The chronography of Gregory Abû'l Faraj, the son of Aaron, the Hebrew physician, commonly known as Bar Hebraeus : being the first part of his political history of the world / translated from the Syriac by Ernest A. Wallis Budge.
- Bar Hebraeus
- Date:
- 1932
Licence: Public Domain Mark
Credit: The chronography of Gregory Abû'l Faraj, the son of Aaron, the Hebrew physician, commonly known as Bar Hebraeus : being the first part of his political history of the world / translated from the Syriac by Ernest A. Wallis Budge. Source: Wellcome Collection.
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![24th day of shebat of that year. Whilst mar denha was still alive two Uigur monks came from china,1 by the command of kublai, the Great Khan, to go and worship in Jerusalem. And when they arrived in these countries they could neither find a road nor the means of travelling [further]. And they tarried with mar denha, and so that his enemy bar- kal!gh might not go to china, mar denha ordained one of these two Uigur, that is to say Turkish, monks Metropolitan of China, and gave him the name of ‘yahbh ’allaha’. And whilst they were preparing to go back to their country mar denha died. Then the Amir ’ashmut, who was a kinsman of theirs, spake concerning yahbh ’allaha to the King of Kings, saying, ‘The Christians wish him to be their Catholicus. And the people of Baghdad also wish for him because by reason of his affinity with the MONGOLS both in race and in language, they will be helped by him.’ How¬ ever, the matter was a Royal Pukdana went forth that yahbh ’allaha was to be the Catholicus. And he collected about four and twenty bishops, and they went down to seleucia and ctesiphon, and they ordained him Catholicus. Now although this mar yahbh ’allaha was weak in the Syrian doctrine and literature, he was by nature a good man, and the fear of God was found in him, and he displayed much affection for us and the children of our nation. And in the year 1593 (a.d. 1282), in the days of spring, the Maphrian set his face to go to the city of tabr!z, and to complete the building of the new church which was there, for there were very many things lacking in its house of prayer (oratory). And as he was travelling along he joined the caravan of the daughter of king mangalijn in order to be in her retinue, and the report arrived of the departure (i.e. death) of ’abaka, the King of Kings. Therefore he left the Tabriz road, and journeyed directly to the tak (Mongol palace), where the new king was about to rise up (or succeed). And when he arrived there, and the valiant ’ahmad had been elected and was seated on the royal throne, the nobles introduced the Maphrian into his presence. And he recited prayers and blessings according to custom. And ’ahmad commanded, and a marvellous Patent was written for the churches of ’adhorbijan, and ’athor and beth nahrin. And he left and came and dwelt in the church of Tabriz, and he completed the building of the house of prayer which is therein. And he crowned it with a gate of sculptured (i.e. hewn) stones. And he also built cells above the oratory for the pilgrims, and a cemetery for the dead. And because with the exception of the sardab which is under the temple there was no place for the throne of the bishop, he built a summer-house and a winter chamber of the fire¬ place (or furnace), and he completed everything according to his utmost ability. But in truth it was his brother bar-sawma who managed and carried out all these things. 1 The full story is told by Mar Yahbh-AllSha, who was one of the two monks in my Monks of Kublai Khan, London, 1928.](https://iiif.wellcomecollection.org/image/b31365334_0037.jp2/full/800%2C/0/default.jpg)
