Sacred Geography.

CANAAN, OR THE HOLY LAND.*

Of the principal Buildings in, and about Jerusalem.

In the last number of our work, we stated, that the site of the ancient temple of Jerusalem was now occupied by the splendid mosque of Al-Harem, or the mosque of Solomon. We have to apologize for having remarked in connection with this, that as no Christian was permitted to enter this building under pain of death, no account of its interior was to be obtained upon which reliance could be placed. This was owing to our having overlooked the very interesting, and no doubt, accurate description, given of this sumptuous building by Dr. Richardson, who, availing himself of the great influence which his professional character gave him, visited its interior four times, and examined its various parts with great attention.

From the descriptions of this very intelligent traveller we are enabled to present our readers with the following account of this Mahommedan temple:†

Laying aside his white burnouse, that he might not be detected as a Christian by his colours, he put on a black abba of the Capo Verde's, and, escorted by a black interpreter, ascended the southern slope of mount Moriah, passed the house of the cadi, and entered by the gate into the Haram Schereeff. "This," says the doctor, "is the name which is given to the whole space enclosed about the mosque, and is interpreted to mean the grand or noble retirement for devotion. Proceeding forward a few yards, we ascended a flight of steps, and got upon the Stoa Sakhara, an elevated platform, floored with marble, all round the mosque, from the door of which we were now distant but a few paces. On our arrival at the door, a gentle knock brought up the sacristan, who, apprized of our arrival, was waiting within to receive us. He demanded, rather sternly, who we were, and was answered by my black conductor in tones not less consequential than his own. The door immediately edged up, to prevent, as much as possible, the light from shining out, and we squeezed ourselves in with a light and noiseless step, although there was no person near who could be alarmed by the loudest sound of our bare feet upon the marble floor. The door was no sooner shut

Continued from p. 61.

†The Mussulman religion acknowledges but two temples: that of Mecca, and this of Jerusalem.

than the sacristan, taking a couple of candles in his hand, showed us all over the interior of this building, pointing, in the pride of his heart, to the elegant marble walls, the beautifully gilded ceiling, the well at which the true worshippers drink and wash, with which we also blessed our palates and moistened our beards, the paltry reading-desk, with the ancient Koran, the handsome columns, and the green stone, with the wonderful nails. As soon as we had completed this circuit, pulling a key from his girdle, he unlocked the door of the railing which separates the outer from the inner part of the mosque, which, with an elevation of two or three steps, led us into the sacred recess; where he pointed out the patches of mosaic in the floor, the round flat stone which the Prophet carried on his arm in battle; directed us to introduce our hand through the hole in the wooden box to feel the print of the Prophet's foot, and through the posts of the wooden rail to feel as well as to see the marks of the angel Gabriel's fingers, into which I carefully put my own, in the sacred stone that occupies the centre of the mosque, and from which it derives the name of Sakhara, or locked-up; and over which is suspended a fine cloth of green and red satin, but which was so covered with dust, that, but for the information of my guide, I should not have been able to tell the composing colours; and, finally, he pointed to the door that leads into the small cavern below, of which he had not the key. I looked up to the interior of the dome; but there being few lamps burning, the light was not sufficient to shew me any of its beauty, farther than a general glance. The columns and curiosities were counted over again and again, the arches were specially examined and enumerated, to be sure that I had not missed nor forgotten any of them. Writing would have been an ungracious behaviour, calculated to excite a thousand suspicions, that next day would have gone to swell the general current of the city gossip, to the prejudice both of myself and my friend. Having examined the adytum, we once more touched the footstep of the Prophet, and the finger prints of the angel Gabriel, and descended the steps, over which the door was immediately secured. viewed a second time the interior of the building, drank of the well, counted the remaining nails in the green stone, as well as the empty holes; then, having put a dollar into the hands of the sacristan, which he grasped very hard with his fist while he obstinately refused it with his tongue, we hied us out at the gate of Paradise, Bab el Jenné, and, having made the exterior circuit of the mosque, we passed by the judgment-seat of Solomon, and descended from the Stoa Sakhara by another flight of steps into the outer field of this elegant enclosure. Here we put on our shoes, and turning to the left, walked through the trees, that were but thinly scattered in the smooth grassy turf, to a house that adjoins the wall of the enclosure, which, in this place, is also the wall of the city, and which is said to contain the throne of king Solomon. Here there was no admittance; and from this we proceeded to a stair which led up to the top of the wall, and sat down upon the stone on which Mahomet is to sit at the Day of Judgment, to judge the reimbodied spirits assem

We

bled beneath him in the valley of Jehoshaphat. Descending from this seat of tremendous anticipation, which, if Mahomet were made of flesh and blood, would be as trying to him as his countenance would be alarming to the reimbodied spirits, we walked along the front of El Aksa, the other mosque, which occupies the side, as the Sakhara does the centre of the enclosure, and arrived at another fountain, were we again washed our beards and tasted the water. We had scarcely advanced half a dozen steps from the cooling wave, when a voice from the window of the cadi's house, as it appeared to me, called out, Who goes there? Had I been alone, and so challenged, I should have been puzzled for an answer, for my tongue would instantly have betrayed me, had I been inclined to counterfeit; but my sable attendant replied, in a tone of surly and fearless confidence, Men, and be d-mn-d to you! what's your business?' The call was from some of the santones of the mosque, of which Omar Effendi is the head, and hearing the well-known voice of his myrmidon, the challenger slunk into his cell, and we continued our walk, without farther interruption round to the house of the governor, where, having made the circuit of the Harám Schereeff, we retraced our steps, passed out by the gate at which we entered, and regained the house of Omar Effendi. Here I laid aside the black abba, resumed my white burnouse, and walked into the room as gravely as if nothing had happened. The noble Turk, participating in my joy, received me with a smiling countenance, sat me down by his side, and enquired if I had seen the Sakhara? I rejoined in the affirmative; and perceiving that the cause of my absence was no secret to those who were now assembled around him, I expressed my high admiration of its beauty, and my sincere thanks to him for having permitted me the envied gratification of seeing what had been refused to the whole Christian world, during the long period of its appropriation to the religion of the Prophet, with the exception of de Hayes, the ambassador of Lewis the Thirteenth, who did not avail himself of the permission.

"He next proceeded to examine me in detail on the different places that I had seen, and when his queries were exhausted, I begged of him to explain to me certain terms used by my guide, which I did not fully comprehend, and afterwards to explain to me the interior of the dome. He regretted that the want of light had prevented me from seeing it, and was proceeding to supply the defect by a verbal description, when his brother, who was sitting on the other side of the divan, called out, Why don't you go in during the day?' The question electrified me with joy; but considering it perhaps as a little rash, I looked at the Capo Verde before making any reply, when he speedily removed all doubt respecting his brother's prudence, by converting the query into the imperative sanction of yes, go in during the day; which was no sooner said than cordially accepted, and his brother and cousin, each moving his two fore-fingers in a parallel direction, said Sava, Sava, we shall go in together as a token of friendship and respect. Several other Turks did the same, for in these countries the friendship of the

principal person always ensures the officious and often troublesome attention of his inferiors and dependants.

"Next day, having previously provided myself with a pencil, which a friend was kind enough to lend me, I returned at noon to the house of the Capo Verde, which was the time and place fixed for our rendezvous, and immediately, in company with four well dressed, long bearded Turks, repaired to the Harám Schereeff, which we entered by the same gate as I had done the evening before.

"This sacred enclosure is the sunny spot of Moslem devotion. There is no sod like that which covers the ample area of its contents, and no mosque at all comparable to the Sakhara. Here the god of day pours his choicest rays in a flood of light, that streaming all round upon the marble pavement, mingles its softened tints in the verdant turf, and leaves nothing to compare with, or desire beyond. It seems as if the glory of the temple still dwelt upon the mosque, and the glory of Solomon still covered the site of his temple. On the same spot and under the same sun the memory conjures up a thousand delightful remembrances, and contemplates in review the glorious house, the dedication and prayer of the wisest of kings, spreading forth his hands in the midst of his people, the fire descending upon the burnt-offering and the sacrifice, and the glory of the Lord filling the house; with the people bowing down with their faces. to the pavement, and worshipping and praising the Lord, for he is good, for his mercy endureth for ever.' The spectator forgets that it is a house of foreign devotion, and feels as if in the radiant opalescence of its light, an inviting ray was sent forth to the heart of every returning Israelite to this ancient centre of prayer. There is no reflected light like the light from the Sakhara; like the glorious sun itself it stands alone in the world, and there is but one spot on earth, were all things typical were done away, that sinks a deeper interest into the heart of the Christian.

"The dimensions of this noble enclosure, as furnished me by the cousin of Omar Effendi, are in length six hundred and sixty peeks of Constantinople, that is, about one thousand four hundred and eighty-nine feet, measuring from the arch of prayer in El Aksa to the Bab el Salâm, or gate of peace, which is the name of the gate on the opposite end. In breadth it is four hundred and forty peeks, or nine hundred and ninety-five feet, measuring from Allah dien to the gate Beseri on the west.

"This spacious square is enclosed on the east and on the south by the wall of the city; through which there is only one gate, and that leads into El Aksa on the south. There were formerly two gates on the east side, and the gate of Tobet, Bab el Tobé, both of which are now built up. The other two sides of the square are in the town. The west side is enclosed by a line of Turkish houses, and is entered by five gates; the north side is enclosed partly by a wall, and partly by Turkish houses, and is entered by three gates. Having passed in by either of these gates, the visitor enters what may be called the outer court of the Harám Schereeff, which is a fine smooth level space all round the Stoa Sakhara, falling with a gentle