And There Be Seven
Places That Burn And That Cast Out Diverse Flames And Diverse
Colour:
And by the changing of those flames, men of that country
know when it shall be dearth or good
Time, or cold or hot or moist
or dry, or in all other manners how the time shall be governed.
And from Italy unto the volcanoes ne is but twenty-five mile. And
men say, that the volcanoes be ways of hell.
And whoso goeth by Pisa, if that men list to go that way, there is
an arm of the sea, where that men go to other havens in those
marches. And then men pass by the isle of Greaf that is at Genoa.
And after arrive men in Greece at the haven of the city of Myrok,
or at the haven of Valone, or at the city of Duras; and there is a
Duke at Duras, or at other havens in those marches; and so men go
to Constantinople. And after go men by water to the isle of Crete
and to the isle of Rhodes, and so to Cyprus, and so to Athens, and
from thence to Constantinople. To hold the more right way by sea,
it is well a thousand eight hundred and four score mile of
Lombardy. And after from Cyprus men go by sea, and leave Jerusalem
and all the country on the left hand, unto Egypt, and arrive at the
city of Damietta, that was wont to be full strong, and it sits at
the entry of Egypt. And from Damietta go men to the city of
Alexandria, that sits also upon the sea. In that city was Saint
Catherine beheaded: and there was Saint Mark the evangelist
martyred and buried, but the Emperor Leo made his bones to be
brought to Venice.
And yet there is at Alexandria a fair church, all white without
paintures; and so be all the other churches that were of the
Christian men, all white within, for the Paynims and the Saracens
made them white for to fordo the images of saints that were painted
on the walls. That city of Alexandria is well thirty furlongs in
length, but it is but ten on largeness; and it is a full noble city
and a fair. At that city entereth the river of Nile into the sea,
as I to you have said before. In that river men find many precious
stones, and much also of lignum aloes; and it is a manner of wood,
that cometh out of Paradise terrestrial, the which is good for many
diverse medicines, and it is right dear-worth. And from Alexandria
men go to Babylon, where the sultan dwelleth; that sits also upon
the river of Nile: and this way is the most short, for to go
straight unto Babylon.
Now shall I say you also the way, that goeth from Babylon to the
Mount of Sinai, where Saint Catherine lieth. He must pass by the
deserts of Arabia, by the which deserts Moses led the people of
Israel.
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