Hierapolis—Manbij.                        389

and found that the soldiers were eager to be gone; but
it was snowing hard, and we waited for a break in the
weather. This came about ten o'clock, when we set
out for Manbij, and we reached it early in the afternoon.
Manbij is the Arabic form^ of " Mabbogh," the name
by which Syrian Christians called the city of Bambyce
(Ba/i/3vK7j). Of its primitive history nothing is known.^
Bambyce was founded in very early times, and it was
famous as one of the principal shrines of Astarte, a
Syrian form of the Assyrian goddess Ishtar. It was
called " Hierapolis " by Seleucus Nicator, and under his
fostering influence became a central market of great im¬
portance. Under Constantine it became the capital of
the Euphrates Province, and Julian made it the point of
concentration for the Roman troops when about to begin
his campaign in Persia. Whilst Julian was entering the
city gates a portico on the left fell down and killed many
soldiers who were passing under it (Ammianus XXIII,
2, 6). Its name of " Hierapolis " fell into disuse in the
Vlth century. It escaped pillage by paying a heavy
tribute to Chosroes, and was conquered by the Emperor
Romanus IV Diogenes in 1068, and submitted to the

^ See Yakut, iv, 654 ; Abu'1-Fida, p. 271.

* Henry Maundrell {An Account of the Author s fourney from Aleppo
to the River Euphrates, p. i) describes " Bambyeh " thus : " This
place has no remnants of its ancient greatness but in walls, which
may be traced all round, and cannot be less than three miles in
compass. Several fragments of them remain on the east side, espe¬
cially at the east gate ; and another piece of 80 yards long, with
towers of large square stone extremely well built. On the north side
I found a stone with the busts of a man and woman, large as the
life, and under, two eagles carved on it. Not far from it, on the
side of a large well, was fixed a stone with three figures carved on
it, in basso rilievo. They were two syrens, which twining their fishy
tails together, made a seat, on which was placed sitting a naked
woman, her arms and the syrens' on each side mutually entwined.
On the west side is a deep pit of about 100 yards diameter. It was
low, and had water in it, and seemed to have had great buildings all
round it, with the pillars and ruins of which it is now in part filled up;
but not so much but that there was still water in it. Here are a
multitude of subterranean aqueducts brought to this city ; the people
attested no fewer than fifty."