The Atlas of Sacred Places: Meeting Points of Heaven and Earth [1 ed.] 0805027750

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I

I

1

Meeting Points of Heavt JAMES H

k

d Eap

—

THE ATLAS OF

SACRED PLACES

THE

human need

that have

for

sacred places

been sanctified by holy

—

— sites rituals,

and saints stretches back to the beginnings of recorded history and beyond. In the ancient world these places usually relics,

combined divinely inspired architecture with dramatic settings. Such sites became the focal points of communities, their sacred precincts screened off from the secular world by ceremonial fences and gateways. And now, in an age in

which religious values are increasingly challenged by the forces of materialism, sacred places have taken on a new importance becoming

spiritual

oases with the power to

inspire and channel our higher aspirations.

The Atlas of Sacred Places visits more than around the globe, from Mexico to China. Norway to India, taking in hallowed halls of temples and shrines, mystical mountains, and places of pilgrimage.- Evocative essays describe the sites and explain the spiritual significance of each as well as its connections thirty sites

with religious leaders and holy figures. Color photographs and paintings capture the detail of cathedrals, mosques, ancient shrines, and their often idyllic surroundings. Location maps place each site in context, and special feature maps reflect the broader historical picture. A practical gazetteer helps pilgrims and visitors find their

way and offers suggestions on what to see when they arrive. Wide in its scope and colorful in its approach, The Atlas of Sacred Places reveals the holy places of the world. This is a book that will

enchant and entertain, inspire and inform.

1194

I

arcmbi

5750

Archtv nop

Mitty High

School

Library

5000 Mitty Way San Jg§e,CA 95129

Tim

Atlas of

SACRED PLACES

The Aii

as of

SACRED PLACES Meeting Points

oj

Heaven and

James Harpur

A Henry Holt Reference Book Henry Hoi

i

Ni.w

and Company York

Archbishop Mftty High School Library

5000 Mitty Way San Jose, CA 95129

liarth

Contents A Henry Holt

INTRODUCTION

Reference Book

Henry Holt and Company,

IN

HONOR OF THE DEAD

NEWGRANGE

46

The Megalithic World

50

Mycenae

52

THE FOOTSTEPS OF HOLY MEN

Publishers sisce 1866

IN

West 18th Street

115

6

Inc.

New York, New York

1001

Mount

Sinai

12

EGYPT

®

Henry Holt

is

trademark

a registered

of Henry Holt and Company,

Copyright

©

Inc.

To the Promised

1994 by

Land

16

BODH GAYA

Marshall Editions Developments Ltd.

18

The Tomb Complex of Shi Huangdi

INDIA All rights reserved.

EPHESUS

Harpur, James.

The

atlas

of sacred places /

cm.

p.

meeting points of heaven

:

James Harpur.

— ht

22

TURKEY

The Pyramids of

ed.

— (Henry Holt reference book)

Paul's Third Journey

28

IONA

30

Includes bibliographical references and index. 1

.

Sacred Places

—Guidebooks.

I.

Title.

II.

291.3'5'09

94-4597

—dc20

64

Giza EGYPT

Series.

BL580.H37 1993

60

CHINA

Library ot Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

and earth

GREECE

CIP

GREAT BRITAIN

Oseberg

72

NORWAY

ISBN 0-8050-2775-0

Henry Holt books

are available for special

promotions and premiums. For

details

contact: Director, Special Markets. First

The Dome of the

36

The Viking Age

76

The Catacombs

78

Rock ISRAEL

of

Edition— 1994

Rome

ITALY

Conceived, edited, and designed by

Marshall Editions, London Editor:

James Bremner

Art Editor: Managing Editor:

Helen Spencer

DTP

Mary

Lindsay

Editor:

McTeague

Pickles

Picture Research:

Richard Philpott

Research:

Simon Beecroft

Copy Editor:

Isabella

Production:

Raeburn

Janice Storr

Sarah Hinks

Origination by Printed and

HBM Print,

bound

Singapore

Spain

in

by Printer Industria Grafica, Barcelona editions are printed

All

first

on

acid-free paper. °°

10

987

6

Netvgrange, spiral pattern;

5432

Tlic symbols used in this book to

1

denote each place are: tablets

Photographs shown on the preliminary pages are a holy

and

the

Dome

man

of the

at

I

aranasi, India,

Rock,Jemsalcm.

the

Mount

of the Law; Bodh

Sinai,

Gay a,

Bodhi Tree; Ephesus, statue of

Artemis; Iona, Celtic

of the Rock, the

cross;

Dome;

Dome

Mycenae, "mask of Agamemnon";

Tomb Complex terracotta soldier;

of Shi Huangdi,

Pyramids of

Giza, the pyramids; Oseberg, carved animal head; Catacombs

of Rome, Christian

fish

symbol;

GLOW

IX) llll

Olgas

111

1

AUSTRA.

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INDIA

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MEXICO




I

of the

Prophet

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Time

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MPtA

104

TURKEY

GREECE

The Empire

of

Suleyman

164

wpi

166

the Magnificent

Cahokia

I

112

UNITED STATES I

The Mounds \srth An:

Ancient

of

1

is

in

Golden

«

I

\ln

,i,

Jew

.

.Mu^luih alike




;

to

of

make

converts in northern Britain and farther

Oronsay-

was only with the

start

of

by Viking marauders in 794

that

its

it

influence began to wane. There were further Viking attacks in the 9th and 10th

centuries, these bellicose Scandinavians

j

NORTHERN 1

IRELAND

pagan Scotland

finding rich pickings treasures

among

the sacred

of the pious and scholarly monks.

30

in the sixth

century A. D. Tliis modern

Abbey shows

small hillock

-4 7

to

is

for bringing Christianity

conducive to an "atmosphere of miracle."

sight.

I

famous

elements and the night's canopy of stars are

place

Inverness i|^-

star of Scotland's faith,"

window

Columcille, meaning

of the church.

in

his Celtic

Iona

name

"Colum

WW

Ml I ~

.--'.:*

MPN - z

\2f

77ie medieval abbey of Iona, set against a

backdrop

of the

mountains of Mull, stands on

Columba's original

the site of settlement.

From

the 9th to the

lth centuries, the

I

abbey

graveyard was the burial place of

48

kings of Scotland, including

Macbeth, I

I

later

immortalized by

illiam Shakespeare.

^^MHfl

During the Middle Ages, Benedictine abbey was built on the island, in 1203, .i

confirming

Roman

its

place as part of mainstream

Catholic Christianity,

as

to the Celtic Christianity that

opposed

Columba

centuries, especially after the in the

other buildings

picturesque restoration

fell

ruin

work

finally

in certain practical matters,

and from 193H onward.

as

the date

Iona was never influential beyond its immediate locality. Gradually, over the

31

1

M,i]or

took place

in three

H7o, 1902 to 1910,

Although the medieval abbey in. mi

attraction for visitors,

ing spirit of

unique.

Columba

a

travelers.

tor

phases, from 1H74 to

such

becoming

into decay,

had practiced. (The two types differed only

of Easter and the type of tonsure monks should adopt.) However, from this time on,

Reformation

16th century, the abbey church and

that

He was born

it

is

makes the in

a

is

the

the presid island

wild and

IONA

mountainous

region

of Donegal

in

northwestern Ireland in 521. Royal blood

flowed in

descended

his veins, since his father

from

Niall

of the

was

Nine

Hostages, high king of Ireland from 379 to

405. Christianity had

come

to Ireland

through the evangelizing of Saint Patrick (c.

389— 461) and the young Columba

form the peaceful heart of the abbey. Clustered aroutid

them

are the chapter house to the east, the refectory to the north,

and

the medieval abbey church

to the

south.

Waves sweep

age of 42, "desiring to seek country for the sake of Christ."

in

563. Flanked by heather-clad

and divided

large

humpback

of which this

is

in

rock

visible

two by a

—

the

on the

small secluded bay

A grassy

by

mound

the bay

was once believed

conceal

Columba's

-

one

is

of the sacred spots visited

pilgrims.

end

left

near to

coracle;

however, excavations have been

unable

to

substantiate

the biography of

in

found the monastery of Derry (now officially called Londonderry) in presentday Ulster, or Northern Ireland. Columba then went on to preach up and down the country for about 15 years, founding hundreds of churches and monasteries, including those of Durrow and also Kells, which is famous for its illuminated gospels. All this time, he was able to hone the organizational skills and powers of leadership that would later serve him well. The reason for Columba's mission to Scotland is shrouded in mystery. According to one tradition, he may have played a part

of Iona, where Columba and

cliffs

does not appear

who

This account, however,

that the saint left Ireland for Britain at the

into the Port of

\2 companions landed

souls to Christianity as those

fallen in battle.

was self-confident and well-trained enough

the Coracle on the southern tip

his

many

had

number of

a

to

cloisters that

church synod to go into exile and convert as

learned churchmen. At the age of 25, he

monastic schools under

Sunlight gilds the elegant

his

Columba by the later Ionan monk Adamnan (c.628-704), who simply states

received a sound Christian education in

columns of the

provoking an

intertribal battle between kinsmen - the northern Ui Neill clan and the southern Ui Neills. Filled with remorse, Columba was charged by a

in

this.

32

In

foreign

a

any event, in 563, with his 12 set sail northward

companions, Columba

toward the islands of Scotland, braving the seas in a coracle, a small boat

animal skins bound to

a

made of

wicker framework

with leather thongs and sealed with pitch.

He

first

landed on the tiny island ot

Oronsay, but, determined that his beloved Ireland should not be visible from his

home, he

set off

Here, near the gravelly beach and

what

is

now

climbed

a

called Port

small

new

again and reached Iona.

hill

cliffs

of

of the Coracle, he

and, gazing in the

mpry

1

K

found the

tion ol Ireland,

make

he would

his

i

of Ins life

set

to

uinb.i

and

work

to

home

they

I

and crew

ittle,

the

rops

on the west of the

Ihc\ hunted

seals for

w

hii

w horn .ind

oi die

i

was to target

wattle huts, as well as their oaken

w

church, kiln, kitchen,

traveled In

bank and

None

a ditch.

\

alley

of these structures has

across

the

>

combination

of and cen-

fire

to

lew

.i

1 1

lien,

Viking sword and turies

stables, mill.

it

(

survived

i

the

i

that tin-

stret< lies

date from

occupy

Mm

northeast

whi
>iili oi

body was found here

"i

in

firelight

the small

hambet leading ti the tholoi However, the size and grandeui "i the tomb suggest that n-> anonymous occupant

side

w.is

i

probably

»

Agamemnon, Knowledge

king, perhaps an ancestot "i possibly Atxeus. «>t

tholos

difficult to glean, since

plundered

in

tomb

hum

ancient times.

burial rites

i->

them were However, the oi

20th-century British archaeologist Lord Willi. un

x

treasury

Carved out of a

hillside, the

ury ofAtreus

thole* tomb

is

H

.

pilasters.

the

The

A

120-

or dronios,

to the entrance,

by

the largest

Mycenae.

at

once flanked

triangular space

doorway was

originally

plugged by a stone.

/ The dominant from about

both a palace

shows the -

city on the

1600

to

1

100

Greek mainland

B.C.,

and a fortress. This

position.-

of Lion Gat*

the royal palace .

burning brands. With whipping up the flames,

.1

like the

it.

Cusufsson,

pun- oars

just

with his team in

Septembei 21,

.1 l

l

before

pairs ol

~>

I

burial 50 years

its

indicating an overhaul

l.uei. possibly

foi

its

voyage to the othei world

List

Nothing

is

known

foi

certain about the

lim the

ol

ship burials, as well as

wagons and

strong wind

to ashes.

Volga vessel, was

third from the

new ruddei and

a

those involving

provisioned with food, and two people.

(ijhriil

around 800, had been repaired

Inult

and given

that

left,

poses

photograph taken on

H)4. during the excavation.

death was the imm stage

anothei world

Foi

died on the battlefield, Valhalla, an

horses, sug >>i

.1

journey to

who

Viking heroes tins

other world was

abode presided ovet

supreme god Odin, where the ordei

In

the

ol the

Among

day was endless drinking and (easting.

Although the Oseberg ship was not cremated,

h
>i

s

I

t

dominant

and t

Varangian

the

ommunities

Some

hed

ituall)


>

£

.

*

* * *

RUSSIA Bul^.u-

»

•

\

I

/

*( iiuviinwi I

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^ Kiev

.

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ii

1

\

* * \S B A \ r.

+

Berezanv

CA

B

Danube

LAC A

S

/

S

/*»./

S

I

f

\

I

^

i

Constantinople •,

Baghda I

M

"P****

E

&

1

1

k

R R A

\ E A N

S E A

— „ — Route

in

onstantinople, where the)

rd as mercenaries and elite

Km

i

S.A\?

BirL.

i

it

emperor's

interior along, tot example,

U

«

the Byzantine capital

tlu-

v

aspian Sea and forming

the

network and pencoratc

Ivhme ^w t"ili Sea i K ussia. trading id

-

he Baltu

Cliristophci

low draft ol then ships,

I

loth

n (lu- late

5

-

of Viking expansion I (,

II I I

I

I

ITALY

The Catacombs of Rome a I often entered the crypts,

dug deep

into the earth, their

m

walls lined on either side with the. bodies of the dead. Saint Jerome (c.342-420), referring to the catacombs of

.

Rome

Italian archaeologist G.B. de Rossi had good cause to remember 1849. For that year, he made a discovery that rolled

inscribed with the broken letters MELIUS

Carved out ofground

MARTYR and deduced

south ofancietit Rome, the

And he was

cavelike crypt of the popes forms

back 16 centuries of history to the time of

aware from literary sources that in the

part of a third-century catacomb

the early Christians. Outside the walls of

vicinity lay the undiscovered

Rome, he

Saint Callistus

discovered an underground

once marked

that the stone

a Christian

-

in

tomb.

which

had

catacomb of

several third-

named

for

lying

Saint Callistus.

Sanctified by the bodies of early

cemetery, or catacomb, which had held the

century popes, including one named

Christian clergy and martyrs,

bodies of several early popes. Informed of

Cornelius, were interred.

the catacombs were underground

this

amazing

find,

Pope Pius IX hurried

De

to a

asked de Rossi: "Are these really the

gloom within

tombstones of

my

predecessors

who

were

De

spectacular success. In the flickering

passages,

with the

buried here?"

Rossi had been alerted to the

a

labyrinth of

he found not only letters

Via Appia. Here, he spotted

of underground

slab

A

catacomb

marble fitted

a crypt in

the popes had been buried.

marble

underground a

COR, which

NELIUS martyr, but also

existence of the cemetery while looking around an old Christian chapel near the a

were

Rossi's subsequent excavations

the cemetery and, his eyes filled with tears,

typically consists galleries, often

of

slab

with

cemeteries.

They

also served as

meeting places for Christians, especially before their religion

adopted by the

Roman

in the fourth century

was

emperors

A.D.

which a

maze

carved out

Shouting the words "Come forth," Jesus raised

Lazarus

from the dead, an episode recounted in Saint John's Gospel (1

1:1—46) and depicted

mural from the

Roman

in this

catacomb

ofJordan!. Tlxe miracle, which demonstrates Jesus's power over death, was popular in catacomb art

— more

50

than

have been found

depictions

in the

Roman

cemeteries. According to John's

Gospel, Lazarus was buried in a cave; here, a

boxlike tomb

78

is

Roman-style

shown.

\ :\

*s

I

V*

/*%

~v-

J' 1

1

'

^|p

i

]

J

I

.IF 1

I

*

SI

y,-

THE CATACOMBS OF ROME

on more than one

level

The

and connected to

chambers. These burial places have been

found in other

parts

of

as

Italy,

well as in

Asia Minor, Egypt, Tunisia, and Malta.

However, the term "catacombs" has become virtually synonymous with the Christian cemeteries in Rome, which are the most famous and extensive - about 40 of them have been found. The

earliest date

back to the second century A.D. and are situated mainly near the ancient roads that

radiate

from the

city,

since

Roman

law

forbade burial within the walls.

Christians from the time of Emperor

Nero

(54—68) to the early fourth century, the

catacombs, like

all

burial places, were

considered sacrosanct by the rarely

The

Jesus looks after his flock his role as the in this ceiling.

in

in

Good Shepherd

painting from a catacomb Tire most popular

catacomb

Shepherd

is

art, the

theme

Good

often depicted in a

lush idyllic setting with birds, plants,

and

trees.

echoes of classical a shepherd

is

Tlie figure has art, in

typically

which

shown

bearing on his shoulders an

In spite of periodic persecutions of

Romans and

early Christians considered the burial

of the dead

animal

for sacrifice.

For the

early

According

a sacred duty.

church father Tertullian

some of the money

to the

160—225),

(c.

collected every

month

by Christian communities was spent on

And Ambrose,

burials for the poor.

the

fourth-century bishop of Milan, advised

church

that, if necessary,

sold in order to raise

should be

vessels

money

to finance

Christian burials.

This Christian concern for the dead was influenced by the belief in bodily resurrection and by the doctrine of purgatory.

This

is

a

place or state in

which the

early Christians, however, the

dead must expiate their

shepherd's task was to save his

punishment before encountering the

sheep, just as Jesus saved people

from

their sins.

divine vision of

sins

God; and

and undergo

in this they can

be helped by the prayers of the living.

plundered or damaged.

Conversely, the prayers of

known and most

those in the afterlife were

best

visited are those

named

considered beneficial to the

for

saints Callistus, Sebastian,

and Domitilla, are situated

all

were places where a communion between the living

of which

on or near the

Via Appia that leads south

from the

city.

passages are

Thus, the catacombs

living.

and the dead could take

Their narrow

place.

Christians gathered in the

tombs

hned with rows

especially

on the

of rectangular niches, or

anniversary of the death of a

loculi, in which the shrouded and lime-coated bodies of

saint,

saints,

martyrs, and ordinary

Elsewhere

in their

chambers, or

such

a

memorial

"refreshment meal" — and dark

celebrated the Eucharist. In

tomb

this

way,

sense of sanctity

a

pervaded these holy warrens

cubicula, that

housed generations of the same family. Pious inscriptions

-

refrigerium

Christians were placed.

confines are sizable

martyr, or loved one.

Together, they partook of a

which, with their sacred

art,

were always more than

just

and Christian symbols,

tombs. In later centuries,

the fish and the

pilgrims from northern and

as

came

anchor, and delicate murals

other parts of Europe

of Adam and Eve, the raising

to

of Lazarus from the dead, and other scenes from the

them. The large number of

Rome

visitors

warmth They show that the tombs were places of

especially to visit

can be judged by the

Bible add color and

fact that special

to the walls.

or

devotion, lovingly tended.

Itineraria,

The

4SH9B0HHHBHMBHHMBBlHHi

80

guide books,

were produced.

catacombs

mostly created by

were

fossores,

The J.nk gdller)

1

recttrngla

locuh

oj

of the catacomb

/'//

the central

was rekindled

The

after

PriscWa.

oj

of the deceased urn inserted

m

bodies

these niches

then sealed in with stone slabs or

and

1578,

the Via Salaria in

tiles.

m

good

.i

the loth century, especially

when workmen uncovered on multi-galleried catacomb

a

The disCOA

state of preservation.

cry attracted the attention of professional diggers,

of the

who dug them

Rome. owned

volcanic tufa around

soft

out

often on private plots of ground

by wealthy individuals. Corridors were frequently carved initial

passage and then linked by a passage

running

parallel to the

was usually

at a

were excavated

omb fifth

right angles from an

at

century

by barbarian

down

as

Rome

tribes.

galleries

to decline

m

the

became threatened

The tombs

the hands of the (ioths

suffered

at

537 and were

m

755. Unable

and

m

the

from marauders,

later

popes

eighth and ninth centuries transferred the relics to

churches within the

scientific

recording began

in

middle of the

l

m

earnest only

wearing with

a

the

u th century.

Today, the catacombs

mystique and

the Cata

excavation and

sanctity.

his pick,

takes

imagi-

little a

a

lamp into

a

wall.

The

first

catacombs are

buict

OUTSIDE THE WALLS Of ROME. Visigoths under Alaric

capture and sack Rome.

Stm

CENTURY

Catacomb building to decline.

begins

fossor,

537

Goths

755

Lombards plunder the

raid the catacombs.

loculus

or putting chippings a

2o CENTURY 410

short tunic, carving out

bag, or spiking

A.D.

preserve their

still

It

Timeframe

in (

)r

his

tombs, prompting the

REMOVAL OE HOLT BONES TO

to

see

a

group of Christians gathered together, 1578

to protect the holy bones of martyrs saints

Columbus of

combs." However,

within Rome's walls.

m

plundered by the Lombards

ol

nation to conjure up the figure ot

to five levels.

began

ations

certain

a

whose meticulous explorcemeteries earned him the

Bosia,

sobriquet "the

Because space

first.

premium, further

burials

Antonio

city walls.

During the Middle Ages, the tombs were virtually forgotten. Interest in them

murmuring as

their prayers or sharing a

they gaze

at a fresco

raising Lazarus

carrying

a

from the

lamb on

"There music

in

is

light in

or tenderly

on

a

1864-77

wall:

there

is

Publication of oe Rossi's classic

As one

catacomb

this darkness;

these tombs."

Bl

v V

*

westernmost sentinel of the group, which sheerry about 1,500 feet above the

desert floor and from

which the

rest

of

the group Lake their name.

The

first

white

man

1

872.

He

not cross

named and

a lake that

(.lies in

his horses

blocked

the lake and distant

Mount

on the

was unable to reach

them, however, because

could

his path.

He

domes Amadeus

Olga, respectively, for the king

and queen of Spain,

to the Olgas the following

who

were notable

patrons of science. Giles actually

made

his

his

September

shock and dismay,

the tracks of another explorer

William

to set eyes

Olgas was the explorer Ernest

October

way

but found there, to

As Giles wrote afterward:

Ciosse.

yawned

"1 lad the earth

separating

me

named

from

at

this

my

feet, for

ever

mountain, or had

another of similar appearance risen sudden ly

before

more

my

eyes.

astonished.

1

could not have been

." .

.

For Aborigines. Katatjuta has been sacred

site

suite time

be understood only Dreaming. According

85

a

immemorial and tan in

relation to the

to Aboriginal belief,

The

ribbed formations of

clouds ieem

to

mirror the bulging

configurations pj the Olgas, which lie at tire

the center qj Australia

sacred to the Aborigines.

and

was

when

their "ancestors," in the

Glowing

like great ruby spheres, the Olgas'

Scattered like the fossilized

this

bones of a huge dinosaur, the

form of humans and totemic animals,

conglomerate domes are fired

Olgas are a three-dimensional

emerged from the depths of the earth into

the rising

Dreaming map. Hie snake

daylight.

Wanambi

on

lives

Mount Olga

(8)

and

(7)

during the dry season.

Elsewhere are food by the mice

kangaroo

men

waterhole

retreats to a

man

(1, 2,

(6)

women; (5);

and

Valley of the

3);

prepared

As they journeyed

they created

hills,

and other natural

deep red by

through everyday

the

stories

handed down from

Dreaming and become symbiotically

The paths the ancestors took are known Dreaming tracks, or songlines. When

Aborigines follow

trails

belonging to their

totemic group and sing the songs and

tell

their

world of the

thinking, and singing.

as

also

experienced at Uluru (Ayers Rock).

ancestors, they enter into the

and (4).

to a

phenomenon

waterholes, caves, lakes,

features

Pungalunga

Winds

setting sun, a

actions such as hunting, fighting, marrying,

the dying

the

across the land,

and

at

one

with the ancestor and the landscape.

The Dreaming

refers

not only to the

original act of ancestral creation, but also to a

dimension of time continuous with

the present. Thus, the western concept of history as a series of events irrevocably con-

signed to the past

is

alien to the Aborigines.

For them, the Dreaming and the journeys

of the ancestors in

are an ever-present reality

which they can

actually participate

by ceremonial singing, storytelling, and dancing.

The

land

is

a living text,

raphy printed with Dreaming

its

lore,

topog-

and the

songlines that criss-cross the continent are

sacred paths leading the initiated into an eternal dimension.

Katatjuta, with

its

myriad crevices,

fissures, gullies, striations, is

86

and waterholes,

impregnated with Dreaming

stories.

before setting oui pet snakes

..I!

.•

attack

i>>

lluiu

.it

link

tint dying «>t wounds

ast

I

Ivtalu,

i

dingoes

inflicted b\

I

he

which he leans is his sister Mulumura, a lizard woman, who cradles hei brothei in bei ai ms i>n

•\Uo important ate the stone bodies ol

known

giant cannibals

is

which can be seen on side

filler

tli. in

the Pungalui

tin-

northwestern

powerful jawed, and

ttees.

sharp toothed, the I'ung.iliinga killed,

dismembered, and cooked then human victims.

I

he

ot these savage giants

last

who

speared him

crouched

in

the back while he was

the shrub read)

in

was

two kangaroo men.

eventually killed In

them. As the I'ungalung.i

fled

ambush

to

howling

in

two men tracked him down to cave near a spring, where they managed to finish him off pain, the

A

green earpei of trees and shrubs

/livr of the

narrow

I

leads into the heart

alley

lines the

of the Winds that

of the OlgOS.

Mount Olga, for instance, is the borne of a snake named Wanambi who, during the rainy season,

lies

curled

m

a

waterhole on

the mountain's summit, but

another one

in the

moves

to

gorge below during the

.1

Although non-Aborigines are mostly unaware of the Olgas' rich Dreaming lore, many find them to be as impressive and

more mysterious than the betterknown Uluru. Certainly, the rocks made a

often

deep impression on the at

the end of the

dr\ season.

the

Mount Olgas caves are believed to be Wanambi's various camp sites, and black

them variously

lines created

by water on

its

eastern end are

first

l'^th

first

white

B.C. c.500

The Olgas are

MILLION

BY MOVEMENTS Of THE

the

wind

that

Wanambi's breath

blows through the gorge.

reaching hurricane force

No

one must

when he

is

angry.

transgress tribal law; otherwise

Wanambi, taking the form of will

is

The

first

Aborigines are

THOUGHT TO HAVE ARRIVED Australia from

in

Southeast Asia.

A.D. 1788

They described

A

British expedition.

under the command of Arthur Phillip, establishes

as "a

congress of camel-

a colony

humps," "the temples

ot an ancient city,"

Sydney Cove.

and "enormous pink haystacks."

a

rainbow,

wreak mortal revenge.

On

not require

It

would

1872

great leap of imagination to

a

embroider these metaphors

to

evoking

as

Olgas emit

a

raw primordial grandeur.

prepared by them, while monoliths nearby

minarets, giant cupolas, and monstrous

And on the southdomes where the Liru. poisonous snake men. made their camp

domes. .have stood

camp

western

tip are

sites.

stark

the depths of prehistory, have the

power

as

it:

"the rounded

huge memorials of

first.

The Ayers Rock-Mount

Olga National

Park.

which eventually becomes the Uluru National Park. IS

1981

ESTABLISHED

The freehold title of more than 100.000 square miles Of land is

in

South Australia

given by the state

authorities to the Pitjantjatjara Abori'.

the ancient times less

eons

of" ages,

87

of"

earth, tor ages,

suite

its

is

Ernest Giles reaches the

there

1958

to

transport the visitor to the distant past. As

.

WHITE MAN

Olgas. but finds that

bulbous forms, straight out of

Ernest (dies expressed

FIRST

the Olgas; but he

William Gosse has got

Their

are their

1873

specific images, the

number of domes are connected with ancestors known as the mice women. Two large rocks near the end of Mount Olga are great mounds of food the eastern side, a

see

UNABLE TO REACH THEM

of the Dreaming.

As well

Australia at

in

The explorer Ernest Giles

to

produce

non-Aboriginal creation stones equivalent to those

formed

EARTH'S CRUST.

C40.000

BECOMES THE

the hairs of his beard.

first

visitors

century ami during

half of the 20th.

Timeframe

creation

count "

•

EGYPT

The Temple of Karnak a

Tlie imagination, which in

Europe

soars high above

our portals, stops short and falls powerless at the foot of the

140 columns.

.

.

Karnak.

at

French Egyptologist Jean-Francois Champollion (1790-1832)

upward Tocolonnaded stare

hall

Amun

at

inside

the great

of the temple of

Karnak, on the eastern bank of

the Nile River,

is

to feel like a Lilliputian

Karnak

is

modern Egyptian name for complex that lay at the heart

Egyptians,

who

called

it

designed to magnify

Amun,

columns capitals

Gargantuan

of Gulliver.

rise like petrified sequoias, their

broad enough to support

a

crowd

of 100 people or more huddled together. Elsewhere, other columns,

more than 45

feet high, create countless channels

through

this

vegetation.

of light

dense rainforest of stone

The

largest religious building

ever constructed, the temple was clearly

Amun, "king of the make mere mortals pale into

insignificance in his presence.

also

known

as

Sea

Ipet-isut, "the

gods," and

land

the

I

Mbditbrra XF.I.V

of Thebes, former capital of the ancient

most select of places." The city rose to prominence during the Middle Kingdom period of Egyptian history (c. 1938-1600 B.C.), and the prestige of its local deity Amun, originally a god of the wind, became more widespread. It was only during the New Kingdom, however, with the coming to national power of Theban nobles, that the city became a grand imperial capital. Now

in

— — _ — __,

the

the temple

Amun-Re

identification with the sun god,

I

• Cai

Red Sea

—. Kanuk ™_ The Temple j^ of Karnak V» Luxor i

from

his

became ^JVN

J

100

ci

* Aswan

km

IKE i^sfR

_l

|

|

Colossal columns, nearly 10

and 12

feet high

feet in diameter,

form the heart of Karnak's

Hypostyle Hall. Built more

3,000

than

was

filled

years ago, the hall

with a multitude of

columns and was the

man-made

largest

sacred structure in

the ancient world.

Ram-headed sphinxes

line

one side of the temple's great court.

Tlte ram, an aspect of

Amun-Re, Ramses

holds a statue of

II between his paws.

V -A«

V V .

'.

>#

vcro

fe*

.«

H'J

*>

THE TEMPLE OF KARNAK

\

the mightiest of Egyptian gods, and his

421,000

temple became the grandest

yards,

in the country.

main treasury, with the king, or pharaoh, dedicating to it booty from victorious campaigns abroad. Tribute from foreign provinces and tax revenues also poured in, so that it became the most powerful

The temple

also served as the state's

played an important role in

the economic, administrative, and social

of the country.

employed

large

It

owned

numbers of

scribes, craftsmen, farmers, as

vast estates

life

and

core of the temple. As a

result,

(1187— at least

7 percent of the population, 81,000

slaves,

now

a

's

(RIGHT)

in his sacred boat.

incised

Amun

traverses the

low

heavens

This finely

relief forms

part of

pylons, courtyards, columns, halls, obelisks,

great court.

statues. In general, later

pharaohs

extended the temple westward toward the Nile.

Thus Pylon

visitor enters,

is

1,

the

the last

first

one

gateway the

been

to have

To proceed through pylons and

courtyards toward the sanctuary

III

it is

solar disk,

Karnak patron god

the shrine oj Seti II within the

and gardeners,

temple controlled

onward,

bewildering agglomeration of gateways, or

built.

During the reign of Ramses B.C.), the

New Kingdom

administrators,

well as clergy, musicians, and singers.

1156

the

Taking the form of a ram and crowned with a

ships.

pharaoh after pharaoh built, knocked down, added to, and altered the original

and

institution in Egypt.

The temple

From

433 gardens, 46 building

cattle,

and 83

through

lateral strata

Although Karnak

of Egyptian is

with the temple of distinct precincts form

is

to

walk

history.

often equated only

Amun, two

other

part of the complex.

The Great Hypostyle Hall was

initiated by

Ramses I and

completed by Seti I and his son

Ramses central

II.

A

double row of

columns

than the others light to filter

windows

(3) stood higher (4),

allowing

through clerestory

(1) situated just

the roof. All the walls (5)

below

and

columns were carved and painted with scenes illustrating cultic acts

and

heroic deeds of

the pharaoh. Priests entered the hall via a massive pylon,

which

was adorned with flagpoles

90

(2).

["hese

belong to the goddess Mut. the wife and Montu, who was originally

'mm. the local

temple

god of the

However, Amun's

city.

preserved and the

the best

is

would

gi eatesi in size, covering an area thai

accommodate

1" cathedrals.

The approach avenue

to

Pylon

of guardian

creatures with the bodies

heads of rams.

pylon, with

its

The

great sandy-colored

austere double towers, like the

baronial casde. This

clearly

is

Egyptians thought of

rums

The

it

entrance to

a

what modern

named

since they

karnak - "the

el

hybrid

of lions and the

looms ahead, looking

the

along an

is

1

sphinxes,

fortress."

pylon, one ot six leading to the

first

sanctuary - the holy of holies - provides

temporary shade before the dazzling sunlight ot the first courtyard. From here, huge

the second pylon, preceded by

of Ramses

statues

(1279-1213 B.C.), heralds the entrance of the great colonnaded hall. This is

II

known

officially

as

the Hypostyle Hall

and was completed b\ pharaohs

Ramses

his successor.

II.

It

ot about 54.0(1(1 square feet

rooted and total

filled

Seti

I

and

covers an area

and was once

with 16 rows containing

a

of 134 columns.

The two

central rows of

higher than those on either

columns side,

and

are this

enabled "clerestory" windows to be built This grand statue of Ramses II court

was "usurped" some time

m

the great

after his death

by Pinncdjem, a hioh priest, whose

name

is

inscribed on the statue's hilt.

91

92

into the walls thai ro

the

beams

sharp

beams

sunlight

ol

through

ted

rheir

example, w slu ine

i

illuminating

statue

ol

columns

that were carved and brightly painted with

illustrating

es

worship and heroic deeds.

create

I

acts

mystique

ol

I

after tlu- dazzling

levels

inner sanctum.

i

to mutate stylized lotus buds

sense of

According this,

to

island

visual estlietu

was once

Bey ond

Kamak's crumbling

a

mud

mound of

island

land grew

became the perch

On

emerged. a

this

reed plant, which

god

effect

portrayed in

is

was with

the

lypostyle

I

this

to an inscription,

encrusted with

once had

lapis lazuli

golden door

a

and other gems,

painting by David Roberts, a

a

Horus. Sanctified by the presence of the

19th-century British artist.The

which "shone more than the heavens."

god. the island required divine protection.

French Egyptologist Georges

path continues through the fourth and

Legrain began major work on

pylons to where the original

and so

a

for the falcon

reed-mat shrine was

the plant and cordoned off by Later, this structure

built a

around

reed wall.

was expanded into

at a level

1895.

later,

columns

a

reed temple with various other rooms

added

the temple in

lower than the shrine.

it

furnished the archetypal model for

restorations

two

still

this obelisk is

standing at Karnak.

single block from the quarries

polished

and

It

one of

was cut as a

of Aswan, then

inscribed with texts.

tell

111

the

down

after

had not been

IV

1

7, his

work was

carried

on by Henri Chevrier, Pierre Lacau, and othei French Egyptologists determined to

preserve this greate

93

I

pj temples.

floor overlaid with silver,

by Tuthmosis

(1493

I

1

ami

gilt QagStaffi

he

tuary, built

s.iih

4«2

I

fifth

B.C.), stood.

However, the one seen

today,

sixth pylon,

l'hihp Airhid.ieus.

was

built b)

behind the

the half-brother of Alexander the

who conquered

completed before Legrain's death in

Reaching heavenward,

1

our years

an earthquake. Although

Although there were variations of the myth,

1

Hypostyle Hall

I

ith

\\

s.

Hall rises the third pylon which, according

magnificence before restorations took

n ol the

ei t

mythic truth, not

.1

covered with darkness and waters, from

which

ompletel)


)7i'rf

and oiuiHtU

s

1

Karnak loom

behind

nj
y

Hen, while

elegant

spectators

around chatting and viewing

the proceedings, trainers supervised their charges,

whose oik d bodies

would soon become bespattered with ^and.

YMPIA

One of the most shrines

venerated

templelike structures raised by cities in

interpretation of their dreams.

homage

dark green pines, the

Olympic

temple of Hera was Olympia's

Although

remains date from about

its

600

B.C., an earlier structure

Zeus or

as a

some lie

still

thanksgiving for

victories.

elliptical

In the center, gigantic

in ancient Greece, the

oldest sanctuary.

to

embedded

m jumbled

column drums,

fossil-like in the earth,

heaps around the temple of

Zeus, whose cult statue was one of the

grassy slopes, cheered

The

at

columns were originally made

the foot of which was an oracular shrine of

of wood and over time were

Gaia, goddess of the earth. People

replaced with stone ones.

this spot to

came

to

hear prophecies based on the

106

their favorites.

Olympic festival are obscure and shrouded in myths and

The

legends.

Cronus, named for the father of Zeus,

on

origins of the

son of Tantalus,

centuries earlier. Tlie Doric

two

in

stadium where 40,000 spectators,

Northeast of the temple

of

site

Shrouded

overlooks the

enjoying the sunshine on the surrounding

seven wonders of the ancient world. rises the hill

probably existed on the

hill

site is

associated with Pelops,

who won

the hand of Hippodameia, the daughter of the local king of Pisa, by beating her father in a chariot race.

A

existed at the

cult site,

of Pelops

is

said to

and according

to

have

one

tradition the fbui yearly

ommemoratc

games writ held

Pausanias, however, held thai the w.in x.u red to

Wops; and

ronus before the

c

\2 labors,

who

m

oming

is

said to

honoi

main modern

Otympia's stadium via an arched passageway (BE)

RIGHT)

ov

Ik-

776

B.
.

he games cycle was such an important

Greek calendar

was

occasion

in the

the banks surrounding the

used

chronological reference point tor

running

dating other events.

stadia. Spectators

210

yards long

a "stade" to

which WOS about

track,

-

- and wide enough

sent out

from the

parts of

Greece

stride out in this detail from

varying lengths, including ones miles.

initiated,

it

ol

200

local city

to

of

is

a fifth-

yards

said, after a runner's shorts

Elis to

proclaim the

All athletes ran naked, a custom

off in a race in

the

st. ut

arrived

tin-

ol

at

and 1

tni-

they

IK the

1


l\

scholars through the writings

prize to survive

being looted forever. In 42o. Emperoi the capital of the eastern

tuary ol antiquity

s.iiu I

nexi century,

a

knew

they

and

•

decided to carry his

place

Zeus Ins jui

who saw

up. diey heard

shepherds bid no

Andilalo covered the most famous stadium

Caligula

much that luRome. But when

it

local

the

the ttatue

lightning that struck the pavement nearby

rhe statue impressed

that

the king

/

stadium specially

built foi the occasion.

the "holy

Timeframe B.C.

776

recorded games

First

festival

at Olympia.

468

Building of the temple of

457

Zeus.

C437

Pheidias begins

work on

the

statue of Zeus

A.D. 67

The Roman emperor Nero COMPETES AT THE GAMES.

c

393

The GAMES ARE CLOSED by Theodosius

426

Theodosius

II

DOWN

1.

carries off

THE STATUE OF ZEUS.

1766

The

site

of Olympia

is

rediscovered by Richard

Chandler. 1875

Extensive

German

excavations at Olympia begin.

1896

First

Olympiad of the

modern era Athens 1996

is

held at

Modern centenary

game-.

are held at Atlanta.

Ill

UNITED STATES

Cahokia H

Wlien I examined

that this stupendous

it

in

1811, I was astonished

monument of antiquity should

have been unnoticed by any

traveler.

.

Henry Brackenridge describing Cahokia's Monks Mound in a letter to thomas jefferson A GROUP OF FRENCH TRAPPIST WHEN monks founded monastery in

a

southern

Illinois in

that their

new

1809, they discovered

settlement was blistered with

emerald green earth mounds. Everywhere

mounds of different shapes overgrown and eroded, bulged

they looked,

and

sizes,

from the landscape. dominated the mountain,

its

One

others, rising

in particular

up

like a small

mass divided into terraces. however, ground

down

by malaria and the hardships of daily

living,

Four years

later,

the Trappists decided that their future lay

elsewhere. So they departed

their settlement

— unaware

that

had been on top of

Cahokia, the greatest prehistoric Native

American Little did

city

they

north of the Rio Grande.

know

it,

but

this rich fertile

Cahokia was the greatest city of the Mississippian people,

whose

culture

is

known

today

through objects such as the shell

head with a topknot

(ABOVE LEFT) and

hairstyle

the shell

disk incised with a spider

(LEFT). Tlic head's stylized

weeping eye and the

cross

on

the spider's thorax are symbols

which archaeologists connect with a religion

Southern Cult,

known

as the

itself associated

with the Mississippians.

112

area

had been teeming with thousands

of

people some 500 years previously. Yet the Trappists' brief sojourn was not forgotten. Cahokia's great earth

the lowest of

whose

Monks Mound

mound, on

terraces the Trappists

had grown vegetables, was in their

later

Lying eight miles

designated

honor. That

a

holy

this

entirely appropriate, since

monument is Monks Mound

was the sacred heart of Cahokia. the base of a grand

believed to have

both

a

wooden

combined

temple and

a palace.

It

formed

structure that

is

the functions ot

I

ouis, Missouri,

Daunt

light defines

Monks Mound,

who

prehistorit earthen

It

of

is

inhabited the area

was the a

.1

mam

culture

in

the 17th century.

and ceremonial center

city

known

as

Mississippi. in that

flourished from r.1050 to 1250.

order of another tune and culture should

be associated with

cast ot St.

named for Native American people (the name means "Wild Geese"), Cahokia

I

in

he Mississippi. ins rose to prominence

the southeast and nnd-i oiitinent during

the ninth century A.D. characteristic

flat-topped

of

mounds

visible w.is the

that served as the bases

mortuary houses, and ro\.il Prospering on the cultivation of

for temples,

residences.

The most

then civilization

113

silhouetted

summit

'/« '•

oj

f

.'.///. >/./,;

the largest

work

in the

Americas. Raised about 1,000

mound is compose! 11 million cubit

yean

ago, the

oj tin

estimated

feet oj earth. ifti>

Its

topmost

terrace

oiko crowned by a temple/

palace from where the ruler prie

presided over the

city.

t

CAHOKIA

corn and other crops along the flood plains of the river

valleys, Mississippian

None of them, how-

villages multiplied.

ever, attained the size

reached

its

peak

in

of Cahokia, which

about the middle of the

12th century. At this time, settlement in area

towns and

it

was the

largest

North America, covering an

of about

six square miles

population of as

The body of

many the

as

city'

and with

a

20,000 people. lay

within

a

long

sturdy stockade laid out in the shape of a D. Inside this curtain of

wood

stretched the

broad main plaza, about 40 acres in extent,

The most imposing structure was Monks Mound, which dominated the city from the northern end of the colossal earthen

work —

over 300 years.

Its

sloping sides rose 100

and consisted of four terraces that covered some 14 acres. On the mound's topmost terrace stood a grand thatched ceremonial building, which was more than 100 feet long and 50 feet high. This was probably the main temple

reflected this duality.

and

wooden

On

their flat tops

were raised

temples and other structures, none

of which has survived.

— although

since the

may have combined both

religious

political roles, the building

probably

ruler

From

triangular ends and ridgelike summits.

pyramids.

started in

feet

cones, while others were elongated with

form mounds, which resembled truncated

This

the 10th century and built and enlarged

or the ruler's palace

the temple or plat-

plaza.

pre-Columbian Americas — was

from which rose a number of earth mounds of different types and sizes. Some were rounded with pointed tops, like

Most common were

main

the largest in the

Monks Mound,

atop

his attendants

the ruler and

could gaze over the city with

120 mounds and the outlying villages. They would have seen the land ruptured with mounds like giant molehills, spacious its

plazas,

and small

lakes, possibly

>.ui

.1

monial use and which sometimes enclose burial mo;;

11

ru culture

belli

their

mounds

as

included conch

Rird

whom most scholars

people

well shells

.»\

tlu-ir

from

are

known through

^r.m- goods

ilu-

1

hese have

Gulf coast and

G

a-

/




the center, exuding

Ihnpli

i

meditative

\nawrahta's death

in

stillness

1077, the

kmc ol Pagan was Ins stepson who ame to the throne in IS and men itul ulei \\ ho presided ovei

next great

Kyanzittha,

•rw/ ,

nmidal •tit.

.-.!

.

mbolu

nts the

Indian

unt

temple level, the

mythical \/< ru

A .111

iiiNt

i

l

1

i

i

unrivaled period ol peace and prosperity

in Pagan's history,

China and stimulated

relations with

and religious sent

.1

ship

he improved iliplom.nu

ties

full

with

Sri

I

.mk.i

He

trade also

ol treasure to India to pa)

foi

up. m

tlu

Bodh

.'i

iaya

(pp

Buddha had

rea


>.'(/,

/')

./

who had

16rdoba from


/a mW »• 1AR

I

F.FT),

whose influence

over her husband seemed excessive to

some contemporaries.

in

the

Ottoman

of water known as the Golden Horn, approached from the northeast via a

inlet is

street

choked with

mosque,

courtyard, ami the royal graveyard. Within

it

1557. the Siileymaniye

mosque

stone wall, punctuated by iron grilled

how

giant bulk, overlooking the

winding narrow

Ottoman

Empire

Its

A

upward,

that soar

air.

windows, surrounds the tins

in

largest

needle-pointed minarets spiking the blue

work-

should be done.

Completed

And the sense of downward pressure from domes is offset by the four pencil (Inn.

the

traffic

compound,

a

its

path leads to the stone

of the mam entrance. Between two columns of verd antique, a predominantly

steps

dark green marble,

a

heavy green padded

curtain separates the inside from the oul side,

A

the Sacred from the profane.

calligraphic inscription set within

a

gold I

and pedestrians. As the road bends round, the mosque suddenly looms into view like

tangular panel adorns the curtain. Set

a

sea-gomg liner. Its dove-gray dome seems to spawn smaller domes that soften the

row of Steps and

descent from the generous curves of the

their

cupola to the vertical

uplift

of the walk

159

the wall to the right of the entrance

must perforin feet,

seats at

which the

ritual ablutions

hands,

entering the holy spai

and faces e.

m is

a

faithful

washing

befon

The mosque's domes

rise

above

For non-Muslim

visitors,

however, the

through the court-

elegant rows of arches that form

mosque's entrance

a colonnade along the four sides

yard, adjoining

of its courtyard. Tlie arches

elegant spacious quadrangle, the courtyard

on

24 columns

by Sinan

's

buildings in

rest

that were taken

builders from ruined

and around

Istanbul.

is

lined

is

its

on three

western facade.

sides

whose arches stem from

An

with porticoes, granite, marble,

and beet-red porphyry columns and

are

topped by small domes. In the center, rectangular ablutions fountain,

marble with

grilles

a

made of

of iron latticework,

quietude,

it

mosque becomes too

the side adjoining the

offers shade

also functions as

160

and

an overspill

full.

mosque

Thus,

has

two

mihrabs, niches that indicate the direction

of Mecca

(pp.

202—7), which Muslims

must face when they

Through mosque, the cavern and a away. space

pray.

the western first

doorway of the

impression

is

of

a vast

of red carpets stretching

sea

The sense of an engulfing unified much greater than in a cathedral,

is

where the nave,

provides the focal point.

Although the courtyard

area if the

transepts,

choir,

and

chapels chop the enclosed area into formal divisions.

From

above, hundreds of black

Musi:--

mosque

gbhUKM

entails tht

This plan of the Siihymaniyi-

(BELON RJGHT) shows mosque

itself

the

10 standing


mosque complex included

the

law colleges (1,2,

6i;

5,

and

the baths (3); the hospital (7);

and

the public kitchens (8).

metal chains pour

down from

bearing the weight of chandeliers,

a

whose hundreds of

out just above the head, lilies

the ccilmg

horizontal

lying over

All around,

a

like

web of

lights tan

illuminated

of carpets.

lake

sweeping arches, checkered

with gray and russet marble, and massive

load-bearing columns and piers elevate

domes and semi-domes toward heaven. The sober - almost severe - chiefly gray decor

is

enriched by circular and lancet

windows

stained-glass

the qihla wall, that

is,

The main dome windows. At

its

that shine out

from

the one facing Mecca. is

pierced

by

32

center, a circle of tight-

knit golden arabesques sends out sparking

shoots of swirling Arabic calligraphy like a

spinning firework.

The whole is a burstmosque is

ing sun around which the

harmoniously aligned.

161

rjxi'.-J-r.

pinrn;

%m

vim

1

»

In the past, however, the Siileymaniye was

much more

i*C

^HJk

...

than just a place of worship. For outside the compound's perimeter wall,

ifc

Sinan built

a

as a kiilliye.

complex of buildings, known

This housed four madrasahs; a

school where muezzin learned the Qur'an,

book of

the holy

Islam; a hospital for the

infirm of body and mind; a kitchen that

""ill

*

&f

IH-lM

prepared food for the poor; and

house for important

Siileymaniye was

a

the

microcosm within

of sanctity and devotion

Istanbul, a place

which

guest-

a

visitors. In effect,

also catered for scholarship

and the

human needs of ordinary people. The Siileymaniye also encloses in its compound a graveyard. Prominent are the two and

royal mausolea, or

better

tiirbes,

of Siileyman

queen Haseki Hiirrem, who

his

known

Russian." Siileyman's

than that of

is

in the west as Roxelana, "the tiirbe,

queen,

his

is

which a small

octagonal building. Inside, in

is

larger

domed

muted

light,

the sultan's long triangular cenotaph,

draped

green cloth and surmounted by

in

On

the royal turban, stands in the center.

each side are smaller cenotaphs belonging to his daughter, Princess

two 77ie grandeur of Siileyman

mosque

is

's

Unlike Hagia Sophia, which

museum,

captured in this

English illustration painted

22

building.

tangerine light casts a

1588. Hie mosque

walls

enclosed

by a domed wall, and in the

the

foreground the royal mausoleum

Tlie Siileymaniye

the so

17th-century Turkish

Evliya Celebi Efendi, visitor said

mosque: "Nowhere

much

begin to twinkle across

is

beauty, external

proceed to the

front, to

near the mihrab, while the

to

western Europeans. According

for example, one

lights

At sundown, as the glow over its western

Golden Horn, the muezzin's magnetic draws the faithful to the mosque.

men

was

undoubtedly impressive

traveler

a

Worshipers enter holding their shoes; the

can be seen.

to the

call

and

now

the Siileymaniye has remained

a religious

years after the sultan's death, in is

is

of

there

and

internal, to be found united.

"

sit

women

later sultans,

and Ahmet

II

Siileyman

II

(1687—91)

(1691-95). fell

in love

with Roxelana

early in his reign and, forsaking the other

women

in his

harem, he made her

his

queen. His devotion to her was so evident that

many contemporaries

ful,

powerful

woman

had

felt this

beauti-

cast a spell

on

him, which explains her nickname: the

in a line

Cadi, or Witch.

gather

suaded her husband that

at

Mihrimah, and

Siileyman

It

is

even said she perhis eldest son,

the back of the building in specially set-

Mustapha, was plotting against him and

aside enclosures.

had to be dealt with. Mustapha was duly

The white-turbaned imam,

the local

spiritual leader, stands in the mihrab,

curved recess acting

as a natural

its

amplifier

which seems to sudden responses of bowing,

for his hypnotic chanting,

trigger

kneeling, and prostration, as each person falls

into the

rhythm of devotion.

162

executed, and this paved the way for Roxelana's

own

known

"the Sot") to succeed to the

as

Ottoman

Of

all

son Selim (who was

later

throne.

the various buildings of the

Siileymaniye complex, perhaps the least noticeable and least visited

is

the small

s himself, which lies outside tomb the main compound to tin- northwest, fat

me

the

(

rolden

marble tomb, the house

lot n

I

where he once

through which can pphagus with s

n

I

his

trom h^ •

.1

Greek Christian

ol

lbs childhood

conventional, and he learned

of

>

to

rigoroui

as a military

the rank

«>t

having cut

In 1538,

his teeth >>n military

projects, su< h as building bridges ami

Sinan began

fortifications,

work

mosque

a

architects

Ins

Ovei the next

undertook

an

mm

civilian

chiel ot the imperial

as

^ t]

years,

Sinan

enormous numbei

79 mosques, 34 palaces,

projects

ol

Timeframe A.D.

\3

1489

public baths, 19 tombs, 55 schools, l6pooi houses. 7 madrasahs, and

Sman 99.

died

m

1588,

at

Ins portrait

ticularly tor the

interior

a

Suietmaniyi. 1

520 66

the grand age ot

His memory, however, h\es on

only through

its

12 caravanserais.

Sinan. architect of tmi is

BORN

Reign of Suletman

1.

which the Ottoman

lira

bills,

people

domes and minarets

most

army

rising

"i

luet ot the artillery

modern Turkish tin-

period

a

engineer, eventually

Ottoman

corps, picked out the

|aniss.tr\

Siiian.

life

hen, atin

I

training, he served in the

v

and converted

ot the palace schools

Islam

seen the marble

In-

dramatic turn.

officials,

hits

turbaned tombstone

its

was born

u.in relative!) skills

\\

lived, has a grille

parents in Anatolia in 1489

the

modest

into the garden wall ol

set

one

15)8

Sinan builds

1550

WOW

the passage of tune to the golden age ot

his

BEGINS

hrst mosque

ON

THE

SuifYMANITE

but also, par-

Suleymaniye,

Empire

APOGEE

which adorns

sacred space melting away

Suleyman's empire.

ITS

not

ot Istanbul, in the

ot the

REACHES

during

1557

The mosque

1566

SULEYMAN

1571

1

is

competed

DIES.

The Ottomans are deeeateo Br a Christian fleet at the

Battle of Lepanto

The Empire of Suleyman the Magnificent For more than 450 years, the Ottoman Turks presided over an empire that ranks greatest.

Beginning

in 1453,

it

among

reached

its

the holy places in his domains. These included the

Mosque of Kairouan; the Mosque of Ibn Tulun Mosque of Damascus; and the Shehzade Mosque in Istanbul, all of which are

the world's

Great

peak

in Cairo; the Great

during the reign of Suleyman the Magnificent (1520-66),

who

ruled most of the Middle East,

illustrated here.

Suleyman was champion of Islamic law — the — and introduced the Qur'an as the basis of education. He encouraged the use of Arabic script

northern Africa, western Asia, the Balkans, and

Hungary. As

and

political

Suleyman was both the spiritual head of the empire and controller of all

shari'a

sultan,

in

HOLY ROMAN EMPIRE

i

D'1

Paris

n* D

.••Pest D fiuda

Vienn*

Buchar

Mohacs • Venice •

Belgrade

Sofia

Rome

IONIAN \ ISLANDS

-

A*t

Madrid*

MALTA Tunis*

AFRICA

\

200

400

600

800

1

1

1

1

—J— 200

400 miles

km

ME

D

I

T E R

ed !i?

lull ot the

indirect rule

l

.

1

known

av tin- millet

and judicial

(

man i

death Jin

>ttonian

I

in

' I

mpire began us

slovt

dc< line

rhe government was severely hampered b) nepotism, endemit corruption, and the

and compete with

he) were also given

the) could administei theii

spiritual, educational,

B

u

SUle) the

population ol the empire, were

exempt from mihtar) sen

which meant

i

tin-

who formed

Muslims,

ot the tin

more than

ul textile

calligi

rule was generally tolerant b>

system,

Portugal, .uhI

own

1

I

uropean

I

ngland

mope during the

1

I

inability

moderni

i>>

states su< h as Spain,

tubbed the

Man

Sit k

ol

9th century, the empire was

eventual!) formally dismantled in 1924

affairs,

A

• Istanbul

• Teheran

jtU

• Ankara

SAFAVID EMPIRE

jut)

• limn

'Isfahan

Baghdad

CYPRLS

Damascus • (Great Mosque)

'>

E •

-i

n

Sea

•Jerusalem

/

G

i

i

.1

v

i

\lnandna

ARABIA

ff Medina

Mecca Ottoman

l-.mpirc at the turn- ul

Slilcyman the Magnificent (1520j

INDIA

The Golden Temple it

Hie one God pervades every

place.

He

alone

" dwells in every soul.

From the Adi Gr-^sth

RISING

LIKE A GILDED

LOTUS FROM AN

lake in the city of Amritsar,

artificial

northwestern India, the Golden Temple

is

jeweled canopy. Every

day, in the early

hours of the morning, the book in procession to the

is

carried

temple from the Akal

domed building that lies opposite Once it has been installed,

the holiest shrine in the Sikh religion.

Takht,

Originally founded in about 1589, the

the causeway.

Golden Temple, or Harimandir,

designated Sikhs declaim holy verses from

present

form

dates

from the

early 19th centuries.

structure,

as

if

Its

its

golden boxlike

crafted by Faberge,

testimony to the brilliance of

is

executed

art

Connected

to

surrounding complex

its

marble causeway, the temple consists

a

of two

it

continuously throughout the day. At

night,

it is

returned to the Akal Takht.

The Sikh religion was founded by Guru Nanak (1469-1539), a spiritual teacher

of God.

in the service

by

in

18th and

late

a

stories.

The lower one

from pale marble

inlaid

fashioned

is

with delicate

Casting

its

gilded reflection on Amrita

Sarovar, the Pool of Nectar, the lies at

the spiritual heart of the

floral

patterns in mother-of-pearl, onyx, lapis lazuli,

cornelian, and other gemstones.

Its

four sides face the cardinal points and are

punctuated by the dark frames of four open doorways. Above walls of sheet

marble sheathing

this

copper covered

from the Sikh holy

Inscriptions

written in the flowing

scriptures,

Gurmukhi

the Punjabi language, add

a

rise

in gold.

script

of

brocaded

texture to the golden facades.

On

top, the

roof

is

clustered with small

gilded kiosks with fluted, pumpkinlike

domes and

dome of

spires. In

a

the center, the larger

known as the Shish Room, a sanctuary used

pavilion

Mahal, or Mirror

for meditation, gathers sunlight it

out

like a

and

flashes

beacon.

Inside the temple,

its

spiritual heart

is

expressed not in the form of a god-image,

but by the Sikh holy book,

known

Adi Granth or Guru Granth

Sahib. This

laid

out on

a

divan below

a

as

the is

gilded and

166

Golden Temple Sikh community.

167

THE GOLDEN TEMPLE

A

marble causeway more

than

200 feet

long and lined

who there

He taught that God and one humanity who earnestly seek God will

lived in the Punjab. is

only one

with gilded lamps connects the

and

Harimandir

discover the divinity within themselves.

to the

mainland.

Opposite the causeway entrance stands the

Akal Takht, which

serves as the seat of the Sikhs'

supreme

religious council.

that those

After

Guru Nanak

died, his teaching

was carried on by nine successive Gurus,

all

of whom are revered by Sikhs. Guru Gobind Singh, the 10th and last Guru who

died in 1708, declared that after him there would be no more human Gurus. Instead, he conferred Guruship on the sacred scriptures — the Guru Granth Sahib — and

on the Sikh community or Panth. It was the Fifth Guru, Arjan, created the

temple

first

who With

at Amritsar.

money donated by

the Sikh community, he on land that had been donated by the Emperor Akbar (1556-1605), the most religiously tolerant of the Muslim Mughal

built

it

rulers

the

of India. This shrine, expressive of

new

Sikh religion, differed from Hindu

temples

and

important structural

in

symbolic ways.

An

attitude of spiritual openness

shown by was

laid

was

the fact that the foundation stone

by

a

Muslim mystic from Lahore

named Mian

Mir. Also, whereas

temples are raised on plinths,

Hindu Sikh

this

shrine was built in a slight depression so

would have

that worshipers

to

it

in a spirit

to

walk

down

of humility. Furthermore,

it

was given four doors, instead of one, to show that it was open to all four castes of Hinduism.

And

inside, the focal point

was

the holy scriptures, not an image of Vishnu, Shiva, or another Hindu god.

For the next 150 years, the temple

remained at the heart of Sikh worship. Then, in the 18th century, Mughal power began to wane, and this encouraged the armies of the Afghan king Ahmad Shah Durrani to make frequent incursions into

northwestern India. In 1757, in reprisal

on Afghan troops and materiel, Durrani raided Amritsar,

for Sikh guerrilla attacks

destroyed the temple, and

filled

the sacred

lake with slaughtered cattle. Further attacks

followed over the next seven years.

temple was

ever, in 1765, the in essentially the

The

form

1

9th century by one of the

most famous Sikh

rulers,

Rendered blind

smallpox,

168

has today.

structure was later refurbished at

the start of the

Singh.

it

How-

finally rebuilt

illiterate,

Maharaja Ranjit in

one eye from

and fond of jewels and

Guru Namak who

sits

with the other nine Gurus,

Sikh painting.

are haloed, in this

shown

jrc a

Hindu,

sitting beside

with a peacock fan, and

.1

Muslin

Abo

Garden trees,

women, in

domed

present-day Pakistan, and

tower. 17 ^S. the tower was

At.il.

the seven-year-old son of

t

one of the tributaries of the Indus. He turned Amntsar into a prosperous trading center and donated some half a million

by

rupees tor the temple to be refashioned in

for his deed.

marble and gold leaf by the best craftsmen

his life for the

of the time. From

down

In tact,

130-

.1

l

111

snake

the shrine

Golden Temple. the temple consists of more than as

fruit

to

named lor Guru Hargobind Singh. According to Sikh tradition. Baba A had brought ba< k to life a young friend who had died from a Built

the Himalayas south to the Sutlej River.

became known

pool,

foot

the charismatic R.mjit

this time,

.1

musician.

Singh carved out an empire that stretched

from Peshawar,

which

in

Guru Nanak

Baba

beautiful

Guru,

of the

and pavilions stand next

the

one glittering building. An entire complex surrounds the shrine and includes

just

bite.

.

1 1

Timeframe

But he was then reprimanded

A.D.

expressing his spiritual

1539

his father tor

power through miracle working

rather than

by teaching and upright

Repent. int

c.l

It

living.

Baba Atal decided

one he had

to give

saved, so he

1

Thousands come

in

to visit

it

tory,

a

kitchen and refec-

and watchtowers. An

inlaid

marble

Here.

111

built at

the sacred pool

causeway and.

that

circumambulate the shrine of the Harimandir

is

the

pilgrims can itself.

Just south

Guraka Bagh, the

,is

realm, hear the

it

1111

every year, both

The temple

1765

after the it

THE

SACRED LAKE. is

reconstructed

Afghan attack.

as

lord.

39

Rule of Maharaja Ranjit Singh,

who

has the temple

refurbished with

gold

leaf

MARBLE.

cross the elegant

passing into

.1

celestial

antations of God's

echoing .iround the temple

169

Arjan,

a spot where

AND POLLUTES

THE TEMPLE,

1984

so

on

attacks Amritsar. destroys

AND

community, they can

is

Guru

MEDITATE.

Amrits.ir. the heart ot the Sikh

pavement, backed by colonnades, borders

first temple

Ahmad Shah Durrani

itself

from the Punjab and abroad, viewing the-

The

Guru Nanak used to

1\

the Sikh soul.

the Darbar Sahib, the Court of

dies.

reputedly

1801

guesthouses, offices,

of

the Sikh religion,

Amritsar bv

1757

however, the golden shrine

that burns brightest

589

up

next to the pool and died. is.

Guru Nanak, founder

walls.

word

Indian army troops attack Sikh separatists installed in

the

Golden

Temple.

ITALY

San Vitale There

is

no other church

that can compare.

.

in Italy

.

Ninth-century Ravenna chronicler Andrea Agnello on San Vitale

CHURCH OF SAN VlTALE IN Ravenna in northeastern Italy seems a small and humble edifice compared with the great cathedrals of northern Europe

THE

with their Yet

its

spires

and acres of stained

of the great glories of western a

glass.

plain brick walls conceal within

one

spiritual art:

cavernous interior whose surfaces are

aglow with sacred mosaics.

On

walls

colored

of

glass

and

ceilings,

thousands of tiny

cubes form glittering tableaux

biblical scenes.

Cast in gold and

all

of

the shades of the rainbow, Jesus Christ,

Abraham, Moses, and various

saints

and

angels shine out of these crystalline tapestries that

become incandescent under

the

flaming buds of candlelight.

Some

15 centuries ago,

one of the great

cities

San Vitale

Ravenna was

of the west. In the

early fifth century, at a time

when Roman

was under threat from advancing barbarian tribes, Emperor Honorius elevated Ravenna to capital of the Western Roman Empire because of its natural Italy

defenses of marsh and sea. Later, in 540,

came under

'

it

the control of the Byzantine

A

relic

of the golden age of rule in Italy, San

Byzantine Vitale

was founded about

1,500

years ago

and contains

some of the most important sacred mosaics in Europe. Tlie

view here

is

from

the central

part of the church below the

dome with

looking toward the apse its

Christ

170

grand mosaic ofJesus

(above right)

.

Tfie chiefjewel of San apse

is

this

I

itale's

mosaic offesus Christ

enthroned. Standing on either side of

him

are

winged

angels.

They -

present the figures of Ecclesius the local bishop under I

'itale

was begun

in

whom San

about

520

emperors

of

Istanbul),

who

Constantinople ruled

it

or exarchates, for about

(modem

through governors, 1

5'

»

mausolea whose interior decoration became

wonder

of"

the western world.

Of

all

and who holds a model of the church - and Saint 'italis, the

Ravenna's holy monuments, none surpassed San Vitale. which was consecrated

third-century Italian martyr for

in

whom

ot the great Byzantine rulers.

I

the church

is

named.

547 during the reign of Justinian

I

I.

one

he church's austere, compact exterior

leaves the visitor

unprepared for the opu-

lence within. Inside, light from arch-shaped

171

illuminates

women

during services, and

sat

marble columns

years.

During this golden age. the city was adorned with churches, baptisteries, and the

windows

into

the

shadow

dome,

phal arch

that

galleries,

frame oblique

1

ere,

m

a

lieuis

otl

vistas

From tin- enter, below drawn to the mum through which the chain el and y aisles.

the eye

(

is

apse - San Vitale's duet glories 1

w

retlei

glowing cave

t

be< kon.

sparkling light,

the figures ot Christ, the four Gospel writers - Matthew. Mark.

I

tike,

and |ohn

and other holy figures loom from the

m

c

1

walls

oruscating jigsaws.

rom

a

distance, the mosaics look like

seamless whole.

Only on

a

closer inspection

does

become evident that their magic — small glass cubes in a

it

tiny tesserae

lies in

plethora of colors from rich blues through violets,

and greens to reds and

grays,

them like heraldic devices; and they hold open their books, looking upward for divine inspiration. In the space between the scenes

is

a riot

of verdant

foliage, vines

Countless tiny bricks make up the exterior of San Vitale, which belies the colorful light-reflecting

walls within. Tlie structure

is

browns. Particularly eye-catching are the

laden with white and red grapes growing

surmounted by a

golden cubes, used to fill haloes or background space, which were made by pressing gold leaf onto a glass base and

out of vases, and peacocks and doves.

which was composed of clay pots

securing tesserae

it

were

with

a

thin layer of glass.

set into

damp

different angles to break

The

plaster at slightly

up the

light

and

rich

complex

patterns of the mosaics

are perhaps best appreciated in the center

angels standing

Below hand

on

and

a

semicircular panel, or

Adam,

second son of

offering a sacrificial lamb and the

These two Old Testament characters were depicted

as a

thematic prelude to the figure

foreshadow, respectively, the sacrifice of

a circular

wreath supported by four

on blue

spheres.

on the leftJohn and Luke sit

this radiant presence,

wall, the apostles

either side of a triple-arched opening

and

Below them,

lunette, features Abel, the

shines out against a starry blue sky

within

Here, the

that slotted into each other

were topped by layers of timbers

of Christ in the apse, since their offerings

ceiling.

dome,

Matthew and Mark echo John and Luke.

Lamb of

of the chancel

God

the opposite wall, the apostles

priest-king Melchizedek presenting bread.

create a sparkling effect.

The

On

conical

Christ for

humankind and

the bread of the

Eucharist, or Mass.

The

apse - the visual climax of the

church —

adjoins the chancel and cups and

reflects

light

around

its

semicircular

center, staring out across

against a rocky landscape. Their respective

structure. In

symbols, the eagle and the ox, stand above

the church and flanked by angels,

its

172

is

the

tiles.

was so

As

a result, the

light that

it

dome

did not need

supporting buttresses.

majei

hrist, sitting

(

on

blue

.1

ufung heaven With his purple on hair, and clean-shaven face, he oman emperor, but on a the faithful, the seated

01

!

from

,u

rheodora,

flamboyant wife, ol

1

1

n> us

notoriety

is

he. u

who

gained

TlMf (KAMI AD. 404

•

HONOftut MAI

ibe. on which the

are those

three

Magi

depicting Justinian and his wife rheodora,

holds

a

which dominate

contemporary historian

are

embroidered Hei

gold chalice

gold, and

in

eyes, said In

5JI

S)2

MM

one iimi

on each

the apse walls

side

.iiul

The son ol a peasant, [ustinian rose to ome one of the greatest Byzantine

A nun

rulers.

he

of vision and grv.n energy,

most famous

in

Roman

law

that has

west

in his

h.ul

had enormous influence

In the mosaic, his

.1

work the

in

imposing figure

deep purple robe stands out from

in

captured

more

San Vitak

Sin Vn.ilc remained the

548

Empmv, Tmiop

Ravenna

751

The lOHMUDS OCCUHf

jewel ot Byzantine administered until the eighth ccnturv,

(«oh thi Ostrogoths

when

the city was

a

his

tew

his large oval eyes suggest dignity

and sternness halo

is

a

m

equal measure. His golden

visual link

with the one behind

Christ - a reminder of his status representative his

A

on

earth.

By

as C'hrist's

the same token,

attendants are depicted

as

earthly

equivalents to C'hrist's angels and saints.

San

I

taken

first

bv the

structure. Its

main UJturcs

til. the central

chancel (3),

arc

its

its

the apse t4i with

However, the churches, and

-•

Ravenna

1

city's

mosaic

in particular

like sacred furnaces,

inscription put

it:

mosaics

U CJinst and Justinian and Ilieodora.

173

rusted

The mystic Lamb of God,

ot

Agnus Dei,

is

one contemporary

figure in the

mosau

fires

"bather light was born

here or reigns imprisoned."

basic

em

San Vitale. are

keeping the

religious art burning. As

entrance

its

cONStCHATiD

medieval backwater.

space ill below the dome, the

and

is

the blanks.

"uale was built as a centralized church

inth tun concentric octagons forming

UNDO

547

^i s

s.uicd

wisps of hair escape from under his crown.

white-clad attendants.

S27

and

in

known

and

n first

hidden

later,

m

cathedral.

in

\

JL

fT The temple

oj

dominates the

Apollo

temenos

few

fa Doric columns are

whether

it

to enter the Pythia a

sacrificial

and give

a

the inner sanctuary

where the Pythia

sat,

good

from the questioners and

priests.

and

omen was

it

on the

sacred cake

a

outside the temple.

altar

Then, one by one. they were taken hearth within the temple.

or

or

cella,

and

expectant silence with the I

mam

They then proceeded

inner sanctuary, he Pythia

sat

on

a

bow] mounted on three their view, probably

by

part

Many of

of the

-

it

he attacked the Persians he

if

would destroy

great empire.

a

turned out to be

his

own

I

le did - hut

empire. Nero

was warned to fear "three and seventy years," but did not realize that

not to his old age but to

his

it

referred

successor

ence the Pythia's responses for a

bronze

- hidden from

By

this

helped by chewing laurel leaves and that her tripod

been

Galba. Despite such ambiguities and the

curtain.

One

to have

potential for the Delphic priests to influ-

in

priests.

legs

seem

there

time, she was already in a trance, possibly

drinking sacred water.

the oracles

cryptic or equivocal. Croesus, tor example,

to the adyton, sat

tripod

a

inside

on the inner

to sacrifice a goat or sheep

then conveyed to her the

reply to the inquirer in verse.

was told that

for an oracle session.

offer

priests

uttered the mysterious answer, he gave the

shivered, perhaps symbolizing

Questioners had to buy

screened

One of the

consultation,

goat was sprinkled with cold

the Pythia's trance state, then the

it

to

questioner's inquiry and. after she had

main

It"

Then,

for the

water.

part, or cella, led to the

*V-

god

was propitious

standing Inside the temple, the

adyton -

^F

...^Q^HH

^S?.^" !?^^

tost

of ./

^—^

the waters of the Castalian spring.

still

Delphi, even though only ot

V A.

^^^fcZT

V

^

nt

;i

it-

^^^J^p^^^^^-p^^

.-*

source suggests

was placed over

a

fissure in

the bedrock from which emanated an

ends, the oracle retained

the

first

century

under the sway

By site

the

was

first

in

of

called

a

century

(c.

A.

I).

however, the

The Greek

46-120), himself

wrote

the Failure oj Oracles, a

intoxicating vapor. However, archaeologists

enon he attributed

have found no evidence of any such crack.

population.

199

A.D.,

priest at Delphi,

On

political

prestige until

B.C. when Greece was Rome.

serious decline.

writer Plutarch

once

its

a

treatise

phenom-

to a general decrease in

And when

Pausanias visited

\~s+c

DELPHI

Delphi in the next century, he found

it

neglected and deserted.

The TJie

Bronze Charioteer,

excavated at Delphi, advertises

an international

drama

at

Delphi

recorded oracle was given in

by the

Roman

emperor Julian the Apostate.

The

oracle stated poignantly: "Tell the king

1990, a

this:

the glorious temple has fallen into

begun here

ruin;

Apollo has no roof over

festival

in

theatrical tradition

last

about A.D. 362, in response to an inquiry

of Greek

his head; the

by Angelas and Eva Sikelianos.

bay leaves are

Countries represented included

and fountains are dead." In 393, the Christian emperor Theodosius officially closed the oracle down: Apollo, the god of light, who had conquered the earth goddess, had now himself succumbed to a new god, of a different, but more powerful,

Germany, Denmark,

Italy,

England, Holland, Spain,

and

France.

In the 1990s, the British writer

Tony Harrison's Trackers

of Oxyrhynchus was performed in

Delphi's stadium.

play,

The comic

which featured a chorus

silent,

the prophetic springs

spiritual light.

During the succeeding sanctuary

fell

centuries, the

into ruin and, by the

Middle

of satyrs (below), was based

Ages, the village of Castri had grown up

on a fragment

over

of a

play by the

classical dramatist Sophocles.

200

it.

Delphi

Although the

m

site

was identified

the 17th century by

two

as

scholars,

Frenchman Jacques Spon and

the

A

lu-k-i.

u

\\.i-

the Briton

only in 1892 thai

a

,h archaeological team succeeded in gaining permission from

lb vlo this they

had to stone,

I

no objeel minutes)

the existing village, stone by

tnent to dig there shift

Greek govern

tin-

Hound rhe daughtei ol a va made sun- thai money was

Prometheus millionaire,

(.

drama

ireek

On

down

capturing,

in

detail, the authenti


1

the principal

was held again

from

in

and the new

successful,

faltered.

estranged

,

Angelos died

in

Eva

wife.

his

returned from the U.S. for the funeral and

on

stayed

Greece, shortly to die there

in

At her burial

herself.

Delphi's omphalos, or navel, stone was

was

sensation, with the actors'

a

1930,

.1

from >elphi

words unexpectedly magnified to dramatic effect by the echoing Phaedriades cliffs.

American-born wife Eva, believed that powerful Vlpln could once again be 1

a

might be put

was

even!

I

sudden influx

lowever, the play

I

Greek

visitors

them distinguished

attending, since they feared thai ill

the

to

ol an< ieni

ity

women who back

in

i \

at

Delphi, the local

had appeared

in

Prometheus

)21 spontaneously sang part of

the lines that they had learned for the play

under

Eva's direction.

Yet the creative seeds

sown by Angelos

Timeframe B.C.

and Eva did not

on stony ground.

In

l'-'oOs,

the idea tor an international

festival

was mooted by the Greek

the late

drama

fall

government and later came to fruition. The festival is now a regular event, with troupes coming from Europe and beyond to stage classical

Even said

drama

time

when

it

Apollo used to leave the sanctuary

three

months

Delphi

is

established as

an

IMPORTANT ORACLE CENTER. 582

The Pythian games are

548

Temple of Apollo

reorganized.

down; 373

it is

soon

is

burned

rebuilt.

The second stone temple

is

destroyed by an earthquake,

summer.

in the

in the winter, a

C.600

but

was for

is

rebuilt.

A.D. 362

The oracle gives the last

recorded answer to a

to

go

to the "land of the

Hyperboreans" somewhere

in

question by emperor julian the apostate.

the north,

thousands of modern pilgrims come to Delphi. They come not on foot or 111

393

1892

chariots but by bus; not to question but to

admire the mountains and

valley,

the local Christian monasteries: to admire

the presiding spirits of Gaia, Apollo, and

Christ in reciprocal harmony.

201

down.

French archaeologists begin their excavation of

the

the

ancient temple, stadium and theater, even

Emperor Theodosius closes the oracle

1927

site.

Production of Aeschylus's Prometheus Bound is put on at Delphi by Angelos and Eva Sikelianos.

SAUDI ARABIA

Mecca Tlte first sanctuary appointed for

mankind was

that at t)

[Mecca], a blessed place, a guidance for the peoples.

Bakkah

The Qur'an

3:96

the Muslim Tuaregs pray When dismount middle of in

the desert, they

from a

their camels

and draw the outline of

mosquelike structure in the sand. These

nomadic Berber people of the Sahel regions of Africa then enter using the sun

as a

this

"enclosure" and,

guide, tace Mecca, a

And

Known

to the

is

mosques

the most sacred

According to

to

China, Britain to the Sudan, worshipers

bow down

to pray five times a

special niches, or mihrabs, that

day facing

show them

the direction of Mecca.

Umm

Muhammad

(c.

A.D.

570—632), the messenger of God and founder of the Muslim faith, was born. Here, too, within the city's Great Mosque, is

over the world, from the United States

in

faithful as

the holiest place in the Islamic world.

Here, the Prophet

all

small city in Saudi Arabia.

Muslim

al-Qura - the Mother of Cities - Mecca

Muslim

shrine: the Ka'aba. :5E«-'

tradition, this

cube-shaped

building, draped in black cloth embroi-

band of sacred verses in gold and silver thread, was originally built as a replica of a heavenly prototype. It was dered with

a

Muslims Jill

Mecca's Great Mosque, in whose

courtyard stands the Ka'aba, the holiest shrine in

Islam

-

reputedly founded by

Adam.

-

Pilgrims,

Ka'aba seven SAUDI ARABIA

times.

The

shrine itself is covered

with an embroidered cloth, or kiswah, which

renewed every

!

\

such as those below, must process around the

is

year.

•Medina

^ Mecca

,-

!MEN

ETHIOPIA

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