Having returned with the pilgrims to Jerusalem, he proceeded to visit
the other sacred places celebrated in the New Testament,—Bethlehem,
Nazareth, Mount Tabor; on which last spot, he observes, he drank some
excellent goat’s milk. From thence he proceeded to the Lake of Tiberias,
where to his great surprise he found many of the fishes of the Nile. At
Japhia, or Jaffa, a village near Nazareth, he found great quantities of
the plant which he supposed to be the mandrake, or _dudaim_ of the
Scriptures. This plant was not then in flower, nor could he procure an
entire root for want of a mattock. It grows in great plenty throughout
Galilee, but is not found in Judea. The Arabs denominate it “devil’s
meat.”
From thence he descended to the seacoast, visited the ruins of Tyre, and
proceeded by night to Sidon. Here he found various objects highly
interesting to a naturalist in the immense gardens of this city, from
whence prodigious quantities of fruit are annually exported. The
mulberry-tree is found in great abundance in this part of the country,
which has led the inhabitants to pay great attention to the rearing of
silk-worms, which here, as at Nice, are hatched in little bags which the
women wear in their bosoms by day, and at night place under their
pillows. In botanizing among the neighbouring hills he was invited by a
shepherd to share his dinner. It consisted of half-ripe ears of wheat
roasted over the fire, a sort of food mentioned in the Scriptures, and
warm milk. The practice of eating unripe corn in this manner likewise
prevails in Egypt, where Turkey wheat and millet are substituted for the
proper wheat.
On the 23d of May, 1751, he sailed from Sidon in a small French ship
bound for Cyprus, and on the 28th cast anchor in the harbour of Larnaco.
Though he visited this island with no intention of travelling in it,
being once there he could not forbear making a few excursions into the
interior, of which the first was to the mountain of Santa Croce, the
loftiest in the country. In the rusty-coloured limestone rock which
forms the basis of this mountain are mines of lead, copper, and
rock-crystal; which last, of which some fine specimens are found near
the ancient Paphos, was at first mistaken for a diamond-mine by the
Turks. A few days after his return from Santa Croce he visited
Famagosta, once, when in possession of the Venetians, a splendid city;
but now a heap of miserable ruins.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account