AXMIXSTER. 



AXUM. 



'. > 



fords both in the lower and upper parts ' * "*"> From this 

 point downwards the river appears to have deviated fnun its ancient 

 bed, which my still be trmoed about six miles from Saloniki to the 

 west, and to have taken a more westerly direction ; it is now joined, 

 about a league from the sea, by the Km4im*k (apparently the 

 ancient Lydisut), flowing from the lake of Pella. The nearest point 

 of the rirer is about fourteen miles west of the town of Saloniki, 

 whence there i a carriage road to Pella. In winter the river U 

 deep and rapid and is nearly two miles in breadth before reaching 

 . 



Herodotus (vii. 124) describes the Echeidorus as flowing through 

 If ygdonia, and entering the gulf in or close to the marsh at the mouth 

 of the Axius. In the age of the historian the Axius was the boundary 

 between Mygdonia on the east, and Bottitcis on the west, along the 

 shore of the gulf. The epitomiser of Strabo (book vii.) says that the 

 Axius is a muddy stream ; he also states that a branch or channel of 

 the Axius runs into that lake in which Pella stands, and out of which 

 the Lydias flows into the gulf. According to Herodotus (vii. 127) the 

 and Holiacmon united before they reached the sea, but this 

 does not appear to be the case at present. 



AXMINSTER, Devonshire, a market-town and the seat of a Poor- 

 Law Union, in the parish and hundred of Axminster, is situated on 

 the road from London to Exeter, in 50 46' N. lat, 2 59' W. long., 26 

 miles E. by N. from Exeter, and 147 miles W.S.W. from London : 

 the population of the town in 1851 was under 2000 ; that of the 

 entire parish was 2769. The living is a vicarage (with the chapelries 

 of Kilmington and Membury annexed) in the archdeaconry and diocese 

 of Exeter. Axminater Poor-Law Union contains 17 parishes and 

 townships, with an area of 69,592 acres, and a population in 1851 of 

 ' 



Mr. Salt could only copy a small part, he believes to be i.: 

 characters. 



Besides the obelisk, there i- . < hristian chuivh at Axnm. lo which 

 there is an ascent by two fine flights of ntcps. The ehurel. 



Axminster is on the left or south-east bank of the river Axe, and is 

 irregularly built on the side of a little hill rising from the river. The 

 street* are wide and airy, and the place is clean and healthy. The 

 church, a somewhat inelegant structure, has a Norman doorway, with 

 enriched mouldings, three sedilia, and a piscina ; also several ancient 

 monuments. The Wesleyan Methodist*, Independents, and Roman 

 Catholics have places of worship, and there are National schools. A 

 county court is held in the town. 



The place was formerly celebrated for its manufacture of carpets. 

 In this it rivalled the productions of Turkey and Persia BO successfully 

 that the carpet* of Axminster were considered little inferior to those 

 imported. They were woven in one entire piece. But after lasting for 

 100 years this manufactory was given up, the demand not being found 

 equal to the expense of producing the article. There is a market on 

 Friday; but the business done in corn has become inconsiderable. 

 There ore three fairs in the year, chiefly for cattle. 



The manor of Axminster, called Axeminstcr in Domesday Book, 

 was in early times the property of the crown. After some changes 

 it came to the Cistercian monastery at Newnham, some very 

 scanty remains of which still exist ; and upon the dissolution of 

 religious houses in the reign of Henry VIII., it fell again to the 

 crown. James L granted it to Sir W. Petre, afterwards Lord Petre, 

 in whose family it remained till recently. There was formerly 

 a castle of Axminster, of which there are now no remains. In an 

 action near this town, between the Royalists and Parliamentarians, 

 in October, 1644, Sir R. Cholmondeley, the commander of the Royalists, 

 was killed. The Duke of Monmouth halted here for some time, 

 immediately after his landing to collect troops, and here repulsed the 

 county militia. William III. also stopped here on bis march from 

 Exeter, in 1688. Axminster is situated in a very interesting 

 geological district ; and it is worth noting that two of the 

 most eminent living English geologists, the Deans of Westminster 

 and 1-)*f^*f are locally connected with this little town. Dr. 

 Kuckland was born and brought up at Axminster; Dr. Conybeare is 

 lord of the manor, to which the advowson of the living belongs, 

 nod was himself vicar of Axminster till he was appointed to the 

 deanery of LUndaff. 



(Polwbele's Daonikire ; Lysons's Magna Britannia, ; Comtpondent 

 at Ajmintlrr.) 



AXMi'lTI! [DEVOMBIMt] 



AXI'M, a town of Abyssinia, in about 14* 7' N. lat, 39* 27' E. 

 long., and about 120 miles S.S.W. from Arkeeko, on the coast of the 

 Red Sea. The town stands in a nook formed by two hills and the 

 north-west extremity of an extensive and fertile valley, which is 

 watered by a small stream. The dwelling-houses are built in a 

 cylindrical form, and surmounted with a cone. The object of greatest 

 interest here is a large obelisk, 60 feet high, made of a single block of 

 granite. This obelisk has DO hieroglyphics inscribed upon it ; its form 

 u quadrilateral, but one of the sides has a hollow space running up 

 the centre from the base to the summit, which, instead of terminating 

 in a pyramid like the Egyptian obelisks, is crowned with a kind o 

 patera. At the bottom of the hollow space just described a doorway 

 is represented. The obelisks of Axum were originally 65 in number 

 and four of them, it u said, were as large as that now standing ; yet 

 nothing is known of the period at which they were erected. Among 

 the other antiquities of Axum is a stone which contains two inscrip 

 lions: that on one side is in rude Greek characters, and has 

 been copied by Mr. Salt; that on the opposite side, of which 



Obclixk of Axum. 



which is perhaps about two centuries old, is 111 feet long, 51 feet 

 broad, and 40 feet high, with a flat roof. Near the church ia a square 

 inclosure, with u pillar at each corner ; within it ore a seat and a foot- 

 stool; the whole is of granite. On this seat tradition says the ancient 

 kings were crowned. 



The kingdom of the Axumites is first noticed by the author of (ho 

 ' Periplus ' of the Red Sea and part of the east coast of A In 

 This document was written probably about the close of the 2nd 

 century; but how long this Axumite kingdom hail exi.-ted i 

 we ore not able to say. The Greek inscription, which wan &>): 

 Mr. Salt, shows us that the monarch of Axum had extensive domi- 

 nions in Africa, co-extensive at least with the present province of 

 Tign5, and his possessions extended even into Arabia. Through the 

 port of Adiile, mi the Red Sea, Axum maintained a commercial inter- 

 course with Arabia and India ; and it was proluiMy for some advantage 

 to be secured to Greek merchants from Egypt in the Indian 

 that the Byzantine Caesars paid a yearly tax to the Axumite LULL; 

 until the commencement of the Arab conquest. Axum was the great 

 emporium for ivory, which was exported through Adulo. It may 

 be mentioned as a curious fact that when the emperor Auivli. 

 Palmyra he found among the assemblage of nations within it walls 

 some Axumites, probably traders. 



Axum was probably the first part of Abyssinia into which Christi- 

 anity was introduced. In the 'Apology' of Athanasius, which is 

 addressed to the Emperor Constantius Nicetes, the patriarch >.- 

 copy of a letter sent by Constantius to Axum on the subject of Kru- 

 mentius. This letter is addressed jointly to two pei- 

 Aizanas and Sazanas, without any indication of one being superior to 

 the other: but they ore evidently addressed as the sovereigns of 

 Axum, and in the concluding part of the letter the emperor addresses 

 the two Axumite princes by the title of 'most honoured brctlir< n.' 

 See the works of St. Athanasius by the Benedictines of .St. Muur 

 (vol. i. j.t. 1, p. 316). 



