(a.d. 1226) the finest sugar of the Ghflr was made at J. : polm trees and bananas abounded. Jaques de Vito' (cap. 63) also refers to the fields of sugar-cane. The ruins to the west of ' Ain es-Sultau, with the coonectjng aqueducts, appear to date from the Crusading period.
The modem er-Riha is a miserable village, con- taining about 300 swarthy inhabitants, possibly the descendants of the puny race called by Arculf Canaanites, who dwelt in his time on the plain. The rich patches of barley and wheat, with the gardens of the ecclesiastical establishments, give a hint of the possibilities of fertility which were so amply realized in former days, 'llie level of the village is 900 ft. below the Mediter., and the flora and fauna of the plain differ largely from those of the rest of Pal., some species not being found nearer than the Asiatic and African tropics. A dozen isolated palms represent the splendid groves of the past. The Znkkum {Balanites .F.ifijjitlaica), identified by some with the Mi/ro- hnlanum of Josephus, still abounds; also the acacia, and trees of the Zizijphus species, called in Arabic Sidr or Dom. A handsome Russian hospice now stands near the ruined tower mentioned by Willebrand, and there is a small Greek church. Two good hotels accommodate travellers, who may now make the journey from Jerus. by carriage- road, and continue their drive over the plain to the Jordan and the Dead Sea. J. contains onljs- a few plots of freehold, as in recent times it has become the private property of the Sultan, together with many other parts of the Jordan Valley.
All autliorities are agreed that the site of the Can. city is at Tell es-Sultan, above 'Ain es-Sultan (Klisha's fountain), one and a half miles from modern Jericho. As we have seen, Josephus places the old city near the fountain, and so does the Bordeau.x Pilgrim, who gives the distance from the J. of his day as one and a half miles as above, which dist.ance would do equally well if we identify the latter with the ruins near the pass to be men- tioned later. Theodosius makes the distance 2 miles. This mound is 1200 ft. long from N. to S., and the lar''cr part of its area is 50 ft. in height, measured above the fountain at the E., but not so high on the western side, as the original ground slopes from W. to E. Rising from the top of the mound along its edges are four superimposed mounds, the highest being some 90 ft. above the fountain. Near the base of the mound, above the spring, a hollow has been recently scooped out, revealing an ancient mud-brick wall in silu. The ])Ottery found strewn over the mound l>elong9, as a rule, to pre-Uoman times, and some pre-Israclitish ware occurs. The superimpo.scd mounds nuiy indicate later fortifications, but the accumulation of 50 ft. of d6bris below them, by analogy with the excavated mounds of Hissarlik and Tell el-Hesy (see Laciiish), probably represents the alternate growth and decay of the town for several centuries. Tlenco systematic excavations through the base of the mound would doubtless bring to light the remains of the pre-Israclitish city. On natural grounds, the [>lace, with its abundant supply of water, would have been chosen by the first builders. Prom one ami a half to two miles west of modern J., on the south bank of the Wady eUCelt, near the mouth of the piuns, there are abundant remains of a city. An unobservant traveller might not notice thoin, as the houses are ruined down to the soil, but the ground-plans remain, and often the four sides of a room are quite plain. A largo fool, called liirkct il\isn, is in the neighbourhooa. The character of tlie pottery with which these mins are strewn indicates the Roman site. This identi ficalion is favoured by the probable identification of the site of Beit Juhr, a ruined fort on the soul li side of the Jerus. rood, commanding the ascent
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JEKOBOAM
from the J. plain, with tlie fort Cyproa, wliicli HeroU built above J. ; as well as by the fact that the aqueducts in the Wady el-J^elt, two of which were constructed to bring water to this site, appear to be Kom. work (PEF Mem. vol. iii. p. 173). Similar ruins north of 'Ain es-Sultan suggest that Konian Jericho may have been very e.xtcnsive, occupying both sites, with detached villas between, as there are signs of building at many points in the intervening lields. Tlie settle- ment of the Crusaders seems to have been at the modern er-Uiha, about 2 miles from the pass. In the vicinity of J. the remains of live old monastic establishments may be visited. In the precipices of l^uruntul (Quarantania) there are hermits' caves, with chaijcls adorned with frescoes. The monastery •f St. John, near tlie traditional place of ba|>tism, built by Justinian, and rebuilt by the Crusaders, has again been restored, but traces of the old work remain. The identification of ^Cusr el-Hajlah is not sure. Tell Mogheitir probably represents the ancient St. Eustochium, mentioned by Willibald in A.u. 721 as being in the middle of the plain. At Khurbet el-MiJjir, north-east of 'Ain es-Sultan, are the ruins of a splendid monastic establishment. Most picturesque of all is the convent of Elijah, clinging to the crags above the Wady el-l>.elt. This has been recently restored, but .some of the old frescoes remain. Further down in the valley the clill's immediately above the stream are pierced with hermits' caves, which can be approached only by ladders. They are stUl inhabited, but their nicely painted wooden doors produce an incongruous etl'ect in the midst of the wild sur- roundings. F. J. Buss.