The times., 1899-03-22
THE BLACK STONE OF ISLAM.
of the Sacred Relic and
Theories of It's Origin.
(From the Asiatic Qusrterly.)

(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 writer's
as to the nature and appearance OF The
black stone exhibit some considerable vari-
atoms, for orthodox Mussulmans cannos be
prevailed upon to give a straigh, forward
description of it, and mere adventurers,
like the several European Halls (Burck-
hardt, Burton, and the others} couS oniy
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 Mussu,-
man cannot understand that any o;he. mo-
tive than worship should lead any one TO
visit Mecca.
Mr. Bate mentions what intelligent trav-
elers have recorded concerning the ma ure
of the black stone. One of them tells US
that it is undoubtedly large aeroiite-
an opinion which scarcely harmoniZes with
its reputed quality of floating in water,
since aerolites usually contain large per-
centage 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
ment of volcanic basalt, sprinkled through
out its surface with small pointed colored
crystals, and varied with felspar upon a
dark ground, like coal-exeepting one Of
its protuberances. which happens to be a
little reddish. Others, again, claiming an
equal 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
overlook the circumstance that this opin
ion OF theirs does not take due cognizance
of that property of the stone to which We
have Just alluded. and also the circum-
stance that the only kind OF stone yield
ed by the Meccan quarries is a sort Of
gray granite.
Not so difficult is II to form an idea as
to its size and present appearance. In
form it is an irregular oval, the inequality
of its two longer sides imparting TO it a
| somewhat semicircular appearance. IL
| measures about six inches in height and
eight in breadth, the diameter on its low
er and wider side being eight inches and
half. The surface is proturberant and
somewhat knobby or undulating, and has
| the appearance of being composed of a
number of smaller stones of different sizes
and shapes, securely fitted together with
+ cement and perfectly smooth. Its appear
l ance is as though the original piece OF
stone had been broken to pieces by vio-
| lent blow and then repaired. And, as a
matter Of fact, this appears TO be the true
! explanation of this irregularity of the sur
| face, for il is recorded by the Arabian
| historians of the aba that in the year
/ 413 of the Haiira, an emissary of certain
! Egyptian Khalifa, known as the mad
| Khalifa Hakim," shattered it to pieces by
! 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 protuberances mentioned are twelve
or fifteen in number. and are such as 10
/ impart to the surface of the stone muscu-
I lar or pebbly appearance. Near the mid
die there is a hollow which reaches &C
t about as much as two inches below the
( outer edge of the stone, and is of a kline
| to suggest to the visitor the surmise tha
one of the protuberances may have beer
removed. The color of the surface of tn.
relic is at the present time deep reddish
brown, or, as some have described it,
metallic black; and Notwithstanding I'll;
polished appearance impaired to it by tht
constant touching of unnumbered myriad!
of devotees. il yet bears on its undulatinG
surface what appear to be evident mark:
of volcanic origin. These muscular protub.
erances however. are attributed by the
Moslem authorities to the incessant oscula
tions and rubbings of the faithful. The
smoothness may perhaps be attributable tC
this cause. but the obviously fractured an(
! pebbly appearance is not accounted for In
| this way.