68 L\``1^^`\ll.

v.
1 11fJ.1( J1J^JJl>.
DEsPITE its great nntiquit)'-for it existed already in
the time of Homer-Smyrna retains little of its original
splendour. I saw, for my part, no other ancient ruins,
than three or four gigantic Roman columns, overtopping
the finil modern architecture whieh surrounded them.
These crumbling columns-relics .of a temple of Jupiter
or of Fortune, I am nut sure which-arc very remarkable,
and ought to bave exercised the sagacity of the learned.
I saw them only from the top of a donlcey's back; and am,
therefore, unable to ofer an elaborate opinion in regard to
them.
Ti1e coasts of Asia are much less arid than those of
Europe ; and I remained on decl1 so long as the daylight
alloYed me to distinguish the outlines of the land.
The next day, when the dawn appeared, we had passed
Mytylene (the ancient Lesbos); the birth-place of Sappho.
In front of us, on our right, is seen a fiat expanse of land;
it is the Troncl :
'
" Campos ubi 'roju fuit;"
the ver
y
soil of epic poetry, the theatre of fable, the spot
doubly hallowed by the genius of Greece and the genius
of Rome ;-by Homer and by Virgil. It makes a strange
impression, to fnd one's self thus in the midst of poetry
and of mythology. As Jneas recited his history to Dido,
11 1\A1.~J1Y J^JlC- 69
from the height of his lofty couch, I can say, fom the
height of the deck, nnd ith more of truth,
"Est in conspectu 'l'cncdos i"
for. there, behold the isle whence issued the serpents
who wound in their deadly folds the unhappy Laocoon
and his sons, and furished the subect of a master-piece
to the sculptor ;-Tenedos, over which reigned Phcbus"
Apollo, the God of the silver bow, invoked by Chryses ;
and see, lleyoml, the soil which Protesilaus (the frst victim
of U war, doomed t destroy a nation) dyed with his
blood, ns with ,a propitiatory libation. That undefined
heap of rubbish in the distnce was the Scrnn Gate,
whence Hector issued wearing that scarlet-plumed helmet
which so al armed the little Astyanax; and beside which
were seated in the shade the old men who did homage to
the beauty of Helen. That sombre mountain, clothed in
U mantle of forest which extends to the verge of the
horizon-that is Mount Ida, the scene of the Judgment
of Paris, where the three rival godesses-Juno with
the snowy arms, Pallas-Athene of the sea-blue eyes, and
Aphrodite of the magic girdle-stood revealed in undraped
loveliness before the entranced rustic; and where also
Auchises proved the intoxication of celestial nuptials, and
rendered \r en us the mother of .neas.
The Grecian feets were ranged along this coast, upon
which rested the black prows of the war-galleys, drawn
half\vay up upon the sands. The exactitude of Homer's
local descriptions, is apparent in every detail of the 800DC.
1 strategist might easily trace , with the " Iliad'' in his
hand, every incident of that C''entful siege.
'Vhile thus recalling my classic reminiscences, I gaze
upon the Troad: Stalimene-tlle ancient Lemnos, whieh
received in his fall Vulcan, precipitated from heaven-
10 CONSTANTINOPLE.
rises from the sea, and lifts behind us its yellow pro
montories.. I begin to wish that I were sUpplied, like
Janus, ith two faces. Two eyes/ are really a very scant
supply; and man is certainly much inferior in that respect
to a spider,-who, according to some nuturalists, has no
less than eight thousand of those organs. I turn my head
for a moment, to throw a glance vpon that vol.:anic island,
where were forged the arms-ofproof of the heroes
favoured by the gods, and also those iro: ripods, Iiving
sIavea cI metI, `hich served the Olympians in their
celestial abodes; but the captain pulls me \ the sleeve,
to show me, upon the Trojan shore, a mound whose conical
form betrays the haucliwork of man, and wc ia said to
cover the remains of Antilochvs, :he sou of Nc!:tor and
Eurydice ; the frst Greek who slew a 'rojan at the cpening
of the siege, and 'vho himself perished by the hand of
Hector, VD10 parrying a blow which lIemnon aimed at
his father.1 Does Antilochus truly repose beneath thi:'
tumulus? Tradition afrms it; and what inducement has
tradi tion to tell a flsehood?
As we advance we discover tvm other tumuli, not fur
fom U little village called Y cni-Scheyr, distinguished by
a row of new windmills, similar to those of Syra. The
nearest, as you approach from Smyrna, and the nearest also
to the sea, is the tomb of Patroclus ;-the ccar fricnd,
the brother-in-arms ancl in afection, the inseparable
companion, of Achilles. There was erected that gigantic
funeral pyre, sprinkled with the blood of innvmera\lc
Yictims, upcn which Achilles, intoxicated with grief, cast
four priceless steeds, two dogs of noble breed, and twelve
Troan youths-all sacrifced by his own hand to te mavea
cf bia hend, wl1ile around the pyre tIe mourning anny
celebrated funeral games, which continued for many days.
Accoring to Homor, Antilochus was killed by Mcmnon.
J1 .J 11L1.. 71
The second mound, frther inland, is the tomb of
Achilles himself ; or, at least, such is the name it bears.
According to the Homeric legend, the ashes of Achilles /_
were mingled with those of Patroclus in a golden urn;
and thus the two friends, inseparable in life, were even more
closely united in death. The gods themselves mourned
tIe decease of the hero : Thetis issued fom the sea with
a choir of mourning nereids; the nine muses wept and
chaunted mournful songs ruound the funeral couch ; anc
tIe bravest of the warriors joined 1n sangunary games in
honour of the dead.
This mound, therefore, shuld Ie the tom
b
of some other
chief--Grccian or Trojan; very probably of Hector. In lIe
time cf Alexander, the plUce of the tomb of the herc of
tIe ". Iliad " was stilllmown; for the conqueror of Asia
pavsed there, saying that Achilles was indeed fortunate in
having such a friyml as PUtroclus, and aveh a chronicler as
'Homer. Alexander had but Ephestion and QuintusCurtius;
and yet his exploits surpassed those of the son of Peleus;
and this time history was engrafted vpcn mythology.
While I talk about Homeric geography, and the heroes
of the ''Iliad" (a pedantry pardonable and innocent, in
view of Troy) , tho Leonis continues her voyage, retarded
little by the north wind, which is blmving stongly from
tIe IIacl 8ea; and we draw near the Strait of tbe
DardUnelles, defended by two strong fortresses-the one
upon the European, the other on the Asiatic coast. Their
cross-fre bars the enlrance of the strait, and renders
access, 1J not impossible, at least exceedingly difcult, to
a hcstile feet. But to nish with the Troad, let us observe,
that beyond Yeni-Scheyr, a stream cI water empties itself
into the_Bosphorus, which is said to Ie the ancient Simois,
-br by some the Granicvs.
The Hellespont, or Sea of Helle, is very narrow, and
12 LL^cA^`l11.
resembles mther a river u\ I8 UOlID IU u veritable sea.
Its breadth does not exceed that of the Thames at Graves
end. As the wind was favourable for cominn out inIo
C
the Jgean Sea1 we met u crowd of vessels, which np
proached us with all sail set, and studding-sails run out,
and, from a distance, resembled the outline of women
carrying a pail U each hand, and dancing along towards
us. The European shore, which we coast somewhut
clohel y, consists of rugged hills, spotted with some patches
of vegetation, bat of aU aspect generally arid and mo1o
tnous. The Asiatic coast wears a much more cl1eerful
look, and presents an appearance of northern verdure,
which according to preconceived ideas, would be more
suitable to Enrope. At one moment, we were so near the
shore, as to discern fve Jurkish cavaliers, riding along a
pathway, which nm round the base of the rising shore, nnd
looked like a narrow strip of yellow riband. These horse
men erved us as scale, to measure the elevation of the
shore, which proved inueh greater than we had supposed.
It was near this spot that Xerxes caused the bridge to
be constructed which he designed for the passage of his
army, ant subsequently caused the sea to be fogged, for its
disrespectful behaviour, in breaking the bridge constructed
by so magnifcent a monarch. Judged upon the spot, and
under the excitement of it hihtoric nssociations, this
act, cited as the height of nDD0U van\ty and flly, hL\1>
rather rational than otherwise.
One thinks also of Sestos aud Abydos, made memorable
by the legencl of Hero Und Lean
_
der; but fnds the Helle
spont l1ere contrnctcd to a breadth of only 875 fet. Lord
Byron, as is well known, renewed the exploit of Leander,
wiIhout being lover. In fact, De VUh hiDself the
" Hero" of his wn exploit; and, instead of fndiDg a
lovely maiden awaiting D\D on his emerging from the
'riE TROAD.-THE DARDANELLES. 73
wave, he found only a fever. He took 1 hour nnd ten
DiUutes t accompliGh the feat, and seemed more proud
of it, thnn of the authorship of" Childe Harold," or "The
Corsair "-nn UH` j1'0J1'( of the swimmer, quite con
00\VuDt by those `ho h:we ever prided themselns upou
their prowess in that art.
\Ve paused for a morneDt, but without mabnc land
ing, before town over which foated the standms of tho
consulates of man
y
nn.tions, and which was en1i\encc by
the Gails of severl W:D0m\JS revolvin
g
furiousl
y
in the
fresh breeze. Outside of the town, the earth Y0S mottled
with 'vhite and green tents, Lenenth which soldiers were
0n0amped. I do not tell you the precise Dm:C of this
plnce, because ench perhon hom I asked gave it H dif
frent designation-an occurrence by no U\U1G IUI in H
country 'vhere, to the primitve LJ0CK nuDC, is superadded
a Latin appellation, overlaid by a Turkish one, upon ''"hich
is engrafted yet uUother, of either French or Engl[sh, hy
way of renderiDg the matter quite clear. I believe, how
C''er, that this name ,.,.us Chanak-Knlcssi, '"hich we
]uropCans render freely by " Dardanelles "-it being, in
fact, the town which hns given a name to the strait.
The wind, the curret, nml the smnH extent of the
channel, render the waters somewhat. rough; and the
short swell tosd about, most unceremoniously, a boat
with several rowers, whose pccupnnts ha\ led the Leonidas,
0nd boarded her, U order to proceed by her to their dcs
tinntion. This boat curried Pasha, bound for Gallir)olis
'
'
at the mouth of the Se: of Marmora. He VUh big man,
with thiok neck and shoulders,. and a large, heavy face,
but with something fne beneath its heaYiness. Jt W08
dressed in the horrible costume of the Nizam-the red
'' fez,'' or cap, and a blue fock-coat, buttoned straight to
the tbront. A numerous snite surrounded D1DOU001S
F
CO!STANTINOPLE.
secretaries, pipe-bearers, and other domestic ofcers, with-
.
out cointing CUUGo and domestics. All these people
unfolded carpets) or unrolled mattresses, and seated them
selves upon tber, with the exception of Bome few, better
bred, who sat down upon the benches, and consoled
themselves for taking that unnaturUl position, by holding
one of their feet in one of their hands, as a comfort and an
occupntion.
Their luggage was curious. There lvcre narghiles,
enclosed in red morocco cases; packets of pipe-stems, of
cherry or jasmin ; baskets, covered with richly-gilded
leather, to do duty us portmanteaus
;
rolls of Persian
carpet, and piles of cushions and footstools. There were,
among this band, some singularly striking "types."
Among others, a f1t youth, very plump, very rosy, very
fair, 'Yho had the 1ir of !n enormous English baby, dressed
up as a Turk
;
and a thin Greek, pointed, angular, with a
muzzle lilw a fox, Luried in a long pelisse of cloth, bor
dered with fur, similar to those in which the actors play
Bajazet. These two enclosed the fat Pasha, lihe the two
horns of n parenthesis, and appeared to Yie with each
other in entertining their master. 'he costumes of the
infriors of the party were iu keeping with their character;
-broad belts, bristling with arms; embroidered vests;
braided jackets, with superbly-decorated hanging sleeves;
and the physiognomy of Albanian or Arnaout bandits.
Thus clad, these vassals had the air of Eastern princes,
and their masters that of valets de place out of work.
As the fast of Ramadan was in progress, neither
mnster nor slave touc
h
ed the chibouque ; but were obliged
to pass the time in sleeping, or in running the beads of
their chaplets through their fngers.
Of the Sen of :armora, properly so called, I can give
no precise detail, because it was night when we traversed
TITE TROAD.-TIE DARDANELLES. 75
its waters, and I was asleep in the recesses of my c.bin,
ftigued by a previous promenade of fourteen hours on
deck. Above Gallipolis, the sea broadens considerably, to
contact itelf ngain at Constantinople. The Pasha and
his suite were landed at Gall ipolis ; the minaret of which
were indistinctly visible, amid the flling shadows of the
evening.
\hen day appeared, on the Asiatic coast, the Olympus
of Bithyni n, crowned with eternal snows, Teared its lofy
crest amid the rosy clouds of morning, glisteni11g with
variegated shades of purple and silver. The coast of
Europe, infnitely less bold, was also visible, dotted with
ranges of white mansions and masses of verdure, above
which rose tal chimneys of brick-obelisks of industry
the red colour of which, at a distance
,
rendered them
strikingly like the red granite obelisks of Egypt. If I
were not afraid of being accused of a desire to indite a
paradox, I would say, that all this region seemed strikingly
like the Thames, between the Isle of Dogs and Greenwich.
The sky, very milky, opal-like, almost white
,
and sufused
with a transprent mist,. enhanced the illusion, until it
seemed as i f I were approaching London, in the Boulogne
packet; ancl I almost needed, to undeceive myself, a glance
at the red fag, bearing a silver crescent, which we had
hoisted on entcting the Dardanelles.
In the dist::mco, now nppcnrs the little archipelago of
the Isles of Princes-the scene of suburban water-parties
from Constantinople,. on their Sabbath (Friday). A few
minutes more, and Stamboul itself appea!S i all its
splendour.
Already, on the left,. through the silvery Yeil of mist,
the peaks of many mnaret are visible-the Ctle of the
Seven Towers (where formerly ambnssadorswere imprisoned
on the outbreak of wa with the country which they
F 2
70 L^bJc^J^1'1L.
represented) displtlys its mnssi\e turrets and embattled
'alls ; its base buing washed by the sea, while its rear
abuts u[on the hill Vhich rises abruptly behind. It was
here that the anCient 1D[u:I cOnn0:Cc0 whicl1 form0rly
encircled the town as f1r as Eyonb. The Turks call the
castle Yedi-Kulc, and the Greeks n.amcd it IIc
p
tnpurgon.
Its construction dates back to the Byzantine Emperors.
It wns commence0 by Zcno, rmd fnisl1cd by Commenus.
Seen fom. the sea, it seems in a ruinous co11tlition, and
1enty to crurble to uCu6 ncvertltdess, it produCes a
striking efect, with its heavy outlines, its bulky towers, its
massive walls, and its mingled aspect of bastile and fortress.
The Leonids, relaxing her specd, in order not to arrive
too early, grazes the angle of the S0raglio. It presents
range of long, whitewashed ''mlls, relicyecl 0
-
gains1 8c:00D8
of cypress and tamarind trees
;
apartments with trellised
'vindows, 0U0 kiOsks with overhanging rOofs with J [0-
tence to symmetry. There is nothing to recall tho mag
nificenct with which render of" 'lho Arn.hian Nights" un
cOnsciOusly associates the word '' srU glio ;" and it must be
confesse0, tmt these wooden boxes, with their grated
windows, enclosing tho beauties of Georgia, Circassia, and
Greece (houris of that paradise of MOhammed of which
the Padiscbah is the deity), curiOusly resemble large cages
:lled with comcstie fowls.
\V C Europeans, arc in the habit of confounding
Moorish and Turki sh architecture, whCh hnxe, in truth
nothing in common ; and we make, involuntarily, an
Alhambra of every seraglio-whieh is fr epough fiom the
- reality. But these remarks do not prevent the Seraglio
fror ofering a very pleasing aspect, with its brilliant
whit0 walls and its masses of dark verdure, lying betw0en
the clenr sky nnd the blue 'vater, whose rapid curent
wash0s its mysterious boundaries.
J11 JV\A111 !!A^1.]S. 77
As we [us8 the!e is po1nted OuI to DS an inclined
plane, poj ecti ng from un o[0nj ng in the ;vall, and
overhanging the sea; forming, in fi1ct, H Rort of " shoot,"
such as we see in mine8 and 8ome kinds of fnctorics.
It is by that opening 1 i8 said, that those Odal1squ08
WuO u1C guilty of infcelity, or who .hn:e 0:s[00800
the Sultnn, n:0 [:0c1QI010U into the deep uLU rapi d waters
of the Bos
p
horus, enclosed in a sack together with n cu!
and H serpent
;
these last being considered emblems of
domestic infdelity and treachery.
At present, howe ve:, VC u10 tolU thnt with the a(h-ance
Oenlightenment, these ex0cutions hnvc b0en discontinued.
And U08100S this, the tradition nmy U0utterly fnlse J1UJ
ticully D0!Uu1Ou6ns it is. If iI be not true, and I do not
guarantee it, it has at le0sIa locn1 colour1ng Opossibility;
and there 1S little coubt, that females have been sometimes
suUm0rged in the Bos[horus imprisoned in 80cK8 \\DC\D01
Uy this p0rti cula: channel or otherwise.
We donble the Seraglio-Point; the Lconas halts n1
the entrance of the Golden Horn. A manell ous panorama
displays itself before our eyes, like tho grand theatrical
scene of some oriental spect.'cle.
The Gol0en JO:n 8 a bay, of ;vhich \he Seraglio
Point, and the port of Top-Hane, form the two capes, and
which penetrats into the city, lying in nn amphitheatre
upon it \Vu sl1mes, as far as the " Sweet \aters," and
the mouth of the Barbys0s, a little triUutary stream. Its
name of Golden Horn is derived, no 0oubt, fiom its forming
a literal " cornucopia ' ' fr the city, u!0 cont:iUut1ng to
it wealth, by the facilities which it 0for0s to \D0 shipping,
to commerce, nnd to nava cOD81:DclOD8.
\: aiting DnIil

W0 can !uD0 01 us ll(tke a [0n and ink

sketch, of the picture' ' that we can paint by-and-by.
To the right, beyond the sea, rises an immense building,
78 CONSTANTINOPLE.
regularly pierced by successive ranges of windows, and
fanked at each angle by a sort of turret surmounted by
a fag-staf It is a barrack ; the largest building, but by
no means the most characteristic, in Scutari-the Turkish
name of that Asiatic suburb of Constantinople, which dis
plays itself on returning from the borders of the Black
Sea, and lies upon the site of the ancient Chrysopolis, of
which there now remains no vestige.
A little more remote, in the midst of tle waters, rises,
upon an islet of rocks, a lighthouse of da:ling whiteness,
which is called Leander's Tower, or otherwise the Maiden's
Tower; although the place has nothing in harmony with
the legend of tl1e two classic lovers. This to\er, elegant
enough in form, and which in this clear air looks like
alabaster, forms a superb contrast to the deep blue of the
surrounding waters.
At the entrance ofthe Golden Horn, Top-Hane appears;
with its l:mding-pluce, its cnnnon-foundery, and its mosque,
with the aerial dome nnd slender minarets, built by the
Sultan Mahmoud. The palace of the Russian embassy
lifts its proudly-elevated
.
front above the red-tiled roofs
, and the tufs of trees, and seems to commnnd attention
us the feature of the town ; yet, us the residences of the
other ambassadors are far less assuming, there would seem
to be no necessity fr this self-asserton on the part of
Russia.
The tower of Galata-the quater occupied by the
Frankish commerce-rises in the midst of the houses,
covered with a Lracn cupola, and towers above the
ancient Genoese walls, which crumble nt its base.
Pera, the peculiar residence of the Europeans, crowns
the summit of the hill, with its ranges of cypress trees,
and its mansions of stone; forming a striking contrast to
the wooden barracks of the Turks.
'IIE THOAD.-THE DARDANEL!.ES. 79
Seraglio-Point forms the other cape, and upon this
shore lies the city of Constntinople proper-the veritble
Stumboul-and neYer did outline more magnifcent display
it undulations aml indenttions, bebveen sea and sky. The
lund inclines to the very verge of the water, and the
buildings present themselves in a perfect and superb
amphitheatre. The mosques, rising above this ocean of
verdure, and this wilderness of houses of all coloms, dis
play their blue domes, while their white minarets, sur
rounded by balconies, and terminatd by U slender spire,
shoot upward, sharp and bright, in the clear sky of the
morning; giving to the twn, an oriental and fairy plly
siognomy, heightened hy the soft and silvery vapour which
hangs about the earth and the buildings. Amidst all
these minaret, behind the mosque of Bajnzet, rises to
a prodigious height the tower of the Sernskier, whence is
displayed the signal, which indicates the outbreak and the
locality of accidental fn. s .
.
Three bridges of bouts connect the two shores of the
Golden Horn, and permit incessant communication between
the Turkish town and it variously-populatd suburbs.
The principal street of Galata abuts upon the frst of these
bridges. vVe will not, however, anticipate these details,
which will be given hereafter in their proper places, but
limit oursel ve9 to the general aspect.
There are no quays in Constantinople, ancl the town
everywhere plunges it feet into the water. The ships of
all nations Upproach the houses, without being kept at a
respectful distance by piers of gruni te.
Near the bridge which occupies the centre of the
Golden Horn, are Etationed the steamers of England,
France, Austria, and Turkey ; omnibuses of the sea,
watermen of the Bosphorus, that Thames of Constanti
nople, where is concentratd all the activity and all the
80
L\^1^\1.
lif of the town. Myriads of boats and caiques, glide liJe
fsh amid the azure waters of the gulf, and direct their
cottrse townrd the Leonids, moored at a short distance
from tl1e Cu:tom-bouse, which is situated between Galata
and Top-Hane. In all the cour,tries of the world the
custom-houses have columns, and an architecture i the
style of the- Orleon. That of Constantinople is not false
to its speies, hut lucki ly the ncighbouriug brracks are
so dilU pidated, so out of the perpendicular, tlnd shouldering
each other about with U nonchalnce so truly oriental,
that the sen;re clssicality of the custom-house is some
what mneliorated.
As usu.al, the deck of the Leonis was covered in an
instant with a polyglot crmvd. It was medley of Turkish,
Greek, Italian, Armenian, French, and English. I was
sadly pe11)lexed amidst this babel, although before startino
I had studied Turldsh " under the best masters;" whe
there appeared in a caique, like a guardi an angel, the
person io whom I was consigned and recommended, and
who knew in his own proper person an the languages that
ever were spoken, and seemingly sore few besides. He
sent to the devil (each in his own tongue), all the rasals
who were devouring me, took me into his boat, and con
ducted me to the custom-house, where the ofcials con
tented themselves with a mere glnce at my scantily
stocked portmanteau, which U !mnmal, or porter, im
mediately afterwarcl tossed, like U feather, across his
herculean shoulders.
The hammal is of a species pecul inr to Constantinople;
sort of camel with two legs nnc no hump. lie lives on
cucumbers and water, and carrie& the most enormous
weights up the most perpenciculm: streets, under sun
literally melting.
These men carry upon -their shoulders U stufclleathern
1 1\A.~`11 1A11A`11J\H. fH
cushion, on which they place their burdens; stooping
greatly benPnth the weight; und bearing the strain upon
tho neck, like oxen. Their- <rcss consists of loose linen
trousers, a course yellow jacket, and a fez, about which is
wound a handkerchief. Their chest and bodies are generally
well developed; but, singular as it may appear, their legs are
often very sl ender. It is amazi ng to see legs, which look
lke two futes in russet leather cases, sustain weights
beneath which Hercules would bend.
In following the bummal, who lecl the way toward 3
lodging which had been secured for me near tho principal
street of Peru, I found myself bewildered in U labyrinth of
streets and lanes, narrow, crooked, mean, anc infmously
paved; full of boles and puddles ; thronged with mang
y
curs, and asses loaded with bricks and mortar. The lovely
1nirage which had enwrappec the city as seen from the
sen, rapidly disappeared. Tho purndise was changed into
a cloa.cc; the poetry turned into prose ; and I could not
but ask myself, sadly, how these ugly and ruinous houses
could derive, from distance and perspective, aspects so
seducing-u colouring so soft and luminous.
I hUve come from Paris in twelve days and a half,
trnvelliug 'vith the mails; for I make it a })rinciple in my
journeys,- to travel as rapidly as possible to the most
distant point, irt order to return nt my
ease; anc I had
promised myself to consecrate this day to a repose which
I had fairly earned ; but curiosity was too strong for me,
:n1d after paying the homage of a few yawns to my fatigue,
I commenced my peregrinations, and plunged at hazard
into the midst of the unknown town, without taking the
precaution to provide myself with a compass ; such havg
been the
'
custom of a friend of mine, characterised by
.
singular prudence and sa
g
acity.
82
CONSTANTINOPLE.
VI
1 GOLDEN HORN.
Tn. lodging provided for me, occupied aw frst-foor of a
house situated at the extremity of a street in the }'rank ish
quarter; the only one which Euro
peans inhabit. This
street led from the chief street of Per to the Field of the
Dead ;1 but I cannot designate it more clearly, for the
simple reason, that in Constantinople the streets l1ave no
names afxed at the corners-neither Turkish, nor French
-nor arc the houses numbered, which fhct complicates
the difculty.
In traversing this nameless maze, each person follows
his own judgment, for vmnt of better guidance; and fnds
his way and retraces it, by means of his own observation of
local peculiarities. The "due'' of Ariadne or of Queen
Eleanor, would here be of invaluable utility; but the
attempt to drop crum_ bs of bread, and retrace your steps by
their means, would be futile indeed, for the dogs would
have devoured your land marks, long before you had cYen
\eacl1ed your frst destination.
Speaking of dogs, my principal guide-post or beacon,
by which to fnd my apartments during the earlier days of
my sojourn, b great hole sunken in the middle of the
' The character of l)era is so mnch more French than anythin
g
else, that this disused cemetery is best known to uropcuns by its
French designation of "Petit-champ des Morts;" of which ''Tho
Little Field of tho Dond," although certainly a literal ttnnslation and
te only possible one, conveys but a clumsy oqui\'alcnt.-TH.Ns:
THE GOLDEN !D. 83
highway, in which a mang female cog, suckled a litter of
some half doZen puppies, with the most entire composure
and security, and with but little respect for the legs of
those pedestians who ap
p
roached too closely the yerge of
her -extempore kennel.
Some streets, however, have traditional names, derived
from their proxiHity to some mosque or khan ; and that
in which my abode was si tuated, as I by-and-by ascer
tained, was called "Dervish-Sohak; " but the name being
nowhere 'ritten up, senes but small purpose of guidance.
My house was of stone; a fact by no means unconsola
tory, in a tmn so combustible as Constantinople ;-and,
for greater security, was furnished with an iron door and
iron-plated shutters, to repel the fames and sparks in case
of fre in the neighbourhood. My room was distinguished
by whitewashed walls, and a painted 'vooden foor; and
had, for furniture, a long divan, U table, and a Venetian
mirror in a fme of black and gold. It communicated
with a bed-room, supplied with an iron bedstead and a
chest of chawers. There was about all this, nothing very
oriental, ns you may perceive ; nevertheless, my hostess
was Smy1niote, and her niece, although dressed in a
European morning wrapper, had a face of oriental paleness,
illumined by a pair of dark eyes, purely Asiatic in their
depth a.cl languor of expression. A pretty Grecian girl
for a servant, with a handkerchief twisted into tuJbn
by way of head-dress, assisted by a stupid boy, formed
the domestic establishment, and maintained it local
colouring. The niece knew some French,-the aunt
l ittle Italian; and by means of these two, and my sus
picions of Turkish, we contrived to misunderstand each
other very" satisfactorily. lut, Constantinople is evidently
the original Babel, and the confusion of tongues has never
ceaed siuce it outbrek. The knowledge of at least four
81 L\`tJA^|^\1l1.
languages, is indispensable for the commonest daily inter
course; those four being Greek, Turkish, Italian, nnd
French; some or all of which arc spoken at Pera by the
very boys in the streets. At _Constantinople the celebrated
linguists Mezzofanti or 1pwring, would be no such won
derful persons after all; and as for us Frenchmen, who
know only our own language, we stand confounded amidst
this prodigious linguistic ihcility; nnd fnd ourselves little
better situated than if tile gift of !pccch Jd been denied
us altogether.
As 1 have already said, it is my habit, in stmnge
to\'Tls, to plunge boldly into the unknown streets, like a
nautical explorer; trusting to the points of the compass
and dead-reckoning. Nothing is more amusing, than the
discoveries" that one makes in this manner; and it is a
great satisfction to give mosque or a fountain its true
name, by dint of your own researches and analogies, with
out the aid of a stupid dtagoman; who would pronounce
both name and history, with the tone and manner of a
showman exhibiting a nest of boa-constrictors, or some
'' amphibious" nondescript, "which cannot live in the
water and dies on the land."
Moreover, in this errant-travelling, you see things
which guides never would sho` you; which, in fact,
means all that is really worth seeing, in the countries
which you visit.
\Vith ''fez" for a hat, dressed in a closely-buttoned
frock-coat, my face embrowned by the sea air, and a beard
of six months' growth, I had suficiently the air of U
modernised and ''reformed'' Turk, to attract no attention
in the streets; and I, therefore, boldly pursued my course
toward ''The Little Field of the Dead;" taking the pre
caution to observe very closely, at starting, both my l10use
and the road whirh I took, so that I might not lose myself.
J11 \\11J1. \1^.
85
"The Little I<'ield of the Dead," which, fr brevity,
and to avoid the more lugubrious addition, is usually
cnlled "The Little Field," occupies the slope of a hill
which rises from the shore of the Golden Hor, to the
crest of Peru, and is distinguished by a t{Irace bordered
by lofty houses and cafes. It is an ancient Turkish ceme
tery, but disused for some years: perhaps, because there
H> U luck of room; pedutps, because the dead JIussul
mr1s found themselves too near the living Giaours.
A blazing sun glares upon this decliYity, bristling \Yith
durk-le:cd and gray-tnmked C)"presses, beneath wl:ich
rise a crowd of tombstones of marble, the summit of each
of which is decorated with a carved and coloured turban.
These stones lean in all directions,-right, left, bnclnva1d,
or forward, according to the sinking of the earth beneath
and around them; and bear a vague resemblance (from
their turbaned heads) to_hUhnn frms, or to those children's
toys, which represent blackomith striking upon anvil,
with wooden-hamme11 stuck in his stomach.
In many places the stones, curved >Yith verses of tl_ 1e
Koran, have yielded under their own weight; and being
carelessly placUd in U sandy soil, are overturned or broken.
Some of them are decapitated, and their tnrbnns lie at
their feet like severed heads. It is said that these trun
cated tombs are those of the J anissaries, pursued even
beyond the graYe by the vengeance of the Sultan Mah-
moud.
Nothing like symmetry or arrangement is discerible
in this scattered cemetery; which extends, at one point, its
tombs arul its cypresses, l.etwccn the houses of Pcra, to
the "Tekke," or monastery, of the Dancing Denishes.
Here aud there, rise sli1htly elevated plot of ground,
often enclohUd by low walls, or balustrades, forming toe
special burinl-groum of some fmily of \Yenlth or power.
86 LbJI^ILt
These enclosures contain, habitually, a pi llar surmounted
by a superb turban, encircled by three or four l eaves of
marble (rounded at the top like the handle of a spoon),
and a dozen of smaller pillars. This is the burial-place
of some Pasha, with his wives, and those of his children
who died young ; forming a sort of funeral harem, to keep
him company in the other world.
At diferent poi nts, workmen are making door-fames,
cr steps for stir-cases ; idlers are sleeping, or smoking
their pipes, seated upon the tombs ; veiled fmales puss,
hailing their yellow boots with careless scrt cf step ;
children are playing at hide-and-seek among the graves,
and shoating merrily at their play ; and the cake. mel'
chants set up their stalls, and ofr you their light circular
cakes, encrusted with almonds.
Aong the fallen stones foYls HT peeki ng, and ecws
seeL some meagre shoots of heTbage ; while for lack of
grass they chew scraps of shoes, and fragments cf old
hats, which are scattereJ around. The dogs have installed
themselves in the excavations caused by the decay of the
cofns, or more ofen of tho pl anks which support the
earth above the bodi es ; and have made themselves friglt
fl hiding-places of these asyl ums of the deud,-enlnrged
by their voracity.
In the most fiequented quarters, the tombs are worn
beneath the feet of the passengers, and are gradually
obliterated beneath the dust and other accumulati ons.
The marble pillars are seattcred in fragments
.
upon the
soil, and are mpidly being buried, like the mouldering
remains which they once dcsignated,-shrouded by those
InvisiIIe grave- di ggcrs who make ever
ything neglected
and deserted to disappear ; -be it tomb, temple, or town.
Here, it i s not Soli tude extending itself above Forgetful
ness, but Life resuming the pl ace whi ch it hud temporarily
J!L LlLr^ J1`- S7
conceded to Death. Some masses of cypress, peculiarly
compact, have still saved eertain eorners of the cemetery
from prOanation, and preserved its hue of melancholy.
The turtle- do,es nestle in their dark folinge, and fights
of smaller bi rds, hovering above their black cones, trace
large circles upon the blue of the sl{y.
Scue small hcuses
o
f wood-built of planks, lath, and
lattice-work, painted of a red whi ch has been rendered
pink by the sun and the rain~are grcaped among the
trees; looking worn out and dissipated, out of perpendicular,
and in that state of dilapidation, most favourable to the
artist.
Bcf(rC descending tle hill leading to the Golden Horn,
I paused moment to contemplate th superb prospect
which expanded itself beneath my view. The frst picture,
wns formed by th cemetery' and its slopes, covered with
cypresses and tombs ;-the second, by the brown-tiled
roof', and the red houses of the quarter of Kassim Pasha ;
the third, by the blue waters of the gulf, 'vhich extends
fi om Serai-Bournou to the '' Sweet \Vaters of Europe ; "
and the fourth, by the li ne of undulating hills, upon the
slope of which Constantin ople l ies outspread as i UO
amphitheatre. The blue domes of the bazaars, the white
minarets of the mosques, the arches of the ancient
aqueduct, the tufts of cypress and of plane tTees, the
angles of the roof, vnrying the mngnifi cent line of horizon,
extending from the Seven Towers to the heights of Eyoub :
-all this, lay before me in a pure nncl silvery light, and
with a force of tone and clearness of outline beyond
description.
After a few mi nutes of pensive admiration, I resume
my progress ; ncw fcIcwing U1 obscure path, new striding
cver the tombs, until I come to a labyrinth of narrow
streets, lined with black-looking houses, inhabited by
88 LLNoJAJ1PL1lL.
charcoal deal ers, blacksmiths, and other ferrugi nous labour
ers. I said " houses," but the word is far too grand, and
I recal i t. Say hut, hovel s, dog-kennel s ; al l that yon
can imagi ne the most smoky, di rty, and mi serable.
\Vretchcd little donkeys , with droopi ng ears and bare
bones, runge about loaded wi th charcoal or ol d iron.
Aged beggars, seated upon their crossed and fol ded legs
extended piteous} y towards me, from amid their rngs,
hands l ike those of unfo: dcd mum1 u ics ;
,
w hi l e their owl ' s
eyes, and thei r beaks l ike tbose of birds of prey, repell ed,
rather than excited compassion. Others, wi t h cmTed
backs, and heads l eaning on their breasts, hobll cd along,
wi th their hands resting upon large canes-looki ng, for n1
the world, like the
_
pictures of Mother Goose i u the nursery
tale.
It is only in the East, that it is possibl e to realise the
fantastic extreme of ugliness, to whi ch old women can
attai n, who mak no attempt to com:eal the rvages of
ti me. Here, t oo, the vei l augments the horro1 ; for what
one sees is frightful , but what that leads LIU t o imagi ne,
is unutt erabl e ! It is a sad pity that the Turks hnYc no
'' \Vitches Sabbath, " to celebrate which, they could scncl
these horrible creatures, each upon her broom !
Some few hammal i, bendi ng beneath i ucrediblc weights
-and, li ke Dante in the i nferal regions, miing one foot,
only when the other i s frmly plnted-mount and descend
the streets ; a rw horses pass noi sily al ong, striking in
numerable sparks, at each step, fr om the wretched nud
uneven paYement, of thi s mthcr labori on: than fashionable
qnnrter.
At length, I reacheu tlw Golden J lom, where I came
out upon the whi te buil di ngs of the urst ual , erected ahoYe
extensive Yaults, aud crowned by a t ower nnd bel fry.
Being built however, in accordance wi t h ciYil i scd tns tcs,
TlE GOLDEN HORN.
it has no attraction for Europeans, although the Turks are
very proud of i t. I therefore give little time to its con
templation, and devote my observation ruther to the
harbour, crowded with ships of all nations, and rippled by
caiques gliding about i n every direction ; and above all,
to the wonderful panorama of Constantinople itsel f, dis
played upon the opposite shore.
This view is so strangely beautifl, that it is hard to
credi t its 1eality ; or to believe that it is anything but one of
those theatrical scenes, prepared to illustrate some eastern
fairy tale, and bathed, by the fancy of the painter, and
the brilliancy of the gas-lights, in a radiance p1ely
celestial. The palace of Serai-Bournou, with its Chinese
roofs, its white and crenelated walls, its latticed kiosks,
its gardens of cypress, pine, and plane trees ; the mosque
of Sultan-Achmet, with its circular dome standing amidst
the six minaets, which rise around it lw masts of ivory;
the great mosque of Saint Sophia ; the mosque of Banzet ;
Yeni-Dami ; the Seraskier's Tower, an immense column,
upon whose summit is ahvays stationed watchman to
give the alarm in case of fre, nud indicntc it locality ;
the Suleimanieh, with its Arab elegance, and its dome ] ike
a helmet of steel ;. nll these, displayed upon a ground of
delicious blue, form a picture which seems rather like
a brilliant visior, than a prosaic scene of actunl life and
reality.
The transpaent waters of the Golden Horn, refect
these splendoms in their trembling mirror, nnd increase
the magical efect of the picture ; hi1e the shijJS at
anch01 and the sailing-boat skimming the wave, with
'
.
d
their sails outspread like the wings of btr , serve as
vaied and life-le accessorie.s, in giving tone and force,
to the tableau, in which, as i the atmosphere of dream
land, yo behold the city ofConsttine and of Mahomet II.
U
90 LLbbA^Li).
I know, from the experience of those who have visited
Constantinople before me, that these wonders have need
(l i ke the theatical scenes which they resemble) of di s
tance and perspective ; and that, on a nea1 approach, the
charm vanishes ; the palaces prove to be only dilapidated
barracks ; the minarets nothing but lt\rge ,vhitewashed
pillars ; and the streets , steep and narrow, are utterly
without chantcter. But what matter, i f this i ncongruous
assemblnge of houses, of mosques, nn(\ of trees, when
pai nted Ly that peerless arti st, the sun, produces wonder
ful picture, lying thus between sea and sky ? The scene,
although the result of an illusion, i s not the less truly and
wonderfully beautiful.
I remained for a time on the shore, to watch the
fi ght of the sea-gulls, and to sec the cai qucs darti ng l ike
gold- fsh through the water, bearing " types " of all
nations-represented by one or more S})CCimens-forming
perpetual carnival , whjch seems never to pu1l upon the
vi ew. I had a strong desi re to risk n1ysclf upon the
bridge of boats whi ch con1ects the two shores, and to go
" Ei tin polin," as the Greeks say-a phrase from which
the Turks, by force of constant hearing and repenting,
have formed " Is- tm-boul "-the moder name of the
ancient Byzanti um; although some " learned The bans "
pretend that we ought to say '' Isl um-bol /' meani ng
Islam-ville " ; but the passage i s, for a stranger, rather
too bold a feat to attempt at an adncecl hour of the day,
and with the chance of bei ng overtalwn by darkness before
accomplishing it. I resume my ron.d, therefore, nnd n:
mount the accl i vi ty of . the cemetery, to regai Peru. I n
so doi ng, I deviated to the right, whi ch brought me
beneath the ancient Genoese walls, at the foot of which is
a dried-up moat, flled with dogs asleep, and children at
play ; and thence, to the Tower of Galata-a l ofty column,
'l'HE GOLDEN HORN. 91
on the summit of which, as n that of the Seraskier' s
Tower, is stationed, perpetually, a watchman, to give the
aarm of fre.

This tower is U veritable Gothi c donjon, crowned by

bnttlemented and projecting gallery, and surmounted by
pointed roof of brass, oxydised by time, and which, in place
of the crescent, sust'lins the swallow-tail ed weather-vane
of the ol d fudal manor-house. At the foot of the tower,
are grouped a number of hovels and dwarfd houses,
which even augment its really great height. Its construc
tion dates back to the time of the Genoese. Those mer-
. chant-soldiers made fortresses of their warehouses, and
embattl ed their quarter like a fortifed town. Thei r
counting-}wuses might have withstood a siege-and so
indeed they did, more than one.
At the summit of the hill which is occupi ed by the
cemetery, is a broad road, lined on one side 'vith houses
which enjoy a splendid prospect. I followed this road to
an angle, where stands a very remakable old cypress tree,
and found myself speedily opposite to my owu street ;
tired enough, and dying of hunger.
I was supplied with a dinner, which they had obtained
fom U neighbouring eating-house, and which Roon calmed
my appetite ; rather, l10wever, by disgust, than by satisfy
ing my hunger. I am not in the habit of writing elegies
upon the culinary deceptions which I sufer in travelling ;
and an omelette, garnished with a few stray hairs, and
rendered aromatic by a deluge of rancid butter, is a private
misfortune, -vhich I shall not attempt to elevate to the
digni ty of public calamity ; but I may as well record,
i n passing, that this frst revelation of the style of Turk
ish cookery, seemed to me but an evil augmy for the
future.
Spain had habituated me t o wine tasting of goat-skins
L 2
92 CONS'rANTINOPLE.
and pitch, and I resigned myself readily enough to the
black wine of Tenedos, brought in a kid-skin bottl e ; but
the water-yell ow, brackish, and favoured by the rust of
the ol d aqueducts-made me wish f either the gargouleltes
of Algiers, or the alcwzzaras of Granada.
TTE WOMEN. 195
XVI
JJ woMEN.
'nE frst question, invm`inbly addressed t every traveler
on his re tm11 from the East, is " ' ell, and the women?"
To which each responds by a smile, more or less myste
rious and signfcant, according to his degree of fatut,
and the charactei of the inquirer ; but always implying,
with more or less distinctness, that he has encotmtered
more of romantic adventures than he thins ft to recount
to everybody.
"atever it may cost my sel-love, I humbly avow
that I have, in this particular, " no story t tl ; " but
U com1)ellcd, to my great regret, to send forth my
narrative, devoid of al incident of love or romance. A
few such, '"ould certainly have seryed admirably to v:
my descriptions of cemeteries, mosques, tekkes, palaces,
and kiosks. Notl1ing is more chaming in an Eastern
tale, than to rend, how old woman, in a deserted street,
made you a sign to follow her cautiously, and at a distance ;
and introduceu you, by a secret door, into an apartment
heaped \Yith all the luxmies of the Orient, where, re
clining upon U superb divan, sultana, gleaming with
j ewels,-which, however, })filed beside her superb love
liness,-impatiently awaited your coming, and received
you with smiles of tenderess and welcome. In due
course, the adventure shou terminate by the sudden
arrival of the master, who scarcely leaes you time to
1 96 LLbJA LL-
fy by the hack-door ; unless, indeed, a more trugical
climax is attained, by a cOntest from wh c you barely
esca
p
e with life, and the pluuge into the Bosphorus, at
dead of nght, of a sack which bears some vgue resem
blance to the human frm.
This orthodox nanative of Ea8tern adventure, slghtly
varied in detail s, alway8 passes current, and DLCIC8!8 0
readers ; and more especially, aU " ftir readers ; " and
doubtless, it is not entirely wiLhout precedent, that a
y
oung Giaour, handsome, rich, knowing thoroughly the
language of the Counhy, and residing u hi s own house
i the Turkish IOu, should, with great peril to himself
and absolUtC danger to the lilo Ol the lady, have au inuigUC
with U Turkish woman ; but if such a thing occurs, it is
NCj rarely indeed, 0ud this for many and ObviOus reasons.
First, the boits and thC gratings , which intervene between
the females and the rest Ol the world, arc tangible and
.
umnistkcahle obstUCles ; then, the difference of religion,
and the ucon
q
uerable 8UspiciOu, with which every U
!Du women not excepted-instinctively regards all un
believers ; DO! tu mention the dfCulty, or almOst im
possibility, of that previ ous acquanLance, which might
awaken a mutual regard betweeu !hC partiCs.
Besides this, it is to be remarked, that in most European
countri es, the world at lar_O are rather dsposed to con
nive and smile at any " firttion" which i s observed,
even tough the lady be mUrried woman ; while in
Turkey, U Cawas, a hammal, any mau, of even the lowest
grade, who should observe a Jfahometan woman speaking
in !he street to Frank, or L`LU exChanging lD0slighLesl
sigu of intlligence with him, Would lterally fall upon
her, with lmnd, foot, and cudgel, and be warmly applauded
for such brutality, by auy casual spectators, especially
among the women. No one, here, undLrstunc LDOremotest
THE WOMEN.
197
approaCh to rniHery, on the sub]ecI OlCOu_U_0 uhdCIj.
'he purely materal _euous Ol lDC u1K8, 0ud the pre
cautions which i t uvolves, protect them, almost invariably,
fom ny cause OdomC8tic scnndnl ; athough ]OCO80allu
sions to the subject ne made fmnilinrly enOugh in the
theatre of our friend K0gheuz, and in th0 COU8C Ol the
comic disputes ICIuCul !O 8 perlOrmCe8.
It is hue, that the Ju1:8DVOmCu _O OUI freCly, take
their W08 and drives to the Valley of Sweet V atIs, to
Hyder-Pasha, or to the Place of Sultan-Baazet ; seat them
selves beside the tombs of the \lIC J1Cd8 Ol Pera or
SCUtri ; puss eutire days at the bath, or in visits to their
fiends ; talk beneath the porticos of the mosquCs ; OUu_C
i tDe shops of the Bezestin ; and sail, in caiques or
steamers, U[Ou tho waters Olthe Bosphorus ; but tey have
always some CompauiOu, be it a negrCss, or an old woman
i the CHp0City of duena, or : thCy are rich, a eunuch,
often more ] ealoUs than his master. I they 0C uO! l!U8
nccOmpunied,-Which exception 8 10IC,~0 CDU, led by
the hand, insures tCm respect ; or even in default Ol this
proteCtiOn, the tone of [U1C m0UDCI8 W0!CC8 over !DCm,
and " protects " them, pCrhaps, a little more r_orOusly
than they altogethCr cure aboUt. The excessive liberty
of action which thCy enjOy is only 0[parent.
JoIeigners have sometimes fancied themselves beloved
by Turkish om0u, wheu thCy have, in fact, . confounded '
the Armenians with the Turks, whose costume they wear,
except the yell ow boots, 0uOhose manners and allurC
ment they imitat0 so. closely, as to deCeivC any but U
resideut of !he county. For this, it sUfces to have an
old woman, who arranges her plans with U pretty jOuD_
11mCu!U CoqUette, H rather Credulou; ad 1Ou0u!CjOuD_
mau, and a I'encl ezvous i n a lOnely hOu8e. anity dOC8
!u0 rCst . and tDe advCutUre _euerally terminates in the
198
CONSTANTINOPLE.
extortion of a sum of money ; -an inoi gnifcant circum
stance, omitted from the subsequent narrative of the
deluded Giuour, who imagi nes in his heroine at least
the fyourite slave of a Paoha, if not one of the harem
of the Grand Seignor himsel f.
But_ in real truth, the actual Turkish l i fe is not less
" hermetically scaled '' than we have al ways supposed ;
and it is very difcut to even conjecture what passes
behind those closely-trellised windows, the only view
through which is that fom within ; each bei ng frnished
wi th a sort of bull' s-eye, to enable those on the inner*
side to command a perfect view of all that passes without,
whie they themselves remain 1i gorously in visible.
Nor i s it of any use to thi nk of obtaining information
fom the natives of the country. As the author says at
the commencement of " Nnmouna "-
" Utter silence reigns throughout this narrative."
To 8peuk to a Turk of the females of hi s household, i s
to commi t the grossest possible brench of etiquette uud
})Oli tcness. It is frbidden to make the sl ightst llufi on
even indirectly, to thi s del i cate subect ; and, of course,
all such phrases as " How is madam, to-dny? " (common
J)lace as they are to us) are qui te ba1ished from conver
sation. The most feroeiosly-bearded and turbaned Turk
would blush l i ke a school- girl , i f he hUard an inquiry so
outrageously improper:
The Ambassadress of France, wishing to make a pre
sent to Hcdschid Pasha, of some superb Lyons silks, for
the ladies of his harem, sent them to hi m with thi s brief
note : -" Pray accpt some si lks, 'vhi ch you wi l l know
better than any one how to use." To have expressed
more plainly the object of the gift, would have been bad
tste, even i n the eyes of Rcdschid Pasha, despite his
famili arity with French manners ; and the exqui:ite trwt
THE WOMEN. 199
of the Marchioness caused her t adopt a form of expres-
sion so gracefully vaue, as could not wound even the
" sensitive susceptibility of an Oriental .
It is, therefre, easy to understand, that it would be
singularly unbecoming t ask fom a Turk any detail
to the habits or customs of the harem or the character
and manners of the women. Even though he may have
known you fail i arly at Paris, have taken two hundred
cups of cofe and smoked an equal number of pipes on
the same divan with you, . he will , nevertheless, if you
question him on thi s subject, stammer and hesitate, and
evade your inquiries i n every possible manner. Civilisa
tion, in thi s partiulH, has not advanced a single step.
The only method to employ, in order really to obtain any
authenti information, is to request some European lady,
who is well introduced and has access to the harems,. to
recount to. you faithfully that which she has seen. For a
man, h e may UH well abdon, at once, the idea of knowing
anything more of the Turkish beauties than he is able to
gather from the glimpss which he may snatch, by sur
prise, from beneath the awning of an aruba, through the
window of a tlika, or beneath the shade of the cypresses
of the cemetery, at some m_oment when heat or solitude
bas caused a momentary 0ud partial withdwing of the
veil.
Stil l, if one approaches too boldly_ even under such
circumstances,-and especially if there chance to be any
Turk withi n hearing,-he draws upon himself a shower of
such compliments us the following :-" Dog of a Chris
tian !-Miscreant ! -Giaour !--May the birds of the air
soil your beard !-May the plague dwell in your house !
May your wife be childless ! " The lnst being a Biblical
and Mahometun malediction, of the utmost severit-y. It
may, however, be suspected, that this fury i s more afected
200 CONSTANTINOPLE.
than real , and is, in great part, piece of acting " for
the gall ery ; for a woman, even though a Turk, i s seldom
displeased at being admired ; and among the Moslem
women, the secret of their beauty, no doubt, wei ghs some
what upon their minds (as any other secret would do upon
any female mind), and they are not sorry to have an
occasional confdant, of that sex vhich is best able to
appreciate the value of the disclosure.
By the " Sweet-waters of Asia,"-by leani ng immove
ably against a tree, or the fountain, i n the atti tude of one
who i s lost in profoul1d reverie,-I have been able to catch
a glimpse of more than one l ovely face, but imperfect1y
conceal ed by a thin veil of gauze hal f-withdrawn, and
more than one snowy t11loat; gleaming between the folds
of half- open feredge, wl1ile the eunuch wus walking at a
l ittle distance, 0 gazing upon the steamboats on the Bos
phorus, assured by my assumed air of drowsiness and
abstraction.
. The Turks, however, see no more of them than uo the
Gi nours. They never pass beyond tho Sclaml ick, even i n
the houses of their most intimate fiicnds ; and they arc
acquainted with no females but those of their own harems.
\hen the inmates of one harem visi t those of another, the
well-known custom of placing the slippers of the visitors
upon the threshold of th harem whi ch they are visiting,
nt once announces the presence of strangers, nnc in
terdicts the entrance of the O(blick, UX1 to i t s own
master ; who thus fi nds himsel f, at any moment, shut
out from a part of his own house. An immense fomn1 c popu
lati on-ronymous nnd unlmown-circnlatcs through thi s
mysterious city, which i s thus transformed into a sort of
vast musquernde,-with the pecu1iadty, that the dominoes
are neYer permi tted to unmask. The father nnd the brother
are the only mules who are allowed to behold the ihccs
.
of
THE WOMEN. 201
their daughters and sisters, who rigidly veil themselves for
an
y
relative of remoter degree ; and thus a Turk may, i n
hi s whole lfe, have seen but half-a-ddzen faces of Moslem
women !
The possession of large and numerous harems is :e-
stricted to viziers, pashas, beys, and other persons of
either great wealth or high rank, for their maintenance
i s enormously expensive; especially as each female who
becomes mother, is entitled to her sepaate apartments
and her own suite of slaves. The Turks of . mi ddle rank
have rarely more than one wife (although legaly entited
to espouse four), together with perhaps three or four pur
chased female slaves ; and, for 'them, the rest of the sex
remains in the condi tion of myth or chimera. It is true,
tat they can compensao themselves by looking at the
women of other races-the Greeks, Jewesses, and Ar
menians, together with the few Em;opean ladies who
extend their trayels so far ; but of the females of their
own people, they lmow absolutely nothing beyond the
wals of their own harems.
The sentiment of love and the delicacies of courtship
necessarily, almost un1mown to the Moslemah. A
Tk who wishes to marry has recourse to some woman
of mature age, who exercises the profession of a mati-
monial negotiator. This woman fequents the baths, and
gives Dm U mi nute description of the personal charm
.

of
a certain number of Asmes, Rouchens, Nourmahals, Leilas,
and other beauties of matria
g
erble nge ; taking proper
care, of couse, to adorn with the greatest profusion of
metaphors the portrait of te young girl whom she herself
favours, or whom it is her interest to select. The Efendi
becomes a lover on the strength of her descripton ;
sprinkles with hyacinths the path by which his veiled
idol must pass ; nnd, after the interchage of few glances
N
202
LLb1lDL.
[u8 8DuIC OlW1CDi D1lCd !O8uCD_Jlu_1SC8of a _0I1 Ol
CC8

08 uC Cuu

8ua!Cu 1hrOu_u !DC Clo8C-duwn vCil),
Umau 1uC mCu Ol

1C: 0luCI, OC:U_ uC: a doWy

Pl OportrouCd!O u18 _088:Ou 0ud u8IO:IUuC 0ud ulCu_Iu

CC8 ICmOVCd, lOI !DC D:81 1imC in !DCuu_!I0 0D0mCI

C !uC )0Cuma0K WD0D Du8 DI!DC!O COuCCuCd 1uC 1u:I
OuC 8IC0IuJC8 DOm D8 Ou_n_ _uZC.
JC8C m00_C8 y _rOC0ra!ou,UO uO! 0__CuI 1O _VC
roOu for muCu mO:C OI mi8!uKC or dCcCplOn, than those
whwD \0KC _aCe among us.
1 ! WC:C Ca8y t tr0u80rbe DCC,Om!uC WOIk8 of pre
CCu1_ 0VC!C:8, 0 m088 Ol dCLuI8 0out luC 8U!0u08,
!uC Od8uC8, ad !C u!C!7u CCOuOm) O !uC D0ICm
DUl !DC books \1`Om WD10u I shoud co_y aC befOrC \D
'oIld ; and I _:C1CP lO[08!O8omCtun_0luC mOIC [I0
0SC, aud t uW " a rkh ulCo:," from thC 8KC!Cu
_I

Cu mC by 0Uj, WuO W08 IV!Cd t Uu0with luC

w1fC O !u0l CX-108u0 OI uu18Uu, WuO8C _uC8! I D0U
0lready bCCu.
uC Pa8Da'8 wife u0d D0Cu in !uC m_C:0 8C109O
DClOJC m ' th. p 1
.

O
)

.
01)U_ C 0810. WCu !DCj 0l!0u !uC 0_C
o lDirty yCaI8, thC Su!au _VC8 _Cm188IOu !O CC!uu O
hi8 . 80VC8 t? m0ry ; 0ud !uC_ C alway8 Om DO8l
UC8UuUC 00uCC8 Ou 0CCO0ul O !C IClulOu8 WDICu lhe
0ICO 00 8u[[O8Cd !O UC~uD!C !O maintain W!D the
_a00C, 0ud uC Dou.Our `\uicD 0!!uCuC8 !O their having
founed 0 part of !C HD_C! uou8Chold.
Be8des tui8, C) 0C always WC CUuC0!Cd ; kowing
how
_
to Cnd, wnte, muKC VCI8C8, duuCC, ud play upon ..
mu1eal D8!IumCul8 uud uuVC 0!8O !uC 8I0!Cy m0UuC:8,
V!1Cu 0C 8u[OSCd !O lC u0quud a! COUI! Ou. JC_
usu
_
aly po8se88, mOCOVC, lO!D lC 8KI uLd u0UI! of
_O
:
tlC cabal and ulr
g
UC uud O1Cu lCau, thrOu_D
then \nCudS WuO ICmuu u lDC ua:em, 8!0!u 8CCC!8, of
`\m2.
03
which their husbands nvail \DCm8C!V08 tO win a !0\Ou1 O
uVOd d dis_racC . O m0

H dHu_utCr OltDC sera_lio is,

therefore, a VC:QO!C mC08UIC for 0n ambitious and
calculating man.
The apartent i wllicu the Pasha's wi ICCCIVCd
DCI _uC8l, wa ot :0u 0ud CJC_0Dl, and fOrmed a strong
cOutr08t to the plain severity of te 800m1CK, which I
have dC8O:!Cd In the prC0edin_ Cu0[lCI. Tluee sides of
the room 'vero furnished 'vith windows, so a:IUngCd HH
LO admit lDCUtmOst possible amount of air and li_ht. A
EuropCr1 conservatory woud DC !uC DC8! !U8!:0!Ou O!
\u8 0Q0lmCul 0uU u tlwt, too, they _Uad LuC OvCliCsl
and ::uust of fowCrs. The DOOI was 0OverCUDy a suQCrb
Smyrna carpe!, upon which the heaviest foot 'vould fall
noiselessly ; !uC CCI1u_ w0s dCCO:01Cd Vlu OOOU:Cd aud
gilded arabesques ; a lOn_dIVuD, Ol _C!OW 0nd blue satin,
ruu 0l Ou_ two CuliIe 8!dC8 of !C Ioom) and another VC_
OW dvuu 8!OOd bCtwCCu bo W\udOW8, Om Wu0u Wu8
seen a s_Cudid VICW of the Do8_orus in DI _C8pCc!VC.
111 one corer suOuC a beautiful emerald-coloured ewer
of Bohemian _las8, placed upon a plateau of tue 8umC
materia, bo!h DCU_ ICDy _J!dCd while Iu the other
ange W08 paCed 0 Chest,or lar_e Cu5KCl OlCuIuCI, Ou08Cd,
1u!0d uDd gIldCd in the mOsl per!Cc! taste. Strangely ul
VuuuC0, DowCvCr, VLu this air of oricntnl lu.ury, wa
soi-t of !able OI CDC8! Ol draweI8 of mauo_aLy, the marble
slab of whch . was 8UmOUu!Cd by a 0O0K in mmolu;
covCrCU by a _la8 shade, and standing lCtWCeu two vases
Ol 0iUD C0! DOWCI8, 0!8O uudCI _088 luC YuOC DCu_
uCluCI mOJC nor OtuCr, than one O those I<'rench CO0K8,
WI!D !s 8U[[O!C8, WDICD you wIl D ud ou the mantel
piece Ol CVC_ IC8pCctabe bmghCI i the dC[0IlmCu! O
IuCSC\ue. JhesCdiscrC_aucies abound in aluO8CuKSu
uOu8C8 WuICu m0KC0U) _re!CusIou tO " _oOd tast; , that
, 2
204 CONS1.4TINOPLE,
is, those which ape the civilised and EurOpean fashions f
" !hC reform," and dCstroy !he harmony OI the fne old
Turkish luxur and massive wealth of decOrution, without
having !hC SK tO introduce the substituted stye i
pCrfction.
Next to thi s channing apartment was another, very
plai nly fur8hed, which servCd 1OI u dinng-room, and
communicated with the staircase which led to the dOmCstic
ofces.
The Inoun was sumiJtuously dressed, as !hC uK8D
ladies alwuys 01C, CVCu uI hOmC C8[CCu!j when they
. expect visitors. Her black hair, divided into an ufnity
of small plaits, fell U[Ou her shoulders and over her
cheeks. Her head shone as if it were decked with a
casket of damonds ; fOr arOunu U litte cap Ol bluC satn,
were twined guadruple strings of brilliants of the fnest
1?0!C, COVuD_ tDC C0[ 0mO8I Cntirey, and s[urkliDg
wth wonderful lustrC.
u uCC was CncrclCd by a nCcldace Ol large pearls,
and her chemisette of silk, half-O[en, gave to view a
lovely throat, and the Outline of a bust which OWuuuothing
lO !he aid Ol the corset; !ha! n8trumen! Of torture Ueino
K
.
O
un no`

u I the East, or rCplaced onlj Uy the UowstriDg

O Ua8tmado. She wore a UC88 OI dar ruUy-colOmCd
8k, Ouu u !OuI li ke a [elissC, looped up at each s de
to the uu0, and fannug behind a tran, like that of
cOurt-dress. 'I'his dress wns !:mmuu Wl W!!C 1UUOu
fOrmed at n!ervals u!O O8CIlC8 \VC uD Cgu18!
Persian shawl eDCicled her waist, and confned par of
fl owng trousers of W!C silk, the folds of which OVCI-
hmg her t1
:
y sl[pCrs Ol_ulOW mOO0CO,lCuVug nothDg
O them VHble, but !e points of the toes, l ong and
turned U[ in !C Lhinese fashi on.
ChC recCVeu her visitOr very gracefully, uud [uCud
THE WOMEN. 205
her beside herself on the divan after huVu_ frst ofered
her a chair, i f she should ch11nce to prefer t ) , 0Du !lCu
examiued curou8ly, but not discourteously, thC European
lady' s dress ; fankly, in CI, and without afCcta!On
;
ns
a well-bred person, anywhere,

ay examine obCcts which

are confessCclly s!angC.
he " Conversaton," betwCen pCrsOns not s[eaKin_
!hC 80mC lauguage, was nece8saij limited to pantomime,
and COuld uOIhave much Varety. The Turkish lady in
gUred Ol IDC Europea" if she had any children ; " and
made her understad that she herself was, to her g;Cat
ruget, de[rived of that hap[inCss.
\Vhen the dinner-hour arrived, they [058Cd DtO !C
nCghbouru_apartment, similarly surrom1ded with divan,
and the 8ervants brou_hIthe small table of [olishCd brass,
supplud with dishes very simlar to !hose with which I
D0u been served when I dined 1vith the Pasha ; CXCC[I
!D0I !hC d8C8 O! meaI were fewer in proportion, and
those of CoufctionCr mOC uUmCOu8 0uu mOC vared.
A favourite femle slave of the Khanoun partook of
the tC[u8I, sCated beside her mistress. She was a fe
girl of seventeen or eghteCuyears of age ; lively, hethfu,
and 8uperUly dCveoped in person; but very inferior in race
and breeding to the ex-odalisque of the seraglio. She
had large black eyes, somewh0t C0V_ DOW8, Cd lips,
ad full CuC18
;
and, in fact, 1OOm Ol 8OmCWuI rude
and rustic health upOuher cOun!Cnace.
1 mulatto girl, of a fine bronze COmplexon, ith
white scarf graceflly woud about her head, in the form
of a turban, stood, with bare feet, near the door, and te-
. ceived the 0J8C8 Om the hands of the servant, who
brought them to hCr Om !C kilChen beow.
.
After diner, the Cadine rose, and led the waj again
into the saoon, whCre she [rCsen!ly smoked eigaette,
206 L.oA^3lPO!' L .
instead of the traditionmy narghil6 ; which, i fact is
being to U great extent superseded among tho Turkish
ladies, by the ci garette ; the latter having become qui te
the fashion,11 until they are smoked almost as universally
ut Constantinople as at Seville
.
It is, in fact a wonderfl
amusement and resource for the women, to employ their
cle1 icate fngers in pulling the long threads of the latakia,
and rolling them into the neat li ttle ciymettes 0H papillote,
which they subsequently occupy themselves in smoking-
1fhe master of the house now came to })lY a visit to
hi s wife 0nd her European visi tor ; but on hearing his
ap})roach, the female slave fl ed with extreme precipitation ;
for, it appeared that she belonged strictly to the lady, and
being already promised in maniage could not appear with
uncovered face before the ex-Pasha ; who, by the way,
like many other of his countrmen, had but one wife.
After the lapse of U few minutes, the Pashn retired
1 perform his devotions, and the Khanoun reCall ed her
slaY e.
The llOu of departure had arrhed, and tlw stranger
rose to take leave ; when her hostess made a sign to her
to wait for moment, and whispered few words to the
young slave at her side, who immediatel y began to ranack
tho drawers in seUrch of something, whi ch she presently
produced, and which the Paslm' s wife handed to her
guest as a souvenir of the pleUsant eveni11g passed together.
Courtesy forbade the visitor to examine the gift, hile
still in presence of her hostess ; but fom the LUre wth
\\ hich it was encased in a delicate litle ecrrt of morocco,
she could not doubt that it wus some rare obect of oriental
taste or skil.
On reaching ' her own apartment, she immediatly
opened the case, and found ithin the object wllich the
rasha
'
s lady hud selected us a choice memorial for her
THE L3L.
207
fair visitor. It was little glass bottle, bearing an en
graved nd gilded paper, on which `Y ins

ribed tIe
following legend : " Extrait pour l e Mouchor : Par

s,
:Miel
.
" whil H similar scroll upon the reverse, dts-
playe
'
c : Extrait double, qualite guarantie de miel :
. .,.. .
I
) . "
. J. Piver, 103 Rue Samt-J.n. nrtm, ans.
222
CONSTANTJNOPLE.
XVIII.
` 11 'Y1Jb OJ' CONS1'ANTI NOPI.E.
I !i formed U decided resolution to make a grand
expedition among those remote di stri cts of Constantinople,
which UlL hut mrcly visit ed by trvellers ; their curiosity
seldom extcncling farther than the Bezcstin, the Atmei
cl nn, Snltan-Bnazet, the Old Seragli o, :e tho environ
of Saint-Sophia ; around ":hich localities is concontratccl
the l i fe and movement of tho Moslem City.
I started, accordingly, at an early hour, accompanied
by a young Frenchman, who had been a long ti me resident
in Turkey. \e descended rapidly the slope of Galata ;
?rosscd the Golden lorn, by the bridge of boats, on pay
mg four. paras to the toll-keeper ; and leaving YeniDjami
at one side, we plunged boldly into a labyrinth of narrow
streets and lanes, of the purest '\trkish character.
As we advanced, the scene became more lonely ; the
dogs, gro\Ying more savage at each stage of our progress,
glared sullenly at us, nnd followed growling atonr heel:.
Tho wooden houses, discoloured and dilapidated, with their
crumbli ng l attices nnd foors out of line, presented much
the appearance of decayed hen-coops. A fountain, i n
ruins, allowed its water to escape tluough various O1
THE WALLS OF CONSTANTINOPLE. 223
icgarded crevices. into a green and slimy basin. A dis
mantled turbe (funeral chapel), overrun with briars, nettles,
and dafodils) displayed, through its cob-web covered
gratings, some clingy sepulchral columns, leaning to right
nncl left and ofering to view only U few illegible inscrip
tions. 1 marabuut reared its coarsely whitewashed dome,
flanked with a minaet which rcsemblecl a tall candle
surmounted by its extinguisher ; above the long line of
walls projected the sable cones of cypresses, and tufts of
sycamore, or plane-tree, hung over into the streets.
No more mosques with columns of marble, and
Moresque balconies ; no more ko11acks of pashas gloing
with
-
brilliant colours, and sustaining their elegant aerial
galleries ; but, instead, great heaps of cinders, fm. amidst
which rose blac" and grimy chimneys, formed of bricks
placed on end. On every side, decay, dilapidation, and
neglect ; and above all this squaor and abandonment,
the pure, dazzling, implncoble sun-light of the Orient,
making even more painfuly obvious . every miute detail
of the wetchedness around.
Through lane after lane, crossing after crossing, we
reached a large dilapidated khan, with loft arches, and
long stone walls, originally designed _to accommodate
caravans with trains of camels.
It was the hour of praer ; and from the exterior
gallery of the minaret of the nei
g
hbouring mosque, two .
muezzins, clad i white, and moving around the gallery
with the step of phantoms, proclaimed the sacramental .
formula of Islam to these mansions, deserted, blind and
deaf, and losing themselves in silence and solitude. The
verse of the Koran thus . proclaimed, and which seemed
almost as if it had been uttered from heaven (so devoid
was the region of any movement of humanity), called forth
no other response tha _ sort of sigh from some dog whose
24
CONSTANTI:OPLE.

CuD8 it dturbed_ or the f0ppiu_ OI IuC W1u_8 of 8OmC

p1geon alarmed by its 8uddenness-

The mUCZZu8, hoWeVCI dd not the less contnue lD0I
:Ouud,ul!t

:L_ the namCs of Aah 0ud OI IDC Pro1)het t

the four WDd8 of heaven, like sowers who ae regardless
whCr0 the seed fal s whicQ the scatter u !uCI _IO_IC88,
WCknowm_ that it W fnd root somewhere.
Perh0ps Ldeed, beneath even these worm-eaten roofs
and in the rCce8ses of \\C8C 5eemU_ ubandoned rius:
there may DC 8OmC Ol l1C fa!hf who spread their WOI
0udfaded carpets ; and, turuin_!u0m8C\u8OW0Id80CC0
:C_C0!, W1lh 8uCC:C devotion, " Allah is Aah and
Mahomet is his Prophet
.
"
A negro on ho:8eback passes occn.sionally ; 0n Od
CmuC mumm, 8luC a_ai n8l 0"0, _IO!:Ud08 Dt m0m1d
a m088 of :0_8 1

: mOuKC-!C paw, and profts Dthe

expCcted occas1on to dCm0ud 0m8; two or tln:ee young

1mps (who seemed to D0VC C8C0_Cd bodily fom one of
DeCamp 8 lllarvcllous sketches), seek to amuse ICm8CVC8
b

t

:owiJig pebbles i nto the basin of the exhausted foun

tain ; U few liza1ds crawl lC0:C88 about over the 8!OuC8

0ud this 8 all.

'
I r
:
l t myself, in mOWu despte O__IC88Cd Lan over
whClmm_ 8a

ess ; and I shoul d even have iorgotten the

proposed obJect of our ramble (which was to see Ihe
mOuulC

0u8 ne0r the _ale of Silivri-Kapoussi), l m_

COmQuUOu had uot rCpCatedly reminded me Ol i t.
.
I

vas lat

_ued and per8hing w th thrsl ; for, without

t

mKmg of 1t, WC Dad traversed an enormous s_acC, and

dIvCrged very considerably from our road_ which 1U
coVe:ed not wi thoUl dfcuty

\e !I0VCI80d lh0 COUJl

aud gardCn of a mosque, the n0me Olwhich I forget ; and
our ears W0:C saluted with the soUud of some barbarous
and d80OId0u! mu8C i8sun g Jro_m 0u CuCO8uIC or bOolh
TIE WALLS OF CONSTANTINOPLE. 225
of planks, which indicted to us that we were on the
ri ght track at last.
There it was, indeed. \e seated ourseh-es upon one
ol !DO80 OW otlom0us or !OOUlOO8 (about fou inches in
height), which aboud in thesC places ; called for COC0
0ud ppes and _0VCour best alleution to the performance,
which, in the mddle Ol the area, 0:OUud which wC were
seated was tr.king pl ace upon 0 heap of fne dusl. Tis
exhibition was that of Moors, performing uealy the s0me
feats, u8 h0ve been so often executed in France and Eng
land, by the Arabian troop O!gymn0st or acrobats.
Indeed, I even l0ncied that I could recognise the big
fellow, who served as the base Ol the human pyramid,
0ud carried eight men piled upon his brouzed 8houlders
Some wooden-horaes, supporting tight-ropes, showed
that the exl1ibition had been augmented bj rope-danci ng ;
but \Ve arrived too late to witness that part Ol the per
formance ; a lacl which I regretted exceedingly, becaUse
the performers were l ittle girl R of eight Or tn year8 OO
and (we werC told) very pretty and singularly agile. There
were also some COmC rope- dancers ; TurKs 'vith arge
beards, and great parrot-noses, who assumed, with the
utmost gravity, the most grotesque attitudes.
At the extremity Ol the urea Was a latticed gallery, a
sera'l, as they say in Turkey, serving as 0 p:ivat box,
or tribuneg for the females ; and we were mnde to retire,
that they mi_hl depart unmolested,-the prC8enCe of
Giaours outraging lhei: m0dC8lj a modest
y
ROmewhat
exaggerated I must say, for we saw them pas8 at U distance,
mufed up .to the eyes, and looking like nothing on earth
so much, as Ihose wicker-work fTames on which they hang
the l inen in the baths.
\ U now sought for something to eat ; for if we D0d
refeshed our eyes, our stomachs were none the DCL!CP lU:
226 CONST:NTINOPLE.
i t, and every
i
Dstant 0__ruV0IC0 our 8uI1crlu8 n t-
t' - h
_ u 1!1
I8 uu

eard-of quarter, thCr0 were none of those dei 0a0ies

to
.
whiCh

0 Da0 accustored ourselves ; no kabobs

8H00 Wlth p

per ; no balls of r ce wrapped in VD0-

00V08 , or 0XQtl8i lC salads of 0u0umD0r O I
.
' l
*
0

' u_ 1n 01 ,
ami
-
d

hcate morsels o f U0u\. `^0 !oun0 Dothng to bu

but wh1 te mulberries and black soap-a rath d' Y
f0ast.
4 0 me were
: 0 h

rried on fami8hi ng, casting our huDgry C_08 in

al dIr0uluD8, 8D0 ob8eIvn_ ID0 streets wh ch, being at
!0u8\
.
Css 0080l0U !nuu the rest, seemed to O0 8Om0
rOmts0O8u8l0D0u00. At 0n_th, a benevolent Old Greek
lady, who was folowed by a s mnll servant curryin_ u
!0_C prcel , took pi ty upon us, and poiDt00 out, at DO
grea\ (hstance, a sort of rCstaurant, i n which V0 could
probabl appease our uD_0). Iler information proved to
be mo8t accurut0 ; ODj l!008|uuruDl D00 D00u cOsed for
several years ! JD0 C0O0cIOD8 of the _ood ol0 !ad
d0l back to the days of her own youth !
Ih: Quul0r though which we now pnss0d, pre80nt0d
a

entuely nCW aspect. It D00 no longer u Jurk8h air.
1 0 hal-op0u
.
doO:8 of the houses, 0!OW00 tD0 C0 to
peD0tr

tC the mt0nor. At unlatti 00c VuuOW8, 0[]Cur00

0DumD_ female heads, dCcked wi th l ittC caps of gauze
and surmouDled by arge braids of hur, forming a sot Of
crown.
.
OuD_ grl8 80ul0d Ou the thresholds, gaz0d f0ar^
l0ssl_ mto the street ; 0D0 W0 could, without ammi nO
thCm, admire their [uC aud d0li0ale f0ature8, their u:'
tresses, and l0rgC D!u0 008. l0IO0 the C0l8
.
.
1

, mtL I
ute tumcs, I00 ClJ

S, and jacket8 with loose huD_ID_

8leeVe8, W0r0 swallowmg large _a88es of ?'aki, .and makin
themselves drunk l ike good Christ i ans.
g
b
1; sho1t, we W0r0 in Psammathi a ; a Quarter unu\Cd
y De I ayaDs, - the non-:Mussulman 8ubj0cts of the
11 AJb L L^bI1^Ll1.
227
Porte ; a sort of Greek colony i l|0 midst of tDe Turkish
town.
Ani mation had su0c0ed0d to silence ; D0rrm0Dl to
800DC88. `Y0 found oursel Ves, once more, amid a rnce of
li Vin_ beings ; aDd w0 uD0onsious1y felt the unspea0ble
udVuDIu_08 OI Christi anity, evCn of the lowest order, over
Heathenism, in a social point of view.
A youn_ vagabond, s0ein_ us D search of U l0\0D
ofered himself as our guid0 afte m0kin_ us look at his
passport, li ke a young !amp, as D0 was ; and conducted
us iu a most round-about manner, in ord0r to enhance the
importnce of the servi ce, to a sort of restaurant, situated
01Ou! twenty steps from where he started with us. We
_0V0 him a fw paras for his trouble ; but, thiDiDg himself,
no doubt, inadequately reVrded, he poss0ssed himself,
wi th all th0 skill of 0 patriar0h of pick-pockets, of the
pmtemomwio of my companion, whi ch contained some
D\0 and !W0D! sDHD_8 IDbe0hli cks and piastres !
0 entered 0 l0rge room, wh0r0, behi nd 0 couuteP
charged wi th dishes and bottles, stood truculent-looking
. brigand, se0mingly far more ftted to cut the tDroats of
tavCll0r8 than of chickens. This ferocious, blue-bearded
pCrsoDage, 0ODd080Cu00d DOW0VCr to sCrve us with
8om0 prawns, and some mullets broiled D paper ; followed
by peacDes, raisins, cheese, 0Dd 0 08K of whit0 1'esi1wto
win0. He was unable, on that dny, despite our wish, to
supply u8 wi th aDy meat ; for
i
t was, I know not what feast
. of the Greek 0hurch, and fasting from fesh was obligatory.
But we were so d0spemtely hungry, that !u8 8imple
collation seemed to us U C8D0ZZ08 feast ; and we wee
0lmO8! OO!D_ to see the h0r_ uscr pIon bl aZing upon the
walL Meantime, how0ver, Psammathia stood frm upon
its foundations, and we achieved ou r0past without any
Biblical catastrophe.
22R
CONSTANTINOPLE.
.
Duly refres1ed, we put ourselves again under way
With renewed VIgour, and soon reached the gat which is
nearest to the Castle of the Seven Towers ; in Greek
Heptapurgon, i Turkish JediKuuleler ; names which
have, all three, the same signifcation. Here we en
countered one of those me with horses for hire, who so
abound at 'op-Hane, near the Green Kiosk, or . by the
great cemetr of Pera, and in other frequented quarters
of CoLtantmople, but of miraculous rarity in such a
place as this. We speedy bestrode his two beasts who
were very nicely caparisoned, and as good, certiny, as
those 1)retended English jades, with which our triumphant
countrymen parade the Champs Elysees at Paris.

' These worthy beast of Kunistan, the one white, the

oter blck
:
set out side-by-side i brotherly stle, at a
long swmgmg pace, followed by their master on foot
and we, trning to the right, left upon the other hnd th
dilapidated towers of the renowned old prison of the state
the prison to which, as tradtion records, the Porte wa
wont to commit the foreign ambassadors, at the moment
of declaring war against the countries which they repre
sented ; no thinking it worth whie to stand upon
ceremony Wth mere Cluistiau dogs. But times have
changed slightly, and the Trk has leared to look with
diferent eyes upon the EuTopcan Powers, since tho time
when the Castle of the Seven Towers obtained its fearful
and gloomy reputtion.
we would have gone along the whole outer extent of
these ancient walls of Byzantium, fom the sea to Ederne
Kapoussi, and even fther, had we not been fr too much
fatigued.
I do not SU})pose, that th01e is in the world U ride more
austerelymelancholy, than upon this road, which extends for
nearly a league, between a cemetery ad mass of ruins.
THE WALLS OF CONSTANTINOPLE. 229
The rampart, composed of two lines of wall fanked
with square towers, have at their base a l arge moat, at
present cultivated throughout, which is again strrounded
by U stone parapet ; forming, in fact, three lines of fortif
cation.
These are the walls of Constantine ; at least such a
have be lef of them, after time, sieges, and earthquakes
have done their worst upon them. In their masses of
brick and stone, are stil visible breaches made by cat
put and battering-rams, or by that gigantic culverin,
that mastodon of artilery, which 'vas served by seven
hundred cannoniers, ad threw balls of marble, of nearly
half a ton in weight.
Here and there, gigantic crevice severed a tower fom
top to bo.ttom
;
fther on, a mass of wal had flen into
the moat ; but where mason
r was wanting, the elements
had supplied eart and seed ; a shrub had supplied the
place of a missing batlement, ad grown into a tree ; the
thousad tendrils of paasitical plats sustined the stone
whch would otherwise have fallen ; the roots of tees,
after UctiJg as wedges to introduce themselves between
the joits of the stones, became chans to confne them ;
and the line of wall was still (to the eye) continued 'ith
out interruption; raising against the clear sky its battered
profle, and displayng its curtas and bastions, draped
with ivy, and gilded by time, with tints by ts mellow
and severe. At intervals were vsible the ancient gates,
of Byzantine achitectme, overlaid with Turkish masonry,
but still leaving enough of the original to be recog
nised.
It was difcult to reaise, that a living city lay behind
the defunct rampart -which hid Constantinople from our
view. It had been easier to believe one's self near some
of those cities of the Aabian legends, all the inabitnts
230
L^JA'1`1bLL.
of which had been, by som magical process, turned into
stone. Only a few minruet, rearing thcil heads above
the immense circuit of ruins, testified tht there was lif e
within, and that the Capital of Islam still existed.
The ConquOror of Constntine XIII. , if he could return .
to
.
the wor, could make again, with stri king appro
pnatness, h1s celebrated quotation from the Persian :
" The spider shall weaye her web iu the palace of
Emperors, and the owl cry by nigt from the towers of
Ephrasiab. "
These embro,ned wal, encumbered by the vegetation
})eculi

to ruins, which

eemed to expand itself lazily i

the solitude, and over whiCh crOpt fear!ess!y an occasional
lizad, wit
.
nessec, four hund1ed years ago, throging
around their base, the hordes of Asia, urged on by the
terrible :Mahomet II. The bodies of Janissaries and
of savages rolled, covered with wounds, in this moat,
wher now peaceful vOgetati on displays itself; streas of
blood poued dow, where now rool) only the tenrils of
ivy or of sassafas.
ne of the n
:
ost fearful of human struggles-the
conflict of race gamst raCe, of religion against 1eligion
occurred on this spot, nov! deserted, and where now
reI_ns IDO 8I!OuuC of deCay and death. As is always the
case, the young and Yigorous barbarism overpowered the
ol and (eCrepid ci visation ; and while the Greek priest
stil Cont1ued tmnqmlly to fy his fsh, unable to believe
in
.
the possibilit that Constantinople could be tken, the
trmmphant lfahomOt I. SJrred his steed into the sacred
precinCts of . Saint-Sophia, and struck llis cnsanguined
hand upon the marble wall of the sanctuary, in token of.
conquest. The Lross fell before !O Crescent ; and the
CO])Se of the Emperor Lonstantine was withdmwn fom a
heap of nameless dead, bleediug, muti!ated, and distin-
11L WALLS OF CONSTANTiNOPLE.
231
guishable only by the golden eagles, which sOrved as
clasps to his buskins of imperial pm
-le.
.
.
.
I spoke just now of the priest, occ1pIed I frymg his
fsh, during the heat of DO terrifC nud final assault upon
Constantinople, and who replied, incredulously, to the
anouncement of the success of \DU Turks, " Pooh ! I
would sooner believe that these fsh will come to life ngn,
.
th f
, ,
jump out of the boiling oil, and swun upon e oor
This protigy, DuVCVOJ, is snic to have acually ocCurre,
and, of course brought conviction to the nund of the obsti
D0\ monk ; ad it cOrtny was followed-or preceded
hi the parallel prodigy of the tiumph of the 1oslems .
.
The miraculous esca})C ofthe fsh was madO mto the c1s
tern of the ruined Greek church of Baloukli, which is vsilc
at some (listnnce from the ramparts, a lttle before arnvmg
at Silivi-Kapoussi. The fsh themselvUs are red u
p
on one
side, but brown on the other, i meory of then expe
rience of the frying-pan, i n which they were half-cooked;
and a poor devil of a monk stl exhibits them to strange

s !
Although I do not profess opinions of the
.
Votmre
school on the subj ect of miracles, I did not tlunk
:
t ne
cessay to go to the conveut, to yerif
y
or refu
.
te th
.
Is one
for myself; es1ccially as it was D LC mDaclC,
which I was by 1U !U1b clled upon to beheve. I con
tented mysel, therefore, with taking the legend upon
trust ; and continuccl my progress.
The ruins of winter, the winds of summer, and he
work of timO, have hea1)ed the dust upon \DO road wlnch
we OIO pursuing, and which has, probably, not been re
paiJed since thO days of Constantine,
a
d have

o utterly
destroyed its distinctive CharaCter, that Iplac
.
es 1t seemd
more like the summit of some vast, half bun eel rampmt,
thHn practica1)le roadway ; but, neyertheless, \wo rnbas
were takng t1eir comsc along it,-one, gilded and pam ted,
232 LL^bIIL1L.
flled with rily-dressed and closely-veiled femnes, cur
ryg beautiful children upon their knees ; the other,
formed of coarse planks attached by a rough fame-work
of wood, and crowded with a troop of Ziyani, male and
female, brown as Indians, wild, and half-clad ; who roared
out some rude Boheman bHlad accompanied by the deep
tones and melodious clang of tambouri nes.
I have yet to underst.1nd hoY these clumsy vehicles-.
alike clumsy, despite te df erence of decoration-escaped
being hundred times precipitated, in fagments, to the
bttom. of the trencl1es on either side ; but the oxen were
sure-footed, ad the drivers never left hold of their hor.
A to myself, I quitted this rugged pathway of stones, and
walked my horse beneath the cypresses of the immense old
cemetery, which stretches fom the Seven Towers to the
foot of the hills of Eyoub.
I was riding slowly along U narow path, traced among
the gTaves, when I observed, resting beside a tomb, a
youg female, veiled with rather transparent yaclnuack,
and enwapped i a feredge of pale green. She held i
her hand bunch of roses, and the fxed gaze of her large
and luminous eyes, seemed to indicate that she was lost
in profound reverie. Did she bring these fowers as
tribute to the grave of some beloved one ; or was she
simply idling among these gloomy shades ? That is a
question whi ch I cannot answer; but, at the soud of tho
hoofs of my horse, she raised her head, and, trough the
tansparent muslin of her veil, displayed face of surpass
ing loveliness. Doubtless, my eyes expressed, fiankly,
the admiratien which her beauty excited ; for she ap
proached the yerge of the path wa, and, with move
ment full of timid grace, ofered me a rose, dawn from
her boucruet.
My companion, who followed, now overtook me ; and
M WALLS OF CONSTANTINOPLE.
233
h d him a rose also with an instct of delicacy,
s e ouere ` ' '
h
which seemed designed to correct aught tlat mlght ave
been too fee, in her frst impulse .
.
.
I 1 ted her wit my best grace, J the onental
. sa u '
. . d h d
. two or three companions reJome er, an
manner ,
h
she disappeared beneath the shadow of the over angrg
cypresses.

b t
Thus terminated the only " conquest, I can oas
h Tk h f * ones .ut I have never forgotten
aong t e s al +

those luminous black eyes, wth their ncb, droopmglashes '

and I stl preserve, with care, the
.
rose se gave me, and
which I shall ever guad as H premous relic.
1
SAI NT-SOPJ[ A.
273
XXII.
JJ MOSQUES.
IT would be dangerous for a Giaour to penetrate to the in
terior of the mosques during the Rmadan, even wt U
fman and attended by cawas. The exhorttions of the
!mans excite, among the fithul, double amount of
fervour and fanatcism; and te action of the fast heats
the brain, until the habitual tolerance, produced by the
progress of civilisation, is easily frgotten. I awated,
therefore, until after the Bnimm, before making this
essential part of my tour of observation.
It is usual to commence the series with Saint-Sophia,
the most ancient and most important building of Constant
nople, which, before being a mosque, had been a Christian
church ; not dedicated, however, U its name might
suggest, to a particular saint, but t the Dive Wisdom,
" Agia-Soplia," personifed by the Greeks, and, according
to their teaching, mother of the tree theological virtues.
Mter having once seen, from the space which extends
i front of the Augustan Gate, the back-enriched with
delicate carvings and inscriptions-of the foutin of
Achmet III. , SUint Sopha presents but an ill-assorted
mass of misshapen constuctons. The origial pla
has . disappeared, beneath an aggregation of excrescences
and additions, which have obliterated the primitive out
lines, and rendered it nmost impossible to retrnce them.
274 CON ST., NTI NOPJ.E.
Between the buttresses crecte(l by Amurath III . , t o
support the walls, shaken by repeated earthquakes, are
crowded tombs, shops, baths and stals.
Above this miscellaneous gathering, rises, amid four
heav minarets, the great cupola, supported upon the
wal by U`ses of masonry, alternately white and pink,
;d encircled, as by tiam, with range of latticed
windows. The minarets have not the graceful sl enderness
of the Arabi c style, and the cupolas rest heavily upon the
unadored stone-work ; and the traveller, whose imagia
tion has been stimulated by the magical name of " Saint
Sophi a " (reminding him of the temples of Ephesus and
of Solomon), experiences disappointment, whi ch, fortun
ately, does not continue, after he has once reached the
interior of the edifce.
To reach the entrance of the mosque, the visitor follows
U nanow street, lned with sycamores, and ith turbes
whose gilded and painted stone-work gleams vaguely
through their gratings ; and he arrives, after a few diver
gences, in f1ont of gate of brone, one leaf of which
still retains the imprint of the Greek cross. This is U
side entrance, which gives access to vestibule })ierccd
wt nine doors. At this point, the visitor exchanges his
boot or shoes for slippers, which it is important to have
brought by the dragoman ; because to enter the mosque i
boots would be U palpable an irreverence as to keep one's
hat on, in U Catholic church ; and might, moreover, entail
res ults by no means agreeable to the ofender.
At the frst step within, I was struck with amazement.
I seemed to be at Venice, ancl entering fom the Piazza,
bneath the nave of Saint-Made ; O!ly that the dimensions
had enlarged immeasurably, and assumed colossal pro
portions. ''he coluns rose gigantic, fom the mat-covered
pavement ; the dome of the CU})Qla hung overhead_ liko
SAINT-SOPHIA.
the ach of the sky ; the galeries, i which the fou
sacred streams pour forth their waters in mosaic, described
immeasurable circuit ; the tibunes seemed destined to
contnin whole nations ! Suint-Mark, in fct, is but a mn
iature of Sait-Sopha ; reduced, on the scae of an inch
t a foot, fom the basilica of Justinian. Nor is there
anything surprisig i this ; for Venice, separated by only
U narrow sea fom Greece, lived aways i familiarity with
the Orient ; ad her architects would naturaly seek to
reproduce the type of that church, which was then con
sidered the richest and the most beautifl of all Cis
tendon- The erection of Saint-Mark was commenced
about the tenth century ; ad its architects would have
been able to see Saint-Sophia, i all it integrity and
splendou, before it had been profaned by Mahomet II. ;
an event which did not take pldce unti ! n. 1 453.
The existing Saint-Sophia was erect ed upon the ashes
of the temple consecrated to The 'Visdom Divine," by
Constntine the Great, which had been bued during the
tumults of the contest between the " greens" ad te
" blues," and whose antiquity was fouded upon an
antiquity even more remote. Athemius of Tralles and
Isidore of Miletus, i tracig its foundations, directed it
reconstruction.
To enrich the new church, the acient pagan temples
were despoiled ; and the dome of Christ's Church
supported by the columns of the temple of " Diana of the
Ephesians," stil black from the torch of Erostratu, and
the pi llars of. the ` remple of the Sun " at Palmyra,
stil gilded with the emblem of their origina worship.
From the ruins of Pergamus, were taken two enormous
urns of porphyry, whose " lustral waters ' ' gave place to
the consecrated waer of Christian baptism, ad, later st1ll,
of Mahometan ablution. The walls were adoned wth
276 CO.SANTINOPLE.
mosaics of gold and _Cm8 and when the work was com
ple:ed, ustiniuH migh! WC! 0XC!0tm, u del tghted admi
rattn, ' Glory be to God, who has esteemed me worthy to
UchIeve U work so sublime ' Oh Solomon ' I ] _ , . 1ave sur-
passed theC ! "
lthough I8lamismJ :L it hostility to the pictorial and
pla

tw arts, has de8poil ed oai nt-Sophia of the greater part

of Its nolest ornaments, it I 8 stil magnifcent edifce.
The mOs

t c8 uon a _round of gold, representing Scrip

tural subJeCt, C those of Cu uI-BJ0:, have di sappeared
b

uent
.
h a couting of lime. They have presCrved the four
_ fuu cherubim of the galleries ; the 8X WJu_8 of each
shme through the scintillations of masse8 of gilded crystal .
b

t the hea
.
ds of these masses of gorgeous pluma_e ar
hidden behmd enormous _ol den suns ; the representation
of the human fce bei ug the especial horror of the Mos
l

mah. At the Cud of the sanctuary, beneath the oven

like arc which forms i ts termination, are vaguely traceable
te outlmes of a colossal fgure, which the deposi t of the
hme has not altogether obliterated : this was the image of
th

pntro

of the church,-nn emhodment of the Divne
\V1

dom m an individual form, the Agia-Sopltia ; and

wh1ch, benenth l1is half-transpaent veil , still preside8
over the ceremomes of a hostile fai t h.
uC 8IuIuC8 have been removed. 'he altar, made of
an unknown metal ,-the result, l ike the Corinthi an brass
of a
.
combi uation of gold 8il ver OOuzC I:OL up
.
g , , rCcIOu8
stne8, 1 : n
.
sta:e of fusi on,-is replaced by a slab of red
marbl e, mdiCatmg the direction of Mecca. Above, hangs
uH old and worn carpet, a mere dirty rag, which possesses,
for the Turks, the unspeakable merit, of being one of the
four carpets on which Mahomet himself knelt to pCrform
his devotions.
Immense green disks, _iven by diferent oultans, are
81lNT-SOPHIA.
277
attached to the walls, and inscribed WI!u VC:8C8 fom the
Kora, or piou8 ma.ims, witten in enormous golden
letters. A 8croll of porphyry, bem8 the names of Allah,
of Mahomet, and of the frst four Knlifs : Abu-Beki r,
Omar, OsmUn, and Ali . The pulpit (ntbar), where the
klwt stands to rend the Koran, J8 pl accd a_uinst one of
the pillars, and 8 reached by a steep staircase, decorated
with two balustdes of open carvin_, of a delicacy un
suassed by that of the :nest lace. The reader ahvuys
ascends with the Book of the Law L one hand and a
drawn sHbre in the other, as in a conquCred mosque.
Cords, fom which Ure suspendCd tuf of silk, and
o8t:ch C__8, han_ I1O!u the dome to withi n ten or Iwelve
feet of I!C foor, su8tUiniu_ circles of iron 'YiTe, deco
rated ,,,ith lump8 t form a chandelier. Desks in the
form of X, 8imilar to those which we use to support
portfolio8 of Cu_ru\u_8-L fUct, U sort of tressels-are
di spersed about the mosque, to 8upport manuscripts of
the Koran. Many are orameuted with enmel , or deli-
cate inl ayin_s of brass, or mother-of-pearl.
u!S of rushes in the summer, and carpets i n the
witer, cover the pUvement, formed of slabs of marble, IuC
Vtn8 of which u:C skl1ully Urran_ed, to _ive the appear
ance of three steams , congealed, as they fow in wa'
unduations through the edifce. The mt8 also present U
singular pecuiarity ; they a:e placed obl i quCly, and con
trary to the lnes of the Uchitecture ; like the plank8 of
U foor, placed diagonally, instead of parallel, to the wall8
which enclose them. But !D8 strage pecuarity is soon
cXp!ained. ounI-CoDu was not o:i _inally designed for U
mosque, and consequently does not s'Ld i te proper
directon, rel atively to Mecca.
Many of the mosques.
_
much resemble, internally, Pro-
teHtant churches, Or rather " chapels." Art 8 not there
278
CONSTAN'NOPLE.
alowed to displ ay it elegancies. Pious inscriptions, a
pulpit, reading desks. mats to cover the foors ; and you
have all the ' ' ornament " that i s permit ted. The one
idea of DEITY should fl His temple, and is suficienty
vast to do so unasSisted.
I admit, Dowever, that the arIiSIic elegance of the
Cathol i c and Episcopal churches, seems to me preferable ;
and the alleged danger of idol atry, is t be feared only
aIong H barbarous and ignorant people, incapable of
distinguishing the form from the spiri t-the image from
the idea. There is also, certainly, an express indi cati on
of reverence and adoration, in the mere fact of thus
ehricDi ng our tempes ; and, i f it be esteemed bccominO
c
to adorn the halls in Whch WC do honour to earthly
potenttes, how much more, the palaces hich we dedi
cate to the KING of KINGs !
The chief cupola of Saint-Sophia, a l ittle brokun in IIS
curve, is surrounded by several hal f- dores, like those of
Saint-Mark. It is of imuense height, and uuSI have
shone like a sun of gold and D0S!0, UuJO!6 IDC OSCm
coating of l ime extinguished its spendours. But, such
as i t was, i t produced upon me an impresSion U\LJ more
startling than the dome of Suint-Peter. The Byzantine
nrchitecture is certanly thC sIyle necessary for Catho
liciSm. Even Gothic archi tecture, Wu!0V0I i ts reli(rious
c
value, 1s not so perfectly adapted to this object. Despite
its deteriorations of all sorts, Saint-Sophia Still stands
above all other CDristian churches that I havU seen ; and
I VC seen many. Nothing can equal the majesty of I8
domes ; the tiibunes resting agai nst its columns of jasper,
of porphyry, and of verd-autique, with their strange Co
ri nthian capitu1s ; or the animals, the chiueras, and the
crosses, enlaced among its sculptured foilage. The superb
of Greece, athough degenerate, still makes itself felt ;
SAINT-SOPHIA.
and one can understnd that when Christ enters the !empC,
Jupiter must go forth.
.
Some years since, Saint-Sophia was menaced with de
struction. The wall b
.
egan to bulge, fssures to appear in
the domes, and the pavement to undulate ; and the
colums, fatgued, perhaps, with standing so long up
riCht leaned in all directions, like drunken men. Nothig
w:s in line ; the vhole building leaned visibly on one side ;
and, despite the buttresses erected by Amuuth, the church
mosque, worn by the lapse of centuries and shaken by
repeated eartl1quakes, appeared tottering to itC falL
An exceedingly capable Tessinese acl1itect, howe:er,
(Si gnor Fossati) , undertook the
.
difcult tas:t of re

cumg
thi s noble monument of antiqmty from rum ; whiCh he
efcted by under- pinning, portion by portion, wi th inde
fatigable caution and activity. Bands of
.
brass 1ere
thrown about the riven pillars ; supporters of uon propped
the sinking arches ; massive ground-works sust ained the
trembling walls ; the crevices 1vere flled up ; the crum
bling stones replaced by those of fresher and sb
.
onger
quality ; musses of masonry, whose purpose was shluly
di sguised under the garb of ornament, were made to bear
the enormous weight of the cupolH ; and, at l ength, thanks
to this elaborate and skilful restoration, Suint-Sophia
could still promise itself many centuries
.
of existence
:
Durint> the progress of the works, S1gnor Fossutl had
C

the curiosity to exhume many of tho \tC

DO8008
from the bed of lime in which they ere bur1ed ; and,
before covering them again, he caused them to be care
fully copied ; a proceeding, the fruits of whi ch, it i s to be
hoped, may be one day given to tlw world.
.
These mosaics are those of the cupola and th denu
donies. The others, which decorte the l ower walls, may
be regarded as destroyed. The mollahs reroyc, almost
280 LLbH1LiL.
daily, with their knives, cubes of crystal , covered with
gold leaf, and sell them to stangers. I mysel possess
some half-dozen of theset detached in my presence ; for,
although I am not one of those tourists who break of
.
the
noses of stues, as a souvenir of the monuments they have
visitd, I could not di sappoint the hope of a gatuit
y
which inspired the worthy Moslem who ofred me these
. memorials.
.
From the height of the tribunes (which are reached
by gentle winding slopes, as i n the Giralda or the Campa
nill a ), an admirable view of the mosque is obtained. At
this moment, some fithful belieyers, kneeling upon the
matting, are devoutly performing their
J
>rostrations ; two
or three fmales, wrapped
.
i n their feredges, stand near
one of the doors, and a porter, with his head supported
on the base of a pillar, is sl eepi ng with all his might. A
soft and tender li ght falls from the elevated windows ; and
I can see, iu the distant recess, opposite the pulpit, the
spaLkle of the gol den gratings of the tribune reserved for
the Sultan.
A species of })latform, supported by columns of finest
marble and oman:uted with curved railings, rises at each
point of intersection of the aisles. In the side-chapels
(useless in the Mussulman 1ituul ), nre heaped trunks,
boxes, and packages of al kinds ; for, i the East, the
mosques serve as store-houses, uud those who UL going
away on a journey, or who fear being roLbed at home,
deposi t their wealth under the immediate protection of
Allah ; and there has never been an instance of the loss of
a farthi ng under such circumstances, for theft would need
to combine itself with sacrilege. Heaps of dust accumulate
upon masses of gold, or of precious objects, scarcely
covered with \\Tappers of coarse cloth, or old leather ;
and the spi der, so cherished among the Turks, for having
b1^~bA.
281
thrown his web across the mouth of the cave in which the
Prophet was concealed, weaves his thread peaceflly about
the l oclu, which no OJe tkes the trouble to use.
Around the mosque are grouped hospitals, <'alleges,
baths, and kitchens for the poor ; for the whole of Moslem
life gathers around the house of God. People without
hore sleep beneath the arches, where no police disturb
them, for they are tl1e guests of AUah. The faithful pray
there ; the females go there to dream away their time ;
and the si ck are trancported thither, to be cured or to di e.
In the East, the present life is never separated from reli
gion anr the thought of the future.
. I sought in vai n, in Sai nt-S.ophia, for the imprint of
the bloody hand, which Mahomet II. , dashing, on horse
back, into the sanctuary, imprinted upon the wall, in sign
of taking possession as conqueror, while the women and
maidens were crowded round the altr as a last refuge fom
the besi eging army, and expecting rescue by U miracle,
which did not occur. This bloody imprint of the conqueror' s
hand-is it an historical fact, or only an idle legend ?
\Vhil c writing the word " legend,' ' I recall a remark
able one, ,vhich is current at Constantinople, and to which
the eyent of the day give a peculiar interest.
"Vhen the aates of Saint-Sophia gave 'vay, beneath the
C
pressure of the barbarian hordes who stormed the c1tJ of
Constantine, U priest was before the altar, performmg
mass. At the noise made upon the pavement of J usti
nian by the hoofs of the Tartar horses, the shout of :he
soldiers, and the terri fc cries of the lfoslems, the pnest
paused in his sacred ofce, took with
.
hi

the sa
?
rnmentnl
vases, and retired towards one of the s1de Isles, w1th a cal m
and deliberate step. The soldiers brandished their swords,
as if to slaughter the priest, when he suddely di sap
peared, throu_D 0 wall which opened to receiYe him ;
s
282 CONSTANTINOPLE.
means, as one would suppose, of a secret door ; but
no, the wall was frm, compact, impenetrable. The priest
had passed through a mass of solid masonr.
Sometimes are heard, even now ( it is sUid), fint notes
of psalmody, through the thickness of the wall. It i s the
saintly fther, still . living, who repeats, in hi s miracu10JS
sleep, portions of his interrupted liturgy. When Sai nt
Sophia shal l be again restored to Christian worship, the
wall will once more open of itself, and the priest, issuing
from his long retreat, will return, to fnish, at the altar,
the mass commenced four hundre years before.
If, according to invariabl e rule in thes legcndary pre
di ctions, 'e allow the addi tional " one year," which com
pl etes the mystic period (as does the " one day," in the
term of " a year and a day," so well known in all mdgicHl
tales) ; and assume that four hundred and one years com
plete the tale of the predicted time, the 29th of May, i n thi s
present year ( 1 854), wil be the day on wl1ich the sleeping
pri est should
a
ain cross the nave of Saint-Sophia, and
mount, with phantom-tread, the steps of the altar of Justi
nian, to consummate his mutilated rites. It is strange, at
least, that the event of thi epoch, should have Tendered U
Christi Un le-occupation of SUint-Sophia wi thin the pre
scribed period (at one moment), no very remote possi
bility ; but whether it is still to be accomplished, i s
another question, under the present aspects . 1
On issuing from Sai nt-Sophia, I visi ted several other
mosques.
Tltt of Sultan-Achmct, si tuated ner the Atmcidan,
is one of the most remarkable, It presents the pecu-
1 Porl11ps te opinion of the Anglo-French allied forces, might,
now, have some weight in furnishing reply to this qucstion.
'HANS.
1 MOSQUES. 283
liarit
y
of having six minaet, which has given it the
designation, i Turkish, of " Alti -Minare1i-D:uni ; " and
I menti on this, hecase it gave occasion, during the
erection of the edifice, to a ferce debate bet\ecn the
Sulta and the Iman of Mecca. The Iman declared that
the Sultn was Ubout to commit an act of sacrilege ; for
that no other mosque should presume to rhTal in splendour
the nost holy J{aba of Mecca, fanked by just that
number of minarets. The works were suspended, and
the mosque was in danger of . never being fnished, when
the Sultan, being U man of intelligence, discovered an in
genious subterfuge to close the mouth of the fanatical
Iman : he caused U seventh minaret to be added to the
Iaabn, and then proceeded to the completion of his own
maonifcent work, in accordance with its ori ginal design.
C

This mosque cost a fabul ous sum fur its construchon,

and it has even been reckoned that each drachm wei ght
of stone in the buildi ng had cost three a.spns I "That
ever the precise total, it must have been very great. It
lofty dome rises mnjestically in the midst of several lesser
nes, and surrounded by six superb mi narets, each en
circled by its graceful gallery as by a 1racelet. It is
faced by a court, surrounded by columns, with capitals
of white and black, and haYing bases of bronze, sup
porting arches which form U quadruple range of cloisters
to the portico ; if one may apply the word " cloister " to
mosque. In the midst of thi s court, r ises a richly-orna
mented fountain, covered with a sort of cage of gilded
trellis-work, doubtless to protect the purity of the water
destined for rel igions ablutions.
The style of all the architecture is noble and pure,
and recalls the grandest epoch of Arabian art ; although
the actual date of the structure goes back no fnrther than
the beginning of the seventeenth 'entury. A door of
2
284
LbbAN1 "LL.
bronze, reached by three steps, gives access to the interior
of the mosque. The beholder is most i mpressed, at frst
sight, by the four col ossal columns, or rather the fou
futed towers, which support the masshe weight of the
princi pal dome. These pi l l ars, with capi tals carved in
st1 actite, are encircled, at mid-hei ght, by a plain band,
covered with inscri pti ons in Turki sh letters. They have
a cl1nracter,. al together, of wonderful ma
j
esty, endurance,
and power.
Verses of the Koran encircle, also, tl1e cupol as and
domes, and run along the cori cef ;. U species of orna .
ment, imitated fom the Al hambra, and t which the
Arabic writi ng lends itelf charmingly, wi tl} i t,s characters
of \'eritable " arabesque," resembl ing those designs of
smpassing richness, which UU seen upon the genuine
shawl s of cachmere.
Key-stones, ahCrately black and whi te, adorn the
summits of . the arches ; the mtalb, which indi cates the
directi on of Mecca and contuins the sacred book, is en
crusted with lapis-lazuli, agate, and jasper ; and it is said
to contain also a fiagment of the black stone of the
Knnba ; U reli c as preci ous for Mussul man, as a frag
ment of the " True Cross " for a Catholic. It i s i n this
mosque, also, that is preserved the Standard of the Pror
phet ; which, like the Orifamme of the ancient French
monnrchy, is never displayed, except upon occasions of
the most supreme solemni ty. Mahmoud caused it to be tl is
pluyed, wheu, surrounded by the Irans, he announced t
the prostrate multitude the decree of extermination at rainst
the j1missari cs.
O
A pulpit, surmounted by its roi1i cal sounding-board
the rnastaclws, or platforms raised upon pill ars, whence
the muezzins cnl l tho faithful to prayer-and the chande
l iers, decorated wi th gl obes of crystal and ostrich ecrtrs
OC *
. THE MOSQUES. 285
complete t10 decorati on, which is o f the same character
in all the mosques. As in Saint-Sophia, beneath the side
arches, are heaped boxes, trunks, and packages, placed
there ni1eler the Divine protection.
Near the mosque is the turbe. or tomb, of Achmet him
self ; the glorious Padi scha, who sleeps i n his funeral
chapel, beneath his cofn, which is covered with the most
precious stufs of India and Persia ; hUving at his head his
turban, with its jewelled aigrette, and at foot two giganti c
tnpers, like the masts of U ship for size. Thi rty l esser cofns
suround him, being those of his children and hi s favourite
wives, who keep him company in death i n l i fe. At the
extremity of the turbe, stands a cabinet, gleaming with
sabres, kandj ars, and other arms, literally blazing with
gems.
These detailed descriptions of tl1e two moft remarlmble
mosques, alow me to dispense with any description of the
mosque of Sultan-Bayezid (Bajazet), which di frs in no
important particulars from the others ; nnd those parti
culars, such demand rather the pencil than the pen,
for their illusttion. One may remark, in the interior,
some beautiful pillars of jasper and porphyry ; and above
the cloister which is attached to the mosque, hover per
petually clouds of pigeons, as familiarly as those in the
Place of Saint-Mark at Venice. A wort.y old Turk is
always in attendance, beneat the arches, wit a sack of
grain, of which you buy a small measure, and scatter by
handfuls upon the ground ; when, in a moment, domes,
pilars, mnarets, and corices, give forth myiads of
pigeons, who precipitate themselves at your feet, almost
brushing your face with their wings ; and you fnd
yourself in the midst of a whirlwind of plumage. In
H fe. seconds, not a grain of cor remains upon the
pavement, and the feathery cloud rises agai to its
286 LDb1ADJHLL.
eril position This world of pigeons comes fom
single pair, which the Sultan Bajazct purchased from
U poor old woman who solicited his charity, nd ga.ve
to the mosque. Jhey have certinly multiplied amaz
ingly ; but, doubtess, their lives are sacred
According to the custom of the founders of mosques,
Baazet has his turbe JL to that to wh.ich. he has given
4is name. He sleeps there, covered with a drapery of
golq and silver, and having beneth the bead-with un
assumption of humility_ rather Christian than Mahometun
in character-a brick, made :om the dust upon his gar
ment: and his shoes ; for there is in the Koran, the
following verse . " He who i s soiled with dust in the
paths of All ah, has nothig to fear fom the fires of hell."
\Ve will extend no fa1ther this review of mosques ;
which, as already remarked_ greatly resemble each other,
having only slight architectural variations.
It is well to mention the Suleimaniel1; as one of the
most perfeUt in it architecture ; and near which stands
the tmbe, where reposes, beside Soliman I. , the cele
brated Toxalrma, beneath cofn covered with cache
meres. Not fr from thi s mosque_ is_ a sarcophagus of
porphyry, said to be that of Constantine .
BUYUK-DBRt. 357
XXX.
1JJ-JL1 OF J11J.
BuYUK-DBRE, seen from the terrace of Therapia, is one of
the Jost charming pleasure village in the world. The
shore curYes at this place, and describes a semi~circle,
into which the waters pour, to subside in gentle undulations
upon the beach. Elegant habitations (among which i s
discernible the summer palace of the Russian EUbUsy)
rise upon the bordeIs of the sea, at the foot of the hills
which form the channel of the Bosphorus. The rich mer
chants of Constantinople poOsess there country houses, to
which, every nightg they are conveyed by steam-boat, to be
re-conveyed to their plaes of business every _morning.
Upon the terrace of Buyuk-Der&, afer sunset, the
Greek and Armenian ladies, superbly dressed, promenade.
The lights of the caes and tha houses blend in the water
wi th the silvry wake of the moon and the refections of
tho stars. A bIeze, laden with perfume and freshness
sighs gently, and waves the air like a fan moved by the
invisible hand of Night. Orchestras of HungdriaD musi
cians give to the echoes the waltzes of StraObs ; and the
bulbul sings the poem of his loves with the Los hidden
beneath .the tufts of the myrtles.
After day of heat, tbe frame, renimated by this
balmy air, feels a dUlicious sense of being ; and it is with
regret, that one retires to rest.'
Tho hotel recently opened at Buyuk-Dere (and rendered
358 CONSTANTINOPLE.
necessary by the number of vi si tors), is well kept. H has
a large garden, i n which the branches of a superb plane-tree
e:

and themselves, among the boughs of which is established

a httle bo\'er, wherein I took my breakfast, shaded by U
parasol of leaves. A I was admiring the size of this tree
I was told, that, in a plain at the end of the chief street of
the village, was another, much more enormous and known
as " the plane-tree of Godfrey de Bouillon., '
I went to see .it) and at frst glance, I seemed to behold
rather a :orest than a tree. The trunk, composci of an ag
gom

rati On
.
of seven or eight s tems, resembles a tower,
dilapidated In parts , enormous roots, like giant serpents
half hidden in the gro

nd, creep upon tho soil ; and the

bough! have more the au of horizontal trees than of mere
rances. In its si des gape black caverns fled by decay,
I wluc the herdsmen sit, as i n a grotto, and make tires
here, Without disturbi ng the giant tree more than do the
msects that
.
cr

wl upon i ts bark. It is maj estically pi c

turesq

e, wi th
,
I t

monstrous masses of foli age, over which
centuries have ghded li ke drops of rai n ; and which have
seen outspread beneath thei r shade, the tents of heroes sun('
by Tasso, in his " Jerusalem Del i vered.
c
But do not let us abandon , ourselyes to poetry. See,
here

be history, which comes, as usual, to contradict the
trad1tlon.
'rhe learned declare that Godfrey de Bouillon never en
camped beneath thi s tree, and they bring, for proof, a pas
sag

from Anna Commenus, a contemporary of the facts,
whwh certamly des Lroys the legend But
.
1 l . , never 1e ess,
Oou
_
nt R<Joul established his camp at Buyuk-Dcre, with other
Lat m Crusaders ; and the peopl e subsequently oave to the
tr

e the name of Godfiey de Bouillon, whicl in their

mmds, was specially identifed with the whole crusade.
lUYUK-DERE.
359
Be this as i t may, the millennia! tree is ever there, full
of nest and of sunbeams, seeing the years fall at its .feet
like leaves ; itself, from century to century, more frm and
more colossal ; while the wi nds of the desert have long
since scattered, among the sands, the impalpable ashes of
the Crusaders.
The Ca1lene was moored at Therapia, in front of
the French Embassy ; and on this night the Ambassador
gave an entertai nment to the crew, composed of some twelve
hundred men. The sailors hd arranged a theatrical per
formance in the gardens of the Embasy, which t,hey enacted
wi th surpasing skill,. to the great amusement . of their fellow
sailors, nnd d numerous audi ence of Europeans, either
residents or belonging to the other Legations.
'l' he weather was lovely ; and, after the entertainme
.
nt,
l resolved to retUn, thal very night, to Constantinople, in
a caique with two pairs of oars, manned by two robust
Arnaouts. Although it wa ten o'clock when I started, I
could see perfectly, and in faith better than
,
i n London at
mi d-day. It \vas not a night, but a softened day, of incon
cei vable purity and transpUrency. I established. myself in
tho stern of my cai que, with my paletot buttoned to the
throat,-for the dew fell in fne silvery drops, like the
noctural tears of the stars, and the bottom of the boat U
qui te damp.
My Arnaouts had thrown j acket over their striped
shirts, and we commenced the descent of the stream. The
cai que, aided by the current and imptlled by four vigorous
arms, few along almost as apidly as a steamer, amid the
luminous trembl ing of the water. The hills and capes of
the shore threw large shadows across the silvery surface of
the waves ; lightt burned here and there, on board ships at
anchor, or in the distant windows of the villages. No noise
380 LLb1&^1^L1.
heard, but the measured breathing of the oaidis_ the
rythmical movement of the oars, the ripple of the water,
and an occasional distant barking of some awakened dog-
From time to time, a meor would shoot across the
heavens, and die away like a rocket. The milky way un
rolled its zone of white, wi th brightness and defniteness
of outline unknown in the misty nights of the North ;
the stars shone, even in the wake of the moon. It was a
marvel of tranquil magnifcence, and serene splendour-
In contemplating this vault of lapis-lazuli, I could not
but ask, " Why is tho sky so splendid, when the world is
asleep ; ` and why do the stars not rise, but at the hour
when all eyes are closed " This fairyli ke illumination is
seen by no one. It is displayed only fr the nyctalopic
eyes of mvls, bats, and cats. Does the Divi ne Decorator
despi se the world, that He does not display His most mag
nifcent pictures until the spectators have retired ? This i s
not fatteri ng to human pri de ; but then the earth is only
a speck a grai n of seed, lost i n the in1mensi ty of space ;
and, as Victor Hugo says, " the normal state of the sky
is ni ght.
One o'clock lud struck, when my boat grazed the land
i ng at Top-Han e. I li ghted my canterio, and climbed the
deserted streets, until I gained my apartment_ i n the Great
Field of Pera,-exhausted but del ighted.
The next' day, I visited " The Sweet-waters of Europe,
at the extremi ty of the GoldenHorn. Passing the thin
bridges of boats (the last of which has been hitely built by
a wealthy Armenian, at hi s own charge), I clenrcd the docks
of the naval arsenal,where, upon stocks, hung suspended
carcasses of ships, like skeletons of mammoths or whales,
and, going between Eyoub and Pein-Pasha, I soon entered
THE SWEET-WATERS OF EUROPE. 361
the archipelago of low islands which divide the embouchure
of the Cydaris and Barbyses, united a li ttle before they fll
i nto the sea.
Some herons and swans, their baks upon their wings,
and one foot held up aainst thei r breasts, looked at us wi th
a friendly air as we pased ; gulls fapped our faces with
thei r wings, and hawks described circles above our heads.
As we advance, the murmur of Constantinople dies away,
and soli tude begins : the country succeeds to the town by
an insensible transi tion.
The Sweet-waters of Europe are more especially fe
quented during the winter. The Sultan ha a kiosk there,
with artifi cial waters and cascades, bordered by charming
pavilions, in Turkish style. This residence was built by
Mahmoud ; but as i t is scarcely ever i nhabi ted, and not
kept in repair it has sufered greatly from neglect, and is
almost i n rui ns.
The caal overflows, and the disjoi nted stones allow the
water to escape, while parasitical plants blend with the UU
besques of the walls. It is said that Mahmoudg having
built this charming nest for a favourite odalisque refused
agai n to visit it, after an early death had taken her from
him. Since that time, a veil of melancholy appears t hang
over this deserted palace, buried in masses of sycamores,
beeches, and planetrees_ which almost hide il from the eye
of the traveller, li ke the thick forest that surrounds the cha
teau of the Sleeping Beauty of the Wood ; and the weeping
wi llows drop sadly into the water their tears of foliage-
O n that particular day, there was no visitor but myself_
and after wandering for a time beneath the trees, I paused
at a li ttl e caf6 to take some yottmtl (milk~curd) and
a morsel of bread-a frugal repast, of which I stood I
great need.
362 CONSTANTINOPLE.
In place of retuLing in my cai que, I took a horse, and
retraced my way by Pein-Pasha, Has-Keu', and Kasim
Paha, towards San-Demetri , the Greek village near the
Great Cemetery of Pera ; and, following vast naked felds, I
arrived at Ock-Meidani, which on would take, at a dis-
' tance, for cemetery, so thickly is it studded wi th a mur
ti tude of smal columns of marble.
. It is, however, merely the place where the Sultans used
to practise thIowi ng the djerid ; and these l i ttle monuments
are to mark the spots of extraordinarily successful casts.
They are very simple, and have for ornament only an in
scription, or someti mes only a star of brass, on the summi t.
The djerid is fallen into disuse, and the most modern of
these columns a1e already old. The old customs di sappear,
and will soon be only remembrances.
Seventy-t\O days have elapsed since I reaced Constan
tinople, and I know i ts every street and corner. Doubtl ess,
this is a very short time i n which to study the character
and manners of a nation, but it is enough to sei ze the pic
turesque physiognomy of a city ; and that the sole
obect of my visit.
Life i s alled-in in the East ; Ieligious preudi ces and
old habits oppose aU attempt to penetrate its mysteries ;
the language is unacqui rable, ex?ept by a study of seven or
eight years ; and one is forced to be contented with a view
of the external panorama. A few weeks' prolongati on of
my boj. ourn. would have gained me no advantage
;
and,
besides this, I began to hav a longi ng once more for pic
tures,. statues, and workb of art. 'be everlasti ng bal masque
of the streets had began to weary me. I had seen Unough
of veils
;
I wished to ste a few faces.
This mystery, whi ch at frst occupies the i magination,
THE SWJET-WAT.RS OF EUROPE. 36!
becomes fatiguing at length, particularly when one fnds
that the veil is rally impenetrable. You soon ceae t
think of it, and throw only absent glances upon the phan
toms which glide past you . . Ennui gains upon you, despite
the Frankish society of Pera ; which, although composed
of mos worthy people, is not altogethr amusing, paIticu-
larly for a poet.
.
I theIefore secured a cabin on board the Austrian vessel
the lmpetore, to go to Athens (by Cor1espondUnce with
Syra), visi t Corinth, the Gulf of Lepanto, Patros, Corfu, the
Mountain of the Chi mera, and reach Trieste by coating the
shores of the Adri atic.
I see already, in i magination, shining upon the rock of
the Acropolis, the white Uolonnade of the Parthenon, wi th
i ts i nterstices of azure j and the minarets of Sai nt-Sophi a
gi ve me no more pleasure. My spirit, turned towards another
goal,. was no longer i mpressed by the surrounding obj ects.
I depalted ; and yet, al though glad to depart, I took
one l ast look at Constantinople, disappearing on the verge
of the horizon, wi th that i ndefnable feeling of regret which
presses upon the heart, when one qui ts spot which he may
probably never more behold.
2