PREFACE.

WITHIN a few years past, extensive explorations have been carried on throughout the East, which have resulted in remarkable discoveries in nearly all of the ancient and renowned cities known to sacred history.

Among the most important of these discoveries are those made in Jerusalem, in the excavations around and under the Temple site-among the ruins of King Solomon's store cities, Baalbek, Tadmor, and Hamath-at Babylon, Nineveh, and Shushan.

These discoveries have awakened an interest that will not be satisfied with anything less than a description of the ruins of all the important cities of the East.

In the ordinary works of Eastern travelers and writers, so much space is given to incidents of travel, and the speculations of travelers, that but little room is left for a description of antiquities or relics.

The aim of this work is to comprise in a convenient compass the results of all the important explorations

and excavations made in the East;-especially among
the ruins of King Solomon's cities. To this end, this
work has been made strictly descriptive and historical;
yet containing only enough of history to render the
subject intelligible. By this plan a description of the
ruins, as now seen, of forty of the most famous cities
of antiquity is given in the space of this volume.
THE AUTHOR

CETS

VIVER.

OF

ALIFOR

CONTENTS.

FIRE..

JERUSALEM.

ITS ORIGIN, AND A SKETCH OF ITS HISTORY.

CHAPTER I.

ORIGIN-ASSAULT AND CAPTURE OF THE CITY BY DAVID-DAVID'S

DEATH-HE IS SUCCEEDED BY SOLOMON, WHO BUILDS

THE MAGNIFICENT TEMPLE, AND THE STORE CITIES—

SIEGE OF JERUSALEM BY TITUS, IT IS TAKEN AT MID-

NIGHT-WANTON DESTRUCTION OF THE TEMPLE BY

PAGE 17

CHAPTER II.

A SKETCH OF THE TOPOGRAPHY OF THE CITY AND ADJOIN-

ING COUNTRY.

JERUSALEM-VALLEY OF JEHOSHAPHAT-VALLEY OF HIN-

NOM-THE

VIA DOLOROSA

TYROPEON-WALLS-

DAVID STREET..

--

PAGE 45

CHAPTER III.

RELICS, OBJECTS AND PLACES OF INTEREST.

ANCIENT POTTERY-LAMPS-KNIVES AND OTHER RELICS

-ZION BRIDGE ANCIENT CASTLE OF DAVID-GATES

OF THE CITY-POOLS-FOUNTAINS-VALLEY OF JEHO-

SHAPHAT-VILLAGE OF SILOAM-ANCIENT TOMBS AND

VAULTS-VALLEY OF HINNOM-ACELDAMA, THE FIELD

OF BLOOD.......

.PAGE 51

PLACES OF INTEREST NEAR THE CITY.

CHAPTER IV.

THE VALLEY OF JEHOSHAPHAT-OF HINNOM-ACELDAMA

-MOUNT OF OFFENCE ANCIENT SEPULCHRES-SCOPUS

RIDGE-MOUNT OF OLIVES-THE ROAD OVER WHICH

CHRIST RODE INTO JERUSALEM.›.
.PAGE 75

CHAPTER V.

CONCERNING THE TEMPLE OF KING SOLOMON.

MOUNT MORIAH-THE TEMPLE AREA, OR ENCLOSURE-

WILSON'S ARCH-ROBINSON'S ARCH-MASONIC HALL-

FOUNDATION WALLS OF THE TEMPLE-SOUTH, WEST,

AND EAST GATES-DOME OF THE ROCK-MOSQUE EL

AKSA..

HEBRON

...

CHAPTER VI.

THE PRIVATE MARKS OF THE BUILDERS AND THE REMARK

ABLE ANCIENT QUARRY UNDER JERUSALEM.

MARKS FOUND ON STONES IN THE FOUNDATION WALLS OF

THE TEMPLE AREA-MARKS FOUND IN SAMARIA AND

PAGE 117

......PAGE 87

CONTENTS.

THE

CHAPTER VII.

PLACES HISTORICALLY CONNECTED WITH SOLOMON'S TEMPLE

AND THE BUILDERS.

ANCIENT TYRE, HIRAM'S TOMB-MT. LEBANON—A SKETCH

OF ITS HISTORY-ITS WONDERFUL TOPOGRAPHY-THE

RENOWNED CEDARS-THE FOREST WHERE THEY WERE

PROCURED FOR SOLOMON'S TEMPLE-HOW THEY WERE

CONVEYED FROM THE MOUNTAINS TO THE SEA, AND

MADE UP INTO FLOATS THE SINGULAR INHABITANTS

OF LEBANON; THEIR MANNERS AND CUSTOMS THE

AKALS, A SECRET ORDER, HAVING SIGNS, GRIPS, AND

WORDS SIMILAR TO THOSE IN USE AMONG MASONS-

PASS OF THE JORDAN-JOPPA—HEBRON, ITS IMPORTANT

RELICS OF ANTIQUITY, AND SINGULAR MOSQUE-KING

SOLOMON'S STORE CITIES, BAALBEK-TADMOR—HAMATH

GEBAL - THE RUINS OF BEEROTH

JEARIM-SAMARIA, CHURCH OF ST. JOHN...

AND

-

-

THE RUINS OF BABYLON 1 ERECH

NINEVEH-DAMASCUS-

CHAPTER VIII.

THE CRADLE OF THE HUMAN RACE.

GARDEN OF EDEN-MOUNT ARARAT-THE DISPER-

SION OF THE PEOPLE-THEIR LOCATION, OR THE

PLACES OCCUPIED BY THEM THE FIRST

MENTS OF THE HUMAN FAMILY.

KIRJATH

........PAGE 141

vii

CHAPTER IX.

THE FIRST CITIES BUILT, THEIR RISE, FALL, AND RUINS,

AS NOW SEEN.

SETTLE-

...PAGE 258

ACCAD-CALNETH-

SHECHEM-GAZA-BEERSHEBA

-BETHEL-BETHLEHEM-SIDON-JERICHO..... PAGE 263