CARMEL
352
CARMEL
of Maon, was shearing his sheep in the pasture-land of
Carmel, there occurred between him and David, then
a fugitive from the anger of Saul, the episode in which
Abigail, Nabal's wife, played so conspicuous a part
(I Kings, xxv, 2, 5, 7, 40). It was apparently in
Carmelof Juda that King Osias, son of Amasias, had
arable lands and vineyards [II Paralipomenon (A. V.,
II Chronicles), xxvi, 101 These simple Biblical data
enable us to understand why this city and its district
were actually called "Carmel"; in contrast to the
wilderness a little farther to the south and to the east,
the region appeared like a "garden" to the Hebrews
of old, and the city naturally derived its name from
that of the adjacent territory. In the fourth century
of our era St. Jerome describes the town of Carmel
as a village with a Roman garrison and speaks of the
district as a mountain. In the time of the Crusades,
the city was held by King Amalrich against Saladin,
anil then passed into oblivion till the nineteenth cen-
tury, when it was recognized by travellers under the
name of Kurmul. The place is now utterly desolate,
but its ruins — conspicuous among which are three
churches and a strong castle with bevelled stones —
indicate a town of considerable extent and impor-
tance. The ruins of the town are about ten miles S.E.
of Hebron, and close to those of Maon.
Robinson. Biblical Researches, II. 193-196 (Boston, 1S41); Stanley, Sinai ami Palestine, 100. 479, 4S4 (New York, 1S59); Smith, Historical Geography of the Holy Land (New York, 1897), 306, 317. note FRANCIS E. GlGOT.
Carmel, Mount, a well-known mountain ridge in Palestine, usually called in the Hebrew Bible So"On, Hdkkdrmil (with the definite article), "the garden" or "the garden-land". In later Hebrew it is known simply as Karmil, and in modern Arabic as Kurmul, or more commonly as Jebel M&r Elias (Mountain of St. Elias). At its extremity, near the sea, Mount Carmel looks like a bold promontory which all but runs into the waves of the Mediter- ranean. This north-western end of Carmel is about nine miles south-west of Acre, and in 32° 50' N. lat. and 35° E. long. From this point, the ridge gradu- ally retires from the coast and stretches south-east, ascending for about ten miles to its highest point and then sinking for nearly three miles more. Like its northern, its southern end is marked by a bold bluff above Wady el-Milh. This is the range of mountains which is usually designated under the name of Mount Carmel. The name is also applied at times to the lower hills which, for another twelve or thirteen miles, form the prolongation of the main range and extend to the south-east as far as the neighbourhood of Jenin. These lower hills, however, are of a softer formation than the main range of Carmel, and really separate it from the Hill Country, or central longitu- dinal section of Western Palestine. Hence they should rather be considered as forming a chain of heights distinct from Carmel, and be simply spoken of as hills of Samaria. The three principal summits of the main range of Carmel are far inferior in altitude to those of the mountains of either Galilee or Judea. Its highest peak, a little to the south of the Druse village of 'Esfiyeh, is only 1810 feet. Next in altitude comes the south-eastern summit of Carmel, near the ruins called El Mahraka, and some 1700feet high; and last, the north-western promontory or cape of Carmel. where the Carmelite monastery is situated 560 feet above the sea. The general shape of the range is that of a triangle, the apex of which is near the Medi- terranean, while the sides, to the east and west, look very different from each other. The western side sinks slowly by long ridges and dales upon that pari of the sea-coast which is known as the plain of Saron. The eastern side, on the contrary, is abrupt above the plains of Haifa and Esdnlon, ami in many places descends almost by precipices to the River Cison, which flows at the foot of the mountain and is gener-
ally parallel to its axis. Its geological structure is no
other than that of the central longitudinal section of
Palestine, west of the Jordan. It is made up of the
same hard limestone. In it there are numerous
caves, and it abounds in flints, geodes, and fossils.
< )n the north-east, igneous rocks break out from a
basalt formation which runs through the plain of
Esdrelon and extends to the Sea of Galilee. As
nearly the whole range of Carmel is covered with
abundant and rich vegetable earth, it has still much
of that appearance which no doubt was the origin of
its name: "the garden" or "the garden-land". Most
of the ridge is covered with thickets of evergreens.
Besides the pine, its most common trees are the
prickly oak, myrtle, lentisk, earob, and olive. Car-
mel is also remarkable for its profusion of aromatic
plants and wild flowers. Its woody heights are ten-
anted chiefly by the roebuck, leopard, and wild cat.
In various places of the range, ancient wine presses
can still be pointed out; but the vine is almost en-
tirely extinct except in the neighbourhood of 'Esfiyeh
and of the German colony which was established in
1869 near Haifa. Of its former numerous villages
but a few are at present inhabited, and only small
patches of land around these and near the sea-coast
are now cultivated. Besides 'Esfiyeh, its principal
extant villages are Et Tireh, Daliet El Kurmul, and
L T m Ez Zeinat. Most of the villagers are Druses and
Christians. In the present day, Carmel belongs to
the pashalic of Acre.
Mt. Carmel is never mentioned in the New Testa- ment; but it is oftentimes spoken of in the Old Covenant. Its conquest is referred to the time of Josue (xii, 22), and its territory is given as form- ing the southern boundary of the tribe of Aser (xix, 26). Its luxuriant verdure, chiefly caused by the vicinity of the Mediterranean Sea and by abundant dew, was regarded as singularly beautiful; hence the poetical comparison, "thy head is like Car- mel", found in the Canticle of Canticles (vii. 5; Heb., vii, 6), and the distinct reference to the "beauty of Carmel" in Isaias (xxxv, 2). As Nabu- chodonosor towered proudly above the kings of the earth, so Carmel was prominent above the sea (Jer., xlvi. IS). Its great fertility made it the type of a country which was favoured with the Divine blessing (Jer., 1, 19; Mich., vii, 14); and its devastation was conceived as the surest sign of God's severe punish- ment of His people (Is., xxxiii, 9; Jer., iv, 26: Amos, i, 2; Nali., i, 4). Its woody summits and its tortuous caverns formed a secure hilling place for a fugitive [Amos, ix,3. See also III (A.V., I) K.,xviii, 4. 13]. The sacredness of its heights was well known in ancient Israel. Apparently long before Elias' time — how long before cannot now be made out — an altar had been erected in honour of Yahweh on Mt. Carmel, and its ruins were repaired by that prophet as soon as this could be done with safety (III K.. xviii, 30). It was the ridge of Carmel that the same Prophet
