Year: 1869

The subterranean explorations which have been
carried on at Jerusalem by Lieutenant Warren, on
behalf of the British Association known as the
Palestine Exploration Society, leaves no doubt
that the city which was hallowed by the feet Of the
Saviour of mankind, and which was the scene o1
the most solemn events in the history of the world
still exists, buried beneath the modern Jerusalem
as Pompeii and Herculaneum lie buried beneath
the lava and ashes of Vesuvius. Lieutenant War
rem commenced his explorations in February
1868, and reports of the results of his investiga
tions up to February of this year has been pub
lished. He has sunken twenty-four shafts in dit
ferents parts of the city, besides making excava
tions at the Pool of Bethesda and at Sloan, anc
has driven galleries from these shafts to the dis
tance Of many hundred feet. Until these inVesti
cations had been commenced, the belief was gen
eral that not only had the ancient Jerusalem beer
razed to the ground, but that it had been cleared
away from its site 80 that not even vestige OF il
could be found. Innumerable explorations Of the
modern city above the ground have been made
and it was supposed that all the notable proper
tions of the new city had been correctly identified
with the corresponding portions Of the ancient
one. But now it seems to be shown that the great
er part of these supposed dentifcations have beer
based upon fallacies. The disappearance OF the
old city is, in fact, one Of the most marvellous
things in history. Here was city famous for it
size, magnifcence and beauty, "the joy Of the ma
tons of the earth," the history OF which, from it:
foundation up to the period Of its capture by the
Romans, was known and recorded with unparal
leled minuteness suddenly wiped out from the tact
of the earth, with nothing left to mark its site bu
gigantic heaps of ruins, on which, after the lapst
of centuries, a small and ugly looking town wa
built. From the destruction of Jerusalem by Titu
down to the fourth century, the history Of the city
is blank but, from the latter period until now
descriptions of it have been numerous and detailed
Curious enough however, no one before Lieuten
ant Warren seems to have noticed that, while th'
correctness of the description given by Josephu
Of the ancient city is unquestionable, the fact tina
the appearance and comparative height Of the hill
and especially the height Of the temple wall, are 81
different discrepancy pointed out the fact tina
the surface of the modern city is one hundred fee
or more above what was the surface of the ancien
city. Thus, Josephus speaks Of the dizzy heigh
from the southern cloister of the temple to the bot
tom of Kedron Valley. At present the height i
anything but dizzy one; but Lieutenant Warner
has ascertained that the wall Of the temple, from
its foundation to the floor of this cloister was l3
feet; the cloister was itself 80 feet high; and tn
bottom of the valley Of the Kedron, which is nov
1923 feet below the wall, was in fact 225 feet deep
50 that "dizzy height" was really 44S feet, or JUS
about the distance of the three hundred cubit
mentioned by Josephus.


Lieutenant Warren commenced his excavation
at the southeast corner of the harem inclosure, 1
spot where the wall is remarkable for the size o
the stone and its height, which is seventy fee
above the present surface. The result Of this ex