Edgar Allan Poe - The Greatest Gothic Classics

11. ... the stranger displayed such rarities as he had never before seen In the Tales of Inatulla , we meet with a traveller who, like this, was furnished with trinkets and curiosities of an extraordinary kind. That such were much sought after in the days of Vathek, may be concluded from the encouragement which Haroun al Raschid gave to the mechanic arts, and the present he sent by his ambassadors to Charlemagne. This consisted of a clock, which, when put into motion, by means of a clepsydra, not only pointed out the hours in their round, but also, by dropping small balls on a bell, struck them, and, at the same instant, threw open as many little doors, to let out an equal number of horsemen. Besides these, the clock displayed various other contrivances.— Ann. Reg. Franc. Pip. Caroli, etc. , ad ann. 807. Weidler, p. 205.

12. ... characters on the sabres Such inscriptions often occur in Eastern romances. We find, in the Arabian Nights , a cornelian, on which unknown characters were engraven; and, also, a sabre, like those here described. In the French king’s library is a curious treatise, entitled Sefat Alaclam ; containing a variety of alphabets, arranged under different heads; such as the prophetic , the mystical , the philosophic , the magical , the talismanic , etc., which seems to have escaped the research of the indefatigable Mr. Astle.— Arabian Nights , vol. ii, p. 246; vol. i, p. 143. D’Herbelot, p. 797.

13. ... beards burnt off The loss of the beard, from the earliest ages, was accounted highly disgraceful. An instance occurs, in the Tales of Inatulla , of one being singed off , as a mulct on the owner, for having failed to explain a question propounded; and, in the Arabian Nights , a proclamation may be seen similar to this of Vathek.—Vol. i, p. 268; vol. ii, p. 228.

14. The old man put on his green spectacles This is an apparent anachronism; but such frequently occur in reading the Arabian writers. It should be remembered, the difficulty of ascertaining facts and fixing the dates of inventions must be considerable in a vast extent of country, where books are comparatively few, and the art of printing unpractised. Though the origin of spectacles can be traced back, with certainty, no higher than the thirteenth century, yet the observation of Seneca—that letters appeared of an increased magnitude when viewed through the medium of convex glass—might have been noted also by others, and a sort of spectacles contrived, in consequence of it. But, however this might have been, the art of staining glass is sufficiently ancient, to have suggested in the days of Vathek the use of green , as a protection to the eye from a glare of light.

15. Accursed Giaour! Dives of this kind are frequently mentioned by Eastern writers. Consult their tales in general; and especially those of the Fishermen, Aladdin, and the Princess of China.

16. Bababalouk, the chief of his eunuchs As it was the employment of the black eunuchs to wait upon and guard the sultanas; so the general superintendence of the harem was particularly committed to their chief.—Habesci’s State of the Ottoman Empire , pp. 155, 156.

17. ... the divan This was both the supreme council and court of justice, at which the caliphs of the race of the Abassides assisted in person, to redress the injuries of every appellant.—D’Herbelot, p. 298.

18. The officers arranged themselves in a semicircle Such was the etiquette, constantly observed, on entering the divan.— Arabian Nights , vol. iv, p. 36. D’Herbelot, p. 912.

19. ... the prime vizier Vazir, vezir, or, as we express it, vizier, literally signifies a porter ; and, by metaphor, the minister who bears the principal burden of the state, generally called the Sublime Porte.

20. The muezzins and their minarets Valid, the son of Abdalmalek, was the first who erected a minaret , or turret; and this he placed on the grand mosque at Damascus, for the muezzin , or crier, to announce from it the hour of prayer. This practice has constantly been kept to this day.—D’Herbelot, p. 576.

21. Soliman Ben Daoud The name of David in Hebrew is composed of the letter ו Vau between two ד Daleths דוד; and, according to the Masoretic points, ought to be pronounced David . Having no U consonant in their tongue, the Septuagint substituted the letter B for V, and wrote Δαβιδ, Dabid . The Syriac reads Dad or Dod ; and the Arabs articulate Daoud .

22. I require the blood of fifty of the most beautiful sons of the viziers Amongst the infatuated votaries of the powers of darkness, the most acceptable offering was the blood of their children . If the parents were not at hand to make an immediate offer, the magistrates did not fail to select those who were most fair and promising , that the demon might not be defrauded of his dues. On one occasion, two hundred of the prime nobility were sacrificed together .—Bryant’s Observations , p. 279, etc.

23. ... bracelet The bracelet, in the East, was an emblem of royalty.—D’Herbelot, p. 541. For want of a more proper term to denominate the ornament serkhooj , the word aigret is here used.

24. ... mutes It has been usual, in Eastern courts, from time immemorial, to retain a number of mutes. These are not only employed to amuse the monarch, but also to instruct his pages in an art to us little known, of communicating everything by signs, lest the sounds of their voices should disturb the sovereign.—Habesci’s State of the Ottoman Empire , p. 164. The mutes are also the secret instruments of his private vengeance, in carrying the fatal string.

25. Prayer announced at break of day The stated seasons of public prayer, in the twenty-four hours, were five: daybreak, noon, midtime between noon and sunset, immediately as the sun leaves the horizon, and an hour and a half after it is down.

26. Skulls and skeletons Both were usually added to the ingredients already mentioned. These magic rites sufficiently resemble the witch scenes of Middleton, Shakespeare, etc., to show their Oriental origin. Nor is it to be wondered if, amongst the many systems adopted from the East, this should have been in the number. It may be seen, from the Arabian Tales, that magic was an art publicly taught; and Father Angelo relates of a rich enchanter, whom he knew at Bassora, that his pupils were so numerous as to occupy an entire quarter of the city.

27. Flagons of wine and vases of sherbet reposing on snow Sir John Chardin speaks of a wine much admired in the East, and particularly in Persia, called roubnar ; which is made from the juice of the pomegranate, and sent abroad in large quantities. The Oriental sherbets, styled by St. Jerome, sorbitiunculæ delicatæ , consisted of various syrups (such as lemon, liquorice, capillaire, etc.) mixed with water. To these, Hasselquist adds several others, and observes, that the sweet-scented violet is a flower greatly esteemed, not only for its smell and colour, but, especially, for its use in sherbet ; which, when the Easterns intend to entertain their guests in an elegant manner, is made of a solution of violet-sugar. Snow, in the rinfrescos of a hot climate, is almost a constant ingredient. Thus, in the Arabian Nights , Bedreddin Hassan, having filled a large porcelain bowl with sherbet of roses, put snow into it.

28. ... a parchment Parchments of the like mysterious import are frequent in the writings of the Easterns. One in particular, amongst the Arabians, is held in high veneration. It was written by Ali, and Giafar Sadek, in mystic characters, and is said to contain the destiny of the Mahometan religion, and the great events which are to happen previous to the end of the world. This parchment is of camel’s skin ; but it was usual with Catherine of Medicis to carry about her person, a legend, in cabalistic characters, inscribed on the skin of a dead-born infant.—D’Herbelot, p. 366. Wraxall’s House of Valois .