a city of Media, which, according to Herodotus, was built by
Dejoces, king of the Medes. It was situated on a gentle declivity,
distant twelve stadia from Mount Orontes, and was in compass one hundred
and fifty stadia, and, next to Nineveh and Babylon, was one of the
strongest and most beautiful cities of the east. After the union of
Media with Persia, it was the summer residence of the Persian kings. Sir
R. K. Porter, in his Travels, says, “Having for a few moments gazed at
the venerable mountain, (Orontes, at the foot of which Ecbatana was
built,) and at the sad vacuum at its base; what had been Ecbatana, being
now shrunk to comparative nothingness; I turned my eye on the still busy
scene of life which occupied the adjacent country; the extensive plain
of Hamadan, and its widely extending hills. On our right, the receding
vale was varied, at short distances, with numberless castellated
villages rising from amidst groves of the noblest trees; while the great
plain itself stretched northward and eastward to such far remoteness,
that its mountain boundaries appeared like clouds upon the horizon. This
whole tract seemed one carpet of luxuriant verdure, studded with
hamlets, and watered by beautiful rivulets. On the south-west, Orontes,
or Elwund, (by whichever name we may designate this most towering
division of the mountain,) presents itself, in all the stupendous
grandeur of its fame and form. Near to its base, appear the dark
coloured dwellings of Hamadan, crowded thickly on each other; while the
gardens of the inhabitants with their connecting orchards and woods,
fringe the entire slope of that part of the mountain.” “The site of the
modern town, like that of the ancient, is on a gradual ascent,
terminating near the foot of the eastern side of the mountain; but there
all trace of its past appearance would cease, were it not for two or
three considerable elevations, and overgrown irregularities on and near
them, which may have been the walls of the royal fortress, with those of
the palaces, temples, and theatres, seen no more. I passed one of these
heights, standing to the south-west, as I entered the city, and observed
that it bore many vestiges of having been strongly fortified. The sides
and summit are covered with large remnants of ruined walls of a great
thickness, and also of towers, the materials of which were sun-dried
bricks. It has the name of the Inner Fortress, and certainly holds the
most commanding station near the plain.” Of the interior of the city,
the same author says, “The mud alleys, which now occupy the site of the
ancient streets or squares, are narrow, interrupted by large holes or
hollows in the way, and heaps of the fallen crumbled walls of deserted
dwellings. A miserable bazaar or two are passed through in traversing
the town; and large lonely spots are met with, marked by broken low
mounds over older ruins; with here and there a few poplars, or willow
trees, shadowing the border of a dirty stream, abandoned to the meanest
uses; which, probably, flowed pellucid and admired, when these places
were gardens, and the grass-grown heap some stately dwelling of
Ecbatana. In one or two spots I observed square platforms, composed of
large stones; the faces of many of which were chiselled all over into
the finest arabesque fretwork, while others had, in addition, long
inscriptions in the Arabic character. They had evidently been
tomb-stones of the inhabitants, during the caliph rule in Persia. But
when we compare relics of the seventh century, with the deep antiquity
of the ruins on which they lie, these monumental remains seem but the
register of yesterday.” Here is shown the tomb of Mordecai and Esther;
as well as that of Avicenna, the celebrated Arabian physician. The
sepulchre of the former stands near the centre of the city of Hamadan:
the tombs are covered by a dome, on which is the following inscription
in Hebrew: “This day, 15th of the month Adar, in the year 4474 from the
creation of the world, was finished the building of this temple over the
graves of Mordecai and Esther, by the hands of the good-hearted
brothers, Elias and Samuel, the sons of the deceased Ismael of Kashan.”
This inscription, the date of which proves the dome to have been built
eleven hundred years, was sent by Sir Gore Ouseley to Sir John Malcolm,
who has given it in his History of Persia; who also says that the tombs,
which are of a black coloured wood, are evidently of very great
antiquity, but in good preservation, as the wood has not perished, and
the inscriptions are still very legible. Sir R. K. Porter has given a
more particular description of this tomb. He says, “I accompanied the
priest through the town, over much ruin and rubbish, to an enclosed
piece of ground, rather more elevated than any in its immediate
vicinity. In the centre was the Jewish tomb; a square building of brick,
of a mosque-like form, with a rather elongated dome at the top. The
whole seems in a very decaying state, falling fast to the mouldering
condition of some wall fragments around, which, in former times, had
been connected with, and extended the consequence of, the sacred
enclosure. The door that admitted us into the tomb, is in the ancient
sepulchral fashion of the country, very small; consisting of a small
stone of great thickness, and turning on its own pivots from one side.
Its key is always in possession of the head of the Jews resident at
Hamadan.” “On passing through the little portal, which we did in an
almost doubled position, we entered a small arched chamber, in which are
seen the graves of several rabbies: probably, one may cover the remains
of the pious Ismael; and, not unlikely, the others may contain the
bodies of the first rebuilders after the sacrilegious destruction by
Timour. Having ‘trod lightly by their graves,’ a second door of such
very confined dimensions presented itself at the end of this vestibule,
we were constrained to enter it on our hands and knees, and then
standing up, we found ourselves in a larger chamber, to which
appertained the dome. Immediately under its concave, stand two
sarcophagi, made of a very dark wood, carved with great intricacy of
pattern, and richness of twisted ornament, with a line of inscription in
Hebrew running round the upper ledge of each. Many other inscriptions,
in the same language, are cut on the walls; while one of the oldest
antiquity, engraved on a slab of white marble, is let into the wall
itself.” This inscription is as follows: “Mordecai, beloved and honoured
by a king, was great and good. His garments were as those of a
sovereign. Ahasuerus covered him with this rich dress, and also placed a
golden chain around his neck. The city of Susa rejoiced at his honours,
and his high fortune became the glory of the Jews.” The inscription
which encompasses the sarcophagus of Mordecai, is to this effect: “It is
said by David, Preserve me, O God! I am now in thy presence. I have
cried at the gate of heaven, that thou art my God; and what goodness I
have received from thee, O Lord! Those whose bodies are now beneath in
this earth, when animated by thy mercy were great; and whatever
happiness was bestowed upon them in this world, came from thee, O God!
Their grief and sufferings were many, at the first; but they became
happy, because they always called upon thy holy name in their miseries.
Thou liftedst me up, and I became powerful. Thine enemies sought to
destroy me, in the early times of my life; but the shadow of thy hand
was upon me, and covered me, as a tent, from their wicked
purposes!--MORDECAI.” The following is the corresponding inscription on
the sarcophagus of Esther: “I praise thee, O God, that thou hast created
me! I know that my sins merit punishment, yet I hope for mercy at thy
hands; for whenever I call upon thee, thou art with me; thy holy
presence secures me from all evil. My heart is at ease, and my fear of
thee increases. My life became, through thy goodness, at the last, full
of peace. O God, do not shut my soul out from thy divine presence! Those
whom thou lovest, never feel the torments of hell. Lead me, O merciful
Father, to the life of life; that I may be filled with the heavenly
fruits of paradise!--ESTHER.” The Jews at Hamadan have no tradition of
the cause of Esther and Mordecai having been interred at that place; but
however that might be, there are sufficient reasons for believing the
validity of their interment in this spot. The strongest evidence we can
have of the truth of any historical fact, is, its commemoration by an
annual festival. It is well known, that several important events in
Jewish history are thus celebrated; and among the rest, the feast of
Purim is kept on the 13th and 14th of the month Adar, to commemorate the
deliverance obtained by the Jews, at the intercession of Esther, from
the general massacre ordered by Ahasuerus, and the slaughter they were
permitted to make of their enemies. Now on this same festival, in the
same day and month, Jewish pilgrims resort from all quarters to the
sepulchre of Mordecai and Esther; and have done so for centuries,--a
strong presumptive proof that the tradition of their burial in this
place rests on some authentic foundation.
Dejoces, king of the Medes. It was situated on a gentle declivity,
distant twelve stadia from Mount Orontes, and was in compass one hundred
and fifty stadia, and, next to Nineveh and Babylon, was one of the
strongest and most beautiful cities of the east. After the union of
Media with Persia, it was the summer residence of the Persian kings. Sir
R. K. Porter, in his Travels, says, “Having for a few moments gazed at
the venerable mountain, (Orontes, at the foot of which Ecbatana was
built,) and at the sad vacuum at its base; what had been Ecbatana, being
now shrunk to comparative nothingness; I turned my eye on the still busy
scene of life which occupied the adjacent country; the extensive plain
of Hamadan, and its widely extending hills. On our right, the receding
vale was varied, at short distances, with numberless castellated
villages rising from amidst groves of the noblest trees; while the great
plain itself stretched northward and eastward to such far remoteness,
that its mountain boundaries appeared like clouds upon the horizon. This
whole tract seemed one carpet of luxuriant verdure, studded with
hamlets, and watered by beautiful rivulets. On the south-west, Orontes,
or Elwund, (by whichever name we may designate this most towering
division of the mountain,) presents itself, in all the stupendous
grandeur of its fame and form. Near to its base, appear the dark
coloured dwellings of Hamadan, crowded thickly on each other; while the
gardens of the inhabitants with their connecting orchards and woods,
fringe the entire slope of that part of the mountain.” “The site of the
modern town, like that of the ancient, is on a gradual ascent,
terminating near the foot of the eastern side of the mountain; but there
all trace of its past appearance would cease, were it not for two or
three considerable elevations, and overgrown irregularities on and near
them, which may have been the walls of the royal fortress, with those of
the palaces, temples, and theatres, seen no more. I passed one of these
heights, standing to the south-west, as I entered the city, and observed
that it bore many vestiges of having been strongly fortified. The sides
and summit are covered with large remnants of ruined walls of a great
thickness, and also of towers, the materials of which were sun-dried
bricks. It has the name of the Inner Fortress, and certainly holds the
most commanding station near the plain.” Of the interior of the city,
the same author says, “The mud alleys, which now occupy the site of the
ancient streets or squares, are narrow, interrupted by large holes or
hollows in the way, and heaps of the fallen crumbled walls of deserted
dwellings. A miserable bazaar or two are passed through in traversing
the town; and large lonely spots are met with, marked by broken low
mounds over older ruins; with here and there a few poplars, or willow
trees, shadowing the border of a dirty stream, abandoned to the meanest
uses; which, probably, flowed pellucid and admired, when these places
were gardens, and the grass-grown heap some stately dwelling of
Ecbatana. In one or two spots I observed square platforms, composed of
large stones; the faces of many of which were chiselled all over into
the finest arabesque fretwork, while others had, in addition, long
inscriptions in the Arabic character. They had evidently been
tomb-stones of the inhabitants, during the caliph rule in Persia. But
when we compare relics of the seventh century, with the deep antiquity
of the ruins on which they lie, these monumental remains seem but the
register of yesterday.” Here is shown the tomb of Mordecai and Esther;
as well as that of Avicenna, the celebrated Arabian physician. The
sepulchre of the former stands near the centre of the city of Hamadan:
the tombs are covered by a dome, on which is the following inscription
in Hebrew: “This day, 15th of the month Adar, in the year 4474 from the
creation of the world, was finished the building of this temple over the
graves of Mordecai and Esther, by the hands of the good-hearted
brothers, Elias and Samuel, the sons of the deceased Ismael of Kashan.”
This inscription, the date of which proves the dome to have been built
eleven hundred years, was sent by Sir Gore Ouseley to Sir John Malcolm,
who has given it in his History of Persia; who also says that the tombs,
which are of a black coloured wood, are evidently of very great
antiquity, but in good preservation, as the wood has not perished, and
the inscriptions are still very legible. Sir R. K. Porter has given a
more particular description of this tomb. He says, “I accompanied the
priest through the town, over much ruin and rubbish, to an enclosed
piece of ground, rather more elevated than any in its immediate
vicinity. In the centre was the Jewish tomb; a square building of brick,
of a mosque-like form, with a rather elongated dome at the top. The
whole seems in a very decaying state, falling fast to the mouldering
condition of some wall fragments around, which, in former times, had
been connected with, and extended the consequence of, the sacred
enclosure. The door that admitted us into the tomb, is in the ancient
sepulchral fashion of the country, very small; consisting of a small
stone of great thickness, and turning on its own pivots from one side.
Its key is always in possession of the head of the Jews resident at
Hamadan.” “On passing through the little portal, which we did in an
almost doubled position, we entered a small arched chamber, in which are
seen the graves of several rabbies: probably, one may cover the remains
of the pious Ismael; and, not unlikely, the others may contain the
bodies of the first rebuilders after the sacrilegious destruction by
Timour. Having ‘trod lightly by their graves,’ a second door of such
very confined dimensions presented itself at the end of this vestibule,
we were constrained to enter it on our hands and knees, and then
standing up, we found ourselves in a larger chamber, to which
appertained the dome. Immediately under its concave, stand two
sarcophagi, made of a very dark wood, carved with great intricacy of
pattern, and richness of twisted ornament, with a line of inscription in
Hebrew running round the upper ledge of each. Many other inscriptions,
in the same language, are cut on the walls; while one of the oldest
antiquity, engraved on a slab of white marble, is let into the wall
itself.” This inscription is as follows: “Mordecai, beloved and honoured
by a king, was great and good. His garments were as those of a
sovereign. Ahasuerus covered him with this rich dress, and also placed a
golden chain around his neck. The city of Susa rejoiced at his honours,
and his high fortune became the glory of the Jews.” The inscription
which encompasses the sarcophagus of Mordecai, is to this effect: “It is
said by David, Preserve me, O God! I am now in thy presence. I have
cried at the gate of heaven, that thou art my God; and what goodness I
have received from thee, O Lord! Those whose bodies are now beneath in
this earth, when animated by thy mercy were great; and whatever
happiness was bestowed upon them in this world, came from thee, O God!
Their grief and sufferings were many, at the first; but they became
happy, because they always called upon thy holy name in their miseries.
Thou liftedst me up, and I became powerful. Thine enemies sought to
destroy me, in the early times of my life; but the shadow of thy hand
was upon me, and covered me, as a tent, from their wicked
purposes!--MORDECAI.” The following is the corresponding inscription on
the sarcophagus of Esther: “I praise thee, O God, that thou hast created
me! I know that my sins merit punishment, yet I hope for mercy at thy
hands; for whenever I call upon thee, thou art with me; thy holy
presence secures me from all evil. My heart is at ease, and my fear of
thee increases. My life became, through thy goodness, at the last, full
of peace. O God, do not shut my soul out from thy divine presence! Those
whom thou lovest, never feel the torments of hell. Lead me, O merciful
Father, to the life of life; that I may be filled with the heavenly
fruits of paradise!--ESTHER.” The Jews at Hamadan have no tradition of
the cause of Esther and Mordecai having been interred at that place; but
however that might be, there are sufficient reasons for believing the
validity of their interment in this spot. The strongest evidence we can
have of the truth of any historical fact, is, its commemoration by an
annual festival. It is well known, that several important events in
Jewish history are thus celebrated; and among the rest, the feast of
Purim is kept on the 13th and 14th of the month Adar, to commemorate the
deliverance obtained by the Jews, at the intercession of Esther, from
the general massacre ordered by Ahasuerus, and the slaughter they were
permitted to make of their enemies. Now on this same festival, in the
same day and month, Jewish pilgrims resort from all quarters to the
sepulchre of Mordecai and Esther; and have done so for centuries,--a
strong presumptive proof that the tradition of their burial in this
place rests on some authentic foundation.