Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1899-05-08
A PRICELESS RELIC.
THE FAMOUS BLACK STONE OF THE
TEMPLE OF MECCA.

How This Treasure of Islam Appears
at the Present Day and the Various
Theories of Its OriEin-Guarded by
MOhamm elans.
So carefully is the black stone of the
temple of Mecca guarded, even to this
day, that the accounts given by different
writers as to the nature and appearance
of the black stone exhibit some consid-
cradle variations, for orthodox Mussul-
mans cannot be prevailed upon tc give
a straightforward description of If, and
mere Adventures, like the several Eu-
ropean hadjis (Burckhardt, Burton and
the others) could only crafty their in
telligent curiosity by stealthy investi-
cations Detection in the act of pursu-
ing such investigation would have cost
the travellers their lives, in pursuance
(as Mohammedans suppose) of the law
of the prophet. Your faithful Mussul-
man cannot understand that any other
motive than worship should lead any
one to visit Mecca.
The Mohammedans believe that this
famous stone was brought down from
heaven by angels. 1t is set in the wall
of the Caaba, which stands within the
great colonnade. The stone is four feet
nine inches from the ground and IS
kissed and touched with great veneer
alton by every pilgrim to Mecca.
Mr. Bate mentions what intelligent
travellers have recorded concerning the
ma ture of the black stone One of them
tells us that it is undoubtedly large
aerolite-an opinion which scarcely
harmonizes with its reputed quality of
floating in water, since aerolites usually
contain a large percentage of heavy.
metallic matter, such as iron pyrites.
Another traveller reports that it looks
like piece of lava, containing small
extraneous particles of some white and
yellowish substance.
Still another of these authorities
affirms that it is fragment of volcanic
basalt, sprinkled throughout its surface
with small, pointed. colored crystals and
varied with felspar upon dark ground.
like coal, excepting one of its protuber-
ances, which happens to be a little red
dish.
Others, again, claiming an equal title
to exact knowledge, give it as their
opinion that it is nothing else than an
ordinary piece of stone from quarries in
which the Meccan territory abounds.
These last mentioned travellers. how
ever, appear to overlook the circum-
stance that this opinion of theirs does
not take due coSnizance of that proper
ty of the stone to which we have Just
alluded and also the circumstance that
the only kind of stone yielded by the
Meccan quarries is a sort of gray gran
ite
Not so difficult is it to form an idea
as to its size and present appearance.
In form it is an irregular oval, the in
equality of its two longer sides impart-
ing to it q somewhat semicircular ap
pearance. 1t measures about 6 inches
in height and in breadth, the dame
ter on its lower and wider side being
So inches. The surface is protuberant
and somewhat knobby or undulating
and has the appearance of being COM
posed of a number of smaller stones of
different sizes and shapes, securely fit
ted together with cement and perfectly
smooth.
Its appearance is as though the orig
inal piece of stone had been broken to
pieces by violent blow and then re-
paired. And. as a matter of fact, this
appears to be the true explanation of
this irregularity of the surface, for it is
recorded by the Arabian historians of
the Caaba that in the year Alb of the
Hajira an emissary of certain Egyp-
tian khalifa, known as ''the Mad Khali-
IA Hakim, shattered it to pieces by n
stroke of a club, and they relate that
after this event the pieces and even the
dust also We're carefully restored and
the fragments cemented together.
The protuberances mentioned are -
or 5 in number and are such as to i'm
part to the surface of the stone mus
cular or pebbly appearance. Near the
middle there is a hollow which reaches
TO about as much as two inches below
the outer edge of the stone and is of a
kind to suggest to the visitor the sur
mise that one of the protuberances may
have been removed.
The color of the surface of the relic is |
at the present time a deep reddish |
brown, or. as some have described it, a |
metallic black. and. notwithstanding |
the polished appearance impaired to it |
by the constant touching of unnumber-
ed myriads of devotees, it yet bears on |
its undulating surface what appear to |
be evident marks of volcanic origin.
These muscular protuberances, how
ever, are attributed by the Moslem au-
thorities to the incessant oscillations
and Iubbings of the faithful The
smoothness may perhaps be attributable
to this cause, but the obviously frac-
tured and pebbly appearance is not &C.
counted for in this way.-Asiatic Quar-
terly