DAMASCENUS 



DAMASCUS 



6C3 



n tn !> worked cut is undercut in the metal, 

 into iln- ilif -..Id or silver wire is lui<l, ami tin- 

 scarp edge is Ibeaten down with a hammer, thus 

 ciiiin^ tin- wire in its position. Another method 

 udists in scratching tlie surface, ami beating into 

 tln> scratched lines the gold or silver wire, after 

 which tin- whole surface i- burnished to remove the 

 incisions. See GUN. 



Daninscenus. See JOANNES DAMASCENUS. 



Damascus is the capital of Syria, and the 

 largest town in \\ 'estern Asia. It is called by the 

 names Itimnxltlc I's-SImm, or simply es-Sham, the 

 name which is generally applied to all Syria. The 

 city stands 1A mile from the mouth of the gorge, 

 through which the Barada, the Chri/aorrhoas of the 

 Greeks, forces its way into the plain ; and it is now 

 connected with Beyrout on the Mediterranean by 

 an excellent French road al>out 70 miles lonjj. 

 Tin- plain of Damascus, 500 sq. m. in area, is 

 dotted by over a hundred towns and villages. 

 It is bounded on the north-west by the Anti- 

 l.ilianns range, on the south by the Black 

 Mountains, beyond which are the hills of Boshan, 

 and on the east by the marshes of the plain. 

 Damascus is situated on the western side of the 

 great plain at an elevation of 2*260 feet above the 

 level of the sea, and immediately to the north-west 

 of the city the Anti-Libanus rises to a height of 3840 

 feet. This elevated part of the mountain, called 

 Jebel Kosyiin, is crowned by the Kubbet en-Nosr 

 ( ' Dome of Victory'). From the base of this dome 

 the best view of Damascus is obtained. Its ex- 

 quisite beauty, as seen from the mountain, is 

 greatly enhanced by contrast. Towards the west 

 there are the bare chocolate sahara and the storm- 

 bleached, lime-streaked mountains. But the 

 Barada, having forced its way through the moun- 

 tain, spreads fan-like by seven rivers over the plain 

 of Damascus, ' and everything lives whither the 

 river cometh.' A beautiful green meadow, the joy 

 of all orientals, extends almost from the mountain 

 to the city ; gardens, in which all the trees of the 

 forest and the field blend their many shades, extend 

 for many a mile and hold the desert at bay. From 

 out this bower of soft green the city lifts to heaven 

 its forest of minarets towering above pearly domes. 

 The rivers of Damascus are the constant source of 

 the city's perennial existence. According to tradi- 

 tion, Abraham on his westward march lingered by 

 the crystal waters, and ruled the city in peace. 



The seven canals by which water is drawn off 

 from the central Barada are called rivers. The 

 HUM important on the right side is N a liar Abanias. 

 This is the river Abana, and it flowed through the 

 fashionable west-end suburb in the palmy days of 

 Damascus. The most important canal on the left 

 side of the Barada is Nahar Taura the Pharpar of 

 2 Kings, v. 12. Both rivers flowed through the 

 residential parts of the city, and were largely used 

 for bathing purposes. 



The appearance of Damascus as viewed from the 

 mountain resembles a tennis-racquet. The handle, 

 which lies in a south-westerly direction, is the 

 Meidan, a suburb which extends along the Mecca 

 pilgrim-route for about a mile, and ends at the 

 liawabat Alia ('Gate of Got!'). The other part is 

 concentrated on the rivers, and is inclosed within 

 ancient walls and encompassed by luxuritmt gardens 

 which seem to surge around ami over the pearl- 

 coloured city like a sea. At the western side of the 

 city within the walls stands the citadel. It is a 

 large quadrangular structure about 300 yards long 

 ana 250 wide, with projecting towers, and surrounded 

 by a moat. It was erected in 1219 by Melik-el- 

 Ashraf, and bos a massive appearance, but it is a 

 good deal dilapidated. The }>alace stands outside 

 the walls west of the citadel, and about 400 



yards cant of the citadel stand* the Great Mosque, 

 burnt in October 1893. The Mottque wax erected by 

 Walfd 'Abd-el-Melik at the taginning of the sth 

 century on the Rite of the church of St John, just 

 a- that church had been erected by A read in* about 

 the beginning of the 5th century on the site of a 

 pagan temple, which proliablv occupied the site of 

 the ancient Hf.it Rimnwn. Die church was con- 

 structed from the splendid material of ancient 

 temples, and the mosque is made up of the materials 

 of ancient churches. The old walls and many of 

 the columns of the church are still in position, and 

 on a portal, older than Mohammedan or Christian 

 times, is carved a cross, followed by the 13th verse 

 of the 145th Psalm in Greek, from the Septuagint, 

 with the abbreviation X added. The mosque is 

 adorned by three minarets, one of which, called the 

 minaret of Jesus, rises to a height of 250 feet, and 

 on this minaret, according to Mohammedan tradi- 

 tion, Jesus will appear when he conies to iudge the 

 world. Near to the pulpit there is a richly gilded 

 dome, beneath which the head of John the Baptist 

 is said to rest, and in the court there is another 

 dome which contains precious fragments of Kufic, 

 Syriac, and other manuscripts. Damascus con- 

 tains 70 other mosques, and more than 150 chapels 

 for prayer and instruction. The churches and 

 synagogues have no architectural pretensions, and 

 their internal decorations are gorgeous but tawdry. 

 The tomb of Nur ed-Din is one of the ornaments 

 of the city, and the walls of the best baths are 

 decorated with beautiful Kishani tiles, and the 

 floors with parian marble. The public cafes, though 

 picturesque when lighted up, are dirty and sodden. 



The religious communities occupy different 

 quarters of Damascus. The Jewish quarter ( Harut- 

 el-Yahoud) lies to the south of the 'street called 

 Straight,' which runs east and west for about a 

 mile, with Roman gateways at either end. The 

 course of the Via Recta can be traced by the 

 columns in situ. The Christian quarter ( Harat-en- 

 Nasara ) lies north of the street called Straight in 

 the eastern part of the city, and the remainder of 

 the city is occupied by Mohammedans. It is 

 spoken of as Harat-el-Islam. The Christians are 

 superior in physique, in education, in enterprise, 

 in skill, in industry to their Mohammedan neigh- 

 bours. 



The different industries are also carried on in 

 separate quarters. There is the silversmiths' 

 bazaar, where rough but very effective personal 

 ornaments are made ; the saddlers' bazaar, where 

 scarlet saddles and horse-trappings are gaily 

 decorated w r ith gold and silver thread ; the shoe- 

 makers' bazaar, where red and yellow slippers of 

 gondola-form and gorgeous top-l>oote are made ; 

 the Greek bazaar, where imitation ' Damascus 

 blades ' and ' antiques ' newly made are offered to 

 the unwary. The book bazaar ( the Paternoster Kow 

 of the East), the cloth bazaar, the seed bazaar, the 

 silk bazaar and all the other trades and commod it ie>. 

 have their distinct locations. The narrow and 

 badly paved streets of Damascus are dusty in 

 summer and muddy in winter. On either side are 

 the rows of arched* niches which are the shops of 

 the place. Each shopkeeper sits cross-legged in 

 his ilukkan, with his spices or Manchester goods 

 piled up around him, awaiting customers, whom he 

 serves with great staU'liness of manner. Behind 

 the mud walls and mean entrances there are 

 splendid houses in Damascus. On entering, one is 

 daz/led by the barbaric grandeur white marble 

 pavements, teseelated with coloured stone ; snowy 

 fountains where the constant music of falling 

 water mingles with the cooing of doves from their 

 nests in the lemon-trees or trellised vines ; walls 

 frescoed and decorated with mosaics and Persian 

 tiles, and slabs inlaid with coloured pastes and 



