30 MEMOIR OF BURCKHARDT. 



with the convoy to the Mediterranean ; and about 

 the middle of April he arrived at Malta. While 

 there, he received intelligence of Dr. Seetzen, a 

 German physician, who had been sent a few years 

 before that period by the Duke of Saxe-Gotha into 

 the Levant to collect manuscripts and Eastern curi- 

 osities. This accomplished traveller had resided for 

 some time at Constantinople, Smyrna, Aleppo, Da- 

 mascus, and Cairo ; and in course of his wanderings 

 had collected about fifteen hundred manuscripts 

 and three thousand objects of antiquity which he 

 had sent to his native place. It appeared that his 

 design at that time was to proceed from Suez down 

 the Red Sea, with a view to explore the interior of 

 Africa, so that Burckhardt considered him as a 

 rival ; but his schemes ^vere frustrated by his pre- 

 mature death, and all that has been published of 

 liis travels is a short correspondence between him 

 and M. de Zach of Saxe-Gotha, which was trans- 

 lated and printed by the Palestine Association in 

 1810. 



Burckhardt sojourned seven weeks at Malta, 

 during which he succeeded in equipping himself 

 thoroughly in the Oriental fashion. In a letter to 

 Sir Joseph Banks, dated 22d May, 1809, he states 

 that the dress he had assumed was some^vhat Sy- 

 rian, yet sufficiently diiffering from the real Syrian 

 costume to show that he had no wish to pass for a 

 native. He continued to practise the speaking of 

 Arabic, and was careful to live retired, for fear of 

 being recognised and detected. He especially avoided 



