Early Travels in Palestine Part 4

Some pilgrims embark at Bari, others at Barlo (Barletta?), some at Siponte, or at Trani; while others take ship at Otranto, the entrance port of Apulia. We set sail from Monopoli, one day's journey from Bari, on Sunday, being the feast of St. Mildred[57]. But starting at an unlucky hour, as happened to us again on a subsequent occasion, we had not proceeded more than three miles, when the mercy of G.o.d alone saved us from perishing; for the same day the violence of the waves wrecked our vessel, but with G.o.d's help we all reached the sh.o.r.e in safety. We then went to Brandia[58], and again our ship, being refitted, set sail on an unlucky day[59], and reached the town of Corfu, on the eve of St.

James the Apostle[60]. From thence we were driven by a tempest to the island of Cephalonia, which we reached on the 1st of August. Here Robert Guiscard died[61]; we also lost some of our party, which was the cause of sadness to us. We next touched at Polipolis[62]; after which we came to the celebrated island of Patras, the city of which we entered for the sake of praying to St. Andrew the Apostle, who suffered martyrdom and was buried here, but was afterwards translated to Constantinople. From Patras we went to Corinth, which we reached on the eve of St.

Lawrence[63]. St. Paul preached the word of G.o.d here, and wrote an epistle to the citizens. In this place we suffered many contrarieties.

Thence we sailed to the port of Hosta[64]; from which place we proceeded, some on foot, others on a.s.ses, to the city of Thebes, vulgarly called Stivas. On the eve of St. Bartholomew the Apostle[65], we came to Nigropont, where we hired another ship. Athens, where the Apostle Paul preached, is two days' journey from Corinth; St. Dionysius was born and taught there, and was afterwards converted by St. Paul.

Here is a church of the blessed Virgin Mary, which has a lamp that burns always and never wants oil.

We went afterwards to the island of Petalion[66]; thence to Andros, where are made rich sindals and samits and other stuffs of silk. We then touched successively at Tinos, Syra, Miconi, and Naxia, near which is the famous island of Crete. Next we came to Carea (Khero), Amorgo, Samos, Scio, and Meteline. We then proceeded to Pathmos, where St. John the Apostle and Evangelist, banished by Domitian Caesar, wrote the Revelations. On the side towards Smyrna, a day's journey distant, is Ephesus, where he afterwards entered the sepulchre living; the apostle Paul, moreover, wrote an Epistle to the Ephesians. Then we came to the isles of Lero and Calimno, and afterwards to Ancho[67], where Galen, the physician most celebrated among the Greeks, was born. Thence we pa.s.sed over to the port of Lido[68], a city destroyed, where t.i.tus, the disciple of St. Paul, preached. Next, to Asus, which is interpreted silvery.

Our next station was the famous island of Rhodes, which is said to have possessed one of the seven wonders of the world, the idol called Colossus, which was a hundred and twenty feet high, and was destroyed by the Persians, with nearly all the province of Romania, when they were on their way to Spain. These are the Colossians, to whom St. Paul the Apostle wrote his epistle[69]. Hence, it is a distance of one day to the city of Patera, where St. Nicholas the archbishop was born, and where we arrived in the evening, after escaping a violent storm. Next morning we sailed to an entirely desolate town called Mogronissi of St. Mary, which means Long Island, which it would appear by the churches and other buildings had been inhabited by the Christians, after they had been driven by the Turks from Alexandria[70]. Then we came to the city of Myra, where St. Nicholas was archbishop, and which is the port of the Adriatic Sea, as Constantinople is the port of the aegean Sea. After having worshipped at the sepulchre of the saint, we sailed to the island which is called Xindacopo[71], which means sixty oars, on account of the force of the sea; near it is the port and district of Finica. Thence we sailed over the broad part of the Adriatic Sea[72], to the city of Paffus (Baffo), which is in the isle of Cyprus, where all the Apostles met after the ascension of our Lord, and held a council for the arrangement of the affairs of the gospel, on which occasion they sent forth St. Barnabas to preach; after whose death St. Peter went thence to Joppa, and sowed the seed of G.o.d's word there, before he ascended the episcopal see of Antioch.

After leaving the isle of Cyprus, we were tossed about by tempestuous weather for seven days and seven nights, being forced back one night almost to the spot from which we sailed; but after much suffering, by divine mercy, at sun-rise on the eighth day, we saw before us the coast of the port of Joppa, which filled us with an unexpected and extraordinary joy. Thus, after a course of thirteen weeks, as we took ship at Monopoli, on a Sunday, having dwelt constantly on the waves of the sea, or in islands, or in deserted cots and sheds (for the Greeks are not hospitable), we put into the port of Joppa, with great rejoicings and thanksgivings, on a Sunday[73].

And now, my dear friends, all join with me in thanking G.o.d for his mercy shown to me through this long voyage; blessed be his name now and evermore! Listen now to a new instance of his mercy shown to me, although the lowest of his servants, and to my companions. The very day we came in sight of the port, one said to me (I believe by divine inspiration), "Sir, go on sh.o.r.e to-day, lest a storm come on in the night, which will render it impossible to land to-morrow." When I heard this, I was suddenly seized with a great desire of landing, and, having hired a boat, went into it, with all my companions; but, before I had reached the sh.o.r.e, the sea was troubled, and became continually more tempestuous. We landed, however, with G.o.d's grace, without hurt, and entering the city weary and hungry, we secured a lodging, and reposed ourselves that night. But next morning, as we were returning from church, we heard the roaring of the sea, and the shouts of the people, and saw that every body was in confusion and astonishment. We were also dragged along with the crowd to the sh.o.r.e, where we saw the waves swelling higher than mountains, and innumerable bodies of drowned persons of both s.e.xes scattered over the beach, while the fragments of ships were floating on every side. Nothing was to be heard but the roaring of the sea and the dashing together of the ships, which drowned entirely the shouts and clamour of the people. Our own ship, which was a very large and strong one, and many others laden with corn and merchandise, as well as with pilgrims coming and returning, still held by their anchors, but how they were tossed by the waves! how their crews were filled with terror! how they cast overboard their merchandise! what eye of those who were looking on could be so hard and stony as to refrain from tears? We had not looked at them long before the ships were driven from their anchors by the violence of the waves, which threw them now up aloft, and now down, until they were run aground or upon the rocks, and there they were beaten backwards and forwards until they were crushed to pieces. For the violence of the wind would not allow them to put out to sea, and the character of the coast would not allow them to put into sh.o.r.e with safety. Of the sailors and pilgrims who had lost all hope of escape, some remained on the ships, others laid hold of the masts or beams of wood; many remained in a state of stupor, and were drowned in that condition without any attempt to save themselves; some (although it may appear incredible) had in my sight their heads knocked off by the very timbers of the ships to which they had attached themselves for safety; others were carried out to sea on the beams, instead of being brought to land; even those who knew how to swim had not strength to struggle with the waves, and very few thus trusting to their own strength reached the sh.o.r.e alive. Thus, out of thirty very large ships, of which some were what are commonly called dromunds, some gulafres, and others cats[74], all laden with palmers and with merchandise, scarcely seven remained safe when we left the sh.o.r.e. Of persons of both s.e.xes, there perished more than a thousand that day.

Indeed, no eye ever beheld a greater misfortune in the s.p.a.ce of a single day, from all which G.o.d s.n.a.t.c.hed us by his grace; to whom be honour and glory for ever. Amen.

We went up from Joppa to the city of Jerusalem, a journey of two days, by a mountainous road, very rough, and dangerous on account of the Saracens, who lie in wait in the caves of the mountains to surprise the Christians, watching both day and night to surprise those less capable of resisting by the smallness of their company, or the weary, who may chance to lag behind their companions. At one moment, you see them on every side; at another, they are altogether invisible, as may be witnessed by any body travelling there. Numbers of human bodies lie scattered in the way, and by the way-side, torn to pieces by wild beasts. Some may, perhaps, wonder that the bodies of Christians are allowed to remain unburied, but it is not surprising when we consider that there is not much earth on the hard rock to dig a grave; and if earth were not wanting, who would be so simple as to leave his company, and go alone to dig a grave for a companion? Indeed, if he did so, he would rather be digging a grave for himself than for the dead man. For on that road, not only the poor and weak, but the rich and strong, are surrounded with perils; many are cut off by the Saracens, but more by heat and thirst; many perish by the want of drink, but more by too much drinking. We, however, with all our company, reached the end of our journey in safety. Blessed be the Lord, who did not turn away my prayer, and hath not turned his mercy from me. Amen.

The entrance to the city of Jerusalem is from the west, under the citadel of king David, by the gate which is called the gate of David.

The first place to be visited is the church of the Holy Sepulchre, which is called the Martyrdom, not only because the streets lead most directly to it, but because it is more celebrated than all the other churches; and that rightly and justly, for all the things which were foretold and forewritten by the holy prophets of our Saviour Jesus Christ were there actually fulfilled. The church itself was royally and magnificently built, after the discovery of our Lord's cross, by the archbishop Maximus, with the patronage of the emperor Constantine, and his mother Helena. In the middle of this church is our Lord's Sepulchre, surrounded by a very strong wall and roof, lest the rain should fall upon the Holy Sepulchre, for the church above is open to the sky. This church is situated, like the city, on the declivity of Mount Sion. The Roman emperors t.i.tus and Vespasian, to revenge our Lord, entirely destroyed the city of Jerusalem, that our Lord's prophecy might be fulfilled, which, as he approached Jerusalem, seeing the city, he p.r.o.nounced, weeping over it, "If thou hadst known, even thou, for the day shall come upon thee, that thine enemies shall cast a trench about thee, and compa.s.s thee round, and keep thee in on every side, and shall lay thee even with the ground, and thy children with thee; and they shall not leave in thee one stone upon another."[75] We know that our Lord suffered without the gate. But the emperor Hadrian, who was called aelius, rebuilt the city of Jerusalem, and the Temple of the Lord, and added to the city as far as the Tower of David, which was previously a considerable distance from the city, for any one may see from the Mount of Olivet where the extreme western walls of the city stood originally, and how much it is since increased. And the emperor called the city after his own name aelia, which is interpreted the House of G.o.d. Some, however, say that the city was rebuilt by the emperor Justinian, and also the Temple of the Lord as it is now; but they say that according to supposition, and not according to truth. For the a.s.syrians[76], whose fathers dwelt in that country from the first persecution, say that the city was taken and destroyed many times after our Lord's Pa.s.sion, along with all the churches, but not entirely defaced.

In the court of the church of our Lord's sepulchre are seen some very holy places, namely, the prison in which our Lord Jesus Christ was confined after he was betrayed, according to the testimony of the a.s.syrians; then, a little above, appears the place where the holy cross and the other crosses were found, where afterwards a large church was built in honour of queen Helena, but which has since been utterly destroyed by the Pagans; and below, not far from the prison, stands the marble column to which our Lord Jesus Christ was bound in the common hall, and scourged with most cruel stripes. Near this is the spot where our Lord was stripped of his garments by the soldiers; and next, the place where he was clad in a purple vest by the soldiers, and crowned with the crown of thorns, and they cast lots for his garments. Next we ascend Mount Calvary, where the patriarch Abraham raised an altar, and prepared, by G.o.d's command, to sacrifice his own son; there afterwards the Son of G.o.d, whom he prefigured, was offered up as a sacrifice to G.o.d the Father for the redemption of the world. The rock of that mountain remains a witness of our Lord's pa.s.sion, being much cracked near the foss in which our Lord's cross was fixed, because it could not suffer the death of its Maker without splitting, as we read in the Pa.s.sion, "and the rocks rent."[77] Below is the place called Golgotha, where Adam is said to have been raised to life by the blood of our Lord which fell upon him, as is said in the Pa.s.sion, "And many bodies of the saints which slept arose."[78] But in the Sentences of St. Augustine, we read that he was buried in Hebron, where also the three patriarchs were afterwards buried with their wives; Abraham with Sarah, Isaac with Rebecca, and Jacob with Leah; as well as the bones of Joseph, which the Children of Israel carried with them from Egypt. Near the place of Calvary is the church of St. Mary, on the spot where the body of our Lord, after having been taken down from the cross, was anointed before it was buried, and wrapped in a linen cloth or shroud.

At the head of the church of the Holy Sepulchre, in the wall outside, not far from the place of Calvary, is the place called Compas, which our Lord Jesus Christ himself signified and measured with his own hand as the middle of the world, according to the words of the Psalmist, "For G.o.d is my king of old, working salvation in the midst of the earth."[79]

But some say that that is the place where our Lord Jesus Christ first appeared to Mary Magdalene, while she sought him weeping, and thought he had been a gardener, as is related in the Gospel. These most holy places of prayer are contained in the court of our Lord's Sepulchre, on the east side. In the sides of the church itself are attached, on one side and the other, two most beautiful chapels in honour of St. Mary and St.

John, as they, partic.i.p.ating in our Lord's sufferings, stationed themselves beside him here and there. On the west wall of the chapel of St. Mary is seen the picture of our Lord's Mother, painted externally, who once, by speaking wonderfully through the Holy Spirit, in the form in which she is here painted, comforted Mary the Egyptian, when she repented with her whole heart, and sought the help of the Mother of our Lord, as we read in her life. On the other side of the church of St.

John is a very fair monastery of the Holy Trinity, in which is the place of the baptistery, to which adjoins the chapel of St. John the Apostle, who first filled the pontifical see at Jerusalem. These are all so composed and arranged, that any one standing in the furthest church may clearly perceive the five churches from door to door.

Without the gate of the Holy Sepulchre, to the south, is the church of St. Mary, called the Latin, because the monks there perform divine service in the Latin tongue; and the a.s.syrians say that the blessed Mother of our Lord, at the crucifixion of her Son, stood on the spot now occupied by the altar of this church. Adjoining to this church is another church of St. Mary, called the Little, occupied by nuns who serve devoutly the Virgin and her Son. Near which is the Hospital, where is a celebrated monastery founded in honour of St. John the Baptist.

We descend from our Lord's sepulchre, about the distance of two arbalist-shots, to the Temple of the Lord, which is to the east of the Holy Sepulchre, the court of which is of great length and breadth, having many gates; but the princ.i.p.al gate, which is in front of the Temple, is called the Beautiful, on account of its elaborate workmanship and variety of colours, and is the spot where Peter healed Claudius, when he and John went up into the Temple at the ninth hour of prayer, as we read in the Acts of the Apostles. The place where Solomon built the Temple was called anciently Bethel; whither Jacob repaired by G.o.d's command, and where he dwelt, and saw the ladder whose summit touched heaven, and the angels ascending and descending, and said, "Truly this place is holy," as we read in Genesis. There he raised a stone as a memorial, and constructed an altar, and poured oil upon it; and in the same place afterwards, by G.o.d's will, Solomon built a temple to the Lord of magnificent and incomparable work, and decorated it wonderfully with every ornament, as we read in the Book of Kings. It exceeded all the mountains around in height, and all walls and buildings in brilliancy and glory. In the middle of which temple is seen a high and large rock, hollowed beneath, in which was the Holy of Holies. In this place Solomon placed the Ark of the Covenant, having the Manna and the Rod of Aaron, which flourished and budded there and produced almonds, and the two Tables of the Testament; here our Lord Jesus Christ, wearied with the insolence of the Jews, was accustomed to repose; here was the place of confession, where his disciples confessed themselves to him; here the angel Gabriel appeared to Zacharias, saying, "Thou shalt receive a child in thy old age;" here Zacharias, the son of Barachias, was slain between the temple and the altar; here the child Jesus was circ.u.mcised on the eighth day, and named Jesus, which is interpreted Saviour; here the Lord Jesus was offered by his parents, with the Virgin Mary, on the day of her purification, and received by the aged Simeon; here, also, when Jesus was twelve years of age, he was found sitting in the midst of the doctors, hearing and interrogating them, as we read in the Gospel; here afterwards he cast out the oxen, and sheep, and pigeons, saying, "My house shall be a house of prayer;" and here he said to the Jews, "Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up." There still are seen in the rock the footsteps of our Lord, when he concealed himself, and went out from the Temple, as we read in the Gospel, lest the Jews should throw at him the stones they carried. Thither the woman taken in adultery was brought before Jesus by the Jews, that they might find some accusation against him[80]. There is the gate of the city on the eastern side of the Temple, which is called the Golden, where Joachim, the father of the Blessed Mary, by order of the Angel of the Lord, met his wife Anne. By the same gate the Lord Jesus, coming from Bethany on the day of olives, sitting on an a.s.s, entered the city of Jerusalem, while the children sang, "Hosanna to the son of David." By this gate the emperor Heraclius entered Jerusalem, when he returned victorious from Persia, with the cross of our Lord; but the stones first fell down and closed up the pa.s.sage, so that the gate became one ma.s.s, until humbling himself at the admonition of an angel, he descended from his horse, and so the entrance was opened to him. In the court of the Temple of the Lord, to the south, is the Temple of Solomon, of wonderful magnitude, on the east side of which is an oratory containing the cradle of Christ, and his bath, and the bed of the Virgin Mary, according to the testimony of the a.s.syrians[81].

From the Temple of the Lord you go to the church of St. Anne, the mother of the Blessed Mary, towards the north, where she lived with her husband, and she was there delivered of her daughter Mary. Near it is the pool called in Hebrew Bethsaida, having five porticoes, of which the Gospel speaks. A little above is the place where the woman was healed by our Lord, by touching the hem of his garment, while he was surrounded by a crowd in the street[82].

From St. Anne we pa.s.s through the gate which leads to the Valley of Jehoshaphat, to the church of St. Mary in the same valley, where she was honourably buried by the Apostles after her death; her sepulchre, as is just and proper, is revered with the greatest honours by the faithful, and monks perform service there day and night. Here is the brook Cedron; here also is Gethsemane, where our Lord came with his disciples from Mount Sion, over the brook Cedron, before the hour of his betrayal; there is a certain oratory where he dismissed Peter, James, and John, saying, "Tarry ye here, and watch with me;"[83] and going forward, he fell on his face and prayed, and came to his disciples, and found them sleeping: the places are still visible where the disciples slept, apart from each other. Gethsemane is at the foot of Mount Olivet, and the brook Cedron below, between Mount Sion and Mount Olivet, as it were the division of the mountains; and the low ground between the mountains is the Valley of Jehoshaphat. A little above, in Mount Olivet, is an oratory in the place where our Lord prayed, as we read in the Pa.s.sion, "And he was withdrawn from them about a stone's cast, and being in an agony, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was, as it were, great drops of blood falling down to the ground."[84] Next we come to Aceldama, the field bought with the price of the Lord, also at the foot of Mount Olivet, near a valley about three or four arbalist-shots to the south of Gethsemane, where are seen innumerable monuments. That field is near the sepulchres of the holy fathers Simeon the Just and Joseph the foster-father of our Lord. These two sepulchres are ancient structures, in the manner of towers, cut into the foot of the mountain itself. We next descend, by Aceldama, to the fountain which is called the Pool of Siloah, where, by our Lord's command, the man born blind washed his eyes, after the Lord had anointed them with clay and spittle.

From the church of St. Mary before mentioned, we go up by a very steep path nearly to the summit of Mount Olivet, towards the east, to the place whence our Lord ascended to heaven in the sight of his disciples.

The place is surrounded by a little tower, and honourably adorned, with an altar raised on the spot within, and also surrounded on all sides with a wall. On the spot where the Apostles stood with his mother, wondering at his ascension, is an altar of St. Mary; there the two men in white garments stood by them, saying, "Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing into heaven?" About a stone's throw from that place is the spot where, according to the a.s.syrians, our Lord wrote the Lord's Prayer in Hebrew, with his own fingers, on marble; and there a very beautiful church was built, but it has since been entirely destroyed by the Pagans, as are all the churches outside the walls, except the church of the Holy Ghost on Mount Sion, about an arrow-shot from the wall to the north, where the Apostles received the promise of the Father, namely, the Paraclete Spirit, on the day of Pentecost; there they made the Creed. In that church is a chapel in the place where the Blessed Mary died. On the other side of the church is the chapel where our Lord Jesus Christ first appeared to the Apostles after his resurrection, and it is called Galilee, as he said to the Apostles, "After I am risen again, I will go before you unto Galilee."[85] That place was called Galilee, because the Apostles, who were called Galileans, frequently rested there.

The great city of Galilee is by Mount Tabor, a journey of three days from Jerusalem. On the other side of Mount Tabor is the city called Tiberias, and after it Capernaum and Nazareth, on the sea of Galilee or sea of Tiberias, whither Peter and the other Apostles, after the resurrection, returned to their fishing, and where the Lord afterwards showed himself to them on the sea. Near the city of Tiberias is the field where the Lord Jesus blessed the five loaves and two fishes, and afterwards fed four thousand men with them, as we read in the Gospel.

But I will return to my immediate subject.

In the Galilee of Mount Sion, where the Apostles were concealed in an inner chamber, with closed doors, for fear of the Jews, Jesus stood in the middle of them and said, "Peace be unto you;"[86] and he again appeared there when Thomas put his finger into his side and into the place of the nails. There he supped with his disciples before the Pa.s.sion, and washed their feet; and the marble table is still preserved there on which he supped. There the relics of St. Stephen, Nicodemus, Gamaliel, and Abido, were honourably deposited by St. John the Patriarch after they were found. The stoning of St. Stephen took place about two or three arbalist-shots without the wall, to the north, where a very handsome church was built, which has been entirely destroyed by the Pagans. The church of the Holy Cross, about a mile to the west of Jerusalem, in the place where the holy cross was cut out, and which was also a very handsome one, has been similarly laid waste by the Pagans; but the destruction here fell chiefly on the surrounding buildings and the cells of the monks, the church itself not having suffered so much.

Under the wall of the city, outside, on the declivity of Mount Sion, is the church of St. Peter, which is called the Gallican, where, after having denied his Lord, he hid himself in a very deep crypt, as may still be seen there, and there wept bitterly for his offence. About three miles to the west of the church of the Holy Cross is a very fine and large monastery in honour of St. Saba, who was one of the seventy-two disciples of our Lord Jesus Christ. There were above three hundred Greek monks living there, in the service of the Lord and of the Saint, of whom the greater part have been slain by the Saracens, and the few who remain have taken up their abode in another monastery of the same Saint, within the walls of the city, near the tower of David, their other monastery being left entirely desolate.

The city of Bethlehem in Judea is six miles to the north of Jerusalem.

The Saracens have left nothing there habitable, but every thing is destroyed (as in the other holy places without the walls of the city of Jerusalem) except the monastery of the blessed Virgin Mary, which is a large and n.o.ble building. In the church there is a crypt under the choir, about the middle, in which is seen the place of our Lord's nativity, as it were to the left. A little lower, to the right, near the place of the nativity, is the manger where the ox and a.s.s stood when the child was placed before them in it; and the stone which supported the head of our Saviour in the sepulchre, which was brought hither from Jerusalem by St. Jerome the Presbyter, may be seen in the manger. St.

Jerome himself rests in the same church, under the altar, to the north-east; and the innocents who were slain for the infant Christ, by Herod, lie under the altar on the north part of the church, as well as the two most holy women, Paula and her daughter Eustochium, the virgin.

There is the marble table on which the blessed Virgin Mary eat with the three Magians, after they had given their offerings. There is a cistern in the church, near the crypt of our Lord's nativity, into which the star is said to have fallen. There, also, is said to be the bath of the blessed Virgin Mary.

Bethany, where Lazarus was raised by our Lord from the dead, is distant from the city about two miles to the east, on the other side of Mount Olivet, and contains the church of St. Lazarus, in which is seen his sepulchre, as well as those of many bishops of Jerusalem. Under the altar is the place where Mary Magdalene washed the feet of our Lord Jesus with her tears, and wiped them with her hair, and kissed his feet and anointed them with ointment. Bethphage, where our Lord sent forward his disciples to the city, is on Mount Olivet, but nearly all traces of it have disappeared. Jericho, where is the garden of Abraham, is ten leagues from Jerusalem, in a land covered with trees, and producing all kinds of palms and other fruits. There is the well of the prophet Elisha, the water of which was most bitter to drink and productive of sterility, until he blessed it and threw salt into it, when it became sweet. This place is surrounded on every side by a beautiful plain. From thence we ascend a lofty mountain, to the spot where our Lord fasted forty days, and where he was afterwards tempted by Satan, about three miles from Jericho.

The river Jordan is four leagues to the east of Jericho. On this side Jordan is the region called Judea, as far as the Adriatic Sea, that is, to the port which is called Joppa; on the other side Jordan is Arabia, most hostile to Christians, and hateful to all who worship G.o.d, in which is the mountain whence Elijah was carried into heaven in a fiery chariot. It is eighteen days' journey from Jordan to Mount Sinai, where the Lord appeared to Moses in the burning bush, and where, afterwards, Moses ascended by G.o.d's command, and was there fasting forty days and as many nights, and there received from the Lord the two stone tables, written by the finger of G.o.d, to teach the Children of Israel the law and the commandments, which were contained in the same tables.

Hebron, where the holy patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob repose, each with his wife, and where Adam, the first of mankind, is also buried, is distant from Bethlehem four leagues to the south. Here king David reigned seven years, before he obtained possession of the city of Jerusalem from the family of king Saul. The city of Hebron, which was large and very handsome, is destroyed by the Saracens. On the eastern side of it the monuments of the holy patriarchs, of ancient workmanship, are surrounded by a very strong castle, each of the three monuments being like a great church, with two sarcophagi placed in a very honourable manner within, that is, one for the man and one for the woman; and, even at the present day, the smell of the balsam and precious aromatics with which the bodies were anointed, rising sweetly from the sepulchre, fills the nostrils of those who stand round them.

But the bones of Joseph, which the Children of Israel, as he had charged them, brought with them out of Egypt, are buried, more humbly than the rest, as it were, at the extremity of the castle. The holm-oak, under the shade of which Abraham stood when he saw the three youths descending by the road, still flourishes and bears leaves, according to the statement of the inhabitants of the place, not far distant from the aforesaid castle.

The city of Nazareth of Galilee, where the blessed Virgin Mary received the salutation of our Lord's nativity from the angel, is about four days' journey from Jerusalem, the road lying through Sichem, a city of Samaria, which is now called Neapolis, where St. John the Baptist received sentence of decollation from Herod. There, also, is the well of Jacob, where Jesus, weary with his journey, thirsty, and sitting upon the well, condescended to ask water of the Samaritan woman who came thither to draw it, as we read in the Gospel. From Sichem we come to Caesarea of Palestine, from Caesarea to Cayphas[87], and from Cayphas to Accaron[88]. Nazareth is about eight miles to the east of Accaron. The city of Nazareth is entirely laid waste and overthrown by the Saracens; but the place of the annunciation of our Lord is indicated by a very n.o.ble monastery. A most limpid fountain bubbles out near the city, still surrounded, as formerly, with marble columns and blocks, from which the child Jesus, with other children, often drew water for the use of his mother.

From Nazareth we proceed about four miles to the east, to Mount Tabor, the scene of our Lord's transfiguration, which is covered in an extraordinary manner with gra.s.s and flowers, and rises in the middle of the green plain of Galilee so as to exceed in alt.i.tude all the mountains which, though at a distance, surround it. On the summit still remain three ancient monasteries; one in honour of our Lord Jesus Christ; another in honour of Moses; and a third, at some distance from the others, in honour of Elias, according to the words of Peter, "Lord, it is good for us to be here; if thou wilt, let us make here three tabernacles, one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elias."[89]

The sea of Galilee is about six miles from Mount Tabor to the east and north-east, and is about ten miles long by five in breadth. The city of Tiberias stands on the sea-sh.o.r.e on one side, and on the other side are Corozaim and Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter. About four miles to the north-east of the city of Tiberias is the castle of Gennesareth, where the Lord appeared to the disciples when fishing, as we learn from the Gospel. About two miles to the east of Gennesareth is the mount on which our Lord Jesus fed five thousand men with five loaves and two fishes. This mount is called by the inhabitants our Lord's table; and at its foot stands a very beautiful church of St. Peter, but deserted. Six miles to the north-east of Nazareth, on a hill, is Cana of Galilee, where our Lord converted water into wine at the marriage feast. There nothing is left standing except the monastery called that of Architriclinius[90]. About half way between Nazareth and Galilee is a castle which is called Roma, where all travellers from Accaron to Tiberias are lodged, having Nazareth on the right, and Galilee to the left.

A day's journey to the north-east of Tiberias is Mount Liba.n.u.s, at the foot of which the river Jordan boils out from two foundations, of which one is called Jor, and the other Dan; the streams of which, joining in one, become a very rapid river, and take the name of Jordan. Its origin is near Caesarea, the city of Philip the Tetrarch, in the district where Jesus, as is related in the Gospel, interrogated his disciples, saying, "Whom do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?"[91] Now the river Jordan, flowing from its spring with a very rapid course, falls into the sea of Galilee on one side, and pa.s.sing out of it on the opposite side, by the violence of its current, makes itself a bed, through which it runs a distance of eight days' journey, and then falls into the Dead Sea. The water of the Jordan is whiter and more of a milky colour than any other water, and it may be distinguished by its colour a long distance into the Dead Sea.

Having, to the best of our power, visited and paid our devotion at all the holy places in the city of Jerusalem and the surrounding country, we took ship at Joppa on the day of Pentecost[92], on our return; but, fearing to meet the fleet of the Saracens, we did not venture out into the open sea by the same course we came, but sailed along the coast by several cities, some of which have fallen into the hands of the Franks, while others still remain in the power of the Saracens. Their names are as follows:-First, after Joppa, is the town called popularly Atsuph, but in Latin, Azotum; next, Caesarea of Palestine; and then Cayphas.

Baldwin, the flower of kings, has possession of these cities. Next after these is the very strong city of Acre, which is called Accaron; then Sur and Sagete, which are Tyre and Sidon; then Jubelet; then Baruth; and then Tartusa, which is in possession of duke Raimund. Next Gibel, where are the mountains of Gilboa; and then Tripolis and Lice. We pa.s.sed by all these cities[93].

On the Wednesday of Pentecost, as we were sailing between Cayphas and Accaron[94], twenty-six ships of the Saracens suddenly came in sight, the forces of the admiral of Tyre and Sidon, which were carrying an army to Babylonia to a.s.sist the Chaldeans in making war on the king of Jerusalem; upon which two of our ships, which had come with us from Joppa full of palmers, leaving our ship behind because they were lighter, fled in all haste to Caesarea. The Saracens, encircling our ship on all sides, at the distance of about an arrow's shot, rejoiced in the prospect of such a rich prey; but our men, ready to meet death in the cause of Christ, took to their arms, and stationed themselves as quickly as possible on the castle of the ship; for our dromund carried about two hundred soldiers. After the s.p.a.ce of about an hour, the commander of the hostile fleet held a council, and sent a sailor up the mast of his ship, which was the largest, that he might give information of our condition and preparations; and as soon as he understood from him the bold countenance we showed, they hoisted their sails and put out to sea, and so that day the Lord by his grace s.n.a.t.c.hed us from our enemies. Some of our people from Joppa afterwards took three of the ships we had seen, and enriched themselves with their spoils.

Thus making our way as well as we could along the coast of Syria, in eight days we reached the port of St. Andrew, in the isle of Cyprus[95]; and thence, next day, we sailed towards Romania, pa.s.sing the port of St.

Simon, and the port of St. Mary, and after many days reached Little Antioch[96]. In this part of the voyage we were several times attacked by pirates; but, under the Divine protection, we escaped unhurt from the attacks of enemies and the shocks of tempests. Then directing our course along the coast of Romania, and pa.s.sing the towns of Stamirra[97] and Patras of St. Nicholas, we with difficulty reached the island of Rhodes on the eve of St. John the Baptist[98], after a narrow escape from wreck in the bay of Satalia. At Rhodes we hired a smaller ship, that we might proceed more rapidly, and then returned to the coast of Romania. We then came to Stromlo[99], a very fair city, but entirely laid waste by the Turks, and there we were detained many days by a strong contrary wind.

Then we came to the island of Samos, and having bought provisions there, as we did in all the islands, we arrived at length at the island of Scio, where we parted with our ship and company, and undertook the journey to Constantinople, to perform our devotions there. After leaving Scio, we pa.s.sed by the great town of Smyrna, and came to the island of Meteline, and then to Tenit[100], near which, on the coast of Romania, was the very ancient and famous city of Troy, the ruins of the buildings of which, as the Greeks say, are still apparent over a s.p.a.ce of many miles.

After leaving this place, we came to the narrow sea which is called the arm of St. George, which divides the two lands, Romania and Macedonia, through which we sailed to St. Phemius, having Greece to the right, and Macedonia to the left. The city of St. Phemius the bishop is on one side of the arm, in Macedonia, and another city, which is called Samthe, stands on the other side in Greece, so that two or three arbalist-shots would reach from one city to the other[101]. They are said to be the keys of Constantinople. Then we sailed by Callipolis, and Agios Georgios, and Paniados, and other notable castles of Macedonia, and came to the city of Rothostoca, after Michaelmas. We came next to the n.o.ble city of Raclea, whence, according to the Greeks, Helen was ravished by Paris Alexander[102].

FOOTNOTES:

[57] July 13, 1102.

[58] The modern Brindisi (_Brundusium_ of the ancients).

[59] _Die aegyptiaca, hora aegyptiaca._ The superst.i.tious belief in unlucky, or, as they were commonly termed, Egyptian days, was universally prevalent in the middle ages; and the days of the month believed to have this character, and on which it was unpropitious to begin or undertake any thing, are often marked in the early calendars and other ma.n.u.scripts.

[60] July 24.

[61] See our Introduction.

[62] M. D'Avezac conjectures this to be merely some _palaeopolis_, or ancient site. No such name as Polipolis can be traced in the maps.

[63] Aug. 9.

[64] This appears to be the place formerly called Liva d'Osta, now corrupted into Livadostro.

[65] Aug. 23.

[66] The modern Spili.

[67] Stancho, the ancient Cos; Hippocrates, and not Galen, was born there.