Planof the REMAINS ofTAUCRA,OrTEUCHIRA;BYCaptn. F. W. Beechey R.N.J. & C. Walker Sculpt.Published as the act directs, April 1827, by J. Murray, Albemarle St. London.(Large-size)
Planof the REMAINS ofTAUCRA,OrTEUCHIRA;BYCaptn. F. W. Beechey R.N.J. & C. Walker Sculpt.Published as the act directs, April 1827, by J. Murray, Albemarle St. London.(Large-size)
Planof the REMAINS ofTAUCRA,OrTEUCHIRA;BYCaptn. F. W. Beechey R.N.
(Large-size)
Planof the RUINS and ENVIRONS ofPTOLEMETA,now calledDOLMEITA.BYCaptn. F. W. Beechey R.N.J. & C. Walker Sculpt.Published as the act directs, April 1827, by J. Murray, Albemarle St. London.(Large-size)
Planof the RUINS and ENVIRONS ofPTOLEMETA,now calledDOLMEITA.BYCaptn. F. W. Beechey R.N.J. & C. Walker Sculpt.Published as the act directs, April 1827, by J. Murray, Albemarle St. London.(Large-size)
Planof the RUINS and ENVIRONS ofPTOLEMETA,now calledDOLMEITA.BYCaptn. F. W. Beechey R.N.
(Large-size)
Engraved from a Drawing taken on the spot by H. Beechey.REMAINS OF AN ANCIENT BRIDGE AT PTOLEMETA.THROWN ACROSS THE BED OF A TORRENT.Published March 1827, by John Murray, London.
Engraved from a Drawing taken on the spot by H. Beechey.REMAINS OF AN ANCIENT BRIDGE AT PTOLEMETA.THROWN ACROSS THE BED OF A TORRENT.Published March 1827, by John Murray, London.
Engraved from a Drawing taken on the spot by H. Beechey.
REMAINS OF AN ANCIENT BRIDGE AT PTOLEMETA.
THROWN ACROSS THE BED OF A TORRENT.
Published March 1827, by John Murray, London.
Engraved from a Drawing taken on the spot by H. Beechey.REMAINS OF AN ANCIENT MAUSOLEUM AT PTOLEMETA.Published March 1827, by John Murray, London.
Engraved from a Drawing taken on the spot by H. Beechey.REMAINS OF AN ANCIENT MAUSOLEUM AT PTOLEMETA.Published March 1827, by John Murray, London.
Engraved from a Drawing taken on the spot by H. Beechey.
REMAINS OF AN ANCIENT MAUSOLEUM AT PTOLEMETA.
Published March 1827, by John Murray, London.
Drawn by H. Beechey.Engraved by E. Pinden.REMAINS OF AN IONIC BUILDING AT PTOLEMETA.Published March 1827, by John Murray, London.
Drawn by H. Beechey.Engraved by E. Pinden.REMAINS OF AN IONIC BUILDING AT PTOLEMETA.Published March 1827, by John Murray, London.
REMAINS OF AN IONIC BUILDING AT PTOLEMETA.
Published March 1827, by John Murray, London.
Engraved from a Drawing taken on the spot by H. Beechey.REMAINS OF A CHRISTIAN CHURCH AT PTOLEMETA.Published March 1827, by John Murray, London.
Engraved from a Drawing taken on the spot by H. Beechey.REMAINS OF A CHRISTIAN CHURCH AT PTOLEMETA.Published March 1827, by John Murray, London.
Engraved from a Drawing taken on the spot by H. Beechey.
REMAINS OF A CHRISTIAN CHURCH AT PTOLEMETA.
Published March 1827, by John Murray, London.
Remarks on the Soil of Bengazi and the Country in its Neighbourhood — Distinction of Sex in the Palm-tree, &c., noticed by the Ancients and by Mahometan Writers — Persian Anecdote of a Love-sick Date-tree — Remarks of Shaw on the Propagation and Treatment of the Palm — Arab Mode of cultivating the Sandy Tracts in the Neighbourhood of Bengazi — Journey to Carcora — Completion of the Coast-line from that Place to Bengazi — Return to Bengazi, and Departure for Teuchira and Ptolemeta — Description of the Country between Bengazi and these Places — Remains observable in this Track — Correspondence of the Tower called Gusser el Towēl with that of Cafez, mentioned by Edrisi — Probable Site of Adriane — Arrival at Birsis — Remains in its neighbourhood, at Mably (or Mabny), considered as those of Neapolis — Hospitality of the Arabs of Birsis — Remains of Teuchira — Position of the City — Quarries without the Walls covered with Greek Inscriptions — Teuchira a Town of Barca — Walls of the City repaired by Justinian — No Port observable at Teuchira — Mistake of Bruce in confounding Teuchira with Ptolemeta — Good Supply of fresh Water at Teuchira — The excavated Tombs of the ancient City used as Dwelling-houses by the Arabs of the Neighbourhood — Indisposition of our Chaous (or Janissary) — Route from Teuchira to Ptolemeta — Remains at Ptolemeta — Port and Cothon of the ancient City — Other Remains observable there — Ptolemaic Inscriptions — Picturesque Ravines in the Neighbourhood of Ptolemeta — Position of the City — Remains of Bridges observed there — Advantages of its Site — Extreme Drought at Ptolemeta, recorded by Procopius — Reparation of the Aqueducts and Cisterns by the Emperor Justinian — Existing Remains of an extensive Cistern at Ptolemeta, probably among those alluded to by Procopius — State of the Town, its Solitude and Desolation — Luxuriant Vegetation which encumbered its Streets when the Place was first visited by our Party — Change of Scene on returning to it in Summer-time.
Thesoil of the Hesperides does not now produce that variety of fruit which we find that it did in the days of its prosperity[1]; but the palm and the fig-tree still flourish there in great abundance, and it is merely from the want of attention, and not from any actualchange in the soil itself, that it does not afford the same variety as formerly[2].
The fruit of the palm-tree forms too essential a part of Arab food to allow of the necessary precautions being neglected for insuring the growth and the ripening of dates; but the fig-trees are for the most part wild, and produce only, a diminutive fruit, which never comes to any perfection. It is a well-known fact in natural history, that “these trees are male and female, and that the fruit will be dry and insipid without a previous communication with the male.” This peculiarity was discovered at a very early period, and has been noticed by writers of various ages with much perspicuity and detail. There appears to have been but little variation at any time in the mode of performing these operations; and the manner in which the palm-tree is described, by Pliny, to have been impregnated, is the same with that which prevails in the present day.
A part of the blossom from the male tree is either attached to the fruit of the female; or the powder from the blossoms of the male is shaken over those which the female produces. The first of these methods is practised in Barbary, (one male being sufficient, as Shaw has observed, to impregnate four or five hundred female); and the latter is common in Egypt, where the number of male trees isgreater[3]. Both these methods are described by Pliny, (Hist. Nat. lib. xiii.) and the whole account which is there given of the palm-tree and its several varieties is extremely accurate and interesting. The attachment of this tree to a sandy and nitrous soil, and its partiality at the same time for water; its inability to thrive in any other than a dry and hot climate, its peculiar foliage and bark, and the decided distinction of sex which is observable in it, are all mentioned in detail by the Roman naturalist.
The remarks of Arab writers on the distinction of sex in the palm-tree are nearly the same with those of Pliny; and a most extraordinary confirmation of it will be found in a Persian anecdote quoted by Silvestre de Sacy; from which it will clearly appear that an unrequited and secret attachment to a neighbouring date-tree had nearly caused the death of a too-susceptible female palm!
Osmai relates (says the story in question) that an inhabitant of Yemama, a province in Arabia, once made him the following recital. “I was possessor of a garden in which was a palm-tree, which had every year produced me abundance of fruit; but two seasons having passed away, without its affording any, I sent for a person well acquainted with the culture of palms, to discover for me the reason of this failure. “An unhappy attachment” (observed the man, after a moment’s inspection) “is the sole cause why this palm-tree produces no fruit!” He then climbed up the trunk, and, looking round on all sides, discovered a male palm at no great distance, which he recognised as the object of my unlucky tree’s affection; and advised me to procure some of the powder from its blossoms, and to scatter it over her branches. This I did (said the Arab,) and the consequence was, that my date-tree, whom unrequited love had kept barren, now bore me a most abundant harvest!”
The value of the palm-tree is not generally appreciated in Europe, but it is highly prized in Asia and Africa. The followers of Mahomet (as appears from Kazwini) believe it to be peculiar to those favoured countries where the religion of the Prophet is professed. “Honour the palm-tree,” (says this writer, in the words of Mahomet himself,) “for she is your father’s aunt;” and this distinction (he tells us) was given to it, because the tree was formed from the remainderof the clay of which Adam was created! It is propagated chiefly (as Shaw has informed us) from young shoots taken from the roots of full-grown trees, which, if well transplanted and taken care of, will yield their fruit in the sixth or seventh year; whereas those that are raised immediately from the kernels will not bear till about their sixteenth. Nothing further is necessary to the culture of the palm-tree, than that it should be well watered once in four or five days, and that a few of the lower boughs should be lopped away whenever they begin to droop or wither. “These” (observes Shaw), “whose stumps, or pollices, in being thus gradually left upon the trunk, serve, like so many rounds of a ladder, to climb up the tree, either to fecundate it, to lop it, or to gather the fruit, are quickly supplied with others which hang down from the crown or top, contributing not only to the regular and uniform growth of this tall, knotless, beautiful tree, but likewise to its perpetual and most delightful verdure.To be exalted(Eccles. xxiv. 14.) orto flourish like the palm-tree, are as just and proper expressions, suitable to the nature of this plant, as tospread abroad like the Cedar[4].”—(Psalm xcii. 11.)
In the immediate neighbourhood of the palm-trees above mentioned (we mean those to the N.E. of Bengazi) are the sand-hills, which form (together with the date-trees) the most remarkable objects on this part of the coast. The occasional mixture of a little manure with the sand, and the decay of vegetable matter, have contributed to produce at the foot of these hills a very excellent soil; portions of which are inclosed within hedges of the prickly-pear and aloe, and near them may be seen a few miserable huts, the abodes of the several proprietors. The chief produce of these little gardens may be stated to be—melons and pumpkins of several kinds, melonzani, or egg-plants, cucumbers, tomatas, red and green peppers, and some few of the plants called bàmia.
The sand itself, with a little labour, is also made to produce very abundantly; so much so, that any one who had seen the place only in the summer time, would scarcely recognise it as the same in the winter season, when covered with luxuriant vegetation. The right of cultivation appears to be general; and a piece of ground may be said to belong to the first person who takes the trouble of inclosing and working it. This, in fact, is no more than just; since the cultivatedtracts, in this part of the plain, are merely so many portions rescued from the sandy waste by the industry of the individuals who select them; and must therefore be considered as so many additions made by the original occupiers to the general stock[5].
The first care of the cultivator is to turn up the sand, and spread layers of faggots underneath: the sand is then replaced, and over it is sometimes spread a mixed stratum of sand and manure.
Upon this the seeds are sown, and care is taken to keep the land irrigated by means of numerous wells of a few feet only in depth. Some of these are built round with rough stones, but the water is always brackish, and occasionally stinking, owing to the quantity of decayed roots, and other vegetable matter, with which they are suffered to be clogged. By the adoption of this short and simple process, the sand is soon rendered so productive, that the Arabs prefer cultivating it, to the trouble of clearing the rich soil beyond it, to the southward, of the broken stones and fragments of building with which it is thickly interspersed.
When the rains had subsided, and the health of Lieutenant Beechey (which had latterly prevented him from travelling) allowed of it, we set out on our journey to Carcora; in order to complete that part of the coast which had been left unfinished between Carcoraand Bengazi: two of our party had before made a trip, along the coast, to Ptolemeta, and returned in high spirits with what they had met with in that delightful part of the Pentapolis. On our route to Carcora we had been very much annoyed with a violent and parching sirocco wind, the heat of which would have been sufficiently disagreeable and oppressive, without the extreme annoyance of thick clouds of sand, whirling everywhere in eddies about us, which were driven with such force into our eyes as almost to prevent our making use of them.
Having completed the unfinished part of the coast-line, we returned back to Bengazi, and found everything prepared for our journey to the eastward, through the diligence and activity of Lieutenant Coffin, who had been left at Bengazi for that purpose. During our absence at Carcora, Bey Halil had left the town, and pitched his tents in the fine plain of Merge, a large tract of table-land on the top of the mountains which bound Teuchira and Ptolemeta to the southward. The object of his journey was to collect the tribute from the neighbouring Bedouin tribes, and this is generally a work of much time and trouble, without which the contribution would not be paid at all. We had previously arranged with him that Hadood, Shekh of Barka, should have camels in readiness (on our return from Carcora) to carry our tents and baggage to the westward; but finding they had not arrived, we with difficulty procured others, and set out from Bengazi on the seventeenth of April for Teuchira, Ptolemeta, and Cyrene.
The road from Bengazi to Teuchira and Ptolemeta lies through avery fertile and beautiful country, though a comparatively small portion of it only is cultivated. It may be described as a plain, thickly covered with wood and flowering shrubs, stretching itself from the sea to the foot of the mountains which form the northern limits of the Cyrenaica, and narrowing every mile as you advance towards Ptolemeta, where the mountains run down very close to the sea. We have already stated that the space between this range and Bengazi is about fourteen geographic miles; and the distance between it and the sea, at Ptolemeta, is no more than a mile, or a mile and a half; the whole length of the plain, from Bengazi to Ptolemeta, being fifty-seven geographic miles. The sides of the mountains are also thickly clothed with wood, chiefly pine, of various kinds, and the juniper is found in great quantities among the other shrubs which overspread them.
Ravines, whose sides are equally covered with wood and verdure, cross the road very frequently, in their course from the mountains to the sea; and most of these, as there is nothing like a bridge over any of them, must be nearly impassable in winter. The force with which the water rushes down the ravines in the rainy season is evident from the slightest inspection; the ground being furrowed and torn up in the parts which form the beds of the torrents, and encumbered with trees and stones of various sizes, washed down from the mountains and from the sides of the ravines. Open spaces are occasionally met with in the woods, some of which are of considerable extent; these were probably once cultivated, but are now thickly covered with grasses of various kinds, among which weoften observed a great proportion of oats produced spontaneously from the soil[6].
Several towers of very solid construction are scattered over this plain in various directions; and one of them will be found to correspond very well with that called Cafez, by Edrisi. It is situated at about the same distance (four miles) from the sea; and has likewise a wood to the eastward of it, as he mentions[7]. It may be reckoned at fifteen miles from Bengazi, and not far from it, also to the eastward, are the lakes described by Edrisi in the neighbourhood of Cafez, separated, exactly as he mentions, from the sea by ridges of sand, and running along parallel with the beach[8]. The water of these lakes is stated by Edrisi to be sweet, but it is certainly, in the present day, brackish. The Arab name of one of these (Zeiana, or Aziana) would seem to point out the neighbourhood of Adriana, laid down by Cellarius between Berenice and Arsinoe, or Teuchira; and many ground-plans of buildings, chiefly dwelling-houses, may be observed at the distance of about three-quarters of a mile from the lake, which probably occupy the site of that town.
At sunset, on the second day, we arrived at Birsis, where there are a number of wells, and mutilated fragments of building, of which it would be impossible to make any satisfactory plan, without a great deal of previous excavation. Birsis occupies a very fertile plain, where there is usually an Arab encampment, and is distant about thirty-one miles from Bengazi, and seven from the city of Teuchira. It is five or six miles from the Cyrenaic range, and about a mile and a half from the sea. A little to the S.W. of Birsis, are other remains of building, which assume a more decided character, and appear to have formed part of a town. Several arched door-ways are still remaining, and some of the walls of the houses are standing, to the height of about ten or twelve feet from the present level. The spot on which they stand is now much overgrown with high grass and shrubs of various kinds, and the buildings have been occasionally added-to by the Arabs; so that it requires a good deal of attention to make out their original plans. We were cautioned by the natives, who saw us making our way through the high grass and bushes which encumber the ruins, to beware of the serpents, which they said were very numerous in the place; we, however, saw no more than two, one of a dark colour, about five feet in length, and another of smaller dimensions. The Arab name for this place is Mabny, and Mably (as we heard it pronounced by different persons residing on the spot); and appears to be a corruption of Napoli, or Neapolis, with no other change than might reasonably be expected from the peculiarities of Arab pronunciation[9].
Neapolis is, however, laid down by Ptolemy between the cities of Teuchira and Ptolemeta; and Mably (or Mabny) is seven or eight miles to the S.W. of the former of these places; so that it will not correspond in position with the city which its name appears to indicate. We may at the same time observe, that in the position assigned by Ptolemy to Neapolis we could perceive no remains which were indicative of a town; that we know of no town, described under another name, as occupying the site of Mably; and that the resemblance of that appellation to Nably, which would be the Arab pronunciation of Neapolis, is too close to be wholly overlooked.
Between Birsis and the sea (from which we have already said it is distant about a mile and a half) are the remains of two towers, occupying the summit of a range of sand-hills on the beach, and which we were unable to visit, in consequence of the marsh which runs along the foot of the range, and separates it from the cultivated land. The country about Birsis and Mably is highly productive, wherever it is cultivated, and agreeably diversified with shrubs and brushwood, among which are a few fig-trees. The plain is here about six miles in breadth (from the sea to the foot of the mountains); and its general appearance, as the Arab tents were seen to rear themselves among the low wood and cultivated lands in which they werepitched, was highly indicative of what one might imagine of patriarchal comfort and tranquillity[10]. We found the Arabs very hospitable and obliging, and one of our party, who had strayed from the rest, and taken shelter at night-fall in one of their tents, was received and entertained with great kindness and liberality; a sheep having been killed expressly for his supper, and the women of the family employed for two hours in preparing it, in the most savoury manner with which they were acquainted. While the mutton was occupying the united attention of the most accomplished cooks of the household, (the mother, one of the wives, and the two eldest daughters of the host) another wife had prepared a large dish of barley-cakes and fried onions, over which was poured some hot melted butter: a great portion of this very speedily disappeared before the repeated attacks of the hungry guest, whose appetite for the savoury meat which was afterwards served up to him was not quite so great as the dish deserved; the skill of the young wife who had cooked the first mess was in consequence highly commended by her spouse, who could no otherwise account for the great portion of meat which was left, than by supposing that the first dish was mostto the stranger’s taste; never dreaming that a pound of dough, besides butter and onions, could in any way tend to diminish a man’s appetite.
Six miles beyond Birsis (in a north-easterly direction) are remains of a much more imposing nature than any which we had hitherto beheld. They are those of an ancient city, completely inclosed within walls of uncommon strength and thickness, which are connected at intervals by quadrangular towers, and entered by two strongly-built gateways, placed opposite to each other on the east and west sides of the city. The town of Teuchira (for it is that to which we allude) is situated close to the sea, which, in this part of the plain, is distant about four miles from the foot of the mountains. A part of the town, as well as of the walls, is built upon a rising ground, and the rest is on a level with the plain; one portion of it (to the westward) has been built round a quarry, and what appears to have been the citadel is also constructed on the edge of another quarry to the eastward, which considerably strengthens its position.
Without the walls on both sides of the town (we mean on the east and west sides) are also very extensive quarries, in which the tombs of the early inhabitants of the place have at various periods been constructed[11]. In these, as well as on the inner part of the city walls, are a great many Greek inscriptions; such of which as ourtime allowed us to copy, will be found at the end of the chapter, with further details of the buildings; and in the mean time we refer our readers to the plan of the city annexed.
Teuchira, or Tauchira, was a town of Barca, of considerable antiquity: its name was changed under the Ptolemies to Arsinoe, and subsequently (by Mark Antony) to Cleopatris; but its original appellation has survived the others, and it is to this day distinguished by the name of Tauchira, or Tocra, under which it is known to the Arabs.
The walls of Teuchira (we are informed by Procopius[12]) were repaired under the emperor Justinian, and they still remain in a state of perfection which sufficiently proves the solidity of the work. They are built of very massy blocks of stone, conformably with the statement of the historian, many of which have formed parts of much earlier buildings, as the inscriptions found upon them demonstrate.
Very little of the history of Teuchira has come down to us; and we scarcely know more of it, than that it formed one of the cities of the Pentapolis. Although it is situated close to the sea, which washes the northern face of it, Teuchira could never have been a port; as it affords no protection whatever for vessels derived from its natural position, and there are not the slightest traces now visible of anything like a cothon having been constructed there; which, indeed, it would have been folly to have attempted in the exposed situation of the place[13].
Traces of Christianity are still visible in the remains of a handsome church in this city, which may perhaps be attributed to the piety or the munificence of Justinian, so conspicuously displayed in similar structures throughout his extensive dominions. The account which Bruce has given us of Ptolemeta proves evidently that he confounded it with Teuchira, since he tells us of itswalls, “which he foundentire, on which were a prodigious number of Greek inscriptions;” whereas there are no remains of walls at Ptolemeta, (with the exception of a noble gateway by which those which once existed were connected,) that are more than a foot above the ground; and we have already stated, that the walls of Teuchira correspond with Bruce’s description. The same writer adds that he found nothing at Arsinoe, or at Barca, and we are somewhat at a loss to know what places he intends to point out as the spots which he considers to have been occupied by the two cities mentioned. We have given the details which we were enabled to collect of Teuchira at the end of the present chapter, and shall therefore abstain from further mention of it here, and proceed with the other parts of our narrative.
We may, however, remark that it abounds in wells of excellent water, which are reserved by the Arabs for their summer consumption, and only resorted to when the more inland supplies are exhausted; at other times Teuchira (we were informed) is uninhabited. Many of the excavated tombs, which we have mentioned above, are occupied as dwelling-houses by the Arabs during their summer visits to this part of the coast; and from the circumstanceof their being much cooler at that season than the external atmosphere, are certainly very pleasant abodes.
Here also, as at Carcora, we were very much annoyed with the parching sirocco wind; and our Chaous, from Bengazi, a very stout active fellow, was seized, in consequence, with a violent fever, and was unable to continue his journey. We left him, however, in very good hands, and he rejoined us, on his recovery, at Ptolemeta.
From Teuchira to Ptolemeta is about eighteen miles (geographic), and the road between these places leads along the sea-coast, which gradually approaches the mountains. The soil is excellent, and the country is for the most part well cultivated; the wood being chiefly confined to the sides of the mountains and to those of the ravines which cross the road. In approaching Ptolemeta, the attention is first arrested by a large and very lofty quadrangular tomb, constructed on a basis of solid rock, which has been purposely insulated from the quarry in which it stands, and shaped also into a quadrangular form. This object assumes the appearance of a lofty tower, and forms a very striking feature in the scenery about Ptolemeta, being seen from a considerable distance.
Signor Della Cella has supposed that this noble monument, “veramente” (as he observes) “di regia grandezza,” was erected by the seventh of the Ptolemies surnamed Physcon, or Euergetes the Second, purposely as a tomb for himself.
It is probable, however, that the restless and ambitious spirit of this prince looked forward at all times to the sovereignty of Egypt, even after the mediation of the Romans, by which the Cyrenaicawas assigned to him as a kingdom. However this may be, it will be seen, from the plan and section of the structure in question, (which we have given in the details of Ptolemeta,) that it was not intended for the tomb of a single person, but as that of a numerous family, in which no one appears to have been particularly distinguished from the rest. There was originally, perhaps, some inscription over the entrance of the tomb by which the name and the honours of the persons it inclosed were set forth; but as this part of the structure has been purposely injured, it is probable that the inscription, if ever there existed one, was at the same time effaced.
At any rate, though we looked very attentively for some appearance of letters, we were unable to distinguish any; and we will merely suggest, with regard to this mausoleum, that it was certainly appropriated to some family of distinction, (it may be to some part of that of the Ptolemies,) since there is none so conspicuous or so handsome in any part of the neighbourhood of Ptolemeta.
The next object which presents itself in approaching the town is the insulated gateway which we have mentioned above, standing now like a triumphal arch overlooking the town, but which was originally connected with the walls. On reaching the summit of the elevated spot upon which this gateway has been erected, the remains of Ptolemeta lie before you, stretched out in various parts of the beautiful plain in which it is built, sloping down from the mountains to the sea. It appears to have occupied about a square mile of ground, and a more agreeable position could not anywhere have been chosen,on this part of the coast of the Cyrenaica, than that which has been fixed upon for the port of Barca.
The harbour has been chiefly formed by art (one side of it only being sheltered by nature); and the remains of the cothon are still very conspicuous, though much encumbered with sand[14].
An Amphitheatre and two Theatres are still visible at Ptolemeta: the latter are close to the remains of a palace, of which three columns only are now standing; and the former is constructed in a large quarry, in which the seats have been partly excavated, those parts only having been built which could not be formed in the quarry itself. The interior court of the palace above-mentioned is still covered with tessellated pavement, and beneath it are very spacious arched cisterns, or reservoirs, communicating with each other, and receiving air and light from the court-yard above them[15]. The remaining columns of this building, which we imagine to have been a palace, are those which Bruce has described as forming part of the portico belonging to an Ionic temple, and as having been executed “in the first manner” of that order. The details of them, (he adds,) with all the parts that could be preserved, are in the King’s collection. The proportions and style of the columns in question do not (we must confess) appear, in our estimation, to partake much of the early character of the Ionic; but were the resemblance in reality much greater than it is, the existence of a Greek inscription whichis built into the basement of the columns, bearing the names of Cleopatra and Ptolemy Philometor[16], (together with another, turned upside down, mentioning that of Arsinoe conjointly with Ptolemy and Berenice,) would prevent our attributing an earlier date to them than the reigns of the sovereigns recorded.
The ravines which form the eastern and western boundaries of Ptolemeta (particularly that to the eastward) are wild and romantic in the extreme; and one might imagine one’s-self transported, in winding along them, to the beautiful secluded valleys of Switzerland and Savoy. It is true that in the Cyrenaica nature is on a less extended scale than in the mountainous districts we have mentioned; but it appears in a form no less captivating on that account; and we will venture to say, that if a person who had travelled in those countries should be suddenly dropt into the eastern valley of Ptolemeta, without being told where he was, he would certainly suspect himself to be in one of them. He would never, for a moment, dream of being in Africa—that parched and barren region of desert monotony so horrid in European estimation. For our own parts we shall never forget the delight which we experienced, at every new turn of the valley, as fresh objects of interest presented themselves to our view on either side of this enchanting retreat.
We had already passed through a very interesting country, in our journey from Bengazi to Ptolemeta; and we had long forgotten thedreary swamps and insipidity of the Syrtis, where onlyone treehad been seen to rear itself in a space of more than four hundred miles.
It could not, therefore, be contrast that made the vallies of Ptolemeta appear to us in such captivating forms and colours—it was the simple impression which Nature’s favourite spots never fail to create on the imagination—heightened only, perhaps, by the solitude of the scene, and the wild, romantic elegance of its character. There are beauties which may be felt, but cannot be described; and the charm of romantic scenery is one of them.
We will not therefore attempt any other description of the eastern valley of Ptolemeta, than by remarking that it rises gradually from the sea, winding through forests of pine and flowering shrubs, (which thicken as the sides of the mountain on which they grow become higher and more abrupt,) till it loses itself in the precipitous part of the range which bounds it to the southward, and which presents a dark barrier of thickly-planted pines, shooting up into the blue sky above them. The windings of the valley greatly add to its beauty, and the scenery increases in interest at every turn, in tracing it up towards the mountains in which it loses itself. Sometimes the path is impeded by trees, which throw their branches across it, leaving only a narrow passage beneath them; and sometimes, on emerging from this dark and difficult approach, a broad sweep of verdant lawn will suddenly present itself, fenced in, apparently, on all sides, by high walls of various-coloured pines, rising one above the head of the other, in all the grandeur of uniformity. On reaching the opposite end of this verdantamphitheatre, a new scene presents itself, before unsuspected; and the rambler, bewildered with variety, finds himself utterly incapable of deciding which pleases him most, or when he shall feel himself equal to the task of tearing himself away from the spot. We confess that, when first we discovered this valley, the shades of night surprised us before we thought the sun had set, far in its deepest recesses; and we never afterwards visited it without regretting that our occupations would not allow us more leisure to admire it.
Among the trees which clothe the sides of the mountains are many handsome stone sarcophagi of Greek and Roman workmanship, all of which, however, we found had been opened; and among them seats of the same material were occasionally observed to have been placed, as if the spirits of the dead loved to linger about the spot which had so much delighted them when living. We should willingly have devoted a great portion of our time to the same pleasing occupation, and have passed whole days in wandering among the tombs, in making plans and drawings of them, and searching for inscriptions: but fate had not decreed us so agreeable a lounge, and after securing in our portfolios some of the principal objects of the place, we set out without further delay for Cyrene, which we had determined (as our time was now limited) should form the chief object of inquiry. We had, however, arranged that, on our return from Cyrene, the plan of the town and neighbourhood of Ptolemeta (which will be found annexed) should be completed; and that drawings should be made of such of the most conspicuous objects as had not been already secured, all of which was eventually accomplished.
It will be seen, by a reference to the plan of Ptolemeta, that the position of the town was remarkably well chosen. In its front was the sea; and on either side a ravine, along which are still seen traces of fortification, secured its flanks from any sudden attack; while the only passes by which it could be approached from the high ridge of mountains to the southward, were defended (as will appear in the plan) by strong barriers drawn completely across them: the whole town, at the same time, was originally inclosed within a wall which may still be traced to considerable extent, running parallel with the mountains at the back, and extending from these, along the banks of the ravines, to the sea. Two bridges appear (from the existing remains) to have been thrown across each of the ravines; one of which is to this day tolerably perfect, and is faithfully represented, in its actual condition, in the drawing which is given of it (page 362); several forts were also scattered about in various directions, both within and without the walls, contributing at once to the beauty and security of the place. The situation of the town in other respects was also remarkably good. It sloped down gradually from the high ground which forms the foot of the mountains at its back, (and which sheltered it from the southerly winds,) and must consequently have enjoyed the full benefit of the cool northern breezes, so grateful in all hot climates. In fact, there is no place on the coast of Northern Africa, between Ptolemeta and Tripoly, which can at all be compared with the former of these places, for beauty, convenience, and security of position, Lebda alone excepted. We are, however, informed, that the town of Ptolemeta suffered at one time so severely from want ofwater, that the inhabitants were obliged to relinquish their houses, and disperse themselves about the country in different directions. The reparation of the aqueducts and cisterns of the town, which, it seems, had fallen into decay, restored Ptolemeta to its former flourishing state; and this act is recorded, among many others of a similar nature performed at the command of Justinian, in the eulogy of that emperor by Procopius. As Ptolemeta is unprovided with springs, the care of its reservoirs and aqueducts must have been at all times peculiarly essential; and we find that its buildings of this class are among the most perfect of its existing remains.
It is probable that the cisterns we have mentioned above, as being situated under the tesselated pavement of the edifice which Bruce calls a temple, were among those alluded to by Procopius. They consist of two divisions of arched chambers, running parallel with each other, which are connected by others of shorter dimensions, running in an opposite direction. They communicate mutually, by means of small door-ways, of the form which will be seen in the plan (page 367), and circular apertures were left at intervals in the roof, which received light and air from the court-yard above them, and might have served equally as entrances to the cisterns, or as places from which the water might be drawn up in buckets. They have all of them been coated with an excellent cement, which is still, for the most part, very perfect, and occupy a square of about an hundred feet. We may suppose that these reservoirs were occasionally available as supplies for the general use of the town, since the remains of an aqueduct leading from them through the centre of it are still visible, aswill appear in the plan of Ptolemeta. There are also remains of stone conductors leading into these cisterns from the mountains at the back of the town, and as rain usually falls in great quantities during the winter they must have been for the most part well supplied. We searched in vain for some inscription on the walls of these buildings which might throw light on the period of their construction or restoration, but were unable to discover one in any part of them: the arches which form the roofs are well turned and constructed in the usual manner, with a key-stone. We may add, that these cisterns still afford a very copious supply to the Arab tribes of the neighbourhood, although no care is taken to lead the rain into them; and we found the water which they contained on our arrival at Ptolemeta uncommonly cool and delightful.
The greater part of the town, on our first visits to it, was thickly overgrown with wild marigolds and camomile, to a height of four and five feet, and patches of corn were here and there observable growing equally within the city walls[17]. The solitude of the place was at the same time unbroken by animals of any description; if we except a small number of jackals and hyænas, which strayed down after sunset in search of water, and a few owls and bats which started out from the ruins as we disturbed them by our near and unexpected approach. Appeals of this kind are always irresistible; and the contrast which presented itself between the silence and desolationwhich characterized the city of Ptolemeta when we visited it, and the busy scene which a spectator of its former wealth and magnificence would have witnessed under the Ptolemies and the Cæsars, afforded a striking and, we must say, a melancholy example of the uncertainty of all human greatness.
If the exuberant vegetation we have mentioned appeared to be rather out of its place, it was not less a source of inconvenience than regret, for we had the pleasure of being obliged to wade through it up to our arm-pits in making our way to the different buildings; and it may readily be imagined that this tiresome operation, after the heavy rains which fell occasionally at night, was no treat on a cool cloudy morning. The brushing through a turnip field, or one of mangel-wurzel, which many of our readers have no doubt often tried with a double-barrelled gun upon their shoulders, is nothing to the tramping we have mentioned; for not only our boots and trowsers were quickly wet through with the heavy drops which we brushed from their lodgments, but our shirt-sleeves and jackets, and sometimes even our turbans, were also well soaked on these occasions. A very different scene presented itself on our return from Cyrene, when the summer heat had begun to exert its influence. Not a leaf or a stalk remained of all the impediments we have alluded to, and the prevailing colour of the place, which we had left a bright green, had been succeeded by a dusky brown. The corn had been cut and carried, leaving scarcely any traces of its having been formerly growing; and the ruins were left exposed, in all their naked desolation, glaring on the eye of the spectator. We had now to encounter inconveniences of avery different nature from those which had originally presented themselves; but although they were by no means less disagreeable, we had reason to rejoice in the exchange. No impediment now remained to obstruct our approach to, or to prevent our view of the buildings, and we were able to trace the plans of them with much greater ease and accuracy than we could on the former occasions. Having given a general view of the country and remains between Bengazi and Ptolemeta, we will now retrace our steps, and notice a few of the ruins which present themselves in the route with somewhat more attention to detail.
Of the buildings which occur in passing from Bengazi to Teuchira, the most conspicuous is that which we have already mentioned under its modern name of Gusser el Toweel (the high tower), and which we have supposed to be the same with that called Cafez by Edrisi, and placed by him at the distance of a day’s journey from Soluc. It is a quadrangular building of about thirty-six feet by twenty; which is entered by a single door placed in the centre of one of its longest sides. On one side of the building is a narrow chamber, occupying the whole breadth of the interior, and on the opposite side is a low archway, (of not more than six feet in height from the floor, and sunk about four feet below it,) which is now almost filled up with rubbish, and of which, we must confess, we were unable to discover the use. The intervening space is left vacant, forming a single room of something more than seventeen feet in length, and occupying, like the narrow chamber which communicates with it, the whole breadth of the inner part of the building.
A window has been formed in part of the wall for the purpose of giving light to an upper story, which, together with the window itself, appears to have made no part of the original plan; an addition has also been made to the exterior, (marked by shading lines in the ground-plan,) and forming, with what has been already described, a square of something less than fifty feet. There is no appearance of any door in this additional wall, which has been very strongly built, and it completely prevents all access from without to the door of the original building. The object of this has no doubt been security, and the whole structure appears to have been intended as a station for troops and was probably one of the fortresses repaired by Justinian. Its height may be about five-and-twenty feet, (we mean the height of the original building, for the added part does not seem to have been ever raised to half that elevation), and it is still surmounted by a cornice part of which is, however, cut away. There are several other strong towers at no great distance from Gusser el Toweel, nearer to the foot of the mountains, and a communication appears to have been kept up all the way from Bengazi to Ptolemeta. There are also several well-built and spacious arched cisterns, and other structures partly built and partly excavated, in this tract of country; as also many subterranean storehouses for grain; and a month or two might certainly be spent with great advantage in examining the space between the sea and the mountains, from Bengazi to Birsis and Teuchira.