PROCEEDINGS OF THE COTTESWOLD CLUB 1 75 



their near kinsmen, the Jews, took the lead in jewellcrv 

 and gold and silversmith's work : as t-he Jews do at the 

 j)rescnt day. Thus at Tell Defennch (the Tahapanes of 

 the Bible, or Da[)hne of the Classic writers) — the border 

 town of Palestine and Egypt, Flinders Petrie records the 

 discovery of goldsmiths' and jewellers' work on a consider- 

 able scale. 



Similarly at the present day these arts in the Caucasus 

 and Northern Persia are mainly followed bvthe Armenians. 

 Homer says that the very finest silverwork in the world 

 was wrought by the Sidonians : and the finest needlework 

 and embroidery. At this moment some of the most beau- 

 tiful silversmith's work in the world is in the Armenian 

 bazaars in Tiflis and Northern Persia, and the finest work 

 of the needle and the loom is found in the same district. 



I may mention that I bought a hammer from an 

 Armenian silversmith, which he had used for years. It 

 has the claw, for nail-drawing, exactly like that with which 

 we are familiar in Europe (see fig. 9). 



I do not dogmatise on these facts — but simplv lav 

 before the reader, for what they are worth, mv own 

 impressions on them, which are briefly these : 



1. We know that the Israelite tribes, and some of their 

 kinsmen, the Phoenicians, settled in the districts now 

 occupied by the Armenians ; and we have no historic 

 reason for supposing that they have since migrated to any 

 other part of the world. 



2. We find among the Armenians old national Israelitish 

 airs in music : old Syrian tools : the same oven that is used 

 in Palestine : the same aptitude for fine metal-work and 

 jewellery which distinguished the Jews and Phoenicians : 

 the same ability in textile manufacture (as displaved in 

 " Persian " and " Turkey " carpets, silk-work, and shawls) : 

 the same talent for commerce :* abstinence from eating 



Tlic Russians assert tb.it " it takes three Jews to outwit an Armenian " ! 



L2 



