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;

the camp, rather than the city, distinguished their abode. Hence it followed, that with the houses, the furniture and even the garb of the Greeks would necessarily be associated neither do the divâns of Turkish apartments differ from those luxurious couches, on which the Greeks and Romans were wont to repose. At the capture of Constantinople, a certain portion of the city was still retained, in undisturbed possession, by those Grecian families, whose services to the conqueror obtained for them privileges, which their descendants enjoy even at this hour3; yet, in their domestic habits, and in all things, except their religious ceremonies, there is nothing which distinguishes them from their fellowcitizens the Turks. The temples of the citizens, we further know, were appropriated to the new religion. The sumptuous baths of the vanquished were not less prized by the victors. Few, if any, of the public buildings were destroyed; and, from the characteristic disposition of Oriental nations to preserve things as they are, we may reasonably conclude, with the exception of those edifices which have yielded to the attacks of time, of earthquakes, and of fire, Constantinople presents one, at least, of the cities of the Antients, almost unaltered. Passing thence into Asia, the traveller may be directed to other examples of the same nature, in which

the

CHAP. I.

(3) They live in a part of the city which, from its proximity to the Light-house, goes by the name of Phanar.

(4) Of which the Church of St. Sophia is a particular instance: and it may be added, that the crescent, which blazons the Turkish banner, is the most antient symbol of Byzantium, as appears by the medals of the city.

CHAP. I.

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the similarity of the antient and the modern appearance is even more striking: and perhaps the howling dervishes of Scutari, who preserve in their frantic orgies the rites of the priests of Baal', accommodated the mercenary exhibition of their pretended miracles to the new superstition which pervaded the temples of Chalcedon; exactly as Pagan miracles, recorded and derided by Horace, were adapted to the ceremonies of the Roman-Catholic religion 2. The Psylli of Egypt, mentioned by Herodotus, are still found in the serpent-eaters of Caïro and Rosetta: and in all ages, where a successful craft, under the name of miracle, has been employed to delude and to subdue the human understanding, the introducers of a new religion have, with considerable policy, appropriated it to the same purpose for which it was employed by their predecessors.

The prejudices of the Christians against their Turkish conquerors were so difficult to be overcome, that while we lament the want of truth, which characterizes every narrative concerning their invaders, we cannot wonder at the falsehood; yet, in this distant period, viewing the events of those times without passion or prejudice, it may become a question, whether, at the capture of Constantinople, the victors or the vanquished were the most polished people. It is not necessary to paint the vices and

the

(1) "And they cried aloud, and cut themselves, after their manner, with knives and lancets." 1 Kings, xviii. 28.

(2) The miracle of the liquefaction of St. Januarius's blood is alluded to by Horace, as practised in his time, under a different name. Hor. Sat. lib. I. 5.

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the barbarism of those degenerate representatives of the
antient Romans, who then possessed the imperial city; nor
to contrast them with those of the Turks: but when it is
urged, that Mahomet and his followers, upon taking pos-
session of Constantinople, were busied only in works of
destruction3, we may derive evidence to the contrary, even
from the writings of those, by whom they were thus calum-
niated. Gyllius and Bandurius have permitted observations
to escape them, which have a remarkable tendency to
establish a contrary opinion: they acknowledge, that certain
magnificent palaces, temples, baths, and caravanserais1,
were allowed to remain; and the Temple of St. Sophia
being of the number, as well as the antiquities in the
Hippodrome, the public
the public cisterns, sarcophagi, &c. we
may form a tolerable estimate of the taste of the Turks
in this respect. It will appear afterwards, that the
regalia, the imperial armoury, and many other works
of magnificence and utility, were likewise preserved.
In the sacking of a city, when all things are left to the
promiscuous pillage of an infuriate soldiery, a scene of ruin
and desolation must necessarily ensue; and, under similar
circumstances of previous provocation and subsequent oppor-
tunity, it is not to be believed that the Greeks would have
been

(3) Capta a Turcis Constantinopoli, antiqua illa ac veneranda monumenta olim a varüs Imperatoribus Christianis magnificentissimè constructa, quæ Barbari illi adhuc integra in regiâ urbe repererant, alia solo æquârunt, alia spoliata suis ornamentis reliquerunt, donec sic neglecta in ruinam diffluerent." Bandurii Imperium Orientale,

CHAP. I.

CHAP. I.

been more scrupulous than their conquerors. The first em-
ployment of Mahomet, when those disorders had subsided,
was not merely the preservation, but the actual improve-
ment of the city of this a striking example is related by
Gyllius, who, speaking of the Forum of Taurus, says, that
being grown over with wood, and affording a shelter for
thieves, Mahomet granted the spot to those who were
willing to build upon it'. The same author also mentions,
that, among other instances of his munificence, the largest
baths in the city were erected by him; one for the use
of men, and the other for women: neither is it neces-
sary to seek further for information, than the documents
which he has afforded, and the authority cited by him, to
prove that Christians, and not Turks, have been the principal
agents in destroying the statues and public buildings with
which Constantinople, in different ages, was adorned. The
havoc was begun by the Romans themselves, even so early
as the time of Constantine the Great; and renewed, at inter-
vals, in consequence of the frequent factions and dissentions
of the inhabitants3. The city, such as it was, when it came
into the possession of the Turks, has been by them pre-
served,

(1) Gyllius de Topog. Constant. lib. iii. c. 6.
(2) Ibid. lib. iv. c. 2.

(3) "Primùm Imperatores dissentientes, deinde incendia creberrima, non modò fortuita, sed etiam ab hostibus tam externis, quam dissidentibus variarum factionum partibus jacta, &c. Neque modò ab hostibus antiqua monumenta eversa sunt, sed etiam ab Imperatoribus etiam Constantinopoli amicissimis, inter quos primus Constantinus Magnus, quem EUSEBIUS scribit templa deorum diruisse, vestibula vastâsse, tecta detraxisse, eorum statuas æreas sustulisse, quibus tot sæculis gloriabantur.” Ibid. tom. i. p. 427. ed. Par. 1711.

served, and undergone fewer alterations than took place while it continued in the hands of their predecessors. It does not however appear, that the changes produced, either by the one or the other, have in any degree affected that striking resemblance which it still bears to the antient cities of the Greeks.

Under these impressions, I eagerly sought an opportunity to examine the interior of the Seraglio; and, difficult as the undertaking may seem, soon found the means of its accomplishment. The harmony existing between England and the Porte, at that critical juncture when Egypt was to be restored to the Turks by the valour of our troops, greatly facilitated the enterprise. I felt convinced, that, within the walls of the Seraglio, many interesting antiquities were concealed from observation; and I was not disappointed.

CHAP. I.

Armoury.

The first place, to which my observations were directed, was the Imperial Armoury: and here, to my great gratifi- Imperial cation, I beheld the weapons, shields, and military engines of the Greek emperors, exactly corresponding with those represented on the medals and bas-reliefs of the Antients, suspended as trophies of the capture of the city by the Turks. It is true, my stay there was not of sufficient duration to enable me to bring away any other than this brief representation of what I saw a Bostanghy soon put a stop to the gratification of my curiosity, and I was compelled to retreat; but even the transient view, thus obtained, was sufficient to excite a belief, that other interesting remains of the Palace of the Cæsars might also be similarly preserved. This conjecture was not without foundation :

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