The Boy Travellers in the Far East, Part Fourth: Adventures of Two Youths in a Journey to Egypt and the Holy LandKnox, Thomas Wallace
General
The Boy Travellers in the Far East, Part Fourth: Adventures of Two Youths in a Journey to Egypt and the Holy Land
Knox, Thomas Wallace
Egypt -- Description and travel -- Juvenile literature; Palestine -- Description and travel -- Juvenile literature
"THE LATIN SACRISTY, containing the sword, spurs, and cross of
Godfrey de Bouillon.
"FRAGMENT OF A COLUMN, said to occupy the centre of the world.
"THE PRISON OF CHRIST, where he was kept while his cross was being
made ready for the crucifixion.
"CHAPEL OF ST. LONGINUS, the soldier who pierced the side of Christ
after his death.
"CHAPEL OF THE PARTING OF THE RAIMENT.
"COLUMN OF THE DERISION, where Christ stood when he was crowned
with thorns.
"CHAPEL OF ST. HELENA, containing the seat where the Empress Helena
sat while the cross was being sought for. Near it is the Chapel of
the Finding of the Cross, and the spot is indicated where the cross
was discovered. The Chapel of St. Helena is reached by descending
twenty-nine steps from the floor of the church, and the Chapel of
the Cross is a cavern in the rock, thirteen steps farther down.
"From this spot we ascended to the floor of the church and were taken
to Golgotha, or Mount Calvary, by an ascent of about fifteen feet.
Remember that everything we have mentioned is under the roof of the
church, or, rather, of the different buildings that have been erected to
make up the church. An architect who goes through it can readily
perceive that the construction was not all of the same period, and that
several men must have planned the various portions. The first chapel on
Mount Calvary was erected by the Emperor Constantine, but it has been
rebuilt two or three times, so that little if anything remains of it.
"The first chapel we entered in this part of the church was that of the
Raising of the Cross. They showed us the hole in the rock where the
cross stood, and about five feet on either side were the crosses of the
two thieves. The cleft in the rock, mentioned in Matt. xxvi. 51, was
pointed out in this chapel, and then we went to the next where Christ
was nailed to the cross, the positions being indicated by pieces of
marble in the floor. Beyond this is the Chapel of the Agony, which is
reached by a short stairway; it is a small chapel, and belongs to the
Latin monks, while the Chapel of the Raising of the Cross is the
property of the Greeks.
"Every day when the church is open to the public a good many pilgrims
come there to worship at the sepulchre of the founder of Christianity.
At Easter and other festivals the number is very large, and sometimes
the building is densely crowded. For a long time the Moslems used to
make all visitors pay heavily for the privilege of entering the church,
but of late years they have not been permitted to extort backsheesh. We
went there at an hour when the church was closed, and were,
consequently, obliged to pay the custodian before the key was produced.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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