Types of mankind, or, Ethnological researches, based upon the ancient monuments, paintings, sculptures, and crania of races, and upon their natural, geographical, philological and Biblical history / illustrated by selections from the inedited papers of Samuel George Morton and by additional contributions from L. Agassiz, W. Usher, and H.S. Patterson ; by J.C. Nott and Geo. R. Gliddon.

  • Nott, Josiah C. (Josiah Clark), 1804-1873.
Date:
1860
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Types of mankind, or, Ethnological researches, based upon the ancient monuments, paintings, sculptures, and crania of races, and upon their natural, geographical, philological and Biblical history / illustrated by selections from the inedited papers of Samuel George Morton and by additional contributions from L. Agassiz, W. Usher, and H.S. Patterson ; by J.C. Nott and Geo. R. Gliddon. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    the extracts or citations they make from the latter's works; so that, what follows the words “Book of Jasher” must be the quotation from that book. The literary criticism of age, manner, and authorship, being briefly defined, we glance next at the topography; observing, that any proposed verifications of the latitude and longi- tude of Gibeon and Ajalon by tourists in modern Palestine are mere “traveller’s tales:” for Gala-On, “ occultation of the sun,” and Aial-Os, (122) “ dawning of the sun,” refer respec- tively, the former to the West, the latter to the East, as points of the compass. Now, sup- pose two towns, one on either side of a valley, opposite to each other; the one, Gabd-On, on the western summit; the other, AhiZ-On, on the eastern; while a battle was raging be- tween Israelites and Ammonites in the valley between and beneath. Suppose, again, by anticipation of the text (and you have as much right to suppositions, in this case, as the forty-seven collectively), that the twenty-four hours during which this fight went on occurred at an equinox ; and that it so happened, by a singular juncture of the solar and lunar mo- tions, that, at six o’clock r. m. precisely, the sun set in the West at the same apparent mo- ment that a full moon rose in the East; you would have light for twenty-four hours in the valley ; or twelve hours of sunlight through the day, and twelve hours of moonlight through the night. Such combinations are so natural, although rare, that if any tourist were to furnish an astronomer with the exact latitude and longitude of such a valley in Palestine, the latter could calculate the precise day when such celestial combinations occurred, and thus fix the era alluded to in the “Book of Joshua.” Finally, in the Hebrew, these two lines are rhyth- mical, besides containing a play upon the words GBdJUN and AILUN, by poetic license: — “To the eyes of Israel, 0 Sun! in the hills [B-GBdUN] even hide thyself: But thou, 0 Moon! bo most resplendeut in the [B-d.MKAILUN] valley.* We conclude with the lesson of that sage from whom both text and commentary are derived. (123) “ In precisely that day that IellOuaH [the document is Jehovistic] delivered up the Amo- rean in face of the children of Israel, Joshua spake to IellOuaH and said: To the eyes of Israel, 0 sun ! in the hills even hide thyself : but thou, 0 moon ! be most resplendent in the valley. And the sun set, and the moon endured until the multitude glutted (their) vengeance upon their enemies :—And is it not written in the book [entitled] the Just ? [here follows the quotation] ‘ The sun which, running along the meridional parti- tion of the heavens [*. e. along the equinoctial line], goes down [sets], was not as precise [true, exact], as by day, intent upon new-birth?’ For certainly there was not before, nor after, a day equal to that in which, IellOuaH having listened to the voice of man, IellOuaH (himself) fought for Israel.” It may be prudent to observe that a passage in Isaiah, and another in Ecclesiastes, pro- perly translated, lend no support to the supernaturalist commentary. That of Habakkuk (iii. 11) has no relation to the event; as, with “one longing, lingering look” at king James’s translation, we prove by the subjoined rendering: — “Sun and moon set at their season: by the light of thy arrows they shall march, by the splendor of the lightning of thy lance.” (Referring probably to a night attack.) Thus vanishes “Joshua’s miracle!” The late Rev. Moses Stuart, than whom as a Hebraist, and upright champion of theology, none superior have yet appeared in these United States, supplies this definition of a “miracle” — “I have it before me, in a letter from one of the first philologists and antiquarians that Germany has produced. It is this: 4 The laws of nature are merely developments of the Godhead. God cannot contradict, or be inconsistent with himself. But inasmuch as a miracle is a contradiction of the laws of nature, or at least an inconsistency with them, therefore a miracle is impossible.' ” (124) Reader! We have submitted seriatim to your judgment a positive example of the errors of our truly-vulgar version for every letter of the English alphabet. We have kept no (122) Like Beth-ON — “House of the Sun”; or ON, the Sun, Hebrew name for Heliopolis. (123) Lanci: Paralipomeni; ii. pp. 381-390. It is of no use to consult Cahen on these passages, except for the text (points deducted); vi. pp. 38, 39. (124) Crit Hist, and Defence, &c.; Andover; 1845; p. 19.