Page:History of Art in Sardinia, Judæa, Syria and Asia Minor Vol 1.djvu/178

 i6o A History of Art in Sardinia and Jud/ea. record the completion of a canal between el Rogel (Virgin's Fountain) and the Pool of Siloam. The letters are exceedingly- rude and archaic and almost illegible. 1 Consequently, when we come to examine the stones encased in portions of the wall— in pilasters, capitals, pedestals, and so forth, it would be more than useless to hope in the turning up of dates, names, and records of passing events. All we shall have to go upon in order to determine their relative age will be their size, shape, and mode of preparation. It will be conceded that a plain cut stone is more difficult to define than the characteristic outline of a moulding, which is of a nature to strike the most unobservant. Where these elements have not been disturbed, where they seem to have been incorporated with the surrounding materials, this should be heralded and given great prominence, for it will lead to a proper classification and estimate of the. various methods that were resorted to. But a similar procedure is not so easy as at first appears. Archaeologists who have busied themselves with this question, men of unquestionable merit and integrity, are not agreed on the results of their observations and of their researches. The stone used in building Jerusalem, ancient and modern, is the white limestone of the country. 2 It is soft when first quarried, but it soon hardens by exposure, furnishing a very solid material if care is taken to remove the less hard and resisting portions. Owing no doubt to the ignorance of the ancient builder, this pre- caution was neglected in the construction of the first wall. The quarries out of which the kings, from Solomon to Herod, derived their building material, extends under the north quarter of the town, one of the entrances being still visible. 3 The blocks ex- 1 The inscription is in the form of a rectangular cartouche, and consists of six graven lines in the canal itself. Pending its translation and publication in the Corpus. Inscrip. Semit., an excellent reproduction will be found in V e. Rapport, Plate VII., by M. Ganneau, 1881 (Archives et Missions, 3 e série, torn. xi.). A cast of this interesting monument is in the British Museum, close to the Mesa Stone ; with which it unfavourably contrasts. The Biblical and Archaeological Society has published a translation of both inscriptions, with critical and explanatory notes. — Editor. 2 The plateau upon which the city stands consists of two strata ; the upper beds yield an extremely hard compact stone, called by the Arabs " mezzeh," whilst the lower, in which most of the ancient tombs and cisterns have been cut, are of a soft white stone called "melekeh." The mezzeh was generally selected for building purposes (Recovery, p. 8). 8 Josephus, Bell.Jud., V. iv. 2. See also "Royal Caverns or Quarries," by Simpson,