Joannes, a voluminous ecclesiastical writer who flourished in the first half of the eighth century A.D. He derived the surname of Damascus from the place of his birth, but was also styled Chrysorrhoas from his eloquence. His father, Sergius, was a councillor at the court of the khaliph, and transmitted both his office and fortune to his son. While on an embassy to Jerusalem, however, Damascus entered the service of the church, and retired to the monastery of St Saba, where he passed the remainder of his days. He died sometime about the middle of the eighth century, and has been canonized both by the Greek and Latin Churches. In his works he has treated a great variety of speculative questions, relating to the Manichaean, Nestorian, and Eutychian heresies. His Accurate Exposition of the Orthodox Faith still maintains its reputation in the Greek Church; but his keen defence of image-worship, against the iconoclasm of Leo the Isaurian, shows him to have been deeply tinctured with the superstition of the age. The best edition of his works is that of Le Quien, Paris, 1712.

Nicolaus, a Greek historian and philosopher, who flourished in the Augustan age, and was the intimate friend of Herod, tetrarch of Judea. Some fragments only of his works remain.

a celebrated Neo-platonic philosopher, who was born at Damascus about the middle of the fifth century, A.D. He studied at Alexandria, and thence removed to Athens, where he taught philosophy till the close of the heathen schools during the reign of Justinian. Of his works, which consisted chiefly of commentaries on Plato and Aristotle, some fragments exist in the writings of Photius, who combats his indirect attacks on Christianity. His work entitled Difficulties and Solutions of the First Principles has been published by J. Kopp, Francof, 1828.

(called by the natives Es Sham), the capital of Syria, as well as of a pashalic of the same name, is a large and opulent city, situated in a plain at the eastern foot of the Anti-Libanus, about 150 miles S. by W. of Aleppo. N. Lat. 33° 27'; E. Long. 36° 25'. It lies on the Barada, by which and its branches it is abundantly watered. Nothing can exceed the beauty of its position, whether approached from the side of Mount Lebanon, from the desert to the east, or by the high road from the north. For many miles the city is girdled by fertile fields (or gardens, as they The view of Damascus, when the traveller emerges from Anti-Libanus, is of the most enchanting kind. "One of the most magnificent situations in the world," says Addison (Damascus and Palmyra, vol. ii., p. 92), "burst upon my sight; like the first view of Constantinople, it is unique. We were looking down from an elevation of a thousand feet upon a vast plain, bordered in the distance by blue mountains, and occupied by a rich luxuriant forest of the walnut, the fig, the pomegranate, the plum, the apricot, the citron, the locust, the pear, and the apple, forming a waving grove of more than fifty miles in circuit; possessing a vast variety of tint, a peculiar density and luxuriance of foliage, and a wildly-picturesque form, from the branches of the loftier trees throwing themselves up above a rich underwood of pomegranates, citrons, and oranges, with their yellow, green, and brown leaves; and then conceive our sensations, to see grandly rising in the distance, above this vast supercicies of rich luxuriant foliage, the swelling leaden domes, the gilded crescents, and the marble minarets of Damascus; while in the centre of all, winding towards the city, ran the main stream of the river Barada. As we descended, here and there the openings in the trees displayed little patches of green verdure, or a glimpse of richly-cultivated gardens; the whole of the rich tract was surrounded by a mud-wall, beyond which all was arid and desert."

The interior of the city, however, does not correspond with the exquisite beauty of its environs. It was formerly surrounded by walls defended by towers, which have now fallen into a ruinous state; and the buildings also have so increased that the number of houses without the walls is double that of those within. The streets are in general narrow compared with those in European cities; but the narrowest streets of Damascus are wider than most of the streets of Cairo, and conveniently admit two foot passengers to move with safety on each side of a loaded camel. The greater number of the streets would allow two loaded camels to pass without incommending those on foot, and many of them are so wide as to allow six or eight camels or horses to move abreast. They are all well paved, and have elevated foot-paths on each side. The houses in the suburbs are surmounted with cupolas; and these, viewed from a distance, present an appearance of an encampment of conical tents ten or twelve feet high. The houses in this quarter of the town are built of bricks baked in the sun, which, were they not protected by the cupolas, would be wasted away by the rains. The buildings in the interior are generally about two stories high, with flat roofs; whilst the principal edifices are painted in the gayest colours, and the aspect is light and airy in the extreme. The town, however, in the interior has a dull and monotonous appearance. The houses present a great supercicies of dead wall; yet Damascus is one of the most splendid cities in the East, and contains about 500 houses, which are entitled to the name of palaces: all their splendour is, however, confined to the interior, which contains a number of spacious and gorgeous apartments, courts, terraces, and galleries, adorned with marble pavements of various colours ingeniously and fancifully arranged, mosaic work of the same materials, friezes painted and gilded, while the ceilings are so many broad canopies of gold and brilliant colours, with rich additions of sculpture and enamel. These houses are sumptuously furnished with sofas richly embroidered, Persian carpets, mirrors, and other valuable articles. Into many of the apartments beautiful fountains are introduced. One of the finest streets in the city is formed by the palaces of the agas of Damascus, who are the nobility of the land. The fronts of these palaces, however, towards the street, are like long prison or hospital walls—mere gray mud walls, with few or no windows, whilst at intervals is a great gate opening on a court. But the interior is magnificent. The ornaments Damascus alone of many of their saloons cost upwards of L1,000 sterling.

The mosques and chapels throughout the city are exceeding numerous. Of these, the Great Mosque is the most remarkable. The architecture is of the Corinthian order throughout every part of the edifice. Its form is an oblong composed of three aisles running parallel to each other, and divided by rows of fine Corinthian columns. It has two minarets at each end, and is crowned by a large stone cupola, supported by four enormous pillars. The interior produces a most imposing effect from its dimensions; and the square court in front is also magnificent from its extent. It has on three of its sides a colonnade of Syrian granite pilars, mostly of a fine grain and reddish colour; and on the outside is a superb fountain. Another, with a grove of trees on each side, stands in a spacious court within. The galleries are supported by numerous columns; and on the walls are still seen the remains of the mosaic work with which they were once adorned. A hospital for the indigent sick is attached to this edifice. This mosque is said to have been originally built by the emperor Heraclius, and to have been dedicated to Zacharias; by others it has been considered to have been the work of the bishops of this see, and by them dedicated to St John of Damascus; whilst the Turks call it the Mosque of St John the Baptist, and think it was built by the khalif Valid in the 86th year of the Hegira (A.D. 692). The mosque of the dervishes (where these fanatics dance until they are excited almost to frenzy) is a large, regular, and handsome edifice, and has two of the loftiest and finest minarets to be seen in Damascus. Besides the principal dome, which is very large, a line of smaller ones is carried round three sides of the open court in front of the building, after the same manner as those in the great mosque of Mecca, of which it appears to be a close imitation. In the court adjoining this mosque is a hospital or charitable institution, constructed by the sultan Selim, for the manufacture of silk. There are other mosques, distinguished for their beautiful and ancient architecture. One is adorned with all kinds of fine marble like mosaic pavement; and another is remarkable for its minaret, which is entirely cased with pantiles.

The bazaars are very striking. The great bazaar is about half a league long. They are long streets covered in with high wood-work, and lined with shops, stalls, magazines, and cafés. The shops are narrow, and go only a short way back. The merchant himself sits in front, with his legs doubled up below him, and his pipe in his mouth. The magazines are stored with merchandise of all sorts, and particularly with Indian manufactures, which are brought in great quantities by the caravans from Baghdad.

The castle is situated towards the S.W. part of the city, and is about three quarters of a mile in circuit. It is a large and fine edifice, with three square towers in front and five on each side, and is surrounded with a broad and deep ditch lined with undressed stone. Within it resembles a small town. It is supposed to have been built in the middle ages, either by the Greeks, or by the first Mohammedan conquerors of Syria. It appears to be a work of great antiquity, and to have undergone many additions, alterations, and repairs at different periods. In the oldest parts of it, near the foundation, the stones are of an extraordinary size, and indicate extreme antiquity. It is said by Buckingham to present in the interior a confused heap, in which are mingled together strong works of defence, ruined palaces retaining marks of ancient splendour, and rich ornaments of the most florid arabesque, with remains of fountains, aqueducts, and gardens attached, besides dark passages, gloomy dungeons, secret stairs, and a labyrinth of other objects which could not be penetrated without a guide acquainted with the localities. Some of the finest buildings in Damascus are the khans or caravanserais appropriated to the reception of goods brought in caravans from various quarters by wholesale merchants. The great khan is said to be the finest in the east. It consists of a spacious court, with a superb gateway in the form of a pointed arch, vaulted and highly ornamented with sculpture. The court is finely paved, and in the centre a large fountain sends forth cooling and agreeable streams; the whole being crowned with a cluster of lofty domes. The masonry is in the ancient Saracen and Turkish style, with alternate layers of black and white marble; and the ornaments are profusely rich. The coffee-houses in Damascus are exceedingly spacious; they have benches on each side of the street, extending fifty yards in length, and contain rooms of the same extent, in which passengers smoke and drink coffee. There are many houses also at which sherbet and other sweet drinks are prepared, cooled with the ice and snow brought down to the city from a snowy mountain to the S.W. of the town. Skins of iced water, sweetened and perfumed, are retailed through the streets.

The suburb of Salihayah, which lies at the foot of the mountains that bound the city on the W. and N.W., is a great resort on the last day of every week, and to it all the inhabitants of Damascus of every age and condition repair in their holiday dress to enjoy the free air and pleasures of the country. Here are to be seen parties by the way-side; some smoking, others engaged in loud and merry conversation, and others amusing themselves and their children; the women enveloped in snow-white muslin robes, with veils of a dark gauze, their usual dress; the men of the city mounted on horses richly caparisoned, or on fine mules and asses; others sauntering on foot, or reposing on the banks that skirt the road, either smoking, playing at chess, or touching the Armanout guitar to their songs.

Damascus is the seat of an extensive trade both with India and with Europe. The productions of India, consisting chiefly of spices, cotton manufactures, coarse and fine muslins, and gold stuffs, are in great demand, and bring high prices. They are brought from India by the Persian Gulf, Bussora, Baghdad, and Aleppo. The manufactures of England are much sought after, and held in very high esteem, particularly light woollen cloths of gay colours, printed cottons and chintzes, and silk and cotton shawls made in imitation of those of Cashmere; also needles, pins, knives, scissors, and fine hardware, as well as china and earthenware, whether English or Indian. These goods being generally imported through Saida, Beirut, and Tripoli, are sold at very high prices. Iron, lead, tin, cochineal, sugar, and other European articles, are also imported through the same channel. Wearing apparel for fashionable persons of both sexes at Damascus, and clothes that have been worn, are brought from Constantinople; and being distributed all over the country, are frequently the means of spreading the contagion of the plague. Amongst the various manufactures to be found in the bazaars are superb caparisons for horses, of which the Turks, as well as all the other Eastern nations, are extremely fond. These are made in European Turkey; and a number of fine bridles, martingales, and silver and embossed breastpieces, come also from Persia. The firearms are chiefly of French and German manufacture, being prepared in an ornamented style expressly for this market. The sabre blades are almost all of the old Persian or Damascus manufacture. The art of making them, however, is no longer known or practised in this city; so that they grow daily more valuable, as no modern sword can compare with them in temper and in quality. The silk seen in the bazaars of Damascus is principally of Chinese and Indian manufacture; the furs come from Russia, Georgia, Circassia, and Armenia; the velvet from Italy; copper from Asia Minor; the manufactures of Britain through Smyrna; and various other articles of an inferior kind from Germany and France. There are few manufactures in Damascus; and these consist chiefly of silk stuffs, plain, coloured, and embroidered Damascens with gold; fabrics of plain cotton, and cotton and silk mixed, all for home consumption, and mostly of broad striped or wavy patterns for the caftans of the Turkish dress.

Commerce, as in all other places in the East, is carried on by means of caravans, of which the principal is that which goes with the annual pilgrimage to Mecca. It is conducted by the pasha, who receives the standard of the prophet from the governor of the castle, and gives a solemn pledge for its restoration. This expedition unites commercial with religious objects. A caravan accompanied by a numerous train of armed men goes thrice a-year to Baghdad, the journey occupying thirty days; that to Aleppo travels twice or thrice a-month. Besides these, many other caravans go to different parts of Syria, Damascus being a great rendezvous and emporium of trade. Provisions and fruit of all kinds are abundant; also ice and snow, which may always be obtained from the neighbouring mountains. Damascus is generally regarded as the oldest city in the world, its history remounting beyond the time of Abraham, whose steward Eliezer was a native of this place. L. Müller (Ad Orig. Reg. Damos.) has undertaken to show that it was even then governed by its own rulers. How long it may have retained its independence cannot be determined; but it appears (2 Sam. viii. 5, 6; 1 Chron. xix. 4) that its monarch having unwisely attacked the victorious David, the Hebrew sovereign defeated the Syrians, making a great slaughter of them, and subdued Damascus, and exacted tribute from its inhabitants. This subjection was not of long duration, for under his successor one Rezon, a servant of Hadadezer, king of Zobah, made himself master of Damascus, and, ruling over Syria, "was an adversary to Israel all the days of Solomon." After Rezon, Hezion occupied the throne. He was succeeded by his son Tabrimon, who was in alliance with Asa, king of Judah. Preserving the same direct line, the crown then fell to Benhadad, under whose son Damascus was the head of a very powerful empire, since it appears (1 Kings xx. 1) that "thirty and two kings" (doubtless petty princes or pashas, governors of provinces) accompanied him in a campaign which he undertook against Samaria. After a series of contests with the kings of Israel, Damascus fell into the hands of Jeroboam II.; and an expedition undertaken by the united powers of Damascus and Syria against Ahaz, king of Judah, was avenged by the Assyrian Tiglath-Pileser, who added the Damascus territory to his own kingdom. Damascus after this fell under the power of the Babylonians and Persians, from whom it was taken by Alexander the Great. Then it made a part of the kingdom of the Seleucidae, from whom it passed into the hands of the Romans. In the time of the apostle Paul it belonged to the dependent kingdom of the Arabian prince Aretas. At a later period it was reckoned among the cities of Decapolis; then it was added to the province of Phoenice; and at last made a part of the province of Phoenicia Libanesia. From the time of Hadrian it bore the honorary title of Metropolis, without enjoying the rights of a metropolis. Under the Greek emperors of Constantinople Damascus was the most celebrated city of the East, remarkable for its wealth, luxury, magnificence, and its numerous Christian population. A great era in its history is its conquest by the Saracens, of which an account may be found in the Arabic historian Alwakidi (Ockley's Hist. of the Saracens). The war was begun about A.D. 633, by the celebrated Abubeker, the successor of Mohammed; and ended in the capture of the city, and the substitution of Islamism for Christianity. It then became the capital of the whole Mussulman world, till the khalipiate was removed to Baghdad. The city continued under the sway of the khaliphs of Baghdad till it came into the hands of the Turks, and was held and rendered famous by Noureddin and Saladin. In 1401 Timour the Tartar captured the city and barba-