Wilson, Charles W. [Hrsg.]; Fenn, Harry [Ill.]: Picturesque Palestine: Sinai and Egypt ; in 2 volumes (Band 1) (New York, 1881)

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PICTURESQUE PALESTINE.

they take off their shoes in the mosque and keep on their fez or turban ; they are dressed in
flowing robes, and for the poorer classes any scrap of cotton or linen, or silk or blanket, or
shawl or sash, serves for a covering; but they have a native air of dignity and courtesy, and
always look picturesque. There are no ruling fashions which obliterate distinctions, as they do
in the West; everybody follows his own taste or whim, and maintains his individuality.

It will be observed that camels form a conspicuous feature in many of the pictures.
Indeed, go in any direction, one can hardly fail of seeing a large number of these strange
creatures, with or without loads, jostling and crowding to make their way along, as though they
formed a part of the inhabitants, and were pushing through the thoroughfares on business of
their own. They need considerable room, but otherwise they make very little disturbance.
Twenty or more horses, walking over the paved streets with their clattering hoofs, make an
almost frightful din, while a string of a hundred camels will pass noiselessly, because their
spongy feet fall on the stones like cushions.

The bazaars are so numerous and varied in character, that days and even weeks may be
spent before a thorough examination of them has been made. While the methods of buying
and selling are peculiar, one will find them to be uniform in every place, from the horse-market
down to the bakers' shops and the old-clothes establishments. Each trade has its own separate
bazaar. Formerly Damascus was rich in products of native industry, silk shawls, carpets, the
famous Damascus blades, and other weapons. But European industry has largely replaced the
Muslim manufactures, and introduced Manchester prints, Sheffield cutlery, and French ribbons.

The chief bazaars, in addition to those above described, are the Greek Bazaar, one of
the largest, where weapons, shawls, and antiquities are sold (usually for one-fourth or one-third
of the sum first asked); the Cloth Bazaar, well stocked with English and Saxony wares ; the
Silk Bazaar, with products of Damascene manufacture; the Bazaar of the Joiners, where
mirrors, chests, cradles, tables, stools, of inlaid and carved wood, are kept; the Bazaar of the
Coppersmiths, where Oriental dinner-services and various cooking utensils are displayed on low
wooden stands. The Shoemakers' Bazaar (see pages 394 and 398), the Horse Market (see
page 405), the Saddle Market, and the Brokers' Market are also worth visiting.

In the Horse Market (see page 405) the purchaser can suit his taste both as to style and
speed, and generally also as to price. Among the common animals will now and then be
found a few fine Arabian horses. These always command a good price. Burckhardt, in his
day, took occasion to praise the honesty and sincerity of the horse-dealers among the Arabs.
Times may have changed since then, for it is certain that now among the Bedawin, and
especially in the Horse Bazaar of Damascus, one must not expect the truth to be spoken with
every statement that is made.

In connection with the horses, the Saddle Market will be visited with interest, because
these necessary articles are so unlike our own, being really broad cushions, and having broad
stirrups with straps so short that the knees are sometimes elevated to a level with the top of
the horse's shoulders. The bridles and girths, together with the saddle, are sometimes richly