96 A SPRING TOUR IN PORTUGAL. 



in England sneer at this, for we too are not uninfluenced 

 in several respects by their early civilization : for example, 

 even now, despise them as we may, we copy their ancient 

 inimitable scroll work ; we make use of the numerals which 

 they have long since discarded as obsolete ; we adopt their 

 expressions in the most skilful of all games when, however 

 ignorant of its meaning, we exclaim at chess ^check-mate,' 

 which is no other than Sheikh-mat, 'the king is dead;' 

 and other instances might be adduced of our unacknow- 

 ledged adoption of what has been introduced into Europe 

 by that polished and clever race, the Arabic, or Saracenic, 

 or Moorish nation. 



The material of which the monastery is built is gene- 

 rally said to be ' marble, similar to that of Carrara,' but it 

 is in reality a peculiarly close-grained limestone, of pure 

 and dazzling whiteness when first extracted from the 

 quarry, but which has become mellowed by time and 

 weather into the richest yellow and brown hues, im- 

 parting a singularly warm and pleasing effect. I will not 

 attempt to describe the various portions which comprise 

 this famous pile of buildings : I will not even touch upon 

 many of its more salient points, to which I have already 

 referred elsewhere: but I desire to direct attention to a 

 few details, which attracted my own admiration, and which 

 may be of similar interest to others. 



Our first gaze is naturally directed to the church, which, 

 in proportion to the size of the monastery, struck me as 

 of very ample dimensions. Its form and arrangement 

 seemed peculiar, though Fergusson tells us the plan is 

 that of an Italian basilica, viz., a three-aisled nave termi- 

 nated by a transept with five chapels occupying the entire 

 eastern end, I would submit, however, that it does possess 

 a choir, though a very short one, and which indeed is 

 little more than an apse or recess from the transept wall, 

 flanked by other chapels almost rivalling the choir in 



