Page:From Constantinople to the home of Omar Khayyam.djvu/444

 264 MASHAD, THE HOLY CITY OF PERSIA

left beneath its tower-flanked walls, crossing a narrow bridge over the dry moat to enter one of the town's seven gates, on either side of which a couple of ragged soldiers stood watch, while the gaudy tile work on the columns that crowned the portal gleamed bright in the beaming sunlight. A short drive along the main avenue of the city, and one or two winding turns in addition, brought our vehicle into the grounds of the British Consulate, where a hearty welcome was extended by Major P. M. Sykes and his hospitable wife, who joined in making our stay at Mashad one of the pleasantest memories of our entire journey.

Mashad has been so often and so well described that it would be impossible for a brief sojourner to add anything of value to what has already been written on the subject. Lord Curzon, with consummate art, skimmed the best cream from the ac- counts by his predecessors, especially Eraser, Eastwick, Khani- koff, and Vambery (correcting at the same time certain errors that had crept into previous reports), and himself was able to contribute much to a better understanding of the city and its history.^ Colonel Yate, from a special knowledge of local con- ditions and Oriental sources, was in a position to offer still further material, not formerly accessible ;2 while Major Sykes, from his residence for a number of years at Mashad in an official capacity, as well as from a thorough acquaintance with Persian affairs, has been able to give a vivid picture of the town and a particularly accurate description of its celebrated sanc- tuary, in portraying which he had the help of an Oriental col- laborator, as no Christian can now enter the sacred precinct except at the risk of being mobbed. ^ Einally, to the pen of his

1 Consult the exhaustive chapter by Sykes, Historical Notes on Khurasan, Curzon, Persia, 1. 148-176. in JBAS. 1910, p. 1129-1148, and the

2 See the two chapters on the his- same author's Glory of the Shia World tory of Mashad and its shrine, Yate, (assisted by Khan Bahadur Ahmad Khurasan, pp. 313-346. Din Khan), pp. 233-257, London and

8 This valuable presentation is pub- N.Y., 1910. Cf.vonSchweinitz, Orient. lished in two different places, see Wanderungen, pp. 15-30, Berlin, 1910.

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