wont to repose. At the capture of Constantinople, a certain CHAP. I. portion of the city was still retained, in undisturbed possession, by those Grecian families, whose services to the conqueror obtained for them privileges, whieh their descendants enjoy even at this hour (8); yet, in their domestic habits, and in all things, except their religious ceremonies, there is nothing which distinguishes them from their fellow-citizens the Turks. The temples of the citizens, we further know, were appropriated to the new religion (9). 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 Ancients, almost unaltered. Passing thence into Asia, the traveller may be directed to other examples of the same nature, in which the similarity of the antient and the modern appearance is even more striking: perhaps the howling dervishes of Scutari, who preserve in their frantic orgies the rites of the priests of Baal(10), 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 (11). The Psylli of Egypt, mentioned by Herodotus, are still found in the serpent-eaters of Cairo and Rosetta: and in all ages, where a suceessful 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 poliey, 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 neces

CHAP. I. sary to paint the vices and 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 possession of Constantinople, were busied only in works of destruction (12), we may derive evidence to the contrary, even from the writings of those, by whom they were thus calumniated, 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 caravanserais (13), were allowed to remain; and the temple of St. Sophia being of the number, as well as the antiquities in the Hippodrome, 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 opportunity, it is not to be believed that the Greeks would have been more scrupulous than their conquerors. The first employment of Mahomet, when those disorders had subsided, was not merely the preservation, but the actual improvement, 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 (14). 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(15): neither is it necessary 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 intervals, in consequence of

the frequent factions and dissentions of the inhabitants (16). CHAP. I. The city, such as it was, when it came into the possession of the Turks, has been by them preserved, 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, Teagerly sought an opportunity to examine the interior of the Scraglio; 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,

The first place, to which my observations were directed, Imperial Arwas the Imperial Armoury: and here, to my great gratifi- moury. eation, 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: nor is it at all remarkable, that, in a lapse of time which does not exceed the period that has intervened since the armour of Henry the Sixth was deposited in the Tower of London, the reliques of Roman power should be thus discovered. It is only singular, that, during all the inquiries which have taken place respecting this remarkable city, such remains should have been unnoticed. In answer to my earnest entreaty for the indulgence of a few moments, to be employed in further examination, it was explained to me, that, if the old armour was an object of my curiosity, I might have full

CHAP. I. leisure to survey it, when carried on sumpter-horses, in the great annual procession of the Grand Signior, at the open

ing of the Bairam, which was shortly to take place, and where I afterwards saw it exhibited.

Vase of the Soon after this, some Pages belonging to the Seraglio Byzantine brought from the Sultan's apartments the fragments of a Emperors. magnificent vase of jasper-agate, which, it was said, his highness had dashed to pieces in a moment of anger. As these fragments were cast away, and disregarded, they came at last into the hands of a poor lapidary, who earned á scanty livelihood by cutting and polishing stones for the signet rings of the Turks (17). In one of my mineralogical excursions, the merchants of the bezesten, where jewels are sold, directed me to the laboratory of this man, to obtain the precious stones of the country in their natural state. He was then employed upon the fragments of this vase, and very gladly spared the labour which he would otherwise have bestowed, by consigning, for a small sum, the whole of them to me. It is hardly possible to conceive a more extraordinary proof of the genius and industry of Grecian artists, than was presented by this vase. Its fragments are still in my possession: and have been reserved for annual exhibition, during a course of public Lectures in the University of Cambridge. When it is stated, that the treasury of Mithradates contained four thousand specimens of similar manufacture, all of which came into the hands of the Romans; and that the Turks are unable to execute any thing of the same nature; it is highly probable this curious relique originally constituted one of the number; which, after passing into the possession of the Turks at the conquest of the city, had continued to adorn the palace of their sovereigns. Such a conjecture is strengthened by the mythological figure, represented in exquisite sculpture, on the vase itself. It consists of an entire mass of green jasper-agate, beautifully variegated with veins and spots of a vermilion colour; so that part of it exhibits the ribbon-jasper, and part the blood-stone. The handle is formed to represent the head of a griffin (carved in all the perfection of the finest caméo), whose extended wings and claws cover the exterior surface. The difficulty of working a siliceous concretion of such extraordinary hardness needs not to be spe

cified: it may be presumed, that the entire life of the antient lapidary, by whom it was wrought, could have been scarcely adequate to such a performance; nor do we at all know in what manner the work was effected. Yet there are parts of it, in which the sides of the vase are as thin as the finest porcelain (18).

CHAP. I.

A second visit, which I made to the interior of the Seraglio, was not attended by any very interesting discovery; but, as it enabled me to describe, with minuteness, scenes hitherto impervious to European eyes, the Reader may be gratified by the observations made within those walls. Every one is curious to know what exists within recesses which have been long closed against the intrusion of Christians. In vain does the eye, roaming from the towers of Gala- ✰ ta, Pera, and Constantinople, attempt to penetrate the thick gloom of cypresses and domes, which distinguishes the most beautiful part of Constantinople. Imagination magnifies things unknown: and when, in addition to the curiosity always excited by mystery, the reflection is suggested, that antient Byzantium occupied the site of the Sultan's palace, a thirst of inquiry is proportionably augmented. I promise to conduct my readers not only within the retirement of the Seraglio, but into the Charem itself, and the most secluded haunts of the Turkish sovereign. Would only I could also promise a degree of satisfaction, in this respect, adequate to their desire of information!

It so happened, that the gardener of the Grand Signior, during our residence in Constantinople, was a German. This person used to mix with the society in Pera, and often joined in the evening parties given by the different foreign ministers. In this manner we became acquainted with him; and were invited to his apartments within the walls of the Seraglio, close to the gates of the Sultan's garden. We were accompanied, during our first visit, by his intimate friend, the secretary and chaplain of the Swedish mission; who, but a short time before, had succeeded in obtaining a sight of the four principal Sultanas and the Sultan Mother, in consequence of his frequent visits to the gardener. They were sitting together one morning, when the cries of the black eunuchs, opening the door of the Charem, which communieated with the Seraglio gardens, announced that these la