From Dan to Beersheba: A Description of the Wonderful Land, with Maps and Engravings and a Prologue by the Author Containing the Latest Explorations and DiscoveriesNewman, John Philip
Religion
From Dan to Beersheba: A Description of the Wonderful Land, with Maps and Engravings and a Prologue by the Author Containing the Latest Explorations and Discoveries
Newman, John Philip
Palestine -- Description and travel
came to land their passengers and discharge their cargoes. To the
northeast of this arcade is a plain Gothic church 20 feet wide and
133 long. The ceiling is supported by 12 arches, springing from as many
plain brackets, each arch culminating in an elegant embossed flower.
The interior is reached by a single door, and its one square and two
pointed windows look upon the sea.
Consisting of a few huts, occupied by inhabitants as filthy as they
are wretched, the modern town of Athlît is piled upon the ruins of the
ancient acropolis. Beneath the citadel are immense vaults, supporting
the formidable fortress above. In the midst of these huts stands the
once magnificent Gothic church of the Crusaders. The remaining wall
is 80 feet high, and is divided into sections by ribs, which rest upon
the heads of human figures. These arches, no doubt, spanned the eastern
aisle of the church in the days of its glory. Such are the splendid
ruins of Athlît. Impressed with its greatness, I experienced the novel
emotions of gazing upon a decayed city whose powerful citizens are
without a record in history. Enumerating Dor and its towns, Joshua may
have included Athlît; or, if it existed at that time, it may not have
been possessed by Issachar.
Two roads lead from the “Pilgrims’ Castle” to Mount Carmel, one
along the coast to Haifa, the other through the Vale of Dor. We took
the latter: the path leads over rich plains, where reapers and gleaners
were gathering the ripened grain. To the east the trees and blades of
corn seemed to rise out of water, but we soon discovered that it was
a mirage. In an hour we reached the mouth of a narrow mountain defile.
To the south of the entrance are two remarkable caves, which some time
have been human habitations. The larger of the two is 300 feet long
and 50 wide. The sides and top are formed into sections by 13 natural
arches, resembling the ribbed ceiling of a Gothic church. The bottom
of the cave declines inward, and near its termination the percolated
water drops from the fretted roof. Entering the mountain gorge, the
lofty hills on either side are covered with oaks, hawthorn, myrtle,
and acacias, and flowers bloomed along the grassy vale. The Sabbath
silence that reigned within was unbroken save by the cooing of the
dove in its mountain home, and the scream of the eagle as he flew from
his inaccessible eyry. The hills soon receded, and the broad valley
was dotted with oaken groves and fields of pasture, where herds of
cattle and flocks of sheep and goats were browsing. Passing through the
village of Asifriah, we descended a steep path leading into a ravine
of extraordinary grandeur. Descending the glen, between mountains which
arose thousands of feet above us, we turned to the north and began
the ascent of Carmel. For two hours we ascended a mountain path steep
and rugged, lined with oaks, acacias, and flowers, when we gained
the summit of the sacred mount, and stood with Elijah of Tishbe, and
Elisha, the son of Shaphat.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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