[From Buck Whaley's Memoirs]

CHAPTER II.

Jerusalem continued-The Temple of the Resurrection-The Holy Sepulchre-The House of Pontius Pilate-The House of Herod-The Armenian Convent-Mount of Olives-The Fountain of Silvajourney to Bethlehem-The Valley of the Giants-Fops SignatusThe Convent of Terra Sancta-Basilica di Santa Maria-The Street of the Cross.

FROM the Temple of Solomon we returned to the Convent, and, accompanied by one of the friars, visited the Temple of the Resurrection, in the centre of which is the Holy Sepulchre of our Saviour.

This temple is a magnificent building, founded by the emperor Constantine, who delivered this sacred spot from the hands of the infidels. He wrote to all the Eastern Provinces to demand contributions ; sent a priest from Constantinople to act as architect, and St. Helena, his mother, undertook the journey to superintend this pious work. This great fabric was finished in nine years. The prodigious quantities of gold and silver ornaments which the emperor sent were the wonder of those times.

Many and various are the vicissitudes which this church has undergone from the different governments to which the city has been subjected since that time.

When the Saracens under Saladin took Jerusalem, the Temple of the Resurrection was plundered of all its riches, but the building received no damage. On examining its walls they are found to be of white calcareous stone, which abounds throughout Palestine, and is capable of a polish little inferior to marble.

In that part of the church called the Chapel of Adam are two very ancient tombs of bad workmanship. The inscriptions are in ancient characters and scarcely legible they set forth that Godfrey and Baldwin, two brothers and kings of Jerusalem, were buried there. I copied the writing exactly as it was on the stone : --¹

It was under this Prince's reign that the order of the Knights Templars was first instituted, as well as that of the Knights Hospitallers. The latter, whose number rapidly increased, took up arms, as much to escort and protect the pilgrims who came from all parts to visit the holy places as to assist the Christian kings in the wars against the infidels. The success of the Hospitallers encouraged some French gentlemen to enrol themselves under their banner. The chief of these were Hugues de Payan and Godfrey of St. Admer, or St. Omer.

King Godfrey died Anno Domini 1100, and his brother in 1118, the former at Jerusalem and the latter at Larissa,² where he was embalmed and afterwards sent to Jerusalem to be interred.³

The following inscription, in characters of the twelfth century, is under a picture of St. Paul, and now almost illegible :-

Ego gratia Det sum id quod sum, et gratia ejus in me vacua non fuit.⁴

After having seen the remainder of the church, which is divided into four different chapels-the Catholic, Greek, Armenian, and Copt-we were conducted to the Holy Sepulchre, built in the centre of the church, immediately under the great cupola, and though, as the Scripture says, "hewn out of a rock," is itself a church in miniature, having a cupola and all the external appearance of a chapel. The entrance to it is by a very small door, from which you descend by a few steps, and first enter a narrow apartment, at the bottom of which are two perpendicular holes that lead to a small cavern in the rock, on which the little chapel is erected : this is the burial place of two of our Saviour's disciples. Proceeding a little further you pass, by a very small door, into the Holy Sepulchre itself.

It is nine feet in length, by about six feet and a half wide. On one side is the Tomb of our Saviour, raised about foor feet from the floor ; it is of white marble and fixed against the wall. This little cavern is lighted by a number of silver lamps suspended from the ceiling, which cause so great a heat that it is difficult to remain long in this awful place.

Though we remained here near a quarter of an hour yet we were so wrapt up in meditation that not a word was uttered. On entering this Holy Shrine I was struck with reverential awe, and felt a kind of pleasing agitation of mind which no language can express ; nor do I think it possible for even the most hardy freethinker to set his foot on this hallowed spot without feeling at least a momentary conviction of his dangerous error. As there were many people waiting to succeed us, we withdrew and went to see the place of crucifixion.

I shall not attempt to describe all the remarkable places in this church. The annexed plan,⁵ with the following references, will convey a much clearer idea of the whole and give more satisfaction than the most elaborate description.

A. A Square before the Temple of Jerusalem.
B. That part of the Church which was [built] by Constantine the Great.
C. Spherical Edifice of Constantius.
D. Church of Mount Calvary.
E. Church of St. Helena.
F. A Chapel of one of the Marys.

No. 1 . Marks where two Martyrs died.
2. The Chapel of the Lamentations of the Virgin.
3. The Campanali [sic].
4. Four doors by which you enter the Church, one of which is stopped up.
5. The Stone of Unction, on which the Body of our Saviour was laid when taken from the Cross.
6. The Chapel of the Unclean, so called from the Jews having there crowned our Saviour with Thorns.
7. The Chapel where they divided his Garments.
8. The Chapel of the Cross.
9. The Altar where Service is not performed.
10. A Chapel called the Prison of our Lord.
11. A place now useless, formerly an Entrance.
12. The place where our Saviour appeared to the Virgin Mary after the Resurrection: the Northern Mark shews where He stood, and the other where the Virgin stood when she turned round and saw Him. (St. John, chap. 20, v. 11, 12, etc.)
13. The Altar of Mary Magdalen.
14. The Chapel of the Copts and Armenians, called also of the Abyssinian Christians.
15. The Chapel of Joseph of Arimathea, who had begged the Body of Jesus from Pilate, and laid [it] in his own new Tomb, which he had hewn out in the Rock. (St. Math. chap. 27, v. 58, S9 and 6o.)
16. The place where Peter and John stopped in going towards the Sepulchre after the Resurrection.
17. The place where St. John was allowed to pass, leaving St. Peter behind. (St. John, chap. 20, v. 3 and 4.) 18. The place where the Marys stayed at the Burial of our Saviour, sitting over against the Sepulchre. (St. Math. chap. 27, v. 61.)
19. The Stairs which lead to the Armenian Church.
20. The Chamber of the Sexton, or Keeper, of the Armenian Church.
21. A flat piece of Marble, on which a number of silver Lamps are always kept burning. This is shown as the place where the pious Women, and the friends i of our Saviour stood looking on at what passed on Mount Calvary, at the time of the Crucifixion. (St. Luke, chap. 23, v. 49.)
22. The Altar where the Armenian Priests officiate.
23. The place of the Latins.
24. The place of the Greeks.
25. A Marble flag, on which you are made to stand : 'tis said to be the centre of the Globe.
26. The Sconstasion.⁶
27. The Seat of the Greek Patriarch of Jerusalem.
28. The Seat of the Vicar of the Patriarch.
29. Sancta Sanctorum of the Greeks.
30. Tribunal.
31 Sepulchres of the Latin Kings of Jerusalem.
32. Stairs by which you ascend to the Church of Calvary, where you are shown the Spot on which our Saviour was crucified.
33. The Chapel of the Crucifixion, the place where our Saviour was laid on the ground, and stretched on the Cross: this Floor is inlaid with the most beautiful Marbles.
34. The Altar of the Crucifixion.
35. An exterior Chapel, dedicated to the Virgin Mary, and called the Chapel of Grief; because through a small entrance she saw the Crucifixion of our Lord.
36. The Chapel of the Elevation of the Cross, after the Body was fastened to it.
37 A Pedestal on which the Cross was placed erect.
38. The place where the Robber was crucified, on the Right Hand of Jesus, called the Happy Robber, from his having prayed to Him on the Cross, while the other mocked Him. (St. Luke, chap. 23.) This is called by the Arabs, Leurs el Jemin, or Right-hand Robber.
39. The place where the Left-hand Robber was crucified.
40. A fissure in Mount Calvary, occasioned by the Earthquake when our Saviour gave up the Ghost. (St. Luke, chap. 23.)
41. The place where the Virgin Mary is said to have stood with St. John the Evangelist at the time of the Elevation of the Cross. (St. John, chap. 19, v. 26 and 27.) In the Chapel of the Erection of the Cross are the Remains of two Pictures, which are of the twelfth Century; they have the following Inscriptions, which are so effaced that their meaning should for ever remain a secret, if one of the Friars of the Greek Church had not taken a copy of them some years ago. The figures were in Mosaik [sic] work.

42. The Seat of the Latin Patriarch.
43. The Altar at which the Latin Priests officiate.
44. The Chapel of Adam, formerly the burial place of the Kings of Jerusalem : in which are seen, besides the two Tombs already mentioned, six other Tombs one without an Inscription, said to belong to Melchisidech. The others have the names of Baldwin 2, 3, 4, and 5, and of Almerian 1 the Ist. These were the only Kings who reigned in the City of Jerusalem, except Foler d'Arogio,2 from the year 1099 to 1186.
45. Sepulchre of Godfrey of Bouillon. 1
46. Sepulchre of Baldwin.
47. The Altar of this Chapel.
48. The fissure which is seen in the Chapel of the Elevation of the Cross, immediately over the Chapel of Adam, which fissure comes down through the Rock, and has an Iron Grating.
49. A Recess in the Rock, in which the Ignorant believe that the Skull of Adam is actually deposited. I could not find out the origin of this tradition.
50. A Chapel which is kept for the Superior of the Greek Convent.
51. Stairs by which you descend to the Church of St. Helena.
52. Altar of St. Helena.
53. Altar dedicated to the Good Robber.
54. The Episcopal Seat.
55. A Window, from which you are shown the Place where St. Helena found the Cross.
56. Stairs by [which] you descend to the Place where the Cross was found.
57 The Spot where the Cross was dug out, which, with the other two Crosses and the Instruments made use of at the Crucifixion, are said to have been hidden here: all of which St. Helena dug out. Nicodemus is supposed to have buried them here.
58. The Altar of the Cross, where the Latin Priests officiate.
59. The Altar where the Armenian Priests officiate.
60. The Chapel of Mary Magdalen.
61. The Altar of the Holy Sacrament. It receives this denomination from the Eucharistical Bread being kept there.
62. The Altar of the Cross, on which there is part of the Wood on which our Saviour died.
63. The Altar of the Flagellation, surrounded by an Iron Grating. It contains a part of the Column to which our Saviour was tied to be scourged. This is under the aforementioned Altar, and takes its name also from having been the Place where Frater Bonifacius of Ragusa was scourged. He was Guardian of the Holy Sepulchre, and repaired it in 1555, as appears from an Inscription near it on a Slab of Ash-coloured Marble¹⁰.

64. A Cistern.
65. Convent's Offices and Quarters of the Greeks.
66. Ten Columns of the Corinthian Order, the Pedestals of some of which are formed of the solid Rock, and have received their present shape without being separated from it.
67. Six Square Pillars which support the Gallery.
68. Chapel of the Holy Sepulchre.
69. Chapel of the Christian Copts.
70. Chapel of the Angel.
71. A Stone which is fixed in the Rock, and is said to have been a support to the Great Stone which was placed at the Mouth of the Sepulchre, when the Body of our Saviour was laid in it; and on which the Priests and Pharisees put their Seals. (St. Math. chap. 27.)
72. Door of the Holy Sepulchre.
73. The Holy Sepulchre, on entering which you see an Excavation made with the Chisel in the solid Rock, the Work of Joseph of Arimathea, which he intended for his own burying-place. (St. Math. chap. 27, etc.) On the right hand in the Holy Sepulchre you observe a Tomb, formed of two Slabs of white Marble, one in the front, placed perpendicularly on its Side ; the other on the top in an horizontal position, as a Lid. These are fastened to the Rock, and form what is now called the Tomb of our Saviour. Over this was a Representation of his Resurrection : but this is entirely spoiled by the smoke of the Lamps, which have not been extinguished for Centuries. About the year 1555, the Tomb was opened, and it is said that some bloody Linen was found. The length of this place is about nine feet, and the vacant space before the Tomb three feet and an half. Not more than two people can enter it at a time.
74. The Tomb in which was placed the Body of our Saviour Jesus Christ.

It may be necessary also to remark, that this magnificent church has, at different periods, been known under various denominations. It was first called "Basilica Constantiniana," evidently from the name of its founder; afterwards " New Jerusalem," the " Church of the Cross," the " Church of the Holy Sepulchre," the " Golgothan Church," and last of all the " Temple of the Resurrection."

Probably it still retains the form in which it was first built by Constantine, as the foundations must have been originally dug at a vast expense and labour. Though the temple has been exposed at different periods to the violent attacks of man, the most positive orders having been issued for its demolition by Chorac,¹¹ king of Persia, in 64, and by Kakem, Calif of Egypt, four hundred years afterwards ; yet some parts resisted their barbarous efforts and survived the general devastation which their soldiery spread through the city. Those parts which are coeval with Constantine may be easily distinguished from those of a later date.

The different parts of this church are splendidly lighted by tapers and an amazing number of silver lamps, and at particular times there are several lamps of solid gold used in the Holy Sepulchre. These are all presents from the different Roman Catholic princes ; and I have been assured that the plate belonging to the Temple of the Resurrection was worth upwards of one hundred thousand pounds.

While we were in the Greek Church a priest was delivering a sermon. He spoke with much vehemence and energy, and seemed to command the attention of a very large assembly, composed mostly of women ; they were all veiled, as the Turks will not permit even the Greek women to appear abroad with their faces uncovered. The concourse of people, always formed at this church, gives it more the appearance of a court of justice than the sacred place of divine worship. The number of different sects, too, which we saw here is really surprising ; the Jews only are forbidden to enter the Temple. A little before my arrival a Jew was found secreting himself in the church during the procession of the pilgrims : he was instantly dragged into the square before the Temple and in a few moments torn to pieces.

The Porte receives so great a revenue from the taxes laid on the pilgrims visiting the Holy Sepulchre that [it] is deemed expedient to preserve them from every kind of molestation and interruption. The Turks of Jerusalem, whenever they enter the Temple conduct themselves with the greatest propriety, being convinced that the slightest offence on their part, being represented by any of the priests, would subject them to the severest punishment.

From the Temple of the Resurrection, we went to see the Seraglio of the Governor, who resides in the same house where Pontius Pilate dwelt when our Saviour was crucified. The small room where the crown of thorns was platted is now the chamber where the Governor's soldiers mount guard. The great council-chamber was also shewn us, in which Pilate, to appease the multitude, passed sentence on our Lord ; and also the great hall in which the soldiers afterwards took him, and mocked him by putting on him the scarlet robe and the crown of thorns.¹²

We afterwards went to the house in which Herod resided when Pilate sent our Saviour to him,¹³ and passed under a very large arch called " Ecce Homo Arch," from Pilate having stood there when Jesus came forth with the purple robe and crown of thorns, and said to the people, Ecce Horno.¹⁴

There is a pillar yet standing in the town from which it is said that the sentence was made public after being passed on Jesus. We were also shewn the house of Jairus, and many other memorable places, where our Saviour performed those miracles recorded in the sacred writings.

From thence we went to the Armenian Convent, and were politely received. This is the richest and most extensive in Jerusalem. Its Superior is a bishop and vested with great powers.

He informed me that he had at times lodged one thousand pilgrims in the Convent ; but that of late years, the impositions, to which they were subjected on the roads thro' Arabia, were such, that many had been obliged to relinquish their pious intentions of visiting the Holy Sepulchre, and consequently that the number of pilgrims was greatly diminished.

There are many ill-executed paintings in the church of this convent ; among which is one representing the Devil, with our Saviour, on a pinnacle of the Temple, tempting him, and another frightful piece, of an extraordinary size, representing the Day of Judgment.

We were also shewn within a white marble sepulchre, in a glass case, the head or skull of St. John the Baptist. This is held as the greatest curiosity of the Holy Land, and in a manner worshipped by the Catholics.

I shall leave to those gentlemen, whose pursuits give them a peculiar claim to the character of a natural philosopher, to determine, how far it may be possible to preserve a skull, for a period little short of eighteen hundred years : for my own part, I would rather subject myself, for ever, to the imputation of weakness, or even superstition, than for a moment to lose sight of those exalted views, and pleasing hopes, with which faith, or a belief of the revealed truths of religion, fill the mind of man.

In the evening we walked out of the town, by the Gate of St. Stephen and viewed with admiration its ancient walls. At a little distance we were shewn the Sepulchres of Absalom and King Manasseh, which are close to each other in the valley of Jehoshaphat. Absalom died one thousand [and] twenty three years_ before Christ ; and though the City, since that period, has been destroyed more than fifty times, yet his tomb remains still unmolested, and may be considered the oldest piece of masonry in the world.

A little further on we saw the memorable Mount of Olives, mentioned in the gospel ; and the spot on which Jesus kneeled and prayed, when the angel appeared to strengthen him, is distinguished by a kind of building erected over it.

About a stone's throw from hence is Gethsemane, where Jesus, after rising from prayer, found his disciples asleep ; and you are also shewn the place where Jesus was taken by the high priests and elders ; and where Peter, drawing the sword, cut off the ear of the servant of the high priest.

Returning another way to the City, we were shown the Fountain of Silva, where the blind received their sight, and a natural grotto where the disciples concealed themselves after Jesus was taken ; another grotto to which Peter retired to weep, after he had denied our Saviour ; and the place where St. Stephen was stoned.

From this place, we went to the Chapel of the Virgin Mary. To the right you see the Sepulchre of Joseph, and opposite to it, that of Anna, the mother of the Holy Virgin. Lower down in a little chapel, is the sepulchre of the Virgin Mary, which has an altar hung with lamps and richly decorated. At the bottom of the stairs to the left, there is a very fine well, the water of which is said to cure all diseases and work many miracles. On returning to the City by the Valley of Jehoshaphat, you are shown the ruins of the palace where Solomon kept his concubines ; and which you are taught to believe was once surrounded by extensive gardens, displaying all the beauties of exquisite taste and luxuriant fertility : but at present, this place, as well as the whole country round Jerusalem, exhibits nothing but sterility and indigence.

On entering the City we examined a castle where the Turks regularly mount guard ; and which, on account of its antiquity (being erected by King David), is well worth seeing. It is almost the only building that has escaped the ravages of the successive wars that have taken place. It was from a window in this castle, that King David first saw [the] fair Bathsheba, as she was bathing in a fountain, which is overlooked by the tower. There is a terrace on the top with embrazures ; but it has only a few dismounted and useless guns which have remained here since the time of the Crusades.

In an apartment at the top of the castle we saw a great number of coats of mail, helmets, breast- and shoulder-plates, old spears and some shields, brought hither by Richard Coeur de Lion, at the time he undertook to take the City from the Saracens, and reduce it under the power of the Christians.

This tower is surrounded by a very deep ditch, has a draw-bridge, and is defended below by a few pieces of ordnance. And were it not for local disadvantages it might, from the thickness and strength of its walls, be a safe place of retreat in time of danger.

Night coming on we returned to the Convent, where our friend the Governor always had a good bowl of punch å l'Angloise ready for us. We acquainted him with our intention of visiting Bethlehem the following day, in consequence of which he gave orders to have mules and Janissaries ready for the journey.

Accordingly, we set out at six in the morning and our guides shewed us the most remarkable places on our way to Bethlehem.

On the south-west of Jerusalem there is a valley, called the Valley of the Giants, or of Raphaim, famous for the defeat of the Philistines, who were twice overthrown here by David. At a little distance to the left is a small eminence with some ruins on it. It is called Mons Mali Consilii from the first council having met here to deliberate on taking and putting to death our Saviour. Near this is the valley where the angel of the Lord slew, in one night, one hundred and eighty-five thousand soldiers of the army of Sennacherib King of Assyria, who came in the reign of Hezekiah to take the City of Jerusalem.

In this valley are still the ruins of the tower in which Simon lived, who received Jesus when a child from the arms of the Virgin Mary, in the Temple of Jerusalem.

We passed the valley called Terebinthus ; and were shown the spot, where Mary sat down under the Terebinthus tree, when she was carrying Jesus from Bethlehem to the Temple. We saw in the environs the ruins of the house where Joseph was warned by the angel, to " arise and take the young child and his mother and flee into Egypt."

Being now within a mile of Bethlehem, we determined on examining its environs before we went to the Convent. We therefore turned to the right, and stopped at a place called Fons Signatus, the entrance to which is a narrow cave, through which a man can with difficulty make his way. After having descended, you find two chambers in the rock, vaulted over with square stones. One of them is forty-eight by twenty-seven feet ; the other forty-two by twenty-seven. On the western side are three grottos, from each of which runs a small stream of pure water, which unite in one channel of about six feet wide and six feet deep : they again separate, and one flows into a fountain ; the second follows the inclination to the Fishponds or Cisterns erected by Solomon, and the third is conveyed by an aqueduct to the City of Jerusalem.

Not far from the Fons Signatus is a castle, the lower part of the walls of which are of Solomon's time ; but the superstructure is of a much later date. Close to it is the first of the Cisterns, one hundred and ninety yards long, and one hundred and eight broad. The second, somewhat lower, is two hundred and twenty-nine yards in length, and one hundred and thirty-nine in breadth. And the third, which is still lower, measures two hundred and eighty-six by one hundred [and] twenty-three yards. These were, formerly, constantly full, but the Fons Signatus, from which they were supplied, does not at present yield sufficient water. Their depth is from forty to fifty feet. They have been cut out of the solid rock, and their sides are covered with a cement of a substance so hard, that it has withstood the force of water for so many centuries.

These extraordinary basins are situated in the centre of a valley one below the other ; so that the overflowings of the first are received by the second, and afterwards by the third successively. They are not level at the bottom, but cut out or indented like steps from the sides to the centre.

This wonderful work is reckoned among those great undertakings which distinguish the reign of the richest and wisest of monarchs: and the Ponds are the same that are mentioned in Eccles. Ch. 2. V. 5 & 6.

After a quarter of an hour's ride from the Ponds, in the same valley, you arrive at a place called Hortus Conclusus, mentioned in the Psalms. Near the Cisterns is the source of an aqueduct, which receiving a part of the waters of Fons Signatus conveys it for upwards of ten miles, through various winding passages, to the City of Jerusalem.

About eleven o'clock we arrived at the ancient town of Bethlehem of Judea : so called to distinguish it from another Bethlehem in Galilee, in the tribe of Zebulon.

It first came into the hands of the Christians in the year i 099, when Tancred was detached from the army of Godfroy de Bouillon to take it. After the loss of Jerusalem in 1 187 it was again abandoned by them, and has since been under the Saracen or Turkish government, but has always been inhabited by Christians.

We alighted at the Convent of the Terra Sancta, and the Padre Guardiano ¹⁵ received us with politeness and paid us the most friendly attention.

As you approach the town, the Convent presents the appearance of a most venerable ruin. You pass through a gate-way, which is at present in its last stage of ruin, though originally of immense thickness. From this gate-way, you go along a large terrace, on which formerly stood a magnificent piazza supported by marble columns.

You afterwards arrive at the church, which has three doors, chiefly built as a security against the Arabs. In the centre, or middle door, is an aperture, through which one person only can enter at a time. This opening is secured by an iron door of great thickness, capable of resisting any force but that of gunpowder. It leads you to a great hall with two doors, one opening to the Armenian Convent, and the other to the church called Basilica di Santa Maria. On entering this church the traveller is struck with surprise to find himself in a noble edifice of exquisite workmanship.

It is divided into five aisles, by four rows of superb columns of white marble with red veins, the produce of the neighbouring hills of Judea. Their capitals are of statuary marble, of the Corinthian order, executed in the most masterly manner. The beams which rest on the columns and support the superstructure, are of the cedar of Mount Lebanus, of immense dimensions, and astonishingly well preserved. The roof has suffered much at different periods; but most of the cedar beams have remained entire since the death of our Lord, and the whole roof is now covered with lead. The altar is in the centre, and raised some steps above the floor of the church : behind the altar you descend by semicircular steps to the grotto where our Saviour was born. There are three altars in this cavern, now a church, the Great Altar, the Altar of the Wise Men, and the Altar of the Circumcision of our Lord.

The walls were formerly ornamented with inlaid slabs of the finest marble; but a Sultan of Egypt tore them down and carried them to Cairo to adorn his seraglio. The floor was likewise finished with the same ornamental slabs as the sides; but now consists only of the uneven rock. At the eastern extremity is a small grotto, the spot where our Saviour was born.

This place, which was once a stable, is now superbly ornamented with different coloured marbles. In the centre is the Table of the Altar, and under it you are shewed the spot where the child was found, which still resembles a manger or stone basin. There is a star in whose centre is porphyry, surrounded with rays of silver, and studded with precious stones as a memorial of the star which conducted the Wise Men to the place where Jesus lay. Under it is written the following motto.
Hic de Virgine Maria
Jesus Christus natus est.
MDCCXXIX

The surface of the altar is an ancient table representing the birth of our Saviour. Joseph and the Virgin are in the attitude of kneeling and worshipping him, while he lies smiling on a bundle of straw. In the clouds is seen a group of angels, holding a scroll in their hands, on which is written " Gloria in excelsis Deo." In the back ground is the angel announcing the birth to the Shepherds.

The religionists of the Holy Land had the exclusive right of resorting to this sanctuary, but for some years past the Greeks have been allowed the same privilege. Near the Altar of the Manger is a painting representing the Magi offering their gifts. This grotto is of an irregular form, and is about ten feet every way. The length of the other from the eastern extremity to the western door is upwards of fifty feet. In the centre of the ceiling are hung a row of lamps, the gifts of different European Catholic princes. This place is held in very high estimation by the Mahommetans, who profess the greatest veneration for our Saviour and for the Virgin Mary. And though they do not acknowledge Jesus Christ to be the Son of God, yet they allow him to be the greatest Prophet of all prophets, conceived by the breath of God in the womb of the Virgin Mary. They acknowledge his miracles ; adding that he foretold the coming of Mahomet.

They believe that in the day of the resurrection we shall be judged in the presence of God, by three persons, namely, Moses, Jesus Christ and Mahomet ; and that each of them will judge his own sectaries.

The Mahommetans are permitted to come here to pray, which they have been known to do in cases of extreme distress, or in times of public calamity. When they enter the sanctuary they uncover their heads and proceed barefooted, with apparent awe and veneration. The Emperor Adrian, when he had reduced Judea to a Roman Province, placed images of the heathen gods in all those places which the Christians held most sacred; supposing that after having been polluted by idols, they never would renew their worship there. He placed the image of Venus in the spot where our Saviour was born. These subterraneous grottos branch out into different parts which have been dedicated to various persons buried here. You descend by five steps into the Cave of the Innocents, from whence there is a narrow passage leading to a chasm in the rock, into which it is said the bodies of the children were thrown after they had been put to death by order of Herod.

There is a very large terrace on the top of the Convent, from which you have a most extensive view of the surrounding country. On a clear day the Dead Sea may be discovered. I expressed my desire to the Superior of visiting it, and other places in the neighbourhood, but he only corroborated the opinion of the Holy Fathers of Jerusalem, by pointing out the insurmountable difficulties that stood in the way. All which I should have braved, were I not circumscribed in respect to time. I was bound, by my contract with the captain of our ship at St. John De Acre, to be back in twelve days from the day I left the ship, under a very heavy penalty. I assured the Superior, that ere long I would pay him another visit, and should then be prepared, with a strong guard to proceed to Sodom and Gomorrah, which is only twenty miles from Bethlehem.

There are some very large Cisterns under the Convent, ''constructed by King David, and the whole monastery is surrounded by a very strong wall. From the manner in which it is built, it resembles a fortified place, and in certain cases might hold out a long siege.

The town of Bethlehem is built on the southern side of a most barren mountain; and at present only consists of a few houses.

The inhabitants are all Christians or at least call themselves so. They are supposed to be the bravest race of people in the Holy Land, and have twice repulsed the Turks.

A few years ago the Bashaw of Acre having sent a little army to carry off the heads of all the inhabitants, the people of the town assembled to the number of about five hundred and made so brave a defence that the greater part of the Bashaw's soldiers were cut to pieces.

These people are very poor, and the country is nothing but rocks and stones: so that they could not possibly subsist, were it not for a manufactory of beads and crosses, which they sell as relics to the Catholic countries of Europe. These relics are made of mother-of-pearl, which is found in great quantities in the sea near Acre, and of a sort of hard red wood.

We were attended all the morning by these innocent men ; and at one an excellent dinner was prepared for us, consisting of at least thirty dishes. These good friars left us to enjoy it, and retired to sing hymns before they sat down to their scanty meal; it being Lent time, which they observe very strictly. After dinner we went to see the different cells and other inhabited parts of the Convent, all which are kept very neat and in excellent repair.

Before we returned to Jerusalem, I promised my spy- glass to the Superior, as a small token of the high sense I entertained of his politeness and attention ; and though he at first refused it, it was evident that he felt happier in accepting it than if I had given him the finest Arabian horse.

In two hours we found ourselves back again at Jerusalem, and heartily thanked the Superior for the friendly reception he had procured for us at Bethlehem.

The next day we had several remarkable places to examine. On leaving the Convent, we were shewn the spot where the house of Zebedee, the father of St. John, once stood. It is now a Greek church. The Virgin Mary and St. John the Evangelist remained here during the Crucifixion of our Saviour.

We afterwards went to the Church of St. James, which belongs to the Armenians. It is lighted by a very beautiful dome, and is said to be the place where St. James was beheaded. Three very remarkable stones are seen here. The first is that against which Moses broke the twelve [? two] Tables, the second, that which was on Mount Tabor at the Transfiguration of Jesus Christ, and the third was in the River Jordan at the place where John baptized our Lord.

We passed through the Gate of Mount Sion, or Gate of David, where we saw the foundations of the house where the Virgin Mary died, after having lived there fourteen years. The two venerable priests who accompanied us spoke of those places with such profound veneration as skewed how implicitly they believed what they had related of them to us.

Near it is the Church of Mount Sion, now a mosque, built before the place where the Holy Ghost descended on the apostles ; and where Jesus Christ administered the sacrament to his disciples and washed their feet.

At a little distance is the house of Caiaphas, where St. Peter denied his Master. Part of the pedestal on which the cock crew is still remaining, and a marble cock placed on it.

We re-entered the City and went to see the Temple of the Dedication, so called because it was here our Lord was dedicated to God, and Simon took him up in his arms, and said " Lord now lettest thou thy Servant depart in peace, according to thy word, etc."¹⁶ There is here a column of vast dimensions in full preservation, which, I think, is one of the most curious pieces of antiquity in Jerusalem.

From thence we went to see the Hospital of St. Helena, which has been preserved entire, and is still used [as] an hospital for the poor Turks.

The following day we began our excursion through the Street of the Cross. We saw the spot where our Saviour was whipt, which formerly was part of the House of Pilate.

Near this is the arch where Pilate produced Jesus to the people with his body lacerated, saying Ecce Homo. This arch extends from one side of the street to the other, under which are written these words, " Tolle, Tolle, Crucifige Eum."

Farther on is a little door, thro' which the Virgin, Mary saw her Son pass, carrying the cross, and the place where he fell under its weight, when it was placed on the shoulders of Simon the Cyrenean.

The place was afterwards shewed us where the house of the poor man Lazarus stood ; as also the palace of the rich man. We were likewise shewed the spot where stood the house of Veronica, on whose handkerchief the image of Christ was imprinted when she wiped the sweat from his brow. Lastly we saw the Door of Condemnation, through which Christ was led to Mount Calvary to be crucified. In the middle of this door the column still remains on which his sentence was stuck up. Here ends the Street of the Cross, which is about one thousand paces from the House of Pilate.

Having now seen and examined all the antiquities and curiosities of Jerusalem, we did not wish to delay our departure one moment. The Superior was much affected, and actually shed tears on hearing our determination to set out for St. John De Acre that very night, nor did he give up his arguments and entreaties to induce us to spend a few days more with him, until I explained to him the agreement between me and the captain of our ship. Upon which he immediately gave orders that we should be furnished with a sufficiency of provisions for our journey.

He had heard, he said, that I was making a collection of medals, and at the same time shewed me several, which excited my admiration; and [I] felt a mixture of pleasure and surprise, when he insisted that I should accept them. They consisted of ten gold ones, and several of silver and brass. He assured me that he had been thirty years collecting his medals, and that these he gave me were the best he met with. In return for which, I presented him with a very costly spy-glass, and a curious case of pistols, which with much difficulty I persuaded him to accept.

I had now some very material business to settle with this good gentleman before I took my final leave ; and therefore took this opportunity of requesting that he would give me a certificate, properly drawn up, signed and witnessed, stating the time of our arrival at Jerusalem; as a proof of my having visited that celebrated City, to be produced to my friends in Ireland.

This innocent man never inquired further into the motives of this particular request, but soon after delivered me a paper which contained a certificate, that I had visited Jerusalem,¹⁸ religionis gratia : I really was pleased at the opinion this worthy man entertained of us ; and felt a little inward shame, from a consciousness of demerit in this respect. He wished us every happiness this world could bestow ; and hoped that the Almighty would further strengthen our pious resolution of revisiting the Holy Land. We received the Reverend Father's benediction with becoming humility and gratitude ; and two hours after sunset began to proceed on our way to Napolosa,¹⁷ which is fifteen hours' ride from Jerusalem.

COPY OF THE SUPERIOR'S CERTIFICATE.¹⁸

Ego infrascriptus Guardianus hujus Conventns S. Mariae fidem facio omnibus et singulis has literas inspecturis, D. D. Thomasum Whaley et Hugh Moore fuisse, et habitasse duabus vicibus in hac Civitate Nazareh spatio trium dierum. in quorum fide etc.

Datum in eadem Civitate Nazareh. Die 5'0. Martis, A.D. 1789F. Archangelus ab Interaq. guars et supr.

seal of the Convent.

[TRANSLATION.]

I, the undersigned Guardian of this Convent of St. Mary, certify to all and singular who may read these presents, that Messrs. Thomas Whaley and Hugh Moore have, on two occasions, been present and resided in this City of Nazareth for the space of three days, in witness whereof

Given in the sd City of Nazareth 5th March 1789Brother Archangel of Entraigues,¹⁹ Guardian and Superior.

Footnotes

1 " Here lies the famous captain Godfrey de Bouillon, who won all this land for the Christian faith. May his soul reign with Christ. Amen." This inscription and that relating to King Baldwin on p. 199, no longer exist. After the conflagration of 1808 the monuments on which they were cut were removed by the Greeks, with the intention of destroying the evidence which they furnished that the Holy Sephulchre had once belonged to the Latins.

See Quaresmius, Terræ Sanct ae Elucidatio, 1639, lib. v., cap. ii., and Pierotti, Jerusalem Explored, Translated by T. G. Bonney, London, 1864.
2"At Laris, a city of Egypt. "-Moore's Journal.
3 This inscription is in reality in rude hexameters, ending in a pentameter, as follows :

Rex Baldewinus, Judas alter Machabeus,
Spes patriae, vigor ecclesiae, virtus utriusque,
Q uem formidabant, cui dona tributa ferebant
Cedar et Egyptus, Dan ac homicida Damascus.
Proh dolor, in modico clauditur hoc tumulo.

King Baldwin, a second Judas Machabaeus, the hope of his country, the strength of the Church, the pride of both, to whom Kedar and Egypt, Dan and man-slaying Damascus in terror brought gifts of tribute, is enclosed, alas ! within this narrow tomb. .

The curious epithet "homicida," applied to Damascus, probably refers to the manufacture of swords, for which that place has long been celebrated.

4 I by the grace of God am that which I am, and His grace was not found wanting an me.
5 This plan seems to have shared the fate of the sketches, as it does not appear in the MS.
6 The Iconastasis, or high and solid screen, reaching about halfway to the roof in Eastern churches, and covered with icons, or sacred pictures. It separated the Bema, or Holy of Holies, from the more public part of the temple.
7 ? Amauri. Moore's journal reads " Almericus."
8 This is evidently intended to represent Foulques d'Anjou.
9 This inscription is amongst those given by Elzearius Horn, Iconographi,e, etc., ed. P. H. Golubovich, Rome, 1902.

In his version which he has copied inaccurately from Quaresmius, Elucidatio `rerr r Sanct r, Lib. v., the third word is SEPUL. . . Whaley's reading agrees with Moore's MS. The Sepulchre (Se pultura) of our Lord Jesus was thoroughly (a fundamenta) restored in the year 1555 of the Holy Incarnation by and at the expense of Brother Boniface of Ragusa, guardian of the Holy Mount Sion.

10 This is only a portion of the full inscription as set out by Horn (see above), and also as given in Moore's Journal. The rest is as follows

ET . EREXI r AL . ISTVD . Î HON . X,
AD HAC . CA . HIC VERA . CERNIM,
COLMG . ET . FLAGELATI . IN PRETORIO PILATI [COLUMNAM]
. D. O. M. L.

and he erected this altar to the honour of Christ, who was bound and scourgea at this very pillar which we see here, in the Prætorium of Pilot,. Deo optima Maximo laus. The word " Columnam " is found in Moare s reading though omitted by Horn and Quaresmius.
11 Intended for Chosroes.
12 St. Matt. ch. 27 (marginal note in MS.)
13 St. Luke, ch. 23 (marginal note).
14 St. John, ch. 19 (marginal note).
15 A Venetian . . . His name was Serafino di Chiavari."-Hugh Moore's journal.
16 St. Luke, ch. ii., v. 29, 30 (marginal note).
' See note next page. 17 Neapolis.
18 The document as here set out is taken from the original which, with its seal attached, is pasted into Hugh Moore's MS. (see Reproduction). It is probable that both Whaley and Moore received separate certificates, as the copy given in Whaley's MS. differs in some unimportant particulars from the form printed above. See Appendix.
19 I am informed by Rev. Thos. A. O'Reilly, O.S.F., Dublin, that it was the custom for Franciscans to drop their family names and adopt instead the names of their places of birth ; and that under the rule of the Order different nationalities were represented in the government of the convents of the Holy Land. The Guardian who signed the Certificate was born apparently at Entraigues in France-Latin, Interaquiae-although he is described in Hugh Moore's journal as an Italian.