city lies the tomb and shrine of Ma'ruf Karkhi, dating from
A.D. 1215, which also is a place of pilgrimage. Close to this stands the
so-called tomb of Sitte Zobeide (Zobaida), with its octagonal base and
pineapple dome, one of the most conspicuous and curious objects in the
neighbourhood of Bagdad. Unfortunately it is rapidly falling into decay. K.
Niebuhr reports that in his day (A.D. 1750) this tomb bore an inscription
setting forth that Ayesha Khanum, the wife of the governor of Bagdad, was
buried here in 1488, her grave having been made in the ancient sepulchre of
the lady Zobeide (Zobaida), granddaughter of Caliph Mansur and wife of
Harun al-Rashid, who died in A.D. 831. The tomb was restored at the time of
her burial, at which date it was already ancient, and it was evidently
believed to be the tomb of Zobeide. Contemporary historians, however, state
that Zobeide was actually buried in Kazemain, and moreover, early writers,
who describe the neighbouring tomb and shrine of Ma'ruf Karkhi, make no
reference to this monument.

About 3 m. west of Bagdad, on the Euphrates road, in or by a grove of
trees, stands the shrine and tomb of Nabi Yusha or Kohen Yusha, a place of
monthly pilgrimage to the Jews, who believe it to be the place of sepulture
of Joshua, son of Josedech, the high priest at the close of the exilian
period. This is one of four similar Jewish shrines in Irak; the others
being the tomb of Ezra on the Shatt el-Arab near Korna, the tomb of Ezekiel
in the village of Kefil near Kufa, and the well of Daniel near Hillah. This
shrine is also venerated by Moslems, who call it the tomb of Yusuf
(Joseph). The Jews bury here their chief priests, a right the Moslems at
times contest, and in 1889 a serious conflict between Jews and Moslems
resulted from an attempt of the former to exercise this right.

There are said to be about thirty _khans_ or caravanserais in Bagdad for
the reception of pilgrims and merchants and their goods, none of which is
of any importance as a building, with the single exception of the khan
el-Aurtmeh adjoining the Marjanieh mosque, to which it formerly belonged.
This dates from A.D. 1356, and is said to occupy the site of an ancient
Christian church. Its vaulted roof is a fine specimen of Saracenic
brickwork. In recent years the demands of modern travel have led to the
establishment of a hotel, which affords comfortable accommodation according
to European methods. There is also an English cl