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To my wife, Beth, for her unending love, constant support, and beautiful
smile.
Contents
Preface
How to Use This Book
Acknowledgments
About the Author
Chapter 1 What Is a DBA?
Why Learn Database Administration?
A Unique Vantage Point
DBA Salaries
Database Technology
The Management Discipline of Database Administration
A Day in the Life of a DBA
Evaluating a DBA Job Offer
Database, Data, and System Administration
Data Administration
Database Administration
System Administration
DBA Tasks
Database Design
Performance Monitoring and Tuning
Ensuring Availability
Database Security and Authorization
Governance and Regulatory Compliance
Backup and Recovery
Ensuring Data Integrity
DBMS Release Migration
Jack-of-All-Trades
 The Types of DBAs
System DBA
Database Architect
Database Analyst
Data Modeler
Application DBA
Task-Oriented DBA
Performance Analyst
Data Warehouse Administrator
Staffing Considerations
How Many DBAs?
DBA Reporting Structures
Multiplatform DBA Issues
Production versus Test
The Impact of Newer Technology on DBA
Procedural DBAs: Managing Database Logic
The Internet: From DBA to eDBA
The Personal DBA and the Cloud
NoSQL, Big Data, and the DBA
New Technology Impacts on DBA
DBA Certification
The Rest of the Book
Review
Bonus Question
Chapter 2 Creating the Database Environment
Defining the Organization’s DBMS Strategy
Choosing a DBMS
DBMS Architectures
DBMS Clustering
DBMS Proliferation
 Hardware Issues
Cloud Database Systems
Installing the DBMS
DBMS Installation Basics
Hardware Requirements
Storage Requirements
Memory Requirements
Configuring the DBMS
Connecting the DBMS to Supporting Infrastructure Software
Installation Verification
DBMS Environments
Upgrading DBMS Versions and Releases
Features and Complexity
Complexity of the DBMS Environment
Reputation of the DBMS Vendor
Support Policies of the DBMS
Organization Style
DBA Staff Skill Set
Platform Support
Supporting Software
Fallback Planning
Migration Verification
The DBMS Upgrade Strategy
Database Standards and Procedures
Database Naming Conventions
Other Database Standards and Procedures
DBMS Education
Summary
Review
Bonus Question
 Suggested Reading
Chapter 3 Data Modeling and Normalization
Data Modeling Concepts
Entity-Relationship Diagramming
The Components of a Data Model
Entities
Attributes
Keys
Relationships
Discovering Entities, Attributes, and Relationships
Conceptual, Logical, and Physical Data Models
What Is Normalization?
The Normal Forms
First Normal Form
Second Normal Form
Third Normal Form
A Normalized Data Model
Further Normal Forms
Normalization in Practice
Additional Data Modeling Issues
Summary
Review
Bonus Question
Suggested Reading
Chapter 4 Database Design
From Logical Model to Physical Database
Transform Entities to Tables
Transform Attributes to Columns
Build Referential Constraints for All Relationships
Build Physical Data Structures
 Database Performance Design
Designing Indexes
Hashing
Clustering
Interleaving Data
Denormalization
When to Denormalize
Prejoined Tables
Report Tables
Mirror Tables
Split Tables
Combined Tables
Redundant Data
Repeating Groups
Derivable Data
Hierarchies
Special Physical Implementation Needs
Denormalization Summary
Views
Data Definition Language
Temporal Data Support
A Temporal Example
Business Time and System Time
Summary
Review
Bonus Question
Suggested Reading
Chapter 5 Application Design
Database Application Development and SQL
SQL
 Set-at-a-Time Processing and Relational Closure
Embedding SQL in a Program
SQL Middleware and APIs
Application Infrastructure
Object Orientation and SQL
Types of SQL
SQL Coding for Performance
Querying XML Data
Defining Transactions
Transaction Guidelines
Unit of Work
Transaction Processing Systems
Application Servers
Locking
Types of Locks
Lock Time-outs
Deadlocks
Lock Duration
Lock Escalation
Programming Techniques to Minimize Locking Problems
Locking Summary
Batch Processing
Summary
Review
Bonus Question
Suggested Reading
Chapter 6 Design Reviews
What Is a Design Review?
Rules of Engagement
Design Review Participants
 Knowledge and Skills Required
Types of Design Reviews
Conceptual Design Review
Logical Design Review
Physical Design Review
Organizational Design Review
SQL and Application Code Design Review
Pre-Implementation Design Review
Post-Implementation Design Review
Design Review Output
Additional Considerations
Dealing with Remote Staff
Mentorship and Knowledge Transfer
Summary
Review
Suggested Reading
Chapter 7 Database Change Management
Change Management Requirements
The Change Management Perspective of the DBA
Types of Changes
DBMS Software
Hardware Configuration
Logical and Physical Design
Applications
Physical Database Structures
Impact of Change on Database Structures
The Limitations of ALTER
Database Change Scenarios
Comparing Database Structures
Requesting Database Changes
 Standardized Change Requests
Communication
Coordinating Database and Application Changes
Compliance
DBA Scripts and Change Management
Summary
Review
Suggested Reading
Chapter 8 Data Availability
Defining Availability
Increased Availability Requirements
Cost of Downtime
How Much Availability Is Enough?
Availability Problems
Loss of the Data Center
Network Problems
Loss of the Server Hardware
Disk-Related Outages
Operating System Failure
DBMS Software Failure
Application Problems
Security and Authorization Problems
Corruption of Data
Loss of Database Objects
Loss of Data
Data Replication and Propagation Failures
Severe Performance Problems
Recovery Issues
DBA Mistakes
Outages: Planned and Unplanned
 Ensuring Availability
Perform Routine Maintenance While Systems Remain Operational
Automate DBA Functions
Exploit High-Availability Features
Exploit Clustering Technology
Database Architecture and NoSQL
Summary
Review
Suggested Reading
Chapter 9 Performance Management
Defining Performance
A Basic Database Performance Road Map
Monitoring versus Management
Reactive versus Proactive
Preproduction Performance Estimation
Historical Trending
Service-Level Management
Types of Performance Tuning
System Tuning
Database Tuning
Application Tuning
Performance Tuning Tools
DBMS Performance Basics
Summary
Review
Bonus Question
Suggested Reading
Chapter 10 System Performance
The Larger Environment
Interaction with the Operating System
 Allied Agents
Hardware Configuration
Components of the DBMS
DBMS Installation and Configuration Issues
Types of Configuration
Memory Usage
Data Cache Details
“Open” Database Objects
Database Logs
Locking and Contention
The System Catalog
Other Configuration Options
General Advice
System Monitoring
Summary
Review
Bonus Question
Suggested Reading
Chapter 11 Database Performance
Techniques for Optimizing Databases
Partitioning
Raw Partition versus File System
Indexing
Denormalization
Clustering
Interleaving Data
Free Space
Compression
File Placement and Allocation
Page Size (Block Size)
 Database Reorganization
Determining When to Reorganize
Automation
Summary
Review
Suggested Reading
Chapter 12 Application Performance
Designing Applications for Relational Access
Relational Optimization
CPU and I/O Costs
Database Statistics
Query Analysis
Joins
Access Path Choices
Additional Optimization Considerations
View Access
Query Rewrite
Rule-Based Optimization
Reviewing Access Paths
Forcing Access Paths
SQL Coding and Tuning for Efficiency
A Dozen SQL Rules of Thumb
Additional SQL Tuning Tips
Identifying Poorly Performing SQL
Summary
Review
Suggested Reading
Chapter 13 Data Integrity
Types of Integrity
Database Structure Integrity
 Types of Structural Problems
Managing Structural Problems
Semantic Data Integrity
Entity Integrity
Unique Constraints
Data Types
Default Values
Check Constraints
Triggers
Referential Integrity
Temporal Database Systems
Summary
Review
Suggested Reading
Chapter 14 Database Security
Data Breaches
Database Security Basics
Database Users
Granting and Revoking Authority
Types of Privileges
Granting to PUBLIC
Revoking Privileges
Label-Based Access Control
Security Reporting
Authorization Roles and Groups
Roles
Groups
Other Database Security Mechanisms
Using Views for Security
Using Stored Procedures for Security
 Encryption
Data at Rest Encryption
Data in Transit Encryption
Encryption Techniques
SQL Injection
SQL Injection Prevention
Auditing
External Security
Job Scheduling and Security
Non-DBMS DBA Security
DBMS Fixpacks and Maintenance
Summary
Review
Suggested Reading
Chapter 15 Regulatory Compliance and Database Administration
A Collaborative Approach to Compliance
Why Should DBAs Care about Compliance?
Metadata Management, Data Quality, and Data Governance
Metadata
Data Quality
Data Governance
Database Auditing and Data Access Tracking
Database Auditing Techniques
Privileged User Auditing
Data Masking and Obfuscation
Data Masking Techniques
Database Archiving for Long-Term Data Retention
The Life Cycle of Data
Database Archiving
Components of a Database Archiving Solution
 The Impact of e-Discovery on DBA
Closer Tracking of Traditional DBA Tasks
Database Change Management
Database Backup and Recovery
Summary
Review
Suggested Reading
Chapter 16 Database Backup and Recovery
The Importance of Backup and Recovery
Preparing for Problems
Backup
Full versus Incremental Backups
Database Objects and Backups
DBMS Control
Concurrent Access Issues
Backup Consistency
Log Archiving and Backup
Determining Your Backup Schedule
DBMS Instance Backup
Designing the DBMS Environment for Recovery
Alternate Approaches to Database Backup
Document Your Backup Strategy
Database Object Definition Backups
Recovery
Determining Recovery Options
General Steps for Database Object Recovery
Types of Recovery
Index Recovery
Testing Your Recovery Plan
Recovering a Dropped Database Object
 Recovering Broken Blocks and Pages
Populating Test Databases
Alternatives to Backup and Recovery
Standby Databases
Replication
Disk Mirroring
Summary
Review
Suggested Reading
Chapter 17 Disaster Planning
The Need for Planning
Risk and Recovery
General Disaster Recovery Guidelines
The Remote Site
The Written Plan
Personnel
Backing Up the Database for Disaster Recovery
Tape Backups
Storage Management Backups
Other Approaches
Some Guidelines
Disaster Prevention
Disaster and Contingency Planning Web Sites
Summary
Review
Suggested Reading
Chapter 18 Data and Storage Management
Storage Management Basics
Files and Data Sets
File Placement on Disk
 Raw Partitions versus File Systems
Temporary Database Files
Space Management
Data Page Layouts
Index Page Layouts
Transaction Logs
Fragmentation and Storage
Storage Options
RAID
JBOD
Storage Area Networks
Network-Attached Storage
Tiered Storage
Planning for the Future
Capacity Planning
Summary
Review
Suggested Reading
Chapter 19 Data Movement and Distribution
Loading and Unloading Data
The LOAD Utility
The UNLOAD Utility
Maintaining Application Test Beds
EXPORT and IMPORT
Bulk Data Movement
ETL Software
Replication and Propagation
Messaging Software
Other Methods
Distributed Databases
 Setting Up a Distributed Environment
Data Distribution Standards
Accessing Distributed Data
Two-Phase COMMIT
Distributed Performance Problems
Summary
Review
Bonus Question
Suggested Reading
Chapter 20 Data Warehouse Administration
What Is a Data Warehouse?
Analytical versus Transaction Processing
Administering the Data Warehouse
Too Much Focus on Technology?
Data Warehouse Design
Data Movement
Data Cleansing
Data Warehouse Scalability
Data Warehouse Performance
Data Freshness
Data Content
Data Usage
Financial Chargeback
Backup and Recovery
Don’t Operate in a Vacuum!
Summary
Review
Suggested Reading
Chapter 21 Database Connectivity
Multitier, Distributed Computing
Discovering Diverse Content Through
Random Scribd Documents
therefore, the 13th of July, 1102, when Sæwulf sailed from
Monopoli, and the 22nd of the same month when he left Brindisi;
and it was the day of Pentecost, 1103, when he embarked at Joppa,
on his return. These dates will agree very well with the age of the
Sæwulf mentioned by William of Malmesbury.
The events preceding, and connected with the crusades, had
considerably modified the route followed by the pilgrims in their way
to Jerusalem. They had previously gone by way of Egypt, because it
was no doubt safer to pass in ships employed in commerce with the
Saracens, or to go with Saracenic passports from the west, than to
encounter the hostile feelings with which people were received who
came into Syria from the neighbouring territory of the Greeks. But
now they might proceed with greater security through the Christian
states on the northern shores of the Mediterranean, either visiting
Constantinople before they proceeded to Jerusalem, or, if their
eagerness to see the holy city overcame all other considerations,
sailing along the coast of Greece and through the islands of the
Archipelago. The latter course was taken by Sæwulf; he sailed from
Italy to the Ionian islands; proceeded overland to Negropont, where
he embarked in another ship, and, after touching at several of the
islands, proceeded along the coast of Asia Minor to Jaffa, whence he
travelled by land to Jerusalem, reserving his visit to the metropolis of
the Grecian empire for his return. The narrative appears to be
truncated, which has deprived us of Sæwulf's observations of
Constantinople.
Sæwulf's account of the disastrous storm which attended their
arrival at Jaffa shows us what multitudes of pilgrims now crowded to
the Holy Land. Among these were people of all classes, rich and
poor, noble and ignoble, laymen equally with monks and clergy.
Some went in humility and meekness to visit the scene of their
salvation, while others, embarking with crews of desperate
marauders, although they went to the Holy City with the same
professions, proceeded as privateers, or rather as pirates, plundering
and devastating on their way. Among this latter class the
descendants of the sea-kings of the north appear to have been
especially distinguished, and the Scandinavian sagas have preserved
more than one narrative, half authentic and half romantic, of their
adventures. It has been thought advisable to give, as a specimen of
these, the story of Sigurd the Crusader, a northern prince, whose
presence at the capture of Beyrout, in 1110, is mentioned by William
of Tyre.
The land of Palestine was at this time beginning to attract, in an
unusual degree, the attention of another class of travellers from
western Europe—learned men of the Jewish nation—who were
anxious to discover and to make known to their brethren the
condition of the various synagogues in the East, after so many
sanguinary revolutions, as well as to visit the burial-places of the
eminent Hebrews of former days. Several of their relations, written
in Hebrew, are still preserved in manuscript, and a few have been
printed[10]. The earliest of these of any importance is that of
Benjamin of Tudela. We have an "Itinerary of Palestine" made by
Samuel bar Simson in 1210; a "Description of the Sacred Tombs" by
a Jew of Paris named Jacob, in 1258; and several tracts of the same
kind in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries.
Mr. Asher, to whom we owe the best edition of Benjamin of Tudela,
has fixed the date of Benjamin's travels from his own narrative with
great acuteness. It appears from different circumstances to which he
alludes, that his visit to Rome must have taken place subsequent to
1159, that he was at Constantinople probably in December 1161,
and that his account of Egypt, which almost concludes the work,
must have been written prior to 1171[11]. "If we add to these
dates," Mr. Asher observes, "that of his return, as given in the
preface, we shall find that the narrative refers to a period of about
fourteen years, viz. from 1159 or 1160, to 1173." To these dates
pointed out by Mr. Asher, it may be added, that he appears to have
been at Antioch immediately after the accession of Bohemond III. in
1163; and that he probably reached Sicily, on his way back, early in
1169. By comparing these dates with the general course of the
narrative, I have endeavoured to arrange with tolerable accuracy the
successive years of Benjamin's wanderings; the dates of which are
given at the heads of the pages.
Rabbi Benjamin is the first European traveller whom we find taking a
wider circuit in his travels than that which would have been
restricted by the limits of Christian or Jewish pilgrimage. As Mr.
Asher observes, he appears evidently to have been a merchant, and
hence, though the object most at his heart seems to have been to
note the number and condition of the Jews in the different countries
he visited, he has preserved some valuable information relating to
their trade and commerce at that period, and, in spite of some
credulity, and an evident love of the marvellous, he describes what
he saw with more good sense and accuracy than the Christian
travellers of the same age. Benjamin, who was a Jew of Spain,
began his travels from Saragossa, and proceeded through Italy and
Greece to Constantinople, which city he describes at considerable
length. He proceeded thence, by the Greek Islands, to Antioch, and
thence through Syria, by Acre and Nablous, to Jerusalem. From
Jerusalem he went to Damascus, and from thence to Bagdad, but
his route here and elsewhere appears to have been far from direct,
as we often trace him moving backwards and forwards, to obtain
information, or visit districts that lay out of the ordinary road. The
actual extent of his wanderings towards the East appears doubtful;
but it is certain he remained at Bagdad and in Persia two or three
years, and he returned by way of Arabia and Nubia to Egypt. From
Egypt he returned to Sicily, and he then made a tour in Germany
before his final return home. Mr. Asher observes that there is "one
very peculiar feature" in this work, by which its contents are divided
into what he saw, and what he heard. "In many towns, on the route
from Saragossa to Bagdad, rabbi Benjamin mentions the names of
the principal Jews, elders, and wardens of the congregations he met
with. That a great number of the persons enumerated by rabbi
Benjamin really were his contemporaries; and that the particulars he
incidentally mentions of them are corroborated by other authorities,
has been proved in the biographical notes furnished by Dr. Zunz. We
therefore do not hesitate to assert that rabbi Benjamin visited all
those towns of which he names the elders and principals, and that
the first portion of his narrative comprises an account of what he
saw. But with Gihiagin, the very first stage beyond Bagdad, all such
notices cease, and except those of two princes and of two rabbis, we
look in vain for any other names. So very remarkable a difference
between this and the preceding part of the work leads us to assert
that rabbi Benjamin's travels did not extend beyond Bagdad, and
that he there wrote down the second portion of our work, consisting
of what he heard. Bagdad, at his time the seat of the prince of the
Captivity, must have attracted numerous Jewish pilgrims from all
regions, and, beyond doubt, was the fittest place for gathering those
notices of the Jews and of trade in different parts of the world, the
collecting of which was the aim of rabbi Benjamin's labours." It may
be observed, further, that the information he thus collected agrees in
general with that furnished by the contemporary Arabian
geographers.
The travels of rabbi Benjamin had little, if any, influence on the state
of geographical science amongst the Christians of the west; but a
variety of causes—the thirst for novelty in science excited by the
educational movement of the twelfth century, scattered information,
gleaned from an increased intercourse with the Arabs, and the
adventurous spirit raised by a hundred years of crusades—were now
combining to render them every day more eager for information
relating to distant lands, and this spirit received a new impulse from
the astonishment and terror excited by the incursions of the Tartars
in the earlier half of the thirteenth century. Shrewd and intelligent
men were sent out by the monarchs of the west, nominally as
ambassadors, but really as spies, to ascertain who these dreaded
invaders were, and whence they came, and to report on their
strength and character. These envoys met at the court of the khan
men of distant, and, to them, unknown countries, from whom they
collected information relating to the central and eastern parts of
Asia. Among the first of these envoys was John du Plan de Carpin,
an Italian friar of the order of St. Francis, sent out by Pope Innocent
IV., in the spring of 1245. He was followed immediately by Simon de
St. Quentin, a Dominican monk, also sent by the pope; and a year or
two later, in 1253, by William de Rubruk, another Franciscan, sent on
an embassy to the Tartars by St. Louis. These, as well as other
missionaries of the same century, have left behind them interesting
narratives, several of which are preserved, and some of them are
well known. Merchants, led by the hope of gain, followed in the
steps of, and even preceded, the political or religious missionaries,
and their objects being less restricted, they often penetrated into the
remotest regions of Asia, where they sometimes settled, and rose to
rank and wealth. One of these, an Italian named Marco Polo, on his
return, after a long residence in Asia, in the middle of the thirteenth
century, published the well known narrative, which conduced, more
than any other work, to the development of geographical science,
and which first gave the grand impulse to geographical research,
that led to the more extensive and substantial knowledge which
began to dawn in the following century.
From this time, although short descriptions of the Holy Land became
more numerous than ever, travellers who published their personal
narratives were seldom contented with the old limits of the subject,
but they either visited themselves, or described from the information
of others, some at least of the surrounding countries. This was
carried at times almost to the extreme of affectation. A remarkable
example is furnished to us in the book of Sir John Maundeville. This
singular writer, more credulous than the most bigotted monk,
appears to have visited the east with the double object of
performing the pilgrimage to the Holy Sepulchre, and of seeking
military service in foreign lands. Professedly a guide to pilgrims to
Jerusalem, to which a large portion of the book is devoted, it
contains, nevertheless, the description of nearly the whole of Asia,
and of some parts of Africa and Europe, and extends to countries
which its author visited and to many others which he certainly did
not visit. From the rather equivocal light in which he exhibits himself,
and the peculiar form of his work, it is impossible to trace the course
of his travels, but he assures us that he set out from England in
1322, and that he returned home and compiled his book in 1356. It
appears clear, from evidence furnished by the book itself, that
Maundeville was in Egypt for some time previous to the year
1342[12], and a closer examination would probably fix the date of his
presence in some other countries. But there can be no doubt that his
book is partly a compilation, for we find him not only borrowing from
ancient writers, like Solinus and Pliny, but it is quite evident that he
made large use of the previous narratives of Marco Polo and of the
Franciscan Oderic, who had travelled over a great part of Asia in the
earlier years of the fourteenth century, and had published his
account during Maundeville's absence in the east. It would not be
difficult to analyze a great portion of Maundeville's book, and show
from whence it was compiled.
It is now generally agreed that Marco Polo originally wrote the
account of his travels in the French language, from which it was
subsequently translated into Latin and Italian. French had now,
indeed, become the general language of popular treatises, and it
seems to be equally well established that in it was written the
original text of Maundeville, who states expressly in the French
copies preserved in manuscript, that he chose French in preference
to Latin, as a language more generally understood, "especially by
lords and knights, and others who understand not Latin."[13] We
learn, from the colophon to some of the Latin copies, that he was at
this time residing at Liege, where he is said to have ended his days,
and that he soon afterwards translated his own book into Latin. An
English version, said to be also from the pen of Maundeville himself,
appeared soon afterwards, and the three versions must have
become extremely popular within a few years after their publication,
from the number of early copies that are still found among our
various collections of manuscripts. The travels of Sir John
Maundeville form, perhaps, the most popular work of the fourteenth
and fifteenth centuries, and it continued long afterwards to be read
eagerly in a variety of forms. Yet all we know of him with any
certainty is his own statement that he was a native of St. Albans,—
the rest of his biography, as commonly given, is a mere tissue of
errors. Bale tells us that he died at Liege, on the 17th of November,
1371, and that he was buried there in the abbey of the Guillamites.
Abraham Orbelius, in his "Itinerarium Belgiæ," gives an epitaph from
that abbey, which appears to be a comparatively recent fabrication.
One of the manuscripts, written in the fifteenth century, (MS. Harl.
3989,) says that Maundeville died at Liege in 1382.
Contemporary with Maundeville lived a German named variously
Boldensel, Boldensle, and Boldenslave, who visited the east in 1336,
and, on his return, published a description of the Holy Land, of
which there is an early printed edition. It had been preceded by the
description of the Holy Land by Brochard, published in 1332. From
this time the narratives of travels in Palestine became much more
numerous and more detailed, and I shall not attempt even a bare
enumeration. The majority of them consist of little more than a
repetition of the same facts and the same legends. Some, however,
are far superior to the rest, by the interest of the narrative, and the
novelty of the information gathered by the traveller. Two, belonging
to the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, stand pre-eminent in this
respect, the narratives of Breydenbach and Rauwulf, which merit
separate publication. I have selected to follow sir John Maundeville,
the travels of Bertrandon de la Brocquière, on account of their peculiar
character.
The Turks, who were gradually overthrowing the empire of the Arabs
in the east, were becoming formidable to the Christians also towards
the end of the fourteenth century. Since the time of Brochard, who
had written expressly to show how the east lay open to an attack
from the Christians, several attempts had been made to raise a new
crusade. La Brocquière, like Maundeville, was a knight, and he held
the high position of counsellor and first esquire carver to the duke of
Burgundy. As was the case with so many others of his own class, his
pilgrimage to Jerusalem was the result of a vow, but the curiosity
and ardour of the man-at-arms were perhaps more powerful in him
than the mere calls of religion. He left Burgundy in the February of
1432, in company with other great lords of that country, passed
through Italy by way of Rome to Venice, and there embarked and
proceeded by sea to Jaffa. But when this holy pilgrimage was
completed, as far as lay in his power to perform it, he undertook a
pilgrimage of another kind, and in order to observe the manners and
condition of the Turks, who were already threatening
Constantinople, he formed the bold scheme of returning to France
overland, which would lead him to traverse the western part of Asia
and eastern Europe. The notices he has given us of the countries
through which he passed, some of them but imperfectly known even
at present, combined with the interesting period at which the
journey was made, give an especial importance to this narrative,
which is marked by the accuracy and good sense of its writer, and
exhibits none of the credulity of previous travellers. On his return to
the court of Burgundy, La Brocquière's appearance excited great
interest, and duke Philip began to talk loudly of his intention to lead
a crusade against the Infidels. It was probably to further his object
that La Brocquière compiled his narrative, which was published in
French, soon after the year 1438, to which date he alludes in his
text. The state of Europe, however, was not now favourable to a
crusade, and the duke's designs never went further than a few
empty proclamations, and some equally fruitless feasting and
pageantry. The Turks were allowed to pursue their conquests, and
the victorious Mohammed II. became master of Constantinople in
the May of 1453.
Our notices of the medieval travellers would properly conclude here.
A new era was opening upon the west as well as upon the east, and
the last breath of the spirit of the crusades died, as the system
which had nourished it sunk before the great religious Reformation
of the sixteenth century. Instead of monks and soldiers, Europe,
more enlightened, began soon afterwards to send merchants, and
consuls, and ambassadors. A clearer and more satisfactory light was
now thrown on the geography of the Holy Land. The English
traveller in Palestine of most authority in the seventeenth century
was Sandys, who, however, often erred on the side of credulity.
Before the end of the century came the well known Henry Maundrell,
who, on account of the brevity of his narrative and the extreme
accuracy of his descriptions, has been selected to conclude the
present volume. We know little more of Maundrell than that he was
a fellow of Exeter College, Oxford, which he left to take the
appointment of chaplain to the English factory at Aleppo. It is not
within our province to notice the works of subsequent travellers.
It will be necessary to make some statement to our readers of the
manner in which the present volume has been edited, and of the
sources from which the different works it contains have been
derived.
The travels of bishop Arculf, (as compiled by Adamnan,) as well as
those of Bernard the Wise, and the life of Willibald, were printed in
the Acta Sanctorum Ordinis S. Benedicti, Sæc. III., Part II., in 1672.
A previous edition of Arculf had been published in a small quarto
volume, Ingoldstadt, 1619, which also contained the abridgment by
Bede. The latter, under the title of Libellus de Locis Sanctis, is
included in the different editions of Bede's works, and will be found
in the recent edition by Dr. Giles, accompanied with an English
translation. Another edition of the narrative of Bernard was
published from a manuscript in the Cottonian Library in the British
Museum by M. Francisque Michel, in the Memoirs of the Society of
Geography at Paris. M. Michel's text is in many respects inferior to
that of Mabillon, but it contains the concluding paragraphs relating
to the state of society in Egypt, Italy, and France, which were
wanting in the manuscript from which Mabillon printed. But the new
editor, M. Michel, has fallen into a very grave error; for the treatise
of Bede, De Locis Sanctis, following in the Cottonian manuscript the
tract of Bernard, he has mistaken them for one continued treatise,
and printed them as such, accusing Mabillon of having printed only
one half of his author. The narrative of Sæwulf, the only manuscript
of which is preserved in the library of Corpus Christi College,
Cambridge, was published in the collection of the French
Geographical Society by M. D'Avezac, from a transcript furnished by
the editor of the present volume. M. D'Avezac has executed his task
of editing with remarkable care and discrimination, but I fear that
the transcript was in two or three instances inaccurate, and at the
time of publication it was unfortunately not in the power of M.
D'Avezac to have it collated with the original. One omission of some
importance for the architectural history of the church of the Holy
Sepulchre was very kindly pointed out to me by Professor Willis, and
has been corrected in the translation. In describing this church, the
text as printed by M. D'Avezac contains the words, "Ista oratoria
sanctissima continentur in atrio Dominici sepulchri ad orientalem
plagam. In lateribus autem ipsius ecclesiæ suæ capellæ sibi
adhærent præclarissimæ hinc inde, sicut ipsi participes Dominicæ
passionis sibi in lateribus constiterunt hinc inde." In the original
manuscript the passage stands thus, and is rendered intelligible
—"Ista oratoria sanctissima continentur in atrio Dominici sepulchri ad
orientalem plagam. In lateribus vero ipsius ecclesiæ duæ capellæ
sibi adhærent præclarissimæ hinc inde, Sanctæ Mariæ scilicet
Sanctique Johannis in honore, sicut ipsi participes Dominicæ
passionis sibi in lateribus constiterunt hinc inde."
These four narratives are here translated for the first time. In
translating Bernard, the text of Mabillon has been compared with
that of Michel. The narrative of Arculf has been somewhat abridged,
and relieved of some miracles and theological observations that are
totally without interest. It may be right to observe, also, that in the
original manuscript this narrative is accompanied with plans of
churches, copies of which are given in the edition of Mabillon, and in
the editions of Bede's abridgement.
The translation of the Saga of Sigurd the Crusader, is taken, by the
obliging permission of Mr. Laing, from his recently published
"Hemskringla," or "Chronicle of the Kings of Norway."
A number of editions, and several translations, of the travels of
Benjamin of Tudela, have appeared, but the only strictly correct one
is that published by Mr. A. Asher, Berlin, 1840. The translation
published in the present volume is a mere revision of the English
version by Mr. Asher, altered a little in the language, to make it more
suitable for the popular English reader. My notes are chiefly abridged
from the valuable volume of notes published by Mr. Asher in 1841.
The only edition of the English text of the book of Sir John
Maundeville which correctly represents an original manuscript, is
that published from the Cottonian Library in 1725, of which a reprint
appeared in 1839, with an introduction, and some additional notes
by Mr. Halliwell. The language of this edition has been modernized
for the present volume. The travels of Bertrandon de la Brocquière
are preserved in a manuscript preserved in the Royal Library in Paris,
from which they were published, with some abridgment and in
modernized French, in the fifth volume of the Mémoires of the
Institute of France, by Legrand d'Aussy. They were thence translated
into English by Mr. Johns, and printed at his private press at Hafod,
in 1807. This translation, which has become a rare book, has been
here slightly revised, and a few illustrative notes have been added.
Maundrell's journey is reprinted from the original edition.
Brompton, Aug. 28, 1848.
 THE TRAVELS OF BISHOP ARCULF
IN THE HOLY LAND.

towards a.d. 700.

WRITTEN FROM HIS DICTATION, BY ADAMNAN, ABBOT OF IONA.

Arculf, the holy bishop, a native of Gaul, after visiting many remote
countries, resided nine months at Jerusalem, and made daily visits
to the surrounding districts. He counted in the circuit of the walls of
the holy city eighty-four towers and six gates, the latter being
distributed in the following order:—the gate of David on the west of
Mount Sion, the gate of the valley of the Fuller, St. Stephen's gate,
Benjamin's gate, the little gate leading by a flight of steps to the
valley of Jehoshaphat, and the gate called Tecuitis; of which, the
three most frequented are, one to the west, another to the north,
and a third to the east. That part of the wall which, with its towers,
extends from the gate of David over the northern brow of Mount
Sion, which overlooks the city from the south, to the precipitous
brow of the same mountain which looks to the east, has no gates.
The city itself begins from the northern brow of Mount Sion, and
declines with a gentle slope towards the walls on the north and east,
where it is lower; so that the rain which falls on the city runs in
streams through the eastern gates, carrying with it all the filth of the
streets into the brook Cedron, in the valley of Jehoshaphat. On the
15th of September, annually, an immense multitude of people of
different nations are used to meet in Jerusalem for the purpose of
commerce, and the streets are so clogged with the dung of camels,
horses, mules, and oxen, that they become almost impassable, and
the smell would be a nuisance to the whole town. But, by a
miraculous providence, which exhibits God's peculiar attachment to
this place, no sooner has the multitude left Jerusalem than a heavy
fall of rain begins on the night following, and ceases only when the
city has been perfectly cleansed.
On the spot where the Temple once stood, near the eastern wall, the
Saracens have now erected a square house of prayer, in a rough
manner, by raising beams and planks upon some remains of old
ruins; this is their place of worship, and it is said that it will hold
about three thousand men[14]. Arculf also observed many large and
handsome houses of stone in all parts of the city, but his attention
was more especially attracted by the holy places.
The church of the Holy Sepulchre is very large and round,
encompassed with three walls, with a broad space between each,
and containing three altars of wonderful workmanship, in the middle
wall, at three different points; on the south, the north, and the west.
It is supported by twelve stone columns of extraordinary magnitude;
and it has eight doors or entrances through the three opposite walls,
four fronting the north-east, and four to the south-east. In the
middle space of the inner circle is a round grotto cut in the solid
rock, the interior of which is large enough to allow nine men to pray,
standing, and the roof of which is about a foot and a half higher
than a man of ordinary stature. The entrance is from the east side,
and the whole of the exterior is covered with choice marble to the
very top of the roof, which is adorned with gold, and supports a
large golden cross. Within, on the north side, is the tomb of our
Lord, hewn out of the same rock, seven feet in length, and rising
three palms above the floor. These measurements were taken by
Arculf with his own hand. This tomb is broad enough to hold one
man lying on his back, and has a raised division in the stone to
separate his legs. The entrance is on the south side, and there are
twelve lamps burning day and night, according to the number of the
twelve apostles; four within at the foot, and the other eight above,
on the right-hand side. Internally, the stone of the rock remains in
its original state, and still exhibits the marks of the workman's tools;
its colour is not uniform, but appears to be a mixture of white and
red. The stone that was laid at the entrance to the monument is
now broken in two; the lesser portion standing as a square altar,
before the entrance, while the greater forms another square altar in
the east part of the same church, covered with linen cloths.
To the right of this round church (which is called the Anastasis, or
Resurrection,) adjoins the square church of the Virgin Mary, and to
the east of this another large church is built on the spot called in
Hebrew Golgotha, from the ceiling of which hangs a brazen wheel
with lamps, beneath which a large silver cross is fixed in the very
place where stood the wooden cross on which the Saviour of the
human race suffered. Under the place of our Lord's cross, a cave is
hewn in the rock, in which sacrifice is offered on an altar for the
souls of certain honoured persons deceased, their bodies remaining
meanwhile in the way or street between this church and the round
church. Adjoining the church of Golgotha, to the east, is the basilica,
or church, erected with so much magnificence by the emperor
Constantine, and called the Martyrdom, built, it is said, in the place
where the cross of our Lord with the other two crosses were found
by divine revelation, two hundred and thirty-three years after they
had been buried. Between these two last-mentioned churches, is the
place where Abraham raised the altar for the sacrifice of his son
Isaac, where there is now a small wooden table, on which the alms
for the poor are offered. Between the Anastasis, or round church,
and the basilica of Constantine, a certain open space extends to the
church of Golgotha, in which are lamps burning day and night. In
the same space between the Martyrdom and the Golgotha, is a seat,
in which is the cup of our Lord, concealed in a little shrine, which
Arculf touched and kissed through a hole in the covering. It is made
of silver, of the capacity of about a French quart, and has two
handles, one on each side. In it also is the sponge which was held
up to our Lord's mouth. The soldier's lance, with which he pierced
our Lord's side, which has been broken into two pieces, is also kept
in the portico of the Martyrdom, inserted in a wooden cross. Arculf
saw some other relics, and he observed a lofty column in the holy
places to the north, in the middle of the city, which, at mid-day at
the summer solstice, casts no shadow, which shows that this is the
centre of the earth[15].
Arculf next visited the holy places in the immediate neighbourhood
of Jerusalem. In the valley of Jehoshaphat he saw the round church
of St. Mary, divided into two stories by slabs of stone; in the upper
part are four altars; on the eastern side below there is another, and
to the right of it an empty tomb of stone, in which the Virgin Mary is
said to have been buried; but who moved her body, or when this
took place, no one can say. On entering this chamber, you see on
the right-hand side a stone inserted in the wall, on which Christ knelt
when he prayed on the night in which he was betrayed; and the
marks of his knees are still seen in the stone, as if it had been as
soft as wax. In the same valley, not far from the church of St. Mary,
is shown the tower of Jehoshaphat, in which his tomb is seen;
adjoining to which little tower, on the right, is a separate chamber
cut out of the rock of Mount Olivet, containing two hollow
sepulchres, one, that of the aged Simeon the Just, who held the
child Jesus in the temple, and prophesied of him; the other of
Joseph, the husband of Mary. On the side of Mount Olivet there is a
cave, not far from the church of St. Mary, on an eminence looking
towards the valley of Jehoshaphat, in which are two very deep pits.
One of these extends under the mountain to a vast depth; the other
is sunk straight down from the pavement of the cavern, and is said
to be of great extent. These pits are always closed above. In this
cavern are four stone tables; one, near the entrance, is that of our
Lord Jesus, whose seat is attached to it, and who, doubtless, rested
himself here while his twelve apostles sat at the other tables. There
is a wooden door to the cave, which was often visited by Arculf[16].
After passing through the gate of David, which is adjacent to Mount
Sion, we come to a stone bridge, raised on arches, and pointing
straight across the valley to the south; half-way along which, a little
to the west of it, is the spot where Judas Iscariot hanged himself;
and there is still shown a large fig-tree, from the top of which he is
said to have suspended himself, according to the words of the poet
Juvencus,—

"Informem rapuit ficus de vertice mortem."

On Mount Sion, Arculf saw a square church, which included the site
of our Lord's Supper, the place where the Holy Ghost descended
upon the apostles, the marble column to which our Lord was bound
when he was scourged, and the spot where the Virgin Mary died.
Here also is shown the site of the martyrdom of St. Stephen. He saw
on the south of Mount Sion a small field (Aceldama) covered with a
heap of stones, where the bodies of many pilgrims are carefully
buried, while others are left to rot on the surface.
The ground to the north of Jerusalem, as far as the city of Samuel,
which is called Ramatha, is at intervals rough and stony. There are
open valleys, covered with thorns, extending all the way to the
region of Tamnitis; but, on the other side, from Ælia (Jerusalem) and
Mount Sion to Cæsarea of Palestine, though some narrow and
craggy places are found, yet the principal part of the way is a level
plain interspersed with olive-yards. Arculf states that few trees are
found on Mount Olivet, except vines and olive trees, but wheat and
barley flourish exceedingly; the nature of the soil, which is not
adapted to trees, is favourable to grass and flowers. The height of
this hill appears to be equal to that of Mount Sion, although it is
much more extensive in length and breadth: the two mountains are
separated by the valley of Jehoshaphat. On the highest point of
Mount Olivet, where our Lord ascended into heaven, is a large round
church, having around it three vaulted porticoes. The inner
apartment is not vaulted and covered, because of the passage of our
Lord's body; but it has an altar on the east side, covered with a
narrow roof. On the ground, in the midst of it, are to be seen the
last prints in the dust of our Lord's feet, and the roof appears open
above, where he ascended; and although the earth is daily carried
away by believers, yet still it remains as before, and retains the
same impression of the feet. Near this is a brazen wheel, as high as
a man's neck, having an entrance towards the west, with a great
lamp hanging above it on a pulley, and burning night and day. In the
western part of the same church are eight windows; and eight
lamps, hanging by cords opposite them, cast their light through the
glass as far as Jerusalem; which light, Arculf said, strikes the hearts
of the beholders with a mixture of joy and divine fear. Every year, on
the day of the Ascension, when mass is ended, a strong blast of
wind comes down, and casts to the ground all who are in the
church. All that night, lanterns are kept burning there, so that the
mountain appears not only lighted up, but actually on fire, and all
that side of the city is illuminated by it.
Arculf visited at Bethany a field in the middle of a large grove of
olives, where there is a great monastery, and a church built over the
cave where our Lord raised Lazarus from the dead. There is also a
much frequented church to the north of Bethany, on that part of
Mount Olivet where our Lord is said to have preached to his
disciples.
From Jerusalem Arculf went to Bethlehem, which is situated on a
narrow ridge, surrounded on all sides by valleys. The ridge is about
a mile long, from west to east; and a low wall, without towers,
surrounds the brow of the hill, and overlooks the valley. The houses
of the inhabitants are scattered here and there over the space within
the wall. At the extreme eastern angle there is a sort of natural half
cave, the outer part of which is said to have been the place of our
Lord's birth; the inside is called our Lord's Manger. The whole of this
cave is covered within with precious marble. Over the place where
more especially our Lord is said to have been born, stands the great
church of St. Mary. Near the wall is a hollow stone, which received
back from the wall the water in which our Lord's body was washed,
and has ever since been full of the purest water, without any
diminution. If by any accident or service it has been emptied, it
quickly becomes as full as before. In the valley to the north of
Bethlehem, Arculf saw the tomb of David, in the middle of a church,
covered with a low pyramidal stone, unadorned, with a lamp placed
above it. In another church, on the slope of the hill to the south, is
the tomb of St. Jerome, equally without ornament. About a mile to
the east of Bethlehem, by the tower of Ader, that is, of the Flock, is
a church containing monuments of the three Shepherds, to whom,
on this spot, the angel announced the birth of our Lord.
There is a highway, according to Arculf, leading southward from
Jerusalem to Hebron, to the east of which Bethlehem is situated, six
miles from Jerusalem. At the extremity of this road, on the west
side, is the tomb of Rachel, rudely built of stones, without any
ornament, presenting externally the form of a pyramid. Her name,
placed there by her husband Jacob, is still shown upon it.
Hebron, which is also called Mamre, has no walls, and exhibits only
the ruins of the ancient city; but there are some ill-built villages and
hamlets scattered over the plain, and inhabited by a multitude of
people. To the east is a double cave, looking towards Mamre, where
are the tombs of the four patriarchs, Abram, Isaac, Jacob, and Adam
the first man. Contrary to the usual custom, they are placed with the
feet to the south, and the heads to the north; and they are inclosed
by a square low wall. Each of the tombs is covered with a single
stone, worked somewhat in form of a church, and of a light colour
for those of the three patriarchs, which are together. The tomb of
Adam, which is of meaner workmanship, lies not far from them, at
the furthest extremity to the north. Arculf also saw poorer and
smaller monuments of the three women, Sarah, Rebecca, and Leah,
who were here buried in the earth. The hill of Mamre is a mile to the
south-west of these monuments, and is covered with grass and
flowers, with a flat plain at the summit; on the north side of which is
a church, in which is still seen, rooted in the ground, the stump of
the oak of Mamre, called also the oak of Abraham, because under it
he received the angels. St. Jerome says that this oak had stood
there from the beginning of the world. Passing from Hebron towards
the north, a hill of no great size is seen to the left, covered with fir-
trees, about three miles from Hebron. Fir-wood, for fuel, is carried
hence to Jerusalem on camels, for, as Arculf observed, carriages or
waggons are very seldom met with throughout the whole of Judæa.
In another excursion, Arculf proceeded to Jericho, where, although
the city had been three times built, and as many times utterly
destroyed, yet the walls of the house of Rahab still stand, although
without a roof. The whole site of the city is covered with corn-fields
and vineyards, without any habitations. Between it and the Jordan
are large groves of palm trees, interspersed with open spaces, in
which are almost innumerable houses, inhabited by a diminutive sort
of men of the race of Canaan. A large church stands on the site of
Galgalis, where the children of Israel first encamped after passing
the Jordan. It is five miles from Jericho. Within the church are the
twelve stones which Joshua ordered to be taken out of the Jordan;
six on the south side of the church floor, and six on the north. They
are so heavy, that two strong men, at the present day, could hardly
lift one of them; one has been accidentally broken in two, but the
pieces have been reunited by means of iron.
A wooden cross stands in the Jordan, on the spot where our Lord
was baptized, the depth of which, when the water is highest,
reaches to the neck of a tall man, and, when lowest, to the breast.
The river is here about as broad as a man can throw a stone with a
sling. A stone bridge, raised on arches, reaches from the bank of the
river to the cross, where people bathe. Arculf swam backwards and
forwards in the water. A little church stands at the brink of the water,
on the spot where our Lord is said to have laid his clothes when he
entered the river. On the higher ground is a large monastery of
monks, and a church dedicated to St. John. Arculf found the waters
of the Jordan of a yellowish milky colour, and observed that they
preserved this colour to a considerable distance, after they flowed
into the Dead Sea, where he also witnessed the way in which salt
was obtained from the waters of the latter.
In another excursion, Arculf visited the spot at the foot of Mount
Libanus where the Jordan has its rise from two fountains, which are
named Jor and Dan, the waters of which uniting, take the name of
Jordan; and he went round the greater part of the Sea of Galilee,
called also the Lake of Gennesareth, and the Sea of Tiberias, which
is surrounded by thick woods, and is a hundred and forty stadia in
length. The waters are sweet, and fit to drink; for it receives no
mud, or other coarse substance, from any marshy pools, but is
surrounded on all sides by a sandy shore. Arculf also travelled over
the country of Samaria, and visited the town called in Hebrew
Sichem, but by the Greeks and Latins Sicima, and now more usually
Sichar. Here, without the walls, he saw a cruciform church, in the
centre of which is the well of Jacob, where our Saviour met the
Samaritan woman. Arculf, who drank of the water, estimated its
depth at forty cubits. He also saw in the wilderness a clear fountain,
protected with a covering of masonry, at which it is reported John
the Baptist used to drink. He likewise saw a very small species of
locust, the bodies of which are slender and short, about the size of a
finger; and, because they make short leaps like frogs, they are easily
caught among the grass. When boiled in oil, they form a poor sort of
food. In the same desert he saw trees with broad round leaves of a
milky colour, with the savour of honey, which are naturally fragile,
and, after being bruised with the hand, are eaten; and this is the
wild honey found in the woods. He further saw, on this side of the
Sea of Galilee, to the north of the city of Tiberias, the place where
our Lord blessed the loaves and fishes, a grassy and level plain,
which has never been ploughed since that event, and shows no
traces of buildings, except a few columns round the fountain where,
as they say, those persons drank after they had eaten their fill.
Those who wish to go from Jerusalem to Capernaum, take the direct
way by Tiberias, and from thence, along the Sea of Gennesareth, to
the place where the loaves were blessed, from which Capernaum is
at no great distance. Arculf saw this place from a neighbouring hill,
and observed that it has no walls, but lies on a narrow piece of
ground between the mountain and the lake. On the shore, towards
the east, it extends a long way, having the mountain on the north
and the water on the south. Arculf remained two days and two
nights at Nazareth, which is on a hill, and is also without walls, but it
has large houses of stone, and two very large churches. One of
these is raised upon mounds and arches connecting them, and
under it, between the mounds, is a clear fountain, from which all the
citizens draw water in vessels, which they raise up into the church
by means of pulleys. On this site stood formerly the house in which
our Lord was nursed when an infant. The other church was built on
the site of the house in which the archangel Gabriel came to the
blessed Mary.
Mount Tabor, in Galilee, is three miles from the Lake of Gennesareth,
of a remarkably round shape, and covered in an extraordinary
manner with grass and flowers. At the top is a pleasant and
extensive meadow, surrounded by a thick wood, and in the middle
of the meadow a great monastery, with numerous cells of monks.
The meadow is about twenty-four stadia in breadth, and the height
of the mountain about thirty stadia. There are also three handsome
churches on the top, according to the number of tabernacles
described by Peter[17]. The monastery and churches are inclosed by
a stone wall.
From Mount Tabor, Arculf went to the royal city of Damascus, eight
days' journey, and remained there some days. It is situated in a
plain, surrounded by a broad and ample circuit of walls, with
numerous towers, and is intersected by four great rivers. On all sides
beyond the walls are numerous groves of olives. The king of the
Saracens has obtained possession of this city, and reigns in it[18]. It
contains a large church of St. John the Baptist, frequented by the
Christians. The unbelieving Saracens have built themselves a large
mosque here. From hence Arculf repaired to Tyre, and thence (as it
appears) he returned to Jerusalem. He went subsequently from
Jerusalem to Joppa, and thence sailed, in forty days, to Alexandria in
Egypt, a city famous throughout the whole world. It extends to a
great length from east to west, so that Arculf, who began to enter
the city at nine o'clock in the morning (hora tertia), in the month of
October, and proceeding through the whole length of the city, hardly
reached the other side before dark[19]. On the south it is bounded
by the mouths of the Nile, and on the north by the Lake Mareotis.
Its port is difficult of access, and bears some resemblance to the
human body; for in its head it is sufficiently ample, but at its
entrance it is very narrow, where it admits the tide of the sea,
together with such ships as run into the port to take shelter and
refit. But when you have passed the narrow neck and mouth of the
harbour, the sea, like the human body, stretches out far and wide.
On the right hand side is a small port, in which is the Pharos, a large
tower, which is every night lighted up with torches, lest mariners
might mistake their way in the dark, and be dashed against the
rocks in their attempt to find the entrance, particularly as this is
much impeded and disturbed by the waves dashing to and fro. The
port, however, is always calm, and in magnitude about thirty stadia.
The precautions alluded to are necessary for a port which is, in a
manner, the emporium of the whole world; for innumerable people
from all parts go there for commerce, and the surrounding region is
extremely fruitful. Although the country is destitute of rain, the Nile
serves both as a cultivator of the land, and as the means of
transferring its products from one place to another. Here you see
people sowing, there navigating, which are their chief occupations.
The Nile is navigable to the place they call the town of Elephants[20];
beyond that the cataracts hinder a ship from proceeding, not from
want of water, but because all the waters of the river run in a sort of
wild ruin down a steep descent. Towards Egypt, as we enter the city,
there is a large church on the right, in which St. Mark the Evangelist
is interred. The body is buried in the eastern part of the church,
before the altar, with a monument of squared marble over it. Along
the Nile, the Egyptians are in the habit of constructing numerous
embankments, to prevent the irruption of the water, which, if these
mounds were broken down by the neglect of their keepers, would
rather inundate and destroy than irrigate the lands below. The
Egyptians who inhabit the plains, as Arculf, who frequently passed
backward and forward along the Nile, observed, make their houses
over canals by laying planks across. Arculf relates further, that the
river Nile is haunted by crocodiles, aquatic beasts, not so large as
they are ravenous, and so strong, that if one of them see by chance
a horse or an ass, or even an ox, feeding near the bank of the river,
he suddenly rushes out to attack it, and seizing it perhaps by the
foot, drags it under the water, and devours the whole.
On his return from Alexandria, Arculf went to Constantinople, which
is bounded on all sides, except the north, by the sea. The circuit of
the walls, which are angular, according to the line of the sea, is
about twelve miles. Constantine was at first disposed to build it in
Cilicia, near the sea which separates Europe and Asia; but on a
certain night all the iron tools were carried away, and when men
were sent to seek them, they were found on the European side; for
there it was God's will that the city should be built. In this city is a
church of wonderful workmanship, called the Church of St. Sophia,
built circular from its foundation, domed in, and surrounded by three
walls. It is supported to a great height on columns and arches, and
has, in its inmost part, on the north side, a large and beautiful
closet, wherein is a wooden chest with a wooden lid, containing
three pieces of our Lord's cross[21]; that is to say, the long timber
cut in two, and the transverse part of the same holy cross. These
pieces are exhibited for the adoration of the people three times only
in the year; namely, on the day of our Lord's Supper, the day of the
Preparation, and on Holy Saturday. On the first of these, the chest,
which is two cubits long and one broad, is set out on a golden altar,
with the holy cross exposed to view: the Emperor first approaches,
and, after him, all the different ranks of laymen in order kiss and
worship it; on the following day, the Empress and all the married
women and virgins do the same; on the third day, the bishops and
different orders of the clergy observe the same ceremonies; and
then the chest is shut, and carried back to the closet before
mentioned.
Arculf saw other sacred relics in Constantinople, and then sailed for
his own country. About twelve miles from Sicily he saw the isle of
Vulcano, whence constantly issued smoke by day and fire by night,
with a noise like thunder, but with more intensity on Fridays and
Saturdays. The noise is heard in Sicily, where Arculf made a short
stay; and afterwards, on his way home, he was carried by contrary
winds to the shores of Britain, and at length came to me, Adamnan,
who by diligent inquiry obtained from him the above particulars,
which I have carefully committed to writing.
 THE TRAVELS OF WILLIBALD.

a.d. 721-727.

WRITTEN FROM HIS OWN RECITAL BY A NUN OF HEIDENHEIM.

After the ceremonies of Easter were ended, the active champion (of
Christ) prepared for his voyage with his two companions, and left
Rome. They first went eastward to the town of Daterina[22], where
they remained two days; and thence to Cajeta, on the coast, where
they went on board a ship and sailed over to Nebule[23]. They here
left the ship, and remained a fortnight. These are cities belonging to
the Romans; they are in the territory of Beneventum, but subject to
Rome. There, after waiting anxiously, in constant prayer that their
desires might be agreeable to heaven, they found a ship bound for
Egypt, in which they took their passage, and sailed to the land of
Calabria, to the town which is called Rhegia[24], and there remained
two days; and then proceeded to the island of Sicily, in which is the
town of Catania, where the body of St. Agatha, the virgin, reposes.
And there is Mount Etna; in case of an eruption of which, the
inhabitants of Catania take the veil of St. Agatha, and hold it up
towards the fire, which immediately ceases. They made a stay of
three weeks at this place, and then sailed to the isle of Samos, and
thence to the town of Ephesus, in Asia, which is one mile from the
sea. They walked thence to the place where the seven sleepers
repose; and onward thence to John the Evangelist, in a beautiful
locality by Ephesus. They next walked two miles along the sea-side
to a large village which is called Figila[25], where they remained one
day, and, having begged bread, they went to a fountain in the
middle of the town, and, sitting on the edge, they dipped their bread
in the water, and so made their meal. They next walked along the
sea-shore to the town of Strobole[26], seated on a lofty hill, and
thence to the place called Patera, where they remained till the rigour
of winter was past.
After this, going on ship-board, they came to the town which is
called Melitena[27], which had been nearly destroyed by an
inundation; and two hermits lived there on a rock, secured by walls,
so that the water could not reach them. And there they suffered
much from hunger, from which they were only relieved by God's
providential mercy[28]. They sailed thence to the isle of Cyprus,
which is between the Greeks and the Saracens, to the town of
Papho, where they passed the first week in the year. And thence
they went to the town of Constantia, where St. Epiphanius reposes,
and there they remained till after the Nativity of St. John the
Baptist[29]. They then put to sea again and came into the region of
the Saracens to the town of Tharratas[30], by the sea; and thence
they walked a distance of nine to twelve miles to a castle called
Archæ[31], where there was a Greek bishop; and there they had
divine service according to the Greek custom. Thence they walked
twelve miles to the town which is called Emessa, where there is a
large church built by St. Helena, in honour of John the Baptist,
whose head was long preserved there. This is in Syria.
Willibald's party had now increased to eight in number, and they
became an object of suspicion to the Saracens, who, seeing that
they were strangers, seized them and threw them into prison,
because they knew not of what country they were, and supposed
them to be spies. They carried them as prisoners before a certain
rich old man, that he might examine them; and he inquired whence
they came and the object of their mission; whereupon they related
to him the true cause of their journey. The old man replied, "I have
often seen men of the parts of the earth whence these come,
travelling hither; they seek no harm, but desire to fulfil their law."
And upon that they went to the palace, to obtain leave to proceed to
Jerusalem.
While they were in prison it happened, by a manifest intervention of
Divine Providence, that a merchant residing there was desirous, as
an act of charity, and for the salvation of his soul, to purchase their
deliverance, that they might pursue their way, but he was not
allowed to carry his generous design into effect; nevertheless he
sent them daily their meals, and on Wednesdays and Saturdays sent
his son to them in prison, who took them out to the bath, and
brought them back again. And on Sunday he took them to church
through the market, that they might see the shops, and whatever
they seemed to take a liking to he afterwards bought for them at his
own expense. The townsmen used then to come there to look at
them, because they were young and handsome, and clad in good
garments.
Then, while they were still remaining in prison, a man, who was a
native of Spain, came and spoke with them, and inquired earnestly
who they were and from whence they came, and they told him the
object of their pilgrimage. This Spaniard had a brother in the king's
palace, who was chamberlain to the king of the Saracens; and when
the governor who had thrown them into prison came to the palace,
the captain in whose ship they had sailed from Cyprus, and the
Spaniard who had spoken to them in prison, went together before
the king of the Saracens, whose title is Emir-al-Mumenin[32], and,
when their cause came on, the Spaniard spoke to his brother, and
begged him to intercede with the king for them. After this, when all
three came before the king, and told him the case, he asked whence
the prisoners came. And they said, "These men come from the west
country, where the sun sets; and we know of no land beyond them,
but water only." And the king replied, "Why ought we to punish
them? they have not sinned against us:—give them leave, and let
them go." And even the fine of four deniers, which the other
prisoners had to pay, was remitted to them. The Cyprians were then
situated between the Greeks and the Saracens, and were not in
arms: for there was great peace and friendship between the Greeks
and Saracens. It was a great and extensive region, and had twelve
bishops.
As soon as they had obtained leave, the travellers went direct to
Damascus, a distance of a hundred miles. St. Ananias reposes there,
and it is in the land of Syria. They remained there one week. And at
two miles from the city was a church, on the spot where St. Paul
was first converted, and the Lord said to him, "Saul, Saul, why
persecutest thou me?" &c. And after praying there, they went into
Galilee, to the place where Gabriel first came to St. Mary, and said,
"Hail, full of grace," &c. A church now stands there, and the village
which contains the church is Nazareth. The Christians repeatedly
bought that church of the pagans, when the latter were about to
destroy it. And having there recommended themselves to the Lord,
they proceeded to the town of Cana, where our Lord turned water
into wine. A large church stands there, and near the altar is still
preserved one of the six vessels which our Lord commanded to fill
with water to be turned into wine; and the travellers drunk wine out
of it. They remained there one day, and then continued their journey
to Mount Tabor, the scene of our Lord's transfiguration, where there
is now a monastery and a church consecrated to our Lord, and
Moses, and Elijah. And those who dwell there call it Hagemon (the
Holy Mount). After praying there, they proceeded to the town of
Tiberias, which stands on the shore of the sea on which our Lord
walked with dry feet, and on which Peter tried to walk but sank.
Here are many churches, and a synagogue of the Jews. They
remained there some days, and observed where the Jordan passes
through the midst of the sea. And thence they went round the sea,
and by the village of Magdalum to the village of Capernaum, where
our Lord raised the prince's daughter. Here was a house and a great
wall, which the people of the place told them was the residence of
Zebedæus with his sons John and James. And thence they went to
Bethsaida, the residence of Peter and Andrew, where there is now a
church on the site of their house. They remained there that night,
and next morning went to Chorazin, where our Lord healed the
demoniacs, and sent the devil into a herd of swine. Here was a
church of the Christians.
Having performed their devotions there, they went to the place
where the two fountains, Jor and Dan, issue from the earth, and
flowing down from the mountain are collected into one, and form
the Jordan. And there they passed the night between the two
fountains, and the shepherds gave them sour ewes' milk to drink.
The sheep are of an extraordinary kind, with a long back, short legs,
large upright horns, and all of one colour. There are deep marshes in
the neighbourhood, and when the heat of the sun, in summer, is
oppressive, the sheep go to the marsh, and immerse themselves in
the water all but the head. Thence they proceeded to Cæsarea,
where there was a church and a multitude of Christians. They next
went to the monastery of St. John the Baptist[33], where there were
about twenty monks, and remained one night there, and next day
went the distance of a mile to the spot in the river Jordan where our
Lord was baptized. Here is now a church raised upon stone columns,
and under the church it is now dry land where our Lord was
baptized. They still continue to baptize in this place; and a wooden
cross stands in the middle of the river, where there is small depth of
water, and a rope is extended to it over the Jordan. At the feast of
the Epiphany, the infirm and sick come thither, and, holding by the
rope, dip in the water. And women who are barren come thither
also, and thus obtain God's grace. Willibald here bathed in the
Jordan, and they remained at this place one day.
Thence they went to Galgala, a journey of five miles, where is a
moderate-sized wooden church, in which are the twelve stones
which the children of Israel carried out of the Jordan to Galgala, and
placed there as a memorial of their passage. Here also they
performed their devotions, and then proceeded to Jericho, above
seven miles from the Jordan, and saw there the fountain which was
blessed by the prophet Elisha, and hence to the monastery of St.
Eustochium, which stands in the middle of the plain between Jericho
and Jerusalem.
On their arrival at Jerusalem, they first visited the spot where the
holy cross was found, where there is now a church which is called
the Place of Calvary, and which was formerly outside of Jerusalem;
but when St. Helena found the cross, the place was taken into the
circuit of the city. Three wooden crosses stand in this place, on the
outside of the wall of the church, in memory of our Lord's cross and
of those of the other persons crucified at the same time. They are
without the church, but under a roof. And near at hand is the garden
in which was the sepulchre of our Saviour, which was cut in the rock.
That rock is now above ground, square at the bottom, but tapering
above, with a cross on the summit. And over it there is now built a
wonderful edifice. And on the east side of the rock of the sepulchre
there is a door, by which men enter the sepulchre to pray. And there
is a bed within, on which our Lord's body lay; and on the bed stand
fifteen golden cups with oil burning day and night. The bed on which
our Lord's body rested stands within the rock of the sepulchre on the
north side, to the right of a man entering the sepulchre to pray. And
before the door of the sepulchre lies a great square stone, in the
likeness of the former stone which the angel rolled from the mouth
of the monument. Our bishop arrived here on the feast of St.
Martin[34], and was suddenly seized with sickness, and lay sick until
the week before the Nativity of our Lord. And then, being a little
recovered, he rose and went to the church called St. Sion, which is
in the middle of Jerusalem, and, after performing his devotions, he
went to the porch of Solomon, where is the pool where the infirm
wait for the motion of the water, when the angel comes to move it;
and then he who first enters it is healed. Here our Lord said to the
paralytic, "Rise, take up thy bed, and walk!"[35] St. Mary expired in
the middle of Jerusalem, in the place called St. Sion; and as the
twelve apostles were carrying her body, the angels came and took
her from their hands and carried her to paradise.
Bishop Willibald next descended to the valley of Jehoshaphat, which
is close to the city of Jerusalem, on the east side. And in that valley
is the church of St. Mary, which contains her sepulchre, not because
her body rests there, but in memory of it. And having prayed there,
he ascended Mount Olivet, which is on the east side of the valley,
and where there is now a church, where our Lord prayed before his
passion, and said to his disciples, "Watch and pray, that ye enter not
into temptation."[36] And thence he came to the church on the
mountain itself, where our Lord ascended to heaven. In the middle
of the church is a square receptacle, beautifully sculptured in brass,
on the spot of the Ascension, and there is on it a small lamp in a
glass case, closed on every side, that the lamp may burn always, in
rain or in fair weather, for the church is open above, without a roof;
and two columns stand within the church, against the north wall and
the south wall, in memory of the two men who said, "Men of Galilee,
why stand ye gazing up into heaven?"[37] And the man who can
creep between the wall and the columns will have remission of his
sins.
He next came to the place where the angel appeared to the
shepherds, and thence to Bethlehem, where our Lord was born,
distant seven miles from Jerusalem. The place where Christ was
born was once a cave under the earth, but it is now a square house
cut in the rock, and the earth is dug up and thrown from it all round,
and a church is now built above it, and an altar is placed over the
site of the birth. There is another smaller altar, in order that when
they desire to celebrate mass in the cave, they may carry in the
smaller altar for the occasion. This church is a glorious building, in
the form of a cross. After prayers here, Willibald came to a large
town called Thecua, where the children were slain by Herod, and
where there is now a church; here rests one of the prophets. And
then he came to the valley of Laura, where there is a large
monastery; here the abbot resides in the monastery, and he is porter
of the church, with many other monks who belong to the monastery,
and have their cells round the valley on the slope of the mountain.
The mountain is in a circle round the valley, in which the monastery
is built. Here rests St. Saba. He next arrived at the place where
Philip baptized the eunuch, where there is a small church, in an
extensive valley between Bethlehem and Gaza, where the travellers
prayed. Thence they went to St. Matthew, where there is great glory
on the Sunday. And while our bishop Willibald was standing at mass
in this church, he suddenly lost his sight, and was blind for two
months. And thence they went to St. Zacharias, the prophet, not the
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