The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-03-28
THE BLACK STONE OF ISLAM.
It's Appearance and the Various
Theories of Its Origin.
From the Asiatic Quarterly.

From the Asiatic Quarterly.
So carefully is the black stone of the
Temple of Mecca guarded, even to this
day, that the accounts given by different
writers as 10 the nature and appearance of
the black stone exhibit some considerable
variations; for orthodox Mussulmans can
not be prevailed upon to give a straight
forward description of 1t, and mere adven-
turers, like the several European Halls
(Burckhardt, Burton, and the others could
only crafty their intelligent curiosity by
stealthy investigations. Detection in the
act of pursuing such Investigation would
have cost the travellers their lives, in pur-
suance las Mahometans suppose) of the law
of the prophet Your faithful Mussulman
cannot understand that any other motive
than worship should lead any one to visit
Mecca.
MIR. Bate mentions what intelligent traV-
elers have recorded concerning the nature
of the black stone. One of them tells us
that 1t is undoubtedly a large aerolite-an
opinion which scarcely harmonizes with
its reputed quality of floating in water,
since aerolites usually contain a large per-
centage of heavy metallic matter, such as
iron pyrites. Another traveller reports that
it looks like q piece of lava, containing
small extraneous particles of some white
and yellowish substance. Still another of
these authorities affirms that it is a frag
ment of volcanic basalt, sprinkled through
out its surface with small pointed colored
crystals, and varied with felspar upon
dark ground, like coal-eXcepting one of
its protuberances, which happens to be
little reddish. Others, again, claiming an
equal title to exact knowledge, give IL 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, however,
appear TO overlook the circumstance that
this opinion of theirs does not take due
cognizance of that property 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
sort OF gray granite.
Not so difficult is it to form an idea as TO
it's size and present appearance. In form
il is an irregular oval, the inequality of
its two longer sides impartng TO 1t some
what semi-circuiar appearance. 1t meas
ures about six inches in hight and eight
i'm breadth the diameter on its lower and
wider side being eight inches and a half
The surface is protuDerant and somewhat
knobby or undulatlng, and has the APP
pearance of being composed of number of
smaller stones of different sizes and
shapes, securely fitted together with ce-
ment and perfectly smooth. Its appear
stone had been broken to pieces by VIC
Dent blow and then repaired. And, as
matter of fact, this appears to be the true
explanation of this irregularity of the sur
face: for il is recorded by the Arabian his
torians of the Kalba that in the year Alb
Of the Hajira an emissary of certain
Egvptian Khalifa, known as the mad
I<halifa Hakim," shattered it to pieces by
a stroke of a club" and they relate that,
after this event, the pieces and even the
dust also were carefully restored, and the
fragments cemented together.
The nrotuberances mentioned are twelve
or 6fteen IN number, and are such as to
imnart to the surface of the stone mus
cuiar or pebbly appearance. Near the mid
dle there Is a hollow which reaches to
shoit as much as two inches below the
outer edge of the stone, and is of kind 10
,,ogest TO the visitor the surmise that
one Of the protuberances may have been
removed The color of the surface of the
relic is at the present time deep reddish
trou,n or as some have described IL,
metallic black; and Notwithstanding the
nolished appearance impaired to 1t by the
Constant touching of unnumbered myriads
- devotees. IL vet bears on its undulatng
e,rface what appear TO be evident marks
- volcanic origin. These muscular pro-
tuherances. however, are attributed by the
Moslem authorities to the incessant oscuia-
tions and rubbings of the taithtuG Inc
smoothness may perhaps be attTloutaoie 70
mis- cause. but the obviously fractured ana
pebbly appearance is not accounted LOT III
' this way,