Page 162 - Travels in Arabia (Vol 2)_Neat

IX.] GULF OF ’aKABAII. 143

approaches occasionally so close to the preci­
pice as to appear merely a continuation of
it. Where it remained entire, it was thirty
feet in height and six feet in thickness. The
upper part is turreted, and there are some
openings resembling embrasures, as well as
numerous loopholes. Within this area the

surface of the hill is covered with many square
buildings, separated from each other by thick
walls. Entering one of these edifices by a
small door in the upper part, we descended,
by narrow steps to a vaulted chamber, the
roof of which was supported by two arches,
resting in the centre on a Doric column. This
building and the entrance on the noith-eastern
side are of freestone, but the rest of the pile
has been rudely constructed of unhewn stones,
cemented by a coarse mortar. Scattered amidst
the rubbish we found fragments of marble
entablatures and pillars, and may thence con­

clude that these remains occupy the site of
some edifice more ancient and costly than the
present. The southern hillock presents an un-
distinguishable mass of ruins. We could find
no water on any part of the island; but on
the northern mound some extensive tanks