Helon, in the mean time, viewed with admiration the splendour and wealth of the mansion. Its general arrangement was that which is common to houses in the east; but the solidity of construction and elegance of finish which characterised each part, showed that it was the residence of a wealthy man. Marble, cedar of Lebanon, brass, gold, silver, ivory, silk, and whatever else contributes to the splendour of an oriental house, glittered here on every side.
Selumiel’s house was built in such a way, that it enclosed a large open quadrangular space, called Chazer, or Thavech, (the middle or inner court,) which, under a sky that was almost uninterruptedly serene, served as a great chamber, even on great and festive occasions. The pavement was composed of variegated marble, tastefully disposed. In the middle, where in houses of humbler construction a simple basin stood, was a fountain, enclosed with marble and surrounded with lofty palms, which cast such a cooling shade beneath, that our travellers felt themselves instantly refreshed. In the angles stood rows of vases filled with flowers, especially the roses of Jericho, and many other odoriferous shrubs, planted in bowers. Their grateful shade, and the ever fresh and green turf around the fountain, made the coolness as it were visible, which in the hottest days was to be found there. On the sides of this quadrangle stood three rows of pillars, forming two parallel porticoes. The floor of them was covered with carpets and cushions of very elaborate workmanship, and before some of the pillars hung curtains, which gave the space behind the convenience of an enclosed chamber. The cushions were embroidered with gold and silver, and the curtains were of silk, red, white, green, and blue. Against the interior sides of the porticoes were divans and sofas, elevations of the height of from two to three feet, which were surrounded with a lattice, and in the day time were covered with carpets and served as seats, in the night were used as beds. Above, the porticoes were covered by three galleries one above another, for the house had three stories, and each gallery had a parapet breast-high towards the court.
Round this court the principal parts of the house were disposed. The side which adjoined the street contained a small court, separated from the inner only by a wall and a door, contrary to the common mode of building, according to which this court lay beyond the outer wall and in front of the house, being connected with it by a covered way: some houses again had both the small internal court, which we have described in Selumiel’s house, and the larger exterior court, the latter then serving to receive horses and camels. In Selumiel’s house the court was furnished with a sofa, visitors were received here, and only those whom the master of the house specially invited into the interior went any further. The house-door, which was in the wall of the house and was covered with inscriptions, led to the outer court. In this court was a staircase, which led to the upper stories of the house and immediately to a little building directly over the small interior court, called Alijah, which rose like a tower upon the flat roof. An awning was fastened to the parapet of the roof in such a manner, that it could be drawn over the whole of the innermost court, and produce complete shade in the brightest sunshine.