Description of Mount Egerlí.
This is a high mountain, at half an hour’s distance on the south side of Erzerúm, its name is derived from its form, which is like a saddle (Eger); its top is bifurcated, it abounds in medical herbs, particularly in the Tútia flower, the scent of which perfumes the air. Oculists come here to collect the plant Tútia, and with it cure people who have been diseased for forty years. The odour of aromatic plants and scented flowers fills the atmosphere.
Praise of Balaam, the son of Baúr.
I once played Jeríd at the foot of this mountain, when I fell from the horse, and in falling said to myself, “Where art thou now, saddle-mountain (Egerlítág)?” Having recovered my senses I mounted another horse, and galloping full speed towards the mountain, I ascended it. I saw on the top a large tomb, on which I first said a fátihah, and having measured it by my steps, I found it eighty paces in length, with two columns, which marked the situation of the head and the feet. I was looking on the tomb, when a bad smell arose, very disagreeable both to me and my servants, who held the horses; I looked on the grave, and saw that the earth within it, being black and greasy, was boiling like gruel in a pan. I then returned, and having related my adventure in the Páshá’s company in the evening, Ja’afer Efendi of Erzerúm, a learned and elegant writer, warned me not to visit this place any more, because it was the grave of Balaam, the son of Baúr, who had died an Infidel by the curse of Moses, and whose grave was now boiling, both in winter and summer, by subterraneous fire. At the foot of the same mountain, Abd-ur-rahman Ghází, the standard-bearer of the prophet, lies buried. One day I ascended from the south side of the convent about two thousand paces, when I saw on the second top of this bifurcate mountain a tremendous dragon turned into black stone. It measured seven hundred and seventy paces from the head to the tail, the head looks to the field of Erzerúm, the tail to the castle of Meláz Kerd. If snow falls on the mountains, the figure of this black dragon is easily distinguished from the windows of the Páshá’s palace; the circumference of its body is two hundred paces, each of its four feet is as large as ten men put together, and its tail is raised like a minareh. It remained whole until the reign of Selím I. when it was broken by an earthquake, so that its fragments now lay scattered about. The head was then split asunder, and one of the eye-balls rolled down on the south side towards Melázguerd, where it lies on the plain like a cupola; the left eye-ball of the same size, yet remains in the petrified head, and is seen very distinctly with its ears, tongue, nose, and mouth every time it snows, because no snow will remain on this black stone, but melts away, and renders more prominent the black colour of it. In winter the stone becomes hot, and emits vapour; in summer it is cold, and exhales a pleasant odour. The legend reports that this most tremendous dragon was changed into stone by the Prophet’s standard-bearer, when it came to swallow up the inhabitants of Erzerúm as food for its young, who were shut up in a cave of Mount Siján, on the borders of the lake Ván.
Pilgrimages; Tomb of Sheikh Kárzúní.
His name is Ibrahím, his surname Abú Ishak, a native of the town Kárzún, where he was born in the year 352 of the Hejira. In his travels he visited Brússa and Adrianople and returned to Erzerúm, where he settled in a great tower within the gate of Tabríz; his tomb-keeper is a white-bearded woman, whom I saw when I visited the tomb. Shehíd Murteza Páshá, who was shut up seven months in Eriván, is buried at the foot of Abú Ishak Kárzúní, with Abaza Páshá, who was killed by Dishlín Hossein Páshá. Opposite to the Páshá’s palace, in a pointed vault, lies Sultán Kássim, the son of Mahmúd Gazneví, and near him his sister Fírúzeh Khánum. Outside of the gate of Erzenján, above the camel’s fountain, Jánpúland-zadeh, lies Mustafa Páshá, who after the conquest of Eriván was killed by the grand Vezír Mohammed Pásha. He was a protector of my father and myself. Abd-ur-rahman, the standard-bearer of the Prophet, is buried at the foot of Egerlítágh, in a fine convent. Outside of the gate of Tabríz, at the place called Gumishlí Kunbed (the silver vault), because it was once faced with silver, reposes Sultán Mahmúd, the Gasnevide, on whose marble coffin is written only the word Mahmúd. There are besides many other pilgrimages, which I had no opportunity of visiting.
Stations of our military expedition to the Castle of Shúshík.
Letters of complaint arrived from Genj Alí Khán, the Khán of Eriván, stating that the rebellious Beg of the Castle of Shúshík had broken the peace by inroads into the Persian districts of Eriván. The sanjak Begs, Timariots and Zaims were summoned to take the field with half of their contingents, and to assemble at the Silver vault. The Páshá himself fixed his tent there, with seventy banners of Segbán or Seimen and Sárija (irregular troops), and four thousand regulars. The Beglerbegs assembled around him, pitching their tents according to the orders issued. It was an army of seventy-six thousand men. When the Persian Envoy saw this immense army collected, he repented of his complaint against the Beg of Shúshík, because he was afraid that this army might receive orders to lay siege to Eriván. Alaja Atlí Hassan Agha, with a thousand horse, was named Quarter-master (Konákjí-bashí); he took the van with the tails and tens. Sídí Ahmed Páshá was named Chárkají, or leader of the vanguard, and Bákí Páshá, Dúmdár, or leader of the rearguard. The army set out from the Silver vault in such order that the Persian Envoys and Khans remained quite perplexed. After four hours march it reached the place called the Camel’s Neck (Deve-boiní), where the Páshá, commander-in-chief, gave an entertainment to all the Begs and Beglerbegs, after which every one retired to his tent; this is a pleasant meadow, where our horses were refreshed with excellent trefoil, it is also the commencement of the field of Pássin. In winter time snow lies here to the height of a minareh, and many caravans have been lost in it. It was the snow that prevented Tabáni Yassí Mohammed Páshá from passing the Deve-boiní, and as he did not arrive before Eriván soon enough, that fortress was taken from the Osmanlís after seven months siege by the Persians. Three hours further towards the east, we arrived at the village Ja’afer Efendí, where Ja’afer Efendí, its owner, gave a splendid entertainment to the Páshá, with a present of three horses, and three boys. It is a well cultivated Armenian village of three hundred houses. We marched five hours across the plain of Pássin to the strong fortress of Rúm Hassan, renovated by Uzún Hassan, the Sultán of Azerbeiján; it is a lofty castle which was taken by Sultán Súleimán out of the hands of the children of Kara Yússúf, and is now the seat of the sanjak Beg of Pássin, in the province of Erzerúm. The khass amounts, according to the canon of Sultán Súleimán, to twelve thousand four hundred aspers; there are six Zaims, and three hundred and twenty-five Timariots. An Alaï Beg, Cherí-bashí, and Yuz-bashí (Colonel, Captain, and Lieutenant), are the officers of the feudal militia. In the time of war, the number of the troops amounts to fifteen hundred, the half of which now joined the Páshá’s army. The castle saluted the Páshá, as soon as his tent was fixed, with a great noise of guns and muskets. The Páshá sent an order to the commander to place the whole garrison under arms on the walls, as he wished to enter in state. When we entered it shouts of Allah rent the skies, and the reports of the guns shook them, so that the Persian Envoy was quite perplexed, putting the finger of astonishment to his lips. In the inside of the castle, the space between the outer and inner gate was set round with armour and different kinds of weapons, and beginning from the hot-bath gate, both sides of the road were lined, two deep, by armed men, who gave the salute. The prayer of Friday was performed in the mosque, and when we left it all the walls were covered with flags and banners of different colours. The Páshá entered the inner castle, where the guns of Sultán Súleimán, of forty four spans length, were fired, and the balls were thrown as far as the Bridge of the Shepherds, Shobán Jissrí. Here the company sat down to a splendid dinner, after which the Beg and Dizdár were invested with robes of honour. The Páshá returned to his tent, where he received the visit of the judge (appointed with one hundred and fifty aspers), the Serdár of the Janissaries, the Kiaya-yerí of the Sipáhís, of the Muftí, the Nakib-ul-ishráf, and other principal men (Ayán.)
Size and Form of the Fortress Hassan.
It is situated on the northern side of the field of Pássin, on an isolated high cliff, so high, that to look down from the side of the hot-bath makes the head giddy. Inside there is nobody but the Imám, the Múezzin, and the Dizdár, or commander. Horses and asses cannot get up to this place. There is a small Koshk built for Murad IV. by our protector Melek Ahmed Páshá, who, at the time of the expedition to Eriván, was the imperial sword-bearer, having succeeded the former sword-bearer, who was removed from his office because the coverlet of the Sultán’s bed was set fire to by a spark one night. The circumference of the castle is one thousand paces, without a ditch; an iron gate opens to the west. On the north side, below the upper or innermost castle, is another castle with two walls, whose circumference is six thousand paces. It is an oblong square, of a shining whiteness. The walls are but eighteen yards high, but they are double, and on three sides the ditch is very deep, so that there is no fear of an enemy; the ground being marshy, no trenches can be opened. Its three gates are: on the west side, the gate of Erzerúm, a great gate with iron wings; the gate of the hot-bath, and a secret gate, shut to the east side; there is a garrison of seven hundred men, with a well-filled arsenal, and sixty large and small guns. Towards the south opens the plain of Pássin, which is seven journies long. The houses, five hundred and ninety in number, are all stone-built winter houses: the town consists of nine quarters, with as many mosques. The mosque of Súleimán is a low terraced mosque, with one minareh in the ancient style; there is no Bezestán or Medresse, but six schools for boys, a khán, and a bath. The inhabitants are a brave set of people, kind to foreigners. There are some men of wit and learning. The great poet Nefií Efendí was born here; no gardens exist round the castle, because it is too cold, nevertheless, vegetables are found here in abundance. Bread and honey are rather to be suspected, for I, myself, poor Evliyá, having eaten some honey in the commander’s house, became in half an hour so giddy that I thought of throwing myself down from the castle.