The Conte de Rubruquis, who was sent by St. Louis of France from the Holy Land to visit the Court of Tamerlane, gives a similar impression of the way in which building operations were carried on by that autocratic monarch, all of whose operations seem to have been executed in desperate haste. He says of the building of one of the great mosques: “The architects chose a happy moment to begin it, namely, on the fourth of Ramadam, 801 (May 28, 1399), which answers to the year of the Hare, the Moon being then in Leo, going out of the sextile aspect of Venus. The masons, brought from foreign countries, as mentioned before, gave the greatest proofs of their art and skill, as well in the solidity and beauty of the angles, as in the strength of the foundations of this noble edifice. In the inside of the mosque were employed two hundred masons from Azerbijana, Persia, and India; five hundred men likewise worked in the mountains in the cutting and hewing of stones, which were sent into the city. Several other artisans of different trades performed their parts with the utmost application. Ninety-five chains of elephants were made use of in drawing large stones with wheels and machines according to the laws of mechanics. The princes of the blood and Emirs were appointed to oversee the workmen, that not one moment might be lost in finishing this stupendous building.” The event was celebrated with sumptuous banquets, accompanied by all sorts of plays and diversions. “The Empress Rokia Canica on this occasion gave a noble entertainment, accompanied with concerts of music and fine dancing.”[6] The descriptions of Clavijo, the Spanish envoy, are equally vivid and interesting, giving a thoroughly complete picture of life at the Court of the great Khan. Referring to the Empress Cano (as Clavijo calls her), he says that after she had approached the Emperor, attended by her 300 ladies and eunuchs, and had taken her seat, the second wife or “little Cano” came out and took up her position, followed in turns by his seven other wives. The tents and pavilions on such occasions were of the utmost magnificence, scarlet cloth embroidered with gold and silks, white satin and different coloured silks, with silken cords and tassels. The tables were of gold, and the ornaments of gold and precious stones. Drinking formed an important part of the ceremony, and the Empress was greatly displeased when the monk de Rubruquis refused to drink at her invitation; he narrates that many of the guests became quite drunk and even fell down before her, which added to the amusement. There was also a popular and less harmful beverage of cream and sugar. The meats consisted of sheep and oxen, roasted whole, and served on dishes of thick stamped leather. No less than three hundred men were requisite to bring them in, and camels were used to bring them to the place. This part of the feast sounds quite unrefined, for the food is said to have been placed in heaps