667 
SARAGOSSA. 
assertion we do not know; but it is evident that he, as well 
as most other writers on the subject, regard the appellation as 
much more recent than, in our opinion, it is. Ammianus 
Marcellinus expressly refers to a passage in this work, which 
is lost, in which he had described the manners of the Saracens 
as early as the reign of the emperor Marcus Antoninus; 
and as that period is very little posterior to the age of Pliny, 
there is good reason to consider the Arraceni of this writer, 
as the Saraceni of later times. To this opinion we know 
but of two objections; that the additional letterS proves 
them distinct appellations; but a great number of proper 
names, both in the Greek and Latin writers, have sometimes 
an S, and sometimes a vowel for their initial letter; as 
Elana and Selana, Amnitee and Samnitae, &c.; the other 
objection is, that Pliny places the Arraceni in the middle of 
the desert; whereas Ptolemy extends their territory to the 
confines of Egypt; and Marcianus describes it as adjoining 
Persia. But we think these representations rather confirm 
than weaken the opinion, that the Arraceni of Pliny are the 
formidable and powerful Saracens of later ages, as they 
prove the gradual extension of their territory. The inference 
we should draw, therefore, is, that as the appellation of 
Saraceni existed long before this people attracted the par¬ 
ticular notice or excited the fears of other nations, and when, 
as Pliny expressly states, they were a small tribe in the centre 
of the desert, it is in vain to search for any etymology of the 
appellation, while it is necessary to fix the first notice of 
them earlier than is generally done. Westminster Review. 
SARACEN’S CONFOUND, in Botany. See Solidago. 
SARACEN’S CONFOUND, True. See Senecio. 
SARACE'NIC, or Sarack'nical, adj. Denoting the 
architecture of the Saracens, or the modern Gothic.—The 
arch of'the first church is Roman, being part of a circle; 
that of the additional building is pointed, and therefore Go- 
thick or Saracenical. Johnson. 
SARACHINUS, in Ichthyology, a name given by Char- 
leton and others to the fish called by the generality of authors 
the thrissa, by us the shad. 
SARACUS, a name given by some authors to a species of 
sea-fish of the herring kind, more usually called agonus , and 
by many suspected to have no essential difference from the 
alausa, or shad, but to be the same fish in another state. 
SARAGOSSA, or Zaragoza, by ancient Spanish authors 
written Caragoga, in Geography, an ancient, large, and 
wealthy city of Spain, the capital of Arragon, was founded, as 
some have said, by the Phoenicians, who gave it the name 
of Salduba or Saldivia. It was in a flourishing state under 
the Romans, and being colonized by Augustus, it was called 
Cmsarea, or Cmsarea-Augusta, of which the present name 
is a corruption. The Goths, conducted by Euric, their king, 
became masters of it about the year 470. The Saracens, 
under Musa, their general, drove the Goths from it in 712, 
and took possession of it in the name of the caliph of Da¬ 
mascus; but in 753 it was taken by the Moor Zuzif, 
Governor-general of Spain. The inhabitants, attempting to 
shake off the yoke of the new empire, formed a republic in 
825, but they were soon compelled to implore the clemency 
of the Moorish king. At length this town became, A.D. 
1017, the capital of a small empire, about the time when the 
several governors in different parts of Spain usurped supreme 
power. The governor of Saragossa assumed kingly power, 
and transmitted his crown to his posterity, who retained it 
till Alphonso I., king of Arragon, made himself master of the 
town in December, 1115, after a siege of eight months: he 
then made it the capital of his kingdom, and the residence of 
the princes who succeeded him. It remained the capital of 
Aragon, until that country became, in the 16th century, 
simply a province of the Spanish monarchy, by the marriage 
of its king Ferdinand, the Catholic, with Isabella, heiress of the 
kingdoms of Leon and Castile, 
Saragossa is situated on a fertile plain, on the Ebro, at the 
conflux of two other rivers, the Galego and the Huerva, one 
running from the north, the other a considerable stream, 
descending from the mountains of the south. The Ebro 
separates the town from its suburbs, and is navigable; the 
other two rivers concur in fertilizing the neighbouring 
country. The new canal of Arragon passes through the lands 
in its vicinity. The adjacent fields are well cultivated, and 
its extensive gardens are very productive; and its climate is 
moderate, between the extremes of heat and cold. Although 
this town is one of the largest in Spain, its population does 
not correspond to its size. From an enumeration made in 
1787, it has been estimated at the number of 42,600 persons. 
It has eight gates, besides the four old ones in the wall of 
Augustus, and two bridges over the Ebro, one of wood, and 
another of stone. The streets of Saragossa are, for the most 
part, narrow, irregular, and paved with rough pebbles. 
Some, however, are straight, long, and spacious ; and parti¬ 
cularly that called Calle Santa, or Holy-street, because it was 
the place of the martyrdom of the first victims of the faith in 
Saragossa: this street is also denominated Calle del Corso. 
The houses are generally old, but regularly built; and here are 
several edifices, which deserve attention ; particularly the new 
tower, called the) leaning tower, resembling that of Pisa (see 
Pisa); the church of San Cayetano, and those of the Corde¬ 
liers, of St. Lucia, of the Faretas, of the Convalescents, of St. 
Paul, of Notre Dame del Portillo, and of the Barefoot Augus- 
tines; the college of La Manteria; the convent of the Domini¬ 
cans ; the palace of the Inquisition; the convent of the Jerony- 
mites, called Santa Engracia ; and the metropolitan church, 
called La Seu, distinguished by its beautiful front and its 
high tower. The church of Nuestra Donna del Pilar is also a 
grand and superb building; the principal altar is in the 
Gothic style, constructed almost wholly of alabaster, and 
exhibiting a mixture of different kinds of sculpture. The 
arts, it is said, have combined to decorate the interior of this 
church. In the centre of this cathedral there is an edifice, 
which is strikingly beautiful. The principal front is a chapel 
of our Lady of the Pillar, who appeared upon this very pillar 
to St. James, and afterwards gave to him the image, which 
is worshipped at her altar. Over this there is a dome, cor¬ 
responding to the great dome, under which it stands, serving 
by way of canopy to the image of the Virgin. The three 
other fronts of this elegant tabernacle are in like manner 
chapels. Besides the great dome, there are many smaller 
domes surrounding it, each with elegant paintings in com¬ 
partments, the subjects of which are historical, taken from 
the sacred writings, or from the legends of the saints, to 
whom the chapels and altars are dedicated. These are exe¬ 
cuted by Don Francisco Bayeu, first painter to the king; and 
the architect, under the inspection of whom these domes have 
been constructed, is Rodriguez, of whose taste and judgment 
these decorations and improvements will remain a lasting 
monument. 
The wealth of this cathedral is inestimable, in silver, gold, 
precious stones, and rich embroidery, sent by all the Catholic 
sovereigns of Europe to deck its priests, and to adorn its 
altars. Many of these presents, being modern, are worthy of 
attention for their elegance, as well as for the value of their 
pearls, diamonds, emeralds, and rubies. In a word, what¬ 
ever wealth could command, or human art could execute, 
has been collected to excite the admiration of all who view 
the treasures of this church. 
The Lonja, i. e. the resort of the merchants, or the Ex¬ 
change, round which are the busts of most of the kings of 
Aragon, deserves to be mentioned : its large hall is the place 
where the municipal body assembles. Opposite to this is the 
Hotel of the Deputation, serving for the sittings of the royal 
audience. Saragossa has a number of pleasant promenades. 
This city has a see, which was at first episcopal under the 
Goths; it was abolished under the Moors, and re-established 
by king Alphonso I. It was at last raised to an arch¬ 
bishopric, containing several suffragans, 365 parishes, one 
cathedral chapter, and two collegiate ones. This town has 
17 parishes, 24 convents of monks, four houses of regular 
clergy, 13 convents of nuns, a house of Baguine nuns, a col¬ 
lege of virgins, a house of penitents, four churches and 
houses exempt from the jurisdiction of the ordinary, five hos¬ 
pitals, and a seminary occupied by ecclesiastics, who chiefly 
devote themselves to missions. The House of Pity, for which 
an 
