DOI Seite / Zitierlink:
https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.10358#0024
4
PICTURESQUE PALESTINE.
side, with its apse towards the north-east. A semicircular projection of the northern wall would
indicate the apse of some former edifice within the wall at that point.
The whole mass of ruins is a mystery. It was evidently one of the holy places of the
Arvadites, at once a temple and a stronghold. M. Ray, of Paris, in his report on the remains
of the military architecture of the Crusaders in Syria, styles this place the best s'pecimen of
Tepevos that exists in Syria. Its name, " Solomon's Fortress," would indicate the prevailing
ancient tradition as to its origin. The whole Arab race believe Ba'albek (see page 453, vol. i.)
and Tudmur (Palmyra) (see page 429, vol. i.) to be the work of Solomon aided by the genii,
and this Phoenician quadrangle very naturally bears his name. It is not impossible that
when Solomon went to Hamath Zobah and built store cities or magazines for storing grain in
this district, his men may have made this a store city. The word Hamath means Husn,
or fortress, and the fame of Solomon must have extended through this entire region, then
inhabited by the Phoenicians and Hittites; and it is no improbable supposition that this
retired and almost inaccessible spot may have been selected as a stronghold in which to store
grain for his subjects in Northern Syria, or even as a military fortress. The small temples
were probably of much later date.
Leaving this lovely valley we rode to Burj Safita, the" Castel Blanc " of the Crusaders, and
now, with its Protestant church and schools, a veritable white spot in this dark mountain.
Thence, on the 1st of June, we rode down for six hours over the undulating chalk hills towards
the coast, when suddenly we came upon the modern town of Tartus, the ancient Antaradus
of the Phoenicians. The town contains about one thousand five hundred people, four-fifths
Muslims and one-fifth Greek Christians. The majority of the people live within the walls of
the castle, an immense structure, whose vaulted halls and chapels, built by the Crusaders, are
still in excellent preservation. The castle stands on the seashore, protected from the waves
by a massive sloping buttress. On the land side the castle was surrounded by two walls and
two moats, one between the walls and one beyond. These are in fine preservation, especially
on the north-east side. The ancient structures are solid and beautiful, the modern of the most
abject character.
Taking the Arab shakhtur, or sloop, which plies between the town and its insular sister,
we sail across the two and a half miles of sea to the ancient island of Arvad, now Ruad. This
island is three-quarters of a mile in circumference, with a population of two thousand. It was
surrounded by a wall intended to serve as a fortification, and a dyke to protect the town from
the sea. A portion of the wall still remains, composed of blocks of stone from fifteen to twenty
feet in length. The finely drafted stones indicate its Phoenician origin. The rock interior is
full of cisterns to supply water to the inhabitants. The inscriptions in Greek begin with the
words, " The Senate and People," &c. On the north-east side was the harbour, formed by two
moles built of immense stones brought from the quarries at 'Amrit. The present population
are chiefly fishermen, whose boats supply fish to Ladakiyeh, Tripoli, and even Beirut, and carry
lumber from Mounts Casius and Amanus to the cities of Southern Phoenicia.
PICTURESQUE PALESTINE.
side, with its apse towards the north-east. A semicircular projection of the northern wall would
indicate the apse of some former edifice within the wall at that point.
The whole mass of ruins is a mystery. It was evidently one of the holy places of the
Arvadites, at once a temple and a stronghold. M. Ray, of Paris, in his report on the remains
of the military architecture of the Crusaders in Syria, styles this place the best s'pecimen of
Tepevos that exists in Syria. Its name, " Solomon's Fortress," would indicate the prevailing
ancient tradition as to its origin. The whole Arab race believe Ba'albek (see page 453, vol. i.)
and Tudmur (Palmyra) (see page 429, vol. i.) to be the work of Solomon aided by the genii,
and this Phoenician quadrangle very naturally bears his name. It is not impossible that
when Solomon went to Hamath Zobah and built store cities or magazines for storing grain in
this district, his men may have made this a store city. The word Hamath means Husn,
or fortress, and the fame of Solomon must have extended through this entire region, then
inhabited by the Phoenicians and Hittites; and it is no improbable supposition that this
retired and almost inaccessible spot may have been selected as a stronghold in which to store
grain for his subjects in Northern Syria, or even as a military fortress. The small temples
were probably of much later date.
Leaving this lovely valley we rode to Burj Safita, the" Castel Blanc " of the Crusaders, and
now, with its Protestant church and schools, a veritable white spot in this dark mountain.
Thence, on the 1st of June, we rode down for six hours over the undulating chalk hills towards
the coast, when suddenly we came upon the modern town of Tartus, the ancient Antaradus
of the Phoenicians. The town contains about one thousand five hundred people, four-fifths
Muslims and one-fifth Greek Christians. The majority of the people live within the walls of
the castle, an immense structure, whose vaulted halls and chapels, built by the Crusaders, are
still in excellent preservation. The castle stands on the seashore, protected from the waves
by a massive sloping buttress. On the land side the castle was surrounded by two walls and
two moats, one between the walls and one beyond. These are in fine preservation, especially
on the north-east side. The ancient structures are solid and beautiful, the modern of the most
abject character.
Taking the Arab shakhtur, or sloop, which plies between the town and its insular sister,
we sail across the two and a half miles of sea to the ancient island of Arvad, now Ruad. This
island is three-quarters of a mile in circumference, with a population of two thousand. It was
surrounded by a wall intended to serve as a fortification, and a dyke to protect the town from
the sea. A portion of the wall still remains, composed of blocks of stone from fifteen to twenty
feet in length. The finely drafted stones indicate its Phoenician origin. The rock interior is
full of cisterns to supply water to the inhabitants. The inscriptions in Greek begin with the
words, " The Senate and People," &c. On the north-east side was the harbour, formed by two
moles built of immense stones brought from the quarries at 'Amrit. The present population
are chiefly fishermen, whose boats supply fish to Ladakiyeh, Tripoli, and even Beirut, and carry
lumber from Mounts Casius and Amanus to the cities of Southern Phoenicia.