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Middle East -- Description and travel -- Early works to 1800 Books
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Early Travels in Palestine Comprising the Narratives of Arculf, Willibald, Bernard, Sæwulf, Sigurd, Benjamin of Tudela, Sir John Maundeville, de la Brocquière, and Maundrell
"Early Travels in Palestine" by Thomas Wright is a historical account written in the mid-19th century. This work comprises a collection of narratives from various early pilgrims who journeyed to the Holy Land, including accounts of notable figures such as Bishop Arculf and Sir John Maundeville. It explores the experiences, observations, and cultural exchanges of these travelers, shedding light on the religious significance of Palestine and the evolution of pilgrimage throughout the centuries. The opening portion of this volume begins with an introduction that contextualizes the importance of early pilgrimages to Palestine, emphasizing how these journeys, despite their often superstitious and barbarous undertones, contributed to the advancement of civilization and intellectual curiosity. It sets the stage for the narratives that follow, starting with the travels of Bishop Arculf, who visited Jerusalem around the year 700. His detailed account describes the city’s landmarks, religious sites, and the conditions experienced by pilgrims at that time. This opening provides a rich foundation for understanding the motivations behind these early pilgrimages and the evolving perception of the Holy Land across different historical contexts.
John Ray
Mr. Ray's travels, Vol. 2 : $b A collection of curious travels and voyages. Containing Dr Leonhart Rauwolf's journey into the eastern countries, viz. Syria, Palestine, or the Holy Land, Armenia, Mesopotamia, Assyria, Chaldea, &c., translated from the Original High Dutch, by Nicholas Staphorst. And also, travels into Greece, Asia minor, Egypt, Arabia felix, Petræa, Ethiopia, the Red Sea, &c. Collected from the observations of Mons. Belon, Prosper Alpinus, Dr. Huntington, Mr. Vernon, Sir George Wheeler, Dr. Smith, Mr. Greaves, and others. To which are added three catalogues of such trees, shrubs, and herbs, as grow in the Levant. By the Rev. John Ray, F.R.S.
"Mr. Ray's travels, Vol. 2 : A collection of curious travels and voyages.…." by John Ray is a collection of travel narratives and natural history observations written in the mid-18th century. It gathers translated journeys and reports focused on the Levant and wider Ottoman world—Greece, Asia Minor, Egypt, Arabia, and Ethiopia—emphasizing geography, customs, trade, and plants. Readers will find firsthand itineraries enriched with ethnographic detail and long botanical lists compiled from multiple travelers. The opening of this volume lays out an extensive table of contents and then begins Dr. Leonhart Rauwolf’s travelogue into the Eastern Mediterranean. He states his botanical aims, travels overland from Augsburg to Marseilles noting towns and plants, and then undertakes a stormy, wind-driven passage past Sardinia, Sicily, Crete, and Cyprus, including a brief audience with an Ottoman officer at Salamis, before reaching Tripoli. On arrival he describes a scuffle at the gate and then sketches Tripoli’s setting, irrigated gardens and fruits, flat-roofed houses, narrow paved streets, caravanserais, and especially the public baths and their routines (washing, depilation, and massage). He surveys trade and governance: European consuls and fondiques, bustling bazaars, silk and raisin commerce, soap and potash making from local halophytic plants, coinage, and the roles of Ottoman officials and courts, with examples of both punishments and corruption alongside avenues of appeal. Rauwolf also notes everyday manners—dress, music and games, washing habits, women’s seclusion and cemetery visits, and funeral customs. The section closes by starting a catalog of local flora around Tripoli, from shore plants to ricinus, squills, and sugar-canes.
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