MEMOIR OF BURCKHARDT. 113 



Empress Helena, mother of Constantine the Great, 

 on the spot where the Lord appeared to Moses in 

 the burning bush. It is still occupied by a few 

 monks, most of whom are natives of the Greek 

 islands. On the highest pinnacle of Gebel Mousa 

 are the remains of a church, under the pavement of 

 which the Arabs believe that the original tables of 

 the ten commandments are buried ; and they have 

 made excavations on every side, in the hope of 

 discovering them. Here also is the Convent of 

 St. Elias, erected on the spot where Elijah was fed 

 by the ravens. At no great distance, a block of 

 granite is shown (apparently detached from Mount 

 Sinai) as being the Rock of Meribah, out of which 

 water issued when struck by the rod of Moses. 

 The head of the golden calf (now changed into 

 stone), which the Israelites worshipped; the place 

 where the brazen serpent was elevated; the burial- 

 place of Moses and Aaron ; the pulpit and petrified 

 pot or kettle of Moses; and a rock resembling a 

 chair, on which he sat and beheld the fight between 

 Joshua and the Amalekites ; are among the sacred 

 spots pointed out to the credulity of travellers and 

 pilgrims. 



It is obvious that little dependence can be placed 

 on local tradition. Burckhardt expresses his dis- 

 appointment at being able to trace so very few of 

 the ancient Hebrew names of the Old Testament 

 in the modern geography of the peninsula. With 

 the exception of Sinai and a few others, the ap- 

 pellations are all of Arabic derivation; and the 



