The Conservative. (M'connelsville, Ohio) 1866-1871, 1868-08-13
Mnsnnn of Omnr.

In one Of his recent letters from Jerusa-
lem Rev. DIR. Bellows gives the following
interesting description Of the Mosque Of
Omar:
But / must hurry on to some brief ac-
count Of the Mosque of Omar, on the site
of the old Temple. King solomon, about
IA thousand years before the bhth of Christ,
built the first temple ON Mount MOrlah,
which his father David had bought Of
Araunah for six hundred shekels OF gold.
This temple lasted A23 years, and was dcs-
troyed by Nebuchadnezzar. The second
temple was built about ga years b. O., on
the return from the captivity, but fell into
DECAY during the two centuries before
Christ, and was rebuilt by Herod, in forty
six years, in great magniicence. Josephus
gives us n vivid description of the Temple,
which must have surpassed in splandor
anything now existing in architecture. IL
was erected in Christ's time, and was
wholly destroyed by Titus about 20 A. ID.
With this prelude we may look at the pre-
sent ground. In an enclosure-a parallel
ogram-of about thirty acres, two sides Of
which are the walls Of the city, starting at
the southeast corner, we find ourselves as
cendiug by n of several flights Of steps
ON its four sides, n green terrace which Is
nearly level, and considerable parts Of
which are the surface of the native rock of
Moriah.
The borders of this park, which, like
everything Turkish, is much neglected,
are occupied by the Governors house and
by officers Of the government, by schools
aud by n blind asylum, all rather mean an d
irregular edifices, The park is too large
even for the great mosques which occupy
"a. ..AN.w -a.I l.AlrH .NtH.NgF aauI slUallnNa
as il designed for other buildings. On a
platform of marble, raised about six feet,
and n truly great foundation, and in its very
center, stands the octagonal Mosque OF
Omar, covered with n grand dome that need
not blush to show itself to Michael Angelo
or Brunelleschi. Upon it's octagonal wall
rests a round drum, from which springs a
dome of graceful and grand proportions,
crowned bya gilt crescent, the points of
which meet. The dome is covered with
| copper the drum with terTa-cotta of a
beautiful blue color, on which verses of the
Koran ARE inscribed in arubesque. The
octagonal bnse is lined with white marble
for two yurds high, and above this squares
of precious marbles are introduced in ele-
CANT designs. Four great doors open at
the four cardinal points. Windows filed
with very beautiful glass, in which are no
figures, but only architectural designs of a
small pattern, produce a very captivating
effect. Opposite the eastern gate a small
dome, supported by open columns, covers
Il place called the Dome of Judgment,
where David is tabled to have had his
tribunal, and where, In the last dry, the
balance of judgment will be suspended.
Within the grand Mosque, two concen-
trio octagonal enclosures surround the cen
Nrol ,,nUt uuhfah hos "a tanaA of aarNan and
gilded wood about it, and within a great
mass Of native rock, of thirty feet diane.
ter (the summit of MORALLY, acrude, rough
surface, in strange contrast with the ele,
gance and finish about it. The rock is,
however, the sacred object of the Mosque
Mussulman tradition has it that from thi'
rock Mahomet assembled to Heaven. IL y
faJled TO be self-poised; hung in space
without foundations, and to cover thu
mouth of hell. They show on one side o
this rock n print OF Christ's ioot-the Mos
lens honoring Jesus as one OF theiI
prophets. Gabriel and Enoch have also
their footmarks. The green standards o
Mahomet and of Omar are erected Qolded
within this circle. In Il little chamber on
of the Mosque, very small, one is shown
the chairs Of David, of Solomon, Abraham
and ST. George, and a fiat stone which
struck with the foot, gives out a dull reso
nance, as il over some great vault. Thi
stone covers a well called the Well o
Souls, on which faithful Moslems avail
their judgment, Robinson supposes Tia
rock of the Mosque les Sakhrrh) 10 be tn
original altar of holocausts Il, Chron.
xii. u and the well the place that receiy
ed and conducted of the blood of the sac
riices.
, At the west of this altar he supposes th
? Holy of Holes, or inner shrine of the TEN
pie, to have been situated. He thinks So
} Omon left this native rock, the summit
! Moriah unelevated out Of veneratiou 70
. his fathers purchase and the original us
, to which David put it. Adrian, the Roma
: Emperor, built a temple of Jupiter OF thi
. place after the destruction of Jerusalem
. and put his own statue in it, out this roc
always continued an object of veneratio
a for the Jews, and is described in writing
q of the fourth century. The Crusaders turn
ed the Mosque of Omar into n Christia
+ church, and erected their altar on tn
rock, They took their title of Templal
from this place. Saladin recovered IL
: spot, and it has since continued in Moslel
u hands. Thus this rock marks, with nue.
distinctness, the most sacred part Of Il
o old temple.
/ forgot 10 mention the four massi'
piers, with the twelve grand columns whiC
sustained the drum of the Mosque. The
have somewhat Ionic capitals. There Il
y many other smaller columns in the bu.
ding, many Of exquisite beauty, but | CT
not stop to describe them.
A clergyman of Springfield, Mass, vi
has a bad habit of adding ''ah' TO many