The elevation of the central peak of the Mount of Olives above the sea is given by Schubert at 2556 Paris feet, or 416 Paris feet above the Valley of Jehoshaphat. Hence it appears to be 175 Paris feet higher than the highest point of Zion. From the Wely on the eastern point of this summit, I was able to obtain a base extending in the due magnetic North along the ridge 1426 yards. From the Wely I took the following bearings among others:

Neby Samwil

Eastern Dome of Church of the Holy Sepulchre
Frank Mountain

N. W. corner or bay of Dead Sea

The measurements taken from the ends of the base, give for the distance of the N. W. corner of the Dead Sea from the Wely 14.34 geographical miles; and for the distance of the eastern dome of the Church of the Sepulchre from the same point, 1753 yards, or a trifle short of an English mile. The former distance can be regarded only as an approximation; the latter is probably not far from the truth. Bethlehem is not seen from the Wely; nor was Kerak visible at the time, to my great regret, in consequence of the hazy atmosphere.2

Beyond the northern summit, the ridge of the Mount of Olives sweeps round towards the West, and spreads out into the high level tract North of the city, which is skirted on the West and South by the upper part of the Valley of Jehoshaphat. The road to Nâbulus, passing near the Tombs of the Kings, crosses the valley and rises by a somewhat long but not steep ascent to this high tract, on which lies the village of Sha'fat at the left of the road, about fifty minutes distant from

1) Schubert's Reise, II. p. 521. 2) My intention was to have assumed the other station on the northern summit; but from that

point the view of the N. W. corner of the Dead Sea is intercepted by a ridge. See more on this base in Vol. III. First Append. p. 40.

the Damascus Gate. The brow of the ascent, distant about twenty-five minutes from the same gate, presents the interesting northern prospect of the city, which has been so celebrated by travellers. It is indeed fine;' but a still better point of view is that upon the other road more to the right, leading over to 'Anâta.-This high level tract and brow upon the Nâbulus road, is without much doubt the Scopus of Josephus, where Cestus coming from Gabaon (el-Jîb), and afterwards Titus coming from Gophna, both encamp, at the distance of seven stadia from Jerusalem; and the latter obtains his first view of the splendid city and its magnificent temple.1

Hill of Evil Counsel. South of Zion, beyond the Valley of Hinnom, rises the Hill of Evil Counsel so called; forming the steep southern side or wall of that valley. From the bottom, it rises in most parts very steeply for 20 or 30 feet, with precipitous ledges of rock, in which are many excavated sepulchres. Higher up, the acclivity is more gradual. The highest point is on the West, nearly South of the S. W. part of Zion, and a little to the left of the Bethlehem road. This is nearly or quite as high as Zion itself, but not so steep; and from it the ridge slopes down towards the East to the Valley of Jehoshaphat, in the same manner as Zion, though not so rapidly. South of this ridge, a small Wady has its head, which runs down eastwards, and enters the Valley of Jehoshaphat, as we have seen, 500 yards below the well of Nehemiah, just where the latter valley turns to the East. This Wady is of course parallel to that of Hinnom; but is not half so deep. Still further South, beyond the Wady, is another higher hill or mountain, which continues towards the East without sinking from its high level, and skirts the Valley of Jehoshaphat on the

1) Joseph. B. J. II. 19. 4. V. 2. 3.

South, after the latter has turned eastward on its course towards the Dead Sea.

The summit overagainst Zion affords a pleasing view towards the S. W. down the broad Valley of Rephaim, which was now almost covered with green fields of wheat. Here are also remains of buildings apparently of no antiquity. One in particular seemed once to have been. a small church, or perhaps a Muslim Wely, or other tomb. The general appearance is that of the ruins of an Arab village; and such an one stood here two centuries ago. We suppose this to be the site named by the Arabs Deir el-Kaddîs Môdîstûs, called also Deir Abu Tôr. These ruins the monks dignify with the name of the Villa or Country-house of Caiaphas; in which, according to them, the Jews took counsel to destroy Jesus. Hence the present appellation of the hill; of which name however there is no trace extant, so far as I can find, earlier than the latter part of the fifteenth century. Nor does the name seem to have become very well settled; for travellers vary considerably in respect to the application of it. I have here retained it for want of a better; and because we did not learn the Arabic name.

Having thus gone through with the topographical details of the present city and its environs, let us now cast a glance back upon the earliest historical ac

1) So Cotovicus in A. D. 1598; p. 223. Doubdan in A. D. 1652; p. 139.

2) Matt. xxvi. 3, 4. John xi. 47-53. This legend is apparently first mentioned by Felix Fabri in A. D. 1483; but he calls the hill Gyon (Gihon) contrary to Brocardus and others; Reissbuch des h. Landes, Ed. 2. p. 257. De Salignac in 1522 has Castrum Mali Con

silii; Tom. X. c. 2. Cotovicus mentions both names, as applying only to the village which he saw on the summit, viz. Villa Cai phae, and Vicus Mali Consilii; p. 223. Quaresmius has Mons Mali Consilii; Elucid. II. p.

177.

3) Zuallardo, A. D. 1586, makes this the Mount of Offence; Viag gio di Gierusalemme, p. 136. Roma

1595.

counts, and see how far the notices they contain of the topography of the city as it then was, correspond to its present state; and whether they serve to identify, in any degree, the site of ancient Jerusalem with that of the modern city, upon which its name and history have descended as by inheritance. The Scriptures furnish us, in this respect, with only scattered notices; which, although strongly illustrating occasional facts, cannot be combined into a uniform whole. But in Josephus, the historian of his nation, who brings down his account to the terrible destruction of Jerusalem under Titus, we have a tolerably full description of the city, as it was in his day. Having sketched the progress of the Roman conqueror in his advance to the very gates, and recounted his dispositions for the siege, this writer stops short in his narration, in order to lay before his readers a topographical sketch of the city and temple, as they then existed, before the tremendous overthrow to which they were so soon subjected. This account is to us invaluable; and could not be supplied from any or all other sources.

According to Josephus,' Jerusalem was enclosed by a triple wall, wherever it was not encircled by impassable vallies; for here it had but a single wall. The ancient city lay upon two hills overagainst each other, separated by an intervening valley, at which the houses terminated. Of these hills, that which bore the upper city, was the highest, and was straighter in extent. On account of its fortifications, it was called by King David the Fortress or Citadel; Jose

1) De Bell. Jud. V. c. 4. The description of the temple follows in c. 5.-The works of this writer are too common, both in the original and in translations, to render any thing more than an abstract necessary in the text.

2) This serves to identify it with the hill of Zion; comp. 2 VOL. I.

52

Sam. v. 7-9.-Josephus seems studiously to avoid using the name Zion, which I have not been able to find in his works. The writer of the first Book of Maccabees, on the other hand, applies it to the site of the temple; i. e. he makes it include Moriah. 1 Macc. iv. 37, 60, etc.

phus calls it the Upper Market. The other hill, sustaining the lower city, and called Akra, had the form of the gibbous moon.' Overagainst this was a third hill, naturally lower than Akra, and separated from it by another broad valley. But in the time when the Asmonaeans had rule, they threw earth into this valley, intending to connect the city with the temple; and working upon Akra, they lowered the height of it, so that the temple rose conspicuously above it. The Valley of the Tyropoeon or Cheesemakers, as it was called, which has already been mentioned as separating the hills of the Upper and Lower City, extended quite down to Siloam,―a fountain so named, whose waters were sweet and abundant. From without, the two hills of the city were enclosed by deep vallies; and there was here no approach because of the precipices on every side.

Of the walls of the ancient city, as described by Josephus, it will be sufficient for our present purpose to give here merely an outline; reserving a more exact examination to another place. The single wall, which enclosed that part of the city skirted by precipitous vallies, began at the tower of Hippicus.3 On the West it extended (southwards) to a place called Bethso and the gate of the Essenes; thence it kept along on the South to a point over Siloam; and thence on the East was carried along by Solomon's Pool and

1) In Greek, auqixvotos. See Reland Palaest. p. 852. But this word may also mean nothing more than that Akra was "sloping on both sides," i. e. was a ridge running down into the city.

2) There is some doubt as to the correctness of this account. Josephus elsewhere connects this lowering of the hill Akra with the demolition of a fortress built upon it by Antiochus and the Syrians; Antiq. XIII. 6. 6. Comp. XII. 5. 4.

But the writer of the first Book of Maccabees, an earlier authority, describes this fortress as having been in the city of David, the upper city of Josephus, on Mount Zion; and instead of having been destroyed, Simon Maccabeus strengthened it, and made it his residence; 1 Macc. i. 33. [35.] xiii. 50, seq. xiv. 36, 37. See Crome, art. Jerusa lem, p. 281, seq. in Ersch and Gruber's Encyclopädie.

3) Joseph. B. J. V. 4. 2.