevailed from
the 14th to the 17th, with thunderstorms, but otherwise it was very fine
throughout.
MulhaUiJ, April 26th to May 7 ; Kefr Zthad, May 8 to 23.— Very
fine generally. The 9th and 23rd were squally, with sirocco, and on the
17th and 18th thunder unaccompanied by lightning was heard.
V.
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Quarterly Statement, October, 1874.]
THE
PALESTINE EXPLORATION FUND,
PREFACE.
The mo.st important events in the work of the last three months
are the discoveries on the site of Gezer by M. Clermont-Ganneau, and
that of the Altar of Ed by Lieutenant Conder. The former is only
equalled in interest by M. Ganneau's previous discovery in Jerusalem
of the stone of Herod's Temple. He has found, on a spot previously
indicated by him as the site of Gezer, viz., Abu Shusheh, which lies
five miles south-east of Ramleh and four east of Amwas (the presumed
Emmaus), not only the name Tell el Gezer, still existing, with traces
of the foundations of houses, but two insci*iptions, both exactly alike,
in Hebrew and Greek, the Hebrew words being translated " the
boundary of Gezer." We have thus new data for many impoi-tant
points of dispute. There are, for instance, the boundaries of a
Levitical city (Numbers xxxv. 4, 5) ; the direction of the square,
which is now seen to have lain with its four angles at the four
cardinal points ; the exact length of " two thousand cubits," and
tlierefore of one cubit. The measurements, however, are not yet
completed. The inscriptions will be engraved when these, with
the memoir promised by M. Ganneau, ai'e sent home. The other
discovery, that of the Altar of Ed, is hardly less interesting ; and
the survival through so many ages of the name is only another proof
of the vitality of the old names in the Holy Land.
Q
218 PREFACE.
The Quarterly Statement contains besides these two papers, a
report of the Annual Meeting, at which, among other speakers, the
Eev. Dr. Porter, just returned from Palestine, gave an account of
his recent journey ; and the Rev. Dr. S. Manning, also a recent
traveller, spoke on the necessity, for the right understanding of
the Bible, of scientific exploration. We have also two valuable
reports from M. Clermont-Ganneau, and a paper by Lieutenant
Conder read at the British Association at Belfast.
The thanks of the Committee are specially due to the Cloth-
workers' Company, to the Syrian Improvement Committee, to the
British Association, to Mr. Henry Lee, to INIr. W. Vaux, and to
" G. M. E.," for donations during the present year of £100 each to the
Fund. Financially, the Fund is not prosperous, in spite of these
generous donations. The Committee are deeply in debt. They
asked the Anniial Meeting for £2,500 before the end of the year.
Since that time (June 23rd) about £640 have been received at the
office. It is earnestly urged upon all subscribers who have not paid
for the current year to do so without delay, and upon all Honorary
Local Secretaries to circulate a knowledge of the Fund and its claims
as widely as possible.
NOTES.
The following resolution was passed at the Meeting of the British Association
at Belfast : —
That Major AVilson and Mr.'Eavcnstein be appointed a committee for the piirpose
of furthering tlie Palestine Explorations, and that the sum of £100 be placed at
their disposal to be expended on behalf of the Topographical Survey, and especi-
ally in ascertaining the level of the Sea of Galilee and the fall of the River
Jordan.
The Syria Improvement Committee have decided on terminating their trust.
Out of the funds remaining in tlieir hands they voted £100 for the Survey of
Palestine.
NOTES. 219
M. Clermont-Ganiieau's leave of absence expires on October 23rd. It is liopod
that bis services may be continued for another year.
It has been resolved that an application shall be^made to the War Office for a
second officer of Royal Engineers to join the Survey party under command of
Lieutenant Conder in place of Mr. Tyrwhitt Drake.
The hill sketching and all the plans and special surveys made by Lieutenant
Conder have been deposited for safety with the Union Bank, where they will
remain until the completion of the Survey. It was judged expedient not to
run the risk of losing any of these invaluable documents by iire or otherwise.
The Duke of Westminster, who very kindly lent Grosvenor House for a meeting
in July, has joined the General Committee.
The total amount received from all sources since the last Statement was £650
7s. 7d. (June 26 to Sept. 30). The balance on the same date was £165 15s. Id.
The expenditure during the next three months will be about £1,000, and it will
be necessary besides to pay at least £600 of our liabilities.
A letter has been sent to all the City companies and various societies, asking
for assistance in the great work of the Survey. The fact is stated publicly, in the
hope that subscribers will be able to help this appeal by their own influence.
Perhaps, also, a general appeal will be made in November.
The follo\ving Special Meetings have been held during the summer : —
1. Grosvenor House, July 24th, 1874. The chair was taken by Mr. MacGregor,
and the meeting was addressed by the Chairman, by Captain Warren, and
Lieutenant Conder. The room was very kindly lent by the Duke of West-
minster.
2. Admiral and Lady H. B. Hamilton, July 18, 1874. Captain Warren spoke
on the work of the Fund.
3. Sept. 30, at the Palace, Chichester, when Mrs. Finn, through whose
exertions all the summer meetings were arranged, gave an account from her own
experience of recent and and early research in the Holy Land.
4. Drawing-room Meetings were also held at the houses of Madame de Bunsen,
Mrs, Osborne, and Mrs. Ellis.
At these meetings the following ladies entered their names as members of the
Ladies' Association : — -
Lady H. B. Hamilton, Macartney House, Greenwich.
Miss Hamilton, ,, „
Miss Jones, 16, Park Row, Blackheath.
Miss E. Jones, ,, ,,
Miss Jackson, ,, ,,
Miss Pontifex, Crown Hill, Blackheath.
Mrs. Francis B. Wire, ,, ,,
ilrs. H. Lacon, 7, Hyde Park Street, W.
Miss Turbervill, 170, St. Paul's Road, Highbury
Miss Kims, 24, Highbury New Park, N.
220 NOTES.
Mrs. Stanley, 9, Lancaster Gate, W.
Mrs. J. Gritton, Tinnevelly Lodge, St. Peter's Park, W.
Mrs. S. Hanson, 24, Greville Place, Kilburn.
Miss Hanson, The Vicarage, Clu'istcliurch, Hants.
Mrs. Ellis, 197, Maida Vale.
Mrs. Despard, Parsonage, Kilburn.
Mrs. Sydall, 60, Ladbroke Grove, W.
Mrs. Holdsworth, per H. Gough, Esq., Waltham Abbey, Essex.
Mrs. Osborne, 5, Ulster Terrace, Regent's Park.
Mrs. Halley, 16, Hanley Street, W.
Mrs. J. C. Chappell, 14, George Sti-eet, Hanover Square, W.
Mrs. Huater, 32, Charlotte Street, Edinburgh.
Miss Colls, Florence Villa, King Henry's Road.
Miss Rogers, 150, Alexandra Road, St. John's "Wood.
Mrs. C. H. Osborne, 120, Cornwall Road, S.W.
Mrs. G. H. Osborne, 5, Ulster Terrace, Regent's Park, N.W.
221
ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING OF THE PALESTINE
EXPLORATION FUND.
HELD AT THE ROYAL INSTITUTION, 23ru JUNE, 1874.
The Very Eeverend the Dean of "WESTMrnsxER in the Chair.
The Chairman : I shall call upon Mr. Grove to read the Report.
George Grove, Esq., Hon. Sec, read the Report as follows : —
" The Committee are happy in being able to report that the work of the
year has been marked by an unparalleled progress.
"Two branches of work have been simultaneously carried on. The
survey of Western Palestine, under Lieut. Conder and IVIi-. Tyrwhitt
Drake, and the Archaeological researches of M. Clermont-Gauneau.
Lieut. Conder will himself describe to you the method of the survey.
"At the last annual meeting of the Fund, the Committee were able
to report the completion of 1 ,600 square miles in the eighteen months
which had elapsed since the commencement of the survey.
"During the past twelve months the rate of progress has greatly
increased.
" The number of square miles now mapped and surveyed is over 3,000,
or about one-half of Western Palestine.
"Map-making is only part of the work of the expedition; careful
drawings, with plans, measurements, and sketches of every ruin and
important site, are made ; the ancient roads, aqueducts, and lines of com-
munication are traced ; observations on the geology and natural history
of the country are recorded, and specimens collected ; and the traditions
of the people are sought for and carefully noted down.
" Foremost among the special surveys may be mentioned those of
Athlit, Dor, Beisan, Ctesarea, and Antipatris. There are also plans of
two ruined cities not yet fully identified, discovered by Lieut. Conder ; a
group of early Christian convents, and some fine tombs which throw
much light upon the history of the architecture of various periods in
Palestine. The tomb and summer palace of Herod at Jebel Furaydis
have been examined. A survey and plan have been made of Modin,
where are the tombs of the Maccabees The system of caves, commonly
known as the cave of AduUam, has been thoroughly explored. The
Jordan Valley has been surveyed, where the site of Gilgal has been fixed
with great probability.
"With regard to the identification of other sites, that of (Enon (proposed
by Dr. Robinson) has been verifi-ed. The places mentioned (Judges
vi., vii., and viii.) in Gideon's pursuit after the Midianites can now be
followed on the map ; and Lieuf . Conder believes that he had identified
the rook Oreb and winepress of Zeeb (Judges vii. 25).
" It is probable, also, that the voluminous geological notes made in the
222 THE ANNUAL MEETING.
valley of the Jordan ■will help to settle the difficult question of the date,
and method of formation, of this valley, and the Dead Sea.
"It is impossible to publish in the Quarterly Statements all the sketches
and plans now in the possession of the Committee and accumulating
monthly. These will appear in the work which the Committee hope to
be able to publish in connection with the map, when the survey is com-
pleted.
" The non-commissioned officers. Sergeant Black, Corporal Armstrong,
and Lance-Corporal Brophy, have worked throughout to the entire
satisfaction of Lieut. Conder, and the Committee desire to express their
high sense of the value of the service which they have rendered to the
Fund.
" With regard to the survey, it should be added that the work has been
conducted in the face of the most severe winter ever known in Palestine,
and in spite of fever, which attacked both Lieut. Conder and Mr.
Tyrwhitt Drake.
" Turning to the work of M. Clermont-Ganneau, the Committee point
to his letters published in the Quarterly Statements.
"He has discovered the ancient cemetery of Jaffa, found apparent
traces of the primitive houses of Gezer, examined the site, suggested by
himself, of the stone of Bohan, and made researches attended with results
of great interest at Gumran (the Gomorrah of De Saulcy), Jericho, the
Wady Kelt. Shafat, Modin, and many other places. He has brought to light
numerous inscriptions, discovered and examined many ancient tombs,
and collected a great number of local traditions. He is now engaged in
exploring a series of rock-cut chambers north of the Via Dolorosa, in
Jerusalem, which seem to have an important bearing on the topography
of the city.
' ' The reports of M. Ganneau have been accompanied by a series of most
carefully executed drawings by M. le Comte. The Committee take this
oj)portunity of di-awing attention to the energetic and able manner in
which M. Ganneau is carying out their instructions.
" The income of the Fund for the year 1873 amounted to £3,630 17s. 3d.,
the largest income it has ever obtained since the year 1869. The amount
received this year up to the present date is £1,758 17s. 9d., being £308
more than was received up to the same date of last year.
" On the other hand, the expenses are heavier, both in Palestine, owing
to the two expeditions, and at home, owing to the enlargement of the
Reports and the iiicrca^jed expenses in printing. Even to pay their way,
without paying existing debts, the Committee will have to ask for at least
£2,500 before the end of the year.
" Intelligence has been received fi-om the secretary of the American
Exploration Associiation that the sum of 60,000 dols., or £12,000, has
been raised by appeal, and that a second expedition will be sent out
without delay to the east of the Jordan.
"This proof of enthusiasm in America will be heartily welcomed in
England, and ou^;ht to be a stimulus for the raising of a larger sum for
our own Society.
THE ANNUAL MEETING. 22,3
" An Association has been formed in Germany for the scientific
exploration of Phoenicia. The Committee will endeavour to place them-
selves in communication with this society with a view to the interchange
of papers.
" The Committee have, lastly, the pleasing duty of expressing their
sincere thanks : 1st, to Mr. Consul Mooro, of Jerusalem, for the friendly
help he has always rendered to Lieut. Conder and M. Ganneau ; 2ndly,
to Dr. Chaplin, who has continued for Lieut. Conder's party the same
gratuitous medical assistance which he so kindly gave to Major Wilson's
and Capt. Warren's expeditions, and whose valuable services in many
other ways have always been placed so readily in the hands of the Fund ;
and ordly, to Mr. Schick, for the notes of his researches at Jerusalem,
which he forwards from time to time to Major Wilson for the Fund.
" They have also to thank Lord Shaftesbury for the sympathy which
prompted him to write to the Times last autumn a strong appeal on
behalf of the Fond ; the Rev. Dr. Aberigh Mackay, of Simla, who has
raised a subscription in India ; and all local secretaries, for the trouble
they take in maintaining interest in the work, and raising money for its
continuance."
Lieut. CoNDER then read the following Eeport af the proceedings of
the Society in Palestine : —
It is now two years since I was honoured by having the command
of the Survey Party in Palestine entrusted to my care, and I am glad
to be able to report to-day that the work has been prosecuted during
that time without any material check, and with many interesting and
important results, with which you are already familiar.
Before leaving Palestine I had completed, roughly speaking, half
the map. On my arrival in the country I found that the time required
was estimated at eight or ten years, but now we are able to promise,
that unless the health of the party fails, we shall have all Palestine,
from Dan to Beersheba, surveyed and thoroughly examined within some
eighteen months from this time, — in four years, instead of eight as
originally contemplated. Hitherto the men have hardly had a day's
illness ; and 1 think we may hope that with due care and the invaluable
advice of Dr. Chaplin, the open-air life may continue to enable them to
stand the effects of the climate and of the work.
There is nothing which is so striking on retui-ning to England as the
difficulty of conveying a truthful and vivid impression of Palestine, and
the life we lead there. It must be borne in mind that every inch of
paper on the sheets brought home represents a square mile of difficult
country ridden over more than once, and every small plan a large ruin
encumbered with fallen stones, or overrun Avith thistles through which
the chain has to be dragged.
The method of proceeding has now become stei'eotyped ; it is a con-
stant repetition every fortnight or ten days of the same round of duties,
only broken by the winter rainy season. In a mouih we now add
nearly 300 square miles to the map, being five times the ruto first
224 . THE ANNUAL MEETING.
obtained; and ware it not impossible for even the endurance of my
non-commissioned officers to stand the strain, the actual amount of
time required to complete the map would not be more than some
twelve months.
The expedition as at present constituted consists of five Europeans
and ten Syrians, including servants, groom, cook, and muleteers, with
an irregular horseman supplied by the local efovernment. For our
transport we require eight horses and seven miiles, and on the days of
moving camp five or six camels in addition. Thus, on the occasion of
our first march along the Jordan valley high road our caravan extended
over a quarter of a mile : in front the horsemen, followed by the heavily-
loaded mules with bells and gaily ornamented harness ; behind these
the camels, and in rear the Bedouin guards on their horses and
the Sheikh on his dromedary, whilst a string of Arabs on foot with
long guns, and of servants mounted on donkeys and mules, mingled
wdth the main line of the march.
Arrived at our destination, the first thing necessary is to choose a
camping ground in a convenient position, sheltered, near to water, and
on as even ground as possible. If at a village it is next necessary to
send a message to the leading man of the place. For this purpose our
head servant, in the full glory of Syrian costume, well armed, and
mounted on a good horse, is despatched with the Imperial firman to
explain the object of our arrival, and demand all necessary assistance.
The presence of a government soldier, and the fact that our arrival has
probably been already announced, as it is known at one camp where
our next is to be, makes this generally a mere formality. The elders
of the village immediately come down, and we are off'ered coffee and
other refreshments. After this, with the exception of extortionate
demands, which dwindle to fair prices in the course of a few days, we
have as a rule but little trouble with the inhabitants of this village or
of those in the immediate neighbourhood.
A consultation with my sergeant and orders to the head servant
follow, and thus next morning we are all ready to begin the work.
As night comes over the camp the active duties of our dogs com-
mence. The English fox-terriers, of a breed which we preserve very
carefully, run round the tents, and are constantly on the alert for
jackals, hyajnas, or prowling Arabs. Sometimes we are waked by the
noise of a combat, when they have seized some large prey, and require
our assistance. More than once they have saved our horses by discov-
ering the approach of thieves. Thus, at Shunem, Sergeant Black and I
were waked by a dog's bark, and discovered that three Bedouins had
crept through the long grass within a few feet of the picket of valuable
horses. We rose and loaded our guns, but although some twenty Arabs
descended on the neighbouring village, and a skirmish with the villagers
ensued, we were not attacked. A dropping fire was kept up for some
time on both sides, and the war cry of the Arabs answered the shouts
of the fellahin ; but having stolen a horse and a cow the robbers retired
for the nitilit.
THE ANNUAL MEETING. 225
By about half-past seven in the morning the horses ai*e saddled, the
breakfast ready, and two mules packed. On the back of each is a square
wooden canvas-covered box, containing the theodolite, placed well for-
wai'ds to allow a native to sit; behind it on each side are saddle-bags
with provisions, an umbrella, the legs of the theodolite, a bucket of
whitewash, a hatchet, &c. Each party, accompanied by a guide from
the village on another mule, now moves off to a high mountain top,
already well known, and chosen from a former camp. For two or three
hours we go steadily on our way, now by a path, now across country up
the narrow valleys and over stony ridges, keeping our point straight
before us. There is generally very little said unless a consultation
becomes necessary ; and our acquaintance with the country is now so
good, that we rarely meet any obstacle sufficient to turn us from our
course. Sometimes, indeed, we may arrive at the brink of a pi-ecipitous
ravine like that of Michmash, the existence of which cannot be guessed
from a distance; but even this hardly alters our line of march, and we
have never yet failed by some means or other to drag our sure-footed
beasts down the rocky sides and up the opposite slopes. These great
valleys do, however, materially delay our progress ; and on one occasion
in Judaea it took three hours to advance a distance of only three miles.
Another difficulty which has especially delayed us during this spring
is the entire want of drainage. In parts where there is no natural
outlet for the water, the cornland is often an impassable swamp, and
immediately on leaving the rock the horses will sink up to the girths,
and are with difficulty recovered. Experience, however, has taught lis
to avoid these dangerous places, and to find a path across them. Great
care is necessary also in riding over the bare rock, which is often so
slippery from the rubbing of the camels' feet and the eifect of the sun
that no horse can keep its feet, and the danger of a heavy fall is not to
be laughed at.
On arriving at the chosen point a communication with the other
party has to be established. This is generally effected, either by the
smoke of a fire or by the flash of the sun's rays in a small looking-
glass. Seen from a distance, this resembles a long tongue of electric
flame, and is, on a bright day, visible almost as far as the eye can see.
The theodolite observations occupy from two to four hours, and are
pei'haps the most trying part of our work, necessitating a continual
change of focus for the eye from the long distance seen thi-ough the
telescope to the minute magnified divisions of the gi-aduated circle.
Thus, on returning to camp the day's work has extended over eight or
ten hours.
The work of filling in the details of the map, which commences on
the third or foui-th day of the camp, requires even greater physical
exertion. But this can hardly be explained in a brief address such as
the present. I feel sure, however, that the accuracy of this part of
the work is greater than could be expected, whilst the nvmiber of
names averages six times that on the best existing map.
226 THE ANNUAL MEETING.
The difficulties of country already alluded to are also extremely im-
portant. Some of the valleys are absolutely impassable, and the fatigue
of crossing a narrow gorge, perhaps 1,000 feet deep, is very considerable.
Euins are often hidden in comers or half way down precipitous descents,
and take houi-s to examine. Sometimes when visited they prove modern
or insignificant, but they are noted nevertheless, and our lists give
details of all that is to be seen in every spot we have examined, and
these are now to be counted by thousands.
The great stoniness of the soil is another cause of delay and fatigue
In England it can hardly be realised. The north road from Jerusalem
to Nablus resembles nothing so much as a dry bed of a stream, and
the by-ways are, as may be imagined, worse than the main road.
The danger of assault by the natives has also to be considered,
although it is now less than at first. In every case such an assault has
met with swift and severe punishment, and the fame of these acts of
justice has spread, whilst, at the same time, the peasantry regard us
with less suspicion and fear than formerly. It is to a firm and con-
sistent line of conduct on the part of all members of the expedition
that the freedom from annoyaace from this source has arisen. The
safety of a European when alone in Syria depends on his being well
armed, and on a just confidence in his own superiority to a cowardly
and treacherous race of natives.
In conclusion, I may caU attention to one of those rewards for
systematic labour which we occasionally obtain. I take as an instance
the discovery of Khirbet Deir Serur, where we found a whole town
previously entirely unknown, never before visited or marked on a
map, though only ten miles from Samaria.
In the course of an ordinary day's work, Corporal Armstrong arrived
at this important ruin, and after a brief inspection, saw that it was too
extensive for immediate survey, and would require to be visited by
me. At the earliest opportunity we therefore re-examined it together,
and spent the day in surveying it, measuring its principal buildings,
and noting all details of importance.
The ruin is situated on a hill-top, and presents a field of fallen
masonry, with blocks of white limestone, in some cases ten feet long.
On the east are the foundations of a large building with walls eight
feet thick ; and two curious blocks like pilasters, but unornamented,
stand at the corners unsupported. The building in question is evidently
for some public purpose, though it is not easy to say what. It is not
a church, nor does it entirely resemble in plan a temple or synagogue.
Its floor is tesselated pavement. Fragments of its ornamentation are
scattered about, and a fine stylobate runs at the base of the wall. It
seems to have been divided into three walks with pillars, and had steps
to its great gate on the west. The rubbish, however, has filled the
interior.
Passing along what seems to have been a main street, we fiud another
large building at the north- west corner of the town. The main door-
THE ANNUAL MEETING. 227
way has a fine round arch, and the rubbish here must be over ten
Feet in depth. The pilasters of a side door are of classic moulding, and
the great wall has stones beautifully finished, all with drafted margin.
The general impression with regard to this important ruin appears
to be that it dates about the fii'st or second century. It may turn out
to be Herodian, and its excavation may lead to important finds of
inscriptions or other treasures.
Such, plainly stated, is a single illustration of many similar explora-
tions, and a review of our method of work leading to the valuable
discoveries which we are making in parts of Palestine where a
European has not been seen within the memory of man.
I have endeavoured veiy briefly to give not the results of our work,
which you have already in the Quarterly Statements, but our methods,
our life, and some of our difficulties. I have only to add what you are
quite prepared to hear, that every sheet of our Survey brings out more
forcibly and more clearly the absolute accuracy of the very slightest
topographical indications and incidental notices contained in the
historical books of the Old and New Testaments.
The Chaiemajst : I first of all must make an apology for my being in
the chair in the place of the Archbishop of York, who, I believe, has filled
this chair every time since he undertook to be the President of the Pales-
tine Exploration Fund, and I have always considered it doubly merito-
rious, if I may use such an expression, not only on account of his
numerous important avocations, but because I consider in all geographical
matters that it is a virtue not to be expected that any one should take a
profound interest in a country he has not himself visited, that being a
vii-tue to which I could not lay claim if I were called upon to take the
chair (hear, hear) ; and therefore I consider that the Archbishop of
York does deserve much gratitude from the Fund. (Cheers.) On this
occasion we must all deeply deplore the cause of his absence to-day,
which is wholly occasioned by his having had to cross the Channel to
Paris, only in time to reach the deathbed of a beloved brother. With
regard to the occasion itself, the Eeport and the address you have just
heard leaves very little to add beyond what you all yourselves understand
from it. No doubt the great addition made to our knowledge by this
very careful and extended map is the most important step the Fund has
made in advance, because this is a thing which is unquestionably
superior to anything of the kind which has been done by anybody ; and
it never can be undone, and it has been undertaken at a period in the his-
tory of Palestine which is most important, because one feels that in these
half-civilised countries the progress of civilisation will tend to tear away
and uproot many things which, unless they are chronicled now, will never
be chronicled at all ; and these records can therefore now be made with the
greatest effect. You have also heard from the address of Lieut. Conder
exactly the process by which this map is made. To any one who has
been in Palestine his address is most interesting, as giving you a picture
of the ups and downs and everlasting undulations of these rocky hills,
228 THE ANNUAL MEETING.
and of the precipitous valleys which, so unexpectedly yawn before you.
No doubt the process is exceedingly difficult, and it must be in many
respects exceedingly wearisome, and often, as he has described it, not
free from danger. (Hear, hear.) But I cannot help hoping for him and
those engaged with him this reward. There is no other country in the
world in which they could be employed, not only with such results, but
with such constant and immediate results. The geography and the
monuments of Palestine are the most interesting of any in the world, and
the most thickly scattered — I think not even with the exception of
Greece. Greece is the only country which can come into competition
with Palestine in regard to the narrow space within which these crowded
vestiges of antiquity are packed together ; and therefore at every turn these
explorers may expect to find something which, if not absolutely new,
is exceedingly important for the purpose of making a complete survey.
(Hear, hear.) I cannot help comparing Lieut. Conder's account of the
survey before us with another work in which I happen to be engaged —
especially when speaking of the leng th of time which it requires— and
that is the revision of the authorised version of the Holy Scriptures.
We count week by week, and month by month, the ground we get over ;
and so it is with this exploration of Palestine ; and, as I trust, within the
next ten years we shall in both these works have arrived at something
like the same result. As regards the Map of Palestine, we shall have
given all the results that can be arrived at in this our time in the most
complete form ; and as regards the revision of the text of our translation
of the Holy Scriptures, we shall have brought to bear upon it all the
light which modern scholarship can bring to bear upon the letter of the
Holy Scriptures. (Hear, hear.) We shall thus have been equally suc-
cessful with the land and the letter of the Bible. It is true that does not
supply the spirit; but it is something to have the framework, and it is
something to have the letter, and I trust we shall have that fully within
the next ten years. (Cheers.) The first resolution will be proposed by
Dr. Manning.
The Eev. Dr. S. Manning : The resolution I have to propose is to the
following effect: — " That this meeting cordially approves of the action
of the Committee, and of the efforts made by the exploring officers to
carry out their instructions." This resolution implies two things : first,
that the objects and aims of the Palestine Exploration Fund are deserving
of our approval and support ; and secondly, that those objects are pur-
sued by the Committee and officers with laudable energy, discretion, and
success. With regard to the first point there is little to be said here,
especially in your presence, Mr. Dean, who by precept and example
have shown us the value of topographical knowledge in the exposition of
God's Holy Word. You have told us again and again in your writings
how truth is to be illustrated by reference to the great facts of physical
geography, and your writings have proved its importance in the elucida-
tion of those documents upon which our most holy faith is established.
(Cheers.) Though there will be no gainsayers to this propobition, a few
THE ANNUAL MEETING. 229
words may be pormittod to me. We set ourselves to the exploration of
the soil of Palestiuo with a view of confirming and illustrating the Holy
Scriptures. Before we set ourselves to that work we must have a firm
faith in the historical veracity and accuracy of those documents before
submitting them to this crucial test. No system of falsehood, no system
of semi-falsehood, can survive that test, because its inaccuracy must be
exposed. If you could imagine any one testing the mythologies of India,
Greece, and Rome by reference to the topography of their sites, their
absurdity would be exposed to view — the bubble would burst at the in-
stant of its contact with fact. If we come lower down, to the heroic
period, and take the demigods of classical antiquity, and apply the same
test, the myth would be obvious ; it would not fit into the actual facts of
geographical requirements. But we are perfectly secui'e of the Scriptures.
The Scriptures of the Old and New Testament will be found exactly
to adapt themselves to the facts and requirements of the case. We have
no fear whatever of exposing them to this crucial test ; and the result has
been to justify our confidence, to clear up that which is obscure, and to
confirm what is doubtful ; and if our faith needed a firmer basis on which
to rest, we should find it in these investigations. (Cheers.) I may
perhaps be permitted to give one or two passing illustrations, not to add
to your knowledge, but to show the advantages of this Society. We read
that when the great leader and lawgiver of the Jewish nation was
approaching the end of his honoured career, he ascended the mountain of
Nebo, and the historian says that the whole country lay stretched out
before him from the extreme north to the extreme south of the promised
laud. The infidel of former ages said that this was a physical impossi-
bility, and incredible ; others, affirming that we have hero a slender shred
of fact around which myths had gathered, explained the narrative as
merely an exaggeration of later ages ; and our forefathers in defending
the faith had to affirm the existence of a miracle. But the officers of
this Pund, Canon Tristram and others, have found that it was neither
impossible, nor improbable, nor even miraculous ; and those who have
climbed where Moses stood have found that the wi-iter of Deuteronomy
has supplied a guide-book to the map which lay stretched at their feet.
(Cheers.) Again, we read that on the opposing heights of Ebal and
Gerizim the law was recited — its blessings and its curses— from the
opposing hills. This seems very improbable, very difficult to under-
stand, very hard to believe, insomuch that some writers have been
eager to find another Ebal and another Gerizim where the event might
have happened. We have but to visit the spot and all difficulty dis-
appears. Here are two opposing amphitheatres, and you may stand
in one or the other of them and try the experiment as I tried
it last year myself, under circumstances the most unfavom-able.
Whether from the conformation of the spot, or the elasticity of the
air in Palestine, despite all the difficulties of the case, not only could
we in the valley hear the verses of blessing and cursing, but the
readers on the opposite hills could catch the words with sufficient dis-
230 THE ANNUAL MEETING.
tinctness to take up the verses at the very point where the others left
off. (Cheers.) The period in which we could most expect myth and
legend to exist, if it exist at all, would be that of the great founders of the
nation. Let us bring this to the same test. For instance, Abram and
Lot are at Bethel about to divide the land between them, and we are
told that from the point at which they stood they saw the rich and
fertile plain of Jordan outstretched before them ; beautiful exceedingly,
as Eden, the garden of the Lord. When we look at the site of Bethel
on the map, it is very diflB.cult to understand that. We have but to
visit the spot, however, and at once we have on the one side the barren
rocks and wind-swept heights of southern Palestine, whilst the well-
watered plain of Jordan in all its fertility and beauty is visible to the
naked eye. (Cheers.) Take another instance in the life of the great
patriarch. The announcement of the destruction of Sodom was made to
him overnight, and he climbed the hill, and we are told he saw the
smoke ascending. When we look at the map we find that long ranges
of hills intervene between the two places, and it seems difficult to un-
derstand how this should be ; but from the hill over Mamre, through
a notch in the intervening chain, the whole of that district of the valley
of the Jordan lies clear and plain, and the hot and quivering air is seen
rising up distinctly from that very spot where Abram stood. (Cheers.)
Glance at one of the poetical passages of the Bible, where the march of
the Assyrians on Jerusalem is described. It is but an itinerary of the
different villages from Anathoth up to Nob, just under the walls of
Jerusalem. Step by step, by the officers of this Fund and other
travellers, village after village has been identified, so that the narra-
tive is proved to be a minute itinerary of that march, and the present
names are in almost every case identical with those given us by the
prophet. There is such, a minute accord between the Land and the
Book that they completely illustrate one another. Just as the pieces of
a dissected map fit one to another, so do they coincide with the minutest
possible accm-acy. (Cheers.) We owe it to the labo'oxs of Captain
Warren, Major Wilson, and Lieutenant Conder, that they have brought
before us these elucidations and confirmations of the documents which
form the basis of our faith and hope in Christ. (Loud cheers.) Ad-
mitting that the results have been of such value, yet, when we read
that the resources of the Fund are so unexpectedly and sadly small, we
cannot but feel that there is an idea abroad that the Fund is not doing
the work we might expect it to do. Even those who are most earnestly
desirous of a full exploration of Palestine stand aloof, look coldly, and
speak doubtfully, when the question of supporting and contributing
to this Fund arises. I would like to take the lowest statement I have
ever hoard, or that can be made, of the work of the Fund. I said to a
gentleman in Jerusalem, who is earnestly devoted to this work, who is
a warm and liberal supporter of it, and who has laid it under a heavy
debt of gratitude by the services he has given it, " Will you tell me what
is the net result of the explorations in Jerusalem ? what is the sum
THE ANNUAL MEETING. 231
total of the amount arrived at ? " This was last year. He said, " We
began, believing we knew everything about Jerusalem, and that we only
needed to fill in a few minute points of detail. We have now got so far
that we know absolutely nothing. People were accustomed to talk about
our church as the church on Mount Zion. I do not know where Mount
Zion was." This must be taken with some limitation, because my
friend is cautious and disposed to minimise results and magnify failures.
That was his estimate. It came short of the truth. But even admitting
its accuracy, I am disposed to say, Mr. Dean, that that is a great result
to have obtained — to have detected errors — to have dispelled super-
stitious delusions, which have grown up age after age from the tra-
ditions and ignorances of the innumerable tribes and races who have
held that hallowed spot in Jerusalem. We have not only to dig away
vast mountains of debris, but to scatter vast clouds of prejudices. We
must exorcise and cast out the idols of the cave before we can arrive at
accurate knowledge ; and it is only when error has been scattered that we
can see facts in their true light. (Cheers.) Even if no more had been
done than to disabuse our minds of false conceptions, and bring our-
selves face to face with naked facts, this Society has done great and
noble work. (Cheers.) But this was, I think, an under-statement of
the work. It would not become me, who may be superficially acquainted
with the operations of this Exploration Fund, to enter at great length
to you, who know them better than I do, upon the actual results
attained ; but some of them have greatly impressed me. There is first
that admirable contour plan in plaster of the rocky site of Jerusalem,
giving us the actual surface and contour of the rock, as disclosed by
exploration and borings. We have been dinned and pestered by endless
disputations and discussions as to Acra, and the Tyropoeon valley, and
Zion, and Moriah, and other sites of Jerusalem, were bewildered with
conflicting statements, and found that we were all groping in the dark.
Now, though I do not mean to say that the sites of the Temple and
the Holy Sepulchre have yet been decided, we have a sure basis of fact
on which to rest, and with the contour plan before us, the time cannot
be far distant when the topography of Jerusalem will be ascertained
with certainty, finally and for ever. (Loud cheers.) And referring
again to this survey of Palestine, in which there are from six to eight
times as many names as are to be found in the best of all preceding
maps, I think that is a matter for congratulation. (Cheers.) If the
Fund had devoted itself to some sensational work — if some extraordinary
discovery had brought out some exciting fact before the world — I believe
its funds would have been in a much better position, because more
people would have come to subscribe ; but that would have been of in-
comparably less value than the work which we have now done. You
will soon have the whole soil mapped out as the basis and groundwork
of our future studies, and that is a work the importance of which it is
impossible to exaggerate. And I would mention one point in connec-
tion with this, and that is the importance of putting down on paper the
232 THE ANNUAL MEETING.
names of the existing villages, -which is of more value than it appears
to be at the first glance. In Palestine nothing is more permanent than
the names of places. Notwithstanding the influence of foreign invasion
pouring over the country, the peasantry have retained the old scriptural
names. Thus we find that Emmaus, whether the scriptural Emmaus or
not, was known for centuries as Nicopolis, but it has now reverted to its
ancient name as Amwas. Or take Bethshan, so memorable in connection
with the history of Saul, After being called Scythopolis for centuries,
it is now called Beisan, which is almost identical with the Bethshan of
the Old Testament. And it is by no means impossible, even with regard
to Jerusalem itself, that the same thing may be true. Its modern name
of El Kuds may be but a revival of the name Cadytis by which it was
known to Herodotus. This map is an invaluable result of the work
of this Society ; and we must, moreover, contrast the work done
by the officers of the Fund, not with what has to be done, but with
the means at their disposal. (Cheers.) If they had had exhaustless
resources their work would have been quite equivalent to those resources.
Remember the skill, energy, and versatility of resource which your
officers have displayed, and the dull, stolid obstinacy of the Turkish
Government. I consider they have displayed a courage and a fertility
of resource which, on the battle-field, would have captured a city or won
a campaign. (Cheers.) Imagine them sinking a shaft, and running
a tunnel at an enormous depth, and creeping up holes from which a
fox terrier might be excused for turning back in despair. I say that
Captain "Warren, Major Wilson, Lieutenant Conder, and Sergeant
Birtles are worthy of the greatest admiration and all honour for
the marvellous courage they have displayed in braving danger and
surmounting difficulties. (Cheers.) But although so much has been
done, it is as nothing to what remains to be done. There are Hebron,
Machpelah, Bethel, the summit of Gerizim, with all its mysteries, and
innumerable other sites as yet waiting to be explored. All this has to
be done, but it cannot be done with the means at the disposal of this
Society; and, as the Dean said, what has to be done must be done
quickly. The result of my researches in Jerusalem is that the progress
of the destruction of ancient monuments was never going on so rapidly
as now. "Wherever we turn we find bands of tourists with bags and
hammers, hammering at the pillars of the temple, and they would carry
off a chip from the altar of burnt-offering if it could be found. (Cheers.)
A few years ago a line of wall was discovered — the famed wall of
Agrippa ; and we all know the great importance of the question where
that Tn all ran. Those remains have disappeared — they have been carried
away to build a new Russian convent and hospital, which is rising
outside the Jaffa gate. Some time ago two monoliths were discovered
outside the Jaffa gate, like those at Baalbec, hewn out of the rock. In
consequence of the difficulty of removal they were left in situ, still
attached to the native rock. Their measurements coincided with the
description of Josephus. But one of those columns has disappeared.
THE ANNUAL MEETING.
233
It has been liown and broken into pieces to build some cottages, near
the Jews' almshouses -which were built by Sir Moses Montefiore ; the
other remains in situ. A whole crop of legends are growing up around
it, and it is being invested with a legendary and mythic halo, and it
is safe. But this work of destruction is going on rapidly, and what is
to bo done must be done quickly— now or not at all. He who gives
should give at once: he who gives quickly gives doubly. (Cheers.)
With great confidence and earnestness I commend this resolution to
your adoption. (Great applause.)
[The Dean of "Westminster having loft the meeting, the chair was
iaken by the treasurer of the Fund, Mr. Walter Morrison.]
The Chairman : The Committee had such recent information of the
cause of the Archbishop of York's absence from England that they had
not very much time to get another chairman. We, however, asked the
Dean of Westminster, who at once consented, but who has now gone to
attend another meeting in the City, and I must ask you, therefore, to
accept a less efiacient substitute for him. I will call upon Mr. George
Grove to second the resolution.
Mr. George Grove : Ladies and Gentlemen, — It is very difficult for
an unpractised speaker to follow an eloquent orator like Di-. Man-
ning, but there are one or two things which struck me in Lieutenant
Conder's Eeport, and I cannot help mentioning them to you as they
struck me, because it appears to me that they form a strong testimony to
the admirable manner in which this survey is being carried out, and
the operations of the Committee and the efforts of the exploring officers
are being executed. You will remember what Lieutenant Conder said
about a new and large town being found, the existence of which was
actually unknown and unsuspected before. It is perfectly impossible, it
seems to me, that anj-thing can be a greater testimony than that to what
the exploration has done. There may be, and doubtless are, a hundred
such cases in that little country ; but that our exploring officers should
suddenly come upon a large town, the existence of which was unknown,
and the name of which has never come in any map before, is a proof that
the efforts which Ihey are engaged upon are quite worthy of being pro-
secuted. (Cheers.) Then I was much amused and struck with one
thing. Ho said that they had overcome obstacles which baffled the
great King of Assyria himself, when they came to the very ravine
where Sennacherib laid up his baggage. Lieutenant Conder said " Never
mind," and they went on, and have not been stopped by the ravine of
Michmash, which stopped Sennacherib. That is the way he carries out
his explorations. (Cheers.) There is another thing which has been
mentioned by others, but which I think has not been sufficiently insisted
upon. I myself have been editing, with the able and indefatigable help
of Mr. Saunders, for Mr. Murray, a map of Palestine and the Holy Land.
That map contains every name that we could scrape together with
authority. Now we have cut out to-day a square of that map, equiva-
lent to a square of Lieutenant Conder's map, uud wc find that while
r
234 THE AXXUAL MEETING.
iny map contains 100 names, his contains more than 1,G00 in the same
space. (Cheers.) I do not mention that as casting any blame on to me
or the map-maker; but there the map is, and this space of ground con-
tains in Lieutenant Conder's map between eight and ten times the
number of names which mine cootained with all the information we
could obtain before. (Cheers.) I think these are good indications of
the way in which the survey is being carried out. What we proposed
to ourselves when we started the Palestine Fund, was that we should
get a map containing everything there was in Palestine, so that it should
be the most accurate record of a country that was ever made, and that
the Biblical places shov.ld be traced on the map by the modern names
■which, in nine cases out of ten, have been in existence from the remotest
times to the present. I cannot describe to you the feeling with which I
baw those sheets when they arrived the other day. I felt that one great
object of my life, and that which I did so much for when I was better able,
would be accomplished — and a man may take a pride in the accomplish-
ment of the great object of his life. (Cheers.) We shall have at last
the great thing which Dr. Pusey said was wanted, — an Ordnance Map of
Palestine — that is a common term which every one understands. We
shall have a map representing everything which appears above the soil,
■ — every name, and every particular we can collect about every site.
(Cheers.)
It is well that I should recall to you the machinery by which this is
being carried into effect. We have Lieutenant Conder and a small party
of surveyors, and Captain Wilson, who is better a de to judge than I am,
can tell you they are working as no party of surveyors ever worked before.
They work not only during ordinary hours, but day and night, like men
devoted to the employment, and they have worked at it, not because it
was the thing they had to do, but because thej' liked to do it, and
wished to do it. (Loud cheers.) Then there is Mr. Tyrwhitt Drake,
who, though an amateur, is a devoted explorer. I am sorry to aay
the news received to-day of Mr. Drake's health is anything but re-
assuring, and it is doubtful whether, if he recovers, he will do any
more work for us ; but that is a reason why we should be more grateful
to him. In a very self-sacrificing manner he has been with the party,
and has done work which no other man in his position could do.
(Cheers.) Then, before I leave the survey, I may say that if we get the
money the map '^f the country on this side of Jordan ought to be finished
in 1875. (Hear, heai.) The other side of Jordan is to be done by tho
Americans, who have raised £12,000 for the purpose. That, I think,
is most encouraging to us, and ought to act as a good example. (Hear,
hear.) But leaving the survey, I will go to Jerusalem, where M.
Ganneau is carrying on the work which was begun so well by Captain
Warren. That is more difficult than the other. A survey is a survey ;
you know what you have to do, although there are difficulties in tho
nature of the soil and the scrub ; but in Jerusalem you have got that
extraordinary fact that the old city is covered up, and it is only by boring
THE ANNUAL MEETING. 235
down and tunneling that you can find anything; it is all work in the dark ;
but the two men we have got there, M. Ganneau and M. Lecomte, are
fully able to do that. (Cheers.) I do not think a more able, intelligent,
and devoted person than M. Ganneau exists; I do not think even Lieu-
tenant Conder himself is more so. I have known him for long, — he has
lived in Jerusalem many years, — he is an excellent Arabic scholar, both
in the literary and the vulgar Arabic, and is thus extraordinarily well
fitted for the work lie is about ; and if we can get money enough to keep
bim there, we shall be sure of solid and substantial results with regard to
the city of Jerusalem, which, after all, survey or no survey, must be the
point of the greatest interest in Palestine. (Cheers.)
And nuw with regard to the money that must be raised for this. I do
not think that any of you now present, or any one that thinks of tbese
things in England, can realise the fact that we are in want of money. If
we want £5,000 a year, spread over England, Scotland, and Ireland, it
really is nothing. It is only for every one of you to realise and take
home with you the fact that we want it, and we want you to get it from
your friends. (Cheers.) "We are at present in great difficulties. It is all
very well to find in the report tbat we have received this year £300
more tban last year, but our expenses are greater, — we have more parties
of people at work in Palestine, and we must have more money to do it
than we had wben we had fewer men ; and therefore I do appeal to you
with all the earnestness tbat I am master of. ^Cheers.) I should like
to find,— notwithstanding wbat Dr. Manning has said,— some great
piece of sensation there, such as that when we discovered that the real
original Jerusalem was 150 feet below the present one, because I know
that the report of that discovery in the Timts brought us in more money
than anything else, although in fact our actual results are more
important than our sensational ones. (Cheers.) I hope my remarks
have not been very tedious to you, and tbat you will take to heart what
I have said, and that each one of you will resolve to do what you can to
get us funds to go on with this great work. (Loud cheers.)
The Rev. Dr. Poeteu : I cannot refuse to make a few observations
on this resolution. As some who are here know, I take a very deep
interest in Palestine, in everything connected with its history and
geogiaphy; and especially I look upon that land as the scene
where the greatest events that ever the world saw transpired;
consequently it must be dear to the heart of every student of the
Bible. For this reason especially it is dear to my heart. But I have
made this subject a matter of special study for near a quarter of
a century ; I have spent a good deal of time in Palestine, and I believe,
not even excluding Lieut. Conder, I am the most recent importation
from the Uoly Land. (Hear, hear.) It was only on Saturday tbat 1
arrived, after a journey of more than three months in the East, and I
have gone over during that time a large portion of the country described
by the speakers who have preceded nie ; and I must join ray testimony
to theirs in this respect, that such a map as is being prepared is abso-
236 THE ANNUAL MEETING.
lately necessary for the student of the Holy Scriptures. (Cheers.) I
had the pleasure of meeting M. Ganneau in Jerusalem. I saw there
something of the work in which he was engaged, and I believe
it to be of the deepest interest and importance to every one who would
know Jerusalem thoroughly. (Cheers.) M. Ganneau is prosecuting
that work with a rare enthusiasm, and I believe with a rare success. I
have never seen any man enter so heartily into any work, or carry it
on with so much tact and so much success. (Cheers.) With regard to
the Survey of Palestine, it is my conviction that no one can take too
much interest in such a work. I am here unexpectedly. I did not
know anything of this meeting until yesterday, and I have been
speaking Arabic for the last three months almost exclusively ; but
I am most anxious to show from my recent journey the absolute
necessity of such a map as that which is being prepared by Lieu-
tenant Conder. It was my privilege to travel with the best map ot
Palestine that has yet been made — that which has been referred to by
Mr. George Grove, and which, through the kindness of Mr. Murray,
was placed in my hands. I used it, and I found that not one-tenth of
the places I discovered during my route in Palestine were marked upon
that map. I shall give jow a short sketch of the route I took. It was
unusual ; and being unusual, I shall point it out for that reason, because
it is better fitted to illustrate the j)oint I wish to put before you. I
went from Joppa to Jerusalem, from Jerusalem to Hebron, and then
down here, through this section ire/erring to the Qnap^ of the wilder-
ness to Tekoa, and afterwards up the Jordan valley as far as the place
where the Eiver Jabbok enters the Jordan. Crossing the Jordan there,
I ascended the highest point of Mount Gilcad, where I had the most
magnificent views — views which the old patriarchs enjoyed. I went
along the western brow of the mountains of Gilead, and down here to
Mount Nebo. I stood two months ago upon the summit of that peak,
and I enjoyed the very view which I believe Moses enjoyed, and saw
that land which he saw, but which he was not permitted to enter; and
when I put a question to a well-known Arab chief, and asked him the
name of this peak, I was delighted when he said it was called Jebel
Neha. 1 looked down into a valley immediately to my right, and saw a
fountain there. I asked the name of that fountain, thinking it might
be in the valley in which Moses was buried, and he told me it was
called Jin Musa, "the Foimtain of Moses." (Hear, hear.) All this,
shows how absolutely necessary it is for us to have a full knowledge of
the geography and topography of Palestine in order to see the minute
accuracy of Scripture history. (Cheers.) I travelled from Nebo across
the plain of Moab for some distance, and then took a course through
this vast jjlain to Rabl)ath Amnion ; here I found my map very defec-
tive. There were ruins everywhere around me of large towns and
villages, but none of them appeared on the map. Then I went up in
the course followed by Moses when he led the Israelites against Og,
King of Bashun — following in his route, and in the route pursued by
THE ANNUAL MEETING. 237
Esau when lie went to meet Lis brother Jacob ; and I found that route,
BO interesting to us historically, an absolute blank upon the very best
map of Palestine that has hitherto been published. (Hear, hear.) Now,
is it creditable to Christian England, witli all its wealth and its love of
Scripture truth, to allow that section of the Holy Land to remain for so
many ages a blank u]3on our maps ? (Cheers.) In proportion to the
veneration we have for our Bible, so ought we to conti'ibute for the
exploration and survey of that land. (Cheers.) I encamped upon the
banks of the Jabbok, where Jacob had his wonderful vision ; and then
I struck out a new route, to visit a place which was dear to me in
former days — Bashan — to visit those old giant cities, the existence of
which some people do not believe. After some difficulties, and negotia-
tions with Arab chiefs, we succeeded in securing an escort to conduct
us from Gerasa over the mountains to Bozra, in the southern border
of Bashan. I found at every step of my journey the remains of large
towns, scarcely one of them noted upon any map. Then I journeyed
northward, in footsteps I had followed before ; and there, within a few
miles of a city where I had spent some days sixteen years ago, I heard
of the existence of a large town which I had never heard of before, the
town of Siah, founded apparently by one of the Herods. I believe it
was visited a few years ago by the Count de Yogue. There I found a
number of inscriptions, and, among others, a Nabathean inscription
which my companion, Mr. Tombe, brought to this country. That shows
the necessity of a minute survey of Palestine. (Cheers.) From Siah 1
came across the central plain of Bashan, and then in a zig-zag line
across the northern portion of Gilead to Gadara. I not only found a
great defect in the map there, but the most interesting sites misplaced
— for example, Capitolias is on the map south of Arbela, when it should
be north ; — this shows how necessary it is to make a survey of that
country. I came westward to Amatha, and then across the Jordan to
Bethshean, and travelled by, to me, a new route, generally in the line
of the Eoman road, to Shechem, passing Tirzah, famed for its beauty
in the Bible, and still famed for its richness in the present day. I then
went by the ordinary route to Nazareth, Tiberias, and Damascus. The
more I saw, the more I was impressed with the necessity of an accurate
survey of the whole country. (Cheers.) There is an idea entertained
by large numbers of Christian people in this country that Palestine has
been so often visited by persons who are accustomed to investigate and
explore, that there is no necessity for any organised Exjjioratiou
Society to be sent abroad. This is a total, a complete delusion. I have
spent as much time, as an amateur, ia the exploration of Palestine as
any man, and travelled there as much as any man not given to scientific
pursuits ; but it was impossible for me to explore thoroughly, even in
the direct line of my route. For half a mile on each side I can see what
ruins there are, but beyond that all is unknown except what I hear. If
I pass through a mountainous country, beyond a height a quarter of a
mile from me, there may bo a large city, of which I know nothing. It
238 THE ANNUAL MEETING.
is only ly an organised Exploration Society that the geography of Palestine
can be tJioroughhj investigated. (Clieers.) We cannot lully understand
the history contained in our Bible without a survey. Let any student
take the Book of Joshua, and attempt to follow the descriptions given
in it, or try to understand the lines of road and divisions there laid
down, and he will find it impossible with our present knowledge of
Palestine ; but when we have a thorough survey made, then we shall be
able to follow every line of route in any of the historical portions of the
Bible. Or come to the Gospels — take the routes of our Lord — his
routes through Galilee and Judaja, and you find that every illustration
He makes use of is characteristic of the route He followed; and if you
understand the scenery and the topographical features of the j^laces
in which our Lord spoke, a flood of light will be cast upon His words,
and you will read Gospel histoiy with a new and an absorbing interest.
(Cheers.) I tiust the people of this country will subscribe largely to
this purpose. I do not see why £20,000 or £40,000 should not be con-
tributed within the year, and this would complete the work at once. I
trust, too, we shall not be content with surveying the western side of
Jordan, but that we shall give some aid to our friends who have under-
taken to survey the eastern side, not to take it from them, but to enable
them to complete it sooner, for it cannot be accomplished too soon.
(Loud cheers.)
The Chairman : I am sure we are very much obliged to Dr. Porter ;
no one has done more than he has for our cause. Those who are in
favour of the resolution will hold up their hands. (The resolution was
carried unanimously.) I will now call upon Sir Bartle Frere to projjose
the second resolution. (Cheers.)
Sir Bartle Frere : The resolution which has been placed in my
hands is this: — " Ptosolved, That this meeting receives with great satis-
faction the report of the progress of the survey of Palestine under
Lieut. Conder and Mr. C. F. Tyrwhitt Drake, and rejoices to learn the
prospeiity of the American Society, and the establishment of a German
Association for the systematic exploration of Phoenicia." I think, sir,
after what we have heard from the gentlemen who have already addressed
the meeting, there can be very little doubt as to the satisfaction with
which we have heard of the progress already made, and the impression
which must have been produced as to the great importance of all those
researches in almost every branch of Biblical knowledge. But on
hearing what has passed, a question suggests itself to me : How comes it
that this survey has been hitherto so very ill-supported? And I think
the cause is not very far to seek. There is, no doubt, an impression
abroad that this Palestine survey is rather a matter of dilettante personal
interest to a small knot of persons. The reading world in England has
not recognised the more than national importance of the work — that the
work is of interest to every branch of Christendom ; and if the impres-
eion Dr. Porter has described as made on him as to the defects of our
general knowledge could bo brought home to the goucral mass of readers
THE ANNUAL MEETING.
239
of the Bible, they would be improssod with the great importance of this
survey to the inspired word of God, and as the foundation of what is of
such immense personal importance to every one. (Cheers.) Then there
is another cause which has interfered with the prosperity of the Fund,
and that was alluded to by Dr. Porter when ho spoke of the general
impression that we know a great deal about the country. I would ask
gentlemen who are not perhaps so well acquainted with Syria as with
Italy, to remember if this was not exactly the case with regard to Rome.
I remember when I visited Rome first— thirty years ago— you did not
meet one Englishman out of ten who did not believe that everything
about Rome had been learnt long before ; but at the end of some months'
residence in the city, they found themselves discovering that there was
hardly an ascertained point in the classical history of the city. Since
then much has been done on the lines which, I think, it is desirable to
follow in this Palestine survey, and that is, by a most thorough investiga-
tion, a complete chartography on the largest possible scale. This has
been carried out in England. At first, people were content with the maps
in Camden's " Britannia," and then they got to county maps, and then,
after a long process of time, we got to an Ordnance Survey ; but I doubt
whether until quite lately we have realised the waste of time, money, and
energy which was incurred by beginning at the wrong end — by using bad
maps, and eye-sketches, and only arriving by a gradual development to a
better kind of map. I speak in the presence of gentlemen who will
correct me if I am wrong, but I believe if you have money to spend on
map-making it is the best plan to do it in the best way from the
beginning — (hear, hear)— and just in the way Lieut. Conder has dono.
(Cheers.) If you refer to the greatest authority we have on this subject.
Sir Henry James, he will tell you that if the survey of England had
only been begun in the way in which it is now carried on, hundreds of
thousands of pounds might have been saved, and enormous incidental
advantages gained; and this is of greater importance to realise when
we are so straitened for funds. (Hear, hear.) I have heard people say,
" What nonsense, when we know so little of the country, to have ttu<;h
an elaborate survey ! " On the contrary, any man who knows anything
of the economical bearings of the subject will admit that those surveys
we are now asked to make are the very most economical way of spending
any money you have, whether it is much or little. That, I believe, is a
point which any gentleman who is skilled in surveying and map-
making will confirm. (Cheers.) The resolution has a second portion
which says that we i-ejoice in the in'osperity of the American Society,
and the establishment of a German Association for the systematv.
exploration of Phoinicia. I feel certain that all who have the prosperit f
of the work at heart will rejoice in this ; but there is a feeling of dis-
satisfaction with ourselves. When Ave hear of £12,000 being raised in
America, we ask. Why should we not have raised £20,000 ? It id difficult
to find an answer to that. And when we see a German Association
formed for the systematic exploration of Phccnicia, we may well look
240 THE ANNUAL MEETING.
to ourselves, and hake care that we are not surpassed in this by
our accurate, painstaking, and thoroughgoing German neighbours,
(Cheers.) I ask those interested in the mattei- — having divided Syria
and the work to be done between these three Associations— if they find
that the work of other nations is done more quickly, more accurately,
and more thoroughly than ours. It behoves us to do what we have to do
• — to finish in the most complete manner our part of the work, and then
turn round and assist others. (Cheers.) I trust this resolution, in
commending itself to this meeting, will incite every one to follow the
track so well pointed out by Mr. Grove, and to look upon this as a
matter of individual importance to every one. (Cheers.) Sir Heni-y
James said that the Ordnance Survey never got a hold on the nation
till we recognised the fact that every man could get a sheet and find the
spot he was most interested in himself; and I will put it to the meeting
if the map of Palestine is not of the intensest interest to every one, so
as to make it a matter of thorough individual and practical interest to
each one of lis. (Cheers.)
Sir Fkederick Goldsmid : Mr, Chairman, Ladies, and Gentlemen, —
I was about to express my regret that the task of seconding the resolu-
tion which has been moved by Sir Bartle Frere had not been put into
more efficient and practised hands than my own, but there is no need
for that, because on the present occasion everything that can be said
has been already said by those practised speakers who have preceded
me, and therefore I should be doing you the greatest service by calling
your kind attention to and seconding the resolution which has been so
ably spoken to by Sir Bartle Frere. (Cheers.) (The resolution was
unanimously carried.)
The Rev. George Williams : I am called upon to perform a pleasing
duty, in which you are to take part. I am asked to propose a vote of
thanks to our two Chairmen, the Yery Reverend the Dean of West-
minster, and Mr. Walter Morrison, who has so ably succeeded him in
the chair. I will not detain you with any words of my own, and I am
quite sure the vote will be carried by acclamation. (Loud cheers.)
The Chairman : On behalf of the Dean of Westminster and myself
I must return you my thanks for the compliment you have paid us.
The Dean has always been present at our meetings, and may always be
depended upon to fill up a gap when we find ourselves short of speakers,
and be has not failed us under the loss of our usual chairman to-day.
241
IDENTIFICATION OF THE ALTAH "ED.
Amongst tlie famous places connected with tlie first conquest of
Palestine by the Jews, it is remarkable that not one has as yet been
discovered which can be attributed to them as original founders.
Hebron, so famous as a sacred spot, was a city of the Canaanites.
Jerusalem, only captured as late as the time of David, was strongly
fortified by the Jebusites. The same is true of Shechem, of Kirjath
Jearim, and of all the famous strongholds and sacred sites of the
country. There was, howevei', one site, a monument erected for all the
trans-Jordanic Israelites, a great work constructed by the labour of all
their fighting men, dating from the very time of the conquest, and a
sacred spot jealously regarded as vying with the divinely-appointed
centre of worship at Jerusalem. The identification and exploration of
such a site cannot fail to be considered as of the highest interest, and
it is to this task that the present paper is devoted.
The account of this site is contained in the 22nd chapter of the
book of Joshua. The survey of Palestine was complete, the divided
portions had been allotted to the various tribes, and the success of the
first incursion and rapid mountain campaign in Judoea, had been fol-
lowed by a period of peace and repose. Joshua found, therefore, that
the services of the two and a half tribes who had left their possessions
beyond Jordan to assist in the conquest of Western Palestine were no
longer of immediate importance, and they were permitted to return to
their possessions and families, to the uplands of Gdead and the broad
corn-plains of Bashan, which they had preferred to the barren hills of
JudiBa. From their tents at Shiloh they commenced their homeward
march, with the benediction of their leader and their brethren, " with
very much cattle, with silver and with gold, and with brass and with
iron, and with very much raiment," — spoils still dear to the wandering
Bedouin.
" And when they came unto the borders of Jordan, that are in the
land of Canaan, the children of Reuben and the children of Gad and
the half tribe of Manasseh built there an altar by Jordan, a great altar
to see to." (Josh. xxii. 10.)
The remainder of the chapter is devoted to the dispute which imme-
diately arose, and its final settlement. The remaining tribes, seeing a
place of sacrifice thus erected in the desert, supposed it intended as a
rival to the expected altar at Jerusalem, and regarded it as a sign of sepa-
ration and schism on the part of their brethren. Jealous of this appa-
rent rivalry, or fearing to incur once more the wrath of Jehovah, they
24:2 IDENTIFICATION OF THE ALTAR " ED."
prepared, witli their ordinary impetuosity, to turn their eworde from
the Canaauite upon their own people and late allies. The explanation
given to their heralds was, however, fortunately sufficient to satisfy
their political or religious doubts, and to show that far from being in-
tended as a mark of division or religious dissent, the monument was
erected simply as a monuQient, a point which from beyond Jordan
might "be indicated as showing the relationship with their western
brethren, if not a fortress to command the passage of the river and
form an outpost for the eastern tribes.
The revulsion of popular feeling at once rendered the monument one
of the most favourite sites in the country — a bond of union between the
divided tribes. "The thing pleased the children of Israel. And the
children of Reuben and the children of Gad called the the altar Ed : for
it shall be a witness between us that the Lord is God " (verses 33, 34.)
In considering this account several indications of position are at
once evident.
1st. The altar must have been in or near the direct route of the
lleubenites, from Shiloh to the land of Gilead and Bashan. This route
is very easily traceable. From Shiloh, the modern Seilun, a mountain
road leads to the broad Wady Far'ah which I have had occasion to de-
scribe in identifying ^non. The well-known Damieh Ford, the high-
way from all the eastern uplands to Central Palestine, and generally
identified with the " City Adam," lies opposite to the opening of this
broad valley. It was without doubt by this main passage, lying directly
in their shortest route, that the returning tribes would have crossed in
order to reach the oak-clad uplands of Mount Gilead, and the more
northern corn-lands of the Hauran.
2nd. There can be no question that the altar was erected on the
western side of Jordan. The words of the text allow of no other inter-
pretation, and the very intention of the monument was to obviate the
possible argument, " the Lord hath made Jordan a border between us
and you," by continuing to hold a possession within the country of the
remaining tribes.
There is, however, a verse in the account which, being ill-translated
in the English, at first seems to militate against this second proposi-
tion. Ver. 11 speaks of the altar as " over against the land of Canaan,
in the borders of Jordan, at the passage of the children of Israel."
The Hebrew preposition, however, has, according to Gesenius, the
meaning, in the fore part, in front, that is to say, on the borders of
the land of Canaan ; whilst the ford or passage of the sons of Israel need
not refer to the original passage at the smaller ford near Jericho, but
should rather be taken to be that by which the children of Reuben
had just passed. The verse would read, therefore, " at the boundary of
Canaan, by the Gelilloth of Jordan, at the place where the Israelites
crossed the river " to return to their eastern possessions.
3rd. The altar must have occupied a high and conspicuous position.
The Septuugiut translates the words used in the Hebrew fj-hav tov iSi7y ;
IDENTIFICATION OF THE ALTAH " ED." 243
the Vulgate, " altave infmita; magnitudinis," an altar great to see. The
Hebrew word, however, includes the idea of a view ; and ' ' an altar visible
from a great distance," rather than of great size, is probably the correct
translation. In confirmation of which we have the particle translated
in English "a<" Jordan, but in the Greek eVi, and in one of the Latin
translations " super," ahova. The Ilebrcw (bi.' ) is the same as the Arabic,
which has the meaning of raised above, or high up. It is evident that
so important a monument would not have been placed in an ordinary
or inconspicuous position. It was intended as a landmark and a beacon
to be seen from the eastern side, and there can be no doubt that some
prominent natural object, a h-.ll of peculiar form, or conspicuous from
the eastern plateau, is the natural site to be looked for. Like most
altars, it would be placed on a hill-top, and on one easily distinguish-
able in the range of the chalk peaks above the Jordan valley.
4th. The altar was no ordinary work. It was a " great altar." This,
as we have just seen, is the direct meaning of the Hebrew, and the
opinion of all the translators. It was no mere pile of stones put up in
a single night, like the rnde monuments of Jacob and Laban. The
fighting men of two and a half tribes were concerned in its erection,
and the fame of their work spread throughout the country. There is
nothing to show that it was not a work of time, and the slow progress
of Orientals on a journey well accords with the idea that they may have
remained in the beautiful valley for some considerable period whilst
engaged in constructing a monument which was to be an everlasting
memorial of their share in the privileges and religious observances
which were to find a centre at Jerusalem. As a monument, and not
an altar, it may well have consisted of hewn stones, and in this it
would have resembled the ancient beacons to be found in other con-
spicuous points throughout Palestine.
In concluding this part of the question, we may retranslate the most
important jjassage as follows : — ■
"And when they came to the Gelilloth of Jordan, which are in the
land of Canaan, the sons of Reuben and the sons of Gad, and the half
tribe of Manasseh, built an altar above Jordan — a great altar to be
seen from far."
In passing we may pause a moment to glance at the word Gelilloth,
asually translated borders. It is a word which has puzzled all com-
mentators, and been variously explained. It is etymologically the same
as Gilgal, and has been connected with the title of Galilee. It occurs
in Josh, xviii. 17-19, where the Yulgate renders it " tumulos," and in
the present chapter it is twice used and translated AaAoaS in the Sep-
tuagiut, and " tumulos " by Jerome in each case. The root from which
both words come has the meaning of " rolling," and the Vulgate ren-
dering of a mound is without doubt the most correct. Dean Stanley
has supposed it to refer to the Ghor, or upper plain of Jordan, as dis-
tinguished from Ciccar, now called the Zor, or lower river channel. He
translates it "circles," and suggested u connection with the Scotch
244 IDENTIFICATION OF THK ALTAR " ED."
links, referring to the windings of Jordan. My late colleague pointed
out that the Gelilloth mentioned in tracing the boundary line of
Judah were in all probability the tells or artificial mounds near the
ascent to Adummim, of which I have given a full account in a previous
j)aper. The word, however, has a wider meaning in other passages, and
refers to places in the Jordan valley where no tells exist.
The manner in which the descent from the Ghor to the Zor level
takes place differs very much in various parts of the valley. Some-
times it is a continuous line of cliff, as near Beisan; sometimes, as in
the narrow gorge north of Wady Far'ah, the upper plain almost dis-
appeai's, and the lower reaches near to the foot of the hills ; but more
generally there are broad water channels and low marshy creeks, with
salt springs and mud flats which run irregularly, leaving round islands
Avith flat tops on the level of the Ghor or upper plain, and steep rounded
slopes. The appearance presented by these isolated mounds and the
broken undulating network of channels is, no doubt, that which is indi-
cated by the expressive Hebrew term Gelilloth. It appears, therefore,
that Dean Stanley's explanation is probably to be accepted as correct,
but the term would not naturally apply to all parts of the valley, as in
places none of these Gelilloth or isolated fragments of the upper plain
exist.
From the internal evidence we are therefore able to point with
tolei'able accviracy to the approximate position and character of the
great Witness Altar. It must be near and above Jordan, on some hill-
top west of the rivei", between the modern village of Seilun and the
ford of the Damieh, placed in a conspicuoiTS position, and possibly
giving ruins of some magnitude. In addition to which we should hope
to find remains of the name in some modern Arabic word.
There is but one spot in Palestine which will fulfil these very definite
requirements, and that spot is perhaps the most conspicu.ous in the
country. From the heights of Ebal its sharp cone stands out against
the white valley ; from the castle of Kaukab el Hawa, near Gennesaret,
it is visible at a distance of thirty miles ; from the shores of the Dead Sea
and the plains of Jericho it stands forth prominently as a great bastion
closing the Jordan valley ; from the eastern highlands it is no less con-
spicuous, and from the Judtean watershed it is visible at a great distance.
Every traveller who has been to Jericho has seen it ; all have asked
what it is, and been disappointed to find that it was of no historical
importance, and had only a modern Arabic name. For nearly a month
I lived at its foot, firmly convinced that so conspicuous a landmark
must have played a part in history, yet utterly puzzled as to what
that part could have been. To every explorer it has been a point of
interest, and yet I know of hardly one who has examined it. The place
in question is the high cone of the Kurn Surtabeh, the Surtabeh of the
Talmud, and one of the most important of our trigonometrical stations
on the eastern border of the survey.
The Kurn Surtabeh is the culminating summit of an almost isolated
IDENTIFICATION OF THE ALTAR " ED." 245
block of hill which closes in the broader part of the Jordan valley on the
north. The •whole block consists of white marl capped by a brown hard
oolitic limestone of late cretaceous or eocene formation. The very
marked incouformity of the lower beds causes a sort of separation "which
cuts off this mass from the uptilted beds of the central watershed.
From the summit the whole valley of Jordan is spread out like a map.
On the south lie the black groves round Elisha's fountain, the sharp
peaks and shining waters and distant blue ranges round the Dead Sea.
Nearer is the white cone, which rises, a miniature of the Kurn itself,
against the sharp rocky precipices of the Mountain of Temptation, and
which I have endeavoured to show is the "rock Oreb" of the book of
Judges. Dark ranges close in to the watershed, shutting out the view
of the first beacon station of the llabbis on Olivet, whilst unseen in
one of the narrow gorges lies 'Ain Fasail and the ruins of Phasaelis.
On the east the great mountain wall stretches away north, broken only
by the outline of the famous castle Kala'at el Eabed. At the very foot
of the mountain, 2,000 feet below, lies a green plain. On one side a
slope of nearly forty degrees stretches from the summit sheer to the
base. The northern plain, gaj^ with flowers and green with corn, is the
mouth of the Wady Far'ah, a spot so charming that Yandervelde has
marked it on his map a " beautiful valley." The stream from the
fountains of G^uon flowing through it is nearly perennial, and in winter
scarce fordable. Its course, hitherto unsuspected, was found by us to
run south round the Kurn, and parallel with Jordan for about seven
miles.
In the plain stands the little white dome of Abd el Kader, and the
ruined traces of another great town of Jewish or Roman times, with a
necropolis, having a fragmentary inscription in old Hebrew on one of
its tombs. These ruins I suppose to be those of the town of Archelais,
known to have been near this spot. Beyond the plain are rugged hills,
with steep slopes, the valley here becoming a mere gorge, and in the far
distance are the hills of Gilboa, Tabor, and Kaukab, with the narrow
tiread of the Sea of Galilee, and the white crest of Hermon beyond all.
Standing thus centrally as regards the eastern and western possessions
of the tribes, the Kurn is very difficult of approach. The ancient road,
cut in steps, airives at the summit on the south, but on every side the
valleys are deep, narrow, and impassable, and the only natural ascent
is from the more gentle declivities on the north, by which the watershed
of the block is reached, and followed along its tortuous course till it
leads to the actual summit. The importance of this remark as to the
point of ascent will be seen later.
The great peculiarity of the summit consists in the existence of a
cone or tell, with sides sloping at 35 degs. and about 270 feet high on
the west, where it joins a narrow plateau. On other sides the slope is
sheer to the base of the mountain, and the work of Avalking round the
cone, which was necessary in order to visit certain caverns, required, as I
found, considerable resolution, for there is but little foothold on the
24G IDENTIFICATION OF THE ALTAR " ED."
soft, shingly slope, and nothing stronger than the flower stems for the
hands, -whilst the view to the fallen blocks, 2,000 feet below, is trying
to ordinaiy nerves.
There can be little doubt that this extraordinary cone is only in part
natural. It bears a striking family likeness to the smaller peak near
Jericho — the rock Oreb. ^een from the south the two come almost in
line, the Kurn Suitabeh seeming a gigantic double of the other. This
sort of formation is due to a hard cap of small extent upon a softer base
bed, -wliich is -worn away by the rains into a conical form. The extreme
legularity in the present instance leads however to the supposition that
human skill increased the already marked peculiarity of form. The
great mound at Herodium (Jebel Fureidis) seems to be another similar
case.
The constructions which we found upon the summit of the tell, when
leaving our horses at its base, we with difficulty struggled up, weie of
the highest interest. In an oblong area of about 30 by 100 yards,
enclosed by a ruined wall of fine hewn blocks, is a great platform 18 ft.
high, consisting of ten courses of stones beautifully cut, and averaging
three or four feet in length, with abroad marginal draft. The platform
is long and narrow, apparently solid, and of a most puzzling character.
It was at once evident that it was either Jewish, or at the latest Eomau
work, and intended as a gigantic altar or beacon.
Careful search showed remains of fires, which had been kindled on
part of it, and these we suppose to have been the beacons mentioned in
the Talmud. The most striking point was, however, the great size and
good workmanship of the stones, which, were of great weight ; and the
labour of bringing them to the spot, hewn, as they must have been, at
least below the foot of the tell, or 270 feet from their present position,
shows that this work must have been a monument of no small import-
ance. I discovered in a later visit the probable quarries whence the
stone was brought, a series of caves in the south-eastern side of the bill,
about the level of the little western plateau. The base of the tell on
the side of this plateau is strewn with huge fallen blocks from the outer
surrounding wall, and on the east lies a confused mass of fallen masonry,
showing that the monument was once larger or probably more lofty than
at present.
There are two other peculiarities in the ruins deserving notice. The
first is a curious aqueduct, which runs round the whole mountain block.
Careful levelling showed us that it was impossible this channel could
have communicated with any existing spring. It was merely intended
for the collection of surface drainage and rainfall, and leads to several
large cement-lined cisterns on the north-east side of the cave. The
second point is the apparent existence of an ancient garden or fruit yard
— a series of terraces very visible from our camp in Wady Par 'ah.
Such are the existing ruins. It now only remains to point out how
perfectly this site fulfils the requirements for that of the Witness Altar.
In the first place, the Kurn Surtabch stands above the Damieh ford.
IDENTIFICATION OF THE ALTAR " ED." 247
and beside the direct route to it from Seilun, or Shiloh, upon the western
side of Jordan. Secondly, it is, as we have seen, a point remarkably
conspicuous from a great distance on every side. Lastly, upon its
summit remains to this day the ruin of a great monument of the kind
indicated in the Bible account. At the foot of the mountain lie the
Gelilloth of Jordan, the ground being of that peculiar broken character
to which I suppose the word specially to refer.
"When, in addition to these indications, we find a trace of the original
name, the conclusion seems irresistible. For some time I sought this
in vain on the map. It is a question which I leave to the learned
whether there can be any connection between the name Surtabeh and
the Hebrew ([].?"!"?) Metzebeh- — the altar. The remaining summits
of the block are called respectively El Musetterah, Eas el Kuneiterah,
and Eas el Hafireh. The real name, as often happens, has deserted the
place itself, but may still be traced in the neighbourhood. I have
already pointed out that the natural ascent to the Kurn is from +he
north. On this side I find marked on our map as a valley name Tal'at
Abu 'Ayd. The ascent of the father of 'Ayd. The peculiar use in the
vernacular Arabic of the word Abu, as meaning that which produces, or
leads to or possesses, would make the natural translation of this term
to be, " The going up which leads to 'Ayd." Between the Arabic 'Ayd
and the Hebrew ("">'), no scholar can fail to see the identity, and thus,
though the monument itself has lost its real name, the ascent to the
summit, by which the strong men of the two and a half tribes must
have first gone up, preserved the memory of the Witness Altar.
To future travellers in Palestine, this identification cannot fail to be
of the highest interest. From the ordinary camping ground at Jericho
the great peak is distinctly visible, and no longer will stand out with a
forgotten story, but rather as the greatest monument of the great deeds
of that first conquest, and in the words of the last verse in the chapter,
as a " witness between us that the Lord is God."
In conclusion, I feel I can point with some pride to this identification,
as showing the satisfactory character of our work. It was not till after
my return to England that I first turned attention to it. At the time,
we could have no idea of the importance which would attach to the
name Tal'at Abu 'Ayd, and it was merely collected by one of my non-
commissioned ofiicers with the same mechanical care and conscientious-
ness which marks the work of the whole party. The name has now
served to clinch an important argument, and settle an identification of
the highest interest.
Claude E. Coxdee, Lieut. E.E.
9th July, 1874.
THE SURVEY OF PALESTINE.
A TAPEE EEAD BEEOEE THE BEITISH ASSOCIATION.
By C. E. Conder, E.E.
The country included under the name of Western Palestine, and to
which the present Ordnance Survey is confined, is bounded by the
Jordan, and the sea, and extends from Dan to Beersheba. It contains
approximately 6,600 English square miles. The desert shuts it off on
the south, and on the north the line taken will follow the River Leontes
and extend along the parallel of latitude to the sources of the Jordan
near Banias^ — the ancient Dan.
The country thus bounded may be divided into five geographical dis-
tricts. Two of these are on the south, where the geological formation is
a gentle anticlinal, giving a high and difficult hill country, of an average
elevation of about 3,000 feet in the centre, with a broad plain on the
west, whilst a rapid descent on the east leads to the great crevice of the
Dead Sea. The hill country is that of Judcea. The great plain is that
of Sharon. Between these two lies the less remarkable feature of the
Shephalah, a low range of hills of a cretaceous limestone not conformablo
with the Dolomitic beds of the watershed.
North of Nablus (the ancient Shechem) the character of country
changes, the central watershed divides into two, giving one chain of hills
running north-west and terminating in the great bluff of Carmel, which
rises 1,300 feet above the sea, whilst a second chain continues due north
and separates the Jordan valley from the great plateau extending
between the two ranges, and generally known as the plain of Esdraelon.
The fourth district is the difficult hill country of Galilee, and the Safed
range with a mere strip of plain on the coast, for the plain of Sharon
narrowing suddenly is bounded by Carmel on the north, and in Phoenicia
the hills come down almost to the sea itself. Last, but not least, tho
Jordan valley forms an absolutely distinct division, differing in climate,
in fauna, and in flora, and inhabited by a different race. Commencing
at about sea level on the north, it discends to 600 feet below that level
at the Sea of Galiiee, and thence to nearly 1,300 feet, the level of the
mean surface of tho Dead Sea below that of the MediteiTanean.
Of this extent of country many districts are but little known. Tho
plain of Sharon, Caraiel, the greater part of Judcea, and the central line
of the country, have been often visited. Philistia, or the south-western
plain, was almost unknown before the time of Captain Warren. The
country of the Boiii S'ab, or Shephalah, west of Nablus, had been quite
THE SURVEY OF PALESTINE. 249
an unkno'wn country until surveyed by the present party. The Jordan
valley ■was best known by Captain Warren's rapid reconnaissance, but
the district between this and that included in Major "Wilson's work was
almost a Urra incoijnita. The Sea of Galilee has been carefully explored
by the latter officer, but an unvisited district said to contain synagogues
and other remains of interest exists north of this lake. Wherever the
present survey party has gone over new ground it has met with places
of extreme interest and obtained results of great value.
The work which is now being carried on consists in a regular trigono-
metrical survey to the one-inch scale of the whole country thus described,
together with supplementary researches, antiquarian. Biblical, and
physical. It was iirst commenced in October, 1871, by a party of Royal
Engineers, consisting of two non-commissioned officers under command
of Captain Stewart, E.E. Mr. C. P. Tyrwhitt Drake volunteered to
accompany the expedition and give them the advantage of several years
of acquaintance with Syria and a good colloquial knowledge of Arabic.
The expedition met with a serious check at the outset in the severe ill-
ness of the commander, who was obliged, by medical advice, to return
almost immediately, and subsequently to resign his appointment. Mean-
time Sergeant Black, R.E., was left to prosecute the work unaided, the
party being under Mr. Drake's care. He at once proceeded to measure a
base and extend the triangulation, connecting it with the Ordnance
Sui'vey of Jerusalem, and advancing north towards the plain of Esdraelon,
where it was proposed to obtain a check by measurement of another line.
Thus, by June, 1872, 560 square miles had been surveyed and finished,
and the party rested for a while at Nablus.
Meantime I had 'oeen appointed to succeed Captain Stewart in the
command, and arriving in the country joined the camp at Nablus and
immediately recommenced the out-door work. By September the second
base line had been measured and found to give most satisfactory results.
The triangulation was thence extended with fine well-shaped triangles
towards the north, and the great plain completed, the party remaining
for the two winter months in a house in the German colony at Haifa,
under Carmel, and employing the fine days in completing the map of
this ridge. In March, 1873, they turned their faces southward, connect-
ing on the east with the former work and extending it to the sea-coast^
In April Mr. Drake left for England, his health being impaired by the
climate, and it was not before six months had elapsed that he was able
to return.
May was spent still in the plain of Sharon, and in June the Shephalah
was surveyed, a district almost entirely unknown, and into parts of
which no European had as yet penetrated. Another non-commissioned
officer was at this period added to the strength of the expedition.
During the heat of the summer the party retired to the Antilibanus,
and visited Hermon and Baalbek. In October the work was recom-
menced and extended south of Jerusalem, whence the party proceeded to
the Mar Saba desert, and so arrived at Jericho and the north shore of
S
250 THE SURVEY OF I'ALESTIJiE.
the Dead Sea about the middle of November. Here another serious
check was experienced in an attack of fever from which Mr, Drake
suffered extremely, whilst many of the native servants were dangerously
ill. It was found necessary to retreat to Jerusalem, and the bad weather
set in almost at the same time. The unexampled severity of the winter,
with other causes, delayed the expedition until the end of February,
when they again took the field and advanced up the Jordan valley, the
survey of which was completed up to the 8ea of Galilee (in spite of the
most unfavourable weather) by about the middle of April. The plain of
Sharon was then completed, and in May of this year I returned on duty
to England, bringing home the results of the two years' work. The non-
commissioned officers in the meantime remained in Jerusalem occupied
with various indoor duties. The survej- extended at this period over
0,000 English square miles, including the whole of central Palestine
from Nazareth on the north to Bethlehem on the south.
According to the latest reports from the sergeant in charge of the
party they were all in good health and busily employed with sedentary
v»-ork. But one sad exception has to be made. Mr. Drake, who had
recovered very rapidly from his first attack of typhoid fever, and had
accompanied the party during the trying spring passed in the Jordan
valley, was again seized in Jerusalem. In spite of the great kindness
and care of a skilful English physician, his liver became affected, and on
the 23rd of June he died. His name is well known to geographical
circles as a hai dy and energetic explorer, and his loss will be severely
felt by the expedition in its future work.
The map has been prepared on Sir Henrj^ James' system of tan-
gential projection, in sheets containing 30' of longitude and 20
of latitude, giving about twelve sheets in all. Of these, six are
complete, and three have been brought home to England. The re-
maining four sheets include some very difficult country, but the most
delicate and dangerous part of the work, the survey of the Jordan
valley, has been already successfully completed, and there is every
reason to hope that the future success will be equal to that of the work
already accomplished.
The principles of the survey may now be briefly described. The first
base was very carefully measured with chains corrected before and after
use, by means of a standard steel chain, graduated for the temperature
of the spot. It was connected with the trigonometrical point at Jaffa,
which is taken as the initial point for calculation of the difference of
longitude, Jaffa having been fixed by the Admiralty from the known
longitude of Alexandria. The mean length of the line was 4-3 miles.
It was checked by observations to a point opposite the middle, the whole
length being calculated by the angles thus obtained from the measured
length of a part. The triangulation was thence extended eastward with
lines from three to ten miles in length, and connected with Major
Wilson's points at Jerusalem. Thence it was carried north to the plain
of Esdraelou, where the second base was established. The length of
THE SURVEY OF PALESTINE. 251
this base was four and a half miles, and the difference between its
measured and calculated lengths gives an error of '03 per cent. This
was considered as extremely satisfactory for the style of work expected,
and especially when the difficulties presented by the mirage and other
atmospheric phenomena, the destruction of cairns, and the peculiar form
of the triangulation, extending over 60 miles in length by about 10 in
T)readth, are considered.
The ends of the base, after it had been laid out with a five-inch
theodolite, were marked by cairns, the southern one being set roughly
in mortar, with blocks of considerable size. The base was traced on a
distant point, so that by calculation it could be extended about eight
miles further. Observations for latitude were taken from the southern
■end, and a true astronomical bearing ; it was measured and checked Like
the plain of Sharon base, and every precaution taken to insure accuracy.
A fine line, almost at right angles, was obtained between two good
points on Gilboa, and on the volcanic cone of Sheikh Iskander, east and
west of the plain of Esdraelon. The average length of the side of a tri-
angle was in this part some 15 miles, but in the Judsean hills it is never
greater than 10 miles.
Besides this check thus obtained on the work, several others were
established. The vertical heights, starting from the sea-level at Jaffa,
and brought through the centre of the country, were carried down to the
■dome of the Convent on Carmel. The height of this was then
obtained by a simple trigonometrical process from the length of a
line measured on the beach. Fui'ther checks are also obtained along
the shore by the measured height of buildings in the sea used as
trigonometrical points. The heights across the country were compared
with the very accurate levelling by Major Wilson, E.E., and the differ-
ence was about four feet in the level of the Dead Sea, a very satisfactory
proof of the character of work in the new survey. Further checks and
very long lines will be obtainable on working out the observations sent
home for calculation. One of these gives a fine line of over 35 miles,
observed both ways, and immediately connected with a true astronomical
bearing. Being nearly north and south it will serve as a check for
longitude. Another line has also been observed both ways, from Carmel
to Hermon.
A check of the longitude was obtained by comparing the minaret at
Acca, as fixed by the triangulation, with its position according to the
Admiralty. The agreement was very satisfactory.
The observations thus obtained and checked are calculated at once,
and the points laid down by the calculated lengths. The detail is then
filled in by the following system of interpolation. From each trigono-
metrical point a large number of observations read to the nearest
minute are taken of all prominent objects, village towers, mosque domes,
<:'.ross roads, prominent trees, or any other easily distinguishable point.
The intersections of the line, from two or more stations, when scored
by protraction, are considered sufficient to fi^ these secondary points.
252 THE SURVLY OF PALESTINE.
The work from eacli camp is then divided into four, and sheets of tracing
paper prepared, upon -which the stations and fixed secondary points
are shown, and the remaining detail is filled in upon the ground by inter-
polation with the prismatic compass, from observations taken to three or
more of the fixed points.
With practice, from eight to twelve square miles per man can be com-
pleted by this means in a day, and thus, in four days, the whole
amount, averaging about 100 square miles, is easily finished. Allow-
ing two days for the trigonometrical observations, one for plotting,
one for finishing, one Sunday, and a day for archeeological work, this
gives an average of ten days for a camp.
The rate of work on first starting was about sixty square miles per
month. By the time of my joining, it had risen to 100; from that
date till the winter 1872-73, it increased to about 150; and from then
till October, 1873, it was about 180. From that time, the party being
augmented by one man, it has continued steadily to give an average
of 280 square miles completed monthly, and there seems no reason
why this average should decrease in future work as long as double
theodolite parties and four detail sketchers can be maintained.
The whole of the work is done on horseback, and the method pur-
sued would be most especially fitted for military reconnaissance,
where prominent points could be laid down from the map and de-
tail sketched from the horse's back, by interpolation, with the
compass.
But one other part of the map work remains to be noticed — the
execution of the hill shading. This is done by myself in on sepa-
rate prepared sheets. Each surveyor is provided with one of Abney's
improved clinometers, with which he takes occasional observations
of characteristic or peculiar slopes, marking them on the ground.
He also sketches the shape of the hill-tops on the spot, and, from these
notes, together with a good general acquaintance with the piece of
ground being surveyed, it is quite possible to represent the hill features
with an accuracy proportionate to the scale. I have found also that
a series of outline panoramic sketches from the various stations is very
useful for the execution of the hill shading, as well as for geological
purposes.
The principal heights are obtained, as already explained, by angles
of elevation and depression. For minor points we are contented
with corrected aneroid observations, of which we have now secured
altogether upwards of l,oOO, or one to every two square miles of
country.
The method of correction is as follows : — The aneroids are read every
morning in camp with the mercurial, the readings being kept in a book
devoted to meteorological observations. The observations are made at
wells, ruins, valley junctions, springs, hill-tops, or any other place which
can easily be identified on the map by its name. A small pocket thermo-
meter is kept with the aneroid under the same conditions and read with
THK SURVEY OF PALESTINE. 253
it. The attached thermometer is also read with the mercurial, aud the
aneroid is again read on return to camp. By these precautions the cor-
rection of the aneroid reading is made very exact, and although we have
not discovered any law of variation for the pocket instruments, still,
considering the elevations not to exceed generally 3,000 feet above sea-
level, the results are likely to prove satisfactory. As, however, the
constant transport of the mercurial is liable to destroy its perfect
accuracy, it will be desirable to check the heights of camps obtained by
it. This will be easily done by means of the levelled heights of a great
number of the camps, aud in other cases by the aneroid readings at the
trigonometrical stations whose heights are known.
Astronomical observations are taken at every camp, both to serve as a
rough check during the progress of the work (although the accuracy of
such a method is not comparable to that of careful triangulation), and
also to keep a record from time to time of the variation of the compass.
True astronomical bearings of the longer lines are also obtained, as, for
instance, that of the check base, which was traced on a distant point,
and of the line already mentioned from Hermon to Carmel. The other
observations are for latitude and for time, and have all been satisfactory,
the most important being a series taken from the summit of Hermon, by
means of 'c.-hich, with a true bearing, the latitude and longitude of this
mountain will be very accurately fixed. In addition to this, Hermon
will finally be fixed by triangulation, and its height obtained by two
vertical angles, the one to the mercurial station at Bludan, the other to
the convent on Carmel, which is fixed by immediate measurement from
sea-level. This mountain forms, in fact, an outlying point, to which
long lines can be obtained from most of the principal points in the
survey.
I may now turn to another department of the work, which is of the
greatest importance, namely, the nomenclature. Nothing is more strik-
ing in Palestine than the manner in which the original Hebrew names
are still to be found under slightly modified forms in the Arabic. Very
often a later Eoman name by which a town may have been known in
Herodiau or early Christian times has altogether disappeared, and the
•original Biblical name has reasserted itself. Beisan, the ancient Beth-
shean, was subsequently known as Scythopolis, a name now entii-ely
lost. This is but one instance out of many.
The collection and correct spelling of these names, as tending to thi-ow
invaluable light on the geographical passages in the Old and New Testa-
ments, and especially in the early books of Joshua and Judges, forms a
most important and anxious part of the survey work. The danger of
only receiving a fictitious or wrong name in unexplored j^arts is very
great, as ignorance, stupidity, suspicion, and perverseness, alike incline
the natives to give a lying answer to the plainest question. The practice
obtained by the non-commissioned officers has proved throughout
most important in this department.
The names, which are kept in lists arranged alphabetically for each
254 THE SURVEY OF PALESTINE.
sheet, are invariably obtained from natives belonging to the neighbour-
hood. They are checked by reference to at least three persons. They are
written down in English on the spot, and on the evening of the same day
are pronounced by the surveyor in presence of the native guide, and of
a competent Arabic scholar. This latter duty was the main responsi-
bility of my late colleague, who had an unusual familiarity with colloquial
Arabic. The greater part of the names have been gone through with an
educated native scribe, and no pains has been spared throughout the
course of the work to ensure correctness both of the spelling and jDro-
nunciation of the word, and also of its position on the map. A sort of
test of this accuracy is found in the numerous identifications which
spring up as the work proceeds. As an instance, I may mention the
identification which I have just been able to make of the Kuru Surtabeh,
as being the Altar 'Ad mentioned in the book of Joshua. The require-
ments were all fulfilled, but the name appeared to be lost, until I found
marked on our map the Tal'at Abu 'Ayd, or ascent leading to 'Ayd, as
the name of a broad valley north of the mountain. This satisfactory
confirmation of the other evidences is the result of the systematic collec-
tion of every name of however little its apparent importance at the time.
Nor is this a solitary instance of the subsequent importance attaching to
a name apparently obscure and of doubtful antiquity.
The number of names collected is very large ; it averages seven or
eight times that on the best existing previous map. On the Jerusalem
sheet alone there are considerably over 1,600 names, and although in the
less densely populated parts, such as the great plain of Esdraelon, and
the other broad corn plateaux, the number is smaller, still it seems-
probable that scarce a single name of any interest or importance can
have been omitted. In a country like Palestine an average of two
names per square mile is greater than would at a first glance be ex-
pected. The care and attention bestowed on their correct location will,,
it is hoped, render the map invaluable in settling the disputed points-
of the ancient geography.
The main object of the map, as first projected, was indeed anti-
quarian. The thorough examination of the country, with notes of all
existing ruins and indications of sites worth excavating, formed the
main part of the instructions. Natural history, geology, and physical
geography, were also to be studied as far as circumstances and the
aptitude of the observers allowed. This work, therefore, forms one of
the main labours of the party, and often delays the actual survey con-
siderably.
The method pursued is as follows :— Every ruined or interesting site
is visited and noted on the spot. Such as contain nothing of importance
are not specially reported, but merely included in alphabetical lists
arranged for each sheet of the map.
Any, however, where distinguishable relics are still to be found, are
at once reported and visited by myself. All buildings, dating earlier
than the times of Turkish occupation, are planned with more or less-
THE SURVEY OF PALESTINE. 255
detail according to their importance. Of tlie ruins, no less than 350
are noted on a single sheet of the map. The special plans and surveys,
including the sites of Jewish and Roman towns, temples, chui'ches,
synagogues, tombs, crusading castles, sections of aqueducts, artificial
caves, and early Christian convents, none of which have been pi-eviously
planned or explored in a satisfactory manner, now number more than
seventy. We have added seven churches to those planed by De Voglie,
and obtained in the unexplored country two sites of towns, evidently of
some importance, with traces of the public buildings, and details indi-
cating date, sites never before visited and entirely unknown.
The plans are executed in various ways. Cffisarea was surveyed by a
traverse with the oin. theodolite, the buildings measured with a chain,
and placed by compass angles from the points fixed by the traverse. At
Beisan we had a base given by a short trigonometrical line, and used
this with a triangulation, which was plotted, the details being filled in
■with the compass, and the principal buildings measured and plotted to
a scale of 20 ft. to the inch. Athlit was executed by a compass traverse
which, with pacing, plotted in a very satisfactory manner.
In the survey of caves the best method is the determination of main
lines by a compass bearing, and the plotting of the walls by offsets, as
in a traverse ; the same method is also very useful in the planning of
the complicated systems of catacombs found in many parts of Palestine.
For such buildings as the ruined chui'ches and convents, direct measure-
ments of the walls are preferable ; but in all cases where the work is not
plotted to scale on the spot, it is most necessary to remember that nume-
rous cross checks, and a great number of measurements, save time and
ensure accuracy in the subsequent working out. Where possible the
site is always revisited, plan in hand, and any trifling inaccuracy cor-
rected on the spot.
It may be interesting to enumerate some of these ancient sites with
the more striking identifications resulting from the survey, and to give
some account of the geological notes which have been kept throughout
the progress of the work.
In his interesting work on rude stone monuments, Mr. Fergusson
accuses the Palestine Exploration Fund of being too busily employed
in map-making to find time for the investigation of the real antiquities
of the country. To this accusation our work happily gives a complete
answer. Whereas no single example of a rude stone monument was
known in western Palestine at the time of this publication, Mr. Fer-
gusson will be delighted to hear that we can now point to four which are
of undoubted character. The first is a cromlech with sepulchral bar-
rows, mentioned by Mr. Drake in an early report. By the curious con-
structions north of Jerusalem, known as the Kabur beni Israim, is
another fallen rude stone monument. Apparent remains of a third
exist east of Jerusalem, and a fourth of very large stones is found near
the plain of Esdraelon, In addition to this we have found some very
curious monuments south of Jerusalem, which may very probably be
2'o6 THE SURVEY OF PALESTINE.
sepulcliral mounds of eaiiy date. We have also collected flints from
various parts of the country, although I failed to find any in the
traditional tomb of Joshua, where they are mentioned by a French
explorer.
There is no doubt that a very exaggerated estimate has generally
been made of the antiquity of ruins in Palestine. Many which have
been commonly called Jewish or Phoenician, turn out on close inspec-
tion to be Crusading or Saracenic, and our results are often valuable
only in a negative sense. The traces of Jewish art are hardly worthy
of notice, and the general impression produced is that their construc-
tions were neither magnificent in proportions or design, nor durable in
materials. The various rock-cut cemeteries, and traces of ancient culti-
vation, are almost the only undoubtedly Jewish remains in the country
excepting the synagogues first discovered and described by Major
Wilson.
The interest of the country from a Biblical point of view consists in
the identification of sites from etymological and literary argument.
Amongst the interesting identifications made by the survey party may
be mentioned the altar 'Ad, already referred to, the site of JEnon where
St. John baptized, Zaretan in the Jordan valley, Gilgal — a confii-mation
rather than a discovery, the hill Scopus, north of Jerusalem, and
amongst the less definitely indicated in Scripture, the Eock Oreb and
winepress of Zeeb, mentioned in the book of Judges, the probable tomb
of Samson, with the sites of the town of Archelais, Ecbatana, and
Sozuza, and a number of obscure Biblical names interesting as fixing the
boundaries of the various tribes.
Passing from this period to that of the Eoman occupation of Palestine,
the ruins become far more numerous and important ; they include fine
roads, long aqueducts, temples, theatres, race courses, and city walls.
Among the principal sites are Ceesarea, Ecbatana, Antipatris, Jericho,
Scythopolis, Tantura, Sebaste, and a host of minor jilaces of interest.
All that remains above ground has been noted and sketched, measured
and planned. At Ctesarea the temple built by Herod and dedicated to
Augustus was discovered close to the Crusading Cathedral. To this
group belongs tlio newly discovered town of Deir Seriir, probably the
ancient Sozuza. Its fallen tower blocks, some 10ft. in length, its fine
round arches, its semi-classic mouldings, its walls of finely drafted
masonry, and the great synagogue or temple, with tesselated floor and
walls 8ft. thick, all point to this ruin as a jolace of no little importance.
To this same period also belong several groups of finely ornamented
rock -tombs of semi- classic Greek character, mostly new discoveries, and
resembling closely those already well-known at Jerusalem. Many build-
ings also, like those at Jebel Fureidis (the Ancient Herodiura) are now
for the first time thoroughly explored, and properly planned, although
they have been known for a considerable time, among which may be
enumerated the tomb of Joshua at Timnath, a site of no common interest,
and perhaps one of the best authenticated identifications yet made in
the count IV.
THE SURVEY OF PALESTINE. 257
The next step brings us to the early Christian times, for of the
troublous period after the destruction of Jerusalem, there are scarce any
topographical indications, unless we except the site of Bether. This
strong and almost impregnable site, where, under Barcochebas, the Jews
made their last stand in revolt, is the modern Bitter, and close to it, in a
natural fortress, are ruins which still keep the name (as discovered inde-
pendently by Captain Warren, and afterwards by myself) of Khirbet el
Yahud, Euin of the Jews, a traditional title, for which no reason is now
assigned by the natives.
The great building ages of Justinian and the Crusaders have left many
noble monuments throughout Palestine. Amongst the principal works
of the first period may be mentioned the two great convents of St.
John, on Jordan, and of the traditional Gilgal, erected in the Jordan
valley, and never before planned. lu the wild hill country of Judcca we
also discovered another fine ruin, known us Deir Kal'aah, the Convent
Castle. The details of its architecture are of extreme interest, as throw-
ing lijrht on the disputed question of the date of that style which is
found not far away in the Jerusalem Golden Gate. Five convents in
all were here discovered at no great distance apart in a district pre-
viously almost altogether unknown.
The Crusading works occur in every part of Palestine, and are invari-
ably magnificent. The finest ruins, however, are at Athlit, the Castel
Pelegrino, where first the pilgrims of the 12th century touched the soil
of the Holy Land. Its magnificent masses of masonry, its strong
bastioned walls, its great vaults, running the whole length of the town,
with groined roofs and sculptured capitals, show the splendour which it
must have displayed in its palmy days. The work has more than once
been taken for Phoenician masonry, and curiously enough in the
neighbourhood is the only Phoenician tomb we have yet seen in the
country, but the pointed arches and other details of architectui-e leave
no doubt as to the origin of the town.
From this landing-place a chain of forts leads across Carmel to
Nazareth, and south to Eamleh and Jerusalem. Wherever an important
military position is to be found throughout Palestine a Crusading castle
will also be found. The workmanship of its outer walls, large, strong,
and well cut, of hard limestone or harder basalt, and the details of its
interior, remarkable for beauty and finish in the stonework, the places
of the old portcullises, the secret posterns, the winding turret-stairs,
the groined roofs, the chimneys, and sculptured niches, are all of interest
to the architect. The knowledge of art and skill in choice of good
material, both attest the cultivation of the builders. The numerous
churches, with even finei- finished stonework, frescoes, &c., rude graphitt©,
walls thick enough for a castle, and capitals of florid execution, are still
more worthy of study. Of one of these, the great church at Eamleh,
now a mosque, I am, I believe, the first to have made a plan, and no
church yet seen in Palestine exceeds it in size or workmanship.
Last in order come the Saracenic works, fortresses and khans, mosques
258 THE SURVEY OF PALESTINE.
and minarets. They arc distinguislied by tte smaller size of the masonry,
ty the different form of the arches, and by a peculiar cement, harder
even than the stone, and found in no other work in the country. In
many instances Saracenic additions to Crusading work are noticeable,
and in some few it is difficult to know to which era to ascribe the work.
It wiU be seen, therefore, that we have added something of interest
to what was already known on archaeological questions in Palestine from
the earliest to the latest period of its history. A glance at oui- lists
enables us to say what exists at any spot marked on the map, and to
give a fair estimate of the antiquity and importance of the remains,
which can often be dated by comparison with examples of known periods.
In conclusion I would point out the observations made with regard to
the physical character of the country, and especially as regards the main
features of its geology.
The comparison of ancient and modern physical characteristics of the
country, both as regards the natural features and in respect to the culti-
vation of the land, will be one of the most interesting outcoming
results of the survey.
For data as regards climate, we have now four meteorological stations
established in the country, where barometrical and thermometrical
observations are taken daily with great regularity ; the first at Jerusalem,
the second at Nazareth, both in the bill country, the third at Jaffa on
the sea-coast, the fourth at Gaza in the plain. In addition to which,
we carry with us in camp a full set of meteorological instruments, a
mercurial barometer, wet and dry bulb, maximum and minimum, a
minimum ground, and a black bulb-thermometer. With these also-
are a rain gauge and a set of ozone papers. Many of the observations are
interesting. It is found that with the east or khamsin wintl — a most
trying and depressing weather — there is an entire absence of ozone in the
air. "We notice also that mirage is not dependent on heat alone, but re-
quii'es a certain amount of moisture to develop it fully. The barome-
tric observations in the Jordan valley are very curious ; the rise and fall
of the instrument appeared to have no reference to the storms which
we experienced, whereas in the hills the barometer is a safe guide.
■ The comparison of the rainfall and seasons with those of ancient
historical times will, therefore, be obtained with great accuracy.
In addition to this we are able to show for the first time on the map
the condition of the country as regards vegetation ; gardens, orchards,
and olivej-ards are marked, as are also the districts covered with thickets
or lush, which on the western slopes are very extensive. The map shows
also the Forest of Sharon, hitherto unknown, and consisting only in
stumps of felled oak trees towards the south, whilst in the northern part
of the plain the trees still extend over the country for miles. The palm
trees of the Jordan valley, mentioned as late as the 7th century, have
disappeared from Jericho, but in the northern basin, near the site of
Scythopolis, we found a great number of stunted trees, many of which
have individual names.
THE SURVEY OF PALESTINE.
259
The general result to wHcli the work seems to point is, that m the
seasons, rainfall, and natural vegetation, modern Palestine resembles very
closely that of Biblical times. There is, however, a very marked change
in its cultivation, and the exteat of the ancieat fertility will be approxi-
mated, it is hoped, when the map is complete.
The ancient cisterns, pools, aqueducts, and methods of water supply
and irrigation, are all carefully marked on the map, and their date— Jewish,
Eoman, Christian, or Saracenic— is generally pretty easy to determme.
The terraces, wine and oil presses, vineyard walls, and dry-stone towers,
which appear to be of great antiquity, are carefully noted. Signs of
ancient cultivation are often observable in the wildest of the present
thickets, and there is no doubt that the vino, now almost unknown, was
once cultivated throughout the whole hill country of Palestine and along
the edge of the plains.
Not less important is the study of the geology of Palestine. As a
contribution to what is already known, I have prepared a sketch map,
showing the main divisions of the strata, and in the more interesting-
parts the boundaries have been carefully determined. This map will
form a sort of reconnaissance, from which a professional geologist may
advance to the study of details, and by the use of which much time and
trouble may be saved. The special observations of dip and lithological
character throughout the part of country surveyed amount now to nearly
200. No such general description of the geology has, I believe, been as
yet made. The most famous work on the subject is that by M. Lartet,
the French geologist. The study he has given to the part uf Palestine
which he visited personally is minute and accurate, but his map, which
in many parts is an absolute blank, in others is disfigured by false con-
clusions, drawn apparently from hearsay evidence.
The main results of the geological survey at present may be enume-
rated as follows : —
In the north we have been able to show the geological construction of
the plain of Esdraelon, and have discovered an important volcanic centre
and upwards of forty basaltic outbreaks hitherto quite unknown. We
have marked the extent of country covered by black basalt south of th&
Sea of Galilee never as yet shown. The trappean outbreak on Carmel
has also been carefully examined and sections made of its formation,
with observations of the dip of the strata, which are very curious. South-
west of the mountain we found a tertiary volcanic lake, and traced the
outbreaks' along the west as far south as Jaffa. The map shows the
upheaval of the coast-line, and by fossils obtained along this formation
it will be possible to fix the geological data. Three or four interesting
sections are now extended across the country, as in the latitude of
Nablus, where the nummulitic limestone is found on the upper part
of Ebal and Gerizim, and in the line of Jerusalem and of Nazareth.
The most valuable observations are, however, those which refer to the
depression of the Jordan valley, and I may, perhaps, be permitted to
enlarge rather more fully upon these.
2G0 THE SURVEY OF PALESTINE.
The western shore of the Dead Sea is bounded by steep, precipitous
cliffs, at the feet of which are marls and conglomerates belonging to an
ancient sea-level. At the top of the cliffs are other marls of a similar
character, giving a second level, and from these the marl hills rise
rapidly to a third level, that of the Bukeya, or raised plain, situate at
the feet of the main chain of hills and below the convent of Mar Saba.
This gives a series of three successive steps, each of which seems at
some period to have formed the bed of a lake under conditions similar
to that of the present sea. There is, however, a very curious feature
observable, the narrow valley running northfand south and separating a
line of chalk cliffs immediately adjoining the Bukeya from the hard
dolomite beds of the main chain. It is, in fact, evidence of a fault or
sudden fold in the strata, the existence of which seems to have been
hitherto unsuspected.
Advancing north we find a broad basin north of the Dead Sea in
which Jericho stands, and which has an exact counterpart on the east
side of the valley. The same contortion of the strata is remarkable, and
the higher level is occupied by beds of a reddish marl, and of the
famous stiukstone or bituminous limestone, evidence that at this early
geological period the lake existed under conditions similar to those of
the present Dead Sea.
From this point we succeed in tracing an ancient shore line at a level
equal to the second step for a distance of over twenty miles up the valley.
From thence a narrow gorge with strata less violently contorted extends
for some ten miles. The valley then broadens again, and the shore de-
posits and red marl reappear and extend along the side of the upper
basin south of the Sea of Galilee.
I have submitted these observations to professional geologists, and
theii' opinion confirms that which I formed on the spot — that the Jordan
valley was caused by a sudden and probably violent depression in times
subsequent to the late cretaceous period ; that it presented at first a
chain of great lakes, and that no less than three levels for these lakes
are to be found, the area of the most ancient being the greatest ; that
the effects of denudation or other natural causes working gradually have
continued since the time of the first great dejiression to lower the level,
and that the evaporation increasing with the increased temperature the
area of the lakes has also diminished. Finally, that the same action is
in all probability still slowly proceeding, as evidenced by changes in the
depth of water in the Dead Sea during modern times.
I have endeavoured to show briefly the method and results of our
work — physical, antiquarian, and geographical. Much of interest yet
remains if health and means do not fail us. The plains of Philistia, the
southern shores of the Dead Sea, the numerous ruins of southern Judah,
have yet to be explored. In the'north, Phoenicia still is unvisited, with
its ruins, inscriptions, and natural subjects of interest, including the
newly found mines of Saida. The Sea of Galilee and the mountain of
Safed, where synagogues and ruined towns as yet unknown are reported
LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU.
261
by travellers, still demands patient research. I hope, however, that if
owe future success be equal to that we have already obtained, we shall
be able by the summer of ISTG to commence the publication of the
Ordnance Survey of Palestine as completed from Dan to Beersheba.
Claude R. Conder, Lieut., R.E.,
In Command Survey of Palestine.
Uth July, 1874.
THE JERUSALEM RESEARCHES.
LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU.
XL
Jerusalem, May 31, 1874.
I HAVE just rediscovered, within the Harani, an inscription] of some Ancient
importance, pointed out by several Mussulman authors. Up to the sci'ii)tioii
present time we have not been able to establish its existence : it is a ^^^'"'^ ^''^
^ ... cliineusious
stone on which are inscribed the dimensions of the Haram measured at of tiiu
a very ancient period.
The Arab chronicler of Jerusalem, Medjr ed Din (p. 29 of the text
edited at Boulaq), after having recorded that Hafiz ibr Asakir assigns
to the Haram 755 royal cubits of length and 465 cubits of breadth,
quotes this passage of one of his predecessors, the author of the Mutliir
el Ghoram, from which he repeatedly borrows : — "I saw, a long time
ago, in the north wall, above the door adjacent to the Bab ed Douidariye,
inside the surrounding wall, a slab on which are inscribed the length
and breadth of the Haram. These measurements do not agree \vith
what we have stated above. It is there said that the length is 784
cubits, and the breadth 455 ; the nature of the cubit is specified, but I
was not able to see if it was the cubit mentioned above, or another, on
account of the writing being injured."
The Persian Hadji, Nasir ibn Khosrou, who came on pilgrimage in
the year 438 (A.H.), and consequently before the Crusades, saw this slab
also. " On the northern side, which is contiguous to the Dome of
Yakub (on whom be peace !), I observed an inscription on a tablet, to
the effect that the Mosque was 704 yards long and 455 yards by the
' malak' (measure)." — Major Fuller^ s translation.
This inscription I have just found by accident iitted into the wall
of one of the many Arab Medreses which adjoin the northern face of
the Haram ; it is immediately to the right, coming out of the Bab
el Alme, which seems to correspond to the " Bah cd Douidariye' " of the
262 LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT GANNEAU.
ancient account. In order to see it, you must mount the steps of a
stair leading to the upper floor of the Meclrese. The stone is of hard
vnezzcli, and the writing neshl-y, carelessly traced. It is composed of
four lines separated by four horizontal strokes ; the first being broken,
with nothing on it but the traditional invocation, " BismiJlali er rahman
er rdhim.''^ After this I read, without much difiiculty, as follows : —
"The length of the Mesjid is seven hundred .... and four cubits,
and its breadth is four hundred, fifty, and five cubits, the cubit of . . . ."
The length is broken off in the tens, but we cannot hesitate
between thirty {thalathin), and eighty {thamanin) : according to the
author of the Muthir el Glioram, the last number would be the true one.
Nasir seems as well to have been embarrassed in the reading of the last
number, and to have omitted altogether the doubtful number of tens.
The last Avord, containing the'designation of the kind of cubit, is hard
to make out ; it was also hard in the time of the author of the Muthir
el Glioram. Nasir does not hesitate to write the word Malah (of the
king), but the appearance of the original makes me doubt the exactness
of this reading.
Now that we are on this point, which is not without interest, let me
notice further that the author of the Muthir el Ghoram gives as dimen-
sions of the Haram, measured by the line, in his time, 683 cubits for
the length of the east side, and 650 cubits for that of the Avest ; the
breadth, taken outside the surrounding wall, being estimated at 483
cubits.
In another passage (p. 377) Medjr ed Din also gives us the result of
his personal observations on this point. He measured the Haram wth
a cord twice over, and found for the length, north to south, from the
Mihrab of David to the Bah el eshat (not counting the walls), 660 cubits
(the common cubit), and for the breadth, between the cemetery of Bah
er rahine and the Medrese of Tenguiz, 406 cubits.
"We have now before us very different figures and divergences, the
more difficvilt to harmonise because they spring from the differences in
the cubit employed ; further difficulties are the manner and points of
measurement, and the broken condition of the inscription quoted ; all
perhaps evincing, which would be of interest to us, real variation in
the extent of the Haram at certain epochs in the Mussulman rule.
-Mi>s:iic.sin I have already informed you [in a private letter] of the existence of
arcades^ of*^ mosaics within the arcades of the outer wall of the Sakhra. It results
tiie .S:ikliia. from this fact that between the period when these arcades were opened
and when they Avere completely covered by the fayence tiles now placed
on them, they passed through an intermediary stage ; that is, they
were built up and transformed into little niches, the interior walls
of which received a rich ornamentation of mosaics in coloured and gilt
glass. If, as I have said before, these arcades were open and formed
a part of the gallery in existence at the time of the Crusades, Ave must
admit that this transformation is later than the Crusades, and the
LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU. 263
addition of the mosaics to be the work of the Arabs, perhaps that of
Saladin.*
We know that Saladin must have subjected the Sakhra to many
changes in order to efface the traces of Christian worship which
had made the Mussuhnan sanctuary the Templmn Domini. These
mosaics are good enoiigh, in colour and design, to belong to such a
date. Thanks to the kindness of the Memour, who uncovered a second
arcade next to the first, I ascertained that each arch had received the
same ornamentation. The mosaics had disappeared from this arch,
leaving marks in the casing to prove where they had been placed.
M. Lecomte made a careful study of these mosaics, shattered as they
were, and has succeeded in restoring the principal subject of the decora-
tion in accordance -with the position of the colours. You will receive, if
not bj- this mail, at least by the next, the result of this restoration.
By the intersection of the pattern, crosses are formed, to which I think
it would be difficult to assign anything beyond a geometrical origin I
and value.
The presence, duly ascertained, of mosaics outside the Sakhra, is a
fact of much interest in the history of this building, because it had been
often doubted, in spite of the formal affirmation of the ancient descrip-
tions. From John de Wirzburg to Medjr ed Din, all authors agree in
saying that the Sakhra was adorned with mosaics inside and outside.
The last trace of this system of decoration has disappeared from the
inside, since the general application of the fayence — that is to say, since
the 16th century.
At the present moment they are proceeding to the repair of the Exposure of
inclined roof which covers the lower sides of the Sakhra. In the progress the Sakin-a
of this work the lead is being removed, so that it is now possible to pene-
trate to the interior of the framework, and to see the whole central drum
exposed from, the ceiling to the sj)ringing of the roof. We can thus ex-
amine at our ease the whole external face of the drum. We have been
enabled to ascertain the total absence of the mediaeval dressing in the
materials used in the work. There is only one block in one of the but-
tresses which bears a trace of it. The materials in the buttresses differ
in general from those of the drum itself. They are large, and show a
dressing worked with a point, which I think is ancient. It is found on
several large blocks which are visible in certain parts of the Haram,
which I believe to have been utilised by the Arabs.
We have only found one mason's mark on all the stones examined.
It is quite of the same kind as that which we have noted in the exterior
outspread wall.
We have found in a magazine close to El Aksa a fragment of Vessel in
a magnificent vessel in basalt, with a bluish tinge and a very close ^^*^''''*'-
* Medjr ed Din says (p. 434) that Al Mostanser Billah came to Jerusalem iu
861-2, A.D., and renciced the mosaics of the Sakhra above the marble of the
exterior.
the legend.
264 LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU.
grain. Sarcophagus or bath, this vessel, the fabrication of which must
have been extremely costly on account of the beauty and the hardness
of the material, must have been ordered for some great personage or
some important use. The sides are not vertical, but widened out like
those of a bath. The vessel increases 0"57 metre in depth, and 0-81 in
length. The thickness of the sides is 0-11 metre, and the longest part
preserved is 1'19 metres. At the end is an opening, perhaps made
more recently to let the water flow easily.
Gabaon, You will remember the Bedouin legend which I have already noted
zitn,Her" as referring to the tradition of Joshua stopping the sun at Jericho.
111(111, Tj^Yie alterations of this kind in the history of Joshua are very ancient.
.feiichoby We find very early this tendency to group round Jericho the places
which hold the chief place in the history of the successor of Moses.
Thus it is that we find Procopius, Eusebius, and Jerome, saying that
Mounts Ebal and Gerizim, claimed later at Samaria by the Samari-
tans, are in reality not far from Gilgal. It seems that this grouping
took place earlier than the Christian writers whom I have cited, and
that they borrowed their theories from the Jews, who maintained them
out of hatred to the Samaritans.
The transference of the miracle of Gibeon seems to belong to the same
epoch, if not to have been determined by the same cause. In any case
it is expressly indicated by the Eussian Patriarch Daniel, who says
(p. 56), "To the west of this convent (of the Archangel Michael at
Gilgal) is a fountain called Gibeon. It is lofty and very great. It is
above this mountain that the sun stood still for half a day, until Joshua
had overcome his enemies when he fought against Og, King of Bashan,
and Sihon, King of the Amorites, and all the land of Canaan. When
Joshua had overcome them, the sun went down behind the mountain of
Gibeon. We see a great cavern in this mountain. Here it is that our
Lord Jesus Christ fasted forty days and forty nights, and, when he
was a hungered, the devil drew near to him." So that the mount of
Joshua, when pointed out, is the mountain of Gibeon.
Not only Ebal, Gerizim, and Gibeon have been transported to Jericho,
Hermon has also shared the same lot. The Onomasticon, Antonimis,
St. John of Damascus, and a number of pilgrims, agree in placing the
Hill of Hermon near the Jordan, not far from Jericho.
The excavations I had undertaken in the caves of the Via Dolorosa,
Bezetha! "' and of which I shall give you an account presently, have led, among
other things, to a discovery of great value.
In the deepest of the newly found rock-cut chambers I have ex-
plored, and under the great pieces of broken ceiling which testify ta
some great destruction on this spot, we found a large terra-cotta vase,
which wo could only bring away in pieces. Fortunately the vase,
although broken, is so nearly complete, that it has been possible to
reconstruct it by gumming the pieces together. You will find enclosed
two photographs, pending the arrival of the original.
This cup is in terra-cotta, very hard, and of a grey colour. It
Thejvase of
LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU. 2G5
measures 0*36 metre (nearly 14 inches) high ; it is mounted on a low foot
of simple design, and is very capacious, with a maximum circumference
of one metre. It has no neck, the opening being very small, with a little
coUar 0"235 metre in diameter. It is ornamented by two handles, each
formed of a double tress elegantly t\visted. On the upper part of each
handle is cut a small rectangular cavity, towards which two large
serpents appear to be turning as if to drink. They are in relief,
symmetrically disposed, and climbing along the sides of the vessel ;
their tails are lost in the base of the handles. Immediately below each
handle is sculptured in relief a Gorgon's head.
Further, close to either handle is twice impressed a kind of small
medallion, representing a male figure, nude, upright, the left arm
raised and leaning on a long lance or thyrsus ; the right arm ex-
tended and pointed to the ground. The right hand appears to hold an
indistinct object over another also indistinct placed upon the ground.
The external mouldings of this little figure, of which I shall speak
presently, are repeated six times on one vase.
At nearly equal distances from the two handles, and on each side of
the vase, is repeated twice a second moulded medallion of larger dimen-
sions, representing a naked Mercmy, whose body is seen in full, the
Tiead turned to the left. He has the petasus, and has his tunic tied
across the breast and thrown behind him ; he holds the caduceus in
his left hand, and raises with his right an object which seems to be
a purse — the frequent attribute of the Hermes of antiquity.
In the circle which surrounds him are four objects, which appear
to be meant for fu'-cones- The medallion is encircled by a small border,
formed by means of a moulded repetition of six points arranged in
a circle roimd a seventh central point. This ornament is reproduced
in profusion on the rest of the vase.
On one of the two nearly symmetrical segments into which the vase is
divided by the handles, the medallion of Mercury is flanked on the left by
the small medallion previously described, and to the right by a symboHc
group which demands a description by itself. Under a sort of portico,
divided into three by four little fluted columns, is seen in the central
intercolumniation a vessel Avith two handles, the mouth very wide.
In the left-hand intercolumniation is an altar, lofty, narrow, and
fluted, reminding one of the Assyrian altars, surmounted by eight
little spheres disposed in form of a pyramid. In the right-hand inter-
columniation is a second altar the same as the first, but with a few
essential variations. The number of spheres is only seven, and a
rectangular tablet is fixed in the altar at its middle.
Immediately below the porch, and corresponding with the three inter-
columniations, is stamped in relief a group of three little figures re-
presenting a feminine personage, draped, the left hand supported by a
long spear, the right hand directed towards the ground and holding
some undetermined object. Thus these figures appear to be the repeti-
tion of the same eJctypon, reproduced again twice, but singly on this
T
266 LETTERS FROM M. CLEHMONT-GANNEAU.
side of tlie vessel. The altar on the right is also repeated once by
itself.
I must lastly mention, in concluding this segment of the vase, a
large leaf, with its branches in high relief, stamped beside one of the
serpents.
If we pass to the opposite segment, we find the same elements
arrano-ed in nearly the same way ; but we notice that the little figure,
three times repeated, is not grouped as in the other part of the vase,
that the vase between two columns is reproduced apart, and that
the altar on the left, but not on the right, is repeated by itself.
The lower half of the vase is decorated by two borders, formed by
concentric semicircles with seven extremities. This type, reminding one
of the seven-branched candlestick, appears several times in the upper
part. Below is a third circle, formed by the juxtaposition of a lozenge.
Below this again, the same type grouped in triangles, the point of
which is prolonged to the foot, completes the decoration.
I forgot to say that the collar of the vessel is adorned with five or
six parallel lines of small mouldings, made freely but not without
taste.
One curious matter of detail is that the whole surface of the vase,
especially in the places covered with mouldings, is thickly set with little
holes made before the bf\,king by the print of a sharp chisel or a knife.
This cannot be the result of an accident. On the other hand, there
must have been some serious motive in covering the mouldings with
holes which spoil the figures. Perhaps it was to assist the baking.
This great vase, so rich in ornamentation, is nevertheless executed
with a certain amount of negligence Its form is elegant, but it wants
symmetry and is not perpendicular ; the handles are put on awkwardly ;
and the details of the mouldings show carelessness. All round it may
be seen the marks of the fingers which repaired the accidents produced
in removing the movdd. The arrangement of the figures and the symbols
seems done by chance and without rigorous method. Nevertheless, such
as it is, this vessel, with all its imperfections, is most remarkable from
an artistic point of view.
The profuseness in detail and the carelessness in execution, lead me
to think that it is a kind of specimen, the essay of some artist wishing
to make a model, which he might subsequently reproduce with greater
care, perhaps in metal.
This is the place to record that we found, beside the vase, two frag-
ments of terra-cotta, which did not form part of the vase, as the colour
and form show, but which present striking analogies with it. We
observe in the two fragments, which fit together, the same mould-
ings in the upper part ; a Gorgon mark like that on the large vase, but
of less dimensions ; the same element of ornamentation in the concentric
semicircles ; and an absolute reproduction, probably obtained from the
same mould, of the little male figure leaning on a spear. A hollow
impress of palm leaves completes the decoration.
LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU. 267
The juxtaposition of these two similar vases seems to indicate the
presence of a local manufactory rather than the result of an impoi-tation,
as we might be tempted to suppose, when we reflect how sterile Jerusalem
appears to us at the present time from an artistic point of view. We know
that in imperial days they still made at Arretino vessels in red clay,
with ornaments and figures in relief, cast in moulds, and consequently
. veiy different from the ornamentation of the Greek vases of the old
style, which were modelled by the hand alone.
After the description of the vase, it only remains for us to determine
its date, its use, and the symboKc signification of its complicated decora-
tion.
If we take into account the place where we found it, and conse-
quently the history of Jerusalem, we are inclined to attribute the vase
to the Eoman period ; that is to say, to see in it an object belono-ino- to
^lia Capitolina, The fabrication and style accord very well with this
hypothesis.
The general form of the vase and the disposition of the mouth appear
to imply the existence of a lid similarly ornamented, which has disap-
peared. To judge by the breadth of the mouth and the stability of the
foot, the vase departs from the type of the amphora, and belongs to the
category of vessels from which water was di-awn, not poured out. It
belongs, in fact, to the Kparrip class, although the handles are a little too
liigWy ijlaced for the classic KpaTrjp, whose handles, generally above the
vase, are more often destined to move than to carry the vessel.
The vases might have had a religious or simply a domestic use ; that
is, to serve as libations offered to the gods, or to be employed at ordinary
repasts. In both cases mixed liquids, generally water and wine, were
drawn by means of the simjmlum or the cyathus — a kind of long-handled
spoon which served to fill the cups. Even when the Kpajvp was only
destined for profane use, it preserved a religious character. It was the
custom, in banquets of ceremony, to have three vessels of different shapes.
The first, accordiag to Suidas, dedicated to Mercury, the second to
Charisius, and the third to Jupiter the Etruscan. According to others,
the first cup (some say the third) was consecrated to the food deity
(KyaQo^dilxuv). Three make the cup of Health. One cup bore in its
decoration all the signs of a religious vase, and I am tempted to believe
that it was destined for sacrificial libations, these vessels being, as a rule,
not only dedicated to divinities (as o.vaQitiJ.aTa), but employed for them
as in the communion service.
The four serpents which are proceeding to drink out of the receptacle
hollowed for them in the handles the drops which have escaped from
the simpulum, appear to represent the gejiii loci, and remind me of the
serpentine form of the 'AyaOoSdiixuv, to which in so many ancient monu-
ments libations are offered.
The Mercury twice repeated recalls the cup consecrated to Hermes.
In this case, might the fragment be a piece of the second vase ?
268 LETTERS FROM il. CLERMOXT-GANNEAU.
The little male figure six times repeated on the great vase, and
for a seventh time on the fragment, is not easy to make out. It is
singularly like the Bacclius which appears in the coins of -31lia Capito-
Hna, notably on those struck during the reigns of Antoninus and
Gordian III. If this figure be an imitation of the numismatic type,
the uncertain gesture of one figure may be that of the right hand
holding a bunch of grapes to a panther upright or sitting down. If
necessary it may be regarded as a hand letting the wine flow from a
carchesium.
In any case, the presence of Bacchus is not at all strange on a vase
destined to contain -vvine. Is it the Charisius of Suidas ? The pine-
cones which surroimd the Mercury might perhaps be better for the
Dionysiac attributes.
As to the female figure, I avow my inability to explain it at present ;
but I doubt not that Eiiropean archseologists will succeed in making it
out. Can it be Hygeia ?
The presence of the vase and the two altars grouped under the same
porch completes the religious aspect of one vase. We must note that the
vessel in the ornamentation is of a tj^e very different from that of the
vase itself. The existence of the two altars and the curious form
they possess are points of the highest interest. The nimiber of spheres
contained in the cavity of each altar is not indiflferent. Whatever be
the nature of the objects represented, it is certain that the number seven
in the first case recalls the cosmic conception of antiquity of five planets,
together with the sun and the moon ; the nimiber eight in the other
case is that conception together with the eighth element, Phoenician
ech7nonr, which represents the seven all together. I do not insist on this
symbolic value of the numbers. I confine myself to remarking the
employment of seven points disposed in a circle, six round a seventh,
and the seven extremities of concentric semicircles.
We may ask again how it happens that this vase and the similar
fragment have been picked up in such a place, that is to say, in the
rock-cut chambers. It is very improbable that the vases have been met
with in their original place, that is to say, in a sepulchral cave. The
debris of all kinds with which we found them mixed up would rather
make me suppose that they have been thrown at some remote period
into these caverns pell-mell with refuse. If they ever served for sacri-
fices oflFered by the pagans of JElia Capitolina at the Sanctuary of
Jupiter, which stood not far off, it is very easy to understand how, at
the official triumph of Christianity, these vessels of a proscribed worship
would be ignominiously thro^vn away with the most vile rubbish. If
that is so, the earthquake which destroyed the caverns took place after
the religious reaction.
Whatever opinion be adopted as to these difficvJt questions, the vase,
which I propose to call the Vase of Bezetha, remains one of the most
precious archaeological objects that Jerusalem has yet produced ; and I
LETTEES FROM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU.
269
do not doubt that the interest it will excite among savants wiU equal
the curiosity that it will excite among the public.
C. CLERMONT-G.VNNEAir.
P.S.— Capital in the Haram-esh-Shereef representing the Presentation
of Christ.
MM. Palmer and Drake during their fii'st journey to Jerusalem
remarked and pointed out to me on the minaret at the north-west angle
of the Haram a marble capital with mutilated figures. We went to
see this interesting rehc, and I send you a drawing of it by Lecomte.
Although the heads have been broken by Mussulman iconoclasts, it is
not difficult to make out the scene portrayed. On the left the old man
Simeon receives the infant Jesus from the hands of the Virgin enveloped
in swaddling clothes; on the right is also a personage roimd whose
head is a nimbus, who seems to be St. Joseph. The same subject appears
to have been treated in the three capitals placed in the same minaret^
but the other two have been a great deal more broken. Not only the
capitals, but also the columns and the bases which support them, seem
to have made a single whole. The three capitals were cut so as to be
placed between two walls at right angles. I think that it is easy to
divine whence they came. Phocas, describing the Templum Domini
(the Sakhra) of the Crusaders, says that in the interior, opposite to the
cave, there are two little chapels or chambers (hra/xapot), in which are
represented, in one, "the meeting {imavTi)) of the Lord Christ, for it is
here that Simeon received him in his arms ; " in the other, the vision of
Jacob. It is highly probable that we have in these two capitals the
fragments taken from the chapels after the restoration of the Templum
to the Mussulmans by Salahdin. The sacerdotal costume worn by Simeon
is extremely interesting.
XII.
The period of the Crusades is no exception to the extreme poverty of
inscriptions which appears to be the peculiar character of Palestine, portrait of a
Written traces of the western rule in the Holy Land are of the greatest B^^op'of
rarity. During all the years that I have hunted for inscriptions in this Palestine,
imgrateful soil I have met but five or six texts belonging to the period, raiy with
and even they were for the most part fragmentary. ^^- J^"'"*- i
It is a fact which at fu'st seems the more singular because the period
is comparatively but little removed from us, and because the passage of
the Occidentals, although rapid, has left a broad and deep impress upon
the architecture of Palestine. I have elsewhere established technical
and invariable rules which enable us at first sight and -wathout any
possible error to determine any stone cut by the Crusaders. The appli-
cation of this law — much more certain than the observation, so delicate
and so much disputed, of style>^, and which permits us to determine the
270 LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU.
date of monuments not only taken as a whole, but in their elements, to
number up, so to speak, the materials employed by the hands of the
"Westerns — has demonstrated the prodigious movement of construction
which took place duiing this brief period. It is natural, then, to think
that the men who knew how to use stone would not have neglected to
confide to it the written record of their memorable deeds.
This almost total absence of mediaeval Eirropean inscriptions can only
be explained by a pitiless reaction against everything which could recall
a conquest odious to the Mussulmans, and a yoke borne with impatience
by even Oriental Christians.
Therefore the discovery of a Crusading text even mutilated, on the
very soil, is always a piece of good fortune for science. In our last
excursion to Jaffa I found two. The first (drawn by M. Lecomte,
No. 48), engraved in large and splendid letters on a fine block of white
marble (0*77 + 0*27 + 0'19 metres), consists of two lines, of which only
the middle one remains, and traces of a third line.
. . er : augustiis : io . .
[ . . . anno doniinjice incaniatio[uis]
[ ti] .
I put between brackets the restorations which seem probable. I think
that of anno dominice incarnaUonis Avill be admitted "ndthout difficulty.
This manner of dating the year of the incarnation of the Lord, and the
Avay of writing dominice (se), are found in a number of the charters of
the kingdora of Jerusalem in the eleventh and twelfth centuries (E. de
Eoziere, Cartulaire du St. Sepulcre).
The palseographic aspect of the letters, especially that of the T, tends
also, if my memory serves me, to attach this inscription to the twelfth
centm-y.
The second inscription, which I brought from Jaffa (No. 49 in M.
Lecomte's sketches), is much more interesting, first, because it accom-
panies a very curious iconographic monument ; and secondly, because
it offers great chronological precision. It comes from a Mussulman
wely called Sheikh Mourad, and situated about 20 minutes W.N.W. of
Jaffa.
This precious monument — it is only a fragment — consists of a slab of
white mai'ble measiu-ing actually 0'70 metre in length, by O'bo in height
and 0'05 in thickness. The fragment is broken into two pieces, which
fit each other exactly.
Here is portrayed a personage, full face, with a sharp beard, and
mitre for head-dress, and holding the ej)iscopal crozier ; and its position,
hard to the left, shows that Ave have to do \vith a bishop and not a
mitred abbot.
The head and the shoulders are surrounded by a trilobe resting on a
little column with a capital. In the comer to the right of the
trilobe is represented an incense-bearing angel, with a nimbus and
wing, who censes the head of the bishop. This detail is excellent in its
movement.
LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU. 271
The general drawing is remarkable for its primness and precision ; it
recalls at first sight the style of the thirteenth century, and everything,
as wc shall see, justifies this impression.
We have here one of those flat tombs which were placed on a level
with the ground, and which are so numerous at this period.
I would -willingly believe that the slab was not only engraved, but
also inlaid ; the drawing, deep and narrow, with vertical strokes, was
probably destined to receive some hard and coloured matter ; we re-
mark, besides, in the mitre and the crozier, deep holes, in which may
have been inlaid enamels or glass to imitate precious stones.
The mitre is rather higher than those which we see on monuments of
the twelfth century.
The pastoral staff terminates with the head of an animal ; it was
meant to be carried in the left hand ; the right, which has disappeared,
is occupied, in most similar monuments, in giving the benediction.
There only remains of this slab a piece comprising the left half of the
face to the springing of the shoulders. All roiuid it ran a Latin inscrip-
tion in mediaeval characters forming a frame. A few words only remain,
■which I will examine immediately.
The back of the slab has also received a later inscription in Arabic, of
which this is the translation : —
" In the name of God, merciful and clement. Certainly he restores the
mosques of God who believes in God and in the day of the Eesurrection,
who makes prayer, who gives alms, and who only fears God ; perhaps
he will be [in the number of those who follow the paths of goodness].
The construction of this blessed mosque has been ordered by him who
was poor before the Most High God, the Emir Jemal-ed-din, the son
of Isheik, whom God have in his mercy. The year seven hundred,
thirty-six . . . ."
This inscription was written on the back of the other, the first part
of which is borrowed from the ninth sonnate of the Koran (v. 18).
The poem called " On Eepentance " is disposed in such a fashion as to
show that the slab was cut up into five or six pieces in the year 736
of the Hegira (a.d. 1335). They cut in the original slab a piece
nearly square, on the reverse of which the Arab inscription was cut.
This slab subsequently underwent a slight mutUation, which took off
the lower left angle with a part of the face and breast of one side,
and the first words of the new inscription on the other. We know
from historians, and also from an authentic inscription of Bibars, pre-
served at Eamleh, the exact date of the definitive expulsion of the
Francs from Jaffa : it was, according to WiUiam of Tyre, the seventh of
March, 1268, in Bedjeb, 666, according to the Mussulman authorities.
Our monument could not, therefore, a priori, be later than this, which,
taking it in a minimum limit, brings us to the middle of the thirteenth
century.
We come next, having arrived at a historical limit of time, to the
interpretation of the inscription, or rather the fragment of Latin
272 LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU.
inscription whicli ran round the slab. I read it, with, restorations in
brackets : —
[Anno millesun]o: C°.C. : quiqliagesimo : octavo: in f esto : sancto-
rum : o [nmium ? .]
If we regret the loss of the Bishop's name, we have at least the satis-
faction of possessing almost entire the part which probably contains the
date of his death.
The day is specified by the words in f esto sanctorum ; as for the next
word, I am not certain whether it begins with an o or a c ; in the former
case omnium must be indicated : it will be the day of All Saints.
The preceding words contain the year ; it is impossible to mistake
quinquagesimo sexto in spite of the orthographic irregularity. C^.C. is:
for ducentesimo. There remains the millesimo, of which the o remains,
with the broken m preceding it.
The date is therefore 1255, probably the day of All Saints. The text
is unhappily too much destroyed to inform us who the personage was.
In the absence of certain indications these hypotheses are possible : —
1. The slab may have been, like so much building material, trans-
ported to Jaffa from some other neighbouring city, Ain, for example,
the site of a bishopric.
2. It may have covered the remains of a bishop of some other diocese
who died at Jaffa during the French occupation.
3. It may belong to a bishop of Jaffa.
In the two first cases all conjecture at the exact truth would be
without foundation ; we have only two positive elements of solution,
the date of the death and the rank of the deceased, which are insuffi-
cient, at least vrith the sources of information which I possess here.
I have, in fact, vainly searched through the Oriens Christianus of Le-
quien, and the Families cC Outre Mer of Ducange, for the name of a Latin
bishop, archbishop, abbot, or prior, who died in Palestine in 1255.
The third hypothesis, which, until proof to the contrary, rests the
most probable, deserves a few moments' consideration, especially as it
raises a curious historical question — that is, whether there was or was
not a bishopric at Jaffa during the Crusades.
Before the arrival of the Franks, Joppa, an important centre, and a
town of special veneration, as having been the sojourning place of St.
Peter, was an episcopal seat ; we know that certainly, and know also the
names of several of its bishops : Fidus, Theodotus, Elias, Sergius.
Under the Crusaders it appears, at least at first, to have lost this
rank, for it does not figure in the list of Latin bishoprics as they are
preserved in the contemporary documents. Jacques de Vitry, Bishop of
Aire in 1216, says expressly in his history of Jerusalem, that the city of
Jaffa had no bishop, but was under the immediate jurisdiction of the
priest and canons of the Holy Sepulchre. Ho adds that it was also the
case with Nablus, which was similarly ^vithout a bishop, and belonging
to the abbey of the Seraph im Domini. He remarks, aprojm, that many
other cities of Palestine, ancient episcopal seats, Greek and Syrian, are
LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU. 273
in the same situation, and have been united by the Franks to othei*
bishoprics.
But Lequien says that, notwithstanding this statement, after the
date of Jacques de Vitry he finds mention of bishops of Jaffa, and he
cites a passage of Mich. Ant. Baudrand (Tom. i., Geog., p. 527, col. 1),
in which it is written that Jaffa, city of Palestina Prima, was formerly
a bishopric under the jurisdiction of the Archbishop of Csesarea. He
uses the word olim, it is true, which is somewhat vague. The Latin
bishops of Jaffa mentioned by Lequien are, —
1. Guy de Niman, died 1253.
2. A bishop whose name was unknown, who went in 1273 to the
Council of Lyons, died 1274.
3. John de St. Martin, died Dec. 23, 1374.
I have nothing to say about the third bishop, because I have not
with me the author referred to by Lequien to confirm his conclusions.
I confine myself to the fact that since one lived in 1374, and the others
in 1274, it is imj)ossible that either the second or the third could be
the bishop on this monument. Besides, Jaffa was surrendered in 1268.
Guy de Niman remains, who died in 1253; the bishop of my slab
died in 1255, so that there is chronological incompatibility. Never-
theless we must not forget that the Estoire de Evades Empereur, from
which Lequien boi'rows this fact, contains in matters of date very grave
errors, and it is very easy in manuscripts to get such confusions as
MCCLVIII. and MCCLIII.
But against this identification there is a much more serious objection,
which at the same time puts in question the existence of a bishopric at
Jaffa altogether. The passage of the Estoire de Evades is as follows : —
"A MCCLIII amourent le rois Heniy de Chiprc et I'evesque de
Jaffe Guy de Nimar."
Now a MS. variation gives the word Baffe for Jajfe, which would be'
Paphos (Baphe) in the island of Cyprus. M. G. Eey, in his edition of
the Families d' Outre Mer, has adopted this reading, and admits that Guy
de Niman, whom he calls Mimars, and makes die in 1272 instead of 1273,
was Bishop of Paphos.
In another passage of the same Estoire the word Baphe is read with
a variation of Jaffa. ' ' Li marechaus . . . manda a Baphe pour les
galeres ..."
The same error may have occurred with regard to the second Latin
Bishop of Jafi'a on Lequien's list, and in exactly the same way.
Here is the very existence of our Latin bishoj)ric of Jafia deduced
from the names of these three bishops, compromised, especially if we
remember the very distinct statement of Jacques do Vitry. Never-
theless, in the face of this negative argument, we must place an official
document, a letter of Pope Alexander III. addressed to Peter, Prior of
the Holy Sepulchre (Cartulaii-e, pp. 291, 292), whence it clearly results —
(1) That King Amaury and his homonym, the Patriarch of Jerusalem,
had deprived the Prior of the Holy Sepulchre of the Church of
274 ■ LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU.
JaflFa, restoring it to its ancient dignity of a cathedral church,
which it had lost through the violence and the occupation of
the Heathen.
(2) That the Pope, in sj)ite of the protestation of the Prior, believes
it to be his apostolic duty to maintain the restoration, at the
same time advising that compensation bo made in exchange.
The bishopric of Jaffa was, then, actually accomplished. The cathedral
church could only be the church of St. Peter. As to the compensation,
it very likely consisted of the Church of St. Nicolas, conceded by King
Amaury in 1168.
I confess that it seems difficult to reconcile this fact with the asser-
tion of Jacques de Yitry, who could not have been ignorant of it. How-
ever this may be, the facts seem sufficient to permit us to believe in the
existence of a Latin Bishop of Jaffa, and, in this case, in the discovery of
the tomb and j)ortrait of one of them.
In any case, the certain date 1258 is only six years before the arrival
of Louis IX. at Jaffa, two years before the death of the king, and in the
time of John d'Obelin, Covint of Jaffa, ten years before the definitive
taking of the city by Sultan Bibars.
If the slab really belongs to the Bishop of Jaffa, it may very well be
supposed that it lay originally in the metropolitan church of St. Peter.
This church, constructed on the traditional site of the recovery of Dorcas,
or Tabitha, frequently figures in the Cartulary of the Holy Sepulchre.
Once (p. 71), in the act of donation of the patriarch Ebremar, there is
mention of the cemetery which depended on it. " Ecclesiam Sancti
Petri majorem, qute et apud Joppense eum cimeterio ecclesise pertinenti."
One would say that the church, to judge by the expression "apud
Joppen," Avas outside the city, like another chui-ch of Jaffa, that of St.
Nicolas, which is said in the Act of Donation of Amaury to be situated
without the walls and to the north (Cartidary of St. Stephen, p. 289).
These churches must not be confounded with that which St. Louis
caused to be built by the Cordeliers dui-ing his stay at Jaffa, and which
contained the altars, nor "with that which the Knights Hospitallers
possessed within the city — " in corpore civitatis."
Although some authors admit that the Church of St. Peter was south
of Jaffa, we might j^erhaps suppose that the Wely of Sheikh Mourad
from which the slab comes, and where probably stood the mosque built
by the Emir Jemal in 1335, succeeded this Church of St. Peter, and that
consequently our monument has never changed its place.
This substitution of a Mussulman for a Christian sanctuary is quite
according to Oriental usage, and it would not be the least interesting
thing about this precious fragment if it had enabled us indirectly to
rediscover the exact spot on which this church stood, consecrating one of
the most ancient souvenirs of Christianity. I may add that this con-
clusion is possible, but not necessary.
LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU. 275
XIII.
Jerttsalem, June 25, 1870.
Here are a few details on our recent expedition to Jaffa, witli which.
I am very well satisfied. It lasted seventeen days. Starting from
Jerusalem on the 3rd, we returned on the 19th. The journey was
intended to verify certain points which have engaged me for a long
time. It enabled me, not to explore completely, but to visit a triangular
region having Jerusalem, Jaffa, and Ascalon for the three angles.
The list of our camps will indicate the line followed and the centres
of research : Abu Gosh, Bir el Main, Lydda, Jaffa, Yebneh, Ashdod, El
Moghar, Artuf, and Jerusalem. Our harvest is of two kinds, epigraphic
and topographic, without counting archa3ological observations properly
so called, and an abundant crop of popular and rustic legends, which
are to the Bible just as the popular tales, for example, in German are
to the old German mythology.
I bring back twenty inscriptions, more than one per diem ; all, with
the exception of Nos. 12 and 20, are originals or squeezes.
1. Abu Gosh, Church of the Crusaders. — A mediasval graffito.
2. Kubab. — Media3val inscription.
3. Amwas (Emmaus). — Ancient funeral Greek inscription in a sepul-
chral cave.
4. Jaffa. — Monumental inscription in marble.
5. Do. — Sepulchral slab of a bishop or mitred abbot of the Crusades,
with his portrait, and an inscription running all round : the personage
is censed by an angel. The marble, which must have been of consider-
able dimensions, has an inscription behind it, which it has subse-
vquently received, on the back, iu Arabic inscription, date 736 A.ii.
6. Do. — A Grseco- Jewish funeral inscription of lOTAA son of ZAKXAI.
7. Do. — Do., incomplete, containing two feminine names with the
word u'^>^ and the beginning of another Hebrew word.
8. Do.— Do.
9. Do. — Mv^/xa of Reuben, son of Jacob the Pentaphile ; inscription
preceded by the sign p, iu which I am inclined to see a Christian
symbol.
10. Do. — Do., ANNA son of EIAA2I02.
11. Do.— Do., do.
12. Do.— Do., do.
13. Do. — Two large vase handles stamped with the name of the
potter.
14. Mukhalid. — Greek sepulchral inscription.
15. Do. — Slab with Greek sepulchral inscription.
16. Lydda. — Large Greek Christian inscription engraved in a column
-of the mosque.
17. El Moghar. — Greek Christian sepulchral inscription.
276 LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU.
18. Khirbet er Saide. — Greek Christian inscription. Monumental
and votive — half of this ah-eady known (Guerin and Conder).
19. Ancient Gate of Yabneh.— Fragment of pottery, with word
A0ANA2IOC.
20. Mijmeh el'ade, near Tell el Jezer. — Bilingual inscription in Greek
and Hebrew marking the limit of Gezer.
I have no time at present to give you details of these inscriptions,
which are a rich contribution to the scanty epigraphy of Palestine, and
in which we may see promise of further results in searching again.
Let me call your attention particularly to the group of ten new
inscriptions coming from Jaffa, eight of which are Grseco-Jewish.
The new group belongs to the series which I have been the first to
open up in Jaffa, all coming from the place which I showed on my
arrival here to be the cemetery of the ancient Joppa, from which I have
can-ied away so many curious inscriptions. There is here a valuable
mine to work, and I am convinced that hundreds of inscriptions could be
found here which might throw singular light on the Jewish world at
the commencement of our era. I studied the question carefully during
a four days' halt at Jaffa, and I ended in determining exactly the site
and limits of this cemetery, which extends from the adjacent mamelon
to Suknet Abu Kebir, a length of more than 600 metres.
But the most important inscription of all, the discovery of which is
the grand result of this campaign, is that of Gezer, I have already
touched upon it in a few words written hastily from Jaffa.
Here, then, are new details on the svibgect, pending the full study
which will accompany the original. I send you a drawing of the in-
scription, made by M. Lecomte with his accustomed care and ability.
This may serve as a basis for the observations of savants. I was the
first to establish the identity of Tell el Jezer (the Abu Shusheh of the
maps) with the royal Canaanite city of Gezer, hitherto vainly sought
and generally placed at Yasur. I communicated this discovery to
different persons at Jerusalem, and during my last stay in France I
had the honour of reading before the Academy of Inscriptions a
memoir on the subject, which was only partially published.
I now remember that, when I had finished the reading, the president
of the Academy asked me if I had found on the spot any inscription
confirming this identification, made, so to speak, d priori, and having
for point de depart a little-known passage in Medjr ed Din.
I was obliged to confess that I had not in support of my theory any
proof of this kind, and that I could only quote, outside my nan-ow base,
the classical and critical arguments which from the time of Eobinson
have served to establish the principal Biblical identifications.
Very well ;— this unhoped-for proof, improbable even in Palestine,
where not a single corresponding example has been met with, I have
had the great fortune to find.
At a very short distance from Tell el Jezer, on the east side, the text
in question exists, engraved on a slab of rock nearly horizontal, and
very nciirly two mf'tv*^s in length.
LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-OANNEAU. 277
It is bilingual : it begins with tlie Greek word AAKIO ... in characters
of classical epoch, immediately followed by the Hebrew letters of
ancient square form, of which nothing, I think, can be made except
niJ +nnn.
In the second word we have the very name of Oezerjust as it is written in
the Bible.
As to the first, I can see nothing else than the defective form of
»"inn. The omission of the vuu is perfectly admissible considering
the remote period at which the inscription was written.
As for the signification of the word, it is clearly that of limit. The
word is not Biblical, but it is frequently employed in the Talmud to
determine the distance that must not be exceeded on the Sabbath
(Jay— nntt;n TDinn.
The Hebrew inscription must, then, be translated as limit of Oezer.
Is this the hieratic, or simply the civil limit ?
Two facts appear to argue in favour of the first conjecture : —
1. The special acceptation of the word T^inn in the Talmudic
language.
2. The quality of the city Gezer as belonging to the group of Levitical
cities, so that the observation of the Sabbatical limits would be more
rigorously observed than elsewhere.
I have no time to enter into the still obscure question of the length
of a Sabbath day's journey. I reserve that for the special publication
of this precious text, which will perhaps actually solve it, if it means
really the Sabbatical limit and not a non-religious boundary.
I need not recall the well-known passage, Numbers xxxv. 2 — 34,*
where the limits of the Levitical cities and these suburbs are so
exactly ordered. It may vei'y well be that in the same radius round
Tell el Gezer we may find at the other cardinal points similar inscrip-
tions. I mean to look for them.
One particularity on which I must insist, as it may enlighten us on
the real destination of this singular and unique inscription, is that of
its position. The letters ai'e placed so as to be read, not by any one
who came from Gezer and intended to cross the hieratic boundary, but
by one who coming from without sought to pass within. This makes
me inclined to believe that we have not simply a warning for the
Sabbatic rest, but a line of demarcation much more important and
necessary.
Let me recall, en passant, the fact that Gezer was a frontier town of
Ephraim, though I would not pretend to see a tribe-limit in this city
boundary.
Gezer was a Levitical city (Joshua xxi. 21). " They gave [the
* Ver. 5. "Ye shall measure from without the city on the east side two thou-
sand cubits, and on the south side two thousand cubits, and on the west side two
thousand cuhits, and on the north side two thousand cul>its ; and the city shall be
in the midst," &c.
278 LETTERS FKO.M M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU.
Levites whicli remained of the cliildreu of Koliath] Shecliem with her
suburbs in Mount Ephraim, to be a city of refuge, for the slayer ; and
Gezer with her suburbs."
It is also possible that the Sabbatical limit was the same as the
Levitical.
However that may be, our inscription fixes one point of some peri-
meter about Gezer. The operations of measurement which we shall
proceed to make will perhaps show us whether this radius is one, two,
or three thousand cubits, or whether it is of the length indicated by
several authors as that of the oShs (ra00iTov.
What is the date of the inscription ? Palseographically and histori-
cally it seems that Ave may boldly assign it a date previous to Titus as
a minimum limit.
I should not even hesitate to put it at the Maccabean period, duiing
which Gezer plays so important a part, and becomes a political and
military centre. The Greek and Hebrew characters may very weU
belong to the first centm-y before Christ. The date, I believe, may thus
vary between the two extreme points.
The name of "AX/cws does not help us in fixing it. Is it the name of
a priest, or of a governor of Gezer ? It indicates HeUenized habits
which would be repulsive to the first Asmonseans, and which tend to
bring our inscription down to Herodian times, in which Hellenism was
flourishing.
As to the truncated form axkio, that may be explained by the
fact of the two texts, Hebrew and Greek, being placed end to end on
the same line ; and commencing one at the right and the other at the
left, the engraver carving his Greek word after the other, could not
find room for the whole word, his O abutting on the "> of the word
Oezer. Besides, a broken place in the rock between the A and the K
took up a portion of the space at his disposal.
I think that the limit of the protecting boundary was not marked only
by this inscription on the level of the ground, and difficult to see, but,
besides, by some salient sign, some landmark, or cippus pomariiis, which
has disappeared, the traces of which I intend to look for. The exist-
ence of indicative marks seems pointed out clearly in Numbers xxxv.
4—26.
To sum up, this discovery has for its chief results —
1. The finding of a Hebraeo-Greek text of ancient date, very im-
portant in Jewish epigraphy.
2. The positive confirmation that Gezer is really at Tell el Jezer, as
I had shown from critical considerations.
This startling confirmation of an identification obtained solely by
an inductive method has its weight in other Biblical identifications
established on the same principles, gives them legitimacy, so to speak,
and confii'ms the degree of credibility which belongs to them.
3. The probable solution of the much disputed controversy of the
Sabbath day's journey and the hieratic linuts of Levitical cities.
LETTERS FROM M. CLERMONT-GANNEAU. 279
4. A well-grounded liope of finding in tlie envii'ons of Gezer and the
otlier Levitical cities analogous inscriptions.
I propose to return to Gezer to carry off tlie stone, and to study the
other questions which belong to this subject ; above all to measure the
distance of the inscription from the city.
Our topographic harvest is also abundant : we have collected more
than sixty names which are not found in any of the maps hitherto
published. Very few, however, have escaped Conder. Among them
are certain discoveries and identifications of great importance :—
(1.) A Jeha south of Abu Gosh, which appears to be that where the
inhabitants of Kirjath Jearim deposited the ark.
(2.) Bezlca = El Yezek (El Yezek for El Bezek of Medjr ed Din) which
plays an important part in the battles of the Crusaders with Saladin.
(3.) OyCm Kara = Har-Eakkon and Mejarkon of the tribe of Dan
(Joshua xix. 46).
4. Zernuka = probably by interversion, Sikron of the tribe of Juda
(Joshua XV. 11).
5. Dajun = the real Kefr Dagon of the Onomasticon, between Lydda
and Yabneh, instead of the Beit Dejen hitherto wrongly admitted.
6. Deir Elan, close to Ain Shemes = the great Ebea on which the ark
was placed on arriving from Ekron (1 Sam. vi. 14).
7. The country of Dalila and the Kefr Sorek of the Onomasticon, a
few minutes west of Rafat and near Sara, whence comes the confirma-
tion of the Wady Sarar as the valley of Sorek.
8. Ain Oanmm= (probably) Umvi Jina, &c.
Study of the ethnical names of localities which present the most Different
interesting forms from a linguistic and topographic point of view, tions and
hitherto entirely neglected. I have collected a large number, and I lesends.
have generally obsei-ved that the ethnic form was more archaic than
the name of the locality. Here is the germ of a law which has not yet
been applied, and which resei-ves for us most unexpected discoveries
for Biblical identifications.
I have already pointed out the very striking example presented
in the form Midyeh (Modin). A man of Midyeh is called Midnawy, in
plui'al, Medaw'ne. The ancient word, mutilated in the name of the
village, reappears entirely in the ethnical name.
Legend of Jalud (Goliath) at Esdud, in the very country ; tradition
of a neby flying to Hamama, near Ascalon ; legend of Sampson divided
among several personages in the neighbourhood of Ain Shemeh, whence
it would seem that the tomb of the Danite hero is at Wely Abu'l Meizar,
at Ain Shemesh ; (2) that Beit el Jemal is Eshtaol (Judges xiii. 25, &c.)
The considerable alterations in these confused traditions throughout a
region exclusively rustic and Mussulman are a guarantee that they
have a certain antiquity.
Plans of three unpublished churches : at Beit Niiba (mediaeval) ; at ArchEcoiogy.
Lydda (Greek, contiguous to the Latin church) ; at Yebneh (mediaeval,
with a portal of the purest Western style) ; an abundant crop of masons'
2S0 LETTERS FROM JI. CLERMONT-GANNEAU.
marks; in the mosque of Kamleh. a magnificent lintel ornamented
with animals and Christian symbols ; at Lydda a bridge constructed
by Bibars out of the ruins of the Crusaders' Cathedral ; application and
striking confirmation of the law as to mediajval dressing at the
church of Abu Gosh ; fragment of a magnificent marble statue coming
from Csesarea ; a beautiful marble head from Khalasa, &c., and a
quantity of details more or less important, forming a mass of designs
and sketches too long to enumerate.
-"o
Juhj 8, 1874.
I told you in my last letter that I was most anxious to explore the
neighbourhood of Gezer, persuaded that my inscription could not be
the only one, and that we might find a series staking out the sacred
limits.
I have discovered a second, ivhich is the exact reproduction and the 7nost
startling confirmation of the former. It is placed due north-west of the
first, at a distance of loO metres (169"6 yards). It results from this
that the sacred houndary loas a square, having its four angles at the four
cardinal poi^its.
July 12, 1874.
I think I did not tell you in my last that we found between the first
and the second inscriptions certain other characters, apparently
Hebrew, cut in the rock. Lecomte remarked them first. I hesitate
about the first and second ; the thii-d seems a teth, and the fourth an
aleph .
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