66

TRAVELS

IN THE EAST.

BY

CONSTANTINE TISCHENDORFF,

EDITOR OF THE

99 66

CODEX EPHRÄMI RESCRIPTUS," CODEX FRIDERICO-AUGUSTANUS,'

ETC.

TRANSLATED FROM THE GERMAN,

BY

W. E. SHUCKARD.

LONDON:

PRINTED FOR

LONGMAN, BROWN, GREEN, AND LONGMANS,

PATERNOSTER-ROW.

H

PREFACE.

I HERE offer my Travels in the East to friendly readers. The great sympathy I myself received during my pilgrimage, inclines me to hope that these reminiscences will also attract favourable regard. The very aspect of my book proves that the tone of its communications is not addressed to the learned: my heart rather than my head has dictated them. He who has travelled in the East, possesses at least all that a Swiss has in his native mountains; if he have them not before his eyes, he bears them in his heart. I say that the East attracts the traveller at least to this extent; for in reality it enchains him far more, provided he brings a right mind and spirit to behold the memorials which it preserves of the origin of Christianity and of the sacred past history of mankind.

The eye which I myself brought to the contemplation of the East, will be readily detected in what I have written. The impressions which personal inspection made upon me, it has been my chief object here to compress into a permanent form, as an enduring memorial. It is to be regretted that a work like mine necessarily puts the first person to a certain extent in the foreground; but I conceived that an unreserved outpouring of the heart, an open ingenuousness of narrative which should place writer and reader as it were in immediate contact, would be appreciated by many.

Questions indicative of hearty sympathy have often been put to me by unlearned persons, as to the scope and tendency of the

Biblico-critical labours which I prosecuted during my five years' travels. For the purpose of meeting this request I have introduced a Chapter addressed to an Illustrious Patroness.

I consider it a great good fortune to have travelled in the East, but to describe my travels there I consider to be a still greater. At least I have experienced this in writing this book, as will be readily detected in its style. I indulged the hope that such a representation, a contribution as it were from the Pilgrim's own heart, would be peculiarly adapted, not only to promote a familiarity, but also a sympathy, with the Holy Land. I shall rejoice greatly if I have succeeded.

I have endeavoured to appear as little learned as possible in these pages. When, however, it was indispensable to discuss learned questions, as for instance, in that relating to the Holy Sepulchre at Jerusalem, I have sought to adopt a course which should give umbrage to no reader. Perhaps the omission of a map will be chiefly felt, where I treat of the site of the Holy Sepulchre. I could indeed have supplied one suited to my purposes from among those extant. But I thought that, even for this purpose, as also for the object of the entire compass of the Travels, I might without any prejudice to the sense refer to the many maps of this particular locality which are in almost every body's hand, and whence it would be easy to gather the details of my pilgrimage, and of my views.

As it is possible that many readers might pass by the Epistle which relates especially to my Biblico-critical labours, I take the opportunity here of soliciting for it a kindly regard.

A new opinion has recently been started which disputes the claim of Sinai to the celebrity of being "God's mountain." I gave a short notice of this at the commencement of this year in the Allgemeine Zeitung. A particular refutation of this view, the strong foundation of which is not upon many points to be disputed, I did not think suitable for incorporation in my Travels. But I shall shortly endeavour to do so elsewhere.

I have still only to express the wish that, amid the mighty struggle of ecclesiastical interests, a salutation will be welcome to many from that land of palms, whence the imperishable Word of Peace has resounded to every one that has a heart fitted to be its receptacle.

Leipzig, 1846.

CONSTANTINE TISCHENDORFF.