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with some Greeks. We lodged at the house of a man 
of the latter nation, named II Signor Andrea Zimbolaci, 
an agent of the English consul. His flag was flying 
upon the roof of the house. He is a man of wealth, very 
civil, and has adopted entirely the costume and man- 
ners of the English. His eldest daughter is worthy to 
inhabit the Ieroschipos Aphroditis. She is the most 
perfect beauty I have seen in the island of Cyprus, and 
without being very fair, her figure is truly a model of 
grace and perfection. 
Notwithstanding these advantages, I found in the 
daughter of the Signor Zimbolaci the characteristic de- 
fect which I remarked in all the women of the island, 
that is to say, an air of reserve and silliness; and the 
bosom little resembling that of the beautiful Europa, 
whom Metastasio has described in this verse, Quel bian- 
co petto rilevato, e mobile. 
In reality this woman, as well as the others in the island, 
had too full a neck. Perhaps it was the costume which 
made it appear so, or because it does not sufficiently 
support the form. Having remarked her hair, I recol- 
lected that in Africa the women dye theirs. I therefore 
begged her father to tell me candidly if his daughter 
did so; he owned that she did; and ordered his wife to 
show me a plate which contained a sort of powder, 
which all the women in the island make use of for this 
purpose; and which they obtain from Alexandria. 
Thus then the women of Cyprus owe this part of their 
beauty to Africa. Since I am in the land of beauty and 
the graces, I hope it will not be deemed amiss, if I 
speak of the fair sex whenever an opportunity presents 
itself. Zimbolaci's daughter is unhappily married to the 
