volume 2 - Robert Bedrosian's Armenian History Workshop

112 The Tombs of the Imdms at Sdmarrd.
and passing the ruins of Khalifah, on the east bank,
we came to Simarra, where we tied up near the bridge
of boats.
On landing we went over some low sandy ground,
and turning away from the high bank of the river saw
the modem town for the first time. A thick wall about
i8 or 19 feet high surrounds the whole town, but it
seemed to me comparatively new, and in places it needed
repair. A native, whom we induced with difficulty to
accompany us through the town, advised us to get out
of the place as soon as possible, and the behaviour of
the bazar folk showed that Christians were not wanted
in Samarra. In these days Samarra is famous because
it contains the tombs of the Tenth Imam, 'Ali al-'Askari,
and his son Hasan, the Eleventh Imam ; and their handsome
cupolas and minarets are striking objects when seen
from a distance. To get an5rwhere near them was
impossible. The mosque with the small cupola is
said to cover the underground chamber where the
Twelfth Imam hid himself in 898, and is said to live to
this day. He was called " Al-Ka'im," and was regarded
as the Mahdi who was to come one day and right the
wrong in the world. We were told that the exact spot
whence he will emerge from the ground is known, and is
pointed out to the true believers who make pilgrimages,
chiefly from Persia, to this shrine. These tombs are in
the western half of the city. North of the modern town
is the large walled enclosure, 810 feet long and 490
feet broad, within which the great mosque stands;
the main entrance faces the Kiblah, and the walls
are 30 feet high.^ Immediately to the north of this
enclosure stands what Rich called a " corkscrew tower,
a spiral dividing it into six towers." It is called the
h cause que dans chacun de ces villages, il y a eu autrefois une tour,
dans I'une desquelles il demeuroit un homme qui estoit amoureux
d'une femme qui habitoit dans la tour de I'autre village, et dont il
estoit pareillement aime."
' These are the measurements of Felix Jones {op. cit., p. 13). Rich
thought that the enclosure measured 200 yards by 150 yards. (Narra-
tive, ii, p. 151.)