^^^:SN5 ^^ f e- LETTERS FROM AFRICA, BY SIGNOR TRAVIDEANI, OR AVEIRO, TO CANOFjty THE SCULPTOR. Palmyra, Dec. 17, 1818. JVIaking but a short stay at Grand Cairo, I embarked in the neighbourhood of Babylonia; and turning away from Rhodes, proud of its Niloineter, I found running upwards, Cimopolis, and the city that calls to remembrance the depraved licentious- ness of Adrian, the Lower Abydos, Licopolis, and many other places not mentioned with us. The picturesque prospect of a tliousand cavities called to my mind the anchorites of Thebes. Following the well-employed journey, I observed Abotis, Arroditophopolis, and Tentea, where, in the temple of Isis, I tasted, with wonder, the Egyptian learning ; and, turning to- wards the opposite shore, 1 passed by Coenas, and Apollino- polis Minor; reviewing near thereto the city of the Hundred Clates. Here is Carnak with its boundless walks of sphinxes, the Propylajon, porticoes of granite, the courts, the squares, and the temple, with eighteen ranks of columns hieroglyphically sculptured, the circumference of which seven men haraly span with their arms. Luxor, with its obelisks and innumerable colonnades. Behold Medinet-Atm covered with endless ruins, and with the monstrous colossus that saluted the appearance of the king of the stars, and still shadows the Theban plain. Follow and behold Kowm, where the seatof Memnon makes a rich display; and the bright image of the great Sesostris. But the tombs of these subterranenn abodcfi, that which an Italian (Giovanni Bel/on i,) opened last year, under the aus- pices of Mr. Salt, consul-general of England in Egypt, feeds the doubt, whether it is the production of a mortal hand. The interior is entered through an ample gate, when a path, with walls beautifully sculptured, leads to galleries still mor» beautiful, by the side of which ars the royal rooms, which pre- Latter^ from. /Ifrica, % serre in diffuse painting- the Egyptian mysteries, and the dif- ferent nations first known. The sanctuary of Isis captiratea both the eye and the mind. Then a catacomb of alabaster, adorned with hieroglyphics, both externally and internally, rises in the centre of the greater wing, which alone might enrich and give reputation to a mu- eeum. Why were not yon with me in that hour when I found in the great Thebes the whole world ? Having so opportune a motive, I directed to you from thence a letter. Tearing myself away, as it were, by force, from the divine Hecatouipylos, I passed Armuntis, Crocodilopolis, La- topolis, and Apollinopolis Major, saluting afterwards, -amongst its pleasing hills, the remote Syene. Having visited the temples of that frontier, and the well that was the looking-glass of the sun, and the island Elephantine, (or Elephantine Island) the abode of Emefet, I joined the illustrious party of my Lord Belmore, intent upon visiting- Nubia; and, having passed the last cataract, improperly called the first, the caves of graniie, and the sumptuous edifices of Philoef &c. reached Sieg Ibsambal, the ancient Aboceis, aban- doned to Petronius by the unfortunate Candace, and where is still the best monument of Ethiopia, re-opened by order of the aforesaid Mr. Salt, by our Belzoni, and by us another time when the Nisis had covered it with sand. The name of Mr. Salt is dear to the republic of the literati, and to amateurs of travels, by calling- to their remembrance the interesting accounts of Abyssinia. From Ibsambal, passing over to Ischiel, we met Daud Kas- rhef, one of the seventy ci)ildren of Hassan, who received us with an agreeable politeness, under a canopy of palms, in a field. Oh, if you had seen how different from our own are the customs of the people of Nubia! Here Captain Correy, brother of Lord Belmore, and myself, were seized wiih the desire of passing the penultimate cataract, in order to arrive by the way of Sennaar at the pleasant island of Meroe, which is the Saba conquered by Moses before the high mission, when, under the name of Sontifanti, tie enjoyed high credit at the court of Pharaoh. We were immersed in the new project, when some people of the provinces, subject to the Grand Negus, told us, that the Mamelukes confined in Dongola by the brave Mahomet Ali, notably suspected all those who came from Egypt ; wherefore we retroceded, and, on ihe 26th December, 1817, f cut in the name of Ilias and my own, upon the highest top of the cataracts of Nubia. That river which fertilizes no many kingdoms, and makes •1i Letter t from *^Jnca, them fruifful, is here divided into miliions of various streamif, which, g-nshing- out from amongst the stones, and folding into heaps of flowers^ form to the eye a spectacle not elsewhere known in nature. Having found under the torrid zone the sites of the ancient Phthuris, Assciga, Yicroseia, Corthes, Pselchas, Thutzis, Tal- mis, Taphis, and Thitzi, and having returned to Syene, 1 soon directed my steps towards Ombos Sacra, to Crocodile, to Stili- thia, Anubis, to Koptos, the friend of the maritime Berenice, and which experienced all the rigour of Diocletian, to Dios- polis Minor, Abydos Major, which preserves considerable remains of the temple of Osiris, to Panopolis, Antinoopolis, Her- mopolis Magna, Tanis Superior, and to Osirineus in Siut, where I met with the French traveller. Count Forbin. Spending some time in Radamore, where is the distillery of rum, and a sugar-bakery, under the direction of the hospitable Mr. Brine, I went down to the pyramids of Saccara, and by the plain of Memphis, to those of Ghizeh, where I found M. Bel- zoni anxious to penetrate into the second of those heaps, thought to be of Cephrenus. Knowing his intelligence, I endeavoured only to animate him still more to the undertaking, and after a stay of some days, we traversed a place inaccessible for many generations; and I know not how to express my feelings at wandering amongst those cavities. A very long-inclined gallery, entirely of fine and massy gra- nite ; a passage at the end so narrow, that a man bending horizontally can hardly enter : then a horizontal gallery, which looks into the hall where is the tomb worn away ; a perpendi- cular gallery, somewhat inclined, with a room on the left side of the passage; various collections of saline productions figured upon the walls; various inscriptions; and, finally, crosses drawn upon these same walls: this is what we saw. Emerging from this delirium to the light, I wished to ascend the highest pyramid, and arrived at the top ; I appeared to touch the stars: I remained there the whole night, which was the best of my life. Forty centuries had been silent under my feet, whilst 1 was ponderaling the cause and effects of the creation. The following morning the rising sun illumined me, which ithone around the horizon with a pomp never dreamt of, either by painter or by poet. From this place I wrote to you, to Dionigi, Morghen, Bar- tolomei, Pindemonte, Morichini, Ferroni, Vacea, Scarpellini, Camellieri, Delfico, to the Cardinal Gonsalvi, to the Chevalier Fossombroni, and to other lights and souls of my country. I have icarcely mentioned to you the celebrated woman of Letters from Africa* 4 Mizraim ; she has been a prey to all the scourges of time, so that we can only write upon her remains, " Here was Memphis." Turning from the pyramids, I entered into Grand Cairo, and thence down to Alexandria, in order to expedite to you the plan of my researches : for you and the Regent of England were the first to second my efforts. During the above-ujentioned period, I went to pay homage to the man who governs Egypt, worthy of being inserted in the pages of history by the side of Meeris and Menes, or with Euergetes and Ptolemy, son of Lagos. Returning to Grand Cairo I repaired to Asia: and, plunging into the deserts of Etam and those of Kedar, to see on one side Pharan, and on the other Casiotis, which includes in its bosom the bones of the great Roman yet unrevenged. As I left Egypt, which was deserting me, I was reminded what Amru wrote to the great Omar, desirous of a picture of that country : figure to yourself, O Prince of the Faithful, a vast and arid desert, with a river in the middle, which is attended in its course by two opposite hills, the borders of the ground rendered fertile by that flood so blessed by Heaven. Most just is the picture, and in that too which afterwards follows. Continuing my route I passed the isthmus of Suez, and the fragments of Rinocerura, Rapha, and Agrippfades, and leaving behind me Besor, I comforted my weary eye with the olives of Gerara, the happy land of the Philistines. Departing from Gaza I went to Beersheba, to Sorek, upon the borders of which lived Dalilah, to Timnath and Gabatha, known already by the feats of Samson ; and getting out of the way of the tribe of Simeon, I advanced into the mounts of Judah and Benjamin, arriving by the plain of Booz at Jeru- salem, in the very time of the Greeks demanding from Heaven their sacred fire. At the view of the"Hill of Sion and Mount of Olives, at the appearance of the city, I felt both as a Christian and as a philo- sopher, touched by an hitherto unfelt emotion, which, somewhat retarding my steps, covered my heart with pleasing melancholy, and my mind with incessant meditation. Oh ! what a diflfer- ence between the figurative aind the true. Having reverenced those places which record the beginning of the greatest religion in the world, I contemplated, with in- describable transport, the Tower of David, the Temple of Solomon, the Palace of Herod, the Fountain and the Pool of Siloah, the Sheep-pool, and that of Beer-sheba, the Kedron, the Golden-gate, the Well of Nehemiah, which concealed the true fiery element, the 3Iount of Offence, and that of Scandal^. Voyages and Travels, No^ 1. Vol. V. P 6 Letters from Jifrica. with the Valley of Tophef, where the priests of Israel sacri- ,ficed human vicfims to Moloch; the Sepulchre of Manasseh in the Garden of Uzza, the Sepulchres of the King-s, and those of Absalom, of Jehoshaphaf, of Zachariab, son of Barachiab ; the only architectural objects I thought worthy of you amongst the modern antiquities of the Hebrews, You are never satiated with delight o?er the ruing of Jeru- salem ; and, taking the advantage of a company of pilgrims, I went with them to Bahurim, whence Shimei threw stones at the Psalmist, in Adummim, or Place of Blood, to the Fountain of Elijah, to Jericho, which no longer gives odour to the chaste flower, down to Gilgal ; I purified myself in the Jordan at Bethabara, where John baptized. Before me were Reuben. and Gad, with the Plains of Moab, and the Land of the Amorites. Amongst the crowd of pilgrims were distinguished the Britons, Bengs, Mangles, f rby and Legh, and the exemplary companion of the Italian Belzoni. Returning to Jerusalem, I was present at the tragic quarrel which occurred between the Greeks and Latins, near the Tomb of Jesus Christ. I wrote to the hero of the pontificate, exhorting him to interfere, in order that, in future, such scan- dalous occurrences might not happen. I then undertook another journey, and tlie places I saw were the Valley of the Giants, the Lands of Jacob, the Sepulchre of Rachel, near Ramath, the Cistern of David, Bethlehem, a smilinof town of Judea, the Villa of the closed Garden, the sealed Fountain, and the vessels of Solomon; the Hills of En- gaddi, Tema, the country of Almos; and Giloh, country of Ahitophel; the Grottos of Adullam, and the Wood of Zipb, where the successor of Saul, David, often hid himself; the Valley of Mamre, the Field of Damascus ; whence re-proceed- ing, the Vale of Terebinthus, fatal to Goliah, and the surround- ing places renowned by the nativity and abstinence of the precurser. I, lastly, saw Bethany. Having drawn from the library and the archives of the friars what I thought of service to my purpose, I bid adieu to the Daughter of Sion, and by the Pool of Gibeon, Beth-horon, Succoth, the Valley of Rephaim, Azekah, Emniaus, Anathoth, the country of Jeremiah placed against Modin, the glory of the Maccabees, and by Aramathoea, passing Sharon, I stopped at Joppa, which still boasts of its rocks warm with the tears of Andromeda. Here arrived the T^rian ships, bearing the pre- cious stores and purple which the son of Abibal sent to the sapient king, and here, too, daily arrives the pilgrim, led from aikr to pay the vow. Letters from Jjfrica. 6 From Joppa I went by the shore to Ekron, ilshdod, which kept the ark a prisoner, to Ashkalon, now destroyed, and hav- ing returned to Joppa, I ascended the inheritance of Ephraira to the Sepulchres of Benjamin and Simeon; to Sichem, whence we mounted Ebal and Gerizim, to the Well of Jacob, and the Sepulchre of Joseph ; and meeting with the Abbe de Mazure, a warm panegyrist of France, and measurer of Judea, I went with him to Sdoa, upon the road that leads from Jerusalem to Neapolis. Neapolis, or Napolosa, lies upon the ruins of Sichem, and here, returning from Si!oa, I found the ancient Samaritans, or Guteans, who were praying from error, by a well, believed to be Jacob's. I taught them the truth, which doctrine excited against me no small disturbance; so far, that the said Sama- ritans, thinking me one of their brethren, wished by all means to retain me in the country; and wliat is more singular, exacted that I should promise marriage to a woman of their sect. The Christians of Napolosa took up my defence ; whence, getting off at my own hazard, foreseeing the favour of the for- mer, I took shelter in Samaria, where there is no vestige of the importunate Samaritans. I wrote to you, that, with the excep- tion of some columns, there is nothing interesting in Sebaste. On leaving Samaria the tribe of Issachar piresented them- selves to me in Galilee, with the fountain of Israel, and plain of Esdraelon, over which the eye cannot reach ; Endor, at the foot of the second Hermon, known by the victory of Deborah and Barak. Sophos, the native place of James and of the friend of his master ; Cana, the country of Simon and Natha- nael ; Tabor, terminating with Heaven; beautiful parts of Zabulon ; Bethsaiada^ the country of Peter and Andrew on the shores of that water, abundant in the deeds of the Divine Instructor of virtue. Returned to Tiberias, I undertook the analysis of those mineral waters; and in the city where lives, in retired delight, that deserving man of society, the noble gentleman Raphael de Piciotto,. consul-general of Austria in Syria, whose roof and whose fortune never denied to any one a constant sacred hospitality. And you must know, d-propos, that, amongst the Hebrews dispersed in the various regions of the globe, and amongst those of Asia and of Africa particularly, there exists an ancient custom of coming to finish their days upon the spot, bedewed by the sweat of their ancestors. Such a sentiment gladdens their heart from the most tender years of youth, and hence it is moving to see arrive in the ports of Palestine, the aged Israelite, who, leaning upon the shoulder of his old consort, P2 7 Letters from Africa. approaches with her amidst the cheers of hope, to deposit his rae^jred spoils in the sepulchre of their forefathers. The heats suffered upon the lake of Gennesareth havingf moderated, I revisited the tribe of Issachar, and having ascended Carmel I dropped down to Hepna, to Dora, to Cesarea, to Ma- nasseh ; and passina;" in the tribe of Asher over the space of Semeron and the Waters of Cenderia, I continued afterwards the Belus to Ptolemais, still dyed with that blood which the cruel Djezar caused to flow in torrents. Thus following the course of the Phoenician shore, every moment appeared to me an age which interfered with that which should show me in a miserable rock, surrounded with water and with sand, that once powerful mistress of the seas. The Greek Archbishop, D. Ciriilo Debbas, received me cor- dially in his house, and causing to be prepared a frugal repast, placed on the ground, after the fashion of the East, and setting himself down beside me, spoke as follows : — " Eat with good- will, that God may preserve it to thee, f receive thee negli- gently after the manner of the apostles, and this scanty food I consume with thee in good-will, as I do daily with the other guests. If I had more I would give thee more, but my only income, which is that of the Archbishpric of Tyre, does not produce me annually above 200 crowns (schdi) of thy country, the half of which I employ to nourish the poor of my diocese. Besides being their spiritual, I am also their temporal, physi- cian, and lend gratuitously my remedies wherever they are necessary. The other prelates live more secure under cover of the mountains, but I am more fortunate than they are, who divide with my flock the days of sorrow and of joy." May those be blessed who speak and reason with so much truth. JLeaving Tyre with the benedictions and sincere embraces of my host, I passed the Well of Living Waters, the Pseudo Eleutherius, and Sarepta, when the smiling plain of that Sidou opened itself before me, which struggled hard with its approach- ing fall. Monsieur Ruflin, French Consul, politely offered me reception, and I deplore the loss he has since sustained in a companion who was the model of the tender sex. The Lady Esther Stanhope, who, for so many years, has attracted the attention of Asia and Europe, by the singular manner of life she has ado]ited, is encamped one hour's distance from Sidon, in a small habitation called Ceruba; and, in order to render herself still more remarkable, insisrs upon her wdl being obeyed, that no European shall approach her, even for a moment. To blame her for it, would it not be an act of in- tolerance ? Traversing that mountain which includes so many mountains^ Letters from Africa, 8 and may properly be called a king-dom, and which I shall call Libania, I hastened forward to Cilicia, and thence to Damascus, the name of which imposes more than is due to it. In all the circuit of Libanus, as well as in Carmel, I collected a thousand fruits and petrified testaceous substances, the proof of a tremendous deluge. My intention of going from Damascus to Palmyra not suc- ceeding- at that time, I came to Balbeck, where it appeared to me as \i Thebes were revived in the midst of Syria. An entire volume would be insufficient for the description of the Temple of the Sun. Six columns arise amidst the marshes, each in heig-ht seventy- one feet, and twenty-one feet eight inches in circumference. Three stones of granite occupy the space of one hundred and seventy-five feet and a half, and another has sixty-nine feet of length, twelve of breadth, and thirteen of thickness. You alone. Sublime Genius ! can solve the problem whether it is the work of common men, or of a race of beings superior to our own. Re-ascending mount Libanus, I wished to smell its boasted cedars, see Eden, the grottos of Canobiit, and the horrible cave of the great Egyptian hermit. Oh, how the pure and sweet life of the patriarchs flourishes here! Here is that simplicity and peace that man in vain seeks amongst mankind. Again returning to Phoenicia I went to Tripoli, to Tortosa, witness of the great congress in the first crusade ; to Eluthe- rius, Sober; to the city of Gabale, which preserves one of its amphitheatres ; to Laodicea, where the Signor Agostino Laz- zari entertained me with more than social treatment; and pene- trating amongst the mountains of the Arsarites, worshippers of dogs and of the base senses, I arrived at the Milky Waters of Orontes and at Antioch, an object worthy of contest. From Theopolis, by a road covered with abusive inhabitants, I came to the more flourishing Aleppo, thence to the Euphrates, and hardly touching Mesopotamia, the sound of Nineveh and Babylon already struck my fancy, and drew it away more ra- pidly than the steed of Elimaides, the chariot of Cyrus. Passing again through Aleppo, I kept the other road of Da- tnascus by Apamea, Cima, and Emesa, where the delicately fair-haired, white-complexioned nymphs, display themselves, with their black eyes, more beautiful than were ever produced by the native of Urbino or by Titian. Whilst I was enjoying the presence of Emesa, the catastro- phe of the Palmyrenes came to my memory, and the blood of the acute Longinus almost drew from me a tear. Warmly recommended to the governor of Damascus by the 9 Letters from JiJHca* excellent Piciotto, consul-|2fenerai of Austria in Aleppo, a son worthy of his father, I a