concerning the idol pictures of the Greek church in Russia. which they resemble, in all circumstances of style and execu tion. Similar paintings have been noticed in the description given of our journey to the summit of Gargarus and source of the Scamander, as found in the ruins of Oratories among the recesses of Mount Ida.* Shaw mentions very ancient paintings, as found in the cryptae of Egypt. We also observed similar works in caves near the pyramids. Winkelmann's account of the art of painting among the ancient Egyptians may therefore possibly serve to illustrate the method used by Syrian or Greek artists in preparing and laying on the colours for these paintings, which preserve their original freshness in a very remarkable manner.‡

Leaving the mountain where all these sepulchres are hewn, and regaining the road which conducts toward the east, into the valley of Jehosaphat, we passed the Fountain Siloa, and a white mulberry tree which is supposed to mark the spot where the Oak Rogel stood. Hence we ascended to the summit of the MOUNT OF OLIVES; passing, on our way, a number of et uxorum filiorumque figuras depingentes exsultant, quidam vero etiam nthil sibi competentiun sumunt imagines, il vero et servos diligentes, hoc faciunt." Joseph. contra Apionem, lib, ii. p. 474. tom. II. Edit. Havercampi, Amst. etc. 1726.*See chap. v. p. 81. and chap. vi. p. 86. of this volume."

+ See Shaw's Travels, p. 350. Lond. 1757. "Several of these crypte (Note 5. Ibid) painted with symbolical figures, are seen near the pyramids. Chrysippus An trum Mithræ seems to have been of the same kind. Τα τείχεα το σπηλαίο πάντα ποικίλοις εἴκοσι κοσμούμενα, καὶ τὰ τῶν θεῶν, ὃς μεσίτας καλέσι, ἀγάλματα περιστά

Couleurs sont en détrempe, et plus ou moins délayées avec de l'eau de colle; of chargée de gomme: elles sont toute's employées pures et sans mêlange. On en compte six: le blanc, le noir, le bleu, le rouge, le jaune, et le vert. Le rouge et le bleu, qui dominent le plus, paroissent broyes, assez grossièrement. Le blanc, com>posé de céruse ordinaire, fait l'enduit de la toile des momies, et forme ce que uos peintres appellant l'impression, sur laquelle ils appliquent les couleurs. couleurs, ainsi que la dorure, ont conservé leur fraîcheur pendast quelques milliers d'années." Histoire de l'Art, par Winkelmann, tom. I. pp. 191, 192. Paris, An 2 de la République.

Les

Po

The author mentions this tree merely from its importance as a landmark. cocke seemed aware that "the sepulchres of the kings" (mentioned 2 Chron. xxi. 20.) might be situated somewhere near this spot; for he says, Near this pool (SIJua,) at a white mulberry tree, they say Isaiah was sawn asunder, by the order of Manasseh; and here it is to be supposed he was buried, under the oak Rogel. It is probable the king's gardens were over this vale, in which the tree of Rogel is mentioned." See Pococke, vol. II. part I. p. 24 Lond. 1745. If we can once ascertain the situation of the gardens, that of the sepulchres will be thereby determined. He notices the great number of grottos cut out of the rock, some of which have porticos, and are adorned with the plain Egyptian cornish;" and adds, "they seem to be ancient sepulchres " Seem to be! Is it possible to entertain a doubt of the fact? The truth is, that the real nature of ancient sepulchres has been too little attended to, even where inscriptions upon them clearly explain their history. Benjamin of Tu dela, who is at best but doubtful authority, might have satisfied Pococke on this head: he expressly mentions these sepulchres. He is proceeding by the same road to the Mount of Olives, when he says, "Mount Sion is without Jerusalem: fronting the city are three Jewish burying places, where they buried their dead in ancient times. in one of them there is a sepulchre with the date remaining." Travels of Rabbi -Benjamin, p. 74. ed. by Gerrans. Lood. 1784.

Hebrew tombs.* The Arabs upon the top of this mountain are to be approached with caution, and with a strong guard. Here indeed we stood upon holy ground; and it is a question, which might reasonably be proposed to Jew, Christian, or Mahometan, whether, in reference to the history of their respective nations, it be possible to attain a more interesting place of observation. So commanding is the view of Jerusalem afforded in this situation, that the eye roams over all the streets, and around the walls, as if in the survey of a plan or model of the city. The most conspicuous object is the mosque erected upon the site and foundations of the temple of Solomon: this edifice may perhaps be considered as the finest specimen of Saracenic architecture which exists in the world. But this view of Jerusalem serves to strengthen the objections urged against the prevailing opinion concerning the topography of the ancient city. D'Anville believed that ancient and modern Jerusalem were very similarly situated; that by excluding what is now called Calvary, and embracing the whole of what is now called Mount Sion, we should have an area equal in extent to the space which was occupied by the walls and buildings before the destruction of the holy city by Vespasian and Titus.+ But this is by no means true a spectator upon the Mount of Olives, who looks down upon the space enclosed by the walls of Jerusalem in their present state, as they have remained since they were restored in the sixteenth century by Solyman the son of Selim, and perhaps have existed from the time of Adrian, must be convinced, that instead of covering two conspicuous hills, Jerusalem now occupies one eminence alone; namely, that of

Toute la coste de la montagne est creusée d'une infinité de sepulchres des anciens Juifs, qui sont taillés comme des fours dans la roche; et plus bas, dans le fonds de la vallée, sont les sépultures de ceux, de cette nation, qui vivent à present en Jerusalem; qui ne sont autre chose que des fosses, comme les nostres, couvertes -d'une, deux, ou trois, pierres, mal polies et sans ornement." Doubdan, Voyage de la T. S. p. 130. Paris, 1657.

+ See the treatise of Mons. D'Anville (sur l'Ancienne Jerusalem, Paris, 1747.) as cited by Gibbon, vol. IV. p. 82. Lond. 1807.

See the observations in note (59) chap. xxiii. of Gibbon's Hist. Ibid. After the city was rebuilt by Adrian, A: D. 137, or 138. (See Tillemont, note 9. sur l'empereur Adrian,) and called Elia Capitolina, (which name subsisted in the age of Chrysostom, and is still retained in the country,) the whole of Mount Sion, and not part only, was excluded. See the numerous evidences adduced by Tillemont (Histoire des Empereurs, tom IV. p. 294. Paris. 1702) who, speaking of Mount Sion, says, "Au milieu du iv. siécle la montagne de Sion estoit entierment inhabitée, se labouroit comme une plaine campagne;" thereby fulfilling the prophecy which declared (Micah iii, 12.) that Zion should be "ploughed as a field." The authorities referred to by Tillemont are derived from Eusebius, Cyril, and the Itinerary from Bordeaux to Jerusalem, written A. D. 333. His note is founded principally upon evi dences from Vopiscus, Dio Cassius, Jerom, and Eusebius.

Moriah, where the temple stood of old, and where, like a phenix that hath arisen from the ashes of its parent, the famous niosque of Omar is now situated. It is probable that the whole of Mount Sion has been excluded; and that the mountain covered by ruined edifices, whose base is perforated by ancient sepulchres, and separated from Mount Moriah by the deep trench, or tyropæon, extending as far as the Foun tain Siloa, toward the eastern valley, is, in fact, that eminence which was once surmounted by the "bulwarks, towers, and regal buildings" of the house of David. There seems to be no other method of reconciling the accounts which ancient authors give of the space occupied by the former city; these in no wise correspond with its present appearance: and the strange temerity which endeavours to warp the text of an historian,* so as to suit existing prejudices, and the interests of a degrading superstition, cannot surely be too eagerly scouted by every friend of truth and science. Eusebius allows a distance of twenty-seven stadia, or three miles and three furlongs, for the circumference of the ancient city. The circuit of the modern town does not exceed two miles and a half, or twenty stadia, according to the measure of Eusebius. We cannot, therefore, without including this mountain, embrace an area sufficiently extensive even for the dimensions afforded by Eusebius. But supposing that the ancient cryptae, described at the conclusion of the preceding chapter, do mark the posi tion of the regal sepulchres, in the midst of the vast cemetery of the ancient Jews, where the tomb of Joseph of Arimathea was also possibly situated, then it will appear evident that the mountain standing to the south of that deep trench or valley, which Sandy's has described as the valley of Gehianom, &

"We must not take in a literal sense," (says Mons. De Châteaubriand. Trav. vol. II. p. 85. Lond. 1811.) the text of Josephus, when the historian asserts, that the walls of the city advanced to the north, as far as the sepulchres of the kings." In what sense, then, are we to take the text of an historian? It however happens, that the text of Josephus (lib. vi. de Bell. c. 6.) contains no such assertion. The words ornlaw Bacia do not refer to the tombs of the kings of Judah, but to the royal caves of Helena's sepulchre, which were quite in a different situation: these lying to the north of Jerusalem; whereas the sepulchres of the kings were upon the south side of the city.

Eusebii Præp. Evang. lib. ix. cap. 36. Paris, 1659.

See Maundrell's Journ. from Alep. to Jerus. p. 110. Oxf. 1721. De Châteaubri and walked round it in about an hour. We were rather more than an hour employet in riding round, a foot's pace, but we kept at a short distance from the walls.

That the valley of Gebinnom, In 'Evvcu, or г Bevevvoμ, VALLIS FILII HINNOM, (Reland. Palæst. Illust. t. I. p. 353. Utr. 1714.) was a place of sepulture, may be proved by reference to various authorities, Heathen, Jewish, and Christian. In the Latin version of the Hebrew Itinerary of Petachias (vid. Thesaur. Antig. Sacar, B. Ugolini, tom. VL 1207, 1203. Venet. 1746.) the following passage occurs

where the sepulchres appear which now exhibit, in so many Instances, the words of an inscription, THC AFIAC CIWN,) was, in fact, Mount Sion; opposed, upon the south, to Moriah, and divided from it by this valley.* That the summit of this mountain was formerly included within the walls of the ancient city, the remains upon it, at this hour, not only of walls, but of sumptuous edifices† seem forcibly to demonstrate. In this view of the subject, the topography of the eity seems more reconcilable with ancient documents. The present church of the holy sepulchre, and all the trumpery attached to it, will, it is true, be thrown into the back ground; but the sepulchres of the kings of Judah, so long an object of research, do then become a prominent object in the plan: the possible site of our Saviour's tomb may be deuoted; and

will continue in the situation assigned for it by christian writers of every sect and denomination, since the age of the apostles and earliest fathers of the church.

It was upon the Mount of Olives that the Messiah delivered his prediction concerning the downfall of Jerusalem; and the army of Titus encamped upon the very spots where its destruction had been foretold. Not that, by the introduction of this fact, any allusion is here intended to the particular place shown as "the rock of the prediction." The text of the Evangelist proves that our Saviour, when he delivered

Est hic terra fissa, atque dicitur vallis filiorum hinom, ubi twv w cœmeterium.” But Eusebius (ad vocem Tavu) places this valley upon the eastern side of the city. All the valleys around Jerusalem were places of sepulture; particularly that now called Jehosaphat, which is upon the eastern side. But whenever the observations of an early writer tend to interfere with the notions entertained by the Cathoics of the topography of Jerusalem, they endeavour to accommodate the text to. their notions, or else explain away its meaning.

Rauwolff, speaking of the Tyropcon mentioned by Josephus, says, "This valley hath been, since the desolation, so filled up, that no depth at all appeareth in our days, but only without the fountain gate, by the Fountain Siloah." (See Travels into the Eastern Countries, Ray's edition, p. 289. Lond. 1693) A deep valley filled up, so that even the marks of its existence have disappeared! Is it possible to credit this; especially when such a valley was of use in fortifying the city, by rendering the walls above less accessible? Josephus says (lib. vi. de Bell. c, 6. Colon. 1691.) that the oldest of these three walls was extremely strong, owing to the depth of the inferior valley.

Whose height yet shews the reliques of no meane buildings." Sandys' Travels, p. 186. Lond. 1637,"

Josephus (lib. vi. de Bell. Jud. c. 6.) describes the valley which separated the upper town from the lower, as terminating with the Fountain Siloa'; and this is the case with Sandys' valley of Gehinnom.

Josephus de Bell. Jud. lib, vi. cap. 5. Colon. 1691,

Luke, ch. xix. 37.

the prophecy, was "at the descent of the Mount of Olives," although in such a situation that “he beheld the city, and nept over it." Whether the tenth legion of the Roman army was stationed upon the summit or side of the mountain, cannot now be ascertained; neither is the circumstance worth a moment's consideration. We found, upon the top, the remains of several works, whose history is lost. Among these, were certain subterraneous chambers, of a different nature from any of thecryptac we had before seen. One of them had the shape of a cone, of immense size; the vertex alone appearing level with the soil, and exhibiting, by its section at the top, a small circular aperture: the sides, extending below to a great depth, were Fined with a hard red stucco, like the substance covering the walls of the subterraneous galleries which we found in the sandy isle of Aboukir, upon the coast of Egypt. This extraordinary

piece of antiquity, which, from its conical form, may be called a subterraneous pyramid, is upon the very pinnacle of the mountain. It might easily escape observation, although it is of such considerable size; and perhaps this is the reason why it has not been noticed by preceding travellers.* We could

not find any appearance of an entrance, except by the circular aperture, which is not unlike the mouth of a well, level with the surface of the mountain. This crypt has not the smallest resemblance to any place of Christian use or worship. Its *situation upon the pinnacle of a mountain rather denotes the work of Pagans, whose sacrilegious rites upon "the high places" are so often alluded to in Jewish history. Perhaps some light may be thrown upon its history by the observations of Adrichomius,t who speaks of the fane constructed by Solomon, upon the top of the Mount of Olives, for the worship of Astaroth, the idol of the Sidonians. The Venus of Paphos was represented by a symbol which had the peculiar form of this crypt; that is to say, a cone; but the Phoenician Astaroth, aud the

* All hope of intelligence from the monks of Jerusalem concerning antiquities not included in their catalogue of local sanctities," (or "stations," as they sometimes, called them.) is quite forlorn. The very search after Heathen antiquities is by them deemed heretical and profane. Vid. Quaresmius "de externa profonâ, sed detestabili ac vitiosâ peregrinatione," apud Eluc. T. S. lib. iii. c. 34. Antv. 1639. De Loc. extra Urb. 192. apud Theat. T. S. p. 170. Colon. 1628.

The three points, or summits, of the Mount of Olives, whereof the centre, be ing the highest, was set apart for the worship of Astaroth, are thus described as having been polluted by Heathen abominations: "And the high places that were before Jerusalem, which were on the right hand of the mount of corruption, (i. e. Mount of Olives) which Solomon the king of Israel had builded for Ashtoreth, the abomination of the Sidonians; and for Chemosh, the abomination of the Moabites; and for Milcom, the abomination of the children of Ammon, did tbe king defile." 2 Kings.

xxiii. 13.