Even just walking around the hallways is interesting.

2000 years ago Mount Erciyes erupted in Central Turkey, spewing ash and lava over the Cappadocia region. When the disaster had settled, the terrain was covered in soft-rock pillars that eroded away over the next few centuries.

When people returned to Cappadocia they discovered that the rocks were easily carved, and began creating churches, monasteries and dwellings inside the pillars. They decorated them with Christian paintings, sculpted intricate patterns and turned them into wonders of ancient architecture. These underground cities have stood the test of time and today are one of the most fascinating sights in the area. Something that people dream about when researching a trip to Turkey

Any itinerary to Turkey should include at least two attractions – Exploring Istanbul, the historic capital city, and flying in a hot air balloon over Cappadocia. The latter is one of the best “bucket list” items you can do, and there is nothing quite like floating over the fairy chimneys of Goreme.

But besides the hot air ballooning there are also a lot of other excellent activities in the region, such as hiking, mountain biking, visiting underground cities and horse riding. At least a few days is needed to enjoy everything, and when trying to pick somewhere to rest your head at night there is no better choice than Kale Konak Cave Hotel in Uçhısar.

There are plenty of beautiful decorations around the hotel to add character.

Only 2km from Goreme and situated at the base of the Uçhısar Castle, the Kale Konak Cave Hotel offers an incredible experience with impeccable service. In a place where hundreds of cave hotels have opened to cater for the huge numbers of tourists that visit each year, Kale Konak has taken a step above all and become one of the best boutique hotels in Cappadocia.

Outdoor Patio View Kale Konak Cave Hotel Uchisar Goreme Best Boutique Hotel Cappadocia

The patio by day.

The central courtyard.

Caves with character!

Even just walking around the hallways is interesting.

From the moment we arrived the attentive staff greeted us with a snack plate and cups of fresh apple tea. They went above and beyond to make us feel welcome, which was much appreciated after our long overnight bus ride from the town of Trabzon. The manager Abdullah soon joined us and we chatted and talked for almost an hour before getting a tour of the boutique hotel. Being early December, the hotel was empty except for two guests, so we had the chance to have a look at almost all the immaculately decorated rooms. We were blown away with just how much attention to detail has been put into Kale Konak, and how they have succeeded in using the existing porous rocks as a building frame for creating pure luxury.

We were then shown to our special cave suite, and were blown away from the moment we walked in. The cave room was spacious and tastefully decorated, with subtle lighting throughout the room and lots of comfortable sitting areas. Besides the huge bed (it was seriously massive), we had a couch, table, chairs, a TV, entrance hall and a large bathroom. Unless you suffered from severe claustrophobia, it would be impossible to feel cramped. We even had free wifi in our cave. We’ve been to a lot of caves before, but never before could we check emails while being underground.

Our amazing cave room.

 

If one chanced to go out of the cottage after nightfall for anything

My grandfather (the kingdom of heaven be his! may he eat only wheaten rolls and poppy-seed cakes with honey, in the other world!) Could tell a story wonderfully well. When he used to begin a tale you could not stir from the spot all day, but kept on listening.

He was not like the story-teller of the present day, when he begins to lie, with a tongue as though he had had nothing to eat for three days, so that you snatch your cap and flee from the house.

I remember my old mother was alive then, and in the long winter evenings when the frost was crackling out of doors, and had sealed up hermetically the narrow panes of our cottage, she used to sit at her wheel, drawing out a long thread in her hand, rocking the cradle with her foot, and humming a song, which I seem to hear even now.

The lamp, quivering and flaring up as though in fear of something, lighted up our cottage; the spindle hummed; and all of us children, collected in a cluster, listened to our grandfather, who had not crawled off the stove for more than five years, owing to his great age.

But the wondrous tales of the incursions of the Zaporozhian Cossacks and the Poles, the bold deeds of Polkova, of Poltar-Kozhukh, and Sagaidatchnii, did not interest us so much as the stories about some deed of old, which always sent a shiver through our frames and made our hair rise upright on our heads.

Terror possession

Sometimes such terror took possession of us in consequence of them, that, from that evening forward, Heaven knows how wonderful everything seemed to us. If one chanced to go out of the cottage after nightfall for anything, one fancied that a visitor from the other world had lain down to sleep in one’s bed; and I have often taken my own smock, at a distance, as it lay at the head of the bed, for the Evil One rolled up in a ball! But the chief thing about grandfather’s stories was, that he had never lied in all his life; and whatever he said was so was so.

I will now tell you one of his wonderful tales. I know that there are a great many wise people who copy in the courts, and can even read civil documents, but who, if you were to put into their hand a simple prayer-book, could not make out the first letter in it, and would show all their teeth in derision.

S: https://plenary.ensarislamoglu.com/st-johns-eve-part-2/

First, you need to know the official story as told by Anoka Halloween

POKE AROUND THE RIGHT parts of the internet for a few minutes and it’s easy to find what is supposedly the first city in the United States to hold a Halloween parade: Anoka, Minnesota, the self-proclaimed “Halloween Capital of the World.” Dig a little deeper, though, and the story turns out to be more complicated.

First, you need to know the official story as told by Anoka Halloween, Inc., the non-profit organization that promotes Anoka’s history and organizes the annual festival. According to legend, the town’s parade dates back to 1920.

“Anoka, Minnesota is believed to be the first city in the United States to put on a Halloween celebration to divert its youngsters from Halloween pranks,” the history page reads. “When Anokans awoke to find their cows roaming Main Street, windows soaped and outhouses tipped over, they decided something had to be done.”

The people of the town organized a costume parade and block party, so the story goes. A man named George Green came up with the idea along with city leaders like the Anoka Commercial Club and the Anoka Kiwanis Club.

The parade was a success, with bands, clubs, and city groups taking part. There was popcorn, candy, and peanuts. At the end, a sanctioned bonfire raged at Bridge Square. “Celebrations have been held every year since 1920 with the exception of 1942 and 1943 when the festivities were canceled because of World War II,” the Anoka Halloween page states.

A 12-year-old boy named Harold Blair is responsible for launching Anoka’s campaign to be recognized as the “Halloween Capital of the World” by the rest of the country, when he wore a sweater with the title sewn onto it during a trip to Washington DC in 1937. A modern Minnesota congressman, Bill Luther, helped make the title official. In 2002, Luther asked Congress to reaffirm the proclamation that Anoka is the “Halloween Capital of the World,” according to congressional records of the House of Representatives.

“Anoka is thought to be the first to put on a citywide celebration and parade to provide families with alternative activities and fun on Halloween,” Luther told other members of the House. He briefly mentioned the above history before stating, “Due to the celebration’s size and community significance, Anoka first proclaimed itself the ‘Halloween Capital of the World’ in 1937.”

However, history, as it often does, gets in the way.

“Many older celebrations were before Minnesota became a state (1858) or the city of Anoka existed (1878),” Gary Munkholm of Anoka’s Halloween, Inc. wrote in an email. “We are probably the largest and longest celebration presently and that’s the Halloween capital designation.”

I he man had an ashy pallor

Brayton lifted his right foot free of the floor to step backward. That moment he felt a strong aversion to doing so.

“I am accounted brave,” he murmured; “is bravery, then, no more ilia pride? Because there are none to witness the shame shall I reheat?”

He was steadying himself with his right hand upon the back, his foot suspended.

“Nonsense!” he said aloud; “I am not so great a coward as to fear In seem to myself afraid.”

Malignant head

Lie lifted the foot a little higher by slightly bending the knee, and it sharply to the floor an inch in front of the other! He could mil think how that occurred. I trial with the left foot had the same result; it was again in advance of the right. The hand upon the chair I nick was grasping it; the arm was straight, reaching somewhat backward. One might have seen that he was reluctant to lose his hold. The malignant head was still thrust forth from the inner coil as before, the neck level. It had not moved, but its eyes were now electric parks, radiating an infinity of luminous needles.

I he man had an ashy pallor. Again he took a step forward, and another, partly dragging the chair, which, when finally released, fell upon the floor with a crash. The man groaned; the snake made neither sound nor motion, but its eyes were two dazzling suns. The reptile itself was wholly concealed by them. They gave off enlarging rings of rich and vivid colors, which at their greatest expansion successively jt vanished like soap bubbles; they seemed to approach his very face, and anon were an immeasurable distance away. He heard, somewhere, the continual throbbing of a great drum, with desultory bursts of far music, inconceivably sweet, like the tones of an Aeolian harp. He knew it for the sunrise melody of Memnon’s statue, and thought he stood in the Nileside reeds, hearing, with exalted sense, that immortal anthem through the silence of the centuries.

The music ceased; rather, it became by- insensible degrees the distant roll of a retreating thunderstorm. A landscape, glittering with sun and rain, stretched before him, arched with a vivid rainbow, framing in its giant curve a hundred visible cities. In the middle distance a vast serpent, wearing a crown, reared its head out of its voluminous convolutions and looked at him with his dead mother’s eyes. Suddenly this enchanting landscape seemed to rise swiftly upward, lik the drop scene at a theater, and vanished in a blank. Something struck him a hard blow upon the face and breast.

He had fallen to the floor; the blood ran from his broken nose and his bruised lips. For a moment he was dazed and stunned, and lay with closed eyes, his face against the door. In a few moments he had recovered, and then realized that his fall, by withdrawing his eyes, had broken the spell which held him. He felt that now, by keeping his gaze averted, he would be able to retreat. But the thought of the serpent within a few feet of his head, yet unseen—perhaps in the very act of springing upon him and throwing its coils about his throat—was too horrible. He lifted his head, stared again into those baleful eyes, and was again’ in bondage.

Source: https://turkey.tourguideensar.com/the-man-and-the-snake-part-4/

FURIOUS REPLICA CAR

Building a Fast and Furious Replica Car can be a fun but challenging endeavor. The enthusiasm is understandable, given the excitement that still exists for these movies. It’s the same type of enthusiasm I had for cars as a teenager.

In fact, I couldn’t until I got my driver’s license before I

started working on cars, so I worked on friend’s cars. My buddy had a ’78 Ford

pickup with a 351C and I changed the carb on that. Another buddy had a 69

Mustang and I installed a Paxton blower on that. And so it went for the next 20

years. I had a day job, but after work, I was tinkering on cars.

At 18, I rebuilt my first engine by myself using nothing but

at Chilton’s repair manual. The car was a 1973 V6 Capri with siamesed exhaust

ports and nylon teeth cam/crank gears instead of a timing chain. That was fun!

I learned a couple of things early on:

1) If you don’t have the money to do it right the first

time, you sure as hell don’t have the money to do it a second time.

2) If you don’t know what the fuck you are doing, hire

someone WHO HAS PROVEN RESULTS doing the exact job you need done.

Case in point – remember that V6 Capri I just

mentioned?  I sure as hell didn’t try to

bore the cylinders at home – I sent the block to a proper machine shop. Know

your limits and your capabilities. If you’re struggling to come up with the

cash to buy a part or get a certain job done, you might want to consider

another hobby – or another career.

Judging by some of the work I’ve seen on replica cars around

the world, it’s clear that some builders are in over their head. It’s a damn

shame too, because some cars are being ruined for collectors because of shoddy

replicas and it affects others in the hobby.

Parts are nearly impossible to find and those that are available

are often double or triple their original price, so when someone gets a rare

set of wheels and slaps them on a shoddy replica, it’s frustrating.

People often ask me what I think of replicas. The short

answer is that I admire those who would go to such trouble. The long answer is

that I don’t understand why some people are willing to settle for shoddy

workmanship and building a car that’s supposed to be about passion.

Let me explain.

Common sense in automobile customzing means that you only do

what can be done right. If you’re going to try to replicate a movie car’s

interior, you don’t cut out pieces of leather and glue onto door panels.

A movie car replica should be put together with care and

attention to quality. To do anything less is an insult to the fans and it’s

selling yourself short.

I’ve traveled to many countries and seen many replicas. Some

are done so poorly, they look like they were built on a dirt road in Mongolia.

I just don’t understand why anyone would build a car with no attention to

detail and no concern for quality. Morevover, I just don’t understand why

someone would showoff a car that looks like it was built by monkeys. It’s

embarrassing.

How To Cultivate Environmental Awareness In School

Kids nowadays are quite inquisitive and always ready with a

“why” or “how” when being taught something new. It is in the first few years of

a person’s life that we learn new concepts quickly. Children can speak a new

language easier and more naturally than an adult.  A child’s brain is like a sponge. It soaks up

all the information it receives. Schools have a responsibility towards future

leaders – not just teaching them how to read and write, but also educating them

about environmental awareness.

Here are a few ideas on how to cultivate environmental

awareness in schools.

What is environmental awareness?

Environmental Awareness is about being aware of the

environment. This refers to all flowers and animals and includes all marine and

wildlife. The planet is currently facing an increasing number of environmental

challenges, which include climate change, global warming, droughts, water

scarcity, floods, and pollution.

Children, as early as possible, should be aware of the

environmental issues we’re facing.

How can schools teach environmental awareness?

Schools must lead the conversation. environmental awareness

should be a part of the curriculum in all schools. This will encourage young

people to engage in their environment to protect it and can help communities

become more environmentally aware.

Introduce the 3 R’s: reduce waste, reuse resources, and

recycle materials

Organise tree planting days at school and tell them why

trees are important to the environment

Encourage children to switch off all appliances and lights

when not in use

Ensure taps are closed properly after you have used them and

use water sparingly

How can teachers lead by example?

Most people remember things that people did more than what

they said. Teaching children what it means to be environmentally aware is

important but it will have a more lasting impact if teachers can lead by

example.

For teachers, when you see litter, pick it up even if it’s

not yours. Those little eyes might be watching you.

Start a recycling system in your classroom and show the

children how to use it and recycle their things.

How can schools help spread the word?

Schools should encourage parents to share their

environmental knowledge to their kids at home. It would be a good idea to let

the children practice at home doing small tasks like picking up their trash and

throwing the garbage, or teaching them to turn off the faucet when they’re

brushing their teeth or washing their hands with soap and not let water run

down, or shut off the lights when they’re done using them. This will help them

be more knowledgeable about environmental issues.

Sharjeel Ahmed from Edarabia.com has served the education

industry for over 6 years. He collaborates and works alongside education-marketing

agencies, event organizers, and educational Institutions ranging from

nurseries, schools, and universities to develop and execute their marketing

strategies. He is extremely passionate about education technology and also

writes for various local and international publications. A graduate with High

Distinction from the Manipal University Dubai, UAE, Sharjeel holds a Bachelor’s

Degree with major in Media & Communication.

Hiking in Pigeon Valley

Pretty sure we were lost at this point. The only down side

of being in Uçhısar is that the food options are limited compared to Goreme.

There are restaurants and cafes in the village, but not as many as downtown. In

the summer this wouldn’t be an inconvenience as the on-site restaurant would be

fully operating, or you could make use of the longer daylight hours to wander

around Goreme and take advantage of all the different places to eat (hot tip,

go to Fat Boys Bar).

But in winter when the nights are very cold you will need to

take a taxi to get in and out of Goreme if you want to eat outside of Uçhısar.

This isn’t really a problem though as most people travel in the summer, and

this minor issue didn’t even concern us in winter. We just ended up having a

late lunch every day and hitchhiking back to Uçhısar before the sun set.

If you’re looking for some other activities to do besides

hanging out in the bathhouse and drinking Cappadocian wine (which is damn

good), you can organise a range of tours right from reception.

Obviously hot air ballooning is something that should not be

missed, but you can also take part in one of the popular tours that happen

daily in the area. Whether it is a visit to the open air museum in Goreme or

wandering through the underground cities on the outskirts, everything can be

booked and paid for right there and you will be picked up from the hotel. We

personally went on the “Green Tour” organised through the hotel and it was

sensational.

But if you find yourself simply kicking back at Kale Konak,

then you will also get the wonderful company of some of the dogs and cats that

have been adopted by the staff. Being full-time travellers, we loved the

opportunity to play around with the cute pets that wandered care-free around

the property. Not a luxury we get to enjoy too often.

It’s kind of hard to get work done when you have these cute

critters distracting you!

Kale Konak Cave Hotel Uchisar Goreme Best Boutique Hotel

Cappadocia

Super cute kitten hanging out the hotel.

All in all Kale Konak Cave Hotel proved to not only be one

of the nicest places we have ever stayed in, but also one of the most unique.

There is little wonder it has received a Certificate Of Excellence from Trip

Advisor and ranks so highly on other review websites. When we return to

Cappadocia, and we definitely will as there is still so much to see and do

there, we will be booking our stay at Kale Konak Cave Hotel again!

Arabian Bazaar

A typical Arabian bazaar; Souq Waqif is among the places that represent the city’s cultural and historical aspects.

There are different jewelries, earthenware, silk and spices in this bazaar. In the past, the Bedouin would trade sheep, goat and wool with other materials here. Nowadays, the area is being rearranged aiming for the outlook of a ‘souq’ (bazaar) of the 19th century. Souq Waqif is a typical Arabian bazaar. One can walk along its passages composing of corridors, check out categorized products, spice shops, clothier and gift shops. There are also many restaurants and hookah cafes here. Enjoy drinking tea at the cafes, watch football videos on big screens. Another bazaar that is worth seeing is the Omani Souq, which is located at the Haloul Street. This place is ideal for incense stick and wattle basket shopping. Gold Souq is another bazaar where you can shop for gold and jewelry.

On the trail of Islamic culture

Museum of Islamic Art (MIA) is the first place one must visit in Doha. This monumental museum where you will witness the magnificent treasures of Doha, is designed by the architect of the Louvre Pyramid, the famous I. M. Pei. Housing world’s largest Islamic art collection, MIA displays many artworks from Muslim dynasties in Asia, Africa and Europe.

There are also works from Al-Tani dynasty and some regions in the Middle East. In this collection gathered from three continents, there are elegant clothes, ceramic, glaze and glass works, carpets, jewelry… Museums are highly important in Doha by means of cultural life. Once you start this historical journey, your next stop should be Mathaf, known as the Arab Museum of Modern Art.

Opened in a building, which was a school earlier, on Ai-Luqta Street, Mathaf exhibits modern art collections from the Arab world. Al Khor Museum satisfies viewers’ eyes with the archaeological discoveries from the Neolithic Age and Middle Bronze Age. Orientalist Museum is a significant worldwide gathered collection composed of about 700 paintings, watercolour, sketch and prints. Collected within the past 20 years, the pieces trace orientalism with comebacks from the 18th century. Another interesting museum is the Weaponry Museum on Al Luqta.

This collection including the dagger of Lawrence of Arabia also traces the weaponry craft that fades away as the generations pass. Islamic manuscripts, important archaeological findings, metal objects, clothes, carpets, embroideries and antique furniture are displayed in the Sheikh Faisal Collection, which contains 3 thousand precious pieces.

There is also a historical car collection including a steam- operated car from the 19th century. The Al Root Fort, built in 1880 during Ottoman reign, and the Clock Tower next to Grand Mosque are ideal for a panoramic view of the magnificent scenery. Zubara Fort was built in 1938 during the reign of Shaikh Abdullah bin Jassim Al-Tham; it would be cool to climb up the towers and take pictures.

Source: https://action.docappadocia.com/arabian-bazaar/

My Son Built So Much Confidence By Reading

When children are learning to read independently, some will

attempt it happily, accepting correction with ease and without fear of making

mistakes. Some, though, will not. Many children will shy away from reading out

loud because of a lack of confidence. This lack of confidence is not an

indicator of their ability. Many children who are reluctant to read out loud

are great readers; however, they have a desire to be perfect and don’t want to

mess up.

It can be heartbreaking for parents to watch their children

struggle with reading confidence, but the more you push them to read to you,

the more they clam up and refuse. Even though my son was an early reader, he

was not always eager to read out loud around my husband or me. He is a born

perfectionist, and while so many things come naturally, his desire to do them

perfectly from the start can hamper his efforts. Here are five things we did to

encourage my son to read aloud, and I would suggest them to any parent facing a

similar situation at home.

1. Don’t push your child. When reading with your child,

don’t force him to read. Instead make sure that you are next to each other and

he is following along with you as you read. Trace your finger along the text as

you read.

2. Give him privacy. Give him time alone to read without an

audience. Respect his privacy to read alone.

3. Read to a different audience. Suggest that he read to a

puppy, younger sibling, or stuffed animal. None of these judge or know if a

word was read correctly or not. This helps your child build his confidence. My

son built so much confidence by reading to his baby sister. Now even though his

confidence is no longer an issue, he still reads to her often. Everyone wins!

4. Let your child see you struggle with words. I understand

that some parents want to seem infallible, but showing your children that

sometimes we have to work hard on a word or two is beneficial too. This was a

huge turning point for my son. While reading a book about Star Wars, I had to

sound out many of the characters’ names. My struggles showed my son that

sounding out words while reading wasn’t a sign of weakness but a tool to use no

matter how good of a reader you are.

5. Don’t overcorrect. When your child is reading do not

correct her too much. Remember, the goal here is to build confidence. You will

have lots of time to work on accuracy and fluency, but take it one step at a

time. If your child asks for help with a word go for it, but small mistakes or

omissions should be overlooked in the name of confidence for now.

THE MAN AND THE SNAKE

Beyond a smart shock of surprise and a shudder of mere loathing, Mr. Brayton was not greatly affected. His first thought was to ring the call bell and bring a servant; but, although the bell cord dangled within easy reach, he made no movement toward it; it had occurred to his mind that the act might subject him to the suspicion of fear, which he certainly did not feel. He was more keenly conscious of the incongruous nature of the situation than affected by its perils; it was revolting, but absurd.

Brayton was unfamiliar

The reptile was of a species with which Brayton was unfamiliar. Its length he could only conjecture; the body at the largest visible part seemed about as thick as his forearm. In what way was it dangerous, if in any way? Was it venomous? Was it a constrictor? His knowledge of nature’s danger signals did not enable him to say; he had never deciphered the code.

If not dangerous, the creature was at least offensive. It was de trop “matter out of place” an impertinence. The gem was unworthy of I lie setting. Even the barbarous taste of our time and qountry, which had loaded the walls of the room with pictures, the floor with furniture, and the furniture with bric-a-brac, had not quite fitted the place lor this bit of the savage life of the jungle. Besides—-insupportable thought!—the exhalations of its breath mingled with the atmosphere which he himself was breathing!

These thoughts shaped themselves with greater or less definition in Brayton’s mind, and begot action. The process is what we call consideration and decision. It is thus that we are wise*and unwise. It is thus that the withered leaf in an autumn breeze shows greater or less intelligence than its fellows, falling upon the land or upon the lake. The secret of human action is an open one—something contracts our m uscles. Does it matter if we give to the preparatory molecular changes die name of will?

Brayton rose to his feet and prepared to back softly away from the snake, without disturbing it, if possible, and through the door. People 1 dire so from the presence of the great, for greatness is power, and power is a menace.

He knew that he could walk backward without obstruction, and find the door without error. Should the monster pillow, the taste which had plastered the walls with paintings had consistently supplied a rack of murderous Oriental weapons from which he could snatch one so suit the occasion. In the meantime the snake’s eyes burned with a more pitiless malevolence than ever.

Source: THE MAN AND THE SNAKE 

TALE XXXVI

There were two brothers, one of whom was in the service of the King, and the other ate the bread of his own industry. Once the rich man said to his poor brother, “ Why do you not enter into the service of the King, to relieve yourself from the affliction of labour ? ” He asked, “ And why do you not work, that you may be relieved from the baseness of servitude ?

For the sages have said, That to eat one’s bread and-to sit down at ease, is preferable to wearing a golden girdle and standing up in service ; to use your hands in making mortar of quicklime, is preferable to placing them on your breast in attendance on the Umeer. Precious life has been spent in these cares. £ What shall I eat in the summer, and with what shall I be clothed in the winter ? ignoble belly, satisfyyourself with a loaf of bread, that you may not bend your back in servitude.”

TALE XXXVII.

Somebody brought to Nowshirvan the just the

good tidings, that the God of majesty and glory has taken away such an one, who

was your enemy. He asked, “ Have you heard that He will by any means spare me ?

The death of my enemy is no cause of joy to me, since neither is my own life

eternal.”

TALE XXXVIII.

At the court of Kisra a number of wise men

were debating on some affair, when Buzercliemehcr being silent, they asked him,

Why in this debate he did not say any thing ? He answered, “ Ministers are like

physicians, and the physician administers medicine to the sick only; therefore,

when I see that your opinions are judicious, it would not he consistent with

wisdom for me to obtrude my sentiments. When a business can he managed without

my interference, it is not proper for me to speak on the subject: but if I see

a blind man in the way of a well, if I keep silence, it is a crime.”

TALE XXXIX.

Haroon ur Rusheed, when he had completed the conquest of Egypt, said, “ As a contrast to that rebel, who, through the pride of his possessing the kingdom of Egypt, boasted that he was God, I will bestow this kingdom on the meanest of my slaves.” He had an Ethiopian blockhead, named Khosaib, to whom he gave the kingdom. They say that this man’s wisdom and knowledge were so great, that when some of the farmers of Egypt were complaining, that an unseasonable fell of rain had destroyed the cotton which they had sown on the banks of the Nile, he said that they ought to sow wool.

A man of discernment, upon hearing this said, “ If the augmentation of wealth depended upon knowledge, none would be so distressed as an ignorant fellow ; but God bestows on a single fool as much wealth as would astonish an hundred men of wisdom. Wealth and power depend not upon skill, and cannot be obtained without the assistance of Heaven. It often happens in the world that the imprudent are honoured, and the wise are despised. The alchymist died of grief and distress, whilst the blockhead found treasure under a ruin.”

Alexander the Great

Introduction

In determining the development of the short story in Egypt, it is necessary to study the inscriptions on papyri and stone monuments, a process which the archaeologists are better fitted to accomplish than the literary historians, for there appears to have been little development in the form, and the earliest do not differ radically from the later stories, such as the two here included.

The few Egyptian tales that have survived may date back as early as the Thirtieth Century B.C. So far as can be determined, they are indigenously Egyptian, having Egyptian names, backgrounds, and customs. They are not only an invaluable commentary on the lives of the men of those times, but also genuinely moving and interesting stories.

The tales from Egypt have an extraordinary interest in that they are the very earliest examples that we possess. That they were the earliest in order of composition is naturally an open question: before the year 3000 B.C. we can only conjecture. How many thousands of years before that time the plots were invented we cannot know, but the art with which The Two Brothers and Setna and the Magic Book are contrived indicates that they are comparatively late products.

By the time Egypt was conquered by Alexander the Great, the ancient literature of the country had been superseded.

The two brothers (Anpu and Bata)

(Anonymous: about 1400 B.C.)

Tnu manuscript of this story, one of the oldest in the world, came from the workshop of the scribe Anena, who flourished in the reigns of Raineses II, Menephtah, and Seti II. The work of an unknown author, it is one of the finest examples of the short story in existence.

The theme, which has been used numberless times, is easily recognizable as that of the story of Potiphar’s wife. It has also been used in The History of Prince Amziad and Prince Aisad in The Arabian Nights, and later by Dante in The Divine Comedy.

As in all great art, we are here impressed by the modernity of the author’s attitude, which is only another way of saying that he under-stood his characters and was an accomplished artist.

The translation here used is that by William Flinders Petrie in Egyptian Tales, Vol. 2, published in 1895 by Methuen & Co., by whose permission it is here reprinted. The original manuscript is a part of the so called Madame d’Orbiney Papyrus. There is no title in the original story.

S: https://generic.ephesusday.com/ancient-egypt/

Through your Majesty’s

TALE IX.

A King of Arabia was sick in his old age,

and there was no hope of his recovery, when a horseman entered the gate and

brought these glad tidings, “ Through your Majesty’s auspices, I have taken

such a fortress ; the garrison are made prisoners, and the troops and subjects

of that quarter have one and all submitted to your government.”

When he heard these words he sighed and

said, “ This good news concerns not me, but mine enemies ; that is, those who

shall succeed to my kingdom. My precious life hath been vainly spent in the

expectation of accomplishing my wishes, but now to what purpose does it serve,

for I have no hope that my past life should return! The hand of Fate beats his

march upon the drum. Alas! mine eyes, take your leave of this head ; hands,

arms, and wrists, bid adieu to each other. Death, a foe to my desire, hath

overtaken me. For the last time come before me, 0 my friends ! my days have

been spent in ignorance ; I have not performed my duty: shun my example.”

TALE X.

In a certain year I was sitting retired in

the great mosque at Damascus, at the head of the tomb of Yahiya the prophet (on

whom be peace !) One of the Kings of Arabia, who was notorious for his

injustice, happened to come on a pilgrimage, and having performed his

devotions, he uttered the following words : “ The poor and the rich are

servants of this earth, and those who are richest have the greatest wants.”

He then looked towards me and said, “ Because Durweshes are strenuous and sincere in their commerce with Heaven, unite your prayers with mine, for I am in dread of a powerful enemy.” I replied, “ Show mercy to the weak peasant, that you may not experience difficulty from a strong enemy. It is criminal to crush the poor and defenceless subjects with the arm of power. He liveth in dread who befriendeth not the poor ; for should his foot slip, no one layeth hold of his hand. Whosoever soweth bad seed, and looketh for good fruit, tor tureth his imagination in vain, making a false judgment of tilings.

Take the cotton out of thine car, and distribute justice to mankind ; for if you refusest justice, there will be a day of retribution. The children of Adam are limbs of one another ; and are all produced from the same substance: when the world gives pain to one member, the others also suffer uneasiness. Thou, who art indifferent to the sufferings of others, deservest not to be called a man.”

Dr. Druring’s House

A snake in a. bedroom of a modern city dwelling of the better sort is, happily, not so common a phenomenon as to make explanation altogether needless. Harker Brayton, a bachelor of thirty-five, a scholar, idler, and something of an athlete, rich, popular, and of sound health, had returned to San Francisco from all manner of remote and unfamiliar countries.

 Trifle luxurious

His tastes, always a trifle luxurious, had taken on an added exuberance from long privation; and the resources of even the Castle Hotel being inadequate for their perfect gratification, he had gladly accepted the hospitality of his friend, Dr. Druring, the distinguished scientist. Dr. Druring’s house, a large, old-fashioned one in what was now an obscure quarter of the city, had an outer and visible aspect of reserve.

It plainly would not associate with the contiguous elements of its altered environment, and appeared to have developed some of the eccentricities which come of isolation. One of these was a “wing,” conspicuously irrelevant in point of architecture, and no less rebellious in the matter of purpose; for it was a combination of laboratory, menagerie, and museum. It was here that the doctor indulged the scientific side of his nature in the study of such forms of animal life as engaged his interest and comforted his taste which, it must be confessed, ran rather to the lower forms.

For one of the higher types nimbly and sweetly to recommend itself unto his gentle senses, it had at least to retain certain rudimentary characteristics allying it to such “dragons of the prime” as toads and snakes. His scientific sympathies were distinctly reptilian; he loved nature’s vulgarians and described himself as the Zola of zoology. His wife and daughters, not having the advantage to share his enlightened curiosity regarding the works and ways of our ill-starred fellow-creatures, were, with needless austerity, excluded from what he called the Snakery, and doomed to companionship with their own kind; though, to soften the rigors of their lot, he had permitted them, out of tiis great wealth, to outdo the reptiles in the gorgeousness of their surroundings and to shine with a superior splendor.

Architecturally, and in point of “furnishing,” the Snakery had a severe simplicity befitting the humble circumstances of its occupants, many of whom, indeed, could not safely have been entrusted with the liberty which is necessary to the full enjoyment of luxury, for they had the troublesome peculiarity of being alive.

In their own apartments, however, they were under as little personal restraint as was compatible with their protection from the baneful habit of swallowing one another; and, as Brayton had thoughtfully been apprised, it was more than a tradition that some of them had at divers times been found in parts of the premises where it would have embarrassed them to explain their presence. Despite the Snakery and its uncanny associations to which, indeed, he gave little attention Brayton found life at the Druring mansion very much to his mind.

Source: https://generic.ephesusday.com/the-man-and-the-snake-part-2/

From Tales of Soldiers and Civilians

Ambrose Bierce (1839-1914)

Bierce was born in Ohio in 1839. He served as an officer in the Civil War, and in 1866 went to California, six years later proceeding to England.

Before that time he had begun to write those brief sketches and stories which have only in recent years become widely known. Between 1877 and 1884, having returned to California, he edited a magazine. He was last heard of in Mexico in 1914, and is supposed to have died there that year. Bierce’s stories are remarkable achievements. They are highly finished psychological studies cast in fiction form, of a tragic or satirical turn.

The story of The Man and the Snake was published in the volume m Tales of Soldiers and Civilians. Copyright, i8gi, by E. L. G. Steele. Reprinted by permission of Chatto and Windus, who include it in a volume entitled In the Midst of Life.

The Man and the Snake

It is of veritably report, and attested of so many that there be now of wise and learned none to gainsay it, that ye serpent his eye hath a magnetic properties that whoso fillet into its suasion is drawn forwards in despyte of his wile, and perished miserably by ye creature his byte.
Stretched at ease upon a sofa, in gown and slippers, Harker Brayton smiled as he read the foregoing sentence in old Morryster’s “Marvells of Science.” “The only marvel in the matter,” he said to himself, “is that the wise and learned in Morryster’s day should have believed such nonsense as is rejected by most of even the ignorant in ours.”

A train of reflection followed—for Brayton was a man of thought and he unconsciously lowered his book without altering the direction of his eyes. As soon as the volume had gone below the line of sight, something in an obscure corner of the room recalled his attention to his surroundings. What he saw, in the shadow under his lied, were two small points of light, apparently about an inch apart. They might have been reflections of the gas jet above him, in metal nail heads; he gave them but little thought and resumed his reading. A moment later something some impulse which it did not occur to him to analyze impelled him to lower the book again and seek for what he saw before. The points of light were still there. They seemed to have become brighter than before, shining with a greenish luster which he had not at first observed. He thought, too, that they might have moved a trifle were somewhat nearer.

They were still too much in the shadow, however, to reveal their nature and origin to an indolent attention, and he resumed his reading. Suddenly something in l lie text suggested a thought which made him start and drop the book for the third time to the side of the sofa, whence, escaping from his hand, it fell sprawling to the floor, back upward. Brayton, half-risen, was staring intently into the obscurity beneath the bed, where the points of light shone with, it seemed to him, an added fire.

His attention was now fully aroused, his gaze eager and imperative. It disclosed, almost directly beneath the foot rail of the bed, the coils of a large serpent the points of light were its eyes! Its horrible head, thrust flatly Birth from the innermost coil and resting upon the outermost, was directed straight toward him, the definition of the wide, brutal jaw and the idiotic forehead serving to show the direction of its malevolent gaze. The eyes were no longer merely luminous points; they looked into his own with a meaning, a malign significance.

Source: https://plenary.ensarislamoglu.com/the-man-and-the-snake-part-1/

IN THE SEVENTEENTH CENTURY

FAMILIARITY has bred respect, even

affection, for the typical costume of Charles I.’s reign, and that unfortunate

monarch himself, depicted by Van Dyck in sombre coat and lace collar, is

amongst the dear intimacies of our daily life. Sir Peter Lely, who followed on

the footsteps of Van Dyck, left many modish records of his time, and though he

has been rated for dressing his nymphs in inappropriate extravagances of

fringes and embroidery, he undoubtedly clothed lovely woman with an excellent

fantasy, bestowing height and grace by the length and simple disposition of his

drapery. Mignard, the French artist, also wrote a page in fashion’s history in

his paintings of the Court ladies as Madonnas ; covering the vanities of the

sinner with the mantle of the saint, he was much sought after for his pains.

The main features of feminine costume in

Charles I.’s reign may be realised in recalling the dresses which have so often

appeared to delight us in the various presentations of stage plays of his

period ; the bodice is tight, the basque square and tabbed, and round the waist

are a few folds of silk fastened into a rosette in the front ; the 66 lace

collar falls from the neck to the shoulders in deep points, and the ringleted

hair bears a ribbon rosette, or is surmounted by a plumed hat.

Henrietta, Queen of Charles I., is

accredited with the introduction of female labour for clothing the outer woman,

and from her day mantle-making ranked among female occupations. But the tailor

still ruled supreme, and though the sex of the milliner was the more

sympathetic, it was left to the next century to popularise feminine services.

The farthingale extended its circumference

The farthingale extended its circumference

in the reign of James I., when much effort was taken to suppress it, for the

King declared it occupied more room at his court than he himself. The ruff

flourished, but less obtrusively than in the preceding reigns, and in its place

was adopted what was known as a fall, a loose band overhanging the top of a

wide collar starched and frilled at the base—a fancy some merry writer of the

period noted with the epigram :

A question ’tis why women wear a fall ?

The truth on’t is, to pride they’re given

all,

And pride, the proverb says, will have a

fall.

Gordion Alliance

An historic venue adorns modem Eskisehir’s backyard. We are talking about the quarter of Odunpazan with its narrow winding streets and gaily painted, wood-frame row houses. Regarded as choice examples of traditional Turkish architecture, these houses were reclaimed for tourism in the Odunpazari Houses Preservation Project launched in 2005 by the local municipality.

Like those at Beypazari, Safranbolu and Sirince in other parts of Turkey, the historic houses at Odunpazan are involved now in the branding process. And if you venture outside these three city centers into the valleys and steppes, you will encounter splendid Phrygian monuments at almost every kilometer. Dating back to the 12th century B.C., this civilization exhibited a mastery ahead of its time in architecture, carving, pottery and metal working.

And Midas, who signed the first political alliance at Gordion, was the Phrygians’ most famous king. This culture, which inhabited dwellings cut into the rocks, left behind extraordinary and refined monuments in the valleys of Yazilikaya, Yapikdak, Kumbet, Asmainler, Zahran, Porsuk, Ayazini and Goynus. To see all this and more, you need to take a tour to the Phrygian Valley. If the traveler inside you is keen on an exciting adventure of discovery, now is the time.

One of the best things about Anatolia is the juxtaposition of traditional values with everyday life in complete harmony. After finishing their routine chores, homemakers go to each other’s houses to visit. Served with the traditional tea or ayran (buttermilk), savory pastries such as ‘agziagik’ and lentil- filled ‘bukme’ are carried amidst peals of glee by the children of the house to the local bakery, where they are baked in the oven.

Turkish Delight

Colorful candies, Turkish Delight, chocolates and walnut ‘sucuk’… Candy stores remain part and parcel of life in the cities of the Phrygian Valley. And the opium poppies used in some candies immediately pop to mind at the mention of one of those towns, Afyonkarahisar. Used in a range of products from breads and pastries to pharmaceuticals, the opium poppy continues to be produced under state supervision.

One of the sages who contributed to the cultural ferment of these lands, Yunus Emre springs to mind at the mention of Eskisehir. And International Yunus Emre Culture Week is held every year in the city.

Phrygian Valley

Art and tradition make their presence felt in the cities along the border of the Phrygian Valley. The tiles made by the late Sitki Olgar, one of the world’s leading tile producers, provide clues to Anatolia’s past. And starting from the 13th century, the grandsons of Mevlana Jalalladdin Rumi in Afyonkarahisar and Kutahya ensured the propagation of a new philosophy that would enlighten mankind.

Occupying a special place among the handicrafts of Kutahya and Turkey in general, the art of the tile has achieved an international reputation. Bird, fish, flower, plant and human motifs are generally used on the tiles, which are mainly in shades of dark and light blue, white and Bordeaux. (Funili Cami (the Tiled Mosque) at the city center and the shops that line the main street are proof of the importance given to tile making in this region.

Source: https://turkey.tourguideensar.com/gordion-alliance/

There is an attractive picture of her by Holbein

There is an attractive picture of her by

Holbein, with the hair drawn from her forehead in small curls, and a plait

hanging from the top of the head over one ear, the crown being worn rather far

back and kept in place by a jewelled caul.

To Spain historians have granted the laurel

of the ruff, which became first popular in England in the reign of Henry VIII.

; and Anne Boleyn introduced lappets made of velvet and adorned with precious

stones, either pointed at the hem or square and broad.

Many are the things

to do in Bulgaria. My country is not yet very well discovered and I am sure

you would love it. It’s nature, history and great emotions.

During those days the length of the gown

denoted the rank of the wearer, countesses and baronesses and ladies of lower

degree stamping their estate upon the dimensions of their train. Embroidery

decorated the gowns and petticoats alike, many of the dresses being cut open in

front to display a satin kirtle and an apron embroidered in gold and many

colours. The bodice of the dress sometimes differed in colour from the skirt,

and the sleeves would match the skirt ; and there was much variety in

head-dress, the velvet cap tasselled and set with jewels above a floating veil

being a popular style. But cauls, coifs, and French hoods, and the high bands

in front, were in evidence, together with a white three-cornered cap, the

original no doubt of the Marie Stuart cap of succeeding years.

The men were as prodigal as the women

The men were as prodigal as the women, and

spared no expense or time or thought in their pursuit of the sumptuous and the

elegant ; their shoes and garters and hats glittered with gems, and they wore

rings and chains in profusion, raising the trades of tailors and goldsmiths and

cloth- makers to supreme importance. Jack of Newbury, a famous cloth merchant

of the time of Henry VIII., is described as appearing before that monarch in a

plain russet coat and a pair of white kersey slops, the stockings of the same

piece being sewn to his slops. Slops was a term developed from “ slip,” and

signified any garment easily adjusted, and an example of its use occurs in Much

Ado About Nothing, a phrase running “ as, a German from the waist downward, all

slops ” ; hence may the suspicious glean that the Teuton habit of costume was

not mainly trim.

Men yielded to the general craze for an

expanded hip, wearing great breeches stuffed with hair or bran or wool, and

exhibiting no less than feminine enthusiasm in the width of their ruffles.

Their hose, of different detail, was either of cloth or silk, and blazed with

colour, being ornamented with gold or threads of Venetian silver, though the

King himself preferred cloth hose, which also had the honour of decorating

Queen Elizabeth, until she chanced to meet with the silk stocking, to which she

thereafter clung with tenacity.

Big Mommas

Big Mommas: Like Father Like Son

Cast: Martin Lawrence, Brandon T. Jackson, Jessica Lucas, Michelle Ang, Portia Doubleday

Director: John Whitesell

Turner is joined by Trent, as they go undercover at an all-girls performing arts school after Trent witnesses a murder. Posing as Big Momma and as hefty coed Charmaine, they must find the murderer before he finds them.

Scoobydoo: The Curse Of Lake Monster

Cast: Robbie Amell, Hayley Kiyoko, Kate Melton, Nick Palatas, Frank Welker, Ted McGinley

Director: Brian Levant

Off to a resort with summer jobs, the gang stumbles onto a mystery when the Frog Monster of Lake Erie makes an unexpected appearance, scaring away all the guests.

The Rite

Cast: Colin O’Donoghue, Anthony Hopkins, Ciaran Hinds, Alice Braga, Toby Jones

Director: Mikael Hafstrom

Michael Kovak, reluctantly attends exorcism school at the Vatican. While he’s in Rome, he meets an unorthodox priest who introduces him to the darker side of his faith.

The Tourist

Cast: Johnny Depp, Angelina Jolie, Paul Bettany, Timothy Dalton, Steven Berkoff

Director: Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck

During an impromptu trip to Europe to mend a broken heart, Frank unexpectedly finds himself in a flirtatious encounter with Elise, an extraordinary woman who deliberately crosses his path..

Gulliver’s Travel

Cast: Jack Black, Jason Segel, Emily Blunt, Amanda Peet, Billy Connolly

Director: Rob Letterman

Lemuel Gulliver is a lowly mailroom clerk. After he bluffs his way into an assignment writing about the Bermuda Triangle, he goes there only to be transported to an undiscovered land, Lilliput.

Yogi Bear

Cast: Anna Faris, Tom Cavanagh, T.J. Miller, Andrew Daly, Nathan Corddry

Director: Eric Brevig

Jellystone Park has been losing business, so greedy Mayor Brown decides to shut it down and sell the land. That means Yogi and Boo Boo will be tossed out of the only home they’ve ever known.

Hereafter

Cast: Matt Damon, Cecile De France, Bryce Dallas Howard, Lisa Griffiths, Cyndi Mayo Davis

Source: https://hints.ensaristanbul.com/big-mommas/

Spaghetti With Turkey Meat Sauceingredients

INGREDIENTS

1 lb ground turkey

1, 28-ounce can tomatoes, cut up

1 cup finely chopped green pepper

1 cup finely chopped onion

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 teaspoon dried oregano, crushed

1 teaspoon black pepper

1 lb spaghetti

non-stick cooking spray

1- Spray a large skillet with non-stick spray coating.

Preheat over high heat. Add turkey; cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes.

Drain fat.

2- Stir in tomatoes with their juice, green pepper, onion,

garlic, oregano, and black pepper. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Simmer,

covered, for 15 min¬utes, stirring occasionally.

3- Remove cover; simmer for 15 minutes more. (For a creamier

sauce, give sauce a whirl in a blender or food processor.)

4- Meanwhile, cook spaghetti according to package

directions; drain well. Serve sauce over spaghetti with crusty, whole-grain

bread.

NUTRITION CONTENT

Per Serving

Makes 6 servings

calories: 330

total fat: 5g

saturated fat: 1.3g

carbohydrates: 42g

protein: 29g

cholesterol: 60mg

sodium: 280mg

dietary fiber: 2.7g

BAKED PORK CHOPS

INGREDIENTS

6 lean center-cut pork chops, ½ inch thick

1 egg white

1 cup evaporated skim milk

¾  cup cornflake

crumbs

1 ¼  cup fine dry

bread crumbs

2 tablespoons Hot ‘n Spicy Seasoning

½  teaspoon salt

nonstick spray coating

1- Trim all fat from chops.

2- Beat egg white with evaporated skim milk. Place chops in

milk mixture; let stand for 5 minutes, turning chops once.

3- Meanwhile, mix together cornflake crumbs, bread crumbs,

Hot ‘n Spicy Seasoning and salt. Remove chops from milk mixture. Coat

thoroughly with crumb mixture.

4- Spray a 13-inch x 9-inch baking pan with nonstick spray

coating. Place chops in pan; bake in 375° oven for 20 minutes. Turn chops; bake

15 minutes longer or until no pink remains.

NUTRITION CONTENT

Per Serving

Makes 6 servings

calories: 186

total fat: 4.9g

saturated fat: 1.8g

carbohydrates: 16g

protein: 17g

cholesterol: 31mg

sodium: 393mg

dietary fiber: 0.2 g

MAREK KAPOLKA

If, video replaces our thoughts with moving images, then games will replace our thoughts with systems. Whereas non-interactive media provide representations, games provide simulations. As such, the cognitive processes used to understand a game are completely different from those used to understand passive media. Even on a basic level the player is required to learn a complex network of causes and effects in order to successfully navigate any game.

This mode of thinking has the potential to create a framework for scientific curiosity. In science, as in game analysis, the observer asks a series of “why” questions down through layers of complexity in order to understand the systems that drive their subject. With the systemic fluency provided by playing games and a finely developed sense of agency, gamers will not only have a lucid vision of the social order they want to live in but will also be able to design the rules of such a society.

Thomas Asmuth

In Homo Ludens the act of Play was quoted as being ‘older than culture’ itself by Dutch historian and theorist Johan Huizinga. In his argument,

Play transcends the milestones by which we would frame ‘civilization’ and ‘culture’. The impetus for play and gaming is an innate drive in man and other mammals and, when framed within Huizinga’s theory, the topic ‘Future of Games’ sounds hyperbolic. The desire to play and game is instinctual stuff that we carry with us all the time.

Contemporary popularization and interest in gaming is firmly rooted in the massive rise of the personal computing and networking industries. The games industry regularly outsells Hollywood with annual sales in the 100’s of billions of US dollars. These cyclopean revenues have inspired a creative generation of software engineers, artists and sociologists. These game culturalisms are all focused on the nature of gaming and the possibilities it can kindle.

This emergent global gaming culture transcends geographical, social, and national boundaries: this is where the Future of Games gains traction. There is a very real sense of community formation within, and surrounding, gaming systems. It may be one of the best ways humanity can collaborate and collectively bring forth models for discourse, change and cultural improvement. The Future of Games is in the massively interconnected society that thrives within games and the evolving culture that surrounds them.

Source: https://generic.ephesusday.com/marek-kapolka/

Mohammed Khoiruzm Shah

In the same year that Sultan Mohammed Khoiruzm Shah, for some weighty reason, made peace ith the King of Khatai, I entered the mosque of ashghur, where I saw a boy of incomparable beauty id remarkably elegant in his form, such as those ho have been thus described : ‘ The master perfect- l you in bold and captivating manners, in tyranny, blandishment, forwardness, and severity: I never saw any mortal possessed of such beauty, such temper, such stature, and accomplishments ; but you may have been instructed by a fairy.’

He held in his hand the instruction to the syntax of Zemukslxery, and was repeating, “Zeid struck Omar, and became the injurer of Omar.” I said, “Young man, Khovaruzm and Khatai have made peace ; and does there still continue the contention between Omar and Zeid? ” He laughed, and asked where I was born? I answered, “At Shiraz.” He asked, “What have you of S&dy’s compositions?” I replied, in Arabic, “I am enamoured with the student of syntax, who attacks me as furiously as Zeid does Omar, and is so intent on repeating his lesson that he lifts not up his head; for how can the disdainful person look upon others?” He replied, “ The greater part of his verses to be met with in this country are in the Persian language; if you would repeat some of those we should more readily comprehend them.

Speak to men according to their capacity.” Whilst you fix your attention on syntax, our minds are bereft of reason; alas, thou ravisher of hearts, I am thinking on you only, and you are engrossed by Omar and Zeid. Probably some of the caravan had told him that I was SMy, for on the morning of our departure I saw him come running. He showed kindness and lamented my departure, saying, “How was it that you should have been so long without telling me that you are Sady, in order that I might have rendered you every service in my power? ” I answered, that I had not power to discover myself in his presence.

He added, “What objection can there be to your remaining here, and favouring us with your company a few days longer? ” I replied, “ I cannot, on account of the following incident which once befel me :I saw in the mountain a wise man, who, having retired from the world, dwelt in a cave. I asking why he did not frequent the city to relieve his mind? He replied, There dwell many of exquisite beauty: and where there is much clay, the elephants lose their footing.’ ” After making this speech, we mutually kissed and bid each other adieu. What benefit is there in kissing the cheek of a friend at the instant that you are bidding him adieu? It is like an apple with one cheek red and the other yellow. If I die not of grief on the day that I bid adieu, you will not consider me faithful in friendship.

Inhabitants of Baghdad

They asked one of the inhabitants of Baghdad his opinion of handsome youths. He replied, “No good is to be found amongst them as long as they appear delicate, for then they are insolent ; but when they become rough, they are courteous ; or, in other words, whilst handsome and delicate, their behaviour is rude ; and when they become rough, they are kind and friendly. The youth, whilst his face continues smooth, has bitter words and a morose disposition; when his beard appears and he is arrived at manhood, he mixes with society and cultivates friendship.”

Place with a beautiful girl

They asked a learned man, “ If a man is sitting in a secret place with a beautiful girl, the doors shut and the rivals asleep, the passions, inflamed and lust raging, (as the Arabs say, 4 The dates ripe and the watchman not hindering,’) whether he thought his virtue would protect him ? ” He replied, “Ifhe escapes from the beautiful girl, he will not escape from slanderers.”

If the man has not suffered his passions to

overcome his virtue, yet the suspicious world will think ill of him. One may

perchance restrain his passions, but he will not be able to curb men’s tongues.

Cage with a parrot

They shut up a crow in the same cage with a parrot, who, distressed at the other’s ugly appearance, was saying, ‘What is this detestable countenance, this odious form, this cursed object with unpolished manners? Thou crow of the desert, would to God we were as far asunder as the east is from the west. Whosoever should behold your face when he is rising, it would convert a goodly morning into a dark evening. Such an ill- fated wretch should have a companion like yourself; but where in the world can your equal be found? ”

What is the most strange, the crew was equally distressed by the society of the parrot, and lamenting his fate, complained of the vicissitudes of Fortune, and rubbing the claws of sorrow one against the other, was saying, “ What ill luck, Avah mean fate, what a reverse of fortune ! It suited my dignity to be strutting on a garden wall in company with another crow. It is sufficient imprisonment for a holy man that he should be compelled to associate with profligates. How far have I sinned, that in punishment thereof my life should be spent in a company with such a worthless conceited prattler? No one will approach a wall on which your picture is painted. If you had admittance into paradise, everyone would prefer hell to your company.”

I have brought this example to show, that

how much sever men of understanding may despise the ignorant, these are a

hundred times more distressed in the company of the wise.

A devotee being at a singing party in

company with some profligates, one of the beauties of Balk said to him, “If you

are displeased don’t look sour, for you are bitter enough to us already. In an

assemblage of roses and tulips, you resemble a dry stick placed in the midst; or

like a contrary wind, or intense coldness; or driven snow or frozen ice.”

The deliverance from Turkish rule brought with it a gradual revival

The Jugoslavs form a national unit and are ethnologically part of the Slavonic race. Jugoslav literature begins with translations of the Bible by Cyril and Methodius, the “Slavonic Apostles,” about the middle of the Ninth Century. During the first period of the nation’s literary history, from the Twelfth to the Fifteenth Century, several biographies and chronicles were produced.

Toward the end of the Fourteenth Century and until the beginning of the Nineteenth Century the Jugoslavs fell under the domination of the Turks, who practically arrested national life. There were, however, those who, despite this catastrophe, tried to carry on the traditions of their literature.

The deliverance from Turkish rule brought with it a gradual revival. At first, however, little was written in the Jugoslav languages (Serbian, Croatian, and Slovenian), because the printing presses throughout the country had been destroyed by the Turks. The books imported from Russia were printed in Russian, and were not familiar to the mass of readers. Dositey Obradovich (1739-1811), writing in the vernacular, became immensely popular, so much so that he was appointed Minister of Public Education, in which capacity he established the first Serbian college at Belgrade.

Vuk Karajich (1787-1864) is considered by many as the father of modern Serbian literature. He collected some ten volumes of national poetry and songs which served as an inspirational source for other writers.

Stefan Sremacs

The Jugoslavs have as yet no great novelist, but they have some successful short story writers, among whom Dr. Lazarevich (1851-1890) takes high rank. Another popular author is Stefan Sremacs, whom literary critics have dubbed the “Serbian Dickens.” Sima Matavulj, another much read author, paints vivid pictures of the Dalmatian and Montenegrin Serbians in his delightful stories.

The division designated as “Jugoslav” includes the political groups speaking the Serbian, Croatian, and Slovenian tongues. Certain territories, which were before 1914 under Austrian rule, are now joined with Serbia, forming Jugoslavia.

The short story is a comparatively recent development. In the three examples included in the present volume no one can fail to observe the folk element, which characterizes the work of the best Jugoslav writers.

Source: https://www.doholiday.com/jugoslavia/

Company of learned men

A sensible young man, who had made

considerable progress in learning and virtue, was at the same time so discreet,

that he would sit in the company of learned men without

littering a word. Once his father said to him, “My son, why do you not also say

something what you know? ”He replied, “I fear lest they should question me

about something of which I am ignorant, whereby I should suffer shame.”

Have you not heard of a Soofee that was

driving some nails into his sandals, when an officer laying hold of his sleeve,

said, ‘Come and shoe my horse? ’ Whilst you are silent, no one has any business

with you; but when you speak, you must be ready with your proofs.

Dispute with an infidel

A man, famous for his learning, happened to

have a dispute with an infidel, and finding that argument had

no effect, he gave up the contest and retired. Somebody said, “How happens it

that you, who possess so much superiority in learning, virtue, and wisdom, are

not a match for this infidel?” He replied, u My learning is the Koran, the

traditions of the prophet, and the doctrines of the fathers, which he will

neither hear nor believe ; and what use is there in my listening to his

blasphemy ? To him who will not be convinced by the Koran and the traditions,

the proper answer is, not to answer him.”

A wise man and disgrace

Galen, on seeing a blockhead lay hold of

the collar of a wise man and disgrace him, said, “If

this man had been really wise, matters would not have come to this pass with

the ignorant. Strife and contention will not happen between two wise men, and a

wise man will not contend with a blockhead. If an ignorant fellow in his

brutality speaks rudely, the wise man will answer him with mildness. Two wise

men will not break a hair: it is the same case between an obstinate person and

one of a mild disposition; but if they are both ignorant, they will break a

chain.”

Considered as unrivalled

Suhban Wahil has been considered as unrivalled in

eloquence, in so much that if he spoke before an assembly for the space of a

year, he did not repeat the same word twice; and if the same meaning recurred,

he expressed it in a different form: and this is one of the qualifications for

a courtier. Although a discourse be captivating and sweet, commanding belief

and admiration, yet when you have once delivered it repeat it not again; for

when you have once eaten sweetmeats it is enough.

Towards Turkish Republic

First steps towards the Republic

When we take a tour at the history section it is possible to name many civilizations such as Assyrians, Hittites, Cimmerians, Phrygians, Romans, Danisments, Etratna, Seljuks, llkhanids and Ottomans that though did not settle and remain for many years but lodged in Sivas.

Sivas is one of rare provinces in Turkey that still significantly conserves this cultural and historical heritage bestowed by its past. The facts that Sivas is one of the regions witnessing the Sivas Congress realized by Mustafa Kemal Ataturk on 4 September 1919 and then the foundation of Republic, increase

A beautiful example of Ottoman mosques built in the 19th century under the Western impression. Built by Kizil Arslan bin Ibrahim between years 1196-1197, Ulu Mosque is one of the oldest mosques of the city. It was restored during the reign of Izzettin Keykavus I, in 1212.

Even Evliya Celebi’s pen failed to express

Famous traveler Evliya Celebi says, “Languages are barren, pens are broken in its praise” for the Great Mosque.

The purpose of your Sivas visit does not matter; you must visit the Great Mosque by facing up to that challenging road between Kangal-Divrigi…

The structure is included in the UNESCO’s World Heritage List with its architectural features as well as the traditional Anatolian stonemasonry. It is a first in Turkey in this aspect. Stonemasonry of the kiblah (direction of Mecca) door is a tremendous work. This unique monument having its place in world art history with the name of ‘Divrigi Ulu Camii and Daru’l-Sifasi’ is constructed by Ahmet Shah the Ruler of Mengucek and the Sifahane (medical center) by Melike Turan, wife of Ahmet Shah in the period of Mengucek Beylik (1228). Three dimensional detailed geometric styles and ornaments, asymmetric figures carved into doors and walls must be seen.

Where to saty?

Best options for accommodation in Sivas are Fatih Hotel One of the most important values of Sivas is Kangal shepherd dogs. This brave, very strong, fast and agile breed is truly loyal to its owner. With their grey bodies, they look noble and beautiful.

Source: https://docappadocia.com/towards-turkish-republic/

Caravan trembling through fear

Sick and wounded he fell in with a caravan, which from necessity he followed. In the evening they arrived at a place that was infested by robbers. He saw the people of the caravan trembling through fear, and looking as if they expected to die. He said, “Be not afraid, for I am one amongst you who will encounter fifty men, and other men will support me.” The men, encouraged by his boasting, rejoiced at being in his company, and they supplied him with victuals and drink. The cravings of the young man’s appetite being very powerful, he ate and drank so much that at length the inner demon was quieted, and being overpowered with fatigue he fell asleep.

An old experienced man who had seen the world and was in the caravan, said, “0 companions, I am more afraid of your guard than of the robbers, for they tell a story of an Arab who, having collected together some money, would not sleep alone in his house, for fear of being robbed by the Lowrains, but got one of his friends to stay with him, from the apprehension he had of being alone. He stayed with him several nights; but, as soon as he got intelligence of the dimers, he seized them and made off.

The next morning, they saw the Arab despoiled lamenting. They asked, What can be the matter, excepting that the thieves may have stolen your money? He replied, ‘By God, not they; but the person who was the guard.’ I never thought myself secure from the serpent, because I knew his disposition.

A wound from the teeth of an enemy is most severe when it is given under the semblance of friendship. How do you know, my friends, but what this young man may be one of the thieves, who by stratagem has introduced himself amongst us, in order that, when he finds an opportunity, he may give intelligence to his comrades? My advice therefore is this, that we leave him asleep arid depart.”

The advice of the old man was approved by

his juniors; and as they were suspicious of this strong man, they took up their

baggage, and, leaving him asleep, departed. The young man, when the sun shone

on his shoulders, lifted up his head and discovered that the caravan was

departed. Lie wandered about a long time, without being able to find the road.

Thirsty and without food, he laid his head on the ground, in a state of

despondency: “Who will converse with me now that the yellow camels are departed?

A traveller has no friend besides a traveller. He is the readiest to distress a

traveller, who has not himself experienced the difficulties of travelling.” He

was uttering this sentence when the King’s son, having lost his attendants in

pursuit of game, happening to come to the spot, overheard him, and seeing him

of good appearance and in distressed circumstances, asked, from whence he was,

and how he came there? He gave a short account of what had befallen him ; and

the King’s son compassionating him, bestowed on him a garment and money, and

ordered a trusty person to accompany him, and see him safe to his own city. The

father was rejoiced at the sight of him, and thanked God for his safe return.

Heart desired

They asked a sick man, what his heart desired? He replied, “Only this, that it may not desire anything.” When the stomach is oppressed and the belly suffering pain, there is benefit in having all other matters in perfection.

Butcher in the city

A butcher in the city of Wasit, to whom the Soofees had contracted some debts was every day importuning them for payment, and made use of very harsh language. The society was much distressed at his reproaches, but had no remedy besides • patience. A holy man of their fraternity said, “It is easier to satisfy the appetite with a promise of food, than to put off the butcher with promise of payment. It is better to relinquish the favour of the great man, than to suffer violence from his porter. It is better to die from want of meat, than to endure the importunities of the butcher.”

Grievously wounded

A certain gallant man was grievously wounded in an expedition against the Tartars. Somebody said, “Such a merchant has an unguent, of which perhaps he might give you a little were you to ask it.” The merchant was notorious for his parsimony. If the sun had been on his table instead of bread, no one would have seen light in the world until the Day of Judgment. The gallant man replied, “ If I ask for the unguent, it is uncertain whether he will give it or not; and-if he should give it, the effect is doubtful. On every account, to ask of such a man is a deadly poison.”

That which you obtain by entreaty from mean

people may benefit the body, but it injures the soul; and the sages have said,

‘If the water of immortality, for example, was to be sold in exchange** for

reputation, the wise man would not purchase it; for an honorable death is

preferable to a disgraceful life.’ If you eat colocynth from the hand of a kind

man, it is preferable to a sweetmeat given by one who has a crabbed

countenance.

Diminution of affection

A certain learned man, who had a large family to support with very scanty means represented his case to a great man, who entertained a favorable opinion of him. He disapproved of the application, deeming it unworthy of a man of spirit. When you are dissatisfied with your fortune, approach not your dearest friend, or you will turn his pleasure into sorrow. When you expose your distress, preserve a lovely and smiling appearance: he never fails in his pursuit, who maintains a joyful countenance. It is said, that the great man increased his pension a little, but treated him with less respect than formerly.

After some time, perceiving his diminution of affection, he said, “Evil is that food which you obtain in the time of distress; the kettle is indeed upon the hearth, but your reputation diminished. He increased my bread and lessened my honour: it is better to be destitute of means, than to suffer the disgrace of solicitation.”

Certain Richman

I heard of a certain rich man, who was as

notorious for parsimony as Hatim Tai for liberality. His external form was

adorned with wealth, but the meanness of his disposition was so radiated, that

he never gave even a loaf of bread to any one: he would not have bestowed a

scrap on the cat of Abu Horiera, nor thrown a bone to the dog of companions of

the cave. In short, no one ever saw his door open nor his table spread. A

Durwesh never knew his victuals, excepting by the smell; no bird ever picked up

any crumbs that fell from his table. I heard that he was sailing on the

Mediterranean Sea towards Egypt, with all the pride of Pharaoh in his

imagination, according to the word of God, ‘Until the time that he was

drowned.’ Suddenly a contrary wind assailed the ship, in the manner as they

have said, ‘What can the heart do that it may not record with your sorrowful disposition;

the north wind is not always favourable for the ship.’ He lifted up the hands

of imploration, and uttered ineffectual lamentations. God hath said, ‘“When you

embark on ships offer up your prayers unto the Lord.’

Of what benefit will it be to the servant

in the time of need, to lift up his hands in imploration, which are extended

during prayers, but when any favour is wanted are folded under his arms?

‘Bestow comfort on others with silver and gold, and from thence derive also

benefit yourself. Know thou, that this edifice of yours will remain, use

therefore bricks of gold and bricks of silver.’

They have related, that he had poor

relations in Egypt, who were enriched with the remainder of his wealth. At his

death they rent their old garments and made up silks and damask. In that same

week I saw one of them riding a fleet horse, with an angelic youth running

after him. I said, “Alas if the dead man should return amongst his tribe and

relations, the heirs would feel more sorrow in restoring him his estate than

they suffered on account of his death.” On the strength of the acquaintance

which had formerly subsisted between us, I pulled his sleeve, and said, “Enjoy

thou, 0 good man of happy endowments, that wealth which the late possessor

accumulated to no purpose.”

Certain rich man

I heard of a certain rich man, who was as

notorious for parsimony as Hatim Tai for liberality. His external form was

adorned with wealth, but the meanness of his disposition was so radiated, that

he never gave even a loaf of bread to any one: he would not have bestowed a

scrap on the cat of Abu Horiera, nor thrown a bone to the dog of companions of

the cave. In short, no one ever saw his door open nor his table spread. A

Durwesh never knew his victuals, excepting by the smell; no bird ever picked up

any crumbs that fell from his table. I heard that he was sailing on the

Mediterranean Sea towards Egypt, with all the pride of Pharaoh in his

imagination, according to the word of God, ‘Until the time that he was

drowned.’ Suddenly a contrary wind assailed the ship, in the manner as they

have said, ‘What can the heart do that it may not record with your sorrowful disposition;

the north wind is not always favourable for the ship.’ He lifted up the hands

of imploration, and uttered ineffectual lamentations. God hath said, ‘“When you

embark on ships offer up your prayers unto the Lord.’

Of what benefit will it be to the servant

in the time of need, to lift up his hands in imploration, which are extended

during prayers, but when any favour is wanted are folded under his arms?

‘Bestow comfort on others with silver and gold, and from thence derive also

benefit yourself. Know thou, that this edifice of yours will remain, use

therefore bricks of gold and bricks of silver.’

They have related, that he had poor

relations in Egypt, who were enriched with the remainder of his wealth. At his

death they rent their old garments and made up silks and damask. In that same

week I saw one of them riding a fleet horse, with an angelic youth running

after him. I said, “Alas if the dead man should return amongst his tribe and

relations, the heirs would feel more sorrow in restoring him his estate than

they suffered on account of his death.” On the strength of the acquaintance

which had formerly subsisted between us, I pulled his sleeve, and said, “Enjoy

thou, 0 good man of happy endowments, that wealth which the late possessor

accumulated to no purpose.”

Debilitated fisherman

A powerful fish fell into the net of a debilitated

fisherman, who not being able to hold it, the fish got the

better of him, snatched the net out of his hand, and escaped. A boy went to

fetch water from the river: the flood tide came in and carried him away. The

net had hitherto always taken the fish, but this time the fish escaped and

carried away the net. The other fisherman grieved at the loss, and reproached

him, that having such a fish in his net, he had not been able to hold it. He

replied, “Alas, my brethren what could be done, seeing it was not my lucky day,

and the fish had yet a day remaining? A fisherman without luck cachet not fish

in the Tigris, neither will the fish without fate expire on the dry ground.

Killed a millipede

One who had neither hands nor feet having killed

a millipede, a pious man passing by said, “Holy God, although

this had a thousand feet, yet when fate overtook him he could not escape from

one destitute of hands and feet. When the enemy who seizes the soul comes

behind, fate ties the feet of the swift man. At that moment when the enemy

attacks us behind, it is needless to draw the Ivianyan bow.”

Fat blockhead clad

I saw a fat blockhead clad in

a rich dress and mounted on an Arab horse, with fine Egyptian linen round his

head. Someone said, “0 Sady, what is your opinion of this notable dress on this

ignorant brute?” I replied, “It is like bad writing executed in water-gold. In

truth, amongst men he is an ass with the form and bleating of a calf. You

cannot say this brute resembles a man excepting in his garment, his turban, and

external form: of all his property, estate, and bodily faculties, it is not

lawful to take anything but his blood. If a man oi noble birth should happen to

be poor, imagine not that his dignity will be thereby lessened; but should a

Jew be so rich as to drive a gold nail into his silver threshold, do not on

that account esteem him noble.”

Obtain a grain of silver

A thief said to a mendicant, “Are you not

ashamed to hold out your hand to every sordid wretch to obtain a grain of silver?”

He replied, “It is better to stretch out the hand for a grain of silver than to

have it cut off for having stolen a dang and a half.”

Certain rich man

I heard of a certain rich man, who was as

notorious for parsimony as Hatim Tai for liberality. His external form was

adorned with wealth, but the meanness of his disposition was so radiated, that

he never gave even a loaf of bread to any one: he would not have bestowed a

scrap on the cat of Abu Horiera, nor thrown a bone to the dog of companions of

the cave. In short, no one ever saw his door open nor his table spread. A

Durwesh never knew his victuals, excepting by the smell; no bird ever picked up

any crumbs that fell from his table. I heard that he was sailing on the

Mediterranean Sea towards Egypt, with all the pride of Pharaoh in his

imagination, according to the word of God, ‘Until the time that he was

drowned.’ Suddenly a contrary wind assailed the ship, in the manner as they

have said, ‘What can the heart do that it may not record with your sorrowful disposition;

the north wind is not always favourable for the ship.’ He lifted up the hands

of imploration, and uttered ineffectual lamentations. God hath said, ‘“When you

embark on ships offer up your prayers unto the Lord.’

Of what benefit will it be to the servant

in the time of need, to lift up his hands in imploration, which are extended

during prayers, but when any favour is wanted are folded under his arms?

‘Bestow comfort on others with silver and gold, and from thence derive also

benefit yourself. Know thou, that this edifice of yours will remain, use

therefore bricks of gold and bricks of silver.’

They have related, that he had poor

relations in Egypt, who were enriched with the remainder of his wealth. At his

death they rent their old garments and made up silks and damask. In that same

week I saw one of them riding a fleet horse, with an angelic youth running

after him. I said, “Alas if the dead man should return amongst his tribe and

relations, the heirs would feel more sorrow in restoring him his estate than

they suffered on account of his death.” On the strength of the acquaintance

which had formerly subsisted between us, I pulled his sleeve, and said, “Enjoy

thou, 0 good man of happy endowments, that wealth which the late possessor

accumulated to no purpose.”

Romania Clayton

Thomas J. Clayton who visited many

countries passed through Bulgaria also. Going from Varna to Ruse and then on to

Romania

Clayton was “surprised” to discover that both Bulgaria and

Romania were “such fertile countries.” He wrote that he “never saw better

pasture lands or wheat fields” anywhere else in the world. These lands reminded

him of the prairie lands of Illinois. He was also surprised to find that there

were no farm houses like in America. The lands, he stated, were “tilled by

peasants who live in miserable little huts, or in villagesOur route lay through

a spur of the Balkan Mountains and was very picturesque very beautiful and

entertainingThe scenery of these mountains is soft and has a soothing rather

than a stirring influence upon the beholder.” The author believed that if peace

prevailed in these parts of the world, Bulgaria and Romania “will soon become

rich and prosperous.”

There are few more accounts by Americans on

Bulgaria. However, they are not much more different than those presented. Many

a time what Americans said about the Bulgarians or for that matter about other

peoples, reflected on their own personal character or how they valued American

culture and way of life. The descriptions presented by these travelers on a

variety of topics, like national character and even the history of Bulgaria are

hardly scientific or correct accounts.

Bulgarian personality

Almost all of these travelers present

nothing but clichés. They did not have the necessary expertise to carefully

analyze the Bulgarian

personality, their ethnic typicalness in terms of common

national cultural values. The frame of reference these travelers used was

founded on their perspective of American history and culture as the

repositories of values of liberty, freedom, democracy, justice, religion,

discipline, industry and progress.

Almost all of the authors sympathized with

the plight of the Bulgarian people under Ottoman domination. They all condemned

the alien system of despotism and many a time showed their preference for

republicanism. The Ottoman system did not permit the development of the

individual, the arts and crafts as well as agriculture and industry. The

authors were aware that the Ottoman state was in its stages of disintegration.

Those who visited Bulgaria before 1878 believed that the Bulgarians would

become free and those who travelled after the liberation of the country praised

the attempts of the Bulgarians to preserve their independence.

Process Mesopotamia

We must now consider more closely the

manner in which these artificial hills come to be created. Any of the mounds

which we have mentioned in the preceding paragraphs would probably serve to

illustrate the broad lines of this process: but those in Mesopotamia will

perhaps serve our purpose best, since they are uncomplicated by the presence of

large stone buildings and at the same time provide examples of some anatomical

eccentricities seldom found elsewhere. This process, then, by which in

antiquity the repeated rebuilding’s of human habitations on a single site

created a perpetually increasing elevation, is by no means difficult to

understand.

The average life of a mud brick building

today seldom exceeds the span of a single generation: and in earlier times,

military conquest or localized raiding on a smaller scale would certainly have

accounted for demolitions that are more frequent. Roofs would be burnt or

collapse and the upper parts of the walls subside, filling the rooms to about a

third of their height with brick debris. Before rebuilding, the site would

usually be systematically levelled, the stumps of the old walls being used as

foundations for the new.

Prehistoric fortresses at Mersin

Thus, after a time, the town or village

would find itself occupying the summit of a rising eminence; a situation, which

had the double advantage of being easily defensible and of affording an

expansive view of the surrounding countryside. One remembers in a connection

how the walls of the little prehistoric fortresses at Mersin in Cilicia were

lined with identical small dwellings for the garrison; and each was provided

with a pair of slit openings from which a watch could be kept on the approaches

to the mound.

What, then, an excavator is concerned with

is the stratified accumulation of archaeological remains, unconsciously created

by the activities of these early builders. By reversing the process and

examining each successive phase of occupation, from the latest (and therefore

uppermost) downwards, he obtains a chronological cross section of the mound’s history,

and can, if circumstances are favorable, reconstruct a remarkably clear picture

of the cultural and political vicissitudes through which its occupants have

passed.

However, it must be remembered that the

procedure, which he adopts, itself involves a new form of demolition. For as

the architectural remains associated with each phase of occupation are cleared,

examined and recorded, they must in turn be removed in order to attend to the

phase beneath. In a Near Eastern mound, the product of an operation of this

sort is often a deep hole in the ground and very little else that could

interest a subsequent visitor to the site of the excavation.