without prejudice or preconceived opinion, will be impressed with the
belief that they belonged to a place of worship; though how this
peculiar structure could be adapted to religious purposes, I will not
undertake to decide. It is well known, that the most ancient idols were
mere pillars or stones, not only of a round or conical shape, as symbols
of the procreative power of nature, but even of a square form. It is
also well known, from the example of the columns in On or Heliopolis, of
the two celebrated columns, Yakín and Boʿaz, in front of the temple in
Jerusalem, and from that of the two pillars of the Phœnician Hercules in
Gades, that the power of the Deity was often represented by a pair. A
pair of massive columns or pillars, covered with a similarly massive
impost, may well serve to represent symbolically the firmness and
eternity of the cosmical order, while the name of the chief deity of the
pagan Berbers, ʿAmún, may possibly have the original meaning of “the
Founder, Supporter.” But I will not enter here into such conjectures; I
will only say that my distinct impression on the spot was, that the
structure was a rude kind of sun-dial, combining the vertical with the
horizontal principle. That it could not be intended as a common doorway,
even if it were connected with another building, is evident from the
narrowness of the passage; but it may have had the purpose of serving as
a sort of penitential or purgatory passage in consecrating and preparing
the worshippers[21], previous to their offering sacrifices, by obliging
them to squeeze themselves through this narrow passage, the
inconvenience of which was increased by the awful character attributed
to this cromlech. Even in Christian and Mohammedan countries religious
ordeals of a similar kind are not unknown; and a very analogous custom
in the celebrated mosque of Kairowán may well have its origin in the
older pagan practice of the aborigines. However this may be, the
religious character of the whole structure can scarcely be doubtful,
from the nature of the flat stone, the channel in which was certainly
intended to carry off the blood of the victim.[22]
It must strike the observer, in regarding these ruins, that while they
are so rude in principle, their style of execution evidently bears
traces of art; and I think it not improbable that the art may be
ascribed to Roman influence. We shall further on see another specimen of
these curious pillars combined with the ground-plan of an almost regular
Roman temple. But from whatever quarter this artistical influence may
have proceeded, there cannot be the least doubt that the character of
the structure is, on the whole, not Roman, but indicates quite another
race; and if we take into regard what I have just said about the
influence of art visible in this structure, and that such influence
could scarcely proceed from any other quarter than that of the
Carthaginians or the Romans, we must attribute these remains to the
Berber race, who, during the historical period, were the exclusive
possessors of these inland regions. Analogous structures have been
found, however, not only in England and Ireland on the one side, and in
several parts of India, principally in the Nilgherries, on the other,
but also in Circassia, Southern Russia, on the South Arabian coast, and
in the Somali country. This analogy might certainly be explained by a
similarity of principle in the simple religious rites of rude people;
but there may be also in these curious remains a confirmation of the
theories of Sir Henry Rawlinson respecting the wide extension of the
Scythians. But while, with regard to other tribes, from the Dravidian
group in Southern India to the Celtic in Ireland, such a connexion of
origin seems to be confirmed by analogy of language, there exist but
very few points of analogy between the Berber and the Central Asiatic
languages, except by means of the Coptic. In every respect, however, it
may be better to call such remains by the general name of Scythian than
by that of Druidical, which certainly can be justified only with regard
to the north-west of Europe.
These remarkable ruins are at a short distance from the foot of a
fortified hill, which is crowned with ancient fortifications of hewn
stone, to which are added later works of small stones. Other ruins of
cut-stone buildings lie about; and on an eminence at a little distance
eastward is a small castle belonging to the earlier times of the Arabs,
while on the highest top of the hilly chain behind the Arab encampment,
and which is called Gábes, are likewise ruins. The ruins of a whole
village, partly built of regularly-cut stone, and even exhibiting the
ornament of a column, were found the next morning near our encampment,
which our people had placed on the slope of the hills bordering the
plain towards the north-east.
All these ruins are evident proofs that the fertile plain Elkeb, and the
adjoining one, called Madher, were once well cultivated and thickly
inhabited. Their situation is very favourable, as the direct road from
Tripoli to Beni Ulíd and Sokna, by way of the valley Melgha, passes
close by. We had here descended to an average height of about one
thousand feet above the level of the sea.
[Sidenote: February 18th.]
During the night there was heavy rain, which lasted till morning, and
delayed our starting till rather late. After about a mile and a half’s
march, we ascended a little from the plain to the undulating pastures of
the Dháhar Tarhóna, which soon became enlivened by the tents and herds
of the Megaigera, and where I was glad to see at length a few cows. The
ground, though scantily covered with herbage, was dotted with lilies,
which my companion called balúdt, though this name is generally
understood to signify the ash-tree. Our guide from Meruán informed me
here that the water of this district takes its course not towards the
north, as might be expected, but towards the south-east, running from
hence to Temásla, on this side of Beni Ulíd, thence into the Wadi
Merdúm, and thence into Wadi Sofejín, which, as is well known, descends
towards Tawárgha. A little further on we left, on a small eminence to
the left, another hanshír surrounded by cultivated ground. It had been
an inconsiderable place, built chiefly of small stones; but even here
two enormous pillars or slabs were to be seen standing in the midst of
the rubbish. There were two holes in each of these pillars, going quite
through, and widening on one side.
At half-past nine o’clock, when passing the Hanshír Bu-Trehébe, at a
distance of more than two miles on our left, we had a fine retrospective
view of the various peaks of the Ghurián range, while on our left a
lower range approached more and more, with two summits rising from it to
a greater elevation. About noon we passed another site, called Hanshír
Suán, where are the remains of a large castle, with an inner and outer
fortification, built of small stones, but in a very neat and regular
style. The country, chiefly owing to the murkiness of the sky, had begun
to assume a very sombre character, and was crossed by stripes of red
sand, which, however, affords the best soil for the growth of the
pumpkin; but in the afternoon it improved greatly, showing fine pasture-
ground and ample corn-fields and, among the ruins of ancient times, the
rare example of a well-proportioned and neatly-worked Ionic capital,
which I found at the border of a ravine. Further on, upon a detached low
rock, which had been hewn into rectangular walls, and surrounded with a
ditch, were seen ruins of cut stone, very similar in appearance to those
of Kasr Jahalíyeh, near Gargash. We at length found traces of living
beings, in an Arab encampment situated in a green hollow, where we
learnt that the Kaïd or governor of Tarhóna, whose residence we were in
search of, was at present encamped near the spring called ʿAin
Shershára.
The country gradually assumes a more diversified aspect, agreeably
succeeding its former monotony. A considerable mountain-range, with
manifold crags, peaks, and ravines, approaches from S.S.W., and, turning
N.E., presents an insurmountable barrier to an advance in that
direction, while the plain sweeps nicely in a concave towards its foot;
but it is quite bare and desolate, and only now and then is seen a poor
remnant of the large olive-grove, consisting, according to the statement
of our shoush, of 10,000 trees, which Bey ʿAbd Allah, in Masráta, my
host on my former journey, had ventured to plant here five years ago. My
people maintained, whether correctly or not I cannot say, that the
strong gales which prevail in this plain did not allow the young olive-
tree to thrive. I think the failure is due rather to the character of
the inhabitants, who, unaccustomed to this branch of culture, have not
paid the necessary attention to the young trees.
Having passed a small wadi, we came in sight of the encampment of the
governor, which stretched out in front of us in a well-chosen situation
at the southern foot of a small cone. A Turkish officer’s green tent,
pitched a little in advance, was surrounded by several smaller ones,
while another group of twelve Bedwín tents, in a higher position up the
slope of the mount, contained the household. The governor received us in
a very friendly but rather affected manner, which seemed peculiar to
him, and might even be thought becoming in a man who has assisted his
country’s foes in exterminating all the members of his family, formerly
one of the foremost in the country. His friends, who try to represent
him as an honest man, say that he was forced to the deed, after having
once entered into Turkish service. This man, Bel Kásem el Lohéshi
Mahmúdi, has since played a conspicuous part in the present revolution;
for he it was who led the Turkish force last year against Ghóma, his
near relative but most bitter enemy, who, having been a prisoner in
Trebizond for many years, suddenly made his escape from thence during
the Russian war, and, issuing from the Tunisian frontier, appeared in
Jébel Yéfren. El Lohéshi was routed, and taken prisoner, and, according
to the first report, slain by the successful rebel. When we visited El
Lohéshi, he had occupied his new post only for the last year, having
been before governor of the Jebel. During all the period he had been in
Tarhóna, he assured us he had not moved his encampment from this place;
which I can well understand, as it is a very pleasant spot. His
principal business, of course, consists in collecting the tithes, in
registering which he was busily employed. He knew very little of the
province under his government; and it was to other men that I had to
look for information.
Having pitched our tent near that of the governor, we proceeded to make
ourselves acquainted with the locality, and, a few paces north from our
encampment, stumbled upon the famous brook called ʿAin Shersher, or ʿAin
Shershára, which, proceeding from the junction of three springs, forms
here a cascade of about twenty-five feet over the firm calcareous rock.
Running west a short distance, it then turns north and, breaking through
the mountain-slope in a deep picturesque glen, takes the direction of
the Wadi Ramle, which, however, it only reaches during great floods.
It seems as if this pleasant spot had already been a favourite residence
in the Roman times, as is amply shown by the fine ruins of a large
building of hewn stone, which the torrent has rent asunder and scattered
on both sides. From this place, ascending the side of a very wild
ravine, we reached the height which overlooks the Bedwín encampment, and
on the morning of the following day made a more distant excursion to the
mount called Bu-tauwíl, about three miles north, which was represented
to us as affording a very distant prospect, and the name of which seemed
to promise more than ordinary elevation.
As to the view we were rather disappointed; yet we were well repaid for
our trouble from the character of the country traversed, and the
unexpectedly pleasing aspect of the terrace spread out at the western
foot of the mountain, which must have formed a favourite retirement in
the time of the Romans, so literally strewn is it with the ruins of
buildings of hewn stone. In descending it, about 300 feet below the
summit, we first came to a Roman tomb, 8 ft. 7 in. long, and 7 ft. 9 in.
broad, rising in two stories, the lower being about ten feet high from
the base to the moulding, and ornamented with pilasters at the corners.
A little further on, to the west, was another tomb, just on the brink of
the slope into the valley below; but it has been destroyed, and at
present the chief interest attaches to a monumental stone, which most
probably stood upright on its top, and fell down when the monument went
to pieces, so that it now lies in a merely casual position on the floor
of the sepulchre, which has been repeatedly rifled by greedy hands. This
stone is 7 ft. 2 in. long, and has on one side, in high relief, the
figure of a man, of natural size, clothed in a toga. The workmanship is
good, and certainly not much later than the time of Severus. Close at
hand are other ruins lying about; and further west are several groups of
buildings. Three olive-trees and a palm-tree adorned this beautiful
retired spot.
Having returned to our encampment, I and my companion resolved to
separate for a few days, Overweg wishing to examine the neighbourhood of
the ʿAin Shershára for geological purposes, while I was rather bent upon
executing the original plan of our route all round the mountain-range.
We agreed to meet again at the castle called Kasr el Jefára in the plain
near the sea-shore. We borrowed another tent from the governor for Mr.
Overweg during his stay at this place, while I procured a horseman, with
whom, together with Ibrahim, our shoush, and one of the camel-drivers, I
was ready for starting an hour before noon; for the heat of the sun was
not much to be dreaded at this season of the year. Overweg accompanied
me as far as Kasr Dóga.[23]
Winding along narrow ravines, after about one mile’s march we passed, on
an eminence to our right, another specimen of large pilasters with an
impost, and ruins of buildings of large square stones close by. After
much winding, we cleared the narrow channel ascending the hills, which
were covered with halfa; but here too there was not a single tree to be
seen, and my guide said that there were no olive-trees in the Tarhóna
except in Máta, a place situated between Mount Bu-tauwíl and Kasr
Jefára, from which the tribe Máta derives its name. I have noticed
before, as remarkable, the three olive-trees near Bu-tauwíl. It was
about one o’clock in the afternoon when we came in sight of the Roman
monument called Kasr Dóga; and its brown colour almost induced us to
conclude that it was of brick; but on approaching nearer, we found that
it was built of hewn stone. We were astonished at the grand dimensions
of the monument, as it appeared evident that it was originally a mere
sepulchre, though in after times blocked up by the Arabs, and converted
into a castle.
[Illustration]
The front of the monument faces the south with ten degrees of deviation
towards the west. The whole body of the building, rising upon a base of
three steps, measures 47 ft. 6 in. in length, and 31 ft. 4 in. in
breadth. The entrance or portal, equidistant from both corners, was 12
ft. 6 in. wide; but it has been entirely blocked up with hewn stone, so
that it is now impossible to get into the interior of the monument
without great labour, and only a glimpse can be obtained of a kind of
entrance-hall of small dimensions. Of the interior arrangement,
therefore, nothing meets the view; but on the top of the solid mass of
building, rising to a height of 28 ft. 10 in., the ground-plan of the
third story, which has been demolished to obtain materials for closing
the entrance, is distinctly visible. Here the vestibule measures 10 ft.
10 in., the wall of the interior chamber or cell being adorned with two
columns, which are no less than 3 ft. 10 in. apart: the inner room
itself measures 22 ft. 4 in. in length within the walls. The monument,
although more massive than beautiful, is a fair proof of the wealth of
this district in ancient times. Opposite to it, on a limestone hill of
considerable elevation, is another specimen of the cromlech kind in good
preservation, besides other ruins. In the hollow at the S.E. side of the
sepulchre there are six deep and spacious wells sunk in the rock.
Here my companion left me, and I continued my route alone, passing
through a well-cultivated tract, till I reached an encampment of the
Welád Bu-Séllem, where we pitched our tent. Here I met a cousin of Haj
ʿAbd el Hádi el Meráyet, who had once been master of half the Tarhóna
district, but was made prisoner by the Turks, and sent to
Constantinople. This man also reappeared on the stage last year.
[Sidenote: Wednesday, February 20th.]
We set out early in the morning, the country continuing flat as far as
the chapel of Sidi ʿAli ben Salah, which, standing on a hill, is a
conspicuous object for many miles round. At a short distance from this
chapel, I observed the ruins of a castle built of large square stones
taken from older buildings; it measures 42 feet in every direction, and
exhibits a few bad but curious sculptures, among others an ass in
relief. Around are the ruins of a small village, and flat stones of
immense size, similar in workmanship to those described above, but no
upright pillars.
Beyond the chapel of the saint the country became more hilly, and after
some time we entered a ravine joining the Wadi Gedaera, which exhibited
the remains of three broad and firmly-constructed dikes, crossing the
ravine at the distance of about 800 yards from each other. They were
built of small stones, and were evidently intended to exclude the water
from the lower part of the valley. Another eight hundred yards below the
innermost dike, the ravine widens out into a fine verdant hollow,
stretching from west to east, and provided with several wells. On a
detached hill rising in the midst of this basin, is situated the Kasr
Dawán, built partly of older materials of hewn stone, partly of small
stones, and probably of the same age as the dikes. The whole floor of
the basin is strewn with ruins; and a considerable village seems to have
extended round the castle: where the ground was free from stones, it was
covered with ranunculuses. Altogether, this spot was interesting—the
stronghold of a chieftain who appears to have had energy and foresight,
but whose deeds are left without a record.
As soon as we emerged from this ravine the whole character of the
country changed, and through a pleasant valley we entered a wider plain,
bordered in the distance by a high range of mountains, among which the
Jebel Msíd, crowned with a zawíya or convent, is distinguished by its
height and its form. It is rather remarkable, and of the highest
interest as regards the ancient history of the civilization of these
regions, that the two most conspicuous mountains bordering Tarhóna, one
on the west the other on the east side, should bear the same name, and a
name which bears evident testimony to their having been places of
worship in ancient times. Both of them have grandeur of form; but the
western one is more regularly dome-shaped.
[Illustration]
The fine pasturage which this plain affords to the cows of the Mehaedi
enabled their masters to regale us with fine fresh sourmilk, which
interrupted our march very pleasantly. On the site of an ancient
village, near the margin of a small torrent, I found the following
curious specimens of upright pilasters, together with the impost,
remarkable for their height as well as for the rough sculpture of a dog,
or some other animal, which is seen on the higher part of one of them.
About 700 yards beyond the torrent called Ksaea, we had on our right a
large building of hewn stone about 140 yards square, besides six pairs
of pilasters together with their imposts; but some of them are lying at
present on the ground. These structures could never have been intended
as doors or passages; for the space between the upright stones is so
narrow, that a man of ordinary size could hardly squeeze his way through
them. Other ruins are on the left.
Here we entered the mountain chain which forms the natural boundary
between the district of Tarhóna and that of Meselláta, and at the
present time separates scenes of nomadic life from fixed settlements.
The highest part of the chain round the Jebel Msíd remained on our left,
while the heights on the right decreased in elevation. The chain has
little breadth; and we had hardly reached its crest when the country
that presented itself to our view had quite a different appearance from
that just left behind, presenting among other objects the castle of
Meselláta, surrounded by an olive-grove. In this spot ancient sites and
modern villages with stone houses are intermixed, while thick olive-
groves enliven the whole, and constitute the wealth of the inhabitants.
Having passed a village called Fatír, lying in a ravine that runs S.W.,
we soon descried, in a hollow at the southern foot of the Kasr Sʿaade (a
small ancient fortress), the first olive-plantation and the first
orchards belonging to Meselláta. From this place onward they succeed
each other at short intervals. Having passed a small eminence, with a
fine olive-grove in the hollow at its foot, we entered the beautiful and
well-inhabited plain of Meselláta. Here a great deal of industry was
evinced by the planting of young cuttings between the venerable old
olive-trees, or ghúrs Faraón as the Arabs call them. My shoush affirmed
that the inhabitants of Meselláta are the most industrious and diligent
people in the whole regency, taking good care of their plantations, and
watering them whenever they need it. The whole country has here a
different character from that of Tarhóna, the naked calcareous rock
protruding everywhere, while in Tarhóna the plains generally consist of
clayey soil. This district is only about one thousand feet above the
sea, while the average height of the Jébel (Yéfren) and the Ghurián is
about two thousand feet. Here the olives had been collected a month ago;
in the former districts they remained still on the tree.
Cheered by the spectacle of life and industry around us, we continued
our pleasant march, and having crossed an open space of rough rocky
ground filled with cisterns, we reached the castle of Meselláta, an
edifice of little merit, built with square stones from old ruins, and
lying at the northern end of the village Kúsabát, which properly means
“the Castles.” While my people were pitching my tent behind the castle,
on the only spot which would allow of the pegs being driven into the
ground, I went to pay a visit to Khalíl Aghá, who resided in the castle;
but I found it to be so desolate and comfortless that I left it
immediately, taking with me the sheikh Mesʿaud and a shoush named
Ibrahím Tubbát, in order to view the Kalʿa or Gellʿah, a very
conspicuous object, visible even from the sea. Keeping along the western
side of the village, which consists of from 300 to 400 cottages[24]
built of stone, and occupies a gentle slope towards the south, the
highest point of which, near the mosque, is 1250 feet[25] above the
level of the sea, we reached a pleasant little hollow adorned with
gardens, which being fenced with hedges of the Indian fig-tree, rendered
the spot extremely picturesque. From hence we ascended the naked
calcareous eminence, from the top of which the fortress overlooks a
great extent of country. Going round its demolished walls, from east to
west, I was able to descry and to take the bearings of a great number of
villages belonging to the district of Meselláta, some of them peeping
out of olive-groves, others distinguishable only by the smoke rising up
from them.