UNDERGROUND IN THE HOLY CITY

Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 89, 8 January 1918, Page 8

UNDERGROUND IN THE HOLY CITY

4 LOST SACRED TREASURES ARK OF THE COVENANT According to a tradition, 'disputed', though pretty well generally accepted, when the Babylonians took Jerusalem, and removed the- Jews into captivity by the waters of Babylon, tliov failed to secure the Ark of ihe Covenant, the Table of Shew Broad and the Seven Branched Candlestick. These ancient objects of Jewish veneration were said to have been hidden among the soft limestone caves, of which there aro many underneath the 'city, an expression' which would include the adjacent area. The secret of the hiding place, or places, was confined to the family of the High Priest, and was carefully guarded. When Cyrus permitted the Jews to return, after the seventy years' captivity, their leader, Ezra, reconstructed the temple on the lines of Solomon's Temple as far as possible. But lie could not replace the wealth of ornamentation in £old and other material, the Jews being now a poor people. In Solomon's time they had expanded their boundaries for a short time because the two great empires of the Assyrians and the Egyptians had become utterly exhausted by their continuous' wars. Solomon got astride the great Asian-African trade route, and got far enough south to secure Akabah as an outlet on the Red Sea for the South Arabian and Indian Ocean trade. He made the most of his opportunities, and levied tribute like any robber knight on the Rhine did on the unlucky traders who had to pass his stronghold by land or by water. Ezra- is said in the Bible narrative to have mado a new ark, a new table, and a new candlestick on the mode of the old sacred relics, the measurements being known from the old records in the Pentateuch, and they and the Temple were in ,due time solemnly dedicated to the glory of Yahweli. But a tradition exists in the East that Ezra had knowledge of the hiding place of the original ark, table and candlestick, and made his replicas from the actual holy relics; but the secret of their actual existence was carefully guarded.

What the new ark, table or candlestick were like can be seen on the arch 'of Titus at Rome, which was erected to commemorate his Palestine and other campaigns, these sacred relics beinfr depicted in feliof they wereborne in the triumphal voted by the Senate and pebple on the return of Titus. 'They were then kept in Rome, probably in the Templo of the Capitoline .Jovel In 410 A.1)., Alaric the Visigoth.took Rome by storm, and was extremely merciful to the city and tho people, but naturally required some plunder, and followed tile usual custom by taking possession of the enemy's most sacred relics and religious objects. Now comes in a considerable aoubt as to tlie fate of the ark, table, and candlestick. One legend says that they were thrown, with pother treasures, into the river for safe keeping by leather Tiber, "to whbni we Romans pray," and to whom every Roman from earliest times to the present made, and,niakes, offerings on special occasions, the mora wealthy frequently throwing in objects of gold and silver, or other precious material. Another legend says Alaric secured theso precious relics, and that when he died in the south of Italy they were,-buried with him, with other treasure, in' the river bed of the Busento. The story goes that the Visigoths, fearing the desecration of the grave of their king, collected the people in tho, neighbourhood, made them turn tho course of the little stream, then dig the grave. IWhen tllatw'as ready and. the king was buried,.surrounded,by his treasures, the people were made to restore the stream to its former course, and then were slaughtered, ill order that the grave of the great dead should' remain unknown, and therefore, free from all fear of desecration; while another legend states that these treasures were lost curing tiie g/eat storm which wrecked a large part of Alaric's fleet when he attempted to cross to Carthage, aud it was this storm which turned him back to die on Italian soil.

Though the Turkish Government lias at intervals allowed excavations to be carried 011 under Jerusalem, and both Generals Warren and Wilson, of tho Royal Engineers, working under the Palestine Exploration Fund Committee, made important discoveries, and later other explorers, the objects so venerated by the Jews have never been found. As a matter (f fact the amount of exploration done lias been very small, and it is a testimony to the knowledge and acuteness of the various explorers that so satisfactory results have been obtained. Quito recently a syndicate was formed- by Captain Parker (of the Macclesfield family) and inendu to explore bcneaUi Jerusalem, lbov found n enty of inllucnce to place 111 tho yglis quarter, for they got a." firman from Abdul Hanul, and were allowed unusual latitude as to their operations. There was a: hint that they had conu. upon somo extraordinary finds, but their operations wore put a sudden end „ v the Tirks, wlu> forbade any further exploratnns. And there the story of tho search for their venerated obits ends. ?ow Hint the British aro 'in possession 'if Jerusalem a tlioioug.i eviration of underground Jerusalem should bo systi niatically ma<oin the 11 - torosts of bistiry and of aiittqu.man iSrcb. Thc:e is 1,0 knowing what treasures may be the reward. It is well worth wliih, and should be undertaken at once.