OF THE DEAD SEA, AND OF THE RIVER JORDAN.—OF THE HEAD OF ST. JOHN
THE BAPTIST, AND OF THE USAGES OF THE SAMARITANS.
From Jericho it is three miles to the Dead Sea. About that sea groweth
much alum and alkatran[339]. Between Jericho and that sea is the land
of Dengadda, where formerly balm grew; but men cause the branches to be
drawn up and carried to Babylon, and still they call them vines of Gady.
On the coast of that sea, as we go from Arabia, is the mount of the
Moabites, where there is a cave which they call Karua. Upon that hill
Balak, the son of Boaz, led Balaam the priest to curse the people of
Israel. The Dead Sea divides the lands of India and Arabia, and the sea
reaches from Soara to Arabia. The water of that sea is very bitter and
salt, and if the earth were moistened with that water it would never
bear fruit. And the earth and land changeth often its colour. The water
casteth out a thing that is called asphalt, in pieces as large as a
horse, every day and on all sides. From Jerusalem to that sea is two
hundred furlongs. That sea is in length five hundred and eighty
furlongs, and in breadth one hundred and fifty furlongs, and is called
the Dead Sea, because it does not run, but is ever motionless. Neither
man, beast, nor anything that hath life, may die in that sea; and that
hath been proved many times by men that have been condemned to death,
who have been cast therein, and left therein three or four days, and
they might never die therein, for it receiveth nothing within him that
breatheth life. And no man may drink of the water on account of its
bitterness. And if a man cast iron therein, it will float on the
surface; but if men cast a feather therein, it will sink to the bottom;
and these are things contrary to nature. And there beside grow trees
that bear apples very fair of colour to behold; but when we break or cut
them in two we find within ashes and cinders, which is a token that by
the wrath of God the cities and the land were burned and sunk into hell.
Some call that sea the Lake Dasfetidee; some, the River of Devils; and
some the river that is ever stinking. Into that sea, by the wrath of
God, sunk the five cities, Sodom, Gomorrah, Aldama, Seboym, and Segor,
for the abominable sin that reigned in them. But Segor, by the prayer of
Lot, was saved and kept a great while, for it was set upon a hill, and
some part of it still appears above the water; and men may see the walls
when it is fair and clear weather. In that city Lot dwelt a little
while; and there was he made drunk by his daughters, and lay with them,
and begat on them Moab and Amon. The hill above Segor was then called
Edom, but afterwards men called it Seyr, and subsequently Idumea. At the
right side of the Dead Sea the wife of Lot still stands in likeness of a
salt stone, because she looked behind her when the cities sunk into
hell.
And you shall understand that the river Jordan runs into the Dead Sea,
and there it dies, for it runs no further; and its entrance is a mile
from the church of St. John the Baptist, toward the west, a little
beneath the place where Christians bathe commonly. A mile from the river
Jordan is the river of Jabbok, which Jacob passed over when he came from
Mesopotamia. This river Jordan is no great river, but it has plenty of
good fish; and it cometh out of the hill of Libanus by two wells, that
are called Jor and Dan; and of those two wells it hath its name. It
passes by a lake called Maron; and after, it passes through the sea of
Tiberias and under the hills of Gilboa; and there is a very fair valley
on both sides of the river. The hills of Libanus reach in length to the
desert of Pharan. And these hills separate the kingdom of Syria and the
country of Phœnicia. Upon these hills grow cedar trees, that are very
high, and bear long apples, as great as a man's head. This river Jordan
also separates the land of Galilee and the land of Idumea and the land
of Betron; and it runs under the earth a great way, unto a fair and
great plain, which is called Meldan, in the language of Sarmoyz; that is
to say, a fair or market, in their language, because fairs are often
held in that plain. And there becomes the water great and wide. That
plain is the tomb of Job. About the river Jordan are many churches,
where many Christian men dwelt. And near it is the city of Hay, which
Joshua assailed and took. Also beyond the river Jordan is the valley of
Mamre, and that is a very fair valley. Also upon the hill that I spoke
of before, where our Lord fasted forty days, two miles from Galilee, is
a fair and lofty hill, where the fiend carried our Lord, the third time,
to tempt him, and showed him all the regions of the world, and said,
"All this shall I give thee, if thou fall down and worship me."
In going eastward from the Dead Sea, out of the borders of the Holy
Land, is a strong and fair castle, on a hill which is called Carak, in
Sarmoyz; that is to say, Royal. That castle was made by king Baldwin,
when he had conquered that land, who put it into the hands of
Christians, to keep that part of the country; and for that cause it was
called the Mount Royal[340]; and under it there is a town called
Sobache; and there all about dwell Christians, under tribute. From
thence men go to Nazareth, of which our Lord beareth the surname. And
thence it is three days to Jerusalem: and men go by the province of
Galilee, by Ramoth, by Sodom, and by the high hill of Ephraim, where
Elkanah and Hannah, the mother of Samuel the prophet, dwelt. There this
prophet was born; and, after his death, he was buried at Mount Joy, as I
have said before. And then men go to Shiloh, where the ark of God with
the relics were long kept under Eli the prophet. There the people of
Hebron sacrificed to our Lord; and there they yielded up their vows; and
there God first spake to Samuel, and showed him the change of the order
of priesthood, and the mystery of the sacrament. And right nigh, on the
left side, is Gibeon, and Ramah, and Benjamin, of which Holy Writ
speaketh. And after men go to Shechem, formerly called Sichar, which is
in the province of the Samaritans; and there is a very fair and fruitful
vale, and there is a fair and good city, called Neapolis, whence it is a
day's journey to Jerusalem. And there is the well where our Lord spake
to the woman of Samaria; and there was wont to be a church, but it is
beaten down. Beside that well king Rehoboam caused two calves to be made
of gold, and made them to be worshipped, and put the one at Dan and the
other at Bethel. A mile from Sichar is the city of Deluze, in which
Abraham dwelt a certain time. Shechem is ten miles from Jerusalem, and
is called Neapolis, that is to say, the new city. And near it is the
tomb of Joseph, the son of Jacob, who governed Egypt; for the Jews
carried his bones from Egypt, and buried them there; and thither the
Jews go oftentime in pilgrimage, with great devotion. In that city was
Dinah, Jacob's daughter, ravished; for which her brethren slew many
persons, and did many injuries to the city. And there beside is the hill
of Gerizim, where the Samaritans make their sacrifice: on that hill
would Abraham have sacrificed his son Isaac. And there beside is the
valley of Dothan; and there is the cistern wherein Joseph was cast by
his brethren, when they sold him; and that is two miles from Sichar.
From thence we go to Samaria, which is now called Sebaste; it is the
chief city of that country, and is situated between the hill of Aygnes
in a similar manner to Jerusalem. In that city was the sittings of the
twelve tribes of Israel; but the city is not now so great as it was
formerly. There St. John the Baptist was buried, between two prophets,
Elisha and Abdias; but he was beheaded in the castle of Macharyme, near
the Dead Sea; and after he was carried by his disciples, and buried at
Samaria: and there Julian the Apostate caused him to be dug up, and
burned his bones, and cast his ashes to the wind. But the finger that
showed our Lord, saying, "Behold the Lamb of God!" would never burn, but
is all whole; St. Tecla, the holy virgin, caused that finger to be
carried to the hill of Sebaste, and there men make great feast for it.
In that place was wont to be a fair church; and many others there were,
but they are all beaten down. There was wont to be the head of St. John
the Baptist, inclosed in the wall; but the emperor Theodosius had it
drawn out, and found it wrapped in a little cloth, all bloody; and so he
carried it to Constantinople; and the hinder part of the head is still
at Constantinople; and the fore part of the head, to under the chin, is
at Rome, under the church of St. Silvester, where are nuns; and it is
yet all broiled, as though it were half burnt; for the emperor Julian
above mentioned, of his wickedness and malice, burnt that part with the
other bones, as may still be seen; and this thing hath been proved both
by popes and emperors. And the jaws beneath, which hold to the chin, and
a part of the ashes, and the platter on which the head was laid when it
was smitten off, are at Genoa; and the Genoese make a great feast in
honour of it, and so do the Saracens also. And some men say that the
head of St. John is at Amiens, in Picardy; and other men say, that it is
the head of St. John the bishop. I know not which is correct, but God
knows; but however men worship it, the blessed St. John is satisfied.
From this city of Sebaste unto Jerusalem it is twelve miles. And between
the hills of that country there is a well that four times in the year
changes its colour; sometimes green, sometimes red, sometimes clear, and
sometimes troubled; and men call that well Job. And the people of that
country, who are called Samaritans, were converted and baptized by the
Apostles, but they hold not well their doctrine; and always they hold
laws by themselves, varying from Christian men, from Saracens, Jews, and
Pagans. The Samaritans believe well in one God; and they say that there
is only one God, who created all things, and judges all things; and they
hold the Bible according to the letter, and use the Psalter as the Jews
do; and they say that they are the right sons of God; and, among all
other folk, they say that they be best beloved of God, and that to them
belongs the heritage that God promised to his beloved children; and they
have also a different clothing and outward appearance from other people,
for they wrap their heads in red linen cloth, as a distinction from
others; and the Saracens wrap their heads in white linen cloth; and the
Christian men that dwell in the country wrap them in blue of India, and
the Jews in yellow cloth. In that country dwell many of the Jews, paying
tribute as Christians do.