me of the monks of the Holy Mountain do
so even now, and were evidently scandalized when they saw me smile. This
is, however, only one of the numberless instances in which, owing to the
differences of education and circumstances, men look upon the same thing
with awe or pity, with ridicule or veneration.[15]

Theinterior of the principal church in this monastery is interesting from
the number of early Greek pictures which it contains, and which are hung
on the walls of the apsis behind the altar. They are almost all in
silver frames, and are painted on wood; most of them are small, being
not more than one or two feet square; the back-ground of all of them is
gilt; and in many of them this back-ground is formed of plates of silver
or gold. One small painting is ascribed to St. Luke, and several have
the frames set with jewels, and are of great antiquity. In front of the
altar, and suspended from the two columns nearest to the [Greek:
ikonostasis]--the screen which, like the veil of the temple, conceals
the holy of holies from the gaze of the profane--are two pictures larger
than the rest: the one represents our Saviour, the other the Blessed
Virgin. Except the faces they are entirely covered over with plates of
silver-gilt; and the whole of both pictures, as well as their frames, is
richly ornamented with a kind of coarse golden filigree, set with large
turquoises, agates, and cornelians. These very curious productions of
early art were presented to the monastery by the Emperor Andronicus
Paleologus, whose portrait, with that of his Empress, is represented on
the silver frame.

The floor of this church, and of the one which stands in the centre of
the other court, is paved with rich coloured marbles. The relics are
preserved in that division of the church which is behind the altar;
their number and value is much less than formerly, as during the
revolution, when the Holy Mountain was under the rule of Aboulabout
Pasha, he squeezed all he could out of the monks of this and all the
other monasteries. However, as no Turk is a match for a Greek, they
managed to preserve a great deal of ancient church plate, some of which
dates as far back as the days of the Roman emperors, for few of the
Christian successors of Constantine failed to offer some little bribe to
the saints in order to obtain pardon for the desperate manner in which
they passed their lives. Some of these pieces of plate are well worthy
the attention of antiquar