have been brought from Scio, once mounted on Trajan's Arch
at Rome, brought here by Constantine. They were taken to Venice by
Dandolo, then Napoleon gave them to Paris, and finally after Waterloo
they were restored again to St. Mark's at Venice.
In Constantinople we also saw three or four other Mosques of great
size, and the Seraglio grounds and Palace. In the latter we saw the
gates through which the odalisks who had lost the sultan's favor passed
beyond to be executed. The passage of this gate made our flesh creep
when we thought of all it meant to the unfortunates; but near by, in
agreeable contrast, is the "Gate of Felicity," which is the entrance to
the sultan's harem. Through this the new favorites entered and
remained till they had grown old and lost their charm.
[Illustration: "THE MOOSKI," CAIRO. THERE ARE MILES OF STREETS IN THIS
ARTISTIC MARKET WHERE RUGS, TAPESTRIES, LACES, AND ORIENTAL
_BRIC-A-BRAC_ MAY BE SECURED BY THE ANXIOUS AT AN ALARMING SACRIFICE.
EVERY MINUTE IS A BARGAIN DAY]
The Imperial Ottoman Museum is full of good things purloined from other
art centres. It contains many fine examples of Greco-Roman sculptures,
statues and reliefs, in marbles, terra-cotta and bronze. The figures
of dancing women have a swing and their draperies a palpable swish--as
if a breeze were stirring them--seen only in this school of art. It
also contains Alexander the Great's sarcophagus, which is regarded as
one of the finest examples of Greek art in existence.
The Grand Bazaar is both a sight and a town in itself, full of streets,
entries, lanes and alleys, covered here and there as an arcade, into
which the sun never penetrates. The dim light, the great crowds of
strangely costumed people,--veiled women with their children in hand,
attended by eunuchs, some chattering, some silent and aloof--but all
intent on bargaining and eager for the fray. This novel and engrossing
picture is made possible and is enhanced by the bewildering variety and
display of Oriental goods and wares--rugs, perfumes, cosmetics,
weapons, shawls, embroideries, inlaid tables, porcelains, brassware,
silks, fans, jewels, laces, gold and silver ornaments of infinite
variety--all piled up and strewn about as if they had been pitchforked
by some magician into an enchanted market-place, with the god of greed
and chance presiding.
[Illustration: SAMPLES Of CONSTANTINOPLE'S BRAND OF "WHITE WINGS."
IT'S A SIGHT FOR GODS AND MEN TO S
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