DOI Page / Citation link:
https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.10358#0139
ii4 PICTURESQUE PALESTINE.
chiefly of oleanders and lupins in full bloom, mallows, tall grasses, and large bushes of
arbutus.
Nothing is positively known of the early history of Athlit, not even its name. It appears
to have been included in the territory allotted to Manasseh, from which he could not drive out
the inhabitants, "for the Canaanites would dwell in the land," though at a later period Israel
became sufficiently powerful to compel them to pay tribute (Judges i. 27, 28).
So favourable a position for a seaport town as the promontory of Athlit, with its bay
and two natural harbours, and with springs and extensive quarries and fertile plains in its
immediate neighbourhood, could not have been overlooked by the Phoenicians, and the Greeks
and Romans must also have occupied it. But the history of Athlit begins and ends with the
Crusading era. It is, however, recorded that the Crusaders discovered ancient foundations
both at Athlit and its outpost Detroit, and at the latter place the builders found a store of very
curious coins which they could not decipher.
As already stated, the " Knights of the Temple of Solomon " (commonly called the
Knights-Templar) built the fortress of Athlit (see page 100), and it was evidently a very
strong one. The Sultan Muezzin besieged it unsuccessfully in the year 1220, and it was the
last place held by the Crusaders in Palestine. It was finally subdued by the Sultan Melek-el-
Ashraf Khalil, son of Kalaoun, after his conquest of St. Jean d'Acre in the year 1291 (refer
to page 91).
From Athlit we journey southwards towards Tanturah (see page 105), a distance of six
miles and a half. The ancient chariot road runs westward of the ran^e of coast-hills, but a
broad strip of sandy and marshy land separates it from the seashore. About a third of a mile
south of the promontory of Athlit (see page 101), the shore line abruptly advances westward
into the sea, and thus forms the commodious little bay of Athlit. From this point, for a mile
or more, the sandy and marshy coast plain is nearly a mile in width. Through an opening in
the rocky hills on our left we see the fertile plain of Athlit stretching to the slopes of Carmel,
traversed diagonally by a footpath leading to the ruined site called " El Mezar " (the Place of
Visitation). The many large caves near to it, and a Mohammedan sanctuary, cistern, and well,
attract the peasantry, especially shepherds and goatherds, to this spot. In its neighbourhood
there are wooded ravines with the pleasantly suggestive names Khallet Rummaneh (Pome-
granate Dale) and Khallet Zeituneh (Olive-tree Dale); but we must pursue our way southwards.
As we approach Surafend, a small village four miles south of Athlit, built on the crest of the
low coast hills, we see signs of cultivation. Instead of sand-dunes, lagoons, and marshes, there
are fields of sesame, millet, and tobacco bordering the road, and little groups of palm-trees
near to the seashore.
Half a mile south of Surafend, which is famous for its fig-orchards, there is another
village. It is called Kefr Lamm, and though built on the broad smooth summit of the
widening coast range, it is only fifty-one feet above the sea-level. On one occasion, when I
was travelling along the coast with my brother, we spent a night here. It was the last week
chiefly of oleanders and lupins in full bloom, mallows, tall grasses, and large bushes of
arbutus.
Nothing is positively known of the early history of Athlit, not even its name. It appears
to have been included in the territory allotted to Manasseh, from which he could not drive out
the inhabitants, "for the Canaanites would dwell in the land," though at a later period Israel
became sufficiently powerful to compel them to pay tribute (Judges i. 27, 28).
So favourable a position for a seaport town as the promontory of Athlit, with its bay
and two natural harbours, and with springs and extensive quarries and fertile plains in its
immediate neighbourhood, could not have been overlooked by the Phoenicians, and the Greeks
and Romans must also have occupied it. But the history of Athlit begins and ends with the
Crusading era. It is, however, recorded that the Crusaders discovered ancient foundations
both at Athlit and its outpost Detroit, and at the latter place the builders found a store of very
curious coins which they could not decipher.
As already stated, the " Knights of the Temple of Solomon " (commonly called the
Knights-Templar) built the fortress of Athlit (see page 100), and it was evidently a very
strong one. The Sultan Muezzin besieged it unsuccessfully in the year 1220, and it was the
last place held by the Crusaders in Palestine. It was finally subdued by the Sultan Melek-el-
Ashraf Khalil, son of Kalaoun, after his conquest of St. Jean d'Acre in the year 1291 (refer
to page 91).
From Athlit we journey southwards towards Tanturah (see page 105), a distance of six
miles and a half. The ancient chariot road runs westward of the ran^e of coast-hills, but a
broad strip of sandy and marshy land separates it from the seashore. About a third of a mile
south of the promontory of Athlit (see page 101), the shore line abruptly advances westward
into the sea, and thus forms the commodious little bay of Athlit. From this point, for a mile
or more, the sandy and marshy coast plain is nearly a mile in width. Through an opening in
the rocky hills on our left we see the fertile plain of Athlit stretching to the slopes of Carmel,
traversed diagonally by a footpath leading to the ruined site called " El Mezar " (the Place of
Visitation). The many large caves near to it, and a Mohammedan sanctuary, cistern, and well,
attract the peasantry, especially shepherds and goatherds, to this spot. In its neighbourhood
there are wooded ravines with the pleasantly suggestive names Khallet Rummaneh (Pome-
granate Dale) and Khallet Zeituneh (Olive-tree Dale); but we must pursue our way southwards.
As we approach Surafend, a small village four miles south of Athlit, built on the crest of the
low coast hills, we see signs of cultivation. Instead of sand-dunes, lagoons, and marshes, there
are fields of sesame, millet, and tobacco bordering the road, and little groups of palm-trees
near to the seashore.
Half a mile south of Surafend, which is famous for its fig-orchards, there is another
village. It is called Kefr Lamm, and though built on the broad smooth summit of the
widening coast range, it is only fifty-one feet above the sea-level. On one occasion, when I
was travelling along the coast with my brother, we spent a night here. It was the last week